Matthew 5:34

5:34 But I say to you, do not take oaths at all – not by heaven, because it is the throne of God,

Psalms 11:4

11:4 The Lord is in his holy temple; ¹ 

the Lord’s throne is in heaven. ² 

His eyes ³  watch; ⁴ 

his eyes ⁵  examine ⁶  all people. ⁷ 

Isaiah 66:1

66:1 This is what the Lord says:

“The heavens are my throne

and the earth is my footstool.

Where then is the house you will build for me?

Where is the place where I will rest?

Acts 7:49

7:49 ‘Heaven is my throne,

and earth is the footstool for my feet.

What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord,

or what is my resting place? ⁸ 

Revelation 4:2-3

4:2 Immediately I was in the Spirit, ⁹  and ¹⁰  a throne was standing ¹¹  in heaven with someone seated on it! 4:3 And the one seated on it was like jasper ¹²  and carnelian ¹³  in appearance, and a rainbow looking like it was made of emerald ¹⁴  encircled the throne.

¹ tn Because of the royal imagery involved here, one could translate “lofty palace.” The Lord’s heavenly temple is in view here (see Mic 1:2-4).

² sn The Lord’s throne is in heaven. The psalmist is confident that the Lord reigns as sovereign king, “keeps an eye on” all people, and responds in a just manner to the godly and wicked.

³ sn His eyes. The anthropomorphic language draws attention to God’s awareness of and interest in the situation on earth. Though the enemies are hidden by the darkness (v. 2), the Lord sees all.

⁴ tn The two Hebrew imperfect verbal forms in this verse describe the Lord’s characteristic activity.

⁵ tn Heb “eyelids.”

⁶ tn For other uses of the verb in this sense, see Job 7:18; Pss 7:9; 26:2; 139:23.

⁷ tn Heb “test the sons of men.”

⁸ sn What kind…resting place? The rhetorical questions suggest mere human beings cannot build a house to contain God.

⁹ tn Or “in the spirit.” “Spirit” could refer either to the Holy Spirit or the human spirit, but in either case John was in “a state of spiritual exaltation best described as a trance” (R. H. Mounce, Revelation [NICNT], 75).

¹⁰ tn Grk “and behold.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) at the beginning of this statement has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

¹¹ tn BDAG 537 s.v. κεῖμαι 2 gives the translation “stand” for the term in this verse.

¹² tn Grk “jasper stone.”

¹³ sn Carnelian was a semiprecious gemstone, usually red in color (L&N 2.36).

¹⁴ tn Or “a rainbow emerald-like in appearance.”