What Does the Bible Say About Ghosts and Life After Death?
God’s word is absolutely amazing. When I was young, I never read the Bible. My family had an ancient copy of the Bible sitting on a shelf in the basement - you know the one with the pages made of some kind of tissue-like substance that you can’t flip over without ripping it? Plus, I’m pretty sure it was a King James version, so we couldn’t understand what was being said anyway.
The result was that I grew up extremely ignorant about God, and life in general. Fortunately the Lord reached out to me (as he does to everyone : ) and pointed out how relevant and “real” his word is.
I had no idea that the Bible discussed all the real-life issues that it does. For example, I was reading Luke chapter 16. The Bible specifically covers whether there are ghosts. It’s right there in “black-and-white,” folks, so if any of us are a believer, yet still watch that garbage on TV about ghosts and spirits, check this verse out about what the Bible says about the existence of Ghosts
Ta da! One less thing we have to wonder about. Thanks for dropping by. Tell me your take on it in the comments section below and have a blessed day!
PS - I was checking out my favorite movie review site for secular critics take on the Da Vinci Code. The consensus… “it sucks!”
Great article! But if you ever feel like refreshing it you might want to continue with Luke 16:27-31. It’s pretty informative also.
The conversation is between the rich man in hell and Abraham(long since dead at the time) in heaven. The chasm Abraham speaks of is obviously between heaven and hell. So this really says nothing about the existence, one way or the other, of ghosts.
I’m interested in what the Bible says about ghosts, and the phenomenon that surrounds what people refer to as ghosts. Though the passage you listed here, really doesn’t say anything about ghosts. You might read later on in Luke when Jesus says, “Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” Luke 24:30. He speaks as if there is something that excites that’s a “ghost”. Now what that is, I don’t know. You could look up the verse in Greek and Hebrew, but I don’t know if that would give any straight answers. I think the point you were trying to make is that there are no ghosts because everyone either goes to Heaven or hell. But I think people make rash judgment when they think the ghost phenomenon can only be the result of lost human spirits. It’s like, I see something I don’t know what it is in the sky, it has to be alien from some far off planet. Ghosts could really be demons, they could be angels, they could be some freak natural assurance.
And also, with the idea of life after death. I think that needs to be looked at closer as well. Jews had a very vague idea of what the after-life was, and even earlier one they didn’t necessarily even have one. Even throughout Christianity, the idea of what happens after death has changed a lot. Today’s mainstream Hollywood idea is that, we die and either go to Heaven or hell, and that’s it. But regardless of what happens initially, the Bible tells us that one day we will rise from the dead, and be judged. We will have new bodies, and that there will be a new earth created and we’ll live in it. So the end result isn’t Heaven, its the new earth. Now for ghosts, who knows. I really need to look into this more, but I’ve gotten different answers from different people. I believe there is some sort of phenomenon out there from personal experience, I also believe that there’s a lot of things out there that we don’t know about, or can explain. And that’s alright, because maybe we shouldn’t worry about it. Because, after all, it’s all in God’s hands, right?
Yes, the passage only talks about the chasm between Paradise and Hell. Not the earth and living beings/dead beings.
Jesus did tell the men in the boat “I am not a ghost”, but there is no elaboration on what a ghost is in that scripture. Personally, I think what most people believe are ghosts is simply evil spirits playing tricks on people. We tend to forget that Satan is not in hell YET. He is wandering around on the earth. It stands to reason the other angels (wasn’t it one third?) that were kicked out with him are also wandering the earth.
If the demons can convince people Heaven is a fallacy by confusing them with apparitions that look like deceased people, that is part of their mission. They don’t want people believing in God and reading the word and praying. So they do things like make themselves look like dead people “haunting” places, to confuse others. Remember that angels, both those of God and those who rebelled against God, are NOT human. They aren’t going to appear as themselves to most people. So they take on the form of a benign spirit to fool people, and when they can’t fool them, they do things like haunt people and play tricks on people, sometimes even harming them physically.
It’s another of Satan’s games. Don’t fall for it.
I didn’t really get what this verse had to say about the existance of ghost or what the bible has to say about this concept. I think that you should find a more understanding verse so that i can get help with my religous views on ghost/spirits.
Well put Michele! I began my research to see what the Bible had to say when a family member said that she was visited by our deceased Grandmother. She said Grandmother spoke to her and gave her information about another family member.
As a Christian, I knew that I needed to get into the Word (Bible) to see what God had to say about this. It was very clear! Stay away from witchcraft, soothsayers, those who interpret omens, sorcerers, those who conjure spells, mediums, spiritist or those who call up the dead. (Deu. 18:10-13) It is an abomination to the Lord.
Satan is into confusing those who turn to these people/practices and that is exactly what they get…confused. There is definitely a spirit world, just read Ephesians 6:10-20. Christians just need to remember that the Spirit they need to concentrate on is the Holy Spirit and if they do ever see a ghost/spirit…speak it away in the name of Jesus Christ.
http://www.arrowsforthelord.blogspot.com
Okay - sorry folks. I was wondering how so many of you all missed what I was talking about, but that was because I cut the passage off too early.
Here is what was left out.
Note here they use “rises from the dead”, like people rose from the dead as Jesus performed miracles, or Jesus rising from the dead. They do not talk about ghosts. So while it might be trendy or cool, there are no ghosts of people formerly on this earth. Just demons… scary ones… with bad breath…
Know what the funniest part about this post is? This is the most conversation we’ve had on any post to date. If someone is a spiritual seeker, I am juiced that you came by - great stuff and hope to see you again. Keep asking questions.
However… If you are a believer in Christ, why is it Christians are more interested in ghosts and angels than in Jesus Christ?
He is talking about what people call ghost.I never believed in ghost,but thats what there called.even though i no once your dead your dead.You dont float around on earth.You either go to heaven or hell.Its demons that are going around potraying themselfs as ghost/dead people.If a demon would show his true self to all these ghost fanatics,mediums,pysics and so forth.They would stop.The bible makes it very clear.When dead you go up or down.So with that being said.Its demons tricking people.
I came upon this website when searching what the bible says about ghost.
Why does the word ghost even exist in the bible if there is no such thing? Why is it called holy ghost, to me it is naming of which ghost they refer to, meaning there are others. If people think the research people do is garbage then they do not have an opened mind. To believe in God or the holy spirit you must have an open mind, have you ever seen God or have you seen the holy spirit or have you ever seen an angel with wings? If you have then I would think that is a part of a paranormal experience, it is not every day people see such things. I believe when people read the bible they have their own beliefs on what it truly means. How can you believe in Demons and not believe in ghost, does that mean you do not believe in the Holy Ghost? The meaning of ghost is as follows;
1.The spirit of a dead person, especially one believed to appear in bodily likeness to living persons or to haunt former habitats.
2.The center of spiritual life; the soul.
3. A demon or spirit.
So if you believe in Demons you must believe in ghost.
I have seen a ghost or apparition what ever term fits and I have heard voices on recordings that I have made. If they were not ghost then what were they. I do not believe they were of a Demonic nature because not harm was ever done.
I don’t deny anyone their personal beliefs, but I wish people would open their minds more when it comes to the research concerning the paranormal activity known as ghost.
In my opinion, ghosts/spirits exist…according to my research in the Bible. I have an entry on my blog that lists all the scriptures that I could find in the Bible dealing with ghost & familiar spirits.
In a nutshell…we should stay away from trying to interact with spirits of any kind. The only Spirit we should interact with is the Holy Spirit.
Having an open mind is important, but can also get you into trouble if you are not grounded in your beliefs.
Let me know what you think after studying the scriptures on my blog. It really opened my eyes to what God expects from us and our interactions with the paranormal.
On to my blog, then to labels, find Growing Spiritually, then scroll down to: “Ghosts? Are they real? What Does the Bible Say?”
Blessings ~ Jennifer
I was utterly THRILLED to find this website! I have been raised in a Christian family and am TOTALLY in love with the Lord. But….most every woman in my family has had multiple experiences with apparitions, disembodied voices, etc., for generations, including myself. It is far more difficult to disregard or ignore such matters as ghosts when one has seen them. And as a Christian, even searching the Holy Word of God, there are still gaping holes between the answers and the questions. I will add here that I remember my grandmother quoting her mother as saying, “…you must ask them, ‘what in the name of the Father,Son, and Holy Spirit do you want?” I haven;t really remained in an unnatural presence long enough to ask that question but perhaps some day I will.
Hey Piper. Thanks for dropping by.
As a guy, I was completely unaware of the struggle most women have with discernment so far as supernatural apparitions until I had many, many women share this with me. Most still do on some level.
The problem is when people see ghosts, etc. and then decide they are the spirit of a former person on earth. Satan has been given full ability here to do whatever he wants. Relying on the physical will always lead to ruin for a believer in Christ - and most of what people call “spiritual” when they talk about such subjects is actually physical because it is always something they saw or felt. Limiting oneself to that leaves us entirely vulnerable to missing the Lord’s will because we cut off most of the ways we hear from him and close it off to only those things that are carnal.
I really wonder about this subject. Some passages do seem to say people could be stuck here. The mere fact that the world is not perfect and sin can cause what is supposed to happen, not happen. Like when everyone talks about the Greenhouse affect, I think that’s true but it’s caused by us just being here. It should be called the Sin affect.
I must say that I agree with Tkay and Piper. I have a strong relationship with my Heavenly Father. In our limited and earthly knowledge, we may broadly label a spirit a ghost, whether it is malevolent or benign. To suggest all spirits are agents acting on behalf of Satan is to deny those “spirits” that act on our behalf. The Bible is filled with stories of angels coming to the aid of those on Earth, providing protection, information, warning…etc. These angels (apparitions) “appeared” before various characters of the Bible in order to carry out God’s will. I believe the Holy Spirit gives us the gift of discernment so that we are NOT fooled by the enemy. We must be firmly rooted in our beliefs, and stand firm in our conviction as Christians in order to withstand the vices of Satan. Ephesians 6:10-18 speaks to this. My own experiences have convinced me that there is so much we cannot be certain of until we meet our Savior face to face. In the meantime, we must rely upon God’s Word and walk by faith, not by sight.
I just still think it’s funny that 99% of the comments left by women on this blog are on this one post - love where the conversation is going so thanks to all.
Lynn, what passages say people are stuck on earth in spiritual form?