Yet grace despised necessarily ends in judgment. There are two different interpretations of this passage. As throughout the vision, John uses present terminology to describe future conditions. "And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The glory of the kingdom does not preserve when men in their natural state are exposed to the adversary. But here there is neither; and this again is an evidence of gain, not of loss. 2. XI1 (New York-Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1957), p. 542. Bible > Revelation > Chapter 22 > Verse 2 eBibles Free Downloads Audio Revelation 22:2 You must with the best authorities leave out this addition, if you would have the true force of the verse. Learn to do things without drawing attention to yourself. You don't want to get into that. *It is the aorist in Greek, which in such a case as this it is difficult correctly to represent in English; for neither "reigned" nor "hath reigned" could convey that God had entered on His kingdom, but rather that it was past. The seventh bowl contained under it the fall of Babylon, which "was remembered before God, to give to her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.". beyond the physical healing itself and its benefits (as with 2323 /therape).]. Some connect these words with the preceding. "And death and hades were cast into the lake of fire. "And the nations shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour unto it. And it appears to me that here we are bound to account for the presence of these others that are at the marriage-supper of the Lamb, but appear as guests, and not at all in the quality of the bride. This chapter explains how it was that Babylon was so offensive to God, and wherefore He judged her thus sternly. "In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. Here it would seem we have just what answers to that: this name none knew but He Himself. It is to Jesus. [11] William Barclay, The Revelation of John (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1976), p. 221. There may be lights of the heaven to mark times and seasons for the earth, and again on the earth. That hope was never realized in the way in which he expected, but we can never doubt that Christ nevertheless abundantly kept his promise that he would be with his own even to the end of the world ( Matthew 28:20). As such, tribe is synonymous with ethnos, that is, an ethnos or nation is the coming together of all the various tribes found in one geographical location, for better of for worse. "I'm coming quickly. Hence He must have come back previously to both. Healing Leaves (Revelation 22:2) I love the last line of Revelation 22:2 about the leaves of the fruit tree nourished by the living waters. We have here a note of time of signal value. 19. It produces 12 different kinds of fruita new one each month. "Don't do that." Hence the horns and the beast join together and desolate the harlot. Here I am obliged to say that our authorized version, and not merely it, but our common Greek Testaments, are altogether wrong. There is more than one idea here. Psalms 1:3; Jeremiah 17:8; Ezekiel 19:10). "And no curse shall be any more: and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him." Those who have access to it will enjoy all the rights, blessings, and privileges of eternal life. What does Revelation 22:2 mean? | BibleRef.com (No way to imagine one tree on either side.) Peculiar energy indeed attaches to symbolic language. It is entirely in His hand, and in none other's. Today is Saturday, April 22, the 112th day of 2023. All right, good work, make you ruler over eight cities." We may best understand the greatness of that promise by remembering that the Christian is promised a privilege which was denied even to Moses to whom God's word was: "You cannot see my face; for man shall not see me and live" ( Exodus 33:20; Exodus 33:23). rev2023.5.1.43404. Come, Lord Jesus! This disposes of many a web of comments; for we find at once what is perfectly simple, what any child of God who believes this to be the word of God must own. "Upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of the harlots and of the abominations of the earth.". R. H. Charles points out that this warning may not be part of the original book at all. What remains of the last chapter of the Revelation is curiously disjointed. "Up to this chapter, the New Jerusalem seems to be all mineral and no vegetable. But Ge 3:22 seems to imply, man had not yet taken of the tree, and that if he had, he would have lived for ever, which in his then fallen state would have been the greatest curse. For Christ has not only a supreme but an exclusive place. "The dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." Worship God.". There. More than that, this would recall the great Messianic prophecy: "A star shall come forth out of Jacob" ( Numbers 24:17). "Behold I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the words of the prophecy of this book." We find a decree going forth that all the world shall be enrolled. The beast is the expression of the will of man setting itself up in direct antagonism to God. "Let him that heareth," then, be encouraged to "say, Come." 24:23; 60:19, 20; Rev. But in this is shown what it is of importance to see the true nature of the kingdom or millennial reign. Here is the symbol that Jesus Christ has everything within himself and needs nothing from any other source. Get Your Bible Minute in Your Inbox Every Morning, In the midst of the street of it That is, of the city described in the preceding chapter, which shows that this vision belongs to that, and is a continuation of it, and which street was all of pure gold, ( Revelation 21:21 ). Thus nothing can be simpler or more beautiful than the way in which this verse sums up the Revelation as a whole. So abundant is its vitality that it bears a crop of fruit each month! Nothing more is to be done. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing" ( Ezekiel 47:12). And the leaves of the tree - Not only the fruit will contribute to give life, but even the leaves will be salutary. And at one and a half miles from its source the river was one to swim in. "Living waters," says Zechariah, "shall flow out from Jerusalem" ( Zechariah 14:8). These are the martyrs of Revelation 6:1-17, those long since seen under the altar, poured out like burnt-offerings to God. The tree is everywhere; it is constantly producing fruit. NBA playoffs 2023 bracket: Which teams have advanced to the second Let us bear this in mind. The Tree of Life in the BIble - Meaning & Symbolism - Crosswalk.com Consequently Christianity, as being directly aggressive on the falsehood of heathenism, was of all things the most offensive to Rome. Those who have washed their robes is hoi ( G3588) plunontes ( G4150) tas ( G3588) stolas ( G4749) , and those that do his commandments is hoi ( G3588) poiountes ( G4160) tas ( G3588) entolas ( G1785) . Salem Media Group. Again John making the mistake that man so often makes worshipping the instrument of God. https://www.studylight.org/​commentaries/​mhm/​revelation-22.html. The proper translation is, producing twelve fruits, yielding or rendering its fruit in each month. Thus there is, indeed, a succession of fruit-crops, but it is the same kind of fruit. Bible (King James)/Revelation - Wikisource, the free library and on either side of the river was there the tree of life; not that it stood either in the midst of the street of the city, which being a pavement of gold, a tree could not well stand there; nor on both sides of the river, which is impossible, unless the tree of life is put for many trees of the same kind, as in Ezekiel's vision, to which the allusion is; and so some were on one side of the river, and some on the other, as there; see ( Ezekiel 47:7 Ezekiel 47:12 ) or unless it can be thought that such a solution of the difficulty is sufficient, that the root of it was on one side, and the branches grew over to the other; though the words may be better rendered, and the difficulty will be removed, and the sense be clear, "between the street of it", the city, "and the river, on this side, and on that side"; that is, the street on one side, and the river on the other, was the tree of life; compare with this ( John 19:18 ) . Thus, whether the books or the book be examined, all conspire to declare the justice, the solemn but most affecting righteousness, of God's final irrevocable sentence. each month . "Yet is" is a most unfortunate expression. The Lamb is its light. All is then fixed. Ezekiel 47:1-12). The bride represents those that are spoken of in the normal possession and enjoyment of their privileges. In the hot lands water was, and is, literally life. This gives great beauty to the imagery. That the word can mean "therapy" or healing" in confirmed by BDAG and its use in Luke 9:11. So with a warmer love for the church and a deeper dedication in the service of our local congregation as a part of that great church--realising that the river of water of life is flowing now--we will sing with truer understanding--, "Glorious things of thee are spoken, Zion, city of our God! It is not therefore his final judgment. All the dispensational names of God disappear. When any wrong is done, it will be dealt with. From the manner in which resurrection is referred to in scripture, does not God leave room for this? It is due to the exigency of a notion which fears and is irreconcilable with the truth in this place. Creature lights are gone. Was there the tree of life - Not a single tree, but it abounded everywhere - on the banks of the river, and in all the streets. But the most ordinary knowledge suffices; for who does not know from the Bible that there was a Roman empire when Christ was born, one emperor, and no such state as that empire divided into ten kingdoms? The temple would suppose a medium. "And when the thousand years are completed, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to war." In the early Greek manuscripts all the words are written in capital letters and there is no space left between them. Beyond controversy, however, it is a most unusual and abnormal reappearance, which is altogether exceptional in the history of the world. "Cursed will be the ground; thorns and thistles will it bring forth. What I judge, then, is that the guests, or those that were called to the marriage-supper of the Lamb, refer clearly to the Old Testament saints. 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. In heaven, there will be no diseases either of body or mind. That is, the tabernacle of God is regarded as a separate object, no doubt associated with men, but not confounded with them. In my opinion it is not absolutely so. All this gives us a true and just view of the various parties that have a share in the resurrection. Therefore the messages John received came from the same God as inspired the great prophets of the Old Testament, and must be treated with equal seriousness. In both cases you have abundant water and the tree of life (Rev. But it really is. Such is the hard bondage which mere historical tradition imposes on its votaries. They were caught in flagrant treason and rebellion: what further need of any process of judgment whatsoever? Thus, I suggest that the tree of life that grows on either side of the river in the New Jerusalem is for the "service" of the nations as it appears essential for eternal life (Gen 3:23, Rev 2:7). but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: And they shall see his face ( Revelation 22:3-4 ); "Blessed are the pure in heart", Jesus said, "for they shall see God" ( Matthew 5:8 ). "And I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. Note too that "street" is not a reference to one street but to all streets. But there is a message also for others. The political side of this is described here with surprising brightness and brevity. The new thing here is these new seedless flame grapes. You should be making fresh discoveries about Jesus Christ which you had never known before--Is your experience ankle deep--or, "a river to swim in? For suddenly shall ye be consumed and wither away. It was the common tree in this blessed Paradise - of which all might partake, and which was everywhere the emblem of immortality. As man does not believe in the resurrection of man, it is no wonder that he does not believe in the resurrection of an empire. Afterwards we come to the description of itself, of its wall, its building, its foundations, and its gates. 2down the middle of the great street of the city. "On the east three gates; on the north three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience. THE BEAUTY OF HOLINESS ( Revelation 22:3-5 ). "A fountain," says Joel, "shall come forth from the house of the Lord" ( Joel 3:18). How could one speak of "months" if this is heaven? I do not deserve it. And there shall be no more curse ( Revelation 22:3): The earth, you remember, was cursed as a result of sin. down the middle of the main street of the city. On either side of the Man alone is to blame who has misapplied it. "The kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour unto it" not into but unto. There are two possibilities. But a very different point of interest is to be observed. But "nations of them which are saved," is a most anomalous expression, and betrays man as the author of it. God's invitation to you to come and to share in the glories of His eternal kingdom. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations unto it. "These have one mind, and give their own power and authority to the beast," or their imperial leader. Power must come DOWN from God else all of mans schemes to save our world will come to nothing. "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse." But that idea is wholly insufficient to cover or meet the word of God, which gives clear and strong reasons that prove the mistake of applying this to the pope as its complete fulfilment. Reuchlin. He is no longer to be allowed to prowl about the world ensnaring and destroying. But this is not to emerge from the bottomless pit. This verse declares it, and there is no other interpretation that can stand even a moment's fair discussion. The situation of it--in the midst of the street, and on either side the river; or, as might have been better rendered, in the midst between the terrace-walk and the river. If you are a believer, do not be afraid, even if you know but little; for the Lord neither forgets nor slights those who may be comparatively unintelligent. Thus the attempt to apply it during the pagan period is altogether futile on the face of the matter.