14. V. After these things the Lord Jehovih founds a new heaven from the good elevated to Himself, and from the evil removed from Himself a new hell; and in both He establishes order, so that they may stand under His auspices, and under obedience to Him, to eternity. It is written in Isaiah:
Jehovah said, Behold I create new heavens and a new earth (55:17); and elsewhere in the same prophet:
As the new heavens and the new earth, which I am about to make, shall stand before Me (56:22);
in the Apocalypse:
I saw a new heaven and a new earth; the former heaven and the former earth have passed away (21:1);
and in Peter:
According to promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein justice shall dwell (2 Epist. 3:13). It has not hitherto entered into the mind of anyone to suppose otherwise, than that by "heaven," in these places, is meant the visible heaven, that is, the whole firmament, together with the sun, moon and stars; and that by "earth," there, is meant the habitable earth, or the globe, and that these will perish at the day of the Last Judgment; when nevertheless by "heaven" there the angelic heaven is meant, and by "earth" the church. That by "earth" everywhere in the prophetic Word is meant the church, has been fully shown in the Apocalypse Revealed (n. 285). The reason why by "new heavens" and a "new earth" have been hitherto understood the visible heaven and the habitable earth, is because men have not known anything of the spiritual world, consequently not anything of the angelic heaven, nor anything of the prophetic sense, which carries and stores up nothing but spiritual things; and the spiritual meaning of "earth" is the church. When, indeed, the angels, inasmuch as they are spiritual, look down into the earth, they see nothing at all of it, but only the church with men.
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