Numbers 16:33 They went down alive into the grave, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community.

Korah, Dathan and Abiram and their families go straight to “sheol” without dying: “They went down ALIVE into Sheol.” The fissure in the earth gave them a direct route straight into “sheol.” There was no need for angels to carry their departed souls into “sheol." The rebels found themselves in “sheol” while they were still alive. Also following the rebels into “sheol” were sundry items, such as their tents, their cooking utensils, etc., for the passage states “all of their possessions” went into “sheol."

A better solution would be to interpret “tachtiy sheol” as a reference to the roots of the mountains, seeing how the second half of this verse is a repetitive parallel of the first half. “Tachtiy sheol” (the lowest hell) is compared to “the foundations of the mountains.”

David says that “the cords of sheol” coiled around him when Saul and his troops sought to capture him. Do those who believe in immortal souls understand that David (a man after God’s own heart) was one step away from their fire and brimstone “hell” while he tried to outrun Saul in the wilderness?

1 Kings 2:9 But now, do not consider him innocent. You are a man of wisdom; you will know what to do to him. Bring his gray head down to the grave in blood."

Also see comments above for Genesis 42:38.

Job 24:19 As heat and drought snatch away the melted snow, so the grave snatches away those who have sinned. 20 The womb forgets them, the worm feasts on them; evil men are no longer remembered but are broken like a tree.

When were the wicked ever in hell before they died? Does not the passage describe the wicked “returning” to hell? If, however, “sheol” is a reference to “returning to the dust” from which we were formed, then “return” would make senses, since God told Adam in the beginning: “By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19)

The psalmist prophetically describes the death of the Messiah, how he would not be abandoned in “sheol.” The thought is further clarified with the parallelism: this Holy One would not see decay in “sheol.” The use of the word “decay” speaks of the existence of a body, which can decay and be eaten by worms.

Another Hebrew parallelism, where the “cords of sheol” and “the snares of death” describe one and the same thing. Also see comments above on 2 Samuel 22:6.

Psalm 30:3 O LORD, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit.

“Going down alive to sheol” appears to be a figure of speech referring to the suddenness of death that the psalmist hoped would come upon his enemies.

Question: When was David ever delivered out of anything closely resembling Christianity’s traditional “hell”?  See notes on Deuteronomy 32:22.

The dead in Psalm 88 are described as lying in the grave. The dead are also described as being unconscious of God and His works — incapable of praising Him.

Poetic language places the spirit of God everywhere. There is no place that one can hide from the eyes of God. In this passage “sheol” is compared to a bed — a place where one can lie down.

In verse 5 “sheol” is paralleled with “death”.

“Sheol” is paralleled with “the chambers of death”.

Proverbs 23:13 Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish him with the rod, he will not die. 14 Punish him with the rod and save his soul from death.

Song of Solomon 8:6 Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame.

In these verses, a taunting proverb is spoken against the king of Babylon whose sinful pride would soon be judged by God. In this taunt we find trees speaking (vs. 8), and many dead monarchs who are already in “sheol.” They are described as asleep on their thrones, awakening to welcome the king on the day of his death. (vs. 9-10).

Although this passage is the most picturesque image of “sheol” that one comes across in the Old Testament, the sudden dramatic imagery that we find should make us cautious. If one were to take the figures and their actions literally, we would conclude that there is life in “sheol.” However, to take these verses literally we would also have to conclude that dead kings have thrones in “sheol” and that trees can speak! Moreover, the dead king who is “welcomed” by his peers is at the same time resting upon a bed of maggots, covered with a blanket of worms.

On the day that this mighty tree falls, it will be brought down to “sheol.” In addition, its tree “neighbors" are described as going to “sheol,” along with all those who have been killed by the sword.

These verses reveal the inconsistency and whimsical manner with which the King James translators render “sheol” into English. "Sheol” occurs in verses 15, 16, and 17, but only in verse 15 do the translators render “sheol” as “the grave.” In verses 16 and 17, the KJV translators decided to use the word “hell."

In verse 21 one hears the voices of the mighty leaders who are dead in “sheol.” They pronounce a muted welcome to Egypt and her allies. The use of the words “bed”, “laid”, “lain” in these verses portray a picture of sleeping bodies, not immaterial immortal souls writhing in a traditional “hell” of fire and brimstone.

The KJV translates “sheol” in verses 21 and 27 as “hell."  In verse 27, “weapons of war” descend into “sheol” and find their rest beneath the skulls and bones of the dead.

Amos 9:2 Though they dig down to the depths of the grave, from there my hand will take them. Though they climb up to the heavens, from there I will bring them down.

Jonah 2:2 He said: “In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry. 5 The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. 6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you brought my life up from the pit, O LORD my God.

After being tossed overboard, Jonah found himself in “sheol.” From “sheol” he cried out to the LORD to save him. Instead of describing “sheol” as a place of eternal torments for the wicked, Jonah’s description of “sheol” sounds more like the bottom of the ocean to which he sank, or like the insides of the belly of the great fish that swallowed him.