Revelation Chapter 22 - John Karmelich

1. This lesson is called "Coming Full Circle".

a) This is an expression that refers to the idea of ending a journey back where one started, but hopefully wiser for the experience of the journey itself.

b) This lesson comes full circle in that Revelation 22 is the final chapter in the bible, and at the same time, it ties to the early chapters of Genesis. Revelation is a book of "endings". In many ways, it is a mirror image of the book of Genesis, a book of "beginnings". Many of the concepts that begun in Genesis have their final climatic ending in Revelation.

i) For example, some aspects of this chapter tie to the Garden of Eden. That story was the first involving mankind. The last story of mankind here in Revelation involves some of the same imagery.

c) What I want you the reader to grasp out of this chapter is to reflect upon one's whole life as a Christian believer, past, present and future. That is what is in view in Revelation. In many ways, the direction of a life comes full circle when one reaches the end. I'll talk more about this theme as we go through the chapter.

2. Back when I wrote my first lesson on this book, I mentioned that Revelation is the only book of the bible that says in effect, "Read me I'm special". It is the only book in the bible that says one is blessed by reading the words of this book.

a) Chapter 1, Verse 3 says, "Blessed are those who read this prophecy". Verse 7 of this final chapter says, "Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book." Somehow, someway, people who study Revelation are blessed by reading this book.

b) As I stated some chapters back, I don't think we are blessed by reading about say, angels pouring out bowl judgments on earth. ☺ The blessing has to do with understanding God's game plan for our salvation, understanding what entails our redemption and what is God's eternal plan for us.

c) Let me put it another way: Do I believe innocent babies who die at birth go to heaven? Yes. (See 2nd Samuel 12:20-23). Do I believe people who commit their lives to serving Jesus and trust Him for their sins get to go to heaven? Of course. The question is what's the key difference in the end? Is the saved Christian any better off than the innocent baby? Yes, in the sense the Christian had the maturity to realize that sin was wrong and one needed to change from that sin.

i) The human maturity process is to go from innocence to guilty to redeemed by God's grace. In the Garden of Eden, we see mankind begin to exercise their own free will against God for sin. The Christian eventually figures out that God's way is better than man's way, and asks God for forgiveness and desires to be "perfectly forgiven" for all one's sins.

ii) In that sense, mankind goes full circle. We go from being "perfectly innocent" to being "perfectly innocent" because we are perfectly forgiven of sins. The circle of life is best to be lived for God once we realize just how much God loves us and how much trouble He went to in order to redeem us.

3. OK, John, I understand I'm forgiven and all that. How does that affect my life today? What does any of this have to do with the final chapter of Revelation? So glad you asked! ☺

a) This chapter consists of two things: The first is a final description of life during "eternity". The second is final comments by Jesus saying in effect, �Blessed are the Revelation readers!� Most of this chapter gives some final reminders of the key things that are important to those of us who have committed our lives to serving Christ.

b) As you read this chapter, stop and think about the fact that these are the final things God wants to say to me. It is like someone giving you their final words in life or the "big conclusion" to a matter. The point is if it's the conclusion, it must be important.

c) The problem with life is that it is too easy to be caught up in the moment. The problems of daily life be it work, finances, relationships with people, sickness or whatever tends to take our minds off of God. I'm convinced "worrying" is the opposite of faith in that we worry and focus about the matter of the moment as opposed to God.

d) This does not mean we should be thinking about God at every moment. It does mean one should consider "the eternal perspective" when dealing with issues. I can't tell you how many times in my life when things are going wrong I have to think, "At least I'm saved. God is going to get me out of this. I don't know how, but I have to trust in that." Another example, when I'm feeling unloved or lonely, is to remember that God loved me so much as to pick me for all of eternity.

e) What Revelation does, more than anything else, is give one the eternal perspective. It is a book about how life as we know it ends. What it does it get us to see past the end of the day. It gets us to see past the problems of the moment. It gets us to see a glorious future over and above whatever situation we are facing at that moment. That is how Revelation is a blessing to the reader. Yes, the Gospel message is scattered all through the book. The other idea is that not only are we saved for eternity, but we are saved into a loving relationship with God that will last for eternity. That is what "blessed" is all about. The material things of this world will disappear one day. Loving, sinless relationships with God and people will continue into eternity. On that happy note, I'll start Verse 1. ☺

4. Verse 1: Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ² down the middle of the great street of the city.

a) Let's recall what is happening:

i) Most of Revelation is about "judgment" on the earth prior to Jesus Second Coming. The early chapters of the book focused on God judging Christian churches, and then bulk of the book is on judging nonbelievers.

ii) Chapter 19 described the literal return of Jesus to earth occurs. There is a final battle (more of a wipeout) between those who oppose Jesus' rule over the world.

iii) Chapter 20 described a 1,000-year time frame where Jesus rules over the earth.

iv) In Chapter 21, that thousand-year period is over. Chapters 21 and the first five verses of Chapter 22 describe life during the "forever" period of our existence.

v) The rest of Chapter 22 is an epilogue with final comments by Jesus and John, the writer of Revelation.

b) Which leads us to Verse 1 of Chapter 22: We are still describing life in "eternity".

i) (Remember the chapter breaks were not added until about the 12th Century AD.)

ii) We ended Chapter 21 with John describing "The New Jerusalem". John saw a new earth, as somehow, the world as we know it no longer exists. The earth and the atmosphere around it explodes, implodes or just plain disappears. ☺ (Some claim the "new earth" is the same old earth with a new "existence", but I disagree.)

iii) Anyway, the latter part of Chapter 21 was John describing a city coming down to earth. The new city, called "The New Jerusalem" is described separately from the new earth. Most believe it is "plopped down" on the earth and some argue it hangs in the sky. Whatever it is, it is called "The bride of Christ" as it is the inhabited home of Christians for eternity.

c) Verse 1 states that within this city, is a "river of the water of life". This river is crystal clear. It flows from God's throne and down the middle of "Main Street".

d) If you recall from the last chapter, there is "no more sea". (Ref. Revelation 21:1) If there is no more sea (i.e., oceans), then there should be no more rain as we know it, no more snowfall, and thus no river sources as we know it.

i) Do I believe this river is literal? Of course. If "God is God", He can create anything. My point about oceans and rainfall is to stretch one's imagination about what life will be like.

ii) Do I also believe this river is also symbolic? Of course. The bible is designed to teach us things about God and our relationship with Him. Even the historical stories of the bible are also designed as word pictures and prophetic events.

e) What does the God want to teach us about this river? The answer lies in reading the text in context of the surrounding text.

i) Back in Verse 6 of the previous chapter, it read, "To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life."

a) Here in Verse 1, it said, "The river of the water of life".

ii) Obviously, the same flow of water is in view. Verses 1 and 2 give us more details about this river. Chapter 21 Verse 6 says "To him who is thirsty". The idea is to compare our relationship with God to "thirst and drinking".

iii) The previous chapter stated there is no temple in the New Jerusalem, as the whole city is "one big temple". However, there is a central location as it is stated that God the Father's throne and God the Son's throne have a combined, single, central location. This river starts from this central throne location.

iv) The idea of this verse is that the river is "pure and clean". In other words, to "drink of God" contains no pollutants. There are no algae or fish in this water. ☺

f) Notice in Chapter 20 Verse 6, it is called "a spring". Here in Verse 1, it is called a "river".

i) The Book of Ezekiel Chapter 47 describes a similar flow of water that exists during the millennium. Ezekiel said in 47:3 that the water came up to his ankles. In 47:4, Ezekiel went further away from the temple and the water came up to his knees. Ezekiel then went further away, and the water was waist-deep. By Verse 5, one had to swim to cross it. My point is this river is unusual in that it grows by itself. I suspect this "New Jerusalem" water source is the same (or similar) to the one seen by the Ezekiel. The similarity is the water amount increases as it goes.

ii) The symbolic meaning has to do with "immersing" ourselves in our relationship with God. As one grows with God, the water becomes deeper, just like our relationship becomes deeper. At the same time, the central point of our relationship is a simple, "spring" of water.

g) What this "pure, crystal-clear river" means is that our relationship with God continues into the next life, but there is no "impurity" of sin in our relationship. In the same way, the river grows, so does our relationship with God.

5. Verse 2 (cont.): On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.

a) This sentence, in Verse 2 is probably the strangest in the chapter. We're still describing the "New Jerusalem". Surrounding the river that runs down (or along side) "Main Street" is a type of tree. This tree bears twelve types of fruit, on a once per month basis. The leaves of the trees are for the "healing of the nation".

b) To understand this verse, let's start with the expression, "The tree of life".

i) Back in the Garden of Eden, people forget that Genesis mentions two trees:

a) "In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." (Genesis 2:9).

b) It was the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil" that was forbidden to be eaten. That's another story. ☺

ii) There are two other references to the "tree of life" in the Garden of Eden story: After Adam and Eve sinned, God said, "The man (Adam) has now become like one of us (God in plural form!), knowing good and evil. He (mankind) must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." (Genesis 3:22, NIV, parenthesis text added.)

a) The other reference to the tree of life is in Genesis 3:24, where a cherubim (i.e., a high-ranking angel) guards the tree.

iii) The point is, back in the Garden of Eden, there were two key trees. One provided sustaining (that is, "everlasting") life and one leads to death.

iv) Now it's time to come back to the theme of "coming full circle". Just as the tree of life is mentioned in the first story of mankind, the same tree of life is mentioned here in Revelation in the last story of mankind. We are "back where we started". The key difference is we can now eat of this tree as the price for sin has been paid.

v) The "tree of life" represents some way of sustaining life forever. Since it exists in the "New Jerusalem", it exists for people who have already been forgiven of their sins. Does that mean we have to eat of this tree in order to live forever? Don't know. Bible scholars are split on this issue. Some suggest, "We don't have to eat of it in heaven, but the option is available."

c) One more thing about these fruit trees. They bear fruit "every month".

i) I've been saying all through Revelation that God exists outside of time. When we are resurrected, we will exist forever. Yet here in Revelation, there is still a reference to a "month". Does that mean there is still a lunar cycle in eternity?

ii) Understand that we do live for eternity, but we will be aware of the time going by. Time can still exist, but there is no "final year". In a sense, living for eternity is timeless as there is no end. At the same time, we are aware of time passing.

d) Let's move on to the next sentence: It says, "The leaves are for the healing of the nations".

i) It doesn't say the fruit of the tree is for healing, but the leaves. So apparently, eating salads are good for you in the next life too! ☺

ii) Here in Revelation, there is no reference as to why the leaves are for healing.

iii) Since the "tree of life" ties to a Garden of Eden reference, I'm speculating whether or not the "leaves" are also an Eden reference. In the Garden, after Adam and Eve sinned, they realized they were naked and made clothing out of fig leaves. (Ref. Genesis 3:7). God then replaced that leaf-clothing with animal skins, as to show "the blood of the innocent" is needed to cover sin. I'm speculating that there is some sort of "tie in" that animal sacrifices are no longer necessary and now the "leaves" are some sort of positive benefit.

e) Let's step back and summarize the first two verses of this chapter:

i) We are getting details of the New Jerusalem. There is a river flowing down by the main street. There is a type of tree that grows alongside the river that bears a twelve fruits on a once-per-month rotational basis. The leaves of these trees are for "the healing of the nations".

ii) The one word used five times in this chapter is "life". The water is referred to as the "water of life" and the tree is referred to as the "tree of life". The point is whatever this water and trees mean, they have to do with sustaining life.

iii) Apparently, heaven is not going to be some place where we just sit there with harps singings songs all day. Somehow, we are to take in "things" that sustain life. Can we die in heaven if we don't? I don't think so. This is not about life in the sense of living or dying. This is about life in the sense of drawing closer to God. Remember eternity is about our relationship with God. These symbols (and probably literal "things") somehow help our relationship with God.

iv) I believe a Christian can believe Jesus died for our sins, and never do much about it. We can have a "starter" relationship with God and never grow from there. What God desires is a mature developed relationship. That means praying and studying God's word regularly. That means being with and ministering to other people regularly. The development of mature relationships will continue in heaven. That is why I call this chapter "coming full circle". In heaven, we still work on developing relationships with God and with other people. Somehow, this "pure river" and these "trees of life" are literal and symbolic of that process.

6. Verse 3: No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.

a) Verse 3 states another point already implied: There is no more "curse".

b) Again, this ties back to the Garden of Eden. After Adam and Eve sinned, God placed a curse on mankind. Part of this curse was in effect, "Men have to work all of their lives and the ground will be cursed for their sake." (Ref.: Genesis 3:17). That is another reason why there has to be a "new earth". God cursed the ground of the old one.

i) To put it another way, eternity has many of the features of the Garden of Eden prior to the curse. Again, we as people are "coming full circle". The world of eternity will no longer be under any sort of curse. The difference is, in the new world we are aware the curse once existed and has been removed. That is, we are aware God has forgiven our sins, and we now live in gratitude for that fact.

c) The next fact is that "The throne of God and of the Lamb (Jesus) will be in the city."

i) Again, there is no central temple in this New Jerusalem, but there will be a single throne where God the Father and God the Son are located. The whole city is one-big-temple as it is place of worship of God the Father and God the Son. (The Holy Spirit's function is to draw us to God the Father through God the Son.)

d) Here's the key phrase for us: "His servants will serve him."

i) Who are the "servants"? The answer is in the first verse of Revelation: "The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place." In other words, it is us. It refers to Christians.

ii) There is a false notion that when we get to heaven, we just sit around in our individual mansions watching television while angels stock our refrigerators. ☺ The truth is we serve God in heaven.

iii) Let's define biblical "love". That term means to put other's needs in front of our own. It means to fulfill someone else's needs as a priority over our needs. That is a broad term for "ministering" to each other. To serve God means to put His priorities and desire for our lives in front of our own desires. Examples include everything from prayer and worship to helping other people.

iv) Again, heaven is not going to be a place where we just "sit there". Somehow, someway, we are going to minister to God and to others. This won't be a burden. We don't punch a time sheet to work in heaven. ☺ If we love someone, it is a joy to serve them. One of the greatest joys we can have on earth is putting other's needs over our own. Serving God is a sense of joy that is far greater than any sort of self-pleasure we can have. That will continue in the next life. The bonus prize is there is no more sin to interfere with that desire to serve God!

7. Verse 4: They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.

a) Back in Exodus, God once told Moses, "You (Moses) cannot see my (God's) face, for no one may see me and live." (Exodus 33:20, NIV, text in parenthesis added). The idea of that verse is God is "perfect" (i.e., "holy") and man is still a sinful creature. We as humans cannot fully comprehend God this lifetime. That changes in heaven. As resurrected beings, we can now see God "face to face" whatever that means. Do I believe God has a literal face like a man? I don't think so. Somehow, someway, we will be able to comprehend and see God in a way that no man could ever do in this lifetime.

b) Again, heaven is about an intimate relationship between God and people. We will know God in ways we cannot comprehend in this lifetime. In that sense, life with God will be "face to face" as our relationship will be more intimate than it is in this lifetime.

i) Paul said, "Now we see (God) but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face." (1st Corinthians 13:12, NIV).

c) The verse says God's name will be on Christian's foreheads. Why the forehead? It occurred to me is we can see who else is marked, but we can't see our forehead!

d) Will this be literal seal? It could be. What's more important is understand the concept. The idea of God stamping our forehead with "Property of God" is like branding cattle to show its ownership. If this is literal, I think it is more for our sakes than God's sakes. It will be a visual reminder that we belong to God. Here's the good news. We belong to God starting "now", and not just for eternity. God is all knowing. He knew in advance who would be in heaven. He picked us. In a sense, our forehead already has His name imbedded. God cannot change. God cannot "un-love" what He loves!

8. Verse 5: There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

a) The first thing to notice about the New Jerusalem is that neither sunlight nor "lamp light" is necessary. God Himself provides the light. The verse says there is no more night.

i) Does this mean there is no more sun? Does the new earth not rotate around the sun? The text doesn't say. This verse is quiet on that issue. The point is there is no "night" in the sense that God illuminates the New Jerusalem to a point where one cannot tell daytime from nighttime.

b) The important point is that God is "all the light we need in heaven". We as saved people don't have to depend upon God and anything else.

i) For the Christian, the idea is we fully depend upon God for all our needs. We still work for a living, but we understand that somehow God is in the background working out our lives for His glory. In our new eternal state, that concept of being dependant upon God continues forever, only it will be more blatant.

c) Before we begin to study Verse 6, note that this is the end of the "New Jerusalem" description. Beginning in Verse 6, we get in the "epilogue" of Revelation where we get some wrap up comments on the whole book.

9. Verse 6: The angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place."

a) Let me paraphrase Verse 6: "I'm not making this stuff up as I go along. All of the things you've read about here in Revelation are pure truth. Bank on it!"

b) If one is skeptical, one can ponder all sorts of questions. There are aspects of this New Jerusalem that defy laws of nature as we know them. For example, how can a river of water have no source? How can people be resurrected and live forever anyway? How can there be a "new earth" and huge city coming down to it?

i) I've always stated, "If you can handle the first verse of the bible, you can handle the rest." The first verse in Genesis says, "In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth". If one can accept the fact there is a God and He is capable of creating the world as we know it, then the rest is acceptable. If "God is God", He can create any type of world He wants to. He created the present world for the purpose of drawing "His People" to Himself. He is going to create a future world (i.e., the New Jerusalem etc.) for the purpose of having an intimate, eternal relationship with those who choose to love God for eternity.

c) Let's tal