Saturday 13 September 2025
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them." (v. 3)
Background
The reading today combines two different passages from the last section of Revelation (chapters 19-22), both of which emphasise the transforming presence of God in the new creation.
The first passage – Revelation 21:1-7 – begins with a vision of a ‘new heaven and a new earth’. While this could suggest the ‘first’ earth is destroyed, the allusion to Isaiah (Isaiah 65:17) and the emphasis on the holy city ‘descending’ to earth suggests that this is about creation’s radical transformation (v. 2). When heaven and earth join, all is changed.
The passage emphasises God’s future presence with this people; ‘the home of God… among mortals’ (v. 3). The hope to be with God is reflected throughout Scripture, including in God’s promise to Israel that "I will be their God, and they shall be my people" (Jeremiah 7:23). Jesus brought God’s presence to earth in human form, but God’s presence which ends death and suffering awaits the future (v. 4).
The text also depicts God speaking, one of the few passages where this occurs in Revelation. God is the ‘Alpha and Omega’ – the one who has always been there and will always be there – and offers "water as a gift from the stream of life" (vs 5-7).
The theme of the ‘water of life’ is then picked up in the second passage, Revelation 22:1-4. The vision of the new creation depicts water flowing from the throne of God, bringing abundance to the land and healing to the nations. Such an image finds biblical parallels in Ezekiel 47 and in Jesus’ promise to quench the thirst of those who come to him (John 7:37-39).
The vision also depicts the new creation as a place where evil no longer exists; there, humans see God and the lamb face to face, a promise described by some later theologians as the ‘beatific vision’ (22:3-4). God will be the light of creation, and humans under God ‘will reign forever and ever’ (22:5).
To Ponder:
- Which of the images of the new creation in Revelation 21 and 22 do you find most helpful or inspiring?
- How might the Church continue to pursue a transformation of current society while retaining hope for a future, transformed creation?
Bible notes author: The Revd Dr Ed Mackenzie
Ed Mackenzie works at Cliff College as the Programme Lead for the BA in Theology and Mission, and lectures in New Testament Studies and Biblical Theology.
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