Everything New: Revelation 21:1-8

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

New. Not merely renovated but new. Heaven and earth—the totality of creation—made fresh. The first had passed away. The old order gone. And notably: no longer any sea. The chaotic, threatening, separating sea—eliminated. No more barrier between peoples or between humanity and God.

I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

A city descending. Not built from earth up but coming from heaven down. The new Jerusalem—the capital of the new creation. Prepared like a bride. Beautifully dressed. The city is a person; the person is a city. The people of God in their perfected community.