Greenland has nine times the suicide rate of the United States per capita and leads the countries of the world in this tragedy. In the United States, Alaska has more suicides per capita than any other state. One contributing factor may be the lack of daylight hours in these regions of the world. In Barrow, Alaska, at the very top of the state, the sun never rises during two months of the winter. Darkness can be very depressing, while sunshine can be tremendously cheerful. Sunlight is essential for all life.
John was charged with writing down a vision of the future. He described the future new Jerusalem (see question #22)—where the followers of Jesus will live in eternity—as a city that “does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb [Jesus] is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light. . . . On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there” (Rev. 21:23–25).
Barrow, Alaska, has eighty-five continuous days of daylight in the summer. But in heaven it will be “daylight” all the time. This is true of the intermediate heaven and the eternal “heaven,” the new earth. (For details about what the new earth will look like, see question #10.) John repeated this idea of the future light in heaven later in Revelation. “There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light” (22:5). No night! No darkness! Perhaps there will be no need for sleep either. Whether we think of the intermediate heaven, where believers go after death, or the eternal “heaven”—the new earth—there is sure to be plenty of cheerful brightness coming from the radiance of God and Christ.
Much of the Bible implies that heaven and the new earth are so astounding that our words may not be capable of describing them adequately. Paul wrote, “ ‘What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived’—the things God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Cor. 2:9). He was speaking not only about what God has done for his people in the present time (e.g., salvation) but also about what awaits them in eternity. On another occasion, Paul said that there was a time he “was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell” (2 Cor. 12:4). Not only the sights, but even the sounds of heaven must be astounding. Perhaps in our sinful condition on earth we are incapable of fathoming the ultimate glory and beauty of God in heaven.
One visible picture of heaven in all its descriptions is the throne of God and the encircling angels there. When John saw heaven in his vision, he “heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne [of God] . . .” (Rev. 5:11). Expect to see angels in heaven, and lots of them. In several of John’s visions, he spoke with angels (17:1; 21:9). We can assume that we too will talk with angels in heaven. We may discover in discussions with angels how they helped other believers we know, or even how they helped us personally.
There are also strange-looking heavenly beings that God has created that we will see in heaven. For example, the Bible speaks a few times of seraphim (plural; the singular is seraph). They are described as standing upright and having three pairs of wings, as well as human faces and hands. Cherubim, another group of heavenly creatures, are described as ones who serve in the very presence of God. They seem to have a winged human-animal form.
Four “living creatures” appear in the book of Revelation. They have the faces of a lion, ox, man, and eagle respectively. “Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings” (Rev. 4:8). So keep in mind that all the looks and shapes of creatures that God has created are not on this earth. All of these heavenly creatures worship the Creator God continually. (On seeing God in heaven, see question #25.)
FOR FURTHER STUDY
Genesis 3:24; Exodus 37:7–9; Psalm 11:4; Isaiah 6:1–8; 37:16; 60:19–20; Ezekiel 10; Hebrews 1:14; Revelation 4–5