Roman Catholics and Orthodox pray for the souls of their departed. In fact, an entire theology is based on this practice, but it does not refer to the Bible. Can we pray for the dead? What does the Bible say about this?
Is praying for the dead biblical?
Despite the good intentions of Catholics and Orthodox, the Bible offers no support for praying for the dead. According to the Bible, when someone dies, there is no chance for salvation.
If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior in this life, you will never have the opportunity to do so in the next life. The dead face judgment immediately (2 Corinthians 5:6-8).
It may be helpful to consider a parable from Christ often called the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-21).
In this story, Jesus makes it clear that there are two separate realms where the spirits of the dead live. One is a place of reward, heaven. The other is a place of torment and suffering, where souls are eternally separated from God.
In this parable, Christ does not assign a place to the third state, and there is also no concept of believers’ prayers for the dead being effective in any way.
Tertullian, a church father, wrote:
“That parable of God… has a very clear and simple meaning… (beware that) as a violator of your covenant, before God the judge… and lest this judge make you an angel who is going to execute the sentence surrender, and he will throw you into the prison of hell, where you will have no escape forever…”
Dionysius the Areopagite wrote:
“The bishop…does not pray for the innocent dead.”
The only exceptions were the prayers recited in memory of those who had died in the faith, that is, those who were known to have led holy and exemplary lives.
“Let us pray for our brothers who rest in Christ” (Apostolic Epistles).
These prayers were not to save them or ease their suffering, because they knew they were with Christ. Instead, it was simply a prayer to honor and remember them.
It may be a comforting thought to think that you can save your deceased friend or family member from hell and suffering by prayer, but it is a false comfort because it is not found anywhere in the Word of God.
We can certainly pray for bereaved relatives and friends. Such prayers are biblical and an act of love and forgiveness—a way of loving your neighbor as yourself.
Likewise, the idea that we can do good deeds in this life to alleviate our suffering in the spirit world has no biblical basis. Every sin we commit in this world, every time we reject the still, but firm voice of the Holy Spirit urging us to avoid sin and live a holy life, will be counted against us after death.
The decision we make now and in this life determines our eternal destiny, either to enjoy the presence of God and His saints forever, or to be with the fallen angels, the spirits of the Nephilim, etc. (Ezekiel 18:20) Pain, sorrow and endure the torment of hell.
There is no middle ground, no room for those who were partly good but also partly sinful, no place for those who did not surrender to Jesus Christ during their lifetime. When you die, you face immediate judgment (Hebrews 9:27). Notice what the writer of Hebrews says here.
He makes it clear that when you die, there is nothing you or anyone else can do to influence your eternal destiny. Now you either stand there by the merits of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ which you accepted while alive, or you must answer for all your sins alone, without any lawyer to defend you.
Today in the article : What Does the Bible Say about Praying for the Dead? We reviewed useful information about the Bible and the way of Jesus. If you wish, you can view other articles of Ali Vahidi about Christianity
