New Heaven, New Earth - Reflections on Revelation 21:1-6, Easter 5, Year C

by John C. Holbert on Monday, March 31, 2025

          Before I get to the text assigned for today from Revelation, I cannot miss the opportunity for a quick look at the most notorious passage in the book: Rev.13:18. More foolish nonsense has been spoken and written about this verse than can reasonably be quantified. It is, of course, that wonderful second beast, “rising out of the land,” (Rev.13:11), the one given a number: 666. I will not list the many ridiculous attempts to designate just who this figure may be—from Proctor and Gamble’s logo to Adolf Hitler to the latest despised American President—but I simply must provide who it was John may have had in mind in the 1st century. We must note, but too often don’t, that John warns his readers of what he is about to do with this beast. “This calls for wisdom (in other words, “Pay attention!”). Let anyone who has intelligence (!) figure out the number of the beast, for it is the number of a human being; and its number is six hundred and sixty-six.” John is playing the game of gematria here, a well-known gambit in the literature of apocalypse, wherein by the addition of the numerical value of the letters of a name, one can present the name of a person without naming the person directly. In both Hebrew and Greek, in the place of numerals, the letters of the alphabet were given numerical values. Of course, for the game to work, the name disguised must be known beforehand if any certainty is to be achieved. 

         In this special case, it appears that the person in John’s mind is Nero, the notorious emperor of Rome, who died during the famous fire of Rome in 66CE. Whether he was in fact “fiddling” while Rome burned, a now infamous cliche, is impossible to prove. His infamy was undoubted, because after his announced death, a myth developed around him, called Nero redivivus, “Nero reborn,” in which the cruel emperor had somehow escaped death or had somehow been resurrected, and was assembling a huge army, preparing to march on Rome and rule over it forever. This myth apparently served John as fodder for his comment about the second beast, because Greek Neron Kaisar (Nero Caesar in Latin), transliterated into Hebrew script (nrwn qsr) in fact adds up to 666. It should also be noted that the Latin form Nero Caesar (in Hebrew nrw qsr) adds up to 616, a number that occurs in several variant manuscripts of the book. In addition, of course, 666 is one step short of the perfect number 777, making the number just short of perfect, and thus profoundly negative. This number fun has one more famous game that I cannot resist sharing. If you assign 100 to the letter “a” and 101 to the letter “b” and 102 to the letter “c”, etc., 666 turns out to be Hitler! Try it! But of course, in the way of gematria, the game will not work unless you assign English letters in just this way. OK. Enough of that fun.

         And now for the New Jerusalem that concludes the apocalyptic drama. The former creation has passed away (Rev.20:11), and all evil has been destroyed; indeed “Death and Hades have been thrown into the lake of fire” (Rev.20:14). Creation has now been renewed. It is important to note that John does not have God say, “I make all new things;” God instead says, “I make all things new.” Creation in the New Jerusalem represents a new, remade earth. I make two comments about this wonderful portrait of a New Jerusalem. First, there is a very significant Greek grammatical point to be noted. In Rev.21:2, the verb translated “coming down out of heaven” is a Greek continuous present tense. That is, the verb suggests that this New Jerusalem is “always” coming down from heaven; John is not merely speaking of some future event. The reality of the New Jerusalem is available to those who are attuned to its presence. That is, those who have followed the work of the slain Lamb, those who recognize the evil of the Roman Empire, reject its values, and live their lives in Christ, will see this New Jerusalem always, and will be guided by its presence among them. In short, John’s vision is not merely for some marvelous future reality—though he imagines such a future for the faithful—but he also believes that the life with God and the Lamb is available now as well.

         Two hymns in the United Methodist Hymnal (1989) express in music and word the insights John offers us. Brian Wren’s 1978 (alt.1987) hymn (#383), “This is a Day of New Beginnings,” especially in vss.4 and 5 capture the need to follow the living Christ, because “our God is making all things new.” Also, #726, Walter Russell Bowie’s grand hymn of 1909, influenced profoundly by the Social Gospel movement, early in the 20th century, directly borrows themes and images from Rev.21-22, and makes the claim that we all have the task of “building the glory of the heavenly city,” and thus avoid our desire to “rest content while lust and greed for gain in street and shop and tenement wring gold from human gain, and bitter lips in blind despair cry, ‘Christ hath died in vain.’” I know of no better language to capture the essence of John’s concern for avoiding Roman lures and following the way of the slain Lamb.

         Second, this New Jerusalem possesses no sin of any sort; all of that has been sent into the lake of fire with the beasts and their minions. Yet, Rev.21:8 issues a warning to his hearers and readers. All of them, and all of us, must always strive to prepare, on earth, for life in the eternal city. We must, all of us, turn from sin now. The delights and temptations of Rome are ever luring us to turn away from the way of the slain Lamb. In other words, John’s revelation speaks of life now and life in the future; indeed, how one lives now directly effects life in the future. John’s eschatology, his interest in “last things,” is both realized—for today—and future—for the Heavenly City. Next week, we will learn more of this city, and more of what we must do to achieve it.