I was recently asked which verse in the Bible was my overall favorite, and why. That was sort of a difficult question so I had to stop and give it some serious thought. I can’t simply choose one verse, cause doing so would take that passage out of context. (Still remember that from Bible 101 in college)
So here it is:
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. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, 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. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain:for the former things are passed away
This is the passage of Revelation chapter 21 verses 1 – 4.
Let me tell you why. You see John was told to write what he saw and heard. But what he saw, he saw in the spirit. And then had to find a way to translate it into a passage that you and me could understand. So in reality this is the greatest translation document known to all mankind. However in the original text, there is a noted difference when he writes here, than in all the other passages where he relates what he saw.
In this passage there is a joy, and ease in his writing. This part was simple for him. It made him feel safe, overjoyed, and most of all thankful. As I studied this book over the years I read one writer who stated that he was upset that the Spanish translations never picked up on that, and used the proper grammatical symbols in the writing.
No exclamation points, no bold letters, nothing showing the true feeling of the verses. I have caught them. It is that reason that my hope during these times that seem so dark, seems to get brighter.
So where is your faith? Where is your future?
MedicSmurf 