8 – Hell is the Grave

There is no surer fact than that Hell (or hades) is the grave, to which all go at death

The original Hebrew word “sheol”, translated “hell” means “a covered place”.

“Hell” is the anglicized version of “sheol” thus when we read of “hell” we are not reading a word which has been fully translated. A “helmet” is literally a “hell-met” meaning a covering for the head. Biblically, this “covered place”, or “hell” is the grave. There are many examples where the original word “sheol” is translated “grave”

Sheol – Grave or State of the Dead

Old Testament (Hebrew) passages where “sheol” has been rendered “grave” or “state of the dead”:

“He (Jacob) refused to be comforted: and he said For I will go down into the grave (sheol) unto my son mourning.” Genesis 37:35
“If mischief befall him the way by which we go, then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave (sheol).” Genesis 42:38
“The Lord killeth and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave (sheol) and bringeth up.” 1 Samuel 2:6
“Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his hoary head go down to the grave (sheol) in peace.” 1 Kings 2:6
“O that thou wouldest hide me in the grave (sheol), that thou wouldest keep me secret until the wrath be past.” Job 14:13
“If I wait the grave (sheol) is mine house: I have made my bed in the darkness.” Job 17:13
“O lord thou hast brought up my soul from the grave (sheol); thou hast kept me alive that I should not go down to the pit.” Psalm 30:3
“Like sheep they are laid in the grave (sheol); death shall feed on them.” Psalm 49:14
“I will ransom them from the power of the grave (sheol): O grave I will be thy destruction.” (Compare with 1 Cor 15:55). Hosea 13:14
“There is no work nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave (sheol), whither thou goest.” Ecclesiastes 9:10
“Let them be silent in the grave (sheol).” Psalm 31:17
“And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised, which are gone down to grave (sheol) with their weapons of war; and they have laid their swords under their heads.” Ezekiel 32:27 (“Hell” here is shown to be the grave, by the fact that the “mighty lie there with their swords under their heads,” it being a custom to bury warriors with their swords under their heads).
“For thou wilt not leave my soul in grave (sheol), neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.” Psalm 16:10 (Peter uses this to prove that Christ was raised from the grave – Acts 2:27, 30-32).

From these quotes it is clear that the inspired writers had no idea of a place of eternal torment being represented by the word “sheol”. Just substitute “the place of eternal torment” for the word sheol in these texts and you will see how absurd is the theory of modern theology. It would make David say, “Let not his hoary head go down to the place of eternal torment in peace“, as though it were possible to go to such a place in peace. It would make Job say, “O that thou wouldest hide me in the place of eternal torment until the wrath be past” which would be praying to be taken from bad to worse. It would make David and Peter say that Christ went to the place of torment but was not left there. Now if you keep in view that the final end of the wicked is to be punished with eternal death – to be cast into the darkness of death and the grave – then you will easily understand the use of the word sheol when the translators have rendered it “hell”, such for instance as “The wicked shall be turned into hell (sheol), and all nations that forget God.” Psalms 9:17.

Hades – Grave or State of the Dead

The word that the writers of the New Testament used as meaning the same as “sheol” is“hades”. The Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) uses the word hades as the equivalent of sheol. Therefore the texts quoted above apply to the use of the word hades in the Greek in the same way as they do to sheol in the Hebrew. The word hades only occurs eleven times in the New Testament.

New Testament (Greek) passages where “hades” has been rendered “grave” or “state of the dead”:

“And thou Capernaum which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell (hades).” Matthew 11:23. On this, Dr Adam Clarke in “Commentary” says: “This prediction of our Lord was literally fulfilled: for in the wars with the Romans and the Jews these cities were totally destroyed, so that no traces are now found of Bethsaida, Chorazin or Capernaum. To be brought down to hell, the grave, was therefore to be destroyed.”
“And I say unto thee, thou art Peter, and upon this rock will I build my church: and the gates of hell (hades) the grave, shall not prevail against it. “The gates of hades” says Parkhurst, “may always be allusive to the form of Jewish sepulchres.” The gates of the grave will not prevail, because the church will be delivered, and exclaim “O grave (hades) where is thy victory?” (1 Corinthians 15:55)
Luke 10:15 Same as already referred to in Matthew 11:23 above.
“And in hell (hades) he lifted up his eyes.” Luke 16:23
“Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell (hades), neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.” Acts 2:27, 31
“O death, where is thy sting? O grave (hades), where is thy victory?” 1 Corinthians 15:55
“I am he that liveth and was dead: and, behold, I am alive for evermore, amen: and have the keys of hell (hades) and of death.” Revelation 1:18
“And I looked and behold, a pale horse: and his name that sat upon him was Death, andhell (hades)followed after him.” Revelation 6:8
“And the sea gave up the dead which were in it: and death and hell (hades) delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell (hades) were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.” Revelation 20:13,14

These passages will all be clear to you as applying to the grave, except, perhaps one – that in which the rich man is said to lift up his eyes in hell (hades). This is dealt with further in the “Further Reading” section at the end of this page but we note here that the parable of the rich man and Lazarus was addressed to the Pharisees (Luke 26:14), who, having received traditions which made the Word of God of none effect, had become believers in the heathen dogma of the conscious existence of disembodied souls. To find a receptacle for these after death they invented a place where good and bad souls were preserved awaiting the judgement day: and to that place they gave the name of hades. In this parable our Lord used their theory to represent the national calamity shortly to come upon them in the destruction of Jerusalem and their torment at the hands of the Roman and other nations among whom they would suffer. The fact that the Saviour used their theory in parable no more commits Him to that theory than His use of the word Beelzebub (Matthew 7:27) committed Him to the pagan fiction of the god of the fly.

Gehenna – What and Where is it?

Gehenna, the other word translated hell in the New Testament, has an entirely different meaning from hades, and never ought to have been translated by the word hell. The following from the Emphatic Diaglott is a good explanation:

“Gehenna,the Greek word translated hell in the common version, occurs 12 times. It is the Grecian mode of spelling the Hebrew words which are translated “The Valley of Hinnom.” This Valley was also called Tophet, a detestation, an abomination. Into this place were cast all kinds of filth, with the carcasses of beasts and the unburied bodies of criminals who had been executed. Continual fires were kept to consume these. Sennacherib’s army of 185,000 men were slain here in one night. Here children were burnt to death in sacrifice to Moloch. Gehenna, then, as occurring in the New Testament, symbolises death and utter destruction, but in no place symbolises a place of eternal torment.”

The Jews having come to look upon Gehenna as a place of horror, it was associated by our Lord with the destiny which awaited those who shall be the victims of the wrath of God in the day of just retribution.

Following are the passages where the word hell in the common version is from Gehenna:

“But I say, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgement: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell (Gehenna) fire.” Matthew 5:22
“And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of the members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell (Gehenna).” Matthew 5:29
Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell(Gehenna) than yourselves.” Matthew 23:15
Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell Gehenna?” Matthew 23:33
Mark 9:43, 45, 47, Luke 12:14 – these are the same as given from Matthew.
“And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature: and it is set on fire of hell Gehenna.” James 3:6

You will see from these testimonies that no support is given by them to the theory of eternal preservation in “hell fire” as popularly believed. The Jews knew that to be “in danger ofGehenna” was to be in danger of an ignoble death, a devouring of worms or a consuming of fire in the detested valley of Gehenna, instead of even being allowed a burial after death. You will see that the meaning of the words “The worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched” is NOT that the bodies upon which the worms prey are preserved alive but that their victims have been put to DEATH and that to be totally devoured is the certain end: and the fact that the fire is “not quenched” is proof, not that its victims will be preserved, but that they will be DEVOURED.

Does the popular view make sense?

Consider:

“I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice.” Jonah 2:2 Jonah was in fact in the belly of a whale.
“Behold I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” Revelation 1:18 Jesus has the keys to hell not a personal devil.
“For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?” Psalm 6:5 According to the popular view, souls will remember.
“Let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave.” Psalm 31:17 According to the popular view the wicked are supposed to be tormented and would be unable to remain silent.
“The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence.” Psalm 115:17

Further reading

Common concerns re: hell is the grave