The River of Life and the Tree of Life
Revelation 22 is closely connected to every-thing about New Jerusalem in chapter 21, as shown by its first word, And. “And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb in the middle of its street. And on this side and on that side of the river was the tree of life, producing twelve fruits, yielding its fruit each month” (22:1-2a).
Revelation 2:7 also mentions the tree of life. “The tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.”
The tree of life is planted in the Paradise of God. Since the tree of life is in the city, this tells us that the New Jerusalem is the Paradise of God.
The New Jerusalem is the wife of the Lamb and is also the Paradise of God. In Genesis 2 there were three entities—Adam, Eve, and the garden. But in Revelation 21 and 22 there are only two—the Lamb and the city. The city is the bride and also the Paradise; the woman and the Paradise have become one.*
Both Genesis 2 and Revelation 22 include the river of life and the tree of life. In Genesis 3 the serpent came in, deceived Eve, Adam ate from the wrong tree, and Satan imparted sin and death to all men (Rom. 5:12). This sequence began because Eve was independent of God.
But in Revelation 21–22 the bride is one with God, and Satan is in the lake of fire forever, so there is no possibility in New Jerusalem of deception, no chance for repetition of Genesis 3.
* From chapter 5 of The Glorious Church by Watchman Nee, published and © by Living Stream Ministry, available at www.ministrybooks.org/ and www.livingstream.com/en/the-church/8012401-glorious-church-the.html.
Posted by Don on August 12, 2022
