The Glory and the Horror

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away… He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal… And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof… And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life” (From Rev. 21). These words of truth copied here give us a peek of the splendor and majesty of the new Jerusalem that awaits those who are faithful and remain so till the end, and also a fearful warning for any and all who are NOT going to be fully committed to the righteousness of God for the duration of their lives. This account of the afterlife in the book of Revelation is not finished however, but rather it continues with more of the same, both promise and warning.

“And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 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: And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever… He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be… Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without [outside the city] are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie… And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (From Rev. 22). Here in the last two chapters of the Bible we see not only the glorious promises to the faithful, but also two powerful and sobering statements of truth which cannot be overlooked by any and all who aspire to inherit eternal life. One is that anyone who goes to their grave with sin in their life will most assuredly NOT “be accounted worthy to obtain that world” (Lk. 20:35). The other is that the “lake of fire,” the final destination of those who are NOT faithful to Jesus in holiness till the end, will be outside of the new Jerusalem (Mat. 24:12,13; Mat. 13:40-42; Jn. 15:5,6). That reality is shadow typed in the old testament by the valley of Hinnom which was outside of Jerusalem, and was a place for burning garbage; and also where the wicked of God’s people caused their children to be burnt sacrifices to the heathen idol Molech (Jer. 32:35). That leaves me with just one more quote from the chapter directly before these, that solidifies these sayings: “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years” (Rev. 20:6). Amen.