# Isaiah 65 đ: New Heavens and New Earth
[[đ Explore the Bible Books]]
[[-Isaiah Overview]] | [[Isaiah 64]] | [[Isaiah 66]]
> [!info] Table of Contents
> [[#đ Scripture Text (NET)]]
> [[#đ Verse-by-Verse Commentary]]
> [[#đ¤ Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]]
> [[#đ§ Chapter Summary]]
> [[#âď¸ Christ in This Chapter]]
> [[#đ Key Principles / đ Life Application]]
> [[#đŹ Discussion Questions]]
> [[#âď¸ Key Verses to Remember]]
> [[#đ Related Passages/Cross Reference]]
> [[#đ Devotional Reflection]]
> [[#đ Internal Notes]]
## đ Scripture Text (NET)
(The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005)
### The Lord Will Distinguish Between Sinners and the Godly
[[#Verse 01.]]Â âI made myself available to those who did not ask for me;
I appeared to those who did not look for me.
I said, âHere I am! Here I am!â
to a nation that did not invoke my name.
[[#Verse 02.]]Â I spread out my hands all day long
to my rebellious people,
who lived in a way that is morally unacceptable,
and who did what they desired.
[[#Verse 03.]]Â These people continually and blatantly offend me
as they sacrifice in their sacred orchards
and burn incense on brick altars.
[[#Verse 04.]]Â They sit among the tombs
and keep watch all night long.
They eat pork,
and broth from unclean sacrificial meat is in their pans.
[[#Verse 05.]] They say, âKeep to yourself! Donât get near me, for I am holier than you!â These people are like smoke in my nostrils, like a fire that keeps burning all day long.
[[#Verse 05]]Â They say, âKeep to yourself!
Donât get near me, for I am holier than you!â
These people are like smoke in my nostrils,
like a fire that keeps burning all day long.
[[#Verse 06.]]Â Look, I have decreed:
I will not keep silent, but will pay them back;
I will pay them back exactly what they deserve,
[[#Verse 07.]] for your sins and your ancestorsâ sins,â says the Lord.
âBecause they burned incense on the mountains
and offended me on the hills,
I will punish them in full measure.â
[[#Verse 08.]] This is what the Lord says:
âWhen juice is discovered in a cluster of grapes,
someone says, âDonât destroy it, for it contains juice.â
So I will do for the sake of my servantsâ
I will not destroy everyone.
[[#Verse 09.]]Â I will bring forth descendants from Jacob,
and from Judah people to take possession of my mountains.
My chosen ones will take possession of the land;
my servants will live there.
[[#Verse 10.]] Sharon will become a pasture for sheep,
and the Valley of Achor a place where cattle graze;
they will belong to my people, who seek me.
[[#Verse 11.]] But as for you who abandon the Lord
and forget about worshiping at my holy mountain,
who prepare a feast for the god called âFortune,â
and fill up wine jugs for the god called âDestinyââ
[[#Verse 12.]]Â I predestine you to die by the sword,
all of you will kneel down at the slaughtering block,
because I called to you, and you did not respond;
I spoke and you did not listen.
You did evil before me;
you chose to do what displeases me.â
[[#Verse 13.]] So this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
âLook, my servants will eat, but you will be hungry.
Look, my servants will drink, but you will be thirsty.
Look, my servants will rejoice, but you will be humiliated.
[[#Verse 14.]]Â Look, my servants will shout for joy as happiness fills their hearts.
But you will cry out as sorrow fills your hearts;
you will wail because your spirits will be crushed.
[[#Verse 15.]]Â Your names will live on in the curse formulas of my chosen ones.
The Sovereign Lord will kill you,
but he will give his servants another name.
[[#Verse 16.]]Â Whoever pronounces a blessing in the earth
will do so in the name of the faithful God;
whoever makes an oath in the earth
will do so in the name of the faithful God.
For past problems will be forgotten;
I will no longer think about them.
[[#Verse 17.]]Â For look, I am ready to create
new heavens and a new earth!
The former ones will not be remembered;
no one will think about them anymore.
[[#Verse 18.]]Â But be happy and rejoice forevermore
over what I am about to create!
For look, I am ready to create Jerusalem to be a source of joy,
and her people to be a source of happiness.
[[#Verse 19.]]Â Jerusalem will bring me joy,
and my people will bring me happiness.
The sound of weeping or cries of sorrow
will never be heard in her again.
[[#Verse 20.]]Â Never again will one of her infants live just a few days
or an old man die before his time.
Indeed, no one will die before the age of one hundred;
anyone who fails to reach the age of one hundred will be considered cursed.
[[#Verse 21.]]Â They will build houses and live in them;
they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
[[#Verse 22.]]Â No longer will they build a house only to have another live in it,
or plant a vineyard only to have another eat its fruit,
for my people will live as long as trees,
and my chosen ones will enjoy to the fullest what they have produced.
[[#Verse 23.]]Â They will not work in vain,
or give birth to children that will experience disaster.
For the Lord will bless their children
and their descendants.
[[#Verse 24.]] Before they even call out, I will respond;
while they are still speaking, I will hear.
[[#Verse 25.]]Â A wolf and a lamb will graze together;
a lion, like an ox, will eat straw,
and a snakeâs food will be dirt.
They will no longer injure or destroy
on my entire royal mountain,â says the Lord.
## đ Verse-by-Verse Commentary
###### Overall.
###### Verse 01.
###### Verse 02.
###### Verse 03.
###### Verse 04.
###### Verse 05.
###### Verse 06.
###### Verse 07.
###### Verse 08.
###### Verse 09.
###### Verse 10.
###### Verse 11.
###### Verse 12.
###### Verse 13.
###### Verse 14.
###### Verse 15.
###### Verse 16.
###### Verse 17.
###### Verse 18.
###### Verse 19.
###### Verse 20.
###### Verse 21.
###### Verse 22.
###### Verse 23.
###### Verse 24.
###### Verse 25.
## đ¤ Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights
1. Paul quotes 65:1-2 in Romans 10:20-21 to describe the Gentiles finding God and Israel's resistance.
2. Sacrificing in gardens and eating pork (65:3-4) describe pagan practices forbidden by the Law (Leviticus 11:7).
3. The phrase holier than thou comes from the King James Version's wording of 65:5.
4. Fortune and Destiny (65:11) are the names of two pagan gods, Gad and Meni, worshiped with tables of food and wine.
5. The Valley of Achor (65:10), where Achan was judged (Joshua 7:24-26), becomes a place of rest. Hosea 2:15 calls it a door of hope.
6. The new heavens and new earth (65:17) are echoed in 2 Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1.
7. Someone who dies at a hundred being considered young (65:20) pictures long, blessed lives.
8. Building houses and living in them (65:21-22) reverses the covenant curses of Deuteronomy 28:30.
9. The wolf and lamb feeding together (65:25) repeats the promise of 11:6-9.
10. Dust will be the serpent's food (65:25) recalls the curse on the serpent in Genesis 3:14.
## đ§ Chapter Summary
> [!note] đą Still growing. This section is on its way.
## âď¸ Christ in This Chapter
Christ is the One through whom God creates new heavens and a new earth (65:17; Revelation 21:1-5). God was found by those who did not seek Him (65:1), the Gentiles who came to Jesus by faith (Romans 10:20).
## đ Key Principles / đ Life Application
> [!note] đą Still growing. This section is on its way.
## đŹ Discussion Questions
1. God held out His hands all day to a rebellious people (65:2). What does this reveal about God's patience?
2. Some said, keep away, I am holier than you (65:5). How can spiritual pride creep into our lives?
3. God promises new heavens and a new earth where the former things will not be remembered (65:17). How does this hope shape how you live now?
## âď¸ Key Verses to Remember
- đ verse 1: God was found by those who did not seek Him.
- đ verse 17: God will create new heavens and a new earth.
- đ verse 24: Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear.
## đ Related Passages/Cross Reference
- đ [[Revelation 21#Verse 01.|Revelation 21:1-5]] - A new heaven and a new earth.
- đ [[2 Peter 03#Verse 13.|2 Peter 3:13]] - We wait for new heavens and a new earth.
- đ [[Romans 10#Verse 20.|Romans 10:20-21]] - I was found by those who did not seek Me.
- đ [[Luke 18#Verse 09.|Luke 18:9-14]] - The Pharisee and the tax collector.
- đ [[Matthew 06#Verse 08.|Matthew 6:8]] - Your Father knows what you need before you ask.
## đ Devotional Reflection
đ SOAP: [[Isaiah 65 - SOAP|The Purpose of Prayer]]
## đ Internal Notes