Bible teaching about Death
What is death? This age-old and universal question has often been asked, and answered with a surprising unanimity. Literature, both ancient and modern, voices almost overwhelmingly the belief that death is not really death. The religions of ancient Egypt, Babylon, Greece and Rome contained as their central and essential theme the doctrine of a continued existence of life in some form after death.

The Egyptian "Book of the Dead', whether placed under the mummy bandages of the dead one or within the coffin, contained instructions to the 'soul', so that it might successfully, after many trials and perils, reach a 'paradise'. The Babylonians likewise, believing in the continuation of an individual's 'spirit', placed weapons and implements in their tombs in order that the 'spirit' might protect itself and secure sustenance. The Greeks also, believing in an 'immortal soul', consigned it to Hades or even Tartarus—though exceptionally favoured ones might find a place in some Elysian paradise. It is only necessary to call to mind the fundamental teaching of Buddhism, Mohammedanism and orthodox Christendom to show that a belief in a continuance of existence after death is common to all.

Thus the question 'What is death?' is answered by the affirmation that 'Death is not really death', or, in the words of the poet: 'Safe from temptation, safe from sin's pollution. She lives whom we call dead'. ('Resignation'—Longfellow).

If there were sure and certain proof that man possesses an immortal essence which is released at death, or yet again, in the words of the poet: 'Dust thou art to dust returnest was not spoken of the soul' (Psalm of Life' - Lonfellow) then we need question no further. The fact that the question is still asked- and asked in thought and word by multitudes-shows that no such clear evidence is presented. However closely the living may cling to a hope that at some time their 'souls' may speed 'Beyond the bounds of time and space', the mere desire proves nothing. Hopes and desires do not constitute an immortal soul. These are evidences of a living organism, the result of the functioning of the brain, but they all cease with the decay of that organ in death.
It will be clear from the foregoing that in this booklet the almost universal answer to the question 'What is death?' is to be challenged. In presenting a different answer, clear evidences in support will be produced from the Bible.

Bible Facts
The first fact is the very simple one set forth in the words of the wise man in the Book of Ecclesiastes. He wrote: The living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything'. The living do indeed know-so often with sorrow-that in death, all living functions cease: respiration, circulation of blood, glandular action, sensory responses, so that it is exactly as the above quotation continues to state:

"also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in anything that is done under the sun'. (Ecclesiastes 9.5,6).

The Psalmist is equally emphatic: 'His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish'. (Psalm 146.4).
In what we have written we have, in a measure, balanced two statements: the words of a modern poet, 'Dust thou art to dust returnest was not spoken of the soul', against that of an ancient writer and poet, 'Man returneth to his earth, in that very day his thoughts perish' and have found them contradictory. Why should we prefer one, and refuse the other? Our preference should clearly rest upon the writer who can set forth the greater reasons to establish the truth of his statement.

The Authority of the Bible
The poet would make no claim to be an authority-he was merely expressing in poetic language an ardent desire and a commonly accepted belief. The Bible, on the other hand, claims to have an authority which none can question, for it claims to be the Word of God. It claims to be the record of God's actions in relation to man and His decrees concerning man. This claim is implicit in all that it has to say; it was the claim of the prophet (Jeremiah 1.5-9) and the poet (2 Samuel 23.1-3); it was the claim of Christ (John 12.49,50) and his apostles (Galatians 1.12). The Bible invites us to test it and to confirm for ourselves that this claim can be upheld.
It should be noted that the Bible is the only book which provides a reasonable explanation for the experience of death and the only authority for a hope of life after death.

The problem of ageing and eventual death is one which scientists, and particularly biochemists, have been investigating with increasing intensity in recent years. The human body has built into it all the regenerative processes necessary to keep it functioning, so that apart from disease or accident there is no reason why it should not continue to function indefinitely. But in fact there is an irreversible process whereby birth and growth to maturity are unavoidably followed by decline, death and decay. It is as if a time clock has been deliberately incorporated into the body to control its development and decline; indeed. Professor W. 5. Bullough, Professor of Zoology at Birkbeck College, London was recently reported as saying 'Ageing is due to some internal clock within you, which deliberately runs you down, and destroys you' (Daily Telegraph, July 27th, 1970). Why do our powers gradually fail? Why do we die? What is death? Is there anything beyond? These are questions to which the Bible offers answers and there is every reason to accept these answers.

The Genesis Account
The Bible states that God created man: %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'. (Genesis 2.7). If this passage had not been tampered with and misinterpreted, all would be well. It is a clear statement of the fact that an inanimate body, fashioned from the dust of the earth, became a living body by reason of having breathed into it life-giving breath.

You will recall the quotation from Lonfellow's 'Psalm of Life1: 'Dust thou art to dust returnest was not spoken of the soul', where the poet writes of some entity residing in the body, but not subject to decay or disintegration, no such idea is contained in the original Hebrew text of the passage quoted.The Authorised Version translates the Hebrew word 'nephesh' by the word 'soul', and this would be satisfactory if the word had not acquired the connotation of 'everliving', or 'never dying' or 'immortal'. If the word soul were always used in the sense of the following passage, 'Every soul that was in the ship perished in the waters', that is, used to denote a living being or creature, or extended to denote life, individuality, mind, or disposition, it would truly express the meaning of the original word.

In the first chapter of Genesis at verse 24 it is written 'And God said. Let the earth bring forth the living creature (Heb: nephesh) after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind'. It may be of interest to know that in the 754 places where the Hebrew word 'nephesh' is found in the Old Testament, it is said to be subject to death, in danger of death, or delivered from death 652 times. Solomon writes of this likeness of man and beast in the words: For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them; as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast.' (Ecclesiastes 5. 19).

The record of the creation of man gives no support for the view that any part of man lives for ever. When God first created man there was no mention made of his eventual death. Death was referred to later as the penalty for breaking God's law:
'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.' (Genesis 2.17).