Down to Earth But Heavenly Minded

The New Heaven and the New Earth

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

The New Jerusalem

Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal. He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement. The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Revelation 21:1-8 –

With the conclusion of Revelation 20, the events of time are all in the past. Beginning with Ch. 21, God unveils eternity before our eyes. The key phrase is found in Revelation 21:5, “Behold I make all things new.” In this chapter and Revelation 22:1-5, we are introduced to all things new: A new heaven, a new earth, a new Jerusalem, a new relationship between God and man, new conditions for redeemed man, a new eternal home for the bride, a new glory, and a new temple.

First Heaven Destroyed –

Revelation 21:1 refers to a “new heaven” and a “new earth.” This statement has always intrigued me. I understand how there must be a new earth in the eternal state. Every vestige of sin and evil must be eternally destroyed. But why should there be a new heaven? Isn’t heaven, God’s house, perfect in every respect? Then, why should it be destroyed? Note the words in verse one, “The first heaven was passed away.”

We read Genesis 1:1 in our KJV, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” In the original language the word for heaven is plural – heavens. There are actually three heavens mentioned in the Scriptures. The first heaven (the atmospheric heaven) is the firmament of Genesis 1. It is the expanse that is just above the earth – the cloudy heavens. The second heaven is the heaven of the stars – the stellar heaven. The third heaven is spoken of as Paradise in 2 Corinthians 12:2-4. This is undoubtedly God’s dwelling place (Absolute Holiness).

When John says, “I saw a new heaven…for the first heaven was passed away,” he is referring to the “atmospheric heaven” around us. The stormy heavens probably come under this judgment, but certainly not the third heaven – Paradise – or God’s dwelling place. One of the reasons why the atmospheric heaven must be destroyed is because this has been the abode of Satan. [Note: Satan’s fall – 1/3 of the angels – Tartaras – the others are in the air around us – “He is the prince of the powers of the air.”] Peter describes the destroying of the first heaven in 2 Peter 3:10. “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens will vanish with a thunderous crash and the natural elements of the universe will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and the work that are upon it will be burned up.”

Heaven and Hell –

At this point I want to make a comparison between heaven and hell. See Revelation 20:14-15, “And death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. And whoever’s name was not found in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” This is the second death. Now look at Revelation 21:8, “[…] shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” The first death is physical. The second death is spiritual.

To those who die in their sins, there is the fearful looking forward to of judgment. “It is appointed unto men once to die; after death the judgment.” We must all die and be prepared to meet God. Luke 16 is a vivid example of this. This is thought to be a true story. In it, Jesus gives exact details about the state of an unbelieving soul immediately after leaving this world. In it, we see:

– The lost soul suffers (Luke 16:27 – These people pray for their relatives and friends.)

– The lost soul is fully conscious (Luke 16:23-24)

– The lost soul is in full possession of its memory (Luke 16:25)

– The lost soul has no hope of ever leaving the place of torment (Luke 16:26 – Note the eternal character of this condition; it is a “great gulf fixed.”)

On the other hand, look at what happens to the believer when he dies: The rich man died and was buried. Lazarus died and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom. His body was probably picked up on the street and burned.

John gives us some idea of conditions in heaven in Revelation 21:3-4. God is dwelling with men. He will wipe all tears from their eyes. There shall be no more death, crying, or pain [Describe the thought of “Abraham’s bosom.”] Paul was caught up into this place. He was caught up into the third heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2). He was caught up into paradise (2 Corinthians 12:4). He heard sacred secrets, which no human lips could repeat. He wrote 1 Corinthians 2:9 with this experience in view: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, neither can the heart of man understand the things which God has prepared for them that love Him.” Because of this experience, he could write to the Philippians’ Church in Philippians 1:23-24, “[I am in a dilemma, I would like to stay with you, but my strong desire is to depart and be with Christ, which is far better].”