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But God will again have mercy on them and bring them back to the land of Israel. They will build the house again, but it will not be like the first until the era when the appointed times will be completed.[a] Afterward all of them will return from their captivity, and they will rebuild Jerusalem with due honor. In it the house of God will also be rebuilt, just as the prophets of Israel said of it.(A)

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Footnotes

  1. 14:5 Until the era…completed: a reference to the coming of the day of the Lord, when a new, more perfect temple was to be expected. Cf. Hb 9:1–14.

11 O afflicted one,[a] storm-battered and unconsoled,
    I lay your pavements in carnelians,
    your foundations in sapphires;(A)
12 I will make your battlements of rubies,
    your gates of jewels,
    and all your walls of precious stones.
13 All your children shall be taught by the Lord;
    great shall be the peace of your children.

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Footnotes

  1. 54:11 Afflicted one: Jerusalem.

Nations shall behold your vindication,
    and all kings your glory;
You shall be called by a new name
    bestowed by the mouth of the Lord.(A)

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10 He took me in spirit to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God.(A) 11 It gleamed with the splendor of God. Its radiance was like that of a precious stone, like jasper, clear as crystal.(B) 12 It had a massive, high wall, with twelve gates where twelve angels were stationed and on which names were inscribed, [the names] of the twelve tribes of the Israelites. 13 There were three gates facing east, three north, three south, and three west.(C) 14 The wall of the city had twelve courses of stones as its foundation, on which were inscribed the twelve names of the twelve apostles[a] of the Lamb.(D)

15 [b]The one who spoke to me held a gold measuring rod to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. 16 The city was square, its length the same as [also] its width. He measured the city with the rod and found it fifteen hundred miles[c] in length and width and height. 17 He also measured its wall: one hundred and forty-four cubits[d] according to the standard unit of measurement the angel used. 18 [e]The wall was constructed of jasper, while the city was pure gold, clear as glass. 19 The foundations of the city wall were decorated with every precious stone; the first course of stones was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald,(E) 20 the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh hyacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made from a single pearl; and the street of the city was of pure gold, transparent as glass.

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Footnotes

  1. 21:14 Courses of stones…apostles: literally, “twelve foundations”; cf. Eph 2:19–20.
  2. 21:15–17 The city is shaped like a gigantic cube, a symbol of perfection (cf. 1 Kgs 6:19–20). The measurements of the city and its wall are multiples of the symbolic number twelve; see note on Rev 7:4–9.
  3. 21:16 Fifteen hundred miles: literally, twelve thousand stades, about 12,000 furlongs (see note on Rev 14:20); the number is symbolic: twelve (the apostles as leaders of the new Israel) multiplied by 1,000 (the immensity of Christians); cf. Introduction. In length and width and height: literally, “its length and width and height are the same.”
  4. 21:17 One hundred and forty-four cubits: the cubit was about eighteen inches in length. Standard unit of measurement the angel used: literally, “by a human measure, i.e., an angel’s.”
  5. 21:18–21 The gold and precious gems symbolize the beauty and excellence of the church; cf. Ex 28:15–21; Tb 13:16–17; Is 54:11–12.