– The Kingdom of God began with the temporal and national institution of the kingdom of Israel. After the exile from Babylon, the Kingdom of the Messiah is considered, in a more religious and spiritual order, as an era of universal peace and justice. Our Lord will raise this Messianic Kingdom above all national and temporal perspective: it is, above all, the Kingdom of God in souls, its outward manifestation in souls, and its glorious consummation at the end of time; the Kingdom of God is primarily the whole universe, by reason of its creation and preservation:
1Ch 29,11 : To you, Lord, greatness, […] for everything in heaven and on earth belongs to you.
Ps 102 : 19 : The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his empire extends over the universe.
Ps 144 :13 : Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your empire endures through all generations.
– The Kingdom of God is, in a special way, the people of Israel, because of their choice:
Ex 10,1ss : Go and look for Pharaoh, because I hardened his heart and that of his people to manifest my wonders.
Ex 24,3-8 : Moses came to tell the people all the words of the Lord, and all his laws.
– The Kingdom of God is established in the NT, through the preaching of penance and conversion to God:
Mt 3,2 : Do penance because the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.
Mt 4,17 : Do penance, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.
Mk 1,4.15 : John the Baptist appeared in the desert and preached a baptism of conversion for the remission of sins.
Lc 3,3 : He traveled all over the Jordan region, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.
– To the Kingdom of God are called first the Jews and then all men:
Mt 8,11s : Therefore I declare to you that multitudes will come from East and West and will settle down in the Kingdom of Heaven.
Mt 10,5s : Do not go among the Gentiles […] go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
Mt 15:24 : Jesus answered them: “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel”.
Jo 12,20-23 : There were some Greeks among those who went up to worship during the feast.
– This Kingdom has a temporal and an eternal phase:
Mt 13,3-9.18-52 : A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, part of the seed fell along the way.
Mt 25 : The Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins who went out with their lamps to meet their husband.
– Kingdom of Heaven is an expression that appears in the most recent books of the AT:
Wis 10:10 : Showed him the Kingdom of God, and gave him the knowledge of holy things.
Dn 3,54 : Be blessed for […] sitting on the cherubim, worthy of the highest praise and eternal exaltation!
Dn 4,31 : Praise […] him who lives forever, whose dominion is perpetual, whose kingdom endures from age to age.
Dn 7,14 : His dominion will be eternal; will never cease, and his kingdom will never be destroyed.
– And which indicates the full sovereignty of God over the world, history and human beings; The oldest are the expressions Yahweh reigns, Yahweh is king:
Ex 15,18 : The Lord is king forever, without end!
Num 23:21 : The Lord his God is with him, he is proclaimed king in him.
Psalm 46 : For the Lord is the most high, the awesome, the great king of the universe.
Psalm 92 : The Lord is king and is clothed with majesty, he is girded with a belt of power.
Psalm 94 : For the Lord is an immense God, a king who surpasses all gods.
Psalm 97 : Sing a new song to the Lord, for he has done wonders.
Psalm 98 : The Lord reigns, the peoples tremble; his throne is over the cherubim: the earth totters.
Is 6,5 : However, my eyes have seen the king, the Lord of hosts!
Is 33:22 : For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver; the Lord is our king who will save us.
Is 52,2 : Shake off the dust that covers you, rise, Jerusalem, and reign.
– The expression Kingdom of God is frequent in the synoptics; Matthew prefers Kingdom of Heaven to not name God; the Kingdom is the central theme of Jesus’ preaching:
Mt 4,23 : Jesus traveled throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom.
Mt 9,35 : He taught in the synagogues, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom and healing every disease and illness.
Mk 1,15 : The time has come and the Kingdom of God is at hand; do penance and believe in the Gospel.
– Illustrated with many parables:
Mt 13 : On that day, Jesus went out and sat by the lake.
Mark 4 : And he taught them many things in parables.
– And announced as an already present reality:
Mt 12:28 : But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come for you.
Lc 17,21 : Nor will people say: Here he is; or: Here he is. For the Kingdom of God is already among you.
Luke 21:32 : Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things are fulfilled.
– Which will be fulfilled in eschatology:
Mt 13:43 : When the impure spirit comes out of a man, he wanders through arid places looking for rest.
Mt 25,31-32 : When the Son of Man returns in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne.
1Cor 15,25-26 : For he must reign until he puts all enemies under his feet.
– See PARABLE, ESCHATOLOGY.
