Man, I had to tone that down a bit. Let's see if that "Soul Sleep" bucket can hold Water.
Revelation 7:13-17 (NRSV)
13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, "Who are these, robed in white, and where have they come from?"
14 I said to him, "Sir, you are the one that knows." Then he said to me, "These are they who have come out of the great ordeal; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
15 For this reason they are before the throne of God, and worship him day and night within his temple, and the one who is seated on the throne will shelter them.
16 They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat;
17 for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."
Revelation 6:9-11 (HCSB)
9 When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the people slaughtered {beheaded} because of God’s word and the testimony they had.
10 They cried out with a loud voice: “Lord, the One who is holy and true, how long until You judge and avenge our blood from those who live on the earth?”
11 So a white robe was given to each of them, and they were told to rest a little while longer until ⌊the number⌋ would be completed ⌊of⌋ their fellow slaves and their brothers, who were going to be killed just as they had been.
Revelation 20:4 (NASB)
4 Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them {Their responsible duties on earth, Mat. 28:18-20; IS FINISHED as of Rev. 4:4.} and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls {Not yet Gloried bodies.} of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
The Tribulation Saints get their glorified bodies at the End of Tribulation, while we get our glorified bodies at the Beginning of Tribulation.
By the way, that blows the false teaching of "Soul Sleep", clean out of the Water.
No problem that Buck had no bottom in it anyhow.
I forgot something. In most Human circles, the polite way to say somebody DIED, is the "Fell Asleep" expression. It is a reference to their Bodies. It is a Euphenism, for Dead.
To be a living soul means to have life in some form. Scripture is clear that the spirit in man is that which gives our mortal human body life. Without a spirit there is NO life. Scripture is also clear that humans who believe in Christ while physically alive "shall NEVER die"! Christ is not without knowing that all flesh is destined to death. Yet, we have His promise "And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die." (Jo 11:26) Even Jesus, being destined to death, physically died. But the spirit in Christ that gave Him physical life did not die, because the last words Christ spoke to us from His cross are these, "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit". The spirit that gave the mortal body of Christ physical life returned to the Father in heaven, and His body into the grave. But to prove that He defeated death, instead of returning to the dust of the earth after three days the living spirit of Christ was returned to His human body and He physically arose from the grave. No human, not even the risen Lord can have physical life without a spirit. And together with body plus spirit mankind is a complete living soul. It's clear the spirit that gave physical life to Christ did not die with His body, because it ascended to the Father in heaven the very day He physically died. That's why Christ told the thief next to Him who believed Him "To day shalt thou be with me in paradise" (Lu 23:43). Paradise Christ spoke of is in heaven (see 2Cor 12:4; Rev 2:7).
Before being physically seen ascending back to heaven (Acts 1), Christ, first, through His Spirit descended into the place of the grave the Old Covenant people likened to Abraham's Bosom (Lu 16:22), to preach to the spirits in prison (1Pe 3:18-19) and set the captives there free (Eph 4:8-10). This being after His resurrection we read of the graves of the saints opening and the faithful ascending to the holy city in heaven as living (spirit) souls (Mt 27:52-53). The location of the holy city since the advent of Christ is heaven (Rev 21:2; Heb 11:16; 12:22). Since heaven is now the location of the holy city, new Jerusalem, the Old Covenant faithful saints, along with whosoever believes in Christ after death ascend to heaven a spiritual body called a living (spirit) soul. For the body cannot live without a spirit, but the spirit in man that dies in faith, through Christ's Spirit in them go alive to heaven to be as are the angels of God in heaven (Mt 22:30), spiritual bodies. That's why Paul longed to be rid of his body of flesh to be with the Lord in heaven a living (spirit) soul.