Facts in Judaism
Do Non-Jews Have a Place in the World to Come? A Complete Guide to the Seven Noahide Laws
Understanding the role of non-Jews in Jewish belief, their moral obligations, and how they merit the World to Come
- Hidabroot
- |Updated
Everyone knows that Jews have a full system of 613 mitzvot, and that fulfilling more mitzvot leads to a better portion in the World to Come. What about non-Jews? They did not receive the Torah — are they commanded in anything? If a non-Jew keeps mitzvot, does he also merit the World to Come? Rabbi Eli Amar explains:
What Are Non-Jews Commanded To Do?
“Non-Jews are obligated in very basic, mainly ethical commandments — fundamental norms required for a functional and moral society,” says Rabbi Amar. “God tells them something simple: If you behave like decent human beings, you will merit the World to Come.”
The Seven Noahide Laws
The framework for non-Jewish commandments is called the Seven Laws of the Children of Noach. They include:
Prohibition of idolatry
Prohibition of forbidden sexual relations
Prohibition of murder
Prohibition of eating a limb taken from a living animal
Belief in God
Prohibition of theft
Establishing a system of law and justice
A non-Jew who keeps these seven laws does not need to convert and still earns a portion in the World to Come — though not on the same level as a Jew who fulfills 613 mitzvot.
What Is the Non-Jewish World to Come?
The Talmud describes the World to Come with the phrase: “No eye has seen it but Yours, O God.” (Berachot 34b) Meaning, humans cannot fully understand it.
Rabbi Amar explains that there are three levels of pleasure:
Physical pleasure — food, drink, bodily comfort
Emotional pleasure — joy, honor, connection
Spiritual pleasure — transcendent fulfillment beyond physical and emotional experience
The pleasures of the World to Come are purely spiritual, and far greater than anything in this world.
Non-Jews receive a simpler form of spiritual pleasure compared to Jews, but the fact that they merit a place at all is enormously significant.
Rabbi Amar compares it to a prestigious company: you might be the CEO or a simple employee — but either way, you’re still in a very good place.
Do Non-Jewish Actions Affect Higher Worlds?
Rabbi Pinchas Badush expands this idea.
The Talmud (Avodah Zarah 3a) says that at a certain point, God “released” the nations of the world from the Seven Noahide Laws because they were not keeping them.
What does “released” mean? Rabbi Badush explains: It means God disconnected their actions from affecting the higher spiritual worlds.
For Jews, every mitzvah influences higher realms and every sin can cause spiritual damage. For non-Jews however, their impact is only in the physical world, but not in the upper worlds.
God did this so their wrongdoing would not cause greater harm than what already happens here.
Did Hitler Influence the Upper Worlds?
Rabbi Badush answers that Hitler's influence was only here. In this world you can harm a person’s body, not their soul. That is the extent of his impact.
Do Non-Jews Still Merit the World to Come?
Despite lacking influence on the higher realms, non-Jews still have free will, and when a non-Jew meets his moral and spiritual obligations by not murdering, not stealing, not abusing animals, and generally not harming the world — he fulfills his purpose.
And therefore he merits his portion in the World to Come — according to his level.
