July 21: A Brand New Universe! / How to Get God's Attention
Isaiah 65:17-25
Amplified Bible (AMP)
17 For behold, I create [a]new heavens and a new earth. And the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a rejoicing and her people a joy.
19 And I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people; and the sound of weeping will no more be heard in it, nor the cry of distress.
20 There shall no more be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who dies prematurely; for the child shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner who dies when only a hundred years old shall be [thought only a child, cut off because he is] accursed.
21 They shall build houses and inhabit them, and they shall plant vineyards and eat the fruit of them.
22 They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat [the fruit]. For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, and My chosen and elect shall long make use of andenjoy the work of their hands.
23 They shall not labor in vain or bring forth [children] for sudden terror or calamity; for they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them.
24 And it shall be that before they call I will answer; and while they are yet speaking I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox; and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all My holy Mount [Zion], says the Lord.
Footnotes:
- Isaiah 65:17 A new universe is meant here. The Hebrew language has no single word to express the concept of cosmos or universe, so heavens and earth are substituted.
In this lesson I discuss in detail verses Isaiah 65:17-25.
Read Isaiah 65:17-19. Here we read the prophecy of God's promise of a New Heavens and New Earth, the utopia where the "former things" are forgotten. What former things? I think that all evil, all sin, all fleshy thoughts will be gone. Even thoughts of the old earth will be gone, since the current earth is corrupted and polluted by mankind's sin and poor stewardship. God becomes even more specific and says that there will be no more weeping or crying. The New Jerusalem will be a place of joy and laughter, not sorrow.
This verse are very similar to what we can read in Revelation 21:1-4. In Isaiah Jerusalem and God's chosen people are a "delight" to God; in Revelation she is like a beautiful, well loved bride, coming to live with her adoring husband. What I like best about the Revelation passage is that God will come and dwell with His people.
We now move into a passage about the end times which I personally find a bit confusing. The previous three verses appear to be talking about the final state of things, no sorrow, no death, no sin. However, this next verse speak about death and sin, and then in verse 23, we read about people having children! My commentary says that these last few verses, therefore, could easily be speaking about the "Millennium Kingdom" we read about in Revelation 20. Read Revelation 20:1-6. This kingdom, we can see, is set up after Jesus Second Coming (which is described in Revelation 19).
Read Isaiah 65:20. So in this blessed kingdom long life will be promised, and being a hundred years old will be considered to be like a teenager today! "he who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed" can also be translated to mean that "even a sinner will live at least to be a hundred" before God's puts him to death because of his sin. This should remind us of how long people used to live during Adam's day. Read Genesis 5:3-5, 5:25-27. Notice that Methuselah lived 969 years, almost a thousand years! It is possible, therefore, that people born at the beginning of this "Millennium Kingdom", if we can read this as being a literal 1000 years, could still be living on the earth when Satan is released from the Abyss and goes out to deceive the world that one last time. Read Revelation 20:7-10.
Isaiah goes on to describe life during this time period as being much like life today, but in a more Utopian setting.
Read Isaiah 65:21-22. This may read like an "oh, duh, of course" kind of passage unless you know your curses from Deuteronomy. Read Deuteronomy 28:30. This was a curse promised to the Israelites if they rejected God and followed after idols, that they would build homes and plants vineyards, but that they would later be plundered and invaded by enemies. But here in Isaiah they are told, a time is coming where there will be no more invasion, no more plundering, you can plant your crops, build your homes, and live in peace. There are no more wars.
"For as the days of the tree" once again long life is promised. We have proof that some trees can live as long as a 1000 years, if left undisturbed by man and natural disasters!
Read Isaiah 65:23. The people will bear children in safety, knowing that they are blessed and protected and that there will be no marauding armies coming to take their children as slaves. "They will not toil in vain" once again they are promised that they will be able to enjoy the fruits of their own vineyards and orchards; they aren't growing them to feed their enemies. Their enemies are gone!
Read Isaiah 65:24. Jehovah will have such a close intimate relationship with His people, and they with Him, that answers to prayer will be swift. This implies that the people's will will be in close harmony with God's will. We know that when we pray within God's will we can move mountains.Read Mark 11:22-24.
Read Isaiah 65:25. The new earth will no longer be a place of violence and destruction amongst the animals, as it is today. All the carnivores will become herbivores ("the lion will eat straw like the ox") and traditional predator and prey will become companions ("the wolf and the lamb will feed together"). The serpent will no longer be something to be feared, but rather something harmless. Is this speaking just about the physical serpent or is this speaking about Satan, the serpent? I don't know, I just know that he will no longer be anything to be afraid of. I think this passage also means that people will all become vegetarians as well; we will not be killing animals for food, any more than the animals will be killing each other for food. This passage is an abbreviated version of what we read in Isaiah 11:6-9.
I can't imagine that diseases will be common during this time period, either, so I would expect that there will be no more cancer, no more AIDS, no more heart attacks... it will be an incredible, wonderful time and place. However, I think I will still prefer living in Heaven after that final battle, when there is truly no more sin, no more death, and no threat of Satan returning!" by Gail Sanders, Sept. 2008
Isaiah 66:1-2
Amplified Bible (AMP)
66 Thus says the Lord: Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. What kind of house would you build for Me? And what kind can be My resting-place?
2 For all these things My hand has made, and so all these things have come into being [by and for Me], says the Lord. But this is the man to whom I will look and have regard: he who is humble and of a broken or wounded spirit, and who trembles at My word and reveres My commands.
James 4:8
Amplified Bible (AMP)
8 Come close to God and He will come close to you. [Recognize that you are] sinners, get your soiled hands clean; [realize that you have been disloyal] wavering individuals with divided interests, and purify your hearts [of your spiritual adultery]
2 Chronicles 33:10-17
New International Version (NIV)
10 The Lord spoke to Manasseh and his people, but they paid no attention. 11 So the Lord brought against them the army commanders of the king of Assyria, who took Manasseh prisoner, put a hook in his nose, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon. 12 In his distress he sought the favor of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his ancestors. 13 And when he prayed to him, the Lord was moved by his entreaty and listened to his plea; so he brought him back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is God.
14 Afterward he rebuilt the outer wall of the City of David, west of the Gihon spring in the valley, as far as the entrance of the Fish Gate and encircling the hill of Ophel; he also made it much higher. He stationed military commanders in all the fortified cities in Judah.
15 He got rid of the foreign gods and removed the image from the temple of the Lord, as well as all the altars he had built on the temple hill and in Jerusalem; and he threw them out of the city. 16 Then he restored the altar of the Lord and sacrificed fellowship offerings and thank offerings on it, and told Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel. 17 The people, however, continued to sacrifice at the high places, but only to the Lord their God.
14 Afterward he rebuilt the outer wall of the City of David, west of the Gihon spring in the valley, as far as the entrance of the Fish Gate and encircling the hill of Ophel; he also made it much higher. He stationed military commanders in all the fortified cities in Judah.
15 He got rid of the foreign gods and removed the image from the temple of the Lord, as well as all the altars he had built on the temple hill and in Jerusalem; and he threw them out of the city. 16 Then he restored the altar of the Lord and sacrificed fellowship offerings and thank offerings on it, and told Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel. 17 The people, however, continued to sacrifice at the high places, but only to the Lord their God.
"Dear Jesus, thank You for Your beautiful word today. You continue to make it plain! When we turn away from You and worship other gods, You turn away from us! You allow our enemies to rule over us! When we turn to You, You turn to us! I pray for the one out there today who is filled with shame. I pray they will simply turn to You. Thank You that You are ALWAYS ready to return to one who has a humble, repentant heart. And no ulterior motives. You see the heart! We humans can't know 100% for sure if someone's heart is pure. We don't know our OWN heart even!
Jeremiah 17:9
Amplified Bible (AMP)
9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly perverse and corrupt and severely, mortally sick! Who can know it [perceive, understand, be acquainted with his own heart and mind]?
Thank You for the mirror of Your word that keeps bringing us back to reality. You are worthy of the highest praise. In Jesus name we pray, AMEN."
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