Terry wrote: > The other place, where the unsaved were held, is > known as Sheol, and there was a great gulf between > the two. People in Sheol were waiting to go to > Gehenna, or Hell as we commonly call it.
Just a minor comment for the sake of semantic accuracy. Doesn't the understanding of Abraham's Bosom / Paradise come primarily from the work, "Josephus' discourse to the Greeks concerning Hades"? If so, then perhaps we should base our language and descriptions upon this work. Note that Hades and Sheol are the same place, Sheol being the Hebrew word, and Hades being the Greek word. I think we agree on that. This work I have mentioned signifies Hades as being the place where both righteous and unrighteous souls are detained. It also says, "In this region there is a certain place set apart, as a lake of unquenchable fire, whereinto we suppose no one hath hitherto been cast; but it is prepared for a day aforedetermined by God..." It also says, "For there is one descent into this region, at whose gate we believe there stands an archangel with an host." It continues, "the just are guided to the right hand ... unto a region of light ... This place we call 'The Bosom of Abraham'." The treatise continues, "But as to the unjust, they are dragged by force to the left hand by the angels allotted for punishment ... those angels ... drag them into the neighborhood of hell itself; who, when they are hard by it, continually hear the noise of it, and do not stand clear of the hot vapor itself ... they are struck with a fearful expectation of a future judgment, and in effect punished thereby: and not only so, but where they see the place [or choir] of the fathers of the just, even hereby are they punished; for a chaos deep and large is fixed between them; insomuch that a just man that hath compassion upon them cannot be admitted, nor ... pass over it." So it seems to me that if the foundation for your understanding is based upon this work, it ought to speak in a way that Sheol is the place in which hell fire (Gehenna) resides, and also where Paradise / Abraham's Bosom resides (these being the same place) on the right hand, and the place of torments being on the left hand. In other words, all of this is in Sheol, in some subterraneous region in the depths of the earth. Of course, we recognize that those in Paradise have since the death of Christ been moved to heaven, but prior to that time, it seems that the Jewish understanding of Sheol was a place for all the dead not just some of the dead. It is Sheol which was divided into the place for the righteous and the place for the unrighteous. If you see it differently, I would welcome hearing your thoughts about it. Peace be with you. David Miller, Beverly Hills, Florida. ---------- "Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer every man." (Colossians 4:6) http://www.InnGlory.org If you do not want to receive posts from this list, send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and you will be unsubscribed. If you have a friend who wants to join, tell him to send an e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and he will be subscribed.
