Heaven & Hell

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From Nave’s Topical Bible (1896), a historical reference index. The groupings are Nave’s; the verses are shown in the text used across this site.

Heaven

God's Dwelling Place

• Deuteronomy 26:15 Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land You have given us as You swore to our fathers— a land flowing with milk and honey.”
• 1 Kings 8:30 Hear the plea of Your servant and of Your people Israel when they pray toward this place. May You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place. May You hear and forgive.
• 1 Kings 8:39 be heard by You from heaven, Your dwelling place. And may You forgive and act, and repay each man according to all his ways, since You know his heart — for You alone know the hearts of all men —
• 1 Kings 8:43 then may You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to You. Then all the peoples of the earth will know Your name and fear You, as do Your people Israel, and they will know that this house I have built is called by Your Name.
• 1 Kings 8:49 then may You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place, their prayer and petition, and may You uphold their cause.
• 1 Chronicles 16:31 Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice. Let them say among the nations, ‘The LORD reigns!’
• 1 Chronicles 21:26 And there he built an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. He called upon the LORD, who answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering.
• 2 Chronicles 2:6 But who is able to build a house for Him, since the heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain Him? Who then am I, that I should build a house for Him, except as a place to burn sacrifices before Him?
• 2 Chronicles 6:18 But will God indeed dwell with man upon the earth? The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain You, much less this temple I have built.
• 2 Chronicles 6:21 Hear the plea of Your servant and of Your people Israel when they pray toward this place. May You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place. May You hear and forgive.

The Future Dwelling Place of the Righteous

Called A GARNER

• Matthew 3:12 His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

The Kingdom of Christ and of God

• Ephesians 5:5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person (that is, an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

The Father's House

• John 14:2 In My Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?

A Heavenly Country

• Hebrews 11:16 Instead, they were longing for a better country, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

A Rest

• Hebrews 4:9 There remains, then, a Sabbath rest for the people of God.
• Revelation 14:13 And I heard a voice from heaven telling me to write, “Blessed are the dead — those who die in the Lord from this moment on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.”

Paradise

• 2 Corinthians 12:2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of it I do not know, but God knows.
• 2 Corinthians 12:4 was caught up to Paradise. The things he heard were inexpressible, things that man is not permitted to tell.

The wicked excluded from

• Galatians 5:21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
• Ephesians 5:5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person (that is, an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
• Revelation 22:15 But outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

Unclassified Scriptures Relating to 2ki 2:11; Job 3:17; Psa 16:11; 17:15; 23:6; 24:3,7; 73:24; Isa 33:17; 49:9,10; Dan 12:3; Mal 3:17; Mat 3:12; 5:3,8,12,20; 6:20; 8:11; 13:30,43,49; 18:10; 19:21; 22:30; 25:34,46; Luk 10:20; 12:8,32,33; 15:6,7,10,32; 16:22; 20:34-36; 22:29,30; 23:43; Jhn 5:28,29; 10:28; 12:26; 13:36; 14:2,3; 17:22,24; Act 7:55,56; Rom 5:17; 2co 5:1; 12:2-4; Eph 1:18; Col 1:5,6,12; 3:4; 1th 2:12; 4:17; 2th 1:7; 2:14; Heb 10:34; 11:10,16; 12:22-24,28; 13:14; 1pe 1:4; 2pe 1:11; 3:13; Rev 2:7; 3:21; 4:4; 5:9; 7:9,13-17; 14:1-3; 15:2; 21:1-5,9-11,18,19,21-25,27; 22:1-5

See RIGHTEOUS, PROMISES TO

The Physical Heavens

• Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
• Psalm 19:1 For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.
• Psalm 50:6 And the heavens proclaim His righteousness, for God Himself is Judge. Selah
• Psalm 68:33 to Him who rides upon the highest heavens of old; behold, His mighty voice resounds.
• Psalm 89:29 I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure.
• Psalm 97:6 The heavens proclaim His righteousness; all the peoples see His glory.
• Psalm 103:11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His loving devotion for those who fear Him.
• Psalm 113:4 The LORD is exalted over all the nations, His glory above the heavens.
• Psalm 115:16 The highest heavens belong to the LORD, but the earth He has given to mankind.
• Jeremiah 31:37 This is what the LORD says: “Only if the heavens above could be measured and the foundations of the earth below searched out would I reject all of Israel’s descendants because of all they have done,” declares the LORD.

See Sub-topics, below

Physical Heavens, Creation of

• Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
• Genesis 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
• 1 Chronicles 16:26 For all the gods of the nations are idols, but it is the LORD who made the heavens.
• 2 Chronicles 2:12 And Hiram added: “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who made the heavens and the earth! He has given King David a wise son with insight and understanding, who will build a temple for the LORD and a royal palace for himself.
• Nehemiah 9:6 You alone are the LORD. You created the heavens, the highest heavens with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to all things, and the host of heaven worships You.
• Job 9:8 He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea.
• Psalm 8:3 When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place —
• Psalm 19:1 For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.
• Psalm 33:6 By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the stars by the breath of His mouth.
• Psalm 33:9 For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm.

See HEAVENS, NEW

See Creation

See GOD, CREATOR

Physical Heavens, Destruction of

• Job 14:12 so a man lies down and does not rise. Until the heavens are no more, he will not be awakened or roused from sleep.
• Psalm 102:25–26 In the beginning You laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing You will change them, and they will be passed on.
• Isaiah 34:4 All the stars of heaven will be dissolved. The skies will be rolled up like a scroll, and all their stars will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like foliage from the fig tree.
• Isaiah 51:6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth below; for the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and its people will die like gnats. But My salvation will last forever, and My righteousness will never fail.
• Matthew 5:18 For I tell you truly, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single jot, not a stroke of a pen, will disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.
• Matthew 24:35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
• Hebrews 1:10–12 And: “In the beginning, O Lord, You laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they will be changed; but You remain the same, and Your years…
• 2 Peter 3:10 But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and its works will be laid bare.
• 2 Peter 3:12 as you anticipate and hasten the coming of the day of God, when the heavens will be destroyed by fire and the elements will melt in the heat.
• Revelation 6:12–14 And I watched as the Lamb opened the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black like sackcloth of goat hair, and the whole moon turned blood red, and the stars of the sky fell to the earth like unripe figs dropping from a tree shaken by a great wind. The sky receded like…

New Heavens

• Isaiah 65:17 For behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind.
• Isaiah 66:22 “For just as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, will endure before Me,” declares the LORD, “so your descendants and your name will endure.
• 2 Peter 3:13 But in keeping with God’s promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.
• Revelation 21:1–4 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “Behold, the dw…

Hell

(In the A. V. this word occurs in O. T. Scriptures, cited below, and is the translation of the Hebrew word "sheol," which signifies the unseen state)

In the R. V. of O. T. it appears only in

• Isaiah 5:14 Therefore Sheol enlarges its throat and opens wide its enormous jaws, and down go Zion’s nobles and masses, her revelers and carousers!
• Isaiah 14:9 Sheol beneath is eager to meet you upon your arrival. It stirs the spirits of the dead to greet you— all the rulers of the earth. It makes all the kings of the nations rise from their thrones.
• Isaiah 14:15 But you will be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit.
• Isaiah 28:15 For you said, “We have made a covenant with death; we have fashioned an agreement with Sheol. When the overwhelming scourge passes through it will not touch us, because we have made lies our refuge and falsehood our hiding place.”
• Isaiah 28:18 Your covenant with death will be dissolved, and your agreement with Sheol will not stand. When the overwhelming scourge passes through, you will be trampled by it.
• Isaiah 57:9 You went to Molech with oil and multiplied your perfumes. You have sent your envoys a great distance; you have descended even to Sheol itself.
• Ezekiel 31:16–17 I made the nations quake at the sound of its downfall, when I cast it down to Sheol with those who descend to the Pit. Then all the trees of Eden, the choicest and best of Lebanon, all the well-watered trees, were consoled in the earth below. They too descended with it to Sheol, to those slain by t…
• Ezekiel 32:21 Mighty chiefs will speak from the midst of Sheol about Egypt and her allies: ‘They have come down and lie with the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword.’
• Ezekiel 32:27 They do not lie down with the fallen warriors of old, who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, whose swords were placed under their heads, whose shields rested on their bones, although the terror of the mighty was once in the land of the living.
• Amos 9:2 Though they dig down to Sheol, from there My hand will take them; and though they climb up to heaven, from there I will pull them down.

In the R. V., "sheol" is translated "lowest pit"

• Deuteronomy 32:22 For a fire has been kindled by My anger, and it burns to the depths of Sheol; it consumes the earth and its produce, and scorches the foundations of the mountains.
• Psalm 86:13 For great is Your loving devotion to me; You have delivered me from the depths of Sheol.

And it is translated "pit" in

• Psalm 55:15 Let death seize them by surprise; let them go down to Sheol alive, for evil is with them in their homes.

In the R. V. the word "Sheol" itself occurs in the following scriptures

• 2 Samuel 22:6 The cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me.
• Job 11:8 They are higher than the heavens— what can you do? They are deeper than Sheol— what can you know?
• Job 26:6 Sheol is naked before God, and Abaddon has no covering.
• Psalm 9:17 The wicked will return to Sheol— all the nations who forget God.
• Psalm 16:10 For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol, nor will You let Your Holy One see decay.
• Psalm 18:5 The cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me.
• Psalm 116:3 The ropes of death entangled me; the anguish of Sheol overcame me; I was confronted by trouble and sorrow.
• Psalm 139:8 If I ascend to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.
• Proverbs 5:5 Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to Sheol.
• Proverbs 7:27 Her house is the road to Sheol, descending to the chambers of death.

Sheol is translated "grave" in A. V. in

• Genesis 37:35 All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No, ” he said. “I will go down to Sheol mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him.
• Genesis 42:38 But Jacob replied, “My son will not go down there with you, for his brother is dead, and he alone is left. If any harm comes to him on your journey, you will bring my gray hair down to Sheol in sorrow.”
• Genesis 44:29 Now if you also take this one from me and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray hair down to Sheol in sorrow.’
• Genesis 44:31 sees that the boy is not with us, he will die. Then your servants will have brought the gray hair of your servant our father down to Sheol in sorrow.
• 1 Samuel 2:6 The LORD brings death and gives life; He brings down to Sheol and raises up.
• 1 Kings 2:6 So act according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace.
• 1 Kings 9 Now when Solomon had finished building the house of the LORD and the royal palace, and had achieved all that he had desired to do, the LORD appeared to him a second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon. And the LORD said to him: “I have heard your prayer and petition before Me. I have consecra… (whole chapter)
• Job 7:9 As a cloud vanishes and is gone, so he who goes down to Sheol does not come back up.
• Job 14:13 If only You would hide me in Sheol and conceal me until Your anger has passed! If only You would appoint a time for me and then remember me!
• Job 17:13 If I look for Sheol as my home, if I spread out my bed in darkness,

In the R. V. the Greek word "gehenna" is translated "hell" in the following scriptures

• Matthew 5:22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be subject to the fire of hell.
• Matthew 5:29–30 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than fo…
• Matthew 10:28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
• Matthew 18:9 And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.
• Matthew 23:15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You traverse land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.
• Matthew 23:33 You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape the sentence of hell?
• Mark 9:43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two hands and go into hell, into the unquenchable fire.
• Mark 9:45 If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.
• Mark 9:47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell,
• Luke 12:5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear the One who, after you have been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him!

The R. V. has introduced "Hades," the word found in the Greek text, which signifies the unseen world, in the following scriptures

• Matthew 11:23 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day.
• Matthew 16:18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
• Luke 10:15 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades!
• Luke 16:23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham from afar, with Lazarus by his side.
• Acts 2:27 because You will not abandon my soul to Hades, nor will You let Your Holy One see decay.
• Acts 2:31 Foreseeing this, David spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that He was not abandoned to Hades, nor did His body see decay.
• Revelation 1:18 the Living One. I was dead, and behold, now I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of Death and of Hades.
• Revelation 6:8 Then I looked and saw a pale green horse. Its rider’s name was Death, and Hades followed close behind. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill by sword, by famine, by plague, and by the beasts of the earth.
• Revelation 20:13–14 The sea gave up its dead, and Death and Hades gave up their dead, and each one was judged according to his deeds. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death — the lake of fire.

The Future Home of the Wicked

• Psalm 9:17 The wicked will return to Sheol— all the nations who forget God.
• Proverbs 5:5 Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to Sheol.
• Proverbs 9:13 The woman named Folly is loud; she is naive and knows nothing.
• Proverbs 9:15–18 calling out to those who pass by, who make their paths straight. “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” she says to him who lacks judgment. “Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is tasty!” But they do not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.
• Proverbs 15:24 The path of life leads upward for the wise, that he may avoid going down to Sheol.
• Proverbs 23:13–14 Do not withhold discipline from a child; although you strike him with a rod, he will not die. Strike him with a rod, and you will deliver his soul from Sheol.
• Isaiah 30:33 For Topheth has long been prepared; it has been made ready for the king. Its funeral pyre is deep and wide, with plenty of fire and wood. The breath of the LORD, like a torrent of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.
• Isaiah 33:14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling grips the ungodly: “Who of us can dwell with a consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting flames?”
• Matthew 3:12 His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
• Matthew 5:29–30 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than fo…

See WICKED, PUNISHMENT OF