Chapter 33

Of the State of Man After Death, and of the Resurrection of the Dead

1. The bodies of men after death return to dust, and see corruption,1

Genesis And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and
3:17 hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it:
cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
Genesis Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the
3:18 field;
Genesis In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it
3:19 wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

Acts For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and
13:36 was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption:
Acts But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption.
13:37

but their souls, which neither die nor sleep, having an immortal subsistence,
immediately return to God who gave them:2

Ecclesiastes Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto
12:7 God who gave it.

the souls of the righteous being then made perfect in holiness, are received into
paradise, where they are with Christ, and behold the face of God, in light and glory,
waiting for the full redemption of their bodies;3

Luke 23:42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

II Corinthians For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a
5:1 building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
II Corinthians For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is
5:2 from heaven:
II Corinthians If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
5:3
II Corinthians For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would
5:4 be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
II Corinthians Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given
5:5 unto us the earnest of the Spirit.
II Corinthians Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the
5:6 body, we are absent from the Lord:
II Corinthians (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
5:7
II Corinthians We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be
5:8 present with the Lord.

Philippians For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ;
1:23 which is far better:
Philippians Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.
1:24

Hebrews For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire,
12:18 nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,
Hebrews And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard
12:19 entreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:
Hebrews (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast
12:20 touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:
Hebrews And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)
12:21
Hebrews But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly
12:22 Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
Hebrews To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and
12:23 to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
Hebrews And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that
12:24 speaketh better things than that of Abel.

and the souls of the wicked are cast into hell, where they remain in torment and
utter darkness reserved to the judgment of the great day;4

Jude And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath
1:6 reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.
Jude Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves
1:7 over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the
vengeance of eternal fire.

I Peter For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us
3:18 to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
I Peter By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
3:19
I Peter Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the
3:20 days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved
by water.
I Peter The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of
3:21 the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the
resurrection of Jesus Christ:
I Peter Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and
3:22 powers being made subject unto him.

Luke And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's
16:22 bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
Luke And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and
16:23 Lazarus in his bosom.
Luke And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he
16:24 may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this
flame.
Luke But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things,
16:25 and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.

besides these two places, for souls separated from their bodies, the Scripture
acknowledgeth none.

2. At the last day, such of the saints as are found alive shall not sleep but be
changed;5

I Corinthians Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
15:51
I Corinthians In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall
15:52 sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
I Thessalonians For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of
4:16 the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
I Thessalonians Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in
4:17 the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
I Thessalonians Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
4:18

and all the dead shall be raised up with the self same bodies, and none other;6

Job For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the
19:25 earth:
Job And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:
19:26
Job Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my
19:27 reins be consumed within me.

although with different qualities, which shall be united again to their souls for ever.7

I Corinthians So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in

15:42 incorruption:
I Corinthians It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in
15:43 power:
I Corinthians It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and
15:44 there is a spiritual body.

3. The bodies of the unjust shall, by the power of Christ, be raised to dishonour;
the bodies of the just, by His Spirit, unto honour, and be made conformable
to His own glorious body.8

Acts But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the
24:14 God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets:
Acts And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a
24:15 resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.
John Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear
5:28 his voice,
John And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they
5:29 that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.

Philippians For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the
3:20 Lord Jesus Christ:
Philippians Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious
3:21 body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto
himself.