Scripture distinguishes several stages: death, then the state of the dead before the resurrection (little is said about it), the resurrection, judgment, and the final state—new heaven and new earth. The center of Christian hope is the resurrection and life with God, not merely what happens immediately after death.
What Does the Bible Say About This?
- A person dies once, and after that comes judgment (Heb 9:27).
- Jesus promises the repentant criminal that he will be with Him “in paradise” (Lk 23:42–43).
- Paul desires “to depart and be with Christ”; to be away from the body means to be at home with the Lord (Phil 1:21–23; 2 Cor 5:6–8).
- Interpretations differ regarding exactly what happens to a person between death and the resurrection—Scripture does not describe this in detail. The parable in Luke 16:19–31 is a parable, not a detailed map of the afterlife.
- Jesus says that the time will come when all the dead will hear His voice and come out of their tombs—some to the resurrection of life, others to the resurrection of condemnation (John 5:28–29); the resurrected body is imperishable and “spiritual” (1 Cor 15:42–44, 51–53).
- The dead in Christ will rise; Paul tells believers to comfort one another with these words (1 Thess 4:13–18).
- God has appointed a day on which He will judge the world through Jesus (Acts 17:31); the great judgment, the “second death,” and the book of life are described (Rev 20:11–15).
- In the end, there will be a new heaven and a new earth, where God dwells with people (Rev. 21:1–4).
The brief answer was prepared by the editorial team; the Scripture passages are from the “Father’s Blessing” Bible.
Key Scripture Passages
12 Scripture passages · “Father’s Blessing” Bible
Hebrews 9:27
And just as people are appointed to die once, and after that to face judgment,
Luke 23:42–43
42 And he said to Jesus, “Remember me, Lord, when You come into Your kingdom!” 43 And Jesus said to him, “Truly I tell you today, you will be with Me in paradise.”
Philippians 1:21–23
21 For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. 22 But if I continue to live in the flesh, this means fruitful labor for me, I do not know what to choose. 23 I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better;
2 Corinthians 5:6–8
6 Therefore, we are always confident; and we know that while we are at home in the body, we are away from the Lord, 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight, 8 so we are confident and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
John 5:28–29
28 Do not be amazed at this, because a time is coming when all who are in the graves will hear the voice of the Son of God; 29 and those who have done good will come out to the resurrection of life, while those who have done evil will rise to the resurrection of judgment.
1 Corinthians 15:42–44
42 So it is with the resurrection of the dead: what is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable; 43 what is sown is dishonorable, what is raised is glorious; what is sown is weak, what is raised is powerful; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.
1 Corinthians 15:51–53
51 I tell you a mystery: We will not all die, but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed. 53 For this corruptible body must put on incorruption, and this mortal body must put on immortality.
1 Thessalonians 4:13–18
13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who have fallen asleep, so that you do not grieve like the rest who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, then God will also bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord: we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who have fallen asleep, 16 because the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first; 17 then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore, comfort one another with these words.
Acts 17:31
because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained, giving assurance to all by raising Him from the dead.
Revelation 20:11–15
11 I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose presence the earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what was written in the books, according to their works. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each according to their works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death—the lake of fire. 15 And anyone whose name was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
Revelation 21:1–4
1 I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband, 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: Behold, God’s dwelling place is now among the people. He will dwell with them, and they will be His peoples, and God Himself will be with them [and will be their God]. 4 And [God] will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death; neither sorrow, nor crying, nor pain will exist anymore, because the former things have passed away.
Luke 16:19–31
19 There was a certain rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and feasted lavishly every day. 20 There was also a certain beggar named Lazarus, who lay at his gate covered with sores 21 and longed to eat the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And in Hades, being in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus at his side, 24 and he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am suffering in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are suffering. 26 And besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that those who want to cross from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross from there to us.’ 27 Then he said, ‘I beg you, father, send him to my father’s house, 28 because I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not come to this place of torment.’ 29 Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ 30 ‘No, Father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ 31 Then Abraham said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’
Related Questions
- Where does the soul go after death?
- Will the dead be resurrected?
- What is paradise?
- What is hell?
- What is the Judgment of God?
