by Mako Kato
Happy Thanksgiving! Thank God for the day that he will make all things new. In this passage we look at a description of the holy city Jerusalem, the wife of the Lamb.
We read about its beauty. It has the glory of God. It is radiant and brilliant like a precious jewel. It is the only time in the New Testament the Greek word translated as “clear as crystal” is used. We can imagine the jasper, sapphire, agate, emerald, onyx, and other precious jewels, along with the gold and the pearls.
But even imagining the most beautiful things on this earth doesn’t compare to what it actually will look like. We read a couple times that the city was pure gold, but it’s not the gold we know of today. This gold is clear as glass. This city isn’t limited to the precious metals and jewels of this earth. For all I know, John is just doing his best to describe heavenly versions of the prettiest things he could think of.
We also read about the dimensions of the city. We see the linking of the Old Testament with the New Testament. On the gates are the names of the twelve tribes of Israel and on the wall of the city are twelve foundations which hold the names of the twelve apostles.
The length and width and height of the city are equal. We see the symbolism in the number twelve again with 12,000 stadia as the measurement for the length and width and height. 12,000 stadia is about 1,380 miles, which is roughly the driving distance from Blaine, WA (on the border with Canada) to San Diego, CA.
I don’t know if these measurements are meant to be literal, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they were. Whatever the case, this is one big and beautiful place.
This Thanksgiving I just want to remind y’all to “give thanks in all circumstances” like it talks about in Thessalonians. We can give thanks for what He has done, is doing, and is going to do.