The Constant Church of God presents clear answers to your questions, directly from the Bible!

What is the New Jerusalem?

There are those in mainstream, traditional Christianity who believe the New Jerusalem is merely "symbolic."

A place where there will be no more death, sorrow or pain.

Only eternal peace, holiness and joy.

Literally heaven on earth.

Is that what the Bible says?

The Bible actually provides a lot of detailed, eye-opening information regarding the New Jerusalem.

So let’s open our Bibles and begin in Revelation chapter 21.

The apostle John, in vision, sees the New Jerusalem.

Verse 1.

1 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.

John sees a vision of the NEW heaven and the NEW earth.

The pain, suffering, sorrow and misery — EVERYTHING — that had to do with the FIRST heaven and the FIRST earth had passed away or ceased to exist.

There was no more sea, for it had been dissolved by fervent heat.

And the city — the New Jerusalem — had no need for the sun nor the moon because the glory — the majesty, the magnificence, the dignity, the brilliance — of God the Father and the Lamb Jesus Christ illuminated the city!

Continuing in verse 2.

2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

The holy city — the NEW Jerusalem — will come down from heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, to the new earth.

Verse 3.

3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell [or live] with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.”

And so, God the Father Himself will come down from heaven to the earth and make the New Jerusalem His home.

AFTER Christ has established HIS rule; and, AFTER He has made all things new.

What will the New Jerusalem look like?

Let’s continue reading in verse 16, Revelation chapter 21.

16 The city is laid out as a square; its length is as great as its breadth. And he measured the city with the reed [or a measuring stick]: twelve thousand furlongs. Its length, breadth, and height are equal.

The New Jerusalem will actually be more of a cube: measuring 12 thousand furlongs long, 12 thousand furlongs wide and 12 thousand furlongs high!

Calculating EIGHT furlongs to a mile, the footprint of the New Jerusalem will occupy an area of TWO MILLION TWO HUNDRED FIFTY THOUSAND square miles or 5.8 million square kilometers.

A city that size would cover about two-thirds of the ENTIRE land area of the continental United States!

It would be over 4 times the size of Alaska, the largest state in the US at 586 thousand square miles.

That’s how massive this city is. And that’s just the ground level.

At 15 hundred miles high, the New Jerusalem would rise past the earth’s atmosphere over TWENTY FOUR TIMES!

If it were built like a modern-day skyscraper, the New Jerusalem would be close to 8 million feet tall, with 660 thousand floors!

Exceeding the tallest free-standing structure in the world — the Burj Khalifa in Dubai — by almost THREE THOUSAND TIMES in height!

How is this possible?

The New Jerusalem is a LITERAL city, created and fashioned by God, with SPIRIT not physical materials.

The foundations of the wall were garnished — beautified or adorned — with SPIRIT gemstones.

Not the physical gemstones we are all familiar with.

The streets of the city were of PURE GOLD like clear glass.

Couldn’t have been physical gold as we know it. Because physical gold — being a metal — is not transparent.

John here sees things so utterly fantastic and incomprehensible to him.

He is trying to describe what he sees with words he’s familiar with.

WHO will be in the New Jerusalem?

God the Father and Jesus Christ, together with former humans now changed to immortal SPIRIT will be in the New Jerusalem!

Former humans who have overcome.

Former humans who have kept God’s truth; who have refused to deny God’s name by remaining steadfast and loyal to Him, despite the overwhelming pressure to conform to the world.

They will become spirit-born members of God’s Family.

And WHAT will they be doing in the New Jerusalem?

The answer is in Revelation chapter 22.

Notice what John records here at the end of verse 5.

5 “. . .and they shall reign for ever and ever.”

The Greek word for “reign” literally means “to be king.”

That’s what those former humans now made spirit will be doing.

They will be reigning as kings and priests, rulers and teachers, leaders of the government of God under Jesus Christ, the KING of kings and LORD of lords in the New Jerusalem!

The magnitude of God’s holy city — the New Jerusalem — is mind-boggling; but we believe what God says in His word: the Bible!

We know the New Jerusalem is REAL.

It’s not some metaphor.

Nor is it symbolic of some ideal, utopian-like paradise.

The New Jerusalem is where God's throne will be located, with Jesus Christ seated at His right hand.

The New Jerusalem will be the Headquarters of the Kingdom of God over all the universe.

The New Jerusalem is where the whole universe will be governed from.

And in plain scripture after plain scripture, the Bible clearly says that this is what God has in mind for us.
IF we obey Him.

So if we persevere and stay steadfast all the way to the end, we are going to be at the same place where God the Father and Jesus Christ will be.

We will reign as kings, governing, administering and executing the policies decreed by Jesus Christ from God the Father over ALL things.

The whole universe!!

FOR ALL ETERNITY in God’s holy city, the New Jerusalem!

This is Ross Abasolo with the Constant Church of God.

Join us again next time to hear more about what the Bible actually says!