Breadcrumb: The Jewish afterlife

In Num. 16:30 and 16:33, the Hebrew text uses the word sheol, which the NIV translates as "the grave" and the KJV translates as "the pit." In fact, sheol is the closest the Hebrew scriptures come to an afterlife. Strong's Concordance defines sheol as "the underworld; the above of the dead." Unlike the Christian hell, which is so prevalent in theological writings, the world sheol is used only 65 times in the entire Old Testament. Quite frankly, though the concept of an afterlife exists in Judaism, it is vague and undeveloped, to the point where many Jews don't even know about it.