How Big is the City New Jerusalem?
The information recorded in Revelation chapter 22 is trustworthy and true. But who studies and investigates those words, the facts presented. Hardly anyone. They are caught up in Satan’s web trying to figure out what just happened in this world and what is going to happen next. That is the way of the world. Try to out class the next guy in your field. That road leads to no where.
To understand how much the world has missed, let’s take a look at the previous chapter.
Revelation 21:16 NLTse When he measured it, he found it was a square, as wide as it was long. In fact, its length and width and height were each 1,400 miles.
Revelation 21:16 KJV And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.
The square form of this city probably denotes its stability; while its vast dimensions, being 1,500 miles on each side, are emblematical of magnificence, and of its capability of containing all the multitude of inhabitants which should ever enter it, however immense or innumerable.
We can see how there are a number of translations for the size of the city. Some may think the dimensions are across the city. Others insist God could make a city that large so the size in the measurement around the city. We can do a little math to see which interpretation may be true.
If the city is 1500 miles around, it would be 375 miles across and 375 miles high. When we cube 375 miles we come up with 52,734,375 cubic miles. If we divided that by a billion people, each person would have 0.052734375 cubic miles of space in that city. That may not sound like much, but it is in fact 7,762,392,000 cubic feet per person. Now we have to make an educated guess at how tall each room may be in that city. If the rooms are 10 feet tall, that would leave each person 776,239,200 square feet of living space. That is much larger than the average 1200 square foot home today. If the ceiling height was 20 feet, that would reduce the living space to 38,811,960 square feet. That is if the city held a billion people.
One estimate places the total number of people who ever lived on the earth at 108 billion. We have no reliable estimate Biblically based or otherwise. The best we can do is guess. Maybe that is why Jesus told us His words are trustworthy and true. To remind us how reliable this world is.
How many people lived on this world is not what we are looking for. We are looking for a number of people who are saved. If we borrow a number from the Bible, we know a third of the angels followed Satan and those angels will be lost. If we us that 1/3 number and apply it to round figures of 100 billion people who ever lived in this world, we come up with 66 billion souls who may be saved. Of course this is only an estimate designed to look at the square footage available in the New City Jerusalem. If that city held 66 billion people, each person would have 117,612,000 cubic feet of living space. If we estimated 20 foot ceilings, each person would have a 5,880,600 square foot apartment.
That appears to be rather large. Time to recheck the math.
375x375x375= 52,734,375 Cubic miles
52,734,375 Cubic miles = 7,762,392,000,000,000,000 cubic feet.
With 20 foot ceilings: 7,762,392,000,000,000,000 cubic feet / 20 = 388,119,600,000,000,000 Square feet.
Now we can look at the square feet of the city and estimate the square feet per person based on a few figures.
With a billions people living in the city. 388,119,600,000,000,000 / 1,000,000,000 = 388,119,600 square feet per person.
With 66 billions people living in the city. 388,119,600,000,000,000 / 66,000,000,000 = 5,880,600 square feet per person. Is there any reason to recalculate this for a city that is 1500 miles across?
Of course the ceilings may be 100 feet tall. They could be for all we know. That would reduce the 5,880,600 square feet per person to 1,176,120 square feet per person. That is a lot of living space. Now if Jesus is preparing a place for us, we see how busy He must me.
Of course Jesus or God can speak such a city into existence. But what about the personal preferences each person has? Do you think each room will look alike, or each room will have its own variations based in personal preferences? The Jesus I know wants to design a room for you based on personal tastes. The question is, have you discussed those design preferences with Jesus? If not, don’t you think you have better things to do than worry about this world?
Jesus is building a future home for us and wants our input. Are we too worried about the little things of this world to sit down with Jesus and discuss building plans? What is more important in your life, the things of this world, or the place Jesus is preparing for you at this moment? Are you holding up production? Are you causing delays? Or are you helping Jesus build eternity? I’m in Real Estate and I an smart enough to know, I’ll be out of a job in Heaven. What about you? Are any of your work skills going to be useful in Heaven? Then why worry about them.