1. “He said to him, Truly I say to you, Today you shall be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43).
2. “So will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights” (Matt. 12:40).
3. “Neither was He abandoned to Hades” (Acts 2:31).
The Lord Jesus was in the Paradise in Hades for three days and three nights after His death. When the Lord was dying on the cross, He promised the thief that he would be with Him in Paradise that day. Acts 2:31 also indicates that Paradise is in Hades because it speaks of the Lord’s resurrection as the proof that He was not abandoned to Hades following His death. Luke 23:43 and Acts 2:31 show that the Lord entered the Paradise in Hades on the day that He died. According to Matthew 12:40, He was there for three days and three nights until the time of His resurrection from the dead.
1. “I know such a man (whether in the body or outside the body, I do not know; God knows), that he was caught away into Paradise” (2 Cor. 12:3-4).
In these verses Paul speaks of being caught away into Paradise in a vision. Many think that this reference to Paradise is the same as Paul’s reference to the third heaven in verse 2. But according to the original Greek and to the facts, being caught away into Paradise and being caught away to the third heaven are two different matters. This portion of Scripture speaks of the revelations received by the apostle (v. 1). In order to give him a full revelation, God caught him away to the third heaven to show him the heavenly things and also into Paradise to show him the things under the earth in Hades. The Bible divides the space in the universe into three parts: the heavens, the earth, and under the earth (Phil. 2:10). In order for a person to have a full revelation, he must know these three parts. Paul was a man living on earth, so he certainly knew the things on the earth, but he did not know the things in heaven or the things under the earth, that is, in Hades. Therefore, God caught him away to the third heaven to show him the things in the heavens as well as to Paradise in Hades to show him the things under the earth. He received the transcendence of the revelations (2 Cor. 12:7), including being caught away into Paradise in Hades.
1. “In the heart of the earth” (Matt. 12:40).
Paradise is in the heart of the earth. This is confirmed by the fact that Paradise in Luke 23:43 refers to a place in the heart of the earth.
2. “Hades” (Acts 2:27, 31).
Paradise is in Hades. This is confirmed by the fact that Paradise in Luke 23:43 is also associated with Hades.
3. “Did not ascend into the heavens”; “In the name of Jesus every knee should bow...under the earth, and every tongue should openly confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Acts 2:34; Phil. 2:10-11).
Many think that when Jesus resurrected and ascended, He brought the righteous ones in Paradise up to heaven. Both Acts 2:34 and Philippians 2:10-11 show that the righteous ones in Paradise did not go to heaven following the Lord’s resurrection. Instead, in the name of Jesus they are still under the earth in the Paradise in Hades, bowing their knees and confessing that Jesus is Lord. After the Lord’s ascension on the day of Pentecost, Peter specifically said that David did not ascend into the heavens. This proves that the righteous ones in Hades did not go to heaven at that time. If the righteous ones went to heaven when the Lord resurrected and ascended, how could there still be people in the name of Jesus who are bowing their knees and confessing His name with their tongues under the earth? Revelation 6:9 shows that at the time of the fifth seal (near the end of this age), there are still souls underneath the altar. The altar is on the earth, so underneath the altar means under the earth. Until the end of this age, the righteous dead in Paradise will be under the earth in Hades. They will be in Paradise, which is under the earth; it is in the heart of the earth. Even though Paradise is in the heart of the earth, it is still Paradise because the spirits and souls of the righteous enjoy rest there.
Some in Christianity today believe that Paradise in Hades was moved to another place when the Lord Jesus resurrected and ascended from Hades to the heavens. Bible expositors who believe this, such as Scofield and his followers, base this teaching on Ephesians 4:8. They say that the phrase those taken captive in this verse refers to the righteous ones in the Paradise in Hades. According to their view, the spirits and souls of the righteous ones in Hades have been taken captive by the devil and are being held there. They say that since the Lord defeated the devil, who has the might of death, on the cross and defeated death by His resurrection, He led the spirits and souls of those righteous ones who were taken captive by the enemy and held in Hades and brought them to heaven when He ascended. They then use this explanation as a basis for saying that when the Lord ascended to the heavens, He brought both Paradise, where the spirits and souls of the righteous are, and the spirits and souls of the righteous themselves out of Hades into heaven. If we examine this explanation carefully, it is not difficult to see that it is quite strained. Without touching the problems in their translation of Ephesians 4:8, they cannot make a case for saying that the Lord brought Paradise itself, which was in Hades, out of Hades and into heaven when He ascended.
Those taken captive refers to the redeemed saints, who were taken captive by Satan before being saved by Christ’s death and resurrection. In His ascension Christ led them captive; that is, He rescued them from Satan’s captivity and took them to Himself. This indicates that He conquered and overcame Satan, who had captured them by sin and death.
The Amplified New Testament renders He led captive those taken captive as “He led a train of vanquished foes.” Vanquished foes may refer to Satan, to his angels, and to us the sinners, again indicating Christ’s victory over Satan, sin, and death. In Christ’s ascension there was a procession of these vanquished foes, led as captives from a war, for a celebration of Christ’s victory.
Those who say that the Paradise in Hades was moved to the heavens also regard 2 Corinthians 12:2-4 as a strong basis for their teaching. According to their view, the apostle Paul’s experiences of being caught away into Paradise and being caught away to the third heaven refer to the same thing because Paradise was no longer in Hades when Paul was caught away, having been moved to the third heaven, which they call heaven. But we have previously seen that being caught away into Paradise and being caught away to the third heaven refer to two different places. Thus, 2 Corinthians 12:2-4 does not prove that Paradise is in the heavens. Rather, it proves that Paradise is still in Hades, which is a different place from heaven.
There are two other portions that are used to try to prove that Paradise in Hades was moved to the heavens: 2 Corinthians 5:8 and Philippians 1:23. These portions speak of being abroad from the body and at home with the Lord and of departing and being with Christ. Based on these two portions, some say that when the believers leave their bodies to be with the Lord, they must go to the Lord, who is now in the heavens. They then say that since the dead believers leave the earth to go to Paradise to be with the Lord, Paradise must be in the heavens. However, from experience we know that being at home with the Lord and being with the Lord are relative matters before the rapture and transfiguration of the believers (1 Thes. 4:17). Before the rapture and transfiguration of the believers, these matters are not absolute. For example, Genesis 5—6 tells us that Enoch and Noah both walked with God while they were living on the earth. Second Corinthians 5 and Philippians 1 also speak of these matters in a relative sense. When we believers are in our physical bodies, we live in the physical realm. Although we can live and be with the Lord in our spirit and heart, we are separated from Him at a physical level. When we leave our bodies, we leave the physical realm and enter into a spiritual realm in which we can live and be with the Lord in a deeper, closer way. But even then, we are not fully living with the Lord and are not absolutely with the Lord. These portions do not say that we are absolutely with the Lord after leaving the earth, so they cannot be used to prove that Paradise in Hades is in the heavens where the Lord is now.
Others say that Paradise must be in the heavens because 1 Thessalonians 4:14 says that God will bring those who have fallen asleep through Jesus with Him. This verse, however, is spoken in the context of the Lord’s return, and verse 16 specifically says that the dead in Christ will rise when the Lord returns. Verse 14 cannot be used to prove that the dead in Christ are with the Lord Jesus in the heavens simply because God will bring them back with Christ. For example, a father may be doing business in America while his son is studying in Japan. One day the father may write to the mother and tell her that he is bringing their son with him when he returns, but this does not prove that the son is with the father in America. Similarly, 1 Thessalonians 4:14 cannot be used to prove that the believers are in the heavens with the Lord before their resurrection or that prior to their resurrection the believers are in a Paradise that is in the heavens.
The teaching that Paradise in Hades was moved to the heavens is incorrect. According to the Bible, Paradise is in Hades, and it has not moved. Because Paradise is in Hades, the righteous ones will rise from under the earth when they are resurrected. This is the only explanation that is consistent with the meaning of resurrection since resurrection means “rising up” in the original Greek. If Paradise has been moved to the heavens, the righteous could only descend from the heavens at the time of the resurrection. This, however, would not be a rising up. The righteous in this Paradise will resurrect; they will rise up. This further proves that Paradise is under the earth in Hades, not in the heavens.