Strongs definition: ᾅδης háidēs; from G1 (as a negative particle) and G1492; properly, unseen, i.e. "Hades" or the place (state) of departed souls:—grave, hell.
Appearances: Total x11
hell (10x)
grave (1x).
What does it refer to?
A temporary place where disembodied spirits go.
In the example of the Rich man and Lazarus story, there is also a place called ‘Abraham’s Bossom’ where Lazarus went, and the Rich man was separated from here by a large Chasm.
It is a place of torture and torment for unrighteous.
It is also a holding place for the righteous.
Who will go there?
All the dead until Christ came, died, and ascended into heaven where believers will now be.
Those who are not saved are sent here (Sheol/Hades) temporarily.
Length of its duration
All those who have put their faith in Christ, upon their death, go to be with the Lord in Heaven (also known as Paradise).
Those who are not saved will remain here until it is cast into the lake of fire.
Verses
Acts 2:27 - Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
Revelation 20:14 - “death and hell (hades) were cast into the lake of fire.”
[Rev 1:18 KJV] 18 I [am] he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.
Why is this not a parable but an account of a previous event?
Christ gives us an explanation of something outside of our human experience, where the parables he told used objects and situations that we are familiar with.
Use of a proper name - Lazarus, and the mention of a historical character, Abraham.
Christ gives us a description about Hades.
Angels are mentioned in the recount.
If hell doesn’t exist, then Christ has just told a huge lie.
Lessons to learn from the rich man and Lazarus about Hell
All souls are immortal, whether saved and unsaved.
A soul is conscious after death and is not in soul sleep (Jehova’s Witnesses and Seventh-day Adventists.) _ Guarantee you that they will say this is a parable.
Those who are righteous at death are taken immediately to paradise / heaven. The unrighteous are sent to a place of misery and torment.
The rich man relied on his riches, which blinded him of his eternal destination.
A soul cannot crossover since the gulf is fixed.
The warning of hell has been given abundantly in this life through God’s Word, the Spirit, and His servants. No dead person will return to tell us if it is true or not.
Luke 16:29 - People claim there is no Hell, and some even go on further to say there is not Hell in the OT, yet Abraham responds to the rich man by saying that Moses and the Prophets taught that there is a hell, and what is required to avoid hell.
