Deeper Commentary

CHAPTER 22

22:1- see on Jn. 1:14.

And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb- The throne of God and Jesus will be in Jerusalem. The river of life proceeds from there. Whilst I fail to see a doctrine of a Millennial reign taught in Revelation, it's clear that after Babylon is destroyed and Christ and the saints are enthroned in Jerusalem, there is a period of time during which the surviving mortals have the opportunity to identify themselves with the Kingdom and be immortalized. The water of life thus flows out to them, and they are urged to drink freely of it, thereby finding immortality. Likewise the tree of eternal life offers its fruits to them in :2; all they have to do is take it. And both the Lord Jesus and us His bride urge the peoples to come into the city of God, through the gates into the city of eternal life (:17). It may be that in order to eat of the tree of life they must first "wash their robes", undergoing a kind of baptism experience (:14). There may be some literal element of fulfilment of the prophecy that a fountain will be opened in Jerusalem where sin can be cleansed (Zech. 13:1).

The New Jerusalem described here is clearly presented as the capital city of the true Christian. This was another counter cultural stab at the cult of empire, whereby Rome was to be seen as the eternal mother city. To go to Rome was seen as the ultimate pilgrimage, with Caesar's palace perceived and imaged as the most 'holy' place on earth. All this is subverted by presenting the New Jerusalem, replete with the actual throne of God Almighty, as the ultimate city of identity. So Christians who lived within the Roman empire were not to see Rome as their capital, nor for that matter "Jerusalem that now is"; but rather the heavenly Jerusalem "which is above".

The new Jerusalem comes down from Heaven, clothed as a bride. The city is therefore people. Just as "Babylon" is people, so is the new "Jerusalem". The wall is 144 cubits high, combining the 12 apostles with the 12 tribes of Israel. The wall too is representative of people. This needs to be understood, lest we fall into some kind of excessive literalism regarding the physical city called Jerusalem. Indeed, Paul's connects "the Jerusalem that now is" with bondage and condemnation, rather than salvation. The "Jerusalem that is above" is free, and for freedom has Christ set us free. We are that city. Revelation is full of pictures of the triumphant, victorious believers "in Heaven", and then pictures of  them "on earth" under persecution and suffering. There is no conscious survival of death. The believers "in Heaven" are not alive. But they are assured of salvation, and so the God who is outside of time sees them as they shall eternally be. But on the ground, they are suffering. The new Jerusalem 'coming down' therefore means that the salvation now assured for us, and the nature of which is currently being worked out in Heaven, will then be turned into reality on earth. Right now, our reward is being prepared; the nature of eternity, our part in the 'new city', reflects our own chosen path, our works, the nuances of our personal relationship with the Lord Jesus which we are now developing. In this sense it is a reward prepared for us, and we will be given according to our works (Rev. 22:12), although salvation itself is by grace and not works. What the Lord is now working with us to prepare will then be transferred, from heaven to earth. This all may be represented by a physical entity appearing in Jerusalem from heaven, to replace the abomination built there by the antiChrist. Although contra that is the bald statement in Rev. 21:22 "And I saw no temple therein. For the Lord God the Almighty, and the Lamb, are the temple of it". This was clearly aimed at the way the primary Jewish audience of Revelation were being sucked back in to the temple cult of Judaism. But any such future physical entity is of small moment compared to the far greater spiritual reality which that would represent.

He who overcomes will be made a pillar in that new temple / city: "He that overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God; and he shall leave there no more, and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from my God; and my own new name" (Rev. 3:12). Clearly the temple and the city are parallel. It is a city which is a temple. And we are now that temple. The apostles are now the foundation stones of that city just as we are pillars within it. But there is a present dimension to all this. We can be pillars now within it (Gal. 2:9); and we are now the temple of God. The temple [which is the city] is now being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets: "You are fellow-citizens [as if living in a city state] with the saints and of the household of God, being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief corner stone. In whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In whom you also are being built up together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit" (Eph. 2:19-22). Heb. 12:22,23 is clear: "But you have come to association with mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable hosts of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborns, who are enrolled in heaven". This is what Revelation calls the "new Jerusalem". We are now like Abraham, walking in search of the city whose builder and maker is God (Heb. 11:10). Hebrews specifically mentions these things in view of the impending destruction of the city and temple in AD70. The point is, that at the Lord's return, what we are now in prospect will be revealed and manifest in ultimate terms, visibly and actually upon this earth.   

22:2- see on Rom. 5:12.

In the midst of the street thereof. And on both sides of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve fruits, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations- The righteous man is right now like "a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth his fruit in season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does (in this work of preaching?) shall prosper" (Ps. 1:3). These words are quoted in Rev. 22:2 concerning our holding out of life to the mortal population at the Lord's return. The conclusion? If we witness now we are living the Kingdom life now, and therefore we will be perpetuated in that time.

Rev. 21 and 22 seem to describe a "wood of trees of life" (22:2- A.V. 'tree' must be wrong because the 'tree' is on either side of the river), watered by the river of life proceeding from the mountain of "the throne of God and of the Lamb". There was a mountain in Eden, seeing there were four "headstreams" there, and it seems fitting to suggest that God's throne was on this same mountain before the fall. So whilst the picture is of Eden restored, there are differences- there will be a whole forest of trees of life, and no liar will be within the restored paradise, i.e. there will be no serpent, no possibility of sinning. Which means paradise indeed.

"The healing of the nations" suggests a process of time after the Lord's return during which the nations are healed, perhaps physically from the effects of the judgments, and spiritually.

The situation here is part of the description of the new Jerusalem. But already in this life, the tree of life "is" in God's paradise: "To him that overcomes, I will permit him to eat from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God" (Rev. 2:7). Just as the new Jerusalem in one sense exists. But these things will be made physically manifest upon earth when the new Jerusalem is as it were transferred to earth at the Lord's return.

22:3- see on Rev. 21:27.

And there shall be no curse any more, and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be therein, and his servants shall serve him- One option is "No more cursed one", alluding to the serpent. No more possibility of temptation and sin; and that would indeed be attractive to all who are spiritually minded and frustrated at their own propensity to failure.

The final chapters of Revelation so often parallel God and “the lamb" (e.g. Rev. 22:3). The Father was so deeply united with the Son in His time of sacrificial offering. See on Jn. 19:19. The descriptions of the new city of Jerusalem in the prophets and Revelation can be better understood once it is appreciated that Eden will literally be restored in that area. Zech. 14:8-11 lays the basis for the descriptions of the city in Revelation, and includes the main elements of Eden- "living waters" ('Hiddekel') going out from a "Lifted up" mountain in Jerusalem, with "no more curse" there, v.11 (the phrase "no more utter destruction" is translated like this when it is quoted in Rev. 22:3).

The removal of the curse of itself suggests that this world is not going to be destroyed; but the curse will be removed, reverting things to how they were before the sin in Eden. This is also the implication of "I am making all things new" in Rev. 21:5. The old is not destroyed totally, but made new. The word for "new" is not neos, meaning new in time or quality, but kainos, which means newness in nature or quality. The new heavens and earth are clearly based on the idea of the creation of heavens and earth in Genesis 1. But there too, we have pre-existing matter being re-ordered, and something beautiful emerging from chaos. And this is how things shall we at the Lord's return; and this is our personal hope. "We shall be changed", but not totally destroyed into some kind of nirvana / non-existence. Salvation is personal, and so we can see continuities between our present existence and how we shall eternally be. In this we see the paramount importance of personality; for who we are now is who we shall eternally be. "The spirit shall be saved". The new Jerusalem is likewise us now, "in heaven" in God's plan and purpose, which must 'come down' and be more materially and tangibly manifest upon earth. This fits with the repeated teaching that the Kingdom of God will be a restoration of the Kingdom of God as it was historically. The Lord Jesus will "restore again the Kingdom to Israel". The first heaven and earth "passes away", but that is parallel with "the former things are passed away" (Rev. 21:1,4). Likewise "no more sea" (Rev. 21:1) is hardly literal; it refers to the environment out of which the evil beasts arise (Dan. 7:3; Rev. 13:1,6,7). Nowhere does the Bible teach the literal destruction of the earth.

22:4 They shall see his face, and his name shall be on their foreheads- The reference seems to be to God Himself. This is in the context of the allusions to the situation in Eden being restored. The result of sin was that Adam and Eve went away from the face of God whereas they had previously seen it (Gen. 3:9-11). It is all about relationship with God without barrier. Throughout Revelation 21 and 22 there is a distinction made between God and "the Lamb". This further suggests that the references to "God himself" are not to God manifestation in the Lamb, but to Yahweh Himself. "They shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads" indicates that "His face" and "His name" refer to the same being. The Name which will be in our foreheads will be that of Yahweh, the Father, not Christ (Rev. 3:12; 14:1). Therefore it is His face which we will see. Of course there is some reference here to 'seeing' in the sense of understanding, which is how we see the Father now.   But then our fuller mental comprehension of the Father will be reflected in our physical vision of Him.  Is. 25:6-9 speaks of how God's people will enjoy a feast in Jerusalem at the Lord's return, the veil will be withdrawn from their eyes, all tears will be wiped away, and then "It shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God... this is Yahweh". There is a parallel between physically seeing God and having the veil of our present incomprehension removed. The fuller understanding which we will then have will be reflected in our literal seeing of God.

The seeing of God's face is parallel with having His Name or personality in our heads, in the centre of our minds. This is what will make the physical seeing of His face appropriate.

The Name of God in the forehead contrasts with the name in the forehead of Babylon. Here we find continued the idea that the city of Babylon is the antithesis of the new Jerusalem. But neither are literal cities; they are women, one a prostitute and the other a bride; they represent the world and the church. There is no third group, and the two systems can never assimilate into each other. They are radically opposed. And this is the situation between the believer and whatever form of 'Babylon' surrounds them. The harlot Babylon has jewels, as does the new Jerusalem. The unclean things and abominations within Babylon (Rev. 17:3,4) are the very things which are outside the new Jerusalem (Rev. 21:6). The new Jerusalem has names belonging to it, which are in the book of life (Rev. 21:27); the names associated with Babylon are not in the book of life (Rev. 17:8). Again we see that these cities refer to people and not to geographical locations.

22:5 There shall be night no more, so they do not need the light of a lamp, nor the light of the sun; for the Lord God shall give them light- The candle, symbol of God's word (Ps. 119:105) will no longer be needed by the faithful, because "the Lord God shall give them light". Our personal, direct contact with God will replace the ministry of the Bible and indeed all God's manifestations and communications as we now have experienced them. Personally seeing God's face means that we need no other form of illumination. But the parallel in Rev. 21:23 says that "the city has no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine upon it. For the glory of God did light it, and the lamp of it is the Lamb". "The city" is the "they" who are God's servants (:3). The light God will give is the light of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, the Lamb. But we now see that same glory, albeit through a glass darkly (2 Cor. 4:6); just as we are in a sense the city now.

The allusion is to the prophecies that Zion's light shall be everlasting and shall eclipse the need for sun and moon (Is. 30:23-26; 60:1,2,19,20). But that everlasting light shall shine "day and night", according to Is. 60:20. So we are not to think that the literal heavens shall be destroyed. But the message we get is that the spiritual shall far eclipse the physical, although the physical shall remain. All pictures of the Kingdom of God which focus heavily upon the physical [ideal climate etc.] are simply missing the Biblical emphasis- which is upon relationship with God, and His glory.

And they shall reign for ever and ever- This continues the allusions to Eden and the restoration of the situation there. Man will again see God's face (:4), as he did there. But the intention was that Adam in Eden would reign over all creation (Gen. 1:26). This intention is now going to be realized- for ever.

22:6- see on Jer. 23:18,22.

And he said to me: These words are faithful and true- It seems the Angel sensed John's struggle to accept the reality of it all. See on 21:5 Write!

And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent His angel to show His servants what must soon take place- Perhaps this continues the theme noted in :5; that now we shall be face to face with God, there is no need for any more manifestation of Him to us through things like His word. His Spirit was in the prophets, but now the God whose Spirit that was- is with us face to face.

His servants- We are given the same simple title in :3. We will eternally serve Him, and so we have begun the eternal life now, in so far as we serve Him now. The present experience of the eternal life is a major theme in John's writings.

22:7 And behold, I come quickly- These words would be appropriate to the Lord Jesus, so we assume that He spoke them; or that the Angel so intensely represented the Lord that he could appropriately say them. The Lord's quick or soon coming could refer to the suddenness of His coming, implying the need for constant readiness for it on our part. Or the idea may indeed be that He is coming "soon", in that all believers are to live as if the second coming is imminent. And the Lord could have come "soon" after John's time, had Israel repented. The Olivet prophecy and many New Testament references certainly support that possibility. But because of the unreadiness of the bride, the lack of repentance in Israel and lack of spiritual fruit in the church, that coming has been delayed to our days.

Blessed is he that keeps the words of the prophecy of this book- The book is hardly a list of commandments, and this particular section of Revelation is a description of the awesome destiny awaiting God's people by grace. So the reference is not really to 'keeping' in the sense of keeping commandments; nor can 'keep' be twisted to mean 'keep the right interpretation of...'. Perhaps the idea is that blessed is he who believes these wonderful things and keeps the reality of them far further than merely seeing the vision, being visually awed, and then slipping back into the humdrum of the mediocre religious life.

22:8 And I John am he that heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel that showed me these things- The "these things" don't therefore refer to the entire vision, but to what John saw prior to falling before the Angel. Presumably the reference is to the amazing vision of eternity in 22:1-5. Faced with these eternal realities, our natural response should be to fall down and worship.

22:9 And he said to me: You must not do that! I am a fellow-servant with you, and with your brothers the prophets, and with those that keep the words of this book. Worship God!- This shows that the Angel was a prophet. This title does not only mean one who foretells future events, but in Biblical usage refers more to one who ministers the word of God under inspiration; the Angel was therefore responsible for inspiring the Bible like the prophets (Old and New Testament ones) were. Note too how the Lord describes the Angels as “servants” (Mt. 22:13), using the common description of the prophets as Jehovah’s servants- as if He saw a close connection between Angels and prophets. See on 2 Cor. 3:6.

22:10 Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book. For the time is at hand- The implication would be that the interpretation of Revelation would be sealed until the time for fulfilment was at hand. Daniel was told the same about his prophecies (Dan. 12:9). This fits with much other Bible teaching, to the effect that prophecy will be understood at the very end of time, just before its final fulfilment in the Lord's return. The flagship verse concerning the opening of our eyes to latter day prophecy must be Dan. 12:4,10: "Shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro (an idiom often used concerning response to God's word: Ps. 119:32,60; 147:15; Amos 8:11,12; Hab. 2:2; 2 Thess. 3:1 Gk.), and knowledge (of Daniel's prophecies) shall be increased... many shall be purified, and made white, and tried (in the tribulation); but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand". This is all in the context of the Angel rejecting Daniel's plea for insight into his own prophecies. All he was told was that they would be fulfilled in the far distant future, but he was comforted with the thought that the faithful at that time would understand. That the fulfilment of all the latter day prophecies will be understood fully in the very last days is implied in Jer. 23:20: "In the latter days you shall understand it perfectly". The "it" refers to "the intents of [God's] heart" revealed in His prophetic word. It is no accident that the Apocalypse ends with words which clearly allude to the closing words of Daniel. John falls at the Angel's feet, as Daniel did. The Angel then says: "Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book (unlike Daniel's, which was sealed): for the time is at hand. He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still (cp. "the wicked shall do wickedly")". The implication is that the book is sealed for those who are a long way from the time of fulfilment; hence John must not seal the prophecy because its fulfilment is near. Thus Dan. 12:4 LXX reads: "Seal the book until the time of its accomplishment"- then it will be unsealed and the meaning become apparent. The primary application of Revelation is to the events of AD70; the implication is that the righteous understood the pattern of events then because of this book. There is a repeated stress throughout the NT epistles on the need to understand and get true knowledge (1 Pet. 3:7; 2 Pet. 1:2-6,8,16; 2:20; 3:18), perhaps with special reference to Scripture like the Olivet prophecy and Revelation; likewise 1 Tim. 3:1,16; 4:1,2 encourage Bible study in the 'last days' leading up to AD70. The need for understanding and study at that time is reflected in our last days. Paul told the Thessalonians (in the context of AD70) that he didn't need to tell them about the times and seasons because they already understood the prophecies so well- but they needed rather to make sure that their lifestyle was appropriate to their understanding (1 Thess. 5:1-5). The situation in AD70 is a type of the true "last days". Therefore the understanding of Revelation will not be sealed just before its second and major fulfilment in the second coming of Christ. In the same way as Daniel's prophecies will be opened to us in the last days, so must the book of Revelation, because the understanding of Revelation is so bound up with the meaning of Daniel. "None of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand" suggests that this true understanding of prophecy motivates the faithful remnant in holding on to a righteous lifestyle. Time and again Israel are condemned because their lack of understanding of the prophecies led them into sinful behaviour (Dt. 32:29; Ps. 94:8; Is. 44:18).

As to the time being "at hand", see on :7.

22:11 He that is unrighteous, let him continue to do unrighteousness, and he that is filthy, let him remain filthy, and he that is righteous, let him continue to do righteousness, and he that is holy, let him remain holy- This verse appears to be stating the obvious and axiomatic, but probably the idea is that God will confirm people in the way they wish to go. Seeing the reference is to the time of the very end (:10), the idea may also be that once the Lord comes, we cannot change our ways. Now is the time to do that. We will as it were be frozen as we are.

22:12- see on Mt. 26:70.

Behold, I come suddenly- See on :7.

And my reward is with me- The reward has been prepared for us in Heaven (Mt. 5:12). In this sense the new Jerusalem descends from Heaven- to us.

To repay everyone for what he has done- Gk. 'according as his works shall be'. It will be in our last days that Israel's blindness starts to be cured, thanks to a Word-based revival, led by the Elijah ministry. Solomon's prayer stated that when Israel properly repented, God would then "render unto every man according unto all his ways" (2 Chron. 6:30). Our Lord here definitely applied these words to the work of His second coming. His allusion to Solomon's prayer should be proof enough that the time of His full apocalypse is related to the time of Israel's repentance. The "everyone" in view is not only the believers; the phrase 'according to works' is found in Rev. 18:6 about the judgments upon Babylon according as their works have been. We noted on 20:13 that the judgment according to works may specifically be a reference to the judgment of those who persecuted the believers during the tribulation. For the believers are not judged according to their works in that salvation is not on the basis of works, although it is also true that our works will have eternal consequence.

22:13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end- The Lord Jesus is appropriating to Himself the titles of His Father, as used in Is. 41:4; 44:6; 48:12. Those statements that God is "the first and with the last" are all in the context of assuring a doubting Judah that really, God has saved them. We sense from the encouragement to John to really record all this, and the repeated reminders that these words are true and faithful, that the Lord's people will struggle to grasp the wonderful truth of all this. Right through the process, from our foreknowledge at the beginning to the "last things" of our final salvation- He will have been in the process.

22:14- see on Mk. 10:25.

Blessed are they that wash their robes, that they may have the right to eat of the tree of life and may enter in through the gates into the city- The reference may be to baptism, and belief in the efficacy of that washing. On this basis we will have the “right” to the tree of life (Rev. 22:14); yet our salvation is by pure grace alone. We are "meet" to be partakers of the inheritance, we walk worthy of the Lord Jesus unto all pleasing of him (Col. 1:10-12), the labourers receive the penny of salvation, that which is their right (Mt. 20:14). We are either seen as absolutely perfect, or totally wicked, due to God's imputation of righteousness or evil to us (Ps. 37:37). There is no third way.

This parallels the city and Eden by equating having "right to the tree of life" with entering "in through the gates into the city". Rev. 22:3 tells us that the throne of God will be in "it" - i.e. the wood of life (not the river- see context), as in Eden God's throne was in the garden, which garden was presumably a wood of trees and little else ("of every tree of the garden..." -other plants are not mentioned), in the same way as the new Eden is composed solely of trees of life. The invitation "of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat" is mirrored in "take the water (lit. take from the stream) of life freely" - the stream being that of Eden. Rev. 21:27 stresses that no serpent -"whatever works abomination or makes a lie"- will enter the new Eden as it did before. The midst of the new Garden will be the throne of Christ, who in every way will then be the tree of life and knowledge. This will be paradise restored, but without the possibility of sinning. Paradise indeed.

22:15 Outside it- We all worry as to whether we shall be left outside the Kingdom. This description of those outside is helpful in this regard. All are urged to enter, the gates are open constantly, the Spirit and bride both urging entrance, the water of eternal life can be drunk freely, a whole forest of trees of life offer their eternal fruit to all regularly, the wall around the city is transparent. Only those who don't want to be there will not be.

Are the dogs- One subtext of these visions is the criticism of Judaism and legalism. "Dogs" are elsewhere used to represent those who teach circumcision and who return to the Jewish law (Phil. 3:2; 2 Pet. 2:22).

And the sorcerers- Literally, poisoners. All these categories of the condemned have one thing in common- they entice others into sin and damage others, after the pattern of the serpent in Eden. The message is that paradise will be restored but with the major difference that there will no more be tempters and enticers to sin. Pharmakeus could perhaps dynamically be translated as 'drug pushers'. But the reference is to how the system of the beast and Babylon is guilty of all these things, spreading her sorceries, fornication, idolatry and lies to all the peoples in the earth / land during the tribulation.

Idolaters- Those who worship images, and Revelation has much to say about those who worship the image of the latter day beast.

Lovers and practisers of falsehood-  Those who love and create lies. Given all the allusions to paradise restored, this must refer to the serpent in Eden.

22:16 I Jesus have sent my angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star- This statement of the obvious seems to be another example of how the utter reality of these things is being emphasized. This is not fantasy or wild dreaming, there is an eternal truth to this message of the Kingdom. And the message is to be shared with "the churches", initially the seven [representative] churches of chapters 1-3.

The Lord is both the offspring of Jesse and David, and also "the root of Jesse" (Is. 11:1,10). This is another way of saying that He is the alpha and omega of all things. All this wonderful plan was planned for us from the beginning and shall come to fulfilment. Barnes helpfully comments: "Not the root in the sense that David sprang from him, as a tree does from a root, but in the sense that he was the “root-shoot” of David, or that he himself sprang from him, as a sprout starts up from a decayed and fallen tree - as of the oak, the willow, the chestnut, etc. The meaning then is, not that he was the ancestor of David, or that David sprang from him, but that he was the offspring of David, according to the promise in the Scripture, that the Messiah should be descended from him. No argument, then, can be derived from this passage in proof of the pre-existence, or the divinity of Christ".

22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say: Come! And he that hears, let him say: Come!- The whole spirit of the Lord Jesus is to invite others to come and share His salvation. He that hears will say to others "Come". This refers to the redeemed community and the Lord Jesus urging the survivors of Babylon's judgments to come within the city of salvation. Those who 'hear', i.e. believe, will invite others to 'come', in the spirit of Zech. 8:21. There is a wonderful theme in these last visions of urging others to accept the great salvation presented. The water of life can be freely drunk, the gates of the city are open constantly, and the Spirit ["the Lord the Spirit", the Lord Jesus] and us the bride urge others to enter. In the immediate context of this chapter, the reference would be to the mortal nations who survive Armageddon who are urged to enter the Kingdom which has been established in Jerusalem.

And he that is thirsty, let him come. Let him that desires take the water of life freely- The 'free' nature of the gift of eternal life fits into the general impression given in these visions that the community of salvation is so utterly and easily open to all, and the only qualification is that we 'desire' to be there; that we are those who 'thirst' for the water of eternal life. This goes back to the Lord's opening teaching in the Sermon on the Mount; that salvation is freely available quite simply for those who really want it. Our desire to 'be there' should therefore be the passion of our heart, our defining emotion and wish. And we shall be satisfied.

22:18 I testify to every man that hears the words of the prophecy of this book, that if anyone shall add to them, God shall add to him the plagues which are written in this book- The reference is not to the whole Bible, it is specifically to the words of the prophecy of the Apocalypse. The only other time the Greek text talks about 'adding things' is in Acts 15:28 where we read of the tendency to add things to salvation by faith alone. I have suggested that the language of the New Jerusalem and the open temple is all to be understood in the first century context in which it was given. For the admission of non-Jews to a largely Jewish Christian community was a live issue. The picture presented here is of an eternal salvation where literal Jerusalem and its temple are surpassed by the reality of the Kingdom, and the 12 tribes of Israel are no longer to be understood literally. So I suggest with that background, the idea here is that the great salvation just presented is available to all, freely. And anyone who adds conditions to that shall be excluded from it; and likewise any who detract from the vision by not believing it. For the fearful and unbelieving are listed in Revelation alongside the whores and sorcerers who shall remain outside the new Jerusalem.

Yet the plagues written in the book have specific reference to latter judgments upon the Jews and upon the supporters of the beast in the earth / land promised to Abraham during the three and a half year final tribulation. Islam adds to the prophecies through claiming that the Koran and Hadith were given after the time of Revelation; and first century Judaism added to God's book by elevating their laws and traditions to effectively the same status as the words of God un the Bible.

22:19 And if anyone shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the tree of life and out of the holy city, which are written of in this book- That disobeying the law of God is effectively adding to it was clearly brought home to Israel: "What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it" (Dt. 12:32). The command to Joshua to "observe to do according to all the law... turn not from it to the right hand or to the left" (Josh. 1:7) is probably reiterating the command not to add ("to the right") or subtract ("to the left") from the law. Rev. 22:18,19 is based on these passages.

Only those once written in the book of life can have their names taken out of it. The idea of taking away therefore refers to believers who fall away. In the last days especially, as the tribulation unfolds, it will be tempting for believers to downgrade the book of Revelation, and not to accept the plain teaching about the need for separation from the beast, even if it nets death and persecution. There will be a particular temptation then to "take away" from this book. 

22:20 He who testifies these things says: Yes. I come quickly. Amen- See on :7. This could mean that the return of the Lord was all set up and possible in the first century, but was delayed due to human failure to meet the required conditions. It could equally mean that He will come suddenly, unexpectedly for many; and the key characteristic of the faithful is that we should be ready for His coming. Acceptance of His 'imminent' return is a feature of Christian life; we are to live expecting the end to come very soon.

The idea of delayed fulfilment of that which was expected imminently is, however, part of God's entire revelation. On one hand, the delays are because of human failure to meet required preconditions, e.g. the spread of the Gospel to all the world before the end comes, the fruit of repentance on the fig tree of Israel, spiritual fruit in the body of Christ, etc. And yet we have to note that throughout Revelation, we have visions of the "end"; as if that end is approached but not quite reached. Because then we go on to read of further events which must happen. There are gaps between the openings of the sixth and seventh seals, and again between the blowing of the sixth and seventh trumpets. The impression given to someone listening to the book being read would have been of 'strange delay'. We may take relief when we hear that there is to be "delay no longer" (Rev. 10:3-6); but then we go on to read of a three and a half year period of witness amidst persecution (Rev. 11:3). So promise of the end, followed by delay, and then another cycle of the same... appears to be part of God's style. It may well reflect human failures to meet preconditions. But it may also simply be His style in history, in order to bring things to an even greater climax when the Lord finally does return.

Revelation comforts believers that their sufferings at the hands of systems of evil are only for "a short time" or "a little while" (Rev. 6:11; 12:12; 17:10) is from Heaven's perspective. For those 'on the ground' suffering persecution and death during that "short time", this would give perspective. But it would only be comforting if they accepted Heaven's perspective, as taught in Revelation. Believing in the ultimate return of Jesus and the eternity of God's Kingdom on earth... this enables us to locate our own sufferings, even if they last a lifetime, within the broader perspective of eternity. The comfort that suffering is only 'for a moment' only finds meaning if we accept the reality of the eternity ahead. In this sense, the Lord's return is "soon".

Come Lord Jesus- There is little point in praying for His coming if it is set for a date set in stone that cannot be altered. The calendar date of His coming is therefore not set; because it depends upon our prayers.

22:21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with the saints. Amen- Given the awesome eternal future prepared, it is appropriate we are reminded that this is all by absolute grace. Yet "grace" often carries with it the idea of the gift of the Spirit, and this is a major theme in John's writings. He wishes all readers to accept that gift, the presence and power of the Lord Jesus with us; which is the essence of life now just as it shall be of the life eternal.