(Revelation 21:3-4) . . .“Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his peoples. And God himself will be with them. 4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”
Mankind means earthling, people on earth who have been restored to eternal life.
How?
Like Jesus when on earth, by obedience to God, not Satan.
Obedience to God is everlasting life. (Adam disobeyed)
(Hebrews 5:9) . . .he became responsible for everlasting salvation to all those obeying him. . .
Heaven is obedient, and incorruptible in that group of immortals.
So that obedience above, implying “everlasting salvation” is obedience of humans through Satan’s test, after the 1000 years is complete.
Heaven has no issues with death and sin, or disobedience.
Earth does.
That is why Jesus and his kings and priests must rule over earth, to restore life here:
(Revelation 5:10) you made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings over the earth.”
So no use ruling earth if everyone is either in hell or heaven.
But in fact, hell (hades) and death are BOTH removed on earth:
(Revelation 20:14) . . .And death and Hades were hurled into the lake of fire. This means the second death, the lake of fire.
So like Adam, man’s only destinations in obedience, are heaven, or earth, hell is NOT an option, it is removed.
Death is not a problem in heaven.
Earth is where death must be removed, NOT removal of people, removal of death:
So these that “rule as kings over the earth”, include Jesus of course as the King of kings:
(1 Corinthians 15:25-26) . . .For he must rule as king until God has put all enemies under his feet. 26 As the last enemy, death is to be brought to nothing.
So death must be destroyed, where it exists, on earth, for no death exists in heaven, the “last enemy” exists on earth.
And who is involved, and why did Jesus also have to die?
(Hebrews 2:14-15) . . .Therefore, since the “young children” are sharers of blood and flesh, he also similarly partook of the same things, that through his death he might bring to nothing the one having the means to cause death, that is, the Devil; 15 and that he might emancipate all those who for fear of death were subject to slavery all through their lives.
So that emancipation is here on earth:
(Revelation 22:1-2) . . .And he showed me a river of water of life, clear as crystal, flowing out from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of its broad way. And on this side of the river and on that side there were trees of life producing twelve crops of fruit, yielding their fruits each month. And the leaves of the trees [were] for the curing of the nations.
These “nations” are on earth as God promised Abraham:
(Genesis 22:18) . . .And by means of your seed all nations of the earth will certainly bless themselves. . .
What is the blessing?
Removal of the curse:
(Genesis 3:17) . . .And to Adam he said: “Because you listened to your wife’s voice and took to eating from the tree concerning which I gave you this command, ‘You must not eat from it,’ cursed is the ground on your account.. . .
Now it can be removed:
(Revelation 22:2-3) . . .And the leaves of the trees were for the curing of the nations. 3 And no more will there be any curse.. . .
And that curse, was on earth.
(Revelation 21:3-4) . . .The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his peoples. And God himself will be with them. 4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”
