The river of life - Revelation 22:1-5 v1 Then the *angel showed me the river of the water that gives

life. It shone like *crystal. And it flowed from the *throne where God and the *Lamb sit. v2 It flowed down the middle of the main street of the city. On each side of the river, there stood the tree that gives life. This tree produces fruit 12 times a year. It yields fresh fruit each month. And the leaves of the tree were for the health of the nations. v3 Nothing evil will be there. The *throne of God and of the *Lamb will be in the city, and Gods servants will serve him. v4 They will see Gods face and Gods name will be on the front of their heads. v5 There will be no night there. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun. Instead, the *Lord God will provide their light. And they will always rule as kings. Verse 1 The *angel showed John the river. This river flowed from the *throne of God and of the *Lamb. The river has clear and clean water. The water shone bright as it reflected the light. John calls it the water that gives life. In John chapter 4, Jesus spoke to a woman at a well. He spoke about the water that he would give. The water that Jesus gives means *eternal life. The water in the river gives that life. The river flows from the *throne. God and the *Lamb are the source of the river. All life comes from God. He gives *eternal life to those who belong to the *Lamb. Verse 2 The river flowed through the main street. This is the river of life. Where the river flows, it gives life. This is an essential part of the New Jerusalem.

God made Adam and Eve. He put them in the garden called Eden. The tree that gives life was among the trees in the garden. When Adam *sinned, God did not allow him to eat of this tree (Genesis 2:9; Genesis 3:22-24). Adam could not have *eternal life in his *sinful state. The tree that gives life will be in the New Jerusalem. It will be on both sides of the river. Gods people will eat the fruit of that tree. God has removed their *sins. The fruit will be good to eat. John saw that the tree had plenty of fruit. It had 12 kinds of fruit. It had fresh fruit each month. What God provides is always new. He gives to us more than we ever need. The tree shows how generous God is to his people. They will eat and the food will satisfy them. The leaves of the tree were for the health of the nations. So, the leaves were like medicine. This shows that there will be no lack of health. The life to come will be plentiful and perfect. The leaves of the tree help all people to enjoy life. Verse 3 The trouble that *sin brought will not still exist. The *Lord has taken *sin and the effects of *sin away from us. Those who refused his kindness will not be in the new earth. All who are in the city will be the servants of God and of the *Lamb. God and the *Lamb will rule the earth from their *throne in the city. Verse 4 God would not allow even Moses to see his face (Exodus 33:20). Nobody could see God and live. But in the New Jerusalem, all will see the face of God. They will know him well. They will know his name. They will live with him and they will *worship him.

Gods people will have the name of God on their heads. The name means the character of God. It is as if each person will reflect the image of God. They will have a perfect character, like Jesus. They will see him as he is (1 John 3:2). Verse 5 There will be no night there, because God will be always present. The *Lord God provides the light in that place. The new earth will not have days and nights. It will be day all the time (Zechariah 14:7). It seems that people will not still need to sleep. Those who live in the New Jerusalem will rule as kings with God.