The Catholic encyclopedia: Immortality.
That early Jewish history shows
that the Hebrew nation did not
believe in a future life, is sometimes
stated. It is true that temporal
rewards and punishments from God
are much insisted upon throughout
the Old Testament, and that the
doctrine of a future life occupies
a less prominent position there
than we should perhaps have anticipated.
Still, careful study of the Old
Testament reveals incidental and
indirect evidence quite sufficient
to establish the existence of
this belief among the Israelites
at an early date (see Genesis 2:7; Wisdom 2:22-23; Ecclesiastes
12:7; Proverbs 15:24; Isaiah 35:10;
51:6; Daniel 12:2, etc.).
It would,
however, on a priori grounds,
have been incredible that the
Hebrew people should not have
held this belief, considering
their intimate contact with the
Egyptians on one side and the Chaldæans
on the other.
(See Atzberger, Die
christliche Eschatologie,
Freiburg, 1890). |
