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Concise Bible Dictionary
:
This is referred to in
scripture
under various aspects.
1.
The general appointment for sinful
man
—the death of the body by the separation of the
soul
from it (
Heb. 9:27
27
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: (Hebrews 9:27)
;
Rom. 5:14
14
Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. (Romans 5:14)
;
Rom. 6:23
23
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
).
2.
The
spiritual
condition of fallen man, “dead in trespasses and sins” (
Eph. 2:1,5
1
And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; (Ephesians 2:1)
5
Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) (Ephesians 2:5)
;
Rom. 7:24
24
O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? (Romans 7:24)
).
3.
Death personified as a
power
of
Satan
: the last enemy to be destroyed (
1 Cor. 15:26
26
The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. (1 Corinthians 15:26)
;
Rev. 20:13-14
13
And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
14
And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. (Revelation 20:13‑14)
).
4.
THE SECOND DEATH:
eternal
punishment
(
Rev. 2:11
11
He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death. (Revelation 2:11)
;
Rev. 20:14
14
And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. (Revelation 20:14)
;
Rev. 21:8
8
But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. (Revelation 21:8)
).
From Anstey’s
Doctrinal Definitions
:
Death
always involves separation in some way or another. It is used in
Scripture
in at least
seven
different ways. The context dictates which aspect is in view. They are:
• Physical death
—to have the
soul
and
spirit
separated from the body (
James 2:26
26
For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. (James 2:26)
). It does not refer to extinction (
Matt. 10:28
28
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28)
;
Luke 20:38
38
For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him. (Luke 20:38)
). Physical death is a temporary condition for
all
who die—regardless whether a person is saved or lost (
John 5:29
29
And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. (John 5:29)
;
Acts 24:15
15
And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust. (Acts 24:15)
).
•
Spiritual
death
—to be spiritually separated from
God
by not having a
new
life
and
nature
(
Eph. 2:1
1
And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; (Ephesians 2:1)
;
Col. 2:13
13
And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; (Colossians 2:13)
).
• Second death
—to be eternally separated from God in the
lake of
fire
(
Rev. 20:6, 14
6
Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. (Revelation 20:6)
14
And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. (Revelation 20:14)
).
• Apostate death
—to be separated from God by abandoning one’s
profession
of the
faith
(
Jude 12
12
These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; (Jude 12)
;
Rev. 8:9
9
And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed. (Revelation 8:9)
).
• National death
—to no longer exist as a nation on
earth
(
Isa. 26:19
19
Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead. (Isaiah 26:19)
; Ezek. 37;
Dan. 12:2
2
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:2)
).
• Judicial death
—to be positionally separated from the whole order of
sin
under the headship of
Adam
by the death of Christ (
Rom. 6:2; 7:6
2
God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? (Romans 6:2)
6
But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter. (Romans 7:6)
;
Col. 2:20; 3:3
20
Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, (Colossians 2:20)
3
For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. (Colossians 3:3)
).
• Moral death
—to be separated from
communion
with God while living on earth (
Rom. 8:13
13
For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. (Romans 8:13)
;
1 Tim. 5:6
6
But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth. (1 Timothy 5:6)
).
The reader will note that each aspect of death involves separation of some kind. It is sobering to think that sin is the cause of every one of these aspects of death! Truly,
“the wages of sin is death”
(
Rom. 6:23
23
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
).
The
Bible
tells us that there are only two states in which a person can die (physically). It is either in
“in the
Lord
”
(
Rev. 14:13
13
And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them. (Revelation 14:13)
) or
“in your sins”
(
John 8:24
24
I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins. (John 8:24)
). To die in one’s sins is to pass out of this world without having had our sins
put
away before God judicially by the work of Christ on the
cross
. The person who dies in that awful condition will be responsible to pay the price of his sins under the righteous
judgment
of God in a lost eternity. To die in the Lord is to die being safe and secure from all judgment under the shelter of the
blood
of Christ, God’s
Son
(
John 5:24
24
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24)
;
1 John 1:7
7
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. (1 John 1:7)
). The death of a
believer
is
“precious in the sight of the LORD”
(
Psa. 116:15
15
Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. (Psalm 116:15)
), whereas the death of an
unbeliever
is something that God has
“no pleasure”
in, because it means that that person will be eternally lost (
Ezek. 33:11
11
Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel? (Ezekiel 33:11)
;
2 Peter 3:9
9
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)
).
Related Books and Articles:
Death
From:
Things New and Old: Volume 16
The Atoning Death of the Son of God
From:
Pamphlets
By:
Charles Stanley
Death
From:
Present Testimony: Volume 8, 1856
Death Is Ours
From:
Present Testimony: Volume 14, 1865
By:
George Vicesimus Wigram
The Fear of Death
From:
Present Testimony: Volume 11, 1860
By:
George Vicesimus Wigram
Death of the Cross: No. 1
From:
Things New and Old: Volume 23
By:
Hugh Henry Snell
Show More Sources
Death of the Cross: No. 1
From:
Death of the Cross
Call: 1-630-543-1441
“Study to show thyself approved unto God, … rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).
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