“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.”
Revelation 21:1 (NASB95)
“While the Messianic kingdom is the high point of the Old Testament prophecy, the eternal order is the high point of New Testament prophecy. Much of the information in the first twenty chapters of the book of Revelation can also be found in the Old Testament. However, the last two chapters of Revelation contain brand-new material not revealed to the prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures“ (Fruchtenbaum, The Footsteps of the Messiah, p. 505, emphasis added). When the current heaven and earth are destroyed by fire, God will create a new heaven and a brand-new planet earth.
“And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, ‘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, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away” (Revelation 21:2-4 NASB95).
Once again, we see that God desires to personally tabernacle with His people. In the New Jerusalem, sin and death will be done away with, and glorified saints will have direct access to the Shekinah glory of the Triune God for all eternity. Walvoord notes that “This is the last of twenty-one times that a ‘great voice’ or ‘loud voice’ is mentioned in the book of Revelation” (The Revelation of Jesus Christ, p. 314). The proclamation of Jehovah dwelling among men and being their God is a concept that is also repeated in Scripture twenty-one times (J.B. Smith/Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ, p. 314). The eternal order is the culmination of God’s redemption plan.
Not only will God dwell among us forever, but He will wipe away every tear from our eyes. “The new situation is the consummation of divine grace and is the assurance of the estate of ineffable blessedness for those who were once lost sinners. The Scripture makes plain that not only the old earth and heaven pass away but also all the details and associations that belong to it [such as mourning, crying, and pain], which would mar the situation in the new heaven and the new earth” (Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ, p. 315). I am reminded of David’s prayer in Psalm 56:8, “You have taken account of my wanderings; put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your book?” (NASB95). This is a beautiful thought to consider. God is mindful of every tear we’ve ever cried on this earth. One day, in the glory of what is to come, He will wipe all our tears away. He will make all things new.
“And He who sits on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, ‘Write, for these words are faithful and true. Then He said to me, ‘It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.”
Revelation 21:5-7 (NASB95)
His words are evidence of His character, faithful and true. Precept Austin says, “The purpose of God, as set forth by His written word, extends not just beyond this life, but beyond this entire created order. His words are more certain than the physical reality around us” (Precept Austin, Rev. 21). “It is done” is a reference “to the work accomplished throughout the whole drama of human history prior to the eternal state. this statement does not mean that there are no future works of God but that a major work has been brought to completion and that the works now relating to the eternal state are the beginning” (Walvoord, p. 316).
“But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars – their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death” (Revelation 21:8 NLT).
Here, the believer’s inheritance is contrasted with the unbeliever’s destiny. “While there is further mention of the fate of the unsaved later in the book of Revelation, this is the last mention of the lake of fire and of the second death specifically” (Walvoord, p. 317).
“Then one of the seven angels who held the seven bowls containing the seven last plagues came and said to me, ‘Come with me! I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’ So he took me in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and he showed me the holy city of Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God and sparkled like a precious stone – like jasper as clear as crystal” (Revelation 21:9-11 NLT).
“Since a city is not a bride nor a wife, the truth here represented is that the city, the residence of the saints of eternity future, is to be compared to a bride for beauty and is intimately related to Jesus Christ the Lamb” (Walvoord, p. 317). Besides Revelation 21:1-22:5, the New Jerusalem is mentioned in two other passages, Hebrews 12:22-24 and Galatians 4:26. Hebrews and Galatians both seem to infer that the New Jerusalem currently exists in the third heaven where God is. Jesus made it clear that He was going to the Father to prepare a place for us to live with Him forever (John 14:1-3). However, its construction might happen in that future time when God creates the “new heaven” and the “new earth” at the end of the Millennium. Whether it exists now or later, the important thing to remember is that the city will be ablaze with the light of the glory of God!
“The city is said to have the glory of God and to have a brilliant light. As the glory of God is the sum of His infinite perfections in their manifestations, so the New Jerusalem reflects all that God is.”
Walvoord, The REvelation of Jesus Christ, p. 320
“The city wall was broad and high, with twelve gates guarded by twelve angels. And the names of the twelve tribes of Israel were written on the gates. There were three gates on each side – east, north, south, and west. The wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. “The angel who talked to me held in his hand a gold measuring stick to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. When he measured it, he found it was a square, as wide as it was long. In fact, its length and width and height were each 1400 miles. Then he measured the walls and found them to be 216 feet thick (according to the human standard used by the angel)” (Rev. 21:12-17 NLT).
There are twelve gates in the wall. Although twelve angels are guarding the gates, the gates themselves never close (see Rev. 21:25), allowing for the people of God to go in and out of the city. “The New Jerusalem will have the distinction of being the residence of the saints, but it is implied that they will be able to travel elsewhere on the new earth and possibly also in the new heaven” (Walvoord, p. 322).
The heavenly city is in the shape of a perfect cube. Interestingly, the shape of the Holy of Holies was also a perfect cube. J. Vernon McGee says, “The glory of light streaming through this crystal-clear prism, will break up into a polychromed rainbow of breath-taking beauty” (Reveling Through Revelation, II, p. 104-105).
“The city taken as a whole is pictured as descending from heaven to the new earth, and the fact that it has foundations and comes from heaven to the earth seems to imply that it rests on the new earth itself. this is also implied in the fact that people go in and out of the gates, which fact is difficult to visualize unless the gates themselves rest upon the earth.”
Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ, p. 324
“The material of the wall was jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundation stones of the city wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation stone was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst” (Revelation 21:18-20).
The wall surrounding the city” is made of jasper, which could refer to a diamond or gem that looks like ice. The gigantic wall looks like a shimmering sheet of ice” (Hitchcock, The End, p. 455). “The various foundations are represented as layers built upon each other, each layer extending around all four sides of the city” (Walvoord, p. 325). Imagine the light of God shining in and through this city, reflecting upon the multicolored precious stones. It will be brilliant to behold.
Foundation Stones in the Wall (see Walvoord, p. 325)
- Jasper: In Revelation, this stone is clear as crystal, with similar effects as that of a diamond.
- Sapphire: A deep and brilliant blue stone.
- Chalcedony: “An agate stone from Chalcedon (in Turkey), thought to be sky-blue with stripes of other colors running through it.”
- Emerald: A bright green stone.
- Sardonyx: “A red and white stone.”
- Sardius: “A common jewel of reddish color also found in honey color which was considered less valuable. The sardius is used with the jasper in Revelation 4:3 in describing the glory of God on the throne.”
- Chrysolyte: “A transparent stone golden in color according to the ancient writer Pliny, and therefore somewhat different from the modern pale-green chrysolite stone.”
- Beryl: A sea-green stone.
- Topaz: This stone is “yellow-green and transparent.”
- Chrysoprasus: This stone “introduces another shade of green.”
- Jacinth: “A violet” colored stone.
- Amethyst: A purple stone.
“Though the precise colors of these stones in some cases are not certain, the general picture here described by John is one of unmistakable beauty, designed to reflect the glory of God in a spectrum of brilliant color. The light of the city within shining through these various colors in the foundation wall topped by the wall itself composed of the crystal-clear jasper forms a scene of dazzling beauty in keeping with the glory of God and the beauty of His holiness.”
Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ, p. 325
The gates that are built into the wall are each made of a single huge pearl. The streets of the city are “described as pure gold transparent as glass” (Walvoord, p. 325).
“I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it” (Revelation 21:22-23 NASB95).
There is no longer any need for a building to house the Shekinah glory. With the eternal absence of sin and death, God’s Shekinah glory will be physically ever-present with us forever. The city will be one of everlasting light. “The source of light in the eternal order will not come from such created things [sun and moon], but will be provided by the Creator of light, the Shechinah glory of the Lamb, which will illuminate all for the eternal order” (Fruchtenbaum, The Footsteps of the Messiah, p. 512). The mention of the nations and kings refers to glorified Gentile believers. “The meaning is not that political entities will enter into the New Jerusalem but rather that those who are saved Gentiles, who belong to the non-Jewish races, will be in the new city” (Walvoord, p. 327). Apparently, those Gentile believers who had honored positions on earth “will ascribe glory and honor that once was theirs to their Lord God” (Walvoord, p. 327).
“In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”
Revelation 21:27 (NASB95)
“The brilliant light of the city, however, dispels any possible darkness. Believers in their glorified bodies do not need rest, and their lives are full of continuous activity even like the holy angels” (Walvoord, p. 328). Can you imagine living in the splendor of this new world with no more night, no more pain, no more tears, no more crying, no more misunderstandings and broken relationships, no more death, no more mourning, and no more sickness? All of these things are part of the curse which will one day be removed because of what Christ has done for us! As if that’s not enough, Revelation 22:1-5 adds more detail to the description of this glorious city.
“Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations” (Revelation 22:1-2 NASB95).
Regarding the river, “This is the fountain of the water of life which God promised to the thirsty in the previous chapter (Rev. 21:6). Its ultimate source is God Himself, for it proceeds from His throne (Psalm 36:8-9; 46:4)“ (Precept Austin). I love that, once again, we see living water as a provision connected with God’s presence dwelling among men. This river is not to be confused with the Millennial River flowing from the Millennial Temple. The River of Life is much larger and extends to the whole new earth. Walvoord says this river “speaks of the power, purity, and eternal life manifest in the heavenly city” (p. 329). “Although this is a literal river in the eternal state, it also typifies the Holy Spirit Who cleanses and gives life to those who trust Christ in this age” (Precept Austin).
The Tree of Life appears to be the same “that man was excluded from when he was expelled from the Garden of Eden [and] will be available to all of God’s people for all of eternity” (Hitchcock, The End, p. 456). The word for “healing” in Revelation 22:2 is a Greek word meaning “therapeutic” and should be viewed as “health-giving.” “The leaves of the tree promote the enjoyment of life in the new Jerusalem, and are not for correcting ills which do not exist” (Walvoord, p. 330).
“Just as the tears which they had shed on account of earthly suffering will be wiped away in the eternal life, so the healing leaves of the tree of life serve for the healing of sickness from which the nations had suffered during their earthly life, but shall never suffer again in the new earth.”
Swete, The Apocalypse of St. John, p. 299
“There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bondservants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever” (Revelation 22:3-5 NASB95).
Not only is the city illumined by God’s glory, but so are the ones who dwell within it. This reminds me of Moses after meeting with God Almighty. When he came off the mountain, his face was illumined with the glory of God so much so that he had to cover it with a veil (Exodus 34:29-35). The saints of God will reign with Him forever and ever. The ruling and reigning will not stop after the Millennium, it will continue differently. “Christ continues for all eternity as the King of kings and Lord of lords even though the scene of His mediatorial and millennial rule over the earth is changed to the new heaven and the new earth” (Walvoord, p. 332).
“Every believer should feel the heavenward pull, the tug of heaven. Our feet are on earth, but our hearts are to be in heaven where Christ dwells (Colossians 3:1-4). Heaven should rest at the center of our worldview and should motivate us to live for the Lamb of Glory, who dwells in unapproachable light yet made a way for us to dwell with Him forever by shedding His blood on the cross and rising from the dead.”
Hitchcock, The End, p. 457
Week 10 Homework Reflections:
Because of the length of this post (thanks for taking the time to read it), the only homework this week is to prayerfully read through Revelation 21:1-22:5 and reflect on the following two questions.
- What aspects of the Eternal Order minister your heart the most and why?
- Considering all you have learned thus far, how does Colossians 3:1-4 apply to your life and your current situation?
Simply Persuaded 