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Revelation 21
Revelation 21:1
General Information:
John begins to describe his vision of the new Jerusalem.
I saw
Here "I" refers to John.
Revelation 21:2
like a bride adorned for her husband
This compares the new Jerusalem to a bride who has made herself beautiful for her bridegroom. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-simile)
Revelation 21:3
a great voice from the throne saying
The word "voice" refers to the one who speaks. Alternate translation: "someone speak loudly from the throne saying" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metonymy)
Look!
The word "Look" here alerts us to pay attention to the surprising information that follows.
The dwelling place of God is with human beings, and he will live with them
These two phrases mean the same thing and emphasize that God will, indeed, live among men. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-parallelism)
Revelation 21:4
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes
Tears here represent sadness. See how you translated this in Revelation 7:17. Alternate translation: "God will wipe away their sadness, like wiping away tears" or "God will cause them to not be sad anymore" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metonymy)
Revelation 21:5
these words are trustworthy and true
Here "words" refers to the message that they formed. Alternate translation: "this message is trustworthy and true" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metonymy)
Revelation 21:6
the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end
These two phrases mean basically the same thing and emphasize God's eternal nature. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-parallelism and rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-merism)
the Alpha and the Omega
These are first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. Possible meanings are 1) "the one who began all things and who ends all things" or 2) "the one who has always lived and who always will live." If the meanings are unclear to readers, you may consider using the first and last letters of your alphabet. See how you translated this in Revelation 1:8. Alternate translation: "the A and the Z" or "the first and the last" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor and rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-merism)
the beginning and the end
Possible meanings are 1) "the one who began all things and the one who will cause all things to end" or 2) "the one who existed before all things and who will exist after all things."
To the one who thirsts ... water of life
God speaks of a person's desire for eternal life as if it were thirst and of that person receiving eternal life as if he were drinking life-giving water. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor)
Revelation 21:7
Connecting Statement:
The one seated on the throne continues to speak to John.
Revelation 21:8
the cowards
"those who are too afraid to do what is right"
the detestable
"those who do terrible things"
the fiery lake of burning sulfur
"the lake of fire that burns with sulfur" or "place full of fire that burns with sulfur." See how you translated this in Revelation 19:20.
the second death
"dying a second time." This is described as eternal punishment in the lake of fire in Revelation 20:14 and Revelation 21:8. See how you translated this in Revelation 2:11. Alternate translation: "the final death in the lake of fire" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/writing-symlanguage)
Revelation 21:9
the bride, the wife of the Lamb
The angel speaks of Jerusalem as if it were a woman who is about to marry her groom, the Lamb. Jerusalem is metonymy for those who believers who will inhabit it. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-personification and rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor and rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metonymy)
the Lamb
This is a young sheep. Here is it used symbolically to refer to Christ. See how you translated this in Revelation 5:6. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/writing-symlanguage)
Revelation 21:10
carried me away in the Spirit
The setting changes as John is taken to a high mountain where he can see the city of Jerusalem. See how you translated this phrase in Revelation 17:3. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/writing-background)
Revelation 21:11
Jerusalem
This refers to the "Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven" that he described in the previous verse and not to the physical Jerusalem.
like a very precious jewel, like a stone of crystal-clear jasper
These two phrases mean basically the same thing. The second emphasizes the brilliance of Jerusalem by naming a specific jewel. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-parallelism)
crystal-clear
"extremely clear"
jasper
This is a valuable stone. Jasper may have been clear like glass or crystal. See how you translated this in Revelation 4:3. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-unknown)
Revelation 21:12
twelve gates
"12 gates" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-numbers)
were written
This can be stated in active form. Alternate translation: "someone had written" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-activepassive)
Revelation 21:13
General Information:
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Revelation 21:14
Lamb
This refers to Jesus. See how you translated this in Revelation 5:6.
Revelation 21:15
General Information:
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Revelation 21:16
twelve thousand stadia
"12,000 stadia." You may convert this to modern measures. Alternate translation: "2,200 kilometers" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-numbers and rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-bdistance)
Revelation 21:17
144 cubits
"one hundred forty-four cubits." You may convert this to modern measures. Alternate translation: "66 meters" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-numbers and rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-bdistance)
Revelation 21:18
The wall was built of jasper and the city of pure gold
This can be stated in active form. Alternate translation: "Someone had built the wall with jasper and the city with pure gold" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-activepassive)
pure gold, like clear glass
The gold was so clear that it is spoken of as if it were glass. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-simile)
jasper
This is a valuable stone. Jasper may have been clear like glass or crystal. See how you translated this in Revelation 4:3. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-unknown)
Revelation 21:19
The foundations of the wall were adorned
This can be stated in active form. Alternate translation: "Someone adorned the foundations of the wall" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-activepassive)
jasper ... sapphire ... agate ... emerald
These are valuable stones. Jasper may have been clear like glass or crystal. See how you translated it in Revelation 4:3. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-unknown)
Revelation 21:20
onyx ... chrysolite ... beryl ... topaz ... chrysoprase ... jacinth ... amethyst
These are all valuable gems. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-unknown)
Revelation 21:21
pearls
beautiful and valuable white beads. They are formed inside the shell of a certain kind of small animal that lives in the ocean. See how you translated this in Revelation 17:4. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/translate-unknown)
each of the gates was made from a single pearl
This can be stated in active form. Alternate translation: "someone had made each of the gates from a single pearl" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-activepassive)
pure gold, like transparent glass
The gold was so clear that it is spoken of as if it were glass. See how you translated a similar phrase in Revelation 21:18. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-simile)
Revelation 21:22
Lord God ... and the Lamb are its temple
The temple represented God's presence. This means the new Jerusalem does not need a temple because God and the Lamb will live there. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor)
Revelation 21:23
its lamp is the Lamb
Here the glory of Jesus, the Lamb, is spoken of as if it were a lamp that gives light to the city. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor)
Revelation 21:24
The nations will walk
The words "the nations" are a metonym for the people who live in the nations. "Walk" here is a metaphor for "live." Alternate translation: "The people from all the different nations will live" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metonymy and rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor)
Revelation 21:25
Its gates will not be shut
This can be stated in active form. Alternate translation: "No one will shut the gates" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-activepassive)
Revelation 21:26
They will bring
"The kings of the earth will bring"
Revelation 21:27
nothing unclean will ever enter into it, nor anyone
This can be stated in positive form. Alternate translation: "only what is clean will ever enter, and never anyone" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-doublenegatives)
but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life
This can be stated in active form. Alternate translation: "but only those whose names the Lamb wrote in his Book of Life" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-activepassive)
the Lamb
This is a young sheep. Here is it used symbolically to refer to Christ. See how you translated this in Revelation 5:6. (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/writing-symlanguage)