Simon Brown.

Join me on this journey. Let's seek the truth together! 💡 Proverbs 8:34-36 Blessed is the man who hears me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at my door posts. For whoever finds me finds life, and will obtain favor from Yahweh. But he who sins against me wrongs his own soul. All those who hate me love death.” Psalm 84: 11 For Yahweh God is a sun and a shield. Yahweh will give grace and glory. He withholds no good thing from those who walk blamelessly. 12 Yahweh of Armies, blessed is the man who trusts in you. 1 John 5:5 Now who is the one overcoming the world, except the one believing that Jesus is the Son of God.
Showing posts with label Hades. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hades. Show all posts

Sunday, 23 August 2026

Quick Facts: Luke 16:23 – Are the Dead Alive and Burning in Hell?

 

Quick Facts Luke 16:23 Bible study examining whether the dead are alive and burning in Hell, comparing Hades, Gehenna and the second death.

A detailed Bible research infographic examining Luke 16:23 and the traditional teaching of Hell. It compares the Greek words Hades and Gehenna, Matthew 10:28 and Revelation 20:14, and examines whether final punishment means eternal conscious torment or the second death.

QUICK FACTS: LUKE 16:23

DOES LUKE 16:23 REALLY TEACH THAT THE DEAD ARE ALIVE AND BURNING IN HELL?

Millions of Christians have been taught that when an unsaved person dies, the body dies but the soul remains consciously alive and immediately enters a place of fiery torment called Hell.

One of the principal passages used to support this belief is Jesus’ account of the Rich Man and Lazarus in Luke 16.

The King James Bible reads:

Luke 16:23 — KJV

“And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments…”

At first sight, that certainly appears to say that the rich man died and immediately found himself alive and suffering in Hell.

But there is an important problem:

THE GREEK TEXT DOES NOT SAY GEHENNA.

The Greek word in Luke 16:23 is:

ᾅδης — HADES

So before constructing a doctrine about eternal punishment from the English word “hell,” we need to distinguish the different biblical words that English translations have historically rendered by that one word.


LUKE 16:23 ACTUALLY SAYS “HADES”

The Greek text reads:

ἐν τῷ ᾅδῃ — en tō hadē

Meaning:

“IN HADES.”

The Berean Literal Bible therefore reads:

Luke 16:23 — BLB

“And in Hades, having lifted up his eyes, being in torment, he sees Abraham from afar, and Lazarus in his bosom.”

The BLB preserves the word:

HADES

rather than translating it simply as “hell.”

That distinction is extremely important.


HADES AND GEHENNA ARE NOT THE SAME GREEK WORD

This is where considerable confusion can arise.

The New Testament uses:

ᾅδης — HADES

and:

γέεννα — GEHENNA

They are different Greek words.

Yet older English translations such as the KJV can translate both using the same English word:

“HELL.”

When the distinction disappears in translation, readers can easily assume that every occurrence of “hell” describes exactly the same thing.

But the original Greek does not allow us to make that assumption.


WHAT CORRESPONDS TO HADES IN THE OLD TESTAMENT?

The Greek Hades commonly corresponds to the Hebrew:

שְׁאוֹל — SHEOL

Sheol refers to the realm or state of the dead and is frequently translated:

the grave

the pit

or:

Sheol

depending upon the translation and context.

This connection can be seen particularly clearly when the New Testament quotes the Old Testament.

For example, Psalm 16:10 uses Sheol, while its quotation in Acts 2:27 uses Hades.

That gives us a direct biblical relationship:

HEBREW: SHEOL

GREEK: HADES

Therefore, we should not automatically equate every reference to Hades with the final punishment associated with Gehenna or the lake of fire.


WHAT, THEN, IS GEHENNA?

Now compare Luke 16:23 with Jesus' words in Matthew 10:28.

Matthew 10:28 — Berean Literal Bible

“And you should not be afraid of those killing the body but not being able to kill the soul. Indeed rather you should fear the One being able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.”

Here the Greek word is:

γέεννα — GEHENNA

Not Hades.

And notice something extremely important about Jesus' statement:

BOTH SOUL AND BODY CAN BE DESTROYED IN GEHENNA.

Jesus does not say here that God preserves the wicked eternally alive in Gehenna.

He uses the Greek verb ἀπόλλυμι — apollymi, translated in the BLB as:

“DESTROY.”

Whatever theological position we ultimately take concerning final punishment, that word must be allowed its proper place in the discussion.


JESUS SAID GOD CAN DESTROY BOTH

Look carefully at the contrast:

Man can:

kill the body

but:

God can:

DESTROY BOTH SOUL AND BODY IN GEHENNA.

That statement presents a serious challenge to the claim that the human soul is inherently indestructible and therefore must remain consciously alive forever.

Jesus explicitly says God is able to:

DESTROY THE SOUL.

That deserves much more attention than it sometimes receives.


WHAT HAPPENS TO HADES ITSELF?

Revelation gives us another vital piece of evidence.

Revelation 20:14 — Berean Literal Bible

“And Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.”

Notice the sequence:

DEATH

and:

HADES

are themselves eventually thrown into:

THE LAKE OF FIRE.

Therefore:

HADES CANNOT SIMPLY BE IDENTICAL TO THE LAKE OF FIRE.

If Hades is thrown into the lake of fire, the two cannot simply be treated as interchangeable terms.

And Revelation calls the lake of fire:

“THE SECOND DEATH.”


FIRST DEATH AND SECOND DEATH

This distinction helps us understand the biblical sequence.

There is:

THE PRESENT STATE OF DEATH

followed eventually by:

RESURRECTION AND JUDGMENT

and then the final judgment described as:

THE SECOND DEATH.

Revelation 20:11–15 places the lake of fire after the resurrection and Great White Throne judgment.

This means we should be extremely cautious about teaching that every unsaved person is already experiencing the final lake-of-fire judgment immediately upon death.

The final judgment depicted in Revelation 20 occurs at the appointed judgment.


WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT THE DEAD?

Consider the language of Ecclesiastes:

Ecclesiastes 9:5

“For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing…”

And:

Ecclesiastes 9:10

“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work, nor plan, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in Sheol, where you are going.”

Psalm 146:4 likewise says of man:

“His spirit goes forth; he returns to his earth. In that very day, his thoughts perish.”

These passages should be considered alongside any interpretation claiming that the dead continue thinking, remembering and experiencing conscious life immediately after death.


THEN WHAT ABOUT THE RICH MAN AND LAZARUS?

This is the crucial question.

If Luke 16:19–31 is treated as a literal description of the geography and conscious experiences of dead people, it naturally becomes a major proof text for conscious existence after death.

But there are strong reasons to examine whether Jesus is instead using a story with symbolic and parabolic features to make a theological and moral point.

Consider what appears in the account:

Abraham's bosom.

A conversation across a great chasm.

The rich man's tongue.

Lazarus' finger.

A request for water.

And finally the central message:

“THEY HAVE MOSES AND THE PROPHETS; LET THEM HEAR THEM.”

The climax is not a geographical explanation of the afterlife.

It concerns people who refuse to hear Moses and the Prophets.


JESUS TELLS US THE CENTRAL LESSON

The account concludes:

Luke 16:31 — Berean Literal Bible

“And he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded if one should rise out from the dead.’”

That final sentence points us directly toward the spiritual warning.

People who refuse God's testimony will not necessarily believe even when confronted with resurrection.

The passage should therefore not be isolated from its literary purpose and turned automatically into a detailed map of what happens immediately after death.


THE KJV WORD “HELL” CAN HIDE IMPORTANT DISTINCTIONS

This is one of the real problems with using the English word “hell” without checking the underlying biblical language.

Depending upon the passage, the KJV can use “hell” where the underlying word is:

SHEOL

or:

HADES

or:

GEHENNA.

Those words are not simply identical.

So when somebody says:

“The Bible says people are in Hell.”

we should immediately ask:

WHICH WORD?

SHEOL?

HADES?

GEHENNA?

THE LAKE OF FIRE?

Only then can we properly examine what the passage actually teaches.


AN IMPORTANT CORRECTION

There is one point from the older article that should be tightened considerably.

It is too broad to say:

“Hades simply means the grave.”

Hades is closely associated with Sheol and the realm/state of the dead, and in some contexts “grave” communicates that idea. But its lexical range is broader than simply a physical burial grave.

Likewise, Gehenna originally derives from the Valley of Hinnom and became associated with divine judgment. The Greek word itself does not literally mean “Great White Throne Judgment Day.”

Those distinctions actually strengthen the research because we don't need to exaggerate what the Greek words mean.

The strongest argument comes from allowing Scripture to define its own sequence.


THE BIBLICAL SEQUENCE

The picture presented in Revelation 20 is:

THE DEAD ARE RAISED

↓

JUDGMENT TAKES PLACE

↓

DEATH AND HADES ARE DESTROYED

↓

THE LAKE OF FIRE

↓

“THIS IS THE SECOND DEATH.”

Revelation 20:14

That makes an important distinction between Hades and the final judgment.


DOES MATTHEW 10:28 TEACH ETERNAL CONSCIOUS TORMENT?

Jesus' actual language should be taken seriously:

“DESTROY BOTH SOUL AND BODY IN GEHENNA.”

He did not say in this verse:

“Preserve both soul and body alive forever in Gehenna.”

He said:

DESTROY.

And Revelation describes the ultimate punishment as:

“THE SECOND DEATH.”

This is why Christians who hold to conditional immortality or final destruction argue that the ultimate fate of the wicked is death and destruction rather than everlasting conscious life in torment.

Other Christians interpret the judgment texts differently, so Matthew 10:28 alone does not settle every aspect of that wider debate.

But it certainly deserves to be read exactly as Jesus gave it.


QUICK FACT CONCLUSION

Luke 16:23 in the Greek does not contain the word:

GEHENNA.

It contains:

HADES.

Matthew 10:28, however, actually uses:

GEHENNA

and Jesus says God can:

“DESTROY BOTH SOUL AND BODY”

there.

Then Revelation 20:14 tells us:

DEATH AND HADES ARE THROWN INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE

and calls that final punishment:

“THE SECOND DEATH.”

So we should not collapse Hades, Gehenna, Sheol and the lake of fire into one English word and assume they all mean exactly the same thing.

And we certainly should not construct our doctrine merely from the KJV's use of the English word “hell.”

GO BACK TO THE HEBREW.

GO BACK TO THE GREEK.

COMPARE SCRIPTURE WITH SCRIPTURE.

Then ask the crucial question:

Does the Bible really teach that the wicked receive everlasting life in torment—or does final judgment ultimately result in the second death?

That is the question the biblical evidence must answer.


OLD RESEARCH ARTICLE

Luke 16:23 — The Rich Man and Lazarus, Hades, Gehenna and the Truth About Hell

Read the full research article

Research by Simon Brown
wwwrealdiscoveriesorg-simon.blogspot.com

You tube videos:

 EXPOSING FALSE TEACHERS ON REVELATION TV!

EXPOSING Dr. Grady S. McMurtry On Revelation TV!

According to Dr. Grady, John 14:9, John 10:30, PROVES Jesus is GOD Almighty!

FALSE TEACHINGS of Dr Grady John 10:30.

Dr. Grady McMurtry's FALSE TEACHING on HELL!

Dr Grady McMurtry says 2 Corinthians 5:8 proves the saints are in HEAVEN! 

David Pawson & Answers in Genesis, FALSE TEACHINGS on the TRINITY.

RELATED ARTICLES:

 Quick Facts: 2 Corinthians 5:8 – Are Dead Christians Already Alive in Heaven?

Quick Facts: Revelation TV – Testing the Trinity Against the Word of God

Monday, 10 August 2026

Quick Facts: Are the Dead Alive or Dead? What the Bible Really Teaches.

Quick Facts Bible study examining whether the dead are alive in heaven or asleep awaiting resurrection, with Scriptures about death, Hades, Jesus' return, resurrection and final judgment.

 A detailed Quick Facts Bible study examining what Scripture teaches about the state of the dead. The study compares the widespread Christian belief that people remain consciously alive after death with passages describing the dead as asleep and awaiting resurrection. Key Scriptures include Ecclesiastes 9:5–10, John 11:11–14, John 20:17, 1 Corinthians 15:20–23, 1 Thessalonians 4:13–17, John 5:28–29 and Revelation 20:4–15.   

PART 1 — WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE DIE?

The Bible’s Language of Death and Sleep

This will contain Quick Facts 1–10:

  1. The Bible describes death as sleep
  2. Jesus called death “sleep”
  3. Martha expected Lazarus to rise “at the last day”
  4. Jesus did not say Lazarus was alive in heaven
  5. “The dead know not any thing” — Ecclesiastes 9:5
  6. “In death there is no remembrance” — Psalm 6:5
  7. “The dead praise not the LORD” — Psalm 115:17
  8. At death, “his thoughts perish” — Psalm 146:4
  9. Job described death as sleep
  10. Jesus said those in the graves will hear His voice and come forth — John 5:28–29

PART 1 — WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE DIE?

THE BIBLE’S LANGUAGE OF DEATH AND SLEEP

INTRODUCTION

What actually happens to us when we die?

This is one of the greatest questions mankind has ever asked.

Many Christians have been taught that death is not really death.

They have been taught that when a saved Christian dies, an immortal soul immediately leaves the body and continues consciously living in heaven with Jesus.

Many are also taught that the unsaved dead remain consciously alive in Hades, awaiting the final judgment.

I once accepted teachings like these myself.

But when we put aside traditions and begin searching the Scriptures, we must ask:

IS THIS REALLY WHAT THE BIBLE TEACHES?

Before examining difficult passages such as the thief on the cross, the rich man and Lazarus, “absent from the body,” and Paul's desire to “depart, and to be with Christ,” we first need to establish something much more fundamental:

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE NORMALLY SAY HAPPENS WHEN A PERSON DIES?

What did Jesus call death?

What did the prophets call death?

And when did Jesus say the dead would live again?

Let us begin with the clearest Scriptures.

QUICK FACT 1 — THE BIBLE REPEATEDLY DESCRIBES DEATH AS SLEEP

One of the most important facts in this entire study is remarkably simple:

THE BIBLE REPEATEDLY COMPARES DEATH WITH SLEEP.

Consider Daniel's prophecy:

“And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake...”
— Daniel 12:2, KJV

Notice exactly what Daniel says.

They:

“SLEEP IN THE DUST OF THE EARTH.”

And eventually they:

“SHALL AWAKE.”

This gives us a remarkably simple biblical picture:

DEATH → SLEEP

RESURRECTION → AWAKENING

They are not described here as consciously living in heaven or consciously suffering somewhere beneath the earth.

They are described as:

ASLEEP.

And one day:

THEY WILL AWAKE.

QUICK FACT 2 — JESUS HIMSELF CALLED DEATH “SLEEP”

We do not have to rely only upon the Old Testament.

Jesus used exactly the same language.

When Lazarus died, Jesus told His disciples:

“Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.”
— John 11:11, KJV

The disciples misunderstood Him.

They thought Lazarus was literally sleeping.

So Jesus explained exactly what He meant:

“Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.”
— John 11:14, KJV

This could hardly be clearer.

Jesus said:

“LAZARUS SLEEPETH.”

Then Jesus explained:

“LAZARUS IS DEAD.”

Therefore, in this passage:

SLEEP = DEATH.

And what was Jesus going to do?

AWAKEN HIM.

This gives us a beautiful biblical picture:

DEATH IS THE SLEEP.

RESURRECTION IS THE AWAKENING.

QUICK FACT 3 — MARTHA EXPECTED LAZARUS TO RISE “AT THE LAST DAY”

There is another extremely important detail in the story of Lazarus.

Jesus told Martha:

“Thy brother shall rise again.”
— John 11:23, KJV

Notice Martha's response:

“I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”
— John 11:24, KJV

Martha did not answer:

“I know Lazarus is already alive in heaven.”

Her hope was:

THE RESURRECTION.

And when did she expect it?

“AT THE LAST DAY.”

Jesus then declared:

“I am the resurrection, and the life.”
— John 11:25, KJV

The emphasis is upon RESURRECTION.

Death is not presented as the believer's final victory.

RESURRECTION FROM DEATH IS.

QUICK FACT 4 — JESUS NEVER SAID LAZARUS WAS ALIVE IN HEAVEN

Think carefully about what happens in John chapter 11.

Lazarus had been dead for four days.

Yet Jesus never comforts Martha by saying:

“Lazarus isn't really dead. He is alive with God in heaven.”

Instead:

JESUS CALLS LAZARUS' DEATH “SLEEP.”

JESUS THEN SAYS PLAINLY THAT LAZARUS IS DEAD.

MARTHA EXPECTS HIM TO RISE “AT THE LAST DAY.”

Then Jesus goes to the tomb and cries:

“Lazarus, come forth.”
— John 11:43, KJV

What happened?

“And he that was dead came forth...”
— John 11:44, KJV

Notice those words:

“HE THAT WAS DEAD.”

The passage does not tell us that Lazarus' immortal soul came down from heaven and re-entered his body.

It tells us:

LAZARUS WAS DEAD.

JESUS CALLED HIM.

LAZARUS CAME FORTH.

LAZARUS LIVED AGAIN.

This is RESURRECTION.

QUICK FACT 5 — “THE DEAD KNOW NOT ANY THING”

Now consider one of the Bible's most direct statements concerning the dead:

“For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing...”
— Ecclesiastes 9:5, KJV

Please read those words again:

“THE DEAD KNOW NOT ANY THING.”

Ecclesiastes continues:

“Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished...”
— Ecclesiastes 9:6, KJV

And:

“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 goest.”
— Ecclesiastes 9:10, KJV

Notice what is absent:

NO WORK.

NO KNOWLEDGE.

NO WISDOM.

The dead are not described here as continuing normal conscious existence somewhere else.

The Bible says:

“THE DEAD KNOW NOT ANY THING.”

PART 1 CONCLUSION

So what have we discovered from our first five Quick Facts?

DANIEL describes the dead as sleeping in the dust and eventually awakening.

JESUS describes Lazarus' death as sleep.

MARTHA expects Lazarus to rise “at the last day.”

LAZARUS is explicitly described as “dead.”

And ECCLESIASTES says:

“THE DEAD KNOW NOT ANY THING.”

Already we have a serious biblical question to consider.

If the dead are consciously alive somewhere else, why does Scripture repeatedly describe death as:

SLEEP?

Why must the dead:

AWAKE?

Why did Martha expect Lazarus to rise:

“AT THE LAST DAY”?

And why does Ecclesiastes explicitly say:

“THE DEAD KNOW NOT ANY THING”?

BUT THERE IS MUCH MORE EVIDENCE TO EXAMINE.

In the next part we will discover what the Bible says happens to:

OUR THOUGHTS.

OUR KNOWLEDGE.

OUR PRAISE.

OUR CONSCIOUSNESS.

And we will examine where Jesus says the dead are when He finally calls them back to life.

COMING NEXT:

PART 2 — WHAT DO THE DEAD KNOW?

THE BIBLE’S DESCRIPTION OF DEATH, SILENCE AND THE GRAVE

We will examine:

“IN DEATH THERE IS NO REMEMBRANCE.”
— Psalm 6:5

“THE DEAD PRAISE NOT THE LORD.”
— Psalm 115:17

“IN THAT VERY DAY HIS THOUGHTS PERISH.”
— Psalm 146:4

Job's extraordinary description of waiting in death until God calls him.

And finally Jesus' own words:

“ALL THAT ARE IN THE GRAVES SHALL HEAR HIS VOICE,

AND SHALL COME FORTH.”
— John 5:28–29

SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES.

COMPARE THE EVIDENCE.

TEST EVERYTHING.

AND FOLLOW THE TRUTH WHEREVER IT LEADS.

Thursday, 19 March 2015

THE 33 CHILEAN MINERS AND GOD.

Friends do you remember the amazing story of the 33 Chilean miners who were trapped deep in a dark hot pit which reminds me of Hades, the spiritual prison.
THE 33 CHILEAN MINERS
Image by http://www.womenandtechnology.com/2010/10/tech-gadgets-kept-chile-miners-connected.html

What a wonderful ending. After being trapped deep in a dark hot pit for 69 days and feared dead, every one of the Chilean miners survived. 

Just as Interesting is what was written on their shirts, 
 "Thank you Lord"  "To Him be the glory and honour," from Psalm 95:4, and on one sleeve was the name "Jesus."

The Chilean miners said they had faith in God, and all agreed this is what stopped them from giving up.

Mario Sepúlveda, one of the Chilean miners said: "God and the devil were fighting over me and God won. I always knew they would get me out. I always had faith in the professionals here in Chile and in the Great Creator."

After Carlos Mamani and Omar Reygadas surfaced from the pits of Hell, they knelt down on their hands and knees praying and giving thanks to God.

19-year-old Jimmy Sanchez said God was down there with them.

IS THIS A Message of Salvation?----------Every miner was saved.
Acts 2:21  And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

I hope you enjoy my video. SB.
Script on the video is by Teresa Neumann (October 15, 2010) 
Song By North Point Live. Film Made By Simon Brown OF WWW.REALDISCOVERIES.COM.





Let us put our trust in Jesus, by following Him and see His saving hand pull our souls out of danger to everlasting life. Amen.

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. Romans 10:9 King James Version

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