Tuesday, April 28, 2026
Scripture Readings
- Primary Reading: Revelation 21
Key Verse
Revelation 21:14 — “And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”
Devotional Thought
What does it ask of us today, this vision given to an old man on a prison island? John was on Patmos, exiled, likely the last of the twelve still living, when the Spirit carried him to a great and high mountain and showed him a city descending out of heaven from God. That city is what Revelation 21 asks us to live toward. On a late April Tuesday, when the world is greening and gardeners are setting out tomato plants, the church is asked to remember that our truest citizenship is not here. We are exiles too, in our own way, and the city we await is not of our making.
Notice how specific the vision is. John sees twelve gates, three on each side, each gate one pearl, and names written on them — the twelve tribes of Israel. He sees twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The whole people of God, old covenant and new, are built into the architecture of this city. Its length and breadth and height are equal, a perfect cube, and the angel measures it with a golden reed: twelve thousand furlongs, a hundred and forty-four cubits. The wall is jasper, the city pure gold like clear glass, and the foundations are garnished with jasper, sapphire, chalcedony, emerald, sardonyx, sardius, chrysolyte, beryl, topaz, chrysoprasus, jacinth, and amethyst. God is not vague about His promises. He gives dimensions, stones, gates, names.
But the heart of the chapter is not the architecture; it is the voice. “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” Then this: “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.” Picture that hand, the hand that flung stars into space, gently wiping a cheek. There is no more death, no sorrow, no crying, no pain. And there is no temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. No sun, no moon — the glory of God lights it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. The gates never shut, for there is no night there.
Yet the chapter is honest. It does not end only in gold and pearls. Verse eight names the fearful, the unbelieving, the abominable, murderers, whoremongers, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, and verse twenty-seven says nothing that defileth shall enter in. The city has one door, and it is the Lamb’s book of life. So today, in the ordinary hours of a Tuesday, the call is plain: drink freely of the fountain of the water of life, overcome, and let your name be found written there.
Reflection
- Verse 4 says God shall wipe away all tears. What tear in your own life, or in the life of someone you love, do you most long to see Him wipe away — and does that longing make you more or less faithful today?
- John saw the city measured and named, gate by gate and stone by stone. If nothing that defileth shall enter in, what is one thing in your life this week that you need to bring to the Lamb’s book of life rather than carry through the gate?
Prayer
Lord God Almighty, Alpha and Omega, we thank You that You make all things new. We come thirsty, and You give freely of the fountain of the water of life. We confess that we are sometimes fearful and unbelieving, and we ask You to write our names in the Lamb’s book of life. Wipe away our tears, we pray, and the tears of those we love. Be our God, and make us Your sons and daughters, until that day when we walk the streets of pure gold and see the Lamb who is the light thereof. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. Amen.