Re the NT evidence, one thing you are missing is that Matthew has not simply
preferred "kingdom of heaven" in his own writing, he has in many places
changed "kingdom of God" in his presumed underlying sources into "kingdom of
heaven", as witnessed in parallel passages in Mark and Luke. Or, less
probably, "kingdom of heaven" was original and Mark and Luke changed it to
"kingdom of God".
Another clear NT example of "heaven" being used in place of "God" is Luke
15:18,21, where the returning Prodigal Son confesses his sin "against
heaven".
I guess we can only speculate on the reasons for these changes.
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