Early Christian Beliefs About Heaven

Tertullian, Apology Direct teaching

And if we speak of Paradise, the place of heavenly bliss appointed to receive the spirits of the saints, severed from the knowledge of this world by that fiery zone as by a sort of enclosure, the Elysian plains have taken possession of their faith.

Cyprian, Treatises Direct teaching

Philippians 3:21 Christ the Lord also promises that we shall be such, when, that we may be with Him, and that we may live with Him in eternal mansions, and may rejoice in heavenly kingdoms, He prays the Father for us, saying, Father, I will that they also whom You have given me be with me where I am, and may see the glory which You have given me before the world was made.

Irenaeus, Against Heresies: Book V Direct teaching

And since (or, that) these things shall ever continue without end, Isaiah declares, “For as the new heavens and the new earth which I do make, continue in my sight, saith the , so shall your seed and your name remain.” And as the presbyters say, Then those who are deemed worthy of an abode in heaven shall go there, others shall enjoy the delights of paradise, and others shall possess the splendour of the city;

Clement of Alexandria, Who Is the Rich Man That Shall Be Saved? Supporting witness

holding forth the shadowless, ceaseless light; conducting them, to the Father's bosom, to eternal life, to the kingdom of heaven.

John 14:2 Background

In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

John 14:3 Background

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Cyprian, Treatises Direct teaching

Next in the prayer comes, "Your kingdom come." We ask that the kingdom of God may come to us, just as we also ask that His name may be sanctified in us. For when does God not reign? Or when does that begin in Him which has always existed and never stops existing? We pray that our kingdom may come, the kingdom promised to us by God, which was obtained by the blood and suffering of Christ. Then we who are first His subjects in the world may afterward reign with Christ when He reigns, as He Himself promises and says, "Come, you blessed of my Father, receive the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Matthew 25:34). However, dearest brothers, Christ Himself may also be understood as the kingdom of God. We desire Him to come day by day, and we long for His coming to be quickly shown to us. For since He Himself is the Resurrection, and since in Him we rise again, so also the kingdom of God may be understood to be Himself, since in Him we shall reign. But we do well in seeking the kingdom of God, that is, the heavenly kingdom, because there is also an earthly kingdom. But the one who has already renounced the world is also greater than its honors and its kingdom. And

Irenaeus, Against Heresies: Book V Direct teaching

...not combine with pottery.” Since an end will come, he says: “In the days of these kings, the God of heaven will raise up a kingdom that will never decay, and His kingdom will not be left to another people. It will break and scatter all kingdoms and will be exalted forever. As you saw that the stone was cut without hands from the mountain and broke the baked clay, iron, brass, silver, and gold, God has shown the king what will happen after these events; the dream is true, and the interpretation is reliable.”

Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies Direct teaching

This, says he, is the kingdom of heaven that reposes within us as a treasure, as leaven hid in the three measures of meal.

Tatian, The Diatessaron Background

27 Matthew 20:1 The kingdom of heaven is like a man that is a householder, which went out early 28 in the morning to hire labourers for his vineyard.

Daniel 7:27 Background

And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.

Revelation 11:15 Background

And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

Psalms 145:13 Background

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. [The LORD is faithful in all his words and kind in all his works.]

Matthew 25:34 Background

Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

Cyprian, Treatises Direct teaching

...ls; and with the patriarchs, with the apostles, and with the prophets, to rejoice in possessing the heavenly kingdom! What persecution can conquer thoughts like these? What tortures can overcome them? The brave and steadfast mind, founded on religious meditations, endures. The spirit remains unmoved against all the terrors of the devil and the threats of the world when it is strengthened by the sure and solid faith of the things to come. In persecutions, earth is closed, but heaven is opened. Antichrist threatens, but Christ protects. Death is brought in, but immortality follows. The world is taken away from the one who is killed, but paradise is presented to him in return. The life of time is ended, but the life of eternity is gained. What dignity and what security it is to go gladly from here, to depart gloriously in the midst of afflictions and tribulations, to close in a moment the eyes with which men and the world are seen, and at once to open them to look upon God and Christ! How great is the swiftness of such a blessed departure! You shall suddenly be taken away from earth and placed in the heavenly kingdoms. We ought to embrace these things in our mind and consideration,

Lactantius, The Divine Institutes Direct teaching

But, however, by either name a king is signified: not that He has obtained this earthly kingdom, the time for receiving which has not yet arrived, but that He sways a heavenly and eternal kingdom, concerning which we shall speak in the last book.

Justin Martyr, Connection to Matthew 8:11 Direct teaching

`For they shall come, 'He said, `from the west and from the east, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; but the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness.'

Justin Martyr, Connection to Matthew 8:11 Supporting witness

`They shall come from the east, and from the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness.'

Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies Supporting witness

And you shall receive the kingdom of heaven, you who, while you sojourned in this life, knew the Celestial King.

Cyprian, Epistles Supporting witness

or who in some places, condemned to death, have received heavenly crowns from the glorification of the Lord?

Justin Martyr, The First Apology Supporting witness

and they taught that, having been torn in pieces, he ascended into heaven.

1 Peter 1:4 Background

To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,

Hebrews 11:16 Background

But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

Colossians 1:5 Background

For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel;

Methodius, From the Discourse on the Resurrection Direct teaching

...eir virtues, says that what is mortal is inherited, but life inherits; and that flesh dies, but the kingdom of heaven lives. So then, when Paul says that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven, he is not speaking as if he despised the rebirth of the flesh. Rather, he is teaching that the kingdom of God, which is eternal life, is not inherited by the body, but that the body is inherited by life. For if the kingdom of God, which is life, were inherited by the body, it would follow that life was swallowed up by corruption. But as it is, life inherits what is mortal, so that death may be swallowed up by life in victory, and so that what is corruptible may appear as the possession of incorruption, being set free from death and sin, and having become the slave and subject of immortality, so that the body may become the possession of incorruption, and not incorruption the possession of the body.

Peter of Alexandria, The Genuine Acts of Peter Supporting witness

..., says that what is mortal is inherited, but life does the inheriting; and that flesh dies, but the kingdom of heaven lives. So then, when Paul says that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven, he is not speaking as if he were treating the regeneration of the flesh lightly. Rather, he is teaching that the kingdom of God, which is eternal life, is not inherited by the body, but that the body is inherited by life. For if the kingdom of God, which is life, were inherited by the body, then it would follow that life was swallowed up by corruption. But as it is, life inherits what is mortal, so that death may be swallowed up by life in victory, and so that what is corruptible may appear as the possession of incorruption. It is made free from death and sin, and becomes the slave and subject of immortality, so that the body may become the possession of incorruption, and not incorruption become the possession of the body.

Methodius, From the Discourse on the Resurrection Direct teaching

Now the followers of Origen bring forward this passage, “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved,” 2 Corinthians 5:1, and so on, to argue against the resurrection of the body. They say that the tabernacle is the body, and that the house not made with hands in the heavens is our spiritual clothing. Therefore, says the holy Methodius, by this earthly house we should understand, in a figurative way, our short-lived existence here, and not this tabernacle. For if you choose to take the body as the earthly house that is dissolved, tell us what the tabernacle is whose house is dissolved. For the tabernacle is one thing, the house of the tabernacle is another, and we who have the tabernacle are another thing still. For he says, “if our earthly house of this tabernacle be dissolved,” by which he shows that we ourselves are the souls, that the body is a tabernacle, and that the house of the tabernacle figuratively means the enjoyment of the flesh in the present life. If, then, this present life of the body is dissolved like a house, we shall have that which is not made with hands in the heavens. “Not made with hands,” he says, points out the difference. This

Peter of Alexandria, The Genuine Acts of Peter Supporting witness

...sh. This is so that, "as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly," 1 Corinthians 15:49. For the image of the earthy that we have borne is this: "Dust you are, and to dust shall you return," Genesis 3:19. But the image of the heavenly is the resurrection from the dead and incorruption, so that, "as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also should walk in newness of life," Romans 6:4. But if anyone thinks that the earthy image is the flesh itself, while the heavenly image is some other spiritual body besides the flesh, let him first consider that Christ, the heavenly man, when He appeared, bore the same form of limbs and the same image of flesh as ours. Through this also, He who was not man became man, so that "as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive," 1 Corinthians 15:22. For if He bore flesh for any other reason than to set the flesh free and raise it up, why did He bear flesh needlessly, if He intended neither to save it nor to raise it up? But the Son of God does nothing needlessly. He did not, then, take the form of a servant for no purpose, but to raise it up and save it. For He

Methodius, From the Discourse on the Resurrection Supporting witness

...sh. This is so that, as we have borne the image of the earthly, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly, 1 Corinthians 15:49. For the image of the earthly that we have borne is this: “Dust you are, and to dust shall you return,” Genesis 3:19. But the image of the heavenly is the resurrection from the dead and incorruption, so that, as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also should walk in newness of life, Romans 6:4. But if anyone thinks that the earthly image is the flesh itself, while the heavenly image is some other spiritual body besides the flesh, let him first consider that Christ, the heavenly man, when He appeared, bore the same form of limbs and the same image of flesh as ours. Through this also, He who was not man became man, so that as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive, 1 Corinthians 15:22. For if He bore flesh for any other reason than to set the flesh free and raise it up, why did He bear flesh needlessly, since He intended neither to save it nor to raise it up? But the Son of God does nothing needlessly. He did not take the form of a servant for no purpose, but to raise it up and save it. For He truly was

Methodius, From the Discourse on the Resurrection Supporting witness

When then, Paul says that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven, he does not so speak as seeming to slight the regeneration of the flesh, but as teaching that the kingdom of God, which is eternal life, is not inherited by the body, but the body by life.

Peter of Alexandria, The Genuine Acts of Peter Supporting witness

When then, Paul says that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven, he does not so speak as seeming to slight the regeneration of the flesh, but as teaching that the kingdom of God, which is eternal life, is not inherited by the body, but the body by life.

Irenaeus, Against Heresies: Book V Supporting witness

... say these bodies can't receive life. But if the present temporary life, which is so much less than eternal life, can still manage to enliven our mortal bodies, why shouldn't eternal life, which is much more powerful, enliven the flesh, which has already interacted with and been used to sustaining life? For that the flesh can truly share in life is shown by the fact that it is alive; for it lives on as long as it is God’s will for it to do so. It is clear, too, that God has the power to give life to it, since He grants life to us who are alive. And, therefore, since the Lord has the power to infuse life into what He has created, and since the flesh is capable of being made alive, what remains to prevent its sharing in incorruption, which is a blissful and eternal life granted by God?

Papias, Fragments Direct teaching

As the presbyters say, then those who are deemed worthy of an abode in heaven shall go there, others shall enjoy the delights of Paradise, and others shall possess the splendour of the city;

Theophilus of Antioch, To Autolycus Direct teaching

By the expressions, therefore, out of the ground, and eastwards, the holy writing clearly teaches us that Paradise is under this heaven, under which the east and the earth are.

Theophilus of Antioch, To Autolycus Supporting witness

so also the place, Paradise, was made in respect of beauty intermediate between earth and heaven.

Theophilus of Antioch, To Autolycus Supporting witness

..., there were only the things produced on the third day: plants, seeds, and herbs. But the things in Paradise were made with greater loveliness and beauty, since the plants there were said to have been planted by God. As for the other plants, the world did contain plants like them. But the two trees, the tree of life and the tree of knowledge, were not found in the rest of the earth, but only in Paradise. And Scripture shows that Paradise is on the earth and planted on the earth, saying, "Genesis 2:8 And the Lord God planted Paradise in Eden toward the east, and placed man there; and out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food." Therefore, by the words "out of the ground" and "toward the east," the holy writing clearly teaches us that Paradise is under this heaven, where the east and the earth are. And the Hebrew word Eden means delight. It was also shown that a river flowed out of Eden to water Paradise, and after that it divided into four heads. Of these, the two called Pison and Gihon water the eastern regions, especially Gihon, which surrounds the whole land of Ethiopia, and which, they say, appears again in Egypt under

Hippolytus, Exegetical Fragments Supporting witness

For some choose to maintain that paradise is in heaven, and forms no part of the system of creation.

Papias, Fragments Supporting witness

for the first will be taken up into the heavens, the second class will dwell in Paradise, and the last will inhabit the city;

Methodius, From the Discourse on the Resurrection Supporting witness

He maintains that Saint Paul had two revelations. He says the apostle does not mean that paradise is in the third heaven, as those who knew how to observe fine points of language would understand, when he says, “I know such a man caught up to the third heaven; and I know such a man, whether in the body or out of the body, God knows, that was caught up into paradise,” in 2 Corinthians 12:2-3. Here he means that he saw two revelations, since he was clearly taken up twice: once to the third heaven, and once into paradise. For the words, “I know such a man caught up,” make it certain that he himself was shown a revelation about the third heaven. And the words that follow, “And I know such a man, whether in the body or out of the body, God knows, that he was caught up into paradise,” show that another revelation was made to him about paradise. Now he was led to make this statement because his opponent had argued from the apostle’s words that paradise is only a concept, since it is above heaven, and from this drew the conclusion that life in paradise is without a body.

Peter of Alexandria, The Genuine Acts of Peter Supporting witness

He says that Saint Paul had two revelations. He says the apostle does not mean that paradise is in the third heaven, according to those who knew how to notice the fine points of language, when he says, "I know such a man caught up to the third heaven; and I know such a man, whether in the body or out of the body, God knows, that was caught up into paradise" in 2 Corinthians 12:2-3. Here he means that he saw two revelations, since he was clearly taken up twice: once to the third heaven, and once into paradise. For the words, "I know such a man caught up," make it certain that he himself was shown a revelation about the third heaven. And the words that follow, "And I know such a man, whether in the body or out of the body, God knows, that he was caught up into paradise," show that another revelation was made to him about paradise. Now he was led to make this statement because his opponent had argued from the apostle's words that paradise is only an idea, since it is above heaven, in order to conclude that life in paradise is without a body.

Irenaeus, Against Heresies: Book II Supporting witness

...spiritual things when he says he was caught up into the third heaven, and also when he was taken to paradise and heard indescribable words that it is not lawful for a man to speak. But what benefit was there for him, either in entering paradise or being taken to the third heaven, since all these things are still under the power of the Demiurge, if, as some claim, he had already begun to witness and hear those mysteries said to be above the Demiurge? For if it is true that he was becoming familiar with that realm above the Demiurge, he would not have remained in the regions of the Demiurge, and that without fully exploring even these (for, according to their way of speaking, four heavens still lay before him if he were to approach the Demiurge, and thus see all seven beneath him); but perhaps he might have been admitted into the intermediate place, that is, into the presence of the Mother, so he might receive instruction from her about the things within the Pleroma. For that inner man within him, which spoke through him, as they say, although invisible, could have reached not only the third heaven but even the presence of their Mother. For if they claim that they themselves, thei

Irenaeus, Against Heresies: Book I Background

and in the same strain, they declare that Paradise, situated above the third heaven, is a fourth angel possessed of power, from whom Adam derived certain qualities while he conversed with him.