Revelation 21

CHAPTER 21THEME: Entrance into eternity; eternity unveiledEternity is unveiled in chapter 21a new heaven, a new earth, a New Jerusalem, a new era, and the eternal abode of the Lamb’s bride where we will be new creations in Christ Jesus without the old nature that manifests itself so much today. Adopting a popular aphorism of the day, it can truly be said that this chapter is “out of this world.” This chapter hasn’t anything to do with the earth (except for the first few verses). In it we see the eternal abode of the church. What really is heaven? There is a lot of sticky, sentimental stuff said about heaven, and we get quite weepy when we talk about heaven. However, heaven is a place, a very definite place.

You will have an address there. Your name will be put on you so that in eternity, when you wander around into outer space and get lost, some angel will bring you homeand you will have a home. As the long vista of eternity is before us in this chapter, we move not only from time to eternity, but to a new creation. A new heaven, a new earth, and a New Jerusalem greet us. The redeemed have previously received glorified bodies like Christ’s. All things have become new. A new universe suggests new methods and approaches to life. New laws will regulate the new universe. The entire lifestyle will change. Here are some of the changes that are suggested in chapters 21-22:

1. There will be a total absence of sin and temptation and testing in the new creation. This in itself makes a radical difference.
2. The New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, does not mean another satellite for the earth, but rather the earth and all of the new creation with all of the galactic systems will revolve about the New Jerusalem, because it is the dwelling place of God and of Christ.
3. The law of gravity, as we know it, will be radically revised. There will be traffic between the New Jerusalem and the earth. The church will have already left the earth, and its dwelling place is the New Jerusalem. I believe that we will have entirely different bodies, and the law of gravity will not affect us; that is, the law of gravity of this earth or of any other planet.
4. There will be no sun to give light, for God Himself will supply it directly to the universe. There will be the absence, therefore, of night. There is no night there because we just do not need that time to rest since we will have new bodies. I am looking forward to that, by the way.
5. There will no longer be any sea on the earth. The sea occupies most of the earth’s surface today; approximately three-fourths of the total surface is water. This denotes a revolution in life upon the earth. Just think of the parking space we will be able to have! There will be no fish to eat. Apparently man will be a vegetarian during the Millennium and throughout eternity, as he was in the Garden of Eden. Fruit is the only diet of eternal man (see Rev_22:2).
6. The presence of Christ and God, together with the throne of God made visible, ushers in a new day for manthe new creation.

Revelation 21:1

NEW HEAVEN, NEW EARTH, NEW JERUSALEMJohn describes the passing of the heaven and earth we know in the opening verse of chapter 21. As usual, I’ll follow the Authorized Version with my own literal translation of the Greek text. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth passed away: and the sea is no more. “And I saw” is the oft repeated statement of John to remind us that he was a spectator to all of these scenes. He was a witness to the panoramic final scene which ushers in eternity. The Scripture clearly teaches that this present order of creation is to pass away in order to make room for a new heaven and a new earth. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away …” (Mat_24:35). The old creation was made for the first Adam. Christ, the Last Adam, has a new creation for His new creatures. “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind” (Isa_65:17). “For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain” (Isa_66:22). God had promised Abraham a land forever and David a throne forever. Daniel prophesied of “…a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed …” (Dan_2:44). The new earth will see the total fulfillment of these prophecies. Consider the faith of the Old Testament worthies: “These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.

But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city” (Heb_11:13-16). “Heavenly” does not mean they are going to heaven, but that heaven is coming to this earth. This is what we mean when we pray the so-called Lord’s Prayer, “Thy kingdom come …in earth, as it is in heaven” (Mat_6:10). “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2Pe_3:13). In his second epistle Peter declares plainly that the present earth on which we live will be destroyed by fire: “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men…. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness” (2Pe_3:7, 2Pe_3:10-11). The chief characteristic of the new earth, as we have suggested, is the absence of the sea. This would automatically change the climate, the atmosphere, and the lighting conditions. It is impossible for the human mind to comprehend the great transformations which will take place in a new creation. The sea in the past has been a barrier and also a border for mankind, which in some cases has been good and in others bad. Also, the sea was an instrument of judgment at the time of the Flood. However, by the disappearance of the sea, the population on the earth can be doubled again and again because of the increase of the land surface.

Revelation 21:2

And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. This is the part which should interest us. I believe that the New Jerusalem is where those of us who are children of God are going to live. When you talk about going to heaven, what do you think about it? To most people it is just “a beautiful isle of somewhere.” However, it is a definite place. It is a city called the New Jerusalem. It is a planet within itself. Very candidly, very little is said in Scripture about heavenbut here it is, and that is the reason this ought to be important to us. “I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.” This New Jerusalem should not be identified with the old Jerusalem, the earthly Jerusalem down here. I cannot think of a lovelier description than this: “…made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.” It has been my privilege in my many years in the pastorate to have married several hundred couples. I have never seen an ugly bridethey are always lovely. At the wedding ceremony, after the solos have been sung, the preacher walks in followed by the bridegroom and the best man. Nobody pays any attention to the bridegroom except his mama. She smiles at him and thinks he’s wonderful, but nobody else looks at him. In a minute here comes the bride-to-be and, I tell you, everybody stands up and looks at her.

I have never yet seen an ugly bride. On occasion when I would return from a wedding which my wife did not attend, she would always ask me, “Was the bride beautiful?” And I would always answer, “Yes. I’ve never seen an ugly one.” Don’t think that I am just a doting old man when I say that. I have seen some brides before they got married or after the wedding, and I have wondered if she were the same girl who had come down the aisle. God gives to them at that time a radiance and a beauty. That is a thrilling moment for the bridegroom to look down the aisle and see the one whom he is going to make his ownshe will belong to him.

It seems that for that moment God transforms every girl into a lovely bride. I think the reason He does it is that the New Jerusalem where we are going to live is like the bride adorned for her husband. What a picture we have here! The New Jerusalem is the habitation, the eternal home that is prepared for the church. The Lord Jesus said: “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (Joh_14:2-3). You could not have a more lovely or more appropriate picture given. We have seen in Rev_19:7-8 that ushering in the millennial period, actually before Christ returned to the earth, was the marriage of the Lamb, and the bride was the church. This passage is the fulfillment of what Paul wrote to the Ephesians: “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word” (Eph_5:25-26). At the judgment seat of Christ, there will be the straightening out and the judging of believers. Everything that is wrong will have to be corrected. All sin will be dealt with there. Rewards will be given out. And He is going to do something elseHe is going to cleanse the church with the Word. The Word of God is a mighty cleansing agent. “That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish” (Eph_5:27). This is the picture we are getting here in chapter 21. The holy city, the New Jerusalem, is coming down from God out of heaven, adorned as a bride for her husband. The marriage took place before the Millennium, and the Millennium is now over. This has sure been a long honeymoon, hasn’t it? I think it is one that will go on into eternity. Paul continues to talk about this marvelous relationship between Christ and the church, comparing it to human marriage down here. “So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church; for we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church” (Eph_5:28-32). This idea is a mystery that is now being opened to us.

The marriage relationship is the most beautiful and wonderful relationship. It is the oldest ceremony that God has instituted for man. It goes right back into the Garden of Eden, to the very beginning, and it is all-important. It is such a profound mystery that, even with all these marriage counselors and all the books they have written, I do not really think they have touched the fringe of how wonderful marriage could be for believers. By the way, Paul is talking here to believers who are filled with the Spirit. All of these instructions are for Spirit-filled believers. They are not given to the lost world at all, and they are not given to the average believer. At the beginning of this section Paul says, “…be filled with the [Holy] Spirit” (Eph_5:18). That is the only commandment in Scripture in which you are required to do something about the Holy Spirit. We find here something that is difficult to understand, but it gives us another insight into marriage. The wife is the same flesh as the man. How can that be? Have you ever seen a beautiful child that looked like the mother and had a mean disposition like the father? That is where they come together, that is where they are one flesh. But it is deeper than that. When a man loves his wife, he actually loves himself. This is true of the wife also. When she loves her husband, she is actually loving herself. You cannot have it any more intimate than that. When I injure my foot, I do not ignore it. I do all I can to care for it. I go to the doctor and if necessary have it put into a cast. It may not be very pretty, and I might like to leave my foot at home, but it is part of me. Likewise, my wife is part of me. She is my flesh.

We are the same flesh. This is difficult to understand, but that is how intimate it is. This takes us back to the time of creation: “And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed” (Gen_2:23-25). They were naked, and they knew each other.

It was an intimate and a very personal relationship. After a couple gets married, when they have their first fight, the wife often turns over in bed, and he is in a huff and maybe goes to the sofa and lies there. Then they wonder why there is disintegration in their marriage relationship. When your foot gets sick, you don’t ignore it. You don’t get angry with it. You don’t kick with it.

If you do, you are in deeper trouble. The thing that you are to do with the flesh is to do everything to doctor it and try to get it well again. This is the reason that young couples ought never to have a squabble without sitting down and talking things over. I think the wife ought to be very frank with her husband and tell him everythinghow she feels, how he offends her, and what she thinks is wrong. And he ought to do the same thing. You see, they are the same flesh; they are one.

They have been brought together in this very intimate, this very wonderful relationship in which a man leaves his familyhis father, his mother, and his brothers and sisters. He has now been joined to a woman, and they are one flesh. They have started a new creation, if you please, and that is what the marriage relation should be. How wonderful it is to see a family where the man and his wife have no barrier between them. She knows him like a book, and he knows her like a book. They simply know each other, and they love each other.

Until that kind of relationship is established, my friend, you are going to have trouble in the marriage, because God made us that way. Marriage is more than an arrangement to live together and to sleep together. When a man chooses a wife and a wife accepts her husband, they must understand that they are one fleshand you would not hurt yourself, your own flesh, intentionally for anything in the world. “This is a great mystery,” Paul says, “…but I speak concerning Christ and the church” (Eph_5:32). In heaven we are going to be like Him. John writes, “…it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him …” (1Jn_3:2). We are going to have glorified flesh like He has. We are going to be one with Him. We are part of His body, and we are going to be joined to Him.

He said, “…I go to prepare a place for you…. that where I am, there ye may be also” (Joh_14:2-3). How glorious that we can be with Him throughout eternity! As far as I know, no other creatures, including the angels of heaven, are going to have this personal and intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. That is going to be the most glorious day! We are going to celebrate throughout eternity the very fact that we are with Him and that we have been joined to Him.

Revelation 21:3

NEW ERA And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold the tabernacle [Gr.: skene, tent] of God (is) with men, and He shall tabernacle with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God; and God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying nor pain, any more; the first things are passed away.“Behold the tabernacle [tent] of God is with men.” What is the tent? We are told by John in Joh_1:14, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt [pitched His tent] among us….” That flesh was crucified on the cross, and He was raised in a glorified body. We, too, are going to have glorified bodies, and we are going to live with Him in the New Jerusalem. The golden street is not really important. What difference does it make what kind of asphalt you walk on? It is important to know the psychological and spiritual values that will be there. “They shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God.” Certain things that definitely are prominent today are going to be removed: “God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes.” A columnist years ago wrote: “For every light that burns on Broadway, there is a broken heart.” Several times my wife and I have driven up into the Hollywood hills and have looked down on that blanket of light which is Hollywood. I have said to my wife, “For every light down there, there is a broken heart.” There is many a sad and lonely person in this world, but in the New Jerusalem there are not going to be any more tears. “And death shall be no more"that is going to be a very marvelous improvement. Since you began reading this chapter, a number of funeral processions have taken place. People are dying all the time. There is a continual march to the cemetery. I once knew an engineer who in the early days had a great deal to do with the planning and plotting of the great freeways which crisscross this country today. I asked him, “Is it going over the mountains or down through the valleys or crossing the rivers that is the biggest problem for you?” He replied, “The big problem is missing the cemeteries.” This earth is a great cemetery today, but all of that is going to end.

There will be no burying ground in the New Jerusalem. The undertaker will be out of business. Even the doctors are going to be out of business because there is not going to be any crying, “…neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”

Revelation 21:5

And He that sitteth on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And He saith, Write, for these words are faithful and true. He is going to make all things new! This is more meaningful to me than anything else. I do not know about you, but I have never really been satisfied with this life. I have found myself frustrated, I have found myself hemmed in, and I have never been able to accomplish all that I have wanted to accomplish. I’ve never been the man I’ve wanted to be. I’ve never been the husband I’ve wanted to be. I’ve never been the father I’ve wanted to be. And I’ve never preached the sermon I’ve wanted to preach. I just do not seem to have arrived. All accomplishments seem to have a blot on them. But He says to me, as He says to you, “I am going to make all things new. You are going to be able to start over again.” I am waiting for that day when all things are going to be new and I can start over. Have you ever stopped to think about the potential of starting out all new again, of learning all over again, and never ceasing but going on into eternity? Oh, the potential and capability of man! Yonder at the Tower of Babel, God said, “I had better go down there, or nothing will be withheld from man” (see Gen_11:5-7). It was very foolish for some scientists and preachers to say that man could not go to the moon; I think he is going farther than that.

Man is a clever being which God has made. Death ends his potential down here, but with eternity ahead of him, oh, the prospects a saved man has! We see here the glorious prospect of all things made new. We can start over, and there will never be an end to our growth. Remember that of Christ it is said, “Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end” (see Isa_9:7). There is constant growth and development. Just think of the prospect of that for the future. Someday I am going to know something; today I don’t, but I will then.

Revelation 21:6

And He said unto me, They are come to pass. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit these things; and I will be God unto him, and he shall be the son to Me. “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.” This identifies the speaker as the Lord Jesus Christ, as He was identified like this in the first chapter of this book. Believers in their new bodies will thirst after God and the things of God, and they will be satisfied: “I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.” In Mat_5:6 the Lord Jesus said: “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” All believers are overcomers because of faith: “He that overcometh shall inherit these things.” “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith” (1Jn_5:4). “I will be God unto him, and he shall be the son to Me.” All the sons of God become sons through faith in Christ: “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (Joh_1:12). They “inherit all things” because this was promised to the sons of God: “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together” (Rom_8:16-17). “The son to Me” is in the Greek moi ho huios. This is a very unusual expression. Vincent calls attention to the fact that this is the only place in John’s writings where a believer is said to be a son (huios) in relationship with God. (In other passages another Greek word is used rather than huios.) God is the One who says “my son,” and He says it here. Believers in the church are one of the peoples of God, but they are more. They are the sons of God in a unique and glorious fashion. “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is” (1Jn_3:2).

Revelation 21:8

But for the fearful, and unbelieving, and defiled with abominations, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolators, and all liars, their part (shall be) in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. There are several amazing features about this verse. First of all, the creation of the new heavens and a new earth did not affect the status of the lake of fire and of the lost. They are going into eternity just that way. In the second place, there is no possibility of sin, which made man become fearful, unbelieving, liars, murderers, and all the rest, ever breaking over the barriers into the new heavens and the new earth. Sin and its potential are forever shut out of the new creation. Finally, the lake of fire is eternal, for it is the second death, and there is no third resurrection. It is eternal separation from God, and there is nothing as fearful and frightful as that.

Revelation 21:9

NEW JERUSALEM, DESCRIPTION OF THE ETERNAL ABODE OF THE BRIDEThe appearance of this city is the quintessence of beauty, refined loveliness, and uncontrolled joy. Lofty language describes her merits, and descriptive vocabulary is exhausted in painting her portrait. The contemplation of her coming glory is a spiritual tonic for those who grow weary on the pilgrim journey down here. The New Jerusalem is really a postmillennial city, for she does not come into view until the end of the Millennium and the beginning of eternity. This city was evidently in the mind of Christ when He said, “I go to prepare a place for you” (see Joh_14:2), but the curtain does not rise upon the scene of the heavenly city until earth’s drama has reached a satisfactory conclusion. Earth’s sorrow is not hushed until the endless ages begin. The New Jerusalem will be to eternity what the earthly Jerusalem is to the Millennium. The earthly Jerusalem does not pass away, but it takes second place in eternity. Righteousness reigns in Jerusalem; it will dwell in the New Jerusalem. Imperfection and rebellion exist even in the earthly Jerusalem during the Millennium; perfection and the absence of sin will identify the heavenly city. Just as a king’s queen is of more importance than the place of his government, thus the New Jerusalem transcends the city of earth. This will cast no reflection on the earthly city, nor will it cause her inward pain. She can say in the spirit of John the Baptist, “She that hath the bridegroom is the bride” (see Joh_3:29). The New Jerusalem is the eternal abode of the church. The New Jerusalem is the home of the church, the hometown of the church. This is a city toward which the church is journeying as she pitches her tent in that direction. We are now to look at this new home by reading the architect’s blueprint in this twenty-first chapter. And there came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls, who were laden with the seven last plagues; and he spoke with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the wife of the Lamb. What follows in verses Rev_21:9-21 is a description of the city. We have seen the psychological or spiritual aspects of it that are wonderful, but this physical description is also worth contemplating. We must pause here to consider the relationship of the city to the citizensthe city proper to the church. Certainly we are not to infer that the empty city without the citizens is the bride. The citizens are identified with the city in chapter 22, verses Rev_22:3, Rev_22:6, Rev_22:19. Those outside are identified here in verse Rev_22:8 as disfranchised. Although a distinction between the bride and the city needs to be maintained, it is the intent of the writer to consider them together. This passage is a description of the adornments which reveal something of the love and worth that the Bridegroom has conferred upon His bride.

Revelation 21:10

And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. Certainly this city has no counterpart among earth’s cities which are built upon an earthly foundation and are built up from that base. This city comes down out of heaven. She originates in heaven, and the Lord Jesus is the builder. Although the city comes down out of heaven, there is no suggestion that she comes down to the earth. The earthly city never goes to heaven, and the heavenly city never comes to earth. Just how far down the city descends is a matter of speculation. This has led to extreme views in interpreting the New Jerusalem. At the very beginning, Ebionism, one of the first heresies, went to the extreme of applying this whole passage concerning the New Jerusalem to the earthly Jerusalem. The Gnostics, another early heresy, went to the other extremity in spiritualizing the passage to make it refer to heaven. Many modern “isms” apply the New Jerusalem to themselves and set it up on earth at the geographical location of their choice. Liberal theologians and amillennarians have left the city in heaven, in spite of the scriptural statement that it comes down “out of heaven.” Two facts are evident from this passage: (1) It comes down out of heaven, and (2) it is not stated that it comes to the earth. This passage of Scripture leaves the city hanging in midair.

This is the dilemma that many seek to avoid, but why not leave the city in midair? Is anything incongruous about a civilization out yonder in space on a new planet? The New Jerusalem will either become another satellite to the earth or, what is more probable and what I think is true, the earth will become a satellite to the New Jerusalem as well as the rest of the new creation. This chapter indicates that the city will be the center of all things. All activity and glory will revolve about this city. God will be there, it will be His headquarters, and His universe is theocentric (God-centered).

The New Jerusalem is therefore worthy to merit such a preeminent position for eternity.

Revelation 21:11

Having the glory of God: her light was like unto a stone most precious, as it were a jasper stone, shining like crystal. Paul instructs the believers to “…rejoice in hope of the glory of God” (Rom_5:2). This hope will be realized in the holy city. Man in sin has never witnessed the revelation of the glory of God. The experience of Israel in the wilderness taught them that each time there was a rebellion in the camp, the glory of God appeared in judgment. The manifestation of God’s glory strikes terror to a sinful heart, but what glorious anticipation to be able to behold His glory when standing clothed in the righteousness of Christ! Two wonderful facts make this city the manifestation of the fullness of God’s glory. (1) The presence of God makes the city the source of glory for the universe. Every blessing radiates from the city. (2) The presence of the saints does not forbid the manifestation of the glory of God. Sin caused God to remove His glory from man’s presence, but in this city all that is past. Redeemed man dwelling with God in a city “having the glory of God” is the grand goal which is worthy of God. This city reveals the high purpose of God in the church, which is to bring “many sons unto glory” (see Heb_2:10). The word translated “light” (phoster) is the Greek word for source of light. The city is a light giver. It does not reflect light as does the moon, nor does it generate light by physical combustion like the sun, but it originates light and is the source of light. The presence of God and Christ gives explanation to this, as He declared, “…I am the light of the world” (Joh_9:5). God is light. The whole city is like a precious gem. This gem is likened unto a jasper stone. The modern jasper is a multicolored quartz stone. The stone referred to here cannot be that, for this stone is not opaque. “Jasper” is a transliteration of the word iaspis, which is of Semitic origin. Moffatt suggests that iaspis could mean the modern opal, diamond, or topaz. The stone is transparent and gleaming, which suggests one of these stones, most likely the diamond. The diamond seems to fit the description better than any other stone known to man. The similarity of the Hebrew word for crystal in Eze_1:22 to the Hebrew word for “ice” helps to strengthen this view. The New Jerusalem is a diamond in a gold mounting. This city is the engagement ring of the bride; in fact, it is the wedding ring. It is the symbol of the betrothal and wedding of the church to Christ.

Revelation 21:12

THE GATES OF THE CITY Having a wall great and high; having twelve (large) gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: on the east (day spring) were three gates; and on the north three gates; and on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. There are twelve gates to the city, three gates on each side. On each gate is the name of one of the tribes of Israel. This is very striking and suggests immediately the order in which the children of Israel camped about the tabernacle in the wilderness wanderings. The tribe of Levi was the priesthood and served in the tabernacle proper. The New Jerusalem is a temple or tabernacle in one sense, for God is there dwelling with man.

The bride constitutes the priesthood who serve Him constantly. They serve as such in the city and dwell there as Levi did about the tabernacle. Everything in eternity will face in toward this city, for God is there. The children of Israel on earth will enjoy the same relationship to the city that they did toward the wilderness tabernacle and later the city temple. This city will be a tabernacle to Israel. The children of Israel will be among the multitudes who come into this city to worship in eternity. They will come from the earth to bring their worship and glory. They will not dwell in the city anymore than they dwelt in the tabernacle of old.

Those who actually dwell there will be the priests, who are the bride. The bride occupies the closer place to God in eternity, and the bride, like John in the Upper Room, reclines upon His breast. “Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? …” (Son_8:5). She is the bride, and she has come up from the wilderness which is this present world. But the twelve tribes of Israel will come up to the celestial city to worship, three tribes coming up on each of the four sides. They will then return back to the earth after a period of worship, but the bride will dwell in the New Jerusalem.

Revelation 21:14

THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE CITYThis city has twelve foundations, and the names of the twelve apostles are upon them. The church today is “…built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Eph_2:20). When Christ returned to heaven, He committed the keys into the keeping of the apostles. On the human level, the church was in the hands of these twelve men. The Book of Acts gives the order: “The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen” (Act_1:1-2). I do not believe that Matthias is the apostle who succeeded Judas.

I personally believe it was Paul. Simon Peter held that meeting to elect Matthias before the Holy Spirit came, and I do not think he was in the will of God when he did so. You never hear Matthias mentioned again, but you surely hear of Paul the apostle, and I think he is the one whom God chose to succeed Judas, making Paul the twelfth apostle. To these twelve apostles were committed all the writings of the church. These men preached the first sermons, they organized the first churches, and they were among the first martyrs. It is not honoring to Scripture to attempt to minimize the importance of the twelve apostles. In a real sense they were the foundation of the church. To them the church shall eternally be grateful. This is not to rob Christ of His place, for He is “the chief corner stone,” but the church is built upon the foundation which the apostles laid.

Revelation 21:15

THE SIZE AND SHAPE OF THE CITYThe shape of this city is really difficult to describe, due largely to our inability to translate our concepts from a universe of time to the new creation of eternity. The measurements of the city have given rise to all sorts of conceptions as to the size and shape of the city. First of all, let us examine the size of the city. Twelve thousand furlongs is given as the measurement of each side and the height of it. It is twelve thousand stadia in the text, which means about fifteen hundred miles. This figure is corroborated by Dr.

Seiss, Dr. Walter Scott, and others. The amplitude of the city is astounding when first considered but is commensurate with the importance of the city. Certainly God as Creator can never be accused of stinting, economizing, or doing things that reveal littleness. When you go down to the beach, you notice that He has put plenty of sand there and plenty of water in the ocean. He has made many mountains and He has put rocks everywhere.

With a lavish hand, He has garnished the heavens with stellar bodies. When He does something, He certainly does it in abundance. This city bears the trademark of its Maker. The Lord Jesus, the Carpenter of Nazareth, is the One who built this city. Now consider with me the shape of the city. “The city lieth foursquare” is the simple declaration of Scripture. That would seem to indicate that the city is a cube with fifteen hundred miles on a side. Dr. Seiss sees it as a cube. Dr. Harry Ironside sees it as a pyramid.

Still others interpret these measurements in as many geometric figures as can be conceived. However, it is difficult for us to conceive of either a cube or a pyramid projected out in space. We are accustomed to thinking of a sphere (that is a ball-shaped object) hanging in space, because that is the general shape of the heavenly bodies. As far as we know, there are none out there that are square like a cube or like a pyramid. Cubes and pyramids are appropriate for earth’s buildings, but they are as impractical for space as spheres are impractical for earthly buildings. Yet it is definitely stated that the city is foursquare. The difficulty resolves when we think of the city as a cube within a crystal-clear sphere. What we are given are the inside measurements. I think of it as a big plastic ball with a cube inside, having all eight of its corners touching the sphere. As this involves mathematics, which I could not figure out, I asked both a mathematician and an engineer involved in the space program to determine what the circumference of the sphere would be. They both came up with the same answer. To enclose a cube measuring 1,500 miles on each side, the circumference of the sphere would be about 8,164 miles.

The diameter of the moon is about 2,160 miles, and that of the New Jerusalem sphere is about 2,600 miles. Thus, the New Jerusalem will be somewhat larger than the moon, and it will be a sphere like the other heavenly bodies. I personally believe that this is the picture that is given to us here. My thinking is that we will live inside this sphere, not on the outside. Here on earth, we live on the outside, and that presents a few difficulties. The Lord had to make the law of gravity to hold us on the earth, or we would be flying out into space. We walk on the outside here, but I think that we will walk on the inside of the New Jerusalem.

Revelation 21:17

THE WALL OF THE CITYThe wall of the city is for protection. A walled city is a safe city. The New Jerusalem is safe, and those who dwell therein dwell in safety. The heavenly Salem will enjoy the fruits of safety and peace. Made up of those who found peace with God on earth, she will experience the fullness of peace throughout eternity. The walls are a sign that this city has achieved the full meaning of her namepeace. The walls are 144 cubits in height or about 216 feet. Herodotus gives the estimation for the walls of ancient Babylon as 50 cubits thick and 200 cubits high. Those walls were built to make the city impregnable. The great height of the walls of the New Jerusalem are but commensurate with the great size of the city. Beauty, rather than protection, is the motive in design. It is a wall with jasper built into it and is generally designated as a jasper wall. The hardest of substances and the most beautiful gem constitute the exterior of the city.

Revelation 21:19

THE STONES OF FIRE IN THE FOUNDATIONThe twelve foundations of the city not only have the names of the twelve apostles, but they are twelve different precious stones. The most beautiful and costly articles known to man are precious stones. These stones express in human terms the magnificence of the city. The superlative degree of gems is used to convey something of the glory of the city to those who now “…see through a glass, darkly …” (1Co_12:11). We are going to see through it clearly someday. A close examination of these twelve stones in the foundation reveals a polychromed paragon of beauty; varied hues and tints form a galaxy of rainbow colors. The stones are enumerated as follows:

1. Jasper (Gr: iaspis)its color is clear. As mentioned before, this is probably the diamond. It is crystal clear, a reflector of light and color. Dr. Seiss, in speaking of the New Jerusalem, describes it “as clean, and pure, and bright as a transparent icicle in the sunshine.”
2. Sapphire (Gr.: sappheiros)its color is blue. This stone occurs in Exo_24:10 as the foundation of God, “…and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.” Moffatt describes it as a blue stone. Pliny describes it as opaque with gold specks, to which Petrie agrees.
3. Chalcedony (Gr.: chalkedon)its color is greenish. It is an agate. Pliny describes it as “a variety of emerald gathered on a mountain in Chalcedon.” Robertson says, “Possibly a green silicate of copper.”
4. Emerald (Gr.: smaragdos)its color is green. Robertson describes it as a green stone.
5. Sardonyx (Gr.: sardonux)its color is red. Robertson describes it as white with layers of red.
6. Sardius (Gr.: sardios)its color is fiery red. Pliny says that it is the red stone from Sardis. Swete says that it is fiery red.
7. Chrysolyte (Gr.: chrusolithos)its color is golden yellow. Moffatt assigns it a golden hue. Robertson says it is a golden color like our topaz.
8. Beryl (Gr.: berullos)its color is green. It is like the emerald, says Robertson. Pliny says it is sea green.
9. Topaz (Gr.: topazion)its color is greenish yellow. Robertson calls it a golden greenish stone.
10. Chrysoprasus (Gr.: chrusoprasos)its color is gold-green. A golden leek, “a leek colored gem,” says Robertson. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia describes it as sea green.
11. Jacinth (Gr.: huakinthi)its color is violet. It is the color of the hyacinth. Pliny gives the color as violet.
12. Amethyst (Gr.: amethustos)its color is purple. Although the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia lists it as a ruby, Robertson gives the color as purple. The foundations of the New Jerusalem are constructed of the flashing brilliance of rich and costly gems. On the inside is Jesus who, when He was here, was the Light of the World. There He will be the Light of the Universe. Astronauts tell us that in space the colors almost entirely are gray and blackbut wait until you see the New Jerusalem. It is going to light up God’s new heavens and new earth as they have never been lighted before. I think it is going to be the most breathtaking sight that you have ever seen. This New Jerusalem is a planet which comes down right out of heaven. Everything is going to revolve around it, and the light will come from there. It truly will be the Jesus Christ Light and Power Company then. The light will shine out in all these brilliant and beautiful colors. Color is described to us today as dissected light. If you pass a ray of light through a prism, it is broken up into three primary colors: red, blue, and yellow. From these three primary colors come all colors and shades of colors. Light is a requirement for color. Where there is no light, there is no color. Objects of color reveal color to the eye because of their ability to absorb or to reject light rays. A red stone absorbs all the color rays except red; it rejects or throws back to the eye the red ray, which gives it the color of red. The New Jerusalem is a city of light and a city of color. God is light, and He is there. The city is described as a jasper stone as clear as crystal. All of this color will be coming out and flooding God’s universe. The jasper stone is a sphere, and the city, the New Jerusalem, is within. The light shining from within through the jasper stone, acting as a prism, would give every color and shade of color in the rainbowcolors that you and I have not even thought of yet.

The New Jerusalem is, I believe, a new planet, and it is inside a crystal ball. The presence of the primary colors suggests that every shade and tint is reflected from this city. A rainbow that appears after a summer shower gives only a faint impression of the beauty in the coloring of the city of light. Oh, what a glorious place this is!

Revelation 21:21

THE CITY AND STREET OF GOLDNotice that verse Rev_22:18 also says, “and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.” We were told at the beginning of this description that this city is transparent. This is the thing that gave me the lead and the key to believe that we will live on the inside and that everything is transparent. This would mean that the light shines from the inside out and goes through these many different-colored stones. Many colors which our natural eyes cannot see today we will be able to see with the new body that we shall have at that time. We are also told here that the street is pure gold. Personally, I do not care about the asphalt of the place, but there are two things here that impress me. (1) It is not streets (plural) but street (singular)this is not a city with many streets. (2) And it is “transparent"even the street is transparent; it is gold, but transparent gold. This leads me again to insist that what we are looking at is the inside of a globe. You could not have cities like we have today without having streets. You would certainly have a traffic jam with just one street. The New Jerusalem has just one street, which would begin at the four gates; it would start around the circle of the globe, go all the way to the top, and then circle and come back down. One would be the entrance and the other the exit. There is just one street, and my viewpoint lends itself to the idea that there is one street. The fact that it is transparent gold means that the light can shine out. There will be nothing to hinder the light, not even the street.

Revelation 21:22

NEW RELATIONSHIPGOD DWELLING WITH MANGod lights the new creation directly by His presence. After the entrance of sin into the old creation, God withdrew His presence, and “darkness covered the face of the deep” (see Gen_1:2). Then God made use of the physical lights in His universe. He put them up like we put up street lights or lights in our homes. However, in the new creation sin is removed, and He again becomes the source of light. Today the Lord Jesus Christ is the Light of the World in a spiritual sense: “Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (Joh_8:12). In the new creation He is the direct physical as well as the spiritual light. In the tabernacle there was the golden lampstand, which is one of the finest pictures of Christ. In the New Jerusalem He is the golden lampstand. The nations of the world will enter the Holy City as the priests entered the Holy Place in the tabernacle for the purpose of worship. The nations of the earth, as well as Israel, will come to the New Jerusalem as the high priest of old entered the Holy of Holies. Instead of the blood being brought, the Lamb is there in person. What a picture we have here! The temple, which supplanted the tabernacle back in the nation Israel, was an earthly enclosure for the shekinah glory. It was a testimony to the presence of God and the presence of sin. Where sin existed, God could be approached only by the ritual of the temple. However, in the New Jerusalem sin is no longer a reality but is like a hideous nightmare, even locked out of the closet of memory. The actual presence of God with the redeemed eliminates the necessity for a temple, although the whole city may be thought of as a temple. Some have called attention to the fact that the New Jerusalem is the same shape as the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle and temple where God dwelt: a perfect cube.

That is no accident, by the way. In the city of light God is present, and sin is absent; therefore, an edifice of a material substance is no longer necessary. The physical temple was a poor substitute for the presence of God. The New Jerusalem possesses the genuine articleGod in person. It is probably the first place where God will make a personal appearance before man. What a glorious prospect this is! The New Jerusalem will be independent of the sun and moon for light and life. What a contrast to the earth, which is utterly dependent upon the sun and the moon. It may be that the sun and moon will even be dependent upon the celestial city for power to transmit light, since the One who is the source of light and life will dwell within the city. Neither will light be furnished by the New Jerusalem Light and Power Company. The One who is light will be there, and the effulgence of His glory will be manifested in the New Jerusalem unhindered.

Revelation 21:24

NEW CENTER OF THE NEW CREATION And the nations shall walk amidst the light thereof: and the kings of the earth bring their glory into it. “And the nations shall walk amidst the light thereof.” It does not say they will live there, but that they will walk in the light of it. In other words, the New Jerusalem (instead of the sun and the moon) will give light unto the earth. “And the kings of the earth bring their glory into it.” This is my reason for saying that there will be a great deal of traffic commuting back and forth between the New Jerusalem and this earth down here. Not only will Israel come up there to worship, but the nations of the world which have entered eternity will also come up. It will not be their permanent abode, but they will come up there to worship. I believe that the church will be the priests at that time. We are told that we are a priesthood of believers.

Revelation 21:25

And the gates thereof shall in no wise be shut by day (for there shall be no night there). It is nonsense to say that the gates will not be shut at night because there is no night. Therefore, he says that they will not be shut by day. In other words, they are going to throw away the key because there will be no danger. In John’s day, a walled city had gates for the purpose of protection. When the gate of a city was closed, it meant that an enemy was on the outside and that they were trying to keep him there.

Revelation 21:26

And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it: and there shall in no wise enter into it anything unclean, or he that maketh an abomination and a lie: but only they that are written in the Lamb’s book of life. God has apparently accomplished His original purpose with manfellowship. He now has a creature who is a free moral agent and who chooses to worship and serve Him eternally. There can be no night, since the Lamb is the light, and He is eternally present. The gates are not for protection, and they are never closed. Rather, they are the badge or coat of arms of the bride. Notice that these gates are of pearl. The pearl of great price has been purchased at a great price. In the parable (see Mat_13:45-46) that the Lord Jesus gave, the pearl is not Christ whom the sinner buys. What is a sinner to pay for Christ?he hasn’t anything that he can pay.

It is the other way around. The merchant man who bought that pearl was the Lord Jesus Christ, and the pearl is the bride. It is interesting that a pearl is formed by a grain of sand that gets into the body of a little oyster or mollusk of some kind, and that little marine creature begins to put around that grain a secretion that before long makes the pearl. The pearl of great price is margarites in the Greek, and if the church has a name, it is Margaret. The Lord Jesus Christ paid a great price to buy this pearl. This pearl was formed from His side.

Someone has said, “I got into the heart of Christ through a spear wound.” He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities. The church will be for the display of His grace throughout eternity to the absolute myriads of God’s created intelligences. “That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Eph_2:7). In other words, in eternity you and I will be there on display. They will look at Vernon McGee and say: “Do you see that fellow? He deserved hell, and the Lord Jesus Christ died for him and paid a tremendous price. He trusted Christ; that is all he had to offer. Now look what the Lord Jesus has done for him. He has made him fit for heaven and made him acceptable in the beloved.” The church will be the fairest jewel of all when He makes up His jewels (see Mal_3:17-18). When He makes up His jewels, the church is going to be on display. This is the reason that the New Jerusalem will be the center of the new heavens and the new earth. The Lamb’s Book of Life contains the names of the redeemed of all ages. No one who was not redeemed by the blood of Christ will ever be permitted to enter the portals of the New Jerusalem. There is a great gulf fixed between the saved and the lost. The greatest joy that will capture the heart of the redeemed will be that of abiding in the presence of Christ for eternity. “That where I am, there ye may be also” is what He said in Joh_14:3. This is heaven, my friend, to be with Him. Revelation is all about Jesus ChristHe is the centerpiece of God’s universe. Our attention has already been directed to the fact that a redeemed remnant of Israel makes regular visits to the city of God. In verse Rev_21:24 another group is identified who comes into the city to bring their glory and honor. These are the redeemed gentile nations which will occupy the earth together with Israel for eternity. These nations, like Israel, do not belong to the church, for they are redeemed after the church is removed from the earth (or before the church came into existence). They come as visitors to the city. They come as worshipers.

In Heb_12:22 we are told there is also present an innumerable company of angels who evidently constitute the servant class. The city is cosmopolitan in character. All nationalities meet there, and the created intelligences of God walk the street of the New Jerusalem. Among the multitudes, there is not one who will bring defilement or sin. How superior is this city to even the Garden of Eden where the lie of Satan made an entrance for sin. No lie or liar will ever enter the portals of the heavenly Jerusalem. All dwellers and all tourists are not only redeemed from sin but have also lost their taste for sin. They come through the gates which are never closed. The enjoyment of this glorious city is not restricted to the church, although they are the only ones who dwell there. Jerusalem, the golden, with milk and honey blest! Beneath thy contemplation sink heart and voice oppressed; I know not, O I know not what joys await me there; What radiancy of glory, what bliss beyond compare. “Jerusalem the Golden” Bernard of Cluny What a picture and how inadequately I have dealt with it. Oh, if only you and I both could be lifted up so that we might get a glimpse of the glory of that city and of the glory of the One who is its chief adornment, even the Lord Jesus Christ, and of the glorious prospect and privilege of being with Him throughout eternity. There is nothing to compare to it!