Where did Lazarus go when he died?

This question came to me this week so I thought I would post my thoughts on this here.

I have a long version and a short version answer to this. 

Where did Lazarus go?

SHORT ANSWER: Abraham’s Bosom – boy did he have some stories to tell!  And then he’d have to die again!

LONG ANSWER:

The Hebrews and other ancients thought that death was a three day journey.  Sheol was your destination.  So you would make your journey and you probably did not know anything about your journey on your way there.  Nor would you know anything if you came back from the “dead” before your journey was complete.  Part of this may have come about because they would see people seemingly expire and then resuscitate.  Of course, we have a more technical understanding of this now and don’t see it quite the way they do.  This is interesting in context of Jonah, by the way.  Some folks think he may have actually died and God resurrected him in the belly of the whale.  This would further explain why Jesus compared himself to Jonah when speaking of his D.B.R., but  I digress.  Lazarus as it reads in John was in the tomb four days.  He had already completed his journey in the minds of the Hebrews which made his resurrection more interesting. 

 

So, what did he see?  Jesus gave us the story in Luke 16 of the rich man and another Lazarus (poor man).  He went to Abraham’s bosom.  This place was apparently separated from hell by a gulf and each side could see the other.  I am not sure if the geography should be taken literally on this.

 

The bigger question is really where did Jesus go? 

Okay, I am going to finally answer your question.  Some I have read on this believe that prior to Jesus’ death everyone went to Sheol: saints went to Abraham’s bosom, non-saints went to tartarus or hades which was/is a holding place for those without Christ awaiting judgment.  At the judgment then those without Jesus will be cast into gehenna – lake of fire burning with sulfur (some may not equate hades and tartarus with actual burning).  I can track down the scriptures on this later.  Basically all three of these words are used for hell and this creates a lot of discussion.  Hades and maybe tartarus correspond to the basic OT idea of living without God and being cast into a holding place.  But then Jesus comes along and talks about gehenna quite often. 

Insert here the Apostle’s creed which says Jesus descended into hell… or more correctly … Sheol. 

http://www.creeds.net/ancient/apostles.htm 

Matthew 12:38-41 

38Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, "Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you."

 39He answered, "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here.

Did Jesus just die and do nothing or did he do something else?

See 1 Peter 4:6 (New International Version)

6For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to men in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit.

Hmm…

If we take 1 Peter 4 with Luke 16 then perhaps the Creed is correct and Jesus went to preach the good news to Abraham and the others and bring those people out of Abraham’s bosom and take them to heaven.

Answer to the question then is that Lazarus went to be in Abraham’s bosom and then Jesus called him back.  Jesus therefore is truly the master over death and the grave.  That is the point of the passage – not where he went, what he saw, or what he did!

1 Corinthians 15:55 "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"

Other texts:  Job 38:17, Psalm 68:18-22; Matthew 12:38-41; Acts 2:22-32; Romans 10:7; Ephesians 4:7-10, 1 Peter 3:18-20, and 1 Peter 4:6.

See also: http://www.creeds.net/ancient/descendit.htm