Luke 16:22-31 “So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. (23) And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off and Lazarus in his bosom. (24) "Then he cried and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.' (25) But Abraham said, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. (26) And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.' (27) "Then he said, 'I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house, (28) for I have five brothers that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.' (29) Abraham said to him, 'They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.' (30) And he said, 'No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' (31) But he said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.'”
With regards to the Old Testament saints, when they died physically their spirits did not go to heaven. The reason for that was because their spirits had not yet been born again, and they were therefore still spiritually dead. And so they were not able to enter into heaven, for Jesus taught us that unless one is born again they cannot enter the kingdom of God (John 3:3-5). So where did they go when they died? The above passage of scripture reveals to us that the spirits of the Old Testament saints went to a place that Jesus referred to as “Abraham’s bosom”. As we see from this passage, Abraham’s bosom was located under the earth, just as Hades is, for Abraham refers to one in this location as being able to rise from the dead. Nevertheless Abraham’s bosom was located above Hades and there was a great gulf fixed between the two locations which none could cross. The unbelievers who went to Hades were subjected to torment in flames of fire (which is still taking place today), while the saints were comforted in Abraham’s bosom. We also see from this passage that both the saints and the unbelievers could observe each other across the gulf, which obviously added to the torment of the unbelievers, as they watched the saints being comforted while they suffered torment in the flames of hell.
Michael E.B. Maher
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