Making All Things New - Lectionary (RCL) Reflection for Easter 5C (Revelation 21)

Revelation 21:1-6  New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. ² And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

“See, the home of God is among mortals.

He will dwell with them;

they will be his peoples,

and God himself will be with them and be their God;

⁴ he will wipe every tear from their eyes.

Death will be no more;

mourning and crying and pain will be no more,

for the first things have passed away.”

⁵ And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” ⁶ Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.

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                The promise of the Book of Revelation is that God is doing a new thing. So, get ready! As we near the conclusion of the revelation given to John of Patmos, we get a preview of what is to come. Yes, something new is about to be revealed. This message that God is going to do a new thing has deep biblical roots. Jeremiah spoke of a covenant God would write on the hearts of the people of God (Jer. 31:31-34). We see something similar in Isaiah 43, where God speaks through the prophet to the exiles in Babylon, telling them to forget the former things because “I am about to do a new thing” (Is 43:18-19). In fact, we read in Isaiah 65 something even closer to the promise found here in Revelation 21, for God declares: “For I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind” (Is. 65:17).  Of course, Paul wrote about a new creation, promising that the old has passed away and everything is new (2 Cor. 5:17). Here, John of Patmos hears the one seated on the throne (God) promising to make all things new.

                The promise here is of a new heaven and a new earth. In other words, things have gotten so off the rails that the earth as we know it needs to be replaced. I think we can understand why this message might be attractive. Sometimes things get so broken that repair isn’t possible, so they need to be replaced. Just the other day I discovered a small nail in my tire, which caused a slow lead. You would think that this would be a simple repair, but they decided to replace the tire (I purchased special coverage, so it was covered). If you can’t repair it, then you’ll have to replace it.

                This message of the new creation is cosmic in orientation. The vision offered to John that is prominent in apocalyptic theology is that God will disrupt the way things are so something new can emerge. John writes to believers who were wondering if following Jesus was really worth the suffering that they were enduring. John wants them to know that if they endure faithfully their current situation, they will experience the new creation. They can do this because God is faithful. Yes, God’s word is “trustworthy and true.” It’s important to note that when John sees all of this taking place, he doesn’t lose sight of the earthiness of the vision. Too often as Christians, we’ve embraced spiritualized visions of God’s ultimate purposes, so that we set aside God’s view of the earth, of the physical creation. This new earth John hears about isn’t ethereal, it’s physical. As Brian Blount notes: “John’s vision, by contrast, redeems the earth as a part of God’s good creation and as the locus of God’s grand re-creation. A witness for God and the Lamb does not dream of escaping the world. A witness for God and the Lamb works with God to transform the world” [Brian Blount, Revelation (NTL), p. 377 (Kindle)].

                John uses various images to get his point across. Not only does he speak of a new heaven and a new earth, but he speaks of a New Jerusalem. Most scholars assume that John writes well after the destruction of the city of Jerusalem, which had been the focal point of Jewish life and early Christian life. Now that city lies in ruins, and so like Second Isaiah, the promise is of a new city where the people can dwell in safety. In the ancient world, safety lay behind the walls of the city. According to John, this New Jerusalem is a gift from God because it comes down from heaven. This image could be a bit surprising since we usually think of a heavenly destination, but here heaven comes to earth. Then John adds another image, that of a bride adorned for her husband. As we ponder this image, we must take note of social practices that are unsettling. The image of a wedding speaks of a covenant relationship, but we need to remember that women were largely passive in such relationships, which were usually arranged by the family (usually the father). So, as we ponder the image, we need to be aware of the possibility of reinforcing unequal relationships and make sure we emphasize the egalitarian nature of life in the new creation.

                One thing to note here is that in apocalyptic theology, humans play a limited role in bringing this new creation into existence. God is the one who does all of this on our behalf. While God is the primary actor in apocalyptic theology, must this be an either/or proposition? Might we hear in this word a reminder that broken things need to be repaired or replaced? It’s clear that our world is broken and needs healing and renewal. As covenant partners, might we embrace God’s vision of a new creation? Then might we find ways of participating with God in bringing about this new thing?

                The idea of a new creation and a new Jerusalem and even the coming of a bride to her betrothed speak of God coming to us. So, John records this word that comes from the throne of God:  

“See, the home of God is among mortals.

He will dwell with them;

they will be his peoples,

and God himself will be with them and be their God; ….”

Yes, God’s home will be among mortals so God can dwell with them. There are similarities between this image and the word we hear in John 1:14. The focus in John 1 is that the Word of God took flesh to dwell among us. That is, the Word became incarnate in the person of Jesus. The image here is a bit different in that it speaks of a place or building where God dwells, but the point is the same the transcendent God enters human experience and dwells among us. As a result, those with whom God dwells will be God’s people. Yes, God will be their God.  

                There’s more good news. Not only will God be our God, but God will wipe away the tears of those who have suffered. It’s a promise we encountered earlier in Revelation 7 That is because death, what Paul calls the last enemy (1 Cor. 15:26), will be no more, along with mourning, crying, and suffering. This is true because the first things will have passed away. In the Book of Revelation, the word of comfort is first given to those who survive the great ordeal, but even if we do not experience the same level of suffering and death, can we not also receive the promise given to the saints? So, as we look toward life in the new creation, where death and suffering and mourning cease, we can ponder the question Paul poses to us: “Where O death, is your sting?” (1 Cor. 15:55). Let us remember that we are still in the Easter season, and so the promise of resurrection remains with us!

                Having heard these promises, we come to God’s declaration. Seated on the throne of heaven God declares: “See, I am making all things new.” This word here is a reminder that God is the Creator. While in Genesis 1, it appears that God put everything together and then retired, never again engaging in creative activity. Here in Revelation 21, with this declaration, we’re reminded that God continues to create. As Greg Stevenson notes: “With this vision of a new heaven and a new earth, Revelation asserts that the creative activity of God is not an accomplished fact of the past but very much the basis of our hope for the future because creation is not simply what God once did but a component of who God is” [A Slaughtered Lamb, p. 214].

                This promise that God is making all things new is trustworthy and true. As we’ve heard before in Revelation God lets us know that God is the “Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.” While this might seem to speak of temporal boundaries, for John of Patmos, there is no end to creation. God is always at work, making all things new. This is our hope, which ultimately leads to God’s provision of water as a gift to all who thirst. This water God provides as a gift to quench our thirst is taken from the spring of the water of life. Brian Blount offers this helpful word about the promise of the water of life/living water given to those who thirst by God.

This is a vision of eternal life-giving relationship, which was also imaged by the prophets as a great eschatological thirst-quenching experience (Isa 49:10; 55:1; Jer 2:13; Zech 14:8). The Gospel of John foresees Jesus as the conduit for this eternal, life-giving water (John 7:37; cf. Odes Sol. 30.1–2). In the Apocalypse, John connects this spring of lifegiving water to the Eden-like River whose water of life runs through the heart of the new Jerusalem (22:1). [Blount, Revelation (NTL), p. 382, Kindle].

For this provision, we give thanks to God!