238 The Revelation of Jesus Christ You will note that John has now been carried back to the period before the millennium, and is once more associated with "one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues." He is given a vision of the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God toward the earth, a vision of this eternal city in its relation to the millennial earth. The contrast between the heavens and earth of the mil lennial state and the freshly created heavens and earth of the eternal state is plainly marked: In the millennial earth, sin remains in the flesh of those inhabiting the earth, although not, as now, in a manifested form; but in the eternal state, every trace of the fall, all the "former things" will have passed away. Then too, in the millennial state, there will still be national distinctions. "And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it" (21 :24). However, in the eternal state, described in 21: 1-8, national distinctions will have pas.sed away, as we have already seen. To view this fair city, John was led by the Spirit "to a great and high mountain." There is a decided contrast here, with what is recorded concerning the apostate church, repre sented by the harlot. We are told, you will remember, that . to view the harlot, John was carried away into the wilderness, a place of drought, the significance of which we have already learned in our study of chapters seventeen and eighteen. But to see the New Jerusalem, the true bride, he is taken to a "great and high mountain." Surely we may learn from this that, in order to have this glorious scene revealed to our hearts, we need to go to the mountain of God, in communion with Him in spirit, far from that world in which everything is so utterly opposed to Him! The New Jerusalem during the millennial period, as de scribed in 21 :9-22:5, is seen descending toward the earth. It will not descend into the earth, but rather it will appear over the earth, and will be the abode of Christ and His heavenly people, the seat of His government in glory. At the close of the millennium, while the earth is being purified by fire, the New Jerusalem will evidently ascend during the period of renovation of the earth, and then will descend into the earth, to be associated with it throughout the eternal ages. (See
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