What Does the Bible Say About Heaven?

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When you really think about it, the Bible actually does not have that much to say within its pages. There are certainly a lot of words contained within the Good Book, but the ideas that those words are conveying do not vary as much as one would expect given the size of the Bible. Even with tiny print and pages divided into two columns, each Bible still has more than 1,000 pages. As such, one would think that there would be endless amounts of information within each Bible. In reality, the Bible spends a great deal of its time repeating itself. The same ideas come up over and over again. A massive chunk of the Old Testament, for example, is dedicated to the same basic storyline. The Israelites slide back into polytheism and pagan ways. They begin worshipping idols and committing terrible sins. God becomes angry with them and sends a prophet to convince them to repent. They either do so temporarily before sliding back into sin a generation later, or they are invaded and injured by another nation. This sort of repetition also appears when it comes to ideas about heaven. Jesus gives repeated sermons on the same premise. With that in mind, what does the Bible actually say about heaven?

Few will make it there.

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If you asked anyone on the street where they thought they would go after they died, they would almost certainly tell you that they think that they are going to heaven after their death. No one is going to say they think they are going to hell. Even those who are not entirely sure if they are going to heaven will say that they think they are going to go to heaven after they die, or at least, they hope they are going to go to heaven when they die. The Bible, however, makes it very clear that these people are confused and potentially in for a very nasty surprise when they cross over to the other side. Scripture repeatedly says that the vast majority of people actually will not make it to heaven. Only a few will be lucky enough to pass through the narrow gate and enter into paradise after they die.

People will be full of joy and empathy.

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Heaven is the place where everything is perfect. Life on Earth can be wonderful, but anyone with eyes, ears or at least one working sense knows that Earthly life is far from perfect. Children get sick and ask their parents why they cannot go outside or why they hurt. People die too young or before their families are ready to say good-bye. People mourn. People cry. People experience sadness and suffering. In heaven, there is none of that. There is no mourning, death or pain in heaven. Instead, there is perfect contentment. There is also joy. Luke 15 makes it clear that people in heaven experience great joy and excitement when they see that a former sinner has repented and will be joining the saved in heaven. The best of Earth’s experiences will be found in heaven, but they will be even further perfected and anything that could detract from them will be removed.

We will be perfected.

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Heaven as a place will be perfect. That is made clear repeatedly throughout the Bible with Scripture’s many descriptions of how all of Earthly life’s foibles and imperfections will be washed away. What is left will be the best and most holy of Earthly experiences. These will then be further transformed in heaven to reach the pinnacle of perfection. This means that experiences we take for granted will be so radically changed that we may not recognize them at all, but they will be even better versions of what we would have experienced on Earth. Christ said that those in heaven will live as the angels do and be free from sin forever. This is almost incomprehensible to those on Earth, but the Bible says it is true. We will live in perfected bodies and no longer do such Earthly things such as marry or have children. Instead, we will be like angels of God.

It will be beautiful beyond imagining.

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Everyone tries to imagine what heaven will look like when they finally manage to pass through the Pearly Gates after the final end of their Earthly life. Some rely entirely on the Bible’s limited descriptions of heaven and all its staggering beauty and perfection. Others base their imaginings on the myriad ways that popular culture portrays heaven and its appearance above the clouds. Still others simply remember that heaven is supposed to be a place of utter perfection, so they try and construct a detailed mental picture of the most beautiful, peaceful and perfect place they are capable of envisioning. Each of these ideas likely touches on a small element of heaven, but there is no way for human beings to successfully imagine exactly what a place that embodies God’s perfection will look like when we arrive. The Bible suggests that there are streets of gold and many mansions waiting for those who arrive, but mortal minds will never be able to predict the true glory of God.

We will be with and see God.

When we enter heaven, we will be with God for the rest of eternity. The book of Revelation describes heaven and makes it clear that in the end when we arrive, there is no sun or moon that gives its light to heaven. Instead, heaven is lit by nothing more or less than the pure glory of God. When we arrive in heaven, we will truly see the glory of God and be surrounded by it. The loss of innocence and the creation of sin in the Garden of Eden will be reversed. We will eat from the Tree of Life and enjoy its fruit. For the first time since Adam and Eve were rejected from the Garden of Eden after disobeying God’s commands and eating the forbidden fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, we will see God with our own eyes and walk beside Him.