13. When Peter called on those Jews to repent, was he setting before them an earthly hope or a heavenly one, and why?

¹³ So by calling upon those Jews to ‘repent and turn around’ or be converted, the apostle Peter was not setting before those Jews an earthly hope, a hope of inheriting an earthly Paradise under the Messianic kingdom of the heavens. He was not pointing them forward to the long-distant future with the prospect of being restored to perfect human life and health in a Garden of Eden restored to earth. Rather, Peter was pointing them to the opportunity of becoming associated with that Jesus Christ the primary Seed of Abraham and thus sharing with Jesus Christ in blessing all the families and nations of the earth. This would mean that they would also be associated with him in his Messianic reign, reigning with him in the heavens for the blessing of all mankind. So they, also, would receive the anointing with Jehovah’s spirit and become his spiritual sons. Their being natural circumcised Israelites no longer counted with God. They needed to become spiritual Israelites, circumcised at heart, and making up the spiritual “Israel of God.”​—Gal. 6:15, 16.

What a great “refreshing” it will be for us when that greatest of all peace disturbers, Satan the Devil, and his demons will be bound by Jehovah’s Messianic kingdom and be hurled into an abyss so as not to be able to mislead and oppress earth’s inhabitants! (Rev. 20:1-6) By destroying Satan’s entire organization God’s kingdom will vindicate his universal sovereignty.