ISAIAH 26:14 DECLARES THAT THE UNSAVED SHALL NOT LIVE
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STUDY ON ISAIAH 43:17
We
read in Isaiah 26:14:
They are dead, they shall not live; they are
deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and destroyed them,
and made all their memory to perish.
This
verse very clearly says that the unsaved “shall
not live”. Therefore this verse appears to be a clear proof of the
annihilation of the unsaved.
In
order to understand this verse, please see one of the studies below on the Biblical
definition of life and death for mankind. They give many verses that show that
life for mankind does not have to do with existence, but rather life for
mankind has to do with his relationship with God, who is life Himself.
the Biblical definition of
life and death FOR MANKIND
We
will look at some verses that help us to understand this phrase “they shall not live” in Isaiah 26:14.
We
read in Psalm 80:18:
So will not we go back from thee: quicken us, and we
will call upon thy name.
The
Psalmist is pleading with God that God might “quicken” him.
The
word “quicken” is the old English word to “make alive”.
The
Psalmist is pleading to God that God would “make him alive”. Then, he
will call upon the name of the Lord.
Calling
upon the name of the Lord has to do with salvation. The Psalmist is asking for
salvation. However, he does not plead with God, saying “save me”. No. The
Psalmist pleads with God, saying “make me alive”.
There
are a number of other verses with this same plea to “quicken” me or “make
me alive” (Psalm 119:37, 40, 88, 107, 149, 154, 156, 159, Psalm 143:11).
God is saying that being “made alive” has to do with or comes with
salvation.
By
these and other verses, God is teaching that for mankind, being “made alive”
does not have to do with existence. The Psalmist already exists. When God saves
him He does not gain any existence.
Using
modern English, Psalm 80:10 would read like this:
So will not we go back from thee: make us alive,
and we will call upon thy name.
Our
preconceived ideas can block us from learning truth from the Bible
The
problem is that we have decided that for mankind “life = existence”. As shown
in the studies on the Biblical definition of life and death for mankind, there
are many verses that do not agree with the definition of “life = existence” for
mankind. But, to make that definition fit, we will modify verses.
For
example, people will say that Psalm 80:10 must be read this way:
So will not we go back from thee: make us alive in
Christ, and we will call upon thy name.
Or
this way:
So will not we go back from thee: make us alive
spiritually, and we will call upon thy name.
These
changes significantly alter the verse. We cannot do that and have truth. If we
change verses we can get the Bible to say almost anything that we want. But, we
don’t have truth.
If
we want truth we have to read the Bible as God has given it without changing
verses.
God
put these words in the Psalmist’s mouth, “make us alive”. Actually, what
does it mean when the Bible says “make us alive”?
It
cannot mean “make us exist”. The Psalmist already exists before
salvation. The answer to this question is very important in understanding
Isaiah 26:14.
Psalm
80:18 and Isaiah 26:14 relate to each other concerning “life” for mankind
Consider
the two verses:
Psalms 80:18 So will not we go back from thee: quicken us,
and we will call upon thy name.
Isaiah 26:14 They are dead, they shall not live; they
are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and
destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish.
In
Psalm 80:18 the Psalmist is asking God to “make him alive”. But, in
Isaiah 26:14, God is saying that those that remain unsaved shall not live or
shall not be made alive.
We
can see a connection between the two verses.
Let’s
go back to the question: what does it mean when the Bible says “make us alive”?
We
get help by looking at 1 John 5:12. We read there:
He that hath the Son hath life; and
he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
Again,
people will change this verse to make it fit their thinking. They might say it
must be read this way:
He that hath the Son hath life in
Christ; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life in
Christ.
Or:
He that hath the Son hath eternal life;
and he that hath not the Son of God hath not eternal life.
These
changes significantly alter this verse.
If
we change verses, we can get the Bible to say almost anything we want. But, if
we want truth, we cannot change verses. We must read the Bible the way God gave
it.
Let’s
consider 1 John 5:12 again. We read there:
He that hath the Son hath life; and
he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
What
is this verse saying?
1
John 5:12 is basically saying that life for mankind does not have to do with
existence, but rather has to do with his relationship with God. That is because
God Himself is life (John 11:25-26,
14:6).
There
are many more verses in the studies of the Biblical definition of life and
death for mankind that show that God is life, and life for mankind is God in
man or man in God and death for mankind is separation from God.
Now,
with the understanding that life for mankind has to do with his relationship
with God, we can understand the two verses, Psalm 80:18 and the phrase “they
shall not live” in Isaiah 26:14.
Let’s
examine those two verses again.
Psalms 80:18 So will not we go back from thee: quicken us,
and we will call upon thy name.
Isaiah 26:14 They are dead, they shall not live; they
are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and
destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish.
Notice
how they relate:
In
Psalm 80:18, the Psalmist is asking God to “quicken him” or “make him
alive”. This comes with salvation. But, in Isaiah 26:14, God says that
those that remain unsaved shall not be made alive. They shall not become saved.
Psalm
80:18 and Isaiah 26:14 relate together in how they use the word “to live” and
how that relates to salvation.
We
read in Psalm 80:18 that the Psalmist asks God to “quicken” him or to “make
him alive”.
He
is not asking to be made to exist. No. Rather, He is asking for God to give him
life, which is God Himself, indwelling him. That comes with salvation. When God
saves us, He comes into our lives to indwell us and to energize us. We now have
life, which is God Himself, indwelling us.
1
John 5:12 shows us that the true believers have life indwelling them because
they have God indwelling them. The true believers have “life = God”, indwelling
them. In that sense we can say that they have been “made alive”, a fulfillment
of Psalm 80:18. This comes with salvation.
So,
when God saves us, He “makes us alive” by giving us God, who is life, to
indwell us and energize us. God does not make us exist.
But,
on the other hand, those that remain unsaved, will be eternally separated from
God, who is life. Psalm 80:18 will never be fulfilled for them. They will never
be made alive. That is what the phrase “they shall not live” in Isaiah
26:14 is teaching. They shall never be “made alive” according to Psalm
80:18. They will never have God, who is life, in dwelling them. They will be
eternally separated from God, who is life. They will never become saved.
Therefore, “they shall not live”.
This
does not mean that the unsaved shall not exist. The Psalmist in Psalm 80:18
existed before God made him alive. In the same way, the phrase “they shall
not live” in Isaiah 26:14 is not teaching that the unsaved will not exist.
Rather, it is teaching that the plea of Psalm 80:18, “make us alive”,
will never be fulfilled for them. They will be eternally separated from God,
who is life.
Let’s
examine the rest of Isaiah 26:14 to see if it agrees with this conclusion.
Let’s
consider the rest of the verse.
We
read: “They are dead, … they are deceased”
Both
of these word mean “dead”. The second word is translated “dead” in every other
usage. They probably translated it “deceased” in this verse to distinguish it
from the other word translated “dead”.
Actually,
if we follow the Bible, unsaved man is already dead, both in body and soul.
More
verses are shown in the studies of the Biblical definition of life and death
for mankind, however, we will look at a few verses here.
God
told Adam and Eve in the day that they sinned they would die. We read in
Genesis 2:17:
But of the tree of the knowledge of good
and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof
thou shalt surely die.
They
did sin and according to this verse and the rest of the Bible, they did die.
Genesis
2:17 says that they would die. We have changed say this verse and other verses
to say that they would “die spiritually”, but God said they would “die”. The
Bible never uses the term “spiritually dead”. It is a product of man’s
thinking.
Because
we have locked in our minds that death identifies with an unconscious corpse,
we have changed the Bible to say “spiritually dead” when God simply says
“dead”.
We
read more verses that confirm that unsaved man is already “dead”:
Ephesians
2:1, 5:
1 ¶ And you hath he quickened, who
were dead in trespasses and sins;
5
Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ,
(by grace ye are saved;)
1
Peter 4:6:
For for this cause was the gospel preached
also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the
flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.
Colossians 2:13:
And you, being dead in your sins and the
uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having
forgiven you all trespasses;
We
think of “death” as an unconscious corpse. So, we change these verses to
“spiritually dead” or that man died in his spirit.
The
unconscious corpse is a body that is sleeping in the dust. But, the bodies of
both the saved and the unsaved that are sleeping in the dust will “awake” to
consciousness at the end of the world (Daniel 12:2). There is more information
on this subject in the study at the link before:
A STUDY OF 10 PROOFS OF
THE CONSCIOUS RESURRECTION OF THE UNSAVED
The
Bible never uses the term “spiritually dead”. The Bible says that man is “dead”
without limiting it to the spirit essence of the man.
In
fact, the Bible says that man is “dead” in his body also. We read two important
verses on this subject:
Romans
8:10:
And if Christ be in you, the body is
dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
1
Corinthians 15:29:
Else what shall they do which are baptized
for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the
dead?
1
Corinthians 15:29 refers to the believer’s body 3 times as “dead”.
If
we follow the Bible, unsaved man is already dead, both in his body and his
spirit essence. That is, unsaved man is already physically and spiritually
dead. As developed in the study on the Biblical definition of life and death,
for mankind, death = separation from God, and not a cessation of existence.
Unsaved
man is separated from God, both in his body and his soul. He is not energized
by God (Philippians 2:12-13) nor is he indwelt by God (Romans 8:9).
According
the Bible, unsaved man is already “dead”, both in body and soul.
We
read in Isaiah 26:14: “They are dead, … they are deceased”.
According
to the Bible, this is already true.
Then,
what is the significance of this declaration of Isaiah 26:14: “They are dead, … they
are deceased”?
The
significance of the declaration in Isaiah 26:14 that the unsaved are “dead” is
that they will remain dead, that is, separated from God, who is life, forever.
According
to the Bible, the unsaved are already dead, both in body and soul. They have
not ceased to exist. Rather, they are separated from God, who is life, both in
body and soul.
However,
right now, that condition is not final. Salvation is still possible for them.
It is still possible that unsaved man might have God, who is life, indwelling
him eternally.
However,
Isaiah 26:14 makes the emphasis that when we get to Judgment Day, there is no
hope for the unsaved.
The
statement in the middle of Isaiah 26:14, “they
shall not live”, further emphasizes that at the end of the world,
the unsaved will be eternally separated from God, who is “life”.
At
Judgment Day, the unsaved will be eternally separated from God, who is life,
and all of His blessings. This is an emphasis of Isaiah 26:14.
Next,
we read in Isaiah 26:14: “they shall not rise”
When
we read the word “rise”, we might think of the resurrection of the last
day (John 5:28-29). However, normally this Hebrew word is not used in this way.
We
will examine this Hebrew word translated “rise” in Isaiah 26:14 to learn
some ways that God uses this word. It is Strong’s number <06965>:
We
read in Psalm 1:5:
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand <06965> in the judgment, nor sinners in the
congregation of the righteous.
This
same Hebrew word is translated “stand” in Psalm 1:5.
We
can understand Isaiah 26:14 as saying that the unsaved will not “stand”
in the judgment. That is, they still have the guilt of their sins and they will
be cast into the pit of hell, into the lake of fire.
Psalm
1:5 uses this Hebrew word translated “rise” or “stand” to mean that the unsaved
will not “stand” before God, but will fall under the wrath of God. This word is
not specifying the nature of that wrath. Only, that the unsaved will not be
able to “stand” before God.
We
read a similar teaching in Psalm 24:3 using the same Hebrew word:
Who shall ascend into the hill of the
LORD? or who shall stand <06965> in his holy place?
Again,
this Hebrew word is translated “stand”. The unsaved will not “stand”
in God’s holy place. They will be cast down because of their sins. This is a
teaching of Isaiah 26:14 in the phrase “they shall
not rise”
We
see another similar verse in Psalm 40:2:
He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of
the miry clay, and set <06965> my feet upon a rock, and established my
goings.
According
to Isaiah 26:14 the unsaved will not be “set” upon the rock, who is the
Lord Jesus. They will remain down in the horrible pit
Psalm
140:10 provides much help in understanding this word “rise” in Isaiah 26:14.
We
read in Psalms 140:10:
Let burning coals fall upon them: let them
be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again <06965>.
Psalm
140:10 provides a lot of help in how we can understand this Hebrew word
translated “rise” in Isaiah 26:14.
The
word “again” is not in the Hebrew text of Psalm 140:10. It was added by
the translators.
God
describes the sad future for the unsaved. God is describing what it means that
the unsaved shall not “rise” as we read about in Isaiah 26:14.
Psalm
140:10 is not talking about the resurrection of the last day, like we read in
John 5:28-29. Rather, Psalm 140:10 is declaring that the unsaved will not “rise”
out of pit of hell which is also called the lake of fire.
Some
people argue that the lake of fire is simply a literal fire that burns up and
annihilates the unsaved. However, a careful study of the Bible shows that the
lake of fire cannot be a literal fire that simply burns up the unsaved. For
more information, please see the study at the link before:
COULD THE LAKE OF FIRE
BE A VOLCANO OR SOMETHING SIMILAR?
Some
people argue that hell is simply the grave. However, a careful study of the
Bible shows that this is not true. God has more to say about hell than simply
that it is the grave. For more information, please see the study at the link
before:
God
typifies hell as a pit, which is “down there”, to use a figure of speech. For
example, we read about hell as a bottomless pit in Revelation 9:1 and 20:1.
God
is using figurative language: A pit goes “down”. The unsaved that are cast down
into the pit of hell. Out of which they shall not be able to “rise”.
When
God declares that the unsaved shall not “rise” in Isaiah 26:14, God is
referring to that fact that those eternally cast into the pit of hell shall not
be able to “rise” of it. Psalm 140:10 provides help in defining this
Hebrew word translated “rise”.
Christ
went down in the pit of hell to pay for the believers’ sins, according to a
figure that God uses. We read in Ephesians 4:8-10:
8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on
high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
9 (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he
also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?
10 He that descended is the same also that
ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)
In
verse 10 we read that Christ descended into the “lower parts” of the
earth. This refers to the pit of hell, that is “down there” to use the Biblical
figure.
Those
that remain unsaved will be cast down into the pit of hell. That is what we
read in Psalm 140:10. According to that verse, the unsaved shall not be able to
“rise” out of the pit of hell. Sadly, they will be there forever.
We
read two other verses with this same Hebrew word “rise” that also agree with
the principle that the unsaved are cast down into hell and will not be able to
“rise” out of it:
Jeremiah 51:64 And thou
shalt say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise <06965> from the evil that I will bring upon her:
and they shall be weary. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.
Lamentations 1:14 The yoke
of my transgressions is bound by his hand: they are wreathed, and come
up upon my neck: he hath made my strength to fall, the Lord hath delivered me
into their hands, from whom I am not able to rise up <06965>.
In
Lamentations 1:4 Jeremiah is speaking as the unsaved church people who are
under the wrath of God. Jeremiah still exists. He is describing his bad
situation. At the end of the verse, it says that he is not able to “rise up”
using the same Hebrew word.
In
Lamentations 1:4, Jeremiah is a picture of the unsaved church people who are in
the pit of God’s wrath and are not able to “rise up”. Yet, Jeremiah still has
conscious existence as he endures God’s wrath, as a picture of the unsaved
church people.
Let’s
consider the word “rise” in both Isaiah 26:14 and Psalm 140:10 to see
how the verses relate to each other.
Isaiah
26:14 They are dead, they shall
not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise:
therefore hast thou visited and destroyed them, and made all their memory to
perish.
Psalms
140:10 Let burning coals fall upon them:
let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not
up again.
The
word “again” is not in the Hebrew text in Psalm 140:10. It was added by
the translators.
Isaiah
26:14 says that the unsaved shall “not rise”. We might think that means
that there will be no resurrection of conscious existence or no “awaking” to
consciousness. However, Psalm 140:10 explains that the unsaved will not “rise”
out of the pit of hell, using the same Hebrew word translated “rise” in
both verses.
In
Psalm 140:10 God gives more definition for this pit out of which the unsaved
shall not “rise”
Psalm
140:10 says about the unsaved “let them be cast into the fire”.
God
talks about the “fire” of His wrath. Psalm 140:10 gives definition to
the statement that the unsaved shall not “rise”. They will be cast into
the fire of God’s wrath and shall not “rise” out of that “fire”.
Here
are more verses that talk about the “fire” of God’s wrath:
Matthew
13:42 And shall cast them into a furnace
of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Matthew
13:50 And shall cast them into the
furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Revelation
14:10 The same shall drink of the wine
of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his
indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence
of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
Revelation
16:8 And the fourth angel poured out his
vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
Revelation
20:10 And the devil that deceived them
was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false
prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
In
these verses, God identifies the “fire” of God’s wrath with some kind of
conscious affliction. These verses do not identify with merely the burning of
the bones of someone without any consciousness.
These
verses identify the fire of God’s wrath with conscious affliction.
Some
will say that the weeping and gnashing of teeth in Matthew 13:42 & 50 is
not talking about those that have died from this world before May 21, 2011.
However, the point is that God identifies conscious affliction as part of the “fire”
of His wrath.
The
point here is to show that the declaration that the unsaved shall not “rise”
has a Biblical fulfillment in that the unsaved shall not “rise” out of the pit
of hell. It does not have to mean that there will be no conscious resurrection
or awaking. A conscious “awaking” is required to experience conscious
affliction required by the above verses.
In
Psalm 140:10 God uses this same word that is translated "rise"
in Isaiah 26:14 to teach that the unsaved will never "rise"
out of hell. They will be cast into the pit of hell and never rise out of it.
So,
the usage of this word "rise" in Isaiah 26:14 does not teach annihilation.
Rather, it teaches that the wicked will fall in the judgment and will never
rise out of hell. They will be there eternally.
Let’s
consider the rest of Isaiah 26:14:
We
read there :
… therefore hast thou
visited and destroyed them, …
We
read that God has “visited” the unsaved to bring His punishment for sin.
We cannot tell the nature of the punishment from that statement, but God will
bring His punishment upon them.
Next,
we read that God has “destroyed” the unsaved.
When
we read the word “destroy” we often think of an instantaneous destruction of
annihilation. That is how we think.
But,
God talks about “everlasting destruction”. For example, we read in 2
Thessalonians 1:9:
Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction
from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
But,
even with this verse, there are two possibilities:
1.
The unsaved are annihilated and that is forevermore.
Or:
2.
The unsaved are enduring an everlasting continuing destruction.
Actually,
Deuteronomy 28 has 7 verses with the same Hebrew word translated “destroyed”
in Isaiah 26:14. This Hebrew word has Strong’s number <08045>.
We
read in those verses:
Deuteronomy
28:20 The LORD shall send upon thee
cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to
do, until thou be destroyed <08045>,
and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby
thou hast forsaken me.
Deuteronomy
28:24 The LORD shall make the rain of
thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou
be destroyed <08045>.
Deuteronomy
28:45 Moreover all these curses shall
come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be
destroyed <08045>; because thou
hearkenedst not unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments
and his statutes which he commanded thee:
Deuteronomy
28:48 Therefore shalt thou serve thine
enemies which the LORD shall send against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and
in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron
upon thy neck, until he have destroyed <08045>
thee.
Deuteronomy
28:51 And he shall eat the fruit of thy
cattle, and the fruit of thy land, until thou be destroyed <08045>: which also shall not leave
thee either corn, wine, or oil, or the increase of thy kine, or
flocks of thy sheep, until he have destroyed thee.
Deuteronomy
28:61 Also every sickness, and every
plague, which is not written in the book of this law, them will the LORD
bring upon thee, until thou be destroyed <08045>.
Deuteronomy
28:63 And it shall come to pass, that
as the LORD rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you; so the LORD
will rejoice over you to destroy you, and to bring you to nought <08045>; and ye shall be plucked from off
the land whither thou goest to possess it.
In
each of these verses the Hebrew word normally translated “destroy” is in the
“infinitive” tense, indicating an on-going action. The word in these verses is
more properly translated “until destroying you”.
A
careful study of Deuteronomy 28:15-68 will show that this passage teaches a
continuous “destroying” of conscious affliction for all of the unsaved. A more
detailed study of Deuteronomy 28:15-68 can be found in the Bible study at the
link below under the section “Deuteronomy 28”.
A STUDY OF 10 PROOFS OF
THE CONSCIOUS RESURRECTION OF THE UNSAVED
With
the help of Deuteronomy 28:15-68 and other passages, we can know that the
“destruction” of the unsaved in Isaiah 26:14 is a continuous destruction of
conscious affliction.
Finally,
we read in Isaiah 26:14:
…and made all their memory
to perish.
This
last part of the verse is talking about the memory perishing. We can say, based
upon this verse, that God will not remember the unsaved anymore. If God does
not remember the unsaved any more that makes us think that the unsaved don’t
exist anymore.
Actually, God gives a number of verses in which God
uses the idea of God not remembering someone in the sense that He will not
remember to show mercy to them. He will not hear their prayers or cries for
mercy. Please see the Bible study at the link below for more information.
THE UNSAVED ARE
REMEMBERED NO MORE. DOES THIS SIGNIFY ANNIHILATION?
We
have completed a study of Isaiah 26:14 comparing it phrase by phrase with other
verses in the Bible.
A
careful study of Isaiah 26:14 by comparing Scripture with Scripture will show
that this verse is not teaching annihilation. Rather, it is teaching that the
unsaved will be eternally separated from God under the wrath of God without any
hope of escaping. How sad.
DOES ISAIAH 43:17 TEACH ANNIHILATION?
We
read in Isaiah 43:17:
Which bringeth forth the chariot and
horse, the army and the power; they shall lie down together, they shall not
rise: they are extinct, they are quenched as tow.
If
we read this passage quickly without checking the words and how they are used
in other passages, we can assume that this verse teaches that unsaved are
annihilated. However, before making that conclusion we should check this verse
against the rest of the Bible.
In
some cases, the translators have translated words in a way that gives the
impression of annihilation. However, when we examine other verses that use
those same Hebrew and Greek words, we find that the word does not necessarily
teach annihilation.
The
word "lie down" is mostly translated "lie",
"sleep" and "lie down". This word can be used to describe
sleep, but the context here is that their bodies shall fail and sleep in the
dust which happens when someone dies from this world.
Here
are some verses in which this word is used to indicate death from this world:
Deuteronomy 31:16 And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, thou
shalt sleep <07901> with thy fathers; and this people
will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land,
whither they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my
covenant which I have made with them.
1 Kings 1:21
Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep <07901> with his fathers,
that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.
1
Kings 2:10 So David slept <07901> with his fathers, and was buried
in the city of
1
Kings 11:21 And when Hadad heard in
Egypt that David slept <07901>
with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Hadad said to
Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to mine own country.
1
Kings 11:43 And Solomon slept <07901> with his fathers, and was buried
in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.
1
Kings 14:20 And the days which Jeroboam
reigned were two and twenty years: and he slept <07901> with his fathers, and Nadab his
son reigned in his stead.
1
Kings 14:31 And Rehoboam slept <07901> with his fathers, and was buried
with his fathers in the city of
Job
21:26 They shall lie down <07901> alike in the dust, and the worms
shall cover them.
Isaiah
14:18 All the kings of the nations, even
all of them, lie <07901> in
glory, every one in his own house.
Notice
that this word can talk about the death of a believer or the death of the
unsaved.
The
phrase “they shall lie down” can be
teaching us that the unsaved will die from this world. Until we get to the end
of the world, that was the normal expectation for the unsaved and for the saved.
They will die from this world. When they die from this world, they lose
everything they had and any hope of salvation.
We
can understand the phrase “they shall lie down”
in Isaiah 43:17 as teaching that in this world, finally the unsaved die. The
believers die also, which is no problem for them because their souls go into
heaven. However, when the unsaved die, it is their final separation from God.
There is no more hope for them.
Please
see the studies at the links below for more information on the Biblical
definition of life and death for mankind.
the Biblical definition of
life and death FOR MANKIND
Notice
word "together" in Isaiah 43:17
We
can understand this word in various ways.
We
do know that as unsaved people have died from this world, their bodies are
sleeping in the dust according to what we read in Daniel 12:2:
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.
Right
now, all of the unsaved that have previously died from this world are presently
sleeping in the dust. Their bodies are sleeping in the dust. In that sense, the
unsaved shall “lie down together” as we read in Isaiah 43:17. All the
unsaved that have previously died are sleeping in the dust.
Next,
we read in Isaiah 43:17 that the unsaved shall not “rise”
In
fact, let’s consider two words together in Isaiah 43:17. We read “ … they shall lie down together, they shall not rise …
”
When
we read those two phrases together, we probably think of an unconscious corpse
that never is resurrected to consciousness.
God
has written the Bible so that we can read verses and quickly come to a
conclusion. However, in the case of Isaiah 43:17 if we study the verse and it’s
words carefully, we will find that another conclusion is more Biblical.
This
is true of Acts 16:31 and other verses that appear to teach a “do-it-yourself”
Gospel. This is also true of Isaiah 43:17.
When
we read “ … they shall lie down together, they shall
not rise … ” in Isaiah 43:17 we can get the impression that the
unsaved will never be resurrected to consciousness or awake to
consciousness.
However,
we should examine this word “rise” more carefully.
The
Hebrew word translated “rise” in Isaiah 43:17 is the same word we found
in Isaiah 26:14. Please examine the Isaiah 26:14 study above concerning the
word “rise” for more information.
As
a quick review, here are two verses with this Hebrew same word translated “rise”
that ties into the teaching of Isaiah 43:17:
Psalms
1:5 Therefore the ungodly shall not
stand <06965> in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
Here,
the ungodly will not stand in the judgment. They will be cast into hell. Psalm
1:5 doesn't tell us the nature of their punishment. Rather it tells us that
they will come under the wrath of God in the judgment.
Tying
that back into Isaiah 43:17, we read there “… they
shall lie down together, they shall not rise …”
This
is teaching that once the unsaved die from this world, they have lost all hope
of salvation.
When
someone dies from this world unsaved, he has lost all hope of salvation.
The
unsaved “shall lie down together”. That is, the unsaved will finally die
from this world. They will be sleeping in the dust, as we read about in Daniel
12:2.
Then,
we read “they shall not rise (or stand)”.
As
we read in Psalm 1:5 the unsaved shall not stand in the judgment. The wrath of
God shall come upon them.
Psalm
140:10 provides further help in understanding the word “rise” in Isaiah 43:17.
We
read there:
Let burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast
into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again <06965>.
We
covered this verse in detail in the Isaiah 26:14 study above. Please see that
study above.
To
summarize, in Psalm 140:10 God is saying that the unsaved will be cast into the
fire of God’s wrath. This word “fire” identifies with hell or the lake of fire,
a place of torment. For more information on the lake of fire, please see the study
at the link below:
COULD THE LAKE OF FIRE
BE A VOLCANO OR SOMETHING SIMILAR?
So,
the phrase “… they shall lie down together, they
shall not rise …” in Isaiah 43:17 is telling us:
1.
The unsaved die from this world and their bodies sleep in the dust. They “lie down together” in the dust. This Hebrew word
translated “lie down” is frequently used to talk about dying from this world.
Throughout
history, the unsaved have been dying from this world.
2.
The unsaved will be “cast into the fire” (Psalm 140:10) of God’s wrath
and “shall not rise” (Isaiah 43:17) out of it.
Once
the unsaved have died from this world, their eternal destiny is set. They are
subject to the fires of God’s wrath and will never escape out of that.
Therefore,
this word "rise" in Isaiah 43:17 is used in connection with not being
able to "stand" in the judgment of God and not being able to
"rise" out of the pit of hell, or the lake of fire, a place of
torment. It does not have to mean that the wicked cannot come to conscious
existence again.
Let’s
examine the next part of Isaiah 43:17, which reads: “ … they are extinct … ”
The
word “extinct” certainly makes us think of annihilation. We have heard
about “extinct” animals.
The
translators were probably impacted by the first part of Isaiah 43:17 because
their selection of the word “extinct” is not the best fit according to
how God uses this Hebrew word in other verses. It is only translated “extinct”
in this verse. Normally, it is translated “put out” as in putting out a
lamp or candle.
Let’s
look at other verses that use this same Hebrew word translated “extinct”
in Isaiah 43:17. This Hebrew word is used about 9 times in the Old Testament.
We will look at some examples of how it is used:
We
read two verses with this same Hebrew word:
<
Job
18:5 Yea, the light of the wicked shall
be put out <01846>, and the spark
of his fire shall not shine.
Job
18:6 The light shall be dark in his
tabernacle, and his candle shall be put out <01846>
with him.
These
two verses are together. This word appears twice emphasizing a similar theme.
Notice in verse 6 that the candle of the unsaved is put out.
When
we put out a candle do we annihilate it? No. But, we stop all the light coming
from it.
This
is also what verse 5 is saying. The light from the unsaved will be put
out. Verse 5 is emphasizing that it is the light (gospel / philosophy) of the
unsaved will be “put out” or stopped.
These
verses are saying that the unsaved are "put out" in the sense
that their light is stopped. This is not teaching that they have ceased to
exist, just like Job 18:6 is not teaching that the candle is annihilated. But
rather, it’s light is stopped.
We
can think about it this way:
In
this world, the unsaved are shining their false light; their wrong
philosophies, wrong gospels, wrong actions, etc. To some degree they are trying
to get others to follow along with them. However, once they end up in the lake
of fire, all of that is gone. Their light, their philosophies and gospels are
completely put out. They will not be sharing their philosophies anymore.
We
read 4 more verses with a similar theme:
Job
21:17 How oft is the candle of the
wicked put out <01846>! and how
oft cometh their destruction upon them! God distributeth sorrows in
his anger.
Proverbs
13:9 The light of the righteous
rejoiceth: but the lamp of the wicked shall be put out <01846>.
Proverbs
20:20 Whoso curseth his father or his
mother, his lamp shall be put out <01846>
in obscure darkness.
Proverbs
24:20 For there shall be no reward to
the evil man; the candle of the wicked shall be put out <01846>.
This
is a similar theme to Job 18:5-6. When the candle is “put out” it no
longer gives any light, but the candle itself still exists.
In
the same way, when the unsaved are cast into the lake of fire, their “light” of
false wisdom and philosophies will be stopped. But, that does not mean that the
unsaved themselves won’t exist.
So,
when we look at this Hebrew word that is translated "extinct" in
Isaiah 43:17 in other places of the Bible we find that most other usages relate
to the putting out of a candle or lamp. The light or philosophies & gospels
of the unsaved will be stopped when they are in the lake of fire. It does not
mean that they themselves cease to exist.
Let’s
look at the last phrase in Isaiah 43:17. We read in Isaiah 43:17 that the
unsaved are “quenched as tow”.
The
Hebrew word translated “quenched” is frequently used in connection with
the fire of the wrath of God. It is a fire that shall never be “quenched”.
This means that God’s anger at the unsaved will continue forever.
In
addition, this Hebrew word, "quenched", is also used in
connection with the putting out of a lamp.
Here
are some example verses:
1 Samuel 3:3 And ere the lamp of
God went out <03518> in the temple of the LORD, where the
ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep;
2 Chronicles 29:7 Also they have
shut up the doors of the porch, and put out <03518> the lamps, and have
not burned incense nor offered burnt offerings in the holy place unto
the God of Israel.
Proverbs 31:18 She perceiveth that
her merchandise is good: her candle goeth not out <03518> by night.
In
these verses we read about lamps and candles. When the lamps or candles are put
out, the light from them is stopped. However, the lamps or candles remain. They
just not longer give their light.
In
the same way, once the unsaved are cast into the lake of fire, they will not
longer be sharing their false light of wrong philosophies or gospels. But, they
will still exist.
In
this way, this Hebrew word translated "quench" is also like
the word translated "extinct". It does not mean that the
unsaved cease to exist.
Rather,
this word is telling us again that the false light, wrong gospels and
philosophies, of the unsaved will be stopped.
The
word “tow” can just mean something that is very weak
The
last phrase that we read in Isaiah 43:17 is “quenched as tow”.
The
Hebrew word translated “tow” is also found in Judges 15:14. We read
there:
And when he came unto
Lehi, the Philistines shouted against him: and the Spirit of the LORD came
mightily upon him, and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax <06593> that was burnt with
fire, and his bands loosed from off his hands.
In
this verse, this Hebrew word is translated “flax”.
In
Judges 15:14 the “flax” or “tow” is burned and it is become very
weak. In the same way, the unsaved in the lake of fire will be very weak. They
will have no strength against an infinite God.
People
will think about the burning up of “tow”
in a literal fire and believe that Isaiah 43:17 is teaching annihilation.
However, we have to check out our conclusions in the Bible. When God talks
about the burning of the unsaved or that the unsaved are cast into the fire,
God is talking about the lake of fire. A careful study of the lake of fire
shows that it cannot be a literal or physical fire that just burns up the
unsaved. This is shown in the study at the link below:
COULD THE LAKE OF FIRE
BE A VOLCANO OR SOMETHING SIMILAR?
We
have to remember that Christ spoke in parables. According to Psalm 1:3, the
true believers are "like a tree
planted by the rivers of water". They are like a tree in some ways,
but in many ways they are not. People will read a phrase like “quenched as tow”
and say, “yes, the unsaved are not literally tow, but they are quenched as
tow”, and they believe that this is teaching annihilation.
However,
let’s apply that reasoning to the true believer in Psalm 1:3. We read in that
verse about the true believer that he “shall
be like a tree planted by the rivers of water”. The word “like” is the same Hebrew word
translated “as” in Isaiah 43:17 and
other similar verses. Let’s apply the above reasoning used on Isaiah 43:17 to
Psalm 1:3. Psalm 1:3 is talking about a tree which is planted in the earth. The
true believer is not literally a tree, but he shall be as or like
a tree planted by the rivers of waters.
Is Psalm 1:3 teaching that the true believer shall be planted in the earth as
or like a tree? No. The true believer is not going to be planted in the
earth.
Likewise,
Isaiah 43:17 is not teaching that the unsaved will be burned up like tow is
burnt up in a literal fire. We have to
remember that Christ spoke in parables and to come to truth we have to compare
Scripture with Scripture as is shown above.
In
summary, when we read Isaiah 43:17 quickly it may sound like the unsaved are
annihilated and will never experience an awaking to consciousness.
However,
as we look at each of the words in Isaiah 43:17, comparing Scripture with
Scripture, we find that this verse does not teach annihilation at all.