Sheol

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Sheol (Biblical Hebrew: שְׁאוֹל, romanized: Šəʾōl; Tiberian Hebrew: Šŏʾōl) in the Hebrew Bible is the underworld, or the unseen world of the dead to which departed spirits go. It was said to be a place of stillness and darkness in the subterranean regions. The state of existence is shadowy and silent, where the inhabitants are in weakened forms having an inactive remnant of humanity. The word 'Sheol' is almost exclusive to the Old Testament, with exception in Elephantine papyri from the Jewish community residing in southern Egypt. Its etymology is contested and considered to be unknown. However, propositions that have scholarly support include potential roots in Hebrew words meaning 'be desolate' or 'desolate place', or a link to Akkadian loanwords from the goddess Shuwala. Within the Hebrew Bible, there are few—often brief and nondescript—mentions of Sheol, seemingly describing it as a place where both the righteous and the unrighteous dead go, regardless of their moral choices in life...

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