What does Revelation 22:19 mean?

In the prior verse, God warned against "adding" to Revelation, presumably by either adding to the text or trying to force in meanings which the Holy Spirit did not intend. God's warning here extends to those who detract from the book of Revelation and presumably from all Scripture. As with the prior warning, this can be taken to mean editing the text, or trying to explain away or misinterpret those aspects of the message we don't like (1 Corinthians 4:6).

Those who take away from God's Word will not share in the tree of life or have access to the eternal city. Second Timothy 3:16–17 declares that "all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work."

Anyone who detracts from Scripture hurts not only others but also himself. We need the entire body of Scripture to believe right and to behave right. We dare not reject passages of Scripture because they convict us or contradict what we believe. We cannot choose to believe some passages are from God and others are not. We must never read Scripture as if we're prepared to use scissors to cut out what we don't like. A modern tendency is to consider a passage God's Word only if it speaks to us. Scripture is God's objective truth and not subject to human opinion.