Revelation 22:2

Hi Brothers and Sisters,
I have been studying the book of Revelation for a few weeks, and find myself wrestling with a particular verse (22:2) regarding the leaves of the Tree of Life being healing for the nations. As I was studying, my first question was, why would the nations need healing in heaven, since there will be no sickness, sorrow, death,or anything that defiles? Then I thought about Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden, and how they took leaves to cover their own sins; the leaves in a sense representing false atonement. In contrast, the TOL represents Jesus Christ since He is the only one who grants salvation. The Apostle says about the leaves, "they WERE healing for the nations" in heaven? before heaven? I'm thinking the answer is yes to both. Anyway, I need help to understand this. Any insight would be great.
Thanks in advance.
Sonya

Revelation 22:1 And he showed me a pure[a] river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. 4 They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. 5 There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.

As I was studying, my first question was, why would the nations need healing in heaven, since there will be no sickness, sorrow, death,or anything that defiles?

Although I don't understand Greek, my guess would be that the word healing means health and the idea is that the leaves of the Tree are nutritious and promote health instead of curing disease.

I think the answer lies in the garden of eden and Adam and Eve's body before the Fall.

They were told they could eat of the tree of life before the Fall, but not after the fall.

Maybe God has some super fruit in heaven that our glorified bodies will be sustained with?

Although I don't understand Greek, my guess would be that the word healing means health and the idea is that the leaves of the Tree are nutritious and promote health instead of curing disease.

I was just looking that up in the Strong's, and went to the root word therapeuo, which means to restore to health. This leads me to think that the healing of the nations represents the final restoration of the salvation process (justification-sanctification-glorification). JaySaved alluded to this in his post.

One of the interpretive schools regarding the Revelation is known as 'idealist'. This school of thought sees the Revelation not as a future programme of events but as a series of visions which speak age-lasting truth.

I am NOT saying that the latter chapters of the Revelation are not referring to a future state BUT they may also be pointing to a present state.

Without going into too many details, let me explain...“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.” (Revelation 21:1 KJVS)This is reminiscent of the language that Paul uses in “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2Corinthians 5:17 KJVS)Regeneration is, after all, a new creation. When Christ spoke of a 'regeneration' he linked it with the establishing of a throne from which he reigned.“And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” (Matthew 19:28 KJVS)True regeneration is surely the establishing of Christ's throne in the heart; Jesus Christ is Lord was probably the earliest creed.

The visions of the last chapters of revelation speak of the establishing of the throne and in...“And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.” (Revelation 22:3-4 KJVS) This could almost be a poetic description of salvation. In true regeneration the curse is removed and the throne of God and of the Lamb is established. 'Seeing his face' is reconciliation and his servants 'serving him' is restoration to the will of God.

Salvation, is in a way, Jerusalem above having descended onto the earth. The true saint of God begins to experience God's 'will on earth as it is in heaven'... With this kind of 'idealistic' interpretation perhaps those 'leaves' would be a picture of the 'healing' that is brought to the nations through the preaching of the gospel. This would be following the kind of symbolism seen in “But the miry places thereof and the marishes thereof shall not be healed; they shall be given to salt. And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.” (Ezekiel 47:11-12 KJVS) Here again we have the same motifs of rivers of life and healing leaves...

If this kind of thinking is new to you, your head is probably reeling by now. It's just that there are so many perfect symbols here of the life which flowed from the throne when it became the throne of God and of the Lamb that some folk think there are too many coincedences.

Again, this is not necessarily INSTEAD of a heaven to come but may be the apocalytic genre way of expressing current truth in future symbols.

...as Robert W sometimes says..."I'll go and get my helmit..." :-)

In the Scriptures there is much beautiful truth that has been considered something we will only be able to enjoy in Heaven. I believe God is opening our eyes to see that He intends it to be the heritage of the Church here on earth.

For one thing, our Lord teaches us to pray, "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven."

And so this Tree of Life John describes in Revelation 22 (he speaks of it as ONE tree of life, yet you get the impression there are many of them) ...these are the trees growing in the City of God which John saw "coming down from God out of Heaven..." (Rev. 21.2). So they are to be here in the earth.

And what is the Tree of Life? It is Christ, and those who are one with Him. Those who are one with Him (for The City is His Bride) are part of that Tree, are the branches of that Tree. And growing in the Tree, and in the branches, is the unfailing fruit of the Spirit. And the leaves, the foliage, have an ingredient in them that ministers healing, ministers the undoing of the curse. For this is not just physical healing being spoken of, but the healing of the deepest disease and wound of mankind: sin.

Ezekiel saw the same River, and the same Trees. (Ezek. Ch. 47). "And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat (food), whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed (that is, fail): it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine" (47.12).

...So there is the power of Life in those leaves. To heal. The last Adam was made not just a living soul, but "a life-giving Spirit."

I pray, Lord, bring Your truth NIGH unto us! It's here we need this, Lord, in our sin-sick world, and not just up in Heaven. Cause us, grant us the grace, to eat today of the Tree of Life, and no other tree, that we might become One with You, so the same precious healing, life-giving Ingredient, might be in the every-day foliage of our own lives as we walk in the midst of men, so that when men come in contact with us, they come in contact with YOU, and are healed! Amen.

john1140 wrote:
Hi Brothers and Sisters,
I have been studying the book of Revelation for a few weeks, and find myself wrestling with a particular verse (22:2) regarding the leaves of the Tree of Life being healing for the nations. As I was studying, my first question was, why would the nations need healing in heaven, since there will be no sickness, sorrow, death,or anything that defiles? "they WERE healing for the nations" in heaven? before heaven?