Tag: Purgatory
Purge Purgatory: 89 biblical reasons to flush it
March 26, 2023
Introduction
This article was originally published on 8.25.2015 and is now being updated.
Its important to know that this article is not coming to you by way of:
- personal opinions
- denominational bias
- complex and confusing theological theories
but through multiple objective authorities, such as biblical or English dictionaries, ancient Greek manuscripts or the laws of logic that are all in agreement.
Some say that purgatory does not exist and they have a list of bible verses against purgatory. Others, [mostly composed of staunch Roman Catholics of course], say that purgatory does exist and try to prove it [see the list of bible verses used to support purgatory in section #17].
Others have asked, where is purgatory in bible or where is purgatory in bible verses? This research article will definitely answer those questions!
Nearly everybody has heard of purgatory, but what is it and are you ever going there? Let’s find out!
Definition of purgatory
noun, plural purgatories.
1. [in the belief of Roman Catholics and some others] a condition or place in which the souls of those dying penitent are purified from venial sins, or undergo the temporal punishment that, after the guilt of mortal sin has been remitted, still remains to be endured by the sinner.
2. Italian Purgatorio: the second part of Dante’s Divine Comedy, in which the repentant sinners are represented.
3. any condition or place of temporary punishment, suffering, expiation, or similarity.
So purgatory is based upon the belief that when you die, your soul lives on for the purpose of being cleansed from your sins = the usual false belief that you go to heaven when you die.
- Purgatory is never mentioned in the bible, in word or concept!
- Purgatory contradicts well over 100 verses of holy scripture on multiple subjects!
- One of the devil’s purposes of purgatory is to drive people away from Christianity which hinders evangelism.
BIBLICAL & SPIRITUAL SUMMARY
- The origin and history of purgatory proves it was invented by man!
- Mortal and venial sins render purgatory irrelevant, meaningless and useless!
- Purgatory contradicts at least 10 verses of scripture on the true nature of death
- Purgatory contradicts the true nature of body, soul and spirit and the fall of man [Genesis 3:1-6 | Ecclesiastes 12:7 | Isaiah 43:7 | I Thessalonians 5:23]
- The practice of praying for the dead and/or believing in the lie of the dead making prayers not only contradicts the 10+ bible verses on death, but it’s also based upon a lie from II Maccabees, [another counterfeit apocryphal book] and a mistranslation of a Hebrew word from I Baruch [another apocryphal book that counterfeits the bible].
- Purgatory violates 7 verses on God’s forgiveness of us!
- Purgatory does not make the crucial distinction between our fellowship with God and our sonship
- Purgatory contradicts all 8 characteristics of God’s wisdom!
- Purgatory contradicts and totally ignores 28+ verses on the mercy of the Lord which endures forever!
- Purgatory violates at least 7 verses on God’s justice!
- Purgatory violates United Nations Human rights, 42 U.S. Code § 2000dd of the US Government and the UNITED STATES constitution!!!
- Purgatory contradicts 6 verses in Ephesians!
- Purgatory contradicts lots of miscellaneous scriptures!
- Purgatory contradicts 4 verses regarding our new spiritual bodies at the return of Christ
- Don’t blame the Lord! You must understand the Hebrew idiom of permission [a figure of speech] where God ALLOWS evil to happen, but he is not the one who is actually causing harm. You see this very often in the old testament, such as with Genesis 6:13 & 17. In the time of Noah, God did not flood the earth! He allowed it to happen. It was the devil who flooded the earth in a failed attempt to prevent Jesus Christ from being born! So as with purgatory, its not a temporary punishment sanctioned by the Lord that you must endure, but its a religious and corrupt work of Satan instead.
- Purgatory: self righteousness vs the righteousness of God
- Purgatory is torture and torture is inspired by a devil spirit called a sadistic spirit.
- The short list of verses used to justify the supposed existence of purgatory is based upon: denominational bias | ignorance of several subjects in the bible | the contradiction of the definitions of dozens of words in the bible | a total lack of sound logic and biblical research from multiple objective authorities
- Witness the mathematical miracle of I Corinthians 3:12 that proves God is the only author of the bible!
#1 THE ORIGIN AND HISTORY OF PURGATORY PROVES IT WAS INVENTED BY MAN!
Subsection #1: Purgatory is contested…
Christian traditions [Encyclopedia Britannica, the oldest (since 1768, Edinburgh Scotland), largest (except wikipedia) and most respected encyclopedia in the world]
“Among Christians, the biblical warrant for purgatory is contested. Supporters of the Roman Catholic belief cite biblical passages in which there are intimations of the three major components of purgatory:
- Prayer for the dead
- An active interim state between death and resurrection
- A purifying fire after death”.
[My notes: what are intimations? (from vocabulary.com):
Intimation comes from the Latin word intimationem, which means an announcement. In English, intimation refers to a less direct form of communication. It’s a suggestion or hint, rather than a blatant statement of fact.
- a slight suggestion or vague understanding
- an indirect suggestion
Dictionary definition of suggestion:
2
a) the process by which a physical or mental state is influenced by a thought or idea: the power of suggestion
b) the process by which one thought leads to another, especially through association of ideas
3 a slight indication or trace
Furthermore, having intimations about what the bible means and then building entire doctrines on it contradicts lots of verses:]
Acts 1:3
To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion [suffering & death] by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God:
Let’s break this down:
- Many: not 1; not 2; not a few, not several, but “many”: this is the Greek word polus [Strong’s #4183] and means “many (high in number); multitudinous, plenteous, “much”; “great” in amount (extent)”
- Infallible: this is the Greek word tekmérion [Strong’s #5039] and means “properly, a marker (sign-post) supplying indisputable information, “marking something off” as unmistakable (irrefutable)”
- Proofs: plural; this corroborates the many; proof, as opposed to unproven theories, opinions, biased data and outright lies, like what floods the media and the internet.
Dictionary definition of proof:
#1 evidence sufficient to establish a thing as true, or to produce belief in its truth.
#4 the establishment of the truth of anything;
#7 an arithmetical operation serving to check the correctness of a calculation.
#8 Mathematics, Logic. a sequence of steps, statements, or demonstrations that leads to a valid conclusion.
BULLETPROOF: To describe an object as being indestructible, to never stop working, or to outperform other similar products>>the bible is true spiritual titanium!
ORIGIN OF PROOF
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English prove, prooff, prof, proufe, alteration (by association with the vowel of prove) of preove, proeve, prieve, pref, from Middle French preve, proeve, prueve, from Late Latin proba “a test,” akin to Latin probāre “to test and find good”; cf. pree
Isn’t it ironic that the word “proof” entered the english language 50 years before and in the same century as the council of Lyon, France (1274) where no proof of purgatory was offered?
Dictionary: origin of proof
Nehemiah 8
8 So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.
12 And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions [of food for others], and to make great mirth [celebrate], because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.
In verse 8, the word sense is the Hebrew word sekel [Strong’s #7922] and is used 16 times in the OT; 8 is the number of resurrection and a new beginning, so 16 is double that, establishing & intensifying it. It was a great new beginning in their lives once they finally understood the scriptures! This is why they had such a great celebration!
Definition of intimation = vague understanding = open door for Satan to steal the word from you!
Matthew 13
3 And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;
4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.
Luke 1 [amplified bible]
1 Since [as is well known] many have undertaken to compile an orderly account of the things which have been fulfilled among us [by God],
2 exactly as they were handed down to us by those [with personal experience] who from the beginning [of Christ’s ministry] were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word [that is, of the teaching concerning salvation through faith in Christ],
3 it seemed fitting for me as well, [and so I have decided] after having carefully searched out and investigated all the events accurately, from the very beginning, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus;
4 so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught [that is, the history and doctrine of the faith].
Luke 24
13 And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs [1 furlong is 220 yards = 201 meters, so the total distance was about 7.5 miles or 12 kilometers].
14 And they talked together of all these things which had happened.
15 And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them.
16 But their eyes were holden [spiritually held shut; this has to be from devil spirit influences] that they should not know him.
25 Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken:
26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?
27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.
31 And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.
32 And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?
Biblical definition of opened:
Strong’s Concordance #1272 [used 8 times in the NT; 8 is the number of resurrection and a new beginning and its used 3 times in Luke 24]
dianoigó definition: to open up completely
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (dee-an-oy’-go)
Usage: I open fully.
HELPS Word-studies
1272 dianoígō (from 1223 /diá, “all the way across” and 455 /anoígō, “the process to open fully”) – properly, open fully by completing the process necessary to do so.
Ephesians 3
3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,
4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)
11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:
12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him].
Sub section #2: Can you say denominational bias?
Encyclopedia Britannica
“These texts yield a consistent notion of purgatory, however, only when viewed from the standpoint of the formal Roman Catholic doctrine, which was defined at:
- the council of Lyon, France (1274)
- the council of Ferrara-Florence [the council started in Basel, Switzerland, then moved to Ferrara, Italy, and finally to Florence Italy (1438–1445)
- the council of Trent, [northern Italy] (1545–1563)
after a prolonged period of development by lay Christians and theologians”.
There are 3 main concepts we’re going to analyze in the order they occur in the text:
- Notion of purgatory
- Denominational bias: purgatory only supported by RC church
- Dates of the councils and the significance of #13
Notion of purgatory
Definition of notion by vocabulary.com:
“If you have a notion that you can swim across the ocean, you are probably wrong. A notion is an idea, often vague and sometimes fanciful.
A notion is lighter than a theory and embraces a whimsy that a simple idea never could”.
This is the second time the word “vague” has been used in association with purgatory. Not good.
Based upon the definition of notion, the doctrine of purgatory has less credibility than a theory, which by definition means an unproven idea!
Dictionary definition of whimsy:
“Whimsy is what a person who’s a dreamer and out of step with the real world might have lots of. People who are full of whimsy are odd, but often fanciful and lovely, like Harry Potter’s friend Luna Lovegood.
Whimsy is also a whim — something you do just because you want to. If you find a postcard of Alaska and take that as a reason to move there, that could qualify as whimsy. Whimsy is irrational, but playful.
- an odd or fanciful or capricious idea
- the trait of acting unpredictably and more from whim or caprice than from reason or judgment”.
The “real world” is life viewed through the light of the word of God.
Dictionary definition of fanciful:
adjective
1 capricious or whimsical in appearance; characterized by or showing fancy;
2 suggested by fancy; imaginary; unreal
3 led by fancy rather than by reason and experience; whimsical
One of the definitions of notion from the Urban dictionary defines it as “a stupid idea” and there’s a phrase called “notion sickness” = “The feeling you receive when an idea is so bad it makes you physically ill”. LOL
Being fanciful, whimsical and irrational is ok if you’re playing in the park, but when it comes to rightly dividing the word of God, there’s a blatant contradiction.
II Timothy 2:15
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Its impossible to rightly divide the word of God if you are in an irrational state of mind.
From subsections 1 & 2 above and based upon the definitions of:
- Confusion [from the pros & cons of purgatory]
- Fanciful [imaginary & unreal!]
- Imagination
- Intimation
- Irrationality
- Notion [not to mention notion sickness LOL]
- Suggestion
- Suggestion [slight]
- Vague [twice!!]
- Whimsy
- Wrong, the probability of being
- combined with the Encyclopedia Britannica which emphasizes the contestability twice, and you have ZERO ZERO ZERO biblical, spiritual or divine authority for purgatory!!!
The doctrine of purgatory wasn’t established until 14 ½ centuries after the last book of the bible was written [Revelation: 95-100A.D.], including 3 centuries of fierce debate from the late 1200’s to the mid 1500’s!
This alone tells us it’s a very weak and dubious man-made theology without any:
Encyclopedia Britannica
- credible basis
- scholarly biblical research
- critical thinking skills
Denominational Bias
Whenever there’s a biased belief among a specific group of people that nobody else supports, you know that something is wrong.
Dictionary definition of bias:
Noun: a particular tendency, trend, inclination, feeling, or opinion, especially one that is preconceived or unreasoned.
Vocabulary.com definition of preconceived notion:
an opinion formed beforehand without adequate evidence
type of:
opinion, persuasion, sentiment, thought, view:
a personal belief or judgment that is not founded on proof or certainty
Once again, this corroborates what we have already learned in the previous section: the many definitions about purgatory contradict Acts 1:3 [many infallible proofs] and Luke 1:4 [the understanding from above is absolutely certain].
Inductive vs deductive logic from the dictionary:
“What is the difference between inductive vs. deductive reasoning?
Inductive reasoning involves starting from specific premises and forming a general conclusion, while deductive reasoning involves using general premises to form a specific conclusion.
Conclusions reached via deductive reasoning cannot be incorrect if the premises are true. That’s because the conclusion doesn’t contain information that’s not in the premises. Unlike deductive reasoning, though, a conclusion reached via inductive reasoning goes beyond the information contained within the premises—it’s a generalization, and generalizations aren’t always accurate”.
In other words, if I have the preconceived notion that purgatory is a true biblical doctrine, then I would go to the bible and cherry-pick and distort only the verses that seem to support my belief, and ignore all others because my belief is the premise. This is not being a good workman of the word because its an example of partiality or bias, which contradicts God’s true wisdom.
The correct way to approach this problem is to go to the word of God in order to discover what the true premises are first, even if the bible does not support my belief.
In the true word of God, all the verses on the same subject will be in harmony.
Dictionary definition of unreason:
noun
1. inability or unwillingness to think or act rationally, reasonably, or sensibly; irrationality.
2. lack of reason or sanity; madness; confusion; disorder; chaos: a world torn by unreason.
Definition of bias from vocabulary.com:
Noun: partiality that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation.
Verb: influence in an unfair way>>a bribe or threat is an example of this.
Thus, denominational bias is when these definitions are applied to an entire denomination.
James 3
17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.
All denominations and religions are guilty of doctrinal bias, which contradicts God’s wisdom and is, therefore, the wisdom of this world which is earthly, sensual and devilish.
Proverbs 11:14
Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.
Proverbs 15:22
Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established.
Proverbs 24:6
For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety.
Having a multitude of counsellors is the equivalent of multiple objectives authorities, something that I mention in many of my articles and videos and use to rightly divide the word of God.
It has been said that there are 4 things in life:
- Religion
- Corrupt religion
- No religion
- True Christianity
I say that the RC church qualifies as a corrupt religion. How about you?
What is the bird’s eye view spiritually?
Proverbs 6 [amplified bible]
12 A worthless person, a wicked man, is one who walks with a perverse (corrupt, vulgar) mouth.
13 Who winks with his eyes [in mockery], who shuffles his feet [to signal], Who points with his fingers [to give subversive instruction];
14 Who perversely in his heart plots trouble and evil continually; Who spreads discord and strife.
15 Therefore [the crushing weight of] his disaster will come suddenly upon him; Instantly he will be broken, and there will be no healing or remedy [because he has no heart for God].
16 These six things the Lord hates; Indeed, seven are repulsive to Him:
17 A proud look [the attitude that makes one overestimate oneself and discount others], a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood,
18 A heart that creates wicked plans, Feet that run swiftly to evil,
19 A false witness who breathes out lies [even half-truths], And one who spreads discord (rumors) among brothers.
In verse 12, the word “worthless” is the Hebrew word belial [Strong’s #1100 & its used 27 times in the OT] and it literally means without profit [benefit]; worthlessness; by extension, destruction & wickedness.
These are the spiritual sons of the devil and these psychopathic monsters are the real root reason why there are so many different denominations and religions in the world that breed so much doubt, confusion and conflict between them.
In the least common denominator, they are the root cause of all the wars in the world and they will never go away until the new heaven and earth way off in the future. This is why world peace is an impossibility during the age of grace because the root cause of wars cannot be removed at this time. This is why there is so much destruction, treachery, confusion and darkness in our world.
Yet we can stand against this evil and quench these fiery darts of wickedness and overcome the world.
The significance of #13
Do the math!
- the council of Lyon, France [1274] = 1 year
- the council of Ferrara-Florence [1445 minus 1438] = 7 complete years
- the council of Trent [1563 minus 1545] = 18 complete years
It’s interesting to note that there were 26 years of fierce & unresolved debate spanning across 3 centuries of time and its still hotly contested to this very day, 460 years later in 2023!!
26 = 13 x 2 and look what the number in scripture book says about #13! “Hence every occurrence of the number thirteen, and likewise of every multiple of it, stamps that with which it stands in connection with rebellion, apostasy, defection, corruption, disintegration, revolution, or some kindred idea”.
Sub section #3: Purgatory in world religions
Encyclopedia Britannica
“The conception of purgatory as a geographically situated place is largely the achievement of medieval Christian piety and imagination.
In general, the origins of purgatory may be sought in the worldwide practice of praying for the dead and caring for their needs. Such ministrations presuppose that the dead are in a temporal state between earthly life and their final abode and that they can benefit from the generosity or transferred merit of the living”.
OUTLINE
So there’s 2 main concepts we’re going to handle:
- Paragraph 1: imagination
- wisdom of this world
- 2 forms of weak believing
- Paragraph 2: praying for the dead and the presuppostion that there is a temporary state between death and “their final abode”.
I John 3:8
…For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.
The word destroy comes from the Greek word luo [Strong’s #3089] and means to dismantle, disassemble, unbind, break, dissolve, etc.
From one point of view, the works of the devil can come in 2 basic forms: obvious and almost invisible.
Genesis 6
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
17 And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die.
There is a figure of speech called the Hebrew idiom of permission where God ALLOWED the flood to happen, but he was not actually the cause of the flood. The devil murdered all the people on the earth [except Noah and his family] in a failed attempt to prevent Jesus Christ from being born by flooding the earth for 40 days and nights.
The vast majority of the works of the devil are almost invisible: seducing spirits and the doctrines of devils such as purgatory.
Hebrew idiom of permission | I Timothy 4:1
Job 1
1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared [reverenced] God, and eschewed [avoid and stay away from deliberately; stay clear of] evil>>this was Job practicing sanctification, which is being separate from the corrupt world that is against God.
3 His substance also was seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she asses, and a very great household; so that this man was the greatest of all the men of the east.
22 In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly [he did not charge God with injustice].
Picture a large dark and evil fortress made of lego blocks and you are taking it apart, one block at a time or perhaps 5 at a time. If you stay faithful, the fortress will be completely broken down.
Purgatory is Satan’s dark and evil fortress that we are going to break down to the ground with the brilliant light of God.
I John 3:8 & II Corinthians 10:3-5
II Corinthians 10
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
5 Casting down imaginations, and every high [false] thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
The word imaginations is the same root word of imaginations in Romans 1:21 [logizomai #3049]!
IMAGINATIONS
Look what God says about imaginations!
Romans 1
21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened>>contrast this to Ephesians 1:18 The eyes of your understanding [heart>>from the Greek word Kardia; Strong’s #2588] being enlightened…
22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
23 And changed [exchanged>>from Greek word allasso Strong’s #236; used 6 times in the bible, the number of man as he is influenced by the world] the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
25 Who changed [exchanged>>from Greek word metallasso; Strong’s #3337, with an emphasis on the end result] the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature [creation>>Greek word ktisis; Strong’s #2937] more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things [like purgatory!], disobedient to parents,
Biblical definition of imaginations [verse 21]:
Strong’s Concordance #1261
dialogismos definition: a reasoning
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Phonetic Spelling: (dee-al-og-is-mos’)
Usage: a calculation, reasoning, thought, movement of thought, deliberation, plotting.
HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 1261 dialogismós (from 1260 /dialogízomai, “back-and-forth reasoning”) – reasoning that is self-based and therefore confused – especially as it contributes to reinforcing others in discussion to remain in their initial prejudice [a partiality [bias] that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation].
Therefore, by definition, this is not the wisdom of God but is the wisdom of the world which is earthly, sensual and devilish.
[EB]>>Purgatory was the result of imagination >>back-and-forth reasoning from Romans 1:21 & 30>>remember the 26 years of fierce and unresolved debates in
the various councils in France & Italy in the middle ages? This is the spiritual assessment of them.
Notes on the nature of worldly wisdom
James 3
14 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.
15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.
16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.
17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.
From verse 15:
Earthly:
Isaiah 29:4
And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be, as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.
Sensual: it says sensual because its based upon the 5 senses realm and the 5 senses that register and process it: [in alphabetical order; remember the perfect order of the word from Luke 1?] hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting and touching.
I John 2
15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him>>the word love in Greek grammar is in the imperative mood, which means its a commandment of the Lord!
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
Devilish: its devilish because it originates from the devil, the god of this world.
I Corinthians 14:33
For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.
Now we’re going to categorize man-made reasonings regarding spiritual matters again, but from a totally different perspective, bringing deeper enlightenment and understanding.
There are 4 verses in the gospel of Matthew that contain the phrase, “O ye of little faith [believing]”.
Matthew 16:8 [Jesus is talking to his disciples]
Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith [believing], why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread?
Biblical definition of “reason”:
HELPS Word-studies
[Strong’s # 1260] Verb; dialogízomai (from 1223 /diá, “thoroughly,” which intensifies 3049 /logízomai, “reckon, add up”) – properly, go back-and-forth when evaluating, in a way that typically leads to a confused conclusion. The term implies one confused mind interacting with other confused minds, each further reinforcing the original confusion.
By definition, we can see that “reason” has the same basic elements of doubt [wavering; “go back-and-forth when evaluating”; (1 of the 4 types of unbelief)], + confusion, which is ungodly.
The diagram below is so advanced and complex, that it requires a teaching by itself! Its basically a graphical and spiritual summary of the principles of the previous 2 videos, so I will go over the 3 D’s:
- Design
- Doctrine
- Dynamics
so that we can gain the full depth of understanding and wisdom and enlightenment it provides.
[EB] “the origins of purgatory may be sought in the worldwide practice of praying for the dead and caring for their needs“
Ecclesiastes 9
5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
6 Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.
10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
So praying for the dead is classified as:
- Distracting evil: [the distracted mind is the defeated mind; you (and millions of other people in the RC church), are distracted away from growing in the light and wisdom of the Lord]
- Unproductive evil: [this wastes your time, effort and resources (and millions of other people in the RC church), with ZERO benefit for you and the dead you are praying for!!]; This reminds me of the parable of the talents in the gospels and the guy who was given 1 talent buried it in the ground and when his master came back he called him a wicked and slothful servant because he brought his master NO GAIN, when he could have at least deposited the money in the bank and been paid interest!! Romans 14:12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
- Destructive evil: praying for the dead is based upon the lie of life after death; James 3
- 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.
- 8 But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.
- Lies, [such as praying for the dead; the idea that the dead are in a state between death and their final abode, etc] are very destructive indeed because they can be inspired by devil spirits such as from a lying spirit.
- If you are praying for the dead, you’re committing all 3 categories of evil!! Whatever you do, don’t confess this to your priest because there’s no biblical basis for it!! Go directly to God and be forgiven!
- I John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Purgatory is the rotten fruit of man’s unbelief
Matthew 7:20 & 16:8
Matthew 7:20
Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
[EB] “Such ministrations presuppose that the dead are in a temporal state between earthly life and their final abode and that they can benefit from the generosity or transferred merit of the living”.
Dictionary definition of presuppose:
take for granted or as a given; suppose beforehand
which is a type of assumption:
take to be the case or to be true; accept without verification or proof [!!!]. This is a blatant contradiction to Acts 1:3; Acts 17:11; Luke 1:1-4 and many other verses!
Dictionary definition of guess:
1 an estimate based on little or no information
2 a message expressing an opinion based on incomplete evidence
There are 2 general categories of guesses:
Cambridge University dictionary definition of educated guess [from 1209 = 815 years old!]:
a guess that is made using judgment and a particular level of knowledge and is therefore more likely to be correct
Cambridge University dictionary definition of wild guess:
something that you say that is not based on facts and is probably wrong [this is the second time we’ve dealt with the probability of being wrong in connection with purgatory!!].
Which is a type of opinion or view:
a message expressing a belief about something; the expression of a belief that is held with confidence but not substantiated by positive knowledge or proof
Therefore, there are only 2 possibilities regarding purgatory: either the confident belief in it is based upon deception or there is full knowledge of the fallacy with the intent to deceive = fraud.
Purgatory is either a wild denominational guess or a global spiritual fraud.
Sub section #4: Origins of the doctrine
Encyclopedia Britannica
“Advocates of purgatory find support in numerous scriptural and non-scriptural traditions. The well-attested early Christian practice of prayer for the dead, for example, was encouraged by the episode (rejected by Protestants as apocryphal) in which Judas Maccabeus (Jewish leader of the revolt against the tyrant Antiochus IV Epiphanes):
- makes atonement for the idolatry of his fallen soldiers by providing prayers and a monetary sin offering on their behalf (2 Maccabees 12:41–46)
- by the Apostle Paul’s prayer for Onesiphorus (2 Timothy 1:18)
- by the implication in Matthew 12:32 that there may be forgiveness of sins in the world to come.
- The parable of Dives and Lazarus in Luke 16:19–26 and the words of Jesus from the cross to the repentant thief in Luke 23:43 are also cited in support of an interim period before the Day of Judgment during which the damned may hope for respite, the blessed preview their reward, and the “mixed” undergo correction.
- The non-canonical tradition that on Holy Saturday Christ invaded the realm of the dead and liberated Adam and Eve and the biblical patriarchs lends support to the view that there is a temporary realm of imprisonment after death”.
What does the bible say about “non-scriptural traditions”?
Matthew 15
1 Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying,
2 Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread.
3 But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?
4 For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.
5 But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me;
6 And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.
7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Biblical definition of curse [verse 4]:
Strong’s Concordance #2551
Definition of kakologeó: to speak ill of
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (kak-ol-og-eh’-o)
Usage: I speak evil of, curse, revile, abuse.
HELPS Word-studies
2551 kakologéō (from 2556 /kakós, “a malicious disposition” and 3004 /légō, “speaking to a conclusion”) – properly, to speak evil, using malicious, damaging words that are calculated to destroy (misrepresent).
2551 /kakologéō (“calculated evil-speaking”) tries to make evil seem good (“positive”), i.e. presenting what is wrong as “right” (or the reverse). 2551 (kakologéō) issues from a twisted disposition (make-up, perspective). [Note the fundamental meaning of the root (2556 /kakós).]
Matthew 15 [amplified bible]
5 But you say, ‘If anyone says to his father or mother, “Whatever [money or resource that] I have that would help you is [already dedicated and] given to God,”
6 he is not to honor his father or his mother [by helping them with their need].’ So by this you have invalidated the word of God [depriving it of force and authority and making it of no effect] for the sake of your tradition [handed down by the elders].
The bible specifically and emphatically commands us to avoid profane teachings [“non-scriptural traditions”], which, by definition, includes purgatory!
I Timothy 6:20 & II Timothy 2:16
I Timothy 6
20 O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called:
21 Which some professing have erred concerning the faith. Grace be with thee. Amen. [this is the last verse in I Timothy!]
II Timothy 2
15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
16 But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.
17 And their word will eat as doth a canker [Strong’s #1044 gaggraina = gangrene]: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
18 Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith [believing] of some.
19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.
Why is the same command repeated twice? Because the number 2 is the number of division or difference. Those who don’t avoid the profane and vain babblings become part of the division. Remember in the first video the 26 years of fierce and unresolved debates spread out over 3 centuries? That was the consequence of purgatory.
Matthew 7:20
Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
Here is proof that purgatory is one of those “profane and vain babblings” that will spiritually eat you up like gangrene unless you know the truth and do not believe Satan’s lies that can corrupt your believing in the Lord.
In Romans 16:17, we have the general principle of mark and avoid [shun]:
Romans 16:17
Now I beseech you, brethren, mark [distinguish; clearly identify] them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
In II Timothy 2:16, [the word “shun”] and in Romans 16:17 [the word “avoid”] are both in the imperative mood, which means they are the commandments of the Lord written directly to us [the body of christ and its leadership]!
Dictionary definition of profane:
1 grossly irreverent toward what is held to be sacred
2 not holy because unconsecrated or impure or defiled
3 secular [= non biblical!]
Note: since profane is impure, then, by definition, it cannot be the wisdom of God which is FIRST PURE. Therefore, it has to be the wisdom of this world which is earthly, sensual, devilish.
Biblical definition of profane [I Timothy 6:20 & II Timothy 2:16]:
Strong’s Concordance #952
bebélos definition: permitted to be trodden, by implication – unhallowed
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (beb’-ay-los)
Usage: permitted to be trodden, accessible.
HELPS Word-studies
952 bébēlos (an adjective, derived from bainō, “go” and bēlos, “a threshold to enter a building”) – properly, improper, unauthorized entry – literally, “crossing a threshold” which profanes because of improper entrance.
952 /bébēlos (“profane because of improper entrance”) refers to people unfit to access (know) God, because they approach Him apart from faith [believing]. See also 949 (bébaios).
John 10
1 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
2 But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
Biblical definition of vain babblings [I Timothy 6:20 & II Timothy 2:16]:
Strong’s Concordance #2757
kenophónia definition: empty talk
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (ken-of-o-nee’-ah)
Usage: empty disputing, worthless babble.
Encyclopedia Britannica
“Non-Catholic and modern attitudes
The idea of purgatory remains controversial, however”.
This is the second time the Encyclopedia Britannica says that purgatory is “controversial” or “contested”.
SUMMARY OF THE ORIGINS AND HISTORY OF PURGATORY:
- Its based upon the worldly traditions of men that contradict & cancel the word of God
- Its based upon death
- Its based upon the operation of familiar devil spirits
- its based upon confusion, a psychological & spiritual weapon of Satan
- its based upon human 5-senses reasoning, which is 1 of the 4 types of weak believing
- its based upon controversial and unproven opinions and ideas that lack solid scriptural credibility, stirring up division and strife in the body of Christ
- its based upon twisted and presumptuous interpretations of scripture
#2 MORTAL & VENIAL SINS RENDER PURGATORY IRRELEVANT, MEANINGLESS AND USELESS!
Overview of life: all people, at the time of their death, will always end up in 1 of 3 categories:
- They will be a plain, regular natural man, which is a person of body and soul ONLY [no spiritual seed of any kind is present within that person]
- They will be born of the seed of the serpent, [which is to become a spiritual child of the devil] and they will fry in the lake of fire in the judgments of the unjust in the future
- They will choose to be born again of God’s spirit and go to heaven when Jesus Christ comes back [and not when they die]
Here’s a critical distinction: by definition, all sos [seed of the serpent people] are unbelievers, but not all unbelievers are born of the seed of the serpent [thank God for that!!].
Both types of seed, whether its God’s incorruptible seed or the devil’s seed of darkness, are absolutely permanent and irreversible and its ultimately what determines a person’s true nature and future, just as a plant seed or the seed of animals [sperm from the males] determines the identity of a living thing.
Important definitions to know [from dictionary.com & vocabulary.com]:
Mortal sins definition #9 of 12
[dictionary.com]: involving spiritual death (opposed to venial): mortal sin; [vocabulary.com has a slightly different definition]: an unpardonable sin entailing a total loss of grace [my comment here: the ONLY unpardonable sin in the bible is to sell your soul to the devil, to become one of his sons by seed and that involves a total loss of MERCY, not grace].
Penitent definition
feeling or expressing sorrow for sin or wrongdoing and disposed to atonement and amendment; [my comment here is that if a person is penitent, then that is a good thing because it demonstrates that that person still has a conscience left].
Venial sins definition:
adjective
able to be forgiven or pardoned; not seriously wrong, as a sin (opposed to mortal).
excusable; trifling; minor: a venial error; a venial offense; [vocabulary.com]: a pardonable sin regarded as entailing only a partial loss of grace.
If you think about it logically, this idea of mortal sin vs venial sin is totally meaningless!
In the least common denominator, there are only 2 categories of people: believers and unbelievers.
At the time of their death, all unbelievers [which, by definition, automatically includes all people born of the seed of the serpent], all venial sins and all mortal sins are totally irrelevant and cannot be applied to them because these people are, by definition, spiritually dead already and therefore, they will never get into heaven anyways.
Therefore, only Christians [believers] remain. However, since all venial sins are, by definition, “able to be forgiven or pardoned”, purgatory is rendered irrelevant and useless.
Furthermore, whether we are forgiven or not, it still only affects our fellowship with God and can never affect our sonship because of the incorruptible seed. Remember, all seed is permanent.
Due to the nature of the incorruptible spiritual seed of Christ within, a Christian can never commit a mortal sin and spiritually die. Therefore, purgatory is rendered totally irrelevant and useless once again.
Its absolutely 1 billion % impossible to be born of God’s seed and the devil’s seed at the same time.
Whichever seed you choose, its 1 billion % permanent, [so you can never switch, even if you wanted to].
If you are still afraid that you have committed the unforgivable sin, a mortal sin, [blasphemy against the Holy Ghost], you haven’t.
To prove it, read this article!
I also highly recommend you see Rev. Martindale’s unparalleled video, Athletes of the Spirit!
Its still light-years ahead of its time, even though it was produced way back in 1986!
So whether a person is an unbeliever or a Christian, Purgatory does not apply to them.
Now for some critical enlightenment on the natural man:
I Corinthians 2
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost [spirit = the gift of holy spirit within a believer] teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. [the lined out words are not in the vast majority of Greek texts and are also missing from the Aramaic texts.]
14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Its impossible for a natural man [man or woman] to understand spiritual things without the gift of holy spirit to enlighten them and enable them to understand the depths of the spiritual things of the word of God.
Because the gift of holy spirit is incorruptible, its impossible for it to deteriorate, to lose it, have it stolen, get sick, die or get hacked into by Satan!
What is the true nature of the gift of holy spirit, the spiritual seed of Christ within?
I Peter 1
22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
Definition of “purified”:
Hagnizo [verb] Strong’s Concordance #48 [used 7 times in the NT, the number of spiritual perfection]:
Root word hagnos Strong’s Concordance #53
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (hag-nos’)
Definition: free from ceremonial defilement, holy, sacred
Usage: (originally, in a condition prepared for worship), pure (either ethically, or ritually, ceremonially), chaste.
HELPS Word-studies
53 hagnós (an adjective, which may be cognate with 40 /hágios, “holy,” so TDNT [Theological Dictionary of the New Testament], 1, 122) – properly, pure (to the core); virginal (chaste, unadultered); pure inside and out; holy because uncontaminated (undefiled from sin), i.e. without spoilation even within (even down to the center of one’s being); not mixed with guilt or anything condemnable.
Romans 1:23
And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things.
The word “incorruptible” in I Peter 1:23 is the exact same Greek word as the word “uncorruptible” in Romans 1:23 – like father, like son.
Definition of incorruptible:
Strong’s Concordance #862 [used 8 times in the bible: the number of resurrection and new beginning].
aphthartos: imperishable, incorruptible
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (af’-thar-tos)
Definition: undecaying, imperishable
Usage: indestructible, imperishable, incorruptible; hence: immortal.
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 862: ἄφθαρτος
ἄφθαρτος, ἄφθαρτον (φθείρω), uncorrupted, not liable to corruption or decay, imperishable:
No person who is actually born again of the spirit of God can commit a mortal sin = spiritual death.
Romans 1:23 & I Peter 1:23
The section below on body, soul and spirit will further verify and clarify that truth.
The only way a person can get saved from the wrath to come is to get born again of the spirit of God.
WARNING!!
DO NOT TRUST a man-made, convoluted and distorted prayer that a preacher made up who says its all you need to do to get saved!!!
Some of them are so treacherous that I doubt if you can actually get born again of the one true God by them.
If you follow the exact instructions directly from the Lord God himself, you will never go wrong.
Romans 10
9 That if thou shalt confess [declare] with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession [declaration: exact same Greek word as in verse 9] is made unto salvation.
11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.
Acts 4
10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.
11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.
12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
#3 WHAT IS THE NATURE OF DEATH?
Purgatory contradicts at least 10 verses of scripture on the true nature of death!
Job 21:13
They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave.
Psalms 6:5
For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?
Psalms 49
12 Nevertheless man being in honour abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish.
14 Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them…
Psalms 89:48
What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death? Shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? Selah [pause and consider this].
Psalms 146:4
His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish [there is a figure of speech here called Synecdoche [of the part] and the phrase in that very day = after that or when, so the correct translation is: His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; after that, his thoughts perish.
Ecclesiastes 9
5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
6 Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.
10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
I Thessalonians 4
13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent [King James old english for precede] them which are asleep.
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Biblical definition of trump:
Strong’s Concordance #4536
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (sal’-pinx)
Definition: a trumpet
Usage: a trumpet, the sound of a trumpet.
HELPS Word-studies
4536 sálpigks – “properly, a war-trumpet” (WS, 797) that boldly announces God’s victory (the vanquishing of His enemies).
In the OT, trumpets were used to called God’s people to war, and to announce victory wrought by Him. That is, a military clarion that proclaimed the Lord inspired and empowered the victory on behalf of His people.
[“The trumpet was the signal employed to call the hosts of Israel to march as to war, and is common in prophetic imagery (Is 27:13). Cf. The seventh angel (Rev 11:15)” (WP, 1, 193).
Trumpets in the OT summoned God’s saints for His righteous wars (Nu 10:9; Jer 4:19; Joel 2:1). See also Lev 23:24,25; Nu 10:2-10; Ps 81:3.]
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
Ecclesiastes 12:7
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
I Corinthians 15:26
The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
Definition of enemy:
noun
a person who feels hatred for, fosters harmful designs against, or engages in antagonistic activities against another; an adversary or opponent.
Antonyms
friend. ally.
Therefore, by definition, death cannot help anybody or perform any good thing for anybody, such as take a person to heaven. Therefore, christians do not go to heaven when they die. They go to the grave instead.
Death is an enemy and not a friend. A friend would take you to heaven, but not an enemy. An enemy would take you to the grave, but not a friend.
Hebrews 9:27
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
[for a complete teaching on death and related things, see You are not going to heaven when you die!].
Purgatory is only 1 of the many Roman Catholic church lies.
#4 BODY, SOUL & SPIRIT AND THE FALL OF MAN
Genesis 3:4
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
Genesis 2:17
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
- Genesis 2:17 | God | Truth: thou shalt surely die.
- Genesis 3:4 | Serpent | Lie: Ye shall not surely die.
Purgatory is the Serpent’s sadistic scare, the nightmarish perversion of life after death, the lie & liar of “ye shall not surely die” [Genesis 3:4]
If Adam died, as God said, then how come he lived so long afterwards?
Genesis 5:5
And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
Since Adam physically lived to be 930 years old, and since the word of God was perfect when it was originally written and is always true, then sheer logic says that Adam had to have died in a non-physical way in Genesis 2:17 & 3:6.
Adam and Eve were humans of body, soul and spirit. A physical body cannot be alive without the soul, but a body and soul are the minimum number of components of an alive person.
Not understanding the critical distinction between body, soul and spirit has clouded and confused the minds of millions.
Knowing and understanding the clear distinctions between body, soul & spirit will explain many many things in life and will be especially important regarding purgatory.
- Our bodies are made of the dust of the ground, and when we die, it will go back to dust again. [Genesis 3:19
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return]. - Our soul is what gives us breath life, our personality, and the ability to process information. Once we take our last breath, our soul is dead and gone forever. Leviticus 17:11 “For the life [soul] of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul”.
- Our gift of holy spirit will go back to God when we die. [Ecclesiastes 12:7
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.]
Therefore, even if purgatory does exist, after a christian dies, how would they be able to go???
Their bodies went back to the ground already, their soul is dead and gone and their gift of holy spirit already went back to God, so there’s nothing left of them to go anywhere or do anything!
This is why the nature of death is the way it is.
Therefore, the way Adam died in the garden of Eden in Genesis 3 was spiritually. He lost the gift of holy spirit that was upon him upon a condition that he would obey the word of God, but he violated that spiritual law of God and reaped the consequences.
Earlier we learned that all spiritual seed is absolutely permanent, yet Adam died spiritually.
Logically therefore, either the premise of spiritual seed being permanent is false or Adam did not have spiritual seed.
Since it was never actually written or stated that Adam had spiritual seed, the second option has to be the answer.
Here’s an extremely simple table that explains multiple variables all at once:
PHYSICAL | SPIRITUAL |
Corruptible physical seed [sperm] + the egg | Incorruptible spiritual seed |
First birth is physical [body & soul only] | Second birth is spiritual [being born again] |
The key to understanding this is that the incorruptible spiritual seed of God [being born again, which literally means to be born from above] was not available until the day of Pentecost in 28A.D. [see Acts 2], after Jesus Christ had completed everything the Lord needed him to do.
There’s only 2 ways to become a son in a family: by birth or adoption. Its the same with God.
Therefore, all believers in the old testament and gospel periods were sons of God by adoption and not by spiritual birth. Adam was not born again because that would not be available for several thousand years in the future. He simply had the gift of holy spirit upon him upon a condition, which he violated [he committed treason against God] and so the consequence of treason was spiritual death.
Galatians 6
7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
All doctrines, religions & theologies that teach some form of life after death, such as reincarnation, purgatory, or burning in the lake of fire forever are based upon Satan’s first recorded lie in the bible: “ye shall not surely die”.
Let’s dig a little deeper and see how it relates to purgatory.
In John 8, Jesus Christ was confronting a particular group of evil Pharisees, a type of religious leader in that culture and time.
John 8:44
Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father [originator] of it.
It is very interesting that Satan’s first recorded words in the bible are a lie, indicating his dominant nature.
Purgatory is based upon the serpent’s lie of life after death because punishment requires you to be alive. Otherwise, its purpose is defeated. Therefore it must come from the devil who is the originator of lies.
#5 Praying for the dead is an unbiblical concept and contradicts holy scripture and logic
The practice of praying for the dead comes from a false, pagan collection of religious books known as the apocrypha that was inspired by devil spirits. It was designed to deceive & distract us and to counterfeit the truth of God’s word.
We know from the first section on death, that any prayers for the dead are totally useless, a misuse of the Lord’s and our time and a trick of Satan.
However, its always good to know where the lies of the devil come from as well.
I Baruch 3:4
“O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, hear now the prayer of the dead of Israel, the children of those who sinned before you, who did not heed the voice of the Lord their God, so that calamities have clung to us”.
Now just to be fair, you’re going to see something that not many christians know about from the Jewish Encyclopedia about the origin of I Baruch.
The Roman Catholic practice of praying for the dead and the idea that dead people can even pray is based upon a bad translation of a book that counterfeits the bible!
Jewish Encyclopedia on I Baruch 3:4
Some Catholics base the practice of praying for the dead on the book of II Maccabees 12: 43-45, which is included in the catholic bible, but not protestant ones [See The apocrypha: true or false?].
II Maccabees 12
43 And when he had made a gathering throughout the company to the sum of two thousand drachms of silver, he sent it to Jerusalem to offer a sin offering, doing therein very well and honestly, in that he was mindful of the resurrection:
44 For if he had not hoped that they that were slain should have risen again, it had been superfluous and vain to pray for the dead.
45 And also in that he perceived that there was great favour laid up for those that died godly, it was an holy and good thought. Whereupon he made a reconciliation for the dead, that they might be delivered from sin.
Scholars agree that II Maccabees was written somewhere in the general time frame of about 150B.C. Thus the practice of making prayers for the dead predates Christ and this forms the historical roots of the modern Roman Catholic practice.
Even if the book of Maccabees is historically accurate and old testament Judeans did pray for the dead, that doesn’t make it right!
There is still no scripture in either the old or new testaments supporting prayer for the dead. Therefore, it only proves that the Maccabees had walked away from God’s will and succumbed to Satan’s deception instead. Remember Satan’s very first recorded lie, “Ye shall not surely die”? II Maccabees is a perfect example of that.
Why are some Catholics using a pagan, counterfeit religious book that was inspired by devil spirits in order to justify their religious practices? They should be going to the bible instead.
#6 PURGATORY CONTRADICTS GOD’S FORGIVENESS OF US!
Here’s a quote from catholic.com:
“The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines purgatory as a “purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven,” which is experienced by those “who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified” (CCC 1030).
The purification is necessary because, as Scripture teaches, nothing unclean will enter the presence of God in heaven (Rev. 21:27) and, while we may die with our mortal sins forgiven, there can still be many impurities in us, specifically venial sins and the temporal punishment due to sins already forgiven.”
This sounds so religious, doesn’t it? Yet it contradicts multitudes of scriptures, the laws of logic, the laws of justice and it defeats the purpose of forgiveness.
“temporal punishment due to sins already forgiven.” If we are still punished in purgatory after our sins have already been forgiven and forgotten, then that defeats the purpose of forgiveness in the first place! That contradicts and violates God’s forgiveness of us.
Isaiah 43:25
I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.
Purgatory contradicts Isaiah 43:25!
Hebrews 8:12
For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.
Purgatory contradicts Hebrews 8:12!
“and the temporal punishment due to sins already forgiven”.
How can God punish us for sins that have already been forgiven and forgotten???
I John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Check out the definition of “forgive”!:
Strong’s Concordance #863
aphiémi definition: to send away, leave alone, permit
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (af-ee’-ay-mee)
Usage: (a) I send away, (b) I let go, release, permit to depart, (c) I remit, forgive, (d) I permit, suffer.
HELPS Word-studies
863 aphíēmi (from 575 /apó, “away from” and hiēmi, “send”) – properly, send away; release (discharge).
God literally sends our sins away, so how can he punish us for them in purgatory?
Look at the definition of “cleanse”! It comes from the root word Katharos:
Strong’s Concordance #2513
katharos definition: clean
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (kath-ar-os’)
Usage: clean, pure, unstained, either literally or ceremonially or spiritually; guiltless, innocent, upright.
HELPS Word-studies
2513 katharós (a primitive word) – properly, “without admixture” (BAGD); what is separated (purged), hence “clean” (pure) because unmixed (without undesirable elements); (figuratively) spiritually clean because purged (purified by God), i.e. free from the contaminating (soiling) influences of sin.
This exact same Greek word is also used in John 15:3, translated clean!
John 15
1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman [vinedresser].
2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
Purgatory contradicts John 15:3 & I John 1:9 on 2 counts and is an insult to God!!
John 15:3 & I John 1:9 definition of forgive & cleanse
God’s word does not mention venial sins, mortal sins, etc. It simply says to confess your sins. Since God does not make the distinction between sins, why do we?
For a christian, there is only one sin: doing something against the will of God, which will take you out of fellowship with him. That’s it.
Because of our incorruptible spiritual seed, committing sins does not affect your sonship with God, only your fellowship with him.
Romans 1:23 & I Peter 1:23
The reason for that is because spiritual seed is permanent and determines a person’s true nature. An apple tree is the way it is because the nature of apple trees is determined by the genetic instructions and characteristics of the apple seed.
Similarly, if we are born again, but then later in life get deceived by Satan to live after him, we will still go to heaven when Jesus Christ comes back, but we will not receive any rewards from God for our bad behavior.
If a person becomes a son of the devil, then that is permanent spiritual seed also, which cannot be removed. So now back to confession of sin.
We simply go directly to God and get cleansed of our sins.
Confessing your sins to a priest is old testament terminology, imagery and bondage to the old testament law which Jesus Christ freed us from.
Jesus Christ is the best and final high priest for all mankind for all eternity. Our confession goes to God through his son Jesus Christ and that is the end of it.
Ephesians 3
10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:
12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.
Jesus Christ already gave us direct access to God himself, so going through a third party is spiritual interference and a hindrance in your life.
Psalms 103
3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
Why does it say east and west instead of north and south?
Because if you start from the equator and go north, you will eventually reach the north pole. If you keep going in the same direction, then you will be going south instead. North and south meet at the poles.
In other words, your sins will be thrown right back in your face again. If you again start at the equator and go south, you will eventually reach the south pole, at which point, you will begin to go back north again and repeat the previous situation.
However, if you start from the equator, going east or west, you can go on forever and you will still be going in the same direction and will never meet the opposite horizon. In other words, east and west never meet. Your sins will never be thrown back up in your face again.
Therefore, if you are reminded of your past sins that God has already forgiven and forgotten, then that source cannot be from God, which points to Satan who is the god of this world and an enemy of God.
Purgatory contradicts Psalms 103:3 & 12
I John 3
1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
Purgatory contradicts the definition of purifieth in I John 3:3
Look at the definition of purifieth!!
Strong’s Concordance #53
hagnos definition: free from ceremonial defilement, holy, sacred
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (hag-nos’)
Usage: (originally, in a condition prepared for worship), pure (either ethically, or ritually, ceremonially), chaste.
HELPS Word-studies
53 hagnós (an adjective, which may be cognate with 40 /hágios, “holy,” so TDNT, 1, 122) – properly, pure (to the core); virginal (chaste, unadultered); pure inside and out; holy because uncontaminated (undefiled from sin), i.e. without spoilation even within (even down to the center of one’s being); not mixed with guilt or anything condemnable.
#7 PURGATORY DOES NOT MAKE THE CRUCIAL DISTINCTION BETWEEN OUR FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD AND OUR SONSHIP
FELLOWSHIP VS SONSHIP
FELLOWSHIP
I John 1
3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.
5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Biblical definition of fellowship:
Strong’s Concordance #2842
koinónia definition: fellowship
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (koy-nohn-ee’-ah)
Usage: (literally: partnership) (a) contributory help, participation, (b) sharing in, communion, (c) spiritual fellowship, a fellowship in the spirit.
HELPS Word-studies
2842 koinōnía (a feminine noun) – properly, what is shared in common as the basis of fellowship (partnership, community).
This Greek word is used 4 times in I John 1 and 19x in the NT. 19 is the eighth prime number and 8 is the number of resurrection and of a new beginning.
It is always a new beginning in our lives when we get back in fellowship with God.
I John 1
koinónia, [Strong’s #2842] has as its root word koinónos below [Strong’s #2844]
Strong’s Concordance #2844 [this root word is used 10x in the NT]
koinónos definition: a sharer
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Phonetic Spelling: (koy-no-nos’)
Usage: a sharer, partner, companion.
HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 2844 koinōnós (a masculine noun/substantival adjective) – properly, a participant who mutually belongs and shares fellowship; a “joint-participant.” See 2842 (koinōnia).
[2842 /koinōnía (a feminine noun) stresses the relational aspect of the fellowship. 2844 /koinōnós (a masculine noun) more directly focuses on the participant himself (herself).
The basic essence of fellowship with God is that we have FULL SHARING with God and all his resources through his son Jesus Christ.
I recently heard a hypothetical situation online where a christian commits a significant crime and then somehow dies shortly thereafter, leaving them with an unrepented sin.
Again, this only affects their FELLOWSHIP with God and NOT their sonship!
The consequences would be that they might lose some of their crowns and/or rewards, but never their status of being a son.
Section #3 on the nature of death proves that our fellowship with God terminates the moment we die, but our sonship remains eternal.
As demonstrated in section #13 [6 sections below], the perfect spiritual body we receive at the return of Christ never needs any purification, totally eliminating the need of purgatory.
The bible mentions 5 diffferent crowns [garlands or wreaths placed on the head of the winner] and rewards that a christian can earn.
The general principle is that in our walk with God, since we can earn crowns and rewards by our own freedom of will actions, then its also possible that we could be tricked by Satan and lose them.
Galatians 6
7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
The critical distinction between the word of God and purgatory is how sins are dealt with: in the word of God, sins negatively affect our fellowship with God while we are alive and the potential loss of crowns and rewards in the future whereas with purgatory, people are punished and tortured by fire in the future, which is false and evil.
In contrast, salvation is by the grace and the works of God and because the gift of holy spirit is the Christ within us that is incorruptible spiritual seed born within, we cannot lose it; have it die; deteriorate; get sick or have it get stolen by the devil.
OUR CROWNS AND REWARDS FOR CARRYING OUT THE WILL OF GOD
I Corinthians 9
24 Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.
25 And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible [crown because its spiritual and not physical].
26 I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:
Q: How come our incorruptible crowns can be lost, but our incorruptible gift of holy spirit cannot?
A: Because of the fact that the 5-senses realm parallels the spiritual realm. In the physical realm, a crown [garland] can be removed just as easily as it is put on. However, just like in the physical realm, our genetic sonship with our father cannot be changed and therefore, our spiritual sonship with God cannot be removed either.
2 Timothy 2:5
And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.
Remember Lance Armstrong, the only person to ever win the Tour De France 7 times in a row?! He was proclaimed the greatest athlete of all time!
But later on, it was proven that he won the races UNlawfully due to illegal drug use and he had all his trophies and his “crown” as the winner and greatest athlete of all time forfeited!
This is just like the spiritual competition we are in now where we can earn spiritual crowns & rewards, but we will never receive one if we are “cheating” by not following the rules of the game set out in the bible. If we get deceived into committing idolatry, then we can have our crowns & rewards taken away.
2 Timothy 4:8
Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
James 1:12
Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.
1 Peter 5:4
And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.
THERE IS A POTENTIAL THAT WE CAN LOSE OUR REWARDS THAT WE EARNED
II John 1
6 And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.
7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
8 Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought [worked for], but that we receive a full reward.
Ephesians 5
1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;
2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.
3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;
4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.
5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
In the context of believers gaining crowns and rewards as illustrated by the several verses above on the subject, it is possible for us to lose rewards because we got deceived into committing idolatry, which includes influences from a devil spirit of whoredoms, which is the devil spirit primarily responsible for causing believers to worship the creation instead of God, the creator.
SONSHIP
Some of the following verses and information was taken from another section of this article, but here its being shown from a different perspective; that of sonship vs fellowship.
I Peter 1
22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
Romans 1:23
And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things.
The word “incorruptible” in I Peter 1:23 is the exact same Greek word as the word “uncorruptible” in Romans 1:23 – like father, like son.
Definition of incorruptible:
Strong’s Concordance #862 [used 8 times in the bible: the number of resurrection and new beginning].
aphthartos definition: imperishable, incorruptible, undecaying
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (af’-thar-tos)
Usage: indestructible, imperishable, incorruptible; hence: immortal.
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 862: ἄφθαρτος
ἄφθαρτος, ἄφθαρτον (φθείρω), uncorrupted, not liable to corruption or decay, imperishable:
Thus, we cannot lose our sonship, but we can lose our rewards.
Hosea 4:6
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
#8 PURGATORY CONTRADICTS ALL 8 CHARACTERISTICS OF GOD’S WISDOM!
Speaking of pure, look at the very first characteristic of God’s wisdom!
James 3
17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.
Purgatory vs God’s wisdom
PURGATORY | GOD’S WISDOM |
Contaminated and infected doctrine of devils; its a false accusation of being spiritually impure in the eyes of God, which originates from the most impure of all possible sources: the devil | #1 Pure: God’s wisdom is from above and is always of the highest possible purity |
Are you at peace knowing that you will be tortured after you die for an unknown period of time for a spiritual “crime” that you’re not even guilty of? Nobody in their right mind would be. | #2 Peaceable: from HELPS Word-studies 1515 eirḗnē (from eirō, “to join, tie together into a whole”) – properly, wholeness, i.e. when all essential parts are joined together; peace (God’s gift of wholeness). This is the exact opposite meaning of anxious in Philippians 4:6 |
Do you think its fair and just to be tortured after you die, even though you are not guilty? This contradicts God’s perfect justice. | #3 Gentle: from HELPS Word-studies 1933 epieikes (an adjective, derived from 1909 /epi, “on, fitting” and eikos, “equitable, fair”; also see the noun-form, 1932 /epieikeia, “equity-justice”) – properly, equitable; “gentle” in the sense of truly fair by relaxing overly strict standards in order to keep the “spirit of the law.” 1933 /epieikes (“justice beyond ordinary justice”) builds on the real intent (purpose) of what is really at stake (note the epi, “upon”) – and hence, is true equity that appropriately fulfills the spirit (not just the letter) of the law. |
Those who apply critical thinking and are walking in God’s perfect light should not be comfortable with the concept of purgatory because it contradicts so many verses, definitions of words and biblical principles. | #4 Easy to be entreated: from HELPS Word-studies 2138 eupeithes (from 2095 /eu, “well” and 3982 /peitho, “persuade”) – properly, “well-persuaded,” already inclined, i.e. already willing (predisposed, favorable to); easy to come to terms with because already willing. 2138 /eupeithes (“yield”) only occurs in James 3:17. Since James 3:17 is the only place in the bible this word is used, it makes God’s wisdom uniquely superior to the devil’s wordly wisdom. Have you ever heard of the phrase “its a hard pill to swallow”? Easy to be entreated is just the opposite because its smooth and easy to be accepted, it doesn’t make you want to fight against it. Since God’s wisdom is gentle [fair & reasonable; “justice beyond ordinary justice”], then that will automatically be easy to be entreated. |
Purgatory blatantly contradicts God’s mercy in the most cruel way possible; people born of the seed of the serpent are without God’s mercy and will burn in the lake of fire; essentially, purgatory says we are without mercy for a period of time and are tortured by fire; Thus, God’s people are treated as if they are the devil’s own children! The devil accuses us of what he is guilty of himself. Therefore, purgatory was invented by a person born of the seed of the serpent. | #5 Full of mercy: Grace is unmerited divine favor. Mercy has also been defined as merited judgment withheld, which could only be done by God’s grace. The entire 136th Psalm has 26 verses dedicated to the mercy of the Lord which endures forever. |
What good Godly fruits does purgatory produce in your life now or in the future? NONE. Remember the very first section? Purgatory was proven to be irrelevant, meaningless and useless. | #6 Full of good fruits: God’s wisdom produces good fruit, both now and in the future |
Purgatory discriminates against God’s people | #7 Without partiality: God’s wisdom is not a respecter of people and treats all with the same principles; both without partiality and without hypocrisy have the same Greek word krino as their root word! |
Purgatory is hypocritical because of the nature of the accuser who falsely accuses us of what he is guilty of himself | #8 Without hypocrisy: God’s love, believing and wisdom are all without hypocrisy. |
Since purgatory contradicts all 8 characteristics of God’s wisdom, it has to be the devil’s wisdom: James 3 14 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. 15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. 16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. |
#9 PURGATORY CONTRADICTS THE MERCY OF THE LORD WHICH ENDURES FOREVER!
Ephesians 2
1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
Purgatory is never mentioned!
Definition of punish:
verb (used with object)
- to subject to pain, loss, confinement, death, etc., as a penalty for some offense, transgression, or fault: The goal of the court is to punish the criminal for the crime he has committed.
- to inflict a penalty for (an offense, fault, etc.): Unconditional imprisonment is imposed to punish past transgressions.
- to mistreat, abuse, or hurt: Additional tariffs will punish working families with higher prices on household basics.
- to handle severely or roughly, as in a fight.
- to put to painful exertion, as a horse in racing.
- Informal. to make a heavy inroad on; deplete: to punish a quart of whiskey.
Definition of mercy:
noun, plural mer·cies for 4, 5.
- compassionate or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or other person in one’s power; compassion, pity, or benevolence: Have mercy on the poor sinner.
- the disposition to be compassionate or forbearing: an adversary wholly without mercy.
- the discretionary power of a judge to pardon someone or to mitigate punishment, especially to send to prison rather than invoke the death penalty.
- an act of kindness, compassion, or favor: She has performed countless small mercies for her friends and neighbors.
- something that gives evidence of divine favor; blessing: It was just a mercy we had our seat belts on when it happened.
The mercy of the Lord is so great that an entire chapter of Psalms was dedicated to it!
Just look at the incredible precision and symmetry of the word of the Lord!
Purgatory ignores the mercy of the Lord that endures for ever!
Psalms 135 & 136
Psalms 136
1 O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
2 O give thanks unto the God of gods: for his mercy endureth for ever.
3 O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for his mercy endureth for ever.
4 To him who alone doeth great wonders: for his mercy endureth for ever.
5 To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for ever.
6 To him that stretched out the earth above the waters: for his mercy endureth for ever.
7 To him that made great lights: for his mercy endureth for ever:
8 The sun to rule by day: for his mercy endureth for ever:
9 The moon and stars to rule by night: for his mercy endureth for ever.
10 To him that smote Egypt in their firstborn: for his mercy endureth for ever:
11 And brought out Israel from among them: for his mercy endureth for ever:
12 With a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm: for his mercy endureth for ever.
13 To him which divided the Red sea into parts: for his mercy endureth for ever:
14 And made Israel to pass through the midst of it: for his mercy endureth for ever:
15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea: for his mercy endureth for ever.
16 To him which led his people through the wilderness: for his mercy endureth for ever.
17 To him which smote great kings: for his mercy endureth for ever:
18 And slew famous kings: for his mercy endureth for ever:
19 Sihon king of the Amorites: for his mercy endureth for ever:
20 And Og the king of Bashan: for his mercy endureth for ever:
21 And gave their land for an heritage: for his mercy endureth for ever:
22 Even an heritage unto Israel his servant: for his mercy endureth for ever.
23 Who remembered us in our low estate: for his mercy endureth for ever:
24 And hath redeemed us from our enemies: for his mercy endureth for ever.
25 Who giveth food to all flesh: for his mercy endureth for ever.
26 O give thanks unto the God of heaven: for his mercy endureth for ever.
But why 26 verses on the mercy of the Lord? Why not 11 or 35 or some other number?
13 is the number of rebellion, corruption and apostasy against the Lord, so 26 is twice that, emphasizing and intensifying it, yet the mercy of the Lord overcomes that and more!
Mercy is also the 5th characteristic of God’s wisdom!
James 3
17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
18 And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.
“Full of Mercy” is listed 5th in the list of characteristics of God’s wisdom because 5 is the number of grace in the bible.
Grace is unmerited divine favor. Mercy has also been defined as merited judgment withheld, which could only be done by God’s grace.
#10 PURGATORY CONTRADICTS THE PERFECT JUSTICE OF GOD!
Job 1:22
In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.
The word “foolishly” in the companion study bible is defined as “with injustice”. We have a just God who does not punish his people, and especially not for sins that have already been forgiven and forgotten.
So now here is the more accurate translation of this verse:
Job 1:22
In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God with injustice.
Being punished for your sins after they have already been forgiven and forgotten is spiritual injustice which contradicts Job 1:22. Therefore, God cannot be the one who invented purgatory.
Job 1:22
Purgatory contradicts Job 1:22 and the justice of God
Here is a legal hypothetical equivalent to the definition of purgatory.
Say a guy commits a felony and the police arrest him and throw him in jail. The judge says he has to serve 10 years, so he does. Then what happens? Assuming he’s been on good behavior, then the prison system lets him go free. His crime has been forgiven. He paid the price. Yet, the police go arrest him again, without committing another crime, and punishes him for 3.5 additional years in the slammer. That’s real purgatory.
Its logically impossible for God to punish us for sins he cannot even remember. Therefore, the punishment has to come from a source other than the one true God. There are only 2 Gods: God the creator of the universe, who is the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the God of this world, who is Satan.
Colossians 1:22
In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreprovable in his sight:
Once again, we go to a good bible dictionary to further verify and clarify the will of God.
3 definitions from Colossians 1:22
Definition of “holy”:
Strong’s Concordance #40
hagios: sacred, holy
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (hag’-ee-os)
Usage: set apart by (or for) God, holy, sacred.
HELPS Word-studies
40 hágios – properly, different (unlike), other (“otherness”), holy; for the believer, 40 (hágios) means “likeness of nature with the Lord” because “different from the world.”
The fundamental (core) meaning of 40 (hágios) is “different” – thus a temple in the 1st century was hagios (“holy”) because different from other buildings (Wm. Barclay). In the NT, 40 /hágios (“holy”) has the “technical” meaning “different from the world” because “like the Lord.”
[40 (hágios) implies something “set apart” and therefore “different (distinguished/distinct)” – i.e. “other,” because special to the Lord.]
Definition of “unblameable”:
Strong’s Concordance #299
amomos: blameless
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (am’-o-mos)
Definition: amomum (a fragrant plant of India)
Usage: blameless, without blemish, unblemished, faultless.
HELPS Word-studies
299 ámōmos (an adjective, derived from 1 /A “not” and 3470 /mṓmos, “blemish”) – properly, unblemished, without spot or blot (blight); (figuratively) morally, spiritually blameless, unblemished from the marring effects of sin.
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 299a: ἄμωμον
without blemish, free from faultiness, as a victim without spot or blemish:
in both places allusion is made to the sinless life of Christ. Ethically, without blemish, faultless, unblameable
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance
without blame, without blemish, faultless.
From a (as a negative particle) and momos; unblemished (literally or figuratively) — without blame (blemish, fault, spot), faultless, unblameable.
Definition of “unreprovable”:
Strong’s Concordance #410
anegklétos definition: not to be called to account, unreprovable
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (an-eng’-klay-tos)
Usage: irreproachable, blameless.
HELPS Word-studies
410 anégklētos (from 1 /A “not” and 1458 /egkaléō, “making legal charges against someone in a court of law”) – properly, not convictable when a person is properly scrutinized – i.e. tried with correct logic (“legal reasoning”), i.e. logic approved in a court of law.
Purgatory contradicts all 3 definitions of: “holy” | “umblameable” | “unreprovable” in Colossians 1:22
But our legal standing goes another level deeper.
I John 2
1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
2 And he is the propitiation [payment] for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
From verse 1, definition of “advocate”:
Strong’s Concordance #3875
paraklétos definition: called to one’s aid
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Phonetic Spelling: (par-ak’-lay-tos)
Usage: (a) an advocate, intercessor, (b) a consoler, comforter, helper, (c) Paraclete.
HELPS Word-studies
3875 paráklētos (from 3844 /pará, “from close-beside” and 2564 /kaléō, “make a call”) – properly, a legal advocate who makes the right judgment-call because close enough to the situation. 3875 /paráklētos (“advocate, advisor-helper”) is the regular term in NT times of an attorney (lawyer) – i.e. someone giving evidence that stands up in court.
Purgatory contradicts the definition of “advocate” [attorney] in I John 2:1
Romans 5
1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
19 For as by one man’s disobedience [Adam] many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one [Jesus Christ] shall many be made righteous.
30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
Definition of “justified” below in verses 1 & 9:
Strong’s Concordance #1344
dikaioó definition: to show to be righteous, declare righteous
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (dik-ah-yo’-o)
Usage: I make righteous, defend the cause of, plead for the righteousness (innocence) of, acquit, justify; hence: I regard as righteous.
HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 1344 dikaióō (from dikē, “right, judicial-approval”) – properly, approved, especially in a legal, authoritative sense; to show what is right, i.e. conformed to a proper standard (i.e. “upright”).
The believer is “made righteous/justified” (1344 /dikaióō) by the Lord, cleared of all charges (punishment) related to their sins. Moreover, they are justified (1344 /dikaióō, “made right, righteous”) by God’s grace each time they receive (obey) faith (4102 /pístis), i.e. “God’s inwrought persuasion” (cf. the -oō ending which conveys “to bring to/out”). See 1343 (dikaiosynē).
The biblical definition of justified in Romans 5:1 destroys the lie of purgatory!!!
Romans 5:9 says we shall be saved from wrath through him, which, by definition, includes purgatory!!!
II Corinthians 5
19 To wit [to know], that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.
21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Definition of Righteousness:
Strong’s Concordance #1343
dikaiosuné definition: righteousness, justice
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (dik-ah-yos-oo’-nay)
Usage: (usually if not always in a Jewish atmosphere), justice, justness, righteousness, righteousness of which God is the source or author, but practically: a divine righteousness.
HELPS Word-studies
1343 dikaiosýnē (from 1349 /díkē, “a judicial verdict”) – properly, judicial approval (the verdict of approval); in the NT, the approval of God (“divine approval”).
1343 /dikaiosýnē (“divine approval”) is the regular NT term used for righteousness (“God’s judicial approval”). 1343 /dikaiosýnē (“the approval of God”) refers to what is deemed right by the Lord (after His examination), i.e. what is approved in His eyes.
Purgatory contradicts II Corinthians 5:21!
Do you see how quick, simple, easy and logical it is to separate truth from error when you have an accurate knowledge of God’s word?
Essentially, purgatory is the devil falsely accusing God’s people of being impure, which probably contradicts well over 100 verses of scripture and hypocritically, this accusation is coming from the most impure being in the universe: the devil himself.
He is a liar and full of hypocrisy.
John 8:44 [Jesus Christ is confronting a specific group of evil religious leaders called the Pharisees who had become sons of the devil].
Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
Revelation 12:10
And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
The devil will always falsely accuse us of what he is guilty of himself.
John 8:44 & Revelation 12:10
11 PURGATORY VIOLATES UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS, 42 U.S. Code § 2000dd OF THE US GOVERNMENT AND THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION!!!
Human Rights Instruments
CORE INSTRUMENT
Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
ADOPTED
10 December 1984
BY
General Assembly resolution 39/46
Entry into force: 26 June 1987, in accordance with article 27 (1)
The States Parties to this Convention,
Considering that, in accordance with the principles proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations, recognition of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,
Recognizing that those rights derive from the inherent dignity of the human person,
Considering the obligation of States under the Charter, in particular Article 55, to promote universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms,
Having regard to article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, both of which provide that no one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,
Having regard also to the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Being Subjected to Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, adopted by the General Assembly on 9 December 1975,
Desiring to make more effective the struggle against torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment throughout the world,
Have agreed as follows:
Part I
Article 1
- For the purposes of this Convention, the term “torture” means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity. It does not include pain or suffering arising only from, inherent in or incidental to lawful sanctions.
- This article is without prejudice to any international instrument or national legislation which does or may contain provisions of wider application.
Article 2
- Each State Party shall take effective legislative, administrative, judicial or other measures to prevent acts of torture in any territory under its jurisdiction.
- No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency, may be invoked as a justification of torture.
- An order from a superior officer or a public authority may not be invoked as a justification of torture.
Article 3
- No State Party shall expel, return (“refouler”) or extradite a person to another State where there are substantial grounds for believing that he would be in danger of being subjected to torture.
- For the purpose of determining whether there are such grounds, the competent authorities shall take into account all relevant considerations including, where applicable, the existence in the State concerned of a consistent pattern of gross, flagrant or mass violations of human rights.
Cornell Law School
LII [Legal Information Institute]
42 U.S. Code § 2000dd – Prohibition on cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment of persons under custody or control of the United States Government
(a) In general
No individual in the custody or under the physical control of the United States Government, regardless of nationality or physical location, shall be subject to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.
Cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment
In this section, the term “cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment” means the cruel, unusual, and inhumane treatment or punishment prohibited by the Fifth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States, as defined in the United States Reservations, Declarations and Understandings to the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment done at New York, December 10, 1984 .
Fifth Amendment
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
Eighth Amendment
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
14th Amendment
Section 1
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Section 2
Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice-President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.
Section 3
No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.
Section 4
The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.
Section 5
The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.
#12 PURGATORY CONTRADICTS 6 VERSES IN EPHESIANS!
Purgatory contradicts Ephesians 1:6
Ephesians 1
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
Definition of “accepted”:
Strong’s Concordance #5487
charitoó definition: to make graceful, endow with grace
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (khar-ee-to’-o)
Usage: I favor, bestow freely on.
HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 5487 xaritóō (from 5486 /xárisma, “grace,” see there) – properly, highly-favored because receptive to God’s grace. 5487 (xaritóō) is used twice in the NT (Lk 1:28 and Eph 1:6), both times of God extending Himself to freely bestow grace (favor).
Definition of “redemption” in Ephesians 1:7:
Strong’s Concordance #629
apolutrósis definition: a release effected by payment of ransom
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (ap-ol-oo’-tro-sis)
Usage: release effected by payment of ransom; redemption, deliverance.
HELPS Word-studies
629 apolýtrōsis(from 575 /apó, “from” and 3084 /lytróō, “redeem”) – properly, redemption – literally, “buying back from, re-purchasing (winning back) what was previously forfeited (lost).”
629 /apolýtrōsis (“redemption, re-purchase”) emphasizes the distance (“safety-margin”) that results between the rescued person, and what previously enslaved them. For the believer, the prefix (575 /apó) looks back to God’s effective work of grace, purchasing them from the debt of sin and bringing them to their new status (being in Christ).
Definition of “forgiveness”:
Strong’s Concordance #859
aphesis definition: dismissal, release, figuratively – pardon
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (af’-es-is)
Usage: a sending away, a letting go, a release, pardon, complete forgiveness.
HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 859 áphesis (from 863 /aphíēmi, “send away, forgive” ) – properly, “something sent away”; i.e. remission (“forgiveness”), releasing someone from obligation or debt. See 863 (aphiēmi).
Purgatory contradicts Ephesians 1:7 – the definitions of redemption, forgiveness & grace
As born again believers, we are already holy in God’s sight, so no more purification or holiness is needed or can be achieved after death.
Ephesians 1
11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
Not only do we have an inheritance with God, but are to the praise of his glory!! God does not put down payments on junk or trash! YOU are his valued inheritance and YOU are the praise of his glory, so how could you need to be purified in the hell of purgatory?!
One of the purposes of purgatory has got to be an attempt of the devil to drive christians away from God.
Purgatory contradicts Ephesians 1:11 & 12
Ephesians 5
25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
This section of Ephesians is packed full of the rich depth of all the goodness of God! As a result, it has become a separate section of this article, with many definitions of words broken down, verified and clarified so you can see the magnificence of God and his word in all its glory.
Verse 26, definition of “sanctify”:
Strong’s Concordance #37
hagiazó definition: to make holy, consecrate, sanctify
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (hag-ee-ad’-zo)
Usage: I make holy, treat as holy, set apart as holy, sanctify, hallow, purify.
HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 37 hagiázō (from 40 /hágios, “holy”) – to regard as special (sacred), i.e. holy (“set apart”), sanctify. See 40 (hagios).
[37 (hagiázō) means “to make holy, consecrate, sanctify; to dedicate, separate” (Abbott-Smith).]
Verse 26, definition of “cleanse”:
This is the Greek word katharizó: to cleanse [Strong’s Concordance #2511], which is the verb form of katharos, which we’ve already seen before:
Strong’s Concordance #2513
katharos definition: clean
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (kath-ar-os’)
Usage: clean, pure, unstained, either literally or ceremonially or spiritually; guiltless, innocent, upright.
HELPS Word-studies
2513 katharós (a primitive word) – properly, “without admixture” (BAGD); what is separated (purged), hence “clean” (pure) because unmixed (without undesirable elements); (figuratively) spiritually clean because purged (purified by God), i.e. free from the contaminating (soiling) influences of sin.
Verse 26, definition of the word “washing”:
Strong’s Concordance #3067 loutron: a washing, a bath, which comes from the root word Louo, detailed below:
Strong’s Concordance #3068
louó definition: to bathe, to wash
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (loo’-o)
Usage: (literally. or merely ceremonially), I wash, bathe (the body); mid: of washing, bathing one’s self; met: I cleanse from sin.
HELPS Word-studies
3068 loúō – properly, to wash (cleanse), especially the entire person (bathing the whole body). 3068 /loúō (and its derivative, 628 /apoloúō) implies “fully-washing” (literally and metaphorically) – i.e. a complete bathing to cleanse the entire person (body).
Purgatory contradicts the definitions of 8 words in Ephesians 5:25-27!
Verse 27, definition of “glorious”:
Strong’s Concordance #1741
endoxos definition: held in honor, glorious
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (en’-dox-os)
Usage: highly esteemed, splendid, glorious.
HELPS Word-studies
1741 éndoksos (from the prefix, 1722 /en, “engaged in,” which intensifies 1391 /dóksa (“glory, inherent worth”) – properly, “in glory,” expressing the dignity (exalted status) of something and viewed “in a state of high honor and repute” (A-S).
As is that wasn’t great enough, here is the definition of the root word for glorious:
Strong’s Concordance #1391
doxa definition: opinion (always good in N.T.), hence praise, honor, glory
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (dox’-ah)
Usage: honor, renown; glory, an especially divine quality, the unspoken manifestation of God, splendor.
HELPS Word-studies
1391 dóksa (from dokeō, “exercising personal opinion which determines value”) – glory. 1391 /dóksa (“glory”) corresponds to the OT word, kabo (OT 3519, “to be heavy”). Both terms convey God’s infinite, intrinsic worth (substance, essence).
[1391 (dóksa) literally means “what evokes good opinion, i.e. that something has inherent, intrinsic worth” (J. Thayer).]
Verse 27, definition of “spot”:
Strong’s Concordance #4696
spilos definition: a spot, stain
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Phonetic Spelling: (spee’-los)
Usage: a spot, fault, stain, blemish.
HELPS Word-studies
4696 spílos – properly, a stain (spot); (figuratively) a moral (spiritual) fault or blemish. Moral and spiritual stains (spots) come from living outside God’s preferred-will (desire, 2307 /thélēma, compare Eph 5:15-17,27) and are removed with heartfelt confession (1 Jn 1:9).
Verse 27, definition of “wrinkle”:
Strong’s Concordance #4512
rhutis definition: a wrinkle
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (hroo-tece’)
Usage: a wrinkle; fig: a spiritual defect, flaw.
HELPS Word-studies
4512 rhytís – properly, bunched up, contracted; (figuratively) “a wrinkle, from aging” (Souter).
Verse 27, definition of “holy”:
Strong’s Concordance #40
hagios definition: sacred, holy
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (hag’-ee-os)
Usage: set apart by (or for) God, holy, sacred.
HELPS Word-studies
40 hágios – properly, different (unlike), other (“otherness”), holy; for the believer, 40 (hágios) means “likeness of nature with the Lord” because “different from the world.”
The fundamental (core) meaning of 40 (hágios) is “different” – thus a temple in the 1st century was hagios (“holy”) because different from other buildings (Wm. Barclay). In the NT, 40 /hágios (“holy”) has the “technical” meaning “different from the world” because “like the Lord.”
[40 (hágios) implies something “set apart” and therefore “different (distinguished/distinct)” – i.e. “other,” because special to the Lord.]
Verse 27, definition of “without blemish”:
Strong’s Concordance #299
amomos: blameless
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (am’-o-mos)
Definition: amomum (a fragrant plant of India)
Usage: blameless, without blemish, unblemished, faultless.
HELPS Word-studies
299 ámōmos (an adjective, derived from 1 /A “not” and 3470 /mṓmos, “blemish”) – properly, unblemished, without spot or blot (blight); (figuratively) morally, spiritually blameless, unblemished from the marring effects of sin.
#13 PURGATORY CONTRADICTS LOTS OF MISCELLANEOUS SCRIPTURES!
Philippians 2
13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings:
15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;
Definition of blameless:
Strong’s Concordance #273
amemptos definition: blameless
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (am’-emp-tos)
Usage: blameless, free from fault or defect.
HELPS Word-studies
273 ámemptos (an adjective, derived from 1 /A “not” and 3201 /mémphomai, “to find blame”) – properly, without fault; not blameworthy, by omission or commission; hence, above reproach because morally pure. (This term stands in contrast to 299 /ámōmos, “ritual purity.”)
Definition of harmless:
Strong’s Concordance #185
akeraios definition: unmixed, pure
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (ak-er’-ah-yos)
Usage: (literally: unmixed) simple, unsophisticated, sincere, blameless.
HELPS Word-studies
185 akéraios (an adjective, derived from 1 /A “not” and 2767 /keránnymi, “mingled”) – properly, not mixed (mingled); not a destructive mixture because not tainted by sinful motives (ambitions); pure (unmingled).
Definition of without rebuke:
Strong’s Concordance #299
amomos: blameless
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (am’-o-mos)
Definition: amomum (a fragrant plant of India)
Usage: blameless, without blemish, unblemished, faultless.
HELPS Word-studies
299 ámōmos (an adjective, derived from 1 /A “not” and 3470 /mṓmos, “blemish”) – properly, unblemished, without spot or blot (blight); (figuratively) morally, spiritually blameless, unblemished from the marring effects of sin.
Purgatory contradicts Philippians 2:15 on multiple counts!
Colossians 1
26 Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
1 Thessalonians 5:27
I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren.
Hebrews 3:1
Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;
1 Peter 2:9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;
2 Peter 1:4
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
Purgatory contradicts the definition of partakers in II Peter 1:4
We are partakers of God’s divine nature!
So the idea that we need more cleansing after we are dead is a totally unbiblical concept.
#14 AT THE RETURN OF CHRIST, WE WILL HAVE A GLORIOUS SPIRITUAL BODY!
I Corinthians 15
42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:
43 It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:
44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
When Jesus Christ returns, we will get a brand-new spiritual body, similar to the one Jesus Christ got when he was resurrected from the dead.
As the verses above testify, our new body will be:
- Incorruptible
- Glorious
- Powerful
- Spiritual
Purgatory contradicts I Corinthians 15:42-44!
Philippians 3:21
Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.
We will have a glorious spiritual body when Jesus Christ comes back!!! Purgatory contradicts Philippians 3:21!
Psalms 51:14
Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.
Every human being since the fall of Adam and Eve in Genesis 3 has had their blood corrupted because that’s when the devil became the god of this world.
In other words, the sin nature is in the blood of all human beings except Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ is called the innocent blood in the bible. We have been redeemed and made righteous in the sight of God because of the perfect works of Jesus Christ.
So at the return of Christ, our corrupt body, bloodstream and soul [which is also in the blood]will be replaced by a perfect spiritual body with perfect spiritual blood running through our veins.
#15 DON’T BLAME THE LORD! UNDERSTANDING THE HEBREW IDIOM OF PERMISSION
Job 1:21
And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.
So here it looks like God gave something to Job, and then took it away. One of the purposes of Jesus Christ was to expose the devil and his hierarchy of devil spirits and how they functioned.
So before that time, people were literally in the spiritual dark about the whole thing. So when something bad happened, they attributed all good or evil to God, but with a twist.
Whenever the bible says that God slew some people, or destroyed the land, etc, its not literally true. Its a figure of speech, a Hebrew idiom of permission. It means that God allowed the thing to happen because he gives every person freedom of will. They can choose what they want to do. This holds true even for the devil and his devil spirits.
So in Job 1:21 when his children were taken away and killed, ultimately, who did this?
As John 10:10 says, the thief did. Thief is one of the many names of Satan, emphasizing a particular aspect of his nature. God simply allows things to happen based upon variable conditions in a person’s life.
So when it comes to purgatory, it is not the Lord putting us through something horrible. It is the work of Satan who is blaming God for it, which is a function of the devil being the accuser against God and his people.
We live in the age of grace where God allows seducing spirits and doctrines of devils to exist in our world because we have freedom of will and in order for that to occur, there has to be freedom of choice. If there is only one choice, then there’s no freedom.
#16 PURGATORY: SELF RIGHTEOUSNESS VS THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD
There are only 5 verses in the bible that mention self righteousness that I’m aware of:
Isaiah 57:12 [kjv]
I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee.
Isaiah 57:12 [amplified bible]
“I will declare your [hypocritical] righteousness and your deeds, But they will not benefit you.
Ezekiel 33:13
When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousness shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it.
Matthew 6:1 [kjv]
Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 6:1 NET [New English Translation]
Be careful not to display your righteousness merely to be seen by people. Otherwise you have no reward with your Father in heaven.
Matthew 6:1 [Codex Sinaiticus, the oldest complete copy of the Greek new testament in existence, dating back to the 4th century]
But take heed that you do not your righteousness before men, to be seen by them: other wise you have no reward with your Father who is in the heavens.
Matthew 6:33
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and HIS righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
So the 6th chapter of Matthew starts off with a person’s own righteousness, but ends in God’s righteousness, so that is a free spiritual upgrade = exchanging our righteousnesss for the Lords!
Romans 1 talks about men exchanging the incorruptible glory of God for the corruptible glory of men and animals, which is a downgrade.
Romans 10:3
For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
Philippians 3:9
And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith [believing]:
Galatians 5
1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
One of the many forms of self righteousness is martyrdom or being a willing religious victim “for the Lord”. In a more extreme form, it can descend into masochism, which is getting pleasure from pain, which is the operation of a devil spirit, which is discussed in more detail in the section below on torture.
Self righteousness is the world’s counterfeit of and the is opposite of God’s righteousness.
Here is just one of many examples of the genuine righteousness of the Lord.
Isaiah 61:3 [amplified bible]
To grant to those who mourn in Zion the following:
To give them a turban instead of dust [on their heads, a sign of mourning],
The oil of joy instead of mourning,
The garment [expressive] of praise instead of a disheartened spirit.
So they will be called the trees of righteousness [strong and magnificent, distinguished for integrity, justice, and right standing with God],
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.
#17 God does not torture us
He never sanctions torture of any kind, even for evil people. He never even tempts us with evil. Whatever evil falls upon us is either our own fault for breaking sound biblical principles in our life and/or the attacks of Satan.
Galatians 6
7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
John 10:10
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
James 1:13
Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:
God does not even tempt us, so how could he punish us?
I John 1:5
This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
So torturing others is when a person gets pleasure from hurting or injuring others and that is the influence from a devil spirit called a sadistic spirit.
However, if you revel in the thought of being tortured [or the religious counterfeit version of enjoying suffering for the Lord, such as being in purgatory, which would mean becoming a martyr for Jesus or the Lord], then that is the influence by a masochistic spirit which causes a person to get pleasure from pain and suffering.
Scientists have determined that both pain and pleasure are processed in the same parts of the brain [such as the amygdala, the pallidum, and the nucleus accumbens], so if you enjoy hurting others or being hurt, these are the areas of the brain that are being hijacked by devil spirits.
Severe abuse, rape and torture are all caused by a sadistic devil spirit which causes a person to get pleasure from inflicting pain and injury on others.
Purgatory is torture and therefore is inspired by sadistic devil spirits.
Thus, purgatory is a work of seducing spirits and doctrines of devils and must be purged from your thoughts, beliefs, heart and life.
[I Timothy 4:1]
Purgatory vs Seed of the serpent
People in Purgatory | Seed of the Serpent |
Tortured by fire | They and their father the devil burn in the lake of fire and torture people as well |
Falsely accused of being spiritually impure | The devil is the most corrupt and contaminated [impure] entity in existence |
Victims do not receive any of God’s mercy | None of the seed of the serpent or the devil are given any mercy from God; In Job 42, Job’s 3 friends were accepted by the Lord, but Elihu was not because he was born of the seed of the serpent |
Its a hypocritical accusation due to the nature of the accuser | Jesus Christ called S.O.S. hypocrites 7 times in Matthew 23 |
Due to the similarity between purgatory and the nature of the devil and the S.O.S., is it possible that purgatory is a form of retaliation from the devil? |
#18 Verses used to justify purgatory
Some of the main verses used to justify the existence of purgatory are listed below. I will be adding comments and notes as soon as possible.
Matthew 5
25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.
26 Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.
Here is the official Roman Catholic logic and interpretation of these 2 verses and why they believe they verify the existence of purgatory.
https://www.catholic.com/bible-navigator/purgatory/matthew525-26
“Catholic Perspective
Jesus speaks parabolically but directly, here. The metaphor of the “prison” implies a temporary “holding place” for purgatorial suffering. The “penny,” or kodtrantes, represents the “lesser transgressions” being emphasized. These would be venial sins for which Christians can make atonement in cooperation with God’s grace.
Interestingly, the Greek word for prison, phulake, is the same word used by St. Peter to describe the spiritual “holding place” into which Jesus descended after his death to liberate the detained souls of Old Testament believers (1 Pet. 3:19)“.
Once again, this is a clever mixture of truth and error, that ends up with an erroneous conclusion for a variety of reasons.
First off, there is the false assumption or belief that the gospels are written directly to us, the born again christians in the age of grace, which is the period of time between the day of Pentecost [27A.D.] and the day Jesus Christ returns for us [I Thessalonians 4:13-18] whenever that occurs in the future.
The 4 gospels were written DIRECTLY TO ISRAEL AND NOT TO US! They were written for our learning and for our admonition and therefore do not and cannot constitute direct commands to us that we are required to carry out.
In other words, they were written directly to the BRIDE OF CHRIST, BUT NOT THE BODY OF CHRIST, 2 very distinct groups of people that lived in 2 distinctly different biblical administrations of time.
Romans 15:4 & I Corinthians 1:11
For more information, compare this article on the Lord’s prayer vs Ephesians!
Now we’re going to break down each sentence, phrase or individual words to see whether or not it is in agreement with holy scripture.
“Jesus speaks parabolically but directly, here. The metaphor of the “prison” implies a temporary “holding place” for purgatorial suffering.”.
Definition of parable, the root word for parabolically:
noun
- a short allegorical story designed to illustrate or teach some truth, religious principle, or moral lesson.
- a statement or comment that conveys a meaning indirectly by the use of comparison, analogy, or the like.
Usage of the word parable in the bible:
It is used a total of 65 times in the bible [the OT and gospels only].
The pattern and number of usages in the gospels is as follows [verified from biblegateway.com; note, the numbers of times its used are a count of the number of verses the word in question is used in and not an actual count of the number of usages of the word itself]:
- Matthew: 17
- Mark: 12
- Luke: 17
- John: 1
Gospel total: 47 = 72.3% of all biblical usages, or almost 3/4 [75%] of all biblical usages of the word parable(s) is in the gospels.
Unfortunately, the RC church didn’t do their homework on this one either [is anybody actually surprised?]
The first occurrence of the word parable(s) in the gospels is in Matthew 13:3, eight chapters after the verse used to verify the existence of purgatory!
In other words, the bible never says this is a parable, so to say that it is is nothing but private [one’s own] interpretation, which II Peter strictly forbids! Since this is the official position of the RC church, this also represents denominational bias.
2 Peter 1:20
Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private [one’s own] interpretation.
A parable is one of over 200 different types of figures of speech used in the bible.
Definition of parable from Matthew 13:3:
Strong’s Concordance #3850
parabole: a parable, comparison
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (par-ab-ol-ay’)
Definition: to expose oneself to danger
Usage: (a) a comparison, (b) a parable, often of those uttered by our Lord, (c) a proverb, an adage.
HELPS Word-studies
3850 parabolḗ (from 3844 /pará, “close beside, with” and 906 /bállō, “to cast”) – a parable; a teaching aid cast alongside the truth being taught. This casts additional light by using an arresting or familiar analogy, (which is often fictitious or metaphorical, but not necessarily).
[For extensive notes and commentary on Jesus’ “Kingdom-parables” see 932 (basileía).]
In order to avoid any confusion over which things Jesus taught were parables and which ones were not, the bible explicitly tells us 47 times in the gospels which teachings were parables and which ones were not.
Therefore, since none of the verses in Matthew 5 are parables [a figure of speech], then the words must be literal in meaning.
So we’re going into the context of the verses in question, learn some great new things and by the time we’re done, you’ll know these verses inside and out.
Matthew 5:21-26 [amplified bible]
21 “You have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not murder,’ and ‘Whoever murders shall be guilty before the court.’
22 But I say to you that everyone who continues to be angry with his brother or harbors malice against him shall be guilty before the court; and whoever speaks [contemptuously and insultingly] to his brother, ‘Raca (You empty-headed idiot)!’ shall be guilty before the supreme court (Sanhedrin); and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of the fiery hell.
23 So if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and while there you remember that your brother has something [such as a grievance or legitimate complaint] against you,
24 leave your offering there at the altar and go. First make peace with your brother, and then come and present your offering.
25 Come to terms quickly [at the earliest opportunity] with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way [to court], so that your opponent does not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you are thrown into prison.
26 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid the last cent.
Below are 2 screenshots from E.W. Bullinger’s Companion Reference Bible, pages 1316 & 1317, on Matthew 5 in order to clearly identify and better understand the main subject matter:
Below is a screenshot of E.W. Bullinger’s Companion Reference Bible, page 1317, on Matthew 5:21-48 in order to see the symmetrical precision and detailed meaning of the word of God.
We’re going to go through some of these verses very thoroughly to we can stand of the word of God with absolute certainty.
Murder: true murder is when a person is possessed with a devil spirit of murder. That’s what ultimately causes murder. With murder, there are only 2 types: murder of others and murder of oneself, which the world calls suicide. If your life is truly in danger by an attack from another person, then you have the right to defend yourself, even if it means killing the attacker in self defense. That does not involve a devil spirit.
If you take this to a national level, then its right for a country to defend itself against the attacking country and that is not murder either, but ultimately, the seed of the serpent people are the ones who are the root cause of wars. Therefore, until the devil gets cast into the lake of fire in the distant future, world peace is an absolute impossibility because unless the root cause of wars is removed, the problem is guaranteed to continue.
Moving on, in verse 22, it says if you call somebody a fool, you’re in danger of hell fire. Nowadays, this seems ludicrous and very extreme, but you must remember, this is the KJV from 1611. I’ve checked the usages of this word fool in the old testament and sometimes it refers to a person who is born of the seed of the serpent, one who is a spiritual child of the devil, so if you falsely accuse somebody of being a son of belial [a son of the devil], you’re in very big trouble.
So here is the RC quote again:
“Jesus speaks parabolically but directly, here. The metaphor of the “prison” implies a temporary “holding place” for purgatorial suffering. The “penny,” or kodtrantes, represents the “lesser transgressions” being emphasized. These would be venial sins for which Christians can make atonement in cooperation with God’s grace.
Interestingly, the Greek word for prison, phulake, is the same word used by St. Peter to describe the spiritual “holding place” into which Jesus descended after his death to liberate the detained souls of Old Testament believers (1 Pet. 3:19)“.
The metaphor of the “prison” implies a temporary “holding place” for purgatorial suffering”: no, this is an actual, literal jail cell its referring to and it does not mention anything about purgatory. That is 100% conjecture; its denominational bias with nothing to back that claim up.
Let’s see what I Peter 3:19 is actually about:
One of the ways to do proper biblical research is that all verses on the same subject must be in agreement or in harmony with each other because the original bible never contradicts itself, so below are some of the other verses that prove the “spirits in prison” are not people but bad angels under the control of the devil = devil spirits.
Then we’ll also be going to a bible dictionary to verify and clarify what those words really mean.
I Peter 3:19
18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
“to liberate the detained souls of Old Testament believers (1 Pet. 3:19)“:
The word “spirits” in verse 19 has 9 different meanings; here its referring to DEVIL SPIRITS AND NOT PEOPLE!! Specifically, its the devil spirits who destroyed the first heaven and earth and made it without form and void, not to mention flooding the earth in Noah’s time in a failed attempt to prevent Jesus Christ from being born.
Secondly, it cannot be referring to people because that contradicts the many verses in the bible on the nature of death! If these spirits were people, then they would be in the grave and not in a spiritual prison outside of the firmament [known universe].
Specifically, its the fallen angels = devil spirits that Lucifer took with him after he lost the war in heaven [Revelation 12 – he took 1/3 of the angels since originally, there were 3 arch angels in heaven with God and each was in charge of 1/3 of the angels].
II Peter 2
4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;
5 And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;
Definition of hell:
Strong’s Concordance #5020
tartaroó definition: to cast into hell
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (tar-tar-o’-o)
Usage: I thrust down to Tartarus or Gehenna.
HELPS Word-studies
5020 tartaróō – properly, send to Tartarus (“Tartaros”). The NT uses 5020 (tartaróō) for the netherworld – the place of punishment fit only for demons. Later, Tartaros came to represent eternal punishment for wicked people.
“5020 (tartaróō) is a Greek name for the under-world, especially the abode of the damned – hence to cast into hell” (A-S); to send into the subterranean abyss reserved for demons and the dead.
[In Greek mythology, Tartarus was a “place of punishment under the earth, to which, for example, the Titans were sent” (Souter).]
Tartarus is the spiritual holding cell, the prison, where these evil devil spirits are being held to keep our world safe because they were the ones who caused the flood in Noah’s time, not God!
This corroborates the other section in this article about the Hebrew idiom of permission and Genesis 6; it was not God who flooded the earth, but was these bad angels [the devil spirits that are now being locked up, waiting for their judgment in the future].
[BTW there is no such thing as a good devil spirit; 100% of all devil spirits inherent nature is to carry out the will of the devil which is to steal, kill and destroy. Therefore, the old cartoon about Casper the friendly ghost is a 100% lie!]
So now we go to another verse on the same subject to get more clarity and verification on I Peter 3:19:
Jude 1:6 [kjv]
And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.
Jude 1:6 [amplified bible]
You also know that the angels who did not keep within their proper domain but abandoned their own place of residence, he has kept in eternal chains in utter darkness, locked up for the judgment of the great Day.
The chains of darkness are not physical chains because they could never hold a spiritual being. Its a figure of speech indicating their bondage in the prison.
Corroborating what Jude 1:6 & II Peter 2:4 say, [which are in agreement], we have a screenshot of E.W. Bullinger’s Companion Reference Bible, demonstrating the enlightening symmetrical precision of the word of God on I Peter 3:18-22 in the form of the figures of speech introversion & alternation:
So now:
- I Peter 3:19
- II Peter 2:4-5
- Jude 1:6
- the many verses on the true nature of death
- and the Companion Reference Bible are all in agreement
that the spirits in prison in I Peter 3:19 are angels [specifically, the fallen angels under the devil’s control = devil spirits] and cannot be people.
Hebrews gives us some additional enlightenment on the capabilities of Jesus Christ’s spiritual body:
Hebrews 4:14
Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession [confession].
Definition of phrase “that is passed into”:
Strong’s Concordance #1330
dierchomai definition: to go through, go about, to spread
Part of Speech: Verb
Phonetic Spelling: (dee-er’-khom-ahee)
Usage: I pass through, spread (as a report).
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from dia and erchomai
Definition of dia:
Strong’s Concordance #1223
dia definition: through, on account of, because of
Part of Speech: Preposition
Phonetic Spelling: (dee-ah’)
Usage: (a) gen: through, throughout, by the instrumentality of, (b) acc: through, on account of, by reason of, for the sake of, because of.
HELPS Word-studies
1223 diá (a preposition) – properly, across (to the other side), back-and-forth to go all the way through, “successfully across” (“thoroughly”). 1223 (diá) is also commonly used as a prefix and lend the same idea (“thoroughly,” literally, “successfully” across to the other side).
[1223 (diá) is a root of the English term diameter (“across to the other side, through”). Before a vowel, dia is simply written di̓.]
So in his resurrected spiritual body, Jesus Christ was able to pass all the way across the known universe and preach to the devil spirits that God locked up in a dark spiritual holding cell in order to protect us and God’s work of the stars and planets which declare his handywork [psalms 19].
That’s why he locked them up so far away because the constellations declare God’s word even today [see E. W. Bullinger’s book: witness of the stars].
No physical object and not even light itself, could travel that far, that fast, so the idea that Jesus Christ did that as a rotting corpse from the grave is absolute morbid insanity.
The spiritual realm supersedes the physical realm, so Jesus Christ did not violate the laws of physics, he superseded them because he traveled on the spiritual plane and was therefore, not bound to the limits of the physical universe.
Furthermore, let’s consider yet 2 more errors, courtesy of the RC church by referencing the RC quote again:
“Interestingly, the Greek word for prison, phulake, is the same word used by St. Peter to describe the spiritual “holding place” into which Jesus descended after his death to liberate the detained souls of Old Testament believers (1 Pet. 3:19)“.
“to describe the spiritual “holding place” into which Jesus descended after his death” – based upon the 10 verses on the true nature of death, [“into which Jesus descended after his death”] this is an absolute impossibility because there are no thoughts, consciousness, emotions, movement, etc in death.
Furthermore, Jesus was a man of body, soul and spirit, so where do these components go after he died?
Genesis 3:19
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
Ecclesiastes 12:7
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
- So the gift of holy spirit that was upon Jesus was sent back to God, his father, who gave it to him, as Ecclesiastes 12:7 says.
- The body of Jesus was taken down and Joseph of Arimathaea and Nicodemus wrapped it with linen cloth and spices and buried it in the ground, where it began to decay [but fortunately, God resurrected him after being dead 72 hours, in accordance with Old Testament Hebrew law]
- His soul vanished when he took his last breath on the cross
This is why, in addition to the 10 verses on the nature of death, Jesus Christ could never have visited anybody when he died, but as the word says and the Companion Reference bible points out, he preached to the imprisoned devil spirits in his resurrected body.
“to liberate the detained souls of Old Testament believers (1 Pet. 3:19”) – So this is the other error: Jesus could have never done this, or anything else after he died and secondly, there were no souls held in this spiritual prison that was reserved for devil spirits because all the dead souls in the history of man are 100% gone, 100% dead; they are a pile of bones in a grave somewhere in the middle east!
These old testament believers would have to have been resurrected from the dead, but that only happens in the future judgments of the just and unjust, not in the old testament! There is absolutely no scriptural support for this.
Romans 1
3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;
4 And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:
Jesus Christ was the only person his the history of mankind to have ever been resurrected from the dead solely by the power of God himself, and then Jesus was the only person to ever have a spiritual body.
This is just one of the many totally unique qualifications of Jesus Christ to be the redeemer of mankind that nobody who ever lived could even come close to.
Here’s the real reason the RC church believes that the dead are not really dead: its because they pray to the so-called saints, whom they believe are alive in heaven, but are in reality, dead in the grave. This belief is based upon the operation of devil spirits called familiar spirits who imitate the dead.
So now back to the rest of the verses in Matthew 5 from the amplified bible:
23 So if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and while there you remember that your brother has something [such as a grievance or legitimate complaint] against you,
24 leave your offering there at the altar and go. First make peace with your brother, and then come and present your offering.
25 Come to terms quickly [at the earliest opportunity] with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way [to court], so that your opponent does not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you are thrown into prison.
26 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid the last cent.
Verse 25 is very wise advice and makes a lot of sense. Its simply a very practical matter: its better to settle a dispute out of court rather that go to court and risk the judgment going against you where you would be sent to jail and be forced to pay 100% of your debt off before you are released.
Its the basic principle of an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.
Nowadays, if you’re in prison for an extended period of time, if you’re on good behavior, they let you go home several years early, but not back then. This was a financial issue and a person had to pay a debt off and they would not release you until you paid every last cent that was owed to the other party.
Here’s the spiritual background to the legal situation in Matthew 5:
Job 9:24
The earth is given into the hand of the wicked: he covereth the faces of the judges thereof; if not, where, and who is he?
If a judges’ face is covered, then he has been blinded and cannot see, but this verse is not talking about physical sight, but spiritual sight, or more accurately, the lack thereof.
Exodus 23 [amplified bible]
6 “You shall not pervert (bend) the justice due to your poor in his dispute.
7 Keep far away from a false charge or action, and do not condemn to death the innocent or the righteous, for I will not justify and acquit the guilty.
8 “You shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and subverts the testimony and the cause of the righteous.
The reason for this is because every bribe involves the influence of devil spirits that blind people and cause them to corrupt and distort their understanding of the truth.
Definition of bribe:
noun
1 money or any other valuable consideration given or promised with a view to corrupting the behavior of a person, especially in that person’s performance as an athlete, public official, etc.: The motorist offered the arresting officer a bribe to let him go.
2 anything given or serving to persuade or induce: The children were given candy as a bribe to be good.
verb (used with object), bribed, brib·ing.
1 to give or promise a bribe to: They bribed the reporter to forget about what he had seen.
2 to influence or corrupt by a bribe: The judge was too honest to be bribed.
Definition of blackmail:
noun
1 any payment extorted by intimidation, as by threats of injurious revelations or accusations.
2 the extortion of such payment: He confessed rather than suffer the dishonor of blackmail.
3 a tribute formerly exacted in the north of England and in Scotland by freebooting chiefs for protection from pillage.
verb (used with object)
1 to extort money from (a person) by the use of threats.
2 to force or coerce into a particular action, statement, etc.: The strikers claimed they were blackmailed into signing the new contract.
Romans 11
7 What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded.
8 (According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day.
9 And David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompence unto them:
10 Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back alway.
Verse 8 is a quote from Isaiah 29:10 where it was not the true Lord God of Israel that gave them this devil spirit, it was the devil who did it because there’s a figure of speech called a Hebrew idiom of permission, where, for various reasons, the people of that time understood that God was not the true cause of the problem, but allowed it to happen because the people’s bad choices to love the darkness of the world instead of God.
Its a devil spirit of slumber [stupor] that blinds people.
Deuteronomy 16 [KJV]
18 Judges and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy gates, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, throughout thy tribes: and they shall judge the people with just judgment.
19 Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shalt not respect persons, neither take a gift: for a gift doth blind the eyes of the wise, and pervert the words of the righteous.
20 That which is altogether just shalt thou follow, that thou mayest live, and inherit the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
This corroborates the verses on bribery in Exodus 23.
Let’s look at the definition of “gift” in verse 19:
Strong’s Concordance #7810
shochad Hebrew definition: a present, bribe
Original Word: שַׁחַד
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: shochad
Phonetic Spelling: (shakh’-ad)
This word is used 23 times in the old testament. Why is that significant?
Because 23 is the 9th prime number and 9 is the number of finality and judgement!
Romans 14:12
So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
In other words, those who give or accept bribes will answer to God in the future judgments.
Isaiah 19:14
The Lord hath mingled a perverse spirit in the midst thereof: and they have caused Egypt to err in every work thereof, as a drunken man staggereth in his vomit.
Again, the one true Lord is not the cause of the perverse spirit [a type of devil spirit], but allowed it because of the spirituality of the messed up people who walked away from God’s true light.
So bribes cause spiritual blindness because of a devil spirit of slumber that blind people to the truth and they distort the truth because of the perverse devil spirits.
Spiritually, our culture is no different than the ones thousands of years ago! Just check out the news of all the lawsuits, investigations, lies and corruption going on! Bribery and blackmail and other forms of enticement and coercion have saturated the business realm, the legal system, the media, etc.
Back to Matthew 5, this is why its very wise to settle an issue out of court instead of risking being the victim of the spiritual injustice of the legal system.
So let’s sum up the errors the Roman Catholic church has made regarding Matthew 5:25-27:
- They falsely assumed that the gospels are written directly to us, as if they are commandments to us
- they lied that these 3 verses are a parable, when the bible never says that
- the spirits in prison in I Peter 3:19 are devil spirits and not people
- Jesus Christ never visited the prison immediately after he died because that was impossible; he could only preach to the devil spirits in his resurrected body; this was the only way he could have gone that far in such a short period of time; no physical object, even if it were traveling at the speed of light, could have performed such a miraculous feat
- therefore, Jesus Christ never liberated these non-existent souls
So with the various verses on the same subject, the definition of words, figures of speech [which are a grammatical science], etc, its self evident that Matthew 5:25-27 are light years away from anything resembling purgatory. Its 1,000% ignorance, denominational bias and lack of sound biblical research and critical thinking. End of story.
Matthew 12
31 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
These 2 verses have nothing to do with whether purgatory exists or not and everything to do with Jesus Christ giving these 2 extremely stern warnings, because once a person commits their life to the devil, there’s no turning back ever again.
34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
Definition #5 & 6 [of 7] of viper:
5 a malignant or spiteful person.
6 a false or treacherous person.
Isaiah 21:2
A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease.
Isaiah 24:16
From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs, even glory to the righteous. But I said, My leanness, my leanness, woe unto me! the treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously; yea, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.
These treacherous dealers are the people who have committed the unforgivable sin, blasphemy against God himself by selling out to God’s enemy the devil and have become one of the devil’s sons.
This article goes into great detail and depth and verifies what it actually is.
I Corinthians 3
11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
13 Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
14 If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
In order to gain deeper insights into God’s most magnificent work, his word, we’re going to do a very deep dive into the list of items in I Corinthians 3:12, classified as the works of man, even though it may or may not directly prove or disprove the existence of purgatory for the simple reason of further enlightenment so that we can love, trust and have more confidence in God and his perfect word.
Definition of taxonomy
noun, plural tax·on·o·mies.
1 the science or technique of classification.
2 a classification into ordered categories: a proposed taxonomy of educational objectives.
3 Biology. the science dealing with the description, identification, naming, and classification of organisms.
We’re going to be classifying the list of 6 things in I Corinthians 3:12 in many different ways to gain more depth of understanding in the word of God.
12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
However, in order to fully understand verse 12, we need to discuss the details of verse 15 also.
Verse 15 says he shall suffer loss: I see 4 different losses in this verse:
- low loss
- high loss
- perceived loss
- actual loss
Now gold, [the first item on the list] is obviously much more valuable than stubble [the last and least valuable of them all], which is the actual value.
But there’s also a 5th value: the value of rewards from God vs the value of man’s 6 works; of those 2, the divine rewards would be considered high value in God’s eyes [and those who are really walking with him], but due to the influence of the adversary on man, they may have a low perceived value in the eyes of man.
15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss:>> all 4 losses are in this phrase! “If a man’s work shall be burned”: obviously then, whatever forms his spiritual work took, that person had a high perceived value on it [due to the simple fact that he spent so much time, effort and money on it, perhaps even a lifetime], but because it was burned up, it had a low actual value because only man’s works that are on the bottom half of the scale are incinerated.
Therefore, due to the large discrepancy between its perceived value and the actual value, there had to have been significant deception involved, which can only come from Satan.
However, which is of the higher value: the rewards from God or the works of man? Since his works got burned, then they are of low actual value, but of high perceived value in man’s eyes, but the high actual loss was in having his eternal rewards stolen, which most people regard as having a low perceived value.
Since there are exactly 6 items in the list, we need to find out the biblical meaning of numbers in order to gain more understanding and enlightenment.
Number in Scripture Its Supernatural Design and Spiritual Significance By E. W. Bullinger (1837-1913) Fourth Edition, Revised London Eyre & Spottiswoode (Bible Warehouse) Ltd. 33. Paternoster Row, E.C. 1921 This book is in the Public Domain. Copy Freely
The biblical meaning of the number 6
Here is a select quote from this book, available as a free download online [pdf format].
“Six is either 4 plus 2, i.e., man’s world (4) with man’s enmity to God (2) brought in: or it is 5 plus 1, the grace of God made of none effect by man’s addition to it, or perversion, or corruption of it: or it is 7 minus 1, i.e., man’s coming short of spiritual perfection. In any case, therefore, it has to do with man; it is the number of imperfection; the human number; the number of MAN as destitute of God, without God, without Christ”.
We’re starting off with the least common denominator: all 6 items can be classified as things that originate from the ground. This is very important spiritually.
Isaiah 29:4
And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be, as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.
Familiar spirits are devil spirits that counterfeit the dead [among other things]. Thus, since all 6 items originate from the ground, all 6 works of man can be counterfeited by Satan. However, let’s verify and clarify 4 complementary concepts.
- The closer a counterfeit is to the genuine, the more effective it is
- The secret to Satan’s success is the secrecy of his moves
- Satan’s objective is to produce very clever counterfeits of the things of God
- The goal or purpose is to distract and deceive, which is also fraud
Thus, if a religious person is deceived on how to worship the Lord [an extremely common occurrence], his works will have a high perceived value in his own eyes, but in the eyes of God, they will be of low actual value and will therefore be burned up in the future trial by fire.
The verses below are a powerful example of a worst-case scenario of high perceived value, but having a low actual value.
Matthew 7
15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
This is why I brought up Isaiah 29:4 on familiar spirits that can counterfeit the dead. Its so critical to be sharp spiritually so that we don’t get deceived.
2 Timothy 2:20
But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.
So the gold, silver and precious stones are the vessels of honor and wood, hay and stubble are the vessels of dishonor. That’s another way to classify these 6 items.
This list can also be divided up into 2 halves, each having their own group of unique characteristics.
Gold, silver, precious stones: these could be classified in at least 3 different categories:
- different forms of money, wealth and items of high social status and therefore…
- they could also be called high value items
- they are also minerals that are mined from the ground
Wood, hay, stubble, on the other hand, are on the bottom half of the scale, the lower value items derived from plants.
Here’s the generalized connection: minerals in the ground are listed first and the plants that need them are second because this is the perfect order of God’s word.
Matthew 13
37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;
38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.
40 As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.
In verse 38, the word “field” comes from the Greek word agros [Strong’s #68], where we get our english word agriculture from.
So the bottom 3 items in the list spiritually represents the world and worldly works which will be burned up in the fire.
Now we’re going to do a break down of the last 3 elements: wood, hay and stubble.
Definition of wood:
Strong’s Concordance #3586
xulon definition: wood
Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter
Phonetic Spelling: (xoo’-lon)
Usage: anything made of wood, a piece of wood, a club, staff; the trunk of a tree, used to support the cross-bar of a cross in crucifixion.
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 3586: ξύλον
A log or timber with holes in which the feet, hands, neck, of prisoners were inserted and fastened with thongs.
The wood represents the bondage of legalism of the commandments, doctrines and traditions of men that cancel out the goodness of the word of God [Matthew 15].
The bondage of legalism of wood is representative of the last 3 items: wood, hay and stubble.
Definition of hay:
Strong’s Concordance #5528
chortos definition: a feeding place, food, grass
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Phonetic Spelling: (khor’-tos)
Usage: grass, herbage, growing grain, hay.
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance
grass, hay.
Apparently a primary word; a “court” or “garden”, i.e. (by implication, of pasture) herbage or vegetation — blade, grass, hay.
Here is an example of the usage of the word “hay”, translated “grass”:
Luke 12:28
If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith [believing]?
Definition of grass:
Strong’s Concordance #2562
kalamé definition: stubble
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (kal-am’-ay)
Usage: stubble, straw, the stalk.
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 2562: καλάμη
καλάμη, καλάμης, ἡ, a stalk of grain or of a reed, the stalk (left after the ears are cut off), stubble:
Root word for grass:
Strong’s Concordance #2563
kalamos definition: a reed
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Phonetic Spelling: (kal’-am-os)
Usage: a reed; a reed-pen, reed-staff, measuring rod.
Thus, the stubble is the stalk of grain, but the “fruit” – seeds, have already been harvested, so it is almost totally worthless and is used to burn to produce heat for cooking food.
Here is yet another new perspective of the list of 6 items:
The following verses in Ezekiel 28 were literally referring to the king of Tyre [a city in ancient Israel], but figuratively and spiritually refer to Lucifer, who lost the war in heaven and was cast down to earth as the devil [Revelation 12].
Notice the general parallel between him and the list of 6 items: he had the gold, silver and stones of fire [sparkling jewels], but ended up being burned up and turned to ashes as dishonorable trash due to pride in his great wisdom and perfect beauty.
Ezekiel 28
4 With thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures:
5 By thy great wisdom and by thy traffick hast thou increased thy riches, and thine heart is lifted up because of thy riches:
12 Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord God; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.
13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.
14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.
17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.
18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.
19 All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.
“and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth…and never shalt thou be any more”. This is proof that he will not burn in the lake of fire forever, of which there is some evidence that those verses were a corrupted version of the original.
Another truth is that from a usage point of view, fire produces 2 basic benefits: heat and light which affect the items differently.
In the case of the items in the top half [gold, silver and precious stones], heat improves the first 2 [gold and silver] by purification.
Let’s look at Revelation 3:18:
Revelation 3
14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;
15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Definition of tried:
This is the root word for “tried” and is the exact same Greek word for “fire” in the same verse.
Strong’s Concordance #4442
pur definition: fire
Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter
Phonetic Spelling: (poor)
Usage: fire; the heat of the sun, lightning; fig: strife, trials; the eternal fire.
HELPS Word-studies
4442 pýr – fire. In Scripture, fire is often used figuratively – like with the “fire of God” which transforms all it touches into light and likeness with itself
God’s Spirit, like a holy fire, enlightens and purifies so that believers can share more and more in His likeness. Indeed the fire of God brings the uninterrupted privilege of being transformed which happens by experiencing faith from Him. Our lives can become true offerings to Him as we obey this imparted faith from God by His power.
[This is illustrated by God’s fire burning continuously at the entrance of the Tabernacle where the priests made sweet-savor offerings. Compare Lev 6:12,13 with 1 Pet 2:5,9.]
Psalms 12:6
The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
7 is the number of spiritual perfection, which is one of several reasons I’m going into the depths of the word here so you can see its perfection and magnificence, which should increase our love, trust and commitment to God.
So both gold and silver, the first 2 items in the list, are purified, [made better] by the heat of the fire, whereas the bottom half of the list is destroyed by the exact same thing.
Although the heat from the fire does not improve the precious stones, the light does.
All 6 items in the list also have industrial and aesthetic uses and value.
In terms of aesthetic value, precious stones are useless in the dark. They must be seen in the light in order to maximize their benefit. Imagine the dancing and flickering of the flames of light as they reflect, refract and sparkle though and around the intricate shapes and various colors of all the different translucent diamonds, sapphires, rubies and emeralds!
The light magnifies their beauty, brilliance and impact.
Gold and silver are also the only elements that are listed in the periodic table of elements and both are metals, of which there are 4 subcategories:
• Alkali metals
• Alkaline earth metals
• Transition metals
• Post-transition metals
Gold and silver are both called transition metals.
According to Pubchem, [the government database of millions of chemicals]: “Gold is sometimes found free in nature but it is usually found in conjunction with silver, quartz (SiO2), calcite (CaCO3), lead, tellurium, zinc or copper”.
This is at least one reason they are listed together, but we need to keep things in their correct perspective from the word of God.
Proverbs 16:16
How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver!
Proverbs 22:1
A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.
Haggai 2:8
The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts.
Encyclopedia Britannica
“Seven substances recognized today as elements—gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, tin, and mercury—were known to the ancients because they occur in nature in relatively pure form”.
According to gold.info, “INFORMATION PLATFORM FOR PRECIOUS METALS”:
“Gold is also termed to be chemically “inert” hence, it reacts very sluggishly when reacting to other substances. For example gold exhibits no reaction to air and water and also does not itself corrode when exposed to long periods of harsh weathering conditions”.
Thus, the inert property of gold parallels that of God being uncorruptible.
Romans 1:23
And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D.
Chemistry Expert
Education
Ph.D., Biomedical Sciences, University of Tennessee at Knoxville
B.A., Physics and Mathematics, Hastings College
“Characteristics of Noble Metals
The noble metals typically resist corrosion and oxidation in humid air. Usually noble metals are said to include ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, silver, osmium, iridium, platinum and gold. Some texts list gold, silver and copper as the noble metals, excluding all others. Copper is a noble metal according to the physics definition of noble metals, although it corrodes and oxidizes in moist air, so is not very noble from a chemical standpoint. Sometimes mercury is called a noble metal.
Characteristics of Precious Metals
Many of the noble metals are precious metals, which are naturally-occurring elemental metals that have a high economic value. Precious metals were used as currency in the past, but now are more of an investment. Platinum, silver and gold are precious metals. Other platinum group metals, less used for coinage but often found in jewelry, also may be considered precious metals. These metals are ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium and iridium“.
So gold and silver are listed in both the precious metals and noble metals list, which is very rare indeed. Therefore, the first 3 elements listed can be classified as precious substances.
2 Peter 1:4
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
Definition of precious:
Strong’s Concordance #5093
timios definition: valued, precious
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (tim’-ee-os)
Usage: of great price, precious, honored.
This word is used 13 times in the bible, including I Corinthians 3:12 below, translated “precious”:
Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 5093 tímios (an adjective) – properly, valuable as having recognized value in the eyes of the beholder. See 5092 (timē)>>root word
Strong’s Concordance #5092
timé definition: a valuing, a price
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Phonetic Spelling: (tee-may’)
Usage: a price, honor.
HELPS Word-studies
5092 timḗ (from tiō, “accord honor, pay respect”) – properly, perceived value; worth (literally, “price”) especially as perceived honor – i.e. what has value in the eyes of the beholder; (figuratively) the value (weight, honor) willingly assigned to something.
Revelation 21:27
And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
Who is the book of Revelation that everybody talks about written to???
Revelation 1:4
John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;
Revelation 21
10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
John to the seven churches which are in Asia:
Look at the names and locations, they’re all consistent with Israel, not us Christians that are born again sons of God in the age of grace!
- Verse 10: holy Jerusalem
- verse 12: the 12 tribes of the children of Israel
- verse 14: the 12 apostles of the lamb
John 1:29
The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world
The 4 gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are all written directly TO ISRAEL!!
The word “sheep” never occurs in Romans – Thessalonians except once in Romans 8:36 where it is a quote from Psalms 44:22. The word “lamb” never occurs in Romans – Thessalonians.
Romans 8
36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Jesus Christ is not our king. He is the head of the body of Christ [not the bride, who is Israel].
Ephesians 1:22
And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
Ephesians 4:15
But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:
Thus Revelation 21:27 is not written TO us, but is for our learning.
Since all scripture is perfect and eternal truth, it is correct that no person will be defiled in the new Jerusalem because they will have already been resurrected from the dead.
“And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth”:
The word “city” is used no less than 10 times in the 21st chapter alone, referring to the new Jerusalem in the third and final earth, wherein only dwells righteousness, and so this has nothing to do with our cleanliness or our cleansing before God.
At the return of Christ, which occurs long before Revelation 21, the entire body of Christ will be in our new spiritual bodies, similar to the one Jesus Christ had when he was resurrected from the dead.
Philippians 3:21
Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.
And the RC church says we still have to get purified?!?!
Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead and is seated at the right hand of God and he didn’t have to run his glorious spiritual body through a car wash to get cleaned up, so why should we, who will have a glorious spiritual body also???
These are the verses used to justify or verify the existence of purgatory; they say the christian in this scenario is not in heaven yet, but is not in hell either, so they call this state or place purgatory.
This type of reasoning is classified as 1 of the 4 types of weak believing, mentioned in verse 8.
Matthew 16
5 And when his disciples were come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread.
6 Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.
7 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread.
8 Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith [believing] why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread?
9 Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up?
10 Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up?
11 How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees?
12 Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.
Beware of the doctrine of purgatory from the Roman Catholic church!
#19 THE MATHEMATICAL MIRACLE OF I CORINTHIANS 3:12
I Corinthians 3:12
Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
The word “gold” is used 417 times in the bible.
The word “silver” is used 321 times in the bible.
The phrase “precious stones” is used 19 times in the bible.
Add them all up and you get 757, which is the 134th prime number.
If you add up the digits of 757: 7 + 5 + 7 = 19, the exact same number of times the phrase “precious stones” is used in the bible. 19 is also the 8th prime number and 8 is the number of a new beginning and resurrection.
Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead and was given a brand new spiritual body [something that nobody in the history of mankind has ever had] and it has capabilities beyond our comprehension, so I would call that a new beginning, wouldn’t you?
Atomic number of gold: 79
Atomic number of silver: 47
Definition of atomic number:
The number, equal to the number of protons in an atom that determines its chemical properties.
Since atomic numbers only apply to atoms, obtaining one for an entire group of different precious stones, [which are composed of a variety of different elements each], is impossible. However, we know that the phrase “precious stones” is used 19 times in the bible and 19 is the 8th prime number.
So add up the atomic numbers of gold and silver and the order of the prime number of the number of times the phrase “precious stones” is used and you have: 79 + 47 + 8 = 134 a second time!
In I Corinthians 3:12, you have listed:
gold; silver and precious stones as the first 3 items in this list of things.
Since gold is listed first, [which is also the number of God and unity], we can assign the number one to gold;
With silver, we already know that the atomic number is 47, which is the 15th prime number. The factors of 15 are 3 x 5; 3 is the number of completeness and 5 is the number of grace. Grace and truth came with Jesus Christ.
John 1:17
For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
Thus, 15 represents grace completed, so we can assign a 3 to silver.
Precious stones are mined from the earth and God created the heavens and earth.
Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
E.W. Bullinger, number in scripture book on the number 4:
“Creation is therefore the next thing—the fourth thing, and the number four always has reference to all that is created. It is emphatically the number of Creation; of man in his relation to the world as created; while six is the number of man in his opposition to and independence of God.
It is the number of things that have a beginning, of things that are made, of material things, and matter itself. It is the number of material completeness. Hence it is the world number, and especially the “city” number.
The fourth day saw the material creation finished (for on the fifth and sixth days it was only the furnishing and peopling of the earth with living creatures). The sun, moon, and stars completed the work, and they were to give light upon the earth which had been created, and to rule over the day and over the night (Gen 1:14-19).
Four is the number of the great elements—earth, air, fire, and water“.
Thus, we can assign the number 4 to precious stones.
In I Corinthians 3:12, you have listed:
gold; silver and precious stones as the first 3 items in this list of things.
Due to the above reasons, the first 3 elements can be represented by the number sequence of 134 for the third time in a row.
Now add the digits of 134>>1 + 3 + 4 = 8 again, [remember that the phrase “precious stones” was used 19 times in the bible, which is the 8th prime number].
Now multiply the digits of 134: 1 x 3 = 3 and 3 x 4 = 12, the exact same number for the calculation below!
Since the atomic number of gold is 79, its also the 22nd prime number.
Since the atomic number of silver is 47, its also the 15th prime number.
If you add the order of primes for gold and silver together, you have 22 + 15 = 37, the 12th prime number, the exact same answer for the multiplication of the digits of 134!
49 is the result of 4 different calculations 4 times in a row!
So if you add up the order of the prime numbers of the atomic numbers of gold and silver and their total, you have 12 + 15 + 22 = 49, 49 is 7 x 7; Seven is the number of spiritual perfection, so 49 is spiritual perfection squared or spiritual perfection multiplied by spiritual perfection. This is the first time 49 has been the result of a calculation = spiritual perfection squared that is doubled = established spiritual perfection squared.
Referring back to the total of the number of usages of the words gold, silver and precious stones above, if you multiply the digits of 757, look what happens: 7 x 5 = 35 and 35 x 7 = 245, which has as its factors 49 [spiritual perfection squared>>(7 x 7) x 5 [the number of God’s grace] = spiritual perfection squared can only come by God’s perfect grace! This is the second time 49 has come up as the result of a calculation.
The phrase “gold and silver” is used 29 times in the bible.
The phrase “silver and gold” is used 20 times in the bible.
Add them up and you get 49 for a third time in a row for the exact same elements! Since 3 is the number of completion, we now have complete spiritual perfection squared!
The book of Philemon is the 49th book of the bible [if you count correctly] and it never mentions gold or silver, either one of which could be used as the love of money, the root of all evil [I Timothy 6:10].
Philemon is also the only book of the bible that does not mention any people born of the seed of the serpent and one characteristic of all of them is that they always have the love of money!
Since 49 is spiritual perfection squared [7 x 7], that makes perfect sense: you can only have spiritual perfection squared when there are no seed of the serpent present, which is the way it will be in the new heaven and earth where only righteousness dwells!
This is the 4th time 49 is the result of a calculation or relevant truth, and since 4 is the number of material completeness, we now have material completeness for spiritual perfection squared.
Since the phrase “gold and silver” is used 29 times in the bible, let’s crunch some numbers and see what we come up with, starting with the biblical meaning of the numbers 20 & 9:
“20 is the double of ten, and may in some cases signify its concentrated meaning. But its significance seems rather to be connected with the fact that it is one short of twenty-one, 21 – 1 = 20; that is to say, if 21 is the three-fold 7, and signifies Divine (3) completion as regards spiritual perfection (7), then twenty, being one short of 21, it would signify what Dr. Milo Mahan calls expectancy, and certainly we are not without illustrations in support of it:
- Twenty years Jacob waited to get possession of his wives and property, Genesis 21:38,41.
- Twenty years Israel waited for a deliverer from Jabin’s oppression, Judges 4:3.
- Twenty years Israel waited for deliverance through Samson, Judges 15:20, 16:31, but his work was never much more than “begun,” Judges 13:25.
- Twenty years the Ark of the Covenant waited at Kirjath-jearim, 1 Samuel 7:2.
- Twenty years Solomon was waiting for the completion of the two houses, 1 Kings 9:10; 2 Chronicles 8:1.
- Twenty years Jerusalem waited between its capture and destruction; and
- Twenty years Jeremiah prophesied concerning it.
9 is the last of the digits, and thus marks the end; and is significant of the conclusion of a matter. It is akin to the number six, six being the sum of its factors (3×3=9, and 3+3=6), and is thus significant of the end of man, and the summation of all man’s works. Nine is, therefore,
THE NUMBER OF FINALITY OR JUDGMENT, for judgment is committed unto Jesus as “the Son of man” (John 5:27; Acts 17:31). It marks the completeness, the end and issue of all things as to man—the judgment of man and all his works. It is a factor of 666, which is 9 times 74.
The gematria of the word “Dan,” which means a judge, is 54 (9×6)”.
Because the phrase “gold and silver” is used 29 times in the bible, it can be broken down into 20 [the number of expectancy] + 9 [the number of finality and judgment], so if somebody has the love of money [gold & silver], then they will be expecting judgment in the future.
The atomic number for gold is 79, which is the 22nd prime number [a prime number cannot be divided by any other number except 1 and itself].
E.W. Bullinger quote:
“TWENTY-TWO being the double of eleven, has the significance of that number in an intensified form,—disorganization and disintegration, especially in connection with the Word of God”.
What does that have to do with gold?
I Timothy 6:10
For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
If you make gold or silver [money] your servants, they can help you, but if you let them become your master, your life will disintegrate into many sorrows.
Matthew 6:24 | I Timothy 6:10
All these incredibly accurate and breath-taking truths builds trust and confidence in God and his word.
II Samuel 22:31 [amplified bible]
As for God, His way is blameless and perfect; The word of the Lord is tested. He is a shield to all those who take refuge and trust in Him.
Psalm 56:4
In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
CONCLUSION OF MATHEMATICAL MIRACLE SECTION
According to most authorities, I Corinthians was written in approximately 55A.D. [+ or – a year or two], about 40-45 years before the bible was even completed. So how did the atomic numbers of gold & silver [which wouldn’t be discovered for over 1,850+ years], and all the prime number math, and the number of usages of words that were not even written yet, come out so biblically and mathematically and spiritually perfect?