Yes — Old Testament believers went to paradise rather than heaven because no atoning blood had yet been shed to remove their sins.
Les Feldick teaches that throughout the Old Testament economy, believers who died went down into paradise, not up to heaven. Their sins were covered by animal sacrifices, but those sacrifices could not take sin away. They were waiting for the true atoning work of the cross, after which paradise was taken into heaven and believers could be present with the Lord.
Luke 23:43 — Jesus' promise to the thief places 'paradise' as the immediate destination on the day of the cross, confirming the Old Testament pattern of going down into paradise.
Romans 3:25 — Paul's phrase 'remission of sins that are past' is what Les applies to Old Testament believers who were waiting for Christ's atoning blood.
Psalm 32:1 — David says sins are 'covered,' not removed, which Les says is the limitation that kept Old Testament believers from entering heaven.
Jesus told the repentant thief on the cross, 'Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise' (Luke 23:43). In Luke 16, Jesus describes the afterlife of a rich man and Lazarus: 'And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame' (Luke 16:24). Abraham answers, 'And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence' (Luke 16:26). The Psalms also reveal that David knew of a coming reunion: 'But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me' (2 Samuel 12:23). Paul writes to believers, 'We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord' (2 Corinthians 5:8).
Les teaches that all through the Old Testament economy, believing dead went down into paradise, not up to heaven. He draws paradise as one side of Hades or hell, with the rich man in torment on the other side and a great gulf fixed between them. The reason was that no atoning blood had been shed: 'The blood of animals and goats couldn't take away their sin. It was a stopgap' (Clip 1). This is why the Day of Atonement could only cover sins, not remove them, and why Old Testament believers had to wait for the true atoning work of the cross (Clip 4). Les also points to Romans 3:25, where Paul speaks of 'remission of sins that are past' — the sins of Old Testament believers were atoned for by Christ's blood after the fact (Clip 3).
Les pictures paradise as the blessed side of Hades, separated from the rich man's torment by a great fixed gulf. Even though the rich man's body was in the grave, his soul and spirit were suffering as if they had bodily needs, like an amputee feeling phantom pain. No one could cross from one side to the other.
Les explains that the Day of Atonement under the Old Testament law was not a day of removing Israel's sin, because that could not happen with animal blood. It was a covering. David could only say, 'Blessed is the man whose sins are covered.' The sins were not done away with; they were waiting for the true atoning work of the cross. Until that sacrifice, the Old Testament believer could not enter heaven.
Les teaches that at Christ's resurrection morning, He took paradise to heaven. That is why Paul can now say that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. For New Testament believers, death means going into paradise in the presence of God in soul and spirit, while still waiting for the resurrection day.
Les notes that God made two exceptions: Enoch and Elijah. Apart from those two, the believer in the Old Testament could not go into heaven because there had been no atoning bloodshed. Enoch and Elijah were taken up, while everyone else who died as a believer went down into paradise.
Les clarifies that even in the Old Testament, a Jewish believer who died went to paradise. But all of Israel's promises are earthly, not heavenly. When Jewish believers experience their resurrection, they will not be a heavenly people; they will be an earthly people. This is why the Old Testament never presents a Jew dying and immediately going to heaven as a heavenly, resurrected citizen.
Soul and Spirit Suffering After Death
Les uses the rich man in Luke 16 to show that even after the body is buried, the soul and spirit can experience conscious suffering as if bodily needs still exist.
Paradise and the Gulf in Hades
Les explains that Old Testament believers went down into paradise, the good side of Hades, separated from the rich man in torment by a great gulf, and could not enter heaven because no atoning blood had been shed.
Israel's Earthly Promises
Les says an Old Testament saint who died went to paradise, but Israel's resurrection hope is earthly, not heavenly.
Remission of Sins That Are Past
Les connects Romans 3:25 to Old Testament believers, reminding listeners that all through the Old Testament economy believers went down into paradise, with only Enoch and Elijah as exceptions.
Covered But Not Atoned
Les explains that the Day of Atonement only covered sins; animal blood could not remove them, which is why Old Testament believers couldn't enter glory until the cross and why paradise was later taken up to heaven.
Jesus and the Thief in Paradise
Les highlights Jesus' promise to the thief that he would be with Him in paradise that very day, confirming that in the Old Testament economy believing dead went down into paradise, not up to heaven.
Present With the Lord After the Cross
Les says that after the cross, believers who die are in paradise in the presence of God in soul and spirit, waiting for the resurrection day.
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Now there was the answer, that was a 7 day old baby. Was it secure? Was it in God�s presence? Yes, because you know David didn�t speak of going to hell, David�s going to be in heaven. And so when he could think of that 7 day old child that he had just lost from Bathsheba�s birth, he�s going to go to it again someday.
Luke 23:43: And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
Jesus' promise to the thief identifies paradise as the immediate destination for the dying believer on the day of the cross.
Luke 16:24: And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
This verse shows the conscious suffering of the rich man in the afterlife realm that is separated from paradise.
Luke 16:26: And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
This verse establishes the un-crossable division between paradise and torment.
Psalm 32:1: Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
David speaks of sin being covered, which Les says is the Old Testament limitation that kept believers out of heaven until the cross.
Romans 3:25: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
Paul's phrase 'sins that are past' is what Les applies to the Old Testament believers who went to paradise.
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.
This New Testament promise is possible because paradise was taken into heaven after Christ's resurrection.
Yes. Les teaches that in the Old Testament economy, believing dead went down into paradise, which was the blessed side of Hades. Jesus' promise to the thief on the cross confirms that He and the thief went to paradise that day.
Because their sins were only covered by animal blood, not atoned for. Les says the Day of Atonement was a covering, not a removal. The true atoning work happened at the cross, and before that the believer could not enter God's presence in heaven.
Les teaches that at His resurrection morning, God took paradise into heaven. Now the believer who dies is absent from the body and present with the Lord, awaiting the resurrection day.
Yes. Les says God made two exceptions: Enoch and Elijah did not die and go down to paradise; they were taken up. Apart from these two, all Old Testament believers went down into paradise.
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