Scripture Reading: Isa. 49:10; Rev. 7:9-17
These two passages mention a few kinds of blessings: (1) not hungering or thirsting, (2) not having the scorching heat nor sun strike them, (3) being guided to springs of water, and (4) God wiping away every tear. The first three blessings are mentioned in both passages, while the fourth is mentioned only in Revelation.
Revelation records a great multitude which no one could number standing before the throne and before the Lamb. John did not understand who they were. Later, one of the elders asked him, "These who are clothed in the white robes, who are they, and where did they come from?" (Rev. 7:13). John answered, "My lord, you know" (v. 14). The elder then said, "These are those who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb" (v. 14). He also told John the four kinds of blessings these ones have.
Revelation 4:2 says, "There was a throne set in heaven." The throne is in heaven. To say that these people are standing before the throne means that these ones are in heaven. How do they move from earth to heaven? Who are they? These ones are "clothed in white robes" with "palm branches in their hands." Palm branches signify victory. Hence, they are the overcoming believers who are raptured to heaven.
"These are those who come out of the great tribulation." The "great tribulation" here is not the great tribulation of the three and a half years but the "affliction" referred to by the Lord when He says, "In the world you have affliction" (John 16:33). It is called the "great tribulation" because the twelve apostles, Stephen, Paul, and all the ones who came after them suffered the same tribulation.
These overcoming believers will enjoy a few special blessings. They stand before the throne of God; this means that these blessings are eternal blessings in the heavenlies. It is obvious that Revelation 7:16-17 speaks of the condition in eternity.
Apparently, the blessings mentioned in Isaiah 49:10 are the same as the ones mentioned here. Actually, there are some differences. What are the differences? Isaiah 49:6 says, "It is too small a thing that You would be My Servant/To raise up the tribes of Jacob/And bring back the preserved of Israel;/I will also set You as a light of the nations/That You may be My salvation unto the ends of the earth." Has this verse been fulfilled yet? Acts 13:47 says, "I have set you as a light of the Gentiles, that you would be for salvation unto the uttermost part of the earth." From this we see that Isaiah 49:6 has been fulfilled. God has made Jesus Christ the light of the Gentiles. This is a picture of today. This is the condition of the age of the gospel.
Furthermore, Isaiah 49:8 says, "In an acceptable time I have answered You,/And in a day of salvation I have helped You." If we compare this with 2 Corinthians 6:2, we will see that Isaiah 49:8 also refers to the present time.
Since Isaiah 49:6 and 8 refer to the present time, we can say that verse 10 must also refer to the present time. This is in contrast with Revelation 7, which refers to eternity future.
God does not expect us to enjoy these blessings only when we reach heaven. He expects us to have a foretaste of heaven even now. Although we cannot have a full taste of it, at least we can enjoy three-quarters of it. We know that when we reach heaven, surely we will not hunger or thirst anymore or suffer the heat but will be guided to the springs of water. Why then do we not believe that we can enjoy these things today? God says that we can enjoy these three kinds of blessings even today!
These ones "will come from a distance/...from the north and the west/And others from the land of the Sinim" (Isa. 49:12). While they are suffering on the way, God promises that "they will not hunger or thirst;/Neither the scorching heat nor the sun will strike them;/For He who has compassion on them will lead them/And will guide them beside the springs of water." God has given us such wonderful promises. We are these pilgrims; we have left our earthly homes and are on our way to the New Jerusalem.
To hunger and thirst is to have a hope that is not yet satisfied. Who are the ones who will not hunger and thirst? "Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall by no means hunger, and he who believes into Me shall by no means ever thirst" (John 6:35). "But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall by no means thirst forever; but the water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water gushing up into eternal life" (4:14). Christ promises that everyone who believes in Him will be satisfied and receive a satisfying life. It is not us satisfying ourselves with Christ but Christ becoming our satisfaction. The world can only satisfy us temporarily; it can only satisfy us for a moment. It cannot satisfy us forever. "Everyone who drinks of this water shall thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall by no means thirst forever" (vv. 13-14). This is the Lord's word.
God does not say that we can be satisfied only when we reach heaven. We can be satisfied even today. Do we believe that we will not hunger and thirst today, just as we will not be hungry and thirsty in heaven? Today the Lord Jesus can satisfy our heart as much as He will satisfy us on that day in heaven. The Lord said, "But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall by no means thirst forever." Once we drink, we are satisfied. This satisfying life can be ours today.
Those who live in subtropical lands do not feel the scorching of the heat and the sun. But if one travels to tropical lands, he will realize the intensity of the striking from the heat and the sun. A brother once said that when a man walks out of the house without his umbrella in a tropical country, he will be sick for a few months. Once three people went to a certain land. Two of them died of heat on the way; only one survived. However, if one is inside a house, he will not be hurt by the sun because there is a shelter. Without a shelter, one will be hurt by the heat. The Bible mentions God's overshadowing as a kind of shelter. There is one kind of life that is under God's overshadowing; it is a life that is hidden in God (Psa. 36:7-9).
Are you sheltered? In spiritual warfare, we have the helmet of salvation (Eph. 6:17). Our life is a hidden life. We are hidden under God's wings on earth today as little chickens are hidden under the wings of their mother. In Psalm 91, we find that those who dwell "in the secret place of the Most High/Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty" (v. 1). The Lord will deliver these ones from many perils. This is a blessed life. We are a sheltered people.
Springs are with God (Psa. 87:7), while the river of water of life flows from the throne of God and of the Lamb (Rev. 22:1). In other words, we are very close to God; we are right beside Him. God leads us to His presence, and the Lamb shepherds us. To put it another way, it is the Lamb who shepherds; it is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who feeds the lambs with His experience as the Lamb of God. We can never improve ourselves. We need a Shepherd to feed us all the time. What a restful enjoyment this is! This again is something that we can enjoy today.
Today we can enjoy the three blessings above. But this does not mean that we will have no tears. We have to wait until we reach heaven before our tears will be wiped away. Isaiah 49:10 does not mention this kind of blessing because it records the condition on earth. Our Lord Jesus was completely restful while He was on earth; He could walk through all difficulties. Yet He wept beside the tomb of Lazarus, and He also wept on His way to Jerusalem. Finally, He wept in Gethsemane. Hebrews 5 says that He prayed "with strong crying and tears" (v. 7). This shows that tears are unavoidable in this age. However, our tears are put into God's bottle and recorded in His book (Psa. 56:8). One Christian said that even though tears are bitter, God remembers them; therefore, they are a blessing!
Although we cannot avoid tears today, if we believe in God's word, we can be satisfied, and we can have God's sheltering and the Lord's shepherding. God has promised that we can enjoy these three items of blessings today.
