The Revelation · New Testament
Revelation 22
Revelation 22: the river, the last sayings and the closing invitation
General context
The angel shows John a river of water of life coming out of the throne, with the tree of life on either side bearing twelve kinds of fruit and leaves for the healing of the nations. There is no more curse, the throne is in the city, servants serve and see his face, his name is in their foreheads, and there is no night and no need of light. The angel says these sayings are faithful and true and that the Lord God sent his angel to show his servants what must shortly be done, followed by a promise of a quick coming and a blessing on whoever keeps the words of the book. John names himself as the one who saw and heard these things, falls down to worship the angel, and is refused a second time. He is told not to seal the sayings, because the time is at hand, and a saying about the unjust, the filthy, the righteous and the holy follows. The speaker promises to come quickly with a reward, names himself Alpha and Omega, and later says who he is and who sent the angel. The Spirit and the bride say Come, a warning against adding or taking away closes the book, and a final promise and grace end it.
Cited passages: Revelation 22:1, Revelation 22:2, Revelation 22:3, Revelation 22:4, Revelation 22:5, Revelation 22:6, Revelation 22:7, Revelation 22:8, Revelation 22:9, Revelation 22:10, Revelation 22:11, Revelation 22:12, Revelation 22:13, Revelation 22:14, Revelation 22:16, Revelation 22:17, Revelation 22:18, Revelation 22:19, Revelation 22:20, Revelation 22:21
Revelation 22 (KJV)
1And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
2In 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.
3And 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:
4And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.
5And 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.
6And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.
7Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book.
8And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
9Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.
10And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.
11He 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.
12And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
13I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
14Blessed 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.
15For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
16I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
17And 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.
18For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
19And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
20He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.
21The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
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Historical context
The writer names himself a second time in two chapters, "And I John saw these things, and heard them", and the book still gives him no father, office or title beyond what he said at 1:9. At verse 16 a speaker names himself directly, "I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches", and gives two descriptions, "the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star". The instruction here reverses the one given at 10:4: there John was told to seal what he heard, and here he is told, "Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book". The angel refuses worship a second time and repeats the reason given at 19:10, calling himself a fellowservant. The closing warning is stated as concerning anyone who adds to or takes from the words of this book. The nearness claimed, "the time is at hand", is given no date.
Cited passages: Revelation 22:6, Revelation 22:8, Revelation 22:9, Revelation 22:10, Revelation 22:16, Revelation 22:18, Revelation 22:19, Revelation 10:4, Revelation 19:10, Revelation 1:9
Literary context
The ending returns to the opening. The blessing on the one who keeps the words at 22:7 matches the blessing at 1:3 in substance, "the time is at hand" stands word for word in both places, the naming "I am Alpha and Omega" comes back, and the churches are addressed once more. The tree of life, promised to the overcomer in the first message to a church, is here standing by the river. The chapter's closing movement is a chain of invitations, with "Come" said three times in one verse, by the Spirit and the bride, by the hearer, and of the one who is athirst, which is a different kind of ending from the judgments that fill the middle of the book. Speakers change without introduction through these verses, from the angel to a first-person voice promising to come quickly, and the text leaves those shifts unmarked. The last two lines are a promise and a grace.
Cited passages: Revelation 22:2, Revelation 22:7, Revelation 22:10, Revelation 22:12, Revelation 22:13, Revelation 22:17, Revelation 22:20, Revelation 22:21, Revelation 1:3, Revelation 2:7
Key moments
- The river and the tree (Revelation 22:2). The tree of life stands by the river and its leaves are for the healing of the nations.
- John names himself (Revelation 22:8). The writer says he saw and heard these things and fell down before the angel.
- Worship refused again (Revelation 22:9). The angel calls himself a fellowservant and tells John to worship God.
- Seal not the sayings (Revelation 22:10). John is told to leave the prophecy unsealed because the time is at hand.
- The speaker names himself (Revelation 22:16). A voice says Jesus sent the angel to testify these things in the churches.
- Come, three times (Revelation 22:17). The Spirit, the bride, the hearer and the thirsty are all drawn into one invitation.
- The closing promise (Revelation 22:20). The book ends with a promise of a quick coming and an answering call.
For reflection
The book that spent chapters on plagues and battles ends with a short run of invitations to come and a single line of grace. What does that ending do to the way the rest of the book sits with you?
