why does most of the old testament teach that there is no afterlife?

Question

(see ecclesiastes 9:5-6, for example), while later old testament writings and the new testament do?

Answer 1

Did you interpret this yourself or did someone tell you this? Seems to me it's misinterpreted.

Ecclesiastes 9

Death Comes to All

1This, too, I carefully explored: Even though the actions of godly and wise people are in God's hands, no one knows whether or not God will show them favor in this life. 2The same destiny ultimately awaits everyone, whether they are righteous or wicked, good or bad,[a] ceremonially clean or unclean, religious or irreligious. Good people receive the same treatment as sinners, and people who take oaths are treated like people who don't.

3It seems so tragic that one fate comes to all. That is why people are not more careful to be good. Instead, they choose their own mad course, for they have no hope. There is nothing ahead but death anyway. 4There is hope only for the living. For as they say, "It is better to be a live dog than a dead lion!"

5The living at least know they will die, but the dead know nothing. They have no further reward, nor are they remembered. 6Whatever they did in their lifetime--loving, hating, envying--is all long gone. They no longer have a part in anything here on earth.

What this is actually tells you that, we are the walking dead, until we have Christ in our hearts. If we are not saved or born again, we will not spend eternity in Heaven.

If you will continue to read the Holy Bible, Jesus is prophesized...and He came, to save all of us!

Answer 2

Eccl.9:5 -
"The living are conscious that there is a future before them: but the dead are unconscious; they earn nothing, receive nothing, even the memory of them soon disappears; they are no longer excited by the passions which belong to people in this life; their share in its activity has ceased. Solomon here describes what he sees, not what he believes; there is no reference here to the fact or the mode of the existence of the soul in another world, which are matters of faith."

I don't believe you will find any passages in the Old or New Testament that deny the existence of the afterlife.

Answer 3

I believe in reincarnation and I have plenty of reasons for myself to believe in it. However, I consider the Bible's teaching for doing the right thing now as if we only have one life to live and it is the only chance we could get better now than wait for our next life to correct the mistakes we are doing today. While Hindu and Buddhism teaches us to grow gracefully for experiencing life by metamorphosing from physical to nirvana state spirally upward, the Old Testament Bible has taught many to take the middle path which is going straight upward. My other belief is that we are already the old souls still imprisoned by our own ignorance and since Hindu and Buddhism are many thousand years older than the Bible perhaps this now is the right thing to consider following. Have you not wonder why medical symbol is presented to the world with two winding serpents with a straight staff in the middle? Could it not be the symbol of Oldest Beliefs with the New in the middle that holds the two?

Answer 4

I wonder if you might be kind enough to show me where in either
the Hebrew Scriptures or Christian Greek Scriptures it states
that there is an (afterlife)? Ezek.18:4"the soul "man"" person"
that is sinning--It Itself will die" 1Thess.4:13-"we do not want you to
be ignorant concerning those who are sleeping in death;that you
may not sorrow just as the rest also do who have no hope."
This is talking of the resurrection.The Bible does not say that
every one living "good people"have the reward of heavenly life.
only the spirit anointed "brothers/sisters of Christ have that hope.
and it is a limited number.(144,000)The rest of humankind have
the prospect everlasting life here on Earth. Matt.5:5--John10:16.
Matt:6:9,10(Lords Prayer)"let your will take place,as in heaven,
(also upon earth.2Peter3:13--Rev.21:4--(the 144,000)Rev.14:1-3
Heb.12:22-24--Rev.7:4-8.

Answer 5

Oooh my friend it does.
The Old Testament in New Testament is revealed
The New Testament in the Old Testament concealed

Answer 6

Most Jews did not believe in an afterlife, therefore it is not reflected in their earlier Scriptures. The idea of an afterlife was a developing one which is why it is reflected in later Hebrew writings and the N.T.

Answer 7

A) Claiming that that one quote is "lots of the outdated testomony" is patently ridiculous. B) enable us to now study the quote: "For the dwelling understand that they are going to die" -confident "however the lifeless understand not something; -they not understand what takes place next to them, whilst the dwelling knew they're going to die "they have not from now on reward" - the commandments require a actual physique on earth, in case you could not do them, you could't be rewarded for doing them "or maybe the memory of them is forgotten." -care to call the rulers of historical Samaria? how approximately even all 40 two presidents of the U. S.? try to picture lifestyles on earth in 10,000 years, with all that history, won't the memory of all human beings be forgotten? (with the achieveable exception of a few stated non secular figures) "Their love, their hate and their jealousy have long in view that vanished" - interior the comparable way their memory is, if no one even recollects their call - then what possibility will their thoughts have in nonetheless enjoying a function on earth? "never lower back will they have a factor in something that takes place under the sunlight." - once you're lifeless you're via no capacity under the sunlight, you're 6 ft under and oftentimes (horror video clips aside) do not work together lots C) it fairly is a textual content cloth layout to make human beings lament over people who died, so asserting it like that exceedingly lots pushes the component domicile. D) The 'New testomony' teaches plenty approximately it simply by fact it necessary to be greater appealing whilst the early Christians have been changing super quantities of human beings (the super bulk of Jews had via then desperate it grew to become into pretend) - quite then merely being reformed Judaism.

Answer 8

Because the early Jews weren't trying to sell their religion to everyone on the planet. Without an afterlife, what would Christianity have to sell?

Answer 9

The old testament God didnt want to reveal the future which is our savior Jesus who is in the new testament and the sacrifice God made for us through Jesus.

Answer 10

Well, none of it makes sense to me but

As I understand it, the Jews at the time of Christ did not believe in an afterlife. Here is a discussion written by a Messianic Jew (a Jew who has come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah): http://my.homewithgod.com/bethshalom/ministry/otnt.html