Revelation 21:11
Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
The verse describes the New Jerusalem, the metropolis of the glorified new earth, coming down from God out of heaven with the glory of God upon it as the saints arrive at their eternal home. Her light is like a most precious stone, clear as crystal, dazzling and radiant and surpassing in brightness, filling the fair City with its pearly gates. That light is the glory of God and the Lamb flooding the holy city with unfading day far brighter than the sun and brighter than noonday, yet not painfully dazzling, in which the redeemed live and walk forever. These closing chapters of Revelation were given especially for those living amid the perils of the last days, to be read carefully and presented often, with blessing promised to those who read, hear, and keep them because the time is at hand. A place in that shining city is worth striving for and is open to all through what God has given in Jesus, but only the pure in heart can endure and enjoy such glory, so there must now be a deep individual work of cleansing, refining, and transformation of the heart.
The Glorious City Descending
The verse describes the New Jerusalem, the metropolis of the glorified new earth, descending from God out of heaven with the glory of God upon it. Its descent in splendor and dazzling glory marks the saints' arrival at their home on the renewed earth. Her light is like a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone clear as crystal, exceptionally precious and crystal-clear. That light is dazzling and radiant, surpassing in brightness and splendor, and the fair City with its pearly gates is all radiant with it. It belongs to the eternal blessings God has provided for His people and is among the glories awaiting the redeemed in the blessed world where eternal riches and glory are secured.
God's glory and the Lamb fill and flood the holy city with unfading light. That light surpasses the sun and is far brighter than noonday, yet it is not painfully dazzling. So the redeemed live and walk in its perpetual day. The Great City has twelve foundations and twelve gates, with an angel at each gate guarding them. The gates stand three on each side.
The city comes down in splendor and dazzling glory to settle on the earth where the saints stand. This takes place after the thousand years, when the judgment of the wicked dead is finished. Then Jesus leaves the city with the saints and the angelic host and descends upon a great mountain. The mountain parts asunder under His feet and becomes the mighty plain He has prepared. There the great and beautiful city comes down from God out of heaven in all its splendor and settles on that plain.
Promise and Preparation
The verse stands in the last chapters of Revelation, which make known the last events of this earth's history, given from God in solemn warning and made known by Christ Himself to John on the Isle of Patmos to show His servants things which must shortly come to pass. The twenty-first and twenty-second chapters were written especially for those living amid the perils of the last days, and for that reason they should be presented more frequently before the people and read carefully. Blessing is promised to him that reads and to them that hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things written therein, for the time is at hand. Its lesson is set before us now to call minds in these last days and remind of the things which will be, and if Satan can keep minds confused about it he gains a great victory.
The surpassing glory of the scene shown to John, surpassing in brightness and splendor, helped direct attention to Christ's second coming and to the prophecies of Revelation. That prophetic scene of surpassing glory helped bring realization of Christ's second coming and its nearness. The glory and beauty of the city described here are part of the eternal blessings God has provided for His people, the eternal riches and glory secured in the blessed world. It belongs to the beautiful new earth, the hope toward which believers work as they help educate the young and seek their salvation, and it is one of the glories awaiting the redeemed.
Having a place in that shining city of God with its gates shining with the glory of God is worth striving for, and every person can have a place there. God wants people to be there, and His giving of Jesus shows that desire and makes entrance possible. God's purity and glory are so great that the selfish and impure could not endure them or enjoy heaven, for only the pure in heart can see God. These last chapters therefore must be read carefully because they call for a deep and thorough individual work of cleansing, refining, and transformation of the heart, a thorough humbling of the soul before God with heart and mind and soul. They call for a deep searching of heart and cleansing of the soul temple, and most diligent cultivation of the soil of the individual heart so that fruit appears in the life in proportion to the light given, with constant danger of backsliding and of a wrong spirit developing if the work is neglected.
Beholding the divine glory and radiant beauty of the city of God means seeing eternal realities, which links people with God and shows them that worldly enterprises are inferior. Even the brilliance of sunset gives a glimpse of that heavenly light shining from the heavenly city. That glimpse points to the glory of God's throne and the home awaiting the faithful.