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Eternity
But
the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear
with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and
everything in it will be laid bare. 2 Peter 3:10-13.
Then I saw a
new heaven
and a new earth, for the first heaven
and the first earth had passed away,
and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new
Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven
from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the
throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live
with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them
and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will
be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed
away."
He
who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write
this down, for these words are trustworthy and true." He said to me:
"It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning
and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost
from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all
this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But the cowardly,
the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those
who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars-- their place will
be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
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." 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. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very
precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.
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. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three
on the south and three on the west. The wall of the city had twelve
foundations, and on them were the names
of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the
city, its gates and its walls. 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. He measured its wall and it
was 144 cubits thick, by man's measurement,
which the angel was using. The wall was made of jasper, and the city of
pure gold, as pure as glass. 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, 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. 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.
I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and
the Lamb are its temple. 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. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth
will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be
shut, for there will be no night there. The
glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. 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.
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 down the middle
of the great street of the city. 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.
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. They will see his
face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 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 forever and
ever. 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."
"Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the
prophecy in this book."
I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had
heard and seen them, I fell down to worship
at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. But he said to me, "Do not do it! I am
a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of
all who keep the words of this book. Worship God!"
Then he told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this
book, because the time is near. Let him who does wrong continue to do
wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right
continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy."
"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to
everyone according to what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega,
the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. "Blessed are those
who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life
and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, those
who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the
idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. "I, Jesus,
have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am
the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star."
The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say,
"Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him
take the free gift of the water of life. I warn everyone who hears the
words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them,
God will add to him the plagues described
in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of
prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and
in the holy city, which
are described in this book.
He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen. Revelation 21:1-22:21
God creates a new heaven
and a new earth. All of the perfection of the millennium (spiritually, economically, politically,
etc.) will be glorified and last forever.
Owen Weber 2009 |
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