Revelation 2:7

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches. To him that overcometh, to him will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.

He that hath an ear, let him hear ... So! People do not receive spiritual information regarding their salvation from any inner impulses, dreams, impressions, or inner strivings of the soul, but by listening to the words given by the Holy Spirit. "This shows that God's revelations are spoken to man, not put into his heart through some mysterious spiritual power."[28] Also notable in this paragraph and in this verse is the fact that, "God dictated these seven letters to John in the literal sense of the word. Therefore, the ancient prophets received verbatim messages: Thus saith the Lord."[29] Our Lord himself often used this expression, as in Matthew 11:15; 13:9,43, etc.

What the Spirit saith to the churches ... This is of great value in the interpretation of these passages, since it is clear here that the messages written by John were not: (1) to a supernatural being such as an angel; (2) to any human authority in the church; nor (3) to any single one of the congregations, but "to the churches." All that is written to any one of them applies to all. Even beyond this, all that is written is to the churches of all time.

To him that overcometh ... The verb in this phrase can be translated conquereth,[30] or conquers. It occurs only twice in the Gospels (Luke 11:22; John 16:33) and only once in the writings of Paul (Romans 12:21). However, it is found in all seven of these letters to the churches, and John also used it repeatedly in 2John (2 John 1:2:13,14, and 2 John 1:5:4,5).[31] Hendriksen was mightily impressed with the implications of this term and named his book on Revelation after it.[32] John seemed to have some kind of preference for the word. It may be properly applied to a battle or a trial; but the word is used here independently of reference to any particular contest. "It means a victory over all kinds of evil that would harm the church or prevent the salvation of the contender."[33]

I will give to eat of the tree of life ... These words regarding the "tree of life" are found in Genesis 2:9 and in Revelation 22:2,4,19, thus binding the beginning and the end of the Bible together, all of which, first to last, is concerned with the recovery of that which was lost in the Fall. As to just what the tree of life actually is, it is difficult to think of it as any kind of literal fruit. It undoubtedly has reference to Christ himself, as indicated by the following:

The Hebrew word in Genesis 2:9 was rendered by the Septuagint (LXX) translators with a Greek word which means, not tree, but wood; and the New Testament writers used that same word (wood) for all four passages where it occurs in Revelation, and in Acts 5:30; 10:39; 13:29; Galatians 3:13, and in 1 Peter 2:24 regarding the cross upon which Jesus died.[34]

Such blessed promises as this and all the others given in these passages seem to have been designed with a connection between them and the false superstitions of the people to whom they were addressed, in the sense of the good and the true being offered instead of the false. In this case, "Excavated coins of Ephesus show a date-palm, sacred to Artemis, and symbol of her life and beneficent activity."[35] It is not unlikely, therefore, that the tree of life is a holy symbol of the Son of God himself.

Which is in the Paradise of God ... The Greek word here rendered Paradise is Oriental, being first used by the historian Xenophon, denoting the parks of Persian kings and nobles.[36] The thought of a garden is in it. Jesus used the word in his promise to the thief (Luke 23:43), and Paul was caught up into it (2 Corinthians 12:4), apparently identifying it as "the third heaven." Vine states that 2 Corinthians 12:3 does not introduce a different vision.[37] Paradise is most certainly an extraterrestrial location, because the tree of life is positively not found anywhere on earth. Heaven is perhaps as good a synonym for it as we have. However, such conclusions should not be applied to the use of "Paradise" in Luke 23:43, where a slightly different sense is evident. The usage of it there would appear to be equivalent in meaning to "Abraham's bosom" (Luke 16:22). See further comment on this in my Commentary on Matthew, p. 501.

[28] John T. Hinds, op. cit., p. 39.

[29] R. C. H. Lenski, op. cit., p. 92.

[30] W. Boyd Carpenter, op. cit., p. 541.

[31] Ibid.

[32] William Hendriksen, More than Conquerors (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1956).

[33] John T. Hinds, op. cit., p. 39.

[34] R. C. H. Lenski, op. cit., p. 94.

[35] E. M. Blaiklock, op. cit., p. 67.

[36] W. E. Vine, Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words (Old Tappan, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1940), 3p. 158.

[37] Ibid.