How to Pray God’s Way — 8 Points
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No longer any Sea – from Revelation 21:1
In my study I have been examining all the differences from the old earth to the future, new earth (Rev. 21:1). In this blog post we will look at three different views on the meaning of the phrase “there is no longer be any sea” (from Revelation 21:1. Then we will return to each of the three views and consider both the negative and the positive points. I think this will help us to arrive at the true meaning of this phrase, “there is no longer any sea.”
First view, that there will no longer be any water (H20). John MacArthur holds this view. He believes that the new heaven and earth will not have a water-based environment, that our new bodies will no longer need water (H20) to exist, that our glorified bodies and all that grows on the earth will be based on a completely different life principle. And the water referred to in Revelation 22:1 and 17 will not be H20, but heavenly water that will be water of eternal life.
Second view, that there will no longer be oceans and seas. This is probably the most popular view, held by many Christian scientists. It is a belief that the earth will be restored to its original state—that the oceans and seas we have now resulted from the flood, whereas before the flood there was probably only fresh water from rivers and streams. This view of course supposes that the earth will not be destroyed, but will be restored to its original condition.
Third view, that there will no longer be evil. This view may hold some popularity because of the few biblical reference to the word “sea” as symbolizing evil or demonic.
Well, I think all of these views have some positive (or true) points, as well as some negative points. For now, I will hold back my opinion as to which view I think is correct, or the strongest. I think the best way to go at this is to give you both the positive and the negative points on each view (as I see it), then let you ponder it.
The first view, no water. The positive point on this view is that there may be coming something better than water. It is a belief that our new heaven and earth will be made of something better—everlasting and indestructible. It supposes that the water in our bodies and in our plants and in our atmosphere is not now indestructible; hence the new creation of a new life substance. Whatever that substance is, we don’t know, but God knows and it will be glorious. It will be a “water of life” that is not H20, but something better.
On the negative side, there doesn’t seem to be any other Scripture that supports this view, other than the fact that God will make all things new and that He will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life (Rev. 21:4-5), which may not be water as we know it. There is nothing specific in Scripture that says that there will no longer be H20 on the new earth. Also, I think the people that are most opposed to this view are those who now enjoy water sports and all the beautiful plants and flowers that are water-based. They just can’t imagine eternal life without these things. These are the same people who believe that God will bring the earth back to the way it was in the very beginning in the garden of Eden where everything was made up of very pure water.
The second view, no salt-water oceans and seas; just fresh-water rivers and streams. The overwhelming positive side of this is the belief that if this is how the earth was originally (as God made it), then it must be what He will do to make it as He originally intended.
The negative side of this argument is that we don’t have enough biblical evidence just in those few words— “no longer any sea” —to support this view.
The third view, that “sea” is symbolic of evil. I will bring the negative side to this view first. At first glance, we don’t see anything in the wording here to suggest symbolism or that God is not speaking literally.
On the positive side, by examining the word “sea” in some Scriptures we will find that it represents something evil or wicked. Here are a few examples.
Isaiah 57:20
But the wicked are like the tossing sea,
For it cannot be quiet,
And its waters toss up refuse and mud.
Psalm 74:13
You divided the sea by Your strength;
You broke the heads of the sea monsters in the waters.
Revelation 13:1
And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore.
Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names.
I admit, that our argument (that sea is symbolic of evil) from the first two verses is rather weak; but, I think, in Revelation 13:1, it is strong. John MacArthur comments: “The sea represents the abyss or pit, the haunt of demons…The picture is of Satan summoning a powerful demon from the abyss…”9
Also, to further this symbolic argument; the wording, “there is no longer any sea,” is very similar to the wording in verse four, “there will no longer be…” This tells me that there may be a connection in the context between the meaning of “sea” and in the words in verse four— “tears, death, mourning, crying, and pain.” Hence, I think we may see that “sea” not only has the meaning of evil and demons, but also the similar meaning of death, mourning, crying and pain. And so, we see that all these things are the things of the first heaven and earth that will pass away. Hence, when the writer of Revelation says, “and there is no longer any sea,” He could very well be meaning that there will no longer be any evil or anything of the old earth that is connected to the sinful, evil world.
It may seem that I am leaning toward the third view, and that may be true; but I am still open to the other views. We will see.
9 Ibid., notes on Revelation 13:1.
Comparing New Age Prayer to Christian Prayer
Hal Lindsey Dies
No More Sin and Corruption
In the new heaven and earth there will be no more sin and corruption.It will all be gone. And because that is true, as the Psalmist says in Psalm 16:11, our life will be eternally full of joy and pleasures. And we will have nothing to fear from any evil ones; we will dwell securely forever (Psalm 16:9). And all that surrounds us on the earth and in the heavens will be free of any curse. All that we see and touch will be delightful to us. Nothing will ever harm us. Everything will be perfect; perfect weather, perfect air to breath, just the right amount of light we need, and no fear of storms. And I can’t imagine how beautiful God will make it for us. Everything that we think is beautiful now in nature will be much better, much more beautiful. And all that we eat and enjoy now, it will be much better—tastier and more enjoyable. (from Revelation 21:1-5)
The Roots of Contemplative Prayer
The Creation And Expansion Of The New Heaven And Earth
After the first heaven (our present universe) and the first earth (our present earth) are passed away (destroyed), God will give us a new heaven and a new earth.
Revelation 21:1-2
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
And the new heaven and earth will be somewhat blended together as one. This process of blending is when the third heaven (God’s eternal dwelling) is expanded to encompass our new universe and new earth.
Now as I understand it, the entire process of expansion will be accomplished when the heavenly city descends out of the third heaven to earth. Here is the process in four points.
1. The heavenly city, called the New Jerusalem, will be created by God somewhere in the third heaven. Remember, in verse 2, John saw the holy city coming down out of heaven from God. And it was made ready; that is, it was all finished (in its creation). So. its creation was in the third heaven. And Jesus Himself is the builder (Jn. 14:2).
2. This holy city (described in Rev. 21:9-21) will descend from heaven after the New heaven and earth are created. And I think it will either hang over the earth or sit on the earth. And so, the third heaven will be extended down by the holy city to the new earth. Hence the city will be as a gateway or a bridge linking the eternal heaven to the new earth.
3. This New Jerusalem, we think, will be the capitol city of heaven, and it will be where the throne of God is and where the focus of all of heaven is.
4. This city, as we have mentioned, is where we as believers will dwell. We will have our own room that He has made for us (Jn. 14:2). But that doesn’t mean that we are stuck there; for the gates of the city will never be closed (Rev. 21:25). I imagine we will be able to go anywhere we desire in the city, on the new earth, or anywhere in the new heaven—which will then be the new and eternal universe that will have no boundaries and no dimensions. Whereas, our universe now is finite and limited, the new heaven will actually be an extension of the third heaven. So, when John sees the new heaven (in Rev. 21:1) he is actually seeing a new universe that is blended with the third heaven. This is awesome to me and a little scary. But once we get our new bodies and our new mind I imagine that it will be quite exciting and glorious.
Contemplative Prayer
The Destruction of the Universe
There is not much written in the bible about this particular subject, but what is written certainly deserves our attention. We will look at three passages: in Matthew, 2 Peter, and Revelation.
Matthew 24:35
Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
Here Jesus is telling His disciples that in the future heaven and earth will pass away, that they are not permanent or eternal, but His words are eternal.
Revelation 20:11 and 21:1
Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away…
As we see in Revelation 20:11, as soon as it is time for the judgment of all non-believers at the great white throne, the earth and heaven will go away. After that, in Revelation 21:1, John saw a new heaven and a new earth, which appeared to take the place of the old heaven and earth. And I take “heaven” here to mean the universe—but, as we will see, some will disagree with me.
2 Peter 3:10-13
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.
11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
This passage, as we see, presents the details that the other passages leave out. All three of the passages are speaking of the Day of the Lord when the earth and the heavens are destroyed, but this passage is themost precise. So, as we discuss this subject more thoroughly, we will mainly look at this Peter passage. And to give this subject a fair hearing we will look at four different commentaries holding different views. The first two will be from an earlier time—over two-hundred years ago. The second two are living today.
Adam Clark (1762-1832). From his bible commentary on 2 Peter, he writes,
[From verse 10] As the heavens mean here, and in the passages above, the whole atmosphere, in which all the terrestrial vapours are lodged; and as water itself is composed of two gases, eighty-five parts in weight of oxygen, and fifteen of hydrogen, or two parts in volume of the latter, and one of the former; for if these quantities be put together, and several electric sparks passed through them, a chemical union takes place, and water is the product; and, vice versa, if the galvanic spark be made to pass through water, a portion of the fluid is immediately decomposed into its two constituent gases, oxygen and hydrogen;) and as the electric or ethereal fire is that which, in all likelihood, God will use in the general conflagration; the noise occasioned by the application of this fire to such an immense congeries of aqueous particles as float in the atmosphere, must be terrible in the extreme.
[From verse 11] Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness. [“All these things”] will all be separated, all decomposed; but none of them destroyed. And as they are the original matter out of which God formed the terraqueous globe, consequently they may enter again into the composition of a new system; and therefore the apostle says, 2 Peter 3:13: we look for new heavens and a new earth-the others being decomposed, a new system is to be formed out of their materials. There is a wonderful philosophic propriety in the words of the apostle in describing this most awful event.1
From Clarke’s comments it is clear that he gives no possibility of the heavens to mean the universe. He is quite content to think that the passage is only referring to our atmosphere being burned off by fire. And then after the fire a new heavens (our atmosphere) and earth will be formed.
Jamison, Fauset and Brown. (of the same time period as Adam Clarke). In this commentary they write,
The certainty, suddenness, and concomitants, of the coming of the day of the Lord. Faber argues that the millennium. etc., must precede Christ’s literal coming; not follow it. But “the day of the Lord” comprehends the whole series of events, beginning with the premillennial advent, and ending with the destruction of the wicked, final conflagration, and general judgment (which last intervenes between the conflagration and the renovation of the earth)… As “the works” in the earth are distinguished from “the earth,” so by “elements” after “the heavens,” Bengel explains ‘the works therein’-namely, the sun, moon, and stars (as Theophilus of Antioch, pp. 22, 148, 228; and Justin Martyr, ‘Apology,’ ii. , 44, use stoicheia). Rather, as “elements” is not so used in Scripture Greek, the component materials of “the heavens,” (including the heavenly bodies (mentioned in the world’s destruction, as in its creation): it clearly belongs to “the heavens,” not to “the earth,” etc.2
Here the heavens are depicted as the universe (the sun, moon and stars). And other theologians are referred to: Johann Bengal (1687-1752), Theophilus of Antioch (writings from 180-185 AD), and Justin Martyr (100-165 AD). I would say, they have some excellent sources.
Randy Alcorn, from his book Heaven (published 2004). Alcorn has an entire chapter devoted to this subject, entitled, “WILL THE OLD EARTH BE DESTROYED…OR RENEWED?” Here are a few quotes:
A variety of theologians take this view of temporary, not final, destruction. Wayne Grudem, in his discussion of 2 Peter 3:10, which speaks of “everything” in the earth being “laid bare,” suggests that Peter “may not be speaking of the earth as a planet but rather the surface things on the earth (that is, much of the ground and the things on the ground).3
John Piper argues that God did not create matter to throw it away. He writes, “When Revelation 21:1 and 2 Peter 3:10 say that the present earth and heavens will ‘pass away,” it does not have to mean they go out of existence, but may mean that there will be such a change in them that their present condition passes away.4
Several prominent ancient theologians acknowledged the continuity between the present earth and the New Earth. Jerome often said that Heaven and Earth would not be annihilated but would be transformed into something better. Augustine wrote similarly, as did Gregory the Great, Thomas Aquinas and many medieval theologians.5
As God may gather the scattered DNA and atoms and molecules of our bodies, he will regather all he needs of the scorched and disfigured Earth. As our bodies will be raised to new bodies, so the old earth will be raised to become the New Earth. So, will the earth be destroyed or renewed? The answer is both—but the “destruction” will be temporal and partial, whereas the renewal will be eternal and complete.6
It appears that Alcorn has done some great research, but I think he has pretty much gathered from only those that agree with him. I would say that he is in the same camp with Adam Clark. And they speak only of the earth and not the universe.
John MacArthur (taken from his The MacArthur Study Bible notes on 2 Peter 3:10 and Revelation 21:1). From 2 Peter 3:10, he writes,
The “heavens” refer to the physical universe. The “roar” connotes a whistling or a cracking sound as of objects being consumed by flames. God will incinerate the universe, probably in an atomic reaction that disintegrates all matter as we know it…The “elements” are the atomic components into which matter is ultimately divisible, which make up the composition of all the created matter. Peter means that the atoms, neutrons, protons, and electrons are all going to disintegrate…The whole of the physical, natural earth in its present form, with its entire universe will be consumed. Cf. Is 24:19, 20; 34:4.7
From Revelation 21:1 MacArthur writes,
The entire universe as we know it will be destroyed (2 Pet. 3:10-13) and be replaced by a new creation that will last forever. This is an OT reality (Ps. 102:25, 26; Is. 65:17; 66:22), as well as a NT one (Lk 21:33; Heb. 1:10-12).8
As we can see, MacArthur’s view is much different than most others. That is because he sticks closely to the literal meaning of the text without rationalizing or reasoning as to what would be more logical. Also, instead of going to other human sources, he is more content in using only (or mostly) Scripture.
As for my beliefs and comments on this awesome subject, I would like to go first to the small phrases: “fled away” (in Rev. 20:11), “passed away” (in Rev. 21:1, and “pass away” (in 2 Pt. 3:10 and Matt. 24:35). They seem to depict a going out of existence, not a burning off for a later renewal. I think Revelation 20:11 is the most convincing of this. It says, “[the] earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.” It sure sounds like they (heaven and earth) disappeared to John. And when you add the 2 Peter passage to it, we may understand that the fleeing away will be quickly and in all directions—like a huge atomic explosion or an incineration.
And then, in Revelation 21:1, when the new heaven and earth come into existence, they will come to replace the old heaven and earth; for it says, “for the first heaven and the first earth passed away.” Note also that there is a clear distinction from the heaven and the earth, confirming that the heavens referred to is not earth’s atmosphere; it is the universe.
Now some may have the belief that God will bring us back to the garden of Eden, that He will want to continue what He started—a do over; hence the belief of earth’s renewal. And I am not apposed to thinking that the new earth will be similar to Eden. But I don’t think it will be a renewal. It will be an all-together new and different earth—a new creation that will last forever, without flaws.
Certainly, God is not opposed to destroying and starting over. He did it with the flood, and He did it with Sodom and Gomorrah. But next time it will be a total destruction and a recreation.
Also, we see in Matthew 24:35, and other references, that this earth and the heavens will not last forever. Here are a few of those other references.
Psalm 102:25-26
And the heavens are the work of Your hands.
26 “Even they will perish, but You endure;
And all of them will wear out like a garment;
Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed.
Isaiah 34:4
And all the host of heaven will wear away,
And the sky will be rolled up like a scroll;
All their hosts will also wither away
As a leaf withers from the vine,
Or as one withers from the fig tree.
Matthew 5:18-19
“For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
Hebrews 1:10-12
“YOU, LORD, IN THE BEGINNING LAID THE FOUNDATION OF THE EARTH,
AND THE HEAVENS ARE THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS;
11 THEY WILL PERISH, BUT YOU REMAIN;
AND THEY ALL WILL BECOME OLD LIKE A GARMENT,
12 AND LIKE A MANTLE YOU WILL ROLL THEM UP;
LIKE A GARMENT THEY WILL ALSO BE CHANGED.
BUT YOU ARE THE SAME,
AND YOUR YEARS WILL NOT COME TO AN END.”
1 Adam Clarke, Adam Clarke’s Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright © 1996, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.
2 Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright © 1997, 2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.
3 Randy Alcorn, Heaven (Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.: Wheaton, Illinois, 2004). P. 146.
4 Ibid., pp. 146-147.
5 Ibid., p. 149.
6 Ibid., p. 150.
7 John MacArthur, The MacArthur Study Bible (Thomas Nelson, 2006), John MacArthur’s notes on 2 peter 3:10.
8 Ibid., notes on Revelation 21:1.
False Teachers that are Perverting our Prayers
Stephen Nielsen 