This statement is contrary to the evidence.
What is meant by “sleep” at death?
The Bible sometimes describes the state of death as “sleep” or “falling asleep” in verses such as Matt. 9:24; 27:52; John 11:11; Acts 7:60; 13:36; 1 Cor. 15:6, 18, 20, 51; 1 Thess 4:13; 5:10. Let’s take 3 samples from these verses:
1. Matt. 9:24. The ruler’s daughter had died (see 9:18) and before Jesus raised her from the dead, Jesus said, “‘Go away, for the girl is not dead but sleeping.’ And they laughed at him.”
2. Acts 13:36. “For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers . . .”
3. First Corinthians 15:20. “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
This sounds like the soul sleep position is signed, sealed and delivered. If believers go to sleep at death, surely there is no need for further discussion! It would be a danger to jump to such a conclusion this early in an examination of the biblical evidence.
There are many words in many languages (including English) that have a number of unrelated meanings. We see this with the language of ‘sleep’. Webster’s dictionary defines it three ways, one of which is: ‘a natural, regularly recurring condition of rest for the body and mind, during which there is little or no conscious thoughts, sensation, or movement’ (Webster 1978:1706). However, there are many different meanings to ‘sleep’ when statements such as these are made:
(1) My foot went to sleep (meaning that sensation was lost in my foot;
(2) I’ll sleep on it, which means that I will think about the issue and try to come up with an answer later;
(3) My children’s friends are coming for a sleepover, i.e. the children’s friends will come to sleep at our place for the night and there is likely to be a long night of talking, playing games, and favourite party food;
(4) That couple is sleeping together, meaning they are having sex;
(5) There are sleeper cells in this country, which is an indication that there are terrorists awaiting their opportunities to strike;
(6) I had to put my dog to sleep, meaning that I took the dog to the vet and he euthanised (killed) him/her (many of these examples were suggested by Dr John Roller n d, ‘Soul sleep’, but the article is no longer online).
New Testament scholar, Dr. N. T. Wright, wrote that “when ancient Jews, pagans and Christians used the word ‘sleep’ to denote death, they were using a metaphor to refer to a concrete state of affairs.We sometimes use the same language the other way round: a heavy sleeper is ‘dead to the world'” (Wright 2003, p. xix).
When my father died and I saw him in his coffin, he looked as though he was asleep. This is how we are to understand the language of sleep associated with death in the Bible. “Sleep” of the body is a metaphor that refers to death.
Remember the story of Jesus and Lazarus in John 11:5-44? Of Lazarus, it was said that he “has fallen asleep” and Jesus was going “to awaken him” (v. 11). Jesus was very clear what he had meant by “sleep.” “Now Jesus had spoken of his death” (v. 13). “Then Jesus told them plainly, ‘Lazarus has died'” (v. 14). Jesus explains further: “Everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die” (v. 26).
So, in this situation we have this kind of language used: Lazarus died and he looked as though he was asleep but the truth was that, because Lazarus believed in Jesus, Lazarus would never die. That sounds paradoxical. He died but he would never die! This means that the believer who dies physically and appears to be asleep (a metaphor), does not die because his unseen soul goes immediately into the presence of the Lord, thus meaning that the believer never really dies. At death, the believer’s real being (his/her soul) goes into the presence of the Lord (see 2 Cor. 5:8) [From my article, '
Soul sleep: A refutation'].
Works consulted
[SIZE=x-small]Roller, J. H. n.d., “Soul sleep,” available from:
http://www.mychurch.org/blog/7515/Soul-Sleep (Accessed 27 September 2007).[/SIZE]
Webster, N 1978
. J L McKechnie (gen ed),
Webster’s New Twentieth Century Dictionary of the English Language, unabridged, 2nd edn. No city of publication: Collins World.
Wright, N. T. 2003, The Resurrection of the Son of God, series in Christian origins and the Question of God, vol. 3, Fortress Press, Minneapolis.
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