Heaven and Hell
A History of the Afterlife
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $26.21
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
John Bedford Lloyd
-
Bart D. Ehrman - preface
-
Written by:
-
Bart D. Ehrman
About this listen
A New York Times best-selling historian of early Christianity takes on two of the most gripping questions of human existence: Where did the ideas of heaven and hell come from, and why do they endure?
What happens when we die? A recent Pew Research poll showed that 72 percent of Americans believe in a literal heaven and 58 percent believe in a literal hell. Most people who hold these beliefs are Christian and assume they are the age-old teachings of the Bible. But eternal rewards and punishments are found nowhere in the Old Testament and are not what Jesus or his disciples taught.
So where did these ideas come from?
In this “eloquent understanding of how death is viewed through many spiritual traditions” (Publishers Weekly, starred review), Bart Ehrman recounts the long history of the afterlife, ranging from The Epic of Gilgamesh up to the writings of Augustine, focusing especially on the teachings of Jesus and his early followers. He discusses ancient guided tours of heaven and hell, in which a living person observes the sublime blessings of heaven for those who are saved and the horrifying torments of hell for those who are damned. Some of these accounts take the form of near death experiences, the oldest on record, with intriguing similarities to those reported today.
One of Ehrman’s startling conclusions is that there never was a single Greek, Jewish, or Christian understanding of the afterlife, but numerous competing views. Moreover, these views did not come from nowhere; they were intimately connected with the social, cultural, and historical worlds out of which they emerged. Only later, in the early Christian centuries, did they develop into notions of eternal bliss or damnation widely accepted today.
In this “elegant history” (The New Yorker), Ehrman helps us reflect on where our ideas of the afterlife come from. With his “richly layered-narrative” (The Boston Globe) he assures us that even if there may be something to hope for when we die, there certainly is nothing to fear.
©2020 Bart D. Ehrman (P)2020 Simon & Schuster AudioYou may also enjoy...
-
Armageddon
- What the Bible Really Says About the End
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff, Bart D. Ehrman
- Length: 7 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Armageddon, acclaimed New Testament authority Bart D. Ehrman delves into the most misunderstood—and possibly the most dangerous—book of the Bible, exploring the horrifying social and political consequences of expecting an imminent apocalypse and offering a fascinating tour through three millennia of Judeo-Christian thinking about how our world will end. By turns hilarious, moving, troubling, and provocative, Armageddon presents inspiring insights into how to live our lives in the face of an uncertain future.
-
-
Couldn't have come at a better time
- By JonnySel Productions on 2023-04-12
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
Misquoting Jesus
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Richard M. Davidson
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When world-class biblical scholar Bart Ehrman first began to study the texts of the Bible in their original languages he was startled to discover the multitude of mistakes and intentional alterations that had been made by earlier translators. In Misquoting Jesus, Ehrman tells the story behind the mistakes and changes that ancient scribes made to the New Testament and shows the great impact they had upon the Bible we use today.
-
-
The truth is painful , but falsehood kills.
- By Marcello Nabilito on 2019-10-18
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
How Jesus Became God
- The Exaltation of a Jewish Preacher from Galilee
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In a book that took eight years to research and write, leading Bible scholar Bart D. Ehrman explores how an apocalyptic prophet from the backwaters of rural Galilee crucified for crimes against the state came to be thought of as equal with the one God Almighty Creator of all things. Ehrman sketches Jesus's transformation from a human prophet to the Son of God exalted to divine status at his resurrection. Only when some of Jesus's followers had visions of him after his death - alive again - did anyone come to think that he, the prophet from Galilee, had become God.
-
-
Challenging preconceptions of atheists and Christian’s alike
- By Ordered it, never came in, months late and having a hard time getting refunded for something that’s clearly not coming in on 2023-12-16
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
Jesus, Interrupted
- Revealing the Hidden Contradictions in the Bible
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Jason Culp
- Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Picking up where Bible expert Bart Ehrman's New York Times best seller, Misquoting Jesus, left off, Jesus, Interrupted addresses the larger issue of what the New Testament actually teaches...and it's not what most people think. This is the book that pastors, educators, and anyone interested in the Bible have been waiting for, a clear and compelling account of the central challenges we face when attempting to reconstruct the life and message of Jesus.
-
-
Stuff I never heard when I was religious! Wow...
- By Amazon Customer on 2019-01-31
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
The Origin of Satan
- How Christians Demonized Jews, Pagans, and Heretics
- Written by: Elaine Pagels
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Who is Satan in the New Testament, and what is the evil that he represents? In this groundbreaking book, Elaine Pagels, Princeton's distinguished historian of religion, traces the evolution of Satan from its origins in the Hebrew Bible, where Satan is at first merely obstructive, to the New Testament, where Satan becomes the Prince of Darkness, the bitter enemy of God and man, evil incarnate. In The Origin of Satan, Pagels shows that the four Christian gospels tell two very different stories.
-
-
Excellent book
- By Emilie Dionne on 2023-04-03
Written by: Elaine Pagels
-
God
- An Anatomy
- Written by: Francesca Stavrakopoulou
- Narrated by: Francesca Stavrakopoulou
- Length: 15 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The scholarship of theology and religion teaches us that the God of the Bible was without a body, only revealing himself in the Old Testament in words mysteriously uttered through his prophets, and in the New Testament in the body of Christ. The portrayal of God as corporeal and masculine is seen as merely metaphorical, figurative, or poetic. But, in this revelatory study, Francesca Stavrakopoulou presents a vividly corporeal image of God: a human-shaped deity who walks and talks and weeps and laughs, who eats, sleeps, feels, and breathes, and who is undeniably male.
-
-
God's Beard And Other Musings
- By Jamie Charles on 2022-02-04
Written by: Francesca Stavrakopoulou
-
Armageddon
- What the Bible Really Says About the End
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff, Bart D. Ehrman
- Length: 7 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Armageddon, acclaimed New Testament authority Bart D. Ehrman delves into the most misunderstood—and possibly the most dangerous—book of the Bible, exploring the horrifying social and political consequences of expecting an imminent apocalypse and offering a fascinating tour through three millennia of Judeo-Christian thinking about how our world will end. By turns hilarious, moving, troubling, and provocative, Armageddon presents inspiring insights into how to live our lives in the face of an uncertain future.
-
-
Couldn't have come at a better time
- By JonnySel Productions on 2023-04-12
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
Misquoting Jesus
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Richard M. Davidson
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When world-class biblical scholar Bart Ehrman first began to study the texts of the Bible in their original languages he was startled to discover the multitude of mistakes and intentional alterations that had been made by earlier translators. In Misquoting Jesus, Ehrman tells the story behind the mistakes and changes that ancient scribes made to the New Testament and shows the great impact they had upon the Bible we use today.
-
-
The truth is painful , but falsehood kills.
- By Marcello Nabilito on 2019-10-18
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
How Jesus Became God
- The Exaltation of a Jewish Preacher from Galilee
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In a book that took eight years to research and write, leading Bible scholar Bart D. Ehrman explores how an apocalyptic prophet from the backwaters of rural Galilee crucified for crimes against the state came to be thought of as equal with the one God Almighty Creator of all things. Ehrman sketches Jesus's transformation from a human prophet to the Son of God exalted to divine status at his resurrection. Only when some of Jesus's followers had visions of him after his death - alive again - did anyone come to think that he, the prophet from Galilee, had become God.
-
-
Challenging preconceptions of atheists and Christian’s alike
- By Ordered it, never came in, months late and having a hard time getting refunded for something that’s clearly not coming in on 2023-12-16
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
Jesus, Interrupted
- Revealing the Hidden Contradictions in the Bible
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Jason Culp
- Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Picking up where Bible expert Bart Ehrman's New York Times best seller, Misquoting Jesus, left off, Jesus, Interrupted addresses the larger issue of what the New Testament actually teaches...and it's not what most people think. This is the book that pastors, educators, and anyone interested in the Bible have been waiting for, a clear and compelling account of the central challenges we face when attempting to reconstruct the life and message of Jesus.
-
-
Stuff I never heard when I was religious! Wow...
- By Amazon Customer on 2019-01-31
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
The Origin of Satan
- How Christians Demonized Jews, Pagans, and Heretics
- Written by: Elaine Pagels
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Who is Satan in the New Testament, and what is the evil that he represents? In this groundbreaking book, Elaine Pagels, Princeton's distinguished historian of religion, traces the evolution of Satan from its origins in the Hebrew Bible, where Satan is at first merely obstructive, to the New Testament, where Satan becomes the Prince of Darkness, the bitter enemy of God and man, evil incarnate. In The Origin of Satan, Pagels shows that the four Christian gospels tell two very different stories.
-
-
Excellent book
- By Emilie Dionne on 2023-04-03
Written by: Elaine Pagels
-
God
- An Anatomy
- Written by: Francesca Stavrakopoulou
- Narrated by: Francesca Stavrakopoulou
- Length: 15 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The scholarship of theology and religion teaches us that the God of the Bible was without a body, only revealing himself in the Old Testament in words mysteriously uttered through his prophets, and in the New Testament in the body of Christ. The portrayal of God as corporeal and masculine is seen as merely metaphorical, figurative, or poetic. But, in this revelatory study, Francesca Stavrakopoulou presents a vividly corporeal image of God: a human-shaped deity who walks and talks and weeps and laughs, who eats, sleeps, feels, and breathes, and who is undeniably male.
-
-
God's Beard And Other Musings
- By Jamie Charles on 2022-02-04
Written by: Francesca Stavrakopoulou
-
God's Problem
- The Bible Fails to Answer Our Most Important Question - Why We Suffer
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganzer
- Length: 10 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In times of questioning and despair, people often quote the Bible to provide answers. Surprisingly, though, the Bible does not have one answer but many "answers" that often contradict one another.
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
The Atheist Handbook to the Old Testament, Volume 1
- Written by: Joshua Bowen
- Narrated by: Seth Andrews
- Length: 11 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Old Testament is a fierce battleground for atheists and Christian apologists, with each side accusing the other of taking challenging and troubling passages out of context. In this handbook, Joshua Bowen not only provides the background to the Old Testament and the ancient Near East, but engages with hotly contested topics like slavery, failed prophecy, and the authorship of debated Old Testament books.
-
-
Excellent !!!
- By Darryl TADMI on 2023-05-07
Written by: Joshua Bowen
-
Lost Christianities
- The Battles of Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Matthew Kugler
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The early Christian Church was a chaos of contending beliefs. Some groups of Christians claimed that there was not one God but two or twelve or thirty. Some believed that the world had not been created by God but by a lesser, ignorant deity. Certain sects maintained that Jesus was human but not divine, while others said he was divine but not human.
-
-
Excellent narration, easy to digest book
- By Sethenin on 2021-12-26
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
Foundational Falsehoods of Creationism
- Written by: Aron Ra
- Narrated by: Aron Ra
- Length: 16 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Religious fundamentalists and biblical literalists present any number of arguments that attempt to disprove evolution. Those with a sympathetic ear often fail to critically examine these creationist claims, leading to an ill-informed public and, perhaps more troubling, ill-advised public policy. As Aron Ra makes clear, however, every single argument deployed by creationists in their attacks on evolution is founded on fundamental scientific, religious, and historical falsehoods - all of them.
-
-
Technically Superb
- By Anonymous User on 2019-06-03
Written by: Aron Ra
-
The New Testament
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Length: 12 hrs and 27 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Whether taken as a book of faith or a cultural artifact, the New Testament is among the most significant writings the world has ever known, its web of meaning relied upon by virtually every major writer in the last 2,000 years. Yet the New Testament is not only one of Western civilization’s most believed books, but also one of its most widely disputed, often maligned, and least clearly understood, with a vast number of people unaware of how it was written and transmitted.
-
-
Good stuff
- By Miranda on 2018-09-15
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman, and others
-
Paul and Jesus
- How the Apostle Transformed Christianity
- Written by: James D. Tabor
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 9 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Historians know virtually nothing about the two decades following the crucifixion of Jesus, when his followers regrouped and began to spread his message. During this time the man we know as the apostle Paul joined the movement and began to preach to the gentiles. Using the oldest Christian documents that we have - the letters of Paul - as well as other early Christian sources, historian and scholar James Tabor reconstructs the origins of Christianity.
-
-
So much here that I don’t know I don’t know
- By Laurie K on 2024-03-23
Written by: James D. Tabor
-
Jesus Before the Gospels
- How the Earliest Christians Remembered, Changed, and Invented Their Stories of the Savior
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 10 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Throughout much of human history, our most important stories were passed down orally - including the stories about Jesus before they became written down in the Gospels. In this fascinating and deeply researched work, leading Bible scholar Bart D. Erhman investigates the role oral history has played in the New Testament - how the telling of these stories not only spread Jesus' message but helped shape it.
-
-
provides a clear answer to oral history claims
- By Sethenin on 2022-03-27
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
The Triumph of Christianity
- How a Forbidden Religion Swept the World
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: George Newbern, Bart D. Ehrman
- Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Christianity didn't have to become the dominant religion in the West. It easily could have remained a sect of Judaism fated to have the historical importance of the Sadducees or the Essenes. In The Triumph of Christianity, Bart Ehrman, a master explainer of Christian history, texts, and traditions, shows how a religion whose first believers were 20 or so illiterate day laborers in a remote part of the empire became the official religion of Rome, converting some 30 million people in just four centuries.
-
-
One of Ehrman’s best
- By Big Gucci Kony on 2024-05-30
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
Forged
- Writing in the Name of God - Why the Bible's Authors Are Not Who We Think They Are
- Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It is often said, even by critical scholars who should know better, that “writing in the name of another” was widely accepted in antiquity. But New York Times bestselling author Bart D. Ehrman dares to call it what it was: literary forgery, a practice that was as scandalous then as itis today. In Forged, Ehrman’s fresh and original research takes readers back to the ancient world, where forgeries were used as weapons by unknown authors to fend off attacks to their faith and establish their church.
Written by: Bart D. Ehrman
-
Nausea (New Directions Paperbook)
- Written by: Jean-Paul Sartre
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sartre's greatest novel and existentialism's key text, now introduced by James Wood, and read by the inimitable Edoardo Ballerini. Nausea is the story of Antoine Roquentin, a French writer who is horrified at his own existence. In impressionistic, diary form, he ruthlessly catalogs his every feeling and sensation.
Written by: Jean-Paul Sartre
-
The Atheist Handbook to the Old Testament: Volume 2
- Written by: Joshua Bowen
- Narrated by: Seth Andrews
- Length: 14 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Following up on the first volume, The Atheist Handbook to the Old Testament: Volume 2 takes up the challenge of providing a clear and useful guide to those wanting a better understanding of the Old Testament, including its cultural and historical background, as well as discussions on contentious topics like violence and genocide, and whether the Exodus was a real historical event. Volume two also covers the narrative of the Old Testament, from the conquest to the divided monarchy, and a brief history of Egypt to help situate the biblical text within agreed historical events.
Written by: Joshua Bowen
-
Why Evolution Is True
- Written by: Jerry A. Coyne
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Why evolution is more than just a theory: it is a fact. In all the current highly publicized debates about creationism and its descendant "intelligent design", there is an element of the controversy that is rarely mentioned: the evidence, the empirical truth of evolution by natural selection.
-
-
Unbelievably well researched
- By Аmazon Customer on 2018-03-01
Written by: Jerry A. Coyne
What listeners say about Heaven and Hell
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Sethenin
- 2021-12-30
Some chapters are an extremely good resource
The narration was wonderful. There are a few chapters in this book that I didn't find that interesting or useful, but there are a few later chapters that makes the book worthwhile. It's definitely worth the read/listen but I'd just skip chapters if you don't find them interesting. Most chapters are pretty much self contained so you can just jump around without much issue. It is well written and easy to understand.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Big Gucci Kony
- 2023-06-20
Monotonous narrator, interesting story
I found the authors voice during the introduction much more captivating than the paid professional who took over the rest of the book. As someone else said it seems odd that the book stops around the 5th century, with only cursory descriptions of medieval developments of purgatory. But I suppose since one is reading a scholar of early Christianity it makes sense they would stick to their area of expertise. Some chapters were less interesting than others and shared overlapping passages/ ideas from other works by Bart, but overall it was quite interesting and is written very well.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- walter george
- 2023-07-24
Everyone should read this book
Some ignored reality here. All the facts you could ever hope to find. A must read for anyone
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2020-04-09
Excellent Book
Complex ideas for the lay person, as Bart Ehrman is know for. I feel very enlightened after reading this, as it has answered many of the questions I've had throughout my life.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mark Banyai
- 2020-06-10
Poor narration
Really boring narration (monotone). Interesting story and summary of the story of heaven and hell.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- J.
- 2021-10-13
Interesting but limited
This is an excellent academic overview of the origins of ancient concepts of heaven and hell, however it feels like “part 1” since the author inexplicably stops around the 4th century CE. Were there no developments in this area after this time? What about changing attitudes and ideas through the Middle Ages, Renaissance, etc? It’s clear that the author is incredibly well versed in the ideas of antiquity, ancient Judaism, and the origin era of Christianity—and he brings excellent ideas and hypotheses from these times—however his analysis is severely limited by the lack of scope. In the end it ended up being a bit of a slog and not as enlightening as I would have hoped.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!