Jesus meant that, on that very day, the thief would be with Him in paradise — the place of the righteous dead in the heart of the earth.
When the thief asked Jesus to remember him when He came into His kingdom, Jesus answered, 'To day shalt thou be with me in paradise' (Luke 23:43). Les Feldick teaches that this promise was fulfilled immediately: from the cross, Jesus and the thief went down into the paradise side of Sheol, Hades, and hell, not up to heaven.
Luke 23:42 — Records the thief's request to be remembered by Jesus in His kingdom — the immediate context of Jesus' promise.
Luke 23:43 — The direct answer: Jesus promised the thief would be with Him in paradise that very day.
Matthew 12:40 — Shows that Jesus said the Son of man would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Ephesians 4:9 — Paul says Christ first descended into the lower parts of the earth before ascending.
2 Corinthians 5:8 — The apostle Paul states that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord — the believer's destination after Christ's work.
In Luke 23, one of the criminals crucified with Jesus said, 'Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom' (Luke 23:42). Jesus replied, 'Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise' (Luke 23:43). The Bible presents this as Jesus' direct, immediate answer to the thief's plea. The Bible also records Jesus' own words about where He would be after His death: 'so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth' (Matthew 12:40). Paul describes the same event in Ephesians: 'Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?' (Ephesians 4:9). After His resurrection and ascension, the believer's destination is expressed by Paul: 'to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord' (2 Corinthians 5:8).
Les Feldick makes the point that when Jesus said to the thief, 'Today thou shalt be with me in paradise,' He was not speaking about going up to heaven. At that time, paradise was down in the lower parts of the earth — the heart of the earth. He explains that the Old Testament believers who died went down to the paradise side of Sheol, Hades, or hell, because their sins had not yet been atoned for. Animal blood, he says, could not take away sin; it was only a stopgap. The atoning blood of Christ had not yet been shed. According to Les, from the cross Jesus and the thief went down into the paradise side of Hades. This is why Jesus said He would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The Apostles' Creed says Jesus 'descended into hell,' and Les explains that is part of the picture: He went down into the place called Sheol/Hades/hell, but He went into the paradise side, not the torment side. Then, at His resurrection morning, Les says Jesus emptied paradise and took it to heaven. From that point on, when a believer dies he is immediately present with the Lord in heaven, because paradise is now located there. The place of torment, meanwhile, was left behind and enlarged, and the unbeliever who dies today still goes immediately to that place of torment.
Les Feldick teaches that the thief did not go to heaven that day. Jesus said the thief would be with Him in paradise, and Les places paradise at that time in the heart of the earth, in the paradise side of Sheol, Hades, and hell. From the cross, both Jesus and the thief went down into that paradise side.
Les teaches that in the Old Testament economy, paradise was in the center of the earth — the lower parts of the earth. Old Testament believers went there when they died because there had been no atoning bloodshed; animal blood could not take away their sin. He points to the account of Abraham and Lazarus as a window into that area called Hades, with a great gulf fixed between it and the torment side.
Les says 'yes and no.' He explains that the Apostles' Creed says Jesus descended into hell, and that is true in the sense that He went down into the place the Bible calls Sheol, Hades, and hell. But He did not go to the torment side; He went into the paradise side. After the three days and nights, He ascended and later took paradise to heaven.
Les teaches that on His resurrection morning Jesus emptied paradise and took it to heaven. Because of that, paradise is now located up in heaven, and Paul can say that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. The place of torment remained behind, and after paradise was removed, that whole area became totally the place of torment.
What Jesus Said From the Cross — 7 Statements Explained
That's not necessarily true. Each one if you look at it closely, they all have different circumstances, and there are different details. Now that doesn't mean that the writers are conflicting, it just simply means that one is talking about one event, and one is talking about another event, because as we're going to see when we get to the end of John's Gospel, what does John say? Oh, they haven't r…
Why Old Testament Believers Went Down to Paradise
Les explains that when the thief was told 'today... in paradise,' it meant Christ and the thief went to the paradise side of the lower parts of the earth, where Old Testament believers were kept until Christ's atoning blood was shed.
From the Cross, Jesus and the Thief Went Down
Les teaches that Jesus and the thief went down from the cross into the paradise side of Sheol, Hades, and hell, and that Jesus later emptied paradise and took it to heaven.
Three Days and Nights in the Heart of the Earth
Les connects Jesus' promise to the thief with Jesus' own statement that He would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, and explains the Apostles' Creed statement about descending into hell.
Paradise Is the Righteous Side of Hades
Les uses the account of Abraham and Lazarus to show that paradise was down in Hades/hell on the paradise side, and says Jesus took paradise to heaven at His resurrection.
Paradise Now Located in Heaven
Les teaches that since Jesus removed paradise to heaven, believers who die today go immediately into the presence of the Lord, while the place of torment remains for the lost.
How Can You Know You're Saved? The Plan of Salvation in Scripture
And He becomes not just Jesus, but He becomes Jesus Christ the Lord, or the Lord Jesus Christ. And I think it is only proper to approach Him on those terms. So if you will confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt believe, and believe is not something that you do with your hands or your feet. Believing is an attitude of the heart.
The Mark of the Beast & the Unholy Trinity Explained
You're also going to have a few who are still lost, who rejected it, and they've survived. So Jesus brings them all before His throne room in Jerusalem. Matthew 25 says, "...and then shall the king..." See? All right. "...the king will now tell the sheep," who represent the believers, "...you're going to enter into the kingdom because when I was in prison you visited me.
Luke 23:42: And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
This is the thief's plea that prompted Jesus' promise.
Luke 23:43: And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
This is the verse in question — Jesus promises immediate presence with Him in paradise.
Matthew 12:40: For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Jesus links His death and burial to being in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.
Ephesians 4:9: Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?
Paul confirms that before ascending, Christ first descended into the lower parts of the earth.
2 Corinthians 5:8: We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
Paul describes the believer's destination after death in the present dispensation.
Yes. Jesus said, 'To day shalt thou be with me in paradise' (Luke 23:43). Les Feldick teaches that this was fulfilled immediately: from the cross, Jesus and the thief went down into the paradise side of Sheol, Hades, and hell that day.
No, according to Les Feldick. At that time paradise was down in the lower parts of the earth — the heart of the earth. Old Testament believers went there at death because Christ's atoning blood had not yet been shed.
Les Feldick says 'yes and no.' The Apostles' Creed says He descended into hell, and the Bible says He descended into the lower parts of the earth. But He went to the paradise side of that place, not to the torment side.
Les teaches that on resurrection morning Jesus emptied paradise and took it to heaven. Now paradise is located in heaven, and believers who die go immediately to be present with the Lord.
Watch the Teaching: What Jesus Said From the Cross — 7 Statements Explained