Where Is and What Is the Spirit Realm?

 

 

The spirit realm, as revealed in Scripture, is an unseen dimension where God and His spiritual messengers dwell, and where divine purposes unfold beyond human visibility. It is not the realm of conscious human dead, but a domain that intersects with our world in accordance with God’s will. Understanding the spirit realm requires careful alignment with the full counsel of Scripture.

 

The Bible affirms that God is Spirit:

 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:24, LSB)

 

Yahweh reigns from heaven, not a material place, but His spiritual throne:

 

“Yahweh has established His throne in the heavens; And His kingdom rules over all.” (Psalm 103:19, LSB)

 

Angels are spirit beings created by God to minister and carry out His commands. These beings exist in the spirit realm, fulfilling God’s purposes.

 

However, when it comes to human beings, the Bible teaches that man is a living soul—not that man has an immortal soul. At death, man returns to the dust, and the spirit (breath of life) returns to God:

 

“Then Yahweh God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living soul.” (Genesis 2:7, LSB)

 

“Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.” (Ecclesiastes 12:7, LSB)

 

The soul is not a separate, immortal entity. It is the living being—the whole person. When a person dies, they are no longer conscious:

 

“His spirit departs, he returns to the earth; In that very day his thoughts perish.” (Psalm 146:4, LSB)

“For the living know they will die; But the dead do not know anything… their love, their hate, and their zeal have already perished.” (Ecclesiastes 9:5–6, LSB)

“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no working or accounting or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10, LSB)

 

Jesus described death as sleep, not ongoing awareness:

 

“Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I go, so that I may awaken him out of sleep.” … “Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought He was speaking of actual sleep. So Jesus then said to them plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead.’” (John 11:11–14, LSB)

 

Ezekiel declared: 

“Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die.” (Ezekiel 18:4, LSB)

 

The spirit realm remains active with God’s angels and His Spirit, but the dead sleep in the grave until the resurrection. As Paul teaches:

 

“It is written, ‘The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL.’ The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.” (1 Corinthians 15:45, LSB)

 

Believers await the return of Christ and the resurrection, when those who sleep in Christ will be raised to life:

 

“For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 4:14, LSB)

 

 

 

Referenced Scriptures (LSB):

 

John 4:24, “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

 

Psalm 103:19, “Yahweh has established His throne in the heavens; And His kingdom rules over all.”

 

Genesis 2:7, “Then Yahweh God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living soul.”

 

Ecclesiastes 12:7, “Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.”

Psalm 146:4, “His spirit departs, he returns to the earth; In that very day his thoughts perish.”

 

Ecclesiastes 9:5–6, “For the living know they will die; But the dead do not know anything, nor do they have any longer a reward, for their memory is forgotten. Indeed their love, their hate, and their zeal have already perished, and they will no longer have a share in all that is done under the sun.”

 

Ecclesiastes 9:10, “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no working or accounting or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.”

 

John 11:11–14, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I go, so that I may awaken him out of sleep.” … “Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that He was speaking of actual sleep. So Jesus then said to them plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead.’”

 

Ezekiel 18:4, “Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die.”

 

1 Corinthians 15:45, “So also it is written, ‘The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL.’ The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.”

 

1 Thessalonians 4:14, “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.”