paradise

A location or status of uninterrupted bliss. The Greek Bible referred to the Garden of Eden as “Paradise,” and hence the term came to be used for the ultimate destination of the righteous. For some thinkers, paradise was located in the remotest part of the earth, and for others it was in the lower part of the sky above. The image is found in the NT as well. Paul speaks of paradise in connection with his vision of the “third heaven” (2Cor 12:1-4), and Jesus suggested to the thief that both of them were destined for paradise at the moment of death (Luke 23:43).