No — the Old Testament never teaches a Jew dying and going to heaven because Israel was an earthly people with earthly promises, while the Body of Christ is a heavenly people with heavenly promises.
Les Feldick states plainly that 'never does the Old Testament teach a Jew dying and going to heaven' (Clip 1). Israel's calling and promises were connected to the earth—the land and an earthly kingdom—not to a heavenly afterlife. In contrast, believers in the age of grace are a heavenly people whose promises and citizenship are in heaven (Clip 2, 5).
Genesis 13:16 — God's promise to Abram that his seed would be as the dust of the earth shows Israel's earthly calling.
Genesis 15:5 — The stars of heaven in this same promise introduce the heavenly seed, which Les pairs with the heavenly people of the Church.
1 Corinthians 15:48 — Paul contrasts the earthy with the heavenly, supporting the distinction between Israel and the Body of Christ.
Across the Old Testament, God's promises to Israel consistently have an earthly focus. To Abram, God says his seed will be as the dust of the earth (Genesis 13:16). In the same covenant, God also points him to the stars of heaven (Genesis 15:5), but the promise remains tied to descendants and the land. The Old Testament presents Israel as an earthly people with an earthly kingdom as their hope. In the New Testament, Paul describes the same contrast: 'As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly' (1 Corinthians 15:48). The biblical record does not give Old Testament Israel the expectation of dying and going to heaven.
Les Feldick teaches that Israel was God's earthly people and therefore all of Israel's promises were earthly. He is emphatic: 'Never does the Old Testament teach a Jew dying and going to heaven' (Clip 1). Because they were an earthly people, Old Testament Jewish believers had no concept of dying and going to heaven; they only looked for a kingdom on this earth, the kingdom promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Clip 3). Old Testament saints who died went to paradise, but their future resurrection is earthly, not heavenly (Clip 4). By contrast, the Church, the Body of Christ, is a heavenly people with heavenly promises. Les says 'The church, the body of Christ, is a heavenly people with heavenly promises' (Clip 1) and 'You and I are citizens of heaven, all of our promises are heavenly' (Clip 5). This division between Israel's earthly promises and the Church's heavenly promises is, for Les, a central key to Scripture (Clip 5).
Old Testament Jewish believers had no concept of dying and going to heaven. They only saw the grave, and those who believed in life after death looked for a kingdom on this earth that God had promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Clip 3). Even in resurrection, these Old Testament believers will not become a heavenly people; they remain an earthly people with earthly promises (Clip 4).
In the age of grace, the Body of Christ is a heavenly people. Les explains that when God set Israel aside and called out a heavenly people, everything connected with them became heavenly (Clip 2). Grace-age believers are citizens of heaven, and all their promises are heavenly (Clip 5). This is not an earthly, material reward system; financial and material prosperity are not part of the church-age doctrine (Clip 6).
Les says God has divided everything in Scripture between two groups: the nation of Israel, which is earthly with earthly promises, and the Body of Christ, which is heavenly with heavenly promises (Clip 5). Keeping this distinction in mind helps readers understand why the Old Testament does not teach a Jew dying and going to heaven (Clip 1). The Old Testament promises to Israel were never a heavenly calling; that heavenly calling belongs to the Church in this present age (Clip 2).
The 3 Requirements for Redemption: Person, Blood, and Power
It doesn't say to you who have done good works. It says to those who have praised Him and have brought Him glory, see? All right, now let's go on. That verse 13, "...in whom also you trusted after..." Now watch the sequence here. "...after you heard the word of truth.
The Old Testament Never Teaches a Jew Dying and Going to Heaven
Les is direct: the Old Testament never teaches a Jew dying and going to heaven. Israel's promises were earthly, not heavenly.
Celestial and Earthly Distinction Between Israel and the Church
Les teaches that nothing heavenly is connected with Israel, and everything about the Body of Christ is heavenly.
Old Testament Believers Looked for an Earthly Kingdom
Les shows that Old Testament believers had no concept of going to heaven; their hope was an earthly kingdom promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Old Testament Saints Went to Paradise But Their Resurrection Is Earthly
Les clarifies that while Old Testament saints went to paradise at death, their final resurrection remains earthly, not heavenly.
Dust and Stars: Two Seeds in the Abrahamic Covenant
Les uses Genesis 13 and 15 to show the biblical division: Israel is earthly (dust), while the Body of Christ is heavenly (stars).
No Material Prosperity Promises for the Church
Les contrasts Israel's earthly material blessing with the church-age believer's heavenly promises.
A Heavenly Sanctuary for Grace-Age Believers
Les points to the heavenly sanctuary Christ entered, showing how heavenly realities now apply to believers in the age of grace.
Genesis 13:16: And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
This shows the earthly character of God's promise to Abram—his descendants would be like the dust of the earth.
Genesis 15:5: And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
This companion promise uses the stars of heaven, which Les uses to show the heavenly seed represented by the Body of Christ.
1 Corinthians 15:48: As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
Paul's contrast between the earthy and the heavenly mirrors the biblical division between Israel and the Church.
Les says Old Testament saints who died went to paradise, not heaven in the sense of a heavenly resurrection. Their final resurrection state is earthly, because Israel is an earthly people with earthly promises (Clip 4). The Old Testament never presents dying and going to heaven as their expectation (Clip 1).
No. Les states emphatically, 'Never does the Old Testament teach a Jew dying and going to heaven' (Clip 1). Israel's promises were all earthly; they looked for a kingdom on earth, not a heavenly afterlife (Clip 3).
The Body of Christ is a heavenly people with heavenly promises. Les says believers in the age of grace are citizens of heaven, and all their promises are heavenly (Clip 5). This is the opposite of Israel's earthly calling (Clip 2).
Les teaches that God has divided everything in Scripture between the earthly nation of Israel and the heavenly Body of Christ (Clip 5). The Old Testament is primarily Israel's earthly story, while the Church is called out as a heavenly people in the age of grace (Clip 2).
Watch the Teaching: The 3 Requirements for Redemption: Person, Blood, and Power