Topical Bible: Heaven: The Physical Heavens

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The term "heaven" in the Bible often refers to the physical heavens, encompassing the sky, the atmosphere, and the celestial bodies. This concept is distinct from the spiritual realm of heaven where God dwells. The physical heavens are a testament to God's creative power and serve as a backdrop for His divine narrative throughout Scripture.

Creation of the Heavens

The Bible begins with the creation of the physical heavens. Genesis 1:1 states, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." This foundational verse establishes the heavens as part of God's initial act of creation. The physical heavens are further described in Genesis 1:6-8, where God creates the expanse to separate the waters, calling it "sky."

The Heavens Declare God's Glory

The physical heavens are a manifestation of God's glory and craftsmanship. Psalm 19:1 proclaims, "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands." This verse highlights the heavens as a testament to God's majesty and a source of revelation about His nature. The vastness and beauty of the heavens inspire awe and worship, pointing humanity to the Creator.

The Heavens as a Sign

Throughout the Bible, the physical heavens serve as signs and markers of God's covenant and promises. In Genesis 9:13 , God sets the rainbow in the clouds as a sign of His covenant with Noah: "I have set My rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth." The celestial bodies also serve as signs for seasons, days, and years, as stated in Genesis 1:14 : "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years."

The Heavens and God's Sovereignty

The physical heavens are under God's sovereign control. Job 9:8 describes God as the one "who alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea." This imagery emphasizes God's authority over creation, including the heavens. The prophet Isaiah echoes this sentiment in Isaiah 40:22 : "He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in."

The Heavens in Eschatology

The physical heavens also play a role in eschatological events. In the New Testament, Jesus speaks of signs in the heavens preceding His return. Matthew 24:29 states, "Immediately after the tribulation of those days: ‘The sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.’" These cosmic disturbances signal the culmination of God's redemptive plan and the ushering in of a new creation.

The Heavens and Human Perspective

The physical heavens evoke a sense of wonder and humility in humanity. Psalm 8:3-4 reflects this sentiment: "When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You set in place—what is man that You are mindful of him, or the son of man that You care for him?" The vastness of the heavens serves as a reminder of human finitude and the greatness of God.

In summary, the physical heavens in the Bible are a multifaceted concept that reveals God's creative power, serves as a sign of His covenant, and underscores His sovereignty. They are integral to the biblical narrative, pointing to God's glory and the unfolding of His divine plan.

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Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
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Psalm 19:1
The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows his handiwork.
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Psalm 50:6
And the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is judge himself. Selah.
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Psalm 68:33
To him that rides on the heavens of heavens, which were of old; see, he does send out his voice, and that a mighty voice.
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Psalm 89:29
His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.
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Psalm 97:6
The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.
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Psalm 103:11
For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.
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Psalm 113:4
The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens.
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Psalm 115:16
The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD's: but the earth has he given to the children of men.
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Jeremiah 31:37
Thus said the LORD; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, said the LORD.
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Ezekiel 1:1
Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.
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Matthew 24:29,30
Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
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Acts 2:19,20
And I will show wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke:
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Library

The Shaking of the Heavens and the Earth (Preached at the Chapel ...
... How have our conceptions of the physical world been shaken of late, with ever ... the
ways of that God whom the heaven and the heaven of heavens, cannot contain. ...
/.../kingsley/the water of life and other sermons/sermon vi the shaking of.htm

Against the Platonists, who Argue from the Physical Weight of the ...
... Against the Platonists, Who Argue from the Physical Weight of ... the air is between
the highest heaven and the ... therefore earth cannot be in the heavens, how is ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 11 against the platonists who.htm

The Shaking of the Heavens and the Earth.
... after heaven, each tenanted by its own orders of beings, up to that heaven of heavens
in which ... That was no theory to our forefathers: it was a physical fact ...
/.../kingsley/westminster sermons/sermon viii the shaking of.htm

The Lord's Prayer --Our Father in Heaven
... to the clause Our Father in the Heavens for the ... by those who think that He is in
heaven spacially, and ... since it follows that He also is physical, which leads ...
/.../origen/origen on prayer/chapter xiii the lords prayerour.htm

Although the Jew, Then, May Offer no Defence for Himself in the ...
... heard the words of the Lord or beheld the heavens opened. For I do not suppose that
the visible heaven was actually opened, and its physical structure divided ...
/.../origen/origen against celsus/chapter xlviii although the jew.htm

The Second Coming of Christ.
... and is circumscribed by the overarching heavens.] ^c 28 ... preliminary death-throes
of this present physical universe, which ... since he looks for a new heaven and a ...
/.../mcgarvey/the four-fold gospel/cxiv the second coming of.htm

What the Stable Creation Teaches
... Sun, moon and stars, heaven, earth and sea"'ye are My ... heavens, and a time comes,
as even physical science predicts, when 'the heavens shall vanish ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture h/what the stable creation teaches.htm

Tent and Building
... dust being gathered from the four winds of heaven,' and so ... is that the contrast between
the present physical frame and ... It is a house 'in the heavens.' It comes ...
/.../maclaren/romans corinthians to ii corinthians chap v/tent and building.htm

The Work of Christ.
... He was taken into the heavens, where the physical eye could ... What a triumphant entrance
into the heavens it must have ... Him some day in His descent out of heaven. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/gaebelein/the work of christ/ii the work of christ.htm

On the Words, Maker of Heaven and Earth, and of all Things visible ...
... RV Oh that Thou wouldest rend the heavens, that Thou wouldest ... of the universe, and
the revolution of the heaven, and the ... 3; Ansted, Physical Geography, p. 210. ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/lecture ix on the words.htm