*Editor’s Note: Students of the Bible have often found themselves confounded by how to interpret sections of the book of Revelation, especially regarding Jesus’ second coming. Will there be a single massive Great Tribulation first? Just how imminent is Jesus’ Second Coming? Which Bible passages are describing Jesus’ second coming and eternal kingdom (versus which ones are describing an alleged future millennial kingdom)? In this article, biblical scholar Larry Pechawer (PhD, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion) explores these questions and makes the case for what he believes are the most plausible interpretations. End-times frameworks are not “essentials” of the faith, and however you have traditionally approached Revelation, you will find this article helpful.
As most would expect, the promise of Christ’s return is a key aspect of the contribution of the book of Revelation. This promise is featured at the beginning and end of the book and resurfaces in the letters to the churches and at the end of various cycles (the sixth seal, the seventh trumpet). As well, it appears in select visions (among others: the harvest of the earth, the Rider on a white horse from heaven, and fire consuming Gog and Magog as they try to attack God’s people at the end of the thousand years).
Promises in the Past Fulfilled
As we summarize how Revelation treats Christ’s second coming and the resultant eternal state, it would be helpful to highlight key features of the book with regard to its various visions and promises. I have come to several conclusions from my research that were not fully anticipated initially. Taken together, they support what I believe to be a consistent picture as presented in the rest of Scripture, especially the New Testament.
(1) The Domitian (late) dating of Revelation is important for a sound overall understanding of the book. The unknown future commences with the reign of Domitian, the tyrannical ruler designated as the eighth head of the beast (out of a possible seven!). The “beast” will live on through the reign of Domitian and those who follow, an evil entity possessing seven or eight or even many more manifestations (heads). Ultimately the beast (not a specific person) will be destroyed at the second coming along with his followers.
(2) Key here is the rejection of any form of “preterism.” The preterist view of Revelation sees any references to the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 as predictions of future events, anticipations of what is to come. Instead, I view such references—references that I do believe involve Jerusalem’s first-century destruction—as pointers to the past, indicators of how God was at work in fulfilling His promises of said destruction (note the Olivet Discourse in Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21).
“The unknown future commences with the reign of Domitian, the tyrannical ruler designated as the eighth head of the beast (out of a possible seven!).”
(3) Why such references (i.e., to the past A.D. 70 destruction of Jerusalem)? I believe that they speak to the issues of apologetics (a defense of the Bible and the God of the Bible) and theodicy (the study of God’s goodness or justice). They offer a defense of how and why God allows past and prevailing circumstances to continue and in the process they help to explain the difficult situations the early church finds itself facing.
Several key questions surface. Why does God allow the evil Roman Empire to destroy the Jewish nation? Why does He enable the leaders of Rome to use Rome’s triumph over the Jews and Jerusalem to buttress their claims of sovereignty over the empire and superiority over its opponents (including the Jewish rebels)?
(4) The mortal wound of the beast, a wound that heals to the wonder and amazement of the Roman world, refers to the violent civil war that nearly toppled the empire following Nero’s suicide, a period of unrest that embraced five different emperors within the span of a year and a half or so: Nero, Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian. Rome’s unlikely survival in the midst of such chaos made the world marvel.
(5) As unlikely as it may sound, God’s efforts against Jerusalem by the hands of Roman forces verified that He was in control: His promises of wrath against His unfaithful people were fulfilled. The Jews’ “harlotry” had been a common Old Testament theme as well as one emphasized by Jesus in the Gospels.
The Great Tribulation Explained
Many anticipate an end-times “great tribulation” of sorts. This expectation is likely misguided. The expression “great tribulation” (thlipsis megalē) appears four times in the New Testament and each time refers to something totally different from the other occurrences! (See Matthew 24:21; Acts 7:11 [ESV “great affliction”]; Revelation 2:22, 7:14).
In Revelation 7, this expression describes persecution of the church through which many martyrs have proved themselves faithful. It is ongoing tribulation throughout the church age. (Note: Revelation 7:14 is the only reference in the New Testament to “the great tribulation.”) In Stephen’s sermon in Acts 7, the expression refers to the great famine in the Old Testament during the time of Joseph. In Revelation 2, Jesus warns of the great punishment (tribulation, death) awaiting the followers (or “children”) of a certain false teacher designated “Jezebel.”
In Matthew’s version of Jesus’ words in the Olivet Discourse, the term refers to the events in connection with the destruction of first-century Jerusalem (as does simply “tribulation” at Mark 13:19). There is nothing in Jesus’ Olivet Discourse that speaks of a “post-rapture tribulation period” as envisioned by most premillennial dispensationalists. The “great tribulation” described in Revelation 7 is persecution at the hands of evildoers during the church age.
“There is nothing in Jesus’ Olivet Discourse that speaks of a ‘post-rapture tribulation period’ as envisioned by most premillennial dispensationalists.”
Cycles of Wrath
If key events have already occurred by the end of the first century, what events still remain that will unfold “soon”? The answer would seem to be those events involving the second coming of Christ and all that entails. Several aspects of Christ’s return are featured throughout the book of Revelation.
In Revelation 1, we find His visible coming with the clouds in judgment (Revelation 1:7). In Revelation 2-3, the messages to the seven churches of Asia involve warnings and promises relating both to Christ’s return and to the believer’s resultant eternal destiny. It is well recognized that Revelation contains several series or cycles of seven, including the letters to the seven churches (Revelation 2:1-3:22), the opening of the seven seals (6:1-8:1), the blowing of the seven trumpets (Revelation 8:2-9:21, 11:15-19), and the pouring out of the seven bowls of wrath (Revelation 16:1-21). (For possible dramatic effect, the message of the “seven thunders” [?] is sealed up and not disclosed [Revelation 10:4]. We are left to speculate…) Judgment is a primary component particularly in the trumpets and bowls cycles.
“Judgment is a primary component particularly in the trumpets and bowls cycles.”
Most agree that key aspects of the trumpets and bowls cycles involve repetition or recapitulation. The specific events described in one cycle may be paralleled in the other. Also, many have noted that the cyclical parallels play out with increasing intensity. When the second trumpet sounds, a third of the creatures in the sea die (Revelation 8:9), but with the second bowl poured out, every living thing in the sea dies (Revelation 16:3)! The woes connected with the seven trumpets and bowls are roughly parallel, including similar sequences, while the plagues of Egypt in Exodus 7-12 serve as the Old Testament model or type. Parallels between the first through sixth trumpets (Revelation 8-9) and bowls (Revelation 16) include:
- the earth being harmed (Revelation 8:7, 16:2)
- the sea turning to blood (Revelation 8:8, 16:3)
- the rivers being made toxic (Revelation 8:10-11, 16:4-7)
- the sun being affected (Revelation 8:12, 16:8-9)
- the kingdom of the beast being put in anguish (Revelation 9:1-11, 16:10-11)
- evil forces summoned from east of the Euphrates River (Revelation 9:13-21, 16:12-16)
“Most agree that key aspects of the trumpets and bowls cycles involve repetition or recapitulation.”
The seventh trumpet and the seventh bowl both bring a sense of finality, although perhaps in a different framework. The seventh trumpet signals the time of God’s wrath upon the wicked and His reward for the righteous (Revelation 11:15-18). Similarly the seventh bowl describes the fierce judgment of God upon the harlot “Babylon the Great” (Revelation 16:17-21). Although some have argued that the destruction of Babylon the Great occurs in connection with the second coming, the content of Revelation 17-18 would suggest otherwise. The beast and his followers destroy Babylon the Harlot (Revelation 17:16-18), and they in turn at some point are conquered by the Lamb (Revelation 17:14). Babylon’s sudden fall is greatly mourned by its various trading partners and associates (Revelation 18:9-19). The second coming does not seem to be in view here.
An important distinction to note in Revelation 6-18 is between the notions of wrath and tribulation. Many commentators combine the two indiscriminately. In much of this section of Revelation, interpreters often refer to the outpouring of God’s wrath upon the wicked as “the great tribulation” when, in reality, much of the description involves persecution at the hands of Satan, the beast, and the false prophet, while other aspects in the description clearly refer to divine judgment, God’s wrath poured out against His enemies. To label both as “the great tribulation” unnecessarily clouds the picture. In truth, God’s people are sealed or protected from God’s righteous wrath (Revelation 7:1-8), while at the same time they must undergo tribulation at the hands of the ungodly (Revelation 7:9-17).
“In truth, God’s people are sealed or protected from God’s righteous wrath, while at the same time they must undergo tribulation at the hands of the ungodly.”
In my thinking, the calling forth of the trumpet plagues and bowl plagues signals the end. How long “the end” lasts with respect to the transition from the present world order to the eternal state (lake of fire, New Jerusalem, defeat in final “battle,” etc.) is hard to say. Luke’s version of the Olivet Discourse pays more attention to the upheaval of the present order and the resultant perplexity and fear produced than does that in Matthew 24 and Mark 13 (Luke 21:25-28).
The destruction mentioned in connection with the “four horsemen” (seals one through four) in Revelation 6 may well speak to the realities already experienced by the end of the first century. The warfare, famine, and death vividly portrayed easily correspond to the violent nature of the first-century Roman Empire and its many conflicts. One could argue that the devastations described do not end with the first century, and later history could favor such a position.
With the opening of the fifth seal, martyrs for the Christian faith are depicted under the altar before God in heaven and their prayers for judgment are reported (Revelation 6:9-10). The martyrs are told to rest as they will be joined in the future by other heroes of the faith who will have given their lives in the same way (Revelation 6:11). They will escape God’s great day of wrath, of course.
“The martyrs are told to rest as they will be joined in the future by other heroes of the faith who will have given their lives in the same way.”
The sixth seal describes a cataclysmic finale in which the wrath of God is poured out upon the wicked. They call out for the mountains and rocks to fall upon them so as to be hidden from God Almighty and “from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” (Revelation 6:16). We see here an early preview of the end. The opening of the seventh seal is delayed (Revelation 8:1). Even then it serves primarily as a prelude to the sounding of the seven trumpets that comprise the next key cycle in the book (Revelation 8:6).
Note that throughout the book we are left hanging after we read the descriptions of the sixth element of each of the various cycles of seven. Later regarding the sixth trumpet, a demonic army crosses the Euphrates River and kills a third of mankind, leaving all still left alive completely unrepentant (Revelation 9:13-21). The outpouring of the sixth bowl plague precipitates a confrontation at “Armageddon” with Christ’s warning that He is “coming like a thief” for “the great day of God the Almighty.” Here again, demonic forces cross the Euphrates—Rome’s natural eastern border that helped prevent chaos from erupting in connection with the dreaded Parthian Empire (Revelation 16:12-16). Ancient concerns for an ancient audience.
“Ancient concerns for an ancient audience.”
With the previous opening of the sixth seal, we find the “great ones” of the earth calling upon the mountains and rocks to fall upon them and save them from the wrath of the Lamb (Revelation 6:15-17). Then a visionary interlude. Prior to the subsequent opening of the seventh seal, a scene unfolds involving “144,000 sealed from wrath” and a great multitude that has come out of “the great tribulation” (Revelation 7:1-17). Following a brief (ceremonial?) silence (of “about half an hour”; Revelation 8:1), seven angels blow seven trumpets (Revelation 8:6-9:21, 11:15-18).
Once the sixth trumpet is sounded and a third of mankind are killed by horses breathing smoke, fire, and sulfur out of their mouths, we are told that those not slain remain unrepentant (Revelation 9:18-21). At this juncture in the book, we find two further interludes, one involving an angel and a “little scroll” (Revelation 10:1-11) and the other containing a symbol-laden narrative featuring God’s “two witnesses” who prophesy to a mostly unreceptive audience (Revelation 11:1-13).
At the conclusion of these two interludes, the seventh trumpet at last sounds, signaling what now seems to offer another brief preview of final judgment in which God’s servants are rewarded while the wicked suffer the wrath of the “Lord God Almighty” (Revelation 11:15-18). A sizable stretch of visions now follows, a stretch involving key aspects of the book: the conflict between Satan and his followers and Christ and His followers (Revelation 12:1-13:18); the 144,000 worshipping in heaven (Revelation 14:1-5); three angelic proclamations (Revelation 14:6-13); and two judgment scenes involving the harvest of the earth (Revelation 14:14-20).
Visions of Tribulation and Triumph
The structure of Revelation is made more challenging by the interspersing of various visions between the cycles of judgment, some visions of which involve extensive narrative accounts. Such narrative visions include the attacks of Satan upon Christ and His followers (Revelation 12:1-17); the activities of the beast and the false prophet (Revelation 13:1-18); the harvest of the righteous and the wicked (Revelation 14:14-20); and worship scenes involving the redeemed in heaven (Revelation 7:9-17, 14:1-4, 15:2-4). Judgments connected with Christ’s return seem to be represented or anticipated at or near the conclusion of the various cycles: “sixth seal” (Revelation 6:12-17); “seventh trumpet” (Revelation 11:15-19); and “sixth bowl” (Revelation 16:12-16). As well, specific judgment scenes figuratively describe the earth being “harvested” (Revelation 14:14-20) and Christ destroying his enemies in “battle” (Revelation 19:11-21).
The church age, the time between Christ’s first and second comings, is described as a time of both tribulation and triumph regarding God’s people. It is described from two distinct vantage points: the struggles on earth at the hands of Satan’s henchmen—the beast and the false prophet along with their devotees—and the resultant celebrations in heaven of those who were victorious in their faithful testimony for Christ.
Christ’s Imminent Return
The imminent or “any moment” nature of Christ’s return is described throughout the New Testament. Jesus’ arrival will be “like a thief in the night” (Matthew 24:43-44; 1 Thessalonians 5:2; 2 Peter 3:10; Revelation 16:15). As well, He will appear with the suddenness and scope of lightning in the sky (Matthew 24:27; Luke 17:24). No one will miss it!
Revelation concludes with the promise of the imminent return of Jesus (“the time is near,” Revelation 1:3; “I am coming soon,” Revelation 3:11, 22:7, 12, 20). It has been suggested that the Greek expressions in question (tachy, en tachei) primarily mean “quickly, suddenly,” involving kind of action, more than “soon, without delay,” expressing time of action. However, the full range of meanings can be found in the New Testament. For “soon” or “shortly” for Greek en tachei, rather than “suddenly,” see Acts 25:4 and 1 Timothy 3:14-15.
The promise of Christ’s “soon” return in Scripture is a main pillar for the strict preterist view that the A.D. 70 fall of Jerusalem was the “second coming” of Jesus, a view that must be rejected, although I do believe that certain aspects of Revelation relate to events and individuals in the first century A.D. These include the arrival of the beast and likely the A.D. 70 destruction of Jerusalem. Throughout these articles, however, I have also argued for a future return of Christ, regardless of what degree of importance might be placed upon several key first-century events. Yet if the imminent or any-moment return of Christ is a reality, how are the “soon” promises regarding Jesus’ return in Revelation to be understood now, centuries later?
“The promise of Christ’s ‘soon’ return in Scripture is a main pillar for the strict preterist view that the A.D. 70 fall of Jerusalem was the ‘second coming’ of Jesus.”
Jesus Himself acknowledged that as the Son of the Father, He did not know the day or the hour of His own coming (Matthew 24:36). His return would be sudden, unexpected, and was imminent. It could happen at any moment, as the rest of the New Testament contends.
In connection with Luke 18:1-8 (the parable of the persistent widow), Darrell Bock has offered a helpful discussion on the term “soon,” what could be labeled the “eschatological soon” (my words). In Bock’s words, Jesus’ coming is soon “in that it is next on the eschatological calendar.” He also explains, “Until the vindication comes, it seems a long way away, especially in the midst of persecution, but after it comes and is established for eternity, it will not seem so delayed.”[1]
What is next on the eschatological calendar, to use Bock’s wording? Christ’s return in glory! The best approach for understanding “soon”? The “eschatological soon” is a “soon” made possible by the fulfillment of all signs and promises that were given regarding events needing to occur before the second coming of Christ. If by now such fulfillments have already occurred, then the return of Jesus is truly “imminent”; it could happen at any moment. Some have spoken of possible or potential imminence versus necessary imminence: what could happen soon versus what must happen soon.
“The ‘eschatological soon’ is a ‘soon’ made possible by the fulfillment of all signs and promises that were given regarding events needing to occur before the second coming of Christ.”
Numerous scenes in Revelation may have depicted events that had already occurred by the end of the first century. What events then still remain that will unfold “soon”? They are those events occurring in connection with the second coming of Christ, including: His visible coming with the clouds in judgment (Revelation 1:7), His victory in the great Last Battle (Revelation 19:11-21), His Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15); and His casting of Satan, the beast and the false prophet into the lake of fire (Revelation 19:20; 20:10).
The highly figurative and stylized trumpet plagues and bowl plagues may figure in here as well, although their figurative nature clouds any sense of timing we might seek to establish. Most agree that key aspects of these two cycles involve repetition or recapitulation. The specific events described in one cycle may be paralleled in the other. Also, many have noted that the cyclical parallels play out with increasing intensity. To a great extent, timing and sequence are thrown out the window.
In connection with this theme, we should note Peter’s reminder that God’s time and our time are kept differently (2 Peter 3:8-10, ESV). Peter writes, “But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day….But the day of the Lord will come like a thief….” Peter stresses the sudden nature of Christ’s return but the question of how soon is left up to God’s timetable. And with God a day, or even “a watch in the night” (a few hours), is like a thousand years (Psalm 90:4). What is His definition of “soon”? Complicated. And how could we label Him “slow”? He will of course be right on time!
“Peter stresses the sudden nature of Christ’s return but the question of how soon is left up to God’s timetable.”
My contention is that all relevant signs needing to be fulfilled preliminary to Christ’s return have been fulfilled and in fact were fulfilled in events in the first century, especially those connected with that first generation of believers in Jesus as Lord and Messiah. These include Jesus’ prediction regarding Peter’s martyrdom in old age (John 21:18-19), His proclamation regarding the universal spread of the gospel (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; compare Colossians 1:6, 23), and His predictions concerning the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple (Matthew 23:37-39, 24:1-28; Mark 13:1-23; Luke 19:41-44, 21:5-24, 23:26-31). A proper interpretation of the Olivet Discourse is crucial in this regard (Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21).
Importantly as well, a major stumbling-block in the discussion regarding imminence could be removed with my identification of Paul’s “man of lawlessness” as an antagonist in connection with the Jewish Revolt and the subsequent destruction of Jerusalem rather than as an end-times “antichrist” figure. (For now, see Appendix A in my Unraveling Revelation.)
What events then still remain that will unfold “soon”? Again, they are those events occurring in connection with the second coming of Christ, e.g., His visible coming with the clouds in judgment (Revelation 1:7), His victory in the great Last Battle (Revelation 19:11-21), the Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15); and the casting of Satan, the beast, and the false prophet into the lake of fire (Revelation 19:20; 20:10). The highly figurative and stylized trumpet plagues and bowl plagues would seem to attach to the second coming matrix of events as well (Revelation 8:6-9:21, 11:15-19, 16:1-21).
“The highly figurative and stylized trumpet plagues and bowl plagues would seem to attach to the second coming matrix of events as well.”
We have noted that both the trumpet and bowl plague sequences involve the enumeration “seven.” As well, we see that they offer closely parallel language generally in sequence; they each borrow imagery from the Old Testament plagues in connection with the Exodus from Egypt; they both lead up to the second coming itself; and both sequences stress the deserved nature of the plagues and the lack of repentance on the part of all affected.
In contrast with the statement to Daniel that his prophecies were sealed up until the time of the end (Daniel 12:9), John is instructed, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near” (Revelation 22:10, ESV). Daniel’s visions were in part preliminary, containing events that would unfold in the subsequent years leading up to God’s establishing His messianic kingdom (events such as the return from Babylon, the persecution under Antiochus Epiphanes, and the rise of future empires including Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome).
For the early readers of Revelation, the emphasis is not upon events that must still transpire leading up to the climax of human history, but upon what has already happened and continues to happen as God’s people are called to faithful obedience in the face of tribulation. Actually, Daniel had relatively little to say about the second coming—Christ’s first coming being more the focus—while Revelation repeatedly singles out that later key event on the horizon of God’s future for His people.
“For the early readers of Revelation, the emphasis is not upon events that must still transpire leading up to the climax of human history, but upon what has already happened and continues to happen as God’s people are called to faithful obedience in the face of tribulation.”
It should be noted that my identification of Babylon the Harlot as Jerusalem, not Rome, supports the notion of imminence as presented throughout the rest of the New Testament. Conversely, the common current view that ancient Rome was the harlot of which John spoke severely weakens the argument that the entire New Testament, including Revelation, teaches an imminent return for Christ. If Rome (the Harlot?) first had to be destroyed, as it eventually was in the fifth century A.D., the notion of imminence falters. The metaphoric thief in the night of the New Testament could not sneak in as long as Rome stood.
The A.D. 70 fall of Jerusalem marked the end of the first generation of the church, approximately, while the fall of Rome occurred centuries later (410? 476?) and, in fact, a century or more after the conversion of much of the Roman Empire to Christianity. The time for punishing the pagan persecutor of the early church had long since come and gone. A consistent New Testament doctrine of Christ’s imminent return fits well with identifying the Great Harlot of Revelation as first-century Jerusalem, destroyed (by Rome!) in A.D. 70 according to God’s stated divine purposes.
The Old Testament’s New World Order
Central to Revelation’s closing descriptions of the future is John’s depiction of the new heavens and new earth along with the New Jerusalem. The perfect prosperity and peace of the New Jerusalem will be enhanced by God’s presence and intimate communication. In that city there will be no need of a sanctuary, for God Himself will be the temple (Revelation 21:22). The imagery of peace is further highlighted by the reference to the animal kingdom—natural predators along with their prey will dwell in mutual security and bliss (Isaiah 11:6-9). Truly the “curse” will be removed! Paradise will be restored. Some hope that such a text promises that our deceased pets will indeed be in heaven, but that debate will not be engaged in here.
Not all is well in paradise, however. Many interpreters are forced to reject the entire approach given above. Because of a dogged insistence upon literalism, some cannot accept that Isaiah’s language is actually a description of the eternal state, but rather of a future thousand-year reign prior to the eternal state. One can certainly appreciate their concern. If our understanding is correct, references in Isaiah 65 to “building and planting,” “the wolf and the lamb,” etc., present a figurative description of the eternal new heavens and new earth. Importantly, should not similar language elsewhere in the Old Testament then be expected to refer to the same ultimate fulfillment? If Isaiah’s words here describe the eternal state, then what Old Testament “paradise” terminology is left to a future “millennial earth”? In effect, the premillennialist’s rationale for a “millennium” is seriously weakened.
“Because of a dogged insistence upon literalism, some cannot accept that Isaiah’s language is actually a description of the eternal state.”
Several disconnects stand out here.
The closing visions in Revelation do not support a premillennial approach to the book. If the thousand-year reign of Christ mentioned in Revelation 20 is supposed to be the fulfillment of the many Old Testament prophecies of a golden age, why are there no clear connections in Revelation 20 with the Old Testament except for the mention of a Gog and Magog invasion which, ironically, many premillennialists reject as being the same Gog and Magog invasion that the Old Testament prophesies (Ezekiel 38-39)?
Israel is not even mentioned in Revelation 20, nor is the land, nor is Jerusalem specifically. The absence of Old Testament imagery in Revelation to describe an alleged, much-anticipated millennial kingdom is inexplicable. Another major disconnect is the remarkable fact that the extensive Old Testament descriptions of the golden age, including the New Jerusalem and the new heavens and new earth, are cited in Revelation as being fulfilled in the eternal state that follows the millennium, whatever the millennium is.
Isaiah 60 and 65 especially contain striking language parallel to Revelation 21-22. The following listing summarizes the close connections:
- the creation of a new heavens and new earth (Isaiah 65:17-19; Revelation 21:1-2)
- the appearance of the New Jerusalem (Isaiah 65:18-19; Revelation 21:2)
- the removal of all weeping and mourning (Isaiah 65:19; Revelation 21:4)
- no sun or moon will be needed; the Lord Himself will be their light (Isaiah 60:19; Revelation 21:23)
- nations and kings will come to the city’s light (Isaiah 60:3; Revelation 21:24)
- the wealth of the nations will be brought into the city (Isaiah 60:11; Revelation 21:26)
- the city’s gates will never be closed; there will never be night (Isaiah 60:20; Revelation 22:5)
“The absence of Old Testament imagery in Revelation to describe an alleged, much-anticipated millennial kingdom is inexplicable.”
The verses in Isaiah found in Revelation are often cited by John virtually word-for-word. The fact that John extensively utilizes Isaiah in his descriptions of the eternal state cannot be denied. Again, the eternal state, not a millennium. This inconvenient fact is a serious problem for the premillennial approach.
The City of God, the People of God
The focal point of Revelation’s description of the new heavens and new earth is the New Jerusalem. One fascinating aspect of the usage of “city” imagery here is that it is actually two pictures being developed. One picture is that of an actual city into which people enter: a city of walls, gates, and streets (Revelation 21:12-26). But the other picture presented is that the city itself actually is the redeemed people of God.
The New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God is introduced twice, the second time apparently from a closer vantage point (Revelation 21:2, 9-10). In both cases, the term “bride” is used to describe it (Revelation 21:2, 9). John writes, “And I saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Revelation 21:2, ESV). An angel describes the New Jerusalem to John as “the Bride, the wife of the Lamb” (Revelation 21:9).
Scripture elsewhere identifies the church as the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:32). Revelation 19 earlier describes the marriage of the Lamb for which the bride, Christ’s church, had made herself ready (Revelation 19:6-9). The New Jerusalem, therefore, is the wife of the Lamb, the redeemed saints clothed “with fine linen, bright and pure” (Revelation 19:8, ESV).
“The focal point of Revelation’s description of the new heavens and new earth is the New Jerusalem.”
Further elements in the imagery reinforce this people-city equation. The walls of the city contain twelve gates, each gate having the name of one of the twelve tribes of Israel written on it (Revelation 21:12). The walls also have twelve foundations upon which are the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb (Revelation 21:14). The combination of Israel’s tribes and Christ’s apostles is a way to describe the totality of God’s people, both Old Testament and New Testament saints. A temple structure is replaced by the personal presence of God Himself (Revelation 21:23). People and fellowship replace buildings and property in the eternal city of God (Revelation 21:3).
The absence of night enables the gates of the New Jerusalem to be open “round the clock” (Revelation 21:25), a picture of peace and security (note Nehemiah 7:3). The striking reference, “and the sea was no more” (Revelation 21:1)), seems to signal the elimination of that which was dark, dangerous, mysterious, and foreboding, especially in light of the earlier mention of the sea “giving up its dead” (Revelation 20:13-14). A final glimpse within the heavenly city reveals the existence of the garden of God—paradise regained (Revelation 22:1-2; Genesis 2:8-9, 3:22-24; Ezekiel 47:12).
Closing Promises
What would unfold for Christ’s faithful overcomers in the future? Revelation’s final chapter offers answers: entrance into the New Jerusalem (Revelation 22:19); access to the tree of life (Revelation 22:19); drinking freely from the water of life (Revelation 22:17); worship before the divine throne (Revelation 22:3); seeing God’s face (Revelation 22:4); and reigning with God forever and ever (Revelation 22:5). Jesus reiterates the judgment motif found throughout the book: “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done” (Revelation 22:12, ESV).
Solemn words from Jesus close out the book:
“I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.” (Revelation 22:18-19, ESV)
“If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city.”
Although over time, many have attached the warning here to the Bible as a whole, in its original setting, it applies to John’s Apocalypse specifically, and yet the spirit of the cautionary prohibition rings true for all of Scripture. The prayer from commentators should be that they (we) can convey accurately the intent of the message of this great book that closes the pages of God’s Word. The book concludes like a more traditional New Testament epistle: “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen” (Revelation 22:21, ESV).
Jesus’ final promise that He is coming soon is closed by John’s ardent prayer: “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20, ESV). We join countless other students of God’s prophetic word and of the book of Revelation in particular in adding our “Amen” to that ancient, heartfelt request.
[1] Darrell L. Block, Luke: A Commentary on the New Testament (Volume 3), The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1994), 295.
To check out Dr. Larry Pechawer’s book Unraveling Revelation: Hope, Wisdom, and Mystery in John’s Apocalypse, click HERE.
