Revelation 22
English Standard Version
The River of Life
22 Then the angel[a] showed me (A)the river of (B)the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of (C)the street of the city; (D)also, on either side of the river, (E)the tree of life[b] with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were (F)for the healing of the nations. 3 (G)No longer will there be anything accursed, but (H)the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and (I)his servants will worship him. 4 (J)They will see his face, and (K)his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And (L)night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp (M)or sun, for (N)the Lord God will be their light, and (O)they will reign forever and ever.
Jesus Is Coming
6 And he said to me, (P)“These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of (Q)the spirits of the prophets, (R)has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.”
7 “And behold, (S)I am coming soon. (T)Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”
8 I, (U)John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, (V)I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me, 9 (W)but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those (X)who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”
10 And he said to me, (Y)“Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near. 11 (Z)Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.”
12 “Behold, (AA)I am coming soon, (AB)bringing my recompense with me, (AC)to repay each one for what he has done. 13 (AD)I am the Alpha and the Omega, (AE)the first and the last, (AF)the beginning and the end.”
14 Blessed are those who (AG)wash their robes,[c] so that they may have the right to (AH)the tree of life and that (AI)they may enter the city by the gates. 15 (AJ)Outside are (AK)the dogs (AL)and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
16 (AM)“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things (AN)for the churches. I am (AO)the root and (AP)the descendant of David, (AQ)the bright morning star.”
17 The Spirit and (AR)the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And (AS)let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the (AT)water of life without price.
18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: (AU)if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in (AV)the tree of life and in (AW)the holy city, which are described in this book.
20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely (AX)I am coming soon.” Amen. (AY)Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.[d] Amen.
Footnotes
- Revelation 22:1 Greek he
- Revelation 22:2 Or the Lamb. In the midst of the street of the city, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life
- Revelation 22:14 Some manuscripts do his commandments
- Revelation 22:21 Some manuscripts all the saints
Revelation 22
The Voice
John had never seen a city without a temple. In fact, every city John ever entered had many temples dedicated to many gods—all, of course, except Jerusalem, which only had one temple. But now in his vision, he sees a different kind of city, the holy city, the new Jerusalem. As he looks around its streets of gold and magnificent buildings, he sees no temple reaching into the sky. No temple is needed in this city because God and the Lamb live with them, constantly in view. Their throne sits prominently in the city. Their light forever illumines its streets and citizens.
22 My heavenly guide brought me to the river of pure living waters, shimmering as brilliantly as crystal. It flowed out from the throne of God and of the Lamb, 2 flowing down the middle and dividing the street of the holy city. On each bank of the river stood the tree of life, firmly planted, bearing twelve kinds of fruit and producing its sweet crop every month throughout the year. And the soothing leaves that grew on the tree of life provided precious healing for the nations.
Fed by a crystal clear river is the tree of life. In the beginning, Adam and Eve were prevented from eating from the tree once they were expelled from the garden of Eden. Divine creatures and a flaming sword then stood guard at the entrance to the garden (Genesis 3:24). Now the tree of life returns to the story, a single tree situated on both sides of the river. No one is denied access to its luscious fruit and healing leaves.
3 No one or nothing will labor under any curse any longer. And the throne of God and of the Lamb will sit prominently in the city. God’s servants will continually serve and worship Him. 4 They will be able to look upon His face, and His name will be written on their foreheads. 5 Darkness will never again fall on this city. They will not require the light of a lamp or of the sun because the Lord God will be their illumination. By His light, they will reign throughout the ages.
Guide (speaking to me): 6 These words are faithful and true.
And the Lord, the God who inspired the prophets, has sent His heavenly messenger to show to His servants what must soon take place.
The Anointed One: 7 Look now, I am coming soon! The one who remains true to the prophetic words contained in this book will truly be blessed.
8 I, John, am the one who heard and witnessed these visions. And when I heard and witnessed them, I fell prostrate at the feet of the heavenly guide who showed them to me. 9 But he refused.
Guide: You must not do that! I am a servant with you, with your brothers and sisters the prophets, and with those who keep the words contained in this book. Worship God instead!
10 (continuing) Do not seal up the prophetic words contained in this book for another day, for the finale is near. 11 Let the one given to evil continue down evil’s path and the one addicted to filth continue to be its servant. But let the one who is righteous journey along the righteous road, and let the holy continue in holy ways.
The Anointed One: 12 See, I am coming soon, and I will bring My reward with Me. I will pay back every person according to the deeds he has done. 13 I am the Alpha and Omega, the First One and the Last One, the beginning and the end.
14 Blessed are those who wash their garments. In the end, they have rightful access to the tree of life and will enter the city through its gates. 15 The dogs, the sorcerers, those who commit immoral acts, the murderers, the idolaters, and all who love and practice deception must remain outside the gates for all eternity.
Jesus: 16 I, Jesus, have sent My messenger to show you and guide you so that you in turn would share this testimony with the churches. I am the Root and the Descendant of David, the Bright Morning Star.
The Spirit and the Bride: 17 Come.
And let everyone who hears these words say, “Come.”
And let those who thirst come.
All who desire to drink, let them take and drink freely from the water of life.
John closes his book with a warning to safeguard the integrity of his prophecy.
18 Beware, everyone who hears the prophetic words of this book. Know this for certain: if anyone adds to these words, God will add to that person the plagues described in this book. 19 And if anyone subtracts from the prophetic words of this book, God will remove that person’s access to the tree of life and to the holy city which are described in this book.
20 The One who testifies to these realities makes this promise:
The Anointed One: Yes. I am coming soon.
To which we say, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.”
21 May the grace of the Lord Jesus [the Anointed One][a] be with all [the saints].[b] Amen.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.