This term has several meanings in the scriptures. It is first of all the place where God lives and the future home of the saints (Gen. 28: 12; Ps. 11: 4; Matt. 6: 9). It also means the expanse around the earth, as the heavens (Gen. 1: 1, 17; Ex. 24: 10). It is usually thought of as being “up,” or above the earth (cf. Alma 18: 30-32). In the sense of being God’s home and the ultimate place for the faithful, it is clearly distinguished from paradise, which is the temporary abode of the faithful spirits of persons who have lived and died on this earth. Jesus visited paradise after his death on the cross, but on the third day thereafter, he informed Mary that he had not yet been to the Father (see Luke 23: 39-44; John 20: 17).