In many respects life in the 1000-year kingdom reign of our Lord Jesus will resemble pre-fall life in the garden of Eden. As we know, Eden had two notable trees: one with forbidden fruit, and one with fruit that, when eaten, conferred immortality or eternal life to the partaker. Presumably, Adam and Eve could eat freely from this tree of life, but lost that ability when sin manifested itself by their eating of fruit from the forbidden tree of knowledge of good and evil. “Then the Lord God said ‘behold the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever’–. So, he drove out the man, and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.” (Genesis: 22&24). God did not design man to be immortal while in a sinful condition. Thankfully, it’s a whole new ball game in the kingdom.
Jesus told John to write this message to Sardis, one of the seven churches of Revelation: “To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” (Revelation 2:7). It is evident from this and other scriptures that this ‘paradise of God’ is centered in the new Jerusalem where the millennial temple will be located. The prophet Ezekiel envisioned a river flowing out from this temple. “Then he brought me back to the door of the temple; and there was water, flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the front of the temple faced east; the water was flowing from under the right side of the temple, south of the altar.” (Ezekiel 47:1). This water then grew into a large river. “Along the bank of the river, on this side and that, will grow all kinds of trees used for food; their leaves will not wither, and their fruit will not fail. They will bear fruit every month, because their water flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food and their leaves for medicine.” (Ezekiel 47:12). The prophet Joel adds this concerning the days following Messiah’s return: “All the brooks of Judah shall be flooded with water; A fountain shall flow from the house of the Lord and water the valley of acacias.” (Joel 3:18). Zechariah adds more about this water from the temple. “And in that day, it shall be that living waters will flow from Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and half of them toward the western sea; in both summer and winter it will occur.” (Zechariah 14:8). That is to say, half toward the Dead Sea, and half toward the Mediterranean Sea. In this manner, these waters will eventually reach out through the oceans of the world to the entire planet! John, in Revelation, calls these waters, “water of life”. “And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse.” (Revelation 22:1-3)
The straightforward understanding of the above scriptures is that those who are raised in the first resurrection (the resurrection of the righteous) by Jesus will have permanent access to the trees of life, and by eating their fruit will obtain and maintain immortality. Remaining mortal life on earth, because sin and death have not been dealt with fully until the end of the millennium, will be kept from the fruit of the trees of life. Life will be vastly improved for them, however, as Satan is imprisoned for the 1000 years, the Government of the world is on Jesus’ shoulders, and the leaves of the tree of life (like a balm for diseased flesh) are for the healing of the nations.
Many bible commentators liken these scriptures about the trees of life to metaphor, probably indicative of God’s Spirit flowing out from His throne to humankind. This, however, is subjective reasoning, as there is no objective scriptural reason not to read and address these verses as literal. (See the permanent link below to my article on ‘Hermeneutics’). The tree of life was a literal tree with literal fruit in the Eden of Genesis, and it will also be a real literal tree in the paradise of God during the Millennial reign of Christ.
As a bible believing Christian, I’m looking forward to that day when the curse is lifted, and Jesus authorizes His own to eat from the twelve fruits produced by the trees of life lining the banks of the rivers of life flowing out from His throne in His temple in the new Jerusalem. Immortality in His kingdom will become reality!
Maranatha, Jim