<p>21:23 <i>And the city has no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine upon it</i>- The sun and moon were created partly in order to give a sense of time and seasons, not least the Jewish feasts. Grasping God's view of time means that we will see the Kingdom as immortality, not everlasting life. The eternity of our future existence is not the big theme of the Bible; it is &quot;God manifestation, not human salvation&quot;, in the words of John Thomas. The process of eternity, the life and Kingdom of God, is already going on now; the tree of life <i>is</i> now (not 'will be'; Greek tenses are precise) in the midst of the paradise of God, at least from God's perspective (Rev. 2:7). We will have no need of the sun, for the light of God's glory will replace our concept of time (Rev. 21:23). Indeed, &quot;the time of the end&quot; can be read as &quot;the end of time&quot; (Dan. 12:4,9). There will be &quot;time (Gk. <i>chronos</i>, the idea of time) no longer&quot; (Rev. 10:6). The image of Dan. 2 is destroyed together by the Lord's return; each metal in some sense exists at his coming. Rather than meaning that each of those empires must have an end time revival, this may be teaching that the whole concept of human history and time will be ground to powder by the advent of the Kingdom. One day, when we are then with the Lord, will be like a thousand years (2 Pet. 3:8)- there will be no comparison between our present view of time and what will then be. The ploughman shall overtake the reaper (Am. 9:13)- which may refer to the collapsing of time, rather than just being a figure of fecundity. Before people pray, they will be heard (Is. 65:24- although this is our present prayer experience too, Mt. 6:8). Our focus should therefore be more on the <i>quality</i> and <i>nature</i> of the Kingdom life, rather than the mere eternity of it.</p><p><i>For the glory of God did light it, and the lamp of it is the Lamb</i>- This seems to imply their physical presence. There was no 'candlestick' Gk.- no temple and temple furniture was necessary. This was radical reasoning for the first century Jewish audience, dominated as they were by the temple cult.</p>