The Revelation of Jesus Christ
“The New Jerusalem”
Rev 21:9-22:5
I. Prologue
II. Messages to the churches
III. Last days
J. The Final Battle and Judgment Rev 20:7-15
K. Renewed Heaven and Earth Rev 21:1-8
Part of the renewed earth includes the new capital city; the New Jerusalem that descends to the earth. This is the ultimate answer to a prayer prayed millions of times throughout church history. “Your kingdom come on earth” “Your will be done on earth” (someday on earth as it is being done today in heaven). The basic concept of the “kingdom of God” and the “kingdom of heaven” so prevalent in the gospels finds its supreme fulfillment with the descent of the New Jerusalem to the earth. The absolute rule of God and complete conformity to His will by a group of creatures who comprise His kingdom was not a new concept. Daniel described it when outlining a succession of earthly kingdoms and rulers.
"I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, and He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed. Daniel 7:13-14
From the time of John the Baptist, the nearness of the coming divine kingdom was preached.
Its development and character was clearly delineated by Jesus. Jesus preached the coming of God’s kingdom on earth. He sent the disciples to preach the nearness of the kingdom. He taught on the kingdom of God during the 40 days after His ascension. The disciples preached the coming kingdom. At the end of the Scriptures His kingdom comes His will is done on earth just like it is now done in heaven. Heaven and earth converge.
L. The New Jerusalem 21:9-22:5
You get the impression that John is sensually overwhelmed and feverishly tries to write it all down. Earlier, John saw the New Jerusalem (city of peace) coming down out of heaven like a beautiful bride completely decked out in all her glory. One of the angels who had participated in the bowl judgments invited John to look intently.
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, "Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb." Revelation 21:9
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Revelation 21:10-11
We have always been taught that the church is the bride of Christ. Here the city is called the bride of Christ. Perhaps it is not just the physical city but the city with its inhabitants which would at this point be filled with believers in Christ the church. The earthly Jerusalem was only a symbol of the heavenly Jerusalem. It was in the city that the presence of God manifested in the temple. The actual dwelling place of God was the Heavenly Jerusalem. It was the royal palace from which He directs the universe. Up to this point, it has been located in the heavenlies. It is called a holy city. It is pure and undefiled. The writer of Hebrews alluded to the present heavenly city and its inhabitants.
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel. Heb12:22-24
This city already exists. Every believer becomes connected to this glorious city at the moment of salvation and those who have died in Christ experience it NOW. Perhaps Jesus is not building a place for us as we have understood. He goes to prepare a reservation in a city that already exists through his death resurrection and ascension. He promised to return to earth and receive us unto to Himself that where He is (earth) we will be with Him also.
John sees God’s capital, His presidential palace, the “Gold House” come to eternally rest on the renewed earth where God will eternally dwell among His people. It is clear that this great city comes down out of heaven from God. The passage does not specifically say that it comes to rest on the earth. The descriptions however seem to imply that it does indeed rest on the renewed earth. It is interesting to note that John views the city from a high mountain which seems to indicate the new earth will include high mountains. Heaven and earth finally merge.
The whole spectrum of life comes together in complete harmony. Spiritual dimensions merge with physical dimensions and become fully perceptible to the citizens of this eternal kingdom.
1. The city is a spectacular reflection of God’s glory
…having the glory of God. Revelation 21:11
Glory is the nature of a person or thing that grabs your attention. Everything God made has an inherent glory. Of course it is all a reflection of God’s personal glory. Everything draws its glory from the one who create it. This city magnificently reflects God’s incomparable glory. He elaborates what made it so glorious.
Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. Revelation 21:11
John is forced to describe the unknown by the known. He must use familiar earthly comparisons to describe unfamiliar heavenly realities. The crystal clear jasper is a reference to a diamond, opal or topaz gloriously reflecting the light; in this case the brilliance of God. A diamond in a gold setting – sounds like a wedding ring. John described God’s appearance on the throne earlier in this way. (4:3)
2. The city has material walls, gates and streets 21:12-14
It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
The walls were laid with twelve foundations stones each inscribed with the names of the twelve apostles. (Who is the twelfth Apostle; replacement for Judas?) Ephesians 2:20 speaks of the church built upon the foundation of the prophets and apostles with Jesus Christ being the chief cornerstone. At first I couldn’t quite picture this description. How could just twelve stones comprise a foundation so vast, as we will see? As conceived by the artist whose pictures we have shown throughout this series, they are not necessarily just 12 stoned but more like 12 different types of stones made up the foundation. John does his best to describe the 12 different stones which form a 216 foot wall. They have some similarity (seven of the twelve) to the twelve stones attached to the stones inlaid in the high priest’s breastplate representing the 12 tribes of Israel. (Exodus 28:17-21 )
Over the centuries the gem names have been obscured through the translation process.
These stones now represent the 12 apostles who served both Jew and Gentile.
Whereas only the high priest had access to God’s holy of holies, in the New Jerusalem all will have intimate access to Emmanuel – God forever with us.
The foundation stones of the city wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation stone was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst. Revelation 21:19-20
The wall was not so much to protect people but to reflect God’s glory.
Jasper – clear diamond
Sapphire – blue opaque with gold specks
Chalcedony – sky blue with colored streaks Emerald – bright green
Sardonyx – white with layers of red
Sardis – fiery red
Chrysolyte - transparent golden yellow
Beryl – Sea green
Topaz – golden green
Crysoprasus – blue green
Jacinth – Violet
Amethyst - purple
The wall stood 216 feet high. (Some think it is a width measurement). The city itself measured 1,550 miles cubed. Some think it to be an actual cube. Others propose a pyramid. The fact that the holy of holies was a cube and this city is God’s dwelling place may favor a cube view of the city. A city with these dimensions would stretch from New York to Denver; from the Canadian border to Florida. Compared to the city, the walls would look like a 1 inch curb around the Empire State Building. The earth has 120 million square miles of water surface, 60 million miles of land surface. The New Jerusalem will offer 2 billion, 700 million square miles of living space.
A structure consisting of 106 levels each separated by 70,000 feet would contain considerably more surface living area than the entire present earth both land and water. There would be plenty of room for every person that ever lived on the earth.
There are twelve gates in the wall (three per side of the wall) guarded by 12 angels and inscribed with the names of the 12 tribes of Israel. Even in the New Jerusalem there will continue to be a distinction between the church (apostles) and Israel (the tribes of Israel).
It appears the new earth will also maintain directionality (East, West, North, South).
Where you have space – you must have time. Singing (which will be in heaven) involves time/meter. The trees bear a different fruit every month. The gates are made out of a material resembling a seamless pearl. A literal peal would require a gigantic oyster. The gates never close; indicating free and frequent access. The streets were constructed of gold (at $1,000 and ounce) so pure it appeared transparent. Solomon’s temple was overlaid with gold. (1 Kings 6:30)
This is the city the suffering saints, mentioned in Hebrews, longed to see; a city whose builder and maker was God.
3. The city needs no temple
I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. Revelation 21:22
A temple is a focal point for connection and worship. Since God’s full presence permeates the city, there is no need for a temple. Basically the whole city is the temple.
4. The city has no need for an outside light source
And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; Revelation 21:23-25
And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever. Revelation 22:5
The passage does not say the sun and the moon cease to exist. It only says there is no need because the glory of God and the Lamb outshine the sun. Most likely the brightness of God outshines even the sun. God was the original light anyway as He called light on the earth on the first day before He created the sun and the moon on the fourth day. That would mean not only continual illumination but a source of heat. Perfect climate control. The wonder of the city is that there is never night time. There is always activity and action. What a contrast to hell described as “outer darkness.” It doesn’t say that the sun and moon and stars don’t shine outside of the city. Maybe if we travel outside of the city we will be able to see a night sky or the beauty of the stars. God often calls us to gaze at the stars and contemplate His invisible attributes in this age; why not throughout eternity?
5. There will be ethnic groups from all around the world.
The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; Revelation 21:24-26
This is a bit confusing because my sense is there will only really be one kingdom or nation.
Here, John talks about the nations of the earth. My guess is that there will still be groups of people who gather together in specific geographic locations.
6. People and nations will use their gifting to glorify God.
It appears that we will continue to create and produced things that bring glory to the original Creator. God’s glory is reflected in the functioning of His creation. This looks back to the days when kings would bring their offerings to the city of the greater king.
7. The city will be free from any negative influence.
and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life. Revelation 21:27
We mentioned this fact earlier. All the evil doers will have already been confined into the lake of fire. There will be no uncleanness. Nothing that dishonors God will be allowed.
8. The river of life flows into the city from God’s throne
Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. Revelation 22:1-2
It is unclear whether this is figurative or literal. Perhaps it is both. Nothing lives without water.
God provides an ample supply of water.
This life giving water flows from God’s throne and runs down the middle of the city.
In that day there will be no light; the luminaries will dwindle. For it will be a unique day which is known to the LORD, neither day nor night, but it will come about that at evening time there will be light. And in that day living waters will flow out of Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and the other half toward the western sea; it will be in summer as well as in winter. Zechariah 14:6-8
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, The holy dwelling places of the Most High. Psalms 46:4
And in that day the mountains will drip with sweet wine, and the hills will flow with milk, and all the brooks of Judah will flow with water; and a spring will go out from the house of the LORD to water the valley of Shittim. Joel 3:18
9. Ever-bearing fruit trees line both sides of the
On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. Revelation 22:2
The city is more than a menagerie of mineral beauty. John also comments on the wonder of the plant life to be found in the city. It seems the tree of life multiplies and lines both sides of the river. Trees of life line the banks of the great river of life. A different fruit bears on the trees each month all year long. (time)
Even the leaves are edible and bring healing. If there is no sickness, why the need for healing?
Perhaps this is emotional healing or a preventative substance. It could be translated “health giving” rather than healing. This tree enables the physical body to regenerate and keep functioning forever.
10. The curse imposed on the earth and its inhabitants will be forever lifted
There will no longer be any curse… Revelation 22:3
The curse on the ground and on mankind will be lifted. The ground will now willingly yield its fruit without thorns and thistles. The ability of the earth to yield produce all year round will be restored. There will be no need for fertilizer of pesticides.
11. God and the Lamb will tangibly rule from the central throne
the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it 22:3
God will not only live in the New Jerusalem but will rule the world from there.
What about us? What will we do?
12. We will serve Him.
and His bond-servants will serve Him 22:3
This is the same word used in Hebrews 12:28 about offering God and acceptable service in light of the coming unshakable kingdom. It is a word used to indicate a service to someone.
We will be engaged in continual tasks, jobs, missions, activity offered to God. Tending gardens, leading worship, organizing groups, designing buildings, governing
13. We will enjoy an unbroken tangible connection to Jesus.
they will see His face, 22:4
There will be a real tangible connection. It won’t be on a spirit level only but we will physically see Him. Seeing “His face” indicates a close intimate connection. No more separation. No more curse and no more sin to create issues between us and a holy God. Unbroken fellowship with God will be a way of life. God will delight to walk with us and among us as individuals and as a group. We shall be HIS people without sin’s obstruction. The blessing God commanded for Aaron to pronounce on the people will come to its fullest expression.
“The LORD bless you, and keep you; the LORD make His face shine on you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace.” So they shall invoke My name on the sons of Israel, and I then will bless them. Numbers 6:24-27
What will make heaven heaven, is not the external beauty but the visible presence of Jesus.
14. We will forever bear His mark of ownership and affection
and His name will be on their foreheads.
15. We will be continually be enlightened by God
And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them -- 22:5
16. We will rule with/for Jesus forever.
and they will reign forever and ever. 22:5
It was God’s original intention that mankind should rule over His creation. It appears that that will once again be our job on the renewed earth. The passages that indicate degrees of authority will not only be in play during the millennium but on into eternity. Our faithful service on this earth qualifies us for higher service on the renewed earth.
Response
• Make sure this will be your future home.
Jesus answered (Nicodemus) and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3
Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. John 3:5
Peter told his audience to repent and return so they could experience the coming times of refreshing at the period of restoration. Acts 3:19
• Take time to contemplate your future eternal existence with God.
• Show your gratitude by faithful service
Hebrews urges us to show gratitude by offering Him our acceptable service.
Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire. Heb 12:29
• Consider your present lifestyle in light of your future hope
Peter encourages us to consider our present lifestyle in light of our future hope of a renewed heavens and earth.
Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation… 2 Peter 3:11-15
• Eagerly hope and wait for it.
Romans says to eagerly hope and wait for it. Rom 8:18
• Make every effort to share this glorious community with others.
