Reference: Ascension
American
The visible ascent of Christ to heaven. When our Savior had repeatedly conversed with his apostles during forty days, after his resurrection, and afforded them infallible proofs of its reality, he led them out to the Mount of Olives, and was raised up to heaven in their sight, there to continue till he shall come again at the last day to judge the quick and the dead, Ac 1:9,11. The ascension was demonstrated by the descent of the Holy Ghost,
Joh 16:7-14; Ac 2. It was Christ's real human nature that ascended; and he thus triumphed gloriously over death and hell, as head of his body the church. While he blessed his disciples he was parted from them and multitudes of the angelic hosts accompanied and welcomed him, Ps 24:9; 68:17. The consequences resulting from his ascension are: the fulfilment of types and prophecies concerning it; his appearance as a priest in the presence of God for us; his more open and full assumption of his kingly office; his receiving gifts for men; his opening the way to heaven for his people. Heb 10:19-20; and assuring his saints of their ascension to heaven after the resurrection of the dead, Joh 14:1-2.
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Lift up your heads, O you gates; even lift them up, you everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.
The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels: the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place.
Let not your heart be troubled: you believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: read more. Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and you see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. I have yet many things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them now. But when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you.
And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
Who also said, You men of Galilee, why stand you gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, who is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven.
Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he has consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;
Easton
See Christ.
Hastings
The fact of our Lord's Ascension is treated very scantily in the Synoptic Gospels. From Mt. it is entirely omitted. In the appendix to Mk. the words in which it is stated are rather the formula of a creed than the narrative of an event (Mr 16:19). Lk. is somewhat more circumstantial, and, though the chronology is uncertain, mentions the journey to the neighbourhood of Bethany and the disappearance of Christ in the act of blessing, together with the return of the disciples to Jerusalem (Lu 24:50-52). The narrative, meagre as it is, is not inconsistent with, and may even presuppose, the events recorded at greater length in Acts (Ac 1:6-12). Here we learn that the scene was more precisely the Mount, of Olives (Ac 1:12); that the final conversation, to which allusion is possibly made in Mr 16:19, concerned the promise of the Holy Spirit (Mr 16:6-8); and that the Ascension, so far as it was an event and therefore a subject of testimony, took the form of the uplifting of the bodily form of Jesus from the earth till it disappeared in a cloud (Mr 16:9-10). Whether this experience involved more than the separation of Christ from immediate contact with the earth, and included His gradual recession into the upper air, there is nothing directly to show. The general form of the narrative recalls the Transfiguration (Lu 9:28-36 ||). The words of the 'two men in white apparei' (Lu 9:10) suggest that the final impression was that of disappearance above the heads of the onlookers (Lu 9:11). It will be noticed that, while the Markan appendix and Luke, unless the latter narrative is interpolated, blend fact and figure (Mr 16:19 'received up [fact] into heaven [partly fact, partly figure], and sat down at the right hand of God [figure]'; Lu 24:51 'he parted from them [fact], and was carried up into heaven [partly fact, partly figure; but see Revised Version margin,' as must necessarily be the case where the doctrine of the Ascension is concerned; Acts, on the other hand, which purports to describe an event, rigidly keeps within the limits of testimony.
There are certain anticipations of the Ascension in the Gospels which must be regarded as part of their witness to it. Thus Lk. introduces the account of our Lord's last journey to Jerusalem with the words 'when the days were being fulfilled that he should be received up' (Lu 9:51 Revised Version margin). It is probable that the Ascension is here delicately blended with the Crucifixion, as apparently by Christ Himself in Joh 12:32. Again, the word exodos in Luke's account of the Transfiguration, rendered in the text of RV 'decease,' but marg. 'departure,' seems to have the same double reference (Lu 9:31). Our Lord's predictions of the Second Coming 'on the clouds' (Mt 24:30; 26:64; cf. 1Th 4:16; Re 1:7) almost necessarily imply the Ascension. The Fourth Gospel, while in its accustomed manner omitting the story of the Ascension, probably regarded as known, introduces definite references to it on the part of Christ both before and after the Resurrection (Joh 6:62; 7:33; 14:19,28; 16:28; 20:17 etc.). And if we compare statements in the Epistles (Eph 4:8; Heb 1:3; 4:14) with the Ascension narrative, it is scarcely possible to doubt that the writers accepted the historic fact as the basis of their teaching. To this must be added all those passages which speak of Jesus as exalted to the right hand or throne of God (Ro 8:34; Eph 1:20; Heb 10:12 etc.), and as returning to earth in the glory of the Father (Mt 25:31; Mr 8:38; Php 3:20 etc.). In connexion with the Session, St. Peter, after mentioning the Resurrection, uses the expression 'having gone his way into heaven' (1Pe 3:22, cf. Joh 14:3). Nor can we omit such considerations as arise out of the fact of the Resurrection itself, which are satisfied only by an event that puts a definite period to the earthly manifestation of the incarnate Christ.
From what has been said it will appear that the Ascension stands on a somewhat different level from the Resurrection as an attested fact. Like the Virgin-birth, it did not form a part of the primitive preaching, nor does it belong to the evidences of Christianity. The fragment of what is thought to be a primitive hymn quoted in 1Ti 3:16 somewhat curiously places 'preached among the nations' before 'received up in glory.' But it is nevertheless a fact which came within the experience of the Apostles, and can therefore claim a measure of historical testimony. The Resurrection is itself the strongest witness to the reality of the Ascension, as of the Virgin-birth, nor would either in the nature of the case have been capable of winning its way to acceptance apart from the central faith that Jesus actually rose from the dead. But neither the fact itself nor its importance to the Christian believer depends upon the production of evidence for its occurrence. It will not be seriously disputed by those who accept the Apostolic gospel. On the other hand, the fact that the Ascension was accepted in the primitive Church as the event which put a term to the earthly manifestation of Christ brings out the Resurrection in striking relief as in the full sense of the word a fact of history. It is the Ascension, represented as it is in Scripture not only historically but mystically, and not the Resurrection, which might be viewed as an apotheosis or idealization of Jesus. That 'Jesus is now living at the right hand of God' (Harnack) is not a sufficient account of the Christian belief in the Resurrection in view of the Ascension narrative, which, even if Keim and others are right in regarding it as a materialization of the doctrine of the eternal Session as set forth in the Epistles, becomes necessary only when the Resurrection is accepted in the most literal sense.
The Ascension is the point of contact between the man Jesus Christ of the Gospeis and the mystical Christ of the Epistles, preserving the historical character of the former and the universality of the latter in true continuity. It enabled the disciples to identify the gift of Pentecost with the promise of the Holy Spirit, which had been specially connected with the withdrawal of Jesus from bodily sight and His return to the Father (Joh 16:7; cf. Joh 7:39). An eternal character is thus given to the sacrifice of the death of Christ, which becomes efficacious through the exaltation of His crucified and risen manhood (Heb 10:11-14,19-22).
J. G. Simpson.
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And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
Jesus said unto him, You have said so: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall you see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.
And he said unto them, Be not amazed: you seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him. But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goes before you into Galilee: there shall you see him, as he said unto you. read more. And they went out quickly, and fled from the sepulcher; for they trembled and were amazed: neither said they anything to any man; for they were afraid. Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven demons. And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept.
So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
And the apostles, when they were returned, told him all that they had done. And he took them, and went aside privately into a desert place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. And the people, when they knew it, followed him: and he received them, and spoke unto them of the kingdom of God, and healed them that had need of healing.
And it came to pass about eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray. And as he prayed, the appearance of his countenance was altered, and his clothing was white and glistening. read more. And, behold, there talked with him two men, who were Moses and Elijah: Who appeared in glory, and spoke of his death which he should accomplish at Jerusalem.
Who appeared in glory, and spoke of his death which he should accomplish at Jerusalem. But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and when they were awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him. read more. And it came to pass, as they departed from him, Peter said unto Jesus, Teacher, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for you, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah: not knowing what he said. While he thus spoke, there came a cloud, and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud. And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him. And when the voice was past, Jesus was found alone. And they kept it close, and told no man in those days any of those things which they had seen.
And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem,
And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them. And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy:
What if you shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?
Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto him that sent me.
(But this spoke he of the Spirit, whom they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Spirit was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there you may be also.
Yet a little while, and the world sees me no more; but you see me: because I live, you shall live also.
You have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If you loved me, you would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.
Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.
Jesus said unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.
When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father has put in his own power. read more. But you shall receive power, after the Holy Spirit has come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Who also said, You men of Galilee, why stand you gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, who is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven. Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey.
Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey.
Who is he that condemns? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.
Which he performed in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
Therefore he says, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
For our citizenship is in heaven; from which also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ:
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
And without doubt great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.
And every priest stands daily ministering and offering frequently the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God;
But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God; From then on waiting till his enemies be made his footstool. read more. For by one offering he has perfected forever them that are sanctified.
Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he has consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; read more. And having a high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.
Behold, he comes with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also who pierced him: and all tribes of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
Morish
This term is constantly applied to the return of the Lord Jesus Christ to heaven from whence He came. Joh 3:13. Leading His eleven apostles out as far as Bethany, on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives, in the act of blessing them He ascended up to heaven, and a cloud hid Him from their sight. Mr 16:19; Lu 24:50-51; Ac 1:9. The ascension of the Lord Jesus is a momentous fact for His saints: the One who bore their sins on the cross has been received up in glory, and sits on the right hand of God.
As forerunner He has entered into heaven for the saints, and has been made a high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. Heb 6:20. His ascension assured, according to His promise, the descent of the Holy Spirit, which was accomplished at Pentecost. Joh 16:7; 2000'>Ac 1:4,2000'>8; 2. As ascended He became Head of His body the church, Eph 1:22, and gave gifts to men, among which gifts are evangelists who preach to the world, and pastors and teachers to care for and instruct the saints. Ps 68:18; Eph 4:8-13.
His ascension is a demonstration through the presence of the Holy Spirit that sin is in the world and righteousness in heaven, for the very One they rejected has been received by the Father into heaven. Joh 16:10. The ascension is also a tremendous fact for Satan: the prince of this world has been judged who led the world to put the Lord to death; and in His ascension He led captivity captive, having broken the power of death in which men were held, Eph 4:8, for He had in the cross spoiled principalities and powers and made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Col 2:15.
Above all, the ascension is a glorious fact for the blessed Lord Himself. Jehovah said unto Him, "Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool." Ps 110:1. He has taken His place as man where man never was before, and He is also glorified with the glory which He had before the world was, besides the glory which He graciously shares with His saints. Joh 17:5,22.
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You have ascended on high, you have led captivity captive: you have received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among them.
[A Psalm of David.] The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.
So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them. And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
And no man has ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man who is in heaven.
Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and you see me no more;
And now, O Father, glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you before the world was.
And the glory which you gave me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, said he, you have heard of me.
But you shall receive power, after the Holy Spirit has come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
And has put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
Therefore he says, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
Therefore he says, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? read more. He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ:
And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
Where the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.