Category:Afterlife (subject)

Afterlife (Resurrection / Immortatlity / Eternal Life)

The Primeval Belief in Spirits

At the beginning was animism, the belief that all people (including the dead), animals, objects, geographic features, and natural phenomena are inhabited by a spirit. These spirits share the same space with humans, are concerned with human affairs and are capable of helping or harming human interests. The belief in the existence of spirits (including the spirits of the dead) is one of the earliest religious concepts, that predates the establishment of any organized religion.

The relationship of the living with the spirits of the dead is ambivalent. On one end, the living do not wish the dead to interfere negatively (as "vengeful spirits") with their affairs. On the other end, the living have an interest in keeping open the possibility of receiving help from the dead (as "graceful spirits"). The solution to this ambivalent attitude of fear and love was to "organize" the world of the spirits, so that they could rest in peace in a separate world and be summoned only when necessary as helpers of their relatives and friends.

Polytheism was a first attempt to organize the world of the spirits, by transforming the spirits into a hierarchy of "gods" and assigning to the spirits of the dead a distinct place separated from the world of the living. In addition to this world, two to other "spaces" are imagined: Heaven as the residence of the supreme gods, and the "underworld," as the residence of the spirits of the dead. Gods however are distributed everywhere, as lords in Heaven, on earth and in the underworld. Each space has its own gods.

Between Egypt and Mesopotamia

The Israelites were originally Canaanites, one of many people living in the land of Caanan. They emerged into the historical record in the last decades of the 13th century BCE, at the very end of the Late Bronze Age.

Canaan was positioned on the narrow land bridge between Africa and Asia. It was not a land important in itself but a strategic, military and trade crossroad. The area became a constant battleground between Egypt and Mesopotamia, the two superpowers of antiquity. Both Egyptian and Mesopotamian beliefs influenced the development of Israelite religion.

Egyptian Notions of the Afterlife

Egyptians developed a very sophisticated view of the afterlife. They believed that even after death, one's spirit would live on because the life force was a separate entity that could detach itself from the body. Life on earth was only part of an eternal journey which ended, if one were justified by the gods, in eternal life.

The Egyptian afterlife was a mirror-image of life on earth. In order to achieve the ideal afterlife, many practices had to be performed during one's life. This may have included acting justly and following the beliefs of Egyptian creed. Additionally, the Egyptians stressed the rituals completed after an individual's life has ended. Only those who could pass judgment, were admitted to the new life. Non-existence was the destiny of the wicked.

Mesopotamian Notions of the Afterlife

In Mesopotamia, most of the gods lived in the sky, though one powerful goddess, Ereskigal (and her consort Nergal) ruled the underworld, sometimes named Cutha. The spirits of the dead travel to the otherworld, where they are all hosted and kept confined in a city surrounded by walls, where they rest in peace. There is no distinction between the righteous and the wicked. They all go to Cutha.

The major fear was that the spirits of the dead did not reach their assigned land but remained on earth as "ghosts." It happened because they were not properly buried or because they had some sort of "unfinished business" on earth. Their presence was terrifying.

The fear of the dead was strong. The dead were not to be trusted. It was believed that the dead still had a powerful role in the lives of the living. As ghosts they could cause enormous mischief on earth and take vengeance on someone who insulted them. They held the power of giving sickness and health, and even the power of life and death. With these powers they made frightening opponents, and no one wanted to test their goodwill. Everybody wanted them to rest in peace.

Their welfare depended on the generosity of the survivors. The dead demanded praise because they inspired fear. If treated well, they could be helpful. In return the dead were able to give aid in bringing various benefit to society, like rain, protection against witchcraft, and increase to the herds.

These is the reason the dead had to be properly buried and then sacrifices and offerings were given to the dead so that they could rest in peace and accept to be peacefully summoned as "graceful spirits." The Cult of the Dead was not only a way to honor the dead but also to control them and prevent them from being "vengeful spirits" or ghosts. The ultimate goal of the Cult of the Dead was to keep the doors of communication open between the realm of the living and the realm of the dead, whether out of fear of revenge or out of the desire to seek their advice.

The Cult of the Dead was family oriented. It bounds clans into cohesive units.

The Jewish Sheol

As all the other Canaanite people , ancient Israelites were originally polytheistic. The influence of Egyptian beliefs was strong. We are told that Jacob was embalmed according to Egyptian rituals (Gen 50:2-3). The entire embalming process took 70 days, exactly the time that the Egyptians mourned Jacob.

In their view of the afterlife, however, Canaan (and Israel) were more closely related to Mesopotamia than any of them were to Egypt.

The Hebrew Bible took its shape in the 5th century after the Babylonian exile (6th cent.), in a monotheistic context. Nonetheless it preserves traces of the polytheistic past of Israel (see Ancient Israelite Religion). Using these elements and comparing them with what we know about Canaanite religions, we can have a good idea of how the Sheol was imagined.

In Canaanite religions, every god was assigned a place by El, the supreme God of the supreme pantheon. YHWH, a minor god, was assigned the Land of Israel (cf. Deut 32:8-9). He was assisted by a goddess wife, Asherah. Migrating from one land to another meant to worship a different god, not differently from obeying a different king.

Sheol also was imagined as a "place", somewhere near the primal waters, under the earth (Nume 16:30; Job 26:7). As any other place, sheol had its caring Lords, Mot (and his "wife" Shuwala). The Hebrew word for death is actually the name of the Canaanite god of death himself. Likewise, the Hebrew term sheol is a variant for Shuwala, a north Syrian goddess. In Isaiah 28, people who scoff at God say, "We have made a covenant with Death [Mavet/Mot] and with Sheol we have made an agreement" (Isa 28:15). And later in the same chapter, "And [God] will make justice ... Then your cvenant with Death [Mavet/Mot] will be annulled, and your agreement with Sheol will not stand" (Isa 28:17-19). In these references, Mot [Mavet] and sheol may well be actual personages, deities with whom one can collaborate.

As ancient Canaanites, the Israelites imagine the otherworld as a place of still darkness which lies after death, a subterranean underworld where the souls of all dead went after the body died, both the righteous and the unrighteous, regardless of their moral choices in life. Other biblical names for Sheol were: Abaddon (ruin), found in Psalm 88:11, Job 28:22 and Proverbs 15:11; and Shakhat (corruption), found in Isaiah 38:17, Ezekiel 28:8.

All humans have to die. When people die, their vital element (called nefesh) was thought to leave the body and migrate to sheol. For a Jew, death meant essentially a change of residence, a migration from the land of the living (ruled by YHWH) to the land of the dead (ruled by Mot), and therefore also a change of loyalty from one god to another. There was no idea of judgment connected with the Afterlife.

Summoning the dead thru a medium

Besides the ritual "remembrance days," ancient Israelites also believed that the inhabitants of Sheol could, under some circumstances, be summoned by the living, as when the Witch of Endor calls up the spirit of Samuel for Saul. Saul wished to receive advice on defeating the Philistines in battle, after prior attempts to consult God through sacred lots and other means had failed. When summoned, however, the spirit of Samuel only delivers a prophecy of doom against Saul. This event occurs in the First Book of Samuel 28:3-25.

3 Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in Ramah, his own city. Saul had expelled the mediums and the wizards from the land. 4 The Philistines assembled and came and encamped at Shunem. Saul gathered all Israel, and they encamped at Gilboa. 5 When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. 6 When Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, not by dreams or by Urim or by prophets. 7 Then Saul said to his servants, “Seek out for me a woman who is a medium, so that I may go to her and inquire of her.” His servants said to him, “There is a medium at Endor.”

8 So Saul disguised himself and put on other clothes and went there, he and two men with him. They came to the woman by night. And he said, “Consult a spirit for me, and bring up for me the one whom I name to you.” 9 The woman said to him, “Surely you know what Saul has done, how he has cut off the mediums and the wizards from the land. Why then are you laying a snare for my life to bring about my death?” 10 But Saul swore to her by the Lord, “As the Lord lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this thing.” 11 Then the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up for you?” He answered, “Bring up Samuel for me.” 12 When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice, and the woman said to Saul, “Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!” 13 The king said to her, “Have no fear; what do you see?” The woman said to Saul, “I see a divine being[a] coming up out of the ground.” 14 He said to her, “What is his appearance?” She said, “An old man is coming up; he is wrapped in a robe.” So Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and did obeisance.

15 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” Saul answered, “I am in great distress, for the Philistines are warring against me, and God has turned away from me and answers me no more, either by prophets or by dreams, so I have summoned you to tell me what I should do.” 16 Samuel said, “Why then do you ask me, since the Lord has turned from you and become your enemy? 17 The Lord has done to you just as he spoke by me, for the Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, David. 18 Because you did not obey the voice of the Lord and did not carry out his fierce wrath against Amalek, therefore the Lord has done this thing to you today. 19 Moreover, the Lord will give Israel along with you into the hands of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me; the Lord will also give the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.”

20 Immediately Saul fell full length on the ground filled with fear because of the words of Samuel, and there was no strength in him, for he had eaten nothing all day and all night. 21 The woman came to Saul, and when she saw that he was terrified, she said to him, “Your servant has listened to you; I have taken my life in my hand and have listened to what you have said to me. 22 Now, therefore, you also listen to your servant; let me set a morsel of bread before you. Eat, that you may have strength when you go on your way.” 23 He refused and said, “I will not eat.” But his servants, together with the woman, urged him, and he listened to their words. So he got up from the ground and sat on the bed. 24 Now the woman had a fatted calf in the house. She quickly slaughtered it, and she took flour, kneaded it, and baked unleavened cakes. 25 She put them before Saul and his servants, and they ate. Then they rose and went away that night.

The episode is also mentioned in the Book of Sirach (2nd cent. CE). Cf.

Before the time of his eternal sleep, Samuel bore witness before the Lord and his anointed: “No property, not so much as a pair of shoes, have I taken from anyone!” And no one accused him. Even after he had fallen asleep, he prophesied and made known to the king his death and lifted up his voice from the ground in prophecy, to blot out the lawlessness of the people. (Sirach 46:19-20).

Necromancy was a common practice in the Mediterranean world. The story of the Witch of Endor has a close parallel in the 11th book of the Odyssey. We are told that Odysseus followed the advice of Circe to consult Tiresias in Hades, the land of the dead. Odysseus sets out an offering of honey, milk, wine, water, and barley before slaughtering two sheep to add fresh blood to the meal. The souls of many then appear to him. The first to appear to Odysseus is Elpenor, his crew member who died prior to leaving Circe's island. Elpenor asks Odysseus to give him a proper burial, and Odysseus agrees. The next to appear to Odysseus is his mother, Anticlea. As Odysseus has been away fighting the Trojan War for nearly 20 years, he is surprised and saddened by the sight of her soul.

Tiresias, the soul whom Odysseus came to see, next appears to him. Tiresias gives him several pieces of information concerning his nostos (homecoming) and his life after. Tiresias details Poseidon's anger at Odysseus' blinding of Polyphemos (and the coming troubles as a consequence), warns Odysseus not to eat the livestock of the god Helios, and prophesies Odysseus' return home to Ithaca and his eventual death at sea at an old age. After Tiresias instructs Odysseus to allow the spirits he wants to talk to drink the sacrificial blood he used to find Tiresias, he is again given the chance to see his mother, and she tells him of the suffering of his family as they await his return home. As his mother leaves, Odysseus is then visited by a string of souls of past queens. He first sees Tyro, the mother of Pelias and Neleus by Poseidon.

He next talks to Antiope, the mother of Amphion and Zethus (the founders of Thebes) by Zeus. Then, he is visited by Alcmene, the mother of Heracles by Zeus, and Heracle's wife Megara. He is also visited by Epicaste, the mother of Oedipus, and Chloris, the queen of Pylos. Odysseus is then visited by Leda, the mother of Castor and Polydeuces and Iphimedeia, mother of the Aloadae by Poseidon. Odysseus then sees a list of women whom he only briefly mentions: Phaedra, Procris, Ariadne, Maera, Clymene, and Eriphyle, all also lovers of gods or heroes. Next to visit Odysseus is Agamemnon, the king of Mycenae. Agamemnon tells Odysseus of his death by his wife, Clytemnestra and her lover Aegisthus. He warns Odysseus to return to Ithaca in secret and be wary of his own wife.

Odysseus then encounters Achilles, who asks after the wellbeing of his father, Peleus, and his son, Neoptolemus. Odysseus reassures Achilles of his son's bravery in fighting the Trojans. Odysseus then begins seeing figures of dead souls who do not talk directly to him: Ajax, Minos, Orion, Tityos, Tantalus, and Sisyphus. Odysseus ends his visit with Heracles, who asks about Odysseus' intention in Hades. Odysseus begins to get fearful as he waits for more heroes and leaves.

From Polytheism to Monotheism

The Babylonian Exile marks the transition between polytheism and monotheism. The YHWH priests and prophets who were exiled, according the Caananite concepts should have stated to worship the god of Babylon, Marduk. They did not do it. They claimed that their god was not the god of Israel but the supreme, only God of the universe. YHWH and El were not two different gods but two different names of the only God.

God lives in Heaven, surrounded by "spirits." Inferior gods are transformed into "angels." God is present on earth thru his "angels" or "messengers" and is deeply involved in a covenantal relationship with humans. On the other hand, dumans communicate with God thru prophets and priests.

Initially, not much changed in the understanding of sheol with the transition to monotheism, except for the fact that the only God is not interested in the underworld. Sheol became an even sadder place, since the gods of the sheol disappeared and sheol became an empty space far way from the care of the only God YHWH Elohim. Living in the sheol was characterized more by God's absence than God's presence.

For Sheol cannot thank you [God], death cannot praise you; those who go down to the Pit cannot hope for your fauthfulness (Isa 38:18)

For in death there is no remembrance of you [God]; in sheol who can give your praise? (Ps 6:5)

YHWH remained the god of the living and the entire religious emphasis focused on life, not on the afterlife. Sheol was neither a place of reward nor of punishment, merely the final destination where the dead go. Life was seen as the only place and the only time in which humans could receive God's blessings (long life, family, children, goods, peaceful burial). The absence (or the loss) of blessing was seen as a punishment by God. This created the revolt of Job, as an innocent righteous person, who had to endure evil as a test of his righteousness.

People not only feared the idea of death but also the place itself. For a people who had only one God, the idea of being in an underground prison outside of that God's jurisdiction was devastating.

Attempts to suppress the Cult of the Dead

After the Babylonian exile, Jewish monotheism had to fight hard against the cult of the dead, which was (and remained) a significant part of Israelite popular religion. The argument against invoking the dead was precisely against invoking the gods of the Canaanites.

Any form of spirit cult or necromancy was strictly forbidden. While the communication with heaven was praised, any communication with the underworld was forbidden. Seers, sorcerers, witches, and diviners, any who cross the divide between living and dead, were denounced as evildoers. The Pentateuch violently denounced as idolatry any attempt to be in communication with the dead.

Deut 18:10-11

Deut 26:13-14

Lev 20:6

Lev 20:27

Among the prophecies of Isaiah are many sayings against the cult of the Dead:

I [God] spread out my hands ... to a rebellious people who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices ... who sits in tombs and spend the night in secret places; who eat swine's flesh and broth of abominable things in their vessels ... Behold ... I will not not keep silent (Isa 65:2-6).

Isa 8:19-22

Priests were even prevented from attending funerals, except for their close kin (Lev 2:1-5). They cannot indulge in ornate rituals of grief. (Lev 10:6; 19:27-28). The High Priest in particular is enjoined to even higher standards of abstention (Lev 21). Even today priests are not to have any contact with death. Priests do not touch corpses nor can they be in the immediate presence of the dead. This means that priests do not attend funerals, go to the cemetery or care for the dead. The only exception is for their closest relations (parents, siblings, wives, and children).

In spite of all their efforts, the campaign of the religious authorities was not entirely successful. The believe in ghosts and the Cult of the Dead were so much entrenched in everyday practices, that they remained strong in popular culture throughout the Second Temple and Rabbinic Periods, up to the present time.

Retribution After death (the Enoch tradition, 4th-3rd cent. BCE)

The idea that the same fate awaits both the righteous and the dead implies that God is in total control of this world and people receive retribution during their lifetime. Experience, however, shows that this is not always the case. If some suffering could be accepted as a test from God (Job), what about the death of "innocent" children and the misfortune of the righteous? This could be accepted as long as the emphasis was on the survival and prosperity of the family but gradually the emphasis shifted to the individual. The answer to the problem of evil was sought in a more complex view of the afterlife.

Besides, the existence of "evil spirits" was too strong to be easily suppressed. Illnesses and any kind of misfortunes were attributed to them. Who are they? Are they spirits of the dead or "ghosts"?

The Enoch tradition was the first that sought to provide an answer to these problems.

The Enoch tradition (Book of the Watchers) claimed that the evil spirits were not the spirits of the dead but were "demons". A rebellion of angels led a group of them to leave Heaven and take mortal women as wives (see Fallen Angels). They generated monsters ("giants") who corrupted the earth, so much so that God was forced to react. In an epic battle the fallen angels were defeated by the good angels and imprisoned in the "underworld." God then caused the Flood to kill their children, the giants. They died but their spirits survived and are dangerously roaming the earth causing any kind of trouble. It was an ingenious combination of ideas: the evil spirits are still "spirits of the dead", but not spirits of dead people, rather spirits of dead demons. Once again the idea that dead people could become "ghosts" or "evil spirits" is totally rejected. The "evil spirits" are not "ghosts" but "demons" and they are responsible for the presence of evil on earth.

Since the underworld was now the prison of the fallen angels (we could call it Hell), it was necessary to imagine a different "place" for the dead, which is now a "high mountain" in the west, at the extreme boundaries of the earth.

Since the process of retribution could not completed in a world that was seen under the dominion of evil forces, it had to be fulfilled after death. The righteous will find justice in the afterlife and then in the world to come, while the spirits of the wicked will live in darkness and punishment for eternity. In the western mountain there are four different valleys or caves. Three of these valleys are dark (reserved to the sinners), and one is illuminated by a spring of water (reserved to the righteous).

The first valley of the sinners is reserved to those whose sins went unpunished during their lifetime and now undergo bitter and tortuous punishment. The second place is reserved to sinners who suffered violent death and the final place is for sinners who have already received punishment for their sins during their lifetime. These two groups are not receiving punishment for their wrongdoings.

This arrangement is only temporarily, until the day of God's Last Judgment. We are not given details, however, about what will happen then and the final destiny of the dead. We may assume that the reward of the righteous is eternal life in the world to come (still not in Heaven), and eternal punishment is the destiny of the sinners but we are not said where and how they will be confined, whether they will live forever in eternal suffering or will be destroyed.

At the beginning these ideas were not accepted by everybody but gradually they became mainstream.

The Maccabean Revolt

How do you explain martyrdom? The experience of the Maccabean revolt (2nd century BCE) changed everything. The religious persecution by the Greek King Antiochus IV put the people of Israel under a paradoxical alternative: either to transgress God's covenant (and loose God's blessings), or to die in order to keep the covenant (and loose God's blessings, as well). Ideas of retribution after death, which originally were confined to marginal groups (see Books of Enoch), became mainstream. It had become obvious that in order to keep the concept of covenant, the idea of retribution after death should be accepted.

The book of 2 Maccabees so describes the persecution by Antioch IV:

The king sent an Athenian senator to compel the Jews to forsake the laws of their fathers and cease to live by the laws of God, [2] and also to pollute the temple in Jerusalem and call it the temple of Olympian Zeus... [5] The altar was covered with abominable offerings which were forbidden by the laws. [6] A man could neither keep the sabbath, nor observe the feasts of his fathers, nor so much as confess himself to be a Jew. [7] On the monthly celebration of the king's birthday, the Jews were taken, under bitter constraint, to partake of the sacrifices; and when the feast of Dionysus came, they were compelled to walk in the procession in honor of Dionysus, wearing wreaths of ivy. [8] At the suggestion of Ptolemy a decree was issued to the neighboring Greek cities, that they should adopt the same policy toward the Jews and make them partake of the sacrifices, [9] and should slay those who did not choose to change over to Greek customs. One could see, therefore, the misery that had come upon them. [10] For example, two women were brought in for having circumcised their children. These women they publicly paraded about the city, with their babies hung at their breasts, then hurled them down headlong from the wall. [11] Others who had assembled in the caves near by, to observe the seventh day secretly, were betrayed to Philip and were all burned together, because their piety kept them from defending themselves, in view of their regard for that most holy day.

However, death is no longer presented as an obstacle to God's retribution. Suffering is a test and martyrdom is not a punishment but an act of piety that will bring reward in the world to come. "God does not forsake his own people."

[12] Now I urge those who read this book not to be depressed by such calamities, but to recognize that these punishments were designed not to destroy but to discipline our people. [13] In fact, not to let the impious alone for long, but to punish them immediately, is a sign of great kindness. [14] For in the case of the other nations the Lord waits patiently to punish them until they have reached the full measure of their sins; but he does not deal in this way with us [15] in order that he may not take vengeance on us afterward when our sins have reached their height. [16] Therefore he never withdraws his mercy from us. Though he disciplines us with calamities, he does not forsake his own people.

As an example of this new view the story of seven brothers and their mother is told. It contains explicit references to afterlife retribution.

[1] It happened also that seven brothers and their mother were arrested and were being compelled by the king, under torture with whips and cords, to partake of unlawful swine's flesh. [2] One of them, acting as their spokesman, said, "What do you intend to ask and learn from us? For we are ready to die rather than transgress the laws of our fathers." [3] The king fell into a rage, and gave orders that pans and caldrons be heated. [4] These were heated immediately, and he commanded that the tongue of their spokesman be cut out and that they scalp him and cut off his hands and feet, while the rest of the brothers and the mother looked on. [5] When he was utterly helpless, the king ordered them to take him to the fire, still breathing, and to fry him in a pan. The smoke from the pan spread widely, but the brothers and their mother encouraged one another to die nobly, saying, [6] "The Lord God is watching over us and in truth has compassion on us, as Moses declared in his song which bore witness against the people to their faces, when he said, `And he will have compassion on his servants.'" [7] After the first brother had died in this way, they brought forward the second for their sport. They tore off the skin of his head with the hair, and asked him, "Will you eat rather than have your body punished limb by limb?" [8] He replied in the language of his fathers, and said to them, "No." Therefore he in turn underwent tortures as the first brother had done. [9] And when he was at his last breath, he said, "You accursed wretch, you dismiss us from this present life, but the King of the universe will raise us up to an everlasting renewal of life, because we have died for his laws." [10] After him, the third was the victim of their sport. When it was demanded, he quickly put out his tongue and courageously stretched forth his hands, [11] and said nobly, "I got these from Heaven, and because of his laws I disdain them, and from him I hope to get them back again." [12] As a result the king himself and those with him were astonished at the young man's spirit, for he regarded his sufferings as nothing. [13] When he too had died, they maltreated and tortured the fourth in the same way. [14] And when he was near death, he said, "One cannot but choose to die at the hands of men and to cherish the hope that God gives of being raised again by him. But for you there will be no resurrection to life!" [15] Next they brought forward the fifth and maltreated him. [16] But he looked at the king, and said, "Because you have authority among men, mortal though you are, you do what you please. But do not think that God has forsaken our people. [17] Keep on, and see how his mighty power will torture you and your descendants!" [18] After him they brought forward the sixth. And when he was about to die, he said, "Do not deceive yourself in vain. For we are suffering these things on our own account, because of our sins against our own God. Therefore astounding things have happened.[19] But do not think that you will go unpunished for having tried to fight against God!" [20] The mother was especially admirable and worthy of honorable memory. Though she saw her seven sons perish within a single day, she bore it with good courage because of her hope in the Lord. [21] She encouraged each of them in the language of their fathers. Filled with a noble spirit, she fired her woman's reasoning with a man's courage, and said to them, [22] "I do not know how you came into being in my womb. It was not I who gave you life and breath, nor I who set in order the elements within each of you. [23] Therefore the Creator of the world, who shaped the beginning of man and devised the origin of all things, will in his mercy give life and breath back to you again, since you now forget yourselves for the sake of his laws." [24] Antiochus felt that he was being treated with contempt, and he was suspicious of her reproachful tone. The youngest brother being still alive, Antiochus not only appealed to him in words, but promised with oaths that he would make him rich and enviable if he would turn from the ways of his fathers, and that he would take him for his friend and entrust him with public affairs. [25] Since the young man would not listen to him at all, the king called the mother to him and urged her to advise the youth to save himself. [26] After much urging on his part, she undertook to persuade her son. [27] But, leaning close to him, she spoke in their native tongue as follows, deriding the cruel tyrant: "My son, have pity on me. I carried you nine months in my womb, and nursed you for three years, and have reared you and brought you up to this point in your life, and have taken care of you. [28] I beseech you, my child, to look at the heaven and the earth and see everything that is in them, and recognize that God did not make them out of things that existed. Thus also mankind comes into being. [29] Do not fear this butcher, but prove worthy of your brothers. Accept death, so that in God's mercy I may get you back again with your brothers." [30] While she was still speaking, the young man said, "What are you waiting for? I will not obey the king's command, but I obey the command of the law that was given to our fathers through Moses. [31] But you, who have contrived all sorts of evil against the Hebrews, will certainly not escape the hands of God. [32] For we are suffering because of our own sins. [33] And if our living Lord is angry for a little while, to rebuke and discipline us, he will again be reconciled with his own servants. [34] But you, unholy wretch, you most defiled of all men, do not be elated in vain and puffed up by uncertain hopes, when you raise your hand against the children of heaven. [35] You have not yet escaped the judgment of the almighty, all-seeing God. [36] For our brothers after enduring a brief suffering have drunk of everflowing life under God's covenant; but you, by the judgment of God, will receive just punishment for your arrogance. [37] I, like my brothers, give up body and life for the laws of our fathers, appealing to God to show mercy soon to our nation and by afflictions and plagues to make you confess that he alone is God, [38] and through me and my brothers to bring to an end the wrath of the Almighty which has justly fallen on our whole nation." [39] The king fell into a rage, and handled him worse than the others, being exasperated at his scorn. [40] So he died in his integrity, putting his whole trust in the Lord. [41] Last of all, the mother died, after her sons.

From an Enochic perspective (Book of Dream Visions) martyrdom was not a problem as the righteous are aware to live in an evil and corrupted world, but in a covenantal perspective this was not acceptable. The belief in afterlife retribution confirmed the covenant, rejecting the Enochic idea that the universe was a place of iniquity, no longer under God's control. It also confirmed the idea of suffering as a test (like in Job) but eliminating any possible contradiction as retribution is no longer verifiable thru experience.

Daniel (2nd cent. BCE)

Daniel 3

3 King Nebuchadnezzar made a golden statue whose height was sixty cubits and whose width was six cubits; he set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. 2 Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent for the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces, to assemble and come to the dedication of the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. 3 So the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces, assembled for the dedication of the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. When they were standing before the statue that Nebuchadnezzar had set up, 4 the herald proclaimed aloud, “You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, 5 that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, drum, and entire musical ensemble, you are to fall down and worship the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. 6 Whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire.” 7 Therefore, as soon as all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, drum, and entire musical ensemble, all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the golden statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

8 Accordingly, at this time certain Chaldeans came forward and denounced the Jews. 9 They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! 10 You, O king, have made a decree, that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, drum, and entire musical ensemble, shall fall down and worship the golden statue, 11 and whoever does not fall down and worship shall be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire. 12 There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These pay no heed to you, O king. They do not serve your gods and they do not worship the golden statue that you have set up.”

13 Then Nebuchadnezzar in furious rage commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought in; so they brought those men before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods and you do not worship the golden statue that I have set up? 15 Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, drum, and entire musical ensemble to fall down and worship the statue that I have made, well and good.[a] But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire, and who is the god that will deliver you out of my hands?”

16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to present a defense to you in this matter. 17 If our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire and out of your hand, O king, let him deliver us.[b] 18 But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods and we will not worship the golden statue that you have set up.”

The Fiery Furnace 19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was so filled with rage against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that his face was distorted. He ordered the furnace heated up seven times more than was customary, 20 and ordered some of the strongest guards in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and to throw them into the furnace of blazing fire. 21 So the men were bound, still wearing their tunics,[c] their trousers,[d] their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the furnace of blazing fire. 22 Because the king’s command was urgent and the furnace was so overheated, the raging flames killed the men who lifted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. 23 But the three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down, bound, into the furnace of blazing fire.

24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up quickly. He said to his counselors, “Was it not three men that we threw bound into the fire?” They answered the king, “True, O king.” 25 He replied, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the fourth has the appearance of a god.”[e] 26 Nebuchadnezzar then approached the door of the furnace of blazing fire and said, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!” So Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire. 27 And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men; the hair of their heads was not singed, their tunics[f] were not harmed, and not even the smell of fire came from them. 28 Nebuchadnezzar said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants who trusted in him. They disobeyed the king’s command and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God. 29 Therefore I make a decree: Any people, nation, or language that utters blasphemy against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins; for there is no other god who is able to deliver in this way.” 30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

Daniel 6

The Plot against Daniel 6 It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom one hundred twenty satraps, stationed throughout the whole kingdom, 2 and over them three presidents, including Daniel; to these the satraps gave account, so that the king might suffer no loss. 3 Soon Daniel distinguished himself above all the other presidents and satraps because an excellent spirit was in him, and the king planned to appoint him over the whole kingdom. 4 So the presidents and the satraps tried to find grounds for complaint against Daniel in connection with the kingdom. But they could find no grounds for complaint or any corruption, because he was faithful, and no negligence or corruption could be found in him. 5 The men said, “We shall not find any ground for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God.”

6 So the presidents and satraps conspired and came to the king and said to him, “O King Darius, live forever! 7 All the presidents of the kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the counselors and the governors are agreed that the king should establish an ordinance and enforce an interdict, that whoever prays to anyone, divine or human, for thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be thrown into a den of lions. 8 Now, O king, establish the interdict and sign the document, so that it cannot be changed, according to the law of the Medes and the Persians, which cannot be revoked.” 9 Therefore King Darius signed the document and interdict.

Daniel in the Lions’ Den 10 Although Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he continued to go to his house, which had windows in its upper room open toward Jerusalem, and to get down on his knees three times a day to pray to his God and praise him, just as he had done previously. 11 The conspirators came and found Daniel praying and seeking mercy before his God. 12 Then they approached the king and said concerning the interdict, “O king! Did you not sign an interdict, that anyone who prays to anyone, divine or human, within thirty days except to you, O king, shall be thrown into a den of lions?” The king answered, “The thing stands fast, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be revoked.” 13 Then they responded to the king, “Daniel, one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, O king, or to the interdict you have signed, but he is saying his prayers three times a day.”

14 When the king heard the charge, he was very much distressed. He was determined to save Daniel, and until the sun went down he made every effort to rescue him. 15 Then the conspirators came to the king and said to him, “Know, O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no interdict or ordinance that the king establishes can be changed.”

16 Then the king gave the command, and Daniel was brought and thrown into the den of lions. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you faithfully serve, deliver you!” 17 A stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet of his lords, so that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel. 18 Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; no food was brought to him, and sleep fled from him.

Daniel Saved from the Lions 19 Then, at break of day, the king got up and hurried to the den of lions. 20 When he came near the den where Daniel was, he cried out anxiously to Daniel, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God whom you faithfully serve been able to deliver you from the lions?” 21 Daniel then said to the king, “O king, live forever! 22 My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths so that they would not hurt me, because I was found blameless before him; and also before you, O king, I have done no wrong.” 23 Then the king was exceedingly glad and commanded that Daniel be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God. 24 The king gave a command, and those who had accused Daniel were brought and thrown into the den of lions—they, their children, and their wives. Before they reached the bottom of the den the lions overpowered them and broke all their bones in pieces.

25 Then King Darius wrote to all peoples and nations of every language throughout the whole world: “May you have abundant prosperity! 26 I make a decree, that in all my royal dominion people should tremble and fear before the God of Daniel:

For he is the living God, enduring forever. His kingdom shall never be destroyed, and his dominion has no end. 27 He delivers and rescues, he works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth; for he has saved Daniel from the power of the lions.”

28 So this Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.

The Maccabean crisis

"Whoever does not obey the commandment of the King shall die. (1 Macc 1:50).

What happens if you are not protected by God and you actually die?

In covenantal term, it can only mean that you are guilty.

====1 Maccabees

1:10 From them came forth a sinful root, Antiochus Epiphanes, son of King Antiochus; he had been a hostage in Rome. He began to reign in the one hundred thirty-seventh year of the kingdom of the Greeks.

11 In those days certain renegades came out from Israel and misled many, saying, “Let us go and make a covenant with the Gentiles around us, for since we separated from them many disasters have come upon us.” 12 This proposal pleased them, 13 and some of the people eagerly went to the king, who authorized them to observe the ordinances of the Gentiles. 14 So they built a gymnasium in Jerusalem, according to Gentile custom, 15 and removed the marks of circumcision, and abandoned the holy covenant. They joined with the Gentiles and sold themselves to do evil. ...

20 After subduing Egypt, Antiochus returned in the one hundred forty-third year.[c] He went up against Israel and came to Jerusalem with a strong force. 21 He arrogantly entered the sanctuary and took the golden altar, the lampstand for the light, and all its utensils. 22 He took also the table for the bread of the Presence, the cups for drink offerings, the bowls, the golden censers, the curtain, the crowns, and the gold decoration on the front of the temple; he stripped it all off. 23 He took the silver and the gold, and the costly vessels; he took also the hidden treasures that he found.

41 Then the king wrote to his whole kingdom that all should be one people, 42 and that all should give up their particular customs. 43 All the Gentiles accepted the command of the king. Many even from Israel gladly adopted his religion; they sacrificed to idols and profaned the sabbath. 44 And the king sent letters by messengers to Jerusalem and the towns of Judah; he directed them to follow customs strange to the land, 45 to forbid burnt offerings and sacrifices and drink offerings in the sanctuary, to profane sabbaths and festivals, 46 to defile the sanctuary and the priests, 47 to build altars and sacred precincts and shrines for idols, to sacrifice swine and other unclean animals, 48 and to leave their sons uncircumcised. They were to make themselves abominable by everything unclean and profane, 49 so that they would forget the law and change all the ordinances. 50 He added,[e] “And whoever does not obey the command of the king shall die.”

51 In such words he wrote to his whole kingdom. He appointed inspectors over all the people and commanded the towns of Judah to offer sacrifice, town by town. 52 Many of the people, everyone who forsook the law, joined them, and they did evil in the land; 53 they drove Israel into hiding in every place of refuge they had.

54 Now on the fifteenth day of Chislev, in the one hundred forty-fifth year,[f] they erected a desolating sacrilege on the altar of burnt offering. They also built altars in the surrounding towns of Judah, 55 and offered incense at the doors of the houses and in the streets. 56 The books of the law that they found they tore to pieces and burned with fire. 57 Anyone found possessing the book of the covenant, or anyone who adhered to the law, was condemned to death by decree of the king. 58 They kept using violence against Israel, against those who were found month after month in the towns. 59 On the twenty-fifth day of the month they offered sacrifice on the altar that was on top of the altar of burnt offering. 60 According to the decree, they put to death the women who had their children circumcised, 61 and their families and those who circumcised them; and they hung the infants from their mothers’ necks.

62 But many in Israel stood firm and were resolved in their hearts not to eat unclean food. 63 They chose to die rather than to be defiled by food or to profane the holy covenant; and they did die. 64 Very great wrath came upon Israel.

2 Maccabees

The Persecution of the Jews

6:7 On the monthly celebration of the king’s birthday, the Jews[c] were taken, under bitter constraint, to partake of the sacrifices; and when a festival of Dionysus was celebrated, they were compelled to wear wreaths of ivy and to walk in the procession in honor of Dionysus. 8 At the suggestion of the people of Ptolemais[d] a decree was issued to the neighboring Greek cities that they should adopt the same policy toward the Jews and make them partake of the sacrifices, 9 and should kill those who did not choose to change over to Greek customs. One could see, therefore, the misery that had come upon them. 10 For example, two women were brought in for having circumcised their children. They publicly paraded them around the city, with their babies hanging at their breasts, and then hurled them down headlong from the wall. 11 Others who had assembled in the caves nearby, in order to observe the seventh day secretly, were betrayed to Philip and were all burned together, because their piety kept them from defending themselves, in view of their regard for that most holy day.

Providential Significance of the Persecution

12 Now I urge those who read this book not to be depressed by such calamities, but to recognize that these punishments were designed not to destroy but to discipline our people. 13 In fact, it is a sign of great kindness not to let the impious alone for long, but to punish them immediately. 14 For in the case of the other nations the Lord waits patiently to punish them until they have reached the full measure of their sins; but he does not deal in this way with us, 15 in order that he may not take vengeance on us afterward when our sins have reached their height. 16 Therefore he never withdraws his mercy from us. Although he disciplines us with calamities, he does not forsake his own people. 17 Let what we have said serve as a reminder; we must go on briefly with the story.

The Martyrdom of Seven Brothers

7:1 It happened also that seven brothers and their mother were arrested and were being compelled by the king, under torture with whips and thongs, to partake of unlawful swine’s flesh. 2 One of them, acting as their spokesman, said, “What do you intend to ask and learn from us? For we are ready to die rather than transgress the laws of our ancestors.”

3 The king fell into a rage, and gave orders to have pans and caldrons heated. 4 These were heated immediately, and he commanded that the tongue of their spokesman be cut out and that they scalp him and cut off his hands and feet, while the rest of the brothers and the mother looked on. 5 When he was utterly helpless, the king[a] ordered them to take him to the fire, still breathing, and to fry him in a pan. The smoke from the pan spread widely, but the brothers[b] and their mother encouraged one another to die nobly, saying, 6 “The Lord God is watching over us and in truth has compassion on us, as Moses declared in his song that bore witness against the people to their faces, when he said, ‘And he will have compassion on his servants.’”[c]

7 After the first brother had died in this way, they brought forward the second for their sport. They tore off the skin of his head with the hair, and asked him, “Will you eat rather than have your body punished limb by limb?” 8 He replied in the language of his ancestors and said to them, “No.” Therefore he in turn underwent tortures as the first brother had done. 9 And when he was at his last breath, he said, “You accursed wretch, you dismiss us from this present life, but the King of the universe will raise us up to an everlasting renewal of life, because we have died for his laws.”

10 After him, the third was the victim of their sport. When it was demanded, he quickly put out his tongue and courageously stretched forth his hands, 11 and said nobly, “I got these from Heaven, and because of his laws I disdain them, and from him I hope to get them back again.” 12 As a result the king himself and those with him were astonished at the young man’s spirit, for he regarded his sufferings as nothing.

13 After he too had died, they maltreated and tortured the fourth in the same way. 14 When he was near death, he said, “One cannot but choose to die at the hands of mortals and to cherish the hope God gives of being raised again by him. But for you there will be no resurrection to life!”

15 Next they brought forward the fifth and maltreated him. 16 But he looked at the king,[d] and said, “Because you have authority among mortals, though you also are mortal, you do what you please. But do not think that God has forsaken our people. 17 Keep on, and see how his mighty power will torture you and your descendants!”

18 After him they brought forward the sixth. And when he was about to die, he said, “Do not deceive yourself in vain. For we are suffering these things on our own account, because of our sins against our own God. Therefore[e] astounding things have happened. 19 But do not think that you will go unpunished for having tried to fight against God!”

20 The mother was especially admirable and worthy of honorable memory. Although she saw her seven sons perish within a single day, she bore it with good courage because of her hope in the Lord. 21 She encouraged each of them in the language of their ancestors. Filled with a noble spirit, she reinforced her woman’s reasoning with a man’s courage, and said to them, 22 “I do not know how you came into being in my womb. It was not I who gave you life and breath, nor I who set in order the elements within each of you. 23 Therefore the Creator of the world, who shaped the beginning of humankind and devised the origin of all things, will in his mercy give life and breath back to you again, since you now forget yourselves for the sake of his laws.”

24 Antiochus felt that he was being treated with contempt, and he was suspicious of her reproachful tone. The youngest brother being still alive, Antiochus[f] not only appealed to him in words, but promised with oaths that he would make him rich and enviable if he would turn from the ways of his ancestors, and that he would take him for his Friend and entrust him with public affairs. 25 Since the young man would not listen to him at all, the king called the mother to him and urged her to advise the youth to save himself. 26 After much urging on his part, she undertook to persuade her son. 27 But, leaning close to him, she spoke in their native language as follows, deriding the cruel tyrant: “My son, have pity on me. I carried you nine months in my womb, and nursed you for three years, and have reared you and brought you up to this point in your life, and have taken care of you.[g] 28 I beg you, my child, to look at the heaven and the earth and see everything that is in them, and recognize that God did not make them out of things that existed.[h] And in the same way the human race came into being. 29 Do not fear this butcher, but prove worthy of your brothers. Accept death, so that in God’s mercy I may get you back again along with your brothers.”

30 While she was still speaking, the young man said, “What are you[i] waiting for? I will not obey the king’s command, but I obey the command of the law that was given to our ancestors through Moses. 31 But you,[j] who have contrived all sorts of evil against the Hebrews, will certainly not escape the hands of God. 32 For we are suffering because of our own sins. 33 And if our living Lord is angry for a little while, to rebuke and discipline us, he will again be reconciled with his own servants.[k] 34 But you, unholy wretch, you most defiled of all mortals, do not be elated in vain and puffed up by uncertain hopes, when you raise your hand against the children of heaven. 35 You have not yet escaped the judgment of the almighty, all-seeing God. 36 For our brothers after enduring a brief suffering have drunk[l] of ever-flowing life, under God’s covenant; but you, by the judgment of God, will receive just punishment for your arrogance. 37 I, like my brothers, give up body and life for the laws of our ancestors, appealing to God to show mercy soon to our nation and by trials and plagues to make you confess that he alone is God, 38 and through me and my brothers to bring to an end the wrath of the Almighty that has justly fallen on our whole nation.”

39 The king fell into a rage, and handled him worse than the others, being exasperated at his scorn. 40 So he died in his integrity, putting his whole trust in the Lord.

41 Last of all, the mother died, after her sons.

42 Let this be enough, then, about the eating of sacrifices and the extreme tortures.