What happens to a person when they die?

In order to properly understand what happens we need to look at the original Hebrew wording of the Tanakh and the Greek wording of B�rit Hadashah. We also must consider the time period the person lived in. If the person died before Yeshua was resurrected the answer will be different for believers than for those who died after His resurrection.

In the Tanakh, we see 2 Hebrew words used: �Qebuwrah� and �Sheol�.

Qebuwrah (keb-oo-raw'); or Qeburah (keb-oo-raw'), or Queber is the hole in the ground, the grave, which the physical body is placed. (Qebuwrah has been translated as: Burial, burying place, grave, sepulcher.)

She'owl (sheh-ole'); or sheol (sheh-ole') is the temporary holding place for departed spirits.

�Sheol� has been translated as �grave� in some passages and translated as �Hell� in others; it has also been translated as �the pit�. This can cause confusion.

It is pretty obvious that the physical body is placed in a grave, a qebuwrah, of some sort.

What happens to the soul is more complicated.

Many today do not want to believe that there are eternal consequences for their unbelief. They teach that �Sheol� is the grave only, not a place of punishment.

In the Tanakh:

1. The body never goes to sheol but goes to Qebuwrah 37 times. Why? Because Qebuwrah is the grave for bodies and sheol is the place for departed spirits.
2. Sheol is never on the face of the earth but Qebuwrah is located there 32 times. Why? Because graves are on the earth. Sheol, the place for departed spirits, is in some other realm of G-d's creation.
3. Man never puts another man into sheol but he does put a man into a Qebuwrah 33 times. Why? Because man has the power to put other men into graves but does not have the power to put souls into sheol.
4. Man never digs or makes a sheol but he makes and digs a Qebuwrah six times. Why? Because man has the power to make a grave but he does not have the power to make a sheol for departed spirits.
5. Man never speaks of a man as touching sheol, but he touches a Qebuwrah five times. Why? Because, again, it is a grave on the earth and he has the power to touch it. But he has no power to do anything about sheol, the place for departed spirits.

Qebuwrah (Grave) references: Genesis 35:20; Job 10:19; 2 Samuel 19:37; Psalm 88:5

Sheol (Temporary Place) references: Isaiah 38:10; Psalm 30:3; Hosea 13:14; Psalms 16:10

Hades (Temporary Place) references: Matthew 11:23; Matthew 16:18; Luke 10:15; Luke 16:22, 23; Acts 2:27; Acts 2:31; 1 Corinthians 15:55; Revelation 1:18; Revelation 6:8; Revelation 20:13, 14

Gehenna (The lake of Fire) references: Matthew 5:22; Matthew 5:29, 30; Matthew 10:28; Matthew 18:9; Matthew 23:15; Matthew 23:33; Mark 9:43-47; Luke 12:5; James 3:6

Some teach that Gehenna was just the local dump out side of Jerusalem.

The Valley of Hinnom. In the Tanakh period was a place of sacrifice to pagan gods. In B�rit Hadashah times it became the garbage dump. The fire burned 24 hours a day to get rid of all the refuse, and Yeshua said that Gehenna was going to be like the fires at the Valley of Hinnom. (Mark 9: 41-48)

Prior to the resurrection of Yeshua:

Sheol had two sections:

1. Avraham�s Bosom. - The place where the believers went. Why? Because their sins were only covered they were not able to go directly to heaven.
2. A place of torment. - The place where the unbelievers went. They are awaiting the �Great White Throne� judgment of G-d.

As we mentioned before, when Yeshua died:

He went into Sheol, to �Avraham�s Bosom�. When Yeshua resurrected He emptied �Avraham�s Bosom� and the Tanakh believers went to heaven. (Isaiah 61)

Matthew 27:51-53 records what happened at Yeshua�s resurrection: �And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after His resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.�

After the resurrection of Yeshua:

Now �Sheol� is only used for unbelievers. The believers go directly to heaven because the blood of Yeshua has washed their sins away. They may enter the presence of G-d.

2 Corinthians 5:8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the L-rd.

In B�rit Hadashah there are 2 Greek words we need to look at:

Hades is the equivalent of the Hebrew word �sheol�. The temporary holding place for departed spirits. Hades is translated as the grave in some places and hell in others.

Gehenna [geena (gheh'-en-nah)] it is a place of everlasting punishment. It is also known as �The lake of Fire.�

Gehenna is translated as hell, but should be translated as �The Lake of Fire�.

Because both of these words describing two different places are both translated �Hell� there is a lot of confusion.

Think of it this way:

The body goes into the grave, tomb, and sepulcher, �Qebuwrah�.

Sheol (Hades) is temporary. It is like the local jail. Unbelievers go there waiting their day in court.

Gehenna (The Lake of Fire) is permanent. It is like prison. After facing G-d at the �Great White Throne Judgment� those individuals in Sheol (Hades) will be sent to Gehenna (The Lake of Fire). There appears to be various degrees of punishment in Gehenna.

Portions taken from �Jack Van Impe Ministries International Newsletter May 13, 2002�