SA50 - “You Will Be With Me in Paradise”

Three cousins, Jack, Peter, and Sarah, sit excitedly listening as their grandfather describes the whereabouts of a treasure buried deep away in the forest. Engrossed with the details of how the treasure got there and what it contained, Sarah quickly takes notes, jotting down all the specifics related to where they can find this treasure.

Armed with her notes that now serve as a map, they set out in search of finding this fortune described by their grandfather. As they walk into the woods, the scenery starts changing from a sparse forested trail to a densely thicketed woodland. Their surroundings increasingly become so impossible to pass through, that it's difficult for them to see the pathway unobstructed. They carefully travel, jumping over moss covered fallen trees, trying not to slip on the foliage that covers the ground where insects and spider’s dwell. The cousins are armed with everything they need to not only locate but also dig up the forgotten treasure. After a long and exhausting journey through the forest, they finally stumble upon a clearing where in the center stands a large oak tree with an X engraved on it.

Excited and breathless, they begin pitching the dirt higher and higher, the further they dig, the deeper they go, the more rapidly the daylight diminishes. Finally, to their surprise, their shovels ding a rusty old chest. The three cousins look at each other with wide eyes, amazed by their good fortune. With shaking hands, Jack carefully clears away the dirt from around the chest as Peter and Sarah pull the rope, hoisting the chest up onto the surface. Sarah attempts to open it, but she’s unable. Jack and Peter also unsuccessfully whack at it, in a desperate attempt to get it open. They exhaustedly sit and contemplate that perhaps their grandfather's words were indeed true, that the chest must remain locked and can only be opened at a specific time in the future.

Unable to physically carry the treasure chest out of the thick dense forest. They place it back into the ground, determined to return the following day with a wheeled cart to assist them in getting the chest and its contents back home.

As they walk back through the forest towards their grandfather's house, they excitedly talk about what they believe is inside the chest. When they arrive, they explain to their grandfather all the details about their mission.

Jack starts off by telling his grandfather that he believes when the chest is opened, it will reveal physical items such as money, gold and jewels that can be used to restore the earth back to its original beauty and perfection, a kind of Garden of Eden. Peter agrees with Jack, he also sees this treasure as enabling a physical place, which he believes will come after the end of the world.

Sarah laughs at them both and explains that she doesn't believe that there's anything inside the chest, and the idea of a treasure is symbolic like a state of being, rather than a physical place. She believes that 'the treasure' is a condition of perfect happiness and peace, a state of being in which one experiences the love and presence of God.

The idea of paradise, like the contents of the treasure chest, means different things to different people. Some say that paradise is a fantasy. Others say that paradise is wherever they find joy and satisfaction, but let’s consider what God told his friend Abraham. God said that he would multiply Abraham’s offspring “like the grains of sand on the seashore.” - Genesis 26:4 There is no indication in the Bible that Abraham thought that humans would get a final reward in a heavenly paradise. When God spoke of “all nations of the earth” as being blessed, Abraham would reasonably think of blessings on earth. - Genesis 22:17, 18

Isaiah 65:21-23 reflects on how the promises point to a future paradise: People of the whole earth will be blessed by God. No one will face danger from animals or beast-like humans. The blind, deaf, and lame will be cured. People will be able to build their own homes and enjoy growing wholesome food.

Jesus was condemned and hung on a stake to die, with Jewish criminals on each side of him. The one repentant criminal did not know that Jesus had made a covenant with his faithful apostles to be with him in the heavenly Kingdom. (Luke 22:29) Also, that criminal was not even baptized, so this promise that Jesus made to him must have been of an earthly paradise.

Adam and Eve lost Paradise back in Eden, but it was not lost forever because the promises that Jehovah made to the people on earth are yet to be fulfilled. The prophecies in the book of Isaiah should stimulate our appetite for the delightful conditions that will prevail when the promise that Jesus made to the Jewish criminal comes to fruition, “truly I tell you today, you will be with me in Paradise.” – Luke 23:43

Do you have a comment that did not get mentioned during the Watchtower study? What encouraging observations would you like to point out? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.