Heaven, Hades and Hell
Salvation for the Dead
Hades is not Hell.
Non Christians who died are in Hades,
not Hell.
Jesus went to Hades to preach the
Gospel.
In Hades, conversion opportunities are given to the dead.
Arimasa Kubo, Bible expositor
Only Heaven and Hell? No!
Many people have been taught
that the only worlds after death are Heaven and Hell. They think that when
people die, Christians go to Heaven and non-Christians go immediately to Hell.
But this is not what the Bible teaches.
According to the Bible,
Christians go to Heaven after death, and non-Christians go to Hades which
is different from Hell. Hades is the temporary place to keep the general dead
people until God’s final judgment of the end of the world. Hell is the place of
punishment after the final judgment. Heaven is the eternal place for God’s
people.
As we shall see later, in
the 4th century people began to confuse Hades with Hell. Since then, the concept
of Hades, as the world where non-Christians go after death, has disappeared from
the minds of Western Christians. As a result, people thought the only worlds
after death to be Heaven and Hell.
However, the ancient Hebrews
regarded Hades to be different from Hell. Hades is a Greek word. In Hebrew it is
Sheol. Hades in the New Testament and Sheol in the Old Testament have exactly
the same meaning, because the Septuagint, which is the Greek Old Testament used
among Greek Jews in Jesus time, translated every Sheol in the Hebrew Old
Testament into Hades.
Hades Was for All Dead
People
In Old Testament times,
Hades was a place where every dead person went. For example, when Jacob,
forefather of the Israelites, heard the news that his beloved son Joseph had
died, Jacob said: "in mourning will I go down to Sheol to my son."
(Genesis 37:35)
In Jacob's understanding,
Joseph went to Sheol, in spite of his pious faith in God. It was a general
understanding among Jews that all those who died were to go down to Sheol.
Obviously, Sheol is not Heaven, for it is said to be beneath the earth. Sheol is
not Hell either, because it was a destination for believers as much as it was
for non-believers. Before Christ, Sheol was the world for all the dead.
Jacob
thought that
Joseph
King David said that, when
he felt death was near, "my life draws near to Sheol"
(Psalm 88:3, NRSV). In Ecclesiastes, King
Solomon refers to "Sheol" as the world where everybody goes after death (9:10).
When King Saul went astray
and asked a female medium to bring up the late Prophet Samuel, the medium said,
"I see a god-like being coming up out of the earth."
(I Samuel 28:13)
Samuel came up from Sheol.
Not only the wicked, but
also the righteous, including Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Isaiah, Jeremiah
and all other believers and prophets, were destined for Sheol after death,
because it was before Jesus died on the cross.
The ancient Jews had thought
that the vast Sheol was divided into several parts. The Book of Enoch, an
ancient Jewish document, mentions that inside Sheol (Hades) there are four
compartments: one for the righteous (believers of God), and the other three for
other dead people. Hades was thus the place for all who died.
But the saints of the Old
Testament times are now not in Hades
(Sheol), but in Heaven, as the Bible
states:
"When he (Jesus) ascended on
high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men." (Ephesians 4:8-9)
The "captives" whom Jesus
led to Heaven were "spirits in captivity
(in Hades)" (I Peter 3:19). When Jesus ascended to
Heaven, they were taken to Heaven with Jesus. Hades is thus a completely
different place from Hell.
Hades is Temporary
After Jesus’ ascension,
Christians go to Heaven after their physical death and enter God’s glory and
bliss. Apostle Paul writes, "We are…well pleased rather to be absent from the
body and to be present with the Lord." (II Corinthians 5:8).
The Book of Revelation
states that Christian martyrs are serving at the altar of Heaven (6:9, 8:3).
On the other hand, dead
non-Christians now go to Hades. And according to what they sowed on earth, some
souls receive comfort, and some receive discipline or punishment. Hades exists
for them to think back on their lives on earth. They are to be left there until
God’s final judgment of the end of the world, when they will all be brought out
to the court of God’s judgment and be told their final destination. After that,
the empty Hades will be abandoned to Hell, as the Bible states:
"Then death and Hades
were thrown into the lake of fire (Hell). The lake of fire (=Hell)
is the second death."
(Revelation 20:14)
It is thus obvious that
Hades is different from Hell. Hades is temporary until the end of the world.
Hell, meanwhile, remains the final place of punishment for the end of the world
after God’s final judgment. Hell is already in preparation (Matthew 25:41),
but no one is yet in it.
Thus, Christians go to Heaven after death, and non-Christians go to Hades to
await their final judgment.
Mistake in the U.S.
Apostles’ Creed
Then, why have Christians
ever been taught that Christians go to Heaven and non-Christians go to Hell
right after death? The Bible states that Jesus died on the cross and then
descended to Hades. The original Greek text of Acts 2:31 is:
"He (David),
foreseeing this, spoke
concerning the resurrection of Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades."
The Bible clearly states
that Jesus descended to Hades, not Hell. However, the well-used Apostles' Creed
in the U.S. states, "he descended to Hell." The English version of the
Apostles' Creed of the Catholic Church states the same. Why did this happen?
The Old Roman Creed in the
2nd century and the Necene Creed in 325 simply stated, "Jesus... was crucified
and buried, on the third day rose again from the dead" without mentioning either
Hades or Hell. Eventually, however, the confusion of Hades with Hell began among
Roman Christians. Later, in the latter half of the 4th century the Apostles'
Creed in Latin added the phrase, "he descended to Hell
(inferos in Latin)".
The so-called Apostles’
Creed is not what the apostles of Jesus wrote. It was formed in the latter half
of the 4th century, when the confusion of Hades with Hell began. The concept of
Hades disappeared from the minds of Western Christians. People began to think
that the only worlds after death are Heaven and Hell.
In reality, the worlds after
death are Heaven, Hades and Hell. Heaven is eternal. Hades is before the
final judgment of the end of the world. Hell is the punishment after the final
judgment. The Apostles' Creed of the Church of England and others states, "he
descended to the dead," avoiding the word "Hell".
The Apostles' Creed of both
the Catholic Church and Protestant Church in Japan states, "he descended to
Hades." The Japanese translators never translated it into "Hell", because they
were based on the biblical text. They understood the biblical concept of Hades,
for in their tradition they have a similar concept to Hades.
Confusion of Hades with Hell
In the Western world, the
confusion of Hades with Hell began very early in the Christian tradition. After
the 4th century, Westerners thought that Christians would go to Heaven after
death, and non-Christians would go immediately to Hell.
Later, the Catholic Church
invented the teaching of Purgatory, which is a place for incomplete Christians
to be purified before going up to Heaven. Purgatory is not a place for
non-Christians. In Dante's Divine Comedy of the 14th century, there are mentions
of Heaven, Hell and Purgatory. Purgatory is a teaching of the Roman Catholic,
not of the Protestant or the Orthodox. The rest are only Heaven and Hell. Hades
disappeared from people's minds.
Dante's Divine Comedy
In the 16th century, the
Protestant Church published the King James Version
(KJV)
of the Bible. It also
mistranslated Hades into Hell. In the 20th century, the Living Bible became a
bestseller in many countries, but it also translated Hades into Hell. The
confusion of Hades with Hell became widespread.
Some Bible teachers think
that's a problem, but they are in the minority. In his book, Rex Humbard, a
pioneer of American television evangelism, clearly distinguished Hades from
Hell, and explained the difference between the two. However, the identification
of Hades with Hell is still strong. The confusion between the two has led to a
very chaotic response in Christianity concerning the concept of life after death
as the following teachings are presented.
Wrong
Teachings
(1) The only worlds after
death are Heaven and Hell.
(2) "The Judgment after
death" (Hebrews 9:27)
is immediately after death.
People are divided either into Heaven or Hell at the time of death.
(3) Non-Christians go to
Hell immediately after death. There is no postmortem opportunity for their
conversion.
Only Heaven and Hell?
The Bible tells us that
Jesus descended to Hades, not Hell, to preach the Gospel to the dead there.
"Being put to death in the
flesh... He
(Jesus)
went and preached to the
spirits in prison... the gospel was preached also to those who are dead."
(I Peter 3:18-4:6)
Jesus preaching to the dead
in Hades
However, as confusion over
Hades and Hell grew, various odd interpretations emerged. One such
interpretation is that Jesus preached condemnation there, instead of the Good
News. Another is that these verses refer not to Jesus' preaching in Hades, but
Jesus was spiritually in Noah's preaching to the people in Noah's time who are
now in Hades.
An American pastor writes,
"Some people think I Peter 3:18-4:6 is telling us that Jesus went down into Hell
and preached the Gospel to the dead. But if this were true, we should recall at
least half of our missionaries and bring them home, because it would make their
desperate evangelism meaningless." Confusing Hades with Hell, he denied Jesus’
preaching of the Gospel to the dead in Hades.
A pastor, who studied
theology in the U.S. and founded a mega-church in Korea, once was asked a
question, "There are those who were good but died without hearing the Gospel and
salvation. Is there any possibility that they could be saved after death?" Then,
realizing that the only places after death are Heaven and Hell, he answered,
"Those who did not believe in Jesus in their lives on earth are not to be
saved."
However, dead non-Christians
are not currently in eternal Hell, but are in temporary Hades. I Peter 3:18-4:6
tells us that Jesus descended to Hades and preached the Good News to the people
who had died prior to Noah’s Great Flood. Jesus gave them a conversion
opportunity. If so, we can expect to see a postmortem opportunity for conversion
to the dead after the Great Flood.
Postmortem Opportunities
This postmortem opportunity
for conversion is also called a "Second Chance". The phrase Second Chance
usually describes the opportunity to start over, while here it describes the
opportunity for salvation after death, postmortem evangelism and posthumous
conversion
(i.e. the opportunity for
salvation).
This is different from
Universalism which teaches that all people will be saved. Second Chance is the
belief that all who once lived on earth will have the opportunity to hear the
Gospel and to be converted.
Those, who think Heaven and
Hell are the only worlds after death, deny a Second Chance for the dead. In
1646, after confusing Hades with Hell, the famous Westminster Confession of
Faith was published. It states, "The souls of the righteous... are received into
the highest heavens... And the souls of the wicked are cast into hell, where
they remain in torments and utter darkness, reserved to the judgment of the
great day. Beside these two places, for souls separated from their bodies,
the Scripture acknowledgeth none."
This confession is a result
of the confusion of Hades with Hell in the dark medieval ages. The dead
non-Christians are not in Hell, but in Hades. We should now have the right
perception of the world after death.
In Japan, the translators of
the New Translation Bible, a popular Bible known as loyal to the original text,
distinguished Hades from Hell and wrote in the afterword of the Bible: "Hades
in the New Testament means the intermediate place for the dead to wait for the
final judgment at the end of the world, and Gehenna (Hell)
means the place of torment for sinners after the ultimate judgment of God." This
is the biblical concept of the worlds after death.
Judgment Immediately After
Death?
The confusion of Hades with
Hell also led people to believe that the "judgment after death" of Hebrews 9:27
comes immediately after death.
Denialists of the Second
Chance often use that verse. An American pastor writes: "The Bible does not
indicate that people get an opportunity to repent or to put faith in Jesus after
they die. Hebrews 9:27 says, ‘People are destined to die once, and after that to
face judgment.'" A church website also mentions, "The Bible is clear that death
is the end of all chances. Hebrews 9:27 tells us that we die, and then face
judgment... Once a person dies, there are no more chances."
However, Hebrews 9:27 does
not refer to such a judgment immediately after death. The judgment is actually
God’s final judgment as mentioned in Revelation 20:11-15. In God’s court at the
end of the world, people’s final destination will be determined, not immediately
after death.
No Second Chances?
The identification of Hades
with Hell has also misled the interpretation of the story of the Rich Man and
Lazarus
(Luke 16:19-31)
that Jesus himself told. The
story is that the rich man, who was self-centered, died and went immediately to
a place of torment. The rich man showed his willingness to do good there, but he
failed to accomplish it.
The Rich Man and Lazarus
The original Greek text
states that the rich man went to a place in "Hades". But the King James Version,
the Living Bible and some other Bibles translated that word into "Hell". This
mistranslation has led people to think that there are no second chances after
death.
An American music group
sings a song entitled "No Second Chances" with the words, "The rich man died he
felt the torment of hell... Give me one more chance to do things right. Just one
more chance, I'll follow the light. But there's no second chances." This song
mentions "hell" as the place where the rich man went; however, Rex Humbard
claims that it was not Hell but a compartment called the Place of Torment within
Hades.
Billy Graham, an American
evangelist, also states that the rich man was in a compartment of Hades.
However, even in such cases that distinguish Hades from Hell, the distinction is
still obscure in many cases. Hades is often portrayed as an eternal place of
torment, similar to Hell.
As one pastor taught, "The
Bible tells the story of a man who did not believe in God even when he died. The
rich man was tortured, but never repented, only asking Abraham to send Lazarus
to his family. This story tells us that the human mind does not change with each
death". He interpreted the story negatively and denied a Second Chance.
But the story does not teach
us anything negative. Please remember that the rich man entered temporary Hades,
not eternal Hell. One cannot have normal mental activity in Hell because the
torment is so intense. While in Hades, even in the Place of Torment, its
sufferings are of a disciplining nature and are restricted to the extent one can
have conversation and normal mental activity. The rich man regretted his actions
and showed his love for his brothers on earth. Even if the rich man's
request was granted, there was no gain for him. But he craved it; he was
changed. It made a strong impression on Jesus.
Hades was neither final nor
eternal, but a temporary place until the end of the world. This story is also
not a parable, but a true story. When Jesus mentioned parables, he never
used real names, but instead just said, "One man," etc. However here, Jesus
referred to actual names Abraham and Lazarus. When he used real names, they were
always true stories. It was a true story in the Old Testament times. In God's
court of final judgment which will determine the final destiny of the dead, the
rich man's love will surely be a matter for God's consideration.
Opportunity After Death
It is very important to
understand that Hades is different from Hell, and that Jesus went to Hades to
preach the Gospel to the dead, as mentioned in I Peter 3:18-4:6.
As for these verses, church
fathers and historians in the 2nd-3rd centuries such as Hippolytus, Tertullian,
Clement of Alexandria, and Origen noted that Jesus descended to Hades to
preach the Gospel, and that the conversion opportunity after death was the
understanding of the early Christian faith.
William Barclay, a professor
at the University of Glasgow in the UK, Joel B. Green, a Professor of the Fuller
Theological Seminary in the US, and others write, although not using the word
Second Chance, that Jesus descended to "Hades to preach the Gospel to the dead,
and that it was the understanding of the Early Christianity."
The Catechism of the New
Apostolic Church states, "Question 546: Can we help the departed attain
salvation? - Yes, we can intercede in prayer for unredeemed souls and ask the
Lord to help them. Likewise, we can pray that these souls come to believe in
Jesus Christ."
James Beilby, a professor at
the Bethel University, teaches salvation after death in his book "Postmortem
Opportunity." Donald G. Bloesch, a professor emeritus of the Dubuque
Theological Seminary in the US, and Gabriel Fackre, a professor emeritus of the
Andover Newton Seminary in the US, both teach the Postmortem Evangelism that the
Gospel must be preached to all people, and it is also to be preached to the
dead.
Valery Kuzev, a faculty
member at the Pryazovskyi State Technical University in Ukraine, writes, "I
suggest that the traditional model of hell is incompatible with the idea of
justice, and violates a number of ethical considerations. I put forward the
Second Chance Theory".
In their debate book "What
About Those Who Have Never Heard?" (Voted one of Christianity Today's 1996
Books of the Year), three theologians, Ronald Nash, Gabriel Fackre and John
Sanders argue whether or not there is conversion opportunity after death.
Ronald Nash argues that the
receptive knowledge of Jesus Christ in this life is necessary to salvation.
Meanwhile, Gabriel Fackre advocates divine perseverance, with the expectation
that those who die unevangelized receive an opportunity for salvation after
death. John Sanders asserted that though God saves people only through the work
of Jesus Christ, some may be saved even if they do not know about Christ.
There have been such serious
debates recently among church leaders, without calling someone a "heretic". We
should biblically consider a true understanding of the worlds after death.
Prayer for Dead
Non-Christians
Jeffrey A. Trumbower writes
in his book "Rescue for the Dead: The Posthumous Salvation of
Non-Christians in Early Christianity" with many examples that there are
numerous records of many early Christians who prayed for the salvation of dead
non-Christians.
Likewise, we can pray for
our ancestors, relatives, family and loved ones who passed away unevangelized to
receive the opportunity for salvation after death.
Many people oppose the
Second Chance, saying, "If there were a Second Chance, people would think, 'OK,
I can convert after death'".
Certainly
it is
a blessing to convert and
believe in Jesus in this life if you heard the Gospel. But there are a lot of
people in this world who have died without hearing anything about Jesus. If
Second Chances are given to them, it would fulfill God’s love and fairness.
We can also say that it
would be best to convert in this life if we hear the Gospel of Christ. If you
convert in this life, you will be blessed and after your death, you will go to
Heaven and enter God’s bliss. But if you do not convert, your life will not be
blessed and after your death, you will go down to Hades (Sheol)
to reap what you sowed on
earth and wait there for God’s final judgment of God. You do not know if you can
really convert there or not, because your heart is naked before God’s eyes.
It is clear which is better.
If we draw this picture to seekers, they will not postpone their conversion.
Moreover, God says, "(I will show)
mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My
commandments"
(Exodus 20:6).
If you follow the teachings
of God, He will give his mercy and love to thousands of your generations,
including your descendants, ancestors, relatives and family members. Your walk
in Christ will give
pedigree
blessings to the souls of
Hades. If we preach this to seekers, then they will not postpone their
conversion. The Bible says:
"If you
confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God
has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved… Christ died and
rose and lived again, that He might be Lord of both the dead
(in
Hades)
and the
living." (Romans
10:9, 14:9)
Christ’s crucifixion and
resurrection were not only for the living, but also for the dead, "that He might
be Lord" of both. If the dead in Hades confess "the Lord Jesus" "Jesus is Lord",
they "will be saved". The Bible clearly states that the Gospel of Jesus is in
fact also for those in Hades. There are more biblical verses that mention Second
Chance. For details, please read my next article "Second Chance for the Dead".
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