Revelation 21:4 · kjv
Revelation 21:4 - God Shall Wipe Away All Tears
“E Deus enxugará de seus olhos toda lágrima; e não haverá mais morte, nem luto, nem pranto, nem dor; porque as primeiras coisas já passaram.”
Revelation 21:4 lies at the heart of John's vision of the new heaven and new earth. The KJV reads: "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." The Greek exaleipsei ("shall wipe away") means to erase, smear out, or obliterate, used elsewhere for blotting out a written record (Colossians 2:14). Every dakryon ("tear") is personally removed by God Himself. "Death" is thanatos, "sorrow" is penthos (mourning, lamentation), "crying" is krauge (the loud cry of grief), and "pain" is ponos (toil, anguish). The phrase "former things are passed away" uses aperchomai in the aorist, signaling a decisive, accomplished departure. John draws heavily on Isaiah 25:8 ("he will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces") and Isaiah 65:17-19, where God promises new heavens and a new earth with no voice of weeping. The historical setting of Revelation is the late first century, likely under Domitian, when believers faced social marginalization and sporadic persecution, making this eschatological comfort deeply pastoral.
Chapter Context
Revelation 21 opens the final vision of John's apocalypse: the new heaven, new earth, and New Jerusalem descending from God. Verses 1-2 describe the passing of the first heaven and earth and the absence of the sea (often symbolic of chaos). Verse 3 announces the tabernacle of God with men, fulfilling the covenant refrain "I will be their God, and they shall be my people." Verse 4 then details the removal of every source of sorrow. Verses 5-8 continue with the declaration "Behold, I make all things new," the promise of the water of life freely given, and a final warning to those outside the covenant. Verses 9-27 describe the New Jerusalem's architecture, gates, and glory, framing verse 4 as the emotional center of the consummated new creation.
How to Apply This Verse
- Grieve with hope. Christian sorrow is real but not final. Let the promise that God Himself will wipe every tear reshape how you mourn loss, speaking comfort to yourself and others with the confidence that present grief has a coming end.
- Anchor endurance in the future. When pain, illness, or injustice weigh on the soul, rehearse that "former things" will pass away. Let eschatological hope produce patience and perseverance rather than cynicism or despair in trials.
- Minister comfort to the hurting. Share this verse at funerals, hospital beds, and seasons of loss. Read it aloud, meditate on each removed sorrow, and allow its specificity (death, mourning, crying, pain) to meet people in the particular grief they carry.