Introduction

The Bible tells us about a new heavens and a new earth.  New is better, right?  So this is a good thing, right?  This is one of those topics that is easy to discuss, in some ways, because there are only four instances in the Bible where this is mentioned(Isa. 65 & 66; II Pet. 3 and Rev. 21).  Of course, the less information we have about something, the less we know about it.  Based on the limited passages(and it is literally 4 verses), there is only so much we can glean.

What Is This New Heavens and Earth?

Let’s look at the two instances when the new heavens and new earth are mentioned in Is. 65 & 66(the only two instances in the Old Testament).  Before we can do that, we need to pull back and see the entire book of Isaiah for what it is.  The first 35 chapters of Isaiah deal with the history of Israel, specifically their rebellion against God, their idolatry and their abuse of the most vulnerable segments of society(e.g. poor, widows, orphans, etc.).  Chapters 36-39 deal with the present(from Isaiah’s point of view).  It was 701 BC and the Assyrian army came to destroy Jerusalem, the capital of Judah(the southern kingdom – the nation of Israel had separated in 930 BC into two separate nations, the northern kingdom(variously referred to as Israel/Samaria/Ephraim) and the southern kingdom(variously referred to as Judah/Jerusalem)).  Assyria had conquered the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 BC, then proceeded to conquer almost all of the southern kingdom of Judah, ending at Jerusalem.  Assyria threatened to destroy Jerusalem, and Jerusalem was helpless.  It was just a matter of time.  But God intervened and destroyed 187,000 Assyrian soldiers who were camped outside the walls of Jerusalem in just a single night(Isa. 37:36).  Chapters 40 – 66 look forward(in time from Isaiah’s point of view) to a new kingdom that God would bring into this world.  Isaiah 40:3 tells of one who would cry out in the wilderness, announcing the coming of the kingdom and its Messiah.  All four gospels look back to this passage, stating the John the Baptist was this person(not the Messiah, but the herald of the Messiah – Matt. 3:3; Mark 1:3, Luke 3:4-6; John 1:23).  It was Jesus who would set up the kingdom that is discussed in chapters 40-66 of Isaiah.

God promises restoration of His people, Israel, but He also speaks of a new kingdom that would be better than the old Israel.  Why?  Because the old Israel(the physical nation of Israel) had turned its back on God time and time again.  That is why He was going to punish them by exiling them to Babylon(see Isa. 39:6); this happened in 605 BC, almost 100 years later.  Chapters 40-66 are the promise(God’s) of something good happening after the tragic news of exile at the end of chapter 39.  Chapters 60-66 focus even more so on this new kingdom to come.  In Isa. 65:17, God states that He will create a new heavens and a new earth.  This sounds similar to what happened in the beginning, I mean the actual beginning.  In Gen. 1:1, we are told that God created the heavens and the earth.  The phrase “heavens and earth” is typically used to describe everything.  So, in Gen. 1:1, God tells us that He made everything that there is, whether you are looking up at the heavens, or if you are looking on the earth.  When we get to Isa. 65:17, God is not saying that He is going to start over and make a new one . . . a new earth and a new heavens.  The language used in chapters 40 – 66 is often couched in metaphor.  What does this mean?  Would there be a new heavens and a new earth?  Yes, but not a literal new planet earth and a literal new heavens(everything up there).  It would be new because God would bring about a new kingdom.  This one would be so different, especially from physical Israel’s point of view, that it would be like a whole new creation.  How so?  For one thing, Gentiles would be a part of this kingdom(Isa. 66:12).  Going all the way back to Isa. 2:2, God told His people that all nations(i.e. Gentiles) would flow into this new kingdom.  This would be a kingdom without borders(Isa. 54:2-3 states that Israel(God’s people) would need to expand their tents to include more people dwelling among them.  Jesus told His disciples to make disciples of all nations in Matt. 28:19-20.  And in Rev. 7:9, we see that happened, as heaven(the abode of God, not the sky) has people from all nations in it).  It would be a kingdom that would not grow due to physical battles and wars(In John 18:36, Jesus states that His kingdom was not of this world; if it were, His disciples would fight).  Instead, this new kingdom coming from God would be a spiritual kingdom.  Physical people living in a variety of different places would make up this kingdom.  It would be as if God created everything anew(Rev. 21:5).

This leads us to the understanding that the new heavens and new earth mentioned in Isaiah 65:17 and 66:22 refer to the new kingdom, which Jesus created through His death, burial and resurrection.   His sinless life paved the way for a new covenant between God and His new people(Heb. 10:1-4, 10).  God’s people were no longer the physical nation of Israel, but this new nation was a spiritual nation – still referred to as Israel(I Pet. 2:9-10).  The book of Isaiah ends with the warning(judgment) that anyone who is not part of this new kingdom that was to come(from Isaiah’s point of view) would be subject to eternal condemnation(Isa. 66:24 – where the worm does not die and the fire is never quenched – Jesus quotes this passage in Mark 9:44).  But what about II Pet. 3 and Rev. 21?

New Heavens and New Earth in the New Testament

Peter and John(the author of Revelation) each use this same language – a new heavens and a new earth, but are they talking about the same thing as Isaiah, or are they merely using the language of Isaiah to get people to understand that a MAJOR change is coming?  Something akin to a new heavens and a new earth.  Let’s look.

The third chapter of II Peter deals a lot with the return of Jesus.  There were going to be people who would say that Jesus was not going to return(II Pet. 3:4).  Jesus had said that He would return, but these scoffers would make the argument that it had been so long, yet He had not returned.  [Note:  It had been about 35 years since Jesus’ ascension into heaven when Peter is writing this letter.  So the people of Peter’s day were saying that Jesus had taken so long that He must not be returning.]  Peter responds by arguing that God is not slack(i.e. slow) in keeping His promises(to return).  On the contrary, He is patient and wants everyone to repent.  That being said, Peter reminds them that this physical world(i.e. the heavens and the earth) are reserved for fire, meaning that everything we know in this physical world is going to be destroyed by fire.  We are not there yet, Peter is stating, but that is coming.  When will that be?  We do not know.  Peter says it will come like a thief in the night(i.e. an unknown time), but make no mistake, it will come(II Pet. 3:10).  With this in mind, Peter states that since everything in this world is going to be destroyed, we need to live holy lives(II Pet. 3:11).  [Note:  This is really Peter’s main point in this third chapter.  We need to remain faithful to God, even when it seems like He will not return, because He will.]  We should look forward to Jesus’ return, when everything will be destroyed by fire(II Pet. 3:12).  By the way, fire is symbolic of judgment, so the destruction of this physical world by fire is God’s judgment against the world.  This leads us to Peter’s conclusion.  We look forward to(future tense) a new heavens and a new earth.  This means that after God destroys this physical world, we still have something to look forward to.  He calls it a new heavens and a new earth.  But wait, he doesn’t stop there.  He goes on to say, still in verse 13, that this new heavens and new earth is where righteousness dwells.

Heavens and earth is viewed in a sense of totally.  It is everything there is in this physical world now.  And once this physical world is destroyed by God, we will be left with nothing . . . right?  Wrong!  Peter assures his readers that there will be something for us after this.  He calls it a new heavens and a new earth(i.e. a new everything).  And that new everything is what most people think of as heaven.  Does that mean that we will still be separated from God(i.e. we on earth and God in heaven)?  Absolutely not!  Jesus tells us that after the judgment, we will be with God.  The parable of the marriage feast in Matt. 22:1-14 states that we will be with God.  The parable of the ten virgins(Matt. 25:1-13 and the parable of the talents(Matt. 25:14-30) also reference to the judgment and post-judgment.  In all three, those who are faithful are with God(God is the king in the marriage feast, the groom in the 10 virgins and the man traveling in the talents parable). 

What does John have to say about the new heavens and new earth in Revelation 21?  Revelation can be a difficult book to understand at times, but John’s message is effectively the same as Peter’s point in II Pet. 3:  remain faithful to God.  There is a lot of fantastical imagery in Revelation, but the first chapter is about remaining faithful.  When Jesus addresses the seven churches in Asia(chapters 2-3), He tells them to be faithful.  Chapters 4-22 consist of God showing us that although we will deal with different struggles, the struggles are worth it . . . if we remain faithful!  The later part of Rev. 20 deals with the judgment.  Those who are faithful(the point of this book) are referred to as having their names written in the Book of Life(Rev. 20:12).  Anyone whose name was not written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire, which is the second death(Rev. 20:14-15).  The first death is when your body dies(that is a physical death).  The second death is a spiritual death(i.e. eternal separation from God).  The first is bad . . . the second is incomparably bad in comparison to the first.  However, for those whose names are written in the Book of Life, there is chapters 21-22.  It is referred to as a new heavens and a new earth.  But it is different from the first one(i.e. the heavens and earth that we live in now).  God is with us; He dwells with us(Rev. 21:3).  There is no more sadness; no more pain(Rev. 21:4) because the former things(i.e. this world we live in with all the sin and the negative effects of sin are no more).  God is the one who makes all things new(Rev. 21:5).   The remainder of the book utilizes imagery to illustrate that God will be with us and He will provide everything we need.  The Lamb’s wife(Rev. 21:9) is the new kingdom that was promised by Isaiah and brought into being by Jesus.  All those whose names were written in the Book of Life comprise that kingdom.  A physical description of the kingdom is given(i.e. pearly gates, streets of gold, etc.).  None of this is actually physical, as heaven is a spiritual place, but when communicating with people living in a physical world, how do you describe spiritual things?  You use physical things so they can extrapolate.  No sin can enter this place; again, it is only those whose names are written in the Book of Life(Rev. 21:27).  There is a river of life; there is a tree of life; there is no night(Rev. 22:1-5).  God provides everything we need(no, not physical things like water and light – these are physical descriptors to help us understand that God will provide everything we need, which is really just Him).

What About Now?

We are living in the time of Isaiah’s new heavens and new earth.  If you are faithful to God, you are a part of that new kingdom, sometimes referred to as the new Jerusalem.  You are part of God’s chosen people, and that’s pretty special.  What of Peter’s reference to a new heavens and a new earth?  We are still waiting for that.  That new heavens and earth will not be acquired until after this world is judged and destroyed.  After that, those who are faithful to God, those who are a part of His kingdom, a part of His church, will enter into that new heavens and new earth.  Everyone else will be consigned to eternal damnation!  This is something no one who loves God would want for anyone.  Let’s show people that we are waiting for Jesus to return, but let people know that God is patient.  And He wants everybody to repent.  He wants everyone to go to heaven.  Most won’t, but that’s not because God doesn’t want them.  It’s because they do not want God.  I suspect that many do not want God because they don’t know Him.  And how can you want something you don’t even know?  You can’t.  So let’s tell people about Him.  Many won’t listen; but some will(Matt. 7:13-14).  We need to find those who will listen.  It’s up to us.