SCRIPTURE
STUDIES
VOLUME FIVE - THE
ATONEMENT BETWEEN GOD AND MAN
STUDY
XII
THE
SUBJECT OF THE ATONEMENT—MAN
What
is Man? — The “Orthodox” Answer — The Scientific Answer — The Bible
Answer — Man’s Body — The Spirit of Man — The Human
Soul — Confusion Through Mistranslation — The Propagation of Souls
— What is “Sheol,” “Hades,” to which all Souls Go, in
the Interim Between
Death and Resurrection? — The Scriptural Statements Severally Considered.
“What is man, that thou art mindful of him?
And the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou madest him a little lower than the angels, and hast
crowned him with glory and honor. Thou
madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all
things under his feet: all sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the
field, the fowl of the air and the fish of the sea.” Psa. 8:4-8
WHAT great being is man that the Creator of the universe
has been so interested in his welfare as to make so bountiful a provision
for his reconciliation — even through the sacrifice of his Son?
We should know thoroughly, this highest of God’s earthly
creatures, so far as possible: and yet, so limited are our powers of
judgment, and so circumscribed our knowledge, that on this subject we are
dependent almost entirely upon what our loving Creator has made known to
us in his Word. Although the
saying has become proverbial that “The greatest study of mankind is
man,” yet, strange to say, there are few subjects upon which mankind is
more confused than this one—What is man?
There are two general views on the subject, neither of which, we
hold, is the correct, the Scriptural one.
Though both have certain elements of truth connected with them,
both are grievously wrong and misleading; so that even those who are not
wholly deluded by them are nevertheless so influenced [page 302]
and confused by these errors that many truths are
robbed of their force and weight, and many fallacies are given an
appearance of truth. Our
subject, therefore, is important to all who would know the truth, and have
the full benefit of the same in its influence upon their hearts and lives. The subject is of special importance in connection with the
topic under discussion, the Atonement.
He who has not a clear conception of what man is, will find it
difficult if not impossible, to clearly comprehend the Scriptural
teachings relative to the atonement for man’s sin—its operation and
results.
We will here consider the general and so-called orthodox view of
the question, What is man? then the strictly scientific view, and finally
the Bible view, which, we hold, is different from both, much more
reasonable than either, and the only ground of proper harmony between the
two.
Orthodoxy’s
View of Man
The question, What is man? if answered from a so-called “orthodox
theological” standpoint (which we dispute) would be about as follows:
Man is a composite being of three parts, body, spirit and soul; the body
is born after the usual manner of animal birth, except that at the time of
birth God interposes, and in some inscrutable manner implants in the body
a spirit and a soul, which are parts of himself, and being parts of God
are indestructible, and can never die.
These two parts, spirit and soul, “orthodoxy” is unable to
separate and distinguish, and hence uses the terms interchangeably at
convenience. Both terms
(spirit and soul) are understood to mean the real man, while the flesh
is considered to be merely the outward clothing of the real man, in which
he dwells for the years of his earthly life, as in a house.
At death, they say, the real man is let out of this prison-house of
flesh, and finds himself in a condition much more congenial.
In other words, “orthodoxy” claims that the real man is not an
earthly being, but a spirit being wholly unadapted [page 303] to the earth, except through its experiences in the
fleshly body. When set free
from the body by death it is theorized that a great blessing has been
experienced, although the man, while he lived, made every effort to
continue to live in the fleshly house, using medicines and travels and
every hygienic appliance and invention to prolong the life in the flesh,
which, theoretically, it is claimed is illy adapted to his uses and
enjoyments. The
“liberation” called “death” is esteemed to be another step in the
evolutionary process: and in many minds such a future evolution from
earthly to heavenly conditions, from animal to spiritual conditions, is
regarded as a reasonable proposition and a logical outcome of the
scientific conclusion that man was not created a man, but evolved, through
long ages, from the protoplasm of prehistoric times to the microbe, from
the microbe, by various long stages and journeys to the monkey, and from
the monkey finally to manhood. It
is further claimed that manhood, in its earliest stage, was very inferior
to the manhood of the present time, that evolution has been bringing
mankind forward, and that the next step for every human being is a
transformation or evolution into spirit conditions, as angels and gods or
as devils.
All this is very flattering to nineteenth century pride, for
though, on one hand, it acknowledges an ancestry of the very lowest
intelligence, it claims for itself today the very highest attainments, as
well as a future exaltation. Nor
is this view confined to the people of civilized lands: in a general way
all heathen people, even savages, have practically the same thought
respecting man, except that they do not usually trace back his origin so
far. This view finds support
in all the heathen philosophies, and to a considerable extent it is
supported by the scientific theorizers of the present day, who, although
they define the subject quite differently, nevertheless love to indulge in
hopes of a future life along the lines of evolution, and experience a
gratification of their vanity along lines which do not at all accord with
their own scientific deductions respecting the spark of life in man. [page 304]
Man
as Seen by Science
The scientific answer to the question, What is man? stated in
simple language, would be: Man is an animal of the highest type yet
developed and known. He has a
body which differs from the bodies of other animals, in that it is the
highest and noblest development. His
brain structure corresponds to that of the lower animals, but is of a
better developed and more refined order, with added and larger capacities,
which constitute man by nature the lord, the king of the lower creation.
Man’s breath or spirit of life is like that of other animals.
Man’s organism and spark of life are from his progenitors, in the
same manner that the beasts receive their life and bodies from their
progenitors.
Science recognizes every man as a soul or sentient being; but as to
the future, the eternity of man’s being, science has no suggestion
whatever to offer, finding nothing whereon to base a conclusion, or even a
reasonable hypothesis. Science,
however, while it does not speculate, hopes for a future along the lines
of evolution, which it believes it can trace in the past.
Science is proud of the said evolutionary steps already
accomplished by its god, natural law, and is hopeful that the same
operations of natural law will (without a personal God) eventually bring
mankind to still more godlike and masterful conditions than at present.
Man
from the Bible Standpoint
The Bible view, while agreeing with both of the foregoing in some
respects, controverts both most absolutely along some of their most
important lines. The Bible
does not speculate, but properly, as the voice or revelation of God, it
speaks with authority and emphasis, declaring the beginning, the present
and the future of man. The
Bible view is the only consistent one, and hence the only truly scientific and orthodox view of this subject.
But the Bible presentation [page 305]
does not pander to human pride; it does not make of
man his own evolutor, nor does it commit this to a god of nature, which is
no God. The Bible view
respecting man gives God the glory for his original creation (Adam), in
the divine likeness; and lays upon man the blame for failure to maintain
that likeness, and for a fall into sin, and all the consequences of
sin—mental and physical and moral impoverishment unto death.
The Bible view honors God again, in revealing to us his mercy and
magnanimity toward man in his fallen estate, in the provision for man’s
redemption and for his restitution to his original condition, at the hands
of his Redeemer, during the Millennium.
A fruitful source of confusion in the minds of Christian people,
when studying the nature of man, and particularly when attempting to
obtain the Scriptural views upon the subject, is their failure to
distinguish between mankind in general and the Church, the little flock,
which God is selecting from amongst men during the present age, and
fitting and preparing for new and superhuman conditions — spiritual
conditions. Failing to
“rightly divide the word of truth,” they apply to all men the
statements and promises of the Scriptures, especially of the New
Testament, which are addressed only to the Church class, and which have no
bearing whatever upon the restitution hopes held out for all mankind.
These “exceeding great and precious promises” are
proportionately as untrue of the world as they are true of the Church.
Thus, for instance, the Apostle’s words, “The body is dead
because of sin, but the spirit is life because of righteousness” (Rom.
8:10), which apply only to the Church: thus the special and peculiar
conditions of the call of the Church during this Gospel age, is
interpreted to mean the same with respect to all humanity.
Here the words “dead” and “life” are used in a relative
sense, of those who after being justified through faith, by the grace of
God, are at once reckoned as freed from death-condemnation, to the intent
that they may present their bodies living sacrifices, reckoning their
bodies and treating them as dead, so [page 306]
far as earthly rights and interests are concerned:
and reckoning themselves as no longer fleshly or human beings, but as
“new creatures,” begotten to a new nature through the promises of God.
As such, justified and sanctified believers (the Church) recognize
themselves, from the divine standpoint, as having obtained a new spirit of
life through the operation of faith in Christ and obedience to him.
But such uses of the words “dead” and “life” in respect to
the world would be wholly improper, for the world has no other nature than
the one human nature; it has not, in any sense of the word, been begotten again.
Another text frequently misapplied to the world, which belongs to
the Lord’s consecrated people, says, “We have this treasure in earthen
vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.”
(2 Cor. 4:7) Here the Church
alone is referred to—those who have received the treasure of the new
mind, the new nature. They
have this treasure, or new nature, in the natural body, which is reckoned
as dead, and here denominated an “earthen vessel.” The illustration is
quite a correct one for the class to whom it is applied, the Church; but
it is wholly incorrect to apply it to mankind in general, and to suppose
that every human being has a heavenly treasure or new nature, and that
thus every human body is an earthen vessel or receptacle for such new
nature. The world has but one
nature—the human nature: it has no new nature, either as a treasure or
in any other sense; nor is there any promise that it will ever have.
Quite to the contrary, the highest possible aspiration ever to be
opened to humanity, according to the divine Word of promise, is “restitution”—to be restored to the full perfection of the
human nature, lost in Eden, redeemed at Calvary. Acts 3:19-23
Similarly we might discuss scores of statements of the New
Testament, which are not applicable to mankind in general, but merely to
the consecrated Church, begotten again by the holy Spirit to a new spirit
nature. It will be profitable
for all to notice carefully the salutations by which the apostles
introduce their various epistles. They
[page 307] are not addressed, as is supposed by many, to mankind
in general, but to the Church, “the saints,” the “household of
faith.”
Be it remembered, therefore, that in discussing, What is man? in
this chapter, we are not discussing what is the Church, the “new
creature” in Christ Jesus, nor what is the spirit nature to which the
Church is already begotten of the Spirit and if faithful shall be made
partakers to the fullest extent in the first resurrection.
On the contrary, we are discussing the first Adam and his children.
We want to know who and what we are by nature, as a race—What is man?
Thus we can best understand from
what man fell, into
what man fell, from what man was redeemed, and to what man shall be
restored, and other cognate subjects.
Man—Body,
Spirit, Soul
Accepting the standard definition of the word “animal”—“a
sentient living organism,” we need have no hesitation in classing man as
one of and the chief and king over earth’s animals, and thus far the
Scriptures are in full accord with the deductions of science.
Note the text which introduces this chapter: in it the Prophet
David particularly points out that man, in his nature, is lower than the
angels, and a king and head over all earthly creatures, the representative
of God to all the lower orders of sentient beings.
The Scriptures nowhere declare, either directly or by implication,
that a piece, part or spark of the divine being is communicated to every
human creature. This is a
baseless assumption on the part of those who desire to construct a theory,
and are short of material for it. And
this baseless hypothesis, that there is a portion of God communicated to
every human creature at birth, has been made the basis of many false
doctrines, grossly derogatory to the divine character—disrespectful to
divine wisdom, justice, love and power.
It is this assumption, that a spark of the divine being is [page 308]
communicated at birth to every human creature, which
necessitated the theory of a hell of eternal torment. The suggestion is that if man had been created as other
animals were created, he might have died as other animals die, without
fear of an eternity of torture; but that God having imparted to man a spark of his own life, man
is therefore eternal, because God is eternal: and that hence it is
impossible for God to destroy his creature even though such destruction
might become desirable. And
if man cannot be destroyed it is held that he must exist to all eternity
somewhere: and since the vast majority are admittedly evil, and only a
“little flock” saintly and pleasing to God, it is held that the
unsaintly must have a future of torment proportioned to the future of
bliss accorded to the saintly few. Otherwise, it is admitted that it would
be more to man’s interest, more to God’s glory, and more to the peace
and prosperity of the universe, if the wicked could all be destroyed.
The claim is that God, having the power to create, has not the power to
destroy man, his own creation, because a spark of divine life was in some
unexplained manner connected with him.
We hope to show that this entire proposition is fallacious: that it
is not only without Scriptural support, but that it is a fabrication of
the Dark Ages, most positively contradicted by the Scriptures.
The Scriptures recognize man as composed of two elements, body and
spirit. These two produce
soul, sentient being, intelligence, the man himself, the being, or soul. The term “body” applies merely to the physical organism.
It neither relates to the life which animates it, nor to the
sentient being which is the result of animation.
A body is not a man, although there could be no man without a body.
The spirit of life is not the man; although there could be no
manhood without the spirit of life. The
word “spirit” is, in the Old Testament Scriptures, from the Hebrew
word ruach.
Its signification primarily is breath;
and hence we have the expression “breath
of life,” or “spirit
of life,” because the spark of life once started is supported by
breathing. [page 309]
The words “spirit of life,” however, signify more than merely
breath; they relate to the spark of life itself, without which breath
would be an impossibility. This
spark of life we receive from our fathers, it being nourished and
developed through our mothers.*
It is quite untrue that the spark of human life is communicated in
a miraculous way, any more than is the spark of brute life.
The lower animals, the horse, the dog, cattle, etc., are begotten
of the males and born of the females of their respective genera, in
precisely the same manner as the human species is produced, nor does
anything in Scripture suggest the contrary.
It is purely human invention, designed to uphold a false theory,
that claims divine interposition in the birth of human offspring. To
suppose that God is the direct creator of every human infant born into the
world is to suppose what the Scriptures contradict, for thus he would be
the author of sin and of confusion and of imperfection, whereas the
Scriptures declare, “His work is perfect.” (Deut. 32:4)
No, no! the mentally and physically and morally blemished and
deformed are not God’s workmanship.
They are far removed, far fallen from the condition of their
perfect progenitors, Adam and Eve, for whose creation alone God takes the
responsibility. Those who claim that God directly creates every human
being make out that God is responsible for all the idiocy and insanity and
imbecility in the world: but both science and Scripture declare that the
children inherit from their progenitors their vices and their virtues,
their weakness and their talents. The
Apostle most explicitly declares, “By one man’s disobedience sin
entered into the world and death by [as a result of] sin: and thus death
passed upon all men; because all men had [by heredity] become sinners.”
The Prophet refers to the same thing when he declares, “The
fathers ate a sour grape [sin] and the children’s teeth are set on
edge”—they are all depraved. Rom. 5:12; Jer. 31:29,30; Ezek. 18:2
—————
*See page 98.
[page
310]
But some one will inquire, Might it not be possible that God had
implanted a spark of his immortal divinity in our first parents, and that
thus that spark descends nolens volens to posterity?
Let us examine the Scriptural statement respecting this subject,
and in so doing let us remember that there is no other revelation than the
account of the Scriptures open to any one else, hence we may know all
there is to be known on the subject by anybody.
What do we find in the Genesis account?
We find indeed that man’s creation is particularly mentioned,
while that of the brute creation is not so particularly mentioned.
We find, however, that the statements made are in very simple
language, and that they contain no suggestion whatever of the impartation
of some superhuman spark of being. Man’s
superiority over the beast, according to the account given in Genesis,
consists not in his having a different kind of breath or spirit, but in
his having a higher form, a superior body, a finer organism—endowed with
a brain organism which enables him to reason upon planes far above and
beyond the intelligence of the lower animals, the brute creation.
We find that it is in these respects that man was created a fleshly
likeness of his Creator, who is a spirit being. John 4:24
The
Spirit of Man
As already seen* the word
“spirit” in our Common Version Bibles translates the Hebrew word ruach
and the Greek word pneuma;
and hence to rightly appreciate the word spirit
in God’s Word we must keep always in memory the meaning attached to the
originals, which it translates. As
we have seen, “spirit” primarily means wind, and secondarily was made to apply to any invisible
power. In connection
with God we saw that it signifies that he is powerful
but invisible; and used in
reference to God’s influence and operation, it implies that they are by
an invisible power. It is
applied to mind
because it is a power that is invisible, intangible; words
—————
*See page 172.
[page
311] are also invisible, yet powerful; life,
although all-important and all pervading, is an invisible power or
quality, like electricity: hence the word “spirit” is applied to all
of these various things. As a
result, we have the Scriptures speaking of the spirit of our minds, the
invisible power of the mind; the spirit of a man, a man’s mental powers
and will; the spirit of life, the power of living, which actuates our
bodies and all creation; the Spirit of God, the power or influence which
God exerts, either upon animate or inanimate things; the spirit of wisdom,
a wise mind; the spirit of love, a mind or disposition actuated by love; a
spirit of evil and of malice, a mind or disposition actuated by
maliciousness; the spirit of truth, the influence or power exerted by the
truth; the spirit of the world, the influence or power which the world
exerts. Likewise, heavenly
beings are described as spirit beings, that is, invisible beings,
possessed of power, intelligence, etc.
This is applicable, not only to God, the Father, of whom our Lord
Jesus said, “God is a Spirit,” but it is applicable also to our Lord
Jesus since his resurrection, for of him it is declared, “Now the Lord
is that Spirit.” It is
applied also to angels and to the Church, which is assured that in the
first resurrection each overcomer shall have a spirit body.
It is applied in the Scriptures also to Satan and his associates,
spirit beings, invisible, yet powerful.
Spirit
in Re the New Nature in the New Testament
In considering the use of the word spirit
in connection with man, we remark:
(1) The words “spirit” and “spiritual” in the New Testament
are often used to refer to (a) the will, especially to the new
mind of the “saints,” begotten by the Word and Spirit of God.
The “new creatures in Christ” are called to a change of nature,
from human to spiritual, and are promised that if faithful they shall in
the resurrection have (b) spirit
bodies like unto Christ’s resurrection body, and like unto the
heavenly Father’s glorious person.
In view of this, their future prospect, the hope of the Church is
designated as [page 312]
(c) spiritual
and heavenly, in contrast with
the hopes and promises to which the world of mankind will become heirs
during the Millennium. Spirit
is also used (d) in referring to angels, who by nature are spirit beings—not flesh
beings. But the thought of invisibility
always attaches to the words “spirit” and “spiritual” whenever and
wherever used.
A few illustrations of such uses of these words follow:
(a) “Paul purposed in the spirit
[pneuma—mind, will]... to
go to Jerusalem.” Acts 19:21
(a) “Paul’s spirit [pneuma—mind,
feelings] was stirred in him when he saw the city wholly given to
idolatry.” Acts 17:16
(a) “Paul was pressed in spirit
[pneuma—in mind, he was
mentally energized] and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ.”
Acts 18:5
(a) “[Apollos] was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being
fervent in spirit
[pneuma—of
ardent mind] he spake and taught diligently.” Acts 18:25
(a) “God is my witness whom I serve with my spirit
[pneuma—my new mind, my
new heart, my renewed will] in the gospel of his Son.” Rom. 1:9
(a) “Glorify God in your body and in your spirit
[pneuma—mind] which are
God’s.” 1 Cor. 6:20
(a) “I verily as absent in body but present in spirit
[pneuma—mentally] have
judged already as though I were present.” 1 Cor. 5:3
(a) “A meek and quiet spirit [pneuma—mind,
disposition].” 1 Pet. 3:4
(b) “It is sown an animal body, it is raised a spiritual
[pneumatikos] body.” 1
Cor. 15:44
(b) “There is an animal body and there is a spiritual
[pneumatikos] body.” 1
Cor. 15:44
(b) “That was not first which is spiritual
[pneumatikos].” 1 Cor.
15:46
(b) “Afterward that which is spiritual
[pneumatikos].” 1 Cor.
15:46
[page 313]
(c) “To be spiritually minded [pneuma—to
have a mind controlled by God’s holy Spirit or will] is life and
peace.” Rom. 8:6
(c) “Ye which are spiritual [pneumatikos—spirit
begotten and possessed of the new mind] restore such an one in the spirit [pneuma—disposition]
of meekness.” Gal. 6:1
(c) “The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ hath blessed us
with all spiritual
blessings [pneumatikos—blessings of a spirit kind] in heavenly privileges
in Christ.” Eph. 1:3
(c) “Be filled with the spirit [pneuma—the
holy Spirit of God] speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs [pneumatikos—songs
in accord with your new spirit].” Eph. 5:18,19
(c) “That ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in
all wisdom and spiritual
understanding [pneumatikos—understanding of all matters connected with your
new spiritual relationship to God and his plan].” Col. 1:9
(c) “Ye are built up a spiritual household [pneumatikos—a
family or household of a spirit order or kind].” 1 Pet. 2:5
(d) “A damsel possessed of a spirit
[pneuma—an invisible
power] of divination”—through fellowship with the fallen
spirit-beings. Acts 16:16
(d) “Paul...turned and said to the spirit
[pneuma—the evil
spirit-being possessing the woman] I command thee... to come out of
her.” Acts 16:18
(d) “The evil spirits [pneuma]
went out of them.” Acts 19:12,13
(d) “And the evil spirit [pneuma]
answered and said.” Acts 19:15
(d) “The Sadducees say that there is...neither angel nor spirit [pneuma—spirit
being].” Acts 23:8
(d) “If a spirit [pneuma]
or an angel hath spoken to him let us not fight against God.” Acts 23:9
[page 314]
Spirit
in the Old Testament
(2) The word “spirit” is used of mankind in general, especially
in the Old Testament; but always either with reference to (e) the spirit of life, the
animating spark which God first enkindled in Adam and which thence
(impaired) descended to all his posterity—which is an invisible
power or quality; or (f) the spirit
of the mind, the will—an invisible power which controls the
life.
Ruach,
Pneuma—an Animating Power
When speaking of man’s creation it is the spirit
of life that is understood—the breath of life.
The Scriptures clearly show that this spirit of life is common to
all God’s creatures, and is not possessed exclusively by man, as the
following Scripture quotations will clearly demonstrate.
(e) “All flesh wherein is the
breath of life [ruach—the
spirit
or breath
of life of all flesh].” Gen. 6:17; 7:15
(e) “All in whose nostrils was the breath of the
spirit of life [margin, ruach—the
spirit
or power
of life].” Gen. 7:22
(e) “The spirit
of Jacob their father revived [ruach—the
vital or life
powers of Jacob revived].” Gen. 45:27
(e) “And when he [Samson] had drunk, his spirit
[ruach] came again and he
revived [his strength, vigor, energy returned to him].” Judges 15:19
(e) “In whose hand is...the breath [ruach]
of all mankind. [The spirit
of life of all mankind is in the divine power].” Job 12:10
(e) “O God, the God of the spirits
[ruach—life-power, spirit
of life] of ALL FLESH, shall one man sin and wilt thou be wroth with all
the congregation?” Num. 16:22
The theory that the distinction between man and beast consisted in
a different spirit of life, a different kind of life, and that at death
the one went up and the other down [page 315]
seems to have been very old amongst the world’s
philosophers; for we find Solomon, the wise man, querying:
(e) “Who knoweth [who can prove] that the spirit
[ruach—spirit of life] of
man goeth upward and that the spirit
[ruach—spirit of life] of
the beast goeth downward to the earth?” (Eccl. 3:19-21)
Solomon’s own understanding he gives just previously, saying:
(e) “That which befalleth the sons of men [death] befalleth
beasts; even one [the same] thing befalleth them: as the one dieth so
dieth the other; yea they have all one breath [ruach—spirit
of life, breath of life]; so that a man hath no pre-eminence above a
beast”—in this respect, in the matter of having a different kind of
life—his pre-eminence must be sought and found elsewhere, as we shall
see.
(e) “Into thine hand I commit my spirit
[ruach—spirit of life or
vital energy].” Psa. 31:5
This was the prophetic declaration of our Lord Jesus’ dying
words. He had received the
spirit of life from the Father as a gift: he had, in obedience to the
Father’s plan, become a man to be man’s Redeemer: and when yielding up
his spirit
of life or vital energy, he declared his reliance upon God’s
promise to give the spirit of life again, by a
resurrection.
Mankind received the spirit of life from God, the fountain of life, through father
Adam. Adam forfeited his
right to the power or spirit of life by disobedience, and gradually
relinquished his hold upon it—dying slowly for nine hundred and thirty
years. Then the body returned
to the dust as it was before creation, and the spirit of life, the
privilege of living, the power or permission of living, returned to God
who gave that privilege or power: just as any contingent privilege or
favor returns to the giver if its conditions are not complied with. (Eccl.
12:7) Nothing in this text
implies that the spirit of life “wings its flight back to God,” as
some would represent; for the spirit of life is not an intelligence, nor a
person, but merely a power
or privilege which has been [page 316] forfeited and hence reverts to the original giver of
that power or privilege. The
thought is that man having sinned has no further life-rights:
the return of his forfeited life-rights to God, and the return of his
flesh to dust, reduces his condition to exactly what it was before he was
created.
But as our Lord Jesus had hope in the divine promise for a return
of his “spirit of life” or life powers and rights under divine
arrangement, so by reason of our Lord’s redemptive sacrifice certain
hopes and promises are opened to all mankind through “Jesus the mediator
of the New Covenant.” (Heb. 12:24)
Hence believers “sorrow not as others who have no hope.”
Our Redeemer purchased
the spirit of life-rights which father Adam had forfeited for himself and
all his family. Now,
therefore, believers can for themselves (and, by a knowledge of God’s
plan, for others also) commit their spirits (their powers of life) to
God’s hand also, as did our Lord and as did Stephen—full of faith that
God’s promise of a resurrection would be
fulfilled. A resurrection
will mean to the world a reorganization of a human body, and its vivifying
or quickening with life-energy, the spirit of life (Hebrew, ruach; Greek, pneuma).
To the Gospel Church, sharers in the “first [chief]
resurrection,” it will mean the impartation of the spirit of life or
life-energy (Hebrew, ruach;
Greek, pneuma) to a spirit body.
1 Cor. 15:42-45
In that graphic picture of earthly resurrection furnished us in
Ezekiel’s prophecy (37:5-10,13,14) the relationship of the body and the
spirit of life, “the
breath,” is clearly presented. It matters not that the prophet
uses this merely as a symbol, it nevertheless shows (proves) that a human organism has
no life until it receives the ruach—the
breath of life—which, as elsewhere shown, is common to all animals, none
of whom can live without it. Let
us notice Ezekiel’s statements very critically, as follows:
(e) “I will cause breath [ruach—spirit
of life, life-energy] to enter into you, and ye shall live.”
(e) “And I will...bring up flesh upon you, and cover [page
31]
you with skin, and put breath [ruach—spirit
of life, life-energy] in you, and ye shall live.”
(e) “And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came upon
them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath
[ruach—spirit of life,
life- energy] in them.”
(e) “And he said unto me, Prophesy unto the wind
[ruach—spirit of life,
life-energy—margin, breath] and say unto the
wind [ruach—spirit of life,
breath of life], Thus saith the Lord God, Come from the four winds
[ruach]
O
breath [ruach—breath or spirit of life], and breathe upon these slain,
that they may live.”
(e) “So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the
breath [ruach—spirit of life,
breath of life, living energy] came into them, and they lived.”
(e) “And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened
your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, and shall
put my spirit
[ruach—spirit
of life, breath of life] in you, and ye shall live.”
This spirit
of life or power of life given to Adam by his Creator he was privileged to keep
forever if obedient. He
forfeited this right by disobedience, and the right
to life reverted to the great Giver; not as a person, nor as a
thing, but as a right or privilege, the spirit of life returns or reverts
to God, who gave that right or privilege conditionally, and whose
conditions were violated. Eccl. 12:7
(e) “No man hath power over the spirit
[ruach—spirit of life,
spark of life] to retain the spirit
[ruach—spirit of life],
breath of life.” Eccl. 8:8
By God’s grace those forfeited life-rights or privileges which
each man surrenders to God in death have all been purchased with the
precious blood, and the purchaser is announced as the new Life-giver,
regenerator or father for the race, who will give life, and that more
abundantly, to all who will ultimately receive him.
We will give but one instance from the New Testament:
(e) “The body without the spirit
[pneuma—life-spark,
breath of lives] is dead.” Jas. 2:26
[page 318]
Ruach,
Pneuma—the Mind, the Will
Since the mind or will is an invisible
power or influence, it is represented by the same words in the
Hebrew and Greek languages, as the following examples will show:
(f) “Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of
sorrowful spirit
[ruach—mind,
disposition].” 1 Sam. 1:15
(f) “A fool uttereth all his mind
[ruach—plans, thoughts,
mind, purpose].” Prov. 29:11
(f) “My spirit
[ruach—mind,
courage] was overwhelmed.” Psa. 77:3
(f) “My spirit
[ruach—mind]
made diligent search.” Psa. 77:6
(f) “He that is of a faithful spirit
[ruach—disposition,
mind].” Prov. 11:13
(f) “All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the
Lord weigheth the spirits
[ruach—the
mind, thoughts, motives].” Prov. 16:2
(f) “Pride goeth before destruction, a haughty spirit
[ruach—disposition, will,
mind] before a fall.” Prov. 16:18
(f) “Better to be of an humble spirit
[ruach—mind,
disposition].” Prov. 16:19
(f) “Vanity and vexation of spirit
[ruach—mind].” Eccl.
6:9
(f) “Patient in spirit [ruach—mind,
disposition]...proud in spirit
[ruach—mind,
disposition]...hasty in thy spirit
[ruach—mind,
disposition].” Eccl. 7:8,9
A few illustrations from the New Testament:
(f) “The child [John] grew and waxed strong in spirit
[pneuma—mind,
character].” Luke 1:80
(f) “Not slothful in business, fervent in spirit
[pneuma—mind,
disposition, character] serving the Lord.” Rom. 12:11
(f) “Now you have received not the spirit
[pneuma—disposition,
mind] of the world.” 1 Cor. 2:12
(f) “I had no rest in my spirit
[pneuma—mind].” 2 Cor.
2:13
[page 319]
(f) “Be renewed in the spirit [pneuma—character,
disposition] of your mind.” Eph. 4:23
(f) “The ornament of a meek and quiet spirit
[pneuma—mind,
disposition].” 1 Pet. 3:4
These Scriptural uses of these original words show that our English
word spirit
is a good equivalent, for we not only speak of the spirit of life, but
also of a gentle spirit, a good spirit, an angry spirit or mood, a bitter
spirit and a fiery spirit: and we also use these expressions in respect to
the lower animals as well as man. The
fact we are proving is abundantly demonstrated—namely, that the spirit is not the real
man, nor another man, but that this word, when used in reference to
man’s creation, signifies simply the life-spark or life-power, which is
common to all animals.
Neshamah—the
Breath of Lives
Although the word ruach is sometimes translated “breath,” the Hebrews had
another word for breath, viz., neshamah. It occurs twenty-six times, and in nineteen of these it is
translated “breath”—“inspiration” once, “spirit” twice,
“souls” once, “blast” three times.
As samples of the meaning of this word, and as proving that the
word simply signifies life power, and in no sense of the word conveys any
thought of everlasting life, or immortality, note the following uses of
the word:
“The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed [naphach—inflated,
blew] into his nostrils the breath
[neshamah] of lives
[caiyah].”
Gen. 2:7
“All flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of
cattle, and of beasts, and of everything that creepeth upon the earth, and
every man: all in whose nostrils was the breath
[neshamah] of life
[caiyah]
of all that was in the dry land died.” Gen. 7:21,22
These first two occurrences of the word neshamah
in the Bible are abundantly sufficient to prove our contention that the
word has no reference to immortality, nor to an immortal [page 320]
principle, but simply refers to vitality, life power.
This life power, we are told, was given to Adam, and the same life power,
by the second text quoted, is declared to have been in all the dry land
animals, fowl, cattle, beast and creeping things, as well as in man, and
when deprived of this breath of life, the declaration is that all these
souls or beings died as a result—man as well as the lower creatures.
They died alike, except that there is a divine purpose respecting man,
which in due time provided a ransom, and will in further due time provide
the deliverance promised from the power of death by a resurrection of the
being, of the soul.
A
Human Soul
Many in reading the account of creation in Genesis have noted the
fact stated that when God had formed man of the dust of the ground, and
had communicated to him the breath (spirit) of life, the record is, “Man
became a living soul.”
This statement to the average reader taken in connection with his
general misconception of the meaning of the word “soul,” as
misrepresented to him by those who should have instructed him properly,
and should have understood the subject themselves, is sufficient to
bewilder him and leads him to think that somehow there is some basis for
the prevalent error which he does not comprehend, but which he supposes
his chosen theological teachers have investigated and proven beyond
peradventure.
Not comprehending the meaning of the word soul,
many feel at liberty to use it in a reckless manner, and hence they
reverse the Scriptural statement and instead of speaking of man as being
a soul, they speak of man as having
a soul, which is a very different thought.
It is necessary, therefore, that each truth-seeker should, so far
as possible, divest his mind of prejudice on the subject, and especially
with respect to things and features which he admits he does not understand;
because it is the natural tendency to give attributes [page 321]
and powers to that which is mysterious and not
comprehended. Thus the general idea of a soul is that it is wonderfully
intelligent, possessed of wonderful powers, that it is indestructible,
intangible, and incomprehensible.
A Methodist bishop is credited with having given the following
definition of a soul, which certainly accords well with so-called
“orthodox” theories, even if it is absurd when closely
analyzed—“It is without interior or exterior, without body, shape, or
parts, and you could put a million of them in a nutshell.”
These various things are predicated of a soul, to help fill out a
theory which is wholly erroneous. The
theory is that the soul is the real being, a spark of divinity, possessed
of divine quality and intelligent life, etc., separate and apart from the
body; and that it inhabits the human body for a time, and uses it for a
house, and when the body is worn out or disabled abandons it.
Inasmuch as no one ever saw a soul enter a body, and inasmuch as a
soul cannot be found while it is in the body, by the most critical
examination, and with all the improved appliances of the microscope,
photograph and “X” rays, therefore it is supposed that it is
“without a body, without shape, and without parts”; and since it is
supposed to be so small that it cannot be distinguished by a microscope,
it might as well be said that you could put fifty millions of them in a
nutshell. Really, the bishop gave an excellent definition of nothing; and all will
agree that a hundred millions of nothings could be put into the smallest
kind of a nutshell and have room to spare.
But what foundation is there for such wild speculation? We answer,
It is wholly unwarranted. It
is the result of man’s taking his own theory of a future life, and
rejecting the divine theory and plan.
Human theory says, There must be something which never dies, else
there can be no future life. The
divine theory says, The same God who created in the beginning is able to
resurrect the dead. This is
the conflict between the Word of God and all the human theories of earth
amongst the civilized as well as amongst [page 322]
the barbarians: all human theories teach that man
does not die, and hence has no need of a Life-giver and a resurrection.
The Bible theory is that man does die, and that without the Life-giver,
and without a resurrection, death would indeed end all, and there would be
no future life.
It is to support its theory that the world, and all its religious
books (including, we are sorry to say, the majority of works on
eschatology written by professed Christians), teach the doctrine of the
immortality of the soul—that there is a soul in man, possessed of a
separate life from his body, and that it is immortal, indestructible, and
therefore destined to an eternity of pain or pleasure.
We come then to the inquiry:
What
Is a Soul?
Examining this question from the Bible standpoint we will find that
man has
a body and has a spirit, but is
a soul. Science concurs with the Scriptures in this.
Indeed, one of the sciences, Phrenology, undertakes to treat the
skulls of men and the lower animals as indexes and to read therefrom the
natural traits and characteristics of the owners: and do not all men find
themselves possessed of some ability in judging character physiologically?
All can discern between the intellectual and the idiotic, between
the kindly benevolent and the viciously brutal.
Those who have not learned that organism
(bodily form) is indissolubly connected with nature, character and
disposition have made poor use of life’s lessons and are unprepared to
pass judgment on our topic or any other.
The word “soul,” as found in the Scriptures, signifies sentient being;
that is, a being possessed of powers of sense, sense-perception. With
minds freed from prejudice, let us go with this definition to the Genesis
account of man’s creation, and note that (1) the organism or body was formed; (2) the spirit
of life, called “breath of life,” was communicated; (3) living
[page 323]
soul, or sentient being, resulted.
This is very simple, and easily understood.
It shows that the body is not the soul, nor is the spirit or breath
of life the soul; but that when these two were united by the Lord, the
resultant quality or condition was living man, living being—a living
soul, possessed of perceptive powers.
There is nothing mysterious about this—no intimation that a spark
of divinity was infused into humanity, any more than into the lower
animals. Indeed, while the
creation of the lower animals is passed over and not particularly
described, we may know that with them, as well, the process must have been
somewhat similar. We know
that there could be no dog without a dog organism or body, nor without
spirit or breath of life in that body.
The body of the dog that had never been animated would not be a
dog; it requires first the infusion of the spark of life, the breath of
life, then doghood begins. The
same would apply to all animals.
In full accord with this, we now call attention to a fact which
will surprise many; viz., that according to the Scriptural account every
dog is a soul, every horse is a soul, every cow is a soul, every bird and
every fish are souls. That is
to say, these are all sentient
creatures, possessed of powers of sense-perception. True, some of them are on a higher and some on a lower plane
than others; but the word soul
properly and Scripturally applies to creatures on the lower planes as well
as to man, the highest and noblest—to fish, reptiles, birds, beasts,
man. They are all souls.
Mark, we do not say that they have souls, in the ordinary and mistaken sense of that term, yet
they all do have souls, in the sense of having life, being, existence—they
are
living souls. Let us prove
this:
In the first, second and ninth chapters of Genesis the words
“living soul” are applied in the Hebrew language to the lower animals
nine times, but the translators (as though careful to protect the false
but common vagary respecting a soul, derived from Platonic philosophy)
sedulously guarded their work, so that, so far as possible, the English [page 324]
reader is kept in ignorance of this fact—that the
word soul
is common to the lower creatures, and as applicable to them as to man in
inspired Scripture usage. How
else could it happen that in all of these cases, and in many other
instances throughout the Scriptures, they have carefully covered the
thought, by using another English word to translate the Hebrew word,
which, in the case of man, is rendered “soul”?
So carefully have they guarded this point that only in one place in
the Bible is this word translated “soul,” in connection with the lower
creatures, viz., in Num. 31:28, and there, very evidently, they were
compelled to show the matter, by reason of the peculiar construction of
the sentence—no other translation being reasonably possible. The passage
reads:
“Levy a tribute unto the Lord of the men of war which went out to
battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons and of the beeves
and of the asses and of the sheep.” Here it will be noticed that the
word “soul” is used respecting the lower creatures as well as in
reference to man; and so it would appear elsewhere in the Scriptures, had
the translators been free from the warp and twist of their false theories
on this subject.
Let us now notice the nine texts in Genesis in which the Hebrew
original of the word soul
(neh-phesh)
occurs in connection with the lower animals:
“God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving
[creeping] creature that
hath life [Heb., neh-phesh—soul].”
(Gen. 1:20) Note that the
marginal reading is soul;
and that this was on the fifth creative day or period, long before man’s
creation.
“God created great whales, and every living creature
[Heb., neh-phesh—living soul]
that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly.” (Gen. 1:21)
This also was in the fifth “day,” before man’s creation.
These were fish-souls.
“God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature
[Heb., neh-phesh—living soul]
after his kind—cattle and creeping thing and beast.” (Gen. 1:24)
These were dry-land [page 325]
souls, higher than the fishes—but man, human soul
or being, had not yet been created.
“And God said...To every beast of the earth and to every fowl of
the air, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life [living soul—neh-phesh]
I have given every green herb for meat.” (Gen. 1:30) Here the lower animals are specified, and it is distinctly
declared that they are all living souls—in exactly the same terms that
refer to man.
“Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field,
and every fowl of the air;...and whatever Adam called every living creature [Heb., living soul—neh-phesh],
that was the name thereof.” (Gen. 2:19)
Comment here is unnecessary: there can be no question that soul
is not exclusively a human
part or quality, but rightly understood is applicable to all sentient
creatures from the lowest to the highest—all creatures possessed
of sensibilities.
“Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you... but
flesh with
the life thereof [Heb., flesh, soul—neh-phesh]
which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.” (Gen. 9:3,4) Here the
animals which man may eat are not only declared to possess soul or being,
but their blood
is said to represent their existence,
being or soul,
and hence man is forbidden to use blood as food—forbidden to cultivate
blood-thirstiness.
“Behold I establish my covenant with you [Noah] and with your
seed after you; and with every living creature [Heb., living soul—neh-phesh]
that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the
earth.” (Gen. 9:9,10) A
very plain statement that all living creatures are souls as well as
man—though inferior to him in nature, organism, etc.
“This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and
you and every living creature
[Heb., living soul—neh-phesh].” (Gen. 9:12)
What could be more explicit than this?
“I will remember my covenant which is between me and you and
every living creature
[Heb., every living soul—neh-phesh] of all flesh.” Gen. 9:15
[page 326]
The same expression exactly is repeated in verse 16.
And there is no room for cavil as to the meaning when the veil of
mistranslation is lifted and we catch the thought God wished us to receive
from his Word.
We might similarly proceed through other books of the Bible, but we
have quoted sufficient to establish our contention before any reasonable
mind—that soul in Scriptural usage as properly applies to the lower
animals as to man; and hence that all claims or theories built upon the
idea that man’s hopes of a future life and his present superiority over
lower animals result from his being a soul
and they not, is a false theory and needs radical reconstruction if we
would see matters from the true standpoint of divine revelation.
But let no one misunderstand us to teach that because all living,
moving creatures, from a mite to an elephant and from a tadpole to a whale
are living
souls, therefore all these must have a future life, either by a
transfer to spirit conditions or by a resurrection future.
Such a thought would be arrant nonsense — insanity — without a
shadow of reason. Billions of living souls
on these lowest planes of animal nature are born every minute, while other
billions die every minute.
Our argument is that man is a soul
or being of the highest
order—the king and lord over the lower orders of souls or sentient
beings, yet one of them—an earthly, human animal soul; and yet so
grandly constituted originally (Adam) that he was properly described as in
the likeness of God—the
image of him that created him.
Man as a soul is differentiated from the lower animals or souls by
reason of his higher organism: not merely is his superiority indicated by his upright
form; it is witnessed to by his superior mental endowments, which are
Godlike and are reflected in his countenance.
It is in his mental and moral endowments rather than in physical
form that man was created in divine likeness.
While many of the lower orders of animal soul or being possess reasoning
powers and demonstrate them in thousands of ways, yet each has a
level [page 327]
beyond which no progress can be made; but man’s
reasoning powers are almost unlimited, because he was created an “image
of God,” “the likeness of him that created him.” And notwithstanding man’s fall into sin and his thousands
of years of gross darkness and degradation we can still see
Godlikeness—especially in those who have accepted Christ’s ministry of
reconciliation to God, and have again become “sons of God,” and who
are seeking to be conformed to the image of God’s dear Son.
To illustrate: horses, dogs and birds may be taught the meaning of
many words so as to be able to understand many things pertaining to
life’s affairs. They often
demonstrate their reasoning powers, and some are able to count—as high
as twenty: but who would attempt to teach a horse or a dog or a bird
algebra or geometry or astronomy? The
highest of the lower animals can be taught a certain degree of moral
honesty and obligation to their masters—not to kill sheep, not to bite,
kick, etc., but who would attempt to teach his dumb brutes the Decalogue?
They may be taught a certain kind of love for their master and his
friends, but who would think of teaching them to love or worship God, or
more than mere endurance of enemies who had despitefully used them.
The point to be noticed is that all these differences are not by
reason of the lower animals having a different kind of breath
or spirit of life, for as we have seen, “they have all one
breath” (Eccl. 3:19); nor because man is a soul and the brute
beast is not, for as we have seen they are all souls.
But as we have found, and as all men are witnesses, each has a different
bodily organism which gives to each his different characteristics, and
which alone constitutes one higher and the other lower in the scale of
intelligence. Notice, too,
that not size and weight give excellence and superiority, else the
elephant and whale would be the lords of earth; the excellence is in the
“organic
quality” represented chiefly in brain-structure and functions.
Man, therefore, is the highest type of earthly creature—“of the
earth, earthy”—and his excellence consists in the superiority [page 328]
of his mental endowment—not a development, but a
gift from his Creator.
“The
Soul That Sinneth, It Shall Die”
It is quite in harmony with the foregoing, but quite out of harmony
with the usual thought on the subject, that we find the Scriptures
declaring repeatedly the death of the soul, which human philosophy and
hymn-book theology most emphatically declare to be indestructible.
We read, for instance, that our Lord, when he became our
ransom-price, “poured out his soul [being] unto death.”
“He made his soul an offering for sin.” (Isa. 53:10,12)
This was necessary, because it was Adam’s soul
that was sentenced to death, and the promise to mankind is a redemption of
soul
or being from the power of death. “God
will redeem my soul from the grave [sheol—the
condition of death].” (Psa. 49:15) And, as we have seen, it is because
all souls are thus redeemed in the one redemption that all our
friends—all mankind—are said to “sleep in Jesus.” 1 Thess. 4:14
We remark here that the Apostle could not, in this expression,
refer merely to the saints, as when he speaks of those who are “in
Christ”; for those referred to as “new creatures” are those only who
are begotten of God through the Spirit, to joint-heirship with Christ, as
his Church, the members of his body.
But “those who sleep in Jesus” include the entire race, for our
Lord Jesus was a propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but
also for the sins of the whole world, and he is by virtue of that
sacrifice our Life-giver, and not only ours, but also the Life-giver for
the whole world—the testimony and the opportunity for acceptance being,
with the majority, still future. 1 John 2:2; 1 Tim. 2:4-6
That the Apostle has this thought in mind is manifest from this
context: he is here exhorting believers to sorrow not as others who have
no hope; and gives as the reason of [page 329]
the hope this fact, that Jesus died for man’s sin,
and rose again to be man’s justifier, and hence that all “sleep in
Jesus,” or are legally freed from the death sentence, and amenable to
Jesus, to be brought from the dead by the divine power.
Had the Apostle said or been understood to mean that merely the
saints would be thus blessed through Jesus, we can readily see that
believers then and since would have very little consolation in his words,
because the vast majority of the friends of believers, then and since,
cannot be termed saints: and if the awakening from the sleep of death is a
blessing intended only for the saints, the thought, instead of being a
consolation, would be the reverse, an anguish, a distress.
But the Apostle refers to the whole world as being thus asleep
in Jesus, although none knows it from this standpoint except the heavenly
Father and his consecrated people, whom he has instructed respecting his
future gracious plans, through the Word of truth, that they may rejoice in
the lengths and breadths and heights and depths of divine goodness, and
“sorrow not, even as others that have no [such substantial] hope.”
As the natural sleep, if sound, implies total unconsciousness, so
with death, the figurative sleep—it is a period of absolute
unconsciousness—more than that, it is a period of absolute
non-existence, except as preserved in the Father’s purpose and power.
Hence the awakening from death, to those restored, will mean a
revival of consciousness from the exact moment and standpoint where
consciousness was lost in death. There
will be no appreciation of time, as respects the interim.
The moment of awakening will be the next moment after the moment of
death, so far as conscious appreciation is concerned.
This same condition has been noted in connection with persons who
have sustained injuries which have caused pressure upon the brain, and
thus temporarily suspended consciousness, without extinguishing life. In cases of this kind, when the pressure upon the brain has
been removed by trepanning, the subject suddenly coming to consciousness [page 330]
has in numerous instances been known to complete a
sentence which had been interrupted by the concussion which interrupted
thought: for divine power will thoroughly duplicate every convolution of
every brain and vivify them. Thus
in the awakening-time the world of mankind in general will revive with the
same words and thoughts with which they expired.
But let it not be forgotten that we here refer to the world in
general, not to the elect and special class selected out of the world,
namely, the Church, the body of Christ, which will have part in the first
resurrection, and in many respects know a different experience.
But while, as the Adamic death has been turned, by reason of the
divine plan and the ransom, from being a destruction
to a suspension
of existence, called sleep, nevertheless we find that the Scriptures very
distinctly assert that after the revival or awakening from the
death-sleep, it will depend upon each individual whether he shall go on
unto perfection and life, under the guidance, government and tutelage of
the glorious Christ, or whether he will wilfully, deliberately and
stubbornly choose the way of sin. If
he choose the latter he will get the punishment originally designated for
father Adam, viz., death, but no longer Adamic death, the penalty of
Adam’s sin: this is styled Second Death.
This Second Death is nowhere spoken of as a sleep, nor is there the slightest intimation anywhere given that
there will be any awakening from it.
On the contrary, it is designated “everlasting destruction from
the presence of the Lord.” 2 Thess. 1:9
Of this redeemed and awakened class, which in general shall have
its trial during the Millennial age, the Scriptures declare, “The soul
that sinneth it shall die.” (Ezek. 18:20) That this scripture is not
generally applicable at the present time is evident from three
considerations:
(1) It would be meaningless, at the present time, when all
die—saints and sinners.
(2) It is expressed in the form of a second sentence, and [page 331]
based upon the individual action, and this could not
be applicable in the present time, because now we all die because of
“one man’s disobedience,” and the sentence of death which came upon him, and indirectly
affects all his race. Rom. 5:12
(3) The context shows that this passage refers particularly to
those who have gotten free from Adamic sin which prevails in general
today. Its special
applicability, therefore, must belong to the next age, the Millennial age.
Note the connections, not forgetting that the law covenant of the
Jewish age was analogous to the covenant of the Millennial age, except
that the latter will have a better Mediator, able and willing to succor
and to help all who shall seek to walk righteously, not imputing
unintentional short-comings.
The context declares: This shall no more be a proverb in Israel,
The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on
edge. But, on the contrary,
each soul shall be responsible to God for itself, and “the soul
that sinneth it shall die. The
son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father
bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be
upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.” (Ezek.
18:2,4,20) It is evident that this time has not yet come.
The children still have their “teeth set on edge,” by reason of
the sour grapes of sin which their fathers have eaten; we are still under
the law of heredity; all still die for Adam’s sin, and not for
individual sin. In proof of
this note the indisputable fact that nearly one-half of the human family
die in infancy, without having reached years of discretion or
responsibility on their own account.
Who cannot see that the agonizing and dying infant of a few days or
a few months old is not dying for its
own sins, but that it is dying because it is a member of the
Adamic race, which is still under the curse pronounced against our father
Adam, “Dying thou shalt die”? It
has inherited a share of the curse, and will also inherit a share of
God’s blessing through Christ in the coming [page 332]
awakening, secured through the merit of the great
Atonement finished at Calvary.
If we turn to Jeremiah 31:29-34, we find another reference to
exactly the same conditions mentioned by Ezekiel, only that in Jeremiah we
are furnished with more explicit details, which show that this condition
belongs not to the present age, but to a future age.
Jeremiah declares:
“In
those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour
grape, and the children’s teeth are set on edge. But every one [who
dies] shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape
his teeth shall be set on edge.”
The words “In those days” clearly refer to the future times of
restitution, under the reign of Christ, and not to the present time of the
reign of sin and death. Notice
that the Prophet proceeds to describe other features of the Millennial
age, telling about the New Covenant which is to be confirmed to Israel and
Judah, the everlasting covenant, under which they shall obtain their
long-looked-for portion of the Abrahamic blessings and promises.
Compare Rom. 11:26-31
This same thought, that death will again be the penalty for sin, to
all redeemed from the Adamic death, if after they come to a knowledge of
the grace of God, they receive that grace in vain, is shown by our
Lord’s own words, “Fear not them which kill the body but are not able
to kill the soul [fear not them which take away the present life, which is
already under sentence of death, anyway; but remember that you have been
redeemed, and that a future life is a possibility to you, and that no man
can rob you of that which God has provided for you through the redemption
in Christ Jesus], but fear him that can destroy both soul and body in
Gehenna.” (Matt. 10:28) Here
the power of God to destroy the soul is positively asserted, and that by
an unquestionable authority. We
are aware that a crooked theology has sought to wrest the Scriptures, and
therefore asserts that this signifies that God is able to destroy the happiness of
the soul in Gehenna, but that he is unable to destroy the soul [page 333]
itself. We
reply, that this is a wresting of the Scriptures, and their perversion in
a manner which cannot fail to bring evil consequences upon those who
“handle the word of God deceitfully.” We elsewhere show*
that the word “Gehenna” here used signifies “the Second
Death”—utter destruction—to all souls which will not hear God’s
great Prophet, when, in due time, he shall speak plainly unto all the
people, as he now is speaking under parables and dark sayings, expounded
only to the Church. Acts 3:23; Matt. 13:11
—————
*“What Say the Scriptures About Hell?” Address the publishers.
We claim, therefore, that the Scriptures unquestionably declare
that man
is a soul or being; that his right to existence under divine arrangement
was forfeited by sin, and that he is now under the curse or penalty of the
divine sentence, death; that man’s privileges and rights were all purchased by
the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all; that as a
consequence death is not to be accounted as death, utter destruction, but
merely as a temporary “sleep,” from which the world of mankind will be
awakened by their Redeemer in the resurrection morning of the Millennial
age.
Confusion
Through Mistranslations
It should not surprise us when we find that, holding grossly
erroneous views respecting what is the soul, what is the spirit, what is
the real man, the translators of our Common Version English Bible have
been sorely perplexed: and in their endeavor to force the translation into
harmony with their preconceived ideas on this subject, they have confused
the ordinary English reader tenfold.
They have so covered and twisted the meaning of words as to make it
extremely difficult for the English reader to see through the now double
difficulty, (1) the false teaching on the subject, and (2) the
mistranslations which support that false teaching.
[page
334]
However, in divine providence, we are now living in a day provided
with helps of every kind, so that man or woman of even ordinary education,
with the helps before him, can get a better view of the entire subject
than the translators themselves had.
There are now three works which give the English reader a tolerably
clear insight into the Common Version English Bible, and show exactly how
it has translated the Hebrew and Greek originals.
(1) The
Englishman’s
Hebrew and Greek Concordance of the Holy Scriptures [unsectarian].
(2) Professor Young’s Analytical Concordance to the
Bible [Presbyterian]. (3)
Dr. Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance [Methodist]. All three of these give each word of the Scriptures, and show
the original from which it is derived. And although we have mentioned the
denominations represented in these different Concordances, it is but fair
to say that, so far as we have yet observed, denominational prejudices
have not been permitted to interfere with the accuracy of any of them.
Although gotten up on somewhat different lines, their testimony is
harmonious and accurate, the differences between them being those of
convenience and utility.
Examining these standard works what do we find?
This: that the Hebrew word neh-phesh,
which is generally rendered “soul” (436 times) throughout the Old
Testament, and which has the signification of “sentient being,” is
translated in thirty-six different ways, as follows: “any,” 4 times;
“appetite,” 2; “beast,” 1; “body,” 4; “breath,” 1;
“creature,” 9 [see Gen. 1:21,24; 2:19; 9:10,12,15,16; Lev. 11:46,
twice]; “dead,” 5; “deadly,” 1; “desire,” 3;
“discontented,” 1; “fish,” 1 (Isa. 19:10); “ghost,” 2;
“greedy,” 1; “hath,” 1; “he,” 1; (Psa. 105:18); “heart,”
15; “hearty,” 1; “herself,” 1; “her,” 1; “himself,” 4;
“life,” 100; “lust,” 2; “man,” 2; “me,” 3 (Num. 23:10;
Judges 16:30; 1 Kings 20:32); “mind,” 15; “mortally,” 1;
“myself,” 1 (Psa. 131:2); “one,” 1 (Lev. 4:27); “own,” 1 (Prov.
14:10); “person,” 24 (Gen. 14:21; 36:6; Num. 31:19; 35:11,15,30; Deut.
10:22; 27:25; Josh. 20:3,9); “pleasure,” 3; “self,” 21;
“slay,” 1; [page 335]
“thing,” 2 (Lev. 11:10; Ezek. 47:9); “will,”
3; “your,” 3.
The Greek word, psuche [sentient being], of the New Testament corresponding to neh-phesh,
is translated “soul,” fifty-six times; is also translated “mind,”
three times (Acts 14:2; Phil. 1:27; Heb. 12:3); “heart,” once (Eph.
6:6); “life,” forty-one times.
Amongst these variations in translation none has served to obscure
the truth more than the last. It
has tended to give the impression that the life is one thing, and soul
or being another thing; and has fostered the idea that a man might lose
his life, without losing his soul, his being.
The following are the instances in which the word psuche is translated life,
but would better have prevented confusion if translated being
or soul:
“Which sought the young child’s life
[psuche—soul, being].”
Matt. 2:20
“Take no thought for your life [psuche—soul,
being], what ye shall eat.” Matt. 6:25
“Is not the life [psuche—soul,
being] more than meat?” Matt. 6:25
“He that findeth his life [psuche—soul,
being] shall lose it, and he that loseth his life
[psuche—soul, being] for
my sake shall find it.” Matt. 10:39
“Whosoever will save his life [psuche—soul,
being] shall lose it, and whosoever will lose his life
[psuche—soul, being], for
my sake shall find it.” Matt. 16:25
“The Son of man came...to give his life
[psuche—soul, being] a
ransom for many.” Matt. 20:28
“Is it lawful to save life [psuche—soul,
being], or to kill?” Mark 3:4
“Whosoever will save his life [psuche—soul,
being] shall lose it, but whosoever shall lose his life
[psuche—soul, being] for
my sake and the Gospel’s, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and
lose his own soul [psuche—life,
being], or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul
[psuche—life, being]?”
[How few English readers are aware that “life” and “soul,”
each used [page 336] twice in this scripture, are from the same Greek word
psuche.]
Mark 8:35-37
“The Son of Man came to give his life
[psuche—soul, being] a
ransom for many.” Mark 10:45
“Is it lawful to save life [psuche—soul,
being] or to destroy it?” Luke 6:9
“Whosoever will save his life [psuche—soul,
being] shall lose it, but whosoever will lose his life
[psuche—soul, being] for
my sake the same shall save it. For
what is a man advantaged if he gain the whole world and lose himself, or
be cast away?” Luke 9:24
“The Son of Man is not come to destroy men’s lives
[psuche—souls, beings],
but to save them.” Luke 9:56
“Take no thought for your life [psuche—soul,
being] what ye shall eat, neither for the body, what ye shall put on. The life is more than meat, and the body is more than
raiment.” Luke 12:22,23
“If any man come to me, and hate not [love not less] his father
and mother and wife and children and brethren and sisters, yea, and his
own life [psuche—soul,
being] also, he cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:26
“Whosoever shall seek to save his life
[psuche—soul, being]
shall lose it, and whosoever shall lose his life
[psuche—soul, being]
shall preserve it.” Luke 17:33
The thought in this last text, and in several preceding it, is that
the Lord’s people are to remember that their present existence or being
is under sentence of death anyway; but that divine grace has provided
redemption—not a continuance of being, but a resuscitation, a
resurrection, a living again. The
call of this Gospel age is to lay down our lives in the Lord’s service,
as living sacrifices, following the example of our Redeemer—the promise
being that all believers in Christ who so do, faithfully, shall be granted
a share with him in the divine nature, through the operation of the first
resurrection. Thus they will
get back again their soul, being, existence—with “life
[zoee]
more abundantly.” John 10:10
“The good Shepherd giveth his life
[psuche—soul, being] [page 337]
for the sheep [our Lord “poured out his soul
unto death; he made his soul
an offering for sin.” Isa. 53:10,12].” John 10:11
“I lay down my life [psuche—soul,
being] for the sheep.” John 10:15
“I lay down my life [psuche—soul,
being] that I might receive it again [according to the divine promise and
power, through the resurrection].” John 10:17
“He that loveth his life [psuche—soul,
being] shall lose it; and he that hateth his life
[psuche—soul, being] in
this world shall preserve it unto life eternal.” John 12:25
The thought here is, that faithfulness to God under present evil
conditions necessarily means dissatisfaction with present conditions, and
a willingness to sacrifice them all in the service of God and
righteousness and our fellow creatures—and thus, according to the divine
provision, to be accounted worthy of existence
[soul, being] under the more favorable conditions of the dispensation to
come. He who loves the
present conditions of things, and who values the enjoyments and pleasures
of the present time higher than he values righteousness and obedience to
God, will thus be proving himself unworthy of the future existence God has
proffered us, unworthy to have his soul, his being, restored in the first
resurrection.
“Wilt thou lay down thy life [psuche—soul,
being] for my sake?” John 13:38
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life [psuche—soul,
being] for his friends.” John 15:13
“Men that have hazarded their lives
[psuche—souls,
beings].” Acts 15:26
“Trouble not yourselves, for his life
[psuche—soul, being] is
in him [he has not expired, or breathed out existence].” Acts 20:10
“Neither count I my life [psuche—soul,
being, existence] dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with
joy.” Acts 20:24
The Apostle had learned to rightly view the present existence
[page 338]
as of small value in comparison to the future one
promised in the resurrection. He
did not count it “dear,” precious, in the sense of valuing it more
than the Lord and the Lord’s favor, and the opportunities for serving
the Lord’s cause. He was
willing to spend and be spent in the Master’s service, in hope of
attaining to the first resurrection, as he explicitly tells us in Phil.
3:8-11.
“Sirs, I perceive that this voyage will be with hurt and much
damage, not only of the lading and ship, but also of our lives
[psuche—souls,
beings].” Acts 27:10
“There shall be no loss of any man’s life
[psuche—soul, being].”
Acts 27:22
“I am left alone, and they seek my life
[psuche—soul, being].”
Rom. 11:3
“Who have for my life [psuche—soul,
being] laid down their own necks.” Rom. 16:4
“Because for the work of Christ he was nigh unto death, not
regarding his life
[psuche—soul,
being], supplying your lack of service toward me.” Phil. 2:30
“Because he laid down his life [psuche—soul,
being—“he poured out his soul unto death; he made his soul an offering
for sin”] for us; and we ought to lay down our lives
[psuche—souls, beings]
for the brethren.” 1 John 3:16
“The third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life [psuche—soul,
being] died.” Rev. 8:9
“They loved not their lives [psuche—souls,
beings] unto death.” Rev. 12:11
Once we get our minds clear upon this subject of the soul and
obtain a clear understanding of just how the words neh-phesh
and psuche are used throughout
the Scriptures, by the inspired writers, it removes all the mystery that
has heretofore been shrouded under the obscure words, soul and ghost,
which, not only to the ignorant, but also to many of the educated, have
meant something indefinite, indescribable and incomprehensible.
But let none get the thought that the body is
the soul: this [page 339] is an error, as our Lord’s words clearly
show—“God is able to destroy both soul and body.” But
on the other hand there can be no soul, no sentient being without a
body—heavenly or earthly, spiritual or animal.
Going to the Genesis record of man’s creation we see that the
body was formed first, but it was not a man, soul or being,
until animated. It had eyes,
but saw nothing; ears, but heard nothing; a mouth, but spoke nothing; a
tongue, but no taste; nostrils, but no sense of smell; a heart, but it
pulsated not; blood, but it was cold, lifeless; lungs, but they moved not.
It was not a man, but a corpse, an inanimate body.
The second step in the process of man’s creation was to give
vitality to the properly “formed” and in every way prepared body; and
this is described by the words “blew into his nostrils the breath of
life.” When a healthy person has been drowned and animation is
wholly suspended, resuscitation has, it is said, been effected by working
the arms and thus the lungs as a bellows, and so gradually establishing
the breath in the nostrils. In
Adam’s case it of course required no labored effort on the part of the
Creator to cause the perfect organism which he had made to breathe the
life-giving oxygen of the atmosphere.
As the vitalizing breath entered, the lungs expanded, the blood
corpuscles were oxygenized and passed to the heart, which in turn
propelled them to every part of the body, awakening all the prepared but
hitherto dormant nerves to sensation and energy.
In an instant the energy reached the brain, and thought perception,
reasoning, looking, touching, smelling, feeling and tasting commenced.
That which was a lifeless human organism
had become a man,
a sentient being: the “living
soul” condition mentioned in the text had been reached.
In other words, the term “living soul” means neither more nor
less than the term “sentient being”; i.e., a being capable of
sensation, perception, thought.
Moreover, even though Adam was perfect in his organism, it was
necessary for him to sustain
life, soul or sentient [page 340] being, by partaking of the fruits of the trees of
life. And when he sinned, God
drove him from the garden, “lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree [plural trees
or grove]
of life, and eat, and live
forever [i.e., by eating continuously].” (Gen. 3:22)
How the fogs and mysteries scatter before the light of truth which
shines from God’s Word!
Although, because of his fall into sin and death, man’s condition
is far from what it was in its original perfection when pronounced “very
good” by the highest Judge, so that some, by the cultivation of the
lower organs of thought and a failure to use the higher intellectual
faculties, have dwarfed the organs of the brain representing these higher
faculties, yet the organs are still there,
and are capable of development, which is not the case with the most nearly
perfect specimens of the brute creation.
So then it is in that the Creator has endowed man with a higher and
finer organism, that he has made him to differ from the brute.
They have similar flesh and bones, breathe the same air, drink the
same water, and eat similar food, and all are souls or creatures
possessing intelligence; but man, in his better body, possesses
capacity for higher intelligence and is treated by the Creator as on an
entirely different plane. It
is in proportion as sin degrades man from his original likeness of his
Creator that he is said to be “brutish”—more nearly resembling the
brutes, destitute of the higher and finer sensibilities.
Those whose eyes of understanding begin to open to this subject, so
that they see that the word “soul” signifies intelligence, being, and
the word “breath” or “spirit of life” signifies the divine power
to live, can readily see, from the foregoing, that every creature which
possesses life-consciousness has, first of all, a body or organism;
secondly, the spirit of life animating it, and thirdly, existence, being,
soul, as a result. An
illustration which helps some to grasp the proposition is the similarity
between heat and soul. If a
lump of coal is placed under favorable conditions, giving access to the
oxygen of the air, and then ignited, a new thing will be produced—heat.
The coal is not heat, though it [page 341] possesses some of the qualities which, under
favorable conditions, would produce heat; neither is the oxygen heat, yet
it also, under favorable conditions, may be an element in producing heat.
So, to carry the analogy, the body is not the soul, though the body
possesses the qualifications necessary to soul; neither is the breath or
spirit of life the soul—it is the power which came from God, and which
is necessary to the production of the sentient creature.
The body, when properly united with the breath or spirit of life,
produces a new thing—a being, a soul, a sentient creature.
And the process of dissolution, death, is in harmony with these
facts. If the breath or
spirit of life be withdrawn, death results.
Now the question is, what dies?
Does the breath or spirit of life die?
Surely not; it never had sentient being, it is a principle or
power, like electricity; it has no thought, no feeling; it could not die.
Does the body die? We
answer, No. The body may lose the life with which the Father animates it,
but the body of itself, apart from the breath or spirit of life, had no
consciousness, no feeling, no sense, and could not, therefore, be said to
die; it was inanimate
before the breath or spirit of life came into it; it was animate while the breath
or spirit of life was in it; it becomes inanimate
again, or dead, when the spirit of life is withdrawn.
What, then, dies? We
answer that it is the soul that dies—the sentient being ceases.
Let us remember that the sentient being was produced by the union
of the breath or spirit of life with an organism, and that the separation
or dissolution of these two causes the cessation of the being, the
soul—death. That this is
true of the lower animals, none would for a moment question; but is it not
equally true of man, the highest animal, created in the intellectual image
and moral likeness of God? It
is no less true, and should be equally evident to every reasoning mind.
We are aware that some few scriptures might be twisted and
misunderstood to contradict this proposition, but in due course they will
have consideration and will be found in most absolute accord with these
presentations. [page 342]
Take another illustration of the relationship between the human or
animal body, spirit and soul: an unlighted candle would correspond to an
inanimate human body or corpse; the lighting of the candle would
correspond to the spark of life originally imparted by the Creator; the
flame or light corresponds to sentient being, or intelligence, or soul
quality; the oxygenized atmosphere which unites with the carbon of the
candle in supporting the flame corresponds to the breath of life or spirit of life which unites with the physical
organism in producing soul or intelligent existence. If an accident should
occur which would destroy the candle, the flame, of course, would cease;
so if a human or animal body be destroyed, as by disease or accident, the soul,
the being,
intelligence, personality, ceases. Or if the supply of air were cut off from the candle flame,
as by an extinguisher or snuffer, or by submerging the candle in water,
the light would be extinguished even though the candle remained
unimpaired. So the soul,
life, existence, of man or animal would cease if the breath of life were
cut off by drowning or asphyxiation, while the body might be comparatively
sound.
As the lighted candle might be used under favorable conditions to
light other candles, but the flame once extinguished the candle could
neither relight itself nor other candles, so the human or animal body
while alive, as a living soul or being can, under divine arrangement,
start or propagate other souls or
beings—offspring: but so soon as the spark of life is gone, soul or
being has ceased, and all power to think, feel and propagate has ceased.
In harmony with this we read in the Scriptures of Jacob’s
children: “All the souls
that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls.” (Exod. 1:5) Jacob
received his spark of life as well as his physical organism, and hence the
united product of these, his soul or intelligent being, from
Isaac, and hence from Adam, to whom alone God ever directly imparted life.
And Jacob passed on the life and organism and soul to his
posterity, and so with all humanity. [page 343]
A candle might be relighted by any one having the ability; but by
divine arrangement the human body bereft of the spark of life, “wasteth
away,” returns to the dust from which it was taken, and the spark of
life cannot be re-enkindled except by divine power, a miracle. The promise of resurrection
is therefore a promise of a relighting, a re-enkindling of animal
existence or soul; and since there can be no being or soul without a body
and restored life-power or spirit, it follows that a promised resurrection
or restoration of soul or being implies
new bodies, new organisms. Thus
the Scriptures assure us that human bodies, which return to dust will not
be restored,
but that in the resurrection God will give such new bodies as it may
please him to give. 1 Cor. 15:37-40
The Apostle here declares that in the resurrection there will be a
special class accounted worthy of a new nature, spiritual instead of human
or fleshly: and, as we should expect, he shows that this great change of
nature will be effected by giving these a different kind of body. The
candle may here again serve to illustrate: suppose the fleshly or human
nature to be illustrated by a tallow candle, the new body might be
illustrated by a wax candle of a brighter flame, or indeed by an electric
arc-light apparatus.
With any power and wisdom less than that of our Creator
guaranteeing the resurrection, we might justly fear some break or slip by
which the identity
would be lost, especially with those granted the great change of nature
by a share in the first (chief) resurrection to spirit being.
But we can securely trust this and all things to him with whom we
have to do in this matter. He who knows our very thoughts can reproduce them in the new
brains so that not one valuable lesson or precious experience shall be
lost. He is too wise to err
and too good to be unkind; and all that he has promised he will fulfil in
a manner exceedingly abundantly better than we can ask or think.
Many suppose that the bodies buried are to be restored atom for
atom, but, on the contrary, the Apostle declares, [page 344]
“Thou sowest [in death] not that body which shall
be.” It is the soul, the sentient being,
that God proposes to restore
by resurrection power; and in the resurrection he will give to each person
(to each soul or sentient being) such a body as his infinite wisdom has
been pleased to provide; to the Church, the “bride” selected in this
age, spirit
bodies; to the restitution class, human bodies, but not the ones lost in
death. 1 Cor. 15:37,38
As in Adam’s creation, the bringing together of an organism and the breath
of life produced a sentient
being or soul,
so the dissolution of these, from any cause, puts an end to sentient
being—stopping thoughts and feelings of every kind. The soul (i.e., sentient being) ceases; the body returns to
dust as it was; while the spirit or breath of life returns to God, who
imparted it to Adam, and to his race through him. (Eccl. 12:7) It returns
to God in the sense that it is no longer amenable to human control, as in
procreation, and can never be recovered except by divine power.
Recognizing this fact, the Lord’s instructed ones commit their
hope of future life by resurrection to God and to Christ, his now exalted
representative. (Luke 23:46; Acts 7:59)
So, then, had God made no provision for man’s future life by a
ransom and a promised resurrection, death would have been the end of all
hope for humanity. 1 Cor. 15:14-18
But God has thus made provision for our living again; and ever
since he made known his gracious plan, those who speak and write
intelligently upon the subject (for instance, the inspired Scripture
writers), as if by common consent, speak of the unconscious interim
between death and the resurrection morning, in which sensibility (sentient
being) is suspended, as a “sleep.”
Indeed, the illustration is an excellent one; for the moment of
awakening will seem to them like the moment after the moment of their
dissolution. For instance, we
read that speaking of Lazarus’ death our Lord said, “Our friend
Lazarus sleepeth, I go that I may awake
him out of sleep.” Afterward,
because the disciples were slow to comprehend, he said, “Lazarus is
dead.” (John 11:11-14) [page 345] Were the theory of consciousness in death correct, is
it not remarkable that Lazarus gave no account of his experience during
those four days? None will
claim that he was in a “hell” of torment, for our Lord called him his
“friend”; and if he had been in heavenly bliss our Lord would not have
called him from it, for that would have been an unfriendly act.
But as our Lord expressed it, Lazarus slept,
and he awakened him to life, to consciousness, to his sentient
being, or soul
returned or revived; and all this was evidently a favor greatly
appreciated by Lazarus and his friends.
The thought pervades the Scriptures that we are now in the night of
dying and sleeping as compared with the morning of awakening and
resurrection. “Weeping may
endure for a night,
but joy cometh in the morning”
(Psa. 30:5)—the resurrection morning, when the sleepers shall come forth
from the tomb, as expressed by the Prophet: “Awake and sing, ye that
dwell in the dust [of the earth].” Isa. 26:19
The apostles also frequently used this appropriate, hopeful and
peaceful figure of speech. For
instance: Luke says of Stephen, the first martyr, “he
fell asleep”; and in recording Paul’s speech at Antioch he
used the same expression, “David fell
on sleep.” (Acts 7:60; 13:36)
Peter uses the same expression, saying, “The fathers fell
asleep.” (2 Pet. 3:4) And
Paul used it many times as the following quotations show:
“If her husband be dead [Greek, fall
asleep].” 1 Cor. 7:39
“The greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep.” 1 Cor.
15:6
“If there be no resurrection,...then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ
are perished.” 1 Cor. 15:13-18
“Christ is risen from the dead and become the firstfruits of them
that slept.”
1 Cor. 15:20
“Behold, I show you a mystery, we shall not all sleep.”
1 Cor. 15:51
[page 346]
“I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them
that are
asleep.” 1 Thess. 4:13
“Them that sleep
in Jesus, will God bring [from the dead] with [by] him.” 1 Thess. 4:14
When the Kingdom, the resurrection time, comes, “we who are alive
and remain unto the presence
of the Lord shall not precede
them that are
asleep.” 1 Thess. 4:15
The same thought is presented by the Prophet Daniel: describing the
resurrection he says—“Many that sleep in the dust shall awake”—and the description shows
that these sleepers include both the good and bad. (Dan. 12:2)
They “fell asleep” in peace, to await the Lord’s day—the
day of Christ, the Millennial Day—fully persuaded that he (Christ) is
able to keep that which they committed unto him against that day. (2 Tim.
1:12) This same thought runs
through the Old Testament as well—from the time that God first preached
to Abraham the Gospel of a resurrection: the expression, “He slept with
his fathers,” is very common in the Old Testament.
But Job puts the matter in very forcible language, saying, “Oh
that thou wouldest hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret
until thy wrath be [over] past!” The
present dying time is the time of God’s wrath—the curse of death being
upon all, because of the original transgression.
However, we are promised that in due time the curse will be lifted
and a blessing will come through the Redeemer to all the families of the
earth; and so Job continues, “All the days of my appointed time will I
wait, until my change come; [then] thou shalt call (John 5:25) and I will
answer thee; thou shalt have a desire to the work of thine hands.” (Job
14:14,15) And we of the New
Testament times read our Lord’s response, “All that are in the graves
shall hear the voice of the Son of God [calling them to awake and come to
a full knowledge of God and to a full opportunity of everlasting life].”
John 5:25,28,29
This death-”sleep” is so absolutely a period of unconsciousness
[page 347] that the awakened ones will have no knowledge of the
lapse of time. Indeed,
“sleep” is merely an accommodated term, for really the dead are dead,
utterly destroyed, except as God’s wisdom preserves their identity, and
has decreed through Christ their awakening—their reorganization and
resuscitation. And this,
indeed, will be a re-creation—a
still greater manifestation of divine power than was the original creation
of Adam and Eve. It will be
the re-creation of fifty billions instead of two persons. It will be the reproduction of infinite varieties instead of
one. Only our God possesses
such omnipotent wisdom and power; he is both able and willing to perform.
It is to be one of the benefits resulting from the permission of
evil that its eradication will manifest all the features of divine
character as they could not otherwise be manifested and known.
Before both angels and men divine justice
will shine, so will divine love,
so will divine power,
and finally the divine wisdom
in preparing and permitting such an exhibition of God’s character will
be seen and owned by all his creatures also.
The Scriptural testimony regarding the necessity for a resurrection
of the dead is most clear and explicit—and how could there be a
resurrection of the dead
if none are dead, but, as some maintain, “all who seem to die are more
alive than they ever were”; thus contradicting the five senses of every
intelligent being as well as the positive declaration of Scripture that
“To all the living there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead
lion. For the living [even
the least intelligent] know that they shall die, but the dead know
not anything, neither have
they any more a reward; for the memory of them is [very generally]
forgotten. Also their love,
and their hatred and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any
more a portion [interest] forever [Hebrew, olam—for
a long indefinite period] in anything that is done under the
sun...Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there
is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave*
whither thou [the soul,
the sentient being] goest.” Eccl. 9:4-10; Isa. 26:14
—————
*Sheol—the state or condition of death as respects the soul,
in contrast with
grave, a tomb for a dead body
which in the Hebrew is qeber. See Psa. 30:3; 49:15; 89:48; where sheol is rendered grave.
See 2 Chron. 34:28; Job 10:19; Psa. 88:5; where qeber is grave. Our
Lord’s soul went to sheol
the condition of death (Psa. 16:10; Acts 2:27), but “he made his grave [qeber,
tomb] with the wicked and rich.” Isa. 53:9
[page
348]
“Thou destroyest the hope of man [in himself].
Thou prevailest forever against him, and he passeth: thou changest
his countenance and sendest him away.
His sons come to honor and he knoweth it not; and they are brought
low, but he perceiveth it not of them.” Job 14:19-21; Isa. 63:16
Note the significance of the Apostle’s words in his celebrated
treatise on the resurrection in 1 Cor. 15:12-54.
He says:
“If Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some
among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?”
If the dead are not dead, but more alive than ever, then none are
dead, and surely there could be no resurrection of the dead.
The Apostle held no such theory, but the very contrary, that the
dead are perished
like brute beasts unless God will resurrect them; and that our hopes for
them are vain hopes except they be resurrection hopes. Mark well every word of this forceful argument by one of
earth’s greatest logicians. He
says:
“If there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not
risen [but is still dead]: And if Christ be not risen [but still dead],
then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain [because a dead
Christ could know nothing and could help nobody].
Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God [we are wicked
deceivers instead of divinely appointed ambassadors]; because we have
testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up—if so
be [if it be true] that the dead rise not.
For if the dead rise not then is Christ not raised.”
[page
349]
It should be observed that the Apostle is not pressing his argument
as respecting a resurrection of the body,
but as respects a resurrection of being, or soul; “that his soul
was not left in sheol,
hades.”
(Acts 2:31,32) Had Paul the
popular theory of our day respecting resurrection, he would have said
something like this: Some of you speak of a resurrection of the body as though it were a
matter of importance; but really the body is a “clog,” a hindrance, a
“prison house” for the soul, which is far better off when “set
free.” The resurrection of the body, whenever it comes, will be a
calamity and imply the “re-fettering” of the soul and a limitation of
its powers.
The Apostle said nothing of the kind because it would have been the
reverse of the truth. He
taught a resurrection of the soul or sentient being from unconsciousness,
from death; but denied the resurrection of the body which died, saying,
“Thou sowest not that body which shall
be:...[in the resurrection of the soul or being] God giveth it a [new]
body, as it hath pleased him, and to every [kind of] seed his own
[appropriate kind of] body.” (1 Cor. 15:37,38)
The masses of mankind of human seed or kind will receive human
bodies; but not the same bodies which mouldered to dust and whose
fragments or atoms have passed into vegetable and animal organisms
infinitesimal. The Church
will receive spirit bodies like to that of their risen Lord and wholly
unlike their earthly bodies—so much so that the Apostle declares, “It
doth not yet appear what we
shall be, but we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is”—not as
he was. 1 John 3:2
But let us follow the Apostle’s argument further.
He declares:
“If Christ be not raised, your faith is vain: ye are yet in your
sins. Then they also that are
fallen asleep in Christ are perished.” Verses 17,18
Those who claim that the soul cannot die and therefore does not die
and who therefore deny the resurrection of the [page 350]
soul or sentient being, and who in consequence are
forced by their argument to claim that Scriptural references to
resurrection refer merely to the body, are in a quandary what to do with
these words of the inspired Apostle.
If they claim that our Lord was alive, “more alive than ever,”
during the three days the Scriptures declare he was dead, and think of his
resurrection body as the one that lay in Joseph’s tomb wounded and
scarred, how could they claim that faith in a Christ who did not die (but
who merely shed off his body for three days) is a “vain” faith? How
can they acknowledge that such a faith does not release from condemnation?
How could they claim that the “more-alive-than-ever” Christ
“freed” from his body of flesh could not save sinners and hence that
all that have fallen asleep in Christ have “perished?”
Their entire theory is in conflict with the Scriptural presentation of the facts.
They deny that any soul could perish
[Greek apolloomee—be destroyed] while the Apostle says it could; and
so says our Lord—“God is able to destroy both soul and body.”
They deny also that any “are fallen asleep
in Christ” denying that death is a sleep, awaiting a resurrection morn
awakening, while the apostles, our Lord and all the holy prophets unitedly
declare it to be a “sleep” from which God’s power alone can awaken
to consciousness, soul, sentient being, on any plane of existence.
For be it noted that those who experience the “change” of the
first resurrection to the divine nature will be souls
as truly as they were in their earthly nature.
God is declared to be a soul,
the same word psuche
being used—“If any man draw back, my soul
[psuche—sentient being]
shall have no pleasure in him.” Heb. 10:38
The Platonic philosophy (that man does not and cannot die, but
merely appears to do so) prevailed throughout Greece at the time of the
first advent, and constituted the great obstacle to the progress of the
gospel among the Gentiles. For instance, we read that when Paul preached
at Athens he was listened to as a great teacher by the philosophers [page 351]
until he touched on the resurrection of the
dead—that was enough; they had no further interest; they considered
themselves far in advance of the Jewish idea that the dead can have no
future existence except by a resurrection.
“And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead
[and thus discerned that Paul disagreed with their theory that the dead
are more alive than ever] some mocked” and others said, That’s enough
at present. Acts 17:32
The heathen idea, that death is not death, but a step into broader
conditions of life, had not to any extent permeated Jewish thought up to
the time of the first advent. The
Pharisees were the principal sect of the Jews, and our Lord declares them
the successors and representatives of the Mosaic law, saying, “The
scribes [writers] and Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.” (Matt. 23:2)
The Sadducees, much less numerous than the Pharisees, were next as
a sect in point of influence: they were really unbelievers, infidels. They denied entirely a future life, holding that man dies
exactly as does the brute, and that there will be no resurrection of the
dead. They were disbelievers
in all the Messianic promises, deniers also of the superhuman
intelligences, such as angels, etc. True,
Josephus does call attention to a sect called the Essenes, which he
declares held the Platonic theory prevalent amongst the Gentiles, to the
effect that man never really dies, but merely takes a progressive step in
life development, at the crisis termed death.
But we are to remember that Josephus wrote his history of the Jews
while at the Roman court, and that he wrote it with a view of influencing
the minds of the emperor and his court in favor of the Jews. The Romans
had come to regard the Jews, as the Scriptures declare them to have been,
“a stiff-necked and rebellious people,” and naturally had concluded
that the cause of this rebellious disposition lay somehow or other in
their religion. This was a true supposition; it is undoubtedly a fact that
the truths of divine revelation tend to produce a spirit of liberty
wherever they are applied—breaking down the wide distinctions as between
priests and people, kings and [page 352 subjects, teaching that all are amenable to one great
Judge and King. But Josephus
wished to counteract this correct estimate of the Jewish people, and the
Jewish religion; and hence he stretched the truth in his endeavor to make
out a case, and to show the Roman court that the Jews’ religion was
practically the same as the various heathen religions, (1) in respect to
consciousness of the dead, and (2) a belief in eternal torment.*
To make out his case, he cites the sect of the Essenes, as though
they were the chief religious sect amongst the Jews.
On the contrary, they were so insignificant that they are not so
much as mentioned in the New Testament, and evidently never came in
conflict with either the Lord or the apostles, whereas the Pharisees and
the Sadducees are continually and frequently referred to.
—————
*Eternal torment never was the Jewish
belief except of the very few; but the Roman Emperors favored this theory,
for it increased the imperial influence over the common people.
Later the Emperors adopted the title, “Pontifex Maximus,” chief
religious ruler—later still adopted by Papacy for the popes.
“All
Live unto Him”—Luke 20:37,38
It was after our Lord had answered the doctors of the law and the
scribes and Pharisees, and had discomfited them, that the Sadducees put in
an appearance, thinking that they could show the superiority of their
infidel position, by refuting our Lord’s doctrines.
To these Sadducees, who claimed that the dead were forever dead,
our Lord said, “And now that the dead are [to be] raised, even Moses
showed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the
God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. For
he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.”
Luke 20:37,38
Our Lord suggests that this of itself is a proof “that the dead
are [to be] raised,” because God would surely not refer thus to beings
totally and forever blotted out of existence. He then shows that God’s
plan for a resurrection is fixed, [page 353]
and that those whom men call “dead” “all live
unto Him”—from God’s standpoint they only “sleep.”
God’s Word, therefore, speaks of these as “asleep” and not as
destroyed. Though the original sentence was to destruction it is now
offset by the ransom. So
Moses says: “Thou turnest man to destruction, and sayest [in
resurrection], Return, ye children of men.” (Psa. 90:3; 103:4)
In saying, “I am the God of Abraham,” God speaks not only of
things past as still present, but also of things to come as if already
come to pass. Rom. 4:17
The
Body, Spirit and Soul of the Church
—1
Thess. 5:23—
The terms body, soul and spirit are figuratively used of the Church
collectively. For instance,
the Apostle says: “I pray God [that] your whole spirit, soul and body be
preserved blameless, unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This prayer must be understood to apply to the Church as a
whole—the elect Church whose names are written in heaven.
The true spirit has been preserved
in the little flock. Its body
is discernible today, also, notwithstanding the multitude of tares that
would hide as well as choke it. And its soul,
its activity, its intelligence, its sentient being, is in evidence
everywhere, lifting up the standard for the people—the cross, the
ransom.
In no other way could we apply the Apostle’s words; for, however
much people may differ respecting the preservation of the individual
spirits and souls of the people addressed, all will agree that their bodies have not been preserved,
but have returned to dust, like those of others. Besides, the words body, soul and spirit are in the singular,
not in the plural.
What
Is Signified by “Sheol” or “Hades”
to
Which All Souls Go?
It is held that since souls are said to go
to sheol, hades,
[page 354] therefore the soul of man must be something tangible
and conscious after dissolution—after the separation of the spirit of
life from the organism or body. It
is therefore proper that we examine the Word of the Lord on this line, and
see—What is sheol,
hades?
The Hebrew word sheol occurs sixty-five times in the Old Testament Scriptures.
It is three times translated pit, thirty-one times translated grave, and thirty-one
times translated hell. These are all
faulty translations, if measured by the present general use of the words,
hell, grave and pit.
The meaning of the Hebrew word sheol
(hades is its Greek
equivalent) can scarcely be expressed by any one English word: it
signifies hidden
or extinguished,
or obscure—the
condition or state of death: it is not a place but a condition, and
perhaps the word oblivion
would more nearly than any other in our language correspond with the word sheol
of the Hebrew and hades of the Greek. Nothing
in the word sheol
signifies joy or misery, or any feeling; the connections must guide us in
this. Let us therefore examine uses of the words sheol and hades
and ascertain from the connection all we can respecting “hell.”
We will find it clearly stated in the Scriptures that sheol, hades,
oblivion, receives all
mankind, good and bad alike; that it has no light, no knowledge, no
wisdom, no device; that no tongue there praises the Lord, neither
blasphemes his name; that it is a condition of absolute silence, and in
every way an undesirable condition, except that it has attached to it a
hope of resurrection.
It will be noticed also that it is “souls,” both good and bad,
that go to this condition—sheol, oblivion—to
await the summons of the Life-giver in the morning of the Millennial age. It cannot be denied that the translators of our Common
Version English Bible have been at times inconsistent, but we urge that
this be not charged wholly to dishonesty, even though in many instances it
may appear to be little short of this: rather let us believe that it was
the result of a confusion of mind on this subject, superinduced by long
centuries of false teaching, handed down from the “dark [page 355]
ages.” Another
thing that can be said in extenuation of the work of the translators is,
that in the “old English” the word hell had no such meaning
as it has in modern English language. It, in no sense of the word,
signified or implied a place of flames or torture or trouble or pain, but
more the thought of grave—hidden condition, oblivion. The translators in using the word hell probably partially
justified themselves, on the ground of its ancient significance, its
primary meaning, as given in unabridged English dictionaries.
In examining the following occurrences of the word sheol, the reader is urged
to note what would be the sense of the passage, if the word sheol
were translated in each case “hell fire,” or “place of torment,”
and then also to note how, in every instance, the translation would be
thoroughly smooth and consistent with the context if it were translated oblivion. These prove
conclusively that “souls” go to sheol,
oblivion, and that they
are not in torment there, nor have they any knowledge or wisdom or work or
joy or pain or feeling of any kind, but simply wait in oblivion for “the voice
of the archangel and the trump of God.”
“I will go down into the grave [into sheol,
into oblivion] unto my son,
mourning.” Gen. 37:35
Thus did Jacob mourn for his son Joseph, whom he supposed had died
a violent death.
“If mischief shall befall him [Benjamin] by the way in which ye
go, then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the
grave [to sheol, to oblivion].”
Gen. 42:38
These were the words of Jacob, when parting with Benjamin, and
fearful lest he should be killed, as he supposed Joseph had been.
The same words identically are repeated under similar
circumstances, in chapter 44:29, when the brethren of Joseph are relating
to him the parting injunction of their father respecting Benjamin.
And in the 31st verse the [page 356]
brethren again state the matter as for themselves,
saying, “Thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our
father to the
grave [to sheol, to oblivion].”
Here are four instances in which the word sheol
has been translated “grave,” and we invite all to consider how
inappropriate it would have been to have used the word hell, attaching to it the usual, ordinary thought of fire,
torment and anguish. The
translators were evidently quite positive that the word hell, as ordinarily
understood, would give very false ideas of the expectation of Jacob for
himself, and of his sons respecting him: hence they here translated the
word “grave.” Nevertheless,
they did not believe, nor do the majority of people believe, that Jacob
went into the grave, or had any thought of going into the grave.
Nor was the patriarch thinking of the burial of his body in a tomb,
for then doubtless he would have used the same Hebrew word for grave which
he used in speaking of Rachel’s grave, viz., qeburah
(Gen. 35:20), or else he would have used the same word which his son
Joseph used (qeber), when speaking of
Jacob’s grave, which Jacob himself had already caused to be prepared
before he died. (Gen. 50:5) On
the contrary, we see that Jacob was speaking about himself,
as a soul or being—that the disappointment of the loss of Benjamin would
bring him down to oblivion,
to the state of death, in his now old age and feeble health.
“If the Lord make a new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and
swallow them up...and they go down quick into
the pit [into sheol,
into oblivion].”
Num. 16:30
“They...went down alive into the pit [sheol,
oblivion], and the earth closed upon them and they perished from
among the congregation.” Num. 16:33
These two texts referring to Korah, Dathan and Abiram, showing how
they were destroyed, could not have been consistently translated “into hell,”
for fear of proving that the claimed place of torture is under the surface
of this earth. But how simple the statement when rightly understood: the [page 357]
earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up and they
went down from the midst of life’s activities into oblivion,
unconsciousness.
“A fire is kindled in mine anger, and shall burn unto the lowest hell
[sheol,
oblivion], and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set
on fire the foundations of the mountains.” Deut. 32:22
Here certainly is a mention of fire, but not of literal fire. The
entire context shows that it is the fire of God’s jealousy, and the
statement follows, “They shall be burnt with hunger, and devoured with
burning heat and bitter destruction ...the sword without and terror within
shall destroy.” We are not
left to conjecture respecting how this prophecy was fulfilled; for the
Apostle Paul, speaking under the inspiration of the holy Spirit, refers to
this passage, and applies it to fleshly Israel, and to the trouble which
came upon them as a nation, when they rejected the Lord Jesus, and in turn
were themselves rejected of the Lord.
The Apostle declares that wrath came upon them to the uttermost (1
Thess. 2:16): divine anger burned against them and did continue to burn
against them until, as a people, they had suffered for their national
sins. After divine wrath has
burned out their national transgression, even searching them out to the
very lowest oblivion (sheol) he will then speak peaceably toward them, saying to the
Church, “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people; speak ye comfortably to
Jerusalem, and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, that her
iniquity is pardoned; for she hath received of the Lord’s hands double
for all her sins.” (Isa. 40:1,2) Then also shall come the deliverance of
Jacob predicted by the Apostle Paul, on the strength of the divine
statement, “For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away
their sins.” (Rom. 11:26,27) The
same thought that this burning of divine wrath against Israel, to the very
lowest oblivion, will be followed by divine blessing, is shown in the
context. See Deut. 32:26-43.
“The Lord killeth and maketh alive: he bringeth down to [page 358]
the grave [to sheol,
to oblivion], and bringeth up
[by a resurrection out of oblivion,
out of sheol].”
1 Sam. 2:6
“The sorrows of hell [sheol,
oblivion] compassed me about.” 2 Sam. 22:6
The prophet David here expressed the fact that his life was in
jeopardy, but that God delivered him from the hand of Saul.
The context, however, shows quite clearly that the Psalmist speaks
prophetically of the Christ, and the time of the full deliverance of the
body of Christ, which is the Church, from the present evil world, into the
glories of the world to come, showing (verses 8-18) that the deliverance
of the body of Christ would be just before a great time of trouble, and
manifestation of divine power and indignation against wickedness.
“Let not his hoar head go down to the
grave [sheol, oblivion] in
peace...but his hoar head bring thou down to the grave [sheol,
oblivion] with blood.” 1 Kings 2:6,9
David was the speaker, pointing out to Solomon his son that Joab
was a dangerous man, a man of blood, justly deserving of some retribution
before he died. The
translators evidently thought that, although Joab was a bad man, it would
not do here to translate the word sheol
by the word hell, because the context speaks of gray hairs, while their
theory asserts that the hairs and all the remainder of the physical body
are buried, and that the naked soul or spirit goes to hell.
Hence they preferred here to render sheol
by the English word grave. But with the
proper thought in mind, there is no difficulty about having Joab’s gray
hairs and also Jacob’s gray hairs go down into sheol,
oblivion, the state of death, together.
The words “gray hairs” and “hoar head” are simply figures
of speech signifying aged.
“As a cloud is consumed and vanisheth away, so he that goeth down
to the
grave [sheol, oblivion] shall come up no more.” Job 7:9
Job here points out the utter destruction of man’s soul, or [page 359]
being, in death.
Nevertheless in verse 21 he concludes the argument with the
declaration, “I shall sleep and thou shalt seek me in the morning, but I
shall not be.” Here the
interim of death is referred to as a sleep, as the Millennial age is
referred to as the morning, and the present age as the night of weeping
and trouble, dying and crying. The
Lord will seek Job in the morning, in resurrection power, and though he
shall not be, though death shall have worked utter destruction,
nevertheless the case is not beyond divine power, and hence, when the
Lord’s time shall come “he shall have a desire unto the work of his
hands,” when the day of the Lord’s vengeance shall have passed, and
the times of refreshing shall have come—then he shall call, and Job and
all others will answer him. See
Chap. 14:14,15.
“It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do?
Deeper than hell [sheol,
oblivion]; what canst thou know?” Job 11:8
These words are by Zophar, one of Job’s mistaken comforters, whom
the Lord reproved. By this
statement he is attempting to show Job that the divine principles of
government are inscrutable to humanity: as an illustration of man’s
utter lack of knowledge of God he refers to sheol, and compares the two; as there is no knowledge in sheol,
equally, he claims, there can be no knowledge of the divine wisdom and
plan.
“O that thou wouldst hide me in the
grave [sheol, oblivion], that
thou wouldst keep me in secret until thy wrath be past, that thou wouldst
appoint me a set time and remember me.” Job 14:13
Here is the most simple and most explicit statement of Job’s
hope. He was not anxious for
a perpetuation of the present conditions of sin and sorrow and trouble and
pain; he was quite willing to be hidden in oblivion until the time when
the curse, “wrath,” shall be lifted from the earth, and the times of
refreshing instead shall come. But
he does not wish to be blotted out forever.
Oh no! having confidence in the divine provision for a future life,
through a resurrection, [page 360] he prays that God in due time, after the curse of sin
has been rolled away, will remember him, and call him out of oblivion into
being again, by the restitution powers then to be exercised through the
Christ. See Acts 3:19-21.
“If I wait, the grave [sheol,
oblivion] is my house: I shall make my bed in the darkness.
I have cried to corruption, Thou art my father; to the worm, Thou
art my mother and my sister.” Job 17:13,14
How expressive this language!
Oblivion is the house or is the bed, and it is full of
darkness—Job’s soul, his being, sleeps, is inanimate, waiting for the
morning of the resurrection, while his body turns to corruption.
“Where is now my hope? As
for my hope, who shall see it? They
shall go down to the
bars of the pit [to sheol,
oblivion, separately]. Truly
in the dust alone there is rest for all.” Job 17:15,16
The servant of God expresses his own hope or confidence, but
questions how many can have such a confidence.
He has already expressed the hope that his death will be merely a
sleep, from which he shall awake in the morning.
But although each separately goes down to sheol,
to oblivion, whether they have this hope or not, all find rest in the
dust.
“They spend their days in wealth and in a moment go down into the grave [sheol,
oblivion].” Job 21:13
Job is here describing the prosperous course of some who are not
the Lord’s people—contrasting the same with the tribulations
experienced by some who are the Lord’s people, and come under the rod of
divine correction, to fit and prepare them for better things hereafter.
“Drought and heat consume the snow waters: so doth the
grave [sheol, oblivion] those
which have sinned.” Job 24:19
All mankind has sinned, and hence all mankind is subject to death,
and goes down to oblivion. The
only hope is in him who redeemed us from death, and who, “in the [page 361]
morning,” will bring us out of oblivion, according
to his own gracious promise. Job,
however, in this instance is specially referring to evildoers, who hasten
their death by an evil course.
“Hell
[sheol,
oblivion] is naked before him, and destruction hath no
covering.” Job 26:6
Here Job points out the all-wisdom of the Creator, who not only
knows the end from the beginning, but every secret thing of oblivion is
open to his inscrutable gaze.
“For in death there is no remembrance of thee; in the grave [sheol,
oblivion] who shall give thee thanks?” Psa. 6:5
What a clear, positive statement we have here, proving the
unconsciousness of man in death! It
should be noticed also that the statement is not with reference to the
wicked, but with reference to God’s servants who desire to thank and to
praise him for his mercies. Note
also that the reference is not to the dead flesh
which is buried in qeber, but to the soul
which goes to sheol,
oblivion.
“The wicked shall be [re-] turned into hell
[sheol, oblivion] and all
nations that forget God.” Psa. 9:17
The Hebrew word shub in this text is properly translated “returned.”
This gives the thought of one recovered from sheol,
oblivion, and that some thus recovered will be returned to oblivion on
account of wickedness and forgetfulness of God.
The deliverance of mankind in general from sheol will occur during
the Millennial age, as a result of the ransom price finished at Calvary.
However, those once awakened and brought to a knowledge of the
truth, who then are wilfully perverse, will be returned again to
oblivion—“the Second Death,” from which there is to be no ransom and
no restitution. That this
passage is not applicable to the masses of mankind (the heathen) who have
never known God, is very evident — from its own statement it refers to
those who forget God after they have
been brought to clear knowledge of him, and to corresponding
responsibility. [page 362]
“Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell
[sheol, oblivion]; neither
wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.” Psa. 16:10
The Apostle Peter, speaking on the day of Pentecost, under the
plenary influence of the holy Spirit, expounds to us the true significance
of this statement, pointing out that it could not possibly be true of
David himself; because David’s soul was left in sheol,
and his flesh did see corruption. He declares of David, “He is both dead and buried, and his
sepulcher is with us unto this day.”
“David is not ascended into the heavens.” Acts 2:27-34
The Apostle’s words are emphatic and thoroughly convincing on two
points, (1) that the soul of David went to sheol,
oblivion, and still remained there and up to the time of Peter’s
discourse had not gone to heaven; (2) that the soul of Christ Jesus went
to sheol,
oblivion, also, but did not remain because resurrected the third day—and
subsequently ascended to heaven.
These plain statements from an inspired source should clarify this
subject to all genuine truth seekers.
They set before us the following facts: (1) The soul (being) of our
Lord Jesus went to oblivion, to sheol, at death. (2)
He was dead parts of three days. (3)
He arose, was quickened, brought out of oblivion, to the divine nature, on
the third day, by the power of the holy Spirit of God, and became “the
first fruits of them that slept.” Our
Lord’s being or soul was non-existent during the period of death: “He
poured out his soul unto death; he made his soul an offering for sin.”
But his soul [being] was revived in resurrection, being granted a
new spiritual body.*
—————
*Vol. II, p. 109.
“The bonds of hell [sheol,
oblivion] encircled me: the snares of death seized on me.” Psa.
18:5 (Leeser,
18:6)
A figurative expression of deep anguish and fear of death.
“O Lord, thou hast brought up my soul from the
grave
[page
363] [sheol,
oblivion]; thou hast kept me alive.” Psa. 30:3
This is a thanksgiving for recovery from severe illness, which
threatened death.
“Let the wicked be ashamed, let them be silent in the grave [sheol,
oblivion]; let the lying lips be put to silence.” Psa. 31:17,18
Here, as elsewhere, the Psalmist longs for the cleansing of the
earth from those who love and practice wickedness. This has no reference
whatever to a future life, nor does it imply a hope of resurrection.
When the Kingdom is the Lord’s and he is the governor amongst the
nations, and the laws of righteousness and truth are established, and when
mercy and love shall bring to every creature fullest opportunity of
knowledge and recovery from sin, it may be that some who are now wicked
will seek righteousness, seek justice, and be hidden under the mercy of
Christ’s righteousness, and eventually attain to eternal life through
him. Neither the prophet David nor any one else could offer objections to
such a reformation, nor to the giving of eternal life to those thoroughly
reformed and brought back to harmony with God.
“Like sheep they are laid in the
grave [sheol, oblivion]; death
shall feed upon them, and the upright shall have dominion over them in the
morning; and their strength shall consume, the
grave [sheol, oblivion] being an
habitation to every one of them. But
God will redeem my soul from the power of the
grave [sheol, oblivion].” Psa.
49:14,15
That sheol
does not signify grave in the ordinary sense, but as we translate it,
oblivion, is clearly manifested from this text; for sheep are not buried
in graves, though all sheep go into oblivion, are forgotten, are as though
they had not been. The
Prophet is here pointing out his own confidence in the resurrection, that
God would redeem his soul from sheol,
oblivion. This is in full
harmony with the Apostle Peter’s statement that “David is not ascended
into the heavens.” David’s
soul went to sheol,
to oblivion, and [page 364]
David’s only hope is in the redemption of his soul
from sheol,
from oblivion, to life, by the Redeemer in the resurrection. Moreover,
even those who go into oblivion like the sheep are to come out of oblivion
again, for this passage distinctly declares that “in the morning” of
the resurrection, the Millennial morning, the righteous shall “have
dominion” over these, shall rule them, shall control them, shall judge
them in righteousness. So
also saith the Apostle, “The saints shall judge the world.” 1 Cor. 6:2
“Let death seize them, and let them go down quick into hell [sheol,
oblivion]: for wickedness is in their dwellings.” Psa. 55:15
This scripture, as ordinarily misunderstood, has been a great
stumbling block to many of God’s people.
They have said, how could it be that a good man like David should
pray for his enemies to go down into hell—into everlasting torture.
A good man would not so pray, nor was this the tenor of David’s
prayer. As we have seen, and
are seeing, the word sheol contains no thought whatever of fire or blaze or torment
or anything of the kind, but simply signifies oblivion, the extinguishment
of life. It follows, then
that David’s prayer or desire for his enemies, the opponents of
righteousness, was a perfectly proper desire, in fullest harmony with the
laws of the most civilized peoples in this day of greatest enlightenment.
Today the laws of civilized nations declare that all murderers
shall be executed, and they generally stipulate the supposedly easiest and
least painful methods of execution. The
law is thus saying, as did David, Let these culprits go to sheol, oblivion—let them
die. Nevertheless, God in his
mercy, has redeemed, by the precious blood of Christ, the vilest sinner as
well as the least vile, for “Jesus Christ, by the grace of God, tasted
death for every man.” “He
gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.”
If some of our fellow-creatures are more perverse than ourselves,
it may, for aught we know to the contrary, be because of the specially
blinding influences of the Adversary upon them (2 Cor. 4:4); or because of
a more evil heredity. [page 365] In any case, God’s provision is that each
individual of the race shall have a full, fair, impartial opportunity of
deciding his choice
for righteousness and life, or for unrighteousness and the Second
Death—to be returned to sheol. All this is
fully guaranteed to us in the New Covenant secured and sealed to us
through the merit of the precious blood of Christ.
“Great is thy mercy toward me: thou hast delivered my soul from
the lowest hell
[sheol,
oblivion].” Psa. 86:13
The words “lowest hell” here would signify depth of oblivion.
We may not improperly consider that the Prophet is here personating
the Lord Jesus, as he does in many of his Psalms.
If so, the words “depth of oblivion” would have a peculiar
applicability. In the case of
the world of mankind death is but a sleep, and its oblivion but a
temporary one, from which there shall come an awakening in the
resurrection, as a result of the redemption.
But in the case of our Lord Jesus it was different: inasmuch as he
took the place of the sinner (Adam), death to him must have meant the
extreme penalty of sin, viz., a perpetual oblivion, except as, by the
Father’s grace and power, he should be raised from the dead, and become
the Deliverer of those whom he redeemed.
“My soul is full of troubles, and my life draweth nigh unto the grave [sheol,
oblivion].” Psa. 88:3
Here, again, sorrow nigh unto death is briefly and poetically
described.
“What man is he that liveth and shall not see death? Shall he
deliver his soul from the hand [power] of the grave [sheol,
oblivion]?” Psa. 89:48
How consistent this inquiry and its implied answer, with all the
facts of the case as we have thus far seen them, and how inharmonious are
these words with the common thought upon the subject discussed!
The common thought is that no man, no soul, experiences death;
that the moment of dying is the moment of an increase of life; hence that
the soul is quite superior to the powers of sheol,
oblivion—that [page 366] the soul cannot die: so far from it being a question
whether it could deliver itself from the power of sheol, it passes
unquestioned that sheol has no power whatever to touch the soul.
How consistent the Scriptures and the truth!
How inconsistent the commonly accepted Platonic philosophy!
“The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell [sheol,
oblivion] gat hold upon me; I found trouble and sorrow.” Psa.
116:3
Here, again, fear of death is graphically portrayed.
“Whither shall I go from thy spirit [power—to escape or be
hidden from divine power], or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell
[sheol,
oblivion] behold, thou art there.” Psa. 139:7,8
According to the prevalent idea, this would mean that God is a
permanent resident of the awful torture chamber which sheol
is represented to be. On the
contrary, the Prophet is taking a large view of the divine power, and
telling us the result of his researches, that there is no place in all the
universe that is not accessible to divine power.
Even the oblivion of death is subject to our Lord who declares,
“I have the keys of death and of hades
[oblivion].” It is our
confidence in God—in his omnipotence—that constitutes the basis of our
faith in a resurrection of the dead.
“Our bones are scattered at the
grave’s [sheol, oblivion] mouth, as
when one cutteth and cleaveth upon the earth.” Psa. 141:7
The significance of this passage is very obscure, but in any event,
it has nothing in it favorable to the common idea of a hell of torment.
Young’s translation renders this verse—“As one tilling and
ripping up the land, have our bones been scattered at the command of
Saul.”
“Let us swallow them up alive, as the
grave [sheol, oblivion].” Prov.
1:12
This purports to be the language of murderers, who would destroy
their victims quickly, and have them lost from sight and from memory—in
oblivion.
[page 367]
“Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell [sheol,
oblivion].” Prov. 5:5
Here the temptations of an evil woman, and their baneful results,
are poetically set forth: her ways lead to destruction, to death, to
oblivion.
“Her house is the way to hell [sheol,
oblivion], going down to the chambers of death.” Prov. 7:27
A similar expression to the one preceding, but giving evidence that
the hell referred to is not ablaze; not a place of torment, but the dark
chambers of death, nonentity, oblivion.
“Her guests are in the depths of hell
[sheol, oblivion].” Prov.
9:18
Here, in hyperbolic language, the harlot’s guests are represented
as dead, as having lost self-respect, and all the dignity of
manhood—undoubtedly they are in the way of death, for the way of
licentiousness hastens disease and death.
They are in the way of oblivion, not only in the physical sense,
but also in the sense of losing their respect and influence amongst men.
“Hell
[sheol,
oblivion] and destruction are before the Lord: how much more,
then, the hearts of the children of men?” Prov. 15:11
It should be noted that there is no intimation here of torture, but
quite the reverse, sheol, oblivion, is associated with destruction.
“The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell [sheol,
oblivion] beneath.” Prov. 15:24
Our translators have very nearly made this text favor their theory
that the righteous go up to heaven, and the unrighteous go down to hell.
Notice the Revised Version’s rendering—“To the wise the way
of life goeth upward that he may depart from sheol [margin, the grave]
beneath.” The correct
thought might properly be rendered thus—The path of life for the wise is
an upward one toward righteousness, that they may be delivered by
resurrection power from oblivion.
“Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul
from hell
[sheol,
oblivion].” Prov. 23:14
[page 368]
It is, perhaps, unnecessary to explain that this passage does not
teach that after death the corpse should be beaten, in order that the soul
might be gotten out of a hell of torment. The meaning is clearly indicated
by the context. The
injunction is that the child shall not be spared the rod, if it needs it,
for in so doing years of usefulness may be added to its life—its soul
(being) shall be kept back from a premature oblivion, and possibly be
saved from the Second Death—from being returned to oblivion.
“Hell
[sheol,
oblivion] and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are
never satisfied.” Prov. 27:20
So far from this signifying a burning hell, of so immense
proportions that it never can be filled, it merely signifies that there is
no limit to the capacity of death—oblivion and destruction cannot be
overcrowded.
“There are three things that are never satisfied; yea, four
things say not, It is enough: the grave [sheol,
oblivion]; the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with
water, and the fire that saith not, It is enough.” Prov. 30:15,16
In this text, as in the one preceding it, death, oblivion, is said
to have no end of capacity, and cannot be over-filled.
“Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for
there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the
grave [sheol, oblivion] whither
thou goest.” Eccl. 9:10
Here is a most positive statement respecting hell, sheol, oblivion.
It is applicable not merely to the wicked, but also to the
righteous—to all who enter death. There is neither good work nor bad work, neither praising God
nor cursing God, neither thinking good nor thinking ill, neither holy
knowledge nor unholy knowledge, neither heavenly wisdom nor other wisdom,
in sheol,
in the oblivion of death. How could the matter be more clearly or more
emphatically stated?
“Jealousy is cruel as the grave [sheol,
oblivion].” Sol. Song, 8:6
[page 369]
Here the death state, oblivion, is represented as the very
personification of relentlessness. It
swallows up the entire human family, making no exceptions, either of
character or condition.
“Therefore hell
[sheol,
oblivion] hath enlarged herself and opened her mouth without
measure.” Isa. 5:14
The Prophet here uses the word sheol,
oblivion, to describe the loss of prestige, the ignominy, the dishonor
upon Israel. They had become
as though dead, they had passed into oblivion in large numbers.
The passage has no reference to a literal grave, nor to a lake of
fire.
“Hell
[sheol,
oblivion] from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy
coming.” Isa. 14:9
This is highly symbolic language.
It is applied to Babylon. Its fulfilment, we believe, is still
future, and is now close at hand. Great
Babylon is to be swallowed up; as a stone cast into the sea, it shall be
utterly lost sight of and forgotten—it will go to oblivion, sheol.
(Rev. 18:21) This is shown by
the context, which declares, “How hath the oppressor ceased, the golden
city ceased!” See verses
4-8.
“Thy pomp is brought down to the
grave [sheol, oblivion].” Isa.
14:11
This is a continuation of the same symbolical picture of the destruction of mystic
Babylon, whose greatness will soon be a thing of the past—buried in
oblivion, not in a burning hell.
“Ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell [sheol,
oblivion] are we at agreement.” Isa. 28:15
Here the Lord predicts direful trouble, stumbling, and falling
amongst those who, through false doctrines, have come to disregard the
Scriptural teaching that death is the wages of sin.
This time of retribution upon those who have handled the Word of
God deceitfully, and who, instead of being sanctified by the truth, are
preferring the error, is near at hand.
Our great adversary, Satan, is taking advantage of the prevalent
misbelief on this subject to ensnare the [page 370]
world with various false doctrines presented upon
this false premise. Already
he has misled the Papists and the entire heathen world into prayers and
masses for the dead, who are believed to be not dead, but very much alive
in the torments of purgatory. And
now, through Spiritualism, Theosophy and Christian Science, the same
Adversary is making special attacks upon Protestants, who because of their
belief that the dead are not dead, are very susceptible to these deceiving
influences.
Christians of various denominations have “made a league with
death,” and declare that it is a friend, whereas the Scriptures declare
that it is man’s greatest enemy, and the wages of his sin.
With the grave nominal Christians are in agreement; they consider
it to be nothing but a storehouse for the earthly body, which they declare
themselves well rid of. Failing
to see that death (oblivion) is the wages of sin, they are ready to
believe Satan’s falsehood, that eternal torment is the wages of sin.
Failing to believe that death is the wages of sin, they are ready
to deny that the death of Christ was the remedy, the corresponding price,
for man’s release, and thus all the gracious features of the divine plan
of the ransom and restitution are more
or less obscured from their view, and made difficult of
apprehension.
“Your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your
agreement with hell
[sheol,
oblivion] shall not stand.” Isa. 28:18
Thus the Lord declares that he will ultimately convince the world
of the truth of the Scripture statements respecting death and the oblivion
condition; but it shall be through a great time of trouble and confusion
to those who are under this deception, and who refuse to hearken to the
voice of the Word of the Lord on this subject.
“I said, in the cutting off of my days, I shall go to the gates
of the
grave [sheol, oblivion]. I
am deprived of the residue of my years.” Isa. 38:10
These are the words of Hezekiah, the good king of Judah, [page 371]
on whose behalf a miracle was wrought, prolonging his
days. In these words he is
telling what were his thoughts at the time of his sickness. He certainly did not mean that he expected to have gone down
to a hell of eternal torment, and the translators were wise enough to see
that if in this instance they had translated sheol
with the word hell,
it would have aroused questionings and investigations on the part of the
readers, which would the sooner have brought the truth on this subject to
general attention. The king
simply declares that he felt himself near to death, to oblivion, and that
he was about to be deprived of the residue of his days, that he might
reasonably have expected to enjoy.
“The
grave [sheol, oblivion] cannot praise thee: death cannot celebrate
thee.” Isa. 38:18
These are the words of Hezekiah, a part of the same description of
his sickness, his fear of death, his record of the Lord’s goodness and
mercy in prolonging his life, and his thanksgiving to the Lord. He declares, “Thou hast in love of my soul [being] delivered
it from the pit of corruption.” The translators did not render this,
“Hell cannot praise thee,” else those of inquiring mind would have
been asking what kind of a hell would be referred to.
Hezekiah associates the thought of death, with oblivion, sheol, and uses them
synonymously, and then he declares, “The living, the living, he shall
praise thee, as I do this day.” In
other words, a living man can praise the Lord, but if a man be dead, if
his soul
be gone to sheol, to oblivion, he cannot praise the Lord, nor in any sense
recount his mercies—until, in the morning of the resurrection, as Job
declares, the Lord will call, and all will answer him.
“Thou wentest to the king with ointment...and didst debase
thyself even unto hell
[sheol,
oblivion].” Isa. 57:9
This is a figurative expression.
It does not refer to a hell of torment, nor to a literal grave. It represents Israel as a woman, negligent of her husband,
the Lord, seeking alliance [page 372]
with the kings of the earth, to oblivion—to the
extent of becoming figuratively dead, oblivious to the Lord and to the
principles of his truth and the righteousness which is of faith.
“In the day when he went down to the
grave, [sheol, oblivion] I caused
a mourning...I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall, when I
cast him down to hell [sheol,
oblivion] ...they also went down into hell [sheol,
oblivion] unto them that were slain with the sword.” Ezek.
31:15-17
Here the Lord, through the Prophet, is in figurative language
describing the fall of Babylon. As
heretofore seen, the fall of Babylon, and the extravagant descriptions of
it, were in part applicable to literal Babylon, and in greater part are
yet to be applied in the complete fall and collapse of mystic Babylon.
The old-time nation of Babylon was overthrown by the Medes and
Persians, and went down into oblivion, into the death state as a nation:
modern mystic Babylon is similarly to fall into oblivion, to rise no more.
“The strong among the mighty shall speak to him, and them that
help him, out of the midst of hell,
[sheol,
oblivion].” Ezek. 32:21
Here the passing of the nation of Egypt into oblivion, and the
other strong nations which went down into oblivion prior to the fall of
Egypt, are represented as speaking to Egypt in respect to its fall.
Thus we say that history tells
us certain things—that history repeats her lessons.
“They shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the
uncircumcised which are gone down to hell [sheol,
oblivion] with their weapons of war.” Ezek. 32:27
The Prophet is here foretelling the destruction of Meshech and
Tubal, how they also will go down to oblivion with their weapons of war. The weapons of war can, indeed, go down into oblivion, and we
thank the Lord that no provision has been made for their restoration, in
the glorious age that is to come, when Emmanuel shall have established [page 373]
his Kingdom, for the positive promise is, “He shall
make wars to cease unto the ends of the earth.” Psa. 46:9
“I will ransom them from the power of the
grave [sheol, oblivion]; I will
redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues, O grave [sheol,
oblivion] I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from
my eyes.” Hos. 13:14
Whoever has not already been convinced that sheol
does not signify a place of torture can at least take comfort from this
text, in which the Lord declares unqualifiedly that sheol shall
be destroyed. If,
therefore, anyone still believes and contends that it is a place of
torture, let him also at least admit that it will not endure to all
eternity, because the Lord himself has decreed its destruction.
But how beautifully clear and harmonious is this entire statement
from the true standpoint! The
ransom price has already been paid by our dear Redeemer, and the work of
delivering mankind from sheol,
from the oblivion of death, merely waits until the Church, the Body of
Christ, has been selected from amongst mankind, and glorified with her
Lord and Head, Christ Jesus. As
soon as the resurrection of the Church is complete (the chief or first
resurrection) then,
declares the Apostle, “shall be brought to pass the saying that is
written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is thy sting? O
grave, where is thy victory?” 1 Cor. 15:54,55
The swallowing up of death in victory will be the work of the
Millennial age, and a gradual one, just as the swallowing up of mankind by
death has been a gradual one. Eventually
the death sentence which now rests upon mankind, and sheol,
the oblivion which it enforces upon mankind, shall completely pass away,
because all have been redeemed from its power.
Under the new conditions, under the New Covenant, with its abundant
provision, no one shall enter death (oblivion) again, except such as will
be intentional sinners on their own behalf.
This will be the Second Death, from which there will be no hope of
recovery. [page 374]
“Though they dig into hell [sheol,
oblivion] thence shall my hand [power] take them.” Amos 9:2
In this strongly figurative language the Lord declares the
completeness of his power and control over mankind, referring in
particular to Israel. As a
nation, no more than as individuals, could they escape from the divine
judgments, and though they should go down into death, individually and
nationally, still all of God’s promises, and threats as well, shall be
fulfilled. Nevertheless,
after declaring their utter overthrow and scattering amongst all nations
of earth, as we see it fulfilled today, the Lord’s promise is (verses
11-15), “In that day [in the dawning of the Millennial day] I will raise
up the tabernacle of David that is fallen...and I will bring again the
captivity of my people, Israel...and they shall no more be pulled out of
the land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.” None would think of digging his way into a place of eternal
torment; but Israel as a nation did dig its way toward national oblivion.
Yet God shall prevent this.
“Out of the belly of hell [sheol,
oblivion] cried I, and thou heardest my voice.” Jonah 2:2
The belly of hell, in which Jonah was, and from which he cried to
the Lord, and from which he was delivered, was the belly of the great fish
which had swallowed him. It
was the belly of oblivion, destruction, death, to him, had he not been
delivered from it.
“Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine, he is a proud man,
neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell
[sheol, oblivion], and is
as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and
heapeth unto him all people.” Hab. 2:5
Here, apparently, an ambitious nation is referred to, an aggressive
nation. It might be very
fitly applied to the nations of the present time, which are scouring the
world to bring smaller and less civilized nations under their control [page 375]
and patronage. Or
it might refer to the Man of Sin, and his world-wide influence, through
which he draws his revenues from all nations under the sun.
In any case, the thought is that covetousness is like death
(oblivion), in that it never has enough; its capacity cannot be satisfied.
“Hades”
in the New Testament
In the New Testament the Greek word hades
is the exact equivalent of the Hebrew word sheol. We have the
most absolute proof of this from the fact that the apostles, in quotations
from the Old Testament, render sheol
by the word hades.
The following are all the instances in the New Testament in which
the word hades
occurs:
“Thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought
down to hell
[hades,
oblivion].” Matt. 11:23
It certainly was not true that the city of Capernaum went into
eternal torment, neither was it true that it went into a grave, in the
ordinary sense of that word, but it was most absolutely true that
Capernaum did go into oblivion, into destruction.
“I say unto thee, Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build
my Church, and the gates of hell [hades,
oblivion] shall not prevail against it.” Matt. 16:18
Peter had just made confession of the Lord Jesus as being the
Anointed, the Son of the living God, the Messiah.
This truth is the mighty rock upon which the entire Church of
Christ, as living stones, must be built, for there is no other name given
whereby we must be saved. Our
Lord declares Peter to be one of these living
stones, and Peter declares (1 Pet. 2:5), that all consecrated
believers are similarly living stones,
built upon this great foundation rock, Christ, the Anointed.
These living stones are being built up for a habitation of God,
through the spirit, to be a glorious temple for his indwelling, and
through which he will bless all the families [page 376]
of the earth. Notwithstanding
this fact, that God has accepted believers in Christ and is counting them
as members of this future temple, he is permitting death to prevail
against his people now: they go down into death (oblivion), apparently as
do others: they therefore have need of the Lord’s encouraging assurance
that death shall not prevail against them, that the doors of oblivion
shall not forever remain closed; that as he symbolically burst the bars of
death, and came forth in resurrection through the Father’s power, so
also his Church shall be delivered from the power of death—from
oblivion, and shall have share in his resurrection, “the first
resurrection.” Surely this
is in harmony with all Scriptural testimony, and surely no other
interpretation of our Lord’s words would make the least sense.
“Thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust
down to hell
[hades,
oblivion].” Luke 10:15
Capernaum was highly exalted, highly privileged, in that it had our
Lord as a resident for some time, enjoyed the privileges of his teaching,
and witnessed many of his mighty works; and this hyperbolically is termed exaltation to heaven.
But in consequence of a failure to rightly use these high
privileges and opportunities, our Lord declares that the city would suffer
corresponding depression, overthrow, death, as a city—be cast down to
oblivion. And this has been
fulfilled.
“In hell
[hades,
oblivion] he lifted up his eyes being in torments.” Luke 16:23
This is the only passage of the Scriptures in which there is the
slightest intimation of the possibility of thought, feeling, torture or
happiness in hades
or sheol.
At first it seems to be opposed to the declaration that there is no
work, nor knowledge, nor device in sheol,
and it can only be understood from the one standpoint, viz., that it is a
parable. Elsewhere we discuss it in its details,*
and show that the rich man who went into oblivion, and yet was tortured [page
377] while in oblivion, is the Jewish nation.
Israel certainly has gone into oblivion; as a nation it is dead,
yet as a people scattered amongst all the nations, Israel lives and has
suffered torments since the rejection of Messiah, and will so continue to
do until having filled her measure of tribulation she shall be restored to
divine favor, according to the conditions of the divine covenant. Rom.
11:26-29
—————
*See “What Say the Scriptures About Hell?” Address the publishers.
“Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell
[hades, oblivion].” Acts
2:27
This is the quotation from the Psalms with which we started our
present examination—to ascertain whether it is the soul, or merely the
body, that goes to hades,
to sheol,
to oblivion. This text most
emphatically teaches that our Lord’s soul went to hades, oblivion, and that
it was delivered therefrom by a resurrection.
The context proves that David’s soul also went to sheol, but that it has not
yet been delivered from sheol—nor
can it be delivered, according to the divine arrangement, until after all
the Church, which is the body of Christ, has first been delivered, and
until the first resurrection is complete.
See vss. 29,34; Heb. 11:32,39,40.
“David, seeing this before, spake of the resurrection of Christ,
that his soul was not left in hell [hades,
oblivion].” Acts 2:31
This positive statement is a further confirmation of what we have
just seen.
“O death, where is thy sting?
O grave
[hades,
oblivion] where is thy victory?” 1 Cor. 15:55
The Apostle gives this as a quotation from the Old Testament, in
corroboration of his argument that the only hope for the dead is a
resurrection—not in a resurrection of the body, for he distinctly states
that the body buried will not be the one resurrected—(see verses 37,38):
the resurrection hope is for the soul,
the being,
regardless of what kind of body God may be pleased to give it.
It is not, “If your body rise not ...your
faith is vain,” but “If the dead
rise not...your faith is vain...then they also which are fallen asleep in
Christ are perished.” (Verses 16-18)
It is that which falls asleep, [page 378]
not that which turns to corruption, that is to be
awakened, resurrected.
“I am he that liveth and was dead; and behold I am alive
forevermore, amen; and have the keys of hell [hades,
oblivion] and of death.” Rev. 1:18
This passage is given as an encouragement to God’s people, hence
surely hell,
hades,
here cannot mean a place of torment: otherwise, what would be the force of
this expression? These words imply that the Lord’s people go to hades (oblivion), whoever
else may go there, and that the hope of the Lord’s people, when going
down to hades,
to oblivion, is that in due time our great Redeemer shall unlock this
figurative prison-house of death, and bring forth the captives from the
tomb, from sheol,
hades,
oblivion. This is the
significance of the statement that he has the keys, that is, the power,
the authority—he can open and he can shut; all power is given into his
hand.
In preaching at his first advent, he quoted the prophecy of Isaiah
respecting himself, which declares that he will open the prison-house, and
set at liberty the captives, and declared this to be the Gospel. (Isa.
61:1; Luke 4:18) It is the
Gospel of the resurrection, the message, the good tidings of deliverance
of all the captives from the oblivion of death, from the power of the
Adversary, “him that hath the power of death, that is, the devil.”
How full of meaning are these scriptures, when viewed from the
proper standpoint; how confusing and absurd when viewed from any other
standpoint, except when the ignorance is so dense as to cover and hide the
inconsistencies!
“And his name that sat on him was death, and hell
[hades, oblivion]
followed with him: and power was given unto them over the fourth part of
the earth, to kill with the sword, and with hunger, and with death, and
with the beasts of the earth.” Rev. 6:8
It would require a very strong imagination to harmonize this
statement with the commonly accepted view that hades
[page 379] is a place of torment of such immense size as to be
capable of receiving and torturing the fifty thousand millions of the
earth’s population. Nor
could any one see the slightest consistency in using a symbol representing
such a place of torment riding on horseback.
But the reasonableness of the symbols, death and the state of
death, destruction, oblivion,
unconsciousness,
stalking through the earth and sweeping off large proportions of the human
family, is entirely consistent. We content ourselves here with merely
showing this reasonableness, without offering any explanation of the
symbols.
“Death and hell
[hades,
oblivion] delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were
judged, every man according to their works.” Rev. 20:13
As a result of the first trial in Eden, the death sentence passed
upon all men. Probably fifty
thousand millions have already gone into sheol, hades,
oblivion; and hundreds of
millions whom we still call alive are not, in the true sense of the word,
alive, but are nine-tenths dead, under the operation of the death
sentence. As a result of the
ransom price paid at Calvary, an opportunity for a new trial is to be
granted to each member of the human family; and only a favored minority
get such opportunity and trial during this age appointed for the selection
of the Church. This means the
rolling back of the original sentence of death, and the bringing of all
mankind into a condition of judgment or trial for eternal life, on the
basis of his own works of obedience or disobedience.
This scripture shows us that at the proper time not only will the
dead (those under sentence of death, who have not yet gone into the tomb)
be granted a full trial or judgment, to determine their worthiness or
unworthiness of life everlasting, but also all of those who have gone into
sheol,
hades, oblivion,
shall also come forth from unconsciousness, from the sleep of death, to be
judged. This scene of
judgment is located in the Millennial age, which is the “day of
judgment” for the world, as the Gospel age is the day of judgment for
the Church.
[page 380]
“And death and hell [hades,
oblivion] were cast into the lake of fire—this is the Second
Death.” Rev. 20:14
Great confusion must necessarily come to all who would attempt to
interpret hades
as meaning a place of eternal torment, when considering this passage of
Scripture, but how reasonable and harmonious it is from the correct
standpoint! The lake of fire (gehenna) represents utter destruction, the Second Death, which
shall utterly destroy all evil things.
The “death and hades”
here pictured as destroyed in the Second Death are the same as we have
just described in connection with the preceding 13th verse.
The present state of condemnation, the result of Adam’s
transgression, is styled “death and hades”—the
dying condition of those now called the living and the oblivious sleep of
the fully dead.
As the 13th verse declares that all men shall be brought out of
these conditions in due time for trial, so this verse declares that Adamic
death, and the sleep in oblivion, consequent to it, shall be no more,
after the Millennial age; and it explains why, viz., because they shall be
merged into or swallowed up by the Second Death condition.
In the future no one will die for Adam’s sin: it will be out of
consideration as a factor in the trial of the future.
The only death thereafter will be the Second Death, which will
affect only the sinner who commits the sin, not the parents, not the
children. In that day he that dies shall die for his own sin. “The
soul that sinneth it shall die.” Although
such will have weakness of the Adamic nature from which they will never
recover, because of refusal to use the means and opportunities placed
within their reach during the Millennium by the Mediator of the New
Covenant, yet under that New Covenant those inherited weaknesses will not
be reckoned against them, being fully offset by their Redeemer’s
sacrifice. Hence from and
after the time when this full opportunity of the Millennial age is offered
to each individual, although Adamic weaknesses and imperfections will
still be upon them, their death will not be counted as being a part of
Adamic death, but as being a part of the Second [page 381]
Death—because their failure to make progress will
be the result of their own wilfulness, and not the result of Adam’s
transgression, nor of their own heredity to its weaknesses.
We have now examined every text of Scripture containing the words sheol
and hades,
and have ascertained that it is the souls of men that at death pass into
this condition, and that it is a state or condition, and not a place,
although sometimes figuratively spoken of as a place, a prison-house, from
which all prisoners shall come forth in the resurrection morning.
We have found that it is figuratively described as dark, silent,
and the statement freely made that there is no knowledge, nor device, nor
wisdom, nor work, nor cursing, nor praise to God on the part of any who
enter this state or condition of oblivion.
Their only hope is in the Lord—that having redeemed their souls
(beings) from destruction by the sacrifice of his own soul, he shall in
due time deliver them, call them forth from oblivion, in such bodies as
may please him, and to more favorable conditions than the present, when
his wrath, the curse, is passed away and the Millennial era of blessing
has been ushered in.
It is not surprising that the translators of our Common Version
English Bible, and most commentators, being influenced by erroneous views
respecting the nature of man, and the time and place of his reward and
punishment, and misapprehending his condition in the interim of death,
have rendered and glossed certain passages of the Scriptures, in harmony
with their misconceptions, which are to some extent stumbling blocks to
those seeking the truth. It
is proper, therefore, that we consider some of these stumbling blocks, and
remove them from our path; but as we must not interrupt our subject
proper, these will be left for examination, with other popular
misconceptions of Scripture, in our next volume of the SCRIPTURE STUDIES
series.
[page 382]
A LITTLE LIGHT
‘Twas but a little light she bore,
While standing at the open door;
A little light, a feeble spark,
And yet it shone out through the dark
With cheerful ray, and gleamed afar
As brightly as the polar star.
A little light, a gentle hint,
That falls upon the page of print,
May clear the vision, and reveal
The precious treasures doubts conceal.
And guide men to an open door,
Where they new regions may explore.
A little light dispels the gloom
That gathers in the shadowed room,
Where want and sickness find their prey,
And night seems longer than the day,
And hearts with many troubles cope
And feebler glows the spark of hope.
O, sore the need that some must know
While journeying through this vale of woe!
Dismayed, disheartened, gone astray,
Caught in the thickets by the way,
For lack of just a little light
To guide their wandering steps aright.
It may be little we can do
To help another, it is true;
But better is a little spark
Of kindness, when the way is dark,
Than one should walk in paths forbidden,
For lack of light we might have given.
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