By Diane Caston
The Promise
The River of Life - As Jesus culminates his words to John and by proxy to all of mankind, he ties together the promises of the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. He reinforces what he has been telling his people throughout the ages.
Rev. 22:1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb.
Which is the reiteration of the promises He made long ago.
Ezk. 47:1-2 “Then he brought me back to the door of the temple; and there was water, flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the front of the temple faced east; the water was flowing from under the right side of the temple, south of the altar. He brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gateway that faces east; and there was water, running out on the right side.”
Zech 14:8 “And in that day it shall be that living waters shall flow from Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea (dead sea) and half of them toward the western sea (Mediterranean);
in both summer and winter it shall occur.”
Joel 3:18 “And it will come to pass in that day that the mountains shall drip with new wine,
The hills shall flow with milk, And all the brooks of Judah shall be flooded with water;
A fountain shall flow from the house of the Lord and water the Valley of Acacias.”
Ps. 46:4–5 “There is a river who streams, make glad the city of God, the holy place of the Tabernacle of the most high. God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her, just at the break of dawn.
So, we see the angel here in Revelation connects John to the promises the Lord has reinforced over and over throughout scripture. And now John receives the explanation of when that promise will be fulfilled. This picture has always been alluring to me, somewhere in my mind I have the picture of water flowing out from under the stone threshold of the temple, a place of comfort and beauty, a place of worship and awe. The healing water coming down out of this temple. I reflect on that Millennial kingdom and what it will be like.
Ps. 84:1–4 “How lovely is your tabernacle (or dwelling place), o Lord of hosts! My soul longs, yes, even faints for the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young – even your altars, O Lord of hosts, My King and my God.”
This water coming from the temple is certainly real; the evidence is clear from the many references God has made as a picture of things to come. But we also see that Jesus repeatedly used the illustration of water as a picture of his Holy Spirit.
Jn. 7:37-39 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
At the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles, which was celebrated to remind the Jewish people of God’s deliverance in the wilderness, Jesus uses the climax of the festival, the ritual of pouring water from the Pool of Siloam over the altar to commemorate the water from the rock in the wilderness, to tell them if they truly thirsted to come to Him and receive Living Water. Just as He had told the woman at the well.
Jesus told the Samaritan woman:
Jn 4:13 “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never thirst. But the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”
The Lord chastises His people in Jeremiah 2:13 “For My people have committed two evils:
They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water. But they wouldn’t come to me, the Fountain of Living Water.”
There is something very different about this river of water of life though, which in studying has piqued my interest. The previous OT scriptures may have alluded to the Millennial age, but as we see in Rev. 22:22–23, The word tells us:
“But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty, and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light.”
Our verses in Revelation 22 refer now to the New Jerusalem. What need would there be for a temple, because the Lord Himself is there. The water of life flows from the Source of Life, God himself! It pours down the street and brings nourishment to the Tree of Life and produces healing and its leaves.
Back to Rev 22:2, “In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”
Promised in Ezk 47:7-8 “When I returned, there, along the bank of the river, were very many trees on one side and the other. 8 Then he said to me: “This water flows toward the eastern region, goes down into the valley, and enters the sea. When it reaches the sea, its waters are healed.
The verses go on to explain that there will be all kinds of fish, and the fishermen will line the banks.
(I know my husband will love this!). And the trees line the banks, and the leaves of these trees will be medicine for the nations.
Rev 22: 3-5 “And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.” We will reign forever with Him!
Living water, a river of provision right from the throne of God, leaves for healing, no more curse, His Name upon our foreheads!! Surreal imagery, but all a fact! In the summary of all human history, God says you will see His face; you will see him face to face! What joy and what fear are contained in that thought. When John saw Him at the beginning of this Revelation, he fell down as one who was dead!
When we see Him, we will gain a true understanding of how black our sin was and is, and how expensive the price was to allow us to stand and look upon His face! It is too much to even fathom!
The Time Is Near
Rev. 22:6 Then he said to me, “These words (sayings) are faithful and true.”
John may have needed a little encouragement to believe that the fantastic things he was seeing and hearing were true. This is not imaginary or allegorical; it is faithful and true. The angel who is taking him on this tour reminds him, what he was saying was dependable and true. Aren’t these words we long to here today? We long for the truth. There is so much disinformation and deception swirling around us. But the words of the Lord are dependable; we can stand on them! Even though it sounds surreal, we can know that if God said it, it is going to have to happen.
Continuing in Vs. 6 “And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must ‘shortly’ take place.
(Now this word ‘shortly’ is ‘tachos’ in the Greek and means – quickly, speedily, or suddenly by surprise.)
Right after this verse Jesus breaks into the conversation! This is the first of four places in this last chapter that Jesus inserts Himself into the words that are being spoken. In verses 7, 12–13, 16, and 20, the Lord jumps in. I like to think He’s super excited and wants to make sure everyone hears what being said and how soon it could all be!
Rev.22:7, “Behold, I am coming quickly (tachos - quickly, speedily, suddenly by surprise)! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”
(Morgan) “The word ‘quickly’ in the ancient Greek isn’t exactly the same as our word for ‘quickly’. The word ‘quickly’ might with accuracy be rendered ‘suddenly’.”
God‘s definition of quickly is different from ours. We think in our earthly time frame; he thinks eternally, where time is definitely different! If he counted time the way we would like, we wouldn’t even have been born before he came. We wouldn’t even be alive to enjoy all of his promises!
(Guzik) “Still the early church expected Jesus’ return soon -- were they just wrong, or did Jesus mislead them? Not at all, they were not wrong, and they were not misled by Jesus. God wants to keep all generations, expectant, and ready for his return.”
(Mounce) “We are not rushing towards a distant break of the consummation of all things; we are running parallel along the edge of that brink and have been since the time of the apostles. Thus, the time has always been at hand the tension of imminence is endemic to that span of redemptive history, lying between the cross and the Parousia” (arrival, official visit). Referring to the coming of the Lord.
Sometimes it doesn’t seem to be ‘shortly’. My Mother-in-Law would scoff, “Oh they told us those things when I was young.” And there might have been a time when you wondered yourself if it would really be soon, but when we see the things happening today, how can it be much longer? From the word ‘tachos’, that we have mentioned, came the word tachometer, a device to register the speed of machines. Well, when we look around there is no question that things are speeding up. All of those things the Lord told us were signs are accelerating at an unbelievable rate. Deception being the worst of those signs. Keep your eyes on the prize and your studying in His word, so that you will not be deceived. Politicians and elections are not going to save us. The Lord told us at the end perilous times would come. Evil men and seducers would wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. Perilous times indeed!
Never in time past has there been the ability to spread a rumor around the whole planet in a minute, or to view an event live in any location, even outer space, all at the same time. In what other time would people ever have been able to see what is declared in Rev.11:9 about the two witnesses, “then those from the peoples, tribes, tongues, and nations will see their dead bodies, 3 1/2 days, and not allow their dead bodies to be put into graves”. When would this ever have been possible before our days? We are closer than we have ever been.
The Invitation
Revelation 1:3 Blessed is he, who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near
Blessed those who read, blessed those who hear, now finally, blessed are those who keep.
The end of Rev. 22:9 the angel refers to himself as being among those who keep the words of this book. At this point in the book, the reading and hearing are over, now is the time to ‘keep the words’, this phrase means to ‘attend to carefully, or ‘guard or garrison’, the words. Our life is to be a life of sacrifice; Christianity is not a spectator sport. This short life of ours is not about us, or what we can obtain while we are here. Jesus promises future rewards, based on what we have done with what he has given us. We are to give ourselves to Him and others and keep an eternal perspective on our eternal reward.
Rev. 21:6–7 “and he said to me, “it is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give her the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirst. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be my son.
The Lord calls us to be Overcomers, to put the flesh to death, to seek him with all of our hearts, and use our time and treasure to advance the kingdom of God.
Revelations 22:10, “and he said to me, “Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand”
Many Old Testament books were veiled. The book of Daniel was sealed. But this prophetic book is not sealed up. It is for us to read, digest, share and obey. It is verification of the plan of God. It is an invitation to come and drink of the living water, and it is a stern warning to all who will not bend the knee to the Risen Savior.
Rev. 22:12-14 “and behold, I am coming quickly, and my reward is with me, to give to everyone according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last”. Blessed are those who do His commandments that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter through the gates to the city.”
Again, the sense of urgency and warning, Jesus is impressing on the those who follow Him. He’s coming and has rewards with him. Does this mean we’re saved by our works? No, but of faith that is alive will definitely have works with it.
James 2:20 “But do you not know old foolish man that faith without works is dead?”
Titus 3:8, “ this is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.”
Revelations 22:16,” I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the root and offspring of David, the bright and MorningStar.
This is the first time we see any mention of the church since chapter 3. If you were looking for the church in the Tribulation, you will be disappointed. She is not there. The tribulation is not for the church. There are only two reasons for Tribulation, when God‘s wrath will be poured out on the Earth: the discipline of unbelieving Israel, and the punishment of unbelieving Gentiles.
Revelation 22:17 “and the Spirit and the bride say, come! And let him who hears say come and let him who thirsts come, whoever desires let him take of the water of life freely.”
This statement compares to what we know, and many have experienced, the passion of engaged couples, both waiting, and anticipating, each doing their part to prepare for the upcoming union. Each party in this verse speaks, the Spirit says “come”, the bride says yes, “come”! A love conversation, watching and waiting for the time we will be together forever! Us, as the bridegroom, our hearts cry out for our love, for our betrothed. We all feel it sometimes, like an overwhelming feeling that we can’t wait any longer, and he feels the same, waiting and preparing a place for us that we might come to him. If you don’t feel the anticipation today, if you don’t feel this longing, but would like to, then come and drink! Whoever desires, come and drink of the living water of life freely, the water that ends all thirst.
Revelation 22:20 he who testifies these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly”. Amen. Even so come, Lord Jesus!
These are the last recorded words of Jesus and notice how three times in this last chapter he encourages us. I am coming quickly! Remember that every day! Meditate on it! It is your sure future. It is a gift to remind you of what awaits you! Amen.