Kingship and kingdom of God

For other uses, see Kingdom of Heaven (disambiguation).
Stained glass by Hallward depicting Matt 5:10: "Blessed are the poor in spirit: For theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven".
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The concept of the kingship of God appears in all Abrahamic religions, where in some cases the terms kingdom of God and kingdom of Heaven are also used. The notion of God's kingship goes back to the Hebrew Bible, which refers to "his kingdom" but does not include the term "Kingdom of God".[1][2]

The "Kingdom of God" and its equivalent form "Kingdom of Heaven" in the Gospel of Matthew is one of the key elements of the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament. The Gospel of Mark indicates that the gospel is the good news about the Kingdom of God. The term pertains to the kingship of Christ over all creation. The phrase "Kingdom of heaven" appears in Matthew's gospel due primarily to Jewish sensibilities about uttering the "name" (God). Jesus did not teach the kingdom of God per se so much as the return of that kingdom. The notion of God's kingdom (as it had been under Moses) returning became an agitation in "knaan," modern Israel, Palestine, and Lebanon, 60 years before Jesus was born, and continued to be a force for nearly a hundred years after his death.[3][need quotation to verify] Drawing on Old Testament teachings, the Christian characterization of the relationship between God and humanity inherently involves the notion of the "Kingship of God".[4][5]

The Quran does not use the term "kingdom of God", but includes the Throne Verse which talks about the throne of God encompassing the heavens and the Earth. The Quran also refers to Abraham seeing the "Kingdom of the heavens".[6] Writings of the Baháʼí Faith also use the term "kingdom of God".[7]

  1. ^ "Abrahamic Faiths, Ethnicity and Ethnic Conflicts" (Cultural Heritage and Contemporary Change. Series I, Culture and Values, Vol. 7) by Paul Peachey, George F. McLean and John Kromkowski (Jun 1997) ISBN 1565181042 p. 315
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Wright was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ The Gospel of Matthew by R.T. France (21 Aug 2007) ISBN 080282501X pp. 101–103
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Mercer490 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Image478 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Prophet27 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference BGems was invoked but never defined (see the help page).