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To: nickcarraway; NYer; ELS; Pyro7480; livius; ArrogantBustard; Catholicguy; RobbyS; marshmallow; ...
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2 posted on 11/30/2012 9:42:08 PM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: All

From: Revelation 22:1-7

A New World Comes into Being. The New Jerusalem


[1] Then he showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from
the throne of God and of the Lamb [2] through the middle of the street of the city;
also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yiel-
ding its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the na-
tions. [3] There shall no more be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of
the Lamb shall be in it, and his servants shall worship him; [4] they shall see his
face, and his name shall be on their foreheads. [5] And night shall be no more;
they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they
shall reign for ever and ever.

The Visions Come to an End


[6] And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the
God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what
must soon take place. [7] And behold, I am coming soon.”

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

1-5. Because the water of life is a symbol of the Holy Spirit (cf. 21:6), some Fa-
thers and modern commentators have, justifiably, read a trinitarian meaning into
this passage — interpreting the river which flows from the throne of God and of the
Lamb representing the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the Father and the Son.

The trees whose leaves never fade (cf. Ps 1:3), with their fruit and medicinal foli-
age, symbolize the joy of eternal life (cf. Ezek 47:1-12; Ps 46:5).

The passage also takes up the prophecy in Zechariah 14:11 that nothing will be
accursed — a reference to the terrible practice of anathema (Hebrew “herem”)
which marked the Israelite conquest of Canaan: to avoid being tainted by idola-
trous pagans, the Israelites laid cities and fields waste, putting them to torch
and killing inhabitants and livestock. Peace and security will now reign supreme.
And the dream of every man will come true — to see God (something impossible
to attain on earth). Now all the blessed will see God (cf. 1 Cor 13:12); and be-
cause they see him they shall be like him (cf. 1 Jn 3:2). The name of God on
their foreheads shows that they belong to God (cf. Rev 13:16-17).

6-9. The author concludes his account of his visions by reaffirming that every-
thing he has written is true (vv. 5-9) and by issuing a solemn warning: it will all
come to pass and people will either be blessed or rejected (vv. I0-I5).

The truth of what the book says is grounded on God, who is truth itself. This is
St John’s usual way of referring to the authority and reliability of his teaching (cf.
Rev 1:1, 9; Jn 19:35; 1 Jn 1:1 ff). He is acutely conscious of having written in the
same manner as the prophets spoke — inspired by “the God of the spirits of the
prophets”. That is why he presents his book as “prophecy”.

He also insists on the fact that the Lord’s coming is imminent: he says this no
less than three times in this chapter (vv. 7, 12 and 20): this is designed to make
it quite clear that the Lord will come, and to create a climate of vigilance and
hope (cf. note on Rev 1:1, on the imminence of the second coming).

Because this is a genuine book of prophecy those who read it and tell others its
message are described as “blessed”. This is the attitude which Jesus required
people to have towards the word of God and towards his own words: when a wo-
man proclaims his Mother “blessed”, our Lord replies, “Blessed rather are those
who hear the word of God and keep it” (Lk 11:28), and he promises that a person
who listens to his word and keeps it is like someone who builds on solid founda-
tions (cf. Mt 7:24). St James gives a similar warning: “be doers of the word, and
not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (Jas 1:22).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.


3 posted on 11/30/2012 9:50:56 PM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Salvation

Thank you friend in Christ.


8 posted on 11/30/2012 10:05:29 PM PST by jmacusa (Political correctness is cultural Marxism. I'm not a Marxist.)
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To: Salvation

Please add me to your ping list.


21 posted on 12/01/2012 5:57:40 AM PST by Mercat (Adventures make you late for dinner. Bilbo Baggins)
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