The phrase "Bosom of Abraham" refers to the place of comfort in sheol (Greek: hades) where the Jews said the righteous dead awaited Judgment Day. Another name for it is Limbo of the Fathers. The phrase "Bosom of Abraham" is found in Luke 16:22-23 in Jesus' parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. In Hebrew, ²² Sheol (שאול, Shol) is the abode of the dead, the underworld, the common grave of humankind or pit.[1] In the Hebrew Bible, it is a place beneath the earth, beyond gates, where both the bad and the good, slave and king, pious and wicked must go at... In some Christian traditions, hades is the abode of the dead where the righteous and unrighteous alike await resurrection and judgment. ... This article or section should be merged with End times and Last judgment The Last Judgement - Tympanum sculpture at the Abbey Church of Ste-Foy, Conques-en-Rouergue, France In Christian eschatology, the Last Judgement is the ethical-judicial trial, judgement, and punishment/reward of individual humans (assignment to heaven... This article is about the theological concept. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... // For a comparison of parable with other kinds of stories, see Myth, legend, fairy tale, and fable. ... Dives and Lazarus or Lazarus and Dives is a parable[1] attributed to Jesus that is reported only in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 16:19-16:31). ...

Abode of the righteous dead

According to 1st century Jewish beliefs, the dead were gathered into a general tarrying-place, the sheol of the Old Testament, and the Hades of the New Testament writings (cf. Luke, 16:22 in the Gr. 16:23). Here, the righteous occupied an abode or compartment of their own which was distinctly separated by a wall or a chasm from the abode or compartment to which the wicked were consigned. The latter was a place of torments usually spoken of as Gehenna (cf. Matt., 5:29, 30; 18:9ff, Mark 9:42 sqq. in the Latin Vulgate)- the other, a place of bliss and security known under the names of "Paradise" (cf. Luke, 23:43) or "the Bosom of Abraham" (Luke, 16:22, 23). The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination... In Hebrew, ²² Sheol (שאול, Shol) is the abode of the dead, the underworld, the common grave of humankind or pit.[1] In the Hebrew Bible, it is a place beneath the earth, beyond gates, where both the bad and the good, slave and king, pious and wicked must go at... Note: Judaism commonly uses the term Tanakh to refer to its canon, which corresponds to the Protestant Old Testament. ... Hades, Greek god of the underworld, enthroned, with his bird-headed staff, on a red-figure Apulian vase made in the 4th century BC. For other uses, see Hades (disambiguation). ... This article is about the Christian scriptures. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

The afterlife as portrayed in the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus fits this concept of the Bosom of Abraham.

In the 3rd century, Hippolytus of Rome referred to Abraham's bosom as the place in hades where the righteous await judgment day in delight.^[1] In Greek mythology, Hippolytus was a son of Theseus and either Antiope or Hippolyte. ...

Augustine of Hippo likewise referred to the righteous dead as disembodied spirits blissfully awaiting Judgment Day in secret receptacles.^[2] Augustinus redirects here. ...

Since the righteous dead are rewarded in the bosom of Abraham before Judgment Day, this belief represents a form of particular judgment. In Christian eschatology, particular judgment is the doctrine that immediately after death the eternal destiny of each separated soul is decided by the just judgment of God. ...

Origin of the phrase

While commentators generally agree upon the meaning of the "Bosom of Abraham", they disagree about its origins. Up to the time of Maldonatus (A.D. 1583), its origin was traced back to the universal custom of parents to take up into their arms, or place upon their knees, their children when they are fatigued, or return home, and to make them rest by their side during the night (cf. II Kings, 12:2; III Kings 3:20; 17:19; Luke, 11:7 sqq.), thus causing them to enjoy rest and security in the bosom of a loving parent. After the same manner was Abraham supposed to act towards his children after the fatigues and troubles of the present life, hence the metaphorical expression "to be in Abraham's Bosom" as meaning to be in repose and happiness with him. Juan Maldonado (Juan Maldonato, Maldonatus) (b. ... 1583 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. ...

According to Maldonatus (In Lucam, xvi, 22), whose theory has since been accepted by many scholars, the metaphor "to be in Abraham's Bosom" is derived from the custom of reclining on couches at table which prevailed among the Jews during and before the time of Christ. As at a feast each guest leaned on his left elbow so as to leave his right arm at liberty, and as two or more lay on the same couch, the head of one man was near the breast of the man who lay behind, and he was therefore said "to lie in the bosom" of the other.

It was also considered by the Jews of old a mark of special honour and favour for one to be allowed to lie in the bosom of the master of the feast (cf. John 13:23), and it is by this illustration that they pictured the next world. They conceived of the reward of the righteous dead as a sharing in a banquet given by Abraham, "the father of the faithful" (cf. Matt., 8:11 sqq.), and of the highest form of that reward as lying in "Abraham's Bosom".

Christian heaven

Among non-Orthodox Chrsitians, since the 1st century AD, "the Bosom of Abraham" has gradually ceased to designate a place of imperfect happiness, and it has generally become synonymous with Heaven itself. Church fathers sometimes used the term to mean the limbo of the fathers, the abode of the righteous who died before Christ and who were not admitted to heaven until his resurrection. Sometimes they mean Heaven^{[citation needed]}, into which the just of the New Law are immediately introduced upon their demise. Tertullian, on the other hand, described the bosom of Abraham as that section of hades in which the righteous dead await the day of the Lord ^[3]. The term Orthodox Christianity may refer to: The Oriental Orthodox Churches: the Eastern Christian churches adhering to the teachings of only the first three Ecumenical Councils (plus the Second Council of Ephesus). ... For other uses, see Heaven (disambiguation). ... This article is about the theological concept. ... Look up Resurrection in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicised as Tertullian, (ca. ... In some Christian traditions, hades is the abode of the dead where the righteous and unrighteous alike await resurrection and judgment. ...

When Christians pray that the angels may carry the soul of the departed to "Abraham's Bosom", non-Orthodox Christians might mean it as heaven; as it is taught in the West that those in the Limbo of the Fathers went to heaven after the Ascension of Jesus, and so Abraham himself is now in heaven. However, the understanding of both Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy preserves the Bosom of Abraham as distinct from heaven. Also refers to the process of gaining Enlightenment and several meditation techniques. ... ... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations · Other religions Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury · Catholic Pope Coptic Pope · Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box:      The term...

Related concepts

The belief that the souls of the dead go immediately to hell, heaven, or purgatory has largely replaced the original concept of the Bosom of Abraham. Historically, however, many religious traditions have described something similar.

The Book of Enoch describes Enoch's travels through the cosmos and divides Sheol into four sections: for the truly righteous, the good, the wicked awaiting judgment at the resurrection, and the wicked that will not even be resurrected. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Enoch (Hebrew: חֲנוֹךְ; Tiberian: , Standard: ) is a name occurring twice in the generations of Adam. ...

In medieval England, some people believed in a place called Arthur's Bosom, which was similar to Abraham's Bosom. In Kenneth Branagh's film Henry V, Sir John Falstaff dies of a "quotidian fever": Mistress Quickly asserts confidently that the noble Falstaff is resting in Arthur's Bosom. For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Kenneth Charles Branagh (born December 10, 1960) is an Emmy Award-winning, Academy Award-nominated Northern Irish-born actor and film director. ... Henry V may refer to: Henry V of England Henry V of France Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor Henry V, one of the Shakespearean histories, based on Henry V of Englands life Henry V, a 1944 film adaptation of the play Henry V, a 1989 film adaptation of the... Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare primarily as a companion to Prince Hal, the future King Henry V. Round and glorious, tradition holds that Shakespeare wrote the part for his second comedian, a fat man, John Heminges, who played a bold... Mistress Quickly refers to either of two characters in plays by William Shakespeare: The Merry Wives of Windsor Henry IV, Part 1, Henry IV, Part 2, and Henry V (play) Category: ...

The belief of soul sleep holds that the dead (righteous and unrighteous) rest unconsciously while awaiting Judgment Day. Soul sleep is a belief held by some Christians claiming that between death and the resurrection of the dead, the body and soul rest together in unconsciousness. ...

In Islam, the righteous dead are said to await Judgment Day resting blissfully in their graves, much like the righteous dead rest in the Bosom of Abraham. The unrighteous, meanwhile, wait in torment. For people named Islam, see Islam (name). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

See also

• Limbo

This article is about the theological concept. ...

References

1. ^ Against Plato, on the cause of the universe [1]. As to the state of the righteous, he writes, "And there the righteous from the beginning dwell, not ruled by necessity, but enjoying always the contemplation of the blessings which are in their view, and delighting themselves with the expectation of others ever new, and deeming those ever better than these. And that place brings no toils to them. There, there is neither fierce heat, nor cold, nor thorn; but the face of the fathers and the righteous is seen to be always smiling, as they wait for the rest and eternal revival in heaven which succeed this location. And we call it by the name Abraham's bosom."
2. ^ City of God, Book XII
3. ^ Church fathers: a treatise on the soul

This article incorporates text from the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913. The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ...