Phrase Study: basileia tōn ouranōn
I.
Basic Definitions (BAG):
II.
Brainstorming
·
kingdom refers
to some sort of ruled area and involves a king
·
heaven is the
place where God dwells
·
kingdom of the
heavens could be God’s ruling in the heavens
·
kingdom of the
heavens could refer to God’s ruling of the earth from the heavens
·
kingdom of the
heavens could refer to God’s ruling of everything, both heavens and earth
·
the kingdom
could be something yet to come
·
the kingdom
could be something already here
·
the kingdom
could be something both here and yet still to come in some sense as well
III.
Word/Phrase
Usage
A.
“Kingdom”/“
·
Matthew 3:2—John
the Baptist proclaims that
Nearness can imply proximity in time, space, or
both. Perhaps heaven is coming to earth,
perhaps soon. Nearness seems to imply it
is not here yet. The perfect tense
implies, however, that the kingdom has gone from being somewhat distant to
being “near” and that it remains near.
Whatever the arrival of the kingdom might be, it
evidently requires repentance on the part of John’s audience.
·
Matt 4:8—The
Devil shows Jesus the kingdoms of the world.
Kingdom is here used in its normal sense: a domain
ruled by a king. Does Matthew make an
implicit contrast between the kingdoms of this world and the kingdom of
heaven? The word Matthew uses for
worship in 4:10 (quoting Deut 6:13) is the normal word for the obeisance one
gives to a king. You could argue,
therefore, that the kingdom of heaven relates to God being king. Those on earth are to worship the king of heaven,
not the kings of earth.
·
Matt 4:17—Jesus
also preaches repentance and the nearness of the kingdom.
Note that Jesus does not say it has arrived. Like John, he only proclaims its decisive
nearness.
·
Matt 4:23—The near arrival of the kingdom is apparently a “gospel,”
good news of a momentous sort.
In conjunction with his proclamation of the kingdom’s near arrival, Jesus heals diseases and casts out
demons. Presumably this implies that the
arrival of the kingdom contrasts with the current state of things in terms of
disease and demon possession.
·
Matt 5:3—Jesus
says that the kingdom of heaven belongs to the “poor in spirit.”
·
Matt 5:10—In an inclusio, Jesus says that the kingdom of heaven
belongs to those who are persecuted because of righteousness.
Both of these verses seem odd unless they mean that
such individuals will specially participate in the kingdom of heaven when it
arrives because of their misfortune in this world. It could, however, also refer to some inner
reward. The parallel comments regarding
future reward (e.g. 5:4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9) imply that this kingdom is future and
involves comfort (5:4), inheriting the
earth (5:5), being filled with righteousness (5:6), receiving mercy (5:7),
seeing God (5:8), and being called the sons (and daughters) of God (5:9).
The mention of inheriting the earth may imply that
the arrival of the kingdom of heaven could involve inheriting the earth in some
way.
·
Matt 5:19—Breaking
small commandments of the Jewish Law now diminishes one’s status in the kingdom
of heaven.
Jesus here seems to imply that there are different
levels of honor in the kingdom of heaven, yet he seems to imply that one can
break commandments and still be in the kingdom!
·
Matt 5:20—Only a righteousness superior to that of the scribes and
Pharisees enables entrance into the kingdom of heaven.
Again, the implication is that the kingdom of heaven
is future from Jesus’s standpoint at that time.
The particularization in the chapters that follow implies that this
righteousness is one that keeps the heart of the Law rather than the letter
(cf. 23:23). This understanding probably
affects our interpretation of 5:19.
We now know that entrance into the kingdom involves a
certain superior kind of righteousness and that repentance was involved for
·
Matt 6:10—God’s kingdom coming implies his will being done “on
earth as it is in heaven.”
This verse is potentially very helpful! It may imply that the kingdom of heaven is
not (only) a kingdom in heaven, but one that is coming to the earth as
well.
Time out: The kingdom of heaven relates to the will of God or
the rule of God coming to the earth.
John the Baptist and Jesus announced that with their ministries this
rule of God had taken a decisive step toward nearness. The implication is that the rule of God had
not been as manifest to this extent on the earth prior to their
ministries.
The healing and exorcist ministry of Jesus seems to
point to one key way in which the rule of God had not been on the earth—the presence
of sickness and demonic influence. The
world was headed for a reversal of fortunes in which the poor in spirit, the
suffering, the meek, and in general those persecuted for righteousness would
receive reward.
Interestingly, Jesus implies in 5:19 that there would
be various levels of honor and reward in the kingdom of heaven. This reward related to keeping the “least”
commandments in the Jewish Law.
·
Matt 6:33—This verse implies that the audience is to seek God’s
kingdom and his righteousness. Their
reward for such seeking is the satisfaction of their needs.
Here is another indication that the topic of
discussion in the Sermon on the Mount is kingdom righteousness, particularly as
it relates to Pharisaic/scribal righteousness.
From this verse alone it would be unclear whether the kingdom could come
while on earth from such seeking or whether it is the seeking of something yet
to come in and of itself that results in material needs before the kingdom
comes.
·
Matt 7:21—Simply calling Jesus “Lord” is not adequate for entrance
into the kingdom when it arrives. Only
doing the will of the Father counts!
It will be interesting to relate this passage to
other passages where entrance is denied into the kingdom to those thinking they
belonged in! The passage implies that the kingdom will arrive on a certain day.
·
Matt 8:11-12—The arrival of the kingdom of heaven will include a feast
involving not only heroes of
The “subjects of the kingdom” in 8:12 would appear to
be Jews in contrast to the Gentile centurion.
Were these individuals ever really a part of the kingdom, or was the
kingdom originally aimed at them as primary candidates for participation? Ironically, many of the very ones at whom the
kingdom was most directed will not participate in it at the end.
·
Matt
9:35—Similar indication 1) that the good news (gospel) of the kingdom was the
primary message of Jesus as he went around to all the cities and villages, and
2) that his healing ministry was part of the preparation for its arrival. This verse is also in the context of
recruitment for the kingdom, harvesting.
·
Matt 10:7—Another “kingdom has come near” verse. As John the Baptist and Jesus preached, so
the disciples are to preach. The context
of chapter 10 seems to stretch beyond the earthly ministry of Jesus into the
post-resurrection ministry of the disciples.
The implication may be that the kingdom had not fully arrived (it was
still near) long after Jesus’s resurrection.
·
Matt
11:11-12—Puzzling verses in some respects.
They clearly indicate that the kingdom of heaven had not arrived with
John the Baptist. However, the verses
talk as if the audience (either Jesus’s or Matthew’s or both) might find
themselves participating in the kingdom.
The implication seems to be that the kingdom will be on earth rather
than in heaven, since presumably JB would be in a heavenly kingdom.
The statement is difficult that the kingdom of the
heavens suffers violence and violent individuals plunder it. Some brainstorming about the meaning: 1) perhaps
it refers to the opposition to Jesus’s ministry—the kingdom is suffering
violence. 2) perhaps
it refers to revolutionary activity in
·
Matt 12:25, 26,
28—In these verses the Pharisees accuse Jesus of
casting out demons by the power of Beelzebul.
Jesus says that a kingdom divided against itself
cannot stand. These verses make it clear
that Jesus uses the word “kingdom” very similarly to the normal sense; that is,
of a domain of rulership with a king.
Jesus indicates that the kingdom of heaven is definitely not the
12:28 is very important because it indicates that the
kingdom is something “invading” the earth in Jesus’s exorcist ministry. Jesus speaks of the kingdom in the present
tense here. Note also that Matthew
refers to the kingdom as “the
Time Out: It seems that the developing picture is a situation
in which the earth has been the domain of Satan and his demons. One of the primary manifestations of Satan’s
kingdom has been sickness, oppression, and demonic possession. With Jesus, however, the kingdom of heaven
had taken a decisive step toward the earth.
God’s rule, already the case in heaven, was returning to the earth in
the ministry of Jesus. Every demon Jesus
cast out was an indication that the kingdom was arriving.
Given the verses that refer to the kingdom as coming
in the future in conjunction with a Day of Judgment, perhaps Jesus is speaking
proleptically (that is, while the kingdom will literally arrive in the future,
it is so strongly represented in Jesus that we can speak of it as arrived) or
in an inaugurated sense (it has arrived in a sense with Jesus but is not yet
fully here).
·
Matt 13:11, 19, 24, 31, 33, 38, 41, 43, 44,
45, 47, 52—These references are all in the Parable
Discourse. The following is a summary of
lessons relating to the kingdom that these parables teach:
a. The Parable of the Seeds relates to various reactions
to the “word of the kingdom” (13:19). A smaller percentage hear and accept it. Some don’t understand; some fall away with
persecution (“suffer violence”? 11:12); some are distracted by worldly
concerns. It is possible to see the
kingdom as future here, and the reaction as the faith
or lack of faith in its coming. You
might also argue that it is present to those who have faith, but not clearly
visible.
b. The Parable of Weeds is also about what the kingdom
of heaven is like (13:24). The
interpretation supports our division of the universe into the
c. The Parable of the Mustard Seed (13:31) and the
Parable of the Yeast (13:33) both picture the kingdom as present on earth, yet
growing—at times imperceptibly. It is
infiltrating; it will dominate.
d. The Parable of the Hidden Treasure (13:44) and the
Parable of the
e. 13:52 speaks of “scribes who have been schooled in
the kingdom of heaven.” The meaning in
context seems unclear. Some have taken
it as self-referential—The author/editor of Matthew
indicating that he is a scribe by profession.
Some have taken it as permission to modify/invent kingdom sayings to
scribes of the kingdom.
·
Matt 16:19—Jesus
gives Peter the keys to the kingdom of heaven.
This verse seems very enlightening.
It seems to imply that the kingdom of heaven is a heavenly kingdom
because the authority resides in heaven.
Yet the focus of interest in Matthew’s references to the kingdom is what
is happening on earth. By giving Peter
the keys to the kingdom, Jesus gives Peter the authority to unlock the
authority of heaven on earth.
·
Matt 16:28—Jesus
says that some standing there would not taste death before the Son of Man came
(went?) in his kingdom. This verse is
problematic, in that all of Jesus’s audience have died, yet it is not clear
that anyone has yet seen “the Son of Man coming in his kingdom” (16:28) “with
the glory of his father with his angels, and then he will repay to each according
to his practice” (16:27). You might
interpret the verse in reference to the resurrection. Or you might take it of the consummation of
the ages of earlier references. All in
all, the latter fits the context better.
·
Matt 18:1, 3, 4,
23 (also 19:14)—This chapter is the so called “Church
Discourse.” Becoming like a child is
said to be requisite for entrance to the kingdom of heaven, and those who
humble themselves like a child are said to be greatest in the kingdom. Later in the chapter the kingdom of heaven is
likened to a king who wanted to settle accounts but who is extraordinarily
merciful in so doing. He does not do
this cheaply, however. When those he has
forgiven do not treat others similarly, he expects the entire debt to be paid.
This parable reinforces the notion that the focal
meaning of the arrival of the kingdom relates to the Day of Judgment (for some,
the Day of Salvation, to use Paul’s language, for others). Jesus’s message of the kingdom’s good news
(gospel) relates to the mercy and forgiveness that God as king is extending to
the earth. God has expectations,
however, as we will see in the remaining kingdom references.
·
Matt 19:12—Another difficult verse.
This verse relates to those who “make themselves eunuchs for the kingdom
of heaven.” A possible interpretation is
those who suffer shame in this life because of their wives (they do not divorce
them) for the sake of the kingdom. They
have allowed themselves to be made eunuchs in terms of their shame for the sake
of submitting to the kingdom.
·
Matt 19:23, 24—The phrases “kingdom of heaven” and “
·
Matt
20:1—Introduction to the Parable of the Day Laborers. The context of the preceding verses is the
“renewal of all things” (19:28) when the disciples will sit on twelve thrones
judging the
·
Matt 20:21—The mother of James and John asks for them to have seats of
honor in Christ’s kingdom. This verse
once again pictures a post-resurrection context similar to 19:28. There seem to be strong Jewish messianic
overtones in these passages in which Christ as messiah is king over a restored
·
Matt 21:31,
43—Interpretation of the Parable of the Two Sons. Tax collectors and prostitutes are entering
the
·
Matt
22:2—Introduction to the Parable of the Wedding Banquet. This parable reinforces our interpretation of
21:43.
Others are invited (presumably the Gentiles), both
good and bad (similarity to the Parable of the Weeds). One of these is not dressed appropriately and
is rejected (Gentiles without appropriate righteousness?). This verse seems to relate to the “Lord,
Lord” passage in Matthew 7, the Parable of the Weeds, and the Parable of the
Sheep and the Goats of chapter 24. Not
everyone who claims to be a part of God’s kingdom are
really a part of God’s kingdom.
·
Matt
23:13—Relates to the Pharisees misunderstanding of God’s plan, their
unacceptability for the kingdom, and the hindrance they pose to others entering
the kingdom.
·
Matt 24:7—
·
Matt
24:14—Indication that the end (the kingdom) will come after the gospel of the
kingdom has been preached to the whole inhabited world. Caution on reading this as a modern
missiological datum (cf. Colossians 1:23).
·
Matt 25:1,
34—Parable of the Ten Virgins and the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats. These verses clearly associate the kingdom of
heaven with the kingdom that will exist on earth after the judgment. Jesus urges readiness in the Parable of the
Ten Virgins, while the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats demonstrates that the
kingdom is for those with the right kind of righteousness (not Pharisaic
righteousness).
·
Matt 26:29—Jesus
says he will drink again with his disciples in the kingdom of his father. The verse fits well with the
post-resurrection of the disciples envisaged in Jesus’s comments to the mother
of James and John earlier.
Tentative Conclusions: The
B.
“Kingdom (of God)” in Mark and Luke
In parallel passages where Matthew uses the phrase
“kingdom of heaven,” Mark and Luke use the phrase “
Mark and Luke corroborate the range of nuances
present in Matthew. Presuming Markan
priority, Matthew has preserved the futuristic, “within a generation” aspect of
Mark’s kingdom language. Luke, on the other
hand, has diminished the “within a generation” overtones. Acts 1:6 confirms that the “
C.
“Kingdom/Kingdom of God in the rest of the New
Testament
Most significant is probably Paul’s use of kingdom
language in reference to future events.
The unrighteous will not
inherit the
D.
Septuagint
Perhaps the most relevant passage to mention as OT
background to Matthew’s/ Jesus’s use of kingdom language is Isaiah 52:7. This verse not only speaks of the gospel
message of salvation, but it understands this message to be that “Our God
reigns.” The context in Isaiah is that
of the return of
E.
Background Literature
We could draw on any number of historical/literary
sources to indicate that many Jews looked for the eventual restoration of the
IV.
·
Matthew can use
the word kingdom in its normal sense
of an earthly king.
·
Matthew can use
the word kingdom in the sense of the
·
Matthew can use
the phrase kingdom of heaven as his
way of referring to the
V.
Conclusions
Our further examination of the broader NT, OT, and
other literature supports our initial conclusions. To reiterate them:
1. Matthew uses the phrases “kingdom of heaven” and “
2. The kingdom of heaven is a kingdom whose authority
originates from heaven and that includes heaven, but the focus of Matthew’s use
of the phrase relates to the kingdom’s arrival on earth.
3. The
4. There is a sense in which the kingdom has already
arrived in the person and work of Jesus—it is the “kingdom among you” of
Jesus’s exorcist ministry (12:28), it is the mustard seed that may not be
visible yet but it’s growing (13:31). On
the whole, however, Matthew’s kingdom language is oriented toward the future on
the Day of Judgment/Day of the renewal of all things. He pictures a kingdom on earth with the
twelve disciples judging/ruling
5. God’s kingdom involves extraordinary mercy to those
who have not erstwhile kept God’s covenant (toll collectors, prostitutes, Gentiles),
but is equally as harsh and unforgiving of those who reject the gospel and
Jesus. Appropriate attire required,
including childlike submission to God’s will!