Tim Maas Retired Quality Assurance Specialist with the U.S. Army

I would say that Jesus Himself, by saying "even though he die" earlier in the cited verse, indicated that He did not intend His subsequent statement (commonly translated as "he who lives and believes in Me will never die") to mean that belief in Him would allow a person to escape physical death.

As one translation of the verse puts it on the website http://www.biblehub.com, the sense in which Jesus meant His words was, "He shall by no means die forever." (That is, even if the person experiences physical, temporal death in this world, that state will not be permanent. The believer will be bodily resurrected to live eternally at the close of the age.)

This is the same sense to which Jesus was referring earlier in John's gospel (John 8:51) when He said (again, as commonly translated), "If a person keeps My word, he will never see death." The sense in which He meant it was, "He will not see death forever." (That is, he will not remain eternally in a state of death.)

February 27 2020 • 1 response • Vote Up • Share • Report

Aurel Gheorghe

The Bible talks about two types of deaths and two types of resurrections: the first and second death, as well as a first and second resurrection (John 5:28, 29; Daniel 12:2; Rev 2:11, 20:6, 21:8)

When Jesus said “though he may die, he shall live” He was referring to the first death and the first resurrection. The the dead in Christ although will die the first death - at the first resurrection will live and never die again. 

How about “whoever lives and believes in me shall never die?” Jesus referred to Lazarus' death as sleeping (John 11:11) – so according with Jesus the first death is just a sleep. The believer may die (sleep), but will be raised to life in the first resurrection, to live for eternity and will never taste the second death of the unbeliever, which is eternal death.

Jesus tasted the second death for every one of us, so we don’t have to (Heb 2:9). The Scripture doesn’t say Jesus “slept” for everyone, but “died” for everyone. 

Moreover, Revelation 14:10 say that the wicked will drink a cup – Jesus chose to drink that cup for us (Mark 10:38; Matt 26:39). The cup that Jesus drink is the second death.

Adam failure to obey God introduce death to humanity (Gen 2:16, 17) and at the age of 930 Adam's death sentence was fully carried out. Adam passed on to us his sinful fallen nature - we all inherited Adam’s sin-loving nature and we all are subject to death just like Adam – that is what Paul in Romans 5:12 is saying.

February 27 2020 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Robin Pendleton

The Word and Christ are simply saying that those who follow and believe in Him will never die. They will go on living in the spirit with Him in heaven... eternal life. The day you accept Christ and allow Him into your life, your ETERNAL life begins. The flesh will ALWAYS die, but the spirit (the actual person/being) lives on with Christ as followers of Christ in eternal Heaven... otherwise it lives on elsewhere. 

Adam and Eve were intended to live on eternally in the flesh, but they kinda messed that up by disobeying God, and things changed so that now the flesh has to die. But where your spirit lives on is totally up to you. Free Will.

September 15 2020 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Lashandra Wright

There is no contradiction. Because we will die all from our borrowed bodies, live through the Holy Spirit. Furthermore all who believe and confess their sins will be born again.

February 07 2021 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Jack Gutknecht ABC/DTS graduate, guitar music ministry Baptist church

“Jesus guaranteed that since He was ‘the restoration and the life’ (John 11:25), He would revive the individuals who trust in Him unto everlasting life (cf. John 5:28-29).

“Furthermore, I would guess (and this is a calculated guess), that Jesus was talking spiritually and not physically. It is not a contradiction in the Bible. Those who believe in Jesus will not die spiritually and eternally because of the promises found in God's Word (John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”) And don't forgot John 3:36.--‘Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.’

“If you are born once (as are all men), you may die twice--this is what the Bible says; you will experience ‘the second death’ (Revelation 20:14). --‘Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.’ --

“But on the other hand, if you are born twice, and have experienced the new birth of being born again (John 3:3: "Jesus answered him, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.'"), you will die only once (Hebrews 9:27) physically but will live forever with God after being judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ.” --Geisler & Howe

February 08 2021 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report