Second death

The second death is an eschatological concept in Judaism and Christianity related to punishment after a first, natural, death.
==Judaism==
Although the term is not found in the Hebrew Bible, Sysling in his study (1996) of Teḥiyyat ha-metim (Hebrew; "resurrection of the dead") in the Palestinian Targums identifies a consistent usage of the term "second death" in texts of the Second Temple period and early Rabbinical writings. In most cases this "second death" is identical with the judgment, following resurrection, in Gehinnom at the Last Day.Harry Sysling Teḥiyyat ha-metim: the resurrection of the dead in the Palestinian Targums p222 1996 -"Here the second death is identical with the judgment in Gehinnom. The wicked will perish and their riches will be given to ... The second death in the Apocalypse In the Apocalypse of John, the second death is mentioned several times. ...
===Targum Deuteronomy===
In Targum Neofiti (Neof.) and the fragments (FTP and FTV) the "second death" is the death the wicked die.Sysling, p220
===Targum Isaiah ===
Targum Isaiah has three occurrences. The first is 22:14 where the Aramaic paraphrases the Hebrew as: “This sin will not be forgiven you until you die the second death.”
Martin McNamara, Targum and Testament revisited: Aramaic paraphrases of the Hebrew p.226 2010 - 359 The final two examples are from Targum Isaiah 65 which sets the scene for an apocalyptic final battle. Targum Isaiah 65:6 paraphrases the Hebrew in line with the interpretation of the penultimate verse of the Hebrew Isaiah found in the Gospel of Mark where "their worms does not die" is equated with Gehinnom. Here both Targum Isaiah and Gospel of Mark supply the term "Gehinnom", where Hebrew Isaiah simply concludes with the heaps of corpses following the last battle where "their worms do not die" making no further eschatological extension into resurrection and judgment.
===Targum Jeremiah===
Targum Jeremiah 51:17 has the Aramaic "they shall die the second death and not live in the world to come" which appears to depart from the other Targum uses in not being explicit that the second death is after resurrection, but may instead be an exclusion from resurrection.
===Targum Psalms===
The majority reading of Targum Psalm 49:11 has the Aramaic translation "For the wise see that the evildoers are judged in Gehinnom". However several manuscripts, including Paris No.10, Montefiore No.7, and Targum of Salomos 113 have the variant Aramaic translation "He sees men wise in wickedness, who die a second death, and are judged in Gehinnom."Sysling Teḥiyyat ha-metim: the resurrection of the dead in the Palestinian Targums p221 1996
===Rabbinic interpretations===
Rabbi David Qimhi (Toulouse, c.1160-Narbonne, 1235) considered the phrase to mean "the death of the soul in the world".Israel Abrahams Studies in Pharisaism and the Gospels Page 44 "Qimhi's interpretation that the Second Death refers to the " death of the soul in the world to come " cannot be accepted without qualification. For in its paraphrase of Isaiah lxv. 6 the Targum uses the expression : " I will deliver ."
==Christianity==
The main occurrence of the term "second death" in Christianity are the series of uses in Revelation, 2:11, 20:6, 20:14 and 21:8. There are different interpretations as to the meaning of the term "second death"
===Different views===
The majority of Christians who believe in the immortality of the soul regard the second death to mean eternal suffering or torment in a place called the Lake of Fire, though a minority of Christians who believe in the mortality of the soul teach universal salvation. Mortalists, including some Anglicans, some Lutherans, all Seventh-day Adventists, and others, oppose the idea of eternal suffering but believe that the Second death is an actual second death, meaning that the soul perishes and will be annihilated after the final judgment.
==See also==
Spiritual death
==References==
Category:Christian eschatology
Category:Jewish eschatology
Category:Religion and death