The theory that saints are to spend eternity in heaven is not taught anywhere in Scripture. All saints will be translated and will stay in heaven until they return with Christ at His second coming (Zech.14:5; Jude 1:14). Then they will reign on earth with Christ (Rev. 20:4-10) but continue to live in the New Jerusalem in heaven until it is moved from heaven to the New Earth (Rev. 21:2,9-10).
Saints will go back and forth from heaven and earth during the Millennium, then live eternally with God in the New Earth (Rev. 21-22). The natural people who will go from the tribulation into the Millennium will continue to live in the New Earth as subjects of Christ and resurrected saints forever, if they do not rebel with Satan at the end of the Millennium (Rev. 20:7-10).
They will live forever by virtue of the tree of life (Rev. 22:2) and not by change of body from mortality to immortality as the resurrected saints (1 Cor. 15:35-54; Phil. 3:21). Both classes of human beings-the resurrected ones and the natural ones-will inhabit the earth forever (Psalm 37:9,11,18,29,34; Genesis 8:22; Genesis 9:12; Genesis 17:8; Isaiah 9:6-7; Daniel 2:44-45; Daniel 7:13-14,18,27; Zech.14; Matthew 5:5; Luke 1:32-33; Rev. 11:15; Rev. 22:4-5).
Finis J. Dake, Dake Topical Index, WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: “Eternity, Where Saints Spend”.