The life of the city Revelation 22 verses 1-2.
"And He showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bear twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month:and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations."
Contrary to popular opinion, there is very definitely an active life in the new heaven and the new earth. People think of heaven as eternal boredom, but it will be the very opposite. The life of the city will be vibrant and exciting and pleasant. Eden conditions, prior to the fall, will be restored and much much more. The life of the city is bound up in two entities;namely the river of water of life, and the tree of life, which is central to all life in the city. We shall expand on this, but in the river of life we have the thought of satisfaction; in the tree of life we have the thought of sustenance.
First we consider the river of water of life. Clearly what is in view here is not so much the physical river but a spiritual river There is much more to the satisfaction to the human soul than merely the sustenance of the body. What we have here in the water of life is the true spiritual satisfaction which God knows every human being requires, and which He alone can provide.
- The significance of the river. It is a major biblical subject, that the human soul cannot be satisfied with anything less than the Creator. God knows this even if we don't. In Jeremiah 2v13 he describes himself "As the fountain of living waters." God is able to fully satisfy His people. Psalms 46 v 4 says "there is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God. " The Lord Jesus spoke about people being thirsty;in John 7v7 it is written "in the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying "if any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink. " In Revelation 7v17 "for the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feel them unto living fountains of waters." In Revelation 21v6 it says "I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely." And in Revelation 22v17 it says "let him that is athirst come, and whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely." Why so much emphasise on thirst? God knows we need more than material things, human beings created by God can only be satisfied by God Himself.
- The source of the river. The verse itself explains that this river proceeds out of the throne of God Himself and out of the Lamb. This is prefigured in the millennial scene in Ezekiel 47 v1-2. "Waters issued out from under the threshold of the house....." God Himself is the source of satisfaction of all His people. The prophet Isaiah has his say on this in chapter 12v3 "therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the Wells of salvation."
- The satisfaction of the river. The very fact he calls it a river, suggests a never -ending supply. Jesus said to the woman in John 4v14 " whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." Refreshing water, running water, a constant stream of satisfaction of a life we never thought was possible.
Secondly we consider the tree of life. We are not now thinking of the purity of the water supply, we are thinking of the variety of the food supply. Twelve manners of fruits, produced each and every month. In a timeless eternity He marks the time period of a month so that we can understand it. A never ending supply of rich and varied food from the hand of God. Even the leaves of the tree are said to be therapeutic. Whether this is a throw back to the millenium when healing will be required or it is just God's way of saying there will be no healing issues in eternity, we don't really know. What we do know is that the tree of life is the symbol of eternal life (Genesis 3v22) we also know from Revelation 2v8 that this tree "is in the midst of the paradise of God" and from Revelation 22v13 it is on either side of the river which flows through the central street of the city.
The whole picture is of the eternal provision for the people of God in that golden city.
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