It is often said by Protestants that they cannot find Purgatory in the Bible. It could be retorted that it is harder to see something you're not looking for - even harder when you are opposed to finding it.
The typical passage which Catholic appeal to for a description of Purgatory is 1Corinthians 3:10-15. But today I want to look at two other passages which come from the mouth of the Lord Himself.
What Are We Looking For?
The first thing we need to ask is: When we're looking for a passage which is potentially about Purgatory, what are looking for? Well, the basics of Purgatory is that it is a place (or state) after you die wherein you deal with the negative consequences of your sins (or imperfections), but only for a limited period of time. So that's three things:
- A place or state after you die
- Deal with the consequences of sins
- For a limited time
With that in mind, let's look at two passages.
Beatings for a Servant:
This first one comes to us in Luke 12. This is a long chapter in which Jesus preaches to a crowd of thousands.
Starting in verse 35, Jesus gives us a parable of servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet. He concludes the parable with a warning to be watchful, because our master could come at any moment.
This parable has obvious implications for our final judgement, because whether we're talking about the end of our lives - or Jesus' coming at the end of the Age - our judgement can happen at a time we do not expect.
Jesus beings by promising eternal rewards to the faithful servants. But then He describe the fate of the disobedient servants:
"But if that slave says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and if he begins to beat the other slaves, men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk, the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour that he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and put him with the unfaithful.
That slave who knew what his master wanted, but did not prepare himself or do what was wanted, will receive a severe beating. But the one who did not know and did what deserved a beating will receive a light beating. From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded." - Luke 12:45-48
What do we see here? The first servant utterly abandons his duties and begins abusing the master's property and personnel. These people, the Lord says, will be "cut to pieces" and placed with the unfaithful. So... hell.
But then Jesus describes two other servants who weren't quite as bad. One knew the Master's will and was merely neglectful. He get's a hard beating. The final one didn't know his duties - and thus having failed to complete them - only gets a light beating.
Well, a beating is a temporary thing. And when it is done, you are still in the Master's service. So what we have is a person experiencing negative, but temporary, consequences for sin in conjunction with his judgement. That checks all of our boxes, so this is a good candidate for describing purgatory.
Into the Debtors Jail:
The second one occurs early into Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. In this section, the Lord is extending the principle of the 5th commandment (no murder) to more every day interpersonal relationships. He says:
"Anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of Hell. So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny." - Matthew 5:22-26
This is another time when Jesus is making an analogy for our final judgement. He says we need to reconcile with those who have something against us before we go to the judge. If we don't, then we could be thrown into a debtors prison and not get out till we've fully paid.
Let's think about that. Hell is not a place you ever get to leave. Heaven doesn't involve these negative consequences. So the conclusion reached by some commentators is that this is a reference to Purgatory.
(Others propose that the debt is infinite, and cannot ever be paid back. Thus, this is a reference to Hell.)
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