Jesus in Sheol
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JESUS IN SHEOL What Happened Between the Crucifixion of Jesus and His Ascension to Heaven? Gabor Kover Jesus in Sheol What Happened Between the Crucifixion of Jesus and His Ascension to Heaven? Gabor Kover ISBN 978-963-08-8183-8 © Gabor Kover 2013 Unmarked Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982, by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Use by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of International Bible Society. I use the literal translation of words or the original Hebrew terms, e.g., Sheol, for the sake of clarity. Cover design: Krisztian Horvath (First Edition—December 2012 Berlin, Germany) If you buy this e-book, you support me to write more great books! You can download it: jesusinsheol.com CONTENTS Introduction 3 PART 1 - THE STRUCTURE OF THE EARTH AND THE PLACES OF PUNISHMENT The Structure of the Earth 5 Proverbs 8 11 13 תהום - Tehom The Springs of Tehom 13 The Tehom and the Seas 15 Summary 21 Sheol and Other Places of Punishment 23 that is, Hell 23 ,ׁשאול - Sheol Other Terms for Sheol 40 47 אבדון - Abaddon Tartaros 50 Gehenna 52 Summary 57 PART 2 - JESUS IN SHEOL Prophetic Pictures 58 The Story of Joseph 58 The Story of Esther 65 The Story of Jonah 66 Daniel in the Lions’ Den 66 Why Did Jesus Have to Go Down to Sheol? 69 JESUS IN SHEOL 75 The Restoration to Life 101 The Resurrection 104 Summary 117 The Glorification 120 The Ascension to Heaven 123 JESUS IN SHEOL What happened between the crucifixion of Jesus and His ascension to Heaven? Introduction The main subject of this book is the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the great work of salvation. So as to understand the Biblical revelation about the suffering, the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ, some other topics must first be addressed. Without these preliminary studies, the passages about Jesus’ suffering could only be interpreted as metaphoric or figurative language. This is why what the Bible says about the inner structure of the earth, where Hell is located and how the Scriptures describe it will be examined first. These details are vital in understanding the subsequent parts of the subject. Then, some Old Testament examples and stories will be addressed which, in some of their elements, refer to salvation. Through these stories the different aspects of what the Bible has to say about the sacrifice of Jesus Christ will be examined. Finally, a closer look at the particular passages on the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus will be studied. This book is based completely on the Bible and the unfolding of Biblical teachings from the Scriptures. Many Biblical passages are included, which are accompanied by my short commentaries. Therefore, this book is also a Scriptural interpretation. While reading, you will discover - 3 - an interpretation discipline: when a Biblical text is not a parable, primarily the literal meaning as opposed to the metaphoric meaning will be considered. This method of interpretation will allow the student to understand the Bible more. Jesus ascended to Heaven after His resurrection, but He is continuing His work on the earth through the church. As the Bible says: Mark 16:20 “And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs.” May Jesus Christ testify about Himself through the words about Him while you’re reading this book and may the Spirit of God touch you immensely! - 4 - The Structure of the Earth Many scientific theories are considered to be facts and are therefore discussed as facts today. These scientific theories, which are based on materialistic conceptions, have become part of today’s worldview because the scientific- materialistic worldview can be supported the best by these theories. However, these theories many times have several weak points. Materialistic science cannot explain many things and can interpret only a part of the truth. All phenomena that science cannot understand or interpret fall under the so- called ―no-explanation‖ category. Some examples of this ―no-explanation category‖ include parapsychology, the beginning of life, and ancient mysteries. However, most of the phenomena and mysteries like them can be understood if based on the Biblical worldview. It seems that the Bible is not an old-fashioned Book… Today when people think about the inner structure of the earth, they do so according to the scientific-materialistic theory. This very popular theory claims that the earth (together with the other planets and stars) began after the explosion of the energy mass (the ―Big Bang‖ theory). The surface of the hot magma, which solidified in the cold space, has been constantly solidifying since the ―big bang.‖ However, the core is still hot, and the plates are swimming and moving on this hot lava. This book’s study of the inner structure of the earth will be based on the Biblical revelation, which is not in line with the scientific-materialistic theory. - 5 - The first and most fundamental difference is that, according to the Bible, the earth was created by God. In the book of Job, God Himself tells how He created the earth. Job 38:1, 4-11 1Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: ... 4“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding. 5Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? 6 To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, 7When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy? 8“Or who shut in the sea with doors, When it burst forth and issued from the womb; 9When I made the clouds its garment, And thick darkness its swaddling band; 10When I fixed My limit for it, And set bars and doors; 11When I said, „This far you may come, but no farther, And here your proud waves must stop!‟ According to the description in this passage, the earth is laid on a ―cornerstone‖ which is in the center of the earth. Only one cornerstone was laid by God, and He set the footings and the foundations upon this cornerstone. In the (eden) אדנ :original Hebrew text of the Old Testament means ―base, pedestal, pillar.‖ This description is what the Bible calls ―the pillars of the earth.‖ The Bible also uses other words for these ―footings or pillars,: including ‖.mosad) which means ―base or foundation) מוסד - Allow me to share some verses that contain this phrase. - 6 - Isaiah 24:18 And it shall be That he who flees from the noise of the fear Shall fall into the pit, And he who comes up from the midst of the pit Shall be caught in the snare; For the windows from on high are open, And the foundations of the earth are shaken. The entire chapter of Isaiah 24 prophesies the catastrophes in the last days and describes the cosmic plagues striking the earth so fiercely that even the foundations of the planet will shake. Micah 6:2 Hear, O you mountains, the LORD‟s complaint, And you strong [unchanging] foundations of the earth. … The prophet Micah says that the foundations are very stable and unchanging. More precisely, the word strong can be rendered as ―strong, firm, massive and hard.‖ 2 Samuel 22:16 Then the channels of the sea were seen, The foundations of the world were uncovered, At the rebuke of the LORD, At the blast of the breath of His nostrils. This verse reveals that the wrath of God and the light surrounding His presence caused the channels and the beds of the sea to become visible. The foundations of the earth were disclosed—uncovered. Apparently, God had already been to that place once, and He was angry. - 7 - Another interesting detail is revealed in the following verse: Jeremiah 31:37 Thus says the LORD: “If heaven above can be measured, And the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel For all that they have done, says the LORD. God is saying through the prophet Jeremiah that He will never come to hate the descendants of Israel nor will He reject them forever. For this reason, it is impossible to search out and uncover the foundations of the earth. The only source of information about these foundations (pillars) is the Word of God. Yet another verse also claims that it’s impossible to discover the inner part of the earth: Proverbs 25:3 (KJV) …the earth for depth is…unsearchable. Interestingly, it was not only in Biblical times that the technology was insufficient to search the inside of the earth. Even today scientists know very little about the earth’s inside. Modern scientific machinery can only drill to a certain point into the earth’s core. Scientists can only reason and hypothesize theories as a result of gathering this limited information. This information gathering is like somebody’s trying to predict what the inside of an apple is like merely by examining its skin. - 8 - Another word in the Bible referring to the pillars of the earth is: ‖.amud) which means ―pillar) עמוד This word is derived from the term erect (e.g., ―a statue or a pillar‖) but can also be rendered as ―firm, remain or endure.‖ This term is the expression the Bible uses for ―the pillar of cloud and fire‖ that led the Israelites during the exodus as well as for the pillars in the holy tabernacle and in Solomon’s Temple.