Rev. 22:6-21 is the conclusion of this book. In this message we shall consider the various items found in this conclusion.
Verse 6 says, “And he said to me, These words are faithful and true; and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent His angel to show to His slaves the things which must swiftly take place.” The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, who sent His angel to show the things in this book, is the Lord Jesus (Rev. 1:1; 22:16). Verse 16 says, “I Jesus have sent Mine angel to testify to you these things for the churches.” The testimony of this book was given by the Lord Jesus for the churches. Hence, to comprehend and keep it, we need to be in the churches and for the churches.
In this book the Lord God is called the God of the spirits of the prophets. This indicates that all the prophecies in this book are inspired by the very God who inspired the spirits of the prophets in both the Old and New Testaments. It also indicates that these prophecies are related to those in the Old and New Testaments, all of which were spoken by the prophets in their spirit under the inspiration of God. Hence, to comprehend these prophecies, we also need to be in our spirit under God’s anointing.
In verses 7, 12, and 20 we have the warning that the Lord is coming soon. In each of these verses the Lord Jesus said, “I come quickly.” This is the Lord’s warning. If we take heed to this warning, we shall be blessed; otherwise, we shall forfeit the blessing. Do not think that because the Lord has been tolerating the situation for more than nineteen centuries, He is slow to come back. Look at the world situation today. We do not know what will happen within the next few days. In this age, things happen very quickly. Therefore, we must pray and be watchful. We must also be prepared in spirit and in our daily life. May the Lord cover us that we may be a watchful, praying, and prepared people.
In verse 7 the Lord also says, “Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.” Here the Lord tells us clearly that if we keep the words of this prophecy, we shall be blessed. The Lord spoke a very similar word in 1:3. There He said, “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy and keep what is written in it.” This book was written mainly for the blessing of God upon His people. Whether or not we shall share in this blessing depends upon how we deal with the words in this book. We must take these words and keep them. Those who do so will be blessed.
Verse 10 says, “And he said to me, Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near.” Daniel’s prophecies were sealed, because they were given long before the time of the end, whereas the prophecies of this book should not be sealed because the time is near. Instead of being sealed, the book of Revelation should be constantly open to us and to others. For centuries, however, this book was closed and, along with the rest of the Bible, kept away from the people by the Roman Catholic Church. Through Martin Luther the Bible was made available to the people, but not much of it was opened to them. Having read through all the messages of this life-study, we can no longer say that the book of Revelation is closed to us. This book has truly been opened to the saints. Therefore, do not let this book be sealed to you or to others. Rather, you must keep the book open by plunging into every aspect of this prophecy and by diving into the flow. The more we live in the word of this book, the more open it will be to us. If we do this, the book of Revelation will be kept open to us, our family, and all the people around us.
Verse 11 says, “He who does unrighteousness, let him still do unrighteousness; and he who is filthy, let him still be made filthy; and he who is righteous, let him still do righteousness; and he who is holy, let him still be made holy.” Whether anyone is unrighteous or righteous, filthy or holy, is a serious matter in the age of this book. To be righteous is to walk according to the righteous ways of God outwardly, whereas to be holy is to live according to the holy nature of God inwardly. In the age of this book, we must walk and live in this way that we may receive the reward; otherwise, we shall be condemned as unrighteous and filthy and receive punishment at the Lord’s coming back (v. 12).
Anyone who hardens himself and who does not keep this book open to himself or himself open to this book will remain in his pitiful condition. If he is unrighteous and filthy, he will remain unrighteous and filthy. However, if you are righteous and holy and keep yourself open to this book and this book open to you, you will continue to be righteous and holy. This means that if you keep this word open to you, you will continually become more holy and righteous. But if you do not keep it open, you will become more unrighteous and more filthy, remaining in that pitiful situation until the time of judgment comes.
Verse 12 says, “Behold, I come quickly, and My reward is with Me to render to each one according to his work.” “I come quickly” is the Lord’s repeated warning that we may consider His reward at His coming back. The Greek word translated reward means “wages.” At the Lord’s coming, this reward will be rendered to each one of the believers, after their rapture, at the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10; 1 Cor. 4:5; Rom. 14:10; Matt. 16:27).
Verse 13 says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the beginning and the end.” This is the Lord’s declaration at the close of this book, corresponding to what God declared in the opening of this book (1:8). This indicates that the Lord Jesus is the very God. The very Lord whom we serve is the Alpha and the Omega. He is the first letter, the last letter, and all the letters in between. This means that He is able and qualified to accomplish all that is spoken concerning Him in this book. We should not excuse ourselves and say, “This vision is marvelous, but it is too high for me. I cannot attain it.” The Lord is the Alpha and the Omega to back up and to carry out His word. We must exercise our entire being to believe in His word. Do not look at yourself, reckon on yourself, or consider yourself. We all are nothing. If we look at ourselves, we shall not be able to do anything. Therefore, we must turn our eyes to Him, set our eyes upon Him, and believe in His word. No matter how far beyond us His word is, we must say “Amen” to whatever He says. Whenever we say “Amen” to His word, we are strengthened and we have a living faith. Faith is not derived from us; it originates with Him. If we look away from all things unto Him, we shall enjoy Him as our Alpha, as our Omega, and as our everything. And He will certainly accomplish everything He has promised in this book. All we need to do is exercise faith in Him.
According to verse 13, the Lord Jesus is not only the First, but also the beginning, not only the Last, but also the end. The first indicates that none is before Him, and the last, that none is after Him, whereas the beginning means that He is the origination of all things, and the end, that He is the consummation of all things. Hence, the indication here is not only that there is nothing before or after the Lord Jesus, but also that there is neither origination nor consummation without Him. This assures us that the Lord is strong to promise, encourage, and strengthen us. He will accomplish whatever He has spoken in this book.
Because the Lord is everything to us and because He is so strong, we should not excuse ourselves and say, “Oh, I am weak, my family situation is difficult, and my environment is against me.” The more difficult our environment, the richer the Lord will be to us. The more trying our circumstances, the stronger the Lord will be to us. We must exercise our faith in this all-inclusive One, the One who is the Alpha, the Omega, the First, the Last, the beginning, and the end. With Him, there are no problems. Thus, we need to dive into Him, believe in Him, and rest in Him.
In verses 14 and 19 we have the Lord’s promises related to the tree of life and the holy city. The tree of life is for life supply, and the holy city is for dwelling and serving.
Verse 15 says, “Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the fornicators and the murderers and the idolaters and everyone who loves and makes a lie.” “Outside” means outside the city, where the lake of fire keeps all the perished sinners. All the filthy, sinful persons will be cast into the lake of fire, the universal “trash can.” We all must be warned by this.
In verse 16 Jesus says, “I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright morning star.” In His divinity, Christ is the Root of David, his source; in His humanity, He is the Offspring of David, his issue. Hence, He is both the Lord as the Root and the seed, the branch of David, as the Offspring (Matt. 22:42-45; Rom. 1:3; Jer. 23:5).
At His coming back, Christ will be the Sun to His people generally (Mal. 4:2), but the morning star to His watching lovers particularly. This will be a reward to the overcomers (2:28). Christ as the Root and Offspring of David is related to Israel and the kingdom, whereas His being the bright morning star is related to the church and the rapture. The morning star appears before the darkest hour, prior to dawn. The great tribulation will be this darkest hour, after which the day of the kingdom will dawn. In the kingdom, the Lord will appear publicly to His people as the Sun, but before the great tribulation, He will appear privately to His overcomers as the morning star.
Verse 17 says, “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come! Let him who hears also say, Come! Let him who is thirsty also come; he who wills, let him take the water of life freely.” In chapters two and three it was the Spirit speaking to the churches; here, at the end of the book, it is the Spirit and the Bride, the church, speaking together as one. This indicates the improvement of the church in experiencing the Spirit.
“Come” is the response of the Spirit and the Bride to the Lord’s word in verse 16 and His repeated warning in verses 7 and 12. It is the desire for the Lord’s coming. Whosoever hears this response should also say, “Come,” thus expressing a joint desire for the Lord’s coming. All believers who love the Lord’s appearing (2 Tim. 4:8) should express such a joint desire.
In the verses prior to verse 17 we have the Lord’s word. Now in verse 17 the Spirit and the Bride respond to His word. Their response is the desire of their heart for the Lord’s coming. The word “Come!” spoken by the Spirit and the Bride is certainly spoken to the Lord. The fact that the Spirit and the Bride speak as one indicates that they have become one. In chapters two and three the Spirit is the speaker, and the churches were the receivers of the speaking of the Spirit. But at the end of the book the Spirit and the Bride, the Bride and Spirit, have become one. The church is no longer merely the receiver of the divine oracle; she has also become one with the divine Speaker.
The word come is found three times in this verse. The first occurrence of this word refers to the coming back of the Lord Jesus. As we have seen, this is uttered by the Spirit and the Bride. However, the one who hears the Spirit and the Bride say this joins in saying, “Come!” The Spirit and the Bride, on the one hand, desire that the Lord will come, and on the other hand, yearn that the thirsty sinner will also come to take the water of life for his satisfaction. When we have a sincere desire for the Lord’s coming, we also have an earnest concern for the sinners’ salvation. Therefore, the third mention of “come” in this verse refers to the coming of the repenting sinners. Whoever is thirsty, let him come to take the water of life freely. Hence, this verse covers three matters: the response of the Spirit and the Bride; the word of the one who hears the declaration of the Spirit and the Bride; and the desire for the thirsty sinner, the unsaved one, to come and drink of the water of life.
Verse 17 strongly implies that if we have a desire for the Lord’s coming back, we shall be very concerned for others’ salvation. Do you desire the coming back of the Lord Jesus? If you do, this desire will stir up a concern within you for the salvation of others. As you are saying, “Come, Lord Jesus,” a burden may rise up within you for your parents, your cousins, your neighbors, your schoolmates, and your friends. After you have read all these messages, you may have a strong desire for the Lord’s coming back. I am fully assured that this desire will cause you to be concerned about others’ salvation. You will say to the Lord, “Come,” and you will turn to the unbelievers and say, “The Lord Jesus is coming. Will you not come also? Come and be saved. Come to receive your salvation that you may be prepared to meet the coming Savior.” Our experience testifies that this is the proper understanding of verse 17.
Verse 17 also says, “He who wills, let him take the water of life freely.” This is a call to the thirsty to drink freely of the water of life. If we compare this verse with verse 14, we shall see that in verse 17 we have a call and in verse 14, a promise. Thus, the book of Revelation is concluded with a promise and a call. The promise is the promise of the tree of life, and the call is the call to the water of life.
Verses 18 and 19 say, “I testify to every one who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to them, God shall add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the tree of life and out of the holy city, which are written in this book.” The “I” in verse 18 should be the Lord Jesus, according to verses 16 and 20, or it could refer to John, according to 1:2. In any case, John was one in spirit with the Lord in this solemn warning.
The first aspect of this warning is not to add anything to the words of the prophecy of this book, and the second aspect is not to take away anything from the words of the prophecy. Those who add will receive the plagues that are spoken of in this book, and those who take away will have their part in the tree of life and the holy city taken away from them. The main items of the plagues unveiled in the book of Revelation are the three woes of the great tribulation and the second death, that is, the perishing of the whole man — spirit, soul, and body — in the lake of fire.
The outstanding features of the blessing revealed in the book of Revelation are the tree of life and the holy city. Whether one will suffer the plagues or share in the blessing depends upon how he deals with the prophecy of this book. We should neither add to it nor take away from it. We must receive it as it is written. Do not add your concept, your thought, your idea, your opinion, your doctrine, your teaching, or your theology to this book. Neither should you take anything away from it. If you add to the book, you will suffer woe; and if you take away from it, you will lose the blessings, mainly the blessing of the tree of life and of the holy city. This is a serious warning. If we hear this warning, we shall take the word in this book exactly as it is written.
Verse 20 says, “He who testifies these things says, Yes, I come quickly, Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” The first part of this verse is the Lord’s third warning in this chapter regarding His soon coming. The last part is the apostle John’s prayer and response to the Lord’s warning. It is also the last prayer in the Bible. After reading this book, we should have such a prayer and response — “Come, Lord Jesus!” This was John’s desire expressed as a prayer. Therefore, the whole Bible is concluded with the desire for the Lord’s coming expressed as a prayer.
After this concluding prayer, the writer gives the readers a blessing, saying, “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints. Amen.” We need this grace in order to receive this book, to keep it, and to live in it. After seeing all the visions and hearing all the prophecies of this book, we still need the Lord’s grace. Only the grace of the Lord Jesus can enable us to live and walk according to these visions and prophecies. Not only this book, but also the entire Bible, closes with this grace, the grace to experience the all-inclusive Christ and to participate in the Triune God that we may become His eternal corporate expression for the fulfillment of His eternal purpose, that He and we may enjoy absolute satisfaction and complete rest mutually for eternity.
