First, it must be remembered that the Torah is not a book of doctrine, but rather a code of behavior. We look in vain for clear pictures of the meaning of death, the nature and fate of the soul, or the future events awaiting Man or the Jewish people. There are, to be sure, hints; but these can often be understood either literally or allegorically. All of these questions are the province of the Oral Tradition. Even there, however, we find many opinions and interpretations. The ancient Sadducees, who rejected the Oral Torah, denied a hereafter.The views of the afterlife found in other religions that stemmed from Judaism, are much more influenced by the Oral Tradition , than by Scripture.
Well, let's see what we DO find. The term "Sheol" is frequently used throughout the Tanach. It may, and probably does, simply mean the grave. Non traditional scholars, as well as Karaite heresy, interpret it to be like the Greek "Hades", where the souls continue a shadowy, dull existence. According to the Karaites, all are equal there, with no concept of reward or punishment. Many Christian groups understand Sheol to mean Hell. That this is unlikely can be seen from Jacob's statement, after hearing of the supposed death of Joseph, "I will go down in unhappiness to Sheol".Did Jacob believe he was going to Hell? When King David learns of the death of his first son with Bathsheba, he says "He will not return to me, I will go to him". Is he speaking of an afterlife, or merely metaphorically of death? The one case I can think of that strongly implies the continued existence of the soul, is the story of Saul and the Witch of En Dor. G-d has abandoned Saul, and he resorts to going to a Witch (most of whom he has killed) in order to bring up the soul of Samuel, who had anointed him, and guided him in the first days of his reign. Samuel "rises from the Earth", and tells Saul of his doom the next day. But did the Witch actually have power? Many of the rabbis interpret this story literally. Many believe that the Witch was powerless, but G-d sent Samuel , much to the Witch's amazement. Still others believe that the entire story is to be interpreted allegorically. King Solomon, in the cynical mood of his last years, questions: "Who knows the spirit of man whether it goes upward, and the spirit of the beast whether it goes downward to the earth?" (Kohelet 3:21). Yet, he also says: "And the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to G-d who gave it". (Kohelet 12:7) But what does returning to G-d mean? How? Where? These are all questions that are dealt with at length in rabbinic literature, which I will discuss in my next post.
Much clearer than the afterlife, is the idea of bodily resurrection. Ezekiel's vision of the dry bones coming to life would seem to imply resurrection. But it is most probably, from the context, a metaphor for the reestablishment of the exiles in Babylon to the Land of Israel. There are several verses in Isaiah which allude to resurrection, but Daniel has it most clearly: "(2) And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to reproaches and everlasting abhorrence. (3) And they that are wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn the many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever". (Daniel 12:2-3) Daniel seems to clearly state that the dead will live again. But his words indicate a terrible judgement. That idea is to be found in Talmud and other rabbinic literature. However, Maimonides, as we shall see, totally rejects the notion of a day of judgement. Moreover, these verses imply an eternal punishment. But the Talmud rejects eternal punishment. Why? And what has been happening to the souls in the time between death and resurrection? The Karaites assume that it has been in a sort of suspended animation, or more correctly, the shadowy existence in Sheol.. The rabbis, however, see it as a time of heavenly bliss, with the resurrection finally uniting Heaven and Earth. Interesting, Maimonides, in his legal code, deals only briefly with resurrection, and much more with the afterlife.. Yet, in his Thirteen Articles of Faith, he lists the resurrection as a bedrock principle, but fails to mention the afterlife at all. The apocryphal Book of Maccabees speaks of the Jews praying for their dead comrades after a battle. Can the dead be "helped"? Many of the Jewish philosophers, including Maimonides, vigorously reject this notion. Yet, prayers for the dead are a major feature of Jewish worship in nearly all communities. (Interestingly, the quote in Maccabees is probably the reason why Catholics accept, while Protestants reject, that book). Like in many areas, the Tanach contains many treasures and secrets, waiting to be unlocked by the Oral Tradition. I will discuss some of these "keys" in my next installments.