Jerusalem’s eternal significance isn’t one to be taken lightly. No, it directly impacts God’s final judgment of humanity’s fate. Nothing is more critical to a human’s everlasting resting place than the events of modern-day Jerusalem.

God’s Chosen City

God’s chosen city is Jerusalem.

When David reigned as Israel’s king, God said:

Yet I have chosen Jerusalem, that My name may be there, and I have chosen David to be over My people Israel.’ (2 Chronicles 6:6, NKJV)

As seen above, there isn’t another city in the Bible where God makes His name known. Indeed, this truth establishes Jerusalem as His sovereign city.

God has always loved Jerusalem. On several occasions, the Israelites, in their disobedience of God’s covenants, were removed from this Holy City. For example, they became captives of the Egyptians (Genesis 13:14) and Babylonians (Jeremiah 21:7-8).

However, God always showed them compassion and returned them to Jerusalem.

He used His Prophet Zechariah to reassure the Israelites of His love for them and a return of His presence in Jerusalem.

God spoke these words:

“Thus says the Lord:

‘I will return to Zion,
And dwell in the midst of Jerusalem.
Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth,
The Mountain of the Lord of hosts,
The Holy Mountain.’(Zechariah 8:3, NKJV)

In this verse, we see God’s outlook on Jerusalem. He clarifies this city as Truth and one of Holiness. He is telling us that this city is His.

Given these points, I must understand God’s direct interaction with Jerusalem.

Christ’s Second Coming

Jerusalem will be the city of Christ’s second coming (Zechariah 14:4). He won’t return anywhere else. No, God has chosen it as the city where He will unleash His final wrath on the world and eradicate Satan’s stronghold.

However, those whom God saved won’t experience His last vengeance (1 Thessalonians 5:9). He placed us in Christ and anointed us with the Holy Spirit. It’s in Jesus we are in the hands of God where no one can divide us from His grasp (John 10:29).

This doesn’t mean I won’t be judged. No, I must account for my good and evil deeds (2 Corinthians 5:10). I can’t escape this reality, but to know I’m spared His wrath shows me God’s incredible mercy.

Christ’s Revelation brings a new Jerusalem.

And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. (Revelation 21:2, NASB)

God promises us a place in His New Jerusalem. In this sovereign place, we move from a sanctified body into the glory of God (Revelation 21:23-24).

Unlike the Jerusalem of old, God’s new one is filled with love and perfection. It has no corruption or evilness.

God tells us this about the New Jerusalem:

and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:4, NASB)

As can be seen, there isn’t pain and suffering in God’s house. The only other reference in the bible that comes close to this revelation is the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve lived in perfect harmony with God, but when they fell from His grace (Genesis 3), He forbade them access to His holy place (Genesis 3:23-24).

The difference between the two is in the New Jerusalem, the tree of good and evil won’t exist (Genesis 2:16-17). For temptation ceases to exist, God only allows those He listed in the Book of Life (Revelation 21:27).

Summary

As noted, Jerusalem plays a crucial part in our eternal resting place. For this reason, I must observe the current affairs in Jerusalem. The ongoing war between Israel and Palestine and the world’s hate for the Jews is just a prelude to the end of the age. The Book of Revelation and Christ’s teachings on this truth give me critical insights into Jesus’s return.

How do you see Jerusalem’s eternal significance?