sleep until the resurrection. They base this belief on biblical texts such as which states "the dead know not any thing", and which contains a description of the dead being raised from the grave at the second coming. They also hold that Hell is not an eternal place and that the descriptions of it as "eternal" or "unquenchable" does not mean that the fire will never go out. They base this idea in other biblical cases such as the "eternal fire" that was sent as punishment to the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, that later extinguished. () The Church of England has a variety of views on the death state. Some, such as N. T. Wright have proposed a view of the grave which considers Hades to be a place where the dead sleep, and E. W. Bullinger argued for the cessation of the soul between death and resurrection. Proponents of the mortality of the soul argue that the story of the rich man and Lazarus is a parable using the framework of Jewish views of the Bosom of Abraham, and is metaphorical, and is not definitive teaching on the intermediate state for several reasons. After being emptied of the dead, Hades and death are thrown into the lake of fire in . See also Barzakh Discourse to the Greeks concerning Hades Greek underworld Hell in Christianity Purgatory Spirit world (Spiritualism) References External links The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia: Hades The afterlife: Bible references & beliefs of Americans The Truth About Death – Comprehensive site covering death in Christian beliefs. Browse "Heaven and Hell" Category at the Cornell University, PJ Mode Collection of Persuasive Cartography Afterlife in Christianity Christian terminology Christianity and Hellenistic religion Greek underworld