Luke 15:22 English Standard Version (ESV) But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet.’

This verse is from the parable of the Prodigal Son. If it is not fresh on you minds give it a quick read and see what the son had been doing. He had been with the pigs. We understand the parallel here about the views of pigs in Jewish society, unclean animals. Nowhere in this parable do we see the prodigal son clean himself up. Neither did the father ask his servants to wash his son. He said quickly bring the best robe.

There was no concern for the best robe being dirtied by the unclean son. The father had no concern for his son’s cleanliness. The robe would cover his unclean state. While the ring and the shoes have their own symbolic meaning, I would like to stay with the symbol of the robe.

Isaiah 61:10 English Standard Version (ESV) I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

Here in Isaiah we see the robe of righteousness and it is compared to both the bridegroom and the bride. For the bridegroom it is linked to the priesthood and for the bride an adornment.

Hosea 2:19 English Standard Version (ESV) And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy.

Philippians 3:9 English Standard Version (ESV) and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—

It is His robe of righteousness we get to wear as His betrothed.

Hebrews 9:27 English Standard Version (ESV) And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

Is it possible to believe in reincarnation and not believe in resurrection?

There are those who want a second chance. The do over is a chance to make things right that we did wrong. The ideas that come along with this notion are a form of avoidance of final judgement. The belief that being reincarnated gives us the ability to make things right. It is never seen as the possibility of making things worse. If we did get a do over, what makes any of us secure in our ability to set things right? We are just as likely to make things worse. This is the failure of that thinking.

Resurrection on the other hand is the making of an incorruptible body that will never die. This happens to each and every soul regardless of their belief system. Before you get too excited, we must also accept that final judgement is imposed and there are those who get to stay with God and those who get to stay with Satan. Eternal bliss or eternal punishment will happen no matter what we believe. Eternal as in never ending.

While we hope for eternal bliss why does eternal punishment have to be the alternative? At the time of man’s fall, God cast Satan out from His presence and condemned Satan to the dust of the earth, the realm of death, eternal separation from God. God so loved man that He punished Satan forever for leading mankind astray. Satan hates mankind because God chose man over him. God bestowed upon man blessing, mercy, grace and the righteousness of Christ by sacrificing His son for the forgiveness of sin. This forgiveness was never offered to Satan.

For this Satan hates all mankind and he will make life with him an eternal hell.