Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1905-06-16
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
INTERNATIONAL LESSON COMMENTS
FOR JUNE ID.


ory Verses, 3-5-Commentary OIL the
Days Lesson.
l. The heavenly state Tvs. 1-5) l.
"And." The first five verses complete
the description of the new heaven and
earth. The entire passage 211 to 22:5
should be read as one unbrOken de-
scription. "He showed me" OR. W 1t
was the angel interpreter of 219, =,
who Showed" John this wonderful
vision. pure river" This is evident
ly a reference to the garden of para
disc, and the river by which it was
watered. Water Of life" This is a
familiar scriptural image. Living,
pure water is everywhere the type of
blessing (Psa. 36:S; 46:4; 10J:41; Joel
3:1S; John 7:37-39). Proceeding" etc.
The supply is exhaustless. Here is an
unfailing fulness of love, joy and
peace.
2. street of it," This refers to the
city described in the preceding chap
! ter. "Tree of life" The symbol of
| perpetual Immortality. The heavenly
paradise, like the paradise in Eden,
has its river and tree Of life. The tree
of life is favorite image Of Solomon's
/ wisdom; the. fruit of the righteous, the
fulfilled desire, the wholesome tongue,
each is "a tree of life" What posi-
bilities of blessing these figures shadow
forth, who shall say? Twelve man.
ner of fruits" Rather, twelve fruit
ages, or fruit harvests. The idea is not
that there were different species Of
fruits, but successive crops. Leaves
of the tree" The very leaves, in their
fadeless beauty, are universal guar
antee that perfect health is the COIL
slant and everlasting blessing of the
| glorified state. "No more curse" AS
there shall be no more SHINING against
God, so there shall be 10 more curse of
God upon the peonle, for they shall be
all His servants md serve Him. 4.
"Shall see His face" This is that
vision of God" of which theologians
have much spoken, constituting the
highest glory of heaven. See 1 Cor.
1912; 1 John 80. "In their fore
heads" Saints of God in this life Of
ten reflect the image of the heavenly
in their cOuntenances.
8. mo night there" John in his
vision sees one eternal day. This is
figurative language. Darkness is the
| emblem of sin, sorrow, pain and death;
none of these will be found in heaven.
"Giveth them light" The divine glory
never dims. No revolving of the orb
renders the opposite hemisphere dark.
Who can anticipate what honors God
may have awaiting the saints. "FOr
ever and ever" Unto the ages of the
ages" r. ", margin. unto eterni-
ties of eternities."
II. Gods sayings are true Tvs. g. y.
6. and" The visions which John
saw are now ended. The remaining
verses of the chapter are his epilogue.
! "He said" The interpreting angel ".
| y here reaffirms the words of God (21:
81. "These sayings" The utterances
and revelations of this book. "Of the
spirits of the prophets" Or. W The
God who called and commissioned the
prophets to reveal His word. shortly
be DONE" There are many things in
this book which, if taken literally,
would intimate that the prophecies
were to be fulfilled in a short time af-
ter their delivery. This would support
the idea that they referred to those
times in which the apostle lived, and
| to the disturbances which took place
among the Jews and in the Roman em-
| pire. What they all mean, and when
and how they are to be fulfilled, God
in heaven alone knows! Z. 81 come
quickly" There is a difference of
| opinion as to what this coming refers:
1. Some think it refers to ChriSt's
coming at the end Of the world. q
Others think it may refer to His COM
ing in the gospel dispensation. g.
Christ comes to each of us at death,
and in this sense His coming, at the
! longest, will be soon. Blessed"
Blessing and woe are dependent on the
spirit in which the truths of this book
are read and practiced.
III. God only is to be worshiped Tvs.
8, 81. s. Il John saw" The r. V. is
better here. "John had placed his
name in the title of his book (chap. IA,
o., and now at the close he names him
self again, so that we might perfectly
know that he, the Apostle John, had
written this testimony as to the coming
of Jesus Christ" 81 fell down." Over
whelmed with wonder and reverence
at the extraordinary revelations made
to him, and filled with praise at the
amazing blessedness God has prepared
for His children, John felt the impulse
of worship, and it may be that Barnes
is right in his suggestion that Sc apOs-
tie mot improbably entertained some
suspicion that it was the Redeemer
Himself who had manifested Himself.
There was the same attempt and refu-
sal in chapter 1910. This twice offered
and refused worship is full of teach
ing. "Thy fellow servant" One bond
of service unites angels and men; to
be servants Of God is the highest title
they can attain; worship is for God
alone. The words worship God" are
most emphatic; ito God give thy wor-
ship, and not to me-"
Nv. In the future world character
is fixed Tvs. 10, 1D. 10. "Seal not the
sayings" Isaiah (S:16; 30:S) and DAN
iel (S:26; 1874, 81 were commanded to
seal up their prophecies. Their prophe-
cies related to far-distant times. John
was directed not to seal up his predic-
tons, but to leave them open so that a
prosecuted church might have access
to them. II. "He that is unjust" See
r. V. The WORDS contain that solemn
lesson often taught in the Scriptures
that we are fixing our own character
every day we live and that, if judy
ment overtake us at the last, the result
will be traceable to no arbitrary de-
cree, but to the manner in which, as
moral beings, We met the conditions Of
that moral system in which we have
been placed.