Please, browse the many free commentaries available on https://www.katrinapearls.com/blog
I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
"See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them as their God;
they will be his peoples,
and God himself will be with them;
he will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
for the first things have passed away."
And the one who was seated on the throne said, "See, I am making all things new." Also he said, "Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true." Then he said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life."
--------------------
This is the Epistle selection that will be read aloud on the fifth Sunday of Easter, Year C, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. It will be preceded by a mandatory reading from Acts (during the Easter season), which tells of Peter explaining to other true Christians in Jerusalem why he went to a centurion’s house and stayed with him. We read, “They praised God, saying, "Then God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life.” That will be followed by a singing of Psalm 148, which places strong focus on praising Yahweh, as David wrote: “Praise him, all you angels of his; praise him, all his host.” All readings will accompany the Gospel selection from John, where is written of Jesus telling his disciples: “Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, 'Where I am going, you cannot come.' I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.”
The first word of this chapter is a capitalized “Kai,” which means most important information is about to be conveyed. That great importance then leads to the Greek word “eidon,” which is the first-person singular Aorist Active Indicative form of “horaó,” which means “to see, perceive, attend to,” implying in usage “I see, look upon, experience, perceive, discern, beware.” Because this verb is directly linked to a capitalized “Kai,” it should be read as itself capitalized, thereby divinely raised in meaning. Thus, we should read that John (the first-person) “Experienced” or “Perceived” a vision that was divinely inspired. This means what John “saw” was not with his physical eyes [John was ninety and blind], but “Perceived” through the Mind of Christ. This is most important to grasp.
When this is understood to be a spiritual vision seen by the ‘mind’s eye,’ it is like a dream, where nothing seen is real, in the physical sense. Daniel was known for his ability to interpret dreams, and the field of psychology employs people who study the symbolic meaning of things “Perceived” in dreams. This means John’s use of “heaven, earth, and sea” are not to be taken literally, but metaphorically. The metaphor of “heaven” is “spiritual life," like angels and souls. The metaphor for “earth” is a physical body of “flesh,” but also an entity of life on the material plane. The metaphor for “sea” is the collection of all souls and spirits that inhabit human flesh in the worldly plane.
By seeing that symbolism, the element of “new” (“kainos”) is a statement relative to the use of “first” (“prótos”). The Greek word “kainos” means “fresh, new, unused, novel,” where this does not mean a separate “heaven” or “earth,” but a previous state of “heaven” and “earth” that existed before each was made “fresh.” This should be seen like a house needing a “fresh” coating of paint. The house is not torn down and a new one rebuilt (“new”), just because the old paint has faded or chipped. It is then this older version (which is still the same structure as before, only “renewed”) – the “first” – having been changed. When the suggestion of house painting is maintained, the “sea” importantly (from “kai”) becomes a statement that says all houses in the world are subject to having the paint fade and chip, being in need of “refreshment.” To see this “new” leads to “no more” being subject to this degraded state of being, the “new spirit , kai new body” (where the use of “kai” signals importance to the “body new”) is the presence of most divine Spirit that forever lifts one to a permanent higher state of being.
Verse two is introduced by another use of “kai,” showing importance needs to also be applied, to realize the truth of “this city this holy.” After that statement of importance, the capitalized “Jerusalem” is stated, which is said to also be “new.” Again, as a vision or dream, John is not detailing a physical “city of Jerusalem.” Following verse one saying an important “sea” will “exist no longer,” the importance of “this city” (from “tēn polin”) is better understood by seeing this a focus placed on the “inhabitants of a city,” who had previously been the “first soul kai first body” (metaphor of “ouranos” and “gē”) rising from a “sea” of souls. The “new souls kai new bodies” will elevate from that “sea” that is “no more” and become the “inhabitants of a city” that is “holy.” It is not a "sea" that disappears and exists "no more," but the presence in that "sea" by those of "new spirit kai new flesh" that are "no more" part of that "sea."
Again, as John’s vision is only dealing with those “souls new,” having become the soul of Jesus reborn into their bodies of “flesh,” the “city” becomes synonymous with Christianity, rather than some place on a world map. The capitalization of “Jerusalem” then divinely elevates that ‘name’ to represent the meaning behind the ‘name,’ which is “Teaching Peace.” Therefore, this “new” aspect of “Teaching Peace” becomes the purpose of Christianity; and, this is unlike the failure of the Jews, who worshipped their temple in a “city” by the name of “Jerusalem,” while never elevating their souls and bodies to serve Yahweh, teaching peace to the world. That "Jerusalem" and those souls of Jews remain part of the "sea," as unchanged souls in unchanged bodies of flesh."
After making that important series of statements, John then wrote more of his vision, where the rest of verse two can literally be translated into English saying (giving particular note to those words written in the Genitive case), “descending from out of of this of heaven away from of this of God , having been made ready like as a bride having been decorated this husband of herself .” In this, the element of “descending” or “coming down” must be seen as the soul bowing before the throne, which was read in John’s imagery the Sunday prior. This means all humanity (males and females) must submit their souls to Yahweh in complete and total sacrifice of self to Him in divine marriage. The aspect of “from out of of this of heaven” must be once again read as “heaven” equals the spiritual essence, which is the soul of all bowing down before Yahweh. Prior to this, all souls in bodies of flesh were self-important, as life breath given “away from of this of God.” One must “come down” from that almighty self position, “being prepared” or “made ready” to sacrifice self for a much higher reward (eternal life). Once one is ‘engaged’ to Yahweh, one’s lifestyle becomes “decorated” or “adorned” with the blessing of “this husband,” which is to be Yahweh. The use of “herself” must be read as “her soul,” which is how all souls trapped within human flesh take on the feminine essence (males and females); so, the marriage is not physical, but spiritual. All souls in the flesh uniting with Yahweh’s Spirit become His brides, thus all 'her souls.' This is the meaning of the metaphor that John “saw.”
Verse three then is another that begins with a capitalized “Kai,” which again denotes much importance needs to be grasped from that which follows. Here, the great importance comes from John “hearing,” as opposed to what he divinely “saw” in verses one and two. This auditory presence must also be understood as being heard by John’s soul, rather than his physical ears. John then identified it as “a voice great,” which was emanating “from out of of this of throne”. The “throne” (stated in the possessive case) is within John’s soul, so this “of throne” possessed John, allowing his soul to “hear a voice” speaking to him. This, of course, is the “voice” of Yahweh, who is enthroned within John’s soul. The “voice” of God then says (literally translated into English):
“Behold! , this tabernacle of this of God with this of mankind , kai he will dwell with
themselves , kai themselves laity of himself will exist , kai himself this God with
themselves he will exist [ of themselves god ] .”
This is five segments of a statement “heard” by John’s soul. The first is a capitalized “Behold!” (“Idou”), which is a command from God to “Listen” and “See” the truth of His Word. The second segment then places focus on “this tabernacle,” which is the soul-body entity that was John (and all who hear the voice of Yahweh forevermore). Everyone who is “human” (a soul trapped in a body of flesh) that “Hears this great voice” has become “a dwelling place of God." The third segment is introduced by the word “kai,” making it important to grasp. Here, Yahweh says “he will dwell,” where the third-person form of “skénoó” (meaning “tabernacle, tent, dwelling place”) says “he” is both Yahweh’s Spirit, but also His Son Jesus. Jesus will be sent into one’s soul-body “tabernacle” to become its High Priest. Yahweh remains the King on the "throne." The fourth segment of words is also introduced by the word “kai,” showing importance must be grasped in Yahweh next saying, “all souls [“themselves”] where the Son of God is High Priest [the "tabernacle"] will then become the peoples [“laity”] of his soul’s resurrection [“himself”]," so those soul in the flesh “will exist” as Jesus reborn. The final segment of words is another begun with the word “kai,” showing importance to grasp in Yahweh saying, “Jesus [“himself”] is “this God,” as the extension of Yahweh sent onto the material plane; and, the extension of the Father in the Son will “exist with their souls” [“themselves”]. This means Jesus and Yahweh “will exist” in the world.
Where the final two words are enclosed in brackets [a silent statement, unseen but present], the lower case spelling of “theos” says “god,” which in Hebrew would be “el.” This then says “of their souls” [“themselves”] will be resurrected the Yahweh elohim that is Adam-Jesus, to be the Lord over each soul-body that is a wife to Yahweh.
In verse four, two uses of “kai” begin two segments, the first of which says this presence of Yahweh’s Spirit and His Son as High Priest will cease all forms of sadness, which comes from the guilt of sins. All “tears will be wiped from the eyes” of those who bemoan a sinful past, knowing it is impossible to gain eternal life with such a history. The “tears wiped” will come with the outpouring of Spirit that will wash one’s soul forever clean. That repentance will then lead to the second important element, which is no longer having to worry about “death.” When John wrote “all former things will pass away,” those former things are incarnations of a soul into dead matter that will always die again [being mortal] through reincarnation (unless Baptized by the Spirit). This is the importance of eternal salvation, following redemption of sins.
Verse five is another begun by a capitalized “Kai,” showing there is great importance to find in this verse, as that “said” by “this” voice that emanates from “sitting upon this throne” within the hearer (John’s soul and other souls like John’s). That “said” is again prefaced by a capitalized “Behold!,” stating one’s soul must perceive this. That to behold then says, “new I make all,” where we are returned to the use of “kainos” seen in verses one and two. This is most important to know, because this “new” state of being cannot exist without the presence of Yahweh.
At that point of this speaking, John inserted a comma mark and another use of “kai,” showing this following “said” is also separately important to understand. The “great voice said,” “(you have) Written,” which is a capitalized “Grapson,” meaning “Write, Writing, Written.” Because this is written in the second-person singular Aorist Imperative Active voice, it is less a command for John to “Write” and more an important statement that John is there before the throne of Yahweh, seeing visions and hearing a great voice, because of that which he personally (2nd person) had to lead him there – “Scripture.” Thus, Yahweh added, “because these [books of Scripture] these [souls] (are the) words (leading those) faithful”. Yahweh then stated importantly (from use of a “kai”), “(these words) true exist.” This says the words “Written” are from saints, like John, who “Hear the voice of Yahweh” and “Write” the “truth” for others to discern. Still, that “truth” is not fully revealed until a soul has married Yahweh and become reborn as His Son. Then the truth is known to a wife-saint, to take into ministry as Jesus reborn.
In verse six, the voice of Yahweh is then directed to John (and individually to all who “Hear”). The voice of Yahweh then says, “He is born!” This is a capitalized “Gegonan,” which is the third-person Perfect Indicative form of the word “ginomai,” meaning “to come into being, to happen, to become,” implying “to be born.” As a capitalized word of divine elevation in meaning, this speaks of one’s resurrection as Jesus, whose soul “Becomes” one with a host soul. This means John was told he was “Reborn” as Jesus.
Following that exclamation by Yahweh to John, the following was said, where the placement of brackets does not show in standard translations. The following Greek was written by John:
“egō [ eimi ] to Alpha kai to Ō , hē archē kai to telos . egō tō dipsōntidōsō ek tēs
pēgēs tou hydatos tēs zōēs dōrean .”
These three segments (divided into five parts) literally translates to state:
“I [ exist ] this Alpha kai this 'great Circle' [symbol, not word] , this beginning kai this
closure . I this to thirsting will give from out of of this of fountain of this of water of this of
life as a gift .”
In the beginning, where “egō” is separated from “eimi” by brackets, this says the “I” of self (one’s soul identity) will be submerged (the use of brackets), so the only “I” of importance that “exists” is Yahweh, through His Son Jesus (one’s Lord). This is then two joined as one, where the “egō” is Jesus – “this Alpha,” or “First” and “Foremost” Lord.
That addition makes two be joined as a “great Circle,” which is the meaning of the word “Omega” (which is not written, as only the symbol is marked by John). Without this addition of two in one, the symbol of capitalized omega in the Greek letting is not a completed circle, but an open at the bottom symbol (Ὦ). The English transliteration of this symbol makes the "Circle" be depicted fully enclosed" ("Ō"). This means the “kai” of importance is the completion of the “great Circle.” That is then restated as “this beginning kai this closure,” where the Greek word “telos” properly means, “consummation (the end-goal, purpose), such as closure with all its results.” (HELPS Word-studies)
Following a period mark, the final statement made by Yahweh to John (and all today who “Hear” His voice) says, “I (Yahweh) will give” this closure to the great Circle “to those thirsting” for the “truth” of “Scripture.” This means the presence of Jesus’ soul within will become a “fountain” of “living waters” of understanding, so the “truth” will overflow from one’s soul into the cups of other seekers of the “truth,” which will be the “gift” that leads one into ministry, in the name of Jesus – as a Christ reborn.
As Revelation is a standard book for the Year C season of Easter, when the message is Jesus’ resurrection so others can be raised from the dead, the Revelation is all about such divine marriage and resurrection within one’s soul. The lesson here is to be in a position of faith, from seeking the truth. When one is presented the “truth” that is “Written,” so that eye-opening “new” state of meaning leads one’s soul to search further, Yahweh will know one’s heart and make His “gifts” of truth available for the seekers. Here, one must realize that being raised from the dead is not as simple as thinking, “I think I will be raised from the dead by being a Christian today.” One has to become “adorned” with the lessons learned, taught by Yahweh’s Scripture, so one sacrifices self to become the bride of Yahweh. There can be no resurrection of Jesus’ soul before one’s filthy past has been washed clean by His Spirit. That comes in marriage, where one’s soul forevermore sacrifices self to serve Yahweh. That is the first lesson that has to be realized. Until one is sent Jesus within one’s soul, to shepherd your soul-body as one of Yahweh’s sheep (wife-souls), one is still a open-bottom omega, where sins of the past need to be erased, replaced by the soul of Jesus.