Revelation 21 · a question people ask
"by the measure of a man, that is, of an angel" (21:17). What does that mean?
Here is what the verses say. One of the seven angels "came, and he spoke with me" (21:9). "He who spoke with me had for a measure a golden reed to measure the city, its gates, and its walls." (21:15). "He measured the city with the reed" (21:16), and of the wall John says, "Its wall is one hundred forty-four cubits, by the measure of a man, that is, of an angel." (21:17). The verse sets of a man and of an angel side by side and explains them no further, and these notes don't either. They give the stadia and the cubits as written, convert neither into any other measure, and reckon nothing from the numbers.
The verses
“One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls which were loaded with the seven last plagues came, and he spoke with me, saying, “Come here. I will show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife.””
“He who spoke with me had for a measure a golden reed to measure the city, its gates, and its walls. The city is square. Its length is as great as its width. He measured the city with the reed: twelve thousand twelve stadia. Its length, width, and height are equal. Its wall is one hundred forty-four cubits, by the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.”