A new creation beyond the present world
interpretation
On: a new heaven and a new earth
Source quotation · John Wesley · The New Creation
1. What a strange scene is here opened to our view! How remote from all our natural apprehensions! Not a glimpse of what is here revealed was ever seen in the heathen world. Not only the modern, barbarous, uncivilized Heathens have not the least conception of it; but it was equally unknown to the refined, polished Heathens of ancient Greece and Rome. And it is almost as little thought of or understood by the generality of Christians: I mean, not barely those that are nominally such, that have the form of godliness without the power; but even those that in a measure fear God, and study to work righteousness.
2. It must be allowed that after all the researches we can make, still our knowledge of the great truth which is delivered to us in these words is exceedingly short and imperfect. As this is a point of mere revelation, beyond the reach of all our natural faculties, we cannot penetrate far into it, nor form any adequate conception of it. But it may be an encouragement to those who have in any degree tasted of the powers of the world to come to go as far as we can go, interpreting Scripture by Scripture, according to the analogy of faith.
3. The Apostle, caught up in the visions of God, tells us in the first verse of the chapter, “I saw a new heaven and a new earth;” and adds, (Rev. 21:5, ) “He that sat upon the throne said,” (I believe the only words which he is said to utter throughout the whole book,) “Behold, I make all things new.”
4. Very many commentators entertain a strange opinion that this relates only to the present state of things, and gravely tell us that the words are to be referred to the flourishing state of the Church, which commenced after the heathen persecutions. Nay, some of them have discovered that all which the Apostle speaks concerning the “new heaven and the new earth” was fulfilled when Constantine the Great poured in riches and honours upon the Christians. What a miserable way is this of making void the whole counsel of God, with regard to all that grand chain of events, in reference to his Church, yea, and to all mankind, from the time that John was in Patmos unto the end of the world! Nay, the line of this prophecy reaches farther still: It does not end with the present world, but shows us the things that will come to pass when this world is no more. For,
5. Thus saith the Creator and Governor of the universe: “Behold, I make all things new;” — all which are included in that expression of the Apostle, “A new heaven and a new earth.” A new heaven: the original word in Genesis (Gen. 1) is in the plural number. And indeed this is the constant language of Scripture — not heaven, but heavens. Accordingly, the ancient Jewish writers are accustomed to reckon three heavens; in conformity to which, the Apostle Paul speaks of his being “caught up into the third heaven.” It is this, the third heaven, which is usually supposed to be the more immediate residence of God; so far as any residence can be ascribed to his omnipresent Spirit, who pervades and fills the whole universe. It is here (if we speak after the manner of men) that the Lord sitteth upon his throne, surrounded by angels and archangels, and by all his flaming ministers.
The New Creation · CCEL electronic text of Sermons on Several Occasions; historical English sermon text; Sermon 64, paragraphs 1–5. Complete consecutive paragraphs retained. Editorial footnotes and web note markers excluded; source paragraph breaks retained and whitespace normalized. No scan collation claimed.
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1. What a strange scene is here opened to our view! How remote from all our natural apprehensions! Not a glimpse of what is here revealed was ever seen in the heathen world. Not only the modern, barbarous, uncivilized Heathens have not the least conception of it; but it was equally unknown to the refined, polished Heathens of ancient Greece and Rome. And it is almost as little thought of or understood by the generality of Christians: I mean, not barely those that are nominally such, that have the form of godliness without the power; but even those that in a measure fear God, and study to work righteousness.
2. It must be allowed that after all the researches we can make, still our knowledge of the great truth which is delivered to us in these words is exceedingly short and imperfect. As this is a point of mere revelation, beyond the reach of all our natural faculties, we cannot penetrate far into it, nor form any adequate conception of it. But it may be an encouragement to those who have in any degree tasted of the powers of the world to come to go as far as we can go, interpreting Scripture by Scripture, according to the analogy of faith.
3. The Apostle, caught up in the visions of God, tells us in the first verse of the chapter, “I saw a new heaven and a new earth;” and adds, (Rev. 21:5, ) “He that sat upon the throne said,” (I believe the only words which he is said to utter throughout the whole book,) “Behold, I make all things new.”
4. Very many commentators entertain a strange opinion that this relates only to the present state of things, and gravely tell us that the words are to be referred to the flourishing state of the Church, which commenced after the heathen persecutions. Nay, some of them have discovered that all which the Apostle speaks concerning the “new heaven and the new earth” was fulfilled when Constantine the Great poured in riches and honours upon the Christians. What a miserable way is this of making void the whole counsel of God, with regard to all that grand chain of events, in reference to his Church, yea, and to all mankind, from the time that John was in Patmos unto the end of the world! Nay, the line of this prophecy reaches farther still: It does not end with the present world, but shows us the things that will come to pass when this world is no more. For,
5. Thus saith the Creator and Governor of the universe: “Behold, I make all things new;” — all which are included in that expression of the Apostle, “A new heaven and a new earth.” A new heaven: the original word in Genesis (Gen. 1) is in the plural number. And indeed this is the constant language of Scripture — not heaven, but heavens. Accordingly, the ancient Jewish writers are accustomed to reckon three heavens; in conformity to which, the Apostle Paul speaks of his being “caught up into the third heaven.” It is this, the third heaven, which is usually supposed to be the more immediate residence of God; so far as any residence can be ascribed to his omnipresent Spirit, who pervades and fills the whole universe. It is here (if we speak after the manner of men) that the Lord sitteth upon his throne, surrounded by angels and archangels, and by all his flaming ministers.
Does the renewal include animals?
interpretation
On: neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain
Source quotation · John Wesley · The General Deliverance
III. 1. But will “the creature,” will even the brute creation, always remain in this deplorable condition? God forbid that we should affirm this; yea, or even entertain such a thought! While “the whole creation groaneth together,” (whether men attend or not,) their groans are not dispersed in idle air, but enter into the ears of Him that made them. While his creatures “travail together in pain,” he knoweth all their pain, and is bringing them nearer and nearer to the birth, which shall be accomplished in its season. He seeth “the earnest expectation” wherewith the whole animated creation “waiteth for” that final “manifestation of the sons of God;” in which “they themselves also shall be delivered” (not by annihilation; annihilation is not deliverance) “from the” present “bondage of corruption, into” a measure of “the glorious liberty of the children of God.”
2. Nothing can be more express: Away with vulgar prejudices, and let the plain word of God take place. They “shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption, into glorious liberty,” — even a measure, according as they are capable, — of “the liberty of the children of God.”
A general view of this is given us in the twenty-first chapter of the Revelation. When He that “sitteth on the great white throne” hath pronounced, “Behold, I make all things new;” when the word is fulfilled, “The tabernacle of God is with men, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their God;” — then the following blessing shall take place (not only on the children of men; there is no such restriction in the text; but) on every creature according to its capacity: “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. And there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying. Neither shall there be any more pain: For the former things are passed away.”
3. To descend to a few particulars: The whole brute creation will then, undoubtedly, be restored, not only to the vigour, strength, and swiftness which they had at their creation, but to a far higher degree of each than they ever enjoyed. They will be restored, not only to that measure of understanding which they had in paradise, but to a degree of it as much higher than that, as the understanding of an elephant is beyond that of a worm. And whatever affections they had in the garden of God, will be restored with vast increase; being exalted and refined in a manner which we ourselves are not now able to comprehend. The liberty they then had will be completely restored, and they will be free in all their motions. They will be delivered from all irregular appetites, from all unruly passions, from every disposition that is either evil in itself, or has any tendency to evil. No rage will be found in any creature, no fierceness, no cruelty, or thirst for blood. So far from it that “the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid; the calf and the young lion together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall feed together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain.” (Isaiah 11:6.)
4. Thus, in that day, all the vanity to which they are now helplessly subject will be abolished; they will suffer no more, either from within or without; the days of their groaning are ended. At the same time, there can be no reasonable doubt, but all the horridness of their appearance, and all the deformity of their aspect, will vanish away, and be exchanged for their primeval beauty. And with their beauty their happiness will return; to which there can then be no obstruction. As there will be nothing within, so there will be nothing without, to give them any uneasiness: No heat or cold, no storm or tempest, but one perennial spring. In the new earth, as well as in the new heavens, there will be nothing to give pain, but everything that the wisdom and goodness of God can create to give happiness. As a recompence for what they once suffered, while under the “bondage of corruption,” when God has “renewed the face of the earth,” and their corruptible body has put on incorruption, they shall enjoy happiness suited to their state, without alloy, without interruption, and without end.
The General Deliverance · CCEL electronic text of Sermons on Several Occasions; historical English sermon text; Sermon 60, section III, paragraphs 1–4. Complete consecutive paragraphs retained. Editorial footnotes and web note markers excluded; source paragraph breaks retained and whitespace normalized. No scan collation claimed.
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Public-domain historical English author text; modern editorial notes and website material excluded.
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III. 1. But will “the creature,” will even the brute creation, always remain in this deplorable condition? God forbid that we should affirm this; yea, or even entertain such a thought! While “the whole creation groaneth together,” (whether men attend or not,) their groans are not dispersed in idle air, but enter into the ears of Him that made them. While his creatures “travail together in pain,” he knoweth all their pain, and is bringing them nearer and nearer to the birth, which shall be accomplished in its season. He seeth “the earnest expectation” wherewith the whole animated creation “waiteth for” that final “manifestation of the sons of God;” in which “they themselves also shall be delivered” (not by annihilation; annihilation is not deliverance) “from the” present “bondage of corruption, into” a measure of “the glorious liberty of the children of God.”
2. Nothing can be more express: Away with vulgar prejudices, and let the plain word of God take place. They “shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption, into glorious liberty,” — even a measure, according as they are capable, — of “the liberty of the children of God.”
A general view of this is given us in the twenty-first chapter of the Revelation. When He that “sitteth on the great white throne” hath pronounced, “Behold, I make all things new;” when the word is fulfilled, “The tabernacle of God is with men, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their God;” — then the following blessing shall take place (not only on the children of men; there is no such restriction in the text; but) on every creature according to its capacity: “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. And there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying. Neither shall there be any more pain: For the former things are passed away.”
3. To descend to a few particulars: The whole brute creation will then, undoubtedly, be restored, not only to the vigour, strength, and swiftness which they had at their creation, but to a far higher degree of each than they ever enjoyed. They will be restored, not only to that measure of understanding which they had in paradise, but to a degree of it as much higher than that, as the understanding of an elephant is beyond that of a worm. And whatever affections they had in the garden of God, will be restored with vast increase; being exalted and refined in a manner which we ourselves are not now able to comprehend. The liberty they then had will be completely restored, and they will be free in all their motions. They will be delivered from all irregular appetites, from all unruly passions, from every disposition that is either evil in itself, or has any tendency to evil. No rage will be found in any creature, no fierceness, no cruelty, or thirst for blood. So far from it that “the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid; the calf and the young lion together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall feed together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain.” (Isaiah 11:6.)
4. Thus, in that day, all the vanity to which they are now helplessly subject will be abolished; they will suffer no more, either from within or without; the days of their groaning are ended. At the same time, there can be no reasonable doubt, but all the horridness of their appearance, and all the deformity of their aspect, will vanish away, and be exchanged for their primeval beauty. And with their beauty their happiness will return; to which there can then be no obstruction. As there will be nothing within, so there will be nothing without, to give them any uneasiness: No heat or cold, no storm or tempest, but one perennial spring. In the new earth, as well as in the new heavens, there will be nothing to give pain, but everything that the wisdom and goodness of God can create to give happiness. As a recompence for what they once suffered, while under the “bondage of corruption,” when God has “renewed the face of the earth,” and their corruptible body has put on incorruption, they shall enjoy happiness suited to their state, without alloy, without interruption, and without end.
Kimball: ready for the New Jerusalem when it comes down
interpretation
On: made ready as a bride adorned for her husband
Source quotation · Heber C. Kimball, as reported by J. V. Long, 1 July 1860; Journal of Discourses 8, p. 107, one paragraph from “This is our privilege, brethren,” through “to the law of God.”
This is our privilege, brethren, and it is the privilege of all the men that live upon the earth. We are Saints, and we should all live in that manner that would insure us all the blessings that are promised to the faithful Saints. Every man that has received the Priesthood, whether an Apostle, Prophet, High Priest, Elder, Bishop, Priest, or Teacher—all should live as one man—be of one heart and one mind. In regard to those things we have heard with regard to living and practising our religion, that we may be able to build up Zion and establish the New Jerusalem. Unless we are very diligent, we shall be very far behind the times when the New Jerusalem comes down from heaven, adorned as a bride for her husband. Now, I believe that Enoch went away from here on a piece of earth, but I do not believe that he remained idle all the time: they have been improving and cultivating the earth—they have been multiplying and increasing the inhabitants where they live. So it is with the lost tribes of Israel: they are not asleep. God speaks to them through their Prophets, and they are learning to be obedient and to be subject to the law of God.
Heber C. Kimball on the New Jerusalem · Journal of Discourses, vol. 8 (Liverpool: George Q. Cannon), discourse by Heber C. Kimball delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, 1 July 1860, reported by J. V. Long, beginning p. 107. Selected unit p. 107. JournalofDiscourses.com transcription retrieved 30 September 2026, collated word by word against the Internet Archive JoDV08 OCR text layer, with page images inspected where the witnesses differed; wording and spelling follow the print, punctuation and capitalization follow the electronic witness. HTML markup removed and whitespace normalized. No passages omitted within selected units. Print readings restored: “living and practicing our religion” → “living and practising our religion”.
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Nineteenth-century historical source text, public domain. Print witness: https://archive.org/details/JoDV08/page/n114/mode/2up.
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2026-10-01T14:02:23+00:00
This is our privilege, brethren, and it is the privilege of all the men that live upon the earth. We are Saints, and we should all live in that manner that would insure us all the blessings that are promised to the faithful Saints. Every man that has received the Priesthood, whether an Apostle, Prophet, High Priest, Elder, Bishop, Priest, or Teacher—all should live as one man—be of one heart and one mind. In regard to those things we have heard with regard to living and practising our religion, that we may be able to build up Zion and establish the New Jerusalem. Unless we are very diligent, we shall be very far behind the times when the New Jerusalem comes down from heaven, adorned as a bride for her husband. Now, I believe that Enoch went away from here on a piece of earth, but I do not believe that he remained idle all the time: they have been improving and cultivating the earth—they have been multiplying and increasing the inhabitants where they live. So it is with the lost tribes of Israel: they are not asleep. God speaks to them through their Prophets, and they are learning to be obedient and to be subject to the law of God.