Isaiah 65:17
in Isaiah 65For behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
KJV
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.
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This verse in Isaiah 65
Commentary
15 notes on this verseMoreover, those who embrace change, improvement, and do not consider the destruction of elements to be a demise, use this example: In the beginning, you established the earth, O Lord, and the works of your hands are the heavens. They will perish, but you remain, and all of them will wear out like a garment, and you will change them like clothing, and they will be changed (Psalm 102:26-27). This clearly demonstrates a transformation for the better, not an annihilation into nothingness, but a change.
This site's exposition
For behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth
on Isaiah 65:17-19
“For behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth” stands behind 2 Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1. “The former things will not be remembered”. The promise that “The sounds of weeping and crying will no longer be heard” answers the weeping in Zion, as at 22:4.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers4 voices
Isaiah also, declaring prophetically that there will be a new heaven and a new earth, undoubtedly suggests a similar view. For this renewal of heaven and earth, and this transformation of the form of the present world and this changing of the heavens will undoubtedly be prepared for those who are walking along and are tending to that goal of happiness to which, it is said, even enemies themselves are to be subjected and in which God is said to be "all in all." And if anyone imagines that at the end, material, that is, bodily nature will be entirely destroyed, he cannot in any respect meet my view, how beings so numerous and powerful are able to live and to exist without bodies, since it is an attribute of the divine nature alone.… Another, perhaps, may say that in the end every bodily substance will be so pure and refined as to be like the ether and of a celestial purity and clearness. How things will be, however, is known with certainty to God alone and to those who are his friends through Christ and the Holy Spirit.
"For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth." These words point to the church, referring to the heavenly and spiritual gifts that have been granted to it. Indeed, if the Lord took care of the Israelites for the earthly things promised to them, …
(Verse 17, 18.) Because the former troubles have been forgotten and hidden from my eyes. For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. LXX: For they shall forget the affliction of the past, and it shall not come to mind. But there shall be a new heaven and a new earth, and they shall not remember the former things, nor shall they come to mind. But they shall find joy and exultation in it. The cause of joy and confession of the true God is that the eternal oblivion will follow the previous sorrows, so that they will not remember the idols and the former errors, but will pass from darkness to light, so that they may enjoy eternal blessedness. For they will forget the past evils, not by the forgetfulness of memory, but by the succession of good things, according to what is written: 'In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one side by side with the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him.' (Eccles. 7:14). And elsewhere it is said: 'Affliction makes joy forgotten in an hour' (Eccles. 11:29): because while they are in distress, they will not enjoy the former pleasures, according to the mistaken mind of Epicurus. Although it can also be said, that in the new heaven and the new earth, all memory of previous conversations is erased, so that this very thing does not become a part of the evils, to recall the narrowness of the past. But those who believe that everything we see will perish interpret it according to the testimony of the Gospel: Heaven and earth will pass away (Matthew 24:35). […]
The cause of joy and confession of the true God is that the eternal oblivion will follow the previous sorrows, so that they will not remember the idols and the former errors, but will pass from darkness to light, so that they may enjoy eternal blessedness. For they will forget the past evils, not by the forgetfulness of memory, but by the succession of good things, according to what is written: 'In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one side by side with the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him.' (Eccles. 7:14). And elsewhere it is said: 'Affliction makes joy forgotten in an hour' (Eccles. 11:29): because while they are in distress, they will not enjoy the former pleasures, according to the mistaken mind of Epicurus.
The Medieval Church1 voice
And as to the restoration of goods: for behold I create new heavens, new help from heaven, and a new earth, new benefits from the earth; or this refers to the day of judgment, when the world will be renewed to the glory of the …
8 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
I create - I am about wholly to change the state not only of my people, but to bring a new face upon the world, which shall abide until a new heavens and earth appear, in which shall dwell nothing but righteousness. Not be remembered - That state of things shall be so glorious, that the former state of my people shall not be remembered.
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth,....
But these things are here prophesied of under the type and figure of the difference God would make between some and others of the Jews after their return out of captivity, between those that feared God and those that did not, with reproofs of the sins then found among them and promises of the blessings then in reserve for them.
The Nineteenth Century5 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
For behold - The idea in this verse is, that there should be a state of glory as great as if a new heaven and a new earth were to be made. I create new heavens - Calamity and punishment in the Bible are often represented by the heavens growing dark, and being rolled up like as a scroll, or passing away (see the notes at Isa 13:10; Isa 34:4).
THIS passage, like the rest of Isaiah's closing chapters, will have complete fulfillment in the latter days when Christ shall come, when the whole company of His elect ones shall have been gathered out from the world, when the whole creation shall have been renewed, when new heavens and a new earth shall be the product of the Savior's power, when, forever and forever, perfected saints of God shall behold His face and joy and rejoice in Him.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
As Caleb inherited the same land which his feet trod on (De 1:36; Jos 14:9), so Messiah and His saints shall inherit the renovated earth which once they trod while defiled by the enemy (Isa 34:4; Heb 12:26-28 Re 21:1). not be remembered--See on Isa 65:16, note on "troubles"; the words here answer to "the former . . . forgotten," &c.
THIS passage, like the rest of Isaiah's closing chapters, will have complete fulfillment in the latter days when Christ shall come, when the whole company of His elect ones shall have been gathered out from the world, when the whole creation shall have been renewed, when new heavens and a new earth shall be the product of the Savior's power, when, forever and forever, perfected saints of God shall behold His face and joy and rejoice in Him. I hope and believe that the following verses will actually describe the condition of the redeemed during the reign of Christ upon the earth—"There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that has not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old. They shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of My people, and My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them. And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, says the Lord." But the work which is spoken of in the text is already begun among us. There is to be a literal new creation, but that new creation has already commenced and I think, therefore, that even now we ought to manifest a part of the joy.
I create new heavens and a new earth - This has been variously understood. Some Jews and some Christians understand it literally. God shall change the state of the atmosphere, and render the earth more fruitful. Some refer it to what they call the Millennium; others, to a glorious state of religion; others, to the re-creation of the earth after it shall have been destroyed by fire. I think it refers to the full conversion of the Jews ultimately; and primarily to the deliverance from the Babylonish captivity.
The words behind it
14 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| הִנְנִ֥י | hini | here I | H2005 → | 316 times |
| בוֹרֵ֛א | vore' | [am] about to create | H1254 → | 55 times |
| שָׁמַ֥יִם | shamayim | heavens | H8064 → | 421 times |
| חֲדָשִׁ֖ים | chadashim | new | H2319 → | 53 times |
| וָאָ֣רֶץ | vaaretz | and an earth | H776 → | 2504 times |
| חֲדָשָׁ֑ה | chadashah | new | H2319 → | 53 times |
| וְלֹ֤א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תִזָּכַ֙רְנָה֙ | tizakharnah | they will be remembered | H2142 → | 230 times |
| הָרִ֣אשֹׁנ֔וֹת | harishonot | the former [things] | H7223 → | 182 times |
| וְלֹ֥א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| תַעֲלֶ֖ינָה | taaleinah | they will come up | H5927 → | 890 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| לֵֽב׃ | lev | a heart | H3820 → | 595 times |
כִּֽי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
הִנְנִ֥יhere I
hiniH2005 →316 times
בוֹרֵ֛א[am] about to create
vore'H1254 →55 times
שָׁמַ֥יִםheavens
shamayimH8064 →421 times
חֲדָשִׁ֖יםnew
chadashimH2319 →53 times
וָאָ֣רֶץand an earth
vaaretzH776 →2504 times
חֲדָשָׁ֑הnew
chadashahH2319 →53 times
וְלֹ֤אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
תִזָּכַ֙רְנָה֙they will be remembered
tizakharnahH2142 →230 times
הָרִ֣אשֹׁנ֔וֹתthe former [things]
harishonotH7223 →182 times
וְלֹ֥אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
תַעֲלֶ֖ינָהthey will come up
taaleinahH5927 →890 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
לֵֽב׃a heart
levH3820 →595 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Isaiah 43:18“Do not call to mind the former things; pay no attention to the things of old.
it leads to
- 2 Corinthians 3:10
Indeed, what was once glorious has no glory now in comparison to the glory that surpasses it.
- 1 Chronicles 16:12
Remember the wonders He has done, His marvels, and the judgments He has pronounced,
- Deuteronomy 8:2
Remember that these forty years the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness, so that He might humble you and test you in order to know what was in your…
- Jeremiah 16:14–15
Yet behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when they will no longer say, ‘As surely as the LORD lives, who brought the Israelites up out of the land of Egypt.’
- Isaiah 46:9
Remember what happened long ago, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me.
- 2 Corinthians 3:10
Through
2 Peter 3:13But in keeping with God’s promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.
it leads to
- Revelation 21:1
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Isaiah 66:22
“For just as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, will endure before Me,” declares the LORD, “so your descendants and your name will endure.
- Revelation 21:27
But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who practices an abomination or a lie, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
- Revelation 21:1
Where this verse is studied
By subject
Creation34 verses
On this page
About Isaiah
This page draws on 13 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Isaiah; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2211: “God Rejoicing in the New Creation” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); Ephrem the Syrian, COMMENTARY ON ISAIAH 65:17; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Isaiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Isaiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Origen of Alexandria, ON FIRST PRINCIPLES 1:6.4 and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Isaiah.