Word Studies in the Bible

By E. M. Zerr

PARADISE - HEAVEN

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     The first word originated among the Persians, and the Greek historian, Xenophon, comments upon it as follows. "Among the Persians, a grand enclosure or preserve, hunting ground, park, shady and well-watered, in which wild animals were kept for the hunt; it was enclosed by walls and furnished with towers for the hunters." The word got into the Bible and other literature by reason of likeness in the thought. It occurs three times in the King James Version of the New Testament. The passages where it is used are, Luke 23:43; 2 Corinthians 12:4; Revelation 2:7. It is not used at all in this version of the Old Testament. However, the original word which is PARADEISOS, is used by the Septuagint (Greek version of the Old Testament), to translate the original for "garden" in Genesis 2:8.

     Thayer's definitions of the word are as follows: "A grand enclosure or preserve, hunting-ground; park; a garden, pleasure-ground; grove, park; that part of Hades which was thought by the later Jews to be the abode of the souls of the pious until the resurrection; an upper region in the heavens." Thus the word when considered without its context is not a proper noun but a descriptive one only. The connection in which it is used must determine in what form it should be spelled. Likewise whether it is to be given a physical or figurative sense, must be indicated by the use that is made of it. That is why the word has the shades of meaning given to it by Thayer. There are three places only in the New Testament where it is used. Those passages are cited above and the connection must be studied to avoid confusion. The Greek lexicon just quoted recognizes this truth, which is the reason for the various definitions of the original.

     A common idea seems to give to the

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word a definite meaning, as if it referred to some specific place. It will be evident from a careful study of the definitions that such an idea is incorrect. And yet in speech many persons will unconsciously use the word in its true sense, namely, that it refers to any place that has the characteristics prevailing in the word. For instance, in describing some home or grove or place of pleasure, they will exclaim that "it is a regular paradise." That is why Jesus used the word when speaking to the thief. He knew that after death his soul would be in "Abraham's bosom." The word properly applies to that place because of the pleasure of such a rest. The same word is used in the case reported by Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:4. The man had been caught up to the "third heaven" (verse 2), but also called "paradise." It certainly is a proper term for that celestial region, since it is to be a place of pleasure, where the citizens may freely bask near the tree of life (Revelation 2:7).

     The second word is used in both the Old Testament and the New and it occurs a great many times. Like the first word in our heading, it always comes from a single original (in the New Testament, and a single one in the Old). But again, though the writers use the same word in each case, it likewise has three different meanings, due to the various settings of the word. But the three applications are not directly mentioned in the Old Testament. However, with the information which may be obtained in the New Testament, we are able to place the proper construction on it as it is used in the various places in the Old. Hence I shall deal with it from the basis as given by the New Testament writers, and as occasion may suggest it, will show its reflected interpretation upon the Old Testament writers.

     The Greek word is OURANOS, and in the King James Version it is rendered by "air" 10 times, "heaven" 268 and "sky" 5. Thayer uses a page or more for his definitions and explanations. I will quote only his definitions which are the parts in italics. "Heaven; the heights above, vaulted expanse of the sky with all the things visible in it; the universe, the world; the aerial heavens or sky; the sidereal or starry heavens; the region above the sidereal [starry] heavens, the seat of an order of things eternal and consummately perfect, where God dwells and the other heavenly beings; the dwelling-place of God." In determining the proper application in any specific passage, it will be necessary to consider the connection as was necessary with the first word of our heading. To clarify the subject for the reader, based on the authority of the lexicon, I will state it as follows. The first heaven is the air or the region where the birds fly. The second heaven is the region of the stars. These two heavens are material and temporal, and are the ones meant in Genesis 1:1 and 2:1. That is why it is plural in the second passage. The third heaven is the eternal one, where God dwells and where the saved will dwell after the judgment. Since this heaven will be a place of pleasure and beauty, it is fitting that it is also called "the paradise of God" (Revelation 2:7).