The Wicked
New Testament Passages concerning the disembodied state of the wicked are even fewer in number than those relating to the righteous. The few which relate to this topic lead to several conclusions.
SEPARATE FROM GOD- The disembodied wicked are separated from God. This idea is suggested by the account of Lazarus and the rich man in Luke 16:23, Immediately after death Lazarus was carried to the bosom of Abraham, a metaphorical expression of the presence of God. The rich man, on the contrary, was found to be removed from Abraham and Lazarus immediately after death with an impassable gulf separating them. All the blessings of Lazarus in the presence of God were denied the rich man in this separation.
The term "separated fro God" in no way suggests conflict with the concept of God's omnipresence. The idea is that of separation from the blessings and fellowship of God. In his picture of judgment in the "sheep and goat" passage (Matt.25:31-46) Jesus used such terms as "depart from me...into everlasting fire" and "these will go away into everlasting punishment." Whatever idea of separation is meant in this relationship is that which is meant in the use of the term "separated from God."
ALIVE AND CONSCIOUS- The disembodied wicked are alive and conscious. In the above account the rich man is represented as being alive and conscious of his surroundings. He was aware of his condition; he was aware of suffering; he was aware of the desirability of warning his brothers who were yet alive and able to escape his fate.
PUNISHMENT- The disembodied wicked are suffering punishment. This was true of the rich man. He died and found himself immediately in a state of torment. The intensity of his suffering is reflected in his request for the comforting ministry of Lazarus and his desire that his brothers escape that fate.
An additional idea is found in 2 Peter 2:9. There the implication is that the Lord knows how to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment. This indicates that the unrighteous enter immediately into a state of punishment and that they experience that punishment to the time of final judgment. Their fate at that time will be discussed in the chapter of eternal destiny.
1 Peter 3:19-20 is frequently used in the treatment of the teaching on the disembodied wicked. The passage is of highly controversial nature and of questionable value in such a study as this. Where did Jesus go at death?
The answer depends in part at least on the Greek participle in verse 20 which is translated "disobedient." The participle has no article and in general usage would not be translated "who were disobedient" but instead "when they were disobedient." In this usage it would refer to the witnessing of the eternal Spirit at the time of the disobedience in the days of Noah. Every blow of Noah's hammer was a voice witnessing to the judgment of God that was about to fall on men who went on heedlessly in their wickedness. Imprisoned by sin in the time of their sin and rejection, they continued to e "imprisoned spirits."
The emphasis of the passage would be that Jesus was raised up in the power of that same eternal Spirit which was operative even back in the time of Noah. This view has had its adherents throughout the period of Christian interpretation- Augustine, Bede, Aquinas, Lyra, Hammond, Beza, Scholinger, Hornius, Gerhard, Hofmann, Doddridge, Wichelhaus, Besser, Scott, Benson, Clausen, Pearson, and Williams.
There have been many interpretations of the passage from the opposing views: that between his death and his resurrection Jesus preached to the wicked dead. The most comprehensive statement of these views is set out by Reicke. He surveys many views but endorse the view that Jesus went to proclaim his Lordship over even the wicked dead. One thing is clear; so controversial a passage cannot definitive where the disembodied state is being discussed.
AT A FIXED PLACE- What is to be said of the "place" where the disembodied wicked undergo this imprisonment and punishment? The New Testament is not as clear on this subject as it is in the case of the disembodied righteous, who are spoken of as entering paradise. The only term used in the New Testament that would serve as a parallel in the experience of the wicked is the word "Hades". In like 16:23 the rich man is described as being in Hades. It is to say that this passage settles the matter and indicates that the wicked dead are in Hades. Such an easy solution, however, cannot be altogether satisfactory.
The term "Hades" is derived from the infinitive and the alpha privative which makes the idea negative, "not to see." Hades, then, means the unseen world as compared to this visible one. It meant for those who first used it the unseen world inhabited by the spirits of dead men-good or bad. The ancient pagan writers divided Hades into two parts: Elysium, the abode of the righteous, and Tartarus, the abode of the wicked.
The translation of the Septuagint used Hades to translate the Hebrew "Sheol," a word meaning "the grave." Generally no distinction was made between righteous and wicked. They were spoken of as entering Hades, the region of the dead, at the time of dath.
The term "Hades" is used eleven times in the New Testament:
Matthew 11:23, Luke 10:15
Matthew 16:18
Luke 16:23
Acts 2:27
Acts 2:31
1 Corinthians 15:55
Revelation 1:18
Revelation 6:8
Revelation 20:13-14
Careful analysis of the above passage will indicate that Hades seems to e used in the Following ways:
As a general reference to the grave - Acts 2:27; 31; 1 Corinthians 15:55; Revelation 1:18; 6:8
As a specific reference to the place of the departed wicked- Luke 16:23; Revelation 20:14.
As a general reference to death or extinction, or as a specific reference with the evil sense of "hell" implied- Matthew 11:23; Luke 10:15; Matthew 16:18
It appears, then, that we cannot say that the disembodied wicked are in Hades and have the matter settled as easily as we do when we say that the disembodied righteous are paradise. We can only say that they are kept under punishment. The term "Gehenna," "hell," which always bears an evil connotation, will be discussed in the chapter on eternal destiny. At this point we can view the wicked only immediately beyond death.
Thank You!
See You, Other Time...
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