"..and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows but he who receives it."
(Revelation 2:17b)
The white stone points to the climax of the church's pilgrimage. In the ancient world white stones were used for various purposes, but in Revelation the name that the stone bears is more important than the connotations of its color. The name is known only to the recipient, just as the name of the Word of God, who rides a white horse, is known only to himself (Rev. 19:12-13). The name is a shared secret between the Lord and the recipient, blending mystery and disclosure. The victor's "new name" could be his transformed identity in Christ, as the renaming of Abram to Abraham and of Simon to Peter signaled their transformation by God's power and grace. To the one who holds fast His name (Rev. 2:13) Jesus gives a new name, to mark us as His property and to reshape our identity to fit His perfection: "For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He might be the firstborn among many brethren" (Rom. 8:29).
(Dennis E. Johnson)
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