Topical Bible: Death: Called Sleep

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In the Scriptures, death is often metaphorically referred to as "sleep," a term that conveys a temporary state preceding an awakening or resurrection. This metaphor is used to describe the physical death of believers, emphasizing the hope of resurrection and eternal life through Jesus Christ.

Old Testament References

The concept of death as sleep is subtly present in the Old Testament. For instance, in Daniel 12:2 , it is written, "And many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, but others to shame and everlasting contempt." Here, the imagery of sleep is used to describe those who have died, with the promise of awakening to a new reality.

New Testament References

The New Testament provides a clearer depiction of death as sleep, particularly in the teachings of Jesus and the writings of the apostles. In the account of Jairus's daughter, Jesus states in Mark 5:39 , "Why all this commotion and weeping? The child is not dead, but asleep." This statement underscores the temporary nature of physical death for those who will be raised to life.

Similarly, in John 11:11 , Jesus refers to Lazarus's death by saying, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up." This passage highlights Jesus' authority over death and His power to restore life, reinforcing the idea that death is not the end for believers.

The Apostle Paul frequently uses the metaphor of sleep to describe the death of Christians. In 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 , he writes, "Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who are without hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, we also believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him." Paul reassures believers that those who have died in Christ will be resurrected, just as Jesus was.

In 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 , Paul further elaborates on this theme: "Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed." Here, the transformation from death to eternal life is likened to waking from sleep, emphasizing the continuity of life beyond physical death.

Theological Implications

The metaphor of sleep for death carries significant theological implications. It reflects the Christian belief in the resurrection of the dead and the assurance of eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. This perspective offers comfort and hope to believers, affirming that death is not a permanent state but a transition to a promised future with God.

By using the term "sleep," the Bible conveys the peaceful and temporary nature of death for those who are in Christ, contrasting with the finality often associated with death. This metaphor serves as a reminder of the victory over death achieved through Jesus' resurrection, as proclaimed in 1 Corinthians 15:54-55 : "When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come to pass: 'Death has been swallowed up in victory.' 'Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?'"

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Deuteronomy 31:16
And the LORD said to Moses, Behold, you shall sleep with your fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, where they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them.
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Job 7:21
And why do you not pardon my transgression, and take away my iniquity? for now shall I sleep in the dust; and you shall seek me in the morning, but I shall not be.
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Job 14:12
So man lies down, and rises not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.
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Jeremiah 51:39
In their heat I will make their feasts, and I will make them drunken, that they may rejoice, and sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake, said the LORD.
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Daniel 12:2
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
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John 11:11
These things said he: and after that he said to them, Our friend Lazarus sleeps; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.
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Acts 7:60
And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
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Acts 13:36
For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid to his fathers, and saw corruption:
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1 Corinthians 15:6,18,51
After that, he was seen of above five hundred brothers at once; of whom the greater part remain to this present, but some are fallen asleep.
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1 Thessalonians 4:14,15
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
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Library

Consolations against the Fear of Death.
... is sin and the punishment of it, is taken away by Christ (1 Corinthians 15:54.)
Hence death is called, in respect of our bodies, a sleep and rest (1 Thess. ...
/.../bayly/the practice of piety/consolations against the fear of.htm

Chrysostom -- Excessive Grief at the Death of Friends
... sleep." Here, too, he did not say"Them that are dead; but a third time, bringing
the subject to their remembrance, for the third time called death a sleep. ...
/.../various/the worlds great sermons volume i/chrysostom excessive grief at.htm

The Peculiar Sleep of the Beloved
... yet another year, in the hope that he may yet wake from the long sleep of his ... lie
for ever in the death of everlasting torment"if it may be called a death. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 1 1855/the peculiar sleep of the.htm

The Reward of the Righteous
... of his design, "they laughed him to scorn." "The maid," said he, "is not dead, but
sleepeth." "This is rather to be called sleep than death; seeing her life is ...
/.../wesley/sermons on several occasions/sermon 99 the reward of.htm

The Death of the Master and the Death of the Servant
... vision, and from the language of the following supplication, 'called upon Jesus ... scarcely
ever speaks of a Christian's death as death but as sleep, and with ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture the acts/the death of the master.htm

A Believer's Privilege at Death
... in Christ, till they are awakened out of their sleep by the ... Peter 5:5. I have read
of a river called the Day ... daytime of life, but at the night of death they are ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/watson/a body of divinity/2 a believers privilege at.htm

The Raising of the Young Man of Nain - the Meeting of Life and ...
... seemed to him, as if he woke from long sleep. ... with intense suffering and the bereavement
of death, was there ... If mother and son had not called upon Him before ...
/.../edersheim/the life and times of jesus the messiah/chapter xx the raising of.htm

Called Back.
... not; she is not dead, but sleepeth." Jesus loved to call death a "sleep," for He
knew that we never die. Then He took the little maid by the hand and called her ...
/.../lathbury/childs story of the bible/chapter xxii called back.htm

In Danger of Death
... They called in the best physicians of the city, they spared no ... Yet he felt that death
was coming near ... sat by his bed, snatching only a few hours' sleep now and ...
/.../chapter viii in danger of.htm

Preached on Occasion of the Death of the Rev. Mr. John Fletcher ...
... not in particular; only I always see death so inexpressibly ... he had no bad head-ache,
much sleep, without the ... the house, he ordered her to be called up, though ...
/.../wesley/sermons on several occasions/sermon 133 preached on occasion.htm