With animals, the change in their natures will be an overnight, sudden switch, by the miraculous hand of God. With human beings, it will be a process of learning the way of peace.

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.”

“And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” (Isaiah 2:2-4). Herein lies the problem with man: We say we want peace, but for 6,000 years we have been learning war! God says, “The way of peace they know not” (Isaiah 59:8). This is man’s legacy: We don’t know the WAY to peace. In fact, we can’t know the way to peace unless God performs a miracle.

The process of learning the way of peace will be made possible by two things. First, the Earth wide access to God’s Holy Spirit: “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh” (Joel 2:28). And, two, the establishment of God’s government on Earth (Isaiah 9). This will bring about a MIRACULOUS transformation!

“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26). Man cannot make himself a new heart unless God gives it.

The Spirit of God softens the heart. As we come to have the mind of God, we come to be in complete harmony with Him. There is no more clashing of wills—no more fighting against His way or against our fellow man. No more arguing—no more division, strife and all the accompanying discouragement and despair. All of mankind will finally be at one with the mind of God.

“And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them” (verse 27).

God will change the hard hearts of men—not only outlawing all forms of murder and killing, but eliminating hatred, hostility and selfish competitiveness. Man’s most basic desire will be to follow God’s law of love. The Ten Commandments will be widely observed, wiping out violence, burglary, vandalism, immorality, drug use, broken families, and a host of other social ills.

In Zechariah 8:3, God tells us that He will again dwell in the midst of Jerusalem, on His holy mountain. Jerusalem will be designated capital of the world. This will be the center of the Earth’s peaceful and law-abiding activity.

“Thus saith the Lord of hosts; There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for very age. And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof ” (verses 4-5). What a beautiful description of the way cities will be in the World Tomorrow!

And the animals? They will be there too! “The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the Lord” (Isaiah 65:25).

“Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country; And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness” (Zechariah 8:7-8). Jerusalem will be the city of peace— the city of truth— the city where we will work.

“Before the work began there were no jobs, no wages, no security; if you left the city, there was no assurance you would ever return, for crime was rampant” (verse 10; Living Bible). But no longer!

As Herbert W. Armstrong wrote, “If no one ever had any other god before the true God; if all children were reared to honor, respect and obey their parents, and all parents reared their children in God’s ways; if no one ever allowed the spirit of murder to enter his heart, if there were no wars, no killing of humans by humans; if all marriages were kept happy and there were no transgressions of chastity before or after marriage; if all had so much concern for the good and welfare of others that no one would steal—and we could throw away all locks, keys and safes; if everyone told the truth—everyone’s word were good—everyone were honest; if no one ever coveted what was not rightfully his, but had so much outgoing concern for the welfare of others that he really believed it is more blessed to give than to receive—what a happy world we would have!

“In such a world, with all loving and worshiping God with all their minds, hearts and strength—with all having concern for the welfare of all others equal to concern for self—there would be no divorce—no broken homes or families, no juvenile delinquency, no crime, no jails or prisons, no police except for peaceful direction and supervision as a public service for all, no wars, no military establishments” (Mystery of the Ages).

“Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities: And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts: I will go also” (verses 20-21). This is the way it will be in the World Tomorrow, when everyone, from all nations on Earth, will go up to Jerusalem from year to year in order to worship God.

“Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord. Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you” (verses 22-23).

Soon, these will no longer be prophecies; they will be current events!