Paradise

Biblical Texts

In the New Korean Revised Version, the word "paradise" appears three times in the New Testament.

• Luke 23:43: When one of the criminals crucified with Jesus asks to be remembered, Jesus answers, "To day shalt thou be with me in paradise." This saying is counted among the Seven Last Words of Christ.
• 2 Corinthians 12:4: Recounting the experience of a man caught up to the third heaven, Paul writes that he "was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words."
• Revelation 2:7: In the message to the church at Ephesus, the one who overcomes is promised "to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God."

Background of the Word

The Greek paradeisos is generally understood to be a loanword from Old Persian, in which it meant "a walled garden." The cognate Hebrew pardes is rendered "forest" in Nehemiah 2:8 and "orchards" in Ecclesiastes 2:5 in the Korean Bible, and it also appears in Song of Solomon 4:13. The Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, used this word to render the "garden" of the Garden of Eden in Genesis 2. From then on, "paradise" came to evoke Eden, the blessed place of the original creation. In Jewish literature from around the New Testament period, the word is also known to have been used for the place where the righteous dwell after death.

Meaning in the Whole of Scripture

The Bible begins in Eden and ends with the New Jerusalem. Revelation 2:7 and chapter 22 bring back the tree of life that stood in Eden, and many interpreters read this as a picture of the restoration of the fellowship with God that humanity lost. Luke 23:43 is understood as a promise of being with Christ beyond death, and 2 Corinthians 12 as a glimpse in advance of the place where God dwells.

Interpretations and Points of Debate

• The state after death: Mainstream Protestantism, including Presbyterians and Methodists, regards paradise as the place where the souls of deceased believers are immediately with Christ until the resurrection. In support, they cite Philippians 1:23 and 2 Corinthians 5:8. Chapter 32 of the Westminster Confession of Faith likewise confesses that the souls of the righteous are received into heaven immediately at death.
• The placement of "today": The original Greek manuscripts contained no commas. Most translations read, "To day shalt thou be with me in paradise." By contrast, the Seventh-day Adventist Church and Jehovah's Witnesses, who hold that the dead remain unconscious until the resurrection, punctuate the verse as "I say unto thee to day, thou shalt be … in paradise." Read this way, "today" refers not to the time of entering paradise but to the time of speaking.
• Paradise and heaven: Interpreters differ on whether the "third heaven" and "paradise" of 2 Corinthians 12 are the same place. Some hold that paradise was a compartment for the righteous within Hades and was moved to heaven after Christ's ascension, citing Ephesians 4:8-10 in support. Many interpreters reject this view.
• Imagery beyond the text: Popular images of paradise, such as clouds, harps, and fields of flowers, are not drawn from the biblical text. They derive from imagery created by literature and art, such as John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost.

In the Korean Church

Luke 23:43 is frequently quoted in sermons at funeral services and memorial services, where it is read as a word of comfort that the deceased is with Christ. In everyday usage, "paradise" and "heaven" (cheonguk) are often used interchangeably. Whether the two should be strictly distinguished depends on how one understands heaven and hell and eschatology.