What are the dimensions of the city of God, the heavenly Jerusalem?

St. John the Revelator says, “And he who talked with me had a gold reed to measure the city, its gates and its wall” (Rev. 21:15). The children of the kingdom are known and measured by God and safeguarded by Him. The unit of measurement, the golden reed, is heavenly; for spiritual and heavenly matters cannot be measured except by that which is spiritual and heavenly.

“The city is laid out as a square, its length is as great as its breadth. And he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs, its length, breadth, and height are equal” (Rev. 21:16). It is a square with four equal angles, which symbolize the four gospels upon which it rests, and which elevate the faithful towards the things of heaven and adorn them to become heavenly brides by the power of the word. The dimension of twelve thousand furlongs means

1366 Note that we have seen that in several places, the number twelve refers to the kingdom of God.

the children of the kingdom, symbolized by the number twelve, times one thousand, which symbolizes heaven, which can accommodate all the children of the heavenly kingdom.

“Then he measured its wall, one hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel” (Rev. 21:17). The number one hundred and forty-four refers to the catholic Church which gathers the believers of both testaments: the Church of the Old Testament (twelve) multiplied by the Church of the New Testament (twelve). It is encompassed by one wall and is graced by the One God. The one who measures it is an angel and not an earthly human, so that we do not imagine that the material or the earthly have a place in heaven.