In New Jerusalem John saw “a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb in the middle of its street.”
The second aspect of the triune enjoyment is the river of water of life (22:1). This river refers to the Spirit as the consummation of the Triune God. John 7:38-39 indicates that the rivers of living water refer to the Spirit. In Revelation 22:1 there is the throne of God (the Father) and of the Lamb (the Son), out of which flows the river of water of life (the Spirit). God, the Lamb, and the water of life refer to the Trinity. The river is the flowing of the Triune God and the consummate coming out of God.*
The river portrays the Spirit flowing to us and 1 Corinthians 12:13 says we “were all given to drink one Spirit.” Isaiah 12:2 says the Lord has become our salvation. Verse 3 continues, “Therefore you will draw water with rejoicing from the springs of salvation.” The more we rejoice in the Lord, the more we drink the living water of the Spirit.
In New Jerusalem everything will be wonderful and we will always rejoice and drink the Spirit. Yet today we should follow the apostle Paul’s example. He was in prison when he wrote Philippians yet he was rejoicing, not about his circumstances, but in the Lord (1:18; 2:17-18; 3:1; 4:4).
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