Revelation 22
Berean Standard Bible · Compare translations · AD 68 – AD 96 · Late apostolic age · Tap a verse to copy, share or highlight ·
21 verses · 561 words · ~3 min read · ~4 min listen
The River of Life
1Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2down the middle of the main street of the city. On either side of the river stood a tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit and yielding a fresh crop for each month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
3No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be within the city, and His servants will worship Him. 4They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. 5There will be no more night in the city, and they will have no need for the light of a lamp or of the sun. For the Lord God will shine on them, and they will reign forever and ever.
Jesus Is Coming
6Then the angel said to me, “These words are faithful and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent His angel to show His servants what must soon take place.”
7“Behold, I am coming soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of prophecy in this book.”
8And I, John, amd the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had shown me these things. 9But he said to me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God!”
10Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of prophecy in this book, because the time is near. 11Let the unrighteous continue to be unrighteous, and the vile continue to be vile; let the righteous continue to practice righteousness, and the holy continue to be holy.”
12“Behold, I am coming soon, and My reward is with Me, to give to each one according to what he has done. 13I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
14Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by its gates. 15But outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
16“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright Morning Star.”
17The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” Let the one who hears say, “Come!” And let the one who is thirsty come, and the one who desires the water of life drink freely.
Nothing May Be Added or Removed
18I testify to everyone who hears the words of prophecy in this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. 19And if anyone takes away from the words of this book of prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and the holy city, which are described in this book.
20He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints.
Amen.
Footnotes (6)
- a v6 Or suddenly or quickly; similarly in verses 7, 12, and 20
- b v7 Or scroll; also in verses 9, 10, 18, 19
- c v14 BYZ and TR Blessed are those who do His commandments
- d v21 WH and BYZ the Lord Jesus Christ; TR our Lord Jesus Christ
- e v21 SBL, WH, NE, and TR do not include the saints.
- f v21 SBL, WH, NE, and NA do not include Amen.
Study notes on this chapter · 5
The tree of life restored
After the fall, humanity is barred from the tree of life in Eden. Revelation's final chapters picture the tree of life along the river in the new Jerusalem, open to those who overcome and wash their robes. Many readers see the Bible's storyline as beginning and ending in a garden-city.
When: Genesis; Revelation, c. AD 90s.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.
A star will come out of Jacob
The seer Balaam, hired to curse Israel, instead foresees a star rising from Jacob and a scepter from Israel that crushes Moab and Edom. Jewish and Christian readers have applied it to David, to the Messiah, and to later leaders. Matthew's magi follow a star, and Revelation calls Jesus the bright morning star.
When: Numbers (wilderness period); David subdues Moab and Edom, c. 1000 BC; Matthew, c. AD 60–85.
Ways people read this (3)
- Fulfilled first in David's conquest of Moab and Edom (2 Samuel 8), and in his dynasty.
- Messianic: the king and deliverer to come (as in many early Jewish and Christian writings).
- The star in Matthew 2 may echo the oracle, though Matthew does not cite it.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.
A righteous Branch for David
Jeremiah promises that God will raise up for David a righteous Branch who will reign wisely and do justice in the land, and Zechariah speaks of a Branch who will build the temple. The New Testament does not quote these verses, but Paul says Jesus was descended from David, and Revelation calls him the root and descendant of David.
When: Jeremiah, c. 600–586 BC; Zechariah, c. 520 BC.
Ways people read this (3)
- Christian reading: a title for the Messiah, the ideal king from David's line.
- Some see a first reference to Zerubbabel (Zechariah 3–4, 6), a descendant of David who rebuilt the temple.
- Jewish tradition has read these passages as promising a human Davidic king in the future.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.
Ezekiel's vision of the temple
In the twenty-fifth year of the exile Ezekiel is taken in vision to a high mountain and shown a temple with precise dimensions, the return of God's glory, and a river flowing from the threshold that turns the Dead Sea fresh. No such temple was built. Readers disagree about what it depicts.
When: Ezekiel, 573 BC; proposed fulfillments from the return from exile to the end of the age.
Ways people read this (4)
- A temple to be built literally in a future age, with sacrifices as memorials (dispensational premillennial).
- A blueprint for the returning exiles that was never carried out, because the people did not repent.
- A symbolic vision of God's presence among his people, fulfilled in Christ and the church, with the river of Revelation 22 as its fulfillment.
- Jewish tradition has long found these chapters difficult (the Talmud says Elijah will resolve their problems) and has looked to the messianic era for their meaning.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.
The day the LORD comes and his feet stand on the Mount of Olives
Zechariah 14 describes the nations gathering against Jerusalem, the LORD going out to fight, his feet standing on the Mount of Olives which splits in two, living water flowing from Jerusalem, and all the survivors of the nations going up yearly to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. It is one of the most debated chapters in the Bible.
When: Zechariah 9–14 (c. 520–480 BC or later); proposed fulfillments range from the second temple period to the age to come.
Ways people read this (4)
- Literal events surrounding Christ's return to the Mount of Olives (premillennial, citing Acts 1:11-12).
- A symbolic picture of the victory of God and the new age, fulfilled in part at Christ's coming and completely at the end.
- An account of the AD 70 destruction of Jerusalem and the church's rescue (preterist).
- An ancient apocalyptic description of the fall and restoration of Jerusalem, without a historical referent.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.