Divine Provision and Worship

And Solomon had twelve governors over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his household; each one made provision for one month of the year. … Now Solomon's provision for one day was thirty kors of fine flour, sixty kors of meal, ten fatted oxen, twenty oxen from the pastures, and one hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fatted fowl. … And these governors, each man in his month, provided food for King Solomon and for all who came to King Solomon's table. There was no lack in their supply.

(1 Kings 4:7-27)

Although the above passage of Scripture is a historical account of how God provided for King Solomon and his court, it was recorded in Scripture as a type and shadow of the age to come. The principle we see in this passage is that the children of Israel provided for the needs of King Solomon and his court on a day-to-day basis. We see that Solomon appointed twelve governors over Israel, and each governor was required to supply the needs of King Solomon for one month of the year. Likewise, in the age to come, this principle will remain the same. Our Lord will appoint His saints to reign over the children of God on the earth, and they will be required to supply provisions for the New Jerusalem from day to day. This will be the glory and honour of the nations brought into the city.

"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God." '

(Revelation 2:7)

And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

(Revelation 22:1-2)

Another distinction between the saints and the children of God in the age to come is access to the tree of life. Many believe that all will have access to the fruit of the tree of life in the age to come, but this is not correct. As stated in the first passage quoted above, only those who overcome—that is, the saints—will be given access by Jesus to eat the fruit of the tree of life. In contrast, the second passage reveals that the nations living outside the city of New Jerusalem will have access to the leaves of the tree of life, but not its fruit. The Scripture indicates that these leaves are for their healing. This does not mean sickness will be prevalent in the new earth, for we know sickness will not exist there, as it is a curse, and God has declared there will be no more curse (Revelation 22:3). Rather, the leaves of the tree of life will be used to maintain the health and vitality of the peoples of the earth.

The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honour into it. Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). And they shall bring the glory and the honour of the nations into it. But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

(Revelation 21:23-27)

I have already mentioned that the resurrected bodies of the children of God will differ from those of the saints. This passage of Scripture highlights another aspect of this truth. It teaches that there will be no night in the city of New Jerusalem because the glory of God will illuminate the city for all eternity. However, note that only the city itself will experience no night; the rest of the earth will have both day and night. The reason there will be no night in the city is that the saints living there will never sleep. Unlike our current natural bodies, the resurrected bodies of the saints will not require sleep. However, like Adam and Eve, the resurrected bodies of the children of God will need sleep. Thus, the rest of the earth will experience both day and night, not only to allow the children of God to sleep but also to enable the rest of God’s creation—plants and animals—to function naturally as God intended.

There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.

(Revelation 22:5)

This passage confirms that there will be no night in the New Jerusalem. Consequently, the saints will not need lamps or the light of the sun. However, in the rest of the earth in the age to come, both day and night will exist, and the nations will require both lamps and the light of the sun to function.

"For as the new heavens and the new earth which I will make shall remain before Me," says the Lord, "So shall your descendants and your name remain. And it shall come to pass That from one New Moon to another, And from one Sabbath to another, All flesh shall come to worship before Me," says the Lord.

(Isaiah 66:22-23)

This passage confirms that the new earth will experience both day and night, as well as seasons. It also reveals another truth about life on the new earth: everyone will gather in the city of New Jerusalem every Sabbath, New Moon, and set feast to worship before the Lord. As mentioned, the initial population of the earth will be approximately twenty-five billion people, a number that will continue to grow in the new age. How, then, will such a vast multitude gather to worship before the Lord every Sabbath, New Moon, and feast?

Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the midst of the throne, and around the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back.

(Revelation 4:6)

And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God.

(Revelation 15:2)

In the next section, we will discuss the New Jerusalem in more detail. However, one aspect must be mentioned now to explain how the vast population of the earth will be accommodated to worship before the Lord every Sabbath, New Moon, and feast. The passages quoted above describe a sea of glass in heaven where the angels and saints stand to worship before God’s throne. In the age to come, this same sea of glass will surround the throne of God in the heavenly city of New Jerusalem. It is on this sea of glass that all of God’s creation will stand to worship Him.

Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. But Philip was found at Azotus. And passing through, he preached in all the cities till he came to Caesarea.

(Acts 8:39-40)

Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.

(John 6:21)

How will it be logistically possible for twenty-five billion people to gather in the city of New Jerusalem every seven days and return to their homes at the end of the Sabbath to continue their daily lives? The new earth will be at least the size of the planet Jupiter, and as the population grows, people will live vast distances from the city. The answer lies in the passages quoted above. These passages show the Spirit of God supernaturally transporting Philip from one location to another in the blink of an eye and transporting Jesus, His disciples, and their boat from the middle of a lake to the shore instantly. These are not the only accounts of such events, as numerous other passages in the Bible describe similar divine transportations. Thus, God will transport all His children by His Spirit to the city and back to their homes every Sabbath, New Moon, and feast.

Michael E.B. Maher

The End of the Age

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