Add parallel Print Page Options

26 But the other woman, Sarah, represents the heavenly Jerusalem. She is the free woman, and she is our mother.

Read full chapter

22 No, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless thousands of angels in a joyful gathering.

Read full chapter

20 But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.

Read full chapter

And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

Read full chapter

12 All who are victorious will become pillars in the Temple of my God, and they will never have to leave it. And I will write on them the name of my God, and they will be citizens in the city of my God—the new Jerusalem that comes down from heaven from my God. And I will also write on them my new name.

Read full chapter

The Lord’s Future Reign

In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s house
    will be the highest of all—
    the most important place on earth.
It will be raised above the other hills,
    and people from all over the world will stream there to worship.
People from many nations will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
    to the house of Jacob’s God.
There he will teach us his ways,
    and we will walk in his paths.”
For the Lord’s teaching will go out from Zion;
    his word will go out from Jerusalem.

Read full chapter

10 “Rejoice with Jerusalem!
    Be glad with her, all you who love her
    and all you who mourn for her.

Read full chapter

18 Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation!
    And look! I will create Jerusalem as a place of happiness.
    Her people will be a source of joy.

Read full chapter

O city of God,
    what glorious things are said of you! Interlude

I will count Egypt[a] and Babylon among those who know me—
    also Philistia and Tyre, and even distant Ethiopia.[b]
    They have all become citizens of Jerusalem!
Regarding Jerusalem[c] it will be said,
    “Everyone enjoys the rights of citizenship there.”
    And the Most High will personally bless this city.
When the Lord registers the nations, he will say,
    “They have all become citizens of Jerusalem.” Interlude

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 87:4a Hebrew Rahab, the name of a mythical sea monster that represents chaos in ancient literature. The name is used here as a poetic name for Egypt.
  2. 87:4b Hebrew Cush.
  3. 87:5 Hebrew Zion.

10 So he took me in the Spirit[a] to a great, high mountain, and he showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God. 11 It shone with the glory of God and sparkled like a precious stone—like jasper as clear as crystal. 12 The city wall was broad and high, with twelve gates guarded by twelve angels. And the names of the twelve tribes of Israel were written on the gates. 13 There were three gates on each side—east, north, south, and west. 14 The wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

15 The angel who talked to me held in his hand a gold measuring stick to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. 16 When he measured it, he found it was a square, as wide as it was long. In fact, its length and width and height were each 1,400 miles.[b] 17 Then he measured the walls and found them to be 216 feet thick[c] (according to the human standard used by the angel).

18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city was pure gold, as clear as glass. 19 The wall of the city was built on foundation stones inlaid with twelve precious stones:[d] the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst.

21 The twelve gates were made of pearls—each gate from a single pearl! And the main street was pure gold, as clear as glass.

22 I saw no temple in the city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light. 24 The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the world will enter the city in all their glory. 25 Its gates will never be closed at the end of day because there is no night there. 26 And all the nations will bring their glory and honor into the city. 27 Nothing evil[e] will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 21:10 Or in spirit.
  2. 21:16 Greek 12,000 stadia [2,220 kilometers].
  3. 21:17 Greek 144 cubits [65 meters].
  4. 21:19 The identification of some of these gemstones is uncertain.
  5. 21:27 Or ceremonially unclean.

22 The Scriptures say that Abraham had two sons, one from his slave wife and one from his freeborn wife.[a]

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 4:22 See Gen 16:15; 21:2-3.

18 Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.

Read full chapter

14 Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.

Read full chapter

36 So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.

Read full chapter

Blessings for God’s People

17 “Then you will know that I, the Lord your God,
    live in Zion, my holy mountain.
Jerusalem will be holy forever,
    and foreign armies will never conquer her again.

Read full chapter

So you will stumble in broad daylight,
    and your false prophets will fall with you in the night.
    And I will destroy Israel, your mother.

Read full chapter

Their mother is a shameless prostitute
    and became pregnant in a shameful way.
She said, ‘I’ll run after other lovers
    and sell myself to them for food and water,
for clothing of wool and linen,
    and for olive oil and drinks.’

Read full chapter

Charges against an Unfaithful Wife

“But now bring charges against Israel—your mother—
    for she is no longer my wife,
    and I am no longer her husband.
Tell her to remove the prostitute’s makeup from her face
    and the clothing that exposes her breasts.

Read full chapter

Isaiah’s Prayer for Jerusalem

62 Because I love Zion,
    I will not keep still.
Because my heart yearns for Jerusalem,
    I cannot remain silent.
I will not stop praying for her
    until her righteousness shines like the dawn,
    and her salvation blazes like a burning torch.
The nations will see your righteousness.
    World leaders will be blinded by your glory.
And you will be given a new name
    by the Lord’s own mouth.

Read full chapter

50 This is what the Lord says:

“Was your mother sent away because I divorced her?
    Did I sell you as slaves to my creditors?
No, you were sold because of your sins.
    And your mother, too, was taken because of your sins.

Read full chapter

In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s house
    will be the highest of all—
    the most important place on earth.
It will be raised above the other hills,
    and people from all over the world will stream there to worship.
People from many nations will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
    to the house of Jacob’s God.
There he will teach us his ways,
    and we will walk in his paths.”
For the Lord’s teaching will go out from Zion;
    his word will go out from Jerusalem.

Read full chapter

16 For you are free, yet you are God’s slaves, so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil.

Read full chapter

Freedom in Christ

So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law.

Read full chapter

Let the ruins of Jerusalem break into joyful song,
    for the Lord has comforted his people.
    He has redeemed Jerusalem.

Read full chapter

Bible Gateway Recommends