There is an old question, dating back to the 17th Century, that asks the question, “How many angels can fit on the head of a pin?” My question is this, “How many souls can God fit, or cram, under an altar?” Why do I ask such an apparently silly question? Because there is a passage in the Book of Revelation that some use as proof positive that one’s soul definitely does go to heaven or hell the moment a person dies. Here is that passage: “And when he (the Lamb mentioned in verse 1 of Revelation 6) had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘O Lord, holy and true, do you not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?’ And white robes were given unto every one of them, and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled” (Revelation 6:9-11).
So, how many souls do you think God could fit under the altar of His temple in heaven?
These “souls” are mentioned one more time in the Book of Revelation: “And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them. And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands, and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years” (Revelation 20:4).
The “they” spoken of as sitting on thrones refers back to the Lord’s army spoken of in the 19th verse of chapter 19. Those who were beheaded “for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God” bear witness to the fact that Jesus is the Son of God as plainly revealed in the Word of God! The worldwide religion that kills Christians executes them by decapitating them, cutting off their heads. That is one horrible characteristic that identifies the false religion that will yet rule the world at the time of the end, the last days of man’s rule on earth!
Now, returning to Revelation 6:9-11 and the curious phrase “souls under the altar,” think for a minute: what collects under an altar of sacrifice? Blood of course. And that is what John saw pooling under this altar. And that shed blood of the Lord’s servants cries out for vengeance in the same sense Abel’s blood cried out for vengeance when slain by his brother. “And the Lord said unto Cain, ‘Where is Abel, thy brother?’ And he said, ‘I know not. Am I my brother’s keeper?’ And He (the Lord) said, ‘What have you done? THE VOICE OF YOUR BROTHER’S BLOOD CRIES UNTO ME FROM THE GROUND.'” (Genesis 4:9-10. See also Hebrews 11:4). Was Abel’s blood literally crying out to God from the ground where it was spilled? Of course not. The Lord is using obvious figurative language, and He does the same in Revelation 6 when speaking of “the souls under the altar.”
God gives us basic foundational knowledge in the Hebrew scriptures. And over and over again God’s Word emphasizes; “The dead know nothing!” (See Ecclesiastes 9:5). “Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. His breath goes forth (he exhales his last breath). He returns to his earth. IN THAT VERY DAY HIS THOUGHTS PERISH” (Psalm 146:3-4). “In death there is no remembrance of thee. In the grave who shall give thee thanks?” (Psalm 6:5). Where does the prophet Daniel place deceased believers when we breathe our last? “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake (be resurrected – brought back to life), some to everlasting life (yes, we are only HEIRS to everlasting life now), and some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Daniel 12:20). Paul said he believed ALL THINGS which are written in the law and in the prophets. (See Acts 24:14). Paul absolutely believed every statement of scripture in this paragraph. Read them again.
The Book of Revelation uses a lot of symbolism and figurative language. Don’t take Revelation 6:10-11 and insist it is literal language being used there, especially when God emphasizes again and again that the dead are just that, really and truly dead, awaiting a resurrection to bring them back to life. (Oh, by the way, the apostles never contradict that truth of God, believe it or not).
Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),
Donald Wiley