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The Harvester Podcast is brought to you by the Florida School of Preaching. Listen weekly to take a dive into biblical topics and thoughtful studies on things that matter to our eternal souls.
Welcome
to the Harvester Podcast. We are happy you
have joined us today.
As we continue our season six,
Minoring in the Majors, the Major
Prophets,
that is, and we are in a section of this
season where we are talking about
the book of Isaiah. And we've had three
lessons on Isaiah so far.
I am your host, Brian Kenyon, and Stephen
and Forrest are not able to be here today.
We are very busy this time of year,
and it seems like I keep saying that,
but it's true. We are very busy,
and so ~ but the podcast must go on,
so we're gonna continue here.
today. But the subject of this lesson from
Isaiah is New Heavens and New Earth.
New heavens and new earth. And Isaiah
talks about that.
That phrase occurs four times in the
Bible,
twice in Isaiah, and twice in the New
Testament.
And so this will be part one of the study.
We're just going look at it in the book of
Isaiah.
And then part two, we have to follow up,
we feel like, we have to follow up with
the New Testament occurrences
to show the fulfillment of that.
And but actually sh to show how they mean
two different things.
Well, there's the overall meaning that's
just true in both cases,
all four cases, and that is a spiritual
dwelling for God's people.
But there's different nuances in the Old
Testament and in the New Testament,
and we need to really understand that,
as you know that this is a somewhat
controversial subject in the Brotherhood
today,
and so we want to address it in Isaiah.
Now as we begin a study of a Bible
subject,
no matter how potentially controversial
that subject may be,
we must begin with an examination of what
the Bible actually says on that subject,
especially as in this case, when the Bible
explicitly addresses it.
And so new heavens and new earth is a
phrase the Bible does explicitly mention.
And thus any study of this subject must
first start with an examination
of what the Bible actually teaches,
where the phrase is mentioned.
And so we will look at this again,
~ as I mentioned in this episode,
Isaiah 65, 17 and 66, 22,
and then in part two of this we'll look at
its New Testament occurrences.
Now, when we think about the new heavens
and new earth.
You know, anything labeled new must have
an old counterpart.
In fact, the Hebrews writer says in
Hebrews 8 13,
in that he says, A new covenant,
he has made the first obsolete.
Now what is becoming obsolete and growing
old is ready to vanish away.
And so when we talk about new heavens and
new earth,
we must first understand the old heavens
and earth.
And we find that phrase beginning in
Genesis one one,
in the beginning God created the heavens
and the earth.
Now notice the King James translation is
the only one of the major translations
that
has heaven singular. The word is actually
plural.
In the beginning God created the heavens
and the earth.
And Genesis one one is best taken as an
opening statement which functions
both as a title and a summary of the
entire chapter.
And that's the way the major translations
have it.
Now there have been in the past some
well-meaning Christian evidences guys
who would have in their literature and
stuff that on day one God created the
heaven,
the earth, the water, and light.
Simply because Genesis one, one and two,
in the beginning God created the heavens
and the earth,
and the earth was without form and void,
and darkness was upon the face of the
deep,
and the Spirit of God moved upon the face
of the waters.
And God said, Let there be light.
And so they would include Genesis one and
two with the first day of creation.
But that just doesn't doesn't hold very
well,
because to include verses one and two in
the first day of creation
makes the heavens and the earth the only
thing that God did
not speak into existence. You know,
in all the days of creation, God said,
God said, God said. But if you take verses
one and two as part of that,
then you either have heaven,
earth, and water being eternal,
or you have something in God's creation
that God did not speak into existence.
And so why
Why make that? Again, Genesis one three,
six, nine, fourteen, twenty and twenty
four,
God said, You know, there's a God breathed
structure given to the poetry
and the majestic
outlay of creation. And so rather than
being part of the first day of creation,
the heavens and the earth in Genesis 1 1
is a reference to everything,
as in everything from A to Z was created
by God.
Now the details are then itemized in the
six days of creation activity,
Genesis 1 3 through 31, after which God
ceased or rested on the seventh day,
Genesis 2 1 through 3.
The words heaven and earth occur many
times together in Scripture.
In fact, there's a bunch of them,
you know, from Genesis 11, 4 all the way
to Jeremiah,
well, Jeremiah 4, 23 and 28,
and there's a lot more than that.
However, in those verses where creation is
under consideration,
the words are a reference to everything
created,
not just to the literal heavens where the
birds fly,
the planets orbit.
And God dwells, or to the literal planet
upon which human animals dwell.
Rather these verses refer to the whole
created universe again from
A to Z. Now of particular interest in this
study of the new heavens
and new earth are those passages found in
Isaiah.
Now the only Old Testament book where the
explicit phrase new heavens
and new earth occur is in Isaiah,
and the New Heavens and the New Earth
Isaiah sixty six twenty two occur.
In the following passages, heavens and
earth cannot be limited to only those
literal
parts of creation, but rather they must
refer to all creation from A to Z.
When we read a couple of these,
Isaiah 42, five says, Thus says God the
Lord,
who created the heavens and stretched them
out,
who spread forth the earth, and that which
comes from it,
who gives breath to all people on it.
And spirit to those who walk on it.
Now again, who created the heavens and
stretched them out,
who spread forth the earth, that's not
just talking about,
you know, where the birds fly,
but or you know, where we live,
but that's talking about everything.
He created everything from A to Z.
Isaiah 44, 24. Thus says the Lord your
Redeemer,
and he who formed you from the womb.
I am the Lord who make all things.
Who stretches out the heavens all alone,
who spreads abroad the earth by myself?
Again he's using that phrase, and then
notice it's parallel who makes all things,
who stretches out the heavens all alone,
who spread forth the earth by itself.
Heaven and earth require heavens and earth
involve all things created.
Isaiah forty five twelve,
I've made the earth and created man on it.
I, my hands, stretched out the heavens,
and all their host I have commanded.
And so here again, heavens and earth are
not referencing just to where
the birds fly in the planet's orbit and
the globe on which we live,
but is talking about all creation.
Isaiah forty-five, eighteen. For thus says
the Lord who created the heavens,
who is God, who formed the earth and made
it,
who has established it, who did not create
it?
In vain, who formed it to be inhabited,
I am the Lord, and there is none other.
Again, heavens and earth here are
referring to everything,
not just those two literal items.
Isaiah forty eight thirteen Indeed my hand
has laid the foundation of the earth,
and my right hand has stretched out the
heavens.
When I call to them, they stand up
together.
Again heavens and earth are talking about
everything,
not just those items.
Isaiah fifty one, thirteen, and you forget
the Lord your maker,
who stretched out the heavens and laid the
foundations of the earth.
Again, everything created, not just those
items.
And so we actually do a the Bible an
injustice
if we're including heavens and earth in
the first day of creation.
Because again, the beautiful poetry of
Genesis one one,
you have a a great introduction,
Genesis
To creative activity, Genesis one,
one and two, and a great conclusion with
God rested on the seventh day,
Genesis two, one through three.
And in between that you have the six days
of creative activity that each begin with,
God said, God said, God said. And of
course,
even in Exodus twenty, verse eleven,
know ye not that in six days God created
the heavens and the earth and
the seas and all that in them is.
And he rested on the seventh day.
And so heavens and earth, to really to
better understand and appreciate
the new heavens and new earth,
we must understand the first heavens and
earth.
Now, even in some non-creation passages,
the words heavens and earth refer to
everything,
not to that which is limited to those two
literal items.
Again, Leviticus 26, 19, when ~
God is pronouncing curses on the Levites
if they don't follow God's will.
He says, I will break the pride of your
power,
I will make your heavens like iron and
your earth like bronze.
And so what is he saying there?
He's he's using a figure of heavens and
earth,
but he's saying your entire life will be
like iron and like bronze.
In Deuteronomy 28 23, in a similar passage
where
Moses is pronouncing curses on the
children of Israel if they do not follow
God.
He says, And your heavens which are over
your head shall be bronze,
and the earth which is under you shall be
iron.
In other words, it will be very hard,
very difficult. And of course,
it came to pass it was. But notice even in
these non creation passages,
the use of heavens and the earth in the
Old Testament will have a bearing,
you know, they're they're not talking
about.
literal items, but they're talking about
everything.
And so again our understanding of the new
heavens and the new earth must begin first
with an understanding of the first heavens
and earth,
that is, this creation that God has made
for us.
Okay, so now let's look at the new heavens
and new earth in Isaiah,
particularly chapter 65, verse 17.
Notice the two passages in Isaiah that
explicitly mention new heavens
and new earth are actually part of the
same context.
In Isaiah 65 and 66,
and they represent not only the end of the
book of Isaiah,
but also its climax, that is, the promise
of the new heavens and the new earth.
Not only goes beyond anything else in the
book,
but even it goes beyond what our
imaginations can sin can can conceive.
And so it's actually, you know,
as we notice with a lot of things in the
Bible well,
in the Bible, they're put in terms that we
can understand,
anthropomorphic sometimes. All right,
but in Isaiah sixty-five seventeen
The prophet writes for behold I create new
heavens and a new earth
the former shall not be remembered or come
to mind.
In Isaiah sixty six twenty two the prophet
wrote for as the new heavens
and the new earth which I will make shall
remain before me,
says the Lord, so shall your descendants
and your name remain.
Now consideration here will be upon the
first of these references
in Isaiah sixty five seventeen.
When this context is examined,
it is clear that what Isaiah is referring
to is the Messianic kingdom.
Now to understand Isaiah's use of new
heavens and new earth,
it is helpful to first note a contrast in
the immediate context that will limit
the phrase. And again, in Isaiah 67,
we notice a contrast between the
rebellious
and the faithful. Now the context involves
a contrast again of these
rebellious people of God upon whom he will
unleash his wrath
and the faithful remnant of God's people
upon whom he will pour out his blessings.
Isaiah sixty five in many ways can be
viewed as an answer to the prayer
of those in future captivity.
Now keep in mind that Isaiah prophesied
during the time of the Assyrian
domination,
Isaiah 1-1, and not only does he prophesy
about the fall of Assyria,
which was the kingdom under which he the
world power under which he lived,
but he not only prophesies about the
downfall of Assyria in Isaiah 10,
5-19, but he also foretold of Babylon's
dominance,
including their eventual.
Taking Judah into captivity, Isaiah 39,
6 through 7. And then he also talks about
the Medo-Persian dominance,
who, after conquering Babylon,
would eventually let God's scattered
people return to the land of promise.
And these this is in Isaiah 40,
chapters 40 through chapters 48.
Now Isaiah even mentions Cyrus by name,
and this is over a hundred years in the
future.
this world leader would be, and this this
is why some people think there
had to be two or three Isaiahs that wrote,
but of course Isaiah wrote what God
revealed to him,
and the mind of God knows everything,
okay? Past, present, and future.
First, as we look at the context of Isaiah
sixty five,
seventeen, let's realize that there is
here a contrast between
the rebellious and the faithful.
Now the context involves this contrast
now upon the faithful
God promises blessing, but upon those who
are rebellious,
they are going to receive God's wrath.
So Isaiah 65 in many ways can be viewed as
an answer
to the prayer of those in future
captivity.
Now keep in mind that Isaiah prophesied
during the time of Assyrian dominance.
In Isaiah 1:1, he mentions when he
prophesies.
But not only does Isaiah
Talk about the Assyrian downfall in Isaiah
ten five through nineteen.
He also told for foretold of Babylon's
dominance,
including their eventual taking Judah into
captivity in Isaiah thirty nine,
six through seven, and then to the Medo
Persian dominance,
who after conquering Babylon would
eventually let God scatter people return
to the land of promise, Isaiah chapters
forty through forty eight.
Isaiah even mentions Cyrus and
By name, who had not come for over a
hundred years later as God's instrument
in letting the people go. And because
Isaiah speaks so far into the future
as if he were there, that's the reason why
many people want to come up with
two or three Isaiahs. But of course Isaiah
is just simply revealing the mind
of God as instructed or as as inspired by
God,
and God knows everything, past,
present, and future.
But the prayer of Isaiah in Isaiah 63,
15 through 64, 5 involves the following
elements,
according to James E. Smith. Number one,
the captives asked the Lord to acknowledge
their predicament,
Isaiah 63, 15 through 16. Secondly,
the captives asked the Lord for
reconciliation,
Isaiah 63, 17 through 19.
And they're asking the Lord.
Why have you made us stray from your ways
and harden our hearts from
you is an acknowledgement that they have
strayed and thus want God
to return to them, as the next part of the
verse indicates.
Their appeal is for their sake,
and is stated in the prayer, for your
servant's sake,
and because of the enemy's apparent
victory over the Lord.
Isaiah 63, 18 through 19. Now again I say
apparently.
victory, but it's not really a victory
because God is in complete control.
And then thirdly, the captives ask the
Lord for his direct intervention
in Isaiah 64, 1 through 5. And then
fourthly,
the captives confess we have sinned,
we need to be saved, but we are like an
unclean thing,
and all our righteousness is are like
filthy rags.
Isaiah 64
five through seven. And then five,
the fifth part of this prayer,
the captives petition the Lord for his
sympathy upon them.
Isaiah sixty four, eight through twelve.
And so the captives gives reasons why
God's anger should be restrained.
Number one, he was their father,
which meant they were once his people.
Number two, they were clay in the hands of
the divine pottery.
who fashioned their nation for his special
purpose,
Isaiah 64, 8 through 9. 3,
God's holy, quote, holy cities are
wilderness.
Jerusalem is desolate. Isaiah 64 10.
Number four, or fourthly here,
God's, quote, holy and beautiful temple is
burned with fire,
end quote, Isaiah 64 eleven. And so these
captives are those of Judah
Who would be carried into Babylon?
Again, Isaiah 63 18, Isaiah 64 11.
And these captives' prayer ends with two
questions that call
for the Lord's retribution. And this is
recorded in Isaiah 64 12,
and I quote, Will you, God, restrain
yourself because of these things?
O Lord, will you hold your peace and
afflict afflict
us very severely?
And so the Lord answers the future
captives' prayer in Isaiah 65 through 66.
In so doing, Isaiah distinguishes between
the two contrasting people,
those who were the very reason for the
captivity,
that is the rebellious, and those who will
make up his forever covenant people,
that is the remnant. And so the ones who
should have acknowledged God did not.
And we read this verse in Isaiah sixty
five,
one and two. I was sought by those who did
not ask for me,
I was found by those who did not seek me.
I said, Here am I, here am I,
to a nation that was not called by my
name.
I have stretched out my hands all day long
to a rebellious people who walk
in a way that is not good.
according to their own thoughts.
And so Isaiah further described these
people
By their rancid display of idolatry and
disregard for God's standard of religion.
Again in verse three, a people who prove
provoke me to anger continually to my
face,
who sacrifice in gardens and burn incense
and
On altars of brick, who sit among the
graves and spend the night in the tombs,
who eat swine's flesh and the broth of
abdominal things in their vessels,
who say, Keep it to yourself, do not come
near me,
for I am holier than you. These are smoke
in my nostrils,
and a fire that burns all the day.
And so Isaiah further described that.
And then when anyone walks according to
his own thoughts,
the result will not be pleasing to God.
And of course, if you compare that with
First Kings twelve,
twenty-five through thirty-three,
where Jeroboam set up that false system of
worship.
And then also Jeremiah ten twenty-three,
there's a way that seems right to a man,
but the end thereof are the ways of death.
You know, sitting among the graves and
spending the night with the tombs
has to do with
idolatry, particularly necromancy,
which is a deceived attempt to communicate
with the dead.
In the practice of idolatry, these
rebellious people consumed what the
law of Moses forbade in Leviticus eleven,
verse seven, yet they would not hear
correction,
for they claimed that their holiness was
more than those pointing
out their error like Isaiah.
And so Isaiah continues to s to describe
them in verse 11,
quote, those who forsake the Lord,
who forget my holy mountain, who prepare a
table for Gad,
who formed a drink offering for me.
The New King James transliterates.
The Hebrew word for the Canaanite deities.
Other translations render Gad as fortune,
ASV and the ESV, and Mini as destiny,
ASV and ESV. But regardless of the
translation,
these people were heavily and unashamedly
involved in idolatry.
Now Gad was a god worshipped in pre-exilic
times.
Mentioned in Joshua eleven seventeen and
fifteen thirty seven,
the god destiny is uncertain,
except for this, as Morder mentions in his
commentary,
the destiny they chose was the destiny
they received.
The dead gods brought the sentence of
death.
In contrast to these wicked ones,
Isaiah describes the ones who obtained
God's favor.
These are people who did not ask for God
but found him.
People who were not of the physical
offering of Jacob
The Lord repeatedly refers to them as my
servants Isaiah sixty five eight and nine,
Isaiah sixty five, thirteen through
fifteen.
He calls them my elect in Isaiah sixty
five nine.
He calls them my people in Isaiah sixty
five ten and verse nineteen
and verse twenty two. He even calls them
my chosen in Isaiah sixty five
fifteen.
And so these are not merely people who
claim God as their father,
but these are those whom God confirms are
his people.
And there is a big difference.
And so this first contrast is a contrast
between
the rebellious and the faithful.
And again, this is the condition of Israel
as Isaiah predicts in the future.
under the Medo-Persian rule.
Next, there's a contrast between the
resulting relationships with God.
You know, the rebellious will have one
relationship with God,
and the righteous, the remnant,
will have another relationship with God.
Notice the characters of whom Isaiah
writes reveal a contrast of relationship.
The rebellious are like, quote,
smoke in my nostrils, a fire that burns
all day.
Isaiah 65 5.
They were not in touch with God's will.
The Lord declares When I called you did
not answer,
when I spoke you did not hear Isaiah sixty
five twelve.
The righteous on the other hand,
are those who will trust in God and
acknowledge him.
Now most of Isaiah sixty five one through
sixteen deals with the wicked
and the reasons why God must destroy them
and recreate,
as it were, another people who
Who will fulfill the prophecies he made to
Abraham?
Isaiah 51, 1 through 3 is mentioned back
there.
All right, so there's a contrast between
the rebellious and the faithful.
There's a contrast between the
relationships of the rebellious and the
faithful.
And then thirdly, there's a contrast
between how God will respond
to the righteous and the faithful.
Now the outcome of destruction or peaceful
dwelling reveals the contrast
in this section of God's response.
Now God cannot withhold his punishment
upon the rebellious,
for he declares,
Quote, I will not keep silence,
but will repay your iniquities and the
iniquities of your fathers.
And this is Isaiah 65, 6 through 7.
In contrast, for his servant's sake,
he will not completely wipe out these
people.
But rather will bring forth descendants
from Jacob,
and from Judah an heir of my mountains,
my elect shall inherit it, and my servants
shall dwell there.
And that's Isaiah sixty five nine.
Whereas the rebellious are numbered for
the sword,
Isaiah sixty five twelve, God's servants
will be sustained.
The contrast is explicitly detailed in
this
You'll see, my servants shall,
in contrast to but you,
that is the rebellious pattern.
For example, in Isaiah 65, 13 through 15,
the Bible reads, Therefore, thus says the
Lord,
Behold, my servants shall eat,
but you, that is the rebellious,
but you shall be hungry. Behold,
my servants shall drink.
But you the rebellious shall be thirsty.
Behold, my servants shall rejoice,
but you the rebellious shall be ashamed.
Behold, my servants shall sing with joy in
their hearts,
but you the rebellious shall cry for
sorrow of heart,
and wait for grief of spirit. You shall
leave your name
as a curse to my chosen, for the Lord God.
will slay you and call his servants by
another name.
Again Isaiah sixty five, thirteen through
fifteen.
Now before the Lord pronounces the newness
of the future,
he finalizes the outcome of the servants
who shall be called by another name.
Isaiah 65 six The God of truth,
literally the God of the Amen
Found twice in this verse affirms the
reality of his promises
and his trustworthiness to keep them.
That is the promises. The God who promised
of old and Abraham that
the worldwide people would find the
blessings they needed will be fulfilled
in this new heavens and new earth,
as he's going to say. When these contrasts
between a rebellious people versus
a the servant people
When these contrast, we see that there is
a nauseating relationship that is,
as God considers it, versus a rewarding
relationship in his faithful.
And there is a contrast between the
outcome
of destruction versus the outcome of great
blessing.
And so the new creation
Is a section in Isaiah that follows from
this.
And when we understand the old rebellious
people versus the
new servant people that are going to make
up the remnant,
we can better understand this.
And so, in contrast, as he has been giving
to the rebellious and the faithful,
he makes this statement about creating a
new heaven and a new earth.
And so when we approach the meaning of
this phrase.
We must remember not to separate this new
heavens and earth from
the general meaning of heavens and earth
discussed earlier in Genesis one one.
Again, heavens and earth refer to the
totality of
the created universe in Genesis one one,
unless something in the context demands
otherwise.
In this context of Isaiah, a total newness
is in mind,
not a refurbishing of
And this total newness is based on only
what God can do.
Only God can create, Genesis 1:1.
And even spiritually, in Psalm 51,
verse 10, remember there, David cries out
to God,
Create in me a clean heart, O God.
Because only God can create.
And so Moiter, in his commentary,
he observes the following
Indications in the immediate context that
confirm this.
Number one, it begins and ends with
I create Isaiah sixty-five seventeen A and
Isaiah sixty-five eighteen
B. Secondly, it quote balances the new
creation
and those who inhabit it. Isaiah
sixty-five again seventeen B and eighteen
A.
And thirdly, it centers the total newness.
It's it centers on total newness.
Isaiah sixty five seventeen,
the third part of the verse and the fourth
part of the verse.
In other words, the new is portrayed
wholly in terms
of the old only without the sorrows.
There is no attempt to describe any other
kind of newness.
Since the old is
That is under consideration in Isaiah is
the rebellious covenant people,
the destruction that is coming to them,
and the doing away with their system.
The new is referring to a new people,
Isaiah sixty five one, a new spiritual
environment,
Isaiah sixty five nine and ten,
and a new system, Isaiah sixty five
sixteen.
This newness is further elaborated in
Isaiah 65,
18 through 25, with three other new
descriptions.
The reader of Isaiah has seen the kind of
language and description
of this section in earlier passages.
For example, in Isaiah 11, 1 through 9,
and Isaiah 24, 1 through 23.
But here in Isaiah 65,
He first describes for the mind that
cannot comprehend the scope of
a new heavens and a new earth,
he declares there will be a new Jerusalem.
And I quote from Isaiah sixty five
eighteen through nineteen,
but be glad and rejoice forever in what I
create,
for behold I create Jerusalem as a
rejoicing,
and her people a joy.
I will rejoice in Jerusalem and joy in my
people.
The voice of weeping shall no longer be
heard in her,
nor the voice of crying. Again,
Isaiah sixty five, eighteen and nineteen.
The term Jerusalem is found throughout the
book of Isaiah,
but only once in the immediate context of
the last two chapters does it refer
to the literal city Isaiah saw with his
own eyes.
And that's in Isaiah 64.10. All the other
occurrences of Jerusalem in
the final two chapters, including Isaiah
65.18,
are figurative for the spiritual dwelling
of God and his people.
And you can refer to Isaiah 65.19,
Isaiah 66, 10, 13, 20,
and compare that with Isaiah 1,
2 through 4. In relation to the old
covenant,
the people of Isaiah deals with
This new Jerusalem is a reference to the
Messianic Age.
Second, not only does Isaiah declare that
there will be a new Jerusalem,
Isaiah declares that there will be a new
way of life in Isaiah sixty five,
twenty through twenty four. Let me just go
ahead and read that Isaiah sixty five
twenty through twenty four. No more shall
an infant from there
live but a few days, nor an old man who
has not fulfilled his days.
For the child shall die one hundred years
old,
but the sinner being one hundred years old
shall be accursed.
They shall build houses and inhabit them,
they shall plant vineyards and eat the
fruit.
They shall not build and another inhabit.
They shall not plant and another eat,
for the days ~ for as the days of a tree,
so shall be the days of my people,
and my elect shall long enjoy the work of
their hands.
They shall not labor in vain.
Nor bring forth children for trouble,
for they shall be the descendants of the
blessed of the Lord,
and their offspring with them.
It shall come to pass that before they
call I will answer,
and while they are still speaking I will
hear through verse twenty four.
And so the way of life will not be
characterized characterized
by war and destruction, as we just read in
verse twenty.
In fact, it says, No more shall the infant
from there live but a few days,
for the child shall die a hundred years
old.
This shows long life. And of course a
child living a long life,
especially in a war torn country,
~ is significant. Even an old man will
have
not fulfilled his days, is also a great
blessing.
And again, the imagery here is when
war-torn people spend their lives
as refugees frantically seeking to
survive,
if they are fortunate enough to reach old
years,
their lives would have felt unfulfilled.
However, even a sinner living to be a
hundred years
old would be significant. Again,
it's prosperity, you know, it's great
blessing.
Now the sinner would still be accursed of
God.
Because sin must be punished, but again,
the imagery is showing blessings because
of a new way of life.
And of course, in Isaiah as well as a lot
of the Old Testament prophets,
the spiritual is often put in terms of
the physical with which Isaiah's first
readers could identify.
And they would know and appreciate these
images.
Also, instead of building, planting,
and laboring for someone else to reap.
The benefits, which is what was happening
in Isaiah's time to God's people,
because they were rebellious and they're
destined for captivity.
But those in the new way of life inhabit
what they build,
eat what they plant, and enjoy the fruits
of their labor.
Again Isaiah sixty-five, twenty-one
through twenty-two.
Because those in this new Jerusalem will
be able will be the descendants
of the blessed of the Lord, they will be
so in harmony with the
With his will that their prayers are
answered before they even ask.
And of course we have that promise in
Matthew six,
eight that God knows what we need before
we ask.
And so there's going to be a new
Jerusalem,
there's going to be a new way of life,
and then thirdly, Isaiah declares there
will be a new nature.
Now this changed nature is described in
terms of animals of this created order.
Quote, the wolf and the lamb shall feed
together,
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The dust shall be the serpent's food,
they shall not hurt nor destroy in all my
holy mountain.
Isaiah sixty five, twenty five.
Now that sounds very familiar.
Something similar to that is written back
in Isaiah eleven,
verses six through nine. But again the
natural survival instincts of this
creation
will be gone as depicted by carnivores
feeding with their unusual prey.
The fear that is a part of this creation
will be removed as depicted by
the lamb and ox eating in the presence of
creatures that would normally seek
to devour them. Now dust as the serpent's
food is a reminder
of Genesis three and the reason for the
serpent's punishment,
that is sin. And again
Genesis 3 verses 14 and 15 is where God
tells the serpent he will eat the dust.
This also bolsters the position that
Isaiah's new heaven and new earth
is not the eternal home with God,
but a picture of the coming messianic
kingdom.
Death and the reminder of death is still
present,
Isaiah 65 20, but that will not be so in
heaven.
Revelation 21, verse 4. And so Isaiah 65,
17, the first mention of new heavens and
new earth,
that first mention is in this context.
And again, it is referring to the
messianic kingdom,
not to eternity with God. Well,
there is a connection for sure,
but he's not talking about heaven on the
other side of judgment.
He's talking about the messianic kingdom
that we've
Be ushered in by Jesus Christ and
inaugurated in Acts chapter 2.
Well, this is Isaiah 65, and we're going
to look at part two.
Instead of being the New Testament,
we're going to look at Isaiah 66,
New Heavens and New Earth, and show that
it also is referring
to the Messianic Kingdom. But we're going
to take time with that.
But we do appreciate you joining us today.
as we looked at Isaiah sixty five.
And so we will continue this in part two.
And if we'd appreciate your feedback and
we have gotten feedback from from
our listeners and we appreciate that all
the time,
you can email us, you can talk to us.
we're often out and about at lectureships,
at gospel meetings, Forrest, Stephen and
I.
And so look for us there as you see from
our website,
from our Facebook page and other places.
We would be happy to meet with you and
talk with you.
But we appreciate your tuning in today as
we continue our we c
we conclude this episode, but we continue
our season six,
Minoring in the Majors, and the next
episode.