Yes, that is worth putting back in, because it helps people feel the scale of what John is describing.

More Room Than We Ever Imagined – Revelation 21:15-16

Revelation 21:15, 16
And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof. And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.

John is not given vague poetry here. He is given measurements. The angel measures the city, the gates, and the wall, and what John records is staggering. The city is twelve thousand furlongs, which comes to about fifteen hundred miles in length, fifteen hundred miles in breadth, and fifteen hundred miles in height. This is no tiny shining village in the sky. This is a city so immense that the mind almost pulls back from it.

And there is another detail that should not be missed. Earlier in the chapter, John speaks of twelve foundations. There is reason to see those not merely as decorative stones beneath the wall, but as twelve great levels in this enormous city. If that is the case, the scale becomes even more astonishing. We are not looking at a flat city spread out on one plane only, but at a city with layer upon layer of prepared dwelling.

That is why some have pointed out that the city contains about three billion square miles of space. Think about that for a moment. Even using the old population comparison often given, if three billion people were in heaven, there would be enough room for each person to have a square mile. Whether you press every number mathematically or simply let the image speak, the message is plain. There is room. Abundant room.

Jesus said in John 14:2, “In my Father’s house are many mansions.” Revelation 21 lets us see that promise in breathtaking form. The home Christ is preparing is not cramped. It is not crowded. It is not as though the Lord is trying to squeeze the redeemed into some narrow corner of glory. No, the city is vast because His grace is vast.

And that lands close to home. Sometimes people carry around the quiet fear that maybe there will not really be a place for them. Maybe they feel too broken, too ordinary, too forgettable. But the city John saw says otherwise. The God who measured out fifteen hundred miles in every direction has made full provision for His people. He is not short on mercy. He is not limited in welcome. He is not running out of room.

So the measurements are not there just to satisfy curiosity. They are there to steady the heart. Heaven is real. Heaven is prepared. Heaven is immense. And for all who belong to Jesus Christ, there is more than enough room.