“And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” Rev. 21:2-3 KJV)
Some are teaching that this does not happen until the end of the 1000 year Millennium reign of Christ on Earth. They believe this because of the previous chapter, Rev. 20 where it describes what will happen at the end of the Kingdom Age. The thing is, if you think about it, in Revelation 20, it is just discussing about Satan and His Angels and all those who rejected the great gift of salvation through belief on Christ, and where their final destination is going to be. It shows the Great White Throne Judgement of all the dead who rejected Christ. All at that final destination are going to be condemned because they are not found in the Book Of Life, which contains the names of every person who ever lived who was not blotted out because of unbelief on Christ at their death. It is not a chronological order between chapter 19 and 21. It is like an insert to discuss what will happen to the unredeemed and the devil and his angels and how it will take place. It is written as warning to people to repent and believe the Gospel of salvation.
Then John goes back to writing about the start of the Kingdom Age Millennium reign of Christ on Earth. This is written as a great encouragement for people to believe on Christ and get eternally saved by belief on Christ and His once for all blood atoning sacrifice (Hebrews 10) for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2). This is how I see it and it makes sense by the Scriptures in Matthew 24 and Revelation 21 as well.
In Matthew 24:29 Jesus said that after the Tribulation period, the sun and moon will not give it’s light. They will be darkened. That could be the New Heavens of Revelation 21. We already know the Earth will be renewed during the Kingdom Age and become the utopia it once was before the fall of Adam and Eve. Maybe the Earth was taken off it’s axis giving it different stars? It is speculation on my part and we do not know the specifics, but we do know that it will happen.
In describing the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21 it does read,
“And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.” (Rev. 21:23-24 KJV)
The light of the New Jerusalem will be bright enough as the sun and all on the Earth will walk in it’s light! Jesus said He is the light of the world and this also gives new meaning to the enormity of the presence of God and the light He is.
And then there is another clue in Revelation 21 and that is how it starts right at the first verse.
“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.” (Revelation 21:1 KJV)
Now let’s compare this to the description Isaiah gave those in the Old Testament as an encouragement about the final destination of those who will believe which is not the New Jerusalem but the Earthly Jerusalem on Earth in the Kingdom Age promised by God to come,
“For, 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: and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying. There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.” (Isaiah 65:17-20 KJV)
Sound familiar? This sure looks exactly the same as Rev. 21 and the timing is at the start of the 1000 year Kingdom Age where Christ is ruling on Earth, the New Jerusalem hovering a certain distance from the Earth in space.
That is how I see it, in any case by looking at the context closely.
