Perhaps the most important question of all time, to a lot of people, is, What happens after we die? Is there life after death? This question has puzzled mankind since Adam, and there are many different theories suggested. And God is rather clear in the Bible on this subject, as He would be, since Scripture claims in various places that He loves His children—so He would tell us “where we’re moving to” when we die.
So, let’s study what the Word says on the “moving” issue. Let’s promise ourselves that what the Scripture says is more important than what our church says. It looks like the correct doctrine includes an intermediate state (we’re not speaking of Catholic beliefs). Few people believe this anymore–it has either been warped or lost. But it’s definitely in Scripture. Studying that is the ultimate focus of this blog.
The most detailed explanation of life just beyond the grave is found in Jesus’ account of the rich man and Lazarus. See Luke 16:22-31, where Jesus says:
22 So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26 And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’ 27 “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ 29 Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’”
What do we see?
1) 1) The previously poor man is in “Abraham’s bosom,” v.22. He is “comforted.” The rich man is “afar off”—a “great gulf fixed” away–suffering. Yet they’re both likely in the same place, since Abraham and the tormented man can see and talk to one another. That place, with good and bad, is called “hades.” Abraham’s bosom is the good part of this place, but the “hot” section is the bad part. The word “hades” is used several times in Scripture (beware–some translations goof this up) to describe the entire place.
2) 2) The rich man in the suffering region then becomes the focus. He is “in torments.” He “cries out” in agony. Thirst is a serious problem, since a flame is nearby.
3) He has a memory–he is well aware of his previous life, since he remembered his brothers and now wants to see them saved from this. This adds to his mental anxiety while there.
4) As vv 27-31 show, there is no way that someone in this region can warn those still alive. There is no communication between dead and living. Thus, we conclude that seances would be meaningless, today as well as then.
5) Those who are tormented in hades will later be thrown into hell. Revelation 20:14:
Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death
6) Jesus, as the designer of hades, is tough on the tormented man who is eventually to be cast to hell:
a. Through Abraham, He is willing to let him suffer, acknowledging “you are tormented” –yet without relieving him.
b. When the man complains of his suffering, Jesus through Abraham even taunts him, reminding him of the reversal of roles for the two of them—and telling him, too bad, he can’t change his fate
A dreaded and powerful scene! Yet I’m saying that these statements are based on reality, they are not just a “parable that doesn’t apply to us.” Modern theologians don’t want to consider this a doctrine, because it is uncompassionate. I don’t think it is a parable, it’s a doctrine, since it has named Lazarus, and parables don’t give names. This is God’s truth for what happens right after death. Let’s imagine it was a parable–would Jesus set forth a deception about what happens when we die–would He express an untruth on such an important issue? Especially considering we know so little about this important subject elsewhere in Scripture. Would He say, “Hah! I got you. This is all untrue for the future that you will be living in. Now you can continue worrying about this very important question.” I think not.
Part of the reason I believe this intermediate state, hades, is a truth is that it fits in God’s revealed plan in Scripture:
Part of the reason I believe this intermediate state, hades, is a truth is that it fits in God’s revealed plan in Scripture:
(1) if we have faith and live for the Lord, at death our spirit and our body separate from one another: We are in the spirit, comforted by Christ (the comfort of Abraham idea).
(2) there will be a day of judgment: Matthew 25:31-32:
“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in
The word “nations” comes from the Greek “ethnos,” and means “a multitude of people of the same nature,” in this case a multitude of “goats,” having an unsaved nature, etc. And a multiple of sheep, now having a saved nature. There are those who believe that “ethnos” always means nations. But it cannot be that an entire nation will be judged, and all of its people saved or lost, on how Some of them gave to the poor, some did not. Scripture is clear that we are all individually judged.
(3) After the Judgment, the unsaved goats, from the “bad” side of hades, went to hell; and the saved sheep, from the comforted in spirit side, get their bodies resurrected, and then salvation is complete. Like Jesus, we will have body and spirit–all perfect, all desirous of doing His will (finally). NOTE that it is impossible to change locations: at death your entire future, hell or heaven, cannot be changed.
Further proof is in related backup Scriptures, as you’ll see below.
Yet another reason is that this was universally believed by the earliest church fathers; they were brilliant men in their knowledge of Scripture, and believed it was truth. They knew their Greek backward and forward, they knew the culture, they could have asked questions of the apostles, or someone only a generation from them. Consider also that that early church was the most dynamic and godly church in history; so I believe their theology was accurate, and God blessed them because of that by touching their evangelism greatly.
Now here are other supporting Scriptures for the intermediate state:
1. Luke 23:43 records Jesus’ words on the Cross to the dying and just-saved thief alongside:
And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
What’s Paradise? Think with me: if the saved poor man’s first stopover after death, from Luke 16, is “Abraham’s bosom,” as we saw above, and if the first stopover for the just-saved thief is in “paradise,” we have to conclude that since their destination will be the same, paradise is the same thing as Abraham’s bosom. Namely, the good side of hades. We conclude that paradise is NOT heaven, but an intermediate state, hades.
2. Jesus went to hades too, when He died, as proved by Matthew 12:40 and parts of Acts 2:22-27, the words of Peter:
For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth
“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs…you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; 24 whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it. 25 For David says concerning Him: Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope.27 For You will not leave my soul in hades, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
So Jesus did not die and go straight to heaven because He was in “the heart of the earth,” which is definitely not heaven; nor did He go to hell, called “gehenna” in Greek, the lake of fire, a different Greek word. For some, going there will be later. The only choice left is the good side of hades. Jesus told the thief He was going to paradise with Him–yet these verses clearly show, He went to hades. “In the heart of the earth” doesn’t sound like heaven, right? Hades is presumably located deep in earth. His soul did not remain in hades long—three days and nights; when His job there was done, He then went to heaven.
Perhaps your Bible uses “hell” when it should be called “hades.” It also uses “hell” in some versions for Greek “gehenna” and “tartarus.” Those, however, are three separate Greek words, signifying 3 separate places. The English words should be different, rather than combining them all as “hell.” Blame William Tyndale. He took these three Greek words, meaning different things, and translated them all “hell” in English. A proper modern translation would catch this.
These truths about the intermediate state were so universally believed by the earliest Christians that it became part of the original Apostles’ Creed: I believe in God the Father Almighty…and in Jesus Christ…was crucified, dead and buried. He descended to hades (the Greek word); on the third day rose from the dead…
Jesus did not go to hell, but gave hope to the waiting godly souls in hades.
3. John 14:1-3:
“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.
Note the underlined phrase. This proves that when the righteous die, they do not go immediately to heaven to be with Jesus. Why? Well, He has to “come again” (His second coming) and “receive” us, and then the saved, body and soul, go to heaven. If we were already in heaven (i.e., by rapture, so-called), He would not have to “come again” to get us. No, our spirits are in the heart of the earth, in hades, waiting for bodily “pick up.” The pick up will be better than a really hot hot air balloon, better than being the delivery token for an Amazon drone, I’ll bet.
4. John 5:28-29:
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.
Thus, both groups will “come forth” (at the second coming) to the Judgment, possibly at the same time (your denomination may not believe this “judgement at the same time” idea). So hades will be emptied all at once. (If we’re already in heaven, as so many assume, the resurrection would be no big deal–since we’re “already there,” in spirit. It would be just picking up the body. The important thing would always be being with Jesus in heaven–but this has already been going on, according to them. But they are wrong. It will be a total resurrection for heaven at once, body and soul–a big deal, as Scripture points out excitedly. It gets us, soul and body, from hades to heaven, not from heaven to heaven with a body.
5. I Corinthians 15:22-23:
For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming.
So when are we “made alive,” that is, body and soul together? When Jesus comes again, not at time of death. (At His second coming, not the “rapture.”)
6. I Thessalonians 4:16-17:
For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
The first verse indicates the Second Coming (not the 3rd coming, as rapturists believe). Note that “the dead in Christ” will rise. It doesn’t say “their bodies will arise,” (implying that the rapture already picked up the soul), but “the dead” will rise; i.e., body joins soul, they both go up for the first time. Also note that verse 17 says we will “meet the Lord in the air.” Many modern commentaries say our spirit goes immediately to heaven when we die; and say that when Jesus comes down, He comes with the spirits of His saved people to pick up their bodies. But that can’t be, since we will “meet the Lord in the air” at His Coming. “Meet” here suggests “first time I’ve seen you,” since its definition in Vine’s Expository Dictionary says “the official welcome of a newly arrived dignitary.”
8. Finally, I Peter 5:4:
….and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away
Thus, this does not happen when we die; it happens “when the Chief Shepherd appears”–at His Second Coming.
Hopefully these many Scriptures will be convincing. But, you ask, “I don’t think anyone teaches this, how can it be correct?” Well, many Mennonites, some Brethren, some Amish, some in the Restoration movement, some conservative Anglicans still teach this.
Well–so most of us has had it wrong for centuries? How could that be? The speculation is, teaching on the intermediate state has gotten dropped because the Reformation tried to get as far away from the Catholics’ false teaching on purgatory. Purgatory teaches that (a) the Intermediate State can cleanse your sins and (b) it can change final status. Double False. Scripture shows that hades (the real Intermediate State) does not change final status, as we saw in Luke. The sincere pleadings of the rich man were greeted coldly. The rich man encountered Jesus not as merciful, but as Judge. Remember, few are saved (Matthew 7:14). We are shocked and sometimes uncomfortable about seeing this “negative side” of God. But He doesn’t think as we do. We cannot imagine, for instance, how deep is God’s hatred about sin. If you’re unsaved when you go into hades, you’re unsaved when you go out. Period. There is no Scriptural basis for “cleansing from sin” in that state either. The idea that you can purge your own sin is completely false and anti-Biblical, as Scriptural points out, and I point out in many blogs. Jesus has done that cleansing from sin for us. The “works vs faith” argument was what kick-started the Reformation—a just movement in its beginning, but it went to wrong theology on some points to get away from looking Catholic.
Next, Catholicism teaches that there is a special status for those classified as “saints”—they get to go straight to heaven. Everybody else has to go to purgatory to “work off” their sins. False. Scripture is clear that everyone saved is a saint. There are no “status” Christians. Philippians 1:1 says:
Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons.
If saints are only the “status” Christians, why is Paul calling every Christian a “saint,” and, oh yes, let’s not forget the separate listing of bishops and deacons. How do you explain that?
John Calvin, who formulated many Protestant doctrines (not my favorite person, as I have a blog on him), dropped the intermediate state doctrine. So both Catholics and most Protestants have it wrong. You’ve got to read Scripture for yourselves, folks.
Now let us deal with verses the “straight to heaven” folks love: Start with I Thessalonians 4:14, which I’d like to add context by adding verses 16 and 17:
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Now remember, “sleep” refers to death. Start by looking at v. 17, “we who are alive…shall be caught up together with them..to meet the Lord in the air.” Who is “them?” It’s “those who sleep in Jesus.” The verses, taken together, mean that the Christian dead will rise from the grave at His second coming (yes, His second coming), answers first the Thessalonian question about “what happens to the dead?” They go to heaven at the second coming. Then he also adds those who are alive at the time and Christians who are alive at that time will rise from hades and join them to “meet the Lord.” That’s how Jesus will “bring with Him” both groups to heaven. Paul will join them, with Jesus, who will “bring” us to heaven AT THAT TIME. “And AT THAT TIME (the second coming) we will “always be with the Lord.”
Now let us deal with verses the “straight to heaven” folks love: Start with I Thessalonians 4:14, which I’d like to add context by adding verses 16 and 17:
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Now remember, “sleep” refers to death. Start by looking at v. 17, “we who are alive…shall be caught up together with them..to meet the Lord in the air.” Who is “them?” It’s “those who sleep in Jesus.” The verses, taken together, mean that the Christian dead will rise from the grave at His second coming (yes, His second coming), answers first the Thessalonian question about “what happens to the dead?” They go to heaven at the second coming. Then he also adds those who are alive at the time and Christians who are alive at that time will rise from hades and join them to “meet the Lord.” That’s how Jesus will “bring with Him” both groups to heaven. Paul will join them, with Jesus, who will “bring” us to heaven AT THAT TIME. “And AT THAT TIME (the second coming) we will “always be with the Lord.”
PS. This explanation is simple and uncomplicated, as long as you don’t believe in a separate Rapture. Keep in mind, a separate rapture means that Jesus comes three times, which is un-Scriptural. They’re saying, first was His Incarnation; second, His “rapture;” third, His coming in judgment. I have a separate series of blogs on this. If you DO believe in a Rapture, the explanation for how ‘who goes to heaven when’ twists Scripture around like a pretzel to figure out. I won’t even try; somehow I feel that God would make it simple to figure out the important question of “where do we go when we die?”
Another favorite Scripture of “straight to heaven”: Ephesians 4:8-10:
Therefore He says: “When He ascended on high He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.” 9 (Now this, “He ascended”—what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens,
“Captivity captive” is confusing for even the experts to figure out. It could mean either He is referring to the “enemy soldiers” captured, or the rescue of our own men held captive by the enemy. So, flip a coin. If you choose the latter, Jesus is bringing out of hades His children, taking them to heaven. If you choose the former, Jesus is making a display of enemy forces dragged through the city in chains (commonly done in Roman victories). He triumphed over them by His death and resurrection. Who are those enemy forces? That idea is probably best interpreted by Colossians 2:15, where it is said of the “principalities and powers”–the powers of sin and death–that “He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in the cross.”
The fact is, this “captivity captive” verse speaks of unusual things that we can’t expect to build a theology of “where do we go when we die?” around. Look at Matthew 27:52-53, when Jesus died:
and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53 and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.
Was that a repeatable event? Can we form a theology around Matthew 27:52 about when our bodies are raised from the dead? I’m saying the earlier verses, Ephesians 4:8-10, could also have been a strange, non-theologically-based event too. In any event, since I suggested “flip a coin,” I’m saying this is not a proof for either side, and is not relevant to forming a doctrine on.
Another verse for “straight to heaven:” Philippians 1:23:
For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.
Paul is just wondering which is better–to live and support Christians, or to die and be with Christ. I don’t think Paul put any theology on this “what do I prefer” question (nor should we!). For that reason alone, Paul is not thinking doctrinally. Consider also that Christ, or His Spirit, could be in hades with the spirit of a Christian after death, so He is “with” us in hades. So this verse does not lock the case for the “straight to heaven” group either.
Another favorite of theirs is Act 7:56, 59, at the martyrdom of Stephen:
and (Stephen) said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” 59 And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Well, this too could be a special case: Stephen is the first New Testament martyr; plus, he has given a severe admonishment to the Jews about their history defying God, and Jesus confirms him by showing up. Naturally, a man would react by saying, “Jesus, receive my spirit.” Keep in mind, that’s what a man is quoting, and doesn’t have to be doctrine God can approve of for everyone. Think of the musings of Job; they’re not all correct.
Finally, II Corinthians 5:8:
We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.
This is clearly the “straight to heaven” folks’ favorite verse. But…when there are abundant verses telling us differently, should we believe that God changed the doctrinal implications and only indicated the change clearly by this one verse? Would God do that on such an important teaching as “where we go when we die?”
So, as I’m speaking with mostly “straight to heaven” crowd–we should consider opening our mind to a different definition of this verse. We really ought to consider the phrase doesn’t really say that “one leads immediately to the other.” And, since Jesus is omnipresent, why couldn’t Jesus be in heaven with God and be in hades in Spirit, comforting and speaking with His children there too?
So what I see is, none of these verses lock down the “straight to heaven” idea. My eight verses on the intermediate state logically string together a solid case for the good side of hades, then later heaven at His second coming.
It’s not a new idea. After all, it was believed by the Jews, then believed by the young church for another 600 years, then the Catholic church perverted it.
If you want to know more about what Scripture really says on How Do You Get Saved, you need to know that Catholics and many Protestants have not emphasized the right doctrine. I have a blog just on salvation, and another on initial and final salvation. Smarter, though, would be to read the Gospels over and over, noting what Jesus says on that very subject. He is quite clear.
Acknowledgement: David Bercot, CD, “Life After Death.” Scroll Publishing
