What is the true meaning of heaven?

Answer 1

One Answer:

There are many different places to which the term "heaven" can be referring.

The 3 places which are referred to in the scriptures as "heaven" are 1) The dwelling place of God / The place where the angels and the Son of God originally dwelt in God's presence prior to his human life. 2) The place where those select few who have accepted Christ and live according to His gospel who will rule over the earth alongside Jesus Christ will dwell after death. 3) The dwelling place of the myriads of heavenly angels. Note: 1, 2, and 3 are all 3 distinctly different.

Note: a #4 could also be added as the definition of the modern world simply referring to anything above the earth (i.e. "The stars in the heavens")

Generally when someone says that they want to go to "heaven" they are referring to #2, and #3 is often mistaken in the "Christian" world as being the same as #2, yet from the teachings of Christ we know that they are in fact quite different.

Another Answer:

Heaven is a beautiful place were nothing goes wrong and everything is perfect.

Heaven is where God and the angels live. It is also where some believe all humans go after death, if one is "good" and repents of sin and begs God for forgiveness.

Heaven is said to be a place of happiness and immortal life. It is said to be the abode of God and is described by many people in paintings and books. The only way to get into it is to absolve people for their sins and by performing good deeds. According to me, heaven cannot be defined, it is a place of eternity and takes a whole life's hard work to get there.

or u have to be a cristian to go to the magical place of heaven and even u say u are a christian that doesn't mean u r 1 so if u want to be a cristian and go to heaven u cant just say so u r a cristain u hav to act like a cristan

imaginary

You can't do anything because the place doesn't exist. They just made heaven up so people will feel more comfortable about dieing.

Answer 2

Heaven is not exclusively referred to in the bible, surprisingly. Jacob, in Genesis, has a vision of angelic beings descending up and down a ladder (or staircase), and this is assumed to refer to Paradise. Ezekiel has a vision of God sitting on a throne, or more accurately, a chariot, surrounding by various angelic beings with an almost animal like appearance and many wings (called Sephirot/Sefirot). However, this supposedly takes place while he stays in the Temple overnight, and seems to be framed within the Temple itself, with the chariot moving. Neither of these refer to Heaven itself, but to aspect possibly connected with a paradise. The only other reference is to Elijah ascending to heaven and throwing his prophetic mantle (a sort of covering) to Elisha, his attendant and student. Paradise itself is not described. Within the New Testament, Heaven is not described either, but is referred to. Jesus refers rarely to a "Kingdom of God", but whether this is a heavenly kingdom or an abstract idea of God's presence among humans on earth is not clear. The book of Revelation refers to a Third Temple descending from Heaven, and the "saints" ascending into the air to meet Jesus partway between the Earth and heavens. Aside from these and a few other possible scant references, there is no information on a Heaven in the Bible, and neither is there a reference to Hell. As far as Hell, the Old Testament refers to "Sheol", which literally means grave, and may refer to a metaphysical place where some (or even all spirits) of mankind dwell, or it may simply refer to being buried in the ground with no further afterlife. There is reference to a Gehenna, which was an actual place outside Jerusalem where garbage was burned, and had a reputation for being hot, smelly, and just generally horrible. It can to later represent the idea of a place where the sinful were punished for their sins to Jews, and this view was around at the time of Jesus. Whether or not the actual Gehenna or Hell is meant is not known, and the reference is in passing. Jesus in the New Testament refers to an "outer darkness" where there is "weeping, and gnashing of teeth". This is thought to refer to some sort of hell, but it is not explained further. A "Hades" is referred to later in passing, and thought to mean hell, but this is a pagan Greek concept, and was not necessarily the fiery home of the damned we imagine, but was thought to be a general afterlife for all of the dead (except, in this context, those who are saved). All of these things are a matter of interpretation. The afterlife is a matter of contention for many Jews and Christians, and the Bible is almost silent about it. Our conception of Heaven and Hell comes from Greek and German ideals. In fact, our word for Hell comes from the name for the Norse goddess of the underworld... Our modern view of it comes from later Christian authors writing after the Biblical period who may have been influenced by the religions they converted from. This, and the references just mentioned, are the reason many Protestant reformers and modern theologians debate what form an afterlife according to ancient Judaism or Christianity might take, or whether such an idea originally existed at all, with some denominations claiming we just "sleep" in death until the resurrection. So, take your pick.

Answer 3

Jews, Christians and Muslims believe that heaven is the paradise their souls will enter after death, either as a reward for believing or also as a reward for good works. The ancients believed that there were actually seven heavens physically located above the earth, with God enthroned in the highest heaven.

Elijah, Jesus and Muhammad were all believed to have been physically transported upwards to heaven. Modern belief is that heaven is a purely spiritual place that can not be physically located.

Answer 4

Heaven is created by Allah (swt) where everyone will get complete peace,complete satisfaction.In heaven everyone will get the best neiamat i.e,dedar of Allah(swt).

Answer 5

Our reward during our lifetime on earth.