The New Jerusalem

The book of Revelation largely consists of a vision given to the Apostle John. It is not to be understood literally. Unfortunately, some folks let their thinking go too far. Non-literal does not mean not real. Non-literal simply means that we should not expect to sense the things described in our created three-dimensional world. The figurative descriptions still refer to reality.

Consider the descriptions of the New Jerusalem in a general sense...

Building Materials:
Walls, streets and gates are first, functional. They are built for strength, then adorned with art if desired.

Foundations are build for strength, not elegance and beauty. No one takes foundation material and creates jewelry. Yet, the foundation stones in the New Jerusalem are gemstones. The walls are made of jasper.

The city of Ostuni, Italy is nicknamed “the white town” for its white-washed architecture. Many cities have adorned their downtown areas in a special way using combinations of glass, metal, brick and stone. In great contrast to man-made cities, the New Jerusalem is built of refined gold, as pure as clear (pure) glass.

The New Jerusalem is no ordinary city. It is adorned like a bride adorns herself: “Her brilliance was like a very costly stone as a stone of crystal-clear jasper” (Revelation 22:11) It is a precious and beautiful city!

Size:
The dimensions of the New Jerusalem are described by John as having a length of 1500 miles, a width of 1500 miles and a height of 1500 miles. If placed on the earth the footprint of this city would cover the western two thirds of the United States. And remember, the New Jerusalem is not a nation or province, but a city.

By way of comparison, consider the earth’s atmosphere. The troposphere is the lowest and densest part of our atmosphere. It ascends 8 to 12 miles. Beyond the troposphere are the stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere and the exosphere. All combined these reach 375 miles above the earth. We record the elevation of our cities, but not their height. Yet, the height of the New Jerusalem would stretch an equivalent of more than four complete earth atmospheres.

The walls of the New Jerusalem are 216 feet thick. If you were to build houses on one-acre lots along the top of the walls of this city you would have than 146,000 building sites. The entire city covers over 1.4 billion acres.

Resources:
We know that basic human needs include food, water, clothing, shelter and light. In John’s vision he described the following:

• Food: The tree of life bears a variety of fruit all year long (22:2);
• Water: The fiver of life provides water for all (21:6; 22:1);
• Clothing: Clean (pure) robes (22:14);
• Shelter: The city itself (22:10 ff.); and
• Light: God himself is the light (22:5).

Are we supposed to understand these description literally or figuratively??? I really don’t know. If God has prepared for us a city with gates of pearl and streets of gold...GREAT! And yet, what if it’s all figurative?

What do the figurative descriptions tell us?

The building materials are extraordinary and precious. The New Jerusalem is a gem. Its size far exceeds anything known to man; there is no comparison on earth. Beyond that, we will have every resource we need...

...to live...

        ...forever…


Mark Stinnett

August 14, 2022

What about the New Heavens and New Earth?

If you haven’t noticed, things around here are broken. Do you know what I’m thinking about?

When sin entered the world in the Garden of Eden, God cursed humanity and the earth itself.

Most people have grown so accustomed to the world we are in that they fail to recognize that the world as it is was not God’s plan. Thankfully, God has come to the rescue. The writer of Hebrews refers to a better country, a heavenly one (Hebrews 11:14-16). Peter wrote about the destruction of the current heavens and earth which will be followed by new heavens and new earth (2 Peter 3:13).

However, this did not originate in the New Testament. Prophesying to a rebellious nation, Isaiah warned Judah of God’s wrath but also gave a ray of hope for a remnant of faithful servants who would be preserved in new heavens and a new earth (Isaiah:65:17). Isaiah’s prophecy of divine judgment was echoed in Revelation where the new heavens and new earth would follow the destruction of death, Hades, Satan and all whose names are not found in the book of life. In John’s visions he then saw “the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.” (Revelation 20:11-15)

You might remember that when the temple of God was built in Jerusalem God said, “In Jerusalem I will put My name” (2 Kings 21:4). This was God’s city in which was built the house of God (temple). So, Jerusalem was God’s dwelling on earth, where God met man.

Back to Isaiah’s prophecy...

God was displeased with Judah because there was no justice. Yet, God would raise up a Redeemer to go to Zion (the City of David, Jerusalem) to bring salvation and righteousness. Zion would be restored, purified and glorified. God would show compassion to his people by gathering them into Zion.

Then all your people will be righteous;

They will possess the land forever,

The branch of My planting,

The work of My hands,

That I may be glorified.

—Isaiah 60:21

The prophecy of Isaiah foresaw the restoration of physical Judah, but also looked forward to Zion where “all your people will be righteous,” undoubtedly a reference to spiritual Zion. The prophecy went on to tell of the adornment of its citizens with garments of salvation and robes of righteousness. The final verse of Isaiah 61 describes figurative vegetation in Zion:

So the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up....

The writings of John and Peter drew heavily from Isaiah in describing the new heavens and new earth. Of greatest significance…

Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them. 

—Revelation 21:3

But according to His promises we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells. 

—2 Peter 2:13

Unlike physical Jerusalem where there was a physical temple, a copy of the heavenly one (Hebrews 9:24), God Himself will live among His people in the New Jerusalem. Unlike the current world where some people are righteous and some are not, in the new heavens and new earth only righteousness will dwell.

Our current world is broken. Death is here. God created life; He wants us to live forever with Him! Let’s set our eyes on the New Jerusalem!!


Mark Stinnett

August 7, 2022