This is another in a series of excerpts from What Every Christian Should Know About the Return of Jesus, released by High Street Press and available at Amazon. 

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Old Testament scholar Sandra Richter writes:

[E]verything that lies in between Eden’s gate and the New Jerusalem, the bulk of our Bibles, is in essence a huge rescue plan. In fact, we could summarize the plot line of the Bible into one cosmic question: “How do we get Adam back into the garden?” In Genesis 3, humanity was driven out; in Revelation 21-22, they are welcomed home.

The Garden of Eden is a temple where humans enjoy face-to-face friendship with their creator. The Fall results in human banishment from Eden and a divinely prescribed distance between holy God and sinful people. Even Moses, the great lawgiver, is forbidden to see the face of God because God has declared, “No one may see me and live” (Exod. 33:20 NIV). Moses is allowed only to see God’s back as he passes by (v. 23). In the ancient world, criminals are banished from the presence of the king and not allowed to see his face, an apt picture of our separation from God (Esth. 7:8; cf. 2 Sam. 14:24).

John asserts that no person has seen God at any time. Even so, Jesus has declared God as deity veiled in human flesh (John 1:18). Jesus teaches that only the pure in heart will see God (Matt. 5:8). So, consider the transformation that takes place when the redeemed in eternity see God face-to-face and become like him (1 John 3:2).

Tabernacle and temple

After the Fall, God provides a tabernacle, and then a temple, where he meets behind a veil with representatives of sinful humans. Ultimately, God himself tabernacles with us in the person of Jesus (John 1:14). Finally, perfect fellowship is restored as the throne of God comes down out of heaven. The Lord resides once again with redeemed people in a restored Eden. 

The answer to “How do we get Adam back into the garden?” is Jesus. From the Fall in Genesis 3 to the new heavens and earth in Revelation 21-22, we see God’s rescue plan in action. That plan focuses on the eternal Son of God. He’s in the garden as creator (John 1:1-3; Col. 1:15-17). He’s the promised redeemer when mankind falls (Gen. 3:15). He appears numerous times in the Old Testament to inform, deliver, and judge as the angel of the Lord. 

Further, he’s the focus of some four hundred Old Testament messianic prophecies and foreshadows. He’s the God-Man who pitches his tent with people (John 1:14). He’s the Suffering Servant who bears our sins on the cross (Isa. 53:3-6; John 19:17-30). He’s the resurrected and exalted king who holds the keys of death and hades(Rev. 1:18). He’s the King of kings who returns in power and glory to set things right and make all things new (Rev. 19:11-16; 21:5). 

The bridge

Jesus is the bridge connecting fallen Eden and Eden restored. Notice how John captures this truth in Revelation 22.

Jesus restores the pure waters of Eden. “Then he showed me the river of the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb” (Rev. 22:1). In the beginning, there’s a river that waters Eden (Gen. 2:10-14). Adam and Eve may refresh themselves in it until they sin and are banned from it. But Jesus promises living water to those who come to him – a preview of the Holy Spirit and the guarantee of everlasting life (John 7:37-39). 

Jesus restores human access to the tree of life. “The tree of life was on each side of the river, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit every month” (Rev. 22:2). Because Adam and Eve partake of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they are denied access to the tree of life (Gen. 2:9; 3:22-24). But Jesus dies on a tree, bearing humanity’s sin debt. The innocent and immortal life Adam and Eve enjoy before the Fall is regained  (John 11:25; 14:6; Gal. 3:13).

Jesus restores the perfect health of Eden. “The leaves of the tree are for healing the nations” (Rev. 22:2). There is no sickness in Eden, but banishment from the garden exposes Adam and Eve to every kind of physical, emotional, and societal malady. But Jesus comes as the great physician who provides wholeness in body, soul, and spirit (Luke 4:18-19; cf. Isa. 53:3-6; 61:1-2). 

Jesus restores the throne room of Eden. “The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will worship him” (Rev. 22:3). Direct access to the triune Godhead is lost in the Fall. God’s throne withdraws to the unseen realm. But Jesus leaves the throne room of heaven on a mission to restore our broken relationship with God. He wears a crown of thorns and a borrowed robe as he is mocked as a presumptuous king. But truly he is King of kings and Lord of lords, returning to the throne at his ascension and bringing the throne back to earth at his return (John 3:13; 19:2, 5; Rev. 19:16). 

Jesus restores the intimacy of Eden between God and people made in his image. God’s servants “will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads” (Rev. 22:4).  After the Fall, walking with God in the cool of the evening is a pleasure denied Adam and Eve. But Jesus comes to a fallen earth as God incarnate (John 1:1-18; 14:9). Eyewitnesses see him in his humanity – and  Peter, James, and John see him in glorified humanity on the mount of transfiguration (Matt. 17:1-8; 1 John 1:1-3). One day, we will see him face-to-face, as Adam and Eve did in the garden (1 John 3:2). 

Jesus restores the divine light of Eden. “Night will be no more; people will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, because the Lord God will give them light, and they will reign forever and ever” (Rev. 22:5). Separation from God, bondage to sin, and the work of the evil one are associated with darkness throughout Scripture (e.g., Matt. 8:12; 22:13; 25:30; Acts 26:18; Eph. 5:8; Col. 1:13). But Jesus came as the light of the world – a light that shines in darkness (John 1:5; 8:12; 1 John 1:5). 

Jesus restores mankind’s dominion over the earth. God’s servants “will reign forever and ever.” Adam and Eve lose dominion over the earth when they rebel against God, seeking to become the masters of their own fates. But Jesus comes to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for us (Matt. 20:28). Because of this, redeemed people are more than bond-servants of Christ; we are adopted sons and daughters of the Father, and joint heirs with Jesus of the perfect world to come (John 13:1-17; Rom. 8:17). 

Jesus restores Eden as God’s dwelling place. “Look, God’s dwelling is with humanity, and he will live with them” (Rev. 21:3). Sin results in banishment from God’s presence for Adam and Eve – and for all human descendants. But the Son of God takes on human flesh and tabernacles with us so we might live forever with him (John 1:14; 14:1-13). 

Jesus restores the proper balance of Eden between God and people. “They will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them and will be their God” (Rev. 21:3). God withdraws his presence from Adam and Eve after they sin. But Jesus leaves heaven in a mission from heaven’s throne room to be with us, and he promises to prepare a place for us there (John 14:1-3). He takes us to heaven upon our physical death, and then returns with us to dwell in the newly minted heavens and earth (Rev. 19:11-16; 21-22).

Jesus destroys the bonds of sin and restores the sinless perfection humans once enjoyed in Eden. “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4). Outside Eden are a thousand sorrows. But Jesus identifies with us in our sin-wrecked world, becoming “a man of sorrows … acquainted with grief” (Isa. 53:3 KJV). He weeps over the tomb of Lazarus and the city of Jerusalem. Sin and its consequences break his heart (Luke 19:41-44; John 11:35; 16:33). So, he dies that we might live; suffers so we might be secure; bears our shame so we might enjoy honor in his kingdom. 

Jesus is the bridge between fallen Eden and Eden restored. He is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He is the door (John 10:7). He is the resurrection and the life (John 11:25). He is the good shepherd (John 10:11). He is our Passover lamb (1 Cor. 5:7). He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end (Rev. 21:6). He is the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep (1 Cor. 15:20). He is the Son of God and Son of Man (Matt. 3:17; 18:11 KJV). He is the Root and descendant of David, the bright morning star (Rev. 22:16). He is the one seated on the throne who declares, “Look, I am making everything new” (Rev. 21:5). 

Restored, not rewound

Before closing this post, we should be clear that Eden restored is not Eden rewound. We do not erase thousands of years of human history and go back to an age before fire was discovered, the wheel was invented, and great cities were built. The new earth is not a “do-over” going back to Eden’s original paradise. It’s much better than that.

There’s a historical link between the pre-fallen and post-fallen worlds. History won’t start over with the new heavens and earth any more than history began again when Adam and Eve were banished from the garden. In the age to come, there is continuity between the present heavens and earth and the new heavens and earth. The former is purged of sin; the new retains the purified best of the old. 

As Randy Alcorn writes:

Culture won’t regress to Eden, where musical instruments hadn’t yet been invented or where metalworking and countless other skills hadn’t yet been developed (Gen. 4:20-22). The fact that God mentions in Scripture these and other examples of technological progress suggests that he approved of the use of creativity and skills to develop society, even though people were hampered by the Curse.

Life in the new heavens and earth is not a return to the way things were at the beginning. Rather, it’s a restoration of God’s “very good” creation, including the retention of all that is good and holy. Albert Wolters provides keen insight:

Were the new creation to exclude the diversity of the nations and the glory of the kings of the earth, it would be impoverished rather than enriched, historically regressive and reactionary rather than progressive. To express the point in the form of a question: is it likely that the music of Bach and Mozart, the painting of Rembrandt, the writing of Shakespeare, the discoveries of science, etc., will be altogether lost upon life in the new creation?

This by no means minimizes the value of Eden. In fact, it may be said that Eden anticipates the new earth. Consider just one example: the onyx stone. Pishon is the first of four rivers sourced from the river in Eden, and it flows through the land of  Havilah, where there is pure gold, bdellium (an aromatic resin), and onyx. Onyx also is in Eden (Ezek. 28:13). 

In the history of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt and the giving of the law, God commands the high priest to wear two onyx stones with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel inscribed on them. The Lord refers to the onyx stones as “a reminder” (Exod. 28:9-12). But what do the stones memorialize? Eden.

The onyx stones borne by the high priest remind God’s people of the perfect world that once existed, and spur the people to anticipate God’s promise of Eden restored. In Eden, Adam and Eve lived in face-to-face communion with God. In the Eden to come, that special intimacy is revived. 

The final biblical reference to onyx stones, and the only New Testament reference, tells us onyx stones grace the foundations of New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:19-20 KJV; “sardonyx” in CSB). “The onyx of Eden and on the high priest’s shoulders – representing two places where God dwelled with his people – will be displayed in the Holy City, where God will live forever with his people.”³⁵ The onyx adorning the high priest’s garments and the foundations of New Jerusalem simultaneously point us to our past in Eden and our future in the new earth. 

Though we live in a fallen world, it retains much of the beauty of God’s original design. Majestic snow-capped mountains, thundering waterfalls, lush rain forests, and diverse creatures of all kinds take our breaths away. In the world to come, these stunning beauties are not lost; they are retained, redeemed, restored, and revived for our everlasting pleasure. Further, the advancements God has encouraged in human beings will serve as the launching pads for untethered exploration and discovery throughout all eternity. 

Truly, in the new heavens and earth, we do not return to the good old days of Eden, but understand that the best is yet to come.

Next: “I Am Going to Prepare a Place”