第五节 主的降临非为毁灭天地
768# 主的降临，并非他亲自降临以毁灭可见之天与可居之地，并创造新的天与新的地；然而至今仍有许多人，因未曾理解圣言的属灵意义，便如此妄加揣度。
今日诸教会中通行的见解是：当主为施行最后审判而来时，他将显现在天上的云中，伴随众天使与号角之声；并将聚集所有居于地上的人，以及所有已经死去的人；又将恶人与善人分别出来，如牧人将山羊与绵羊分别出来一样；然后将恶人，即山羊，投入地狱，将善人，即绵羊，提升入天堂；并且在那时同时创造一个新的可见之天，和一个新的可居之地；又将一座城降于其上，此城要称为新耶路撒冷，其构造将依照启示录第二十一章中的描述，即由碧玉与黄金造成，其城墙根基由各样宝石筑成，并且其高、宽、长相等，每一面皆为一万二千斯他丢；所有蒙拣选者，无论是当时仍活着的人，还是自世界之初以来已经死去的人，都将聚集到这城中；他们那时也将回到自己的身体，并在那座宏伟之城中，如在自己的天堂里，享受永恒的喜乐。关于主的降临与最后审判，这一见解，今日正在基督教诸教会中居于支配地位。
768# 当今教会的主流观点是，当主为了最后的审判而降临时，祂将与天使和号角声一起出现在天上的云中；祂要将所有仍住在地上的人和所有死了的人都招聚了来，把恶人和善人分开，就像牧羊人把山羊和绵羊分开一样；然后，祂要将恶人或山羊扔进地狱，将善人或绵羊提入天堂。同时，祂要创造一个新的可见的天和一个新的可居的地，并使被称为新耶路撒冷的城降在这地上，这城是按照启示录（21章）中的描述建造的，也就是说，它是碧玉和黄金的，城墙的根基是用各样宝石修饰的，长、宽、高都一样，都是一万二千弗隆。所有选民都将聚集到这座城中，包括那些现在还活着的人，和那些自世界开始以来死去的人。那时，后者将回到自己的身体，在这座壮丽的城中，就像在他们的天堂一样，享受永恒的幸福。关于主降临和最后审判的这种观点在当今基督教会中占主导地位。
768. The Lord's Coming Is Not His Coming to Destroy the Visible Heaven and the Inhabitable Earth and to Create a New Heaven and a New Earth, As Many Have Supposed Because They Have Not Understood the Word's Spiritual Meaning
In the churches in existence today, there is a strongly held opinion about the Second Coming. They believe that when the Lord comes for the Last Judgment, he will appear in the clouds of heaven with angels and the sound of trumpets. He will gather together all the people who are living on the earth and also the people who have died. He will separate the evil among them from the good, as a shepherd separates the goats from the sheep. Then he will cast the evil (the goats) into hell, and lift the good (the sheep) into heaven. At the same time he will create a new visible heaven and a new inhabitable earth. He will send a city down onto this new earth, which will be called the New Jerusalem. Its structure will follow the description given in Revelation 21 That is, it will be made of jasper and gold. The foundations of its walls will be made of precious stones of every kind. Its height, breadth, and length will be equal, at twelve thousand stadia each. All the elect will be brought together into this city, including people who were still alive and also people who had died at any time since the world began. The elect will then return to their bodies and experience everlasting joy in that magnificent city, their heaven.
This is the belief concerning the Lord's Coming and the Last Judgment that is dominant in the Christian churches of today.
768. V. The Lord's coming does not mean His coming to destroy the sky we see and the earth where we live, and to create a new heaven and a new earth, as many people up to now have imagined through not understanding the spiritual sense of the Word.
The opinion current in the churches of the present day is that when the Lord comes to perform the Last Judgment, He will appear in the clouds of the sky accompanied by angels and a blowing of trumpets; and He will gather together all the inhabitants of the earth, as well as those who have died. Then He will separate the wicked from the good, as a shepherd separates the goats from the sheep; and He will throw the wicked, that is, the goats, into hell, and raise the good, that is, the sheep, into heaven. At the same time He will create a new visible sky and a new habitable earth. He will send down upon this a city, to be called the New Jerusalem, built according to the description in Revelation (chapter 21), of jasper and gold, with the foundations of its wall made of every kind of precious stone; its height, width and length will be equal, each measuring twelve thousand stades. All the elect will be gathered into this city, both those then living and those who have died since the beginning of the world. They will then return to their bodies and experience everlasting joy in that magnificent city, which will be a heaven for them. This is the dominant opinion in the Christian churches at the present time about the Lord's coming and the Last Judgment.
768. V. THE LORD'S COMING IS NOT HIS COMING TO DESTROY THE VISIBLE HEAVEN AND THE HABITABLE EARTH, AND TO CREATE A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH, AS MANY, FROM NOT UNDERSTANDING THE SPIRITUAL SENSE OF THE WORD, HAVE HITHERTO SUPPOSED.
The prevailing opinion in the churches at the present day is, that when the Lord shall come for the last judgment, He will appear in the clouds of heaven with angels and the sound of trumpets; will gather together all who still dwell on the earth, together with all who have died; will separate the wicked from the good, as a shepherd separates the goats from the sheep; will then cast the wicked or the goats into hell, and will raise the good or the sheep into heaven; and at the same time will create a new visible heaven and a new habitable earth, and will send down upon that earth the city called the New Jerusalem, built according to the description of it in the Apocalypse (chap. 21), that is, of jasper and gold, and the foundations of its wall of every precious stone, while its height, breadth, and length will be equal, each twelve thousand furlongs; also that into that city will be gathered all the elect, both those who are still alive and those who have died since the beginning of the world; that these will then return into their bodies, and in that magnificent city, as their heaven, will enjoy eternal blessedness. This is the prevailing opinion in the Christian churches of today respecting the Lord's coming and the last judgment.
768. V. THE COMING OF THE LORD IS NOT HIS COMING TO DESTROY THE VISIBLE HEAVEN AND THE HABITABLE EARTH, AND TO CREATE A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH, AS MANY, NOT UNDERSTANDING THE SPIRITUAL SENSE OF THE WORD, HAVE HITHERTO SUPPOSED.
According to the prevailing opinion at this day in the Churches, when the Lord comes for the Last Judgment, He will appear in the clouds of heaven with angels and the sound of trumpets. He will gather together all those who are still on the earth, and also those who have died; and separating the evil from the good as a shepherd separates the goats from the sheep, He will then cast the evil, or the goats, into hell, and raise the good, or the sheep, into heaven. Further, He will also create a new visible heaven and a new habitable earth, and upon this He will send down a city which will be called the New Jerusalem, whose structure will be as described in the Revelation, chapter 21. Thus it will be of jasper and gold, and the foundations of its walls of every kind of precious stone, while its height, breadth and length will be equal, each twelve thousand furlongs. All the elect will be gathered into this city, both those then living and those who have died since the beginning of the world. The latter will return into their bodies and enjoy everlasting bliss in that magnificent city, as in their heaven. This opinion concerning the Coming of the Lord and the Last Judgment is at this day prevailing in Christian Churches.
768. Quod Adventus Domini non sit Adventus Ipsius ad delendum Coelum aspectabile et Terram habitabilem, et ad creandum Novum Coelum et Novam Terram, sicut hactenus multi ex non intellecto sensu spirituali Verbi opinati sunt.
Sententia hodie vigens in Ecclesiis est, quod Dominus, cum ad ultimum judicium veniet, appariturus sit in nubibus Coeli cum Angelis et clangore tubarum, et congregaturus omnes qui super Tellure habitant, et simul qui defuncti sunt, ac separaturus malos a bonis, sicut pastor hircos ab ovibus, et quod tunc conjecturus sit malos seu hircos in infernum, ac bonos seu oves elevaturus in Coelum: et quod tunc simul creaturus sit Novum Coelum aspectabile, et Novam Terram habitabilem; et super hanc demissurus sit Urbem, quae vocabitur Nova Hierosolyma, cujus structura erit secundum descriptionem in Apocalypsi 21, videlicet ex jaspide et auro, et ejus muri fundamenta ex omni lapide pretioso, ac ejus altitudo, latitudo et longitudo aequales, unaquaevis 12000 Stadiorum; et quod in hanc Urbem congregarentur omnes electi, tam qui vivunt, quam qui ab initio Mundi obiverunt; et quod hi tunc redituri in sua corpora, ac aeterno gaudio in magnifica illa Urbe, ut in suo Coelo, fruituri. Haec Sententia de adventu Domini, et de Ultimo judicio, est hodie regnans in Ecclesiis Christianis.