Roadmap for the soul - Judaism, the bible and the tabernacle

Now we come to one of the most feared (and least understood) consequences ---

Genesis 3:19 "... and to dust you shall return."

This passage refers to the separation of the spirit and soul from the body, at which point the physical body of the individual decays back into the basic components from which it was made. In other words, it refers to what most people think of as 'death'.

But in biblical terms, that definition of 'death' is only a partially one...
In order to fully understand death as the bible defines it, we can begin with the following ---

Genesis 3:22-23 "Then the Lord God said, 'Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever'... (v.23)... therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden."

In the passage above, notice the words, "...lest he... eat, and live forever..."

If you look back at Genesis 2:16, you'll see that all of us were perfectly free to eat from this "tree of life" originally. Unfortunately, we didn't take advantage of the opportunity when we should have. Instead. we fell for Satan's deception and chose sin. Thus, in the above passage, God basically says, "Well kids, you have chosen to reject My authority and boundaries. So now, before you make another mistake and eat from the tree of life, and get stuck in your defiled bodies forever, I am going to boot you out of the garden."

There are two things to notice in this ---

First, the fact that we will not be able to "live forever" has put a limit on the amount of time that each of us will have in which to decide whether or not to return to Him.

Secondly, it has also put a limit on the amount of pain and suffering that must be endured by those who will ultimately choose to return to Him.

Put another way, without 'physical death', there would be no escape from the misery which currently surrounds us here on earth. We would all be stuck here forever.

In other words, for those who will eventually choose to return to a relationship with God,
'physical death' sounds like a blessing!

But again, as stated previously, 'physical death' is actually only one part of the story...

As you will see, because man is composed of three components (spirit, soul & body), there are actually a total of three 'deaths' that must be experienced. The precise method of all three 'deaths' will unfold as our story progresses. For now, the next step in understanding the bible's overall view of 'death' is to see that ---

Romans 6:23 "... the wages of sin is death ..."

The word "death" here, comes from the Greek noun "thanatos", and it literally means 'separation'. 11

So really, the above passage is saying,
"...the result of sin is separation"

This certainly fits with what our story has been showing us all along... As seen previously, Satan and his followers experience 'separation' as a result of their rebellion... They end up being "cast out" (or 'separated') from heaven because of their rejection of God's authority and boundaries (sin).

In the biblical sense then, it would be fair to say that Satan and his followers experience a type of 'death' as a result of their rebellion. And remember... they experience 'death' in two stages... They experience 'death' (or 'separation') first in the sense of a 'spiritual separation' from God (as proven by their rejection of His authority & boundaries), and then another 'death' later, when they are finally relegated to the place of total and permanent 'separation from God' (the "lake of fire").

Since humanity has joined in Satan's rebellion,
it would thus make sense that the experience of 'death' would be similar for us ---

Having chosen sin in 'the garden', we are all born into a state of 'spiritual death' (ie 'separation from God').
And as a result of sin, eventually our physical bodies "return to the dust", effectively ending our time on earth.

But as stated previously, 'death' doesn't end there...

Remember, man is composed of three elements... 'spirit, soul, & body'.
Point being that the soul & spirit must also ---

Genesis 2:17 "...surely die".

Thus, just as with Satan, there is still another death (or 'separation') ahead for us as well...
And not surprisingly, it is identified as being the very same destination that Satan is ultimately headed to ---

Revelation 20:14 "... the lake of fire... is the second death."

It is worth noting here, that the "lake of fire" was never intended by God to be a place for people. As it says in Matthew 25:41, it was "...prepared for the devil and his angels." Unfortunately though, some people will choose to join Satan there. These will be people who have experienced Satan's 'freedom' and found it preferable to God's. They will be people who have ignored or rejected all of God's efforts to reach out to them with the truth while they were on earth. These folks will have chosen not to have their names "written in the Book of Life." And as it says here ---

Revelation 20:15 "... anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire."

Like Satan, these people will eventually find themselves permanently and totally separated from God. This "second death" is the place where all three components of man (spirit, soul & body) are ultimately destined to be separated from God for eternity.

Thankfully though, as hinted at in the following passage, God intends to provide a means through which this "second death" can be overcome, ---

Revelation 2:11 "... he who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death."

The fact that this second death can somehow be overcome would certainly seem to be good news. But sadly, many people refuse to even believe that this "second death" is an issue worth worrying about. They assume that when the physical body stops functioning, all consciousness stops, the body just turns into plant food and that's all there is to it.

The bible suggests otherwise however ---

John 5:28-29 "... the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice... (v.29) and come forth... those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."

The word "resurrection" here, comes from a Greek word, "anastasis", which means 'standing up' or 'raised to life'. 12 And notice the word "all"... This word means that everyone will eventually find themselves 'standing up' again (and thus facing the "second death" )... whether they believe in it or not.

References to a new 'resurrection body' can be found in 1 Corinthians, chapter 15, verses 35 - 50. Although the exact form of this new body is hard to pin down, it seems everyone will have some type of personal 'body' after resurrection. Consequently, the "second death" may be worth thinking about.

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