Where are all the dead people?

Death is real and not something to be taken lightly.

It hurts to lose those whom we love. To think they are gone forever is devastating…

…but where are they gone?

Some believe the dead reincarnate into something or someone else. Some believe like Dante Alighieri that the dead are in hell or purgatory or paradise, depending on their good or bad works while living on earth. For some, the dead is present in our world as spirits communicating with others, or they are transformed into some kind of energy.

With so many explanations and theories, it seems we can’t be certain about anything regarding the dead. Dead people are somewhere doing something, and they definitely cannot all be in different places doing different things according to everybody’s culture, religion or theory.

So, where are all the dead people and what are they doing?

Let’s find the line of Bible truth about dead people and it will lead us to the correct answer.

In the Garden of Eden, death as a concept was first mentioned in Genesis 2:17, when God said, “But of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

What did God mean when He said “die”? Did He mean they will go to purgatory or hell or heaven or be reincarnated or what?

After God spoke those words, Cain killed Abel and then in Genesis 5 we have a long list of people who died including Adam. Billions have people have since died.

Thus, we ask, where are they? According to the Bible, they are not in heaven or hell or purgatory, they are in the grave, the earth. (Dan 12:2, John 5:29, Rev 20:13)

What are they doing? According to the Bible they are sleeping? (Dan 12:2, John 11:22-24, Matt 9:24, Acts 7: 60).

Humans are breathing dust.

Dust and breath are the gist of what we are made of, “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.” (Gen 2:7)

Certainly, we are wonderfully made (Psalm 139), but the two basic compositions of humanity are dust and breath. Many scriptures relate to man as dust. Job in his sorrow asked God, “Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay; and wilt thou bring me into dust again?” (Job 7:21).” The Psalmist says, “For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.” (Psalm 103:14).

Solomon said that when we die; “All [dead people and animals] go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.” (Eccl 3: 20). Then he further confirms “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” (Eccl 12:7).

Death has two resolutions!

Death is the result of sin. To counteract this dust and earth combination in humans, one of the two things must happen to “cancel” or “recode” or “rewrite” humans’ mortality to immortality: a translation or a resurrection. The Bible tells us that Jesus is the resurrection and only He can recode this dust and earth combination in our humanity. Our goodness can’t help. Reincarnation doesn’t solve the issue. Our only solution is resurrection.

According to the Bible there are four (4) possible scenarios for humans:

1. Translation: There are two people who were translated into heaven. That means they did not see death. Translation needs no clarification; God took Enoch and Elijah to heaven without them seeing death. This represents those who are alive on earth when Christ returns who will be translated to heaven and changed from mortal to immortality without seeing death (1Thess 4: 16-17, 1 Cor 15: 51-58).

• Resurrection back to life on earth: Throughout the old and New Testament scriptures, there are ten (10) resurrections in the Bible of people who were raised from the dead. As far as we know, these were miracles to declare God’s power and these people died a second time while on earth and will face one of the resurrections in the last days.

• Resurrection and then heaven (The first resurrection (1Thess 4: 16): There is one person whom the Lord buried, resurrected from the dead and then took to heaven afterwards; that person is Moses. “So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moah according to the word of the Lord. And he [the Lord] buried him in a valley in the land of Moab…” (Gen 34:5-6). We know Moses was resurrected because three disciples witnessed Jesus’ transfiguration and Moses was there.  “And behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with him [Jesus], (Matt 17:3). This represents the righteous who die, who like Jesus will be resurrected and taken to heaven.

• Resurrection of damnation (The second resurrection Rev 20:13): Jesus said, “Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice. And shall come forth they that have dome good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation” (John 5:29).

Here is the BIG question. In which category is your loved one?  Did you witness their translation to heaven?  Did God raise them back to life as a Miracle?  Did God bury them and then resurrect them and took them to heaven? Are they waiting for the resurrection of life? Are they waiting for the resurrection of damnation?

The Bible clearly tells us that “all” not some, but “all that are in the graves shall hear God’s voice” (John 5:29). The righteous will go to heaven in the first resurrection and the wicked will be in the second resurrection. We are further told “And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them:” (Rev 20:13).

Are our dead loved ones in heaven looking down on us? Not according to the Bible, for all the dead are in the graves. Our loved ones who died are not in heaven, unless they meet criteria 3.

Are our dead loved ones visiting us during the day or giving us dreams at night? Not according to the Bible, for the dead know nothing (Eccl 9: 5).

Can we communicate with their spirit? Not according to the Bible, for the day they die their “thoughts perish” (Psalm 146:4).

Will we hear their voice whispering and talking to us? Not according to the Bible, God takes their breath and they return to dust, and their memory is forgotten (Psalm 104: 29, Eccl 9:5).

Beware! The dead are not alive.

Now, many await the First Resurrection

Jacob and Joseph along with many others are not in heaven, they both wanted their bones removed from Egypt. Martha said she knew Lazarus “Shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” (John 11:24).

Why then did Jesus say to the thief, “today shalt thou be with me in paradise?” (Luke 23:43 Jesus Himself was going to the grave to be resurrected on the third day. Could the thief on the cross really be with Jesus “today?” It could very well be that the thief is in heaven, but under which of the category above?  He was not translated. He was not even dead yet; Jesus died before him and left him there. If he is heaven, he must have been in category 3. Jesus had to wait until the third day for His resurrection and likewise the thief on the cross must be resurrected before he can get to heaven. Jesus, who is the resurrection, had to first conquer death. He has the power to raise up the thief and take him to heaven with Him, the Bible didn’t say he did. Perhaps God has done that for some humans, just like He did for Moses, we cannot tell. However, generally speaking, at death, humans go back the earth, and the breath goes back to God.

What about Paul’s “absent from the body present with the Lord”? (2 Cor 5:8). Think about it, what else could Paul say? In God’s eyes, death is kind of sleep. After we fall asleep, who is the first person we usually see when you wake up? Usually, family, right?

Paul is saying the same thing. Once the righteous sleeps the sleep of death, the next time they open their eyes at the resurrection, they will be with the Lord. Amen.

I dare say, death is equally critical to life.

Let us live righteously so that we can die righteously and be in the first resurrection through Jesus Christ our Lord.