The intermediate state of the dead refers to the condition of the dead between the time of death and the resurrection from the dead.
Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past. Isa. 26:20
So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. Luke 16:22-23
Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” Luke 23:43
Jesus of Nazareth . . . whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it. For David says concerning him: . . . “You will not leave my soul in Hades.” Acts 2:22–27
When the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. 1 Pet. 5:4
“Because,” said he, “these, the apostles and the teachers who preached the name of the Son of God, after they had fallen asleep in the power and faith of the Son of God, preached also to them that had fallen asleep before them, and themselves gave unto them the seal of the preaching. Therefore they went down with them into the water, and came up again. But these went down alive [and again came up alive]; whereas the others that had fallen asleep before them went down dead and came up alive. So by their means they were quickened into life, and came to the full knowledge of the name of the Son of God. For this cause also they came up with them, and were fitted with them into the building of the tower and were builded with them, without being shaped; for they fell asleep in righteousness and in great purity. Only they had not this seal. You have then the interpretation of these things also.” “I have, Sir,” say I. Hermas (A.D. 70) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.2 pg. 49
Peter, through unrighteous envy [of his persecutors], endured not one or two, but numerous labors. And when he had at length suffered martyrdom, he departed to the place of glory due to him. . . . Paul also obtained the reward of patient endurance, after being seven times thrown into captivity . . . and suffering martyrdom under the prefects. In that manner, he was removed from the world and went into the holy place. Clement of Rome (c. 96, W), 1.6
All the generations from Adam even unto this day have passed away. However, those who, through the grace of God, have been made perfect in love, now possess a place among the godly. And they will be made manifest at the revelation of the kingdom of Christ. For it is written, “Enter into your secret chambers for a little time, until my wrath and fury pass away. And I will remember a propitious day, and will raise you up out of your graves.” Clement of Rome (c. 96, W), 1.18
[IN REFERENCE TO SOME FAITHFUL MARTYRS:] They are in their due place in the presence of the Lord, with whom they also suffered. Polycarp (c. 135, E), 1.35
But [the martyrs] were revealed by the Lord to them, inasmuch as they were no longer men, but had already become angels. Martyrdom of Polycarp (c. 135, E), 1.39
After we have departed from the world, no further power of confessing or repenting will belong to us. Second Clement (c. 150, W), 7.519
For reflect upon the end of each of the preceding kings, how they died the death common to all, which, if it issued in insensibility, would be a godsend to all the wicked. But since sensation remains to all who have ever lived, and eternal punishment is laid up (i.e., for the wicked), see that you neglect not to be convinced, and to hold as your belief, that these things are true. For let even necromancy, and the divinations you practice by immaculate children, and the evoking of departed human souls, and those who are called among the magi, Dream-senders and Assistant-spirits (Familiars), and all that is done by those who are skilled in such matters–let these persuade you that even after death souls are in a state of sensation. Justin Martyr (A.D. 160) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.1 pg.169
The souls of the pious remain in a better place, while those of the unjust and wicked are in a worse, waiting for the time of judgment. Justin Martyr (A.D. 160) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.1 pg.197
For if you have fallen in with some who are called Christians, but who do not admit this [truth], and venture to blaspheme the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; who say there is no resurrection of the dead, and that their souls, when they die, are taken to heaven; do not imagine that they are Christians. Justin Martyr (A.D. 160) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.1 pg.239
Christ declared that ignorance was not on His side, but on theirs, who thought that He was not the Christ, but fancied they would put Him to death, and that He, like some common mortal, would remain in Hades. Justin Martyr (A.D. 160) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.1 pg.248
It is likely enough that they themselves are now lamenting in Hades and repenting with a repentance that is too late. Justin Martyr (c. 160, E), 1.288
If they believe that there is nothing after death, but declare that those who die pass into insensibility, then they become our benefactors when they set us free from sufferings. Justin Martyr (c. 160, E), 1.182
Having been born, and through death existing no longer, and seen no longer, I will exist again, just as before I was not, but was afterwards born. Tatian (c. 160, E), 2.67
The soul is not in itself immortal, O Greeks, but mortal. Yet it is possible for it not to die. If, indeed, it does not know the truth, it dies. It is dissolved with the body, but rises again at last at the end of the world with the body, receiving death by punishment in immortality. But, again, if it acquires the knowledge of God, it does not die, although for a time it is dissolved. Tatian (c. 160, E), 2.70, 71
But these men are in all points inconsistent with themselves, when they decide that all souls do not enter into the intermediate place, but those of the righteous only. Irenaeus (A.D. 180) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.1 pg. 403
The Lord has taught with very great fullness, that souls not only continue to exist, not by passing from body to body, but that they preserve the same form [in their separate state] as the body had to which they were adapted… in that narrative which is recorded respecting the rich man and that Lazarus who found repose in the bosom of Abraham. By these things, then, it is plainly declared that souls continue to exist that they do not pass from body to body, that they possess the form of a man, so that they may be recognized, and retain the memory of things in this world; moreover, that the gift of prophecy was possessed by Abraham, and that each class [of souls] receives a habitation such as it has deserved, even before the judgment. Irenaeus (A.D. 180) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.1 pg. 411
If, then, the Lord observed the law of the dead, that He might become the first-begotten from the dead, and tarried until the third day “in the lower parts of the earth;” …how must these men not be put to confusion, who allege that “the lower parts” refer to this world of ours, but that their tuner man, leaving the body here, ascends into the super-celestial place? For as the Lord “went away in the midst of the shadow of death,” where the souls of the dead were, yet afterwards arose in the body, and after the resurrection was taken up [into heaven], it is manifest that the souls of His disciples also, upon whose account the Lord underwent these things, shall go away into the invisible place allotted to them by God, and there remain until the resurrection, awaiting that event; then receiving their bodies, and rising in their entirety, that is bodily, just as the Lord arose, they shall come thus into the presence of God. Irenaeus (A.D. 180) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.1 pg. 560
The heretics . . . do not acknowledge the salvation of their flesh . . . but claim that immediately upon their death, they will pass above the heavens and the Demiurge [Creator] and go to the Mother or to that Father whom they pretend exists. . . . For they do not choose to understand, that if these things are as they say, the Lord Himself, in whom they profess to believe, did not rise again upon the third day. Rather, immediately upon His expiring on the cross, He undoubtedly departed on high, leaving His body to the earth. . . . The Lord observed the law of the dead so that He might become the First-Begotten from the dead. And He waited until the third day “in the lower parts of the earth.” . . . [Accordingly,] these men [the Gnostics] must be put to confusion, who allege that “the lower parts” refer to this world of ours, but that their inner man, leaving the body here, ascends into the super-celestial place . . . .
The Lord “went away in the midst of the shadow of death,” where the souls of the dead were. However, afterwards, He arose in the body. And after the resurrection, He was taken up [into heaven]. From this, it is clear that the souls of His disciples also (upon whose account the Lord underwent these things) will go away into the invisible place allotted to them by God. And they will remain there until the resurrection, awaiting that event. Then receiving their bodies, and rising in their entirety (that is, bodily), just as the Lord arose, they will come in that manner into the presence of God. Irenaeus (c. 180, E/W), 1.560
“No disciple is above the Master.” . . . Our Master, therefore, did not at once depart, taking flight [to heaven]. Rather, He awaited the time of His resurrection, as determined by the Father. . . . Likewise, we also should await the time of our resurrection determined by God. Irenaeus (c. 180, E/W), 1.560, 561
If, then, the Lord descended to Hades for no other end but to preach the Gospel, as He did descend; it was either to preach the Gospel to all or to the Hebrews only. If, accordingly, to all, then all who believe shall be saved, although they may be of the Gentiles, on making their profession there; since God’s punishments are saving and disciplinary, leading to conversion, and choosing rather the repentance than the death of a sinner; and especially since souls, although darkened by passions, when released from their bodies, are able to perceive more clearly, because of their being no longer obstructed by the paltry flesh.Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 195) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.2 pg.490-491
So I think it is demonstrated that the God being good, and the Lord powerful, they save with a righteousness and equality which extend to all that turn to Him, whether here or elsewhere. For it is not here alone that the active power of God is beforehand, but it is everywhere and is always at work… For it is not right that these should be condemned without trial, and that those alone who lived after the advent should have the advantage of the divine righteousness. Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 195) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.2 pg.491
We speak of Paradise, the place of divine bliss appointed to receive the spirits of the saints. There, the saints are cut off from the knowledge of this world by that fiery zone, as by a sort of enclosure. So, the Elysian plains have taken possession of their faith. Tertullian (c. 197, W), 3.52
[The Marcionites] say that the Creator is the Judge who commits to prison and allows no release out of it without the payment of the very last cent. Tertullian (c. 207, W), 3.399
It must therefore be evident to every man of intelligence who has ever heard of the Elysian fields, that there is some determinate place called Abraham’s bosom. It is designed for the reception of the souls of Abraham’s children—even from among the Gentiles. . . . This region, therefore, I call Abraham’s bosom. Although it is not in heaven, it is yet higher than Hades. And it is appointed to afford an interval of rest to the souls of the righteous until the consummation of all things completes the resurrection of all men with the full recompense of their reward. . . . By Abraham’s bosom is meant some temporary receptacle of faithful souls, wherein is even now foreshadowed an image of the future, and where is given some foresight of the glory of both judgments. Tertullian (c. 207, W), 3.406
When the soul, by the power of death, is released from its bond to the flesh, it is by the very release cleansed and purified. . . . And then it finds itself enjoying its freedom from matter. And by virtue of its liberty, it recovers its divinity. It is just as one who awakes out of sleep passes from dreams to realities. Then the soul declares what it sees. Then it either exults or it fears as soon as it sees the very angel’s face—depending on what lodging it discovers has been prepared for it. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.230
There is not a soul that can at all procure salvation, unless it believes while it is still in the flesh. For it is an established truth that the flesh is the very condition on which salvation hinges. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.551
As [the soul] has acted in each individual instance, so proportionably does it suffer in Hades, being the first to taste of judgment. For it was the first to induce to the commission of sin. Nevertheless, it is still waiting for the flesh. . . . This, in short, will be the process of that judgment that is postponed to the last great day. It is delayed until then, so that by the exhibition of the flesh, the entire course of the divine vengeance may be accomplished. Besides, if it were destined for souls alone, there would be no reason to delay until the end that doom which souls are already tasting in Hades. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.557
When we read, “Go, my people, enter into your closets for a little season, until my anger passes away,” we understand the closets to be graves, in which will rest for a little while those who—at the end of the world—have departed this life in the last furious onset of the power of the Antichrist. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.565
Our answer to this is, that the Scripture itself which dazzles his sight expressly distinguishes between Abraham’s bosom, where the poor man dwells, and the infernal place of torment. “Hell” (I take it) means one thing, and “Abraham’s bosom” another. “A great gulf” is said to separate those regions, and to hinder a passage from one to the other…It must therefore be evident to every man of intelligence who has ever heard of the Elysian fields, that there is some determinate place called Abraham’s bosom, and that it is designed for the reception of the souls of Abraham’s children, even from among the Gentiles…by Abraham’s bosom is meant some temporary receptacle of faithful souls, wherein is even now delineated an image of the future, and where is given some foresight of the glory of both judgments? Tertullian (A.D. 198) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.3 pg. 406
Therefore as it has acted in each several instance, so proportionably does it suffer in Hades, being the first to taste of judgment as it was the first to induce to the commission of sin; but still it is waiting for the flesh in order that it may through the flesh also compensate for its deeds, inasmuch as it laid upon the flesh the execution of its own thoughts. This, in short, will be the process of that judgment which is postponed to the last great day, in order that by the exhibition of the flesh the entire course of the divine vengeance may be accomplished. Besides, (it is obvious to remark) there would be no delaying to the end of that doom which souls are already tasting in Hades, if it was destined for souls alone. Tertullian (A.D. 198) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.3 pg. 557
For who is there that will not desire, while he is in the flesh, to put on immortality, and to continue his life by a happy escape from death, through the transformation which must be experienced instead of it, without encountering too that Hades which will exact the very last farthing? Notwithstanding, he who has already traversed Hades is destined also to obtain the change after the resurrection. For from this circumstance it is that we definitively declare that the flesh will by all means rise again, and, from the change that is to come over it, will assume the condition of angels.Tertullian (A.D. 198) Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.3 pg. 575
We are indeed confident and deem it good rather to be absent from the body and present with the Lord.” . . . Observe how he here also ascribes to the excellence of martyrdom a contempt for the body. For no one, on becoming absent from the body, is at once a dweller in the presence of the Lord—unless by the prerogative of martyrdom he gains a lodging in Paradise, not in Hades. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.576
In Hades, the soul of a certain man is in torment, punished in flames, suffering excruciating thirst, and pleading for the relief of a drop of water for his tongue, from the finger of a happier soul. Do you suppose that this end of the blessed poor man and the miserable rich man is only imaginary? Then, why is the name of Lazarus given in this narrative—if the account is not of a real occurrence? But even if it is to be regarded as a parable, it will still be a testimony to truth and reality. . . . But what is that which is removed to Hades after the separation of the body? What is detained there? What is reserved until the Day of Judgment? To what did Christ also descend, on dying? I imagine it is the souls of the patriarchs. But for what purpose are they retained there—if the soul is not a bodily substance. For whatever is incorporeal is incapable of being kept and guarded in any way. It is also exempt from either punishment or refreshment. . . . Therefore, whatever amount of punishment or refreshment the soul tastes in Hades—in its prison or lodging, in the fire or in Abraham’s bosom—it gives proof thereby of its own corporeality. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.187
If you are inclined to apply the term “adversary” to the devil, you are advised by injunction “while you are on the way with him” to make even with him such a covenant as may be deemed compatible with the requirements of your true faith. Now the covenant you have made concerning him is to renounce him, his pomp, and his angels. So . . . you must never think of getting back any of the things that you have renounced and have given back to him. Otherwise, he may summon you before God the Judge as a fraudulent man, and a transgressor of your covenant. And this Judge may deliver you over to the angel who is to execute the sentence. And he may commit you to the prison of Hades, out of which there will be no dismissal until even the smallest of your delinquencies is paid off in the period before the resurrection. What can be a more fitting sense than this? What can be a truer interpretation? Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.216
Hades is not supposed by us to be a bare cavity, nor some subterranean sewer of the world. Rather it is a vast deep space in the interior of the earth. . . . For we read that Christ in His death spent three days in the heart of the earth. . . . He did not ascend into the heights of heaven before descending into the lower parts of the earth. This was so that He might there [in Hades] make the patriarchs and prophets partakers of Himself. You must believe Hades is a subterranean region. You should keep at arm’s length those [Gnostics] who are too proud to believe that the souls of the faithful deserve a place in Hades. These persons—who are servants above their Lord, and disciples above their Master—would no doubt spurn to receive the comfort of the resurrection, if they must expect it in Abraham’s bosom. But it was for this purpose, they say, that Christ descended into Hades—that we might not ourselves have to descend there. Well, then, what difference is there between pagans and Christians, if the same prison awaits them all when dead? How, indeed, will the soul mount up to heaven, where Christ is already sitting at the Father’s right hand? For the archangel’s trumpet has not yet been heard by the command of God. . . . To no one is heaven opened. . . . When the world, indeed, will pass away, then the kingdom of heaven will be opened. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.231
Shall we then have to sleep high up in ether? . . . No, but in Paradise, you tell me. This is where the patriarchs and prophets have already been transported, from Hades in the retinue of the Lord’s resurrection. How is it, then, that the region of Paradise displays no other souls as in it besides the souls of the martyrs? For it was revealed to John in the Spirit as lying “under the altar.” How is it that the most heroic martyr Perpetua on the day of her martyrdom saw only her fellow martyrs there—in the revelation which she received of Paradise? . . . The sole key to unlock Paradise is your own life’s blood. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.231
You have a treatise by us, in which we have established the position that every soul is detained in safe-keeping in Hades until the day of the Lord. There arises the question of whether this takes place immediately after the soul’s departure from the body. Are some souls detained in the meantime here on earth for special reasons? Is it permitted them of their own accord, or by the intervention of authority, to be removed from Hades at some subsequent time? Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.231, 232
You will say that it is all the wicked souls that are banished to Hades. I must compel you to determine which of its two regions—the region of the good or that of the bad. If you mean the bad, even now the souls of the wicked deserve to be consigned to those abodes. If you mean the good, why should you judge the souls of infants and of virgins—those which, by reason of their condition in life were pure and innocent—to be unworthy of such a resting place? Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.233
The fact that Hades is not in any case opened for [the release] of any soul has been firmly established by the Lord in the person of Abraham—in His representation of the poor man at rest and the rich man in torment. No one could possibly be sent from those abodes to report to us how matters went in the lower regions. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.234
All souls, therefore, are shut up within Hades. Do you admit this? [It is true, whether] you say yes or no. Moreover, there are already experienced there punishments and consolations. And there you have a poor man and a rich. . . . Why, then, cannot you suppose that the soul undergoes punishment and consolation in Hades in the interval, while it awaits its alternative of judgment, in a certain anticipation either of gloom or of glory? You reply: “Because in the judgment of God, this matter should be sure and safe and there should be no inkling beforehand of the award of his sentence—and also because it should first be covered by its vestment of the restored flesh.” . . . What, then, is to take place in that interval? Shall we sleep? But souls do not sleep even when men are alive. It is indeed the business of bodies to sleep, to which also belongs death itself. Tertullian (c. 210, W), 3.234, 235
Full well, then, does the soul even in Hades know how to rejoice and to sorrow even without the body. . . . It is therefore quite in keeping with this order of things that this part of our nature [i.e., the soul] should be the first to have the recompense and reward to which they are due on account of its priority. In short, inasmuch as we understand “the prison” pointed out in the gospel to be Hades, and as we also interpret “the uttermost farthing” to mean the very smallest offense which has to be recompensed there before the resurrection, no one will hesitate to believe that the soul undergoes in Hades some compensatory discipline, without prejudice to the full process of the resurrection—when the recompense will be administered through the flesh as well. The Paraclete has also pressed home this point on our attention in most frequent admonitions, whenever any of us have admitted the force of His words from a knowledge of His promised spiritual disclosures. Tertullian (c. 210)
A person of old used to say that only those who are instructed in the knowledge of divine things descend alive into Hades. For he who has not tasted of the words of life is already dead. Hippolytus (c. 205, W), 5.202
Now we must speak of Hades, in which the souls both of the righteous and the unrighteous are detained. Hades is a place in the created system, rude, a locality beneath the earth, in which the light of the world does not shine. And since the sun does not shine in this place, there is necessarily perpetual darkness there. This place has been destined to be, as it were, a guardhouse for souls. The angels are stationed there as guards distributing temporary punishments for characters, according to each one’s deeds. And in this locality there is a certain place set apart by itself, a lake of unquenchable fire, into which we suppose no one has ever yet been cast. . . . But the righteous (who will obtain the incorruptible and unfading kingdom) are indeed presently detained in Hades, but not in the same place with the unrighteous. For to this locality there is one descent, at the gate of which we believe an archangel is stationed with an army. And when those who are conducted by the angels who are appointed unto the souls have passed through this gate, they do not all proceed down one and the same path. Rather, the righteous are conducted in the light toward the right. And being hymned by the angels stationed at the place, they are brought to a locality full of light. And there all the righteous persons from the beginning dwell. They are not ruled by any necessity. Rather, they perpetually enjoy the contemplation of the blessings that are in their view. Also, they delight themselves with the expectation of other blessings, ever new. In fact, they consider the new blessings as ever better than the first ones. And that place brings no labors for them. In that locale, there are neither fierce heat, cold, nor thorns. But the faces of the fathers and the righteous are seen to be always smiling, as they wait for the rest and eternal revival in heaven that follow this location. And we call this place by the name of “Abraham’s bosom.”
However, the unrighteous are dragged toward the left by angels who are ministers of punishment. These souls no longer go of their own accord. Rather, they are dragged as prisoners by force. And the angels appointed over them hurry them along, reproaching them and threatening them with an eye of terror, forcing them down into the lower parts. And when the souls are brought there, those appointed to that task drag them on to the vicinity of Gehenna. And those who are so near [to Gehenna] hear incessantly its agitation, and they feel the hot smoke. And when that vision is so near, as they see the terrible and excessively glowing spectacle of the fire, they shudder in horror at the expectation of the future judgment, already feeling the power of their punishment. And again, when they see the place of the fathers and the righteous, they also suffer punishment merely from seeing this. For a deep and vast abyss is set there in the midst, so that neither can any of the righteous in sympathy think to cross it, nor do any of the unrighteous dare to cross it.
I think I have said enough on the subject of Hades, in which all souls are detained until the time that God has determined. And then He will accomplish a resurrection of all—not by transferring souls into other bodies—but by raising the bodies themselves. Hippolytus (c. 205, W), 5.222
Those here who die according to the death common to all are—in consequence of the deeds done here—arranged in a way so as to obtain different places according to the proportion of their sins—if they are deemed worthy of the placed called Hades. Origen (c. 225, E), 4.372
What lies beneath the earth is not itself void of distributed and arranged powers. For there is a place where the souls of the just and the unjust are taken, conscious of the anticipated dooms of future judgment. Novatian (c. 235, W), 5.612
Those who had sacrificed [to idols] should be assisted at death, [if repentant,] for there is no confession in Hades. Cyprian (c. 250, W), 5.331
Do not think, dearest brother, that either the courage of the brethren will be lessened, or that martyrdoms will fail for this cause—that repentance is relaxed to the lapsed. . . . It is one thing to stand for pardon. It is another thing to attain to glory. It is one thing, when cast into prison, not to go out from it until one has paid the last coin. It is another thing at once to receive the wages of faith and courage. It is one thing, tortured by long suffering for sins, to be cleansed and long purged by fire. It is another to have all sins purged by suffering. It is one thing to be in suspense until the sentence of God at the day of judgment. It is another to be crowned at once by the Lord. Cyprian (c. 250, W), 5.332
When you have once departed yonder, there is no longer any place for repentance. And there is no possibility of making satisfaction. Here life is either lost or saved. Here eternal safety is provided for by the worship of God and the fruits of faith. Do not let anyone be restrained from coming to obtain salvation, either by his sins or by his years. To him who still remains in this world, no repentance is too late. Cyprian (c. 250, W), 5.465
In Hades there is no repentance. . . . So while the way of mercy is open, brethren, let us entreat God with full atonements. Treatise against Novatian (c. 255, W), 5.662, 663
After the death of a man in this position, there cannot be added to him anything at all. He cannot be supplemented. Nor can anything avail him in the Day of Judgment. Treatise on ReBaptism (c. 257, W), 5.671
The “bronze altar” refers to the earth, under which is Hades. This is a region away from punishments and fires. It is a place of rest for the saints. Here, indeed, the wicked see the righteous, but they cannot be carried across to them. Victorinus (c. 280, W), 7.351
If we ask concerning the tongue, the finger, Abraham’s bosom, and the reclining there, it may perhaps be that the soul receives in the change a form similar in appearance to its coarse and earthly body. Methodius (c. 290, E), 6.377, as quoted by Photius
The rich man was in torment and the poor man was comforted in the bosom of Abraham. The one was to be punished in Hades, and the other was to be comforted in Abraham’s bosom. Yet, they are both spoken of as before the [second] coming of the Savior and before the end of the world. Therefore, their condition is before the resurrection. Methodius (c. 290, E), 6.377, as quoted by Photius
A second life is not granted to us. It is not as though if we seek wisdom in this life, we will be wise in the next one. Each result must be brought about in this life. It should be quickly found in order that it may be quickly embraced. Lactantius (c. 304–313, W), 7.85
Let no one imagine that souls are immediately judged after death. For all are detained in one and a common place of confinement—until the arrival of the time in which the great Judge will make an investigation of their deserts. Those whose piety will have been approved will receive the reward of immortality. However, those whose sins and crimes will have been brought to light—these will not rise again. Rather, they will be hidden in the same darkness with the wicked, being destined to certain punishment. Lactantius (c. 304–313, W), 7.217
What about the punishment in Hades, of which we have heard, which assumes also many forms of torture? Arnobius (c. 305, E), 6.445
When man afterwards had inclined to death, because of the fall, it was necessary that man’s form should be recreated anew to salvation by the same Maker. For the form [i.e., the body] lay rotting in the ground. However, that inspiration that had been as the breath of life—it was detained separately from the body in a dark place that is called Hades. So there was a separation of the soul from the body. The soul was banished to Hades while the body was returned back to dust. Alexander of Alexandria (c. 324, E), 6.300; extended discussion: 3.231–3.235