Paradise and Hell, Part 3
HADES in the New Testament
The Hebrew word sheol is used for the realm of the dead in the OT. The NT, however, was written in Greek, and there we find sheol translated by the Greek word hades. In fact, when the whole of the OT was translated into Greek, sheol was always translated "hades". Similarly, when the NT quotes OT texts, sheol is always translated "hades"; they are one and the same.
Just like sheol, the word hades is never used of the grave, but always refers to the world of departed spirits. We are given specific details about what hades is like, both for those who die as believers as well as those who die as unbelievers. At least some of the mystery disappears as God parts the curtain for us.
Christ accepted the rabbi's understanding that sheol, or hades, had two compartments. To emphasize to the greedy Pharisees how the fortunes of rich people might someday be reversed in the world to come, he told a story that takes us behind the veil which separates the dead from the living.
Remember the context. A rich man who habitually dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in splendor every day died and his soul was taken to hades. A beggar named Lazarus who lay at the rich man's gate also died and ws carried into Abraham's bosom (the blissful region of hades, also called Paradise). Now the description of the hereafter begins:
And 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 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, there is a great chasm fixed, in order that those who wish to come over from here to you may not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.' (Luke 16.23-26).
It would be a mistake to think this tormented man ended in hades because he was rich. The NT clearly teaches that our riches or lack of them do not dictate our eternal destiny. Remember, Christ told this story (not a parable) to jolt greedy Pharisees into the realization that their riches cannot save them; poor people might be better off in the life to come.
The man in hades was fully conscious immediately after death. Memory, speaking, pain, and bliss--all of these were a part of his existence. In hades, an alcoholic will thirst for a drop of liquor, but none will be given to him. The drug addict will crave a shot of heroin, but will not receive it. The immoral man will burn with sexual desire, but never be satisfied.
Perpetually burning lusts never subside, and the tortured conscience aches but is never sedated. There will be increased desire without satisfaction.
The eternal destiny of this man was irrevocably fixed. "Between us and you there is a great chasm fixed..."
This man knew himself well enough to know what he was experiencing was fair and just. In hades, his entire life was present to him; his transfer into the nether world did not diminish, but only heighten his self-awareness. First, he says nothing about how unfair it is for him to be there. He complains about the pain, but does not complain about injustice. Second, and more important, he knew exactly what his brothers would have to do to avoid his own fate! If they would repent, they would be kept from joining him in misery.
Abraham's answer is instructive. "If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone rises from the dead." (v. 31).
The rich man of Luke 16 was not yet in hell but hades. Because the KBJ often translated both sheol and hades as hell, this has confused two different kinds of regions. The Bible is clear that no one is yet in hell (lake of fire) today. Someday, hades will be thrown into hell, but that has not happened yet.
What about the believer, Lazarus? He was in that region of sheol, or hades, which is called "Abraham's bosom." But after the Ascension of Christ believers are said to go directly into heaven. In other words, the two regions of hades no longer exist side-by-side; Abraham's bosom is in heaven today. Hades, as far as we know, now has only one region, and that is where unbelievers enter.
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