EPILOGUE

REVELATION 22:6-21

Rev 22:6 -11

"Then he said to me, 'These words are faithful and true.' And the Lord God of the [NU omits "holy"] spirits of the prophets sent his angel to show his servants the things which must shortly take place. 'Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.' Now I, John, [NU changes "saw and heard"] am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. Then he said to me, 'See that you do not do that. [NU omits "For"] I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.' And he said to me, 'Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him [NU changes "be righteous"] do right still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.'"

22:6

We come now to the last recorded words of Christ to the Church. These are his "good-by until we meet again" words. We should listen carefully, like we would to the last words of a dear friend or loved one. In Revelation, he has faithfully passed on his Father's words to us. It has been an eye-opening journey, has it not? Line upon line, precept upon precept, we have sat at his feet, so to speak, and listened to the things that are to come. His words have been intricate and detailed about peoples and key players, spirits and personalities and judgments that will come on Earth during the closing days of Satan and man's rule here. Then, to top it off, he has verbally transported us right on out into eternity to get a look-see at our eternal home and the new Earth on which it will reside.

The first thought our Lord leaves us with here is that what he has told us is absolutely dependable. His angel says, "These words are faithful and true". This statement is speaking on behalf of the words of the entire book. They are faithful and true because they come from the one whose very nature and name is Faithful and True. He always tells it like it is. Therefore, the angel confidently says these things will shortly take place and adds again, "blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book".

May we step aside here, once more? Child of God, the only solid, dependable, unchanging, reliable, trustworthy thing in this whole vacillating, ambiguous, truth-starved world of ours is found between the covers of your Bible. It contains God's written words to man and is absolutely faithful and true. It tell us everything we need to know from the origin of the universe to the end of the universe; who we are, why we're here, where we're going, where sin came from and how God has dealt with it. It tells us who God is and how we can come into a real relationship with him. How very important God's Word, the Bible, is. Listen to these scriptures.

"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." Colossians 3:16

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16-17

22:7

The second thought our Lord leaves us with is, "Behold, I come quickly". My, how we believers should be filled with the expectancy and anticipation of our Lord's coming. He repeats these words, three times here in our text in verses 7, 12, and 20. Do you think that maybe he feels this is important? Let's take a moment to look at these all-important words one at a time.

"Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand."

And again, as you have it in First John 3:2-3...

"Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when he is revealed, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. And everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure."

Has the words, "I come", gripped your heart and life, dear saint? Did they affect your walk today?

  • 2. "quickly". Granted, this is speaking from our Lord's point of view, nevertheless the countdown to the Rapture continues as surely as that of a space shuttle about to launch! Don't you wish you could get a peek at the clock? It has been nearly two thousand years since John wrote these prophetic words. So, we twenty-first century believers, should be anticipating his coming more than any that have gone before us. Peter says...

    • "But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness, but is long-suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." 2 Peter 3:8-9

    His promise here to come quickly was given to encourage his saints of all ages to keep watching. He knows it is hard to be patient. But we are to trust his word and be enthusiastically waiting for him. As you have it in Hebrews 9:28...

    "... so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for him he will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation."

    Again, as Paul tells the Thessalonians...

    "And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come." First Thessalonians 1:10 (KJV)

    And again, as you have it in Titus 2:13...

    "... looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,"

    He concludes, "Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book."

    22:8-9

    John really really wants us to get a hold on these things, doesn't he? Can you hear it here when he says, "Now, I John am the one who heard and saw these things? Next he says, "I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things". My, how our Lord’s words affected John. Being overcome by them, he made the same mistake he made back in 19:10. Once again, he fell at the feet of the messenger. The angel, of course, wanting nothing to do with that, immediately said, "Don't do that, I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God".

    May we think about that for a moment? Do you worship God? I mean do you really worship him? When you have an opportune moment, maybe while driving your car or when you are alone somewhere, do you lift up your heart and tell him how much you love him and how wonderful he is? Do you get on your knees or lift up your hands or sing to him? When you awake in the night, is your heart glad because he is there and in that quiet hour you enjoy the wonder of his presence and worship him without interruptions or anyone else watching? David knew the joy of those times. He said...

    "My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise you with joyful lips. When I remember you on my bed, I meditate on you in the night watches." Psalm 63:5-6

    The angel said, "worship God". In the Greek, it is a command, by the way. Do you know what happens when we obey his commands? First John 2:5 says...

    "But whoso keepeth his Word, in him truly the love of God is perfected: hereby know we that we are in him".

    Like the Nike commercial, just do it beloved and your love for God will increase and become perfected. Worship God.

    22:10-11

    Next, the angel says, "Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand". Time is short. The book of Revelation is to be an open book. It is for anyone and everyone to read. No one should be discouraged from reading it. It is very special. I believe Revelation, like the rest of the Bible, is not only for the people of God, but also for those who God is drawing to himself.

    The words of the angel continue, "He who is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him do right still; he who is holy, let him be holy still." This is a tongue in cheek warning about the permanency of the state of an unrepentant lifestyle. In light of having been given the truths of this book, are you content to continue as you were? "O.K", the angel says. Do it. If you're righteous that's good, if not ... ??? When a heart grows hard towards the Word of God, there is little hope for it. It has no desire to change. The time for tenderness and change towards God is now, before the heart has been set like concrete or, even worse, time suddenly runs out because of death or the Rapture. Hebrews 3:7-8 says...

    "Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: 'Today, if you will hear his voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of trial in the wilderness,"

    Now is the time to get saved and to declare which side you are on. No one knows if they will have a tomorrow. Back when I was writing a first draft of this very chapter, four teenage young men who were friends of a young man in my church were involved in an awful car wreck. One escaped, two were killed, and one was in critical condition in the hospital. It was forever too late for two of those teenagers to change their eternal destiny. It had been sealed. There will come a day in the life of every one of us when it will be forever too late to change.

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    Rev 22:12-16

    'And behold, I am coming quickly, and my reward is with me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, [NU reverses "the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last"] the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. Blessed are those who [NU omits" do His commandments"] wash their robes that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. [NU omits "But"] Outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie. 'I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.'"

    22:12

    These final words of Jesus continue in verse 12. They are spoken to us believers and have to do with our personal relationship with him. They have seven parts.

  • 1. He says, "my reward is with me". He is encouraging us here to keep our priorities straight. What counts in eternity is what is really important. When he appears, there will be rewards. As you have it in 2 Corinthians 5:10...

    • "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad."

    22:13

  • 2. He says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End". He is encouraging us here to keep our theology straight. He is our God. This title, Alpha and Omega is the same title of deity used by God the Father back in 1:8 and again in 21:6. Christ takes it to himself here, along with the title "the First and the Last", a name of Jehovah in the Old Testament. As you have it in Isaiah 41:4...

    • "Who has performed and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? 'I, the LORD, am the first; and with the last, I am he.'"

    22:14

  • 3. He says, "blessed are they that wash their robes that they might have the right to the tree of life and may enter in through the gates of the city". He is encouraging us here to make sure our soteriology (doctrine of salvation) is straight . In Second Corinthians 13:5a (KJV), Paul says...

    • "Examine yourselves, whether you are in the faith; prove you own selves."

  • Those who go to Heaven are those who have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb. Have you been washed? This terminology may be foreign to you. It means you have put your faith in Christ and ask him to forgive you and save you. Then, he will do the washing.

    Now, there is a problem in the translation here in the King James. The phrase, "wash their robes" is correct. But the words, "keep his commandments", found in the King James Version, are an emendation (addition by a copyist). Possibly, some copier just couldn't believe that people could be saved solely on the basis of the fact that they were washed in the blood of the Lamb, so he added, keep his commandments. I am grateful for the scholarship that is available today so that we can easily tell when the scripture has been tampered with. Have you washed your robes in the blood of the Lamb? If so, you have Jesus' word on it, you are blessed.

    •

    22:15

    "Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:"

    Therefore, all that are outside the city are lost people who are still in their sin as enumerated above. Both the NKJV and the NIV translate sorcerers for the Greek word farmakoi (farmakoi), although I strongly suspect it should be translated drugies.

    22:16

    "do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you." Romans 11:18

    We Gentiles got in by grace combined with the fact that Israel stumbled (Romans 11). This should generate a great appreciation on our part for our Lord’s great mercy toward us. As you have it in Romans 9:25-26...

    "As he says also in Hosea: ‘I will call them my people, who were not my people, and her beloved, who was not beloved. And it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them, 'You are not my people,' There they shall be called sons of the living God.’"

    All I've got to say about that is "GLORY!" ... how about you?! But, Jesus' words here are aimed at his Jewish people and especially the Messianic Jews (believers). He is the King of Israel, David's direct descendant through Mary's line (Luke 3:23-31).

  • 7. Lastly, he says, "I am the Bright and Morning star". He wants us to keep our eschatology (events of the end times) straight. Continuing the theme that he is the root and offspring of David, he reminds us by this title that he, the Messiah, will appear one bright day to rule the world. The name, Star, is rooted in Numbers 24:17 and emphasizes Christ's Second Coming. There we read there...

    • "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near; a Star shall come out of Jacob; a Scepter shall rise out of Israel, and batter the brow of Moab, and destroy all the sons of tumult."

    Peter, in his letter to the Jews, also alluded to this prophecy in Second Peter 1:19...

    "And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts;"

    The prophet Samuel said...

    "The God of Israel said, The Rock of Israel spoke to me: 'He who rules over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God. And he shall be like the light of the morning when the sun rises, a morning without clouds, like the tender grass springing out of the earth, by clear shining after rain." Second Samuel 23:3-4

    Oh what a blessed event it will be when the Morning Star appears for all his covenant people to behold!

    "But to you who fear my name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in his wings; and you shall go out and grow fat like stall-fed calves." Malachi 4:2

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    Rev. 22:17-20

    And the Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!' And let him who hears say, 'Come!' And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that 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 Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. He who testifies to these things says, 'Surely I am coming quickly.' Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen."

    22:17

    Here at verse 17, we come to the conclusion of the book of Revelation. The Lord ends his words with an invitation to be saved. It is extended three times. What a heart for people Jesus has. He says, "Come." Come to Christ. Come and get the water of life freely. These invitations roil up off the page from three different sources. They come from the Spirit (Christ’s Holy Spirit), the Bride (Christ's Bride, the Church) and from all who hear (are able to hear) the words of this prophecy. All three say, "Come". I have often heard the opinion that Revelation is a book that is far too difficult for unbelievers and new believers to tackle, but do you know what I've discovered? I've found that people in general, are very interested in Revelation. When my youngest son was in High School, he said that the young people there were more interested in this book of the Bible than any other. Its words held a peculiar fascination to them. I believe Christ anticipated that God given curiosity and therefore he is lovingly inviting his unsaved readers here to come to him.

    "... for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." Luke 19:10

    If you are unsaved, dear reader, it is no accident that you have been reading this book. Christ's Holy Spirit has been speaking to you. Christ is saying, "Won't you come to me"? If you will, just bow your head right now and pray, "Lord Jesus, please save me. Thank you for dying for my sins on the cross. Wash me in your blood and forgive me all my sins and make me your child. Thank you, thank you! Amen." Romans 10:13 promises...

    "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (KJV)

    22:18-19

    Well, now we have come to the end of it. The final words of the book are a warning against tampering with the text. To those who would add to it, he says, "God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book". Those who would take away from it, he warns, "God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things that are written in this book". The penalty for tampering with this book is great. Not only will there be punishment, but loss of ones part in the Book of Life. I believe this means that such a one will lose his or her chance to be saved, not their salvation. Only an unsaved man or woman would be so stupid as to deliberately mess with the Word of the living God.

    22:20

    The book closes with Jesus' words, like a sweet refrain and a persistent echo, "Surely I am coming quickly". John enthusiastically responds, "even so come Lord Jesus!". John says goodbye to us with, "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen". Thank you, John. Thanks for everything. Well, there you have it, God’s strange work given by the Father to the Son to his angel to John to show to his servants the things, which must shortly come to pass. And, a strange work it shall be when it comes. Grace and peace, beloved. JESUS IS LORD!