CHAPTER 8
LOCATION: HEAVEN -- THE THRONE ROOM OF GOD
Heaven, the throne room of God, was the second location God created just after the original universe was in place. It could have been a simultaneous creation of the universe and heaven, but it will help to understand the order of creations to consider heaven as being the second location created. Either way heaven was in place immediately after the universe was created. Because angels needed an infrastructure in which they could operate and use their sensory faculties and ultimately worship God, He created time, a universe and also heaven for them as His first creations. Once we understand that God never required a heaven, and it was created for souled creatures not for Himself, then we need to discuss where heaven is located. Is it separate from the universe, or is heaven inside the universe? Does that question surprise you? It should not. And the Bible does provide an answer.
We should discuss two possibilities, namely that heaven is either inside the universe or outside of it. While you may be tempted to think it can only be outside of the universe, let us discuss what the Bible reveals. The Bible speaks of "the heavens” as plural, with the throne room of God being one of those "heavens." Nehemiah 9:6 says “You are the Lord, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens." Meaning the "heaven of heavens" as the throne room of God is part of the collective "heavens" which the Bible continually refers to in the plural. And those heavens are always discussed as being in layers without separation. Therefore the Bible describes "the heavens" as contiguous, meaning they are connected with no void between them (space is not a void, it is material, otherwise there could be no space travel). The "heavens" are discussed as a single unit referring to the earth's atmosphere, near space, far space and also the throne room of God. So the "heavens" in the Bible are considered to be interconnected and inseparable starting with the atmosphere around the earth as one part of the heavens, the sun and planets in another part of the heavens, the stars in another, and the throne room of God as part of those connected heavens. Meaning that heaven as the throne room of God is part of the universe.
Therefore the terminology used by the Bible shows the "heavens" are an integrated unit around and above the earth. Heaven is therefore not outside of the universe, somewhere in the so-called nothingness beyond the edges of universe. When the Bible speaks of “the heavens” as contiguous locations inside of the universe, including several layers all of which are material, it means the earth's atmosphere and space and God's heaven are all inside of the universe. If not, the angels could not have traveled back and forth between heaven and earth for many thousands of years. And heaven must be a material place where souled creatures with material bodies can interact with such a location, even though that “material” may be different than the rest of the universe, including the bodies of humans. Material properties not only include what we as humans know, but they also include other "heavenly" properties known to angels but not to man. Heaven is a type of materiality not known to humans while in earthly bodies, but after death human believers are put into heavenly material bodies which can interact with the material properties of heaven.
Let us look at some verses which address these issues:
Nehemiah 9:6: “You are the Lord, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.”
Jeremiah 32:17: “Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.”
Isaiah 40:22: "He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in."
We see that God "sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers" which portrays heaven as located above the earth in relatively close proximity, certainly not outside the universe. Also, these verses show that the heaven which is God's throne room is "the heaven of heavens" and is therefore among the layers of the combined heavens which must be a single unit and contiguous. If they were not, the angels as material beings could not travel to and from earth and heaven. Souled creatures cannot go out of the material universe and cross an immaterial nothingness outside of the universe. The angels have always been able to travel easily from earth to heaven and back. This means there must be a continuous material pathway. God fills earth, space, heaven and all beyond. There is no place where God is not present. But souled creatures cannot be outside of a material location. And heaven is a material location, even though a different type, otherwise souled creatures could not be there, either while living or after death. The angels needed a universe in which to live, and a heaven in which to locate and relate to God. These two locations were originally created for the angels and they went in and out of both. If heaven were outside of the universe the angels would not be able to cross over from one to the other since there would be an immaterial gulf to cross, and since angels have material bodies that would not be possible.
When Jesus ascended to heaven in His resurrection body, which is a material body with heavenly properties, the disciples watched while He was ascending through the clouds and into heaven. Acts 1:9 "After he [Jesus] 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.” Note that the angels said immediately after Jesus went through the clouds He was already in heaven, and they told the disciples "you have seen him go into heaven."
Isaiah also describes the location of heaven as "above the tops of the clouds." Isaiah 14:13-14 quotes Satan when he revolted and wanted to set up his own kingdom apart from God: “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars [angels] of God. I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the north.14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” Once again we see the Bible describes heaven as being "above the tops of the clouds” so it is rather near to earth, and definitely not outside of the universe.
Additionally, if heaven were outside of the universe it would be billions of light years away from the earth, which even for angels would be a nearly impossible trip, even one way. In fact, it is estimated the distance to the nearest edge of the universe is 46 billion light years from earth. If that is accurate, it would take an angel 46 billion years traveling at the speed of light just to get to the edge of the universe. 46 billion years, one way, really? Although they have powerful bodies they are not that powerful. They need access, and it is only possible with a heaven inside the universe and relatively close to the earth.
Let us ponder some additional things we know about heaven. First, we know that heaven is a place souled creatures can relate to, therefore it is material in the sense that souled creatures can locate it, live in it, touch it, sense it, walk around in it, eat in it, and do all the things souled creatures do. Therefore heaven is material in the same way the universe is material, but still different. So if heaven is a material place, and it is, then it must be part of the current universe. If it was separate, then angels and humans entering heaven would be required to travel 46 billion light years to the edge of the universe and then cross a void of nothingness to reach heaven. Is that likely or even possible? Angels went back and forth between earth and heaven when they lived on earth, and they still go back and forth today. Human believers who die go to heaven, and an angel takes the human soul there after death. Therefore heaven is part of the universe, and it is not far away from earth. Exactly how far, we do not know. But it is part of "the heavens."
Also, the Bible reveals that God is accessible to His created beings. He is not a distant, unapproachable God. He first made Himself approachable by the angels, and then to man. Heaven was created for souled creatures, not for God. Therefore God would necessarily put heaven in a location easily accessible to His souled creatures, first angels and later man. And since the earth was the home of angels, and now is the home of man, it would seem plausible that heaven is close to where angels and man would reside so they could interact with God not only spiritually, but also materially and physically. Angels went back and forth from earth to heaven, and believer humans go to heaven at death in the arms of their guardian angel, so God would have made heaven accessible for both angels and man.
When one thinks about these issues, do we really believe a loving God who seeks to benefit His believers would live in a heaven which is 46 billion light years away from those He loves? It is not a problem for Him, but it is for His believers and elect angels. And since guardian angels transport believers to heaven at the point of death, 46 billion light years is not a reasonable distance for the angel holding the soul of the departed believer to transverse, and then also cross over an immaterial nothingness. It only takes a few moments after our death for our guardian angel to take us to heaven as his/her last act on our behalf. All of this requires that heaven is inside the universe and rather close to earth since God does not live apart from His believers, but rather God makes Himself easily accessible to His souled creatures.
So if heaven is inside this universe, where exactly is it? We do not know the exact location, but it is not far from earth. But since it has a slightly different type of materiality, we cannot see it even if it is relatively near to us in space. We know that angelic bodies are material but not as we know materiality based on earth chemistry and physics, so we know the materiality of heaven is different yet still material since angels and humans can both exist there. Heaven could be very close to earth and not be seen, and also our space vehicles could actually pass through it without interacting. So a heaven located in near space is certainly possible, and even likely. Just as angels are material yet invisible to us, and just as we believers have a guardian angel right beside us, and just as angels in the Old Testament times could take on a bodily form visible to man or be invisible, and just as Jesus Christ in resurrection body could be either invisible or visible as He wished and could walk through walls, so also we cannot see heaven although it is likely relatively near to us. Is it within this solar system or just outside of it? There is no way to know for certain. But is it relatively close? Yes. That is because God set up His throne room and earth to be near each other inside the universe so His created beings could have easy access to Him. Although the Bible does not explicitly say where heaven is in relation to earth, it does say the "heavens" are contiguous, and the angels can make the trip easily, and God lives among His people, and heaven is a material place "above the tops of the clouds" where God "sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers." So we can conclude it is inside the universe and relatively near to earth.
Aside from the actual location of heaven, we have discussed that God never needed a heaven as a residence, and it did not exist until angels needed it in order to locate God. If heaven would have existed as long as God has existed inside His eternal now, then God would not have created it, and it would have come from something or someone else. That is an absurdity. But if God required a heaven in which to reside, how could He have ever existed outside of it in order to be able to create it? That is also an absurdity.
But what exactly is heaven?
It may help to first discuss what heaven is not. Heaven is not God's home. God does not need a home, and never did. God does not need a throne to sit on. He does not need a place where He can reside, or a place to stand or sit or relax or do the things created beings must do. God does not act like created beings. So He has never required a heaven. But His creatures require a heaven. The eternal omnipresent God cannot be confined to a single place, but created beings need to have a location in which to interface with God, which is why there is a heaven. The angels, and later man, needed a place to locate and relate to God, therefore heaven was created for two types of souled creatures. God existed in His eternal now without heaven and still does, although He makes Himself available to His souled creatures in heaven and elsewhere. Heaven cannot contain God, and neither does the universe, so God does not confine Himself to any location. God is omnipresent, not isolated in heaven. He is at all times in heaven and throughout the universe and outside of both where only God can exist. But His souled creatures required a heaven in which to locate God, so God graciously provided such a location.
This brings up an important point. Since heaven is a created location, it had a beginning. It did not exist until God created it for His souled creatures. It was created at the same time as the original universe. Here are verses which help explain these issues:
2 Chronicles 2:6 “But who is able to build him a house, since heaven, even highest heaven, cannot contain him? Who am I to build a house for him, except as a place to make offerings before him?”
Nehemiah 9:6: “You are the Lord, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.”
Exodus 20:22 "The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was. And the Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the people of Israel: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have talked with you from heaven.
Ezekiel 28:12 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘You [Satan] were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty...14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones.”
Psalm 33:6: “By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.”
Psalm 115:16: “The heavens are the Lord's heavens, but the earth he has given to the children of man.”
Jeremiah 32:17: “Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.”
Matthew 24:35: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.”
Acts 1:11 says: “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.”
2 Peter 3:10: “then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved”
Revelation 21:7 “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away”
Isaiah 65:17: “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.”
People tend to think of heaven as an ethereal place, a place nothing like the universe. That is not an accurate view of heaven. Heaven is a material place, a location where material angels and material humans can locate and relate to God. If angels and man can be in it, then it must be material. It cannot be a void, or a place of nothingness. Heaven is a real place with real material properties. Those properties are not exactly the same as the properties of our current universe, with the same atomic structure, but it is material otherwise souled creatures could not be in it and relate to it. Our human eternal resurrection bodies as believers will be material, just like the one Jesus Christ has now since His resurrection. 1Cor 15:40 “There are also bodies in the heavens and bodies on the earth. The glory of the heavenly bodies is different from the glory of the earthly bodies.” But heaven must be material in order for our future powerful, but material, bodies to relate and interact with it.
Descriptive details about heaven itself are scarce in the Bible. Many verses which are thought to describe the current heaven do not, but rather they describe the future eternal new heaven which will be located inside the New Jerusalem. The current heaven is a temporary location and much of it will be moved into the new heaven during the Eternal State. Such details of the future new heaven include the streets paved with gold, pearl gates, jewel-like colors, and so on, and these do not apply to the current heaven. Only a few verses describe the current temporary heaven, including the following:
Psalm 11:4: “The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord's throne is in heaven;”
This tells us that the throne room of God is inside the heavenly temple.
John 14:2 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”
Acts 7:49: “‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is the place of my rest?”
Revelation 4:2 “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 ruby. A rainbow that shone like 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.”
Revelation 11:19 “Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant.”
Revelation 15:5 “After this I looked, and I saw in heaven the temple—that is, the tabernacle of the covenant law—and it was opened.”
Revelation 16:1 “Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels...17 out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, “It is done!” ”
Revelation 20:11 “Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.”
Revelation 21:1-3: “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, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.”
We see that the new heaven will replace the current heaven, and the new heaven will come out from the old heaven. Therefore some of the parts of the new heaven will come out from the existing heaven. The new heaven will have a throne and a throne room, as would be expected. Although the current heaven has a temple the new heaven has no temple.
Old Testament believers did not go directly to heaven when they died. Instead they went to Paradise, and were only transferred to heaven after Jesus Christ was seated there. The sin issue needed to be resolved by the Messiah before any human was allowed into heaven. Now after the cross each believer goes immediately to heaven at the point of death. The human soul and spirit are transported by the believer's guardian angel to heaven, and that is the last task for that angel related to that believer. Once in heaven that soul and spirit is put into a temporary heavenly but material body until the resurrection occurs, at which time that believer receives a final resurrection body like that of Jesus Christ. But as of right now, until the Rapture of the Church occurs the only one with a resurrection body is Jesus Christ. Church Age believers will receive their bodies next, which will occur just after the Rapture of the Church. Then seven years later Old Testament believers will receive their eternal bodies at the Second Advent, and 1000 years later Millennial believers receive their resurrection bodies at the end of human history. So the resurrection bodies are handed out in stages, with the Church being first in order of priority even though Old Testament believers will have waited much longer. That shows what the Lord thinks of His believers who make up the Church.
We have mentioned that the current heaven is a temporary place. It will cease to exist in its current form in the future after human history is complete and the current universe is destroyed. As a preview of coming attractions to be discussed in later chapters, at a future time the current universe will be destroyed after the current heaven will have been moved into the future new universe. In fact the New Jerusalem of the future universe will be formed from existing components already part of the current heaven. When the new universe is created and the New Jerusalem, the heaven for eternity, comes out of the current heaven it will become part of that new universe. We will cover additional details in a future chapter. Once again we see that God puts His heaven inside the universe, both now and during the Eternal State. He is not a distant God. The throne-room of heaven will be moved into the New Jerusalem and will become part of the new universe during the Eternal State, and then God will reside with His saved souled creatures in this new heaven and new universe for all eternity.
The current heaven is therefore a temporary location until the end of human history when the eternal heaven called the New Jerusalem will replace it. The portions of heaven which will be moved into the New Jerusalem include the Throne Room, the Mansions of the Lord (John 14:2), and some other portions. But the heavenly Temple described in the Bible will not be moved, since the New Jerusalem does not have a temple even though the current heaven does have one as described in 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 severe hailstorm.” Then later in Revelation 21 the Bible describes the future New Jerusalem version of heaven as having no temple: “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.” (Revelation 21:22) Therefore we know that portions of the existing heaven will cease to exist, since there will not be two heavens during the Eternal State. Although much of this information about the transition of the existing heaven into an eternal heaven will be news to most believers, you will soon understand these things as we proceed to unravel this and other fascinating issues revealed in the Bible about the future times.
To reiterate the locations which can be separated into distinct entities throughout the course of time, they are as follows:
The original Universe
Heaven
Earth
The Lake of Fire
Hades (several compartments)
The renovated Universe (prepared for mankind)
The future eternal Universe, with the new earth and New Jerusalem.
Now that we have covered the first two locations, the original universe and heaven, we can proceed to discuss the remaining five locations. Three of these exist now and the remaining two are still future. But before we continue with those other locations, let us pause to take an in-depth look at the reason these locations were created, namely the angels.