Copyright 2009 Life Assurance Ministries, Inc., Glendale, Arizona, USA. All rights reserved. Revised January 22, 2009. Contact email: proclamation@gmail.com

HOME / STUDIES / WHAT THE BIBLE TEACHES ABOUT SPIRITS, DEATH, AND HELL

4. The Bible also teaches that the spirits/souls of unsaved people continue in conscious existence after physical death.

 

1 Samuel 28:3, 7-20: "Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in his own town of Ramah. Saul had expelled the mediums and spiritists from the land. [...] Saul then said to his attendants, 'Find me a woman who is a medium, so I may go and inquire of her.' 'There is one in Endor,' they said. So Saul disguised himself, putting on other clothes, and at night he and two men went to the woman. 'Consult a spirit for me,' he said, 'and bring up for me the one I name.' But the woman said to him, 'Surely you know what Saul has done. He has cut off the mediums and spiritists from the land. Why have you set a trap for my life to bring about my death?' Saul swore to her by the LORD, 'As surely as the LORD lives, you will not be punished for this.' Then the woman asked, 'Whom shall I bring up for you?' 'Bring up Samuel,' he said. When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out at the top of her voice and said to Saul, 'Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!' The king said to her, 'Don't be afraid. What do you see?' The woman said, 'I see a spirit coming up out of the ground.' 'What does he look like?' he asked. 'An old man wearing a robe is coming up,' she said. Then Saul knew it was Samuel, and he bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. Samuel said to Saul, 'Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?' 'I am in great distress,' Saul said. 'The Philistines are fighting against me, and God has turned away from me. He no longer answers me, either by prophets or by dreams. So I have called on you to tell me what to do.' Samuel said, 'Why do you consult me, now that the LORD has turned away from you and become your enemy? The LORD has done what he predicted through me. The LORD has torn the kingdom out of your hands and given it to one of your neighbors—to David. Because you did not obey the LORD or carry out his fierce wrath against the Amalekites, the LORD has done this to you today. The LORD will hand over both Israel and you to the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. The LORD will also hand over the army of Israel to the Philistines.'Immediately Saul fell full length on the ground, filled with fear because of Samuel's words. His strength was gone, for he had eaten nothing all that day and night." (NIV.)

 

Job 3:9-23: "Let the stars of its dawn be dark; let it hope for light, but have none, nor see the eyelids of the morning, because it did not shut the doors of my mother’s womb, nor hide trouble from my eyes. 'Why did I not die at birth, come out from the womb and expire? Why did the knees receive me? Or why the breasts, that I should nurse? For then I would have lain down and been quiet; I would have slept; then I would have been at rest, with kings and counselors of the earth who rebuilt ruins for themselves, or with princes who had gold, who filled their houses with silver. Or why was I not as a hidden stillborn child, as infants who never see the light? There the wicked cease from troubling, and there the weary are at rest. There the prisoners are at ease together; they hear not the voice of the taskmaster. The small and the great are there, and the slave is free from his master. 'Why is light given to him who is in misery, and life to the bitter in soul, who long for death, but it comes not, and dig for it more than for hidden treasures, who rejoice exceedingly and are glad when they find the grave? Why is light given to a man whose way is hidden, whom God has hedged in?" (ESV.)

Job 11:20: "But the eyes of the wicked shall look [for relief] in vain, and they shall not escape [the justice of God]; and their hope shall be to give up the ghost." [lit. "soul"] (Amplified Bible.) "And the eyes of the wicked are consumed, And refuge hath perished from them, And their hope [is] a breathing out of soul!" (YLT.)

Job 21:13: "They wear out in good their days, And in a moment [to] Sheol go down." (YLT.)

Job 24:19: "Drought and heat consume the snow waters, So does Sheol those who have sinned." (NASB.)

Job 26:5-6: "'The departed spirits tremble Under the waters and their inhabitants. 'Naked is Sheol before Him, And Abaddon has no covering." (NASB.)

Job 30:23: "For I know that you will bring me to death and to the house appointed for all living." (ESV.)

 

Psalm 9:17: "The wicked will return to Sheol, Even all the nations who forget God." (NASB.)

Psalm 49:7-19: "No man can by any means redeem his brother Or give to God a ransom for him--For the redemption of his soul is costly, And he should cease trying forever--That he should live on eternally, That he should not undergo decay. For he sees that even wise men die; The stupid and the senseless alike perish And leave their wealth to others. Their inner thought is that their houses are forever And their dwelling places to all generations; They have called their lands after their own names. But man in his pomp will not endure; He is like the beasts that perish. This is the way of those who are foolish, And of those after them who approve their words. Selah. As sheep they are appointed for Sheol; Death shall be their shepherd; And the upright shall rule over them in the morning, And their form shall be for Sheol to consume So that they have no habitation. But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol, For He will receive me. Selah. Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich, When the glory of his house is increased; For when he dies he will carry nothing away; His glory will not descend after him. Though while he lives he congratulates himself--And though men praise you when you do well for yourself--He shall go to the generation of his fathers; They will never see the light." (NASB.)

Psalm 55:15, 23: "Let death come deceitfully upon them; Let them go down alive to Sheol, For evil is in their dwelling, in their midst. [...] But You, O God, will bring them down to the pit of destruction; Men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days But I will trust in You." (NASB.)

Psalm 63:9: "But those who seek my life, to destroy it, Shall go into the lower parts of the earth." (NKJV.)

Psalm 73:3-4, 16-28:"For I was envious of the arrogant As I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For there are no pains in their death, And their body is fat. [...] When I pondered to understand this, It was troublesome in my sight Until I came into the sanctuary of God; Then I perceived their end. Surely You set them in slippery places; You cast them down to destruction. How they are destroyed in a moment! They are utterly swept away by sudden terrors! Like a dream when one awakes, O Lord, when aroused, You will despise their form. When my heart was embittered And I was pierced within, Then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. With Your counsel You will guide me, And afterward receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. My flesh and my heart may fail, But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For, behold, those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, That I may tell of all Your works." (NASB.)

Psalm 89:48: "What man can live and not see death? Can he deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? Selah." (NASB.)

Psalm 90:10: "As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years, Or if due to strength, eighty years, Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow; For soon it is gone and we fly away." (NASB.)

Psalm 140:9-11: "The chief of my surrounders, The perverseness of their lips covereth them. They cause to fall on themselves burning coals, Into fire He doth cast them, Into deep pits -- they arise not. A talkative man is not established in the earth, One of violence -- evil hunteth to overflowing." (YLT.)

Psalm 140:9-11: "As for the heads of those who surround me, let the trouble their lips cause overwhelm [them]. Let hot coals fall on them. Let them be thrown into the fire, into the abyss, never again to rise. Do not let a slanderer stay in the land. Let evil relentlessly hunt down a violent man." (HCSB.)

 

Proverbs 2:18: "For her house leads down to death and her paths to the spirits of the dead." (NIV.)

Proverbs 9:18: "But he does not know that the dead [lit. Rephaim, "departed spirits"] are there, That her guests are in the depths of Sheol." (NASB.)

Proverbs 15:24: "The path of life leads upward for the wise That he may keep away from Sheol below." (NASB.)

Proverbs 21:16: "The man who strays from the way of wisdom will come to rest in the assembly of the departed spirits." (HCSB.)

Proverbs 23:13-14: "Do not hold back discipline from the child, Although you strike him with the rod, he will not die. You shall strike him with the rod And rescue his soul from Sheol." (NASB.)

 

Song of Solomon 8:6: "Put me like a seal over your heart, Like a seal on your arm For love is as strong as death, Jealousy is as severe as Sheol; Its flashes are flashes of fire, The very flame of the LORD." (NASB.)

 

Isaiah 5:4: "Therefore Sheol has enlarged itself And opened its mouth beyond measure; Their glory and their multitude and their pomp, And he who is jubilant, shall descend into it." (NKJV.)

Isaiah 14:9-17: "'Sheol from beneath is excited over you to meet you when you come; It arouses for you the spirits of the dead, all the leaders of the earth; It raises all the kings of the nations from their thrones. 'They will all respond and say to you, 'Even you have been made weak as we, You have become like us. 'Your pomp and the music of your harps Have been brought down to Sheol; Maggots are spread out as your bed beneath you And worms are your covering.' 'How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations! 'But you said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly In the recesses of the north. 'I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.' 'Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, To the recesses of the pit. 'Those who see you will gaze at you, They will ponder over you, saying, 'Is this the man who made the earth tremble, Who shook kingdoms, Who made the world like a wilderness And overthrew its cities, Who did not allow his prisoners to go home?' (NASB.)

Isaiah 24:21-22: "So it will happen in that day, That the LORD will punish the host of heaven on high, And the kings of the earth on earth. They will be gathered together Like prisoners in the dungeon, And will be confined in prison; And after many days they will be punished." (NASB.)

Isaiah 26:14, 19: "The dead will not live, the departed spirits will not rise; Therefore You have punished and destroyed them, And You have wiped out all remembrance of them. [...] Your dead will live; Their corpses will rise You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy, For your dew is as the dew of the dawn, And the earth will give birth to the departed spirits." (NASB.)

 

Ecclesiastes 12:5-7: "Furthermore, men are afraid of a high place and of terrors on the road; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags himself along, and the caperberry is ineffective. For man goes to his eternal home while mourners go about in the street. Remember Him before the silver cord is broken and the golden bowl is crushed, the pitcher by the well is shattered and the wheel at the cistern is crushed; then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it." (NASB.)

 

Ezekiel 26:19-20: "For thus says the Lord GOD: When I make you a city laid waste, like the cities that are not inhabited, when I bring up the deep over you, and the great waters cover you, then I will make you go down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of old, and I will make you to dwell in the world below, among ruins from of old, with those who go down to the pit, so that you will not be inhabited; but I will set beauty in the land of the living." (ESV.)

Ezekiel 31:1-3, 14-18: "In the eleventh year, in the third [month], on the first [day] of the month, the word of the LORD came to me: 'Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes: Who are you like in your greatness? Think of Assyria, a cedar in Lebanon, with beautiful branches and shady foliage, and of lofty height. Its top was among the clouds. [...] [This happened] so that no trees [planted] beside water would become great in height and set their tops among the clouds, and so that no [other] well-watered trees would reach them in height. For they have all been consigned to death, to the underworld, among the people who descend to the Pit. 'This is what the Lord GOD says: I caused grieving on the day the cedar went down to Sheol. I closed off the underground deep because of it: I held back the rivers of the deep, and [its] abundant waters were restrained. I made Lebanon mourn on account of it, and all the trees of the field fainted because of it. I made the nations quake at the sound of its downfall, when I threw it down to Sheol [to be] with those who descend to the Pit. Then all the trees of Eden, all the well-watered trees, the choice and best of Lebanon, were comforted in the underworld. They too descended with it to Sheol, to those slain by the sword. As its allies they had lived in its shade among the nations. 'Who then are you like in glory and greatness among Eden's trees? You also will be brought down to the underworld [to be] with the trees of Eden. You will lie among the uncircumcised with those slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his hordes'—the declaration of the Lord GOD ." (HCSB.)

Ezekiel 32:17-32: "In the twelfth year, on the fifteenth of the month, the word of the LORD came to me saying, 'Son of man, wail for the hordes of Egypt and bring it down, her and the daughters of the powerful nations, to the nether world, with those who go down to the pit; 'Whom do you surpass in beauty? Go down and make your bed with the uncircumcised.' 'They shall fall in the midst of those who are slain by the sword. She is given over to the sword; they have drawn her and all her hordes away. 'The strong among the mighty ones shall speak of him and his helpers from the midst of Sheol, 'They have gone down, they lie still, the uncircumcised, slain by the sword.' 'Assyria is there and all her company; her graves are round about her. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword, whose graves are set in the remotest parts of the pit and her company is round about her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword, who spread terror in the land of the living. 'Elam is there and all her hordes around her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who went down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the earth, who instilled their terror in the land of the living and bore their disgrace with those who went down to the pit. 'They have made a bed for her among the slain with all her hordes. Her graves are around it, they are all uncircumcised, slain by the sword (although their terror was instilled in the land of the living), and they bore their disgrace with those who go down to the pit; they were put in the midst of the slain. 'Meshech, Tubal and all their hordes are there; their graves surround them. All of them were slain by the sword uncircumcised, though they instilled their terror in the land of the living. 'Nor do they lie beside the fallen heroes of the uncircumcised, who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war and whose swords were laid under their heads; but the punishment for their iniquity rested on their bones, though the terror of these heroes was once in the land of the living. 'But in the midst of the uncircumcised you will be broken and lie with those slain by the sword. 'There also is Edom, its kings and all its princes, who for all their might are laid with those slain by the sword; they will lie with the uncircumcised and with those who go down to the pit. 'There also are the chiefs of the north, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who in spite of the terror resulting from their might, in shame went down with the slain. So they lay down uncircumcised with those slain by the sword and bore their disgrace with those who go down to the pit. 'These Pharaoh will see, and he will be comforted for all his hordes slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his army,' declares the Lord GOD. 'Though I instilled a terror of him in the land of the living, yet he will be made to lie down among the uncircumcised along with those slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his hordes,' declares the Lord GOD." (NASB.)

 

Matthew 10:28: "'Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." (NASB.)

Matthew 11:23-24: "'And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will descend to Hades; for if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day. 'Nevertheless I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you.'" (NASB.)

Matthew 24:48-51: "'But if that evil slave says in his heart, 'My master is not coming for a long time,' and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (NASB.)

 

Luke 10:12-15: "'I say to you, it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city. 'Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 'But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment than for you. 'And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will be brought down to Hades!" (NASB.)

Luke 12:4-5, 18-21, 45-46: "I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. 'But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him! [...] 'Then he said, 'This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 'And I will say to my soul, 'Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.'''But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?' 'So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.' [...] 'But if that slave says in his heart, 'My master will be a long time in coming,' and begins to beat the slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers." (NASB.)

Luke 16:19-31: "'Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day. 'And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man's table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. 'Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. 'In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. 'And he cried out and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.' 'But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. 'And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.' 'And he said, 'Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father's house--for I have five brothers--in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.' 'But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.' 'But he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!' 'But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.''" (NASB.)

 

John 5:25, 28-29: "'Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. [...] 'Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment." (NASB.)

 

Acts 10:42: "And He ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly to testify that this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and the dead." (NASB.)

 

Philippians 2:9-11: "For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (NASB.)

 

2 Timothy 4:1: "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom:" (NASB.)

 

1 Peter 3:18-20: "For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water." (NASB.)

1 Peter 4:4-5: "In all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them into the same excesses of dissipation, and they malign you; but they will give account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead." (NASB.)

 

2 Peter 2:1-9: "But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter; and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds), then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment," (NASB.)

 

Revelation 5:3, 13: "And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the book or to look into it. [...] And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, 'To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.'" (NASB.)

Revelation 9:1-2, 11: "Then the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth; and the key of the bottomless [lit. "abyss"] pit was given to him. He opened the bottomless [lit. "abyss"] pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit. [...] They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon." (NASB.) cf Revelation 20:1-3: "Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time." (NASB.) cf. Matthew 8:29: "And they cried out, saying, 'What business do we have with each other, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?'" (NASB.) cf. Luke 8:28, 30-31: "Seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, 'What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me.' [...] And Jesus asked him, 'What is your name?' And he said, 'Legion'; for many demons had entered him. They were imploring Him not to command them to go away into the abyss." (NASB.) cf. Romans 10:7: "or 'WHO WILL DESCEND INTO THE ABYSS?' (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).'" (NASB.)

Revelation 11:7: "When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them." (NASB.)

Revelation 11:16-18: "And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, 'We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who are and who were, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign. 'And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to reward Your bond-servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.'" (NASB.)

Revelation 17:8: "'The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come." (NASB.)

Revelation 20:12-14: "And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire." (NASB.)

By Jeremy Graham