This is another in a series of excerpts from The Book of Life: What the Bible Says about God’s Registry of the Redeemed from High Street Press and available at Amazon. This except comes from Chapter 15: Assembly of the Firstborn: Hebrews 12:23.

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The previous post intoduced us to some of the key features of Mount Zion, also known as New Jerusalem. Now, we examine more features of the heavenly city.

New Jerusalem lacks a temple, stellar lights, a closing time, and anything unclean (Rev. 21:22-27)

After a detailed description of New Jerusalem’s exterior, John turns his attention inside the city walls. He notes first the absence of a temple “because the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple” (v. 22). 

Historical Jerusalem is known as the city of God because his presence resides there in the temple (1 Kings 8:10-13). The people of God approach him through a mediator, a high priest who offers atoning sacrifices for the peoples’ sins in the holy of holies on the Day of Atonement. 

The atoning blood is carried through a thick veil and sprinkled on the mercy seat, above which the Shekinahglory blazes. There, the wrath of God is satisfied, and his mercy is extended to sinful creatures. All this activity inside the cube-shaped holy of holies bears forward-looking significance. The day is coming when God himself provides a sacrifice: the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29).

When Jesus dies on the cross, the veil of the temple tears in two, from top to bottom, signifying that Jesus has fulfilled the types and shadows of the Old Covenant and now makes way for the New Covenant in his blood. The redeemed now have direct access to the throne of God without the need for a human mediator. John captures the richness of this imagery as he gazes inside New Jerusalem. The Father and the Lamb are the temple. 

The apostle further observes that the city doesn’t need the sun or moon to shine on it “because the glory of God illuminates it, and its lamp is the Lamb” (Rev. 21:23). The light of God is distinct and divine, without earthly origins or natural explanation. We catch a glimpse at times: in the burning bush (Exod. 3), the pillar of cloud and fire (Exod. 13:21-22), the blazing heavenly chariot-throne (Ezek. 1:26-28), on the mount of transfiguration and the road to Damascus (Matt. 17:1-9; Acts 9:1-9), and in the fiery eyes of the glorified Christ (Rev. 1:14). 

There’s no closing time in New Jerusalem. No curfew. No final curtain. The city’s massive gates never close because daylight is continuous, and darkness is dispelled. The kings of the nations walk the streets, bathed in divine light and leading their people to pay homage to the King of kings. 

National and ethnic distinctions remain in the new heavens and earth as a tribute to the one who redeemed people out of every tribe, language, people, and nation (Rev. 5:9). Their kings seek no personal gain or political leverage. At the same time, the nations do not hunger for expanded boundaries or elite status. Instead, they are fully devoted to the one who calls them fellow heirs of the unfolding new creation.

While New Jerusalem is the capital city of the new heavens and earth, it is not the only city on the restored planet. The fact that nations and kings come and go demonstrates this fact. We should not presume to exclude those dwelling outside the city as lesser citizens of New Jerusalem. Perhaps the rewards Christ has granted them in judgment include ruling over cities and nations in other parts of the new world (see Luke 19:11-27). In any case, the city’s gates are always open to them.

But the open gates don’t beckon everyone. “Nothing unclean will enter it,” John writes, “nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Rev. 21:27). The people of God – joined under the Old and New Covenants – are safe in the presence of the Father and the Lamb. Those who have rejected the gracious revelation of God in creation, conscience, the canon of Scripture, and Christ have found themselves before a great white throne without excuse (Rom. 1:20; Rev. 20:11-15). 

The lost have made it clear they do not want a relationship with their creator; instead, they prefer to live now and forevermore independently of God. They have crossed a line and passed a point of no return known only to God but hinted at in the Scriptures as their limit of sins (see 1 Thess. 2:16). And now, because they have demanded their names be stricken from the Lamb’s book of life, they find themselves in outer darkness, perhaps able to see the joyous life in New Jerusalem from a great distance but barred from ever approaching its gates. 

Like the rich man Jesus describes in Luke 16:19-31, they see a “great chasm” between themselves and those resting comfortably at Abraham’s side. And like the insolent guest at the wedding banquet in Jesus’s parable in Matthew 22:1-14, they find themselves bound, taken from the king’s presence, and cast into the darkness of never-ending night.

The gates of New Jerusalem are open, and it’s daylight there forever. But unbelievers remain separated in outer darkness. Like the bound and bounced guest in Jesus’s parable of the wedding banquet, perhaps they see the light from a distance, which makes their darkness more intense. Perhaps they hear the music of heaven’s choir but are forbidden from singing along. Perhaps they smell the aroma of heaven’s banquet table but can never taste its delicacies. The nearness yet inaccessibility of New Jerusalem twists the gut and makes the consequences of divine rejection a perpetual nightmare.

New Jerusalem features a river, a broad street, a tree, and a throne (Rev. 22:1-5)

The first five verses of the final chapter of Revelation describe four prominent objects in New Jerusalem. 

First, the river of living water. John describes the water as “clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the city’s main street” (22:1-2). Just a few verses earlier, the one seated on the throne says, “I will freely give to the thirsty from the spring of the water of life” (Rev. 21:6). 

This promise draws deeply from the Old and New Testaments and speaks of eternal life received by God’s grace through faith. The Greek word potamos is translated “river,” “flood,” or “stream” and is used metaphorically in John 7:38 to describe the blessing of eternal satisfaction found in Christ.

The river John sees in Revelation 22 calls to mind the river in Eden (Gen. 2:10), as well as prophetic references to water flowing from the temple in Ezekiel 47 (see also Joel 3:18; Zech. 14:8). John borrows from this prophetic imagery and applies it to the restored Eden in the new heavens and earth. Perhaps most significant is John’s observation that the river flows from the throne, indicating both its source and its power to slake our spiritual thirsts forever. 

While these waters may be understood literally, a more fitting understanding is that this river signifies the third person of the Trinity – the Holy Spirit, who authors the words of life in Scripture; regenerates the dead spirits of unbelievers; indwells, seals, baptizes, and guides them, ensuring that these children of God grow to full maturity and attain glorification at the resurrection of the just.

Joseph Seiss writes that the river “is the Holy Ghost for that celestial Tabernacle, as God and the Lamb are the Temple of it. It is the divine emanation from the Father and the Son which fills and cheers and forever rejoices the dwellers in that place.”

The second object of note in John’s vision is “the broad street of the city” (Rev. 22:2 HCSB). Revelation 21:21 tells us the street is pure gold, transparent as glass. The term “broad street” also may be translated “public square,” indicating a place of gathering, fellowship, and worship. Perhaps this square is what John describes earlier as resembling “a sea of glass, similar to crystal” (Rev. 4:6).

In any case, this broad street or public square accommodates many people, who stand before the throne of God and enjoy the pure refreshment of the Holy Spirit as he moves among them. 

Note that the street is broad, airy, and inviting – an especially welcome respite from the persecution so many believers suffer on earth. Its location before the throne and alongside life-giving waters makes it an integral part of the new city. Its appearance as pure gold reflects the idea of purity, accessibility, and immense value. And its wide expanse stands in contrast to the narrow way by which it is accessed. 

Jesus tells us we enter the kingdom only through “the narrow gate” (Matt. 7:13-14), and then he reveals himself as that exclusive way (John 14:6). Only those who entrust their lives to Christ stand on the broad streets of the heavenly city.

The third object is the tree of life. We first read of the tree in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:9). Adam and Eve are free to eat from this tree until they fall into sin. Then, they are banished from the garden. The Lord stations cherubim and “the flaming, whirling sword east of the Garden of Eden to guard the way to the tree of life” (Gen. 3:24). Having lost immortality and innocence, the first humans are barred from partaking of the tree and thus locking themselves into a never-ending fallen state. This reflects the mercy of God as well as his divine wrath.

Now, however, we see in Revelation 22 that access to the tree is restored. Immortality and innocence are returned to God’s imagers.

The tree of life represents eternal life or immortality in both Genesis and Revelation. Non-biblical Jewish portrayals of paradise feature the tree of life, the fruit of which enables partakers to live forever (e.g., 2 Enoch 8:3-4). In the garden, after Adam and Eve disobey God, they are denied access to the tree of life and thus experience spiritual death (immediately), death of the soul (slowly and continuously), and physical death (ultimately). The sacrificial system God introduces after the Fall enables sinful people to experience atonement for their sins and retain fellowship with their creator – although it’s not the intimate, face-to-face fellowship enjoyed in the garden (see Gen. 3:21; 4:3-5).

All of this points to the promised Lamb of God who, being hanged on a tree and becoming a curse for us, takes away our sins and enables us to enjoy an unbreakable, intimate, and everlasting covenant relationship with God. In Revelation 2:7, the Spirit tells the church at Ephesus, and in effect all redeemed people, “I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.” Eating is a key component in establishing a covenant, and perhaps the fruit of the tree of life is a constant reminder of God’s faithfulness to his covenant promises.

John tells us the leaves of the tree of life are for “healing the nations” (Rev. 22:2). Perhaps the best way to understand this is that the leaves are always present on the tree, a reminder of God’s faithfulness, and an assurance that the fruit is produced continuously. Leaves tells us a lot about the health of a tree, in addition to adding beauty and form. Further, as leaves are used today as nutrients, health supplements, and even medicines, the leaves of the tree of life assure us of continued physical and spiritual health throughout eternity. 

The fourth object John sees in his vision is the throne of God and of the Lamb. The book of Revelation mentions a heavenly throne about forty times, leading some commentators to conclude that there are many different thrones in heaven. For example, we see the high and lofty throne Isaiah encounters (Isa. 6:1ff); the judgment seat of Christ to which Paul refers (2 Cor. 5:10); the dazzling rainbow-shrouded throne John sees in Revelation 4-5; the great white throne (Rev. 20:11-15); and the throne of God and the Lamb (Rev. 22:1-3). Other commentators see a single throne from which God rules during different phases of human history. The way these thrones appear and are experienced reflects the purpose for which God meets with people.

In Revelation 22:1-3, John sees servants of God around the throne. These servants behold God’s face, serve him in the never-ending light of his glorious presence, and reign with him forever. John also notes that these servants bear God’s name on their foreheads, just as the 144,000 bear the name of Jesus and of the Father on their foreheads (Rev. 14:1). 

This likely doesn’t mean God has physically branded his people. Rather, it signifies two truths: (1) God knows his people and has marked them by his Spirit as his own; and (2) God’s people know him and joyfully keep him forever at the forefront of their minds. 

Long ago, Fanny Crosby wrote a hymn entitled My Savior First of All. Included are these words, which describe the blessedness believers experience when they pass through the portals of heaven:

When my lifework is ended, and I cross the swelling tide,

When the bright and glorious morning I shall see;

I shall know my Redeemer when I reach the other side,

And His smile will be the first to welcome me.

Through the gates to the city in a robe of spotless white,

He will lead me where no tears shall ever fall;

In the glad song of ages I shall mingle with delight,

But I long to meet my Savior first of all.

Next: A Festive Gathering