As I stated last week, in my opinion, the New Jerusalem, like Ezekiel’s Temple, should be understood as a spiritual reality, and I do not believe that the New Jerusalem, as described in the Book of Revelation, will ever be a concrete, material reality. The image of the Kingdom of God and the image of the New Jerusalem are similar. One is the Kingdom, and the other is the capital city of the Kingdom. The image of the Kingdom of God places the emphasis on us accepting God as our King, which will result in our experience of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. (Rom. 14:17). On the other hand, the image of the New Jerusalem emphasizes the idea that God wants to uniquely share His life, glory, and rule with us.
At Revelation 21:9-10, we read,
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls, full of the seven last plagues, came and spoke with me saying, “Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb. And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.
Jesus Christ is our King, and His faithful servants are His bride. The New Jerusalem is both a spiritual place and a spiritual people. The “bride” is an image of devotion. At Jeremiah 2:2, we read, “I remember regarding you the devotion of your youth, [y]our love when you were a bride.” In order to see the New Jerusalem, God must give us a supernatural elevation. We must be carried away in the Spirit “to a great and high mountain.” Please notice that the New Jerusalem comes down from God, who is Spirit, to us humans, who are body, soul, and spirit.
At Revelation 12:11-14, we read that the New Jerusalem had
…the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very valuable stone, like a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on the gates, which are the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. There were three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
The New Jerusalem illuminates a brilliant light like a very valuable stone, like a very costly and precious stone with a crystalline brightness and transparency. On each gate was written one of the names of the 12 tribes of Israel. We Christians are inextricably connected to Israel. We have been grafted into the rich history of God’s people. They are the root. We all should seek to walk in the steps of Abraham’s faith. Notably, angels guarded access to the New Jerusalem. We, like them, should seek to be faithful servants. God requires both angels and humans to be faithful servants.
In the ancient word, many city gates were architecturally interesting and even beautiful. In times of peace, the gates were an important place of community and passage. Inside, there was blessing and security. The gates of the New Jerusalem faced in every direction because this brotherhood is offered and open to all of humanity. The great wall had 12 foundational stones, and upon each stone was written one of the names of the 12 apostles. A wall is only as strong as its foundation. We should be forever grateful to Christian leaders like Paul, Peter, and James, the Lord’s brother. The 12 apostles are representative of leaders and elder believers, who lead other believers to Christ and Christian maturity. At Revelation 4:4, such elder believers are pictured sitting on 24 thrones, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads. At Daniel 12:3, the elder believers are described as leading the many to righteousness. Such believers will shine “like the stars forever and ever” (Dan. 12:3). The Apostle Peter taught that such believers “will receive the unfading crown of glory” (1 Peter. 5:4).
At Revelation 21: 15-18, we read,
The one who spoke with me had a gold measuring rod to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. The city is laid out as a square, and its length is as great as the width, and he measured the city with the rod, twelve thousand stadia, its length, width, and height are equal. And he measured its wall, 144 cubits, by human measurements, which are also angelic measurements. The material of the wall was jasper, and the city was pure gold, like clear glass.
Similar to what happened at Ezekiel, Chapters 40-48, an angel measured the city, gates, and wall of the New Jerusalem. However, this time the angel used a gold measuring rod, which is another image of the importance and significance of the New Jerusalem and its superiority over the Old Jerusalem and all of the Old Jewish Temples. The dimensions and the architecture of the New Jerusalem are very precise and finely tuned. God knows exactly what He is doing, how He is doing it, and what He will achieve. The city was laid out as a perfect cube. It should be noted that the Most Holy Place (where God’s presence dwelled) was designed as a perfect cube in all of the Old Jewish Temples. However, the New Jerusalem was incomparably larger in size than any temple or city that ever existed on Planet Earth. It was 12,000 stadia, by 12,000 stadia, by 12,000 stadia. A stadia was 600 feet. Therefore, the perfect cube and City was 1,363.63 miles, by 1,363.63 miles, by 1363.63 miles. As a comparison, the distance between New York and Los Angeles is approximately 2445 miles. The New Jerusalem is an incredibly large city! It is a perfectly balanced, other-worldly city.
In the ancient world, the stature of a city was often defined by the height and thickness of its walls. The walls of the New Jerusalem were incredibly thick and strong. The walls were 144 cubits thick. A cubit was typically 18 inches, which means the walls were approximately 216 feet thick. As noted in The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, walls 12 to 18 feet thick were considered substantial in the ancient world.[1] Walls measuring 144 cubits was symbolic of incredible and perfect security and safety. The number 12 and derivatives of the number 12 (like 144) are symbolic of eschatological completeness, superiority, and fullness. The safest place we can ever live is in fellowship with God. Finally, it is noted that the wall was jasper (a precious stone), and the city was made of pure gold. According to the BBC Earth Science, all of the gold ever mined on Planet Earth could fit into 3.5 Olympic swimming pools.[2] Considering the size of the New Jerusalem and the quantity of gold required to construct the New Jerusalem, it is truly a superior and other-worldly city. Our God is very powerful and wealthy, and He can solve a lot of problems.
At Revelation 21: 19-20, we read that the 12 foundation stones of the city wall were decorated with very valuable jewels. In fact, the passage specifically describes 12 different kinds of precious stones. This is symbolic of the high value God places upon elder believers like Peter, Paul, James (the Lord’s brother), John (the Elder), and all of the Apostles. As noted above, such elder believers were pictured as sitting on 24 thrones, clothed in white, and wearing golden crowns on their heads (Rev. 4:4). In my opinion, such elder believers will number in the thousands and will rotate on and off the Council of 24 and play a major role in ruling with Christ.
At Revelation 21: 21, we learn that the 12 gates of the city were each comprised of a single pearl. Of course, single pearls of such size have never existed on Planet Earth. And then it is noted that the street of the city was made of pure gold, like transparent glass. Again, gold in such quantities and purity does not exist in the natural world. Revelation, Chapters 21 and 22 provide numerous hints that the New Jerusalem is an unnatural and other-worldly city, which should be understood as a spiritual city that has replaced the Old Jerusalem and Herod’s Temple destroyed by the Romans.
A Bible Class discussing “The New Jerusalem, Part 2” can be viewed at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdmX-WU3CRA
[1] “Wall.” Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, edited by Leland Ryken, et al, InterVarsity Press, 1998, pp. 923-924.
[2] Pomeroy, Steven. “The Entire World’s Gold Fits in Just 3.5 Olympic Pools.” Real Clear Science. 3 July 2023, https://www.realclearscience.com/video/2023/07/03/the_entire_worlds_gold_fits_in_just_35_olympic_pools_963557.html#!.
