The Shadow Of Death

 

INTRODUCTION:

Whether lost or saved, death fascinates mankind. One wreck on the highway will cause traffic to come to a halt for miles because people creep by peering at the occupants to see if anyone was killed.  For a while, it gives those passing by (Rubberneckers is the slang for people who do such things.  The first group of rubberneckers in the bible are found in 2 Sam 20:12.) something to tell.

From time to time we all will view “The Crash On The Highway.”  However, we seldom hear any one pray for the dead or for the survivors and their grief.  We continue right along with our lives as though we are different (immune to death) and that we will live forever.

Millions of dollars are spent every year fighting diseases and unsafe acts in vain attempts to beat the odd of death and dying.  There are companies that will freeze your body in liquid nitrogen shortly after your death.  For a substantial fee your body is in ‘cold storage’ until a cure for the disease that caused your death is found.  Once the cure is perfected, this company will thaw your body, administer the cure, and bring you back to life.

Some of these companies will preserve your head in cold storage.  The idea behind just saving the head is that in the future, mankind will be able to grow you a new body.  Then your head is thawed and attached to your new body.  Why anyone would want a 70-year-old head on a 20-year-old body beats me, Ü.  However, this is the general mentality of the world wherein we live, (The Discovery Channel, 2-26-02)

Mankind, in general, wants to live forever.  Our problem is we do not want to live forever the way the Creator of life offered us the opportunity.  We have a better way, so we say.  The facts are there is no better way and there is no better day to accept His plan for eternal life than today.

 

 

The bible reveals to the believer that there is a thing called death and there is the shadow of death.  While the breath of life is in each body, each person has the opportunity to decide if they will pass through the Shadow of Death or remain forever dead with Death. 

 

I.  THE SHADOW OF DEATH:

The phrase the shadow of death appears 20 times in scripture in nineteen verses.  Ten of those twenty occurrences are found in the book of Job, 3:5, 10:21, 22, 12:22, 16:16, 24:17, 28:3, 34:22, and 38:17.  Four times the phrase appears in the Psalms, 23:4, 44:19, 107:10, 14.  Isaiah used the phrase once in 9:2.  Jeremiah used it twice, 2:6, 13:16.  Amos recorded it once 5:8.  The phrase also appears twice in the Gospels, once at Mat. 4:16 and in Luke 1:79. 

For the believer, and knowing that unless the Lord returns first we will die, this phase is one of the most profound passages of which to cling for peace in this trying situation.  One of the greatest comforts a bible believing blood bought born again child of God possess is the fact that they do not enter into death, they only pass through the shadow of death. 

Comfort in dying is not all that is found in this phrase “the shadow of death.” There is also the historical application and the typology of the phrase as well.  All these applications reveal much about the hidden things of God.  However, this study only deals with the Substance and the shadow of death. 

 

II.  PSALMS 23.

Psa 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

I have heard the 23^rd Psalm read at funerals many times.  This psalm from the pen of King David written thousands of years ago still brings comfort to those bereaved of their loved one. 

It is perhaps the fourth verse that says more than we really comprehend on a casual reading or when heard at the services of a loved one.  In order to really understand the fourth verse we must consider the valley, the Light, those walking through the valley, the shadow, and the Substance from which the shadow is derived. 

 

A.  Dead Bodies Do Not Remain Dead, Ezek 37:4.

There are two types of dead people: those that died in Christ and those that died without Christ.  Those that died without are the unrighteous dead.  It is sometimes difficult for the mind of man to grasp the truth that someone is dead, but yet they are alive.  The reason for this is because man looks on the outward being, that is, the body.  Once that body goes into the coffin, we tend to think it is dead and will forever be so.  Such is not the case.  Dead bodies will live again.  The prophet Ezekiel saw a nation resurrected.

 

1.  King David’s Body.

The first thing we note about Ps. 23:4 is King David visualizes himself at some point in the future from when he was writing this psalm as being dead.  In this revelation he viewed his dead body and his live spirit at the same time.  We know this for he wrote: Yea, though I walk… We know it was his spirit walking through the valley of the shadow of death because dead bodies do not walk.  There is no life in them.

With one stroke of the pen, King David wiped out soul sleep and any subject akin to it.  There is life after the death of the body.  Paul said death for the believer was to be absent from the body and to be at present with the Lord, 2 Cor 5:8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. 

 

2.  He walked in one end and out the other.

The second thing we note about this verse is the spirit belonging to the person known as King David did not remain in the valley of death.  He told us plainly that he walked through the valley.  This means he passed through the valley of the shadow of death and walked out the other side.  When you walk through some thing you go in one side and out the other.  It is most important to grasp this thought and cling to it. 

 

3.  He did not walk alone.  

The third thing this verse reveals is he did not walk by himself, for we note as well that the Great Shepherd was by his side all the way.  The Great Shepherd has a rod and a staff to ward off any evil that may arise in the valley of the shadow of Death. 

How do we know that evil may arise in the valley of the shadow of death?  We know it because the shadow mimics the movement of the Substance.  However, the shadow has no power to harm anyone.  We are not told, but knowing the terror of death, Death probably made threatening gestures as King David saw himself walking through his shadow. 

King David was comforted for the shadow of death could not harm him.  Death itself had no power over Jesus or King David.  Rom 6:9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.  Acts 2:24  Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it. 

Thus, as King David saw himself walking through the valley, he saw Death trying to claim him.  That was why the Good Shepherd walked with Him.  The Good Shepherd gave His life for the sheep.  The Good Shepherd had the power to lay down His life and the power to raise it as well, John 10:18.

Thus, death has no claim over those that believe in Him.  The Life that raised Jesus from the dead was given to the believer at the new birth.  Therefore, death has no legal claim on the soul and spirit of the believer.  Death’s only claim is on a dead body that rots and turns back into the dust. 

Another interesting thought is King David had never been this way before, Josh 3:4…for ye have not passed this way heretofore. 

 

B.  Light, Substance, Shadow.

Have you ever heard it said that someone is so afraid they jump at their shadow?  Have you ever wondered where such a figure of speech originated?  I believe it came from the phrase relating to the shadow of death. 

Years ago before the days of television there was radio show called “The Shadow.”  The Shadow was supposed to be a guy that knew when evil was lurking and was there to thwart its plans.  Recently Hollywood made a movie based on the old radio character.

The old program may have been good entertainment, but it was not very enlightening where the things of God are concerned.  There are several reasons, with the main being this character called The Shadow was supposed to know just about anything.  The truth is the shadow does not know anything. 

 

1.  The makings of a shadow.

There are thing about a shadow here on earth that we take for granted.  We seldom give our shadows any thought for it is not us, it just tags along wherever we go.  How many times have we watched the shadows of clouds as they raced along the ground?

Before there can be a shadow, there are three things needed, each is just as important as the other.  Those three things are: 

The first thing is light. 

The second thing needed is a substance that the light cannot fully pass through or penetrate.  This does not mean that the substance does not have a light within itself. 

The third thing needed is a background that reflects the shadow.  In our world the background can be a variety of things.  Furthermore, the background must in the approximate vicinity of the substance.  The background that reflects the negative light (the shadow) is nothing out of the norm here on earth.

However, in the other world such is not the case, for when we begin to think of how vast eternity is, it begins to bring to mind how large death is as well.  Death is so large that the shadow it cast stretches across time and into eternity. 

 

2.  The Light.

In Ps. 23:4 we have Light, Substance and shadow.  The Light is Jesus Christ, John 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.  We tend to think that John was only speaking of walking in sin in this life.  However, if we have the Light of the world in us, we will not walk into the darkness of death either.  The Light is so great that the darkness of Death will not swallow it, John 1:5  And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. 

 

3.  The substance.

The substance that creates the shadow in Ps. 23:4 is Death.  Death is so vast and void that even the glorious light from Christ cannot and will not penetrate it.  His light did not force its way into the heart of any who refused His mercies.  Therefore, He does not share His glorious light in their deathly abode. 

However, within the confines of that Substance called death, there is a light and it is a black light.  If you were around in the 60’s you know what a black light is and how it affects illumination.  In a semi-dark room a black light gives objects an eerie glow.

Jesus said that if the light that was in some folks was a dark light, then it was a very great darkness (black light).  Mat 6:23 But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!  Those black lights were a hit with the hippies in the 60’s.  They worked very well in the dark, 2 Pet 2:17 These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever.

Furthermore, the posters that adorned the walls of those loving the effects of the black light were akin to the new age movement or they related to death.  Peter said that the mist of darkness would be upon some forever.  Peter was right in step with the times.

 

4.  The shadow.

Having seen that the Light of Christ would not pass through the Substance called death, a shadow is now created.  Death casts its shadow upon the lives of all at one time or the other. 

 

5.  The fear of the Lord. 

Those that are righteous in the sight of God do not fear the Substance nor do they fear its shadow.  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, Prov 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.  Only a fool would trade light for darkness.

The believer was more afraid of Him that had the power to destroy both body and soul than they were death, Mat 10:28  And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 

There may be some fear of our mode of death for none of us know exactly how we are to die.  However, there should be no fear in death for the believer.  This is because we are made perfect in His love, 1 John 4:18  There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.  

 

C. The Valley of the Shadow Of Death.

Having looked at the shadow of death and how it was formed, let us examine the valley of death.  As it was with the shadow and the Substance, so it is with the Death and the valley of death, this fourth truth found in Psalms 23:4.  Once again the believer does not walk into death, we merely walk through a valley of death. 

What does the valley of the shadow of death look like?  The fact is we are not told.  However, God did not leave us to wonder and create our own images of such things.  He left us a likeness and it is found in the valley that was made when the Red Sea parted.  To better grasps this image, do not think of the of the Red Sea with boundaries, meditate upon it as being boundless, save for the entering and exiting points for the nation of Israel. 

When Israel walked through (note that they walked through the sea,) Exo 14:16, 22, Heb 11:29 By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned, the waters were above them on both sides.  The sun’s rays striking the walls of water at an angle, caused a shadow to pass across the valley between the split waters.

Thus, Israel walked through the valley of the shadow of death, (Physical death was the literal waters on both sides of them.) the shadow of death, caused by the light of the sun striking the walls of water, merely pass over the children of Israel, as they walked through the valley of the shadow of death. 

God lead them through the valley of the shadow of death.  This is exactly what King David said God would do for him.  However, the Egyptians could not pass through the valley of the shadow of death. 

Egypt is a type of the lost world and as such the lost must enter into the substance itself: Death.  To bring this point home to the heart of the believer, it was Pharaoh that led his army into their deaths.  Pharaoh was a type of Satan for he withstood the Lord.  Those that follow Satan must enter into his deathly abode as well.

 

D.  Death.

The fifth thing we learn from this fourth verse is those that died without Christ must walk alone into death.  They are on opposites ends of the spectrum from the believers, for the unrighteous dead go into death and there they remain. 

When we compare Rev. 20:5 with 20:12 we learn that there is no such thing as purgatory.  Rev 20:5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

Those that died without Christ are still without Christ after the First Resurrection is past.  Rev 22:11  He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.

Furthermore, they are still dead in trespasses and sins after the 1,000 year reign for we read: Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. 

Scriptures does not teach of a place for the dead to enter called Purgatory and after serving their sentence, they are released.  Such teaching is not found in scripture, but is found in the hearts of depraved lost or misguided souls.  It is this very thing carried out in the prison systems across the United States that contributes to more people being locked up than ever before.

The prison system in America is broke and what contributed to the breakdown is letting evil people out of prison because of “good behavior.”  Without a new birth evil men have no good behavior.  The parole board allows people to serve a minute amount of time in prison and then these same evil men are out on the streets committing worse crimes.  The locks of the prisons have been replaced with revolving doors.

However, someone somewhere got the idea that God had a parole board and if you served your time in purgatory, you would be allowed to enter heaven based on your good works in purgatory.  John 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.  That is not what John the Revelator told us.  He told us those that died without Christ would forever be without Christ.

 

1.  Abodes of the dead.

When these dead folks come forth at the Great White Throne Judgment, they come forth from three deathly states: (a) death (b) hell, and the (c) sea, Rev 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.  This proves that the dead are still dead in trespasses and sins and must remain forever in the presence and be part of the Substance called Death.

 

2.  Death gave up her dead. 

Death as it is listed in Rev. 20:13 poses a problem.  It is commonly understood that once a person dies, they either go into the presence of the Lord or they ascended into hell to await the final judgment.  However, we are told that death gave up the dead therein.  (Perhaps from this verse is where the teaching of purgatory originated.)

A superficial rendering of the verse would leave one to believe that if there were some dead people that were neither in heaven nor in hell, then the only likely place for them to be would be in a place called purgatory or death. 

Let us examine the verse and see if something else is more evident than a false teaching called purgatory.  

Science is trying to perfect a method of deep freezing a body and then bringing that body back to life.  This is called cryonics or cryogenics.  Once this practice is perfected a body will be in a state of death, but the soul will be inactive.  Folks say such will not happen.  However, God Himself said that unless He intervened mankind would build a tower that would reach into heaven.

Gen 11:6  And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.  11:7  Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.  Unless God intervenes, man will continue to experiment until he enters a domain wherein he has no business.  When man plays God, man will mess things up every time.

The second point in Rev. 20:13 is the context did not say that death gave up humans.  These dead could very well be demons as well.  It only states that death gave up the dead therein.  If we read it to mean only human dead, then we are guilty of adding to the text and violate the law of adding to the scriptures, Deu 4:2.  It is best to leave it at that.

The third thing that jumps off the page into the mind of the believer is what I believe to be the biblical truth regarding death giving up the dead that were in it.  The answer to who these dead maybe is found in Rev. 20:7-9.  It is there that we find the final rebellion against God is put down once and for all when fire came down from heaven and killed the rebels.

Satan and his henchmen are immediately cast into the lake of fire 20:10 and in verse 11 the context takes us right into the Great White Throne Judgment.  Therefore, the dead that were captive in death are those that were killed in Rev. 20:9.  These events happens so swiftly that the dead did not descend into hell, for they are ushered into the final judgment.  In order for these rebellious dead to have a Second Death, Rev 20:14, they at some point in their past had to have a first death.  (Man is born one time in the flesh; born a second time in the spirit.)  Therefore, death gave up the dead that it briefly held.  That is my humble opinion. 

 

3.  Hell gave up her dead.

Those that died from creation to Rev. 20:9 were in hell.  God called them forth and they now stand before Him. 

 

4.  The sea gave up its dead.

The third place that John saw giving up its dead was the sea.  This sea that John saw is not the sea that cover the earth.  How do we know such?  Because we are told in Rev. 21:1 that the first heaven and the first earth were passed away and there was no more sea.

The reasoning here is if the earth passed away and the sea (seven seas) was part of the earth, then the sea (seven seas) as we know it passed away as well.  (Do we really believe that the earth passed away leaving only the waters?)  This is why we were explicitly told: Rev 21:1  And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.  There was no more sea and the word sea is in the singular, not in the plural. 

The sea that John saw giving up the dead is often referred to as “the Deep.”  There is no time in this study of the shadow of death to go into a study of the deep.  Suffice it to say that the Deep is the present abode of Satan until Michael kicks him out, Rev. 12.  (It is just as unscriptural to teach that Satan is now in hell as it is to teach purgatory.  Satan does not enter the eternal fires until Rev. 20:10.) 

The deep is a body of water, which measurements defy the mind of man to comprehend.  Here are some passages that refer to the deep and the inhabitants there: Gen 1:2, 8:2, 49:25, Deu 33:13, Job 38:30, 41:31, 32, Psa 69:15, 104:6, 107:24, Prov 8:28, Isa 44:27, 63:13, Ezek 26:19, 31:4, 15, Jonah 2:3, Hab 3:10, and Luke 8:31.  (One should also study the firmament, the serpent, and the dragon as they study the deep. )  Isa 27:1  In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.  Amos 9:3. 

Psa 148:4  Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens.  148:7  Praise the LORD from the earth, ye dragons, and all deeps:  King David said that the waters above the heavens would praise the LORD.  There is water up there. 

There are dead and evil things in the Deep where Satan abides, Job 26:5, 10, 12.  Those dead things with Satan were what John referred to when he said the sea gave up its dead. 

These three abodes of where the dead were, gave forth the dead that was in them.  These unrighteous dead are resurrected back to life and standing before God they receive their eternal penalties.  Some received a greater damnation, Mat 23:14.  Regardless of the degrees of their eternal punishment, they die again and are cast into the lake of fire where death, hell, the beast, the dragon, and the false prophet are.  There they remain forever, Rev 20:11, 14, 15. 

They lived without Christ.  They died without Christ and walked alone into the Substance known as death.  They entered that mouth, Isa 5:14, of eternal Death dead in their sins, judged in their dead state, then were cast alive into the lake of fire.  Thus the dead that die without Christ remain forever alive, yet dead, tormented, and their eternal abode is with Death.  Paul said he was crucified with Christ, yet he was alive, Gal 2:20.

The very anti-type of what he said is seen in the unrighteous that although they are dead, they are also alive.  Hollywood movie produces grasp this fact much faster than some professing Christians.  What Hollywood did was reverse the truth by giving some type of life to dead bodies.

These dead bodies wrecked havoc and destruction because the dead body could not be destroyed by normal means because it was already dead.  Hence the movies that became cult classics: “The Night of the Living Dead,” “Dracula,” and others.  The horrible reality is these living dead remain tormented forever.  

 

SUMMARY:

Now we understand a bit more the blessed assurance that King David proclaimed when he said he walked through the valley of the shadow of death.  Such is not so for the unbeliever for they do not experience death as does those that died with Christ.  The unbeliever dies without Christ and without hope,  1 Th 4:13  But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. 

Those that came up from the three deathly abodes were judged and if their names were not found written in the book of life: Rev 20:15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire, they spend eternity with Satan.

What a beautiful picture King David gave us in this one verse of the world’s most favorite Psalm.  He knew that once he passed through the valley of the shadow of death that he would dwell in the house of the Lord forever, Ps 23:6.

These truths are there in the world’s favorite Psalm so that reading we may believe and by believing we may have life eternal through Jesus Christ God’s Son, John 20:31  But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.