Part 15of 16
Sword of the Spirit
The flaming sword that turns every way, the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God, and the way to eternal life through Jesus Christ.
Scripture: Genesis 3:22–24Ephesians 6:17John 1:1–17
Visual Study
Three Stages in the Dwelling of the Righteous
Abraham's bosom, the present heavenly paradise, and the New Jerusalem of the new creation
Where do the righteous go when they die — and where will they live forever? This study traces a progression in Scripture from the waiting place of the righteous before Christ, to the presence of Christ in heaven now, to resurrected life with God in the new heaven and new earth.
A progression in Scripture
Three stages in the dwelling of the righteous
Stage 1: Abraham's Bosom
The righteous awaiting redemption
Basis: Many interpreters
Stage 2: The Present Heavenly Paradise
The redeemed with Christ
Basis: Scripture & Yona Tree
Stage 3: The New Creation & New Jerusalem
Resurrected humanity dwelling with God forever
Basis: Scripture
The labels below each stage show how firmly it rests on explicit Scripture. Each is discussed with its passages in the study that follows.
The framework
The righteous awaiting redemption → the redeemed with Christ in the present heaven → resurrected humanity dwelling eternally with God in the new heaven and new earth.
Stage one — Abraham’s bosom
Stage two — the present heavenly paradise
Stage three — the new creation and New Jerusalem
Why this matters
The hope of the Christian is not merely to “go to heaven,” but to be raised, made new, and to dwell with God forever. “Wherefore comfort one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18).
Related content
Go deeper
Related videos
Part 13of 16
The New Jerusalem
The marriage supper of the Lamb, New Jerusalem prepared as a bride, and the Jerusalem which is above — then the turn toward the Tree of Life.
Part 9of 16
Children of Zion
Sarah and Hagar as two covenants, two cities and two mountains — Sinai and Zion, earthly Jerusalem and the Jerusalem which is above.
Related studies
Long-form Study
New Jerusalem
The holy city, the Bride, and the river and Tree of Life — Revelation 21–22
Related articles
What Is New Jerusalem?
Twelve gates of pearl, twelve foundations of precious stone, a street of gold like glass, and a river flowing from the throne. A careful reading of John's vision of the holy city — with Scripture, interpretation and speculation kept apart.
Jerusalem Above: The Mother of Us All
"Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all." Paul's allegory of Sarah and Hagar connects the free woman, the heavenly city, and the Spirit who gives believers new birth.
The Flaming Sword and the Sword of the Spirit
Cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way kept the way of the Tree of Life. Yona Tree reads that sword as the Sword of the Spirit — the Word of God — and finds in it the heart of the Gospel.
Related book
Read the book
Seven Lamps Before the Throne
Honoring the Feminine Nature of the Holy Spirit
by Jason Turner & Michael Ogden