What comes to your mind when you think of Heaven?[1] Floating around on some clouds playing harps; wearing nothing but white for all eternity? These are only a few of the common beliefs that most Christians have about Heaven. Even people who are not Christians think about Heaven in this way.

Among Christians, there are two commonly held beliefs about Heaven. First, it will be a spiritual realm in the clouds. Second, God will destroy this world and replace it with a brand-new world known as the New Heavens and New Earth.

However, most do not realize there is a third option. This third view teaches that Heaven is completely different from what most people understand it to be. In this essay, I will present the argument that Heaven will be this current earth restored to a sinless paradise, that is, a redeemed Eden. Skeptical? Let me convince you otherwise.

Our ignorance of Heaven is so bad that I was shocked when I read what one pastor believed about Eternity. He said that he was depressed whenever he thought about heaven. The pastor admitted that he would rather cease to exist rather than go through “that endless tedium.” He continued, “To float around in the clouds with nothing to do but strum a harp…it’s all so terribly boring. Heaven doesn’t sound much better than Hell. I’d rather be annihilated than spend eternity in a place like that.”[2] Writer John Eldredge says it well when it comes to these kinds of beliefs:

“Nearly every Christian I have spoken with has some idea that eternity is an un-ending church service…We have settled on an image of the never-ending sing-along in the sky, one great hymn after another, forever and ever, amen. And our heart sinks. Forever and ever? That’s it? That’s the good news? And then we sigh and feel guilty that we are not more ‘spiritual.’ We lose heart, and we turn once more to the present to find what life we can.”[3]

This is a sad reality among Christians. Thankfully, I believe that it is completely wrong. This essay will lay out the biblical evidence for a renewed world. Let’s get started.

Restoration

The theme of restoration runs throughout many passages in Scripture. Often these verses are overlooked or interpreted in some “spiritual” way. Yet, when we study them closely, we will see a pattern – a pattern that teaches that God’s creation will be redeemed at the second coming of Christ. These passages include the following: 1) Matthew 19:28-29; 2) Acts 3:21; 3) Colossians 1:15-20; 4) Ephesians 1:9-10; 5) 2 Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1; 6) Romans 8:18-25; and, once again, 7) 2 Peter 3:7, 10-13 (we will be looking at 2 Peter 3 twice).

2 Peter 3 and Revelation 21 are usually seen as passages that confirm that the world will be destroyed. However, an examination of these verses says otherwise. We will also take a look at the basic vocabulary that Scripture uses when discussing salvation, which interestingly, points toward restoration, and not annihilation.

Matthew 19:28-29 is our first passage. It is here that Jesus speaks about a restored world. He says, “I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or fathers or mothers or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life” (emphasis mine).

Jesus teaches that when he returns there will be a “renewal of all things” and that his followers will receive “eternal life” at the same time as that renewal. Theologian Randy Alcorn notes that the Greek translated “renewal” “comes from two words which together mean ‘new genesis’ or ‘coming back from death to life.’”[4] This implies a continuation of something in the past with something in the future and not destruction followed by a replacement.

In Acts 3:21, Peter says that “[Jesus] must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.” The Greek for “restore everything”[5] indicates that the passage is referring to all of creation, not just people.[6]

Colossians 1:15-20 teaches that through Christ, God will “reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven.” In this passage, it is taught that Christ created all things. The Greek that is translated “all things”[7] is used in repetition in these verses. Paul is teaching that Christ created and sustains all things, and “He will also redeem all things by the blood of His cross.”[8]

Notice that Paul says that Jesus will reconcile things on earth and in heaven.[9] Scholar Douglas Moo summarizes this passage well when he says, “Through the work of Christ on the cross, God has brought his entire rebellious creation back under the rule of his sovereign power…What Col. 1:20 teaches, then, is not ‘cosmic salvation’ or even ‘cosmic redemption,’ [universalism] but ’cosmic restoration’ or ‘renewal.’”[10]

Our fourth passage is Ephesians 1:9-10. “And he [God] made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment – to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.”

Here Paul teaches that all things in heaven and on earth will be brought under the rule of Jesus. J. Richard Middleton, in his book A New Heaven and a New Earth, explains the significance of this verse:

“Here salvation (God’s plan for the fullness of time) is understood as gathering up or unifying in Christ that which has been fragmented (perhaps alienated) through sin. And this unifying action is applied comprehensively to ‘all things’ in heaven and on earth (v. 10). Since ‘the heavens and the earth’ is how the first verse of Genesis describes the cosmos that God created in the beginning, Ephesians 1 effectively proclaims that eschatological salvation will be as wide as creation.”[11]

Next, we have the phrase “new heaven and new earth.” This is found in 2 Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1. For most readers, these verses seem to confirm that the present creation will be destroyed, and God will create a “brand new” universe. However, a closer look at these verses points toward an interpretation that is consistent with the passages that we saw before.

The Greek that is translated “new” in English does not necessarily mean something that is brand new. The Greek used in 2 Peter and Revelation is kainos, which “indicates a newness in terms of quality,” which carries the sense of “being repaired and refurbished.”[12] This is different from another Greek word that is also translated “new” (neos), which indicates “newness with respect to time.”[13]

What is interesting is that the New Testament uses kainos predominantly when referring to a change in quality or essence, especially in passages that relate to eschatological or redemptive-historical transitions.[14] Writing about kainos Alcorn notes that it means “not the emergence of a cosmos totally other than the present one, but the creation of a universe which, though it has been gloriously renewed, stands in continuity with the present one.”[15]

Also, worth noting is that Paul uses this same word in 2 Corinthians 5:17 when he speaks of a Christian becoming “a new creation.” The new earth will be the same earth that we currently live on now, just as a Christian is still the same person that they were before but with the added fact that they are now saved.[16]

An Eager Expectation (Romans 8:18-25)

I want to now move on to what I believe are the two most important passages in regard to our topic. These are Romans 8:18-25 and 2 Peter 3:10-13. Let’s first look at Romans 8:18-25.

¹⁸ I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the coming glory that will be revealed in us. ¹⁹ The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to frustration [or futility], not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. ²² We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. ²³ Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. ²⁴ For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

Suffering in the Present World

Paul begins by saying that all our present sufferings in this current life cannot be compared to what awaits us in the coming glory. What is the coming glory? Verse 19 tells us that it is the revelation of the sons of God; that is when Christians will be given their resurrection bodies. Christians will receive these bodies at the second coming of Christ.

In the next age (the new heavens and new earth) there will be no more suffering and the pain that we feel in this current life will be a distant memory. As one scholar has said, “the contemporary era is marked by suffering, but in the future age pain will be left behind forever.”[17] The whole point of verse 18 is that our present sufferings and problems that we experience right now are inconsequential and nothing compared to the future glory of Christians.

Creation

What is the meaning of the word “creation” in this passage? The Greek word for “creation” (ktisis) can mean several different things depending on the context: 1) everything that God has created; 2) a living individual or even a non-living creature; 3) humanity as a whole (or figuratively for a group); 4) Christians; or 5) government.[18] So the word can mean “everything” or “humanity” in some kind of capacity. To know which is correct we must closely examine the passage.

It is clear that “Christians” is not the meaning of the word here since Paul is comparing the “creation” with believers, and specifically excludes them in verses 19-22. Verse 19 says the “creation” is waiting for the revealing of the sons of God. The sons of God and the “creation” are different.

Verse 21 states that the “creation” itself will be released from bondage. The words itself and also contrast the creation with believers. Another contrast between the believers and the “creation” comes from verse 23 where it says, “not only so, but we ourselves.” “[B]ut we ourselves,” is distinguished from the “whole creation” by “not only so.”[19]

Paul’s insistence in verse 20, that the creation was subjected not of its own choice, excludes all of humanity and the angels. Humanity was subjected to bondage because we willingly rebelled against God. Fallen angels sinned before Adam and Eve sinned and did so willingly. Angels are also not being “liberated from its bondage” so the “creation” cannot refer to them. So, # 2-5 in the list above are excluded. Thus “the creation” must refer to the subhuman world, especially animals, who also experience suffering and death like humans do.[20]

Birth Pangs, Futility, and Decay[21]

Verses 20-22 give us a description of the current state of creation, and verse 19 says that the creation is waiting for the revelation of the sons of God. The reason is that creation has been subjected to futility. Futility means that the creation has not fulfilled the very purpose for why it was created. There is good reason to conclude that Paul has in mind Genesis 3:17-19 when Adam, Eve, and the world were cursed.

Scholar Thomas Schreiner says that “the text should be interpreted in terms of Gen. 3:17-19, where the ground is cursed because of human sin, and thereby does not fulfill its created purpose.”[22] Another scholar, Douglas Moo, says, “Humanity’s fall into sin marred the ‘goodness’ of God’s creation, and creation has ever since been in a state of ‘frustration.’”[23]

Verse 21 describes this futility as “bondage to decay” or, as some translations put it, “the slavery of corruption.” “Slavery entails corruption, decay, and death, which pervade the natural world.”[24] Verse 22 adds “groaning” and “pains of childbirth.” The groaning of creation is linked to the groaning of believers in the world. Since the redemption of creation and the Christian are linked, it is reasonable then to believe that they came into this bondage to corruption at the same time.

But when did this groaning and bondage begin? Paul indicates that it began when God cursed creation at the time when Adam and Eve sinned. First, the description of futility and slavery to corruption does not fit with what Genesis teaches about creation (it was created “very good”). Second, “groans and labors with birth pangs” is very reminiscent of God’s judgment against Eve in Genesis 3:16. Third, as mentioned above, the liberation from this bondage is connected to the redemption of believers’ bodies. Smith says:

“If the creation was in a futile state at the initial moment of its existence, it technically could not be subjected to corruption and decay. It would simply come into existence in that state. Its natural and initial inclination would be toward futility.”[25]

He continues:

“The narrative of Genesis 3:14–19, however, is much more consistent with Paul’s expressions found in the text under investigation. If Adam’s fall was indeed the cause of this ‘subjection to futility’ by God, the idea of hope being directly connected to the action makes perfect sense if Paul had Genesis 3 in view. Many biblical commentators see Genesis 3:15 as the protoevangelium, the first proclamation of the Gospel. The first human beings have disobeyed God in paradise, and, having been fairly warned, they are to receive punishment for their transgression. But this punishment occurs with hope in God’s view. The Gospel is the ultimate hope in a desperate and impossibly corrupt situation. The combined [Greek] terms hupetagē and tēs douleias tēs phthoras,… in verses 20 and 21 are perfectly consistent with the events described in Genesis 3:14–19, a direct result of Adam and Eve’s disobedience.”[26]

Also, the hope of the creation is connected to the glory of the sons of God. “It therefore follows that the creation’s futility is also inexorably connected to man’s futility, both originating in man’s fall. The whole sub-human created order was plunged into futility by man’s fall, and it will be liberated as a result of man’s redemption”[27]

What does all this mean?

Schreiner gives us a good summary of this passage when he says, “Believers should be full of hope because the sufferings of this age are part and parcel of a fallen creation, and the glory of the age to come inevitably includes a renewed creation. In verses 19-22, Paul argues that the glory of the future age must be indescribably beautiful because the creation longs to experience it.”[28]

Paul personifies the subhuman creation to teach his readers of the “cosmic significance” of humanity’s fall into sin and the Christian’s restoration into glory. Paul tells us about creation’s “eager expectation” to show us that it cannot wait for the revelation of the sons of God.[29]

This passage tells us some interesting details about what heaven is going to be like. The fact that creation cannot wait for the return of Christ shows us that it will not be destroyed, but instead, restored. Why would it eagerly wait for its own destruction? Paul “envisions a future salvation that will engulf the entire cosmos and reverse and transcend the consequences of the fall. The redemption anticipated by the elect will also affect the created order.”[30]

In conclusion to this section, Paul teaches that when Christians receive their resurrection bodies the entire creation will be liberated from the curse of sin and decay. According to this passage, creation was subjected to frustration (sin) by God and is now awaiting the resurrection of Christians so it will be liberated (and not destroyed).

Peter’s view of Heaven

Next, we have 2 Peter 3:7, 10-13: “By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men…But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.”

This passage is probably one of the most popular for those who believe that the world will be destroyed.[31] Referring to these verses, popular prophecy teacher Mark Hitchcock says, “By the spoken word, God will simultaneously break up every atom in the cosmos, and the entire universe will disintegrate (2 Peter 3:7, 10-13).”[32]

However, like “the new heaven and earth” before we will see that Peter is not teaching a creation that will be obliterated by fire, but one that will be purified by fire.

Three Stages of History

The first thing that the reader must understand is the context of this passage. In 2 Peter 3:3-7, 13, Peter tells his audience of three different stages of world history: 1) the world before the Great Flood; 2) the present world (that will be destroyed by fire), and 3) the new heaven and new earth. The three stages of history are separated by two cosmic judgments: The Great Flood and the judgment by fire.

In speaking about the judgment by fire, Peter is drawing a parallel between it and the Great Flood. The world before the Flood was destroyed by water just as the present world will be destroyed by fire. The Deluge of Noah’s day was devastating, but it did not completely obliterate the world. We are still living on it as I type this. It follows that the present earth (between the two judgments) will also continue to exist after the judgment by fire.[33]

The Judgment by Fire

The King James Version of the Bible translates 2 Peter 3:10 as “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.”

The Greek word translated “burned up” (katakaesetai) in the King James Version does not appear in the oldest Greek manuscripts. Instead, these older manuscripts contain another Greek word (heurethesetai) that is best translated as “found.”[34]

What is interesting about this word is that the usual meaning (“found”) does not fit the context of 2 Peter 3:10.[35] Scholar Albert Wolters has concluded that this word indicates not a destruction of the world, but “a smelting process from which the world will emerge purified.”[36] The meaning of the passage would then indicate not a fire that destroys, but a fire that will purify the world as fire purifies metal.

Peter also uses words that mean “to dissolve,” “to melt”, and “to burn.” Interestingly, one of the Greek verbs (pyroomai) that he uses for “burn” is regularly used for metals heated in a smelting furnace. Interestingly, the Greek verb (kaiomai) which means “to burn” in the sense of something going up in flames is absent in this passage.[37] Wolters notes:

“The apostle is describing the Day of the Lord in the terms of cosmic elements which, as the result of intense heat, become incandescent and melt. They do not ‘burn up,’ as is frequently imagined. To use the language of contemporary scientists in describing nuclear accidents, the future cataclysm is not a ‘burnup’ but a ‘meltdown.’”[38]

The prophet Malachi also looked at judgment day as a refiner’s fire. Malachi 3:2-3 says:

“But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver”.

Let’s now quickly go back to the original Greek word that the older manuscripts have (heurethesetai). The passive form of heurisko appears in 2 Peter 3:14: “Be zealous to be found by him without spot or blemish.” The meaning is that Christians should “be found” just like the new heavens and new earth will “be found.”[39]

This seems to indicate that just as Christians will be purified after the judgment, so will the heavens and earth. “In Peter, it seems, heurethenai can have the connotation ‘to have survived,’ ‘to have stood the test,’ ‘to have proved genuine.’” Even more support for this is found in 1 Peter 1:7 where the passive form of this word (heurisko) is used to describe surviving a purifying fire (in an eschatological context as well).[40]

It seems clear that this passage does not refer to the destruction of the world but to its purification. As scholar Cornelis Venema has said, “2 Peter 3:5-13 confirms, then, the basic idea also expressed, though in different language, in Romans 8.”[41]

The Basic Words for Salvation

The final argument in favor of a renewed earth is the basic vocabulary that is used for salvation. These words are “redemption,” “renewal,” “reconciliation,” and the word “salvation” itself. These words indicate a return to something good that has been lost.

1) To redeem something is to “buy free,” which means literally to “buy back.” It calls forth an image of a free person being kidnapped and someone paying a ransom to free that person from bondage.

2) Renewal means “making new again.” Something that was once new but is now worn out is renovated and brought back to what it was before.

3) Reconciliation gives us the image “of friends who have fallen out, or former allies who have declared war on one another. They have become reconciled and return to their original friendship and alliance.”

4) Finally, the Greek word for salvation, soteria, has the general meaning of “health” or “security” after being sick or in danger.

One scholar sums it up well when he says, “All of these terms suggest a restoration of some good thing that was spoiled or lost.”[42] Middleton adds that “salvation is conceived not as God doing something completely new, but rather as redoing something, fixing or repairing what went wrong; this point is expressed in the language of restoration, reconciliation, renewal, and redemption found in these texts.”[43]

Conclusion

In conclusion, many passages in Scripture teach that God will restore the world and not destroy it. Let me summarize the arguments in this essay:

• In Matthew 19:28-29, Jesus teaches that he will restore God’s creation (“renewal of all things”) when he returns and gives his followers eternal life.
• Peter preaches in Acts 3:21 that when Christ returns, “all things” will be restored.
• Paul teaches in Colossians 1:15-20 that God will reconcile all things on earth and in heaven to himself. How can God reconcile both heaven and earth if he is going to obliterate them?
• Continuing in Ephesians 1:9-10, Paul teaches that all things in heaven and earth will be unified in Christ. Again, how can God unify things in heaven and earth under the headship of Christ if he is going to destroy them?
• The word “new” in the new heaven and new earth in 2 Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1 does not mean “brand new.” It is better to think of the word “new” in this context as indicating that creation will be made new again, not replaced (Revelation 21:5).
• Romans 8:18-25 is perhaps one of the most important passages concerning the nature of heaven. Paul teaches that creation is eagerly waiting for the resurrection of Christians as when this event occurs it too will be liberated from the curse. Why would the creation eagerly await the resurrection of Christians if it were only going to be destroyed?
• 2 Peter 3:7, 10-13 teaches us that the judgment of fire is not a destruction of the world, but a purification of the world.
• The vocabulary that is used to describe salvation in the Bible indicates a return to something good that has been lost. They point to something being restored that was once spoiled.

Alcorn sums up the arguments here: “When Christ returns, God’s agenda is not to destroy everything and start over, but to ‘restore everything.’ The perfection of creation once lost will be fully regained, and then some.”[44] What Christians have believed for centuries, that we will spend an eternity in some kind of spiritual world floating around on clouds playing music, is not biblical. Instead, we will live on this earth, in this universe, with God himself.

I’ll end with Matthew 5:5. “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” How can the meek inherit the earth if it is to be destroyed?

After reading the arguments here many of you probably have questions concerning various passages that seem to indicate that God will destroy this world (examples include Hebrews 12:26-28, Psalm 102:25-26, Matthew 24:35; Revelation 6:12-14, and others). I have written another essay examining these passages and I do not believe that they teach the destruction of the world. The article is entitled “Will God Destroy the World?” and it can be found here.

[1] This is an updated edition of this essay (October 6, 2024).

[2] Randy Alcorn, Heaven (Carol Stream: Tyndale, 2004). 5-6.

[3] John Eldredge, The Journey of Desire: Searching for the Life We’ve Only Dreamed Of (Nashville: Nelson, 2000). 111. Quoted in Alcorn, 6.

[4] Alcorn, 92. Craig Blomberg, (Matthew. In “The New American Commentary.” Nashville: Broadman Press, 1992. 301) believes this verse is about the new heavens and new earth. He also notes that the Greek for “renewal of all things” (palingenesia) refers to the “regeneration” or “new birth” of something although he also notes that it was the technical term used by Greco-Roman philosophy “for the dissolution and recreation of the cosmos.” R.T. France (Matthew. In the “New Bible Commentary.” Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 1994. 930) says that the renewal “suggests the ‘new heavens and new earth’ of the Messianic age.” John MacArthur (The MacArthur Bible Commentary. Nashville, Thomas Nelson, 2005. 1161) thinks that this is referring to the Millennium and not the new heavens and new earth. He interprets the verse this way because he believes that the creation will be annihilated and that the new earth is brand new (however, see the rest of this article for a refutation of that idea).

D.A. Carson notes that the only other occurrence of palingenesia is in Titus 3:5 and deals with “rebirth…by the Holy Spirit” (“Matthew” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary. Vol. 8. Ed. Frank E. Gaebelein. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1984, 425). He also believes that this “renewal” takes place at the consummation of the kingdom (p. 425). Craig S. Keener says that the “regeneration” in Matthew 19:28-29 “must refer to the time of the new creation (Acts 3:19-21), applicable especially to the time of Israel’s restoration” (The Gospel of Matthew: A Social-Rhetorical Commentary. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 480).

[5] The Greek for “restoration of all things” is apokatastaseos panton. This appears in the genitive neuter construction (panton) “of all things.” See Ron Minton, “Apostolic Witness to Genesis Creation and the Flood.” In Coming to Grips with Genesis: Biblical Authority and the Age of the Earth. Ed. Terry Mortenson and Thane H. Ury (Green Forest: Master Books, 2008). 349.

[6] Minton, 349. J. Richard Middleton, A New Heaven and a New Earth (Grand Rapids: Baker House, 2014), 157. Alcorn, 90. Anthony A. Hoekema, The Bible and the Future (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1979), 282. However, I admit that words can have different meanings depending on the context. Since Scripture teaches that unbelievers and demons are not saved, it is clear that “everything” in this verse cannot mean literally every single thing in creation. What “everything” includes will be apparent as you continue to read this article.

[7] ta panta.

[8] Minton, 358.

[9] Middleton, 158-159. Alcorn, 125-126. Douglas J. Moo, “Nature in the New Creation: New Testament Eschatology and the Environment.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 49/3 (September 2006): 471-473. Moo notes that every occurrence of “all things” in these verses refer to the created universe and not only humans. The mention in verse 20 to “things on earth or things in heaven” would also include “the spiritual beings that play so prominent a role in the background of the Colossian controversy…The context therefore requires that [panta] be unlimited in its scope” (p. 471-472).

[10] Moo, 472. He also notes that “If the natural world is included in the scope of the ‘all things’ that Christ rules as mediator of creation, it must also be included in the scope of the ‘all things’ that he rules as mediator of reconciliation” (p. 473).

[11] Middleton, 158. Also see Alcorn, 46, 102-103.

[12] Andrew Kulikovsky, Creation, Fall, Restoration (Geanies House: Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 2009.) 274. Also see G. K. Beale, The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text. The New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1999). 1040 and George R. Beasley-Murray, Revelation. In the “New Bible Commentary” (Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 1994). 1453.

[13] Hoekema, 280. Kulikovsky, 274; Beale, 1040. William Hendriksen, More Than Conquerors (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1967). 198.

[14] Kulikovsky, 274. Beale, 1040.

[15] Hoekema, 280. See also Alcorn, 155.

[16] Alcorn, 155. Middleton, 205-206.

[17] Thomas Schreiner. Romans (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1998), 433.

[18] Minton, 355-356. Douglas Moo. The Epistle to the Romans (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1996), 513-514. Henry B. Smith Jr. “Cosmic and universal death from Adam’s fall: and exegesis of Romans 8:19-23a.” Journal of Creation 21 (1):75-85. http://creation.com/cosmic-and-universal-death-from-adams-fall-an-exegesis-of-romans-819-23a.

[19] Schreiner, 435. Leon Morris. The Epistle to the Romans (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1988), 320.

[20] Minton, 356; Moo, 514; Schreiner, 435; Smith; Morris, 320.

[21] Verse 19 says that creation was subjected to futility (the NIV translates it as “frustration”). So the obvious question is “who subjected it?” The “one who subjected” creation has been identified with 1) Adam, by his fall into sin; 2) Satan; or 3) God. Only God can be seen here because he is the only one with the right and power to condemn creation to frustration. (Moo, 515-516. Schreiner, 435. Morris, 321-322)

Henry Smith says, “This subjector, therefore, would have to possess the power and authority to subject the entire sub-human creation to futility, and have hope in view at the same time.” This negates the possibility that it was fallen angels or humanity since neither one has the power to subject the creation with hope in view. Only God, who is both our Judge and Savior, could entertain hope for the world that he had cursed. (Smith. Schreiner, 435.)

[22] Schreiner, 436.

[23] Moo, 515.

[24] Schreiner, 436.

[25] Smith.

[26] Ibid.

[27] Ibid.

[28] Schreiner, 438.

[29] Moo, 514; Morris, 321. The Old Testament also personified the hills, meadows, and valleys who shout and sing together for joy (Psalm 65:12-13), and also used the earth to mourn (Isaiah 24:4; Jer. 4:28; 12:4). See also Psalm 96:12; 98:8 Isaiah 35:1; 55:12.

[30] Schreiner, 437.

[31] Tim Lahaye, Revelation Revealed (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1999), 355-356. John F. Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ (Chicago: Moody Press, 1966), 305-306, 311. Grant R. Osbourne, Revelation (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002), 729. MacArthur, 1942.

[32] Mark Hitchcock, The End (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2012), 450.

[33] Alcorn, 154. Albert Wolters, “Worldview and Textual Criticism in 2 Peter 3:10.” Westminster Theological Journal 49/2 (Fall 1987), 408. Richard Bauckham, Jude, 2 Peter. In the “Word Biblical Commentary” Vol. 50 (Waco: Word Books, 1983). 299. Middleton,195. Cornelis Venema, The Promise of the Future (Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2000). 467. Douglas J. Moo, “Nature in the New Creation,” 467, 469.

[34] Wolters, 405. Kulikovsky, 273. Also see Alcorn, 154-155.The NIV translates it “laid bare,” and the English Standard Version translates it as “exposed.” Bauckham, 316, 319, 321. Middleton, 161-162, 193-194. Douglas Moo, 2 Peter, Jude. In “The NIV Application Commentary” (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996). 190-191. Moo, “Nature in the New Creation,” 468. Venema, 468.

[35] Kulikovsky, 272-273.

[36] Wolters, 408. Also see Middleton, 162, 191, 194-195. Venema, 467-468. Moo, “2 Peter, Jude,” 202. Moo, “Nature in the New Creation,” 468.

[37] Wolters 408-409.

[38] Ibid. 409.

[39] Ibid. 410.

[40] Ibid.

[41] Venema, 469.

[42] Albert M. Wolters, Creation Regained. 2nd Ed (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2005). 69-70. Italics in original. See also Alcorn, 88-90.

[43] Middleton, 163.

[44] Alcorn, 153-154.