The above picture shows the New Jerusalem, or city of God, on the new heavens and earth. Whether the city is a cube or pyramidal is a point we may address later. In this chapter we will begin to look closer at what the scriptures say about this city and its inhabitants. Also, we will perhaps discuss whether the city will have a foundation on earth or be a kind of satellite or moon that hovers in the heavens above the earth.
In "The New Jerusalem: The Consummation of God's Work In Humanity" by David Yoon (See here), we have these good words on our subject (emphasis mine):
"Throughout church history, the mystery of God's purpose and that of man's destiny have been a continuous source for debate and discussion among Christians. According to the divine revelation in the Holy Scriptures, the ultimate answer to these two mysteries is presented in the final vision of the Bible--the vision of the New Jerusalem, the holy city. This vision, described in Revelation 21 and 22, concludes the entire Scriptures and completes the progression of the divine revelation concerning God and His interaction with humankind. As the consummating vision in the Bible, the New Jerusalem unveils the ultimate issue of God's work upon His elect, the final state of their perfection through their participation in His great salvation (Heb. 2:3). The accomplishment of God's purpose and the fulfillment of humanity's destiny culminate and converge in the New Jerusalem."
The New Jerusalem is an eternal city, containing streets and buildings, and the mansions or abodes of the redeemed and resurrected believers from the beginning of the world until the return of Christ. It is, as Yoon says, "the final state" of "perfection" for the people of God. This is the eternal home for the family of God from among redeemed men and women.
Said another writer (See here emphasis mine):
"God’s plan of salvation includes, as we have seen, three great renewals: the renewal of our souls in regeneration, the renewal of our bodies in a glorious resurrection, and the renewal of our world in the creation of a new heaven and a new earth; or, if we may combine the language of the two apostles, St Paul and St John, the building of a new and eternal city, New Jerusalem."
This is a great truth. The city, as previously stated, has two aspects. The work of making a people for this glorious city (the place) is begun in time when sinners are converted to Christ, and as they are thereafter renewed "day by day" (II Cor. 4: 16) as they grow up in Christ. This renewal will not be completed till the body is also renewed in the resurrection. The world will also one day be renewed as we have seen.
The City of God
A city or country has two parts. A city may be defined by the totality of its citizens. It may also be defined by the physical aspects of it, such as its land, streets, buildings, etc. In John's vision of the New Jerusalem, the eternal city of God, the description of that blessed world community focuses on both aspects, although the major focus is upon the material or physical aspects of that city. That city and country is the hope of the saints from all the ages. So we read this of Abraham:
"By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God." (Heb. 11: 8-10 nkjv)
On God being both "builder" and "maker" of this glorious city, Clark's commentary says (emphasis mine):
"The word τεχνιτης signifies an architect, one who plans, calculates, and constructs a building. The word δημιουργος signifies the governor of a people; one who forms them by institutions and laws; the framer of a political constitution. God is here represented the Maker or Father of all the heavenly inhabitants, and the planner of their citizenship in that heavenly country."
The city that Abraham looked for was the one that was promised to him, and to all believers. This city is part of the "inheritance" to be received when Christ returns and resurrects believers. Though Abraham and his family "dwelt in the land of promise" (Palestine or land of Canaan), it was not the superior or antitypical land of promise, or city, which is well described by the apostle John in Revelation's closing chapters. The earthly Jerusalem, glorious as it was under king Solomon, was not the fulfillment of the promise. It became only a type of it, much like the church of Christ of the new covenant (testament), as an institution, is a miniature example of it, or partial realization of it.
Coffman in his commentary references Macknight, as did Clark, who is quoted as saying:
"Believers, after the judgment, shall all be joined in one society or community with the angels. It is called a city which has firm foundations, because it is a community which is never to be dissolved. James Macknight, op. cit., p. 562."
The New Jerusalem, described in the Apocalypse, is a literal city. It cannot be made to be merely symbolic, as some are desirous of doing, especially among Amillennialists. It is not a symbol of the church, though the church (saved people) are made citizens of it in their conversions to Christ and mirrors life in the age to come, as we will see. It is rather that city which Abraham waited for, a city and community whose architect and builder is God himself. In the same chapter in Hebrews we have these additional words of commentary on that glorious city:
"These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them." (13-16)
The new heavens and earth, or kingdom of God on earth, is a country (realm) and a city, or "city state." That is defined by Britannica as "a political system consisting of an independent city having sovereignty over contiguous territory and serving as a political center." The word "city" is from the Greek word "polis" and which basically means such.
In the above text we see how the city that has been "prepared" for believers is not connected with the present heavens and earth but with the new heavens and earth. While occupying the present world, believers are strangers and pilgrims in it. So the writer of Hebrews says further: "For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come." (13: 14) By "here" he means in this present age, in the present earth. In the age to come and in the new heavens and earth, we will be no strangers or pilgrims there. Notice also that by the above text (13: 14) we see that the church is not the city foretold, for the church is what is now present, but the city under consideration is "the one to come."
The city of God will come when Christ comes. Whether it comes strictly at the end of the millennium, or at the start, is a point we will address further later.
That celestial city, country, or homeland is "better" in every way than any city on earth. It is a "heavenly country," which word "heavenly" does not mean it is merely fictional or symbolic, for it is literal and heavenly. When we read of the angels praising the birth of Christ (Luke 2: 13) being a "heavenly host," we see this truth. Notice this text:
"The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly." (I Cor. 15: 47-49 KJV)
The Lord Jesus, "the second man," is a heavenly man and bears the image of a heavenly man. So too will the city of God, whether of the physical city or of its occupants, be both literal and heavenly.
Wrote the apostle Paul:
"And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." (II Cor. 4: 18)
Notice the mention of "heavenly kingdom." The adjective "heavenly" does not mean non-literal. Notice also how again the apostle sees his participation in that kingdom as something that was future and not a present reality for him. In another verse in Hebrews, which we will look at shortly, the writer mentions "heavenly Jerusalem." (12: 22)
For the present time there are of course what are called "the example and shadow of heavenly things" (Heb. 8: 5) or "the patterns of things in the heavens" (9: 23). The Hebrew tabernacle and temple were examples of the heavenly temple and house of God, and so too is the new testament church.
It is interesting and a fact noted by many commentators on the Apocalypse that in the Book of Revelation the earthly Jerusalem is described as a city which "spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt," and the place where Christ was crucified (Rev. 11: 8), which shows it is not the heavenly Jerusalem. Also, the New Jerusalem is the antithesis of end times Babylon, that commercial city (and city state) of the end time global apostasy. (Rev. chapter 18) So, to borrow from the title of one of Charles Dicken's books, we may say that we have examples of a "tale of two cities." Another famous book in the Christian community was written by Augustine (5th century), contrasting the history of two cities, the city of God (people of God) versus the city of man.
Every man is either a citizen of Babylon (representing the group of all unsaved peoples, who are therefore part of false religion) or a citizen of heavenly Jerusalem (representing the group of all saved peoples, who are therefore part of true religion).
The New Jerusalem or heavenly kingdom is the believer's fatherland or motherland. It is essentially connected with the age to come and with the new heavens and earth and this truth is seen in texts such as we see again in Isaiah 65: 17-19, which we have cited in previous chapters, which reads as follows:
“Behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. 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. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people.”
Not only is the new Jerusalem connected with the new heavens and earth, but in the above text the city is distinguished from the people or citizens who reside therein. About this citizenship, the apostle Paul wrote the following: "But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ." (Phil. 3: 20 NIV)
The KJV uses the word "conversation" rather than "citizenship" but the latter is the best and is what most English translations give for the Greek word politeuma. It denotes the life of a citizen. It may also signify a "commonwealth." The fact that this citizenship is "in heaven" reminds us of Paul's speaking of "Jerusalem which is above." He wrote: "But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all." (Gal. 4: 26) Heavenly Jerusalem is contrasted with earthly Jerusalem in the context, with "present day Jerusalem which is in bondage with her children." (vs. 25) Again, notice the two aspects of Jerusalem. There is the physical entity (such as we see described by the apostle John in the closing chapters of the Apocalypse) and then there are the citizens, or "her children."
The earthly Jerusalem was to be a miniature representation of the heavenly Jerusalem (although it often failed to be such). In the same way is the new testament church also a miniature of it, as we will further see shortly. Those who are believers in the God of the Bible and in Christ Jesus, the incarnate Son of God, are children of Zion. (See Joel 2: 23; Psalm 87: 3-6) In the following posting of mine, in the series titled "God's Elect Or World's Elite?", I wrote extensively on this subject (see here). In that same series I dealt extensively with this text, also from Hebrews, on what it means to be a part of this eternal city of God.
In the next chapter we will continue our close study of the New Jerusalem or city of God. There is still much to contemplate on this part of our study.
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