Checking out Biblical Passages about Heaven

We kick off the discussion by casting a glance at the laymen’s common perception of heaven being God’s perpetual domicile.  Since “in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1), many have idly wondered where did the Triune God hang out prior to the six-day creation.  It is obviously futile to indulge in such speculation and so we shall check out the following scriptural verses which offer glimpses of divine proceedings presumably held in the heavenly realm:

#1      “… there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them” (Job 1:6 and 2:1)

#2      “… above the firmament over the living beings’ heads was the likeness of a throne …; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness of a man high above it … This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord” (Ezekiel 1:26-28)

#3      “… I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple” (Isaiah 6:1)

#4      “… behold a throne set in heaven and One sat on the throne” (Revelation 4:2).

Although the first chapter of Esther furnishes lavish details of King Ahasuerus’ palace (down to the marble pillars, linen curtains and even drinking vessels as elaborated in Esther 1:6-7), there is surprisingly no description at all of the venue in Verse #1 where the Lord reportedly held court on two separate occasions; instead, the focus of both Job 1 and Job 2 is, rightly so, on the to-and-fro discourse between God and Satan with regard to Job (who was completely oblivious of what transpired prior to the sudden onset of successive misfortunes).  Even more surprising in Verse #2 are the multiple repetitions of “likeness” coupled with the vague mention of the throne being somewhere above the firmament; a possible explanation is that whatever mortals are able to perceive whilst on earth will merely be a “copy and shadow of the heavenly things” (Hebrews 8:5).  The setting presented in Verse #3 is recognisably the divine throne-room which interestingly appears to be sited within the temple; perhaps reference should be made to Revelation 21:22 where John “saw no temple in it [viz New Jerusalem] for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.”  As for Verse #4, there is explicit referral to heaven being the setting for the throne the One sat on in the end-times; nonetheless, the details depicted in the fourth chapter of Revelation are later eclipsed by the foretelling in Revelation 21:1 of “a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away.”

 

Why is there a paucity of information in the Bible about heaven?  In such a situation, we need to take cognisance of the fact that certain matters actually remain undisclosed to the human race: Deuteronomy 29:29 points out that “the secret things belong to God ...” while Proverbs 25:2 highlights that “it is the glory of God to conceal a matter ...”  Under these circumstances, we do well to sit back and consider how God took to task Job’s friends who were too fast and furious in pontificating while purportedly comforting their friend beset by undeserved sufferings.  In response to God’s question “Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” (Job 38:2), Job freely admitted having “uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me which I did not know” (Job 42:3) and his supposedly-wise friends thereafter had to offer a burnt sacrifice, as commanded by the Lord, “… lest I [viz God] deal with you according to your folly” (Job 42:8).  Especially relevant for our present discussion is God’s challenge to human beings (beyond the characters portrayed in the book of Job): “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?  Tell Me if you [indeed] have understanding” (Job 38:4).  In view of this, human beings must not be too eager to proffer speculative images of heaven based on whatever unsubstantiated data they claim to be able to access.

 

In truth, many are far more interested in seeking information about heaven as the longed-for destination of those who had confessed their sins and concomitantly accepted the Messiah as Saviour; after all, Jesus told His disciples that “in My Father’s house are many mansions … [and] I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2).  Naturally, this King James version of what Jesus indicated in figurative language cannot be read as the believers having been promised brick-and-mortar mansions as the original word “monai” may be translated either as “family” or “dwelling place”.  Another observation is the stark absence of the word “heaven” in this many-mansions verse whatever translation of the Bible has been adopted.  As an alternative, we thus turn to Jesus’ plain-language assurance for the thief on a nearby cross that “today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43); according to Paul’s recollections in II Corinthians 12:2-5 (of possibly his own experience), “Paradise” in II Corinthians 12:4 may be equated to “third heaven” in II Corinthians 12:2.  Another pertinent verse (but this time couched in narrative form) is found in Jesus’ parable: “the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom” (Luke 16:22) where “there is a great gulf fixed so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us” (Luke 16:26).  In contrast, the woman at Endor said to King Saul that “I saw a spirit ascending out of the earth” (I Samuel 28:13) but it is not advisable for us to place any weight on a medium’s perception (which, by the way, had since been called into question by scholars because of the words she actually spoke during the séance).

 

Unfortunately, many have belaboured that there is not much to be gleaned about heaven being the future destination of His children.  In response, it ought to be made clear that our focus should really not be on heaven at present “for we know that the whole creation groans …” (Romans 8:22) after having been marred by the first couple sinning in the Garden of Eden.  An earlier blog-article entitled “Viewing Book of Revelation in Perspective” has already outlined how God had purposively imparted to His people scriptures that point the entire way from Genesis 3:17 (where He pronounced that “cursed is the ground for your sake”) to Revelation 21:5 (where He declares that “behold I make all things new”) with the intermediate biblical passages detailing the manner His salvation plan (which was intimated in Genesis 3:15 during the divine judgment pronounced against the serpent) had been and will be effectuated over the passage of time.  Given that the 66 books are arranged in a particular sequence, we should therefore extend our vision beyond the intermediate narratives (which chronicle Satan’s series of schemes for derailing God’s objective) to draw reassurance from the book of Revelation where the final phase of His plan will come into fruition.

 

In conclusion, we need to look towards the re-created heaven, earth and Jerusalem (where, as expressed explicitly in Psalm 132:13-14, “He has desired for His dwelling place [and] is My resting place forever”).  Who will reside with the Triune God there?  The answer given by Revelation 21:27 is that “there shall by no means enter it [viz New Jerusalem] anything that defiles or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life” with Revelation 22:14 affirming that “those who do His commandments … may have the right to the tree of life and may enter through the gates into the city”.  Consequently, the focus of our search for descriptive verses on heaven should be placed here where, not surprisingly, Revelation 21-22 provide many details such as those contained in the following verses which depict the eventual destination of His children:

●       “… a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeded from the throne of God and of the Lamb” (Revelation 22:1)

●       “… on either side of the river was the tree of life …” (Revelation 22:2)

●       “… the city was pure gold, like clear glass” (Revelation 21:18)

●       “the foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones” (Revelation 21:19)

●       “the city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it for the glory of God illuminated it” (Revelation 21:23).