HEAVEN AND HOW TO GET THERE!

Heaven and Hell

If you are not a Christian: There is at least a fifty-50 chance they are real.... That Eternity is in one or the other! We are faced with a massive problem – it is not surprising that the details are equally Cosmic: God becoming Human in order to save us. You and I cannot take the unfathomable risk of ignoring it, a second longer!

The Lord Jesus, the Messiah, offers Himself as our Saviour – simply by trusting Him to handle our case; as we would place our problem in the hands of a talented Lawyer; please give it urgent thought, and hopefully pray a prayer of commitment: asking the Lord Jesus to be your Lord and Saviour.

THE USES OF TERMS IN THE SCRIPTURES

Recently Rev Dr Mike Lloyd, a theologian, said on the “GodPod” Programme number five: “The Bible never actually talks about going to Heaven when we die – never once, ever….” He went on to concentrate on the Resurrection, and the New Heaven and the New Earth as the ultimate hope of Christians. This study hopes to investigate the questions raised by this statement.

In common usage there are expressions such as: Cloud Nine (from meteorology), and Seventh Heaven - used by a mystical secret Cabbalistic rabbinical sect of Judaism, and in Islamic thought: but not in biblical teaching.

“The Chambers Dictionary” has ‘Heaven of Heavens’ being “God’s abode”.

We are probably going to see that there are two Physical Created Heavens, a Third Spiritual Heaven, which also has been created, and a special eternal exclusive abode of God, Glory, above these.

Only fools want to go to Hell. It may be so vast, that you may never meet anyone else; and if you do, it might be some horrible people, Satan or some of his unclean fallen angels! You will be with your friends; don't be too sure - they may have tricked you and arranged to go to Heaven. The climate is furnace hot, the excessive life-form is flesh eating maggots; death does not exist!

OLD TESTAMENT

Nouns in Hebrew can take three forms: singular, plural and dual. The Third Heaven is expressed as a singular, the two created heavens as dual, and all three as plural. The English Versions do not normally indicate the number – Hebrew duals are translated as singular in English (AV and NIV), but the Newberry edition of the AV does help: by a unique series of shorthand signs.

There are 421 mentions (in 403 verses) of ‘heaven’, singular in the NIV translation of the Bible: 181 in the Old Testament, 222 in the New Testament. There is also the listing of “heavens”: 173 in 166 verses (151 OT, 15 NT); and synonyms such as: glory, eternal life, the dwelling place of God, Father’s House, etc.

^{Genesis 1:1}In the beginning God created the (2 Newberry AV) heavens and the earth.

^2:1Thus the (2 Newberry AV) heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.

^{Some further
examples - 2:4; 6:17; 7:11; 7:19; 8:2; 11:4; 15:5; 19:24; 49:25; Exodus 20:11;
31:17; Deuteronomy 4:11; 4:32}

*Whatever the English Versions have, these verses and more, according to Newberry are very significantly dual!

^{Genesis 11:4} Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the (2) heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

*Even God Himself speaks from the two created heavens, in the Pentateuch.

^{Deuteronomy 10:14} To the LORD your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it (^{two duals and a plural [2 HEAVENS AND THE 2 HEAVENS OF THE
HEAVENS] implied in the Newberry AV.
This is quite a complex picture).}

Perhaps the first indication of a third (or more) heaven – the special dwelling place of God.

^{Deuteronomy 11:21} so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land that the LORD swore to give your forefathers, as many as the days that the (2) heavens are above the earth.

^{Deuteronomy 26:15} “Look down from (2) heaven(s), your holy dwelling place, and bless your people Israel and the land you have given us as you promised on oath to our forefathers, a land flowing with milk and honey.”

^{Deuteronomy 33:26} “There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, who rides on the (2 in Newberry) heavens to help you.

*This implies that God exists above the two created heavens.

^{Joshua 2:11} “When we heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in (2) heaven(s) above and on the earth below.” [This is Rahab, a gentile, using the Tetragrammaton.]

^{1 Kings 8:39 King
Solomon’s prayer:} “…then hear from (2) heaven(s), your dwelling place. Forgive and act; deal with each man according to all he does, since you know his heart (for you alone know the hearts of all men)….

^{1 Kings 22:19} Micaiah continued, “Therefore hear the word of the LORD? I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the host of (2) heaven(s) standing around him on his right and on his left.”

^{2Kings 2:11} As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to (the 2) heaven (s) in a whirlwind.

^{2 Chronicles 6:33
King Solomon’s prayer: “…} then hear from (2) heaven(s), your dwelling place, and do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.”

^{2 Chronicles 30:27} The priests and the Levites stood to bless the people, and God heard them, for their prayer reached (2) heaven(s), his holy dwelling place.

^{Job 16:19} Even now my witness is in (the 2) heaven(s);

my advocate is on high.

Even texts like these, refer to God dwelling, invisibly, in the two created heavens, above the Earth.

^{Psalm 103:19} The LORD has established his throne in (the) heaven(s),

and his kingdom rules over all.

^123:1 I lift up my eyes to you,

to you whose throne is in (the) heaven(s).

(Plural heavens – Third or higher, in Newberry AV)

^{Isaiah 14:12}How you have fallen from (2) heaven(s),

O morning star, son of the dawn!

You have been cast down to the earth,

you who once laid low the nations!

¹³ You said in your heart,

“I will ascend to (the 2) heaven (s);

I will raise my throne

above the stars of God;

I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,

on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain.

*Satan’s fall from Heaven is represented as being from the two Heavens; but I would take the wording at the end of verse 13, to refer to the Third Heaven, and the Abode of God, in terms of Satan’s ambition. See the other passages, which refer to this punishment.

^{Isaiah 37:16} “O LORD Almighty, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made (the 2) heaven(s) and earth.

(It is possible that this refers to the Heavenly Tabernacle, and the real Cherubim.)

^{Lamentations 3:41} Let us lift up our hearts and our hands

to God in (the plural - three or more)heaven(s),

⁵⁰ until the LORD looks down

from (the plural) heaven(s) and sees.

(Newberry AV)

Daniel frequently uses the dual noun. (Newberry AV)

^{Daniel 4:26}The command to leave the stump of the tree with its roots means that your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge that (the) Heaven(s) rule/s.

(Newberry AV, interestingly the plural is introduced here)

^{Daniel 4:35}

(King Nebuchadnezzar) All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers (army) of heaven (Newberry AV dual Heavens) and the peoples of the earth.

· Newberry AV shows that the Holy Spirit favours the use of the Dual Heavens in the Minor Prophets.

^{Zechariah 6:5} The angel answered me, “These are the four spirits of (the) heaven(s) (Newberry AV plural – implying the Three Heavens inhabited by God’s spirits), going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world.

HEAVEN IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

“Heaven” is inevitably singular, and refers to the abode of the triune God: unless the Two Created Heavens are implied by context, or the Third Heaven – which is spiritual, or an obvious link with the created Earth is made.

^{Matthew 3:2} (Jesus) saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”

^{Matthew 3:16} As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him.

^{Matthew 4:17}From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”

^{Matthew 5:18} I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

^{Matthew 5:34} But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne.

^{Matthew 6:9} “This, then, is how you should pray:

“ ‘Our Father in heaven,

¹⁰ your kingdom come,

your will be done

on earth as it is in heaven.

* The spiritual kingdom is here thought of as coming to Earth: both NOW and THEN.

^{Matthew 7:21} “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”

Good works are normally a vital proof of the Lordship of Christ (the thief on the Cross is an exceptional pattern).

^{Matthew 10:32} “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.

³³ But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.

^{Matthew 13:45} “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls.”

*Matthew is particularly rich in “Kingdom of Heaven” references: here is an example of one of the parables: where the Kingdom excites total commitment and rich abandonment.

^{Matthew 16:17} Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.”

^{Matthew 18:10} “See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.” [In the NT the word "heaven" has to work very hard - having many connotations, usually determined by context.]

^{Matthew 24:35} Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

^{Matthew 28:18} Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

*Both the spiritual and the created heavens are indicated here, I think.

^{Luke 21:33} Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

*These verses clearly refer to the created areas.

^{Mark 14:62} “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

^{Mark 16:19} After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.

^{Luke 10:20} “However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

^{John 3:13} No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. [The godly saints are perhaps thought of as being "in Abraham's bosom", - Paradise, as apposed to Sheol/Hades.]

^{John 6:38}For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me

^{Acts 1:2} until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. (See later – Taken Up)

^{Acts 3:20 [Peter in
his sermon to the fellow Jews in the Temple] …} and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus. ²¹ He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.

^{Acts 7:55} But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

^{2 Corinthians 5:1}Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.

^{2 Corinthians 12:2} I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows.³ And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows— ⁴ was caught up to paradise. He heard inexpressible things, things that man is not permitted to tell.

* This is the clearest of statements apropos the three different heavens, and equating here, the Third Heaven with Paradise - a spiritual abode.

^{1 Corinthians 15:48}as was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven.

^{Colossians 1:5} the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel

^{Colossians 1:20} and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in (the) heaven(s) (AV, Newberry), by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

^{1 Thessalonians 4:16} For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first (see later notes on this passage).

^{2 Thessalonians 1:7} and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.

^{Hebrews 1:3} The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

^3:1 Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess..

^{8:1 c} … who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven.

^9:24 … he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence.

^{Cf 12:22} But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, ²³ to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, ²⁴ to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

What a rejoicing!

^12:25See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven?

²⁶ At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.”

²⁷ The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain. ²⁸ Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,

^{1 Peter 1:12 d} … the Holy Spirit sent from heaven.

^{2 Peter 3:13} But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

^{1 Peter 3:22} who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him. ^{This is the Glory above the Third
Heaven, and the Third Heaven.}

^{Revelation 3:12}Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.

*This is a crucial verse – it shows that, whereas Heaven has been above, eschatologically, it will, in the End of Time, come to Earth.

^{Revelation 4:1} After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” ² At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it.

^{Revelation 5:13} Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing:

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb

be praise and honour and glory and power,

for ever and ever!”

^{Revelation 11:12}Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on.

*This is typical of the many passages in Revelation, which are taken-up with Heaven the abode of Divinity.

^{Revelation 11:19} Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm.

^{Revelation 12:7}And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. ⁸ But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.

*This is one level of the Heavens: most likely the Third Heaven – strange, but true, there is fighting there.

^{Revelation 14:2} And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps.

^{Revelation 14:13} Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”

“Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

^{Revelation 15:1} I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues—last, because with them God’s wrath is completed.

^{Revelation 15:5}After this I looked and in heaven the temple, that is, the tabernacle of the Testimony, was opened. (In some special and mysterious way these are the originals in Heaven.)

^{Revelation 19:1}After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting:

“Hallelujah!

Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,

^{Revelation 19:11} I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war.¹⁴ The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean.

^{Revelation 21:1} Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

² I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

¹⁰ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.

*This passage says it all: Heaven above comes down to the New Earth

NIV PASSAGES USING THE PLURAL “HEAVENS”

OLD TESTAMENT

^{1 Kings 8:27} “But will God really dwell on earth? The (2) heavens, even the (2) highest heaven(s) [plural in Newberry AV], cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!”

WITH -

^{2 Chronicles 2:6} But who is able to build a temple for him, since the (2) heavens, even the (2) highest (pl) heavens, cannot contain him? Who then am I to build a temple for him, except as a place to burn sacrifices before him?

^6:18 “But will God really dwell on earth with men? The (2) heavens, even the (2) highest (plural) heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!

*This could imply a Heaven above the recognised three: “the two Heavens and the two Heavens of plural Heavens, cannot contain you” (Newberry AV).

^{1 Chronicles 16:26}For all the gods of the nations are idols,

but the LORD made the heavens.

*This implies that the three Heavens are CREATED (Newberry AV).

^{1 Chronicles 16:31} Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;

let them say among the nations, “The LORD reigns!” (Plural in AV Newberry – implying the spiritual and he material)

Cf above

^{2 Chronicles 6:35} …then hear from heaven [plural in AV – implied in Newberry, as dual is not indicated] their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.

^{2 Chronicles 6:39} …then from heaven [plural in AV – implied in Newberry, as dual is not indicated], your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their pleas, and uphold their cause. And forgive your people, who have sinned against you.

^{Ezra 9:6} and prayed: “O my God, I am too ashamed and disgraced to lift up my face to you, my God, because our sins are higher than our heads and our guilt has reached to the heavens.” (Newberry AV plural = Third Heaven implied)

^{Nehemiah 9:6}You alone are the LORD. You made the (2) heavens, even the (2 heavens of the heavens [plural] in the Newberry AV) … highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of (2) heaven worship you.

⁸ He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea.

*This implies that the three Heavens are CREATED (Newberry AV).

^{Job 14:12} so man lies down and does not rise;

till the heavens are no more, men will not awake

or be roused from their sleep.

*This implies that the Three Heavens are CREATED (Newberry AV), but that all three will be destroyed, and that there is a Fourth Heaven reserved for God alone.

^{Job 15:15} If God places no trust in his holy ones, if even the heavens are not pure in his eyes.

*‘Plural Heavens’ is quite common in Job, and they are seen to be unholy; this seems to imply that there is a perfect Fourth Heaven reserved for God alone.

^{Psalm 2:4} The One enthroned in heaven [plural in Newberry and AV] laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.

PSALM 8 - A MOST REMARKABLE PASSAGE

¹ O LORD, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the (plural) heavens.

*This implies that there is a Fourth Heaven reserved for the glory of God –

³ When I consider your (plural in Newberry AV. Cf 136:5) heavens,

the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars,

which you have set in place,

⁴ what is man that you are mindful of him,

the son of man that you care for him?

⁵ You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings

and crowned him with glory and honor.

*Heavenly beings are taken to be both God Himself, and the angelic persons.

^{(The Sun is not mentioned – being seen scientifically
as a star!)}

^{Psalm 18:13} The LORD thundered from (plural in Newberry and AV) (the) heaven(s); the voice of the Most High resounded.

^{Psalm 19:1}The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

(Plural in Newberry and AV)

^{Psalm 33:6}By the word of the LORD were the heavens (Plural in Newberry and AV) made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth.

(Important – the angels and the Third Heaven are created entities)

33:13 Two Heavens (Newberry)

^{Psalm 36:5}Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.

(Plural in Newberry and AV)

^{Psalm 50:4} He summons the heavens above, and the earth, that he may judge his people:

(Plural in Newberry and AV)

^{Psalm 57:5}Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;

let your glory be over all the earth. (Cf 108:5; 113:4; 115:16)

(Plural in Newberry and AV. This implies, as before, that God’s Glory is above the Third [Plural] Heaven)

^{Psalm 68:33} to him who rides the ancient skies above,

who thunders with mighty voice. [AV Newberry: To Him that rideth upon the heavens of heavens, which were of old.]

^{Psalm 113:6} who stoops down to look on the (Dual in Newberry AV) heavens and the earth?

(As one would expect, God looks down on the two Created Heavens)

^{Psalm 73:9}Their mouths lay claim to (plural in Newberry and AV) heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth.

^{Psalm 89:2} I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you established your faithfulness in (plural in Newberry AV) heaven itself.

^{Psalm 115:3} Our God is in (plural in Newberry AV) heaven; he does whatever pleases him.

^{Psalm 115:16} The highest (dual, plus “even the plural”, in Newberry) heavens belong to the LORD, but the earth he has given to man.

^{Psalm 123:1} I lift up my eyes to you, to you whose throne is in (plural in Newberry AV) heaven.

^{Psalm 144:5} Part your heavens, O LORD, and come down; touch the mountains, so that they smoke.

(Plural in Newberry AV)

^{Proverbs 3:19}By wisdom the LORD laid the earth’s foundations,

by understanding he set the heavens in place (cf 8:27; Isaiah 1:2)

(Three Created Heavens in Newberry AV)

^{Isaiah 13:13} Therefore I will make the heavens tremble; and the earth will shake from its place at the wrath of the LORD Almighty, in the day of his burning anger (plural in Newberry AV and eschatological destruction implied, also Isaiah 34:4 below and 51:6 – all three created, cf above Proverbs 3:19).

^{Isaiah 24:21}In that day the LORD will punish the powers in the heavens above and the kings on the earth below

(“High ones that are on high” in Newberry AV – the evil angelic powers, who work behind nations).

^{Isaiah 34:4} All the stars of the (2) heavens will be dissolved

and the sky (plural in Newberry AV and eschatological destruction implied – all three created) rolled up like a scroll (as in 21^st century Cosmology);

all the starry host will fall

like withered leaves from the vine,

like shriveled figs from the fig tree.

^{Isaiah 42:5} This is what God the LORD says—

he who created the heavens and stretched them out.

(Here we see the Three Created Heavens - Newberry AV).

^{Isaiah 45:18}For this is what the LORD says—

he who created the heavens (plural in Newberry AV, and perhaps rather typical of Isaiah, and Jeremiah – who nevertheless uses the dual noun).

^{Isaiah 55:9} “As the heavens (plural in Newberry AV, and including the Third and spiritual) are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

^{Isaiah 65:17} “Behold, I will create new heavens (plural in Newberry AV) and a new earth.

The former things will not be remembered,

nor will they come to mind.

^66:22 “As the new heavens (plural in Newberry AV) and the new earth that I make will endure before me,” declares the LORD, “so will your name and descendants endure.

(In the New Creation, there are plural Heavens! Cf The Book of Revelation)

^{Jeremiah 51:16}When he thunders, the waters in the heavens (plural in Newberry AV – not the only verse which implies water in the Third Heaven) roar;

he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.

^{Ezekiel 1:1} In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God (plural in Newberry AV: very interesting, because it implies that the prophet saw into the Third Heaven).

^{Daniel 8:10} [The Little Horn] grew until it reached the host of the (2) heavens, and it threw some of the starry host down to the earth and trampled on them (very interesting, the evil spiritual forces appear limited to the two created Heavens).

^{Joel 2:30} I will show wonders in the (plural that is thee at least) heavens

and on the earth,

^{Habakkuk 3:3} God came from Teman,

the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah

His glory covered the (plural) heavens

and his praise filled the earth.

^{Haggai 2:6} “This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land (plural in Newberry AV and eschatological destruction implied cf 2:21).

^{Zechariah 8:12} “The seed will grow well, the vine will yield its fruit, the ground will produce its crops, and the heavens will drop their dew. I will give all these things as an inheritance to the remnant of this people (plural in Newberry AV – not the only verse which implies water in the Third Heaven, or a plural implying 2).

NEW TESTAMENT: HEAVENS

^{Ephesians 4:10} He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe (cf Newberry AV, and Greek – all things/the whole Universe).

* To Glory – the Abode of God.

^{Hebrews 4:14} Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.

* To Glory – the Abode of God.

^{Hebrews 7:26} Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens (to the Abode of God – above two or three Heavens).

^{Hebrews 12:26}At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens (echoing the eschatological theme of the OT Prophets)”.

^{2 Peter 3:7 (cf 3:10 and 12)} By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

^{Revelation 12:12}Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them!

But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you!

He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.”

TEXTS WHICH DO NOT USE THE WORD “HEAVEN”

“GLORY” AS A SYNONYM FOR HEAVEN

Glory often refers to the splendour of God and humankind visible on Earth or revealed in encounters in the here and now. The 295 uses in the NIV are extremely varied in meaning. Reference to Heaven would be required to indicate a place. The word also stands for: splendour (Proverbs 19:11, Isaiah 35:2 - parallelism), praise (Isaiah 42:8,12), rejoicing, pride, majesty, honour,

^{Psalm 8:1} O LORD, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory

above the heavens.

^{Psalm 24:7} Lift up your heads, O you gates;

be lifted up, you ancient doors,

that the King of glory may come in.

⁸ Who is this King of glory?

The LORD strong and mighty,

the LORD mighty in battle.

⁹ Lift up your heads, O you gates;

lift them up, you ancient doors,

that the King of glory may come in.

¹⁰ Who is he, this King of glory?

The LORD Almighty—

he is the King of glory.

^{Psalm 29:3}The voice of the LORD is over the waters;

the God of glory thunders,

^{Psalm 73:24}You guide me with your counsel,

and afterward you will take me into glory. ²⁵ Whom have I in heaven but you?

And earth has nothing I desire besides you.

^{Psalm 113:4} The LORD is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens. (AV, Newberry agrees)

^{Habakkuk 3:3} God came from Teman,

the Holy One from Mount Paran.

Selah

His glory covered the heavens

and his praise filled the earth.

*This passage shows “Glory” existing above the Three Heavens (plural in Newberry AV.

^{Luke 24:26}Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?”

*These are Jesus’s words to the two disciples heading for Emmaus. “His Glory” indicates His Divinity, and His imminent entry into Heaven – the abode of the Father.

^{Acts 7:2} The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran.

^{Cf 7:55} But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

^{Romans 5:2} Through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

and

^{Colossians 1:27} God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

^{Romans 9:4}The people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption as sons; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises.

^{Romans 9:23} What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory—

^{1 Corinthians 2:8}None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

^{1 Thessalonians
2:12} encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.

^{2 Thessalonians
2:14} He called you to this through our gospel that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

^{1 Timthy 3:16}Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great:

He appeared in a body,

was vindicated by the Spirit,

was seen by angels,

was preached among the nations,

was believed on in the world,

was taken up in glory.

*Notice the “in glory” may still refer to Heaven. One might also think of Christ in Glory, from the very moment of resurrection.

^{2 Timothy 2:10} Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

^{Hebrews 2:10}In bringing many sons to glory.

That is, Glory in this life, but particularly in Heaven.

^{1 Peter 4:14}If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.

^{1 Peter 5:10} And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

^{2 Peter 1:17}For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”

* Notice the “glory” given to us! (John 17:22; 1 Corinthians 2:7; 2 Corinthians 3:18)

1 Corinthians 3 - refers to spiritual building and a reward to come

USE OF THE WORD “PARADISE”

There are three occurrences – all in the New Testament – and raising the question: are the uses all exactly the same, in a scientific sense?

^{Luke 23:43} Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”

*Here we have Our Lord’s words on the Cross – raising another question: the Saviour, strictly speaking, did not enter Glory for another three, or even forty-plus days. Jesus would care for the thief on the Cross, in the next life, which may be thought of as outside time and inside eternity. Is this experience part of the Grave, that is Hell when the Place of the Dead is meant?

^{2 Corinthians 12:4} (Paul) was caught up to paradise. He heard inexpressible things, things that man is not permitted to tell.

*Two verses earlier the place is identified as “the third heaven”. Clearly we have a synonym here, in this passage.

What about those who variously and partially commuted between Earth and Paradise: Christ Jesus, Enoch, Lazarus, Moses, Elijah, Paul, and perhaps many more.

^{Revelation 2:7} He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

*The “tree of life” is found eleven times in the Scriptures: 3 in Genesis 2 and 3 – in the Garden of Eden. Four are in Proverbs (wisdom, fruit of righteousness, longing fulfilled, and a healing tongue); and four in Revelation – the one above, and three in Revelation 22, in the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, which comes from Heaven.

“TAKEN UP”

^{Mark 16:19} After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God.

^{Acts 1:2} until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles….

⁹ After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

¹⁰ They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them.

¹¹ “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

OTHER TERMS – AND DETAILS

^{Job 3:17} There the wicked cease from turmoil,

and there the weary are at rest.

^{Job 14:13} “If only you would hide me in the grave

and conceal me till your anger has passed!

If only you would set me a time

and then remember me!

¹⁴ If a man dies, will he live again?

All the days of my hard service

I will wait for my renewal to come.

¹⁵ You will call and I will answer you;

you will long for the creature your hands have made.

¹⁶ Surely then you will count my steps

but not keep track of my sin.

¹⁷ My offenses will be sealed up in a bag;

you will cover over my sin.

^{Job 19:25} I know that my Redeemer lives,

and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.

²⁶ And after my skin has been destroyed,

yet in my flesh I will see God;

²⁷ I myself will see him

with my own eyes—I, and not another.

How my heart yearns within me!

^{Psalm 16:11} …you will fill me with joy in your presence,

with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

^{Psalm 17:15} And I—in righteousness I will see your face;

when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.

^{Psalm 23:6}Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,

and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

* The connotation being, I think, of the Jerusalem and the Heavenly Temples, and of the Shepherd’s home, where he keeps the treasured animal.

^{Psalm 73:24}You guide me with your counsel,

and afterward you will take me into glory

^{Ecclesiastes 12:5 d}

Then man goes to his eternal home

^{Isaiah 57:15}For this is what the high and lofty One says—

he who lives forever, whose name is holy:

“I live in a high and holy place,

but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit,

to revive the spirit of the lowly

and to revive the heart of the contrite.

^{^{Isaiah 61:7 c} …and everlasting joy will be theirs.}

^{Isaiah 63:15} Look down from (2) heaven(s) and see

from your lofty throne, holy and glorious.

Where are your zeal and your might?

Your tenderness and compassion are withheld from us.

^{Ezekiel 28:14} You were anointed as a guardian cherub (Satan?), for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. ¹⁶ Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned.

So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones.

^{Daniel 4:3} (King Nebuchadnezzar’s letter) How great are his signs,

how mighty his wonders!

His kingdom is an eternal kingdom

^{Daniel 4:34c} His dominion is an eternal dominion;

his kingdom endures from generation to generation.

^{Malachi 3:17} “They will be mine,” says the LORD Almighty, “in the day when I make up my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as in compassion a man spares his son who serves him.

^{Matthew 5:8} Blessed are the pure in heart,

for they will see God.

^{Matthew 19:16} Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” ²⁹ And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.

^{Mark 10:17} as above

^{Mark 10:30} as above

^{Luke 10:25} as above top

^{Luke 18:18} as above

^{Luke 18:30} as above

^{Luke 14:14} and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

^{Luke 16:19} “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day.

²⁰ At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores ²¹ and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. ²² “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ In hell (Greek: Hades – the Grave), where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. ²⁴ So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ ²⁵ “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. ²⁶ And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’ ²⁷ “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father’s house, ²⁸ for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’

²⁹ “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’

³⁰ “ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’

³¹ “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ ”

*Is this a parable or non-fiction?

“Abraham’s side/bosom” is either straightforwardly “Heaven”, or a waiting place. Where is Abraham located? "Carried" implies upwards.

^{Luke 20:35} (Jesus’s reply to the Resurrection conundrum)

But those who are considered worthy of taking part in that age and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage,

³⁶ and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children, since they are children of the resurrection.

³⁸ He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.”

^{John 3:15} that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

Hebrews 12:22 and 23 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect,

HOW WE MAY BE CERTAIN OF HEAVEN!

^{John 3:16} “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ¹⁸ Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. ³⁶ Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”

(I HAVE THE WORD OF A GENTLEMAN!)

^{John 4:14} but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” ³⁶ Even now the reaper draws his wages, even now he harvests the crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together.

^{John 5:24} “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. ³⁹ You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me,

^{John 6:27} Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.” ⁴⁰ For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” ⁵⁴ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. ⁶⁸ Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.

^{John 10:28} I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.

^{John 12:25} The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

^{John 12:50} I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”

^{John 14:1} “ Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. ² In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. ³ “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. ⁴ “And you know the way where I am going.”

⁵ Thomas ^*said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?”

⁶ Jesus ^*said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

· Points to note: Jesus was about to go to His Father’s House – God’s Heavenly Abode

Here He would prepare places for His flock
He would return for them
They would ever be with Him – in the Father’s Abode, Reigning in the Millennium, or on the New Earth with its Holy City, the New Jerusalem

^{John 17:2} For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. ³ Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

^{Acts 2:32} God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.

³³ Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.

³⁴ For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,

“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord:

“Sit at my right hand

^{Acts 7:55} But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

^{Acts 13:46} Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. ⁴⁸ When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.

^{Romans 2:7} To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.

^{Romans 5:21} so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

^{Romans 6:22} But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. ²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord

^{2 Corinthians 4:18} So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal

^{2 Corinthians 5:1} Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.

^{Galatians 6:8} The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.

^{Ephesians 5:5}For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

^{Ephesians 6:10}Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

*Is their position in the two Created Heavens, and the Third – the Spiritual Heaven, below God’s Glory? The forces of evil are expelled from God’s Glory.

^{Colossians 1:12} giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.

^{Colossians 3:4} When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory

^{1 Thessalonians 2:12} … God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory

^{1 Thessalonians 4:13} Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.

¹⁴ We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.

¹⁵ According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.

¹⁶ For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

¹⁷ After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

¹⁸ Therefore encourage each other with these words.

* There is no simple explanation of the logistics of this: the dead in the Lord will come with Him – having been in Heaven; but their bodies will be RAISED, verse 16. This makes it quite clear that those Christians who are dead are currently in Heaven, waiting to return to Earth, with the Lord Jesus.

^{1 Timothy 1:16} But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.

^{1 Timothy 6:12} Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

^{2 Timothy
4:18} The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom.

^{Titus 1:2} a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time,

^{Titus 3:7} so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

^Hebrews
1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

^{Hebrews 4:9} There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; ¹⁰ for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. ¹¹ Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience.

^{Hebrews 5:9} and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him

^{Hebrews 9:12} He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption

^{Hebrews 9:15} For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

^{Hebrews 10:34}You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. ³⁵ So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. ³⁶ You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. ³⁷ For in just a very little while,

“He who is coming will come and will not delay.”

^{Hebrews 11:10}For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

¹⁶ Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

^{Hebrews 12:2} Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

^12:10Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.

^12:22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, ²³ to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, ²⁴ to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

^12:27 The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain. ²⁸ Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, ²⁹ for our “God is a consuming fire.”

^{Hebrews 13:14}For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.

^{Hebrews 13:20} May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep

^{1 Peter 1:3} Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, ⁵ who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. ⁶ In this you greatly rejoice,

It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

^{1 Peter 3:22} who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.

^{1 Peter 5:4} Elders - And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away. ¹⁰ And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast

^{2 Peter 1:4}Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

^{2 Peter 1:10} Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, ¹¹ and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

You ought to live holy and godly lives

^{2 Peter 3:12} as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. ¹³ But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. ¹⁴ So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless

^{1 John 1:2}The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.

^{1 John 2:25} And this is what he promised us—even eternal life.

^{1 John 3:2} Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. ³ Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.

^{1 John 3:15} Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.

^{1 John 5:11} And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

^{1 John 5:13} I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. ²⁰ We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true—even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

^{Jude 1:21} Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

REVELATION

^2:7He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

^2:17To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.

^2:26 To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— ²⁷ ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery’— just as I have received authority from my Father. ²⁸ I will also give him the morning star.

^3:5 He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.

^{Cf 3:12}Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.

^3:21 To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.

REVELATION CHAPTER 4

¹ After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”

² At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it.

³ And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian. A rainbow, resembling an emerald, encircled the throne.

⁴ Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads.

⁵ From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God.

⁶ Also before the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal.

In the centre, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back.

⁷ The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.

⁸ Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying:

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.”

⁹ Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives forever and ever,

¹⁰ the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives forever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:

¹¹ “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”

^5:5Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

^5:6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.

^5:7 He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne.

^5:8And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

^5:9And they sang a new song:

“You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.

^5:10You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”

¹¹Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders.

^5:12In a loud voice they sang:

“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!”

^5:13 Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing:

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”

^5:14The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

^7:9 After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.

¹⁰ And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

⁽¹¹ All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures.)

¹⁵ Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.

¹⁶ Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst.

The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat.

¹⁷ For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water.

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

^11:16And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God. Cf

^11:19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant.

^12:5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne.

^(12:7And there was war in heaven.

*Presumably having been in the Third Heaven, at some time in Human History – between Creation and the Future

^14:2 And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. ³ And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders…. ⁴ …. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb.

^{Revelation 14:13} Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”

“Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

^15:1 I saw in heaven ….²And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his name. They held harps given them by God ³ and sang the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb:

“Great and marvelous are your deeds,

Lord God Almighty.

Just and true are your ways, King of the Ages. ⁴ Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

^16:17 “… and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, “It is done!”

^19:1After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, ² for true and just are his judgments. He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries. He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

³ And again they shouted: “Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.”

⁴ The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they cried: “Amen, Hallelujah!” ⁵ Then a voice came from the throne, saying: “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both small and great!”

⁶ Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:

“Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. ⁷ Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. ⁸ Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.”

(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)

⁹ Then the angel said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”

¹¹ I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. ¹² His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. ¹³ He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. ¹⁴ The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. ¹⁵ Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron sceptre.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. ¹⁶ On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

^21:1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. ² I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴ He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” ⁵ He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” ⁶ He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. ⁷ He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son.

⁹ One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” ¹⁰ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. ¹¹ It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. ¹² It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. ¹³ There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. ¹⁴ The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. ¹⁵ The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. ¹⁶ The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. ¹⁷ He measured its wall and it was 144 cubits thick, by man’s measurement, which the angel was using. ¹⁸ The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. ¹⁹ The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, ²⁰ the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. ²¹ The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass. ²¹ The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.

²² I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. ²³ The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. ²⁴ The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendour into it. ²⁵ On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there.

²⁶ The glory and honour of the nations will be brought into it. ²⁷ Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

^22:14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.

¹⁷ The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.

OUTLINE OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION

I. Introduction (1:1-8)

A. Prologue (1:1-3)

B. Greetings and Doxology (1:4-8)

II. Vision of the Son of Man Among the Seven Churches of Asia (1:9-3:22)

A. The Son of Man Among the Lampstands (1:9-20)

1. The Introduction and the Voice (1:9-11)

2. The sight of the Vision (1:12-20)

B. The Letters to the Seven Churches (2:1-3:22)

Ephesus (2:1-7); Smyrna (2:8-11); Pergamum (2:12-17); Thyatira (2:18-29); Sardis (3:1-6); Philadelphia (3:7-13); Laodicia (3:14-22)

III. Vision of the Seven-Sealed Scroll, the Seven Trumpets, the Seven Signs, and the Seven Bowls (4:1-19:10)

The Seven-Sealed Scroll (4:1-8:11)

1. Preparatory: the Throne, the Scroll and the Lamb (4:1-5:14)

a. The Throne (4:1-11)

b. The Scroll and the Lamb (5:1-14)

2. Opening the first Six Seals (6:1-17)

3. First Interlude (7:1-17)

a. The 144, 000 Israelites (7:1-8)

b. The Great White-Robed Multitude (7:9-17)

4. Opening of the Seventh Seal (8:1)

The Seven Trumpets (8:2-11:19)

Preparatory: the Angel and the Golden Censer (8:2-5)
Sounding the first Six Trumpets (8:6-9:21)
Second Interlude (10:1-11:14)

a. The Little Book (10:1-11)

b. The Two Witnesses (11:1-14)

Sounding the Seventh Trumpet (11:15-19)

The Seven Signs (12:1-14:20)

The Woman and the Dragon (12:1-17)
The Two Beasts (13:1-11)
The Lamb and the 144,000 (14:1-5)
The Harvest of the Earth (14:6-20)

D. Seven Bowls (15:1-19:10)

1. Preparatory: The Seven Angels with the Seven Last Plagues (15:1-8)

2. Pouring out the Seven Bowls (16:1-21)

3. The Harlot and the Beast (17:1-18)

4. The fall of Babylon the Great (18:1-24)

5. Thanksgiving for the destruction of Babylon (19:1-5)

6. Thanksgiving for The MARRIAGE OF THE LAMB (19:6-10)

IV. Vision of the RETURN OF CHRIST AND THE CONSUMMATION OF THIS AGE (19:11-20:15)

A. The Rider on the White Horse and the Defeat of the Beast (19:11-21)

B. Binding of Satan and the Millennium (20:1-6)

C. The Release and End of Satan (20:7-10)

D. Great White Throne Judgment (20:11-15)

V. Vision of the New Heaven and the New Earth and the New Jerusalem (21:1-22:5)

A. The New Jerusalem Introduced (21:1-8)

B. The New Jerusalem Described (21:9-22:5)

C. The River of Life and the Tree of Life (22:1-5)

VI. Conclusion (22:6-21)

A SHORT OUTLINE OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION – New Bible Commentary (IVP)

Prologue (1:1-8)
Vision of the Son of Man (1:9-20)
The Letters to the Seven Churches (2:1-3:22)
The Vision of Heaven (4:1-5:14)
The Seven Seals (6:1-8:5)
The Seven Trumpets (8:6-11:19)
The Background of the Earthly Conflict (12:1-14:20)
The Seven Bowls (15:1-16:21)
The Fall of Babylon (17:1-19:21)
The Consummated Kingdom (20:1-22:5)
Epilogue (22:6-21)

It is perhaps wise to keep in mind a matrix for the last days – parts of this are portrayed in the various Sevens of The Book of Revelation:

The Gospel is preached to the whole World
The Anti-Christ will be seen by the Church
The Temple in Jerusalem will be re-established
The seven-year pact and its breaking
The First Resurrection and the Meeting in the Air
Our Lord’s return to the Earth
Satan bound
The Millennium Reign
Satan released for the Last Battle
The Second Resurrection for judgment and the eternal condemnation of all the wicked
The New Heaven and the New Earth

WHAT WILL THE NEXT LIFE IN THE MESSIAH BE LIKE?

The Resurrected Community will rule
There will be no sexual issues
Food will not be needed, and therefore no toilets
Access to power and knowledge
No Satan or evil
No tears or sadness
There will be new dimensions of recognizing people, and limitations to one age

STATISTICS

HEAVEN IN THE BIBLE

HEAVEN IN THE GOSPELS

(Created: 23)

Spiritual: 18

Synonyms: 22 Total: 40

HEAVEN AND SYNONYMS IN THE EXTRA GOSPELS

(Created: 2)

Spiritual: 240

HEAVEN AND SYNONYMS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

(Created: 45)

Spiritual: 90

Total of spiritual Heavens in the whole Bible: 40+240+90= Total: 370

HELL IN THE BIBLE

HELL IN THE GOSPELS

Hades: 4 (2 as Punishment, 2 as the Grave)

Gehenna: 11

Synonyms: 29 (as Punishment)

2+11+29 Total (as Punishment): 42

Notice that Heaven and Hell in the Gospels, in the Teaching of the Lord, are near equal in number - linking with: ^{Luke 11:42} “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.

HELL IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

The Grave: 33

Punishment: 22

Synonyms

Grave: 63

Punishment: 25 Total (as Punishment): 47

HELL IN THE NEW TESTAMENT: Extra to the Gospels

Hades: 8 – meaning the Grave

Gehenna: 1

Synonyms: 58 Total (as Punishment): 59

TOTALS

The Grave: 2+33+63+8= 106

Punishment: 42+47+59= 148 In the whole Bible (as Punishment): 148

*Some of the Blogs are rather long. It is possible to go through EDIT, to SELECT ALL, EDIT again: COPY; and then create your own WORD/MY DOCUMENTS file, PASTE, and SAVE: so you can read the longer items at leisure.

Eternal Hope: Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

^{Colossians 3:2}

We may not find this an easy task, and although these notes are a start, please give thought and add more of your own insights.

If you have come to this site without an assurance of your nearness to God: knowing that you are not sinless, but aware that Christ died for you on the Cross, and rose from the dead to give us hope; please pray to Him – “I accept you to be my Saviour, and to be Lord and Master of my life.” Ask Him to seal you with His Holy Spirit.

Hebrews 13:14 For this world is not our home; we are looking forward to our city in heaven, which is yet to come.

Hebrews 12 (18) You have not come to a physical mountain.

(22) No, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to thousands of angels in joyful assembly. (23) You have come to the assembly of God's firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God himself, who is the judge of all people. And you have come to the spirits of the redeemed in heaven who have now been made perfect. (24) You have come to Jesus, the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, and to the sprinkled blood, which graciously forgives….

^{1 Chronicles 16:27} Splendor and majesty are before him;

strength and joy in his dwelling place.

^{Job 19:23-27} “Oh, that my words were recorded,

that they were written on a scroll,

²⁴ that they were inscribed with an iron tool on lead,

or engraved in rock forever!

²⁵ I know that my Redeemer lives,

and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.

²⁶ And after my skin has been destroyed,

yet in my flesh I will see God;

²⁷ I myself will see him

with my own eyes—I, and not another.

How my heart yearns within me!

^{Isaiah 26:19} But your dead will live;

their bodies will rise.

You who dwell in the dust,

wake up and shout for joy.

Your dew is like the dew of the morning;

the earth will give birth to her dead.

Hebrews 12:1 ff And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us. (2) We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish. He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterward. Now he is seated in the place of highest honour beside God's throne in heaven. (3) Think about all he endured when sinful people did such terrible things to him….

Hebrews 11 (13) All these faithful ones [the great people of this chapter] died without receiving what God had promised them, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed the promises of God. They agreed that they were no more than foreigners and nomads here on earth. (14) And obviously people who talk like that are looking forward to a country they can call their own. (15) If they had meant the country they came from, they would have found a way to go back. (16) But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a heavenly city for them.

Hebrews 10 (37) "For in just a little while,

the Coming One will come and not delay.”

*************************************************************************

When we realize the cost of the Atonement, and the love of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we will be overwhelmed with gratitude, praise and worship.

We will be enabled to have wonderful fellowship with our Heavenly Father, who is omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, and fully loving (Hebrew, hesed).

We will understand the Trinity

Jesus will be able to show us the infinite wonders and size of Glory. We will enjoy being with the Creator of all of Earth’s beauty. His scientific knowledge will be explained and understood.

Wikipedia will be far too simple and inaccurate, compared with Heaven’s information.

There will be music in Heaven – billions of times billions, better than all the composers of this life put together. We will have marvelous capabilities and skills of our own, to enable us to join in.

There will be explanations of all the mysteries we need to know about.

See the worshipping angelic presence.

See the Throne of the Divinity.

Look around the Universe.

There will be perfect love, joy and peace; with deep emotion.

Total healing of all infirmities, sadnesses, regrets, unfulfilled hopes, woes, sins, and mistakes.

Total resurrection health.

How old will we be? Perhaps thirty-three and a half: like Jesus when he arrived home.

*************************************************************************

Hebrews 9:11ff

(11) So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that great, perfect sanctuary in heaven, not made by human hands and not part of this created world. (12) Once for all time he took blood into that Most Holy Place, but not the blood of goats and calves. He took his own blood, and with it he secured our salvation forever.

(13) Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow could cleanse people's bodies from ritual defilement. (14) Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our hearts from deeds that lead to death so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. (15) That is why he is the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, so that all who are invited can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.

(23) That is why the earthly tent and everything in it--which were copies of things in heaven--had to be purified by the blood of animals. But the real things in heaven had to be purified with far better sacrifices than the blood of animals.

(24) For Christ has entered into heaven itself to appear now before God as our Advocate. He did not go into the earthly place of worship, for that was merely a copy of the real Temple in heaven. (25) Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, like the earthly high priest who enters the Most Holy Place year after year to offer the blood of an animal. (26) If that had been necessary, he would have had to die again and again, ever since the world began. But no! He came once for all time, at the end of the age, to remove the power of sin forever by his sacrificial death for us.

(27) And just as it is destined that each person dies only once and after that comes judgment, (28) so also Christ died only once as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again but not to deal with our sins again. This time he will bring salvation to all those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Hebrews 10 (19) And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven's Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. (20) This is the new, life-giving way that Christ has opened up for us through the sacred curtain, by means of his death for us.

(34) You suffered along with those who were thrown into jail. When all you owned was taken from you, you accepted it with joy. You knew you had better things waiting for you in eternity.

(35) Do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord, no matter what happens. Remember the great reward it brings you! (36) Patient endurance is what you need now, so you will continue to do God's will. Then you will receive all that he has promised.

(37) "For in just a little while,

the Coming One will come and not delay.

(28) Since we are receiving a Kingdom that cannot be destroyed, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe.

^{Matthew 5:11-12} “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

^{Matthew 25:21} “His master replied, ’Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ [From the Parable of the Talents]

2 Corinthians 5:1-10 For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down--when we die and leave these bodies--we will have a home in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. (2) We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long for the day when we will put on our heavenly bodies like new clothing. (3) For we will not be spirits without bodies, but we will put on new heavenly bodies. (4) Our dying bodies make us groan and sigh, but it's not that we want to die and have no bodies at all. We want to slip into our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by everlasting life. (5) God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.

(6) So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. (7) That is why we live by believing and not by seeing. (8) Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. (9) So our aim is to please him always, whether we are here in this body or away from this body. (10) For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in our bodies.

^{Philippians 1:20-23} I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.

²¹ For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

²² If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! ²³ I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far.

^{Philippians 3:12-15} Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

¹³ Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

¹⁵ All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. ¹⁶ Only let us live up to what we have already attained.

^{Philippians 3:18-21} For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.

¹⁹ Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. ²⁰ But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, ²¹ who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

^{James 1:12} Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

^{1 Peter 1: 3-7} Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, ⁵ who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

⁶ In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. ⁷ These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

^{1 Peter 1:11 c} …the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.

^{1 Peter 1:13 b} set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.

^{1 Peter 4:13} but rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.

^{1 Peter 5:1} to the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ’s sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed.

^{1 Peter 5:10} “And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while.”

^{2 Peter 1:4} “Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”

^{2 Peter 1:10 b-11}For if you do these things, you will never fall,

¹¹ and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

^{2 Peter 1:19 c} until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

^{2 Peter 3:13-14} But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

¹⁴ So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.

^{1 John 3:2-3} “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. ³ Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.”

^{Jude 1:21} Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

^{Jude 1:24-25} To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—²⁵ to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen

As we would expect, a whole new vocabulary will exist in Glory, even in the Book of Revelation symbolism has to stretch human language to try to convey the realities of the abode of God. Heaven will be far more wonderful than words in this life can describe!

^2:26To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations. [Is this a rule in this life, or on the New Earth?]

^3:12 Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name. [Here are several important features of Heaven.]

Chapter 4 God’s Throne, and the Four Living Creatures

Chapter 5 The Lamb in the Throne

^5:10 You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,

and they will reign on the earth.”

^5:11-14 Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. [The impressive angelic presence]

¹² In a loud voice they sang:

“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,

to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength

and honour and glory and praise!”

¹³ Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing:

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb

be praise and honor and glory and power,

for ever and ever!”

¹⁴ The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

Revelation 7 Worship in Heaven

Life with The Lamb

Revelation 12 A significant Period of Earth’s History, including the Incarnation

The Only and Most Undesirable Alternative

^14:9-11 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand,

¹⁰ he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb.

¹¹ And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name.”

The Blessing of the Righteous Death

^14:13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”

“Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

Mentions of the Temple in Heaven

3:12, 7:15, 11:1,

^11:19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. [We rarely mention these heavenly elements, which in history have been reflected on Earth.]

^14:17-18 Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle.

¹⁸ Still another angel, who had charge of the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, “Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth’s vine, because its grapes are ripe.”

^15:5 After this I looked and in heaven the temple, that is, the tabernacle of the Testimony, was opened.

^15:8 And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed.

^16:1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple

^16:17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, “It is done!”

[See chapter 21:22 below]

Revelation chapter 17 The Lamb’s War

Revelation chapter 19 Judgment and the Wedding of the Lamb

Revelation chapter 20:1-6 The First Resurrection, and the Thousand Year Reign
6 Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.

The Last Battle
Final Judgments, and The Lake of Fire

Revelation Chapter 21 The New Heaven and the New Earth, and the New Jerusalem of God coming down to Earth

1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” 5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” 6 He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.

7 He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son.

8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
9 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.
11 It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a great high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. 13 There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. 14 The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

15 The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls.
16 The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 (1,400 miles, NLT) stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. 17 He measured its wall and it was 144 (216 feet NLT) cubits thick, by man’s measurement, which the angel was using. 18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. 19 The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald,20 the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.

21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of pure gold, like transparent glass.

22 I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.25 On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. 26 The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it.27 Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Revelation chapter 22

1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.

3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

6 The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”

12 “Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”

The Royal Palace, Netherlands

Lives filled with praise on Earth, will hardly notice the move to Heaven.

Will we be bored, some say?

[Hell could be the really boring place - with nothing but everlasting torment!]

**** We will be Rulers

Judges

Own a star

We will find Heaven so wonderful, spectacular, glorious, magnificent, and far beyond our highest imagination.

Holy Spirit gifts

Monday 16 July 2012

HEAVEN

Daniel frequently uses the dual noun. (Newberry AV)

(Newberry AV, interestingly the plural is introduced here)

· Newberry AV shows that the Holy Spirit favours the use of the Dual Heavens in the Minor Prophets.

His glory covered the (plural) heavens

TEXTS WHICH DO NOT USE THE WORD “HEAVEN”

“GLORY” AS A SYNONYM FOR HEAVEN

His glory covered the heavens

USE OF THE WORD “PARADISE”

“TAKEN UP”

OTHER TERMS – AND DETAILS

· Points to note: Jesus was about to go to His Father’s House – God’s Heavenly Abode

“Sit at my right hand

^{2 Timothy
4:18} The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom.

^Hebrews
1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

REVELATION

REVELATION CHAPTER 4

OUTLINE OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION

STATISTICS

HEAVEN IN THE BIBLE

HELL IN THE BIBLE

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Monday 16 July 2012

HEAVEN

Daniel frequently uses the dual noun. (Newberry AV)

(Newberry AV, interestingly the plural is introduced here)

· Newberry AV shows that the Holy Spirit favours the use of the Dual Heavens in the Minor Prophets.

His glory covered the (plural) heavens

TEXTS WHICH DO NOT USE THE WORD “HEAVEN”

“GLORY” AS A SYNONYM FOR HEAVEN

His glory covered the heavens

USE OF THE WORD “PARADISE”

“TAKEN UP”

OTHER TERMS – AND DETAILS

· Points to note: Jesus was about to go to His Father’s House – God’s Heavenly Abode

“Sit at my right hand

2 Timothy 4:18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom.

Hebrews 1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

REVELATION

REVELATION CHAPTER 4

OUTLINE OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION

STATISTICS

HEAVEN IN THE BIBLE

HELL IN THE BIBLE

No comments:

Post a Comment

Blog Archive

About Me

^{2 Timothy
4:18} The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom.

^Hebrews
1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.