Revelation 21:24
Revelation 21:24 states:
- And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.[1]
Followers of the message believe there are multiple tiers of Christians and that this will be reflected in heaven. They support this with quotes from William Branham such as:
- And then, I can prove that there is degrees in Heaven, that they’ll not all be on the same equal, but you’ll have equal Eternal Life. But the Bible said that the kings of the earth bring their honor and glory (Revelation 22)—bring their honor and glory into the city. That proves that there will be kings in the new earth, kings and rulers. Jesus told His disciples…They said, “What will we have after we have left father, and mother, and all to follow You?” 45 He said, “Verily, I say unto you, you’ll set upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel in that day.” See, it’s another, it’s a earthly system that’s coming up that’ll—that’ll be far supreme to anything. In that they’ll be no sin, but yet they’ll have rulers and so forth in the cities, when everything will be carried on in the way of Eternal Life.[2]
But is this what the Bible actually teaches?
What the Bible says
Revelation 21:24 in the NASB, a word for word translation, reads as follows:
- The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it.[3]
Why the significant difference from the KJV? What happened to the words "of them which are saved" which followed the word "nations"??
As outlined in our article on the King James Version of the Bible, the KJV is based on seven very late manuscripts (none earlier than the eleventh century). The words ""of them which are saved" which appear in the KJV, do not appear in any early Greek manuscripts in either the Byzantine or Alexandrian manuscript families.
We can, therefore, conclude that the phrase "the nations of them which are saved" was not in the original autograph manuscript of Revelation and should simply be replaced with the phrase "the nations."
What the Bible teaches
The problem raised by Rev 21:24 (along with Rev 22:2 and 22:15) is the presence of Gentiles outside the heavenly Jerusalem following the final judgment, the overthrow of evil, and the restoration of a new heaven and earth. Just who are these referred to in such a manner?[4]
Taken literally, this verse suggests that in the new earth there will be two companies of people: the redeemed who inhabit the new Jerusalem, and unregenerate nations of earth who live outside the city but who are influenced by its presence, walking in its light, and bringing their glory to the city.
The phrase “the kings of the earth” occurs eight times in Revelation (Rev 1:5; 6:15; 17:2, 18; 18:3, 9; 19:19; 21:24), and only in Rev 1:5 and 21:24 are they not hostile to God and his people. The term is synonymous with the “nations” as revealed in the parallel couplets in Rev 18:3 and Rev 21:24.[5]
The passage leaves us with two possible conclusions:
- John is describing the millennial Jerusalem, not the Jerusalem of the eternal order when all wicked men shall have been cast into the lake of fire.
- It is equally possible that John is using conventional human language to describe the universality of the knowledge of God in the eternal order. In the divine consummation, the redeemed will consist of peoples from every nation and tribe and people and tongue (7:9) who will not lose their national identity. John’s language means no more than the statements of the prophets: “and many peoples shall come and say: ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob’ ” (Isa. 2:3); “and nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising” (Isa. 60:3). This is the affirmation of the universality of the knowledge of God.[6] In this case, “the nations” are the glorified saints, in Rev 5:9, those “out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,” in Rev 7:9, the “great multitude, which no one is able to number, out of every nation and tribes and peoples and tongues.”[7]
Comparison to Isaiah 60
Revelation 21:24–26 are a paraphrase of Isaiah 60:3, 5, 11:[8]
| Revelation 21 | Isaiah 60 |
|---|---|
| 24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it.
25 In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; 26 and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it[9] |
3 Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.
5 Then you will see and be radiant, and your heart will thrill and rejoice; because the abundance of the sea will be turned to you, the wealth of the nations will come to you. 11 Your gates will be open continually; they will not be closed day or night, so that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations, with their kings led in procession.[10] |
Footnotes
- ↑ The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), Re 21:24
- ↑ william Branham, 59-1223 - Questions And Answers, para. 44
- ↑ New American Standard Bible, 1995 Edition: Paragraph Version (La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Re 21:24.
- ↑ Robert H. Mounce, The Book of Revelation, The New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1997), 396.
- ↑ David E. Aune, Revelation 17–22, vol. 52C, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1998), 1171.
- ↑ George Eldon Ladd, A Commentary on the Revelation of John (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1972), 284.
- ↑ R. C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of St. John’s Revelation (Columbus, OH: Lutheran Book Concern, 1935), 644.
- ↑ Ian Boxall, The Revelation of Saint John, Black’s New Testament Commentary (London: Continuum, 2006), 308.
- ↑ New American Standard Bible, 1995 Edition: Paragraph Version (La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Re 21:24-26.
- ↑ New American Standard Bible, 1995 Edition: Paragraph Version (La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Is 60:3, 5, 11