21:24. And the nations [of them which are saved] shall walk [in] BY the light [of it] THEREOF.—“The word ‘nations’ here signifies peoples, and is intended to show that all peoples, not merely the Israelites, will be thus favored under God's Kingdom. The world will not be divided into nationalities as at present.”—Z. '16-394; Isa. 60:3, 5.
And the kings of the earth do bring their glory [and honor] into it.—“When mankind reaches perfection at the close of the Millennial Age, as already shown, they will be admitted into membership in the Kingdom of God and given the entire control of earth as at first designed—each man a sovereign, a king.” (A. 296.) “That Kingdom, in which all will be kings, will be one grand, universal Republic, whose stability and blessed influence will be assured by the perfection of its every citizen, a result now much desired, but an impossibility because of sin.” (Z. '10-39.) “During the Millennial Age the kings will be the Ancient Worthies; but subsequently a New Dispensation will open, under new conditions, in which mankind (perfected) will be granted the privilege of ruling themselves in harmony with the Divine Law.” (Z. '97-304.) In this verse the Ancient Worthies are directly referred to; while in verse 26 the rest of mankind are referred to. Notice the tenses of the verbs “do bring” and “shall bring”—present and future—in the Millennium and after.
21:25. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day.—Throughout the long Millennial Day of a thousand years all who will may seek and find salvation through the broad gates of the City of God that will then be wide open. (Isa. 60:11.) Now, “Narrow is the way that leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”—Matt. 7:14.
For there shall be no night there.—“The period in which sin is permitted has been a dark Night to humanity, never to be forgotten; but the glorious Day of righteousness and Divine favor, to be ushered in by Messiah, who, as the Sun of Righteousness, shall arise and shine fully and clearly into and upon all, bringing healing and blessing, will more than counterbalance the dreadful night of weeping, sighing, pain, sickness and death, in which the groaning creation has been so long. ‘Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.’—Psa. 30:5.” (A. 9.)
The Psalmist explains how the smile of the Father was turned away from mankind. He describes mankind as “Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron; because they rebelled against the words of God [by disobedience of His express command] and contemned [set at naught] the counsels of the Most High. Therefore He brought down their heart with labor [each sex with its own peculiar kind]; they fell down, and there was none to help.” (Psa. 107:10-12.) This disobedience brought our entire race into the Valley of the Shadow of Death (Psa. 23:4); but the Prophets encouraged us to hope for a watchman who would tell us of the coming of the Day. (Isa. 21:12.) In the Apostle's time he declared the night was far spent, being then more than two-thirds gone. (Rom. 13:12.) The event that is to bring in the Day is the rising of the Sun of Righteousness. (Mal. 4:2.) When here at the First Advent Christ was the light of the world (John 8:12); and the people in His immediate neighborhood saw a great Light, shadowing forth His coming glory. (Isa. 9:2.) He declared that we, too, should be lights in the world. (Matt. 5:14.)—“You in your little corner, and I in mine;” and that in the resurrection all these 144,000 brightly burning candles should be brought together and with Him constitute the Sun of Righteousness that is to heal and bless the world. “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the Kingdom of their Father.”—Matt. 13:43.
The sun rises quietly, like a thief. (1 Thes. 5:1.) When the Morning comes, the first work is banishing the works of the night. (Ezek. 7:7-12.) Next comes the opening of the spiritually blind eyes of those that have physical sight. (Amos 5:18.) Surely, the best time for a great oculist to [pg 332] open the eyes of the blind is in the day time. (Isa. 35:5.) Now matters are more or less obscured (1 Cor. 13:12); but the time is coming when the blind shall be shown a way of life they have not hitherto known. (Isa. 42:16.) Will the Lord show wonders in the dark? (Psa. 88:10.) He will indeed; and when the nations come forth from the tomb, they will seek Him that turneth the shadow of death into the morning. (Amos 5:8; Isa. 42: 6, 7.) They will seek Him and will find Him. No wonder, then, that the Psalmist, looking down the stream of time to that happy Day, exultingly exclaims, “Then [after full experience with sin and death] they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder. Oh, that men would praise the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He hath broken the gates of brass [that stood between them and perfection], and cut the bars of iron asunder [that held them in death's prison house].” (Psa. 107:13-16.) “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.” (Rev. 21:4.) “For there shall be no night there.” “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the Morning.”—Psa. 30:5; Zech. 14:7.
21:26. And they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations into it.—“This rendering of glory to the Kingdom will continue throughout the entire Millennial Age; for the princes throughout the earth will make known to the peoples that not in their own name or authority do they rule and execute judgment and establish righteousness, but in the name of the glorified Christ, Head and Body, whose representatives they are.”—Z. '16-394.
21:27. And there shall in no wise enter into it anything [that defileth] COMMON.—No one who could or would contaminate others by speech or example, will ever find a place in that City.
Neither whatsoever worketh abomination.—Nor anything tending in the direction of pride or sectarianism.
Or maketh a lie.—Nor anything countenancing the teaching of error for pleasure or profit.—1 John 2:22.