And behold, I Jesus Christ; come quickly To judge the world. And my reward Both of grace and vengeance; is with me The reward which I shall assign, both to the righteous and the wicked, shall be conferred at my coming; to give to every man according as his work His spirit and conduct, his whole inward and outward behaviour, shall be. And to confirm it further, I repeat it again, I am Alpha, &c. Rather, the Alpha and the Omega, &c. Who exist from everlasting to everlasting. How clear, incontestable a proof does our Lord here give of his divine glory! He is the Lord of the whole creation, by whom all things began to be formed, and by whom all things are to be finished; so that he will do all his pleasure, through all the ages of time, to the consummation of all things; and nothing can prevent or hinder the sure and full accomplishment of his word. Therefore, blessed, happy, are they, and they alone, that do his commandments And so prepare for his important appearance; that they may have a right Through his gracious covenant; to the tree of life
To all the blessings signified by it. When Adam broke his commandment, he was debarred from the tree of life. They who keep his commandments, who show their faith by their works, shall have access to it, and shall eat of it. For without are dogs That is, the unclean, the contentious and quarrelsome, the fierce and rapacious. The sentence, in the original, is abrupt, as expressing abhorrence. The gates are ever open; but not for dogs. These are, and ever shall be, shut out, as also sorcerers, &c. All that live in the violation of the known laws of God. See on Revelation 21:8.