It seems that hardly a week passes by when I do not hear one person or another saying that a person who had just died is looking down and smiling on his or her loved ones. “I know they are gone but I’m sure they are looking down this very moment and smiling”. To set aside the simple disturbing nature of someone who has died watching me and smiling, is the expression biblically accurate? “Is Your Dead Relative Looking Down And Smiling?”
Consider this verse from the Book of Psalms,
Psalm 6:5
For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks? [KJV]
This is a clear statement of fact, in the grave there is no remembrance of God and there is no way for someone who has passed away to give thanks to God. This implies that the state of the dead is one of having no knowledge of God or the things of God. Ecclesiastes puts it more succinctly.
Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6
For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun. [KJV]
We are told here that the dead do not know anything. In addition, the Scriptures says that they have no more portion for ever in anything that is done under the sun. If this is true, then could your dead relative possibly be smiling on you? Of course not – according to the Bible, the dead are dead, they do not know anything, they have no remembrance of God, they cannot give God thanks and they absolutely have no part in anything that is going on in the world. It does not matter how you may feel or what you might want to be true, the Scriptures are totally clear on this.
I know that this view may not align with the scripts that are regularly put forth by Hollywood and the like but it certainly aligns with the Scriptures. It is for this reason that the return of Christ is necessary – so that all those who have died will be brought back to life in their own order. There are several videos on our website that cover this topic.
The statement that your late relative is looking down and smiling on you is not only incorrect but it is also false comfort. The true comfort of the Scriptures for a Chrisitian is that if he or she ends up passing away in this life, then some day, when the lord returns, they will be made alive again. The Bible tells us that it is this truth, these words that are to give us comfort. Until then, the only one who has died and was raised from the dead and is still alive today is the Lord Jesus Christ. Because he is alive, if we die before his return, we too shall be made alive at that time.