Nature of heaven

Heaven as God’s habitation

It is the place where he dwells

Deuteronomy 26:15 KJV 1900

Look down from thy holy habitation, from heaven, and bless thy people Israel, and the land which thou hast given us, as thou swarest unto our fathers, a land that floweth with milk and honey.

See also Ge 28:17; 2 Ch 6:21; Ec 5:2; Re 13:6

It is insufficient as God’s dwelling-place

1 Kings 8:27 KJV 1900

But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded?

See also Ps 113:5–6

Heaven as the place of God’s throne

Psalm 11:4 KJV 1900

The Lord is in his holy temple, The Lord’s throne is in heaven: His eyes behold, His eyelids try, the children of men.

See also Ex 24:9–11; 1 Ki 22:19; Is 6:1; Is 63:15; Da 7:9; Mt 5:34; Mt 23:22; Ac 7:49; Is 66:1; Heb 8:1; Re 4:1–6; Re 20:11

Heaven as God’s vantage point

Psalm 33:13 KJV 1900

The Lord looketh from heaven; He beholdeth all the sons of men.

See also Ps 53:2; Ps 102:19–20; Ec 5:2

Heaven as an alternative term for God

Luke 15:18 KJV 1900

I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,

See also Mt 8:11; Mt 13:11 Matthew is writing especially for Jews who, out of reverence, tried to avoid using the word “God”. Mk 4:11 and Lk 8:10 prefer “kingdom of God”; Mt 16:19; Mt 18:18; Mt 21:25; Jn 3:27; Jn 17:1

Heaven and the sovereignty of God

Heaven is the place of God’s rule

Daniel 4:26 KJV 1900

And whereas they commanded to leave the stump of the tree roots; thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, after that thou shalt have known that the heavens do rule.

See also Ps 45:6; Ps 103:19; Ac 17:24

God’s voice from heaven speaks with divine authority

Deuteronomy 4:36 KJV 1900

Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee: and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire.

See also Da 4:31; Jn 12:28; 1 Th 4:16; 2 Pe 1:17–18

Heaven glimpsed by human eyes

At the baptism of Jesus Christ

Mark 1:10 KJV 1900

And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him:

See also Jn 1:32

In visions

Acts 7:56 KJV 1900

And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.

See also 2 Co 12:2–4; Re 4:1

Prayer addressed to God in heaven

1 Kings 8:30 KJV 1900

And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place: and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place: and when thou hearest, forgive.

See also Dt 26:15; 2 Ch 30:27; Ne 1:4; Ps 20:6; Re 5:8

The association of oaths with heaven

Matthew 23:22 KJV 1900

And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.

See also Ge 24:3; Da 12:7; Mt 5:34; Jas 5:12

The place of Jesus Christ in heaven

His pre-existence in heaven

John 6:38 KJV 1900

For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.

See also Jn 3:13

His ascension into heaven after his resurrection

Luke 24:51 KJV 1900

And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.

See also Eph 1:20

His place is now with God the Father

Hebrews 9:24 KJV 1900

For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:

See also Col 3:1

His second coming will be from heaven

1 Thessalonians 4:16 KJV 1900

For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

See also Mt 25:31; Ac 1:11; 1 Th 1:10

The new heaven

The new heaven completely replaces the old

Revelation 21:1 KJV 1900

And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

See also Is 65:17; Is 66:22; 2 Pe 3:13

The new Jerusalem is divinely created in heaven

Revelation 21:2 KJV 1900

And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

See also Is 2:2–5; Heb 11:16; Heb 13:14; Re 3:12; Re 21:10

Fulness of life in heaven is wholly sustained by God

Re 21:22–23; Re 22:1–2

See also Is 55:1; Eze 47:8–9; Eze 47:12; Jn 7:38–39; Re 2:7