'Dead' in the Bible

And the heart of King David longed to go to Absalom; for he was comforted regarding Amnon, since he was dead.

So Joab sent word to Tekoa and had a wise woman brought from there and told her, “Please pretend to be a mourner, and put on mourning clothes, and do not anoint yourself with oil, but act like a woman who has for many days been in mourning for the dead.

The king asked her, “What is the matter?” She said, “Truly I am a widow; my husband is dead.

Then Abishai [David’s nephew], the son of Zeruiah, said to the king, “Why should this dead dog (despicable person) curse my lord the king? Let me go over and take off his head.”

But Joab told him, “You are not the man to carry news [to King David] today, but you shall carry news another day. On this day you shall carry no news, because the king’s son is dead.”

And Absalom, whom we anointed over us, has died in battle. So now, why are you [leaders] doing nothing about bringing back the king?”

So act in accordance with your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol (the place of the dead) in peace.

So she got up in the middle of the night and took my son from [his place] beside me while your maidservant was asleep, and laid him on her bosom, and laid her dead son on my bosom.

When I got up in the morning to nurse my son, behold, he was dead. But when I examined him carefully in the morning, behold, it was not my son, the one whom I had borne.”

Then the other woman said, “No! For my son is the one who is living, and your son is the dead one.” But the first woman said, “No! For your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one.” [This is how] they were speaking before the king.

Then the king said, “This woman says, ‘This is my son, the one who is alive, and your son is the dead one’; and the other woman says, ‘No! For your son is the dead one, and my son is the one who is alive.’”

But when Hadad heard in Egypt that David had died and that Joab the commander of the army was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Let me leave, so that I may go to my own country.”

Then after he had buried him, he said to his sons, “When I am dead, bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones.

Then they sent word to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned to death.”

When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, she said to Ahab, “Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite which he refused to sell you, because Naboth is no longer alive, but dead.”

So the king died and was brought to Samaria, and they buried the king in Samaria.

Now one of the wives of a man of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha [for help], saying “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant [reverently] feared the Lord; but the creditor is coming to take my two sons to be his slaves [in payment for a loan].”

When Elisha came into the house, the child was dead and lying on his bed.

And [just] as Gehazi was telling the king how Elisha had restored the dead to life, behold, the woman whose son he had restored to life appealed to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said, “My lord, O king, this is the woman and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life.”

Then Jehu wrote a second letter to them, saying, “If you are with me and will obey me, take the heads of your master’s sons, and come to me at Jezreel tomorrow about this time.” Now the [dead] king’s sons, seventy persons, were with the great men of the city, who were rearing them.

When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah [king of Judah] saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal offspring.

Jeroboam restored Israel’s border from the entrance of Hamath to the Sea of the Arabah (Dead Sea), in accordance with the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, which He spoke through His servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who was from Gath-hepher.

Then it came to pass that night, that the angel of the Lord went forth and struck down 185,000 [men] in the camp of the Assyrians; when the survivors got up early in the morning, behold, all [185,000] of them were dead.

Josiah’s servants carried his dead body in a chariot from Megiddo, brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own tomb. Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah and anointed him and made him king in his father’s place.

When his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword and died.

When all the men of Israel who were in the valley saw that the army had fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled; and the Philistines came and lived in them.

So Saul died for his trespass which he committed against the Lord, for his failure to keep the word of the Lord; and also because he consulted a medium [regarding a spirit of the dead], to inquire of her,

Then it was reported to Jehoshaphat, “A great multitude has come against you from beyond the [Dead] Sea, out of Aram (Syria); and behold, they are in Hazazon-tamar (that is, Engedi).”

When [the men of] Judah came to the lookout tower of the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude, and behold, they were dead bodies lying on the ground, and no one had escaped.

Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she rose and destroyed all the royal family of the house of Judah.

Esther replied, “If it pleases the king, let it be granted to the Jews who are in Susa to act tomorrow also in accordance with the decree of today; and let [the dead bodies of] Haman’s ten sons be hanged on the gallows.”

and suddenly, a great wind came from across the desert, and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people and they died, and I alone have escaped to tell you.”

“As a cloud vanishes and is gone,So he who goes down to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) does not come up.

“His wisdom is as high as the heights of heaven. What can you do?It is deeper than Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead). What can you know?

“For what pleasure does he have in his house and family after he is dead,When the number of his months [of life] is cut off?

“Drought and heat consume the snow waters;So does Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) [consume] those who have sinned.

“The spirits of the dead trembleUnderneath the waters and their inhabitants.

“Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) is naked before God,And Abaddon (the place of destruction) has no covering [from His eyes].

The wicked [those who live in disobedience to God’s law] are not so,But they are like the chaff [worthless and without substance] which the wind blows away.

For in death there is no mention of You;In Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) who will praise You and give You thanks?

For You will not abandon me to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead),Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.

The cords of Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) surrounded me;The snares of death confronted me.

O Lord, You have brought my life up from Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead);You have kept me alive, so that I would not go down to the pit (grave).

I am forgotten like a dead man, out of mind;I am like a broken vessel.

Let me not be put to shame, O Lord, for I call on You;Let the wicked (godless) be put to shame, let them be silent in Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead).

Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead);Death will be their shepherd;And the upright shall rule over them in the morning,And their form and beauty shall be for Sheol to consume,So that they have no dwelling [on earth].

But God will redeem my life from the power of Sheol,For He will receive me. Selah.

Let death come deceitfully upon them;Let them go down alive to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead),For evil [of every kind] is in their dwelling and in their hearts, in their midst.

But those who seek my life to destroy itWill [be destroyed and] go into the depths of the earth [into the underworld].

At Your rebuke, O God of Jacob,Both rider and horse were cast into a dead sleep [of death].

They have given the dead bodies of Your servants as food to the birds of the heavens,The flesh of Your godly ones to the beasts of the earth.

For my soul is full of troubles,And my life draws near the grave (Sheol, the place of the dead).

Cast away [from the living] and abandoned among the dead,Like the slain who lie in a [nameless] grave,Whom You no longer remember,And they are cut off from Your hand.

Will You perform wonders for the dead?Shall the departed spirits arise and praise You? Selah.

Will Your wonders be known in the darkness?And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness [where the dead forget and are forgotten]?

What man can live and not see death?Can he rescue his soul from the [powerful] hand of Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead)? Selah.

He will execute judgment [in overwhelming punishment] among the nations;He will fill them with corpses,He will crush the chief men over a broad country.

The dead do not praise the Lord,Nor do any who go down into silence;

The cords and sorrows of death encompassed me,And the terrors of Sheol came upon me;I found distress and sorrow.

If I ascend to heaven, You are there;If I make my bed in Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead), behold, You are there.

For the enemy has persecuted me,He has crushed my life down to the ground;He has made me dwell in dark places, like those who have been long dead.

Let us swallow them alive like Sheol (the place of the dead),Even whole, as those who go down to the pit [of death];

For her house leads down to deathAnd her paths lead to the dead;

Her feet go down to death;Her steps take hold of Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead),

Her house is the way to Sheol,Descending to the chambers of death.

But he does not know that the spirits of the dead are there,And that her guests are [already] in the depths of Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead).

Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) and Abaddon (the abyss, the place of eternal punishment) lie open before the Lord—How much more the hearts and inner motives of the children of men.

The [chosen] path of life leads upward for the wise,That he may keep away from Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) below.

A man who wanders from the way of understanding (godly wisdom)Will remain in the assembly of the dead.

You shall swat him with the reed-like rodAnd rescue his life from Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead).

Sheol (the place of the dead) and Abaddon (the underworld) are never satisfied;Nor are the eyes of man ever satisfied.

Sheol, and the barren womb,Earth that is never satisfied with water,And fire that never says, “It is enough.”

So I congratulated and thought more fortunate are those who are already dead than the living who are still living.

Even if the other man lives a thousand years twice over and yet has seen no good and experienced no enjoyment—do not both go to one place [the grave]?”

This evil is in all that is done under the sun, that one fate comes to all. Also, the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and afterwards they go to the dead.

[There is no exemption,] but whoever is joined with all the living, has hope; surely a live dog is better than a dead lion.

For the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing, and they no longer have a reward [here], for the memory of them is forgotten.

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) where you are going.

Dead flies make the oil of the perfumer give off a foul odor; so a little foolishness [in one who is esteemed] outweighs wisdom and honor.

(The Shulammite Bride)“Under the apple tree I awakened you [to my love];There your mother was in labor with you,There she was in labor and gave you birth.“Put me like a seal on your heart,Like a seal on your arm;For love is as strong as death,Jealousy is as severe and cruel as Sheol (the place of the dead).Its flashes are flashes of fire,[A most vehement flame] the very flame of the Lord!

And Jerusalem’s gates will lament (cry out in grief) and mourn [as those who wail for the dead];And she, being ruined and desolate, will sit upon the ground.

Therefore Sheol (the realm of the dead) has increased its appetite and opened its mouth beyond measure;And Jerusalem’s splendor, her multitude, her [boisterous] uproar and her [drunken] revelers descend into it.

Therefore the anger of the Lord has burned against His people,And He has stretched out His hand against them and has struck them down.And the mountains trembled, and their dead bodies lay like rubbish in the middle of the streets.In spite of all this God’s anger is not turned away,But His hand is still stretched out [in judgment].

When the people [instead of trusting God] say to you, “Consult the mediums [who try to talk to the dead] and the soothsayers who chirp and whisper and mutter,” should not a people consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living?

“Sheol below is excited about you to meet you when you come [you tyrant of Babylon];It stirs up the spirits of the dead [to greet you], all the leaders of the earth;It raises all the kings of the nations from their thrones [in astonishment at your fall].

‘Your pomp and magnificence have been brought down to Sheol,Along with the music of your harps;The maggots [which prey on the dead] are spread out under you [as a bed]And worms are your covering [Babylonian rulers].’

“But [in fact] you will be brought down to Sheol,To the remote recesses of the pit (the region of the dead).

“But you [king of Babylon] have been cast out of your tomb (denied burial)Like a rejected branch,Clothed with the slain who are pierced by the sword,Who go down to the stones of the pit [into which carcasses are thrown],Like a dead body trampled [underfoot].

For the fields of Heshbon have languished and withered, and the vines of Sibmah as well;The lords of the nations have trampled down [Moab’s] choice vine branches,Which reached as far as Jazer and wandered into the wilderness;Its tendrils stretched out, they passed over [the shores of] the [Dead] Sea.

They (warriors) will be left together for the mountain birds of prey,And for the beasts of the earth;And the birds of prey will [spend the] summer feeding on them,And all the beasts of the earth will spend harvest time on them.

The [wicked] dead will not live [again], the spirits of the dead will not rise and return;Therefore You have punished and destroyed them,And You have wiped out every memory of them [every trace of them].

Your dead will live;Their dead bodies will rise.You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy!For your dew is a dew of [celestial] light [heavenly, supernatural],And the earth will give birth to the spirits of the dead.

Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death,And with Sheol (the place of the dead) we have made an agreement,When the overwhelming scourge passes by, it will not reach us,For we have made lies our refuge and we have concealed ourselves in deception.”

“Your covenant with death will be annulled,And your agreement with Sheol (the place of the dead) will not stand;When the overwhelming scourge passes through,Then you will become its trampling ground.

So their slain will be thrown out,And the stench of their corpses will rise,And the mountains will flow with their blood.

And the angel of the Lord went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when the [surviving] men got up early the next morning, they saw all the dead.

I said, “In mid-lifeI am to go through the gates of Sheol (the place of the dead),I am to be summoned, deprived of the remainder of my years.”

“For Sheol cannot praise or thank You,Death cannot praise You and rejoice in You;Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your faithfulness.

Yet the Lord was willingTo crush Him, causing Him to suffer;If He would give Himself as a guilt offering [an atonement for sin],He shall see His [spiritual] offspring,He shall prolong His days,And the will (good pleasure) of the Lord shall succeed and prosper in His hand.

We grope for a wall like the blind,We grope like those who have no eyes.We stumble at midday as in the twilight;Among those who are healthy we are like dead men.