New Jerusalem is Heavenly, Spiritual
Phrases in the Bible about New Jerusalem include “the Jerusalem above is free, which is our mother” (Gal. 4:26), “the city which has the foundations, whose Architect and Builder is God” (Heb. 11:10), “the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem” (Heb. 12:22), and “the holy city, New Jerusalem” (Rev. 21:2).
If we have a clear view and proper understanding of the Jerusalem above, the New Jerusalem, we will realize that such an entity cannot possibly be a material, physical city. A material city cannot be the covenant or the grace. Moreover, a material city cannot be the producing mother nor the composition of the many sons of God. With a material city there cannot be the divine dispensing or the divine mingling with humanity. Finally, with a material city there is no divine expression.*
In Hebrews 8:5 the Old Testament tabernacle and temple are designated “the example and shadow of the heavenly things.” They are merely shadows; the heavenly Jerusalem, “the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man” (8:2) is the reality.
New Jerusalem, the true tabernacle (Rev. 21:3), was built by God in resurrection with His divine life. The whole city is constituted with this life in human beings, not with our fallen natural life. Hence the whole city “has the glory of God.”
* Life-Study of the New Testament, Conclusion Messages: The Church, the Kingdom, and the New Jerusalem, message 255, p. 2677, by Witness Lee. Published 1998 and © by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, California.
Bible verses quoted in these posts are from The Holy Bible, Recovery Version, published and © by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, 2003. The text of this Bible is at text.recoveryversion.bible; this too is © by LSM. A New Testament of this Bible, with 9000 footnotes, is available in multiple languages for free from Bibles for America, Bibles for Canada, Bibles for Europe.
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