Revelation 21 - God's Wife

In Revelation 20 I wrote about the reign of Christ with His Bride.  Death was thrown into the lake of fire, giving Jesus His final victory (1 Cor 15:26).  After Jesus has put all His enemies under His feet, “The Son Himself will be made subject to Him who put everything under Him, so that God may be all in all.” (vs 28).   In Revelation 21 we see new beginnings; the new heavens and earth, and the Bride of Christ is now His immortal wife.

God’s people, the Wife of the Lamb, are called the “New Jerusalem”.  Just as the false Church is symbolized as the city of Babylon, so God’s true people are symbolized as the city of New Jerusalem.  From the beginning of creation God’s intentions and desire has been to dwell with His people.  At this point, after having judged the unbelieving in the second judgment, God has a people to dwell with.  Their desire will be to drink the water of life, whereas those who did not love the Groom had no desire for the things of God.

God not only makes all things new, but He gives His people their glorified bodies.  Paul writes “So will it be with the resurrection of the dead.  The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body” (1 Cor 15:42-44).  God sees His people as His “treasured possession” and those whom He has compassion on, “just in compassion a man spares his son who serves him” (Mal 3:17).  His people inherit eternal life as His sons.

We are shown God’s pride and joy; His wife.  As a city, she does not have one gate, but 12.  And she does not have one foundation, but 12.  Just as in the New Testament Church each member had a function and calling, to be knit together with other believers by nourishing each other, so we see the same concept of individual purposes and works, built together into one city. 

Paul wrote that he laid a foundation, Christ, for us to build on.  He also cautioned that each person “should be careful how he builds” (1 Cor 3:10-12).  Only building with good materials will cause our work to last, for God will test them by fire when the earth is destroyed.  We see that the “gold, silver, costly stones” that survive the fire are in the City of God, the New Jerusalem.  Not only are God’s people eternal, but so are their works.  And even though each tribe of Israel had a separate purpose from each Apostle of Jesus, their purposes were linked together so that all believers would be built together as one City of God: New Jerusalem.  The believer must accept the Old Testament as truth, written and preserved by the 12 tribes of Israel, to walk through the gates into the City of God.  The believer must also accept the words and works of the Apostles of Jesus as truth to enter the City of God.  There is no picking and choosing which words and which works are acceptable to the faith.  The entire written book, the Word of God, is Holy and acceptable.

If we look back at Revelation 17 we see that the great whore was “glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls” (Rev 17:4).  The Harlot Church prevented God’s people from doing the good works which Jesus prepared for us to do (Eph 2:10).  These works were prepared in advance of our knowledge, and are the purpose of our creation.  Yet the Great Prostitute holds people’s talents and callings and will only release them to those who serve her purposes.  We see in Revelation 22 that God’s servants will serve only Him (Rev 22:3).  By destroying the Harlot Church, and throwing the Beast, False Prophet, and the Dragon into the lake of fire, God has removed every source of pollution.  God’s wife is pure, and will forever remain so.