Words have a range of meanings. This is clearly seen with the word "paradise" in the New Testament where we find three related uses of the word but each with a slightly different meaning. The word "paradise" comes from the Persian language for a park and denotes a beautiful place. Jesus told the thief on the cross, "Today you will be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:43). On the day of Pentecost, Peter said that Jesus' soul was not left in Hades, that is, the unseen waiting place for the dead (Acts 2:31). Since Jesus told the story of the rich man and Lazarus, each of whom found themselves in different places in the afterlife (Luke 16:19-31), it would seem that Jesus in using the word "paradise" was referring to the good side of the Hadean world. That would seem to be associated with heaven, since in Revelation 6:9 the souls of martyrs are seen under the altar in front of God's throne.
The second usage of the word "paradise" in the New Testament is when Paul wrote to the Corinthians that he was caught up into paradise (2 Corinthians 12:4). That statement is parallel to an earlier one where he said that he was caught up into the third heaven, that is, the one where God dwells (2 Corinthians 12:2). Birds fly in the first heaven, and the stars shine in the second. Thus he used the word "paradise" here to refer to the heaven where God dwells.
The final usage of the word "paradise" is in Revelation 2:7. There the text says that God will grant to the one who is victorious the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. In the last two chapters of Revelation, the tree of life is in the city that comes down out of heaven from God in the future new heavens and new earth (Revelation 21:1,10; 22:2). So the word "paradise" here refers to the future world.
These three usages are all associated with the heavenly realm, but each has its own unique reference.
http://www.bterry.com/tidbids/paradise.htm Last updated on April 29, 2025