Revelation 21:22-27 I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light,and the Lamb is its lamp. 24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. 25 On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there.26 The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. 27 Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
John next sees the inside of the new Jerusalem. Each of the details is important and symbolic of greater spiritual matters. First, there is no temple, like the Jerusalem of John’s day (depending on when he wrote this document). The temple represented God’s presence to Israel. In the new city, however, a temple is not needed because God and Lamb are the temple (see 21:7). With God’s presence real and experienceable, this leads to no need for the sun. God’s glory supplies the light. John explains the significance of this with the kings of the earth following this light. I don’t think we should read too much into this with the idea of kings and politics in the new Jerusalem. The basic idea is that this city is the center of the world. All people come to this city and behold the glory of God. We should look more to the symbolism of what this passage is communicating. The city has a select citizenship. Only those whose names are written on the Lamb’s book of life may enter. This is a subtle reminder to the readers of Revelation that we must have our names written in this book by accepting and following the Lamb, Jesus. If we want to see this city for ourselves, we must place our hope in Jesus.
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