The Book of Hope
Vision of the New Jerusalem
9 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And in the spirit he carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. 11 It has the glory of God and a radiance like a very rare jewel, like jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It has a great, high wall with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates are inscribed the names of the twelve tribes of the Israelites; 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city has twelve foundations, and on them are the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
15 The angel who talked to me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. 16 The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width; and he measured the city with his rod, fifteen hundred miles; its length and width and height are equal. 17 He also measured its wall, one hundred forty-four cubits by human measurement, which the angel was using. 18 The wall is built of jasper, while the city is pure gold, clear as glass. 19 The foundations of the wall of the city are adorned with every jewel; the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. 21 And the twelve gates are twelve pearls, each of the gates is a single pearl, and the street of the city is pure gold, transparent as glass.
22 I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. 25 Its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 People will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 27 But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
The River of Life
22 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3 Nothing accursed will be found there any more. But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; 4 they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.
Above, more of Revelation, the bold type being our reading for next Sunday, May 5, Easter Six (Revelation 21:10, 22--22:5).
In considering what to preach about yesterday, wanting to use something from one of the Bible readings, I looked at the Gospel (which Episcopal priests often treat as de rigueur the obligatory preaching base) and realized that I had probably preached it to death over the past thirty years. Although “love,” agape’ is impossible to wear out. The Acts reading did not especially appeal. So, Revelation, the Apocalypse then, coincidentally our Sunday School and Bible Seminar project through the Easter Season.
Or perhaps not so coincidental. Looking at our Revelation readings for Easter, it was evident the lectionary framers had avoided the frightful imagery of John Patmos and looked on the bright side. Why?
Because for all John’s fearsome graphics, which, in order to get the attention of his readers and hearers he lifted straight from Old Testament apocalyptic and burnished with his own fantastical imagination, John’s Apocalypse is a book of encouragement. It’s not about punishment and violent, horrendous battle a la Lord of the Rings. John Patmos wrote about Hope, he’s writing about Hope, he’s offering Hope in the midst of life’s suffering. And Hope is the wellspring of Easter. Hope of personal resurrection. Hope of eternal life. Hope of heaven. Hope of seeing loved ones. As our burial liturgy puts it, “the comfort of a reasonable and holy hope, in the joyful expectation of eternal life with those we love.”
So it’s reasonable that during Easter, the Church’s season of Hope, we would read from Revelation with its hopeful images and promises of what lies ahead for us. John Patmos‘ vivid scenes of stars falling, and scorpions the size of horses, and beasts from earth and sea, and lakes of fire, are fine and fun for Sunday School and Bible study groups; but when we gather for worship during Easter we expect and need to hear words of Hope, the promises of God. And that’s what Revelation is really about. Hope. Easter Hope. The Promises of God.
TW+