Old Testament

Isaiah 65:17 says, “For I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; the former things shall not be remembered or come to mind” (Isa 65:17 NRSV). Hubbard offers several observations on the importance of Isaiah in understanding this meaning of “new creation”:

1. “The classic expression of cosmic new creation in the biblical tradition is found in the concluding chapters of the book of Isaiah.”

2. “In continuity with chapters 40–55, the new event of Isa 65:17 is contrasted with ‘the former thing,’ which ‘will no longer be remembered.ֹ (o)’ Yet whereas earlier chapters focused on the transformation of God’s people, with creation playing a supportive role (e.g., 43:18), the situation in chapters 65 and 66 is reversed. Here, creation itself takes center stage, with God’s people and God’s city being swept up in the ovation of praise to the Creator (65:17, 18; compare 42:5; 43:1, 15).”

3. “The Isaianic motif of new creation is both anthropological and cosmological in scope” (Hubbard, Paul’s Letters and Thought, 16–17).