Revelation 21:1-8 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.… 1. There shall be in heaven no more trackless wastes. Over three-fourths of this whole globe is composed of a wild, cheerless, trackless waste of waters. The ship passes over it and leaves no trace of its route. The sun woos it, the zephyrs waft it, the dews and rains descend upon it, yet it produces no vegetation. How many human beings seem to spend useless lives, leaving the world no better nor happier than when they came into it! There is no corner for such supernumeraries in the New Jerusalem. Its inhabitants shall not spend eternity in doing little but to sing songs and wave palm branches; but in service, glorious service, for the great King. Great energies will not be expended, as too often in this life, in vain efforts. 2. There shall be in heaven no more devouring waves. 3. There shall be in heaven no buried secrets. The sea is full of concealment and mystery. The scientific explorer dredges out wondrous revelations from the bosom of its gloomy depths. In heaven all earthly secrets shall be revealed, and there shall be no more sea. 4. There shall be in heaven no restless existence. The changeful tides, the constant agitation of surface, the winds and hurricanes, the ever-shifting scenery of old ocean are a picture of human life, with its rises and falls, its joys and sorrows, its births and deaths, its successes and failures — fickle, transitory, uncertain, unsatisfactory human life. What, is it possible that all this agitation of time shall some day cease? Its unquiet of body, its tumult of mind, its yearning of soul all come to an end? Yes, in heaven, where "there is a rest for the people of God," a blessed calm, an eternal peace of soul in the presence of God. (M. D. Kneeland, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. |
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