New American Standard Bible 1995
Revelation 21:12
121It had a great and high wall, 23with twelve 4gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel.
Revelation 21:12 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
- New International Version (NIV)It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.
- English Standard Version (ESV)It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed—
- New King James Version (NKJV)Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
Context of Revelation 21:12
10And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, 11having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. 13There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. 14And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
Read all of Revelation 21Revelation 21:12 word by word
ἔχουσα τεῖχος μέγα καὶ ὑψηλόν, ἔχουσα πυλῶνας δώδεκα καὶ ἐπὶ τοῖς πυλῶσιν ἀγγέλους δώδεκα, καὶ ὀνόματα ἐπιγεγραμμένα, ἅ ἐστιν τὰ ὀνόματα τῶν δώδεκα φυλῶν υἱῶν Ἰσραήλ·Read the interlinear
- It hadἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
- a greatμέγαςmegas · greatG3173
- and highὑψηλόςhupsēlos · highG5308
- wallτεῖχοςteichos · wallG5038
- with twelveδώδεκαdōdeka · twelveG1427
- gatesπυλώνpulōn · gateG4440
- angelsἄγγελοςaggelos · angelG32
- and namesὄνομαonoma · nameG3686
- writtenἐπιγράφωepigraphō · to write onG1924
- on them, whichὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
- tribesφυλήphulē · tribeG5443
- of the sonsυἱόςuihos · sonG5207
- of IsraelἸσραήλIsraēl · IsraelG2474
Cross-references for Revelation 21:12
- Revelation 21:17And he measured its wall, seventy-two yards, according to human measurements, which are also angelic measurements.
- Ezra 9:9For we are slaves; yet in our bondage our God has not forsaken us, but has extended lovingkindness to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us reviving to raise up the house of our God, to restore its ruins and to give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem.
- Nehemiah 12:27Now at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought out the Levites from all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem so that they might celebrate the dedication with gladness, with hymns of thanksgiving and with songs to the accompaniment of cymbals, harps and lyres.
- Psalms 51:18By Your favor do good to Zion; Build the walls of Jerusalem.
- Psalms 122:7May peace be within your walls, And prosperity within your palaces.”
- Revelation 21:21And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the gates was a single pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.
- Isaiah 54:12Moreover, I will make your battlements of rubies, And your gates of crystal, And your entire wall of precious stones.
- Isaiah 60:18Violence will not be heard again in your land, Nor devastation or destruction within your borders; But you will call your walls salvation, and your gates praise.
- Ezekiel 48:31shall be the gates of the city, named for the tribes of Israel, three gates toward the north: the gate of Reuben, one; the gate of Judah, one; the gate of Levi, one.
- Matthew 18:10“See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven.
- Luke 15:10In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
- Luke 16:22Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried.
- Hebrews 1:14Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
- Revelation 7:4And I heard the number of those who were sealed, one hundred and forty-four thousand sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:
- Numbers 2:2“The sons of Israel shall camp, each by his own standard, with the banners of their fathers’ households; they shall camp around the tent of meeting at a distance.
- Acts 26:7the promise to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly serve God night and day. And for this hope, O King, I am being accused by Jews.
Commentaries on Revelation 21:12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12Had a wall great and high - An almighty defense. Twelve gates - A gate for every tribe of Israel, in the vicinity of which gate that tribe dwelt; so that in coming in and going out they did not mix with each other. This description of the city is partly taken from Ezekiel 48:30-35. In Synopsis Sohar, p. 115, n. 27, it is said: "In the palace of the world to come there are twelve gates, each of which is inscribed with one of the twelve tribes, as that of…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12And had a wall great and high - Ancient cities were always surrounded with walls for protection, and John represents this as enclosed in the usual manner. The word “great” means that it was thick and strong. Its height also is particularly noticed, for it was unusual. See Revelation 21:16. And had twelve gates - Three on each side. The number of the gates correspond to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and to the number of the apostles…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-21Verses 9-21 God has various employments for his holy angels. Sometimes they sound the trumpet of Divine Providence, and warn a careless world; sometimes they discover things of a heavenly nature of the heirs of salvation. Those who would have clear views of heaven, must get as near to heaven as they can, on the mount of meditation and faith. The subject of the vision is the church of God in a perfect, triumphant state, shining in its lustre; glorious in…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12-14In this vision, the twelve tribes of Israel symbolize God's redeemed people (see Revelation 7:4–8; see also Romans 9:6–7). The twelve apostles of the Lamb form the foundation for this community of God's redeemed. Through Jesus, God has fully fulfilled his promise to bless all the families of the earth through Abraham (Genesis 12:3).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. And--A and B omit. Eze 48:30-35, has a similar description, which implies that the millennial Jerusalem shall have its exact antitype in the heavenly Jerusalem which shall descend on the finally regenerated earth. wall great and high--setting forth the security of the Church. Also, the exclusion of the ungodly. twelve angels--guards of the twelve gates: an additional emblem of perfect security, while the gates being never shut (Re 21:25) imply perfect…Read the comment
Topics related to Revelation 21:12
In the dictionaries
Notes
Commentaries on Revelation 21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New American Standard Bible 1995 — © 1960–1995 The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
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