1 This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John,

2 who testifies to everything he saw. This is the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.

3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and obey what is written in it, because the time is near.

— Revelation 1:1-3

Then the angel said to me, “These words are faithful and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent His angel to show His servants what must soon take place.”

— Revelation 22:6

To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Originator of God’s creation.

— Revelation 3:14

Then I saw heaven standing open, and there before me was a white horse. And its rider is called Faithful and True. With righteousness He judges and wages war.

— Revelation 19:11

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, mercy and love from Christ to you.

Revelation opens and closes with words of blessing. Remarkable harmony exists between Revelation’s first and final verses and together they reflect a unified message — John’s Spirit-inspired message — that holds together from beginning to end and inspires in believers the trust in God and His Word. Here in Revelation 22, we see the angel who previously showed John the New Jerusalem now confirms that John’s written testimony carries God’s authority, saying, “These words are trustworthy and true.”

In Greek, this identical pair of words appears twice in Revelation to describe the Lord Jesus Christ. First, Jesus identified Himself to the lukewarm Laodicean church as the faithful (trustworthy, reliable) and true (honest) witness.’ Later, John called the rider on the white horse “Faithful and True.”? Jesus’s character and words remain trustworthy and accurate. Jesus, the living Word, assures the truthfulness of God’s written Word.