Bible Study Seattle

“A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.) The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush.  The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.”  Genesis 2:10-14

Nobody knows where the rivers Pishon and Gihon were; evidently they disappeared, which suggests a change in geography – perhaps at the time of Noah’s flood?  Another river will appear in Israel in the future, hence there must be more geographic change in store.  Perhaps these changes are necessary for the earth to support 100+ billion resurrected people – who knows?

“The Lord will dry up
    the gulf of the Egyptian sea;
with a scorching wind he will sweep his hand
    over the Euphrates River.
He will break it up into seven streams
    so that anyone can cross over in sandals.
There will be a highway for the remnant of his people
    that is left from Assyria,
as there was for Israel
    when they came up from Egypt.”  Isaiah 11:15-16

The Euphrates river broken up into seven smaller rivers!  The previous verses of Isaiah 11 are clearly messianic.  Israel will become a place of streams and rivers:  “Look on Zion, the city of our festivals; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken.  There the Lord will be our Mighty One.  It will be like a place of broad rivers and streams.  No galley with oars will ride them, no mighty ship will sail them.  For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; it is he who will save us.”  Isaiah 33:20-22  

The desert will have water:  “The poor and needy search for water, but there is none their tongues are parched with thirst.  But I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.  I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys.  I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs.  I will put in the desert the cedar and the acacia, the myrtle and the olive.  I will set junipers in the wasteland, the fir and the cypress together.”  Isaiah 41:17-19   

Here is the new river that will appear in Israel:  “The man brought me back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar.  He then brought me out through the north gate  and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side.  As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. He asked me, “Son of man, do you see this?”  Then he led me back to the bank of the river.  When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river.  He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah,  ^where it enters the Dead Sea. When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh.  Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets.  The fish will be of many kinds —like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea.  But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt.   Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river.  Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail.  Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”  Ezekiel 47:1-12

Is this the same river mentioned in Revelation?  “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb  down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month.  And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse.  The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.   They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night.  They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.”  Revelation 22:1-5

This prophecy probably has a double fulfillment: an actual future river in Israel, and a spiritual river in heaven.