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Scripture Reading: Rev. 21:12-21
In this chapter we shall consider further aspects of the New Jerusalem.
Revelation 21:12-13 says, “It had a great and high wall and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names inscribed, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel: on the east three gates, and on the north three gates, and on the south three gates, and on the west three gates.”
The spiritual order of the directions of the tabernacle, east, north, south, and west, convey the thought of God’s dwelling. The four directions of the tabernacle begin from the east, the direction the entrance faced. When someone would come into the tabernacle, he would enter from the east. Then from the east he would turn to the table of the bread of the Presence on the north, the lampstand on the south, and the incense altar toward the west. Then to the rear of the incense altar was the Holy of Holies. In the writing of the Holy Scriptures, the Holy Spirit was very careful to record the details in Revelation 21, showing that the holy city is the tabernacle of God. East, north, south, and west are the directions of God’s dwelling place.
That the city of New Jerusalem has four sides, each side with three gates, indicates that it is in the center of the universe, and it is the very center itself. If, for example, someone puts a building in the corner of a lot, it can have gates only on two of its sides because the other two sides do not face onto the property. For a building to have gates on four sides, each opening onto the lot in balanced proportions, it must be in the center.
In my lifetime I have come in contact with many believers. I can testify under the covering of the Lord’s blood that I have never met a person so balanced in so many directions as Brother Watchman Nee. This was one of many reasons why I was willing to submit myself to him, even though he was only two years older than I. His balance was a great help to us and to the churches in the Far East. By the mercy of the Lord, the churches in the Far East have always been balanced in many ways.
A few times in recent years some believers who attended our meetings told us that we are like the “holiness” churches. Later, others came and said that we are like the Baptists, the Presbyterians, and the Brethren. When someone asks us if we are Brethren, we say, “Yes, in a sense, but not in every sense.” Still others thought we are Pentecostals. It is difficult to say what we are. We are nothing, yet we seem to have everything. We must not denominate ourselves, and if we are balanced in every way, it will not be easy for others to denominate us.
The New Jerusalem has twelve gates on four sides, not only one gate on one side. We should never build in the “corner of the lot.” We must never go to any extreme or take our stand in a corner. If someone pulls us to one side, we should lean toward the other side as well. We should not be a “cake not turned” (Hosea 7:8), with one side burned and the other raw.
However, to be in the center is not to be neutral. The best way to be great is to compromise by staying neutral, but we should be holy, not great. We are part not of the great city, Babylon, but of the holy city, New Jerusalem. Therefore, on the one hand, we must be absolute and uncompromising, but on the other hand, we must be balanced.
Revelation 21:16 says, “And the city lies square, and its length is as great as the breadth. And he measured the city with the reed to a length of twelve thousand stadia; the length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.” To interpret these symbols we need wisdom, and we need the entire Scriptures. In both the tabernacle built by Moses and the temple built by Solomon the Holy of Holies was equal in three dimensions. The Holy of Holies in the tabernacle was ten cubits long, ten cubits wide, and ten cubits high (Exo. 26:2-8), whereas the Holy of Holies in the temple was twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high (1 Kings 6:20). In the entire Scriptures only these three structures — the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle and the temple in the Old Testament and the New Jerusalem in the New Testament — are equal in three dimensions. This indicates that the entire New Jerusalem is not only the tabernacle of God but also the Holy of Holies. In the Old Testament tabernacle there were two sections, the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies, but in the New Jerusalem as the tabernacle of God there is only one section. This means that the veil between the two sections is gone.
That the dimensions of the New Jerusalem are equal in three directions indicates that it is perfect and complete in every way, absolutely straight, and not in the least oblique. Nothing is too short or too long. Anything this perfect must be something of God Himself; only God Himself is so perfect.
The measurements of the three dimensions are twelve thousand stadia. Twelve thousand is twelve times one thousand. Psalm 84:10 says that a day in the courts of God is better than a thousand, and 2 Peter 3:8 says that to the Lord a thousand years is as one day. In addition, the kingdom age will be one thousand years (Rev. 20:4-6). In the Scriptures, therefore, one thousand is the number of fullness. Moreover, that the city was twelve thousand stadia in three directions implies the Triune God in the Holy of Holies.
Revelation 21:18 says, “And the building work of its wall was jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass.” The city is the New Jerusalem as a whole, and the wall is built around the city for separation. While the city is pure gold, the wall is jasper. The wall, which is jasper, gives the appearance of the city, and the city proper, which is surrounded by the wall, is pure gold, like clear glass. Gold in biblical typology signifies God’s divine nature. Second Peter 1:4 tells us that we have become partakers of the divine nature. The divine nature within us is likened to pure and transparent gold with no mixture or alloy.
Many times we are not transparent but opaque because we are still living in the soulish life. According to our experience, the more we live in the soul, the self, and the flesh, the more we are opaque, but whenever we are willing for the cross to deal with our self, flesh, and natural life, we become clear and transparent within. Very often brothers ask me how to know the leading of the Lord. There is only one way; we have to apply the cross to ourselves again and again. In order to be clear about the Lord’s will and guidance, we must stay on the altar. The more we apply the cross and are dealt with by the cross, the more we are clear and transparent, and the divine nature within us is clear as glass.
The divine nature is transparent. Although it is gold, it is not opaque gold. Opaqueness is due to our fallen nature. If we still remain in the self and in the flesh, we cannot be clear. This is why we have to be broken. With just a little bit of breaking, the light will shine out from within. We may think that light comes from above, but in actuality it comes from within. The light is within us already, but something is covering it. When our self, the flesh, the natural life, and the old man are broken even a little, the light shines out and we are clear. God’s divine nature is pure gold, like clear glass.
Revelation 21:19 and 20 say, “The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every precious stone: the first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst.” The city proper is gold, signifying the divine nature within us. The divine nature is our common portion. As long as we believe in the Lord Jesus, we all have the divine nature. However, we are different with respect to the precious stones. Some believers have only the gold, the divine nature, which they received when they were saved. They do not have much of the precious stones built up within them. The precious stones signify the work of the Holy Spirit within. At the time we were saved, we received the divine nature, but after that, how much we have of precious stones built in us depends on how much we allow the Holy Spirit to work within us. The work of the Holy Spirit after we are saved is the work of building something of Christ in us, signified by the precious stones.
Gold is an element originally created by God. Precious stones, however, were not originally created by God. They are a compounding of other elements under the processes of burning heat and high pressure. Trees, for example, are burned into carbon and then pressed over a long period of time to become precious stones. We must be burned and pressed. Do not be frightened by this word; many of us have this kind of experience. Many times the Lord arranges an “oven” for us. Sometimes the Lord uses a high temperature, and other times He uses a lower one, just as a sister knows at what heat to bake something. Many times the Lord has put me into the oven in this way. Even the dear ones around us become a high heat to us. Sometimes our wife is not sufficient for this; we also need some children to “burn” us. A wife may “burn” her husband, and then the children cooperate to also burn him. However, the sisters do not have an easy life either. Many husbands are a burning heat to burn their wives. We praise the Lord for the burning and pressing. Originally, we are only wood, grass, and stubble (1 Cor. 3:12), so we need the burning and pressing that we may become precious stones.
We gain the real experiences of Christ not by speaking about them but by the work of the Holy Spirit, and many times these experiences are of burning and pressing. At times we may meet a brother and realize that with him there is something very precious, not precious in doctrine but precious in the experiences of being burned and pressed. In 2 Corinthians 1:8 Paul says that he was pressed beyond his power. This was so that he could become a precious stone. The gold is common to us all; every regenerated person has gold from the day he is saved. But how much of the precious stones do we have? How many precious experiences of Christ by the working of the Holy Spirit under burning and pressing do we have? These experiences are good for the building, protection, separation, and expression of God. The expression, protection, sanctification, and separation always depend on these kinds of precious experiences of Christ.
People often misuse Romans 8:28, which says that all things work together for good. We should not quote verse 28, however, while forgetting about verse 29, which says that we are being conformed to the image of God’s Son. All things do not work together for our peace, joy, or enjoyment. Rather, all things work together for good to burn us and press us so that we may be conformed to the image of the Son of God. Some may testify that formerly they had a poor house, but due to circumstances they received a better house; all things worked together for good so that they would receive a new house. Many people testify in this way, misusing Romans 8:28. We should turn this kind of testimony upside down. If one day we lose our house and are put out onto the street, we should say, “Thank You, Lord. All things work together for good so that I may be burned and pressed in order to be conformed to the image of the Son of God.” We need the mercy of the Lord. Our circumstances are not in our hands. They are in His hands. He knows how to handle us.
In the city proper there is only one kind of gold, but in the foundations of the wall there are twelve kinds of precious stones. The experiences of Christ within each of us are different. The divine nature is common to us all, but the expression of the divine nature through us is different. Peter, John, and Paul each had their own spiritual characteristics and were different in color and in brightness. Therefore, we should not try to make others uniformly like us. We should not try to convince others to be the same as we are. Rather, we need to appreciate their color and thank the Lord for their brightness.
The different precious stones are built up together as the foundations of the wall in a particular way. Are the twelve foundations twelve blocks built horizontally or twelve layers built up vertically? A vertical layering gives a better arrangement of the colors of the twelve stones. In addition, a horizontal building has no order, but a vertical arrangement keeps a proper order. Anything built vertically is strong. Our physical body, for example, is living and strong when it is vertical, but a horizontal body is dead, or at least sleeping. It is difficult to keep a dead or sleeping person vertical; only a strong, living person stays vertical. The Body of Christ is vertical in three dimensions. This maintains a proper order. We must always keep our position in the right order, appreciate and respect others’ experiences, and try our best to coordinate and fit in with others. This is the Lord’s way to build up His church.
We should not have any kind of organization, but we do need an order in the Body. A sister may desire to bear responsibility like a brother, and a brother may desire to be free from responsibility like a sister. We may compare this to the eyes, nose, and teeth on a face all wanting to line up horizontally. What kind of a face would that be? There would be no beauty or proper function in such a face. According to the human thought, the lips are lower than the nose, and the nose is lower than the eyes. However, it is not a matter of being lower or higher; it is a matter of proper position and function. We need to learn to keep a vertical order. There is no organization in a living organism, but there is a living order. When all the members of the church are fitly framed, everyone keeping a right position in order, there is real beauty, strength, and function. Beauty, strength, and function come from the proper order.
According to its colors, the foundations of the wall of the city have the appearance of a rainbow. In Revelation 4:3 God, who has the appearance of jasper, is sitting on the throne surrounded by a rainbow, and in chapter 21 there is a city with the appearance of jasper surrounded by the foundations of the wall in the colors of a rainbow. The rainbow is a sign of God’s covenant, reminding us that God will keep His covenant. This city is built upon an unshakable foundation. It is built upon God’s unchangeable covenant, His unchangeable faithfulness. Its foundation is as sure as God’s faithfulness.
In chapter 4 there is the appearance of jasper surrounded by a rainbow, and in chapter 21 there is also the appearance of jasper surrounded by a rainbow, but it is now enlarged. Earlier, only God Himself had the appearance of jasper, but now God with a Body has this appearance. God’s appearance and testimony have been enlarged, but His faithfulness remains the same.
Verse 21 says, “And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the gates was, respectively, of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.” Every gate was a pearl of great size. The materials of the New Jerusalem are gold, precious stones, and pearls. These three kinds of materials are also found in Genesis 2:11-12. As we have seen, gold signifies God’s divine nature. In addition, precious stones signify the inner work of life by the Holy Spirit. Pearls are produced by an oyster in the waters of death. When an oyster is wounded by a grain of sand and the grain remains in the wound, the oyster secretes its life-juice around it and makes it into a precious pearl. This depicts the death and resurrection of Christ. Christ as the living One came into the death waters and was wounded by us. As we remain in His wound, the secretion of His resurrection life transforms us. Originally, we were only small grains of sand, but now we are regenerated and are being transformed into precious pearls.
The three materials of the city signify the threefold work of the Triune God. Gold signifies God the Father as the nature of the city. Pearl signifies God the Son who died and resurrected, by whose death and resurrection we have been regenerated. Precious stones signify the work of the inner life by the Holy Spirit by which we are being transformed into something precious.
The entrance into the city is the gates of pearl. We enter into the spiritual things, into the kingdom of God, by regeneration. Through Christ’s death and resurrection we have been regenerated, affording us an entrance into God, into the spiritual things, and into God’s kingdom. Moreover, through our experience of the death and resurrection of Christ we have an entrance and opening for the increase of the church. The more we experience His death and resurrection, the more we will be broken to produce an opening for the increase.
Revelation 21:21b says, “And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.” After entering through the gates, we begin to walk on the street. After we are regenerated, we have the divine life and nature within us as our way. To walk on the street of gold after being regenerated is to walk on the way of the divine life and nature. We know this from our own experience. Whenever we have a revival, we renew our experience of Christ’s death and resurrection, and we begin again to walk on the street of gold, on the way of God’s divine life and nature.
What is the Lord’s way? The Lord Himself is the gate, the door, and He is the way (John 10:7; 14:6). By His death and resurrection, we enter into the spiritual realm, into God Himself, and into His kingdom, the realm and sphere of God. By this we have the life and nature of God, which become the way for us. After entering into the spiritual realm, we walk on the way of the divine nature and live, act, and behave according to the divine life. We may apply this in the following way. A brother may ask us what kind of shirt he should buy. If we truly know how to walk on the street of gold, we will not tell him what to buy. We should simply say, “Do not come to me; I am not your way. The street of pure gold, the divine life and nature within you, is your way. Now you must walk on that way.” There is only one way, and no one can get lost on this way.
Our way is the Lord Himself as the divine life and nature within us, and this way is our leading. If we have the way, we have the leading. In America today there are freeways and expressways. Wherever we want to go, we simply get on a freeway, and it takes us there. This illustrates that the way is the leading itself. The Lord Himself must be life to us, and He must be our nature within. Then He will be our way, and if He is our way, He will be our leading, and it will be easy for us to go on. In the New Jerusalem, in the church, in the spiritual realm, there is only one way.
There are three gates on each of the four sides of the wall of the New Jerusalem, and at the center of the city there is the throne. When we were young, we spent much time to study how twelve gates could have only one street that leads to the throne of God. First, we must point out that the wall of the New Jerusalem is a hundred and forty-four cubits high, but the city proper is twelve thousand stadia in height (Rev. 21:16-17). That the wall is lower and the city is higher indicates that the city proper is like a mountain, like the city situated upon a mountain in Matthew 5:14. Moreover, the throne of God is in the center on the top of this mountain. Therefore, the one street must be a spiral that reaches all twelve gates.
Regardless of which gate we enter through, we are on the same street. On this street there is no left lane, right lane, or multiple lanes. We are all in one lane, following one after another as we march to Zion. Whether we come from America, Africa, Australia, Europe, Asia, or any other direction, we are all on the same street. In this way we become one army, one church, one people, marching in the same lane toward the same goal. This lane is God Himself in His divine life and nature as the way of pure gold.
The entire city of New Jerusalem is nothing other than God Himself wrought into and mingled with humanity. This is a full and true picture of what the church must be today. The more we experience God in Christ as our life and nature, the more we are on the way. On this way there is the flow of living water, and in the flow of living water there is the tree of life.
From our experiences we can testify that all the things we have said here are true. We have experienced these things, and we are still experiencing them. When we passed through the pearl gates, the death and resurrection of Christ, we received the divine nature, and we began to walk in and live by this nature. At the same time the Holy Spirit is working within us to transform us into precious stones for the building up of the wall. Through the work of the Son and the Holy Spirit with the nature of God the Father, the Triune God dispenses Himself into us to transform us into His image.
No human words can exhaust the telling of these wonderful matters. I have ministered from Revelation 21 and 22 many times, but I have never once finished. If you would give me more time, I would still not be able to finish. What is in these two chapters is too rich.
