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NASB | Luke 16:22 "Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Luke 16:22 "Now it happened that the poor man died and his spirit was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom (paradise); and the rich man also died and was buried. |
Bible Question: Angels carried Nasarus, the beggar, to Abraham. [Question 1] Where was Abraham when welcoming Nasarus? In the heaven or somewhere on the earth? What does the Bible say about this issue? [Question 2] Is this parable referring to the future when Jesus would come to the earth the second time? Or is it now, meaning a dead person immediately goes to either Abraham's bosom or the the hot place where the rich man went? |
Bible Answer: Greetings 00123! You ask, "Angels carried Nasarus, the beggar, to Abraham. [Question 1] Where was Abraham when welcoming Nasarus? In the heaven or somewhere on the earth? What does the Bible say about this issue? [Question 2] Is this parable referring to the future when Jesus would come to the earth the second time? Or is it now, meaning a dead person immediately goes to either Abraham's bosom or the the hot place where the rich man went?" Scripture: Luke 16:19-31 1. Abraham (verse 22), or Abraham's bosom, "refers to the place of blessedness to which the righteous dead go to await future vindication." (Zondervan NASB Study Bible, page 1495) Since the Talmud mentions both Paradise (see Luke 23:43, 2 Cor. 12:4 and Rev. 2:7) and Abraham's bosom as the home of the righteous, then we can conclude that this place is heaven (see 2 Cor. 12:4), since at the moment of death "the spirit returns to God who gave it" (Ecclesiastes 12:7) and for the believer immediately going into the presence of the Lord in heaven (see Acts 7:59 and Philippians 1:21-24). 2. All indications are that the timing of these events are before the Second Coming of Christ, or 'now' as you say. Both believers and unbelievers remain as spirits until the future day of resurrection. Once that glorious day comes, God will reunite believers' spirits with their resurrected physical bodies- the perishable will be made imperishable and the mortal will be made immortal (1 Cor. 15:53). Unbelievers, too, will be resurrected, but they will spend eternity apart from God. Blessings to you, Makarios |