In Hellenistic cosmology, the abode of the dead was often situated
in heaven. Accordingly, the cosmic tours were developed into accounts of
journeys through the heavenly spheres. Most often these accounts involve a
scheme of seven heavens, as in 2 Enoch and the Ascension of Isaiah.
Others, however, depict three heavens, as in the Testament of Levi. An
interesting case is 3 Baruch that speaks of five heavens. It comes as no
surprise that paradise, the abode of the righteous dead, is situated in the
heavens, but interestingly, in many accounts, the dwelling place of the wicked
is also there and the visitor to heaven sees both places. For example, in 2
Enoch, both paradise and hell are situated in the third heaven ready to
receive the righteous and the sinners respectively after the judgment. In 3 Baruch,
the three lowest heavens are reserved for people who are not righteous. The
builders and planners of the tower of Babel are in the first two heavens. They
are not actually suffering but have been made into forms of animals. Probably
in the third heaven, there is a huge dragon whose belly is Hades but this
vision is not described in any more detail. Paul’s vision of paradise in 2
Corinthians 12:2–4 also remains obscure. The account of his ecstatic experience
is unique among the numerous ancient reports of otherworldly tours since it records
an autobiographical experience. Paul does not relate his experience in
detail—the things he heard are αρρητα ρηματα, unutterable things.
(Outi Lehtipuu, The Afterlife Imagery in Luke’s Story of the Rich Man and
Lazarus [Supplements to Novum Testamentum 123; Leiden, Brill: 2007], 189-90)
Baruch goes through the first two
heavens in chaps. 2–3. The entrance into the third heaven is likely intended in
4:2. However, in the beginning of chap. 10, the text reads: “. . . he took me
into a third heaven.” Yet Baruch is conducted to the fifth heaven in the
beginning of chap. 11, which makes it likely that a fourth heaven is mentioned
in chap. 10 and the phenomena described in chaps. 4–9 are actually situated in
the third heaven. (Ibid., 190 n. 78)
What, then, might Luke have meant by
“paradise” in Jesus’ words to the repentant thief (23:43)? It is difficult to
answer the question given the diversity of meanings attached to the word in
extra-biblical literature and the fact that the verse is the only instance
where Luke uses it. In addition to Luke 23:43, “paradise” occurs only twice elsewhere
in the whole NT corpus. Paul uses it when describing his rapture in the third
heaven where he heard “things that are not to be told” (2 Cor 12:2–4). For him,
then, paradise seems to be a present reality situated in heaven but it remains
unclear whether he imagines the righteous dwelling there. (Outi Lehtipuu, The
Afterlife Imagery in Luke’s Story of the Rich Man and Lazarus [Supplements
to Novum Testamentum 123; Leiden, Brill: 2007], 280-81)
Paul seems to indicate that paradise is situated in the third
heaven. However, not all scholars read the text that way. According to
Jeremias, it is not certain whether Paul’s rapture in the third heaven in v. 2
is the same as that into paradise in v. 4; “παραδεισος,”
768. In a similar way, Tabor suggests that Paul is describing a two-stage
ascent, first to the third heaven and then to paradise, the throne of God,
which is situated in the highest (presumably seventh) heaven; Things Unutterable,
119–21. In his reading, Paul’s Corinthian opponents boasted about such ecstatic
experiences as raptures in the third heaven (cf. 2 Cor 10:12) and Paul here wishes
to outdo them. Tabor’s suggestion is interesting but rests on sheer
speculation. It is quite likely that, despite the redundant style of 1 Cor
12:2–4, Paul locates paradise in the third heaven, as do the writers of 2 En.,
3 Bar., and Apoc. Mos. Thus also Aejmelaeus, Schwachheit,
233–39. (Ibid., 281 n. 62)
According to Tabor, paradise for Paul is not the dwelling place of
the righteous but the throne of God; Things Unutterable, 118–19. In his
view, Paul pictures the dead in the underworld from where they will rise to
meet Christ in the air; 1 Thess 4:13–18. However, it is also possible that Paul
was no more consistent in his afterlife imagery than Luke. But even if Paul
envisioned paradise as the destination of the righteous, it remains unclear
whether they are already there or will dwell there only after the parousia. (Ibid.,
281 n. 63)
The third occurrence of the word is in Revelation where the
faithful in the church of Ephesus are promised that they will “. . . eat from
the tree of life that is in the paradise of God” (Rev 2:7). This undoubtedly
refers to the final reward at the end of time, as a comparison with the
promises given to the faithful in the six other churches shows. Is this
paradise situated in heaven or on earth? It seems likely that the author
pictures paradise as a heavenly realm that will be restored on earth after the
judgment. This would make paradise analogous to the temple of the New Jerusalem
that “comes down from my God out of heaven” (cf. the reward of the faithful in
Philadelphia described in 3:12). The same applies to the reward of the faithful
in Laodicea who are promised that they will be seated with Jesus on his throne
(3:21). All these images are combined in the description of the final bliss in
Rev 21–22. The New Jerusalem comes down from heaven (21:2) and God dwells among
his people (21:3–4) with Jesus sitting on the throne (21:5). Even though the New
Jerusalem is described as a city, “the river of the water of life” flows
through the middle of the streets with “the tree of life” growing on either
side of it (22:1–2). It is probable that Luke also understands paradise as the
final abode for the righteous that, at least for the time being, is situated in
heaven. However, in his view, the righteous will enter paradise immediately
after death. In other words, understood in this way, Jesus promises the
repentant thief that he will join him in heaven immediately at death. This
would correspond to the fate of Stephen (Acts 7:55–56,59–60; . . .(Outi
Lehtipuu, The Afterlife Imagery in Luke’s Story of the Rich Man and Lazarus [Supplements
to Novum Testamentum 123; Leiden, Brill: 2007], 281-82)
This view has been considered
problematic since Jesus’ promise of being with the thief “today” contrasts with
the idea of future resurrection and the belief that it was only on the third
day that Jesus rose from the dead. One way to solve this apparent contradiction
is to understand the “today” in other than a calendrical sense. According to
this view, σημερον does not refer to the day of
crucifixion but denotes the “now” of messianic salvation. Another solution,
sometimes combined with the first one, is to interpret “paradise” as an interim
abode for the righteous where they await the future resurrection. . . . It is
hard to avoid the impression that the reason for the equation of the paradise
in Luke 23:46 and an interim abode in Hades (where Lazarus supposedly is) is
motivated by the need to harmonize Luke’s thinking into a coherent whole, and
it is not based on the evidence from the texts themselves. However, it seems
that the conflict with Jesus’ descent to Hades and ascent to heaven is “more
imaginary than real” and creates a problem only “. . . when one tries to relate
it to the credal ‘descent into Hell,’ and even with 1 Pt 3:19–20;”78 something
Luke probably never tried to do. (Ibid., 282, 284)
