The End: Revelation 21 and 22

[awakeningaletheia]

The Truth about the End of Revelation

"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.

And to the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their portion will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
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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....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.
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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.
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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.

These various verses come from Revelation 21 and 22 (all taken in order of context), I have put them together because I want to get to the heart of what I think this passage is saying. Take note,

1. Once God has established his final Rule there will be no more death, crying, mourning or pain. This of course lends to the idea of the Lake of Fire not being vindictive and torturous punishment, but corrective and loving punishment.

2. The gates of the New Jerusalem will never be closed, meaning that people can still enter the City. This fully leaves room for the wicked outside the City, in the Lake of Fire and Sulfur, being able to come into the New Jerusalem.

3. In saying that He is making all things new, we can take the wicked being put into the Lake of Fire as a way of making them new. Contextually this is a logical conclusion since God first speaks of the saints and their blessing, and then of the wicked having their 'portion' in the Lake of Fire, a portion is normally something that can run out and come to an end.

4. Nothing impure will enter into the New Jerusalem (Zion) but only those who are written in the Book of Life. In order to be written into the Book of Life it seems one must be born in Zion a.k.a. wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb. [1].

5. There will be a flowing river of life, which is a free gift that Christ invites all to drink from. This is probably the same water he spoke of in John 4 to the Samaritan woman.

6. There are many Trees of Life, each continue to yield its fruit. This seems to denote the idea that the fruit will be needed monthly. The leaves of these Trees are used for healing the nations, again this indicates a need for healing, and healing is for the sick not the healthy. Therefore it is very likely that the leaves are for the Saints to carry outside the City and minister healing.

7. Revelation 22 verse 14 connected with verse 15 tells a beautiful truth about the City of God. That those Outside are able to wash their robes and enter into Zion, thus eating of the Tree of Life. Another interesting parallel is the word for 'robe' in verse 14 is the same one used in the Parable of the Prodigal Son, it is a certain type of robe normally worn by the wealthy. When the wicked son came back to his fathers home, ready to be a slave, he was greeted with unconditional love and his Father commanded the servants to 'bring out the best robe, and put it on him.' Therefore every robe washed in the blood of the Lamb is a gift from God, something that he has given all his children who have been set free from sin and wish to be cleanse of all unrighteousness.

Conclusion

(since no one seems to get what I am saying)

I wanted people to read the italicized words, and to come up with their own conclusions. However here is how my points connect: the ending 2 chapters of Revelation paint a grand picture of redemption one that I am going to try and explain.

The doors of Zion are opened to all those who are cleansed by the blood of the Lamb. I have argued in other posts that the Lake of Fire is the blood of Christ, since the book is the Uncovering of Christ, it is connected to Christ and his new(second) death which Paul speaks about in Romans 6. All will undergo this fire, for all will be salted with fire, one way or another. And since there is no pain then the Lake of Fire cannot be torturous but for the good of the wicked, who are being made new by God, just as the saints are going from glory to glory in the Kingdom. At the same time, inside the New Jerusalem, the many trees of life are continuing to produce healing leaves, meaning that the work of the saints is not finished, they will continue as ministers of reconciliation. For nothing impure or unclean can come in, consequently why do leaves exist for the healing of the sick if they cannot even reach the tree's leaves? This is another reason why the doors are always open, so that they saved can go out to the lost and help reconcile them to God.

The water of life is something only Christ offered and he offers it here to anyone who is thirsty. The Prophet Jeremiah knew that God was the living waters, and Jesus here offering God to anyone who is thirsty. This is like Christ going to Rich man in Luke 16 and offering his not only a drop of water, but a whole river. Anyone who washes their robes in this river of "blood and water(1 John 5:8, John 19:34)" will be able to enter into the City. And the very robes are gifts of God to his broken prodigal sons and daughters.

My final point is this, the end of Revelation is the greatest picture of redemption through Jesus Christ in possibly the whole bible. The living water, the tree of life, the Lake of Fire, the blood of the Lamb, all these represent reconciliation. Jesus offers the living waters (God) to all who thirst(the Rich man); the Lake of Fire is his blood cleansing the sinners; the tree of life is the cross shedding the leaves of healing for the sick; the living book represents being born from above into Zion by the washing of our robes.

Behold! He is making all things new through the blood of Christ Jesus our Lord. This is the picture I found in the italicized words, now I want to see what you find. 

[1]

Psalm 87:5-6(ESV)

And of Zion it shall be said,
"This one and that one were born in her";
for the Most High himself will establish her.
The LORD records as he registers the peoples,
"This one was born there."

Revelation 7:14

"These are those who came out of the great tribulation. They washed their robes, and made them white in the Lamb's blood."

Revelation 22:14

Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter in by the gates into the city.

[Beloved Servant]

It's obviously unclear what your message is; however, the Revelation of Jesus Christ has no end!

[awakeningaletheia]

Haha apparently, though that was not my intention. Here let me edit my OP to show how all these threads connect. 

[Molly]

Haha apparently, though that was not my intention. Here let me edit my OP to show how all these threads connect.

We spent a whole thread in an 'argument' with another board who said no one ever exits the lake of fire and pretty much came to the same conclusions you have reached here.   :thumbsup:

[eaglesway]

The city is open now. It has foundations in the heavens. It is built of living stones. Outside are the fornicators, adultrers liars, etc....but the gates are open- LIFT UP YE GATES AND BE LIFTED UP YE EVERLASTING DOORS THAT THE KING OF GLORY MAY COME IN!!! The overcomers have been made pillars in that city and they shall never go out of it. The city is "coming down" out of the heavens wherever two or more of us gather in His name- and even more so, wherever the Bride is adorned for the Groom, (in white linen, the righteous acts of the saints). There is a "wall of fire" surrounding Zion(Zech 2:5)- no one gets in without being salted with fire, for the Lord will purge Jerusalem by the spirit of judgment and the spirit of burning- all so that she may be "made ready" for His coming into her midst- He will not share His glory with any man- she is the tabernacle of God in the Spirit. Come quickly Lord Jesus!

Rev 3:12  'He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name.

Their heart cried unto the Lord, O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night: give thyself no rest; let not the apple of thine eye cease.
(Lam 2:18)

Isa 33:14  The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?

Babylon is open too--- Come out her My people and be clean and separate!   Only the ones who are seeking that city made without hands now will be there for the "Wedding Feast"- is there oil in the vessel? Can you hear the Voice crying out- a trumpet call? The Bridegroom Comes!!! Awake O Sleeper! Arise! from the dead- and the light of Christ will shine on you!

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel. See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven. And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, "YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN." This expression, "Yet once more," denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.
(Heb 12:22-29)


O Glory! :o)

[Pierac]

awakeningaletheia,

Have a question for you...   Acts 13:48  When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.

Have you been appointed? Chosen by lot?

Eph 1:11  In Christ28 we too have been claimed as God's own possession,29 since we were predestined according to the one purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of his will

Eph 1:11 -

28 tn Grk  "in whom," as a continuation of the previous verse.

29 tn Grk  "we were appointed by lot." The notion of the verb κληρόω (klēroō) in the OT was to "appoint a portion by lot" (the more frequent cognate verb κληρονομέω [klēronomeō] meant "obtain a portion by lot"). In the passive, as here, the idea is that "we were appointed [as a portion] by lot" (BDAG 548 s.v. κληρόω 1). The words "God's own" have been supplied in the translation to clarify this sense of the verb. An alternative interpretation is that believers receive a portion as an inheritance: "In Christ we too have been appointed a portion of the inheritance." See H. W. Hoehner, Ephesians, 226-27, for discussion on this interpretive issue.

sn God's own possession. Although God is not mentioned explicitly in the Greek text, it is clear from the context that he has chosen believers for himself. Just as with the nation Israel, the church is God's chosen portion or possession (cf. Deu_32:8-9).


Now back to Acts 13:48  When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.

Mat 22:14  "For many are called, but few are chosen."

Are we called or are we chosen?   :Chinscratch:

Paul

[WhiteWings]

Haha apparently, though that was not my intention. Here let me edit my OP to show how all these threads connect.

We spent a whole thread in an 'argument' with another board who said no one ever exits the lake of fire and pretty much came to the same conclusions you have reached here.   :thumbsup:

It's always easier to agree with people that do not oppose your+ idea's  :winkgrin:

About being in the Book of Life (BoL)
Everybody is in that book but some get blotted out for a while/age/generation.
Even Jesus was blotted out. Or evil kings (burned Temple Scrolls). That was in human writings but they reflect God's laws.
So I think BoL, blotted out, 'blasphemy against the HS', all are names for the same thing of limited duration.
If we would view New Jerusalem as a literal city and BoL as a guest list it just would for example mean teh evil king won't be on the guest list for 30 years. So he can't join the party in NJ yet.

[Cardinal]

 :cloud9: :laughing7: :thumbsup:

[Molly]

So he can't join the party in NJ yet.

Oh.  I looked at that and thought to myself, Who would want to go to a party in New Jersey? :  Is THAT where the party's going to be? :msealed:

[lomarah]

So he can't join the party in NJ yet.

Oh.  I looked at that and thought to myself, Who would want to go to a party in New Jersey? :  Is THAT where the party's going to be? :msealed:

Hehehehehe Molly your'e too cute.

[WhiteWings]

But not cute enough for NJ. A thousand years of Detroit for Molly  :winkgrin:

[Molly]

But not cute enough for NJ. A thousand years of Detroit for Molly  :winkgrin:

Noooooooooooo!!!! :mshock:

http://www.theseekerbooks.com/detroit/AbandonedDetroit.html

[WhiteWings]

HIROSHIMA vs.. DETROIT -- 64 years later -- Who Won the War?

[sheila]

  Hi

   it is written...the uncircumcized will never enter you again[said of the Holy city]  rather, I see the gates open to the full number of Zions city...but as if a wall of fire

  around it that bars 'the wicked from ever entering again'     the 'Come take lifes water free' in the Revelation is to those due to inherit salvation...the city not built

by human hands


    rather that city is the finished work of God...for death is no more having been consumed by the LOF....the very SUBSTANCE OF THE THING HOPED FOR

   when the full number of Zions children enter that 'ARK' the Lof destroys forever all that fought against it

  now, I differ from some as to the distinctions of the LOF,and its purpose and function...Rather, I  behold it as that which has and does consume allimpurities

  that are removed from the children of Zion..never to enter them again

   it never entered Father's heart to burn His children...Jesus Himself does seperate the sheep from the goat in each child, designating what part is to perish in the wilderness

  never to enter into the Holy city again.  Where people err is when they judge a man as either a sheep or goat.For the truth of the matter is that

  the sin dwelling in our flesh is the scapegoat that perishes in the  wilderness[that evil generation] that does Not enter the promised Land/city

   and is consumed by the jealousy of HIS LOVE[for LOVE is as strong as death,it's jealousy unyeilding as the grave...IT BURNS LIKE BLAZING FIRE

     LIKE A MIGHTY FLAME


the trees that produce 12 man[er] of fruit each month..is the tree of Life....those born of the spirit...Zion's full number of Children, parabolized by Israels 12 sons/tribes 

a woman has a mestrual flow monthly if she does not conceive. Jerusalem above is no menstrous woman

  indeed the doors of Jerusalem above are opened to those who are cleansed of the blood of the Lamb.[sheep]..even MAN....but are

   forever closed to those who go off into eternal cutting off[sons of perdition] goats


   SOS 1'8   If you do not know,most beautiful of women, FOLLOW THE TRACKS OF THE SHEEP AND GRAZE YOUR YOUNG GOATS BY THE TENTS

  OF THE SHEPHERDS

[eaglesway]

God won the war. Tsunami's! World wide Economic Collapse! Nuclear Disaster! Wars! Rumors of War! Famine! Plague! Pestilence!

We reap what we sow but we never learn :o)

[Nathan]

REALLY enjoyed your post Shiela . . .great vision.  :thumbsup:  :thumbsup:

[sheila]

 hI NATHAN

   WHEN I WAS YOUNG I HAD 20/20 VISION OF THE THINGS BELOW..AND WAS LEGALLY BLIND TO THE THINGS OF GOD :mblush:

  NOW, I AM ABOUT LEGALLY BLIND IN THIS WORLD, AND HE IS GIVING BETTER VISION[NOT 20/20 YET] OF THE THINGS OF GOD :mshock:

 

[Nathan]

Greatest vision on earth, least vision in the kingdom.  Least vision on earth, greatest vision in the kingdom . . .sounds familiar.

[sheila]

   further word of the finished state of that Holy city is found in Jeremiah 17;20

    Say to them,HEAR THE WORD OF THE LORD,O KINGS OF JUDAH,AND ALL PEOPLE OF JUDAH AND EVERYONE LIVING IN JERUSALEM

  WHO COME THROUGH THESE GATES.  THIS IS WHAT THE LORD SAY,' BE CAREFUL NOT TO CARRY A LOAD ON THE SABBATH DAY

  OR BRING IT THROUGH THE GATES OF JERUSALEM.


     this finished work is all our rest...Father's also,as well as Jesus...no burden of sin will be carried into the city.Sin will be apart[go into everlasting destruction]

   you see,our sin haad been a burden unto the Lord..forcing Him to serve[work] to cleanse us from it..and set it apart[seperate it] from us.why even we have served sin

   and o what a burden

   for this reason when they accused Jesus of working on the sabbath..he said my Father has continued working til now, and so do I...For He knew

the real Sabbath that would be kept...the true spiritual sabbath.


  and so,Our Father will rest in us..and we will  rest in HIM...  then we shall serve Him,instead of the other way around :mblush:

[Nathan]

Amen again!  Rest from our "labors" . . .the most laboring part of men is their mind.  Entering into the New Jerusalem is a spiritual experience where the minds of men come to rest "under" the spirit in man.  A marriage where mind submits to spirit in order for reproduction of truth and life to birth from within us.  The message of the Sabbath is a whole other set of rules from the days of labor.  Everything is the opposite from what it was.  Before we were instructed to gather the manna . . .to search, to study, to pursue, to consult, and conclude.  Walking in the Spirit ( Day of Rest) has that which was the most important is now the least.  The gathering is finished and we're merely to rest in what's already been done. 

[Cardinal]

 :cloud9: Amen, you two are on fire today.... :thumbsup:

[eaglesway]

I believe that the revelation Jesus gave to John was fresh manna in 100 AD, 500 AD 1000 AD all the way through until today. While I think there are some age/time applicable visions in it- as with Daniel, Zechariah and Ezekiel- I believe it is primarily pictures of time transcendent spiritual reality. The church in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, (as the Ephesians were when Paul wrote to them) has always been a woman clothed with the sun, gestating sons to go forth and destroy the works of the devil(bringing life and peace where there was death and chaos). The overcomers have always been as trees besides the river of living water, bearing fruit in season, with leaves for the healing of the nations. There is a river that makes glad the city of God and it has always been flowing from beneath the throne. I think Jesus has written, and regularly writes, letters to the churches in every city- open to read for those who have ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches.

[Cardinal]

 :cloud9: :thumbsup:

[sheila]

 Amen!