Revelation 22:1 Komentář

In this chapter we have, I. A further description of the heavenly state of the church (Rev 22:1-5). II. A confirmation of this and all the other visions of this book (Rev 22:6-19). III. The conclusion (Rev 22:20, Rev 22:21).

The heavenly state which was before described as a city, and called the new Jerusalem, is here described as a paradise, alluding to the earthly paradise which was lost by the sin of the first Adam; here is another paradise restored by the second Adam. A paradise in a city, or a whole city in a paradise! In the first paradise there were only two persons to behold the beauty and taste the pleasures of it; but in this second paradise whole cities and nations shall find abundant delight and satisfaction. And here observe, I. The river of paradise. The earthly paradise was well watered: no place can be pleasant or fruitful that is not so. This river is described, 1. By its fountain-head - the throne of God and the Lamb. All our springs of grace, comfort, and glory, are in God; and all our streams from him are through the mediation of the Lamb. 2. By its quality - pure and clear as crystal. All the streams of earthly comfort are muddy; but these are clear, salutary, and refreshing, giving life, and preserving life, to those who drink of them. II. The tree of life, in this paradise. Such a tree there was in the earthly paradise, Gen 2:9. This far excels it. And now, as to this tree, observe, 1. The situation of it - in the midst of the street, and on either side the river; or, as might have been better rendered, in the midst between the terrace-walk and the river. This tree of life is fed by the pure waters of the river that comes from the throne of God. The presence and perfections of God furnish out all the glory and blessedness of heaven. 2. The fruitfulness of this tree. (1.) It brings forth many sorts of fruit - twelve sorts, suited to the refined taste of all the saints. (2.) It brings forth fruit at all times - yields its fruit every month. This tree is never empty, never barren; there is always fruit upon it. In heaven there is not only a variety of pure and satisfying pleasures, but a continuance of them, and always fresh. (3.) The fruit is not only pleasant, but wholesome. The presence of God in heaven is the health and happiness of the saints; there they find in him a remedy for all their former maladies, and are preserved by him in the most healthful and vigorous state. III. The perfect freedom of this paradise from every thing that is evil (Rev 22:3): There shall be no more curse; no accursed one - katanathema, no serpent there, as there was in the earthly paradise. Here is the great excellency of this paradise. The devil has nothing to do there; he cannot draw the saints from serving God to be subject to himself, as he did our first parents, nor can he so much as disturb them in the service of God. IV. The supreme felicity of this paradisiacal state. 1. There the saints shall see the face of God; there they shall enjoy the beatific vision. 2. God will own them, as having his seal and name on their foreheads. 3. They shall reign with him for ever; their service shall be not only freedom but honour and dominion. 4. All this shall be with perfect knowledge and joy. They shall be full of wisdom and comfort, continually walking in the light of the Lord; and this not for a time, but for ever and ever.

INTRODUCTION TO REVELATION 22 This chapter contains a further account of the above city, a confirmation of the visions of this book, and the conclusion of it. The city is further described by the river that ran by it, or through it, called a river of water of life, said to be pure and clear as crystal, and to have its rise from the throne of God and the Lamb; and by the tree of life in the midst of it, situated on each side the river, bearing twelve sorts of fruit, yielded every month, the leaves of which heal the nations, Rev 22:1 and the happiness of the inhabitants of it is set forth, by there being no curse in it; by the throne of God and the Lamb being in it; by the service of the saints in it; by the pleasure they enjoy, and the honour put upon them; by the light of the place, and the duration of the saints' reign, Rev 22:3 next follow testimonies concerning the authority of the book, and the truth of things in it; and first, the testimony of the angel that talked with John, declaring that the things in it were true and faithful; and that he was sent from the Lord God of the prophets to show to the saints things that would quickly come to pass; and that Christ himself would quickly come; and that they were happy who kept and observed the sayings and prophecies of it, Rev 22:6 then the testimony of John who saw and heard them, and was about to worship the angel that declared them, but was forbid by him, and dissuaded from it, by observing to him who he was, a fellow servant of his and of his brethren, and that God only was to be worshipped, Rev 22:8 who is ordered, as it seems by Christ, not to seal up the prophecies delivered to him, since the time of their fulfilment was at hand, when men would remain just as they were, whether ungodly and filthy, or righteous and holy, Rev 22:10 and who declares that he should quickly come to reward every man according to his works; and that he was the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last; and that they were happy that did his commandments, since it would appear they had a right to the tree of life, and to entrance through the gates into the city before described, when wicked men, whose characters are given, would be without, Rev 22:12 and still more clearly and fully Christ asserts himself to be the author of this revelation, and the sender of the angel, to testify it to the church, who is David's root and offspring, and the morning star, whose coming is to be wished for by the Spirit and bride, and every truly gracious soul, Rev 22:16 and to show the perfection and authority of this book, as well as of the whole Scripture, and to deter persons from adding to it, or taking from it, he threatens to inflict on such persons the plagues herein written, and to take the names of such out of the book of life, out of the holy city, and from the things written in this book, Rev 22:18 and then he delivers out a fresh asseveration of his speedy coming, to which John adds his hearty "Amen", and earnest request that he would come quickly; and the book is concluded with a benediction usual in the epistles, especially in those of the Apostle Paul, Rev 22:20.

And he showed me a pure river of water of life,.... Not baptism, which used to be administered in rivers and pools of water; and which engaged to purity of life; and, the power and authority of administering which was from God and Christ; but in this Jerusalem state there will be no use nor need of ordinances; for Rev 22:1 belongs to the preceding chapter, and is a continuation of the same account, this being not a new vision, but a part of the former, which the same angel, as in Rev 21:9 proceeds to show to John: nor is the Holy Ghost intended by this river, whose gifts and graces are sometimes, for their plenty, purity, and quickening virtue, compared to rivers of living water; and who is a pure and holy Spirit, and proceeds from the Father and the Son: nor the doctrine of the Gospel, which comes from the blessed God, and is the Gospel of Christ; and, when purely and faithfully preached, is clear as crystal; and is the means of conveying spiritual life to men, and of supporting it in them: nor the ultimate joys of heaven, which may be called a river of pleasure, for the fulness and variety of delight; pure, and clear as crystal, for the holiness and perfect knowledge of that state; and be said to proceed from the throne of God and the Lamb, being the free gift of God through Christ; but this state is not designed here: rather, therefore, by this river is meant the everlasting love of God, which may be compared to a river for its largeness and abundance, its height and depth, its length and breadth; and for the large displays of it in this state, when its waters will increase, and be a broad river to swim in, and be unpassable; and for the streams of it in election, redemption, calling, justification, pardon, adoption, and eternal life, which make glad the city of God; and for the pleasure it yields, and the fruitfulness it gives to those who drink of it: it may be called a river "of water of life", because in the present state of things it quickens such who are dead in trespasses and sins; revives the saints when dead and lifeless, supports their spirits, and is a cordial that preserves from fainting; it keeps and secures from dying the second death and is the spring and source of eternal life; and that itself will last and flow for ever, it is ever running water, it is everlasting love: and it may be said to be pure and clear as crystal, it being free from all hypocrisy and dissimulation, being real, hearty, and sincere, both in the Father and in Christ, of which the fullest proofs and demonstrations are given; and being clear of all motives and conditions in the creature, by which it might be influenced; and it engaging to purity and holiness of life and conversation; for the doctrine, which brings the account of it, and the inward principle of grace, which is the fruit of it, and every discovery of it, have a tendency hereunto: proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb; not taking its rise from man's obedience, nor from his love to God, nor from his faith in Christ; for the love of God is prior to all these, and is the spring and cause of them, and therefore cannot be moved and influenced by them; but it has its origin from the sovereignty of God and of Christ, signified by the throne of both, who will be gracious to whom they will be gracious; nor can any reason be given why they love any of the sons of men, but their own sovereign will and pleasure; this is the sole motive, spring, and cause of their love; and God and the Lamb being mentioned together, shows both the equal dignity of their persons, being on the same throne, and the equality of their love to the inhabitants of the new Jerusalem: and thus, as a river adds to the pleasure, use, convenience, and wholesomeness of a city, this glorious city is commended by such a river running by it, or in the midst of it: there may be an allusion to the river which ran out of the garden of Eden, for this will be a paradisiacal state, Gen 2:9 or rather to the waters in Eze 47:1 which came from under the threshold of the Sanctuary; though this river proceeds not from the temple, there being no temple in this state, but from the throne of God and the Lamb, which is instead of it.

But My People hath changed their glory: whence no profit shall accrue to them: the heaven turned pale thereat" (and when did it turn pale? undoubtedly when Christ suffered), "and shuddered," he says, "most exceedingly; " and "the sun grew dark at mid-day: " (and when did it "shudder exceedingly" except at the passion of Christ, when the earth also trembled to her centre, and the veil of the temple was rent, and the tombs were burst asunder? "because these two evils hath My People done; Me," He says, "they have quite forsaken, the fount of water of life, and they have digged for themselves worn-out tanks, which will not be able to contain water.

The river of life sets forth that the grace of spiritual doctrine flowed through the minds of the faithful, and that manifold flourishing forms of odours germinated therein. The tree of life on either bank sets forth the Advent of Christ, according to the flesh, who satisfied the peoples wasted with famine, that received life from One by the wood of the Cross, with the announcement of God's word.

'And whose leaves never fade.' [Psalm 1:3] The leaves of this tree are by no means useless. Even if one understands Holy Writ only as history, he has something useful for his soul. We read in the Apocalypse of John (a book which, although rejected in these regions, we ought nevertheless to know, because it is accepted and held as canonical throughout the west, and in other Phoenician provinces, and in Egypt, for the ancient churchmen, including Irenaeus, Polycarp, Dionysius, and other Roman expounders of Sacred Scripture, among whom is holy Cyprian, accept and interpret it): 'Behold, I saw a throne set up, and one Lamb and a tree alongside a river, and on both sides of the river was that tree.' [Revelation 22:1-2] This means that the tree 'was both on this side and on that side of the river. 'And this tree,' he says, 'bore fruit and was yielding its twelve fruits for the year according to each month. And it had lean's, too, and the leaves for the healing of the nations.' [Revelation 22:2] 'I saw,' he says, 'a single throne set up.' We believe in the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, that is true, and that they are a Trinity; nevertheless the kingship is one. 'I saw a single throne set lip, and I saw a single Lamb standing in the presence of the throne.' [Revelation 5:6] This refers to the Incarnation of the Savior. Scripture says: 'Behold the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world' [John 1:29] 'And there was a fountain of water coming forth from beneath the middle of the throne' [Revelation 22:1] Notice that it is from the midst of the throne that there issues forth a river of graces. That river does not issue forth from the throne unless the Lamb is standing before it, [Revelation 7:17] for unless we believe in the Incarnation of Christ, we do not receive those graces. A tree, he says, one lofty tree had been set up. He did not say trees, but only one tree. If there is but one tree how can it be on both sides of the river? If he had said, I saw trees, it would have been possible for some trees to be on one side of the river and other trees on the other side. Actually, one tree is said to be on both sides of the river. One river comes forth from the throne of God - the grace of the Holy Spirit - and this grace of the Holy Spirit is found in the river of the Sacred Scriptures. This river, moreover, has two banks, the Old Testament and the New Testament, and the tree planted on both sides is Christ. During the year, this tree yields twelve fruits, one for each month, but we are unable to receive the fruits except through the apostles. If one approaches the tree through the apostles, he must receive the fruit; he gathers the fruit from the Sacred Scriptures; he grasps the divine meaning abiding within the words. If, therefore, one comes to this tree through the apostles, he gathers its fruit just as we have said. If, indeed, he cannot pluck the fruit, it is because he is still too weak; he is not yet a disciple, but belongs to the throng; he is an outsider, a stranger from the nations. Because he cannot pluck the fruit, he plucks only words, the leaves for the healing of the nations, for it is written: 'and the leaves are for the healing of the nations.' One who belongs to the nations, who is not a disciple, who is as yet only one of the crowd, gathers only leaves from the tree; he receives from Scripture plain words for a healing remedy. Briefly, then, the Scripture says: 'and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations'; in other words, the leaves are medicine. Why have we digressed on the Apocalypse? Simply became of that tree 'that yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade. Whatever he does, prospers.'

This passage shows the fountain of baptism flowing from God and from Christ in the midst of the church. For what kind of honor would there be for this city were the river to flow through the streets to the hindrance of the inhabitants?

And he showed me, he says, a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb in the midst of the city's square. The river of life would be the abundant and rich gifts of Christ, which are continually poured out to the saints, as it were borne and flowing to them like a river.

The river of life that flows in the midst of the city no longer signifies the administration of baptism. Rather, the fruit of that sacrament is here revealed. For we sow now in tears what we shall then reap in joy, and so now the church “sows to the Spirit so that it might reap eternal life.”

The living water is the Lord Jesus Christ. Of this water he spoke to the Samaritan woman: “If you knew the gift of God and who it was who says to you, ‘give me to drink,’ you would rather ask from him, and he would give to you the living water.” [He was speaking of] the knowledge of his deity and the fullness of a holy faith. For concerning him it is said, “For with you is the fountain of life.” For they are buried [with him] through baptism, as the apostle says: “For we have been buried with him by baptism into death.” Therefore, the living water which is like crystal and is perfectly clear is the washing of the holy font and the resulting brightness of most blessed faith. It is said to flow from the throne of God and the Lamb because the cleansing is from him, life is from him, and all righteousness and holiness of baptism flows from and proceeds from him.

The river that flows from the church in the present life indicates the baptism of regeneration that is made effective through the Spirit and makes those who are washed more clean than snow and crystal. But the river of God, filled up with waters, namely, the Holy Spirit, flows through the Jerusalem above, flowing from God the Father through the Son. And [this river flows] in the midst of the most excellent powers, which are named here the “throne of God,” making full the streets of the holy city, that is, the multitude of its inhabitants who are, according to the psalmist, “more in number than the sand.”

And he showed me a river of the water of life, etc. In the river of life flowing in the middle of the city, baptism is no longer celebrated, but the fruit of that sacrament is already revealed. For now, the Church sows in the Spirit, so that then it may reap eternal life from the Spirit (Gal. VI).

The river of the water of life, Rev 22:1. The tree of life, Rev 22:2. There is no curse nor darkness in the city of God, Rev 22:3-5. The angel assures John of the truth of what he has heard, and states that the time of the fulfillment is at hand, Rev 22:6, Rev 22:7. He forbids John to worship him, Rev 22:8, Rev 22:9. Again he states that the time of the fulfillment of the prophecies of this book is at hand, Rev 22:10-12. Christ is Alpha and Omega, Rev 22:13. The blessedness of those who keep his commandments; they enter through the gates into the city, Rev 22:14. All the unholy are excluded, Rev 22:15. Christ sent his angel to testify of those things in the Churches, Rev 22:16. The invitation of the Spirit and the bride, Rev 22:17. A curse denounced against those who shall either add to or take away front the prophecies of this book, Rev 22:18, Rev 22:19. Christ cometh quickly, Rev 22:20. The apostolical benediction, Rev 22:21.

Pure river of water of life - This is evidently a reference to the garden of paradise, and the river by which it was watered; and there is also a reference to the account, Eze 47:7-12. Water of life, as we have seen before, generally signifies spring or running water; here it may signify incessant communications of happiness proceeding from God.

THE RIVER OF LIFE: THE TREE OF LIFE: THE OTHER BLESSEDNESSES OF THE REDEEMED. JOHN FORBIDDEN TO WORSHIP THE ANGEL. NEARNESS OF CHRIST'S COMING TO FIX MAN'S ETERNAL STATE. TESTIMONY OF JESUS, HIS SPIRIT, AND THE BRIDE, ANY ADDITION TO WHICH, OR SUBTRACTION FROM WHICH, SHALL BE ETERNALLY PUNISHED. CLOSING BENEDICTION. (Rev. 22:1-21) pure--A, B, Vulgate, and HILARY 22, omit. water of life--infinitely superior to the typical waters in the first Paradise (Gen 2:10-14); and even superior to those figurative ones in the millennial Jerusalem (Eze 47:1, Eze 47:12; Zac 14:8), as the matured fruit is superior to the flower. The millennial waters represent full Gospel grace; these waters of new Jerusalem represent Gospel glory perfected. Their continuous flow from God, the Fountain of life, symbolizes the uninterrupted continuance of life derived by the saints, ever fresh, from Him: life in fulness of joy, as well as perpetual vitality. Like pure crystal, it is free from every taint: compare Rev 4:6, "before the throne a sea of glass, like crystal." clear--Greek, "bright."