May I ask a question of Jews or those who are knowledgable about Judiasm?

Question

I see many posts on here that Jews don't believe in hell. However, I notice that the Jews that Jesus talked to (and yes, I am aware that Jews do not count the New Testament as scripture and that this question could get a lot of sarcastic answers accordingly, but know that this question is asked with good intentions and out of genuine curiosity, not derision) frequently asked Him how they could obtain eternal life. Did the Jews of that time also not believe in hell? Then why did they ask about eternal life?

Again --- I realize that many could post that Jews didn't say that or didn't believe it or that the New Testament is all made up --- I think you all know the kind of answers I am trying to avoid ---- but I would very much like serious answers to this question, and I'm not trying to proselytize with the question.

Thanks!

Crap. I do know how to spell Judaism, I promise.

Answer 1

I think there is a legitimate point of "how sure are you that they really did say that?" as opposed to perhaps that being added artificially to make it look like it was a problem to be solved beforehand.

something more along the lines of what your looking for, IT hink might be simply that Jewish belief on the afterlife is not uniform. there are some core concepts that all of Judaism pretty much agrees on, and for all intents, always has. these are primarily issues as to the nature and singularity of God.

as far as the afterlife... MODERN Jewish belief ranges from a very "typical" heaven concept, to simply being unconcious until the messianic age, (which it clearly is not....) and some even believe in Reincaranation. (yes, believe it or not, Judaism allows for belief in reincarnation. )

perhaps these sites might be useful to you in some way.

Answer 2

Lumping all "Jews" into one group is a little Sunday School simplistic.

It's like saying Pat Robertson and the Pope are "the Christians," . . . how much do they really have in common?

The Sadducees only recognized the Torah, the first five books of Moses -- the 'laws,' that all Jews respected and followed. (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.)

Jesus ignored many of these laws -- from touching a woman who was menstruating, to the dietary laws, to working on the Sabbath.

Those laws were written during a specific time, and were observed by people who were more or less frozen in time -- modern Muslims, for example, who more or less observe the same laws.

They believed God spoke once, and stopped speaking.

The Sadducees didn't believe in any idea of a Resurrection, while the Pharisees did.

The Pharisees recognized the prophets, and they did recognize Jesus as a teacher, "rabbi." The Pharisees were expecting a "Messiah," so some Pharisees ended up following Jesus . . .Nicodemus and Saul/Paul, for example.

Curiously, we read nearly nothing in the Bible about the Essenes.

Essenes believed the prophet Isaiah, and they were waiting for a Messiah . . .

Three different groups of "Jews," with three different views of יהוה

(There were also the Zellots, in Jesus' time, but they nearly all died with the uprising in 70 CE.

Jesus didn't remain a "Jew in every respect," he radically changed what it mean to be in relationship with the God of Abraham.

He interacted with non-Jews, including people who the Torah said to avoid, as well as Roman officers.

Jesus changed who "Jews" were supposed to be, and changed who all of us were supposed to be, if we want to be in relationship with the God who created the universe.

Godspeed.

Answer 3

Jews never really got into the obsession of the after life. They believe the things here, now, are what is important, now.

"I realize that many could post that Jews didn't say that or didn't believe it or that the New Testament is all made up "

Many Jews didn't and still don't believe in the New Testament. And there is a VERY good chance that what the Jews said in the New Testament was made up to (to no surprise) uphold Christianity's claims of the afterlife and salvation.

Answer 4

it's a good question.

judaism certainly does believe in an eternal soul that survives bodily death. the details are a little fuzzy though, because there is a total emphasis on this lifetime, on doing the best we can in our physical life. my understanding is that there are 7 levels of heaven, with g-d at the top one, and the more righteous you are, the higher you go up. but the bottom level still isn't hell.
we don't have the whole sin-judgement thing. the hebrew word for sin translates to "missing the mark", like with an arrow. you learn from your mistake and resolve to do better next time. and you actually have to behave differently the next time the situation comes up, or apologies don't mean anything.
there's certainly no concept of original sin, needing to be saved, having someone die for our sins, etc., so that's why i say Jewish people don't believe in Hell. not as the word is usually understood: the Christian Hell.

Answer 5

Jews do believe in a 'hell' type of place--but it is so different from the Xian hell that we say we do not believe in hell, because people who are asking usually mean the Xian hell, and we don't believe in that one. Confusing, I know, but I hope you are with me.

We have our own sort of 'hell.' Note that there is no uniform position on the afterlife in Judaism, though, since it's not a subject we really focus on as a faith. We're more a "live for today" kind of religion. Anyways. There is a belief that after we die, we go to Gehennom, where we experience the pain of a life not lived but we can only stay there for less than a year before going on to heaven.

Peace

Answer 6

The quotes and stories about Jews in the New Testament are so blatantly false as to be laughable. The New Testament is designed for converting non-Jews to Judaism- knowledgeable Jews can see remnants of Judaism flattering like rags in the background, hidden from view but occassionally coming through in a hidden manner (like with the adulterous woman- "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone" is a direct law from the Torah- the witnesses on whose testimony a person is sentenced to death have to be righteous people and no one should be able to state that they have ever sinned- and then they have to be the first to act (push her off the cliff- stoning was not standing around throwing stones at people). So the remnants of Jewish law come through, but are twisted.

In this case the New Testament is completely wrong. 'Eternal life' has never been an issue in Judaism- the World to Come exists, but it is not "heaven", but a purely spiritual realm that is completely different to this world and without the spiritual equivalents of this world- it is souls reaching towards the spirituality of God.

Note: The description given of Gehenna is rubbish. The bodies of murderers were NEVER burned. In fact, we are commanded to make sure that the bodies of those killed by the order of the Sanhedrin must be BURIED before nightfall. The descration of a body is never allowed, regardless of the persons actions in life.

Additionally- if it had anything to do with burning the bodies of those sentenced to death- then it would have been a very cold place. The Talmud considers a Beis Din bloodthirsty, and not allowed to hear capital cases, if they sentence more than TWO people to death in a space of seven YEARS! And I doubt that one body would be burning for long enough to keep an entire valley hot!

Answer 7

Why would asking about eternal life imply a belief in hell?

Read your own question -- where in there do you cite any Jews making a statement about hell?

In any case, it really is true that the Christian bible is retrofitted to make its doctrines seem justified. That's not the same as saying it's all made up, but where convenient for the narrative, it says things that are demonstrably false.

Answer 8

How could they "obtain eternal life?" Remember the Garden of Eden. It wasn't until after eating "the fruit" that man no longer had eternal life. Some Jews believe that the purpose of the messiah is to help us to perfect the world and return it to perfection as it was in the Garden of Eden.

You'll never get an adequate answer here on Y/A. It takes years of study to understand all the different paths of Judaism. Jews may have their own understanding of what the afterlife may bring, but none of them impose their beliefs on others. The only thing we know for sure about God is what He wants us to DO, not what we should believe. You can read what he wants us to do by googling the 613 Commandments.

From "Judaism for Everyone" by Rabbi Shmuley Boteach
“Whereas the Christian Bible is a book about God incarnate in a body, the Jewish Bible is a book about man and a history of how he struggled in his developing relationship with God.” “The New Testament is about God (as he incarnated himself on earth), whereas the Hebrew Bible is a chronicle of man, from his earliest efforts to know the invisible God. The Hebrew Bible provides the inspiration that influences men and women of faith to emulate the lives of the great heroes of Jewish history.”

“The ultimate purpose of religion is to impart inspiration – to give man not just the vision of a higher purpose, but the wherewithal to make it a reality; not just to be inspired, but to live an inspired life. Life’s most important ingredient is inspiration, without which man is almost indistinguishable from the inanimate rock upon which he treads. Real inspiration comes, not from being exposed to great ideas, but rather from being exposed to great personalities.”

Some people believe that the principal goal of man is personal salvation. To them man’s first concern must always be to climb the mountain of righteousness for himself, to ensure that his every act and thought is just and pure. Judaism rejects this view. From the vantage point of Judaism, it is not personal salvation but world redemption that is man’s first responsibility. Therefore, when man comes before God to express his deepest desires, when he calls forth his most private thoughts, he must do so in the company of the community. For although his words remain private, his prayers must not be only for himself.

.

Answer 9

I am not Jewish but may be able to give you some insight. When Jesus spoke of hell the original word he used was Gehenna. Gehenna was a garbage dump outside of Jerusalem that was constantly burning. The bodies of executed criminals were dumped there to be burned up if there was no one to claim the body and properly bury it. Live criminals were not dumped there to be tortured and burned alive. That is a twisted doctrine that although believed by most Christians is not biblical which lends itself to your original question. Why don't Jews believe in the hell that most Christians claim as real? It is simply not a biblical doctrine.

Answer 10

Your question is written from a Christian point of view and you should know that Judaism did progress after the Antiquity, you Christians seem to think that Judaism is the Judaism of the New Testament. I think you should start to educate yourselves instead..