“Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven final plagues came and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb!” So he took me away in the Spirit to a huge, majestic mountain and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God. The city possesses the glory of God; its brilliance is like a precious jewel, like a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It has a massive, high wall with twelve gates, with twelve angels at the gates, and the names of the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel are written on the gates. There are three gates on the east side, three gates on the north side, three gates on the south side and three gates on the west side. The wall of the city has twelve foundations, and on them are the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The angel who spoke to me had a golden measuring rod with which to measure the city and its foundation stones and wall. Now the city is laid out as a square, its length and width the same. He measured the city with the measuring rod at fourteen hundred miles (its length and width and height are equal). He also measured its wall, one hundred forty-four cubits according to human measurement, which is also the angel’s. The city’s wall is made of jasper and the city is pure gold, like transparent glass. The foundations of the city’s wall are decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation is jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates are twelve pearls – each one of the gates is made from just one pearl! The main street of the city is pure gold, like transparent glass. Now I saw no temple in the city, because the Lord God – the All-Powerful – and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because the glory of God lights it up, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light and the kings of the earth will bring their grandeur into it. Its gates will never be closed during the day (and there will be no night there). They will bring the grandeur and the wealth of the nations into it, but nothing ritually unclean will ever enter into it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or practices falsehood, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”
— Revelation 21:9-27
Debating the seven angels and the structure of Revelation for when these seven bowls fall in sequence is best to leave for another day. This chapter is one of the most encouraging, because it (and chapter 22) provide a glimpse of what we assume to be “heaven.”
However, as we read, we can see a couple ideas, most notably that John sees New Jerusalem coming down to earth. I hesitate to base my entire view of future realities on one passage, especially one so symbolic, but there are others that emphasize earth being remade. An overall theme of Scripture is what’s old is made new—something like redemption. Furthermore, God is the acting agent, and another repeated theme is His longing to live among His people. So it is not surprise here to see “heaven” coming to earth, and this appears to be the ultimate reconciliation of the two realms (in earth’s glorified state).
The slightly confusing part is what this vision actually represents. John is known for his double meanings, and this could be a good example. Is this really a city? Is he showing us a location where we will live, a status/situation of existence, or something else entirely?
Here’s the kicker: The angel says, I’m going to show you “the bride, the wife.” I don’t think anyone has any questions on what/who that is. The bride of the Lamb is/has always been the church. That’s pretty universal throughout the NT, among all authors. But John turns to see…not the church. He sees a city coming down from heaven. Did the angel lie, or is this one big chapter of symbols. (It could be both, but there could be clues throughout to show John’s emphasis).
12 gates to represent the tribes of Israel, and 3 on each side—somewhat reflect the tribes position around the tabernacle. 12 foundations as the apostles—so 24 brings us back to what many think represent 24 elders earlier in the book. These represent the entire people of God.
Apparently the city is a cube, 1400 miles tall, wide, and deep. Umm, that’s really tall. And the gate is only 144 cubits, which I don’t have math for that right now, but as others have points out, it’s not exactly proportional to the height of the wall. It’s really short if it’s trying to “protect” a city that massive. A clue these numbers are representing something else.
Isaiah 54 and 60 are a big backdrop for this passage. 54 references wedding of Israel and YHWH, also some jewels, and enlarging the tabernacle area.
I cannot discuss all the pictures of gold and jewels here. But pure gold is most likely a picture of purity/moral cleanness. God’s people have been cleansed and have righteous status. Various jewels pop up throughout OT, whether the garden of Eden, the temple decorations, or the priest’s vest. All important for worship of God and where He dwells.
The city is pure gold (transparent) and now the main road is the same. We could make a huge deal that only one street is gold and not “streets” as we hear often, but since John is probably not emphasizing real streets anyway, the point is moot. Beale, Revelation, 1089 notes that “the street of the city” is only mentioned one other place in the book—chapter 11 where the prophets are killed and left in the street (of Jerusalem). Whether one takes these prophets as two literal people or representative of the entire church doesn’t matter. It is significant that the street of blood, martyrdom, and persecution has become stainless, pure, and illustrative of the saints’ glory in the New Jerusalem.
Revelation 22:2 also mentions the main street (just not in that phrase). The river of life flows either down the middle of it or parallel to it (depending on where a sentence break is. And the tree of life grows along the river (symbolizing eternal life for those who enter God’s kingdom). The point is the main street of a city often carried sewage outside the city. Here it is pure, clean, and gives life. What a contrast between the old and the new.
Ezekiel 40-48 describe a “new temple,” and some see this as fulfilled in the millennium. Perhaps. Maybe that’s another debate for another time, but I can’t see how sacrifices could ever be reinstated after Jesus’ death and reading anything in the book of Hebrews. Revelation 21-22 describes a situation that would come after millennium, and there at least there is not temple. There’s no need for a special place to meet God, because He will be there in His full glory.
His glory will shine and become so overwhelming, that John says there’s no sun or moon. But if creation is being transformed or repurposed in this new world, then there may be sun/moon. I don’t know. They’re purpose may be different. I like sunsets/sunrises. The point here is that God’s glory fills His new creation with majesty and splendor.
Gates never close. I thought all the “bad people” were taken care of by this point. And…if everyone who worships God is in the city, then where would we go? Who would want to leave the city where God is dwelling? I would think this is also a picture of what the perfect city would look like. (And again, John may be describing both the bride and the living situation at the same time. It gets confusing). This is asking the reader to picture a city in the ancient world that didn’t have to worry about attack, siege, war, invasion, etc. Guests, travelers, or embassies could approach without anyone having any fear. These verses are a summary of perfect safety and security.
Furthermore, the mention of Gentiles is fulfillment of prophecy where nations will enter Israel and share in her wealth (Isa 60). So a bunch to dig deeper into here, but after the final resurrection, our eternal state with God will be absolutely glorious.
Glorified bodies, living in a world with no fear or chaos. Vindicated from our enemies through faith in Jesus. And best of all, Jesus is reigning.
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