Will We See Our Pets Again in Eternity?
Will your beloved pets be resurrected to be with you in the eternal age-to-come (2 Peter 3:13)? Or do your pets go directly to Heaven and await your arrival? What about other animals in Eternity? These are legitimate questions because some people naturally wonder about their beloved pets and other animals.
While the Bible doesn’t directly address the topic of our beloved pets in eternity there is quite a bit of information from which we can derive solid answers.
Let’s start with the question: Will there be animals in the New Heavens and New Earth? Answer: Why wouldn’t there be? After all, there are animals galore in our current age and there will be animals during the Millennium, as this passage shows:
6The wolf will live with the lamb,
the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling together;
and a little child will lead them.
7The cow will feed with the bear,
their young will lie down together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
8The infant will play near the cobra’s den,
and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest.
9They will neither harm nor destroy
on all my holy mountain,
for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
Isaiah 11:6-9
As you can see, carnivorous animals will become herbivorous during the Millennium just as they were before the fall of creation.
Furthermore, there are animals in Heaven right now, as verified by passages like this one:
11I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. 12His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. 13He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. 14The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. 15Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
Revelation 19:11-16
This text details the Second Coming of Christ. The Lord is riding a white horse, as are the armies of Heaven following him (Jude 1:14 & Matthew 25:31).
Someone might argue that these horses are symbolic due to the symbolism contained in Revelation in general and particularly because verse 15 shows a “sharp sword” coming out of the Lord’s mouth to strike down the nations, which we know isn’t literal. Bear in mind, however, that symbolism in the Bible is obvious within the immediate context, as well as the context of the entire Bible. This is how we know the “sharp sword” coming out of Jesus’ mouth isn’t a literal sword, but rather is figurative of the word of God (Ephesians 6:17).
Also, the usage of some symbolic language in a passage doesn’t necessarily mean that every aspect of the passage is figurative when it’s clear some elements are literal. For instance Jesus Christ and the armies of Heaven that follow him are obviously literal in the above passage. As for the horses they ride, I see no indication that they’re symbolic. Other biblical passages suggest that they’re literal, like this one:
15When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked.
16“Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
17And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
2 Kings 6:15-17
Although these horses dwell in Heaven — the highest spiritual realm — and are therefore different from the horses we’re familiar with, they are horses.
Since there are currently animals on Earth and in Heaven, and there will be animals during the Millennium, why wouldn’t there be animals in the eternal age of the New Heavens and New Earth? After all, God originally created all types of animals to fill the Earth before the fall of creation, why would this change when creation is fully restored? It wouldn’t.
God’s Cares About Animals Too!
Whether people are aware of it or not, there are several passages in the Bible that show God’s concern for animals, like this one:
“And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”
Jonah 4:11
The LORD proposed this question to Jonah, who objected to God’s mercy for the people of Nineveh. This city was the capital of Assyria, Israel’s worst enemy at the time, and the prophet wanted the LORD to destroy the city and its people, not mercifully forgive them when they repented (Jonah 4:1-2).
As you can see, the passage shows that God wasn’t just concerned about the fate of the 120,000 Ninevites, who were spiritually ignorant and couldn’t “tell their right hand from their left,” he was also concerned about the numerous animals in the city.
Here are several other passages that reveal the Creator’s concern for animals:
- Job 12:10: Job points out that the “life” of every creature is in God’s hands. The word ‘life’ is nephesh (neh-FESH) in the Hebrew, which is often translated as “soul” in English Bibles. The King James Version translates the passage like so: “In whose hand [is] the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.” We’ll look at these things further as we continue.
- Psalm 24:1 says that every living thing on the earth is the LORD’s, which includes the animals.
- Psalm 50:10-11 reveals that every animal in creation is God’s and He knows every bird in the mountains.
- Psalm 104:21-30 goes into detail about how the LORD created all animals with wisdom to one degree or another and how the whole Earth is filled with God’s creatures; it also shows how the Almighty provides them with food at the proper time and takes away their “breath” when they die.
- Proverbs 12:10 stresses that righteous people care about the needs of their animals.
- Matthew 6:26 shows how our heavenly Father feeds the birds of the air.
- Matthew 10:29 & Luke 12:6 reveal that when even sparrows die not one of them is forgotten by God!
- Revelation 4:11 shows the Mighty One being worshipped for creating all things for his good purpose and pleasure.
Someone might argue: If God cares about the animals so much why did he sanction the killing of them for food? Answer: This wasn’t part of the LORD’s original plan, notice:
29Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.
31God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.
Genesis 1:29-31
All living beings on the Earth were herbivores before the fall of creation, including people, which means their diet was strictly vegetarian.
Verse 31 shows the Creator viewing all he had made and “it was very good.” There were no carnivores at this time because a carnivorous diet necessitates suffering and death of other living creatures and this wouldn’t be good. Unfortunately, Adam & Eve’s sin brought a curse on the physical Universe and the sins of their descendants perpetuate it:
5The earth is defiled by its people;
they have disobeyed the laws,
violated the statutes
and broken the everlasting covenant.
6Therefore a curse consumes the earth;
its people must bear their guilt.
Isaiah 24:5-6
As such, no part of creation functions entirely as originally designed. The ground is cursed, as shown in Genesis 3:17-19, which is a reference to the plant kingdom. Animals are also negatively affected:
Because of [sin] the land dries up, and all who live in it waste away; the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky and the fish in the sea are swept away.
20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.
Romans 8:20-21
The “bondage to decay” is the law of entropy and includes death. As such, every living thing in creation must die, including plant life. It wasn’t until after the fall and the ensuing curse that animals began to fear people (Genesis 9:2).
“The Final Restoration of All Things”
The awesome news is that creation will be redeemed and, in fact, yearns for it:
For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.
Romans 8:19
What does creation wait in eager expectation for? The children of God to be revealed, which is part of the “restoration of all things”:
For he [Jesus] must remain in heaven until the time for the final restoration of all things, as God promised long ago through his holy prophets.
Acts 3:21
This restoration of all things takes place in stages. One key stage is when Jesus returns for his church where believers’ bodies are finally redeemed:
22We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.
Romans 8:22-23
Christ’s return for the church is called the Rapture and is detailed in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (covered in this article).
The restoration continues after the 7-year Tribulation when Jesus returns to Earth and establishes his millennial kingdom. Tribulation martyrs and Old Testament saints will be resurrected at this time and the lifespans of mortal humans will return to the lengthy lifespans of people before the flood.
In a previous section we looked at Isaiah 11:6-9, which shows what life will be like during the Millennium: Carnivorous animals will become herbivorous and therefore wolves will live with lambs and leopards will lie together with goats; calves and lions will hang out and be led by little children. Cows and bears will feed together and formerly carnivorous beasts like the lion will eat straw like an ox. Furthermore, children will play by the cobra’s den and the viper’s nest without fear because poisonous creatures will no longer be poisonous.
As wonderful as the thousand-year reign of Christ will be, it’s just another stage in the “restoration of all things.” The final stage takes place when God wholly renovates the Earth & Universe and the heavenly city, the new Jerusalem, comes “down out of heaven from my God” to rest on the new Earth (Revelation 3:12, 21:2 & 21:10). Notice, by the way, that this is stated three times verbatim in Scripture.
The Greek word for ‘restoration’ in the phrase “the final restoration of all things” is apokatastasis (ap-ok-at-AS-tas-is), which appears only once in the Bible, Acts 3:21. The root word is apokathistémi (ap-ok-ath-IS-tay-mee), which means “to set up again” and “restore to its original position or condition.” That’s what the “restoration of all things” is about — restoring the Earth and Universe to its original condition before the fall, which is the way God originally intended it to be.
The Messiah spoke of this restoration in this passage:
Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
The Greek word for ‘renewal’ here is paliggenesia (pal-ing-ghen-es-EE-ah), which means “new birth, regeneration or renewal.” It’s only used twice in Scripture. The second time is in Titus 3:5 where it refers to the regeneration of the human spirit when a believer accepts the gospel (John3:3, 3:6). This shows that the “renewal of all things” is actually being jump-started in this current age through the spiritual rebirth of believers. This culminates with Christ’s return for his Church, detailed above. The next stage of the “renewal” takes place when Christ returns to the Earth to establish his millennial reign, which is what Jesus was specifically referring to in the above passage, Matthew 19:28. This renewal climaxes with the re-creation of the New Heavens and New Earth, which applies to the eternal age-to-come.
The animal kingdom and even the plant kingdom are partakers in this redemption of the physical universe. Why else would all creation “wait in eager expectation” for this great restoration if they were not included in it (Romans 8:19)? While animals and trees aren’t literally yearning for this renewal, they yearn for it in a figurative sense because they’re included in it.
When the high priest sprinkled animal blood on the cover of the Ark of the Covenant once a year to atone for the sins of the Israelites, this blood covered God’s Law, which was represented in the Ark via the tablets of the ten commandments. This ritual resulted in God’s mercy year to year, covering the Israelites’ sins. But the blood of animals could only temporarily cover sin, not cleanse it away forever (Hebrews 10:1-4). The good news is that Jesus Christ, who is the believer’s High Priest, offered his own blood when he went to the Most Holy Place in Heaven, not merely the blood of animals (Hebrews 9:23-28).
Leviticus 16:15 shows the high priest sprinkling blood on the ground in front of the Ark after sprinkling it on the cover. At the time the Ark was housed in the tent Tabernacle and so the blood was literally poured on the ground. Why’s this significant? Because the entire ceremony pointed to Christ’s blood atonement in Heaven and the priest didn’t just sprinkle blood on the lid of the Ark for the redemption of humanity, but also on the ground for the redemption of all physical creation!
Were there animals before the fall? Yes. Therefore there will be animals after the fall. The question is, will the LORD create new animals or will God simply resurrect animals that have already lived and died? Or both?
Speaking of which…
Will God Resurrect Animals From Sheol?
This is where the topic gets a little complicated because some people have an erroneous understanding of Sheol/Hades, as well as a religious conception of ‘soul’ as opposed to a scriptural one. Thankfully, “the truth will set you free” and everything makes perfect sense when you have a purely biblical grasp of these issues. If you feel it’s getting too complicated, however, just skip down to the final two sections (starting with Tying It All Together).
Let’s start with the fact that Scripture plainly states what happens to animals when they die:
13Such is the fate of the foolhardy,
the end of those who are pleased with their lot.
14Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol;
Death shall be their shepherd;
straight to the grave they descend,
and their form shall waste away;
Sheol shall be their home.
15But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol,
for he will receive me.
Psalm 49:13-15 (NRSV)
Many Christians today are either ignorant of the nature of Sheol (which is Hades in the Greek) or have a faulty grasp of the topic due to unbiblical religious teachings. What is Sheol? Sheol is “the world of the dead,” as scholar James Strong defined it, which corresponds to the scriptural definition as the “assembly of the dead” or “realm of the dead” (see Proverbs 21:16, Isaiah 14:9, 14:15, Ezekiel 31:15, 31:17 and 32:21, 32:27). The verses from Ezekiel, by the way, are the LORD Himself speaking, which means God Himself defines Sheol as “the realm of the dead.” It’s not the realm of the living, but rather the realm of the dead.
In other words, Sheol is the graveyard of dead souls where the immaterial DNA of lifeless souls is stored. For clear proof of this straight from the Holy Scriptures go here. Remember, God’s written Word is the blueprint for authentic Christianity and therefore it reveals what is true and what is not true in regard to spiritual matters. This is why Paul said “do not go beyond what is written” when it comes to Christian beliefs (1 Corinthians 4:1-6). That’s what we’re doing here — finding answers to our topic based on what the Scriptures actually say and not mindlessly embracing religious myths or quaint sectarian theories.
Since Sheol is where soulish remains are stored until potential resurrection at a future date, we are left with two obvious questions:
- Do the immaterial remains of animals go to Sheol when they die?
- Do animals have souls?
The answer to both of these questions is yes. If you find this doubtful, see for yourself what God’s Word has to say on both subjects…
Sheol: A Place Where Sheep Go?
Let’s return to that enlightening passage from the Psalms written by the sons of Korah:
13 Such is the fate of the foolhardy,
the end of those who are pleased with their lot.
14 Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol;
death shall be their shepherd;
straight to the grave they descend,
and their form shall waste away;
Sheol shall be their home.
15 But God will ransom my soul from the power of
Sheol,
for he will receive me.
Psalm 49:13-15 (NRSV)
The text refers to those who trust in themselves rather than God, which verse 13 describes as the “foolhardy.” A ‘fool’ in the Bible is synonymous with a wicked person since “fool” denotes someone who is morally deficient; that is, someone who rejects God’s existence, authority, wisdom & discipline and embraces evil desires (see Proverbs 1:7, 5:22-23 and Psalm 14:1).
Since this passage is definitely referring to ungodly people you would think that the King James translators would have translated sheol as “hell,” which would be in line with their misleading policy of translating the word as “hell” when the passage referred to wicked people, and as “grave” when it referred to righteous people. The reason they did this was to support their religious belief that the unredeemed immediately went to a fiery torture chamber when they died whereas redeemed people went somewhere else. Yet, notice how the King James Bible renders verse 14:
Like sheep they are laid in the grave [sheol];
death shall feed on them;
and the upright shall have dominion over them in the
morning;
and their beauty shall consume in the grave
from their dwelling.
Psalm 49:14 (KJV)
The passage is contextually referring to ungodly people yet the King James translators mysteriously chose not to render sheol as “hell,” which was their usual practice. Why? Obviously because the verse plainly says that wicked people are appointed for Sheol LIKE SHEEP! Of course everyone knows that sheep don’t go to a place of roasting conscious torture when they die. You don’t have to be a scholar to realize this. Hence, despite their desire to render sheol as “hell” in line with their standard practice they had no choice but to translate it as “the grave” in this case.
This passage coincides with Jeremiah 12:3, which also likens ungodly people to sheep that are to be slaughtered: “Drag them off like sheep to be butchered! Set them apart for the day of slaughter.” Note clearly that it says they are to be butchered and slaughtered (which is in harmony with the biblical axiom that “the wages of sin is death”), not tortured in some fiery nether realm until their resurrection thousands of years hence, as some ludicrously teach.
At this point, two questions crop up: Do sheep really go to Sheol as Psalm 49:14 says? And, if so, does this mean they have souls since, biblically speaking, Sheol is the “world of the dead” where dead souls are specifically laid to rest after physical death?
Do Animals Have Souls? Do They Go to Sheol When They Die?
The answer to both questions, believe it or not, is yes. Sheep and other animals are described in terms of being “living souls” in the Bible and, when they die, their non-physical essence is indeed laid to rest in Sheol. This may sound odd at first since due to people being indoctrinated by unbiblical concepts, but let’s observe what the God-breathed Scriptures have to say on the subject.
The word “soul” in the Bible is translated from the Hebrew word nephesh (neh-FESH), which corresponds to the Greek psuche (soo-KHAY).*
* Compare Genesis 2:7 with 1 Corinthians 15:45 for verification.
The creation text, Genesis 2:7, states that God breathed into the body of the first man the breath of life and he “became a living soul.” As such, the passage plainly shows that human beings are “living souls.” This explains why redeemed people who physically die during the future Tribulation period are described as conscious living “souls” in Heaven in Revelation 6:9-11. It’s obvious in Genesis 2:7 that what makes people living souls as opposed to dead souls is God’s breath of life. Without this “breath of life” the human soul is a dead soul.
This is where the concept of Sheol comes into play: When a person physically dies the Bible teaches that the breath of life (i.e. spirit) returns to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 12:6-7, Job 34:14-15 & Psalm 146:3-4). What happens to a soul when God’s breath of life returns to the Creator and the soul is no longer a living soul? In other words, where are dead souls laid to rest? In Sheol! Remember, as the Bible and James Strong define it, Sheol is “the realm of the dead” (Proverbs 21:16, Ezekiel 31:15, 31:17 & 32:21, 32:27). It’s not the realm of the living — the realm of conscious beings — no, it’s the realm of the dead. And souls who are no longer animated by God’s spiritual breath of life are dead. That’s why they are placed in Sheol because, again, Sheol is the realm of the dead.
We know from the Scriptures that every human soul will ultimately be resurrected from Sheol. Old Testament saints will be resurrected at the time of Christ’s Second Coming at the end of the Tribulation (Matthew 19:28). All other unredeemed souls will ultimately be resurrected at the time of the Great White Throne Judgment, which will take place immediately following the millennial reign of Christ on Earth; this resurrection includes every spiritually un-regenerated soul that’s ever existed throughout history (Revelation 20:11-15).
Genuine believers don’t have to worry about going to Sheol, of course, because they’ve been spiritually born-again of the imperishable seed of Christ and possess eternal life in their spirits (1 Peter 1:23 & 1 John 5:12-13); hence, when authentic Christians physically die they are ushered into the presence of the LORD as shown in the aforementioned Revelation 6:9-11, as well as Philippians 1:20-24 and other passages (2 Corinthians 5:8) — death holds no black pall over the blood-washed, spiritually reborn Christian for to “be with Christ… is better by far”! This topic is fully covered here.
Why am I emphasizing all this? Because it’s important here to understand that Sheol is the holding place of dead souls. It is where God stores the soulish remains of every human being that has ever existed, their immaterial DNA, if you will. This is obviously necessary so that every person can be resurrected at the appropriate time.
Incidentally, this is what makes the “second death” so horrifying: Everyone will ultimately be resurrected from Sheol, but no one will ever be resurrected from the lake of fire, which is the second death (Revelation 20:14-15). This “second death” is an “everlasting destruction” so utterly complete and final that no one will ever be resurrected from it; it is literally a total obliteration of soul and body wherein one’s spiritual DNA is wiped out of existence (Matthew 10:28 & Hebrews 10:26-27, 10:31). You can read scriptural details here.
By the way, the fact that everyone will ultimately be resurrected from Sheol, which is the first death, but no one will be resurrected from the second death explains why souls in Sheol are repeatedly described as “sleeping” (e.g. Psalm 13:3 & Matthew 9:23-26). Unredeemed people who suffer the first death (physical death) are, figuratively speaking, “sleeping” because they will one day be “awoken,” that is, resurrected. By contrast, those who suffer the second death are never described as sleeping because they will never be “awoken” or resurrected. In other words, the first death is temporary, but the second death is everlasting — there’s no hope of resurrection from the second death (Revelation 20:11-15).
With the above scriptural facts in mind, let’s return to the questions of whether or not animals have souls and whether or not they go to Sheol when they physically die. The Bible describes animals in terms of being “living souls” just as well as humans. The Hebrew and Greek words for soul — nephesh and psuche — are repeatedly used in reference to animals in the Bible. For example:
So out of the ground the LORD God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called every living creature (nephesh), that was its name.
Genesis 2:19 (NRSV)
As you can see, land animals and birds are described in the Bible as “living creatures.” The word “creature” in this verse is nephesh, the Hebrew word for “soul.” Water animals are also described in the Bible as “living creatures” (Genesis 1:20-21); this includes Revelation 8:9 where the Greek word for “soul” — psuche — is used. My point is that animals are described in the God-breathed Scriptures as “living souls” just as people are. The reason most people don’t realize this is because English translations generally don’t translate nephesh and psuche as “soul” when the text refers to animals, as shown above in Genesis 2:19.
Why would Bible translators refuse to translate nephesh and psuche as “soul” when the terms apply to animals? No doubt because they wanted to draw a distinction between animals and human beings; after all, people are created in the image of God, beasts are not. Yet the original God-breathed Scriptures used the very same Hebrew and Greek word for both, shouldn’t we? If God Himself doesn’t have a problem with it, why should we?
Of course the real reason many translators refrain from translating nephesh and psuche as “soul” when these words apply to animals is that doing so would be counterproductive to the doctrine of the “immortal soul.” This doctrine maintains that souls, once created, can never be de-created — even unredeemed souls. Hence, the immortal soul doctrine is one of the chief pillars for the eternal roasting torture doctrine.
This pillar might be damaged if people discovered that animals are described in the Bible as “living souls” just as well as people; after all, even the uneducated public might question the notion that animals possess immortal souls and roasting in a nether realm for eternity. To solve this dilemma, English Bible translators decided to translate nephesh and psuche as “creature(s)” or “thing(s)” when the terms applied to beasts. This is another example of religionists attempting to cover-up the scriptural truth in order to perpetuate false beliefs.
The King James translators were so careful in this matter that there’s only one passage where nephesh is translated as “soul” in reference to animals; and the only reason they did so in this case was because of the curious wording of the passage. Witness for yourself:
And levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul (nephesh) of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves [oxen], and of the asses, and of the sheep.”
Numbers 31:28 (KJV)
As you can see, “soul” (nephesh) in this verse applies equally to people, oxen, donkeys and sheep; the translators couldn’t very well render it as “creatures” or “things” since the list includes people as well as animals. They therefore had no choice but to translate nephesh as “soul.” (Let’s remember that the King James Version is a word-for-word translation so the translators couldn’t very well omit the word).
An obvious question crops up at this point: If both humans and animals are described as “living souls” in the Bible, what is the essential difference between them? The difference is that human beings are created in the very image of God whilst animals are not (Genesis 1:27). This not only means that people have the same general form of God (head, face, torso, legs, arms*), but also that human beings possess a spiritual dimension to their make-up that is aware of God & the spiritual realm, and Christians even possess the capacity to know and commune with God because of spiritual rebirth through Christ.
* Don’t believe for a second that God is some formless cloud being. Yes, the LORD is spiritual in nature, as Jesus said (John 4:24), but the Bible indicates that He definitely has a central presence that is human-like in form (e.g. Ezekiel 1:25-28 & Revelation 1:14-16). Some may respond: “But isn’t God omnipresent?” Yes, the Creator is omnipresent in the sense that the Almighty knows what’s going on everywhere at the same time and can do innumerable things simultaneously, but this does not mean that God’s being lacks a central presence and form.
Animals, of course, lack these characteristics. Yes, they have a spirit but only in the sense of a “breath of life,” an animating spiritual life-force from the Almighty. Animals are, of course, awesome creations of God, but they are on a far lower plane than people. They are instinct-oriented and therefore lack any consciousness of good or evil and have limited reasoning capabilities. They don’t have a God-consciousness (spirit) or a sin-consciousness (flesh). Many animals can be trained to respond to certain words and do various tasks or tricks, but not much more. They cannot build cities, learn complex languages, understand algebra, create and appreciate art or worship God. Human beings, on the other hand, are souls of the highest order created in God’s image and that’s why the Creator gave humankind authority over all animals (see Genesis 1:28 and 9:1-3). This is evidenced by the fact that people have zoos for animals and not vice versa.
Okay, so it’s clear in the Bible that animals are “souls,” but does this mean that their soulish essence goes to Sheol when they die? Evidently, according to Psalm 49:14:
Like sheep they [the foolhardy] are appointed
for Sheol;
Psalm 49:14 (NRSV)
The psalmist is essentially saying that fools under Old Covenant law will prematurely die just as surely as sheep slated to be slaughtered. Note that the psalmist plainly states that sheep “are appointed for Sheol.” There’s no reason we shouldn’t take this statement literally: When sheep die their souls go to Sheol. Remember, Sheol is simply “the world of the dead” or the “well of souls” — the space in the spiritual realm where dead souls are stored until their potential resurrection in the far-flung future. Is there any reason why God wouldn’t store the soulish remains of animals there as well as humans? After all, where else would the LORD store them? Especially considering the strong possibility that God will resurrect some or all of them in the perpetual age-to-come. We assume, of course, that there’s a separate compartment in Sheol for animal souls, just as pet cemeteries are separate from human cemeteries in the physical world.
Incidentally, the fact the Bible teaches that dead animal souls go to Sheol when they die is further proof that Sheol is not a burial plot in the ground because sheep and other animals are not ordinarily thus buried. The Hebrew word qeber denotes the physical grave where bodies are buried while Sheol refers to the ‘graveyard’ in the spirit realm where dead souls are housed.
Tying It All Together
So 1. animals have souls in the biblical sense, and 2. they go to Sheol when they die. This makes perfect sense when you have a biblical understanding of the nature of Sheol rather than a religious understanding. Sheol is the graveyard of dead souls where the immaterial DNA of lifeless souls is stored. As such, God can resurrect these life-forms when and if he deems fit. This includes the souls of animals.
Animal souls are, of course, stored in a separate compartment of Sheol than humans, just as pet cemeteries on Earth are separate from human graveyards.
In a previous section we saw that the Bible speaks of “the final restoration of all things” (Acts 3:21), which refers to the LORD restoring everything in creation to its original condition. The Greek word for ‘all things’ is pas (pass), which means “all, the whole, every kind of.” So God is going to restore all creation to its original condition, as he originally intended it to be. Revelation 21:5 adds an interesting insight in that God will be “making everything new” and not making new things. Chew on that.
Of course, the LORD won’t restore those condemned to the lake of fire, which includes damned human beings, the devil and his filthy angels and anything else cast into the lake of fire, such as death and Hades:
13The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. 14Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.
Revelation 20:13-15
I bring this up because those who adhere to the doctrine of universal restoration — i.e. universalists — believe that everything thrown into the lake of fire will be purged of evil and restored. If this is so, why did Christ use the example of weeds thrown into fire in reference to damned people who will suffer the second death (Matthew 13:40)? Are weeds restored when they’re cast into fire or do they burn up? What about Jesus’ example of a king’s enemies brought before him and executed in front of him from Luke 19:27? Does this example leave any room for his executed enemies being restored?
Revelation 20:14 (above) shows that death and Hades will be cast into the lake of fire. Does this mean that they’ll be eliminated forever in the coming eternal age or that they’ll be restored? If the latter is true, will death — the grim reaper — be restored and become a friendly reaper? Will Hades morph from a dungeon-like pit where dead souls are housed into a beautiful park where people frolic in paradise?
The answers are obvious: Death and Hades are cast into the lake of fire to be exterminated from existence forever, just as crying and pain will be eliminated (Revelation 21:4).
The reason we’re exploring this topic is because people naturally wonder about their beloved pets and animals. Will they ever see them again? Will they be reunited with them in the New Heavens and New Earth? While the Scriptures don’t directly address the question, the answer is obvious based on the passages we’ve looked at and others. For instance, how could it be the “restoration of all things” if one’s beloved pets are omitted? If Jesus said we are to ask and receive so our joy might be complete on this imperfect Earth (John 16:24), how much more so on the New Earth, which will be perfect? Doesn’t the Bible say that those who delight themselves in the LORD will receive the desires of their hearts (Psalm 37:4)? If this is so in this wicked age, how much more so in the righteous age to come? Really, it’s just common sense.
Will the LORD resurrect all animal souls in Sheol or just some? Again, the question isn’t addressed in the Bible, but we can use common sense in deducing a plausible answer: Why would God create new animals when he can just resurrect ones already created over the course of Earth’s history? Of course, the resurrected animals will be perfected when they’re resurrected — restored to their original design — like straw-eating lions and snakes that are no longer poisonous. This would, again, be part of the “restoration of all things.” How would it truly be a universal restoration of creation if innocent animals are omitted? And how is it that “creation waits in eager expectation” (Romans 8:19) if large quantities of creation — living creatures — aren’t included?
Someone might understandably argue that there wouldn’t be enough space on Earth to resurrect every animal that has died since the fall of creation. However, since astronomers estimate there are at least one hundred billion galaxies in the universe (!) and therefore incalculable planets with Earth-like environments this won’t be a problem whatsoever. Another thing to consider is that there will likely be much more land area on the New Earth in light of Revelation 21:1, that is, if we take it literally (currently 71% of the Earth’s surface is water).
If God doesn’t resurrect all the animals then obviously the dead souls of the ones that aren’t resurrected will still be in Sheol (Hades) when it’s cast into the lake of fire. In short, the soulish remains of these animals will be wiped out of existence at this time.
Do Pets Go to Heaven?
You’ll notice that I didn’t say anything about “pets going to heaven.” That’s because such a statement isn’t biblically accurate. For one thing, the Bible doesn’t describe the eternal age to come as “heaven” but rather as the “new heavens and new earth,” which is “the home of righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13). ‘Heaven’ technically refers to the spiritual realm where God’s throne is located. Of course many Christians refer to the eternal age-to-come as “heaven,” but this is erroneous terminology that can be traced back to Augustine’s false doctrine of amillennialism.
But do the souls of animals go to Heaven when they die like the souls of spiritually-regenerated believers in the New Testament era? We don’t see any evidence of this in the Bible, but we do see evidence of animal souls going to Sheol, as noted. As such, your dead pets aren’t likely hanging out in Heaven awaiting your coming, but they will be resurrected in the coming age of the New Heavens and New Earth, if that’s your desire. And why wouldn’t it be?
A certain prophet, however, insists that your beloved pets are indeed in Heaven and will be awaiting your arrival there during the “intermediate state” between physical death and bodily resurrection. Is this true? I suppose it could be, at least in some cases, but the LORD would have to arrange this beforehand based on your desire to see your pet again.
Whatever the case, you will see your beloved animals again in eternity. Praise the Lord!
Related Topics:
Human Nature — Spirit, Mind & Body
The Three Realms—Heaven, Earth and the Underworld
Sheol / Hades: The “Intermediate State” of the Unsaved Dead
Eternal Life (“Heaven”): Questions & Answers
Hell (Human Damnation) — Questions and Answers
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