Revelation 21:3

Gal 4:24-27 (note). This doubtless means the Christian Church in a state of great prosperity and purity; but some think eternal blessedness is intended. Coming down from God - It is a maxim of the ancient Jews that both the tabernacle, and the temple, and Jerusalem itself, came down from heaven. And in Midrash Hanaalem, Sohar Gen. fol. 69, col. 271, Rab. Jeremias said, "The holy blessed God shall renew the world, and build Jerusalem, and shall cause it to descend from heaven." Their opinion is, that there is a spiritual temple, a spiritual tabernacle, and a spiritual Jerusalem; and that none of these can be destroyed, because they subsist in their spiritual representatives. See Schoettgen. Verse 3 The tabernacle of God is with men - God, in the most especial manner, dwells among his followers, diffusing his light and life everywhere. Verse 4 There shall be no more death - Because there shall be a general resurrection. And this is the inference which St Paul makes from his doctrine of a general resurrection, 1Cor 15:26, where he says, "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." But death cannot be destroyed by there being simply no farther death; death can only be destroyed and annihilated by a general resurrection; if there be no general resurrection, it is most evident that death will still retain his empire. Therefore, the fact that there shall be no more death assures the fact that there shall be a general resurrection; and this also is a proof that, after the resurrection, there shall be no more death. See the whole of the note on 1Cor 15:27. Verse 5 Behold, I make all things new - As the creation of the world at the beginning was the work of God alone, so this new creation. These words are true and faithful - Truth refers to the promise of these changes; faithfulness, to the fulfillment of these promises. Verse 6 It is done - All is determined, and shall be fulfilled in due time. The great drama is finished, and what was intended is now completed; referring to the period alluded to by the angel. I am Alpha and Omega - See on Rev 1:8 (note). The fountain of the water of life - See on Joh 4:10 (note), Joh 4:14 (note); Joh 7:37 (note), etc. The rabbins consider the fountain of the world to come as one of the particular blessings of a future state. In Sanhedrim, Aboth R. Nathan, c. 31, it is said, "He will show them the excellency of the fountain of the future world, that they may accurately see and consider, and say, Wo to us! what good have we lost! and our race is cut off from the face of the earth." Verse 7 Inherit all things - Here he had no inheritance; there he shall inherit the kingdom of heaven, and be with God and Christ, and have every possible degree of blessedness. Verse 8 But the fearful - Δειλοις· Those who, for fear of losing life or their property, either refused to receive the Christian religion, though convinced of its truth and importance; or, having received it, in times of persecution fell away, not being willing to risk their lives. And unbelieving - Those who resist against full evidence. And sinners, και ἁμαρτωλοις, is added here by about thirty excellent MSS., and is found in the Syrian, Arabic, some of the Slavonic, and in Andreas and Arethas. On this evidence Griesbach has admitted it into the text. The abominable - Εβδελυγμενοις· Those who are polluted with unnatural lust. And murderers - Φονευσι· Those who take away the life of man for any cause but the murder of another, and those who hate a brother in their heart. And whoremongers - Πορνοις· Adulterers, fornicators, whores, prostitutes, and rakes of every description. Sorcerers - Φαρμακοις· Persons who, by drugs, philtres, fumigations, etc., pretend to produce supernatural effects, chiefly by spiritual agency. Idolaters - Ειδωλολατραις· Those who offer any kind of worship or religious reverence to any thing but God. All image worshippers are idolaters in every sense of the word. And all liars - Και πασι τοις ψευδεσι· Every one who speaks contrary to the truth when he knows the truth, and even he who speaks the truth with the intention to deceive; i.e., to persuade a person that a thing is different from what it really is, by telling only a part of the truth, or suppressing some circumstance which would have led the hearer to a different end to the true conclusion. All these shall have their portion, το μερος, their share, what belongs to them, their right, in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone. This is the second death, from which there is no recovery. Verse 9 The bride, the Lamb's wife - The pure and holy Christian Church. Verse 10 To a great and high mountain - That, being above this city, he might see every street and lane of it. The holy Jerusalem - See on Rev 21:2 (note). Verse 11 Having the glory of God - Instead of the sun and moon, it has the splendor of God to enlighten it. Unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal - Among precious stones there are some even of the same species more valuable than others: for their value is in proportion to their being free from flaws, and of a good water, i.e., a uniform and brilliant transparency. A crystal is perfectly clear, the oriental jasper is a beautiful sea-green. The stone that is here described is represented as a perfectly transparent jasper, being as unclouded as the brightest crystal, and consequently the most precious of its species. Nothing can be finer than this description: the light of this city is ever intense, equal, and splendid; but it is tinged with this green hue, in order to make it agreeable to the sight. Nothing is so friendly to the eye as blue or green; all other colors fatigue; and, if very intense, injure the eye. These are the colors of the earth and sky, on which the eye of man is to be constantly fixed. To these colors the structure of the eye is adapted; and the general appearance of the earth and the sky is adapted to this structure. Verse 12 Had a wall great and high - An almighty defense. Twelve gates - A gate for every tribe of Israel, in the vicinity of which gate that tribe dwelt; so that in coming in and going out they did not mix with each other. This description of the city is partly taken from Eze 48:30-35. In Synopsis Sohar, p. 115, n. 27, it is said: "In the palace of the world to come there are twelve gates, each of which is inscribed with one of the twelve tribes, as that of Reuben, of Simeon, etc.: he, therefore, who is of the tribe of Reuben is received into none of the twelve gates but his own; and so of the rest." Verse 13 On the east three gates - The city is here represented as standing to the four cardinal points of heaven, and presenting one side to each of these points. Verse 14 The wall - had twelve foundations - Probably twelve stones, one of which served for a foundation or threshold to each gate; and on these were inscribed the names of the twelve apostles, to intimate that it was by the doctrine of the apostles that souls enter into the Church, and thence into the New Jerusalem. Verse 15 Had a golden reed - Several excellent MSS. add μετρον, a measure; he had a measuring rod made of gold. This account of measuring the city seems to be copied, with variations, from Eze 40:3, etc. Verse 16 The city lieth foursquare - Each side was equal, consequently the length and breadth were equal; and its height is here said to be equal to its length. It is hard to say how this should be understood. It cannot mean the height of the buildings, nor of the walls, for neither houses nor walls could be twelve thousand furlongs in height; some think this means the distance from the plain country to the place where the city stood. But what need is there of attempting to determine such measures in such a visionary representation? The quadrangular form intimates its perfection and stability, for the square figure was a figure of perfection among the Greeks; αντρ τετραγωνος, the square or cubical man, was, with them, a man of unsullied integrity, perfect in all things. Verse 17 The wall - a hundred and forty and four cubits - This is twelve, the number of the apostles, multiplied by itself: for twelve times twelve make one hundred and forty-four. The measure of a man, that is, of the angel - The cubit, so called from cubitus, the elbow, is the measure from the tip of the elbow to the tip of the middle finger, and is generally reckoned at one foot and a half, or eighteen inches; though it appears, from some measurements at the pyramids of Egypt, that the cubit was, at least in some cases, twenty-one inches. By the cubit of a man we may here understand the ordinary cubit, and that this was the angel's cubit who appeared in the form of a man. Or suppose we understand the height of the man as being here intended, and that this was the length of the measuring rod. Now allowing this height and rod to be six feet, and that this was intended to have some kind of symbolical reference to the twelve tribes, mentioned Rev 21:12, represented by the twelve gates; and to the twelve apostles, represented by the twelve thresholds or foundations; then twenty-four, the number of the tribes and apostles, multiplied by six, make precisely the number one hundred and forty-four. Verse 18 The building of the wall of it was of jasper - The oriental jasper is exceedingly hard, and almost indestructible. Pillars made of this stone have lasted some thousands of years, and appear to have suffered scarcely any thing from the tooth of time. Pure gold, like unto clear glass - Does not this imply that the walls were made of some beautifully bright yellow stone, very highly polished? This description has been most injudiciously applied to heaven; and in some public discourses, for the comfort and edification of the pious, we hear of heaven with its golden walls, golden pavements, gates of pearl, etc., etc., not considering that nothing of this description was ever intended to be literally understood; and that gold and jewels can have no place in the spiritual and eternal world. But do not such descriptions as these tend to keep up a fondness for gold and ornaments? In symbols they are proper; but construed into realities, they are very improper. The ancient Jews teach that "when Jerusalem and the temple shall be built, they will be all of precious stones, and pearls, and sapphire, and with every species of jewels." - Sepher Rasiel Haggadol, fol. 24, 1. The same authors divide paradise into seven parts or houses; the third they describe thus: "The third house is built of gold and pure silver, and all kinds of jewels and pearls. It is very spacious, and in it all kinds of the good things, either in heaven or earth, are to be found. All kinds of precious things, perfumes, and spiritual virtues, are there planted. In the midst of it is the tree of life, the height of which is five hundred years; (i.e., it is equal in height to the journey which a man might perform in five hundred years), and under it dwell Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, the twelve patriarchs, and all that came out of Egypt, and died in the wilderness. Over these Moses and Aaron preside, and teach them the law," etc. - Yalcut Rubeni, fol. 13, 4. In the same tract, fol. 182, 1, we find these words: "Know that we have a tradition, that when the Messiah, with the collected captivity, shall come to the land of Israel, in that day the dead in Israel shall rise again; and in that day the fiery walls of the city of Jerusalem shall descend from heaven, and in that day the temple shall be builded of jewels and pearls." Verse 19 The foundations of the wall - Does not this mean the foundations or thresholds of the gates? The gates represented the twelve tribes, Rev 21:12; and these foundations or thresholds, the twelve apostles, Rev 21:14. There was no entrance into the city but through those gates, and none through the gates but over these thresholds. The whole of the Mosaic dispensation was the preparation of the Gospel system: without it the Gospel would have no original; without the Gospel, it would have no reference nor proper object. Every part of the Gospel necessarily supposes the law and the prophets. They are the gates, it is the threshold; without the Gospel no person could enter through those gates. The doctrine of Christ crucified, preached by the apostles, gives a solid foundation to stand on; and we have an entrance into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, Heb 10:19, etc. And in reference to this we are said to be built on the Foundation of the Apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone, Eph 2:20. The first foundation was jasper - A stone very hard, some species of which are of a sea-green color; but it is generally a bright reddish brown. The second, sapphire - This is a stone of a fine blue color, next in hardness to the diamond. The third, a chalcedony - A genus of the semipellucid gems, of which there are four species: - 1. A bluish white; this is the most common sort. 2. The dull milky veined; this is of little worth. 3. The brownish black; the least beautiful of all. 4. The yellow and red; the most beautiful, as it is the most valuable of all. Hitherto this has been found only in the East Indies. The fourth, an emerald - This is of a bright green color without any mixture, and is one of the most beautiful of all the gems, The true oriental emerald as very scarce, and said to be found only in the kingdom of Cambay. Verse 20 The fifth, sardonyx - The onyx is an accidental variety of the agate kind; it is of a dark horny color, in which is a plate of a bluish white, and sometimes of red. When on one or both sides of the white there happens to lie also a plate of a reddish color, the jewelers call the stone a sardonyx. The sixth, sardius - The sardius, sardel, or sardine stone, is a precious stone of a blood-red color. The seventh, chrysolite - The gold stone. It is of a dusky green with a cast of yellow. It is a species of the topaz. The eighth, beryl - This is a pellucid gem of a bluish green color. The ninth, a topaz - A pale dead green, with a mixture of yellow. It is considered by the mineralogists as a variety of the sapphire. The tenth, a chrysoprasus - A variety of the chrysolite, called by some the yellowish green and cloudy topaz. It differs from the chrysolite only in having a bluish hue. The eleventh, a jacinth - A precious stone of a dead red color, with a mixture of yellow. It is the same as the hyacenet or cinnamon stone. The twelfth, an amethyst - A gem generally of a purple or violet color, composed of a strong blue and deep red. These stones are nearly the same with those on the breastplate of the high priest, Exo 28:17, etc., and probably were intended to express the meaning of the Hebrew words there used. See the notes on Exo 28:17, etc. where these gems are particularly explained. Verse 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls - This must be merely figurative, for it is out of all the order of nature to produce a pearl large enough to make a gate to such an immense city. But St. John may refer to some relations of this nature among his countrymen, who talk much of most prodigious pearls. I shall give an example: "When Rabbi Juchanan (John) once taught that God would provide jewels and pearls, thirty cubits every way, ten of which should exceed in height twenty cubits, and would place them in the gates of Jerusalem, according to what is said Isa 54:12, I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, one of his disciples ridiculed him, saying, Where can such be found, since at present there is none so large as a pigeon's egg? Afterwards, being at sea in a ship, he saw the ministering angels cutting gems and pearls; and he asked them for what purpose they were preparing those. They answered, to place them in the gates of Jerusalem. On his return he found Rabbi Juchanan teaching as usual; to whom he said, Explain, master, what I have seen. He answered, Thou knave, unless thou hadst seen, thou wouldst not have believed; wilt thou not receive the saying of the wise men? At that moment he fixed his eyes upon him, and he was reduced into a heap of bones." - Bava bathra, fol. 77, 1, and Sanhedrim, fol. 100, 1, page 393. Edit. Cocceii. See Schoettgen. Verse 22 I saw no temple - There was no need of a temple where God and the Lamb were manifestly present. Verse 23 No need of the sun - This is also one of the traditions of the ancient Jews, that "in the world to come the Israelites shall have no need of the sun by day, nor the moon by night." - Yalcut Rubeni, fol. 7, 3. God's light shines in this city, and in the Lamb that light is concentrated, and from him everywhere diffused. Verse 24 The nations of them which are saved - This is an illusion to the promise that the Gentiles should bring their riches, glory, and excellence, to the temple at Jerusalem, after it should be rebuilt. See Rev 21:26. Verse 25 The gates of it shall not be shut at all - The Christian Church shall ever stand open to receive sinners of all sorts, degrees, and nations. There shall be no night there - No more idolatry, no intellectual darkness; the Scriptures shall be everywhere read, the pure word everywhere preached, and the Spirit of God shall shine and work in every heart. Verse 26 The glory and honor of the nations into it - Still alluding to the declarations of the prophets, (see the passages in the margin, Rev 21:24, etc.), that the Gentiles would be led to contribute to the riches and glory of the temple by their gifts, etc. Verse 27 There shall in nowise enter into it any thing that defileth - See Isa 35:8; Isa 52:1. Neither an impure person - he who turns the grace of God into lasciviousness, nor a liar - he that holds and propagates false doctrines. But they which are written - The acknowledged persevering members of the true Church of Christ shall enter into heaven, and only those who are saved from their sins shall have a place in the Church militant. All Christians are bound by their baptism to renounce the devil and all his works, the pomps and vanities of this wicked world, and all the sinful lusts of the flesh; to keep God's holy word and commandments; and to walk in the same all the days of their life. This is the generation of them that seek thy face, O God of Jacob! Reader, art thou of this number? Or art thou expecting an eternal glory while living in sin? If so, thou wilt be fearfully disappointed. Presuming on the mercy of God is as ruinous as despairing of his grace. Where God gives power both to will and to do, the individual should work out his salvation with fear and trembling. Introduction The river of the water of life, Rev 22:1. The tree of life, Rev 22:2. There is no curse nor darkness in the city of God, Rev 22:3-5. The angel assures John of the truth of what he has heard, and states that the time of the fulfillment is at hand, Rev 22:6, Rev 22:7. He forbids John to worship him, Rev 22:8, Rev 22:9. Again he states that the time of the fulfillment of the prophecies of this book is at hand, Rev 22:10-12. Christ is Alpha and Omega, Rev 22:13. The blessedness of those who keep his commandments; they enter through the gates into the city, Rev 22:14. All the unholy are excluded, Rev 22:15. Christ sent his angel to testify of those things in the Churches, Rev 22:16. The invitation of the Spirit and the bride, Rev 22:17. A curse denounced against those who shall either add to or take away front the prophecies of this book, Rev 22:18, Rev 22:19. Christ cometh quickly, Rev 22:20. The apostolical benediction, Rev 22:21. Verse 1 Pure river of water of life - This is evidently a reference to the garden of paradise, and the river by which it was watered; and there is also a reference to the account, Eze 47:7-12. Water of life, as we have seen before, generally signifies spring or running water; here it may signify incessant communications of happiness proceeding from God. Verse 2 In the midst of the street of it - That is, of the city which was described in the preceding chapter. The tree of life - An allusion to Gen 2:9. As this tree of life is stated to be in the streets of the city, and on each side of the river, tree must here be an enallage of the singular for the plural number, trees of life, or trees which yielded fruit by which life was preserved. The account in

The New Jerusalem. ( a. d. 95.) 1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. 7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. 8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. We have here a more general account of the happiness of the church of God in the future state, by which it seems most safe to understand the heavenly state. I. A new world now opens to our view ( v. 1 ): I saw a new heaven and a new earth; that is, a new universe; for we suppose the world to be made up of heaven and earth. By the new earth we may understand a new state for the bodies of men, as well as a heaven for their souls. This world is not now newly created, but newly opened, and filled with all those who were the heirs of it. The new heaven and the new earth will not then be distinct; the very earth of the saints, their glorified bodies, will now be spiritual and heavenly, and suited to those pure and bright mansions. To make way for the commencement of this new world, the old world, with all its troubles and commotions, passed away. II. In this new world the apostle saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from heaven, not locally, but as to its original: this new Jerusalem is the church of God in its new and perfect state, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, beautified with all perfection of wisdom and holiness, meet for the full fruition of the Lord Jesus Christ in glory. III. The blessed presence of God with his people is here proclaimed and admired: I heard a great voice out of heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, &c., v. 3 . Observe, 1. The presence of God with his church is the glory of the church. 2. It is matter of wonder that a holy God should ever dwell with any of the children of men. 3. The presence of God with his people in heaven will not be interrupted as it is on earth, but he will dwell with them continually. 4. The covenant, interest, and relation, that there are now between God and his people, will be filled up and perfected in heaven. They shall be his people; their souls shall be assimilated to him, filled with all the love, honour, and delight in God which their relation to him requires, and this will constitute their perfect holiness; and he will be their God: God himself will be their God; his immediate presence with them, his love fully manifested to them, and his glory put upon them, will be their perfect happiness; then he will fully answer the character of the relation on his part, as they shall do on their part. IV. This new and blessed state will be free from all trouble and sorrow; for, 1. All the effects of former trouble shall be done away. They have been often before in tears, by reason of sin, of affliction, of the calamities of the church; but now all tears shall be wiped away; no signs, no remembrance of former sorrows shall remain, any further than to make their present felicity the greater. God himself, as their tender Father, with his own kind hand, shall wipe away the tears of his children; and they would not have been without those tears when God shall come and wipe them away. 2. All the causes of future sorrow shall be for ever removed: There shall be neither death nor pain; and therefore no sorrow nor crying; these are things incident to that state in which they were before, but now all former things have passed away. V. The truth and certainty of this blessed state are ratified by the word and promise of God, and ordered to be committed to writing, as matter of perpetual record, v. 5, 6 . The subject-matter of this vision is so great, and of such great importance to the church and people of God, that they have need of the fullest assurances of it; and God therefore from heaven repeats and ratifies the truth thereof. Besides, many ages must pass between the time when this vision was given forth and the accomplishment of it, and many great trials must intervene; and therefore God would have it committed to writing, for perpetual memory, and continual use to his people. Observe, 1. The certainty of the promise averred: These words are faithful and true; and it follows, It is done, is as sure as if it were done already. We may and ought to take God's promise as present payment; if he has said that he makes all things new, it is done. 2. He gives us his titles of honour as a pledge or surety of the full performance, even those titles of Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. As it was his glory that he gave the rise and beginning to the world and to his church, it will be his glory to finish the work begin, and not to leave it imperfect. As his power and will were the first cause of all things, his pleasure and glory are the last end, and he will not lose his design; for then he would no longer be the Alpha and Omega. Men may begin designs which they can never bring to perfection; but the counsel of God shall stand, and he will do all his pleasure. 3. The desires of his people towards this blessed state furnish another evidence of the truth and certainty of it. They thirst after a state of sinless perfection and the uninterrupted enjoyment of God, and God has wrought in them these longing desires, which cannot be satisfied with any thing else, and therefore would be the torment of the soul if they were disappointed but it would be inconsistent with the goodness of God, and his love to his people, to create in them holy and heavenly desires, and then deny them their proper satisfaction; and therefore they may be assured that, when they have overcome their present difficulties, he will give them of the fountain of the water of life freely. VI. The greatness of this future felicity is declared and illustrated, 1. By the freeness of it—it is the free gift of God: He gives of the water of life freely; this will not make it less but more grateful to his people. 2. The fulness of it. The people of God then lie at the fountain-head of all blessedness: they inherit all things ( v. 7 ); enjoying God, they enjoy all things. He is all in all. 3. By the tenure and title by which they enjoy this blessedness—by right of inheritance, as the sons of God, a title of all others the most honourable, as resulting from so near and endeared a relation to God himself, and the most sure and indefeasible, that can no more cease than the relation from which it results. 4. By the vastly different state of the wicked. Their misery helps to illustrate the glory and blessedness of the saints, and the distinguishing goodness of God towards them, v. 8 . Here observe, (1.) The sins of those who perish, among which are first mentioned their cowardliness and unbelief. The fearful lead the van in this black list. They durst not encounter the difficulties of religion, and their slavish fear proceeded from their unbelief; but those who were so dastardly as not to dare to take up the cross of Christ, and discharge their duty to him, were yet so desperate as to run into all manner of abominable wickedness— murder, adultery, sorcery, idolatry, and lying. (2.) Their punishment: They have their part in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. [1.] They could not burn at a stake for Christ, but they must burn in hell for sin. [2.] They must die another death after their natural death; the agonies and terrors of the first death will consign them over to the far greater terrors and agonies of eternal death, to die and to be always dying. [3.] This misery will be their proper part and portion, what they have justly deserved, what they have in effect chosen, and what they have prepared themselves for by their sins. Thus the misery of the damned will illustrate the blessedness of those that are saved, and the blessedness of the saved will aggravate the misery of those that are damned.

They shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God - So shall the covenant between God and his people be executed in the most glorious manner.

And I heard a great voice out of heaven. As if uttered by God himself, or the voice of angels. Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men. The tabernacle, as that word is commonly used in the Scriptures, referring to the sacred tent erected in the wilderness, was regarded as the peculiar dwelling-place of God among his people--as the temple was afterwards, which was also called a tabernacle. Heb 9:2. The meaning here is, that God would now dwell with the redeemed, as if in a tabernacle, or in a house specially prepared for his residence among them. It is not said that this would be on the earth, although that may be; for it is possible that the earth, as well as other worlds, may yet become the abode of the redeemed. 2Pet 3:13. And he will dwell with them. As in a tent, or tabernacle--σκηνωσει. This a common idea in the Scriptures. And they shall be his people. He will acknowledge them in this public way as his own, and will dwell with them as such. And God himself shall be with them. Shall be permanently with them; shall never leave them. And be their God. Shall manifest himself as such, in such a manner that there shall be no doubt. (c) "tabernacle of God" 2Cor 6:16 (d) "his people" Zech 8:8 Verse 4.