God's Mercy in Death
1/1/1977
by Dr. Hugh Ross
God judges people in two categories: 1) the righteous (those submitted to God—all evil deeds are erased and forgotten and their reward is based on good deeds alone; 2) the wicked (those who are rebellious—all good deeds are erased and forgotten and their punishment is based on evil deeds alone.
Background references on death
| Genesis 2:16-17 |
Ecclesiastes 9:2-6 |
| Genesis 3:22 |
Isaiah 65:19-25 |
| Genesis 6:3 |
Ezekiel 18:20-32 |
| Proverbs 16:4 |
John 16:5-11 |
| Ecclesiastes 3:11 |
1 Corinthians 3:12-15 |
| Ecclesiastes 7:2-4 |
Hebrews 9:27 |
| Ecclesiastes 8:8 |
Revelation 20:11-15 |
The righteous sometimes die young
- to protect from future torment
- to protect heavenly reward
- as an instrument for good
| 1 Kings 14:6-13 |
Psalm 23:4 |
| 2 Kings 20:1-21:16 |
Isaiah 57:1-2 |
| 2 Chronicles 32:22-33:6 |
Acts 4:32-5:11 |
| Isaiah 36-39 |
Acts 7:54-8:4, Acts 9 |
The righteous sometimes die old
- to maximize heavenly reward
- to protect a spiritual heritage
- to procide an opportunity to achieve an ignored priority
| Psalm 116:15 |
Ephesians 2:10 |
| 1 Corinthians 3:12-15 |
2 Timothy 4:6-8 |
| Philippians 1:21-26 |
Revelation 14:13 |
The wicked sometimes die young
- lack of wisdom
- led astray by folly
- to stop the spread of wickedness
- to limit judgment on the wicked
- to limit grief of relatives
- to transfer wealth to the righteous
| Genesis 38:6-19 |
Proverbs 5:21-23 |
| Job 20:4-11 |
Proverbs 29:16 |
| Psalm 55:15 |
Ecclesiastes 2:26 |
The wicked sometimes die old
- To give them time to turn from their ways
| Ezekiel 18:23 |
2 Peter 3:9 |
| 1 Timothy 2:4 |
Revelation 2:21 |
Copyright 1977, Reasons To Believe
