John now works his apocalyptic vision toward its ultimate closing.
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 for ever and ever.
John continues to draw from the imagery of Ezekiel (in this case, chapter 47), using the image of an angel showing the prophets the apocalyptic conclusion to his vision. The allusions continue, as what John sees is very similar to what Ezekiel saw. Ezekiel also saw a river and trees that bore fruit for the healing of the nations. Allusions to the Psalms and to Jeremiah abound, as well. It seems as though everything God’s people longed for is still — according to John — something to long for, and still in process.
It’s coming, John says.
I think it’s also worth noting here that John is deliberately bringing us full circle back to the beginning of the story of God. There are plenty of direct and indirect allusions to the Garden of Eden and the Tree of Life. Some have suggested John is mirroring the creation imagery in his vision. This would make sense, as we’ve seen in the rest of Johannine literature that John loves to work around with the Creation story motif. Could it be John is bringing us back to where it all began? Remember, in the beginning, Genesis said God separated light from darkness — but the “source” of that light (the sun) wasn’t created until day four. Could John be alluding to these beginnings by suggesting that there is light, but no sun? It seems likely.
The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”
“Look, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy written in this scroll.”
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, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!”
Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this scroll, because the time is near. Let the one who does wrong continue to do wrong; let the vile person continue to be vile; let the one who does right continue to do right; and let the holy person continue to be holy.”
“Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
John (in the vision) is overwhelmed by the things he sees. He falls to worship, but the angel calls to him to make sure his worship remains pure. Is this a call for the readers of this vision, as well? Possibly. The language used by the angel here mirrors that of other visions, in particular at least three different sections in Daniel (chapters 8, 9, and 12). And there may be hints at the closing of Isaiah (chapter 65, and others might even suggest chapter 40).
John’s message continues: It’s all coming true. It’s all coming to pass. You must overcome! You must persevere.
“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 the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.
They must hang in there. John gives them words from Jesus, a testimony for the churches. They must not give in to uncertainly or despair, for the reward of staying true to their convictions will not only be the opportunity to drink freely of the water of life, but to see the culmination of thousands of years of faithfulness on behalf of their ancestors. God’s great redemption project is finding its true and complete fulfillment! But not if they give up.
I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.
While many get worked up about these verses (which are important, no doubt), what is often missed is the fact that these words are taken (surprise!) from earlier writings. Deuteronomy had similar prohibitions. Even the wisdom of the Proverbs used similar words to talk about the record.
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.
And with that prayer of anticipation, John closes his apocalyptic vision.
And we close our study of the Scriptures. But we simply can’t end the conversation here, for this conversation raises historical questions that nag us as twenty-first-century readers. As the Bible ends, the persecuted people of God are standing strong against the empire of Rome. They are watching Rome crumble in the face of a subversive movement and a commitment to peace, love, and compassion. Multiple times throughout the New Testament, we heard the writers exclaim or allude to the fact that they believed the world would see the return of Jesus within even a generation or two.
Were they wrong? How could we have gone through such trying times and watch the fall of the most powerful empire in the world and not see the end of this story? How did we get to where we are today?
In short, what happened?
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