stunning. The New Jerusalem is described as a physical city with a wall, gates, and foundations. It has the throne of God, a river of life and the Tree of Life. Isaiah speaks about the new creation in Isaiah 65:
For behold, I create a new heavens
and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come
to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for
behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness.
I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; no more shall be
heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress. (65:17–19)
There are obvious parallels here to the New Heavens and Earth described in Revelation 21. Isaiah continues:
They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. … The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like an ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain, says the Lord (65:21, 25).
Scripture teaches that believers will enjoy a physical
resurrection on a physical earth—the idea of floating around on clouds
may be a popular image of our eternal existence, but it’s certainly not Biblical." CMI
