God will create a new heavens and a new earth and the former things will not be remembered or even come to mind. We won’t remember. We’re told that former troubles will be forgotten. That’s a relief to me. I hope it’s a relief to you. All the mistakes and failures and pain and trouble will be really gone. In its place will be gladness and rejoicing.

There will be no more crying or distress. There will be no tragedy of a baby dying or a someone not living to a ripe old age.

We will eat the fruits of our labors and enjoy the work of our hands. Never again will we labor in vain. Never again will all our work amount to nothing or even loss.

We will know the mind of God. He will come and answer us before we even call out for help. He will be on the ready to be our help.

There is no “lion shall lay down with the lamb” in Scripture. In verse twenty-five, it’s the wolf and the lamb grazing together. The lion, we’re told, becomes a herbivore. There is no destruction in God’s kingdom. The wolf, the lion, the serpent will not hurt or destroy.

This promise is for God’s servants. There are those with a different destiny, that of wrath.

There is a place for God being found by those not seeking Him, where God decides for His reasons to show mercy, but there is also a place of fierce wrath, judgment, and desecration for those who rebel against a God who has been stretching out His arm to save them, but they have chosen to reject Him and turn to false saviors, who could never save.

There’s a separation, a contrast. God’s people will eat, drink, rejoice, and sing for gladness. Those who reject God’s salvation will be hungry, thirsty, put to shame, and cry out with a broken heart.

What future do you choose for yourself?