What is the context?
John is told not to seal the prophecy because the time is near. The message is to remain available. The next statement sets the unrighteous and vile alongside the righteous and holy, followed by Christ’s promise to come with His reward and repay each person according to what he has done.
Christ again identifies Himself as the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. A blessing follows for those who wash their robes: they have access to the tree of life and enter the city through its gates.
The contrast is with those outside, described by practices including sorcery, sexual immorality, murder, idolatry and love of falsehood. The city’s life is joined to cleansing and holiness, as in the closing verses of chapter 21.
How is this passage commonly understood?
Readers understand verse 11 in light of the approaching judgment, rather than as a simple invitation to do evil. Wesley emphasizes the final condition of people after judgment. Walvoord emphasizes the lasting consequences of rejecting the warning or continuing in faithfulness. Both take the surrounding promise of judgment seriously.
There is also a difference in the wording readers encounter in verse 14. The BSB speaks of washing robes, while Wesley comments on an older reading about keeping Christ’s commands. The difference comes from the underlying textual readings. The BSB’s wording recalls the robes washed in the Lamb’s blood in Revelation 7:14.
Where does this fit in God's plan?
The command to leave the prophecy open contrasts with Daniel 12:4 and 9–10, where words are sealed until the time of the end. Daniel also contrasts the conduct of the wicked with the purification of the wise. Revelation brings those themes into its urgent closing appeal.
Christ’s reward accompanying His coming recalls Isaiah 40:10–11, where the Lord comes with might and reward while tending His flock. The promise joins His authority to judge with His care for His people.
The blessing also completes the promise of access to the tree of life given to the overcomer in Revelation 2:7. What the churches were encouraged to seek is now described as entrance into the Lamb’s city.
What is our position?
We don't have a position on this passage yet. When our study reaches a conclusion the text supports, it will appear here.