Beliefs about the Afterlife (xxiii)

"Yet at the scent of water it will bud 

And bring forth branches like a plant"

In this chapter we will consider a few additional texts from the old testament about the afterlife. After that, we will address some other questions about the afterlife, such as about degrees of rewards and punishments in the afterlife, about the justice of eternal punishment, etc., and then we will conclude this series on the afterlife by speaking of the hope and expectation of Christians versus those who are not Christian, and also discuss what it will be like to live forever without fear of dying and without any moral or spiritual faults, without sin. 

In previous chapters we have referred to a text from the Book of Job in regard to the afterlife. In this chapter we want to take a closer look at one of the chief passages on that subject from that inspired book. 

Job's Testimony

“For there is hope for a tree, If it is cut down, that it will sprout again, And that its tender shoots will not cease. Though its root may grow old in the earth, And its stump may die in the ground, Yet at the scent of water it will bud And bring forth branches like a plant. But man dies and is laid away; Indeed he breathes his last And where is he? As water disappears from the sea, And a river becomes parched and dries up, So man lies down and does not rise. Till the heavens are no more, They will not awake Nor be roused from their sleep. “Oh, that You would hide me in the grave (sheol), That You would conceal me until Your wrath is past, That You would appoint me a set time, and remember me! If a man dies, shall he live again? All the days of my hard service I will wait, Till my change comes. You shall call, and I will answer You; You shall desire the work of Your hands." (Job 14: 7-15 nkjv)

These words seem, at the outset, to deny life after death, or a future resurrection of the body. It seems that Job moans over the fact that man is worse off than a dead stump, for a dead stump may yet sprout new life, but not so with men. He says "so man lies down and does not rise" and "they shall not awake." But, there is that phrase "till the heavens are no more." So, is Job saying the body will not live again, unlike the stump? Or, is he saying it will not live again till the resurrection? How does he answer his own question - "if a man dies, shall he live again?" In one part of his words he seems to view the body as forever dead (unlike the dead stump that may revive at the scent of water) and in another part he seems to affirm a coming resurrection of the body. 

Commented Dr. Gill on verse 12:

"till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep; for so the words are to be read, not in connection with those that go before, but with the last clauses; though the sense is much the same either way, which is, that those who are fallen asleep by death, and lie sleeping in their graves, and on their beds, these shall neither awake of themselves, nor be awaked by others, "till the heavens be no more"; that is, never, so as to awake and arise of themselves, and to this natural life, and to be concerned in the business of it; which sometimes seems to be the sense of this phrase, see Psalm 89:29, Matthew 5:18; or, as some render it, "till the heavens are wore out", or "waxen old" (c); as they will like a garment, and be folded up, and laid aside, as to their present use, Psalm 102:26; or till they shall vanish away, and be no more, as to their present form, quality, and use, though they may exist as to substance; and when this will be the case, as it will be when the Judge shall appear, when Christ shall come a second time to judge the world; then the earth and heaven will flee away from his face, the earth and its works shall be burnt up, and the heavens shall pass away with great noise; and then, and not till then, will the dead, or those that are asleep in their graves, be awaked by the voice of the archangel, and the trump of God, and they shall be raised from their sleepy beds, awake and arise, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt."

Dr. Gill gives us an either or choice of interpretations for the words "till the heavens are no more." Are we to interpret this as "never"? That it means the same as saying "till hell freezes over"? 

It seems to me that it does not mean "never," because 1) the words that follow that expression speak of a time when Job said that he will awake in body at the last day, and 2) the bible does say that the heavens will pass away at the end of the last age, which is the present age. (Matt. 24: 35: II Peter 3: 10; Heb. 1: 10-11). That is when the one who died will "live again" in body. 

The time between death and resurrection (intermediate state) does not seem to be expressly mentioned by Job in this passage, the focus being on the death of the body. He does say that this intermediate time will be when he is "in hiding in Sheol," and when he will be "concealed." Are these words applicable to the body or spirit? Does it mean his being hidden in a coffin or in the ground? Or, that it includes the idea that his spirit or soul would also be in Sheol or Hades, in that part of it where the righteous are resting? Could it therefore be applicable to both Job's body and spirit? 

Consider Paul's statement relative to the family of God. He says "of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named." (Eph.3: 15) How is "the family of God" (the whole number of saved people who have been born) in both heaven and earth at the same time? 

The family members who are in heaven are believers who have lived and died and gone to heaven in spirit and the family members on earth are believers who are yet living on earth. The family members in heaven are thus hidden or concealed from our view. 

Here are the comments of Dr. Albert Barnes in his commentary on Job 14: 7:

"For there is hope of a tree - This passage to Job 14:12, is one of exquisite beauty. Its object is to state reasons why man should be permitted to enjoy this life. A tree, if cut down, might spring up again and flourish; but not man. He died to rise no more; he is cut down and lives not again. The passage is important as expressing the prevalent sentiment of the time in which Job lived about the future condition of man, and is one that deserves a close examination. The great question is, whether Job believed in the future state, or in the resurrection of the dead? On this question one or two things are clear at the outset. 

 

(1) He did not believe that man would spring up from the grave in any sense* similar to the mode in which the sprout or germ of a tree grows up when the tree is cut down. 

 

(2) He did not believe in the doctrine of metempsychosis, or transmigration of souls; a doctrine that was so common among the ancients. 

 

*But it cannot be correct to say that the living again of plants that have died in no sense is "similar to" the resurrection of human bodies, as we will shortly show. Further, he does not say that dead human bodies won't revive as the dead stump, but says such will 

1) not happen till the heavens be no more (which occurs at the last day) and 

2) not be a restoration of or return to the former life in old heavens and earth. 

Said Barnes:

"In this respect the patriarchal religion stood aloof from the systems of paganism, and there is not to be found, that I know of, any expression that would lead us to suppose that they had ever embraced it, or had even heard of it. The general sentiment here is, that if a tree is cut down, it may be expected to shoot up again, and another tree will be found in its place - as is the case with the chestnut, the willow, the oak. But Job says that there was nothing like this to happen to man. There was no root, no germ, no seminal principle from which he would be made to live again on the earth. He was to be finally cut off, from all his pleasures and his friends here, and to go away to return no more. Still, that Job believed in his continued existence beyond the grave - his existence in the dark and gloomy world of shades, is apparent from the whole book, and indeed from the very passage before us; see Job 14:13 - compare Job 10:21-22. The image here is one that is very beautiful, and one that is often employed by poets." 

Yes, the way that a plant dies and is reborn or revived is unlike the resurrection of physical human bodies in that the latter is not the result of forces within nature or in the thing that has died but rather is the result of the work of Christ at his second coming in calling the dead to life. 

The Evergreen and the palm tree have been from ancient times symbols of renewal, of eternal life and immortality, of flourishing. But, the image at the heading of this chapter of a stump having new growth is a picture of resurrection like the caterpillar is a picture of transformation as it becomes a butterfly. So too is Spring time generally viewed as a picture of rebirth from the dead of Winter. 

Of course, Job is not denying an afterlife for the spirit nor of a future resurrection for the body in his words in this chapter, though he might seem to do so in part. Said Job later in his dialogues:

"For I know that my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God, Whom I shall see for myself, And my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!" (19: 25-27 nkjv) 

So, both chapters uphold the belief in a future resurrection of the bodies of the dead.

So, is the living again of a dead tree trunk a picture of bodily resurrection or not? Answer: yes and no, as we have seen.

It is interesting that Job speaks of how dead stumps can live again after having been "cut down." It is a picture in some respects of the resurrection. Both Jesus and Paul thought so. Said Christ Jesus:

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." (John 12: 24)

Said Paul:

"But someone will say, “How are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come?” Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies. And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain—perhaps wheat or some other grain. But God gives it a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body." (I Cor. 15: 35-38)

Death and renewal in the plant world is indeed a picture, in some respects, of death and resurrection in the world of human beings. Christ, according to the flesh, is thus described:

"Like a young plant or a root that sprouts in dry ground, the servant grew up obeying the LORD." (Isa. 53: 2 Contemporary English Version)

This is a picture of Christ being born and beginning to live. But, not only is it a picture of coming to life the first time (in the womb) but a living again after having died. We also see this pictured in the phenomenon of Aaron's rod that budded. 

"Now it came to pass on the next day that Moses went into the tabernacle of witness, and behold, the rod of Aaron, of the house of Levi, had sprouted and put forth buds, had produced blossoms and yielded ripe almonds." (Numb. 17: 8) 

That rod (walking cane) was dead wood and yet it lived again and flourished. That is a picture of Christ' resurrection as is the shoot from a stump that has been "cut down" and died and was regenerated.

A Final Word From Solomon

“A good name is better than a good ointment, and the day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth. It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, because that is the end of every man, and the living takes it to heart.” (Eccl. 7: 1-2)

Is "the day of one's death better than the day of one's birth"? I can see how it is true in regard to certain people and groups. But, I can't see how it is true for those who die in their sins and go to everlasting torment. I also can't see how it would be true of Judas Iscariot, for Christ says of him "woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.” (Matt. 26: 24) 

Also, Solomon's statement seems to be applied to all men, and not just to righteous and saved persons. He does not say "the day of someone's death" or "someone's birth," but "the day of one's death" and "day of one's birth." Can we say "Tis better to have lived and died than never to have lived at all"? (Similarly to "Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all" - Tenyson). 

Solomon's statement and observation is similar to these words also in Ecclesiastes: "Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit." (7: 8)

Is the end of life better for all men or only better for the saved?

Wrote one commentary on 7:1 (expressing a common interpretation):

"The thought in this clause is closely connected with the preceding. If a man's life is such that he leaves a good name behind him, then the day of his departure is better than that of his birth..." (Pulpit Commentary) 

Yes, it could be that Solomon is limiting his statement to those who have a good name and character. However, it could be that Solomon is giving again the way things seem to a man who looks at things without a divine revelation or interpretation of things. How many times have people said about a person who died after years of intense physical pain and suffering - "he is really better off"? We say that because we see his sufferings on earth as ended. Most times, however, we conclude that a "living dog is better than a dead lion." 

As far as what happens on earth "under the sun" it does seem to be better to die than to live for some of both the righteous and unrighteous. That statement seems to be made without any regard to the state of the spirit of the deceased, and is true of all as regards the body. That being so, it is true that all physical bodies are better off dead, for now they are free from bodily suffering and pain (in that intermediate state). 

In the concluding chapters, which are contemplated as few, we will look at certain questions about the afterlife, such as "what will it be like to live in heaven on earth?" And, "what will we be doing for all eternity?" "Will we ever get bored?" "Is sinning and falling from heaven possible?" "Will we have free will in heaven or the capability to do evil?" We will also discuss whether there be degrees of rewards and punishments in the afterlife. We will close by talking about the Christian's hope in regard to the afterlife.