A Comparative Study of Conscious Expectation in Barzakh from the Perspectives of the Old and New Testaments and the Qur’an

Articles in Press

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

University of Sistan and Baluchestan

10.22111/jrm.2026.53010.1325

Abstract

Objective: To conduct a critical, comparative rereading of “waiting” in the intermediate state (barzakh) across the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, the New Testament, and the Qur’an, asking whether the human being between death and the Resurrection possesses an aware and active dimension or is merely passive and suspended in temporal experience.
Methods: Qualitative textual analysis combining lexical, structural, and exegetical readings of sacred texts, supported by authoritative lexicographical and classical commentarial sources. The comparison follows the historical sequence Judaism → Christianity → Islam and distinguishes scriptural data from later theological developments.
Results: In Judaism, Sheol is predominantly depicted as a realm of silence, forgetfulness, and severance from life and meaning. In Christianity—especially in select New Testament passages and later theology—the intermediate state is construed as conscious waiting, with prayer and moral participation (and, in Catholic thought, purgatorial refinement). In the Qur’an and Islamic exegesis, indicators such as post-mortem awareness of bliss/punishment and post-mortem dialogues suggest enhanced awareness, while moral agency is suspended and temporality differs from embodied life.
Conclusion: “Waiting” in the intermediate state is not a uniform reality but reflects each tradition’s anthropology, eschatology, and theology: from Sheol’s minimal agency, to New Testament–grounded awareness (and later purgatorial models), to the Qur’anic pattern of awareness retained/enhanced with suspended moral agency and distinct temporality. A careful comparative approach is required, avoiding oversimplified generalizations

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Main Subjects

Comparative Study of Religions and Mysticism

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 30 May 2026

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History

  • Receive Date: 08 September 2025
  • Revise Date: 02 November 2025
  • Accept Date: 30 May 2026

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