The Word of Truth: Immortality

The Word of Truth

 

Immortality

 

 

 

          We have discovered over the past lessons that the Bible is the Word of God. It reveals to us the truth about God, about life, about sin and about the wonderful savior from sin, the Lord Jesus Christ. As the word of truth the Bible also teaches us about death and the hope for immortality. Only in the Scriptures do we find the truth about what death is and how it can be overcome.

 

          But sadly, one of the most misunderstood teachings of the Bible concerns death and immortality. So many people wrongly believe that everyone has an immortal soul, the invisible real person, encased in a body. People believe that at death the soul goes immediately to heaven for its everlasting reward. Or it goes to a fiery place called hell where it is tormented forever. Both of these beliefs are wrong according the Bible.

 

          The original, simple and clear teaching of Scripture is that there is no immortal soul. In fact 1 Timothy 6:16 reveals that God “alone has immortality.” And Romans 2:7 reveals that humans must “seek for glory, honor, and immortality.” So let’s explore the word of truth to understand who and what we are, what death is and how it is overcome. Genesis 2 gives us the account of man’s creation.

 

                    And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground,

                    and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man

                    became a living being.

                    (Genesis 2:7)

 

          Here is God’s definition of what man is. We are made from the dust of the ground. We are composed of many of the elements found in the earth. Then, secondly, God breathed into Adam’s body the breath of life and man became a “living being” or a living soul.[1] It is this combination of body and breath life that makes us a living soul or being.

 

          The Hebrew words translated “living being” are nephesh chai. The word chai means living, alive and nephesh means a being, a living breathing creature.  Before Adam received the breath of life he was an inanimate soul or being or nephesh. After he received the breath of life he was a living being or soul. God does not place an immortal soul within us. We are not spirit beings trapped in a body as pagan religions teach.[2] Nor are we a spark from the bottom of the pond as evolution teaches. We are a creation of God and we are mortal. You should know that the words nephesh chai are used of animals as well as humans in the Bible.[3]

 

          There is nothing immortal about us as human beings and God made this very clear to Adam.

 

                    Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the

                    garden of Eden to tend and keep it. ¹⁶ And the LORD

                    God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of

                    the garden you may freely eat; ¹⁷ but of the tree of the

                    knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the

                    day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

                    (Genesis 2:15-17)

 

          Immortality is not something we have in our nature; we do not have an immortal soul.[4] Immortality is conditional; it is granted as a gift from God.[5] Adam was warned that sin would lead to death. And after Adam sinned God revealed what would happen at death.

 

                    In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread
                    Till you return to the ground,
                    For out of it you were taken;
                    For dust you are,
                    And to dust you shall return.

                    (Genesis 3:19)

 

          Notice carefully that God did not say when you die your body will return to the dust, but your immortal soul will live on. He said you are dust, every part of you, and to dust you shall return. At death one is no longer a living, conscious being. There are a number of places in Scripture that reveal this to us.

 

                    For in death there is no remembrance of You;
                    In the grave who will give You thanks?

                    (Psalm 6:5)

 

          In death there is no consciousness and therefore no remembrance of God or praise to God.[6]

 

                    Nevertheless man, though in honor, does not remain;
                    He is like the beasts that perish.
                    ¹³ This is the way of those who are foolish,
                    And of their posterity who approve their sayings.  Selah 
                    ¹⁴ Like sheep they are laid in the grave;
                    The upright shall have dominion over them in the morning;
                    And their beauty shall be consumed in the grave, far from

                    their dwelling.

                    (Psalm 49:12-14)

 

At death we cease to exist; our beauty is consumed as we return to dust.

 

                    For what happens to the sons of men also happens to

                    animals; one thing befalls them: as one dies, so dies

                    the other. Surely, they all have one breath; man has no

                    advantage over animals, for all is vanity. ²⁰ All go to one

                    place: all are from the dust, and all return to dust.

                    (Ecclesiastes 3:19, 20)

 

                    For the living know that they will die;
                    But the dead know nothing,
                    And they have no more reward,
                    For the memory of them is forgotten.
                    ⁶ Also their love, their hatred, and their envy have

                    now perished;
                    Nevermore will they have a share
                    In anything done under the sun.
                    ⁷ Go, eat your bread with joy,
                    And drink your wine with a merry heart;
                    For God has already accepted your works.
                    ⁸ Let your garments always be white,
                    And let your head lack no oil.

                    ⁹ Live joyfully with the wife whom you love all the days

                    of your vain life which He has given you under the sun,

                    all your days of vanity; for that is your portion in life,

                    and in the labor which you perform under the sun.

                    ¹⁰ Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might;

                    for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in

                    the grave where you are going.

                    (Ecclesiastes 9:5-10)

 

          It should have been perfectly clear from the Bible that death brings an end to our existence. So if the Bible, the word of truth, teaches that as living souls or living beings we are not immortal in any way, where did the idea of going to heaven or hell come from? The answer is not from the Bible but from pagan philosophies and religions[7] influenced by the first lie in Scripture spoken by Satan who said “You shall not surely die.”[8]

 

          There is no verse in the Bible anywhere that says you go to heaven when you die. There are Scriptures that say we go to hell, but that word is terribly misunderstood. Let’s examine a verse in Psalm 9.

 

                    The wicked shall be turned into hell,
                    And all the nations that forget God.

                    (Psalm 9:17)

 

          Here we have the word “hell” and we are told that the wicked will go there. And because of our pre-conceived ideas we think “hell” is a place of everlasting torment. But the Hebrew word translated “hell” is sheol. The Greek word in the New Testament is hades.[9] And both sheol and hades do not refer to a place of everlasting torment, but simply to the realm of the grave, to gravedome.[10] Let’s re-read a psalm we read earlier, Psalm 49.

 

                    This is the way of those who are foolish,
                    And of their posterity who approve their sayings.  Selah 
                    ¹⁴ Like sheep they are laid in the grave;
                    Death shall feed on them;
                    The upright shall have dominion over them in the morning;
                    And their beauty shall be consumed in the grave, far from

                    their dwelling.

                    (Psalm 49:13, 14)

 

          Both times the word “grave” is used in verse 14 it is the Hebrew word sheol the same word translated “hell” in Psalm 9. The Bible translators used the word “hell” in Psalm 9 because it specifically spoke of the wicked and they want to reinforce the idea of torment. But sheol or hades simply describes the realm of the dead. All of the dead are in gravedome as the following verses declare.

 

                    Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might;

                    for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom

                    in the grave where you are going.

                    (Ecclesiastes 9:10)

 

                    What man can live and not see death?
                    Can he deliver his life from the power of the grave?  Selah

                    (Psalm 89:48)

 

          The word “grave” in the above verses is again the Hebrew word sheol. And there is no man or woman who can rescue themselves from death and the grave. But there is Someone who can. Let’s return to Psalm 49.

 

                    Like sheep they are laid in the grave;
                    Death shall feed on them;
                    The upright shall have dominion over them in the morning;
                    And their beauty shall be consumed in the grave, far from

                    their dwelling.

                    ¹⁵ But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave,
                    For He shall receive me.  Selah   

                    (Psalm 49:14, 15)

 

          In this psalm we are told that everyone who dies is in the grave, in sheol. But the believer in the one true God has hope to one day escape the grave. The wages of sin is death. And at death we return to dust. There is no immortal soul. But God will redeem His people from the power of the grave. They shall be resurrected to new life. But the foolish, the unbeliever who does not understand God’s will, will perish.

 

                    A man who is in honor, yet does not understand,
                    Is like the beasts that perish.

                    (Psalm 49:20)

 

          The unbeliever, the unrighteous, the wicked die and are held in the grip of sheol and they perish. Psalm 37:9 says, “For evildoers shall be cut off,” literally, destroyed. Verse 20 says,

 

                    …the wicked shall perish;
                    And the enemies of the LORD,
                    Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish.
                    Into smoke they shall vanish away.

 

The New Testament reveals that the unbelieving and the wicked,

 

                    shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the

                    presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power

                    (2 Thessalonians 1:9)[11]

 

The unbelieving and the wicked are not tormented forever; they are destroyed forever.

 

But now, someone might ask, “Didn’t Jesus Christ teach that we could be thrown into hell fire?” Yes, he did. Let’s read what he said in Mark 9.

 

                    But whoever causes one of these little ones who

                    believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him

                    if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were

                    thrown into the sea. ⁴³ If your hand causes you to sin,

                    cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed,

                    rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the

                    fire that shall never be quenched— ⁴⁴ where ‘Their

                    worm does not die And the fire is not quenched

                    (Mark 9:42-44)

 

          Jesus Christ declared that a terrible fate awaits unrepentant sinners—hell fire that is never quenched. The Greek word translated “hell” is not sheol or hades but gehenna. Gehenna referred to a literal geographic place called the Valley of Hinnom outside of Jerusalem. This was a garbage dump and the rubbish of the city, the carcasses of animals and the bodies of criminals were burned there. The fire of gehenna never went out, it burned day and night. But everything that was thrown into gehenna was destroyed, consumed and brought to ashes. So it will be for the unsaved on the day of their judgment. Here is what Jesus had to say about the coming judgment.

 

                    Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word

                    and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life,

                    and shall not come into judgment, but has passed

                    from death into life. ²⁵ Most assuredly, I say to you,

                    the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will

                    hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who

                    hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in Himself,

                    so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself,

                    ²⁷ and has given Him authority to execute judgment

                    also, because He is the Son of Man.

                    ²⁸ Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which

                    all who are in the graves will hear His voice ²⁹ and come

                    forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection

                    of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection

                    of condemnation.

                    (John 5:24-29)

 

          One day everyone who is in the grave, not in heaven or hell, but in sheol or hades will hear the voice of Jesus Christ and come to life. Those who have hope in God and Christ will receive the gift of everlasting life. Those who rejected God will face judgment and condemnation. Revelation 21 declares that everyone not found in the Book of Life will be judged, sentenced to the second death and destroyed in the lake of fire. Death and hades will be cast there too.[12] As there is a second and higher life, so there is also a second and deeper death. And as in that higher life there is no more death[13], so in that deeper death there is no life.

 

          Upon learning all of this what should our reaction be? Truth matters; not just as facts store in our minds, but as truths to affect our whole heart and outlook on life. Understanding the true nature of our mortality we should realize that life, this life, is our opportunity to serve God. King Hezekiah was deathly sick, but God had mercy upon him and healed him. Here is Hezekiah’s response.

 

                    Indeed it was for my own peace
                    That I had great bitterness;
                    But You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit

                    of corruption,
                    For You have cast all my sins behind Your back.
                    ¹⁸ For Sheol cannot thank You,
                    Death cannot praise You;
                    Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your truth.
                    ¹⁹ The living, the living man, he shall praise You,
                    As I do this day;
                    The father shall make known Your truth to the children.
                    ²⁰ “The LORD was ready to save me;
                    Therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments
                    All the days of our life, in the house of the LORD.

                    (Isaiah 38:17-20)

 

          Today is the day to thank God for the forgiveness of your sins. Today is the day to praise God and to serve Him with all your heart. Today is the day to teach your children the truth. This is because,

 

For God so loved the world that He gave His only

begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should

not perish but have everlasting life.

(John 3:16)

 

          How urgent it is for us to share the love of God and the good news of Jesus Christ—today, to as many people as we can. While life remains for us, let us praise God for our salvation. And let us share the good news of Jesus Christ lest someone die, as Scripture says as “strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.”[14]

 

 

 

 

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[1] The King James Version and some other translations use the word “soul.”

[2] The Erdman’s Bible Dictionary (Erdman’s Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1987. P. 518) has this to say about the pagan and biblical ideas about “soul”: “The question of human immortality inevitably involves a comparison of biblical and Greek views of the subject. The Greek view, expounded by Plato’s Phaedo, is based on an anthropological dualism of body and soul. The body is gross, corruptible, subject to illusion. The soul, on the other hand, is immortal…Biblical anthropology is not dualistic, but monistic: human beings consist in the integrated wholeness of body and soul, and the Bible never contemplates the disembodied existence of the soul in bliss…Biblical immortality” is achieved “in connection with the resurrection of the body.”

[3] According to God’s Word animals are living beings, nephesh, too as these verses from Genesis 1 reveals: v. 20 – “creatures” = nephesh, v. 21 – “sea creatures” = nephesh, v. 24 –“ living creatures” = nephesh, v. 30 – “life” = nephesh. The translators of our English Bible have done us a disservice by hiding the fact that animals are living souls or beings. The nephesh and it’s New Testament equivalent psyche can be used figuratively for our emotions or thought life but nowhere in Scripture is immortality associated with our being a living being or soul.

 

[4] The New Catholic Encyclopedia (p. 1124): “As is clear from Genesis 2:7, the primary meaning [of soul/nephesh] is possessing life…the word [soul] is never used for the spirit of the dead.”

[5] Even the Lord Jesus Christ did not have an immortal soul. Isaiah 53:12 prophetically states that when Jesus died for our sins “He poured out His soul [his being/life] unto death.” Jesus truly died. But he did not see corruption, because God raised him from the dead (Psalm 16:9-11; Acts 2:24-28).

[6] This is why death is often spoken of as sleep (Duet. 31:16; 1 Kings 2:10; Psalm 13:3; Daniel 12:2; 1 Corinthians 15:18, 20, 51; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).  Just as in deep sleep there is no consciousness of time, so there is none in death. One moment we close our eyes in death and figuratively in the next moment we awake to newness of life (Psalm 17:15).

[7] Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics (Vol. 1, p. 545): “The strongest force working in favor of a general acceptance of the belief in natural immortality has been the dominant influence of Platonism in the early stages of the development of Christian doctrine.” N. H. Snaith, The Distinctive Ideas of the Old Testament, (Epworth Press, London, 1955), pp. 187, 188. “. . . the reinterpretation of biblical theology in terms of Greek philosophers has been both widespread throughout the centuries and everywhere destructive to the essence of the Christian faith . . . Neither Catholic or Protestant theology is based on biblical theology. In each case we have the domination of Christian theology by Greek thought.”

[8] Genesis 3:4

[9] The modern English word Hell is derived from Old English hel, helle and ultimately from Proto-Germanic halja, meaning covered up or hidden.

[10] The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible: “Nowhere in the Old Testament is the abode of the dead regarded as a place of punishment or torture. The concept of an infernal “hell” developed in Israel only during the Hellenistic [Greek philosophical] period.”

[11] See also Psalm 92:7; Proverbs 24:19, 20; Philippians 3:18, 19; 2 Peter 2:12

[12] Revelation 21:11-15

[13] Revelation 20:6

[14] Ephesians 2:12