men ' (cf. Ac :
must be ' from God.' But the most striking i
of ' Heaven ' as a synonym for ' God ' is in the phrase ' the
Kingdom of Heaven,'' almost uniformly in Mt. for ' the Kingdom
of God' of Mk. and Lk., and this in exactly parallel passages.
It is quite possible to make a distinction between these titles,
but it seems best to accept them as synonymous.*
Admitting the use of this metonymy, there can be no objec- tion to its use in other instances where a clear meaning follows. Thus, ' bound, loosed in heaven ' (Mt lUia IS") = ' of God ' ; 'The keys of the kingdom of heaven '(Mt 1619)=the authority of God; ' names written in heaven' (Lk 1020) = acceptance with God, cf. Ex 32^-. The demand for ' a sign from heaven ' (Mt 161, Lk 1116), while it may refer to the expectation of some visible wonder out of the sky, has ultimate reference to some direct act of God. Anything 'from heaven' is an act of God, cf. the judgment upon the cities of the Plain (Lk 1729), also the request of the disciples (Lk !)W). Even the phrase ' treasure in heaven ' has its exact equivalent in ' rich toward God ' (Lk 1221). Addi- tional instances of the use of periphrasis are seen in 'joy in the presence of the angels of God' (Lk IS'O) I confess ' before the ai " "
'from above' (Jn 1911); 'in thy sight' (Mt 1126); 'the Most High' (Lk 132- 76 63.1, cf. Mk 5').
The transition from Heaven as the abode of God to ' Heaven ' as a synonym for ' God ' is illustrated in the custom of uplifting the eyes to Heaven when God is addressed. The thought of the Temple as the dwelling-place of God led to the habit in prayer of turning the face towards Jerusalem and towards the Temple (see 1 K i**. J8, Dn 610, ps 282 1382). with the higher faith of God's transcendence, as One dwelling in the Heaven of Heavens, came the custom of lifting up the eyes to the Heavens (Ps 1231). The publican ' would not "" (Lk 1813, cf. Ezr 90).
' God ;
in the phr
Lkien); 'Lordof heav
firmament,' where are fixed the stars and 'the powers' (Mt
2429), the sky (Mt 1B2 AV), the air (Mt 6'« 820 1332, Lk 85, AV in
each), the trcasurv of the clouds (Mt '2430 206-1), the winds (Mt
2431), the lightning (Lk 172->), the rain (Lk 426) ; and from whence
are signs and portents (Mt 2430, Lk 21").
(h) The abode of God and angels.
Heaven is 'the throne of God' (Mt 634 2322, of. 'Our Father which art in heaven,' Mt 69; 'your Father . . . in heaven,' Mt 516.45 61711181-1239; 'My Father ... in heaven,' Mt -2M032. 33 1250 1617 1810 19 ; so also ' Heavenly (•;/>«»/«) Father, Mt 6«
(Jn 1141),
1419, Mk 734). Tl
culty, but whate
objective
the cloud ■ (Mt 175), i the attestation to Je with God. It is this which is
prayer, Jesui
(Jn 171);
are several passages which present diffi- conclusion mav he come to as to the in the opening of the heaN-ens (Mt 316), the heavens' (Mt 317, Jn 122s), or 'out of < subjective experience is the vital matter, s of His commission from and fellowship
iyinbolically represented i
nediatorship of Jesus i
declared. His revelation of God to man n with God. The striking saying, 'No man hath ascended into heaven but he that descended out of heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven' (Jn 313), has additional difficulty. The weight of MS authority is against the last clause, and the words may have been added as a gloss after the Ascension. If, with the RV, we retain them as the words of Jesus, they must be taken as qualifying the preceding utterance, which then becomes a declaration of His perfect fellowship with God (cf. Jn lis) rather than as a reference to Heaven as a place. The 'heavenly things' (Jn 312) are without doubt the things of God, the new revelation of His grace in Jesus Christ.
In what has been said above there is little that is distinctively Christian. The threefold use of the word ' Heaven ' is common alike to the OT and Jewish thought of the time. But after this pre- liminary study we ought to be in a better position to consider the characteristic teaching of Jesus and the Christian faith.
1. The Kingdom of God finds its perfect realiza- tion in a future state, a world above and beyond earth, the Kingdom in Heaven. This is the reiterated lesson alike of parable and of direct dis- course. All the judgment parables, where separa- tion between the righteous and the wicked is declared, clearly teach a future inheritance of bliss or of woe. S<i the jiarablesof the Tares (Mt IS'"-), the Vir-ins (Mt •_'.-)"•), the Talents (Mt 25"'-), and the Unjust Steward (Lk 16"-, where under the figure of ' eternal tents ' the future Canaan is ' the
• See Schurer, IIJP 11. ii. 171 ; Wendt, Teaching of Jesus, i. 371 n. ; Dalman, Words of Jesus, p. 93 ; Bruce, Expos. Gr. Test. on Mt 32 n., cf. also his Kingdom of God, p. 58, where a distmc- tion is suggested ; also Beyschlag, NT Theol., Bng. tr. 1. 42, where identity of meaning is granted, but ' a mere paraphrase for God' denied; and Stevens, Theol. of the NT, p. 27f.: ' interchangeably in Mt,' but ' of Heaven' denotes origin and attributes.'