Texts in Conversation
The New Jerusalem text in the Dead Sea Scrolls describes a city with measured streets and gates built of precious stone. Revelation similarly describes the new Jerusalem with gates, walls, and streets of valuable materials, following this tradition.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
5Q15 1 i 6
New Jerusalem
Dead Sea Scrolls, Apocalyptic and Eschatological Texts
3 [And the] great [streets that] go out from the east [to the west]: ten reeds is the width [of the street,] seventy [cubits], two of them; and the third, 4 [which is on the] left of the [sanctuary, he] measured: eighteen reeds wide, one hundred [and twenty] and six cubits. And the width [of the streets] that go out from the south 5 [to the north: two of them] are nine reeds and four cubits to each street, sixty-seven cubits; and the middle one, [which is in the] middle of the city, 6 [he measured its width:] thirteen reeds and one cubit, ninety-two cubits. And all the streets [and the city are] paved with white stone 7 […] … […] … […] marble and jasper.
Date: 160–60 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
Revelation 21:21
New Testament
19 The foundations of the city’s wall are decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation is jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. 21 And the twelve gates are twelve pearls—each one of the gates is made from just one pearl! The main street of the city is pure gold, like transparent glass. 22 Now I saw no temple in the city, because the Lord God—the All-Powerful—and the Lamb are its temple. 23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because the glory of God lights it up, and its lamp is the Lamb.
Date: 92–96 CE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... The holiness and glory of the eschatological Jerusalem (21:11) reflect God's presence in its fullness (compare Isaiah 40:5; 60:1; 62:2; Baruch 6:12; 1QS 11:5). The twelve gates motif (21:12) is found in Ezekiel 48:30-35 and repeated in Qumran's New Jerusalem Apocalypse 5Q15. The use of the number of the twelve tribes of Israel on the gates (21:14) is probably borrowed from Ezekiel 48:30-35 and identify the patriarchs with the entrances. Interestingly, in ancient Jerusalem only two tribes had gates named after them, Benjamin and Ephraim. The wall motif was used by Ezekiel (Ezekiel 40:5; 41:5 and 43:30-35). We should keep in mind that Ezekiel's work lies prominently behind the imagery of Revelation 12-22. The wall is a sign of security (Is 49:16) or of separation between sacred and common territory. This wall signifies the separation of the life and light inside from the fiery lake outside. The apostles, as the foundation stones, represent the roots of the eschatological city ..."
Jan A. du Rand, “The Imagery of the Heavenly Jerusalem (Revelation 21:9-22:5),” Neot 22.1 (1988): 65–86.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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