ESVJesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
NIVJesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
NASBAnd Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in theregeneration when the Son of Man will sit onHis glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
CSBJesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, in the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
NLTJesus replied, ‘I assure you that when the world is made new and the Son of Man sits upon his glorious throne, you who have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
KJVAnd Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Insight:
Peter had heard Jesus’ promise to the rich, young ruler, who proved his lack of sincerity by rejecting Jesus’ words (Matthew 19:21–22). Jesus’ command for that particular man was to give up his wealth. Christ then indicated that those who are rich often have a difficult time learning to humbly trust in God. Salvation is impossible through human effort, but not impossible for God (Matthew 19:23–26).
Peter has asked what he and the other disciples will have in heaven since they have left all to follow Jesus (Matthew 19:23–27). The question might sound selfish, but Jesus does not accuse the disciples of this. He simply tells them the most remarkable thing they likely could have imagined ever happening to them. In fact, they likely could not imagine it.
Jesus mentions the new world. In the original language, He uses the term palingenesia, literally meaning something like “the regeneration.” He is describing the moment when the Son of Man, Jesus, will take His seat on the glorious throne of heaven in eternity. Revelation 21:1–5 puts it this way:
“Then I saw a new Heaven and a new Earth, for the first Heaven and the first Earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of Heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with Man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. And He Who was seated on The Throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.’
Regarding the disciples, specifically, Jesus’ answer is that they will be there with Him. Each will be sitting on their own throne in Heaven. They will fill the specific role of judging the twelve tribes of the nation of Israel. These twelve, simple men who have left everything behind to follow Christ will first become His apostles on Earth, then judges over God’s chosen people in Heaven. Revelation 21 mentions them, as well, when describing the new Jerusalem:
“It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of The Lamb” (Revelation 21:12–14).
Jesus has revealed to these men that they will have more than just treasure in Heaven. They will occupy thrones and positions of great responsibility and power alongside Jesus.
“Behold, the days come, saith The LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:”
“Praise be to The Lord, Who has given rest to his people Israel just as He promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises He gave through His servant Moses. 1 Kings 8:56.
Brothers and Sisters in Christ, I pray with you:
May God grant you rest just as He promised. May none of The words of His awesome promises in the Bible fail or fall short in your life, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Few things are more comforting than knowing and believing that God is at work in our lives. This type of comfort is the result of a confidence not in our own abilities, but in a God Whose promises never fail. What He says will happen, He will accomplish. But this type of confidence comes only by faith. And faith comes by hearing God’s Word (Romans10:17). But even in our hearing and reading of God’s Word, we can wonder at times, “Is this promise really for me?” or “Will God stay to true to His promises?”
Are God’s Promises for Me?
Few things are more comforting than knowing and believing that God is at work in our lives. This type of comfort is the result of a confidence not in our own abilities, but in a God whose promises never fail. What He says will happen, He will accomplish. But this type of confidence comes only by faith. And faith comes by hearing God’s Word (Romans10:17). But even in our hearing and reading of God’s Word, we can wonder at times, “Is this promise really for me?” or “Will God stay to true to his promises?”
God fulfills His promises to Israel
I love how the book of Joshua puts it so pointedly: “Not a single one of all the good promises the LORD had given to the family of Israel was left unfulfilled; everything he had spoken came true.” (Joshua 21:45 NLT)
Joshua tells us that not even one of God’s promises were left unfulfilled, nope not even one!
It’s easy to respond – “Well, sure these promises were for Israel, but what about us today?”
We are Israel
Look at what the Apostle Paul writes in Romans:
Well then, has God failed to fulfill his promise to Israel? No, for not all who are born into the nation of Israel are truly members of God’s people! Being descendants of Abraham doesn’t make them truly Abraham’s children. For the Scriptures say, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted,” though Abraham had other children, too. This means that Abraham’s physical descendants are not necessarily children of God. Only the children of the promise are considered to be Abraham’s children. (Romans 9:6-8 NLT)
Here is what the Apostle Paul is saying:
Paul is writing that simply being born a Jew was not a guarantee of being a part of God’s family. Being a child of God meant to follow Him completely. God’s promises then were given to those who willfully committed their lives to obeying him. For believers today, God’s promises are still applied to those who place their faith in Christ.
In fact look at what Peter says in (2 Peter 1:4-5a. NLT) “And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises.”
Not only are God’s promises for us today, but Scripture calls us to respond to them, meaning we pray for them to be in enacted into the situations of our lives each day.
Therefore, you can trust that what God has promised, he will accomplish. So where do you begin? What promises should you know and pray for that will produce the comfort and confidence that comes from trusting in God?
10 Promises of God
1. God promises to strengthen you.
“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being.” (Ephesians 3:14-16 ESV)
2. God promises to give you rest.
“Then Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.’” (Matthew 11:28-30 NLT)
3. God promises to take care of all your needs.
“And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19 NLT)
4. God promises to answer your prayers.
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7 ESV)
5. God promises to work everything out for your good.
“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (Romans 8:28 NLT)
6. God promises to be with you
“I will not fail you or abandon you. This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:5, 9NLT)
7. God promises to protect you.
“This I declare about the LORD: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him.” (Psalm 91:2 NLT)
8. God promises freedom from sin.
“But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.” (1 John 1:9 NLT)
“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:36 ESV)
9. God promises that nothing can separate you from Him.
“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39 ESV)
10. God promises you everlasting life.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 ESV)
This is not an endless list of the promises of God, no, in fact, there are over 3,000 promises in scripture. I encourage to take hold of the promises listed, but as well, continue to search the Word of God – meditating, memorizing and praying into existence all the promises that are tucked away and available to you as a believer. As you do, you will watch God respond to your faith by fulfilling his promises in your life.
“For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory.” (2 Corinthians 1: 20 NLT)
The reading of the Bible, a task which took him a year and a half, Storms came up with a grand total of 8,810 promises (7,487 of them being promises made by God to huMankind).