The

New Heaven

And

Earth

The book of Isaiah Chapter 66:22-24 says; - “for as the new heaven and the new earth, which I shall make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord. And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses of men that have transgressed against me; for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.”

In the book of Revelation; Chapter 20 - We see the finality of Satan , the Antichrist and the false prophet for at least the time period of Christ’s thousand year reign. Satan will be let loose again at the end of Christ’s reign for a season to test the peoples faith in him. After that will come the final judgment and then the new heaven and the new earth

This will occur at the end of Christ’s thousand year reign. Satan will be released so God can make a permanent end of sin before establishing the new heaven and the new earth. All who survive the tribulation and enter the kingdom will be believers. However, despite that and the personal presence and rule of the Lord Jesus Christ, many of their descendants will refuse to believe in him. Satan will then gather those unbelievers for one final and futile act of rebellious war against God. The Lord will decisively and swiftly crush it and then the great white throne of judgment takes place, followed by the establishment of the new heaven and the new earth. The bottomless pit appears seven times in the book of Revelation and it refers to the place the fallen angels and evil spirits are being kept captive. Once the great white throne of judgment these fallen angels and evil spirits who were waiting to be sent to the lake of fire, will be sent there - to their final and eternal punishment.

(4) and I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (5) but the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. (6) blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. For those souls who were Christian that were beheaded by Satan and his cohorts during the great tribulation, they are considered martyrs. They will be executed this way and by fire for refusing his mark and refusing to bow down and worship him.

They too, will reign with Christ during his thousand year reign on earth. The bodies of all the dead of all ages who are unbelievers, as mentioned in verse 5, will not be resurrected until the great white throne of judgment. On the topic of the resurrection, scripture teaches that there are two kind of resurrection. The first kind is described as the” resurrection of the just”, the resurrection of those who are Christ’s at his coming and it is considered the “better resurrection”. it includes only the redeemed of the church age and the tribulation saints. They will enter the kingdom in resurrected bodies, along with those believers who survived the tribulation. The second kind of resurrection is the resurrection of the unconverted who will receive their final bodies at the great white throne of judgment. These bodies will be suited for the eternal torment in the lake of fire. For those who die or have died in the Lord, they are blessed with the privilege of entering into his kingdom. The first death is physical and spiritual. The second death is eternal condemnation in the lake of fire.

(7) and when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, (8) 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 battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. We have reached the point where the millennial reign of Christ has ended and now it is time for Satan to be let loose for a season to tempt those that are the descendants of the great tribulation survivors. He will bring a cohesive leadership to the world of rebels to these descendants of the great tribulation, that entered the kingdom at the beginning. The reason he is let loose for one final time is to Reveal those who reject Christ and are sinners. These will be brought into the final judgment for the very last time. Gog and magog are the names given to the army of rebels and its leader. They were ancient names for the enemies of the Lord. Magog was the grandson of Noah and the founder of a kingdom located north of the black and Caspian seas. Gog is apparently the leader of the rebel army - known collectively as magog. The battle depicted here is like the one we saw in Ezekiel 38 and 39. The only difference is that this battle takes place at the end of the millennial reign of Christ.

(9) and they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. (10) and the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. (11) and i saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

Starting with verse 11, it describes the final judgment of all unbelievers of all ages. The Lord referred to this event as the “resurrection of condemnation”. This judgment takes place in the indescribable void between the end of the present universe and the creation of the new heaven and earth. The great white throne of judgment is mentioned nearly fifty times in the book of Revelation. This is the judgment throne of God, that is elevated pure and holy. God sits on it as the judge in the personage of Jesus Christ.

Jerusalem is the beloved city of God and the capital where Christ will reign. The saints will be living around in the city where he reigns. Fire is frequently associated in scripture with the divine judgment of wicked men. This fire will came from God out of the heavens. (sort of like fireballs as an example) it will devour the wicked. Just as Satan’s demons will entice the world’s armies into the battle of Armageddon, so will Satan draw them into a suicidal assault against Christ and his people. They will lose of course and forever be cast into the lake of fire after the final judgment at the great white throne, as we mentioned earlier. The apostle John saw the contaminated universe go out of existence. Peter described this moment as seeing that the universe is uncreated, going into non-existence.

(12) and i saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. (13) and the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. (14) and death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. (15) and whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

In the judicial sense, the guilty, condemned prisoners are brought to stand before God and his bar of divine justice. There are no living sinners left in the destroyed universe. All sinners were killed and all the believers were glorified. The books that are mentioned in verse 12 have recorded every thought, word and deed of sinful men. All of this was recorded by the divine omniscience. They will provide the evidence of eternal condemnation. The book of life, however, lists all the names of the believers and faithful followers of God and his son, Jesus Christ. In other words, it contains the names of the redeemed.

Each will be judged according to his/her works. Their thoughts, works.and actions will be compared to God’s holy and perfect standard and will be found wanting and this also applies to the degrees of punishment in hell. In describing death and hades , both terms describe a state of death. All unrighteous dead will appear at the great white throne of judgment. There will be none that escape this. All the places that have held the bodies of the unrighteous dead will yield up the new bodies suited for hell. In verses 14 and 15, even death and hades deliver up the dead and then they were finally cast into the lake of fire, which is known as the second death for anyone whose names were not found written in the lamb’s book of life.

- The New Heaven & Earth -

From Revelation Chapter 20; 21:

Did you ever want to know what heaven looked like and what comes after the great tribulation? In these last two Chapters of the book of Revelation we will see this as the apostle John saw it. Many have predicted that the world will end in some nuclear holocaust or by some gigantic meteor hitting the planet. This is not the case. The planet will not be blown out of existence. After Satan and the wicked are judged one last time and sent to eternal punishment, the Lord will uncreated what he has created. As we saw in Chapter 20. In other words, he will take this world, this universe and all that is in it and clean it up by uncrating it and then re-making it. This doesn’t mean that the world, itself, or the universe will no longer exist. No, in fact the opposite is quite true.

When we speak of uncreating...it is the Lord’s way of “cleaning-up” and getting rid of all the filth and trash that man and Satan has created and deposited on this once beautiful planet and in this universe. He will make all things new. Remember in the scriptures in the book of i chronicles 16:30, it says, “fear before him, all the earth; the world also shall be stable, that it would not be moved.” It will be de-contaminated and made pure again. The earth and the universe will never become a gigantic ball of ice as it did when Satan fell from grace. This time the earth and the universe will be purified by his uncreating. The Lord will uncontaminate and rid the world and the universe of evil and the contamination that is already so destructive in this world and universe . Nor more will there be a Satan or his minions or those who chose to follow him to destroy that which God made perfect and beautiful. Only those that are of God will exist in this new heaven and earth forevermore. From this point on the chronology of Revelation, the old testament saints and all those who were converted during the era of the church, the tribulation and the millennial kingdom will be incorporated into the ultimate redeemed bride and they will dwell in the new Jerusalem. John, the apostle, described it as the consummation of all things in Christ and the new Jerusalem descending into the eternal state..

(1) 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. (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..

John saw this world and the first heaven pass away. Here is the Lord’s work of uncreating. There wasn’t even a sea or river to be seen. Then John goes on to tell us that he sees a brand new heaven and a brand new earth. One that is clean and pure and sanctified by the Lord. The new Jerusalem is the capitol city of heaven, a place of perfect holiness. It is seen by John as “coming down out of heaven” which shows it is already in existence. It will descend into the new heavens and new earth from its place on high. In this city, you will find that this is the place where the saints will live. The word bride in Revelation is an important metaphor for the true church of Christ. John’s vision extends to the third part of a jewish wedding, namely the ceremony. The believers (the bride, aqua the true church) in the new Jerusalem come to meet Christ (the bridegroom) in the final ceremony of redemptive history. The whole city is occupied by all the saints, who are called the bride, must be included in the bride, as John saw it, to receive the bridal blessing. God has bought home a bride for his beloved son. All the saints live with Christ in the father’s house. It was a promise made before the church ever began.

The tabernacle of God is the place of God’s abode. This is God’s house, where he lives. God also promised to wipe away every tear and since there will never be anything to cause a tear in heaven, nothing will cause unhappiness or sadness or anything else that brings tears to anyone’s eyes ever. The Lord and God the father have always spoken the truth and have always remained faithful to his people. His people are those that have remained true and faithful to him, his son and the holy spirit. As God and his son remained true and faithful to us, he also remains true and faithful to his word and his promises. God also made it very clear that he was the alpha and the omega - the beginning and the end of all things that were, or are or ever will be. (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 overcomes 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. (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 shew thee the bride, the lamb’s wife. (10) and he carried Me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that Great city, the holy jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.

He also said that he will give of the fountain of the living water freely to anyone who thirsts. The lasting spiritual water of which Jesus spoke is this water that he promises to all that thirst. Heaven to all those, who knowing their souls are parched by sin, have earnestly sought the satisfaction of salvation and eternal life. Anyone who exercises saving faith in Jesus Christ will inherit all things. God will be his God and we shall be his sons and daughters. For the cowardly, the unbelieving, abominable, murders, idolaters, and all the liars shall have their part in the lake of fire and brimstone, which is their second death. The spiritual inheritance for all those who believe and are believers id the fullness of the new creation. These are the overcomers of temptation and sin and all that is not of God. There is also the very serious warning about the kinds of people that will be the outcasts from the new heaven and new earth as we have seen above. Their fate is one of eternal damnation. The new testament goes beyond citing unbelief in listing the character and lifestyle traits of these outcasts. This was done so the believers could identify with such people and not be those kind of people. The angel that held the seven bowls that contained the last seven plagues came to John and said to him, “come i will show you the bride, the lamb’s wife.” Then the angel carried John away in the spirit to a mountain that was great and high. When he was there the angel showed him the great city, the holy jerusalem that was 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 honour 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 honour 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 .

Here we see the complete description of the new Jerusalem, which is very much like the heaven, that many of us have been blessed to see either through the holy spirit or through the experience of a near death experience. In biblical times walls were constructed to provide protection against their enemies here, however, since there will never be another war, the walls of the new jerusalem will serve as a reminder that God of love protected his people while on earth. The walls are the eternal memorial to the fact that our lives have been hidden with Christ in God. The city also has twelve gate, each inscribed with one of the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel. These gates are staffed with angels who welcome those possessing the right and privilege of entering the city. The twelve angels standing at these entrances are possibly those who worked jointly with each tribe during the earthly sojourn of the people of Israel. We can also see, just as the gates are inscribed with the twelve tribes of Israel, so are the foundations of the walls themselves inscribed with the names of the twelve apostles of Christ!

Now, let us look at the size of the city. The angel measures the city with a golden reed or measuring rod. The streets are paved with gold, yet you can see through them like glass. The city itself is of the purest of gold as well; so a golden yardstick seems appropriate here. In verse 16, we see that the city is a tetragonal city. Yes, the new jerusalem is tetragonal in shape........ An absolutely perfect cube because of its width, length and height. In fact the angel, himself discovers that the heavenly city in its dimensions is 12,000 furlongs long, wide and high or 1500 miles in all directions. If this holy city was placed over the united states it would extend from the northern most point of Maine to the southern most point of Florida and from the eastern seaboard to Colorado. It is interesting to note that in comparison to this holy city, the major cities of the world are mere villages in comparison to it. This holy city could literally contain every person ever born and an additional billion people as well !

Take good notice of the first wall of jasper and that it represents Christ, in his radiant glory, surrounding his saints. The next thing we see is the pure gold city that typifies the righteousness of God’s holy nature and then the precious colorful stones. This startling brilliance is the picture of the Lord’s attributes as well as his various aspects of his redemptive work. Can you imagine the city when the light of the city is Jesus Christ? He shines through the brilliancy of these stones! Now for us, John’s vision becomes a reality and when this happens and only them can we understand the term of the glory of God.

When we speak of the jasper, which is the material of the wall...it is the diamond.pure gold, yet like clear glass. Unlike earth’s gold this gold will be transparent so the overpowering of God’s glory can reflect throughout the entire city. The names of some of the gemstones have changed over the centuries and it is difficult to identify each one perfectly and with certainty that they are properly matched to how we know them today. Eight of the them are found in the breastplate of the high priest, while the other four gemstones may also be related to the breastplate. The gemstones and their brilliance and indescribable beauty of the rainbow of colors they send forth in the light of God’s glory. Each of the gates of the city is a 1500 mile high pearl. Even as earthly pearls are formed in response to the wounding of the oyster flesh, so these gigantic and supernatural pearls will remind the saints throughout eternity of the multitude of Christ’s suffering and it’s eternal benefits.

This beautiful city also shows the saints of all ages joined together in love, for the names of the twelve tribes of Israel are joined with the names of the apostles. What this means is that all of God’s people from all walks of life have finally come together into one true and ecumenical brotherhood. There will be no such thing as Baptists, Catholics, Pentecostals, Lutherans, Methodists, Congregationalists or even Presbyterians. We will all be one in the true church of Christ. On that wonderful and glorious day we will no longer have to use those tags of faith and belief that have often divided us while we were here on this world.

In verse 22, we see the temple of God. On this earth, God always had a dwelling place - a temple or tabernacle where men could come and worship him and commune with him. With the new heaven and earth, that is no longer needed. Church buildings or temples or synagogues will become a thing of the past. The tabernacle of God is now with his people, because he has chosen to dwell with his people. Even when Jesus Christ was on the earth he said, “i am the light of the world.” Now, with him in the eternal city, Christ, in all of his radiant glory and splendor shines forth so magnificently that there will be no darkness anywhere. Remember when the sun or moon shone how you could see your shadow or the shadow of others? With the brilliance of the Lord’s glory, there will never be seen a shadow again; for there is no need of darkness in this holy place - nor is there a place for darkness in it. In fact, there will no longer exist nighttime. We will walk forever in the light an glory of the Lord.

The gates of the city will never be shut and the kings of the earth will bring their glory and honor of the nations into it. This means that the born again rulers and king who still live in their earthly bodies, will now bring all their glory and honor into the new jerusalem as well. They will come to praise him who is all in all. As they come, they will not come in fear of being assassinated or to face recrimination, terrorism or robbery. Such evil occurrences no longer exist. Why? Because God is present and Satan is destroyed. Temptation is no longer there for it is forever in the past. What a joy to know that the gates of the city will never be shut or locked. There will be no need of security in this land of eternal day, but the warning flag is again lifted as we see in verse 27 - “and 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.”

- The eternal state-

Revelation - Chapter 22:

In this concluding Chapter of Revelation, the apostle John is shown the rest of the new jerusalem and the everlasting and eternal state in which we will live as believers. It also has a warning for those who read these words and do not heed them. (1) and he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the lamb. (2) in the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

This river is unlike any river anyone ahs ever seen on earth, because no hydrological cycle exists. The water of life is symbolic of the eternal life that flows from God’s throne to all the inhabitants of heaven. So it is with the tree of life. Those who eat of the tree of life grow in the knowledge of God and like the river of life, it also is symbolic of the gift of eternal life and blessings from God. This tree bears twelve fruits, on for each month and is symbolic of the abundant variety in God’s heaven. The leaves that are edible are for healing and enriching heavenly life, thereby making each of us as believers and followers fully complete and satisfied. (3) and there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: (4) and they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.

The curse that was once on humanity and the earth will no longer be there as God will have removed it and the source of the curse; which is Satan. The earth became cursed as did humanity, when Adam and eve disobeyed God and Satan deceived them. All will be totally finished. There will be no unglorified human that will see the face of God and live. It is only those that are the residents of heaven that can look upon the face of God without harm because they are now holy and sanctified by the Lord Jesus through his great sacrifice and our willingness to accept the gift that he gave us. We now become God’s personal possession. (5) and there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever. (6) and he said unto me, these sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done. No longer will there be the night or darkness. No longer will there be a need for light powered by electricity nor candlelight. We will no longer nee the sun to shin nor the moon to be a light in the dark; for the Lord will give us light and we will reign with him for all eternity. What he has said, he remains faithful and true to. All promises that were made by the father and the son are fulfilled. We are more than his servants in heaven, we are his children.

As such we serve the Lord God with joy and glory and honor. This book of Revelation was sent to the seven churches in Asia minor; but all who have read it or will read it and believed and are saved will know what is coming very quickly and have prepared themselves for it. (7) behold, i come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book. (8) and I, John saw these things, and heard them. And when i had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things..

Herein lies the warning. The Lord tells us that he will come quickly and that his return is imminent. In I Thessalonians 3:2-3, Paul warns us to be prepared. He says, “for yourselves know perfectly the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child and they shall not escape” even in ii peter 3:10, we are again warned about the day of the Lord. Peter says the very same thing that Paul did, “but the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in 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.” Heed the warning! This is from God to all his children. Be prepared and watch and wait. John confirms the veracity of what the angel of the Lord has shown him in the spirit as it was his own eyewitness testimony...

He fell down to worship at the feet of the angel that had shown him all these things. (John was on the island of Patmos and was praying in the spirit on the Sabbath when this event took place.) (9) then saith he unto me, see thou do it not: for i am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God. (10) and he saith unto me, seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand. (11) he that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. (12) and, behold, i come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. (13) I am alpha and omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.

The angel told him that it was forbidden to worship angels, that only God was to be worshipped. Because all previous prophecy had been sealed up so no one could have access to them; the angel of the Lord commanded John not to seal these prophecies up because time was at hand (fast approaching) these prophecies were to be proclaimed so they would produce obedience and worship. The end of the world as we know it is rapidly approaching. But we all must remember that only God, our father in heaven, know the day and the hour of the coming of his son, the Lord Jesus Christ- not even Jesus knows when he is to return. We can be assured by heeding the prophecies in the book of Revelation and what has already been confirmed in the books of Daniel, Isaiah and Ezekiel, that we are the closest we have eve been to this great event. The headlines in the news and the events of the world coincide with all that has been prophesied up to the date of this writing (5/15/2000) in the chronology and commentary you will see where we are in history and the you can compare it with what has been Revealed in the books of Revelation and Daniel.

Those who reject God’s multiple warnings will fix their eternal destinies for in hell for all time and eternity. Here they will retain their evil and filthy natures - again for all eternity. For those that respond to the warnings given by God, they will fix their eternal destinies in glory and realize perfect righteousness and holiness in heaven. Once again in verse 12, we are reminded of the imminence of the coming of theLord, each according to his/her works. Only those works which survive God’s testing fire have eternal value and are worthy of reward. Finally once again we are reminded that God is the alpha and the omega - the beginning and the end of all things..

(14) blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. (15) for without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. (16) i Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. (17) and the spirit and the bride say, come. And let him that hearth say, come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. (18) for i testify unto every man that hearth the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: (19) and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. (20) he which testifieth these things saith, surely i come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. (21) the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

Blessed are those who keep his commandments are those who have been forgiven their sin and have received the redemption of the Lord. These are those who have the right to the tree of life and to enter the city. These are those who have been washed in the blood of the lamb (Jesus) of God. The reference of dogs seems to refer to despicable creatures in the new testament period and referred to those who were of a low moral character. The unfaithful leaders and homosexual prostitutes are among those who received such a designation or “label” sorcerers are those who practice all manner of Satanic worship and witchcraft. Of course there is no explanation needed for murders or the sexually immoral people. The idolaters are those who worship graven and false images and Gods. These are those that are made of wood, stone, precious metals and gems. None of these false Gods are real and none of them can save them from the fires of hell as will those who love and practice lies.

Jesus tells John that he had sent his angel to testify to him of what was to come and to deliver this testimony to the seven churches and al who will read it. Jesus again reminds John and us that he is of the root and offspring of David and that he is the bright and morning star. Christ is the source (root) of David’s life and the line of descendants, which establish his deity. He is also a descendant of David (offspring), which establishes his humanity. This history gives a powerful testimony to Christ as the son of God who became the human man to take on all the sins of the world through his baptism, to pay the price of the world’s sin by his crucifixion and death, that brought the shedding of his blood and water from his side and the multiple wounds he received. His resurrection brought the gift of eternal life through his redemptive power and salvation to all who will believe and confess that Jesus is Lord and accept Him into their hearts and lives. The seven churches in Asia minor were the books original recipients. The bright and morning star is the brightest star that announces the arrival of the day. Jesus will be the brightest star who will shatter the darkness of man’s night and herald the dawn of God’s glorious day. When the spirit and the bride say, “come” it is the answer to the spirit’s and the churches answer to the promise of his coming. In verse 17. It says, “let him who hears say, “come!” And him who thirsts, come.” Whoever desires, let him take of the water of life. This is the unlimited offer of grace and salvation to all who desire to have their thirsty souls quenched. Jesus offers extended testimony on the authority and finality of the prophecy.

He commissioned John to write it but he was its author. The warnings in verses 18-19 are not the first warnings that Jesus has given. These warnings against altering the biblical text represent the close of the new testament canon. Anyone who tampers with the truth by attempting to falsify, mitigate, alter or misinterpret it will incur the judgments described in these verses. One thing that will come to those that do this is God’s promise to multiply the Plagues that are written in the book of Revelation to those that do not listen and change or alter or misinterpret and falsify the prophecy given to John and that of the new testament. In his final note to us. He again reminds us of his coming and that it will be quickly. In light of this soon to come expectation, which is now required of believers; it is outlined for us by Peter in II Peter 3:11-18. He finally ends with a Blessing of the Lord that says, “ the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen”