9. One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, "Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb."
10. And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.
11. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.
12. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.
13. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west.
14. The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
15. The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls.
16. The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long.
17. He measured its wall and it was 144 cubits thick, by man's measurement, which the angel was using.
18. The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass.
19. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald,
20. the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.
21. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.
22. I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
23. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.
24. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.
25. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there.
26. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it.
27. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.
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Reflection |
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The Bride of Christ (21:9–21)
Aside from the day I decided to follow Jesus, the best day of my life was when I married my beautiful wife. Watching her walk down the aisle, I could not stop smiling and nearly burst into tears of joy. Her father placed her hand in mine indicating that this lovely woman was a gift to me. In a sense, that is what we see here: the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven, not earned by man, but gifted by God. The new Jerusalem is the bride of Christ. She is described in majestic terms, almost as though John runs out of words to describe her beauty—and that is the point. We are to be overwhelmed by the bride in her brilliance and beauty. She is glorious, precious, and pure as she anticipates her union with her groom.
God, Our Temple (21:22–29)
On the day I married my wife, I paid very little attention to anyone else around me. It was not that other people were not important, but my wife’s radiant beauty captured my entire field of vision. Dressed in white and in the light of day, her brilliance shone through unfiltered. Everything else around me became less important. The image of God providing His light seeks to convey this reality for the church. His unfiltered presence will be with His people, and they will bask in His glory forever. For this reason, the gates of the new Jerusalem will never be closed, because evil cannot enter into God’s presence. God’s light will provide the life and security His people need forever.
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Application |
- The church today seems so far away from what is pictured in Revelation. How might knowledge of the church’s future impact its life and ministry today, as well as your life as a member of the church?
- When God’s people gather together to worship communally, we get a foretaste of this glorious reality presented in Revelation. Pray that this vision would encourage you to continue in worship on a daily basis.
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A Letter to
God |
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Father, I thank you for this vision of the ultimate reality that will one day be manifest for eternity. I look forward to that day when Your people will live in Your unfiltered presence, having been made perfect through the work of Your Son, Jesus Christ. In His name I pray. Amen.
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