A book by Edward Laughlan, featuring the apostle Paul:
CHAPTER FOUR
HELL -
PARADISE - THE GRAVE
Brethren, we have already established,
according to the true usage of Scripture, that death is nothing more than
sleep—a state of total unconsciousness. The Word is clear.
Death is always associated with sheōl
in the Hebrew and hades in the Greek.
Yet how cunningly has the Adversary twisted
these words! Through the corrupting influence of Greek and Latin philosophy, he
has led many astray, distorting hades into something it was never meant
to be!
But we must stand on the truth of the Word!
Hades in the New Testament is nothing more
than the direct equivalent of sheōl in the Old Testament.
Consider the facts:
Sheōl appears 65 times in the Hebrew
Scriptures. It is rendered:
- Grave: 31 times
- Pit: 3 times
- Hell: 31 times (yet in 4 of these cases, the
margin correctly notes it as grave).
Thus, the true count stands at 35 times for
‘grave’ and only 27 times for ‘hell’—a word which itself has been misapplied!
And if any doubt remains… let the Word speak
for itself!
The apostle Luke, under the direct inspiration
of Yahweh, re-quoted Psalms 16:10 in Acts 2:27,31:
"For Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell
(sheōl); neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption."
And what is this sheōl? Is David
speaking of torment? Of fire? Of eternal suffering? No! He
speaks of the grave!
For David himself did not go to ‘hell’!
Clearly, this word should be rendered grave—and in Acts, Yahweh Himself
confirms its true meaning! The matter is settled.
If you claim to believe the Word of Yahweh, if
you accept that all Scripture is God-breathed, then you must take heed!
The truth has been laid before you!
Sheōl is the grave. Hades is the grave.
Nothing more. Nothing less.
Do not be carried away by the vain
imaginations of men, by fables of paradise and hellfire!
For the Word is unchanging, and the Word is
truth!
Brethren,
in our Father’s Word, the term sheōl is always associated with a
downward direction—a place on the Earth itself, not some mystical realm of
paradise or torment. Yet how easily men twist the truth to fit their
desires!
The Word
speaks plainly: sheōl is always in contrast to the land of the
living—therefore, it represents unconsciousness, not awareness. Examine
the Scriptures for yourselves!
- Sheōl is downward, earthly. (Deuteronomy 32:22-25; 1 Samuel 2:6-8)
- Sheōl is connected with mourning. (Genesis 37:34-35; Isaiah 38:3,10,17-18)
- Sheōl is associated with sorrow. (Genesis 42:38; 2 Samuel 22:6; Psalm 18:5; 116:3)
- Sheōl is a place of silence. (Psalm 6:5; 31:7; Ecclesiastes 9:10)
- Sheōl is without knowledge. (Ecclesiastes 9:5-6,10)
- Sheōl is linked to corruption. (Psalm 16:10; Acts 2:27,31)
The Word
leaves no room for error!
And what of
the duration of this unconscious state?
The only
escape from sheōl is through the ‘Gathering’ and the future
resurrections:
- (Psalm 16:11; Acts 2:27,31; 13:33-37; 1
Corinthians 15:55; Revelation 1:18; 20:5,13,14).
Hear the
words of the Messiah Himself!
"No
man can come unto me except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will
raise him up at the last day." (John 6:44)
“At the
last day” is an expression unique to John’s gospel, appearing five times,
referring to Messiah’s return for His Church at the end of this age of Grace.
Yet where
is the mention of souls drifting upward to heaven at death? Nowhere! The
Messiah speaks only of a future resurrection—not an immediate ascension to
paradise! Brethren, do not be deceived by the traditions of men! The Word
is clear, the truth is unshakable:
Death is
sleep, sheōl is the grave, and resurrection alone is our hope!
Brethren,
hear me! Whilst the Church continues to preach abominations regarding death,
calling it a friend that ushers men into heaven, the Word of God calls
it an enemy!
Whilst the
Church proclaims death to be paradise, the Word clearly declares it to
be the grave—the pit!
Whilst the
Church teaches that consciousness remains after death, the Word thunders forth
the truth—unconsciousness, silence, and no knowledge!
And yet, in
their folly, the Church dares to stand against the Almighty Yahweh, the very
Creator of the heavens and the Earth! Teaching demonic lies—mocking the Most
High!
Who can be
so blind to the truth?
Who walks
hand in hand with demons, ignoring the clear and simple testimony of the Holy
Scriptures? Shame on you for being so easily beguiled! Have you not learned
from Eve, deceived by the serpent? And now, you believe the teachings of the
Pharisees over the very Word of Yahweh?
And you
theologians, pastors, and teachers—you are in the greatest peril! You have led
multitudes astray, burdening them with your falsehoods, causing the Word of God
to become of no effect through your vain imaginations and empty philosophies.
Worse still, you even dare to question whether certain Scriptures are inspired!
Do you not
fear the wrath of the Almighty?
Take
guidance from me, the least of the apostles, yet called by God! Instead of
seeking to cast away books such as Ecclesiastes, using foolish arguments that
hold no weight, you should be seeking to prove the Scriptures—upholding, not
destroying, the revealed Word of Yahweh!
If what you
read contradicts your beliefs, should you not rather correct your beliefs than
dare to amend the Word of the Living God?
"Be
not conformed to this world!" (Romans 12:2)
Beware,
lest you cut off healthy branches of the Word, only to graft in dead branches
with no life—lest you yourselves be cut off, your names blotted from the Book
of Life!
Oh children
of iniquity! Who has beguiled you, that you so easily rewrite the Holy
Scriptures, making them unprofitable, unholy—an abomination? You have stripped
the Word of its power, rendering it void, and that without fear or remorse! As
it is written:
“For if God
spared not the natural branches, take heed lest He also spare not thee. Behold
therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but
towards thee, goodness, if thou continue in His goodness, otherwise thou also
shalt be cut off.
And they also, if they abide not in unbelief, shall be grafted in, for God is
able to graft them in again.
For if thou wert cut out of the wild olive tree, which is so by nature, and
wert grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree, how much more shall
these, which be the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree? For
I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye
should be wise in your own conceits, that blindness in part is happened to
Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. And so shall all Israel
be saved, as it is written:
‘There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness
from Jacob: For this is My covenant unto them, when I shall take away their
sins.’”
Oh, foolish
theologians! Your writings shall burn with you in the depths of hell! Take
heed, you pastors and teachers! Tremble before the Word of Yahweh! Leave off
your dead traditions! Let the consuming fire of His Word cleanse your
understanding, purging all impurities and doctrines of devils! The truth of the
Word has found you out, and you are left wanting!
“Return
unto Me,” says Yahweh, “and I, even I, shall return unto you! Look no more to
your traditions, but rather, look unto Me! Seek Me, find Me, and know Me
through the truth of My Word, and My truth indeed shall set you free. Learn
truth, and prove Me now! I will surely remove the veil from off your hearts,
the blindfold from your eyes, and unstop your ears. Then shall you walk wisely,
as children of the Most High! For I, Yahweh, am a jealous God, guarding My Word
from those who wickedly abuse it, from those who treat it with disdain—handing
them over to blindness, folly, and madness of heart!”
You believe
and teach fables!
There is no
disembodied state—and you cannot support this false teaching with
Scripture! I fear for you! Turn your hearts back to the Almighty Yahweh, now!
These
beliefs you hold, passed down from Babylon to the Pharisees, the Greeks, the
Romans, and now to you—where is your discernment? Did not our Lord Yeshua use
the very teachings of the Pharisees to expose their folly?
Consider
Luke 16:15-31—a parable (though not marked as such in your Bibles). This story
does not teach the reality of an afterlife, but rather mocks the Pharisees' own
twisted doctrines. Their teachings, built upon human traditions rather than
divine truth, corrupted the Word of God—nullifying its authority on divorce,
the dead, and many other matters.
What the
Pharisees esteemed was an abomination to God! This is why our Lord Yeshua
continually confronted them. Do not the Scriptures themselves proclaim that He
spoke to the multitudes only in parables?
Psalm 78:2
– “I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old.”
Matthew
13:34-35 – “All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and
without a parable spake He not unto them: That it might be fulfilled which was
spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter
things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.”
Mark 4:34 –
“But without a parable spake He not unto them: and when they were alone, He
expounded all things to His disciples.”
So, I ask
you—will you persist in exalting the traditions of men over the truth of
Yahweh?
Our Lord
battled continually with the Pharisees that day, enduring their mockery and
scorn. Yet, in response, He turned their own corrupt beliefs against them,
exposing the hypocrisy of their doctrines—first, concerning the law of
adultery, and second, their false teachings on immediate rewards and punishment
after death.
Proof of
this being a parable exists in two ancient Greek manuscripts—the Bezae Caulabrigiensis and the Koridethian-Caesarean
text—where the words EIPEN DE KAI HETERAN PARABOLEN appear, meaning:
“And He
said also another parable.”
These words
have been conveniently deleted in later translations. But why?
Would our
Lord Yeshua teach anything contradictory to the Old Testament’s revelation
about the dead and the grave? Impossible! If He had, the entire Word would
collapse into self-contradiction. Could He have come to destroy the very
Scriptures He was sent to fulfil? Yahweh forbid!
Yet you—blind
guides!—destroy His Word by your own corrupt teachings!
Yeshua
publicly ridiculed the Pharisees with their own beliefs, leaving them not only
humiliated but also with a double-edged prophecy—foretelling both the raising
of His disciple Lazarus and His own resurrection. But did they repent? No!
Instead, these wicked men, unwilling to face the truth, later bribed the
soldiers guarding Yeshua’s tomb to spread a lie:
“Say ye,
His disciples came by night, and stole Him away while we slept.” (Matthew
28:13)
Truly,
there is no limit to the deceit and cunning of evil men! Their god and father
has trained them well in lying and deception! And rightly did our Lord Yeshua
condemn them:
“Ye are of
your father the Devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do.” (John 8:44)
Yet another
misused passage is Luke 23:43, which is often quoted as:
“And Yeshua
said unto him, ‘Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with Me in
paradise.’”
What
deception has been built upon a mere misplaced comma! Just before this, the
malefactor pleaded with Yeshua:
“Lord,
remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” (Luke 23:42)
This
kingdom, however, remains in abeyance until the appointed time. As I have
declared before, Yeshua cannot reign until the Creator God, Yahweh, has put all
things in subjection under His feet. Therefore, He could not have meant, “Today
shalt thou be with Me in paradise,” as an immediate answer—since paradise is
inextricably linked to His coming kingdom, which is yet future!
Furthermore,
paradise is always on Earth, never in heaven!
A king must
reign, and Yeshua Messiah will not reign until after the seven-year tribulation
period. At present, He is seated at the right hand of the Father, awaiting the
time when He will return in power and glory.
Now,
consider the word “Today”—or “This day”—a well-known Hebraism, a solid idiom
used throughout Scripture for great emphasis. This expression appears 42 times
in Deuteronomy alone, always used to underline the significance of a
declaration. Yeshua was not placing the malefactor in paradise that very day—He
was emphasizing the certainty of His promise!
This
Hebraism occurs 41 times in the New Testament, rendered as “today” 18 times
(between Hebrews and James) and “this day” 23 times elsewhere. And what do men
do? They distort the meaning of this verse by shifting a single comma!
Let us,
then, read Luke 23:43 correctly, taking into account the Hebraism and proper
punctuation:
“And Yeshua
said unto him, ‘Verily I say unto thee this day, thou shalt be with Me in
paradise.’”
Notice the
corrected placement of the comma, in line with the original text. The phrase
“shalt thou” has been restored to its proper word order, “thou shalt” (future
tense), to accurately reflect the promise Yeshua was making.
And what of
the word “paradise” itself? This, too, holds great significance! According to
the Creator’s Word, paradise is always a place on Earth—never in heaven!
Adam and
Eve lived in paradise for a time, and it is even recorded that Solomon made for
himself a paradise (translated as “orchards”).
Thus, the
malefactor was not promised immediate entry into a disembodied heaven—he was
assured of his future place in Messiah’s earthly kingdom!
When
Messiah reigns on the Earth as recorded in Isaiah 34, the desert shall rejoice
and shall bloom as the rose. In other words, He shall turn the deserts into
paradises! In the New Earth, at the end of Messiah’s 1000 year reign, the New
Earth itself will be an entire paradise!
Paradise
has no heavenly or spiritual connotations whatsoever and there are no
scriptures that relate paradise with heaven!
This word
“paradise” in Luke 23: 43, has the article before it, making it “the paradise”,
of which the prophets of old spoke in relation to Messiah coming into His
kingdom! You must be very careful when dealing with punctuation, as many grave
errors can be made. I had to almost laugh myself when I noticed the error in
Acts 21: 14. It reads: “And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased,
saying, the will of the Lord be done.”
Oh dear
brethren! The Lord Yeshua had tried everything possible to stop me from going
to Jerusalem (read the records!), but against all, I decided that I was going
and that was that! Flesh and blood can be most headstrong at times! I had said
earlier that “I go bound in the spirit”, meaning I did not feel
exactly good and OK with my decision! Now was not that our Lord’s first attempt
at letting me know that I was making a big mistake? But anyway, I decided that
if I was going to suffer, it would be worth it and also a most just reward as I
myself had caused many of the Lord’s brethren to suffer and be put to death
earlier in my life!
I had been
sent many prophets to warn me of my coming fate, but I did not wish to listen.
I may feel a little foolish now, but the past is now the past and I surely did
suffer for my disobedience! It is clearly recorded that it was not the Lord’s
will that I went!
To clarify
the record, we must take careful note of what it is actually saying. “And when
he would not be persuaded, we stopped saying to him, ‘Paul listen to God and do
His will!’
They
finally saw that I was not going to be persuaded so they left off trying!
Almighty God, through His Son, Messiah, had witnessed to me in every town
warning me! But I would not listen. It is far better to be alert and obey
rather than disobey and pay the consequences. But in this, as you read the
scriptures, you can see most clearly how easy it is to be tripped up over
punctuation, getting the wrong meaning entirely. Also, you can see how
inaccurate you are in dealing with the Written revealed Word of God. He who has
ears to hear!
It is
imperative that we learn to be alert and precise in rightly dividing the Word,
lest we fail to grasp the truth and instead embrace the doctrines of men! For
what is man’s word but a distortion of God’s revelation? And who is the author
of confusion? Satan himself!
Let us
return once more to the subject of the grave—sheōl. We must examine the
Scriptures concerning it so that we may rightly discern its meaning and not be
led astray by the vain traditions of men. Consider the following:
Psalms 6:5
– “For in death there is no remembrance of Thee; in the grave, who will give
Thee (Yahweh) thanks?”
Psalms 30:9
– “What profit is there in my blood when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust
praise Thee? Shall it declare Thy truth?”
Psalms
49:12,14 – “Nevertheless, man being in honour abideth not: he is like the
beasts that perish… Like sheep that are laid in the grave, death shall feed on
them…”
Psalms
89:48 – “What man is he that liveth and shall not see death? Shall he deliver
his soul from the hand of the grave?”
Psalms
115:17 – “The dead praise not Yahweh, neither any that go down into silence.”
Psalms
146:4 – “His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day,
his thoughts perish.”
How much
more proof is required to establish the truth that the dead are dead? Their
soul life does not linger in a conscious state—it ceases! Can a man deliver his
soul from the grave? If sheōl were paradise or hell, why would anyone desire to
be delivered from paradise? Do not be deceived! Nowhere in our Father’s Word
did He teach His people the concept of paradise or hell as the Church has
twisted it!
The parable
of Lazarus in the bosom of Abraham must be weighed alongside the entirety of
Scripture—not plucked from its context to construct a doctrine in opposition to
the revealed Word of God! Yet, how many in the churches cling to one or two
misinterpreted verses while ignoring the wealth of Scripture that declares the
opposite? How could our Lord Yeshua contradict such clear passages as this?
Ecclesiastes
9:4 – “For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope: for a living
dog is better than a dead lion.”
And yet men
will ignore even this! They reject the truth in favour of fables and
traditions, corrupting the Word to their own destruction!
This, too,
is another Hebraism—a proverb emphasizing the contrast between life and
death. If a man were truly heading for paradise upon death, this saying would
make no sense at all!
And the
significance of this statement becomes even more striking when we understand
that dogs are cursed animals in the East! If death were truly an entry into
blissful paradise, how could it be said that even a cursed living dog is better
than a dead lion?
And
consider this, brethren—why would Yeshua have bothered to raise Lazarus from
‘paradise’?
If Lazarus
had already entered the joy of heaven, would not his family and Yeshua Himself
rejoice rather than mourn? Would not Yeshua have comforted them with the
assurance that Lazarus had entered into a far better place?
Yet He did
no such thing!
Instead, He
spoke of death as sleep—not bliss, not torment, but a state of unconscious
silence.
John
11:11-14 – “…And after that He said unto them, ‘Our friend Lazarus sleepeth,
but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.’ Then said His disciples, ‘Lord,
if he sleep, he shall do well.’ (Howbeit Yeshua spake of his death: but they
thought that He had spoken of taking rest in sleep.) Then said Yeshua unto them
plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead…’”
Think!
Would you be happy to be dragged back from paradise? Of course not!
Lazarus was
dead. In the grave. In silence. Without consciousness. His breath life—his
soul—had ceased to exist!
This is
why, when Yeshua saw his tomb, He wept!
If Lazarus
had simply passed into spiritual paradise, Yeshua would have rejoiced! Would He
not have declared, "Lazarus is with My Father in heaven, in peace and
joy"?
But He did
not!
Lazarus had
been dead for four days—would this not have been the perfect opportunity for
Yeshua to teach His disciples about paradise and hell if such places existed?
Would He not have comforted the family with this truth?
But
instead, He spoke of death as sleep from which only God can awaken a man!
And yet,
today within the churches, we hear the testimonies of those who have suffered
near-death experiences, claiming to have had out-of-body encounters—floating
above their lifeless bodies, weightless and free from pain.
They claim
to have seen their own bodies lying dead while their ‘souls’ wandered
elsewhere—only to return and reanimate the flesh.
But what
does the Word say?
What does
God’s revelation declare about the state of the dead?
This, too,
is another Hebraism—a proverb emphasizing the contrast between
life and death. If a man were truly heading for paradise upon death, this
saying would make no sense at all!
And the
significance of this statement becomes even more striking when we understand
that dogs are cursed animals in the East! If death were truly an entry into
blissful paradise, how could it be said that even a cursed living dog is better
than a dead lion?
And
consider this, brethren—why would Yeshua have bothered to raise Lazarus from
‘paradise’?
If Lazarus
had already entered the joy of heaven, would not his family and Yeshua Himself
rejoice rather than mourn? Would not Yeshua have comforted them with the
assurance that Lazarus had entered into a far better place? Yet He did no
such thing!
Instead, He
spoke of death as sleep—not bliss, not torment, but a state of unconscious
silence.
John
11:11-14: “…And after that He said unto them, ‘Our friend Lazarus sleepeth, but
I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.’ Then said His disciples, ‘Lord, if he
sleep, he shall do well.’ (Howbeit Yeshua spake of his death: but they thought
that He had spoken of taking rest in sleep.) Then said Yeshua unto them
plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead…’”
Think! Would you be happy to be dragged back from paradise? Of course not!
Lazarus was dead. In the grave. In silence. Without
consciousness. His breath life—his soul—had ceased to exist!
This is
why, when Yeshua saw his tomb, He wept! If Lazarus had simply passed
into spiritual paradise, Yeshua would have rejoiced! Would He not have
declared, "Lazarus is with My Father in heaven, in peace and joy"?
But He did
not!
Lazarus had
been dead for four days—would this not have been the perfect opportunity
for Yeshua to teach His disciples about paradise and hell if such places
existed? Would He not have comforted the family with this truth? But instead,
He spoke of death as sleep from which only God can awaken a man!
And yet,
today within the churches, we hear the testimonies of those who have suffered
near-death experiences, claiming to have had out-of-body encounters—floating
above their lifeless bodies, weightless and free from pain. They claim to have
seen their own bodies lying dead while their ‘souls’ wandered elsewhere—only
to return and reanimate the flesh.
But what
does the Word say? What does God’s revelation declare about the
state of the dead? You completely underestimate the power of demons in these
matters! Do you not realize that certain occultists deliberately practice
this so-called "leaving of the body"?
They call
it astral traveling—a practice found among the worshippers of the Devil
himself! There are even secular books written on this subject, books that teach
people how to engage in these dark arts! Now, I am not saying that every
out-of-body experience is demonic—not at all! For I, too, have endured such
things.
But listen
carefully!
This is not
the work of our Father in Heaven. Satan, the great deceiver, also has power! He
will use any means possible to uphold the lies and false teachings that have
been planted within the churches. Do you not know? Demons and devils have power
over those who do not stand obedient to the Word of God!
And there
are many open doors through which they can enter—gaining access to our minds,
manipulating our thoughts, and crafting illusions so vivid, so convincing that
we can mistake them for reality.
They can
make a man believe he is soaring through the air, or falling at tremendous
speed. They can paralyze the body in sleep, or cause one to see visions with
closed eyes—walking through strange places, perceiving things that are not
there!
And worse
still! There exist even more dangerous teachings—books that train people to
explore the depths of their own minds, to make contact with ‘beings’ that
supposedly dwell there. Lies! Deception! Trickery straight from the pits of
hell! Such things must be avoided at all costs!
Be not
ignorant of Satan’s devices!
And do you
not know that each family is assigned a familiar spirit? A demon whose sole
purpose is to infiltrate, to observe, to learn everything about the
household—to manipulate, to corrupt, to destroy! Watch the children! For these
spirits work tirelessly, influencing young minds, bending wills, shaping behaviours
from infancy.
And yet—what
has happened today?
The world forbids
discipline! It forbids correction! But what does the Word say?
"Foolishness
is bound in the heart of a child, but the rod of correction shall drive it far
from him!"
If we truly
love our children, we will discipline them, as the Father disciplines those
whom He loves! But what has Satan done? He has deceived the nations—twisting
the laws, forbidding the rod, allowing children to dictate to their parents—so
that the divine order of the family is torn apart!
Satan is no
fool! And the churches sleep! Awake, O
sleeper! Open your eyes before it is too late! You must wake from your slumber
and walk as wise children! For demons can communicate directly with our minds!
They do this through the spiritual spark of life—the very force that flows
through our blood and governs our breath. Do you not remember?
When Adam
sinned, our breath life became impure—corrupted, defiled, tainted by the
influence of the enemy. And who is this enemy? The Devil. The Serpent.
Lucifer himself!
At first,
he manifested in physical form to speak with Eve, appearing as an angel of
light, as the Scriptures warn. But he no longer needs to show himself—for now
he works behind the scenes, moving unseen, speaking directly into the minds of
men. Do you not understand? Satan has gained direct access to our thoughts
through the very soul that was once pure!
This is how
mediums and spiritists operate. They receive information straight from familiar
spirits—demons assigned to families, learning their secrets, passing
knowledge from one generation to the next. And what do these spirits do? They
whisper, they deceive, they feed illusions to the weak-minded, revealing things
that should be impossible to know!
Yet, their
so-called "prophecies" are nothing but calculated deception—guesswork
masked as divine knowledge. And when a false prophecy is spoken, these spirits
labour behind the scenes to make it appear true! Did not the prophet Isaiah
warn of these things?
"And
when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and
unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their
God? For the living to the dead?"
(Isaiah 8:19)
Do you not
see? Satan is the great counterfeiter, the great deceiver! He has mimicked and
twisted every holy thing—confounding the minds of men, ensnaring the Church in
his lies! The Church has been easily deceived! And you must not remain in
ignorance!
For the
doors are many through which demons may enter. Only the purity and power of the
Word, burning within your heart, can keep you clean! Did not the gospel records
bear witness to these things? Are they not filled with accounts of men, women,
and even children—possessed, tormented, driven to madness by demons?
Violence!
Illness!
Deformities!
Deafness!
Lunacy!
All these
were the work of unclean spirits! And yet, you take these matters
lightly? Casting out demons is not for the faint of heart! If you attempt such
things without understanding the true workings of the gift of the Holy Spirit,
you invite great danger upon yourself!
Have you
forgotten the seven sons of Sceva? Did they not try to cast out demons without
true authority—and suffer for their folly? Did not the demon turn upon them,
saying:
"Jesus
I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?" (Acts 19:15)
And what
happened next?
"And
the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and
prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and
wounded." (Acts 19:16)
Do you see
now? This is not a game! This is not a mere doctrine to be debated! You must
awaken! You must guard yourselves with the full armour of God! For the battle
is already upon you!
Brethren,
know this: we are in a battle unlike any other, one that does not consist of
mere flesh and blood, but of unseen forces working behind the scenes, seeking
to destroy the lives of those who walk in obedience to the Most High God. We
battle against the principalities and powers of the air—the very air around us!
The prince of the power of the air, Satan himself, is at work in this world,
controlling the wealth, the power, and the influence of our towns and cities.
He is a deceiver, and those who walk without the power of the Spirit of the
Living God are prey to his schemes.
Consider
the exorcists of whom I spoke before, sons of a chief priest—men who presumed
to wield power without the knowledge of the true Spirit. Are they not like the
churches of today who walk in deception, claiming to possess the gifts of
healing and prophecy but lacking the power that comes from the Holy Spirit?
They do not understand, nor do they acknowledge the real power available to
those who walk in faith and obedience to the Word of God.
You,
beloved, must understand that disobedience to the Word brings upon you a curse.
Do not be deceived by the false teachings that say grace removes the
consequences of sin. The law still stands, for not one jot or tittle shall pass
away until all is fulfilled. If you persist in sin, you will suffer the
consequences—this is not the Father’s wrath, but His love correcting you, for
whom He loves, He chastens. If a father loves his child, will he not discipline
them? And how much more does our heavenly Father, who is infinitely righteous,
love us and guide us through correction!
We are
either walking in God’s blessings through belief and obedience, or we are
sowing seeds of destruction by our rebellion. A brother who harms another is
far worse than the actions of an unbeliever, for the brother knows the truth.
The subtlety of Satan is great; he uses anger, jealousy, hatred, greed, deceit,
pride, and many other spirits to open the doors of our hearts to his influence.
As the Word says, we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual
wickedness in high places.
Remember
this: Satan has an army—just as God has His angels, Satan has his own spirits,
and each one is specialized in a certain craft. Spirit of lies and deceit,
spirit of sickness, spirit of gossip, spirit of wickedness, spirit of violence,
spirit of murder, spirit of lust, spirit of jealousy, spirit of
covetousness—there are many, and each one works diligently to lead you astray.
The spirits of rebellion, of pride, of foolishness, of selfishness—these too
are his agents.
Brothers
and sisters, we must be vigilant. The battle is real, and we are called to
stand firm in the faith, clothed in the armour of God. Know your enemy! Do not
walk in ignorance, for Satan is a clever and subtle beast. If you do not
recognize his schemes, you are bound to fall prey. But take heart! For greater
is He who is in you than he who is in the world. Walk in obedience, resist the
enemy, and he will flee from you. Walk in the power of the Spirit, and you
shall not be overcome.
Pray for
wisdom and understanding, beloved. Study to show thyself approved. There is
indeed much to learn. Walk in the spirit with your hearts filled to overflowing
with the Word of Truth. Keep your hearts with all diligence, for out of the
heart comes forth both evil and good. Speak in tongues much, even as I did.
We now turn
to the book that many pastors and teachers prefer to avoid—Ecclesiastes—to
continue our discussion on heaven and hell. To dismiss the book of the
Assembler as not being God-breathed is to tear apart the Holy Scriptures
themselves. Here, Solomon first speaks of the one event that befalls all
mankind—the wise and the foolish, the rich and the poor alike. This realization
led him to despair, for if all share the same fate—the grave—then to him, all
was vanity, mere striving after the wind.
There was
no escape from this one event, not even for Solomon, the wisest and wealthiest
king who ever lived. He did not believe in an immediate afterlife in paradise.
The man filled with more God-given wisdom than any before him or after (save
for the Son of Yahweh Himself) did not teach of an instant reward in heaven or
torment in hell. Solomon, like all men of God before him, saw death as an
enemy—something to hate, not something to anticipate with joy. The grave holds
no consciousness, no knowledge, no love or hate, no praise of God—only silence.
When,
indeed, was the last time your pastor taught from the book of Ecclesiastes? Was
it written only to be ignored?
Ecclesiastes
2:14-17: “The wise man's eyes are in his head; but the fool walketh in
darkness: and I myself perceived also that one event happeneth to them all.
Then said I in my heart, As it happeneth to the fool, so it happeneth even to
me; and why was I then more wise? Then I said in my heart, that this also is
vanity. For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool for ever;
seeing that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten. And how
dieth the wise man? As the fool. Therefore I hated life; because the work that
is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me: for all is vanity and vexation of
spirit.”
Solomon
knew he would not receive an immediate reward in an honoured place in heaven or
paradise, as many wrongly teach. His fate would be the same as all other men
and even the beasts of the field—the grave. He understood that he would remain
asleep for generations to come, awaiting the time of resurrection. This truth
brought him deep sorrow, yet it stands as a testimony against the false
teachings of immediate judgment and paradise at death.
Ecclesiastes
3:18-22: “I said in my heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God
might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.
For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing
befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one
(nephesh, soul) breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for
all is vanity. All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust
again. Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the
beast that goeth downward to the earth? Wherefore I perceive that there is
nothing better than that a man should rejoice in his own works; for that is his
portion: for who shall bring him to see what shall be after him?”
Solomon
reveals here that mankind and animals share the same breath of life. He was the
first to describe breath life as the “spirit of man” and the “spirit of the
animal.” If one insists that Solomon is teaching here that the soul (breath
life) is an eternal spiritual entity, then the same must also apply to animals!
And if we
indeed had a spiritual body that floated off to paradise after death, why would
that body not have the ability to return and observe life on Earth? Have I
misled you into thinking that the “great cloud of witnesses” surrounding us are
spiritual beings? O dearly beloved! Search the Scriptures, for they are life
and truth! Both Solomon and I understood clearly that after death, there is
nothing to anticipate except the return of Messiah in my case and the
resurrection of the just in Solomon’s case. The great cloud of witnesses I
referred to in my letter to the Hebrews is none other than the great men and
women of God who have gone before us, leaving behind their witness in the
revealed Word of the Creator!
Ecclesiastes
9:2: “All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous, and to
the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the unclean; to him that
sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: as is the good, so is the sinner;
and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath.”
This is the
fourth time Solomon references the universal fate of all mankind—the grave
(sheōl). Nowhere does he mention paradise for the good or hell for the wicked.
Verse 3
emphasizes this even further: “This is an evil among all things that are done
under the sun, that there is one event unto all (5th reference): yea, also the
heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while
they live, and after that they go to the dead.”
Note
carefully—he does not say, “and afterward they go to paradise or hell.”
Verse 4
further drives home the point: “For to him that is joined to all the living
there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead lion.”
In the
East, a dog was considered an unclean and cursed animal, much like a scavenger
or rat. Gentile nations were even referred to as dogs. Understanding this
cultural context, we see the stark contrast Solomon is drawing—being alive on
this Earth is of greater value than the idea of so-called “paradise.”
Verses 5-6
confirm this further: “For the living know that they shall die: but the dead
know not anything, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them
is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now
perished; neither have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done
under the sun.”
When
Solomon later speaks in verse 9 of enjoying life with one’s wife, calling our
days “meaningless,” he is not declaring that life itself has no purpose.
Rather, he acknowledges that life’s meaning lies in preparing for the coming
Kingdom—determining one’s rewards and position with the Creator. Conversely,
the alternative is exclusion from that Kingdom, which is the true
hell—separation from God and His promises.
Solomon, in
all his wisdom, understood that God has foreknowledge—that He sees the end from
the beginning. Because of this, Solomon perceived life on this Earth as a
fleeting and meaningless pursuit, a mere chasing of the wind!
Ecclesiastes
9:10: "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."
What was
that, Solomon? No knowledge or wisdom in paradise?? But dear Solomon, if only
you could step into today’s churches! Every pastor and teacher knows that
paradise is heaven, so surely…?
Beloved,
let us not be deceived! It is clear—beyond any doubt—that the wisest man who
ever lived understood the truth of the Old Testament. The dead remain
completely dead and unconscious—without knowledge—until the resurrections!
Ecclesiastes
9:12: "For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in
an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare; so are the sons of
men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them."
How this
verse stands in contrast to the false comfort of today’s churches! Do they not
preach that death is a welcome friend, ushering believers instantly into the
presence of Yeshua and Abraham? Oh, brethren, do not be deceived! Stand against
this evil doctrine, this tradition of men that has wormed its way into the
churches! Free yourselves by seeking the truth in God’s Word. Be no longer
conformed to the corrupt teachings of this world but be transformed by the
renewing of your minds! Let God’s Word reign supreme, and let every man who
contradicts it be found a liar!
Ecclesiastes
12:7: "Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit
shall return unto God who gave it."
Here, the
word “spirit” is ruach, not nephesh. Solomon sometimes referred
to nephesh as "the spirit of man," but in this passage, he
speaks of the breath of life—the very spirit that God gives and takes
away. It is not a conscious entity, nor does it imply an immediate journey to
paradise.
Even in
Ecclesiastes 4:2, when Solomon declares that the dead are better off than the
living, he speaks only in the context of the oppressed—those who suffer without
comfort. He does not teach that death itself is a reward, nor does he suggest
that it leads to an immediate afterlife of joy or torment.
Let us walk
in wisdom, beloved. Let us no longer cling to the false traditions of men but
embrace the unshakable truth of the Scriptures! Let us now turn to the book of
Isaiah and consider the words of King Hezekiah concerning death:
Isaiah
38:17-19: "Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love
to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my
sins behind thy back. For the grave cannot praise thee, death cannot celebrate
thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth. The living, the
living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day..."
Here,
Hezekiah makes it plain: the grave cannot praise God! Death does not
celebrate Him, nor can the dead hope in His truth. Only the living can
praise the Lord! Do you see it, beloved? The phrase "the living, the
living" is a Hebrew figure of speech known as epizuexis, a
duplication used for emphasis. It reinforces the undeniable fact that only the
living praise God!
But if
those in paradise cannot praise Him, what does that imply? It is clear—there is
no praise, no worship, no consciousness in death! Now, consider the words of
the prophet Jeremiah:
Jeremiah
18:20: "Shall evil be recompensed for good? For they have digged a pit for
my soul."
In the King
James Version, the word nephesh is translated as "soul," while
in the NIV, it is simply "me." The NIV rendering is correct! In both
the Old and New Testaments, nephesh refers to life itself—it is
not a separate, immortal spirit. To separate one's nephesh from the body
means death—for both body and breath together make a living being! This
was the Biblical understanding of life amongst the people of Yahweh.
The word
nephesh appears 754 times in the Hebrew Old Testament. Yet in the King James
Version, it is translated “soul” 472 times and rendered by 44 different words
or phrases in the remaining 282 occurrences. In 229 of these places, the
English reader is left unaware that nephesh is even present! It has been
translated as: creature, thing, life, person, breath, beast, heart, will,
desire, appetite, mind, ghost, dead body, and many more.
Likewise,
in the Greek New Testament, the equivalent word psuchē appears 105 times
and is translated as soul 58 times, life 40 times, mind 3 times, and heart,
heartily, us, and you one time each.
Do you
understand, brethren? The word soul, as used in the Scriptures, refers
to a living body or a dead body—but never to an eternal,
disembodied spirit. It is used to describe both man and animal alike. The soul
is as immortal as the dust of the Earth!
Why then do
many persist in the belief that their nephesh—their very breath-life—somehow
continues in conscious existence apart from the body? Such a doctrine is
foreign to the Scriptures! It is the deception of the adversary, who seeks to
replace the truth with the fables of men. But we who are in Christ must stand
upon the pure Word of God, not the traditions of those who twist it! And what
of Job, my beloved? Did he not also understand that paradise did not exist as
so many believe today? The Scriptures are clear—Job knew, as all of God’s
people knew, that one day he would be resurrected!
Job
14:12-15 "So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more,
they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep. O that thou wouldest
hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be
past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me! If a man die,
shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my
change come. Thou shalt call, and I will answer thee: thou wilt have a desire
(a longing) to (for) the work of thine hands."
Oh, the
depth of Job’s understanding! Even God Himself would long for the day when Job
would rise again, to see him and restore him to life! Does this sound like a
man expecting to be taken instantly into paradise? No! He knew the truth—that
he would sleep in the grave until the appointed time.
And what
did Job say of the wicked and the wealthy who live in their ease and security?
Did he ever speak of an immediate judgment, of their souls descending into
torment upon death? No! Job 21 makes it abundantly clear:
Job 21:13: "They
spend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave (sheōl)."
And again,
he declares:
Job
21:23-26: "One dies in his full strength, being wholly at ease and secure;
His pails are full of milk, and the marrow of his bones is moist. Another man
dies in the bitterness of his soul, never having eaten with pleasure. They lie
down alike in the dust, and worms cover them."
Do you hear
it, my brethren? They lie down alike in the dust! Both the prosperous
and the poor share the same fate. The rich man is not in torment, nor is the
poor man in bliss. Where, then, is your so-called Abraham’s bosom? Where is
your fiery torment? The answer is plain to those who seek truth.
Job, a man
of righteousness and wisdom, knew the ways of our Creator. Did he not
understand what happens at death? He did! There was no mystery to him, nor
should there be to you!
And what of
Elihu the Buzite, the man who boldly spoke wisdom before Job? He too confirmed
the truth:
Job 33:18: "He
keepeth back his soul from the pit..."
Job 33:22: "Yea,
his soul draweth near unto the grave..."
Job 33:28: "He
will deliver his soul from going into the pit..."
Job 33:30: "To
bring back his soul from the pit, to be enlightened with the light of the
living."
What does
this tell you, beloved? Over and over again, the Word declares that the soul
goes to the grave—not to paradise, not to some mystical afterlife, but to
the dust of the earth, where it remains until the resurrection! How many more
witnesses do you need? Do not be deceived by the traditions of men! The truth
is before you—believe it and be set free!
Beloved,
does not Romans 8:6 clearly state that "to be carnally minded is
death"? How then can this be a warning to the believer—one who is born
again—if death simply leads them straight to heaven or paradise? Think on this!
If death is an immediate reward, then why should a child of God who lives in
sin be concerned? Would he not enter into paradise regardless? O foolish
thinking! You are void of wisdom in this matter, and it grieves me! You have
been deceived by tradition, not by truth!
And what of
Acts 2:34? It plainly declares:
"For
David is not ascended into the heavens..."
David—the
man after God's own heart! If anyone should have entered into heaven upon
death, would it not be him? Yet he still sleeps in the grave to this day. He is
not in hell either, as the Scriptures confirm:
Psalm 16:10:
"For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell..."
Acts 2:27: "Because
thou wilt not leave my soul in hell..."
The word hell
here refers to sheōl, the grave—not a place of torment, but the
place of the dead, the sleep that all men fall into until the resurrection.
Do you not
understand, beloved? The body is sown as a seed, and only the Creator Himself
knows what kind of seed each man is! Those who are destined for
destruction—those who are of their father, the devil—must be raised in their
physical bodies to receive their final judgment. How else could they suffer the
second death, which is the Lake of Fire? They were sown as corruptible, and
they will be raised in corruption to face their doom!
And what of
those who died without finding the One True God? They, too, shall be raised at
the appointed time of the Great White Throne Judgment. They were planted as
natural men, and in that day, they will be given their appropriate bodies,
according to the Father's righteous decree. For has it not been written?
"God
gives it a body as it has pleased Him, and to every seed his own body." (1
Corinthians 15:38)
All flesh
is not the same! One kind belongs to men, another to animals, another to birds,
and another to fish. There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but
their glory is not the same. The glory of the celestial is one thing, and the
glory of the terrestrial is another.
Beloved, do
not be deceived! The dead do not ascend to paradise upon death, nor do they
descend into torment. They sleep in the dust of the earth, waiting for their
appointed time! The resurrection will determine their fate—some to eternal
life, others to eternal judgment.
Does not
the Sun have one kind of splendour and the Moon another? And do not the stars
differ from the Moon, and even one star from another star in glory? So it will
be in the resurrection of the just!
The body is
sown perishable—it is raised imperishable. It is sown in dishonour—it is raised
in glory. It is sown in weakness—it is raised in power. It is sown a natural
body—it is raised a spiritual body! For if there is a natural body, then surely
there is also a spiritual body! And so it is written:
"The
first man, Adam, became a living being; the last Adam, a life-giving
spirit."
Understand
this, beloved! The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after
that, the spiritual. The first man was of the dust of the Earth; the second man
is from heaven. This is why I have told you before:
"Flesh
and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, nor can corruption inherit
incorruption!"
For
incorruption is not the natural state of man—it is an act of God! It is a work
of His glorious plan of redemption and judgment, established by His law,
through which came the covenant, the promises, and the plan of salvation. And
from that plan came believing, by which came Messiah, through whom all things
shall come by the Father, who is all in all!
And yet,
some of you believe that God must keep us alive in some disembodied state for
hundreds or thousands of years—do you not see the foolishness of this? Shall
God forget who we are? God forbid! Does He not know every one of the trillions
of stars in the heavens by name? And yet, do you think He cannot remember those
who are sealed in His Book of Life? Does He not know us, even to the very
number of hairs on our heads?
O foolish
ones! Do you limit the Creator of all things to the size of your own mind? Do
you not know that by limiting your understanding of Him, you limit His power
within you? And within your churches! For do not all things work by believing?
And now I
ask you, beloved—if God has rescued us from so great a death, just how great a
death was it? If the dead immediately go to paradise upon death, then were they
ever truly dead? Do you not see the contradiction? If the dead are fully alive
in paradise, then death is no death at all!
And where
do you get the idea that it is our souls that enter paradise to wait for the
new body? That our souls lie with Abraham, resting until the resurrection of
the just? If your soul is truly the spiritual body, with full consciousness,
then why would you need a new body at all?
But you
say: "Ah, but the soul cannot walk around without the new body, so it must
wait!"
And I ask
you—are not the other spirit beings in heaven moving freely, with full power
and agility? Do they not think, do they not act, do they not perform works? Tell
me then, beloved—what is the difference between your so-called "soul"
and a spiritual body? If your soul were already a fully conscious, fully
functional being, then what need would there be for a resurrection at all?
I tell you
the truth—your understanding is flawed! You have believed tradition, not truth!
Search the Scriptures, for they alone are life! Be transformed by the renewing
of your mind, and let the Word of God reign supreme over all the vain
imaginations of men!
The soul
is not some limited, temporal body waiting in limbo—it is simply our
breath-life!
Does a man
cease to exist when he exhales? No! So neither does the soul linger as some
waiting ghost, trapped between worlds! When a man dies, the breath of life—that
spiritual spark within him—returns to the Giver! Just as the Holy Spirit,
which we who are born again have received as a token, a down payment for the
fullness of the new man, returns to Him as well. Not to paradise, but to
the One who gave it!
Death is an
enemy to be destroyed! Have you forgotten the
words?
"Death
shall be swallowed up in victory!" "O
death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?"
And yet,
many of you believe that death is no real enemy at all! You have been deceived!
If the body had a spiritual copy that immediately went to paradise upon death,
then death itself would be of little consequence! But I tell you—such a belief
is not of God!
On
"Hell" and the Misunderstanding of the Ages
In your New
Testament, the word “hell” has been used for two very different Greek words. Do
you understand what this means?
1 – Gehenna
(גֵּיא בֶן־הִנֹּם / Γέεννα)
This is the
Valley of the Sons of Hinnom—a real place outside Jerusalem where fires
burned continuously, consuming the refuse of the city. Once, it was the site of
unspeakable idolatry, where children were sacrificed in fire to the false god Molech
(2 Kings 23:10, Isaiah 30:33, Jeremiah 7:31-32; 19:11). By the time of Yeshua,
the idolatry had ceased, but the fires remained, smouldering as a vivid picture
of judgment.
And so,
when Messiah spoke of Gehenna, He was not describing some eternal
torture chamber of the dead, but rather a final destruction—a place where that
which is judged is consumed and is no more!
Gehenna
occurs twelve times in the New Testament, yet it is always
rendered as “hell”:
- Matthew 5:22, 29-30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15,
33
- Mark 9:43, 45, 47
- Luke 12:5
- James 3:6
But tell
me, beloved—where in these passages is Gehenna described as an eternal realm of
conscious torment? Nowhere! You have added to the Scriptures what is not there!
2 – Hades
(ᾍδης)
This is the
Greek word for the unseen world, borrowed from pagan mythology. But let
me ask you—do we derive our doctrine from Greek fables, or from God’s Word?
This word hades
must be given the same meaning as its Hebrew counterpart, sheōl—which
simply means “the grave.” Anything beyond this is to make a mockery of
the Scriptures!
Hades
occurs eleven times in the New Testament, and yet it is always
translated as "hell"—except in one place, where it is rendered
"grave" (1 Corinthians 15:55).
Its other
occurrences:
- Matthew 11:23; 16:18
- Luke 10:15; 16:23
- Acts 2:27, 31
- Revelation 1:18; 6:8; 20:13, 14
And what of
the Revised Version (RV)? In 1 Corinthians 15:55, it renders hades as “death”,
and in all other places simply transliterates it as “Hades”—removing the
misleading translation “hell” altogether!
Why then do
you cling to the traditions of men—traditions that came not from the Hebrew
Scriptures, nor from the teachings of Messiah, but from the pagan superstitions
of the Greeks and the Romans? Come Out from Among Them! Cease from the
doctrines of demons! Turn back to the truth of the Word, for only the Word of
God is life!
Paradise is
Always on Earth—Not in Heaven!
Beloved, where
is it written that paradise was ever moved to heaven? Search the Scriptures!
You will not find it. This is a teaching again rooted in the traditions of men,
not in the Word of God!
From the
beginning, paradise has been a physical place on Earth—whether it was
the Garden of Eden in the past (Genesis 2:8), or the New Earth to
come (Revelation 2:7, 22:2).
The grave,
too, is always here on Earth. It is never linked to “hell” or
“paradise,” except in the minds of those deceived by the god of this world!
For the Scriptures are clear:
Isaiah
14:11 – “Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: the
worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee.”
Where is
this? Here, in the ground! Sheōl is not a place of torment, nor a place of
bliss—but the grave itself!
Corruptions
in the Scriptures
There are false
additions in your so-called sacred texts—words inserted by deceitful
scribes who sought to shape doctrine according to their own traditions!
Consider Matthew
27:52-53, which claims that at the moment of Yeshua’s death, "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."
Beloved, this
was added by men! It does not appear in the earliest manuscripts! Why would
God raise the saints before the appointed resurrection? And if they had been
raised, where are they now? Did they die again? Or ascend separately? Surely,
this is foolishness!
And because
of such corruptions and misinterpretations, many have failed to grasp the truth
of my words to the Philippians.
What I
Actually Meant in Philippians 1:21-24
The translations
you read today have distorted my meaning. They would have you believe that I
taught an immediate transition to Messiah’s presence after death. But God
forbid that I would teach such a thing!
Here is
what I meant:
"For
to me, to live is to live for Messiah and for the furtherance of His Gospel.
But to be with Him is much more desirable—for if I die, my next waking moment
will be with Him, for in death there are no thoughts or consciousness, like
falling asleep and awakening."
What
happens when a man sleeps? He knows nothing. He experiences nothing.
To him, time passes in an instant. And so it is with death.
I did not
say that I would immediately be with Messiah after death. Rather, I
longed for His return, so that whether I lived or died, my next
conscious moment would be in His presence!
And
furthermore, I knew that if I died, the Gospel would still go forth! Others
would rise up to take my place, and in that too, there would be gain!
"But
if I live in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labour, and what I shall choose
I make known. For I am torn between two things—having great desire for the
return of Messiah so that I can be with Him, which is the best thing. But
nevertheless, it is more needful for you that I remain here with you, for Messiah’s
return is not yet and may be far off."
Stop
Believing Lies—Return to the Truth!
So now,
what will you do? Will you cling to the traditions of men, or will you return
to the pure and uncorrupted truth of Scripture? For the hour is late, and the
time has come to cast off deception and embrace the Word as it is written!
Stop
Misquoting Me!
Brethren,
you have misquoted my words time and time again!
You say: “Absent
from the body, present with the Lord.” But I did not say this!
What did I
say? I said we are “willing” to be absent from the body and present with
the Lord! (2 Corinthians 5:8)
Do you see
the difference?
I was
expressing a desire—a longing for Messiah’s return—not stating an immediate
transition after death! If I had meant what you claim, I would have said: "When
we are absent from the body, we are immediately present with the Lord." But
I did not say that! Instead, I wrote:
"We
are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be
present with the Lord."
Our will
is to be with Him—but that does not mean it happens instantly at
death!
And in
context, from 2 Corinthians 4:14 through 5:21, what is the focus? The
resurrection! The return of Messiah! That is what we long for—not some
immediate entry into paradise apart from it!
Stop
Limiting the Creator!
And now you
twist the transfiguration to suit your false beliefs! Listen, brethren! The
Creator lives outside of time! Can He not call things out of time if He so
desires?
Is God
limited? Is He not the God of the impossible? If He wants to show a future
reality to His elect before it happens, is that not within His power? So why
should it amaze you that God arranged a vision where Moses, Elijah, and Yeshua
could all speak together—even though they lived in different time periods?
Here is the
simplicity of it:
- When Moses was alive, God showed
him a vision of Elijah and Yeshua speaking with him.
- When Elijah was alive, God showed
him a vision of Moses and Yeshua speaking with him.
- When Yeshua was alive, God showed
Him a vision of Moses and Elijah speaking with Him.
Three
different visions of the same event!
Each man,
in his own time, was shown a vision of the conversation—as if they were
all speaking together. Look at it as a three-way telephone call across time!
And the Almighty, who created time itself, can do such a thing effortlessly.
Stop
Twisting the Word—Return to Truth!
So what
will you do? Will you continue to misquote me? Will you hold to your
traditions over the clear truth of Scripture? Or will you finally open
your eyes and accept what is written? For the hour is late, and the time
has come to cast off deception and embrace the Word as it is written!
You Must
Understand How God Works Outside of Time!
Beloved, do
you not understand how God reveals truth? How was the book of Revelation given
to John? He saw and heard things taken out of time! Did not the prophet Daniel
experience the same? Were not the prophets of old shown things that had not yet
come to pass? Then why do you insist on misunderstanding the
transfiguration?
The Greek
text itself proves this truth!
- In Matthew 17:3, the word “appeared”
is translated from the Greek word optomai, which means “to see
objectively” or “to envision”.
- If Peter, James, and John had physically
seen Moses and Elijah with their natural eyes, the Greek word blepō
(which refers to literal sight) would have been used!
- But verse 9 makes it plain! What
does Yeshua say?
“Tell the
vision to no man, till the Son of man be risen again from the dead.” (Matthew
17:9)
It was a vision—not
a literal event!
Enoch Was
Taken—But Not to Heaven!
And now,
brethren, you wrongly claim that Enoch was taken to heaven! How can
this be? Does not the Scripture itself declare that flesh and blood
cannot inherit the kingdom of God?
If Yeshua
was the firstfruits from the dead, how then could any mere man have
entered before Him? Impossible! Enoch was taken—but not to heaven.
Where then?
He was moved to another place to spare him from seeing death. He had never seen
death before—not even of his loved ones! And because his heart was delicate, God,
in His mercy, removed him from his surroundings so that he would not witness
such sorrow.
That is
what it means that “he was not found” (Genesis 5:24, Hebrews 11:5). But
you—who have been deceived by false teachers—say he went to heaven,
contradicting the very Word of God!
Faith and
Believing Are Not the Same!
Brethren, you
must stop confusing faith with believing! Faith is a spiritual manifestation
that came only through Messiah Yeshua! Did not I say:
“They that
are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live
in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:24-25)
The Old
Testament believers did not have faith, for faith is a product of the Spirit—and
the Spirit was not yet given! Enoch believed God, and it was pleasing
to Him. But faith came only through Messiah!
You
Continue to Preach the Devil’s Lie!
But worst
of all, you continue to teach Satan’s own deception! For what did he say in the
garden? “Ye shall not surely die.” And you—yes, even you who claim to know the
truth—still teach this lie!
You preach life
immediately after death—yet the Scriptures teach no such thing! You say, “The
dead are conscious!” Where is your proof? Search the Word! There is no
verse—none!—that teaches consciousness after death! And by teaching so, you
preach the doctrines of devils!
Beware of
Wolves in the Church!
Beloved,
have you forgotten my warning? Did I not tell you that after my departure,
grievous wolves would enter in among you, not sparing the flock? (Acts 20:29) And
now, look!
Your own pastors
and teachers—those who claim to shepherd the flock—have handed down this lie
from generation to generation! They were taught by tradition, which was
inspired by Satan himself! But as I have told you before:
“There is
none righteous, no, not one!”
Turn from
these falsehoods! Return to the truth! For the time is short, and the judgment
of God is near!
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