I am quite certain that the manner in which God Almighty now draws near and manifests Himself and reveals hundreds of matters of the unseen to His servant, is almost unprecedented in past ages. In this age, people will soon witness a manifestation of the countenance of God Almighty, as if He has descended from heaven. He kept Himself hidden for a very long time. He was rejected and remained silent, but now He shall conceal Himself no longer and the world will witness manifestations of His power the likes of which their forefathers never saw. This will come to pass because the earth has been corrupted and people have lost faith in the Creator of the heavens and the earth. They pay lip service to Him but their hearts are estranged from Him. That is why God has declared that now He will create a new heaven and a new earth. This means that the earth has perished, that is, the hearts of the people of earth have so hardened as if they are dead. The face of God has become hidden from them and heavenly signs of the past were all reduced to myth and legend. Thus, God has decreed to create a new heaven and a new earth.
What is this new heaven? And what is this new earth? A new earth means those pure hearts that God is preparing with His own hand, which will be manifested by Him and through whom God will be manifested. A new heaven means those signs which are being shown by His command at the hand of His servant.
(Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, Noah’s Ark, pp. 11-12)