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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.

The events of this chapter are a continuation of the series of prophecy considered in the preceding one, only describing an entirely different phase the final reward and eternal home of God’s people. We have traced many series of prophecies through the long weary pathway of centuries, only to find the termination of the powers of wickedness in the lake of fire at the end of time or their overthrow otherwise set forth under appropriate symbols; but in no instance has the final reward of God’s people after the judgment been fully described. That glorious event of the future was referred to in Chap 7 as the final in-gathering of the redeemed “of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues.” The description however, was incomplete. Since the eternal abode of the wicked is referred to often, the subject would seem incomplete without a description of the final glories and triumphs of the redeemed in their future and eternal home. Though their earthly pilgrimage is fraught with sorrow, death, pain, wretchedness, and misery, by the hands of their violent oppressors, yet they shall witness the complete overthrow of all their enemies in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, and they themselves shall be rewarded eternally; for “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, neither crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away.” It is fitting that such a sublime theme should be reserved as the grand climax of the book of Revelation.

With the dissolution of the earth on which we live, which event has just been described, it is evident that the many lines of prophecy leading up to that great event are no longer under special consideration, but that a new theme subsequent to the judgment scene is introduced with the words of the Revelator immediately following “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.” The heaven, earth, and sea that passed away certainly refers to the earth that now is and to the aerial heaven surrounding it; therefore the new heaven and the new earth brought to view must signify the future and eternal home that Jesus went to prepare. We could not consistently make the one literal and the other symbolical. This accords perfectly with the teaching of the apostle Peter where he says: “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.... Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” 2 Pet 3:10-13.

The holy city of God, the New Jerusalem, is next introduced. Since this meets its fulfilment in the new order of things subsequent to the judgment scene, it must have special reference to the future abode of the saints in the new earth. Many of the symbols here describing the New Jerusalem, and even New Jerusalem itself, are often used to set forth the church of God in the New Testament dispensation. The church on earth and the church of God in heaven are in one important sense the same thing, as they constitute but one family (Eph 3:15); yet in another sense there is a difference, and the proper distinction must be observed even when the same symbols or titles are used to describe or designate both phases. A similar two-foldness is seen in many lines of truth. In Heb 12:22, 23, we are represented as dwelling in the city of God in this dispensation; yet verse 27 of this chapter and the fourteenth of the following chapter plainly show our entrance into the city at the end. The Scriptures represent God as dwelling on earth in his church, which, of course, is considered in a spiritual sense; but his actual throne and place of abode is in heaven. A new creation brought about by Christ in his first advent is set forth by various texts; still, it remains a fact that a new creation will actually be brought to view after the present world is no more and that the same will be our eternal home. We obtain spiritual life through Christ now, hence have right to the tree of life; yet in another sense our access to the tree of life is at the end and we then enter in through the gates into the city. Chap 22:14. Hence it is proper to speak of the city of God as both present and future, by observing the proper distinction, just as the Scriptures speak of the church in a twofold sense as being both on earth and in heaven, or of the spiritual kingdom in the present and the eternal kingdom in the end. It is Scriptural to speak of God’s throne as being on earth in the midst of his saints in a spiritual sense and also of its being located in heaven. The tree of life is a present realization spiritually and also a future reality. We dwell in the city of God now in the suburbs, as it were but we shall “have a right” to it in the future state when we are ushered into the very heart of the great metropolis and stand before the actual throne of the Deity, in the presence of his August Majesty.

In the New Testament dispensation the heavenly elements of the New Jerusalem have descended to earth in the form of the new covenant, and God’s people obtain a foretaste of heaven’s glory and are made pure even as Christ is pure, and are therefore represented as having “come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem” (Heb 12:22, 23); and God dwells with them in a very important sens Cor 6:16. They are one with the redeemed above, and together they constitute one “family in heaven and earth,” all loving the same Father, adoring the same King, drinking from the same fountain of life eternal, and all basking in the same divine light that beams from the throne of God. In another sense, however, there is a difference between them; for they are separated by the line of mortality, one phase being located on earth and the other in heaven. But when at the last day the redeemed of earth have access to the tree of life in its perfect sense, there will be henceforth only one phase to the New Jerusalem, or church of God, which will be in its relation to the new earth, as specially described in the prophecy under consideration, when “all things” are made new and “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.

The declarations contained in these verses proceed from God himself and announce the fact that he hath now fulfilled all that he designed. His promises to his faithful children are brought to pass, as well as his threatening to his foes. All things are made new and the former things are passed away. Not only has the strife, the commotion, and the sin in the old order of things passed away, but the new creation, wherein dwelleth righteousness, has been introduced, the grand long-looked-for era of eternal blessedness to the saints. Oh, halleluiah! “And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.”

“And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.” When the seventh angel of Chap 16:17 poured out his vial, the voice of God from the throne said, “It is done,” signifying that the last judgments were complete. Here again the same voice is heard as before, referring to the same thing the accomplishment of God’s great purposes. The enemies of the church have been overthrown, her long period of warfare has ended, and the eternal day of Zion’s glory has come. Then follow his blessed promises held out to the faithful, and also the reward to the wicked. These are to be understood as referring to these classes, not at the day of judgment, but when the Revelation was given to John and therefore to us. “I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things [in the margin, these things]: and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.” “This is the reward in reserve for those who endure through this period of trial and overcome at last. They shall drink of living waters, which will be sweet and refreshing indeed to those who have toiled through this fight; and they shall inherit these things these new heavens and earth. God shall be their God, and they his sons. Oh, what an honor! what a destiny in reserve for the faithful! with what glorious anticipations may the believer look forward to the revelations of that day, and with Paul say, ’If by any means I may attain unto the resurrection of the dead.’

“What warning also to the wicked! The same voice that utters the promise, pronounces also the threatening. ’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.’ God says, ‘These words are true and faithful.’ They came from him who sat upon the throne, the Alpha and Omega. He has put his everlasting seal to them, and pledged his veracity to their truth.” Dear reader, will you accept the word of Him who can not lie and choose to suffer affliction with the people of God until our Lord shall come to call his ransomed home? Or will you decide to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season, only to be resurrected at the last great day to “shame and everlasting contempt”? There is no intimation of future salvation for the transgressor. The lake of fire still stands as the symbol of eternal destruction, and into it the fearful and unbelieving and wicked of every name are cast.

9. And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife.

10. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,

11. Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;

12. And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:

13. On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.

14. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

15. And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.

16. And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.

17. And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.

18. And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.

19. And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;

20. The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.

21. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.

22. And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

23. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.

24. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honor into it.

25. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.

26. And they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations into it.

27. And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

We have here a magnificent description of the New Jerusalem, representing the home of the redeemed. The various symbols employed in its description must of course he understood as symbolical. We have no means of knowing just what our future home will be like; but that it will be a place of wondrous beauty and transcendent glory is shown by the fact that everything which is considered grand and glorious in this world is here chosen to represent the home of the redeemed. The symbols selected to describe it are objects of such priceless worth, even exceeding royal splendor, that we pause in astonishment and exclaim, “What must the reality be?” The conditions upon which entrance to this city may be obtained (Ver 27; Chap 22:14) show clearly that our future and eternal home is the chief burden of this vision and not merely our spiritual inheritance in this world.

“In approaching Jerusalem, the traveller is not aware of its proximity, until, ascending an eminence, the glorious city bursts upon his astonished vision, when he is ready to exclaim with the Psalmist ’Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great king.’”Psa 48:2. John was carried to “a great and high mountain,” from which commanding point of view he was enabled to survey in all its boundless extent the surpassing glories of the New Jerusalem. Never did imagination conceive anything approaching the sublimity and grandeur of the scene here described by the pen of inspiration. It was “a great city” how great we shall soon discover the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.

The ancient city of Jerusalem was regarded as sacred because in it God had recorded his name, and it contained his holy temple, his place of residence on earth. Thither the tribes of Israel went up to worship; “Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.” So, also, this New Jerusalem was “the holy city,” an antitype of the former. It is described as “having the glory of God, and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.” “The glory of God” was that visible manifestation, called the Shekinah, which Jehovah made of himself in the tabernacle of his ancient people. The following facts concerning it will give us an understanding of its signification as connected with the New Jerusalem:

“Jehovah was the accepted King and Lawgiver of his people Israel, and he had his tabernacle among them, where he abode by his presence, where he might be approached and consulted, and make communications of his will. That visible presence was ‘the glory of God’ or the Shekinah; and the Jews regarded it with the highest possible veneration, as the embodiment of the Deity. The sacred writers often speak of it in the same terms as of Jehovah himself. They refer to this when they speak of seeing God. ’Then went up Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and they saw the God of Israel.’ Ex 24:9, 10. ’I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.’ Isa 6:1. And again in verse 5: ’For mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.’ The spiritual essence of God can not, of course, be revealed to mortal vision, yet there was a manifestation of the Deity which was made visible to the eyes of men, and which Moses and Isaiah speak of as seeing God. It is spoken of as the presence and face of Jehovah. ’And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.’ Ex 33:14. ’And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend.’ Ex 33:11.”

The New Jerusalem that John saw descending from God which denotes its heavenly origin had “the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.” It dazzled as the purest diamond. In verse 23 we are informed that it illuminated the whole city so that there was “no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.” In ancient times “the glory of God” filled the tabernacle, the place of his abode; but here it filled the whole city. In that tabernacle the Shekinah was the manifestation of the divine glory of Jehovah. In the New Jerusalem Jesus Christ, who is “the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person,” illuminates the entire city of God. Oh, halleluiah!

In olden times the cities were surrounded with walls, designed as a defense against all enemies. The more important the city, the higher and stronger were the walls built. Having walls, it was necessary also to have gates to furnish ingress and egress to the inhabitants. These gates were in charge of faithful guardians, who had authority to open and to close them according to the regulations of the city. In accordance with this idea the city of God is represented as having “a wall great and high.” This wall represents the security of Zion, whose inhabitants within can rest in peace and safety. The three gates on each side represent the free and easy access into the city from every quarter. Anciently, it was customary to give names to the gates of a city, just as we now do to our streets. The gates of this holy city were named after the twelve tribes of the children of Israel, which embraced all God’s ancient covenant people, and which denotes the perfection and completeness of our heavenly home as including all the spiritual Israel.

And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The twelve foundations, or rather the twelve courses of stone in the foundation, are more fully described hereafter. The names of the twelve tribes were on the gates to denote that the city was composed of Gods true and complete Israel, and the names of the twelve apostles are on the foundation to denote that this contains the church which was built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone. Eph 2:20. The system of truth that they preached to the world forms the doctrinal basis of the church of God, they having received it from heaven by inspiration of God, and their names all appear; and together they constitute one harmonious, solid foundation upon which the church shall stand foreVer

The dimensions of the city as measured by the angel are next given as twelve thousand furlongs, or one thousand five hundred miles. By the statement that the length, the breadth and the height are equal, some have supposed that the city was one thousand five hundred miles high. To quote the words of a certain commentator: “The language, however, will bear another meaning, which is far more natural. It is not that the length and breadth and height were severally equal to each other, but equal with themselves; that is the length was everywhere the same, the breadth everywhere the same, and the height the same. It was perfect and symmetrical in all its proportions. This is confirmed by the fact distinctly stated, that the wall was one hundred and forty and four cubits high, or two hundred and sixteen feet, a proper height for a wall; while it is said only that ’the length is as large as the breadth.’” This writer reckoned but eighteen inches for a cubit, whereas some figure twenty-two. A city one thousand and five hundred miles high with a wall only two hundred and sixteen or two hundred and sixty four feet high, would be altogether out of proportion.

The wondrous dimensions of this city set forth the fact that our future home far exceeds in grandeur and extent everything that is looked upon as glorious upon earth. Who ever heard of a city one thousand and five hundred miles square? We have had empires so large, but no such cities. In this representation the city does not encompass the entire earth as she in one sense really does, because it would be impossible thus to represent her and at the same time she be represented as a city within the earth, into which the nations bring their “glory and honor.” The ancient city of Babylon with its beautiful hanging-gardens, the very triumph of human skill, and the city itself lying in a foursquare, being fifteen miles on each side, was unsurpassed in human loveliness. But the city of God is represented as fifteen hundred miles square, which dimensions are out of all proportion with anything existing on earth; hence its beauty and magnificence must be ascribed to God only.

“And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold like unto clear glass.” The jasper is the same crystal gem before mentioned. What a wondrous wall it must have been! It was not made of such common material as granite, freestone, or marble, which can make the most imposing structures that human pride can rear, and which are fit for the residence of lofty kings; but it was of jasper, clear as crystal. Think of the wall of this holy city being nearly three hundred feet high and stretching around the city six thousand miles, all built of the purest diamond! No stretch of the human imagination can properly compass such a vision. In rearing earthly structures men seek such material as combine durability, cheapness, beauty, and ease of being wrought. Look at this wall! For durability, it has the most indestructible material that can be found on earth. For beauty, the language of man can not even convey a meagre description of its amazing loveliness. For cheapness God’s riches were inexhaustible, hence it was not necessary to take this into consideration. For ease of being wrought think of the vast amount of labor it requires to cut and shape even one large diamond, it being said to require in some cases years of incessant toil; yet God could afford to build the wall of this city of such material. Oh, wonders of God’s handiwork! How inexpressibly glorious! This, my dear reader, symbolizes the priceless worth of our eternal home, secured through the atonement. Study the plan of redemption. There is nothing equal to it in the universe. “What is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”

Men become greatly agitated over the announcement of the discovery of gold in the Klondyke, in the Australian continent, in California, and with feverish excitement they abandon their homes and rush headlong to the reputed El Dorado, fearing neither famine, storms, deserts, nor the icy northern blasts. But all the gold ever mined from the bowels of the earth is insignificant and forms no comparison with the representation of this city. Its streets and mansions were built, not of common cement, lumber, nor even granite and marble, but of pure gold.

The twelve courses of stone in the foundation of the wall have already been mentioned. It is here particularly described. One might suppose that, according to human custom, rougher material would be selected for the foundation. Not so, howeVer The most brilliant and costly gems were chosen to lay these courses. Nothing cheap nor common had anything to do in the construction of this marvelous city. It was altogether beyond the reach of men to imitate: it was God’s own handiwork; and we can not but admire its wondrous beauty. It is unnecessary to give a minute description of the gems of which these foundation-courses were composed. They were the most beautiful and costly of which men possess any knowledge. In appearance they represent various colors of the most delicate shades. Royal persons wear even the smallest of these gems upon their persons and imagine themselves richly adorned; but in this city of God they appear in such abundance that they are even selected to form the basis, or foundation, of the wall. “And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl.” We have rich necklaces of pearl; but where is the individual that was ever blessed with such a profusion of wealth that he could ornament the gates of a city with pearls? The gates of the New Jerusalem, however, were not merely ornamented or studded with pearls that were a very small thing for her but each gate was of one solid pearl. To conceive the immensity of this representation we must consider the size of the gates required to accommodate the multitudes constantly entering and departing from a city. To be in proportion to the wall they would have to be of immense size, and also of prodigious strength in order to resist the assaults of enemies, as they would be the first places attacked. The gate of the temple called Beautiful, mentioned in the Book of Acts, which was in the wall surrounding the temple, is said to have been seventy-five feet high and sixty in width, built of Corinthian brass. Yet immense as they were, those in the New Jerusalem were each of one solid pearl. Oh, beautiful city of God, the home of the saints!

The most prominent object within the walls of the ancient Jerusalem was the magnificent temple on Mount Zion. It was the chief ornament and glory of the city. In the New Jerusalem, however, no temple is seen. Alas! is not this a great defect? What is Jerusalem without a temple where the tribes may go up and worship before the Lord? Oh, they need no temple in this glorious city of God; for there is one there greater than the temple: “the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.” This doubtless sets forth the fact that the worship of God is pure and spiritual and of free access to all. Under the old dispensation the high priest alone, and he but once a year, was permitted to enter the sacred precincts of the Deity as limited to the inner sanctuary of the temple. Now God’s people need no mediating priest to offer up a special sacrifice that the will of God might be known; but all are kings and priests who offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ (1 Pet 2:5); yea, as saith the prophet, “they shall all know me from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord.” Je:34. No temple is needed that the Shekinah of the divine presence may take up its abode between the cherubim in the most holy place, but “the glory of the Lord” fills the entire city. It can not be confined to a given locality. “The Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it,” and they constitute the glory of the New Jerusalem as did the temple on Mount Zion that of the old.

“The nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it.” Can any one conceive the grandeur and the sublimity of the scene when a light that eclipses the sun and the moon is reflected from streets and mansions of gold, or comes streaming through a wall composed of the most brilliant gems of different hues, with gates of solid pearl? No wonder, then, that the poet has denominated it “the beautiful light of God”! The gates are open continuously, for they are not closed by day, and “there shall be no night there.” But “there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of Life.” This, my dear reader, is the reward of the New Testament church, “the church of God.”