What is Hades?
Question 10120
Hades is one of the most frequently misunderstood terms in the New Testament, largely because English readers associate it automatically with the Greek mythology from which the word originates. But the New Testament writers did not adopt Greek mythology when they used the term. They used the Greek word to express the Hebrew concept of Sheol, the realm of the dead, and invested it with distinctly biblical content. Understanding what the New Testament means by Hades is essential for grasping what happens between death and resurrection, and for distinguishing Hades from the final state of the wicked.
Hades as the Greek Equivalent of Sheol
When the Hebrew Old Testament was translated into Greek (the Septuagint), the translators consistently rendered Sheol as Hades. This established a direct equivalence that carried into the New Testament. Hades in biblical usage is the realm of the dead, the unseen world to which the dead depart. It is not the final place of judgement. It is the intermediate state, the holding place between death and resurrection, and it must be carefully distinguished from Gehenna (the Lake of Fire), which is the final and eternal destination of the wicked after the Great White Throne judgement.
In Acts 2:27, Peter quotes Psalm 16:10: “For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption.” The word Hades here translates the Hebrew Sheol directly, and Peter applies it to Christ’s resurrection. Jesus’ soul was not left in Hades; His body did not see decay. The passage confirms that Hades is the realm to which the dead go and from which Christ was raised.
Hades in the Teaching of Jesus
Jesus uses Hades with unmistakable seriousness. In Luke 16:23, the rich man finds himself “in Hades, being in torment,” able to see Abraham and Lazarus in comfort but separated from them by an uncrossable gulf. This account confirms that Hades, like Sheol before it, encompasses distinct regions for the righteous and the wicked. It also confirms that the inhabitants of Hades are conscious, aware of their surroundings, and capable of both speech and memory.
In Matthew 16:18, Jesus declares that “the gates of Hades shall not prevail” against His church. The image of “gates” suggests Hades as a fortress or stronghold. Death itself will not be able to hold back the advance of Christ’s purposes through His people. Some interpreters understand this as a reference to death’s inability to contain believers permanently, anticipating the resurrection. Others see it as a declaration that the powers of death will not overcome the church in its mission. Both readings carry genuine force.
Jesus also pronounces judgement on Capernaum: “And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades” (Matthew 11:23). Here Hades represents the opposite of exaltation, the destination of those who reject the light they have been given.
Hades Is Not the Final State
A point of considerable importance, often missed in popular Christian understanding, is that Hades is temporary. Revelation 20:13-14 states that “Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.” Hades will itself be emptied and destroyed. The dead who are in Hades will be raised for judgement at the Great White Throne and then consigned to the Lake of Fire, which is the final, eternal state of the lost. Hades is therefore the intermediate holding place, not the permanent destination. The Lake of Fire is permanent.
This distinction matters pastorally. When Scripture speaks of “hell” in English translations, it sometimes refers to Hades (the intermediate state) and sometimes to Gehenna (the final state). The two are not identical, and conflating them creates confusion about the biblical timeline of judgement. The wicked dead are currently in Hades, awaiting the final resurrection and judgement. Their ultimate destination is the Lake of Fire, to which they will be consigned after the Great White Throne.
So, now what?
Hades is a sobering reality. It is the place where the unbelieving dead currently exist in conscious awareness, awaiting a judgement that will be worse than what they already experience. For believers, Hades has been conquered. Christ holds its keys (Revelation 1:18), and those who belong to Him will never enter it. The believer who dies goes to be with Christ, not to Hades. The one who rejects Christ goes to Hades, and from Hades to the Lake of Fire. This is not a medieval invention or a cultural artefact. It is the consistent testimony of Jesus Himself, who spoke of Hades more than anyone else in the New Testament and who did so with the authority of the one who has personally conquered it.
“I died, and behold I am alive for evermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.” Revelation 1:18