| Is Cremation Anti-Biblical? |
Added: July-14-04 |
Cremation has been around for thousands of years. It is a practice that has separated Jews and Christians from other religions and customs of the world. Why? It has to do with the degree of respect with which each religious group or custom regards the human body.
Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust: I have heard this phrase all of my life; however, it is not found in Scripture. It is true that man came from dust (Gen. 2:7). It is true that man will return to dust (Gen. 3:19). The Bible teaches that from dust we came and to dust we shall return. But this is not said of ashes returning to ashes.
Cremation was practiced among the Babylonians, the Greeks and the Romans, all of whom were pagan (polytheistic) in their religious beliefs and practices. The Romans often cremated their dead and deposited their ashes in ornate funeral urns. Cremation is also practiced today, almost exclusively among the Hindus of India.
Although God's people of the Old Testament used fire to offer animal sacrifices, they were warned that the practice of the heathen was an abomination to Him and should be avoided (Ezek. 16:20-21; II Chr. 28:3).
The Burning of King Saul: Burning the body as a funeral rite was forbidden for the Hebrews except under the most unusual cases of emergency. One such situation was when King Saul and his sons were burnt with fire and their bones were buried (I Sam. 31:12).
Due to the hot climate of the area, interment followed death by only hours, not days. However, this was not the case with Saul and his sons. After Saul had killed himself and his sons had died in battle, their bodies had lain on the battlefield for an entire day. It was not until the next day that the Philistines came to strip the dead (I Sam. 31:8) and found the bodies of Saul and his sons.
Saul's armor was then taken and hung on the wall in the temple of Ashtaroth, the Philistine goddess. Saul's severed head was sent around the Philistine camps and to the houses of their idols to boast about their victory (I Sam. 31:9). His body was hung on a wall in Bethshan. No doubt Saul's body was bloated, infested with insects, and very odorous. His body would have been beyond ointment and wrapping or any such care as was due kings. Moreover, Saul's death by suicide was one without honor as well. The only feasible thing for the valiant men to do was to confiscate the body and dispose of it in the most expeditious manner: they burned it. The prolonged discovery of Saul's sons' bodies would also demand immediate disposal. This is one unusual case of emergency in which the Hebrews were allowed to burn their dead.
God's Cremation: In Scripture, the burning of individuals, idols and cities was the direct result of God's judgment upon sin. This burning was done to cleanse the land of diseases (Josh 7:25; 11:13; II Samuel 5:21; 23:6; II Kings 10:26; 23:6,11,15,16,20; I Chron. 14:12; Jer. 49:2; 51:58; Rev. 18:8). One such case is that of Achan, who had taken a Baylonish garment, 200 shekels of silver and a wedge of gold from the city of Jericho. The garment was to be burned with the city, and the silver and gold taken into the treasury. This burning was to destroy the disease and illness, wickedness and corruption that was spawning in the city due to the sexual immorality that accompanied paganistic worship. Achan's sin was great because of his disobedience. In addition, he brought the threat of disease into the camp of Israel. Because of this, Achan, his family and their possessions were burned with fire (Josh. 7:20-25).
Revelations from God's Word express that burning the human body is linked to God's judgment upon sin. It is also strongly linked to paganism. The fact of the matter is, whether we recognize it as such or not, Christians are not to participate in pagan practices of any kind, especially when Christians are to be followers of Christ. The body of Christ was not burned, it was buried. This example should be sufficient in settling the matter.
Note: Cremation concerns the deliberate burning of the body and not accidental burning, as we will read about shortly.
Biblical Burial: When Abraham was called out of the pagan city of Ur and God spoke to him, He clearly commanded that Abraham would be buried:
"And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age" (Genesis 15:15) (see also Gen. 25:8,9).
"So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD. And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Bethpeor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day" (Deuteronomy 34:5-6).
Burial among God's people is very prominent in Scripture. Some burials recorded in Scripture are: Abraham and Sarah (Gen. 49:31); Isaac and Rebekah (Gen. 49:31); Leah (Gen. 49:31); Jacob (Gen. 47:28-30); Rachel (Gen. 35:19-20); Rebekah's nurse (Gen. 35:8). The list could go on and on. Even in the New Testament we find these burials: John the Baptist (Matt. 14:8-12); Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:5-10); and Christ Jesus (I Cor. 15:3-4). Moreover, the believer's baptism is the likeness of Christ's death,burial, and resurrection (Rom. 6:4; Col. 2:12).
How much more should we be determined to follow the example of Christ in burial rather than in the pagan practice of burning? It becomes very obvious that the practice of the New Testament believer should include burial rather than cremation.
Graves Opened: Graves opened when Jesus arose (Matt. 27:53) and graves will burst open at the resurrection (Jn. 5:28). There will be no grave to burst open if we are scattered to the wind, to the water, or to the air.
"Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,..." (John 5:28).
Martyrs have been burned at the stake, and saints have been accidentality consumed by fire, eaten by sharks, et cetera. Some Christians have died unaware of the paganistic, unscriptural nature of cremation. There are those who have not even considered the repulsiveness of burning the temple of God, the human body, as a funeral rite. Some Christians have been cast from ships or cast into vats of molten liquid. No doubt their bodily components will come together and will be resurrected in the last day. God is sovereign and is able to raise them up just as He is able to raise up stones (Matt. 3:9). But deliberate cremation is not proper for the Christian.
Cremation, by its very nature of consuming with fire or intense heat, conveys the connection and message of judgment and sin. God is love (I Jn. 4:8); however, our God is a consuming fire against the wicked (Ex. 24:17; Deut. 4:24; Heb. 12:29; Gen. 19:24; Lev. 10:1-2). Burning the human body by fire is found in Scripture as a judgment against sin and is the practice of those who oppose God. The fire of hell is an ever-lasting fire connected with judgment upon sin. The things with which the burning of the human body are connected reveal that cremation does not keep good company.
Scripturally, the graves, not the elements, are to burst open. Scripturally, the bodies in graves will arise. The corruptible body of dust, not ashes, is referred to as "putting on incorruption." If I should die before the Rapture, I dont want an extra-biblical, paganistic form of burning my body. If I should die before the Rapture, I wish for my body to return to the dust from which it came. I want to follow the example of Christ, the example of Scripture and the example of those in Scripture who were followers of God both in the Old and New Testament.
"In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return" (Genesis 3:19).
Cremation, exclusively, has no consequence on salvation, but it does have consequence on witness. The Apostle Paul desired that even if we die before the Lord's return, our entire being be preserved blameless (I Thess. 5:23). The preservation of the spirit and soul is in God's hands. He has left the preservation of the body to us along with the example of Scripture. Cremation maintains the stigma of paganism simply because it is not scriptural.