John and the Future of the Nations - Institute for Biblical Research

270 Bulletin for Biblical Research 12.2
"conquer" who will be given permission to eat from the tree of life
(tw=| nikw=nti dw/sw au)tw|= fagei=n). The "nations" in 22:2 are those who
have refused to compromise their faith in the midst of the hostility of
the nations, that is, those who have held fast to the victory won by
Christ in the battle between God and the evil powers.
CONCLUSION
John's vision of the history of mankind speaks, on the one hand, of
the fellowship of the followers of the Lamb who persevere in their
faith in the "eternal gospel" (14:6), holding fast to the victory of the
Lamb in his death and resurrection, suffering patiently, prepared
and willing to die on account their faith. On the other hand John
speaks of the fellowship of the people associated with and controlled
by the evil powers who refuse to fear God and give him glory, despite
the plagues of God's judgment, but assault the church and kill
its members if and when they refuse to accommodate to their values.
It is in view of this situation that John urgently impresses on his
Christian readers the obligation to remain faithful to Jesus Christ
even in dangerous times. He comforts and encourages by repeatedly
painting a picture of the future consummation that believers in Jesus
Christ are certain to inherit. And he reminds them (in 11:3-13) that
the obligation to evangelistic proclamation has not been canceled,
even though they live in a world that wants to silence their witness.
The vision of God's new creation that follows the vision of the
last and final judgment on rebellious humanity is no longer determined
by the polarity of the redeemed and the unredeemed. John
nowhere predicts mass conversions. He does not predict a conversion
of humanity--whether this be a conversion of all individual human
beings or a conversion of nations. He does not predict a universal
success of the missionary proclamation of the church. John predicts
the decisive victory that Jesus will finally win over the hostile powers
and over the people who follow them when he returns (19:11-21). He
predicts the eternal condemnation of Satan, of his human accomplices,
and of the people who were deceived by them (20:7-15). He
predicts the eternal death of "the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted,
the murderers, the fornicators, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and
all liars" (21:8).
The people who have the unspeakable privilege of living in God's
new and forever perfect creation in the immediate presence of God
and the Lamb are the saints "from every tribe and language and
people and nation" who have been redeemed by Jesus' sacrificial
death (5:9). They are those who worship God and the Lamb (7:9-10),
having received white robes (7:14). They are those who have over-