1 Corinthians 3:15 – ‘If someone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as through fire.’

Does this verse support the doctrine of purgatory?

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

1030 All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.

1031 The Church gives the name Purgatory to this final purification of the elect, which is entirely different from the punishment of the damned.  The Church formulated her doctrine of faith on Purgatory especially at the Councils of Florence and Trent. the tradition of the Church, by reference to certain texts of Scripture, speaks of a cleansing fire:

As for certain lesser faults, we must believe that, before the Final Judgment, there is a purifying fire. He who is truth says that whoever utters blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will be pardoned neither in this age nor in the age to come. From this sentence we understand that certain offenses can be forgiven in this age, but certain others in the age to come.

1032 This teaching is also based on the practice of prayer for the dead, already mentioned in Sacred Scripture: “Therefore Judas Maccabeus] made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin.”  From the beginning the Church has honored the memory of the dead and offered prayers in suffrage for them, above all the Eucharistic sacrifice, so that, thus purified, they may attain the beatific vision of God.  The Church also commends almsgiving, indulgences, and works of penance undertaken on behalf of the dead:

Let us help and commemorate them. If Job’s sons were purified by their father’s sacrifice, why would we doubt that our offerings for the dead bring them some consolation? Let us not hesitate to help those who have died and to offer our prayers for them.

Purgatory, in other words, purifies those who, when they die, are neither good enough for heaven nor bad enough for hell.

The following bases for this doctrine are appealed to:

• 2 Maccabees 12:44f, where Judas Maccabeus makes provision for the atonement of the dead.
• The practice of the ancient church of praying for the dead.
• The present verse (although most Catholics agree that there is no explicit biblical evidence for the doctrine of Purgatory).

Other Bible passages that might be cited as relevant include:

Mt 5:8 – ‘“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.’

Mt 12:32 – ‘Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.’

Phil 1:6 – ‘For I am sure of this very thing, that the one who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.’

Heb 12:14 ‘Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, for without it no one will see the Lord.’

With regard to 1 Cor 3:11-15,

• The flames here are of judgement, not of purgation;
• the fire is figurative, like the building;
• within this imagery, it is not believers who are burned or purged, but their works;
• the salvation in question is not ‘by’ but ‘through’ the flames.
• the issue is not purification from sin but loss of reward for service;
• the purpose of the fire is not to sanctify believers but to test (‘assay’) their works; the fire is a means of valuation, not of purification;
• only church leaders, such as Paul and Barnabas, are being discussed here; it is not certain that Paul’s words are generally applicable;
• the fire is lit at Christ’s coming (‘the day’), and does not burn during the intermediate state (i.e., between the believer’s death and that coming.

Sam Storms (Deciphering Difficult Texts) concludes:

‘There is no biblical warrant for the doctrine of purgatory. In keeping with Philippians 1:19ff. and 2 Corinthians 5:8–10, among other texts,…upon physical death all believers pass immediately into the presence of Christ in heaven, there to enjoy conscious fellowship and joy with him forever.’

Bruce Milne (Know The Truth) adds that:

‘Purgatory is…to be rejected because it is fundamentally at variance with the biblical doctrine of justification (cf. Part 4). To die in faith, even when that faith is exercised in one’s final conscious moments (Luke 23:43; Rom. 5:1; 8:1, 33f.), is to die justified, clothed in the perfect righteousness of Christ and assured of full acquittal at God’s judgment seat.’