The New Heaven and The New Earth
Once again, as the case in so many subjects, the subject of the New Heaven and the New Earth has been grossly misunderstood. It has been my observation, over many decades, that a surprisingly insufficient effort by the past and present Churches of God has been made to discern a more perfect understanding of both original Hebrew and Greek wording contained in the Bible. As a result, many over all conclusions have missed the mark. Some of them to a very great degree. This subject is a clear example of that lack of diligence concerning an area that the Bible has much to say. It seems that the principle common "understanding" stems from Revelation 21:1-4.
The natural tendency is to think that a new heaven and new earth will have to happen after all the things that are prophesied for this earth and its inhabitants has been fulfilled. Especially since it is mentioned right after the statement of the “lake of fire”. The lake of fire is generally considered the last event that God has designed for unrepentant mankind while those who are "saved" enter into eternity. But, with the information within the context of Rev. 21:1-8 we should question that popular conclusion. And it is of the utmost importance to remember that the Book of Revelation is not written in a smooth chronological order. It requires discernment to put the "stammering lips" in order.
Isa 28:11 For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people.
Isa 28:13 But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.
Now to some of the most revealing prophetic words we could read.
Rev 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth
were passed away; and there was no more sea.
Rev 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
Rev 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
Rev 21:6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
Rev 21:7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
Rev 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
There are so many elements in the above verses that are critical to the understanding of their true meaning that I feel compelled to digress from the overall subject to address these particular items. It is imperative to recognize that this vision is not observing events from the perspective of time after the lake of fire.
Verse 1: After this digression the new heaven and new earth will be thoroughly analyzed. First the statement "no more sea" has to be dealt with. It is understood that there will be seas during the earthly rule of Jesus because of what is revealed by Ezekiel. Therefore, according to many, this must be in reference to the future time that would occur when seas are done away after the bench mark event of the lake of fire.
Eze 47:13 Thus saith the Lord GOD; This shall be the border, whereby ye shall inherit the land according to the twelve tribes of Israel: Joseph shall have two portions.
Eze 47:15 And this shall be the border of the land toward the north side, from the great sea, the way of Hethlon, as men go to Zedad;
Eze 47:18 And the east side ye shall measure from Hauran, and from Damascus, and from Gilead, and from the land of Israel by Jordan, from the border unto the east sea. And this is the east side.
What then is the singular sea that 21:1 is referring to? It is a sea that has fulfilled its
purpose! When God moves his abode to the earthly realm from heaven the sea of glass is
never mentioned again. It had served its purpose.
Rev 4:6 And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before andbehind.
Rev 15:2 And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.
This sea will be no more !!!
Verse 2: The next consideration concerns new Jerusalem. Because of the following verses there are those that think that new Jerusalem is the Bride.
Rev 21:9 And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.
Rev 21:10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
No, the city is prepared as a bride adorned for her husband Who is the bride? That is
shown later in the chapter. The paper titled The Bride of Christ ---Her Abode and Destiny
gives much more detail.
Verse 3: Next, we must determine when the tabernacle of Chapter 40 to the end of the
book of Ezekiel deal with the earthly (physical) millennial temple, its services and the
distribution of land to the twelve tribes. The following are two of the concluding verses of the
book of Ezekiel.
Eze 48:29 This is the land which ye shall divide by lot unto the tribes of Israel for inheritance, and -------
Eze 48:35 It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there.
Verse 4: Next, many people are assured that the statement "there shall be no
more death" most assuredly defines the time being after the evil ones are thrown into the
lake of fire. Considering the context of all of these eight verses "no more death" would be
relating to the culture of death resided over by Satan. The culture of life will be the result of
Gods reign. Not only that, adding up all the percentages of those who will die, up to the time
when Jesus takes his throne to rule, we can conclude that the greater part of the world's
population will die. It is also helpful to compare Rev.21:4 to Rev. 7:16-17
16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light ( #4098 “beat” see other trans.) on them, nor any heat (#2738; painful & burning)
17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them “unto” living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.
Notice this is all in a future tense using the beginning of the millennium from which the verses reveal the future. As of that time those people are growing in the Spirit of God but are not yet “spirit beings”. This growth will be the result of God tabernacling over mankind. Yes, the former things ARE passed away.
Verse 5: All things new including the heaven and earth.
Verse 6: The important thing here is again the future tense of " I will give
unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely".
Verse 7: Again future tense. He that overcometh shall inherit all
things.
Verse 8: But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and
murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars,
shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and
brimstone: which is the second death.
Now finally we can get to the subject at hand being the timing and overall effect of the new heaven and new earth.
So many years ago, when I took notice of the thought provoking words provided by Isaiah as recorded in Isa.34:4, I had an initial thought. It was that the stars looked to be falling to the ground.
Isa 34:4 And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree.
But, In this verse the word "dissolved" doesn't seem to fit with a falling fig. I had to check it out. It turns out that dissolved should be rendered flow as revealed by the Gesenius' Lexicon.
H4743 A primitive root; to melt; figuratively to flow, dwindle, vanish: - consume away, be corrupt, dissolve, pine away. Vitringa states that the use of "melt" is very strange. He understands that "flow" is much more adequate and gives his Biblical reference for it. (pg. 504 of the 1980 printing of the Gesenius lexicon).
So it seems that the host of heaven will flow or fall as a fig falls from a fig tree. This indicates that the angle of the earth axis will have to change to accommodate such an event. This also provides a motivation to exhaustively investigate this idea. As you will observe, not only will the heavens be dramatically changed, the earth also will be drastically changed. The following is the result of the investigation. .
Isa 64:1 Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou
wouldest come down, that the mountains might "flow" (H2151 A primitive root
(compare H2107); to shake) down at thy presence,
Isa 64:2 As when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to
boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may
tremble at thy presence!
Isa 64:3 When thou didst terrible things which we looked not for, thou camest down, the mountains flowed down at thy presence.
Isa 64:4 For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.
Joe 2:30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
Joe 2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
Joe 2:32 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.
Isa 13:9 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.
Isa 13:10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.
Isa 13:11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
Isa 13:12 I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.
Isa 13:13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.
Hag 2:6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;
Hag 2:7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.
Heb 12:26 Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.
Heb 12:27 And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.
Heb 12:28 Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:
The next scriptures will give a very good indication of when the angle of axis changes and therefore creating a new heaven. It is important to note that the term "tribulation" is a direct reference to the troubles that Satan has brought to mankind. Whereas, the wrath of God is never referred to as tribulation. The elect will be gathered at the sound of the seventh trump which is also after Satan looses the dominion over the earth. It is also noteworthy that the kingdoms become ruled over by both the Father and the Son.
Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.
Rev 14:14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.
Rev 14:15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.
Rev 14:16 And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.
1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Mar 13:24 But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,
Mar 13:25 And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.
Mar 13:26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.
Mar 13:27 And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.
Mathew gives a more concise time when the stars fall being the result of the change of the angle of the axis. This establishes new heaven after the rotation ends.
Mat 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
Joe 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
Joe 3:15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.
Joe 3:16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
Amos adds very descriptive information.
Amo 8:9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:
Or as Young's Literal Translation puts it.
Amo 8:9 And it hath come to pass in that day, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, I have caused the sun to go in at noon, And caused darkness on the land in a day of light,
How can darkness occur in a day of light or on a clear day? The only way that could happen is if the axis of the earth changes on a clear day or on a day of light. For a more complete look at the context of Amos 8:9 see the paper "In That Day" in "Other Subjects". Now back to the KJV.
Amo 8:10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.
Amo 8:11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:
Now we come to consider the vast change that this earth is destined to experience. It is quite something that we are given the actual time that that this change will occur. It is interesting that, at least in the vicinity of the hail, men were more angry with God with the hail rather than the earthly changes that are described. ------------------Some time has passed since this paper was written and we, very recently, experienced the damage from ping-pong size hail accompanied by a 70 mile per hour wind. It is very hard to imagine the devastation brought by 75 pound ice boulders "raining" down on mankind and their possessions.
Rev 16:17 And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.
Rev 16:18 And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, suchas was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.
Rev 16:19 And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.
Rev 16:20 And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
Rev 16:21 And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.
Eze 38:19 For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel;
Eze 38:20 So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.
Isa 24:18 And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake.
Isa 24:19 The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved (H6565 A
primitive root; to break up) , the earth is moved exceedingly.
Isa 24:20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.
Jer 4:24 I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled (H7493 A primitive root; to
undulate, and all the hills moved lightly (swiftly).
Jer 4:25 I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled.
Jer 4:26 I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and by his fierce anger.
Jer 4:27 For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate (H8077
Feminine of H8076; devastation); yet will I not make a full end.
Then in more poetic terms.
Mic 1:3 For, behold, the LORD cometh forth out of his place, and will come down,
and tread upon the high places of the earth.
Mic 1:4 And the mountains shall be molten under him, and the valleys shall be cleft, as wax before the fire, and as the waters that are poured down a steep place.
Hab 3:6 He stood, and measured the earth: he beheld, and drove asunder the nations; and the everlasting mountains were scattered, the perpetual hills did bow: his ways are everlasting.
It is quite clear that at the terminal point of the change of the angle of the axis of the earth a NEW HEAVEN will be established. With the mountains not being found a NEW EARTH will be established. With this knowledge we can better appreciate the prophecies given to us in Isaiah chapters 65 and 66. It is important to notice that the new heaven and new earth is in context with a "rejoicing Jerusalem" ----- who are a people of flesh, for the "eighth day" is some time off in the future.
Isa 65:16 That he who blesseth himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth; and he that sweareth in the earth shall swear by the God of truth; because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hid from mine eyes.
Isa 65:17 For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
Isa 65:18 But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.
Isa 65:19 And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.
Isa 65:20 There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.
Isa 66:22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.
Isa 66:23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.
Isa 66:24 And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.