Hell and Three days in the Bosom of Abraham (ref1)
We are going to be tackling a very very interesting subject, one that can be controversial and one rarely preached. But when we do get an understanding of it, the answers will open our eyes to not only many questions that challenge the Christian community but also many verses in the bible that we did not fully understand. That is this question of what happened in the three days that Jesus was dead, before He rose again. That insight is going to answer many questions especially what happens when we die, what happened to all the people that died before Jesus came to earth and I think it will probably change some ideas we have of “hell”.
One things for sure, the fatality rate on earth is 100%
Little Bobby was sitting on the porch talking to his Grandpa when he innocently asked, “Grandpa, do you know how to make animal sounds?” “I sure do” Grandpa replied. “What sort of animal sound would you like to hear?” “How about a toad? Do you know how to sound like a toad?” “Sure”, said Grandpa, cupping his hand to his mouth, “croaaak croaaak, how did you like that?!” “Yipee!” screamed Bobby jumping up and down, “We’re going to Disneyworld!” “Huh?” Questioned Grandpa. “Why’s that?” “Because Grandma said that after you croak we’ll all go to Disneyworld!”
But getting back to the topic. When Jesus died at the crucifixion we read in Ehpesians,
Ephesians 4:8-10 8 This is why it[a] says:
“When he ascended on high,
he took many captives
and gave gifts to his people.”[b]
9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions[c]? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)
( Paul is quoting from Psalm 68:18).
Clearly then when Jesus died He “descended to the lower, earthly regions”
But where did He descend to? He descended into a place known as Sheol. We see this in different places in the bible eg when Jacob learns that his favourite son, Joseph, has been killed by wild animals, Jacob says this in his distress
Genesis 37:33-35 (NASB)
33 Then he [a]examined it and said, “It is my son’s tunic. A vicious animal has devoured him; Joseph has surely been torn to pieces!” 34 So Jacob tore his clothes, and put on a sackcloth undergarment over his waist, and mourned for his son many days. 35 Then all his sons and all his daughters got up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. And he said, “Surely I will go down to Sheol in mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him.
Job also
Job 14:13 (NASB)
13 “Oh that You would hide me in [a]Sheol,
That You would conceal me until Your wrath returns to You,
That You would set a limit for me and remember me
The NIV tends to translate Sheol as the “grave” which is too simplistic so loses a great deal from the Hebrew.
But what is Sheol?
It’s a place where God held the souls of all those who died prior to Christ’s sacrifice on the cross
In fact Sheol is two places and we see this in Luke 16
Luke 16:22-26 (NASB)
22 Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and *saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. 26 And [a]besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’
Now we know that no animal sacrifice is adequate to enter the Kingdom of heaven. Only when Jesus had paid that ultimate price, and that price was accepted in faith, would those come into the Kingdom of heaven. And so we have righteous men such as Abraham and Jacob and many many others who died before Jesus’ crucifixion who at that time were not able to come into the Kingdom of Heaven until they too had been washed in the blood of Jesus. As a result they were held in Sheol in a place of comfort awaiting the sacrifice of Messiah as payment for their sins. That place of comfort was Abraham’s home for a time, it came to be called “Abraham’s Bosom,” or “Abraham’s side” meaning the place of Abraham’s comfort
But Sheol was more than just Abraham’s Bosom. Sheol had a second part that held the souls of all those who died without faith. This part of Sheol goes by a different name: Hades. Hades is the Greek word for the place we call Hell. And as the name suggests, this side of Sheol is not a place of comfort
So Jesus descends to Sheol, which is made up of two parts, Abrahams Bosom, a place of comfort, and Hades or hell, a place of no comfort at all.
As a result by the time of Jesus’ first coming, both sides of Sheol were full of souls. Abraham’s Bosom held the souls of the Old Testament saints since Adam. While Hades held the souls of unbelievers .
So when Jesus died and descended to Sheol what did He do?
One thing He did was He preached! That why we read in.
1 Peter 3:18-20 (NASB)
18 For Christ also suffered for sins once for all time, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; 19 in which He also went and made proclamation to the spirits in prison, ……20 who once were disobedient when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water.
But most importantly He went there to unlock the gates of this prison for all believers and it changed what happened to the souls of those of faith from that moment on. It was a momentous occasion because when Jesus ascended it says in the Psalms
Psalm 68:18 He “led captives in [His] train”
and in
Ephesians 4:8-10 8 This is why it[a] says:
“When he ascended on high,
he took many captives
and gave gifts to his people.”[b
At that moment, those in Sheol in Abrahams bosom/side were set free from this prison. So today, Abraham's Bosom stands empty, since the spirits of dead Christians may now enter directly into Heaven . Hades continues to grow with unbelievers until the end
Its important to understand that we are talking about a spiritual ascension of the souls, not a physical “new body” resurrection. That happens at a later stage. Therefore, Christians who die will enter immediately into Heaven in spirit form only. In a future day, the Lord has promised to return for His Church and resurrect us (i.e., give us new bodies). In 1 Thess 4 Paul teaches the exact order of events for the resurrection of the church which we will look at in a moment.
But we should know that when we die now we immediately go into heaven in spirit form.
Mark 12:26-27 (NIV)26 Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the burning bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’[a]? 27 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”
We are not in some suspended state buried in the ground awaiting a future date to go to heaven!
Luke 23:39-43 (NIV)39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.[a]”43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
So again, clearly we are not in some kind of soul sleep. We go to heaven immediately, but resurrection of new body takes place at a later stage
Now lets look at Thessalonians
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (NASB) 13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as indeed the rest of mankind do, who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose from the dead, so also God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep through Jesus. 15 For we say this to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who remain, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore ,comfort one another with these words.
Remember our God is a God of the living not the dead, so here we are describing the moment of the Rapture and then the resurrection into a new body.
At the moment of the resurrection, Paul says in v.14 that the Lord returns from Heaven bringing with him those saints who have already died. These saints will return in spirit only (i.e., no bodies). When the moment arrives for all the Church to receive new bodies, Paul says those Christians who are alive on earth at the moment Jesus returns to resurrect the church will not receive new bodies before those who have already died.
Those saints who have already died and are returning with Christ will receive new physical bodies first with Christ in the clouds (v.16). Then immediately afterward, all saints still alive on the earth will be moved directly from the earth to the clouds into new bodies. They will not experience death but will move directly from earth to the clouds and into new eternal bodies.
Finally, Paul gives additional detail on the rapture in 1Corinthians 15:
1 Corinthians 15:51-53 (NASB)
51 Behold, I am telling you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.
Paul is teaching that at the moment of the resurrection for all saints, any believers who are still alive at that moment will instantly exchange their present body for a new body. The exchange for a new incorruptible form is necessary because we are immediately escorted into Heaven with the Lord.
Just to close off what happens then in the Spiritual realm
We read in Revelation 9 at the end of time, close to mid tribulation in the last 7 years,( ie close to 3.5 yrs)the 5th Trumpet is blown, this is the first Woe. We see that an Angel is released from the Abyss or Bottomless pit. This angel is called Apollyon. This is a fallen angel or demon that creates a great deal of pain in the world. Subsequent to this more demons are released in the 2nd Woe that results in the death of a third of mankind
This bottomless pit or the abyss is the place where God keeps demons captive until they receive their judgment and punishment. The abyss exists side by side with Sheol. So this abyss is a separate place. We also read about the abyss in Luke;
Luke 8:30-31 (NIV)
30 Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” “Legion,” he replied, because many demons had gone into him. 31 And they begged Jesus repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss.
Finally we see in Revelation 20 that, Satan is thrown into the abyss (the demons prison) for 1000 years. After which Satan is then set free for a short period then thrown into the lake of fire.
Revelation 20:1-10 (NIV)The Thousand Years
20 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. 3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.
After this event we have judgement and then…. Satan is thrown into the Lake of Fire
Revelation 20:10 .. And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
And then death and Hades are thrown into the lake of fire!
Revelation 20:14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
So to summarise : We have looked at Sheol, Hades, the abyss and the lake of fire and that can be confronting. BUT one thing we should never forget, is that we have a destiny that is steadfast and sure. We have a destiny in the Kingdom of Heaven!
(1 Corinthians 2:9 ) :” no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no human mind has conceived” the things God has prepared for those who love him and
Corinthians 15:54-57 (NIV)
54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”
55 “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”
See you in heaven!
The Apostles' Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Ref 1: For a better and more detailed information please refer to Verse by Verse Ministry (Stephen Armstrong) https://www.versebyverseministry.org/ from which most of this information was gleaned