I'm sure not everyone that friends with me, would agree with my take on Hell but I believe The traditional view, those who hold to the opposite Note that I still consider them brothers and just as save as me, this deals with the duration of hell note, for a good read on that hell it self is real read this
http://www.bereanbiblesociety.org/articles/1192569770.html
The Eternality of Hell [Part I]
It hardly surprises God-fearing men and women that unbelievers of all
sorts reject the notion of an unending penalty for wickedness. Since
atheists, agnostics, and infidels of every stripe do not believe in the
existence of heaven or an immortal soul, they certainly do not give the
idea of an eternal hell much thought (other than to criticize the
notion). It is somewhat surprising to many Bible believers, however, to
learn that a growing number of people who believe in God, and who accept
as genuine the existence of the soul, are rejecting the idea of an
eternal punishment for those who live and die outside the body of
Christ. What Edward Fudge espoused over twenty years ago in his volume,
The Fire That Consumes,
and what more recently published works by such writers as Homer Hailey
and F. LaGard Smith espouse, is the idea that “the wicked, following
whatever degree and duration of pain that God may justly inflict, will
finally and truly die, perish and become extinct for ever and ever”
(Fudge, 1982, p. 425). Allegedly, as best-selling author Smith wrote in
the foreword of Hailey’s book,
God’s Judgements & Punishments,
“total destruction rather than conscious, ongoing punishment is the
dreaded fate which awaits the wicked” (Hailey, 2003, p. 10). “In
hell...those who have rejected God and have refused to believe in his
Son will be totally wiped out! Completely eradicated. Their existence
will come to an abrupt end” (Smith, 2003, p. 184). According to Smith
and other annihilationists, the choice for mankind is simple: “Blessed
existence versus non-existence” (Smith, p. 190).
ANNIHILATION—OR UNENDING PUNISHMENT?
To those familiar with Jesus’ statement recorded in Matthew 25:46, it
would seem that the question of whether or not the wicked will one day
be annihilated, or punished forever in hell, is rather easy to answer.
After explaining to His disciples how God will separate the righteous
from the wicked at the Judgment (Matthew 25:31-45), Jesus concluded by
telling them that the wicked “shall go away into
eternal punishment: but the righteous into
eternal life” (25:46, ASV).
For many Christians, this verse settles the issue: the wicked will not
be extinguished by God after the Judgment, but will suffer unending
punishment. The righteous, on the other hand, will enjoy the bliss of an
unending life with God in heaven.
Recognizing the fact that if “eternal” means “unending” in Matthew
25:46, then their whole theory about what happens to the wicked after
the Judgment crumbles, certain annihilationists have alleged that the
word eternal has nothing whatsoever to do with time or the unending
duration of the afterlife. F. LaGard Smith, just prior to his discussion
of (what he calls) “The Tormenting Conundrum of Hell” (chapter 8),
stated:
If you have a computer Bible program (or an antiquated concordance!), pull up the word eternal and be prepared for a shock. In all of its many associations, there is not a single hint of time.... To be eternal is to have a lasting nature.
To have the kind of qualities which endure despite the passing of time
(if, in fact, there is any time at all) [p. 162, italics and
parenthetical items in orig., emp. added].
To say, then, that we will have eternal life in heaven says nothing about how long we will live in heaven. It’s already begun before we get there! The point is that life in heaven will be a qualitatively different kind of life from the one we have known in earth’s space and time (p. 163, italics in orig., emp. added; see also Hailey, pp. 132-133).
With such an interpretation in place for the word “eternal” (and
specifically for the phrase “eternal life”), Smith seemingly laid the
groundwork for his interpretation of “eternal fire/punishment.” He
confidently declared:
“Eternal fire” bespeaks the nature of hell’s fire, not its duration....
[W]hen we hear Jesus speaking about “eternal fire,” there’s no reason
to think in terms of clocks or calendars. Time is not the issue. Effect is the issue (p. 174, italics in orig.).
“Eternal punishment” will no more be punishment throughout an endless
eternity than was the immediate, devastating punishment suffered by the
people of Sodom and Gomorrah (p. 175).
Although Smith seems to think that he has presented a convincing case about the annihilation of the wicked in hell through
his
definition of the word “eternal,” he actually never gave a precise
definition of Greek words translated “eternal” or “everlasting.” In the
introduction to his book, Smith admitted: “The afterlife, by its very
nature, is a subject which calls for careful study of the text....
[T]here are the necessary word studies to be done, so that we can be
confident we’re not confusing linguistic apples and oranges” (p. 9).
Unfortunately for the reader, Smith omitted vital, fundamental word
studies, and as a result, caused mass confusion for the reader.
First, he failed to cite even one Greek lexicographer in his defense of the word eternal “in all its many associations”
not having “
a single hint of time”
(p. 162, emp. added). Perhaps the reason for Smith’s omission of
relevant material from Greek dictionaries is that such word studies
overwhelmingly disagree with his premise. Notice how the following
eminently respected Greek scholars have defined the two New Testament
Greek words (
aion and
aionios) that commonly are
translated “forever,” “eternal,” or “everlasting,” especially when they
are connected with ideas that relate to the invisible world.
-
The first two definitions of the word aion provided by Danker,
Arndt, and Gingrich are as follows: (1) “a long period of time, without
ref. to beginning or end” and (2) “a segment of time as a particular
unit of history, age.” Three definitions are then provided for aionios: (1) “pert. to a long period of time, long ago;” (2) “pert. to a period of time without beginning or end, eternal of God;” and (3) “pert. to a period of unending duration, without end” (Danker, et al., 2000, pp. 32-33, italics in orig.).
-
According to Thayer, aion is used in the New Testament numerous times simply to mean “forever” (1962, p. 19). He then defined aionios
in the following three ways: (1) “without beginning or end, that which
always has been and always will be;” (2) “without beginning;” and (3)
“without end, never to cease, everlasting” (p. 20).
-
Of aionios (the Greek word used twice in Matthew 25:46 to
describe both “punishment” and “life”), W.E. Vine wrote: “describes
duration, either undefined but not endless, as in Rom. 16:25; 2 Tim.
1:9; Tit. 1:2; or undefined because endless as in Rom. 16:26 and the
other sixty-six places in the N.T.” (1940, 2:43).
-
Of the word aionios, R.C.H. Lenski asked, “[I]f this Greek
adjective does not mean ‘eternal,’ which Greek adjective does have that
meaning? Or did the Greek world, including the Jewish (Jesus spoke
Aramaic) world, have no words for eternity or eternal?” (1943, p. 997).
-
According to A.T. Robertson: “The word aionios...means either without beginning or without end or both. It comes as near to the idea of eternal as the Greek can put it in one word”(1930, 1:202, emp. added).
-
The first definition Hermann Sasse provided for aion in the highly regarded Theological Dictionary of the New Testament is “in the sense of prolonged time or eternity” (1964, 1:198). Later, when discussing aionios “as
a term for the object eschatological expectation,” he indicated that it
likewise is used to mean “unceasing” or “endless,” while sometimes
extending beyond the purely temporal meaning (1:209; see also Carson,
1996, p. 523).
-
Writing in The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology under the subject heading of time, Joachim Guhrt stated that aion is “primarily a designation for a long period of time [either ending or unending—EL/KB]....
Eternity is thus not necessarily a timeless concept, but the most
comprehensive temporal one which the experience of time has produced”
(1978, p. 826). Although Guhrt admitted that when aionios is used
in the gospel of John (to form “eternal life”), it can be used in a
qualitative sense, nevertheless “there is also a temporal sense, so that
eternal (aionios) indicates the quantity of this life” (p. 832; see also Robertson, 1932, 5:49-50).
-
Finally, James Orr wrote in the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia that
the reply...that aionios...denotes quality, not duration,
cannot be sustained. Whatever else the term includes, it connotes
duration.... [I]t can hardly be questioned that “the aeons of the aeons”
and similar phrases are the practical New Testament equivalents for
eternity, and that aionios in its application to God and to life
(“eternal life”) includes the idea of unending duration.... When,
therefore, the term is applied in the same context to punishment and to
life (Matt. 25:46), and no hint is given anywhere of limitation, the
only reasonable exegesis is to take the word in its full sense of
“eternal” (1956, 4:2502).
When Smith commented on the word eternal, saying, “In all of its many
associations, there is not a single hint of time” (p. 162), he placed
himself at odds with the most respected Greek lexicographers and
scholars of the past century. Any attempt to explain away eternal
punishment by redefining the Greek words for eternal will fail because
eternal “describes duration” (Vine, 2:43).
Second, even without delving into various Greek dictionaries to find the meaning of the word
aionios
(translated “eternal” or “everlasting” in Matthew 25:46), one easily
could grasp the primary meaning of the word simply by noting two
contrasts that Paul made in two of his epistles. First, in 2 Corinthians
4:18, he indicated that the antithesis of the spiritual things that are
“eternal,” are the physical “things which...are
temporary (
proskaira)”
[viz., that which endures for a time or season]. Later, in his letter
to Philemon, he wrote that “perhaps” his servant Onesimus “departed for
a while” so that he (Philemon) “might receive him
forever” (Philemon 15). Paul suggested that perhaps Onesimus had abandoned his master for a season/hour (
horan),
so that their relationship might become one that prevailed in both this
life and in the unending life to come. In each of these passages, Paul
contrasted the temporary with the eternal—that which comes to an end,
with that which is unending.
Third, Bible translators obviously believed that
aionios denotes
duration, else surely they would have chosen to use English words other
than “everlasting” or “eternal” in their respective translations of
this Greek word. According to the fourth edition of
The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language,
the English word “everlasting” means exactly what it sounds like it
means: “1. Lasting forever; eternal. 2a. Continuing indefinitely or for a
long period of time,” and in its noun form, “eternal duration” (2000,
pp. 616-617). The word “eternal” is similarly defined: “1. Being without
beginning or end; existing outside of time.... 2. Continuing without
interruption; perpetual...” (p. 611; see also
Merriam-Webster’s definition of these words). Why have English Bible translators been translating
aionios
as “everlasting” or “eternal” for the past four centuries? Because they
understood that this word denotes duration, and specifically, when
dealing with the future state of the righteous and the wicked, an
unending, unceasing duration. Considering that the Greek words
aion and
aionios,
and the English words everlasting and eternal, all obviously signify
duration, one is bewildered as to how Smith could allege that in the
word eternal, “[i]n all of its many associations, there is not a single
hint of time” (p. 162). Talk about confusing apples with oranges!
Though Smith’s definition of eternal is troubling, his attempt at
explaining away Matthew 25:46 (in light of his doctrine of
annihilationism) is even more perplexing. Having just previously
indicated that “eternal” says
nothing about duration (pp. 162-163,174), he then proceeded to argue that “the Hebrew word
olam and the Greek word
aionios, both of which mean the same as ‘eternal’ ” (p. 174),
do
indicate some kind of duration, but not always an ongoing, unending
duration. He gave eight examples from the Old Testament where “eternal” (
olam)
means “all the days of life” [as when a servant pledged allegiance to
his master, had his ear pierced to the door, and was not discharged
as long as he lived (cf. Deuteronomy 15:17; see Gesenius, 1847, p. 612)]. He then connected Matthew 25, verses 41 and 46, to his discussion of
olam, saying:
So it is that when Jesus talks about the great dividing of the sheep
from the goats, and says of those on his left, “Depart from me, you who
are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his
angels,” the point is destination, not duration. Likewise,
when Jesus says, “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the
righteous to eternal life” (Matthew 25:41,46), he’s speaking of the
kind of punishment—namely destruction—which has everlasting consequences (p. 175, italics in orig.).
Such was Smith’s explanation of Matthew 25:46. At first, he alleged that “eternal” is
not about time (pp. 162-163,174). Then he alleged that it
was about time, though not always unending in its nature (p. 174). Finally, he stated that “eternal” is
not about duration, but destination (p. 175). To say the least, we find his reasoning extremely confusing.
When all of the evidence is considered, Smith’s comments regarding
Matthew 25:46 and the word “eternal” are nothing more than a tenuous
attempt to propagate an extremely dangerous doctrine. As we have
documented, “eternal”
does imply duration. Furthermore, simply because the Old Testament Hebrew word for eternal (
olam)
often involved an eventual ending, does not mean that “eternal” is to
be understood in that sense in every case in the New Testament (and
certainly not in Matthew 25:46).
Admittedly, there are instances in the Old Testament where the Hebrew word
olam
means something other than eternal (cf. Exodus 12:24; 29:9; 40:15;
Joshua 14:9). As Smith noted, the example of the slave who served his
master “forever” (Deuteronomy 15:17) does not mean he will serve him for
eternity. The context demands that we interpret the word
olam
(“forever”) in this verse (and numerous others in the Old Testament) to
mean something other than performing the action everlastingly (cf.
Exodus 40:15; Leviticus 16:34; 1 Chronicles 16:17). In this case of the
“eternal” slave,
olam was used to mean “as long as the slave lived on Earth.”
In other Old Testament passages, however, the Hebrew word for eternal clearly
is
used to mean unending in its duration. When Abraham called on the name
of the Lord (Genesis 21:33), He called on the “Eternal” (
olam)
God. The psalmist praised the God Who is “from everlasting to
everlasting” (90:2; cf. Micah 5:2), and Solomon, near the end of
Ecclesiastes, wrote of man’s place in the next life as being an “eternal
home” (12:5). When the psalmist wrote, “My days are like a shadow that
lengthens, and I wither away like grass. But You, oh Lord, shall endure
forever (
olam)” (Psalm 102:11-12), he quite obviously was
contrasting the shortness of human life with the duration of God’s
existence. The psalmist went on to say that God’s “years would have no
end” (Psalm 102:27). According to Daniel 12:2, “Many of those who sleep
in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting (
olam) life, some to shame and everlasting (
olam) contempt.”
Olam was used in these cases to convey the idea of eternal in
duration.
In fact, the
Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon gives the following definition for the word
olam:
(1) long duration, antiquity, futurity, for ever, ever, everlasting,
evermore, perpetual old, ancient, world; (1a) ancient time, long time
(of past); (1b) (of future); (1b1) forever, always; (1b2) continuous
existence, perpetual; (1b3) everlasting, indefinite or unending future,
eternity (see “
Owlam,” 1999).
Like so many words throughout Scripture that have more than one meaning,
olam and
aionios must be understood in light of the contexts in which they are found. Take, for example, the use of the word “day” (Hebrew
yom; Greek
hemera)
in Scripture. Depending on the context in which it is found, it can
mean: (1) the period opposite of night (Genesis 1:5); (2) a literal
24-hours (cf. Joshua 6:1-16); (3) a period of time in the future (not
necessarily a literal 24 hours—cf. Matthew 7:22; 2 Peter 3:10); or (4)
the total days of Creation (Genesis 2:4). When questions arise about the
kind of days experienced during the Creation week, one is compelled to
examine the specific context of Genesis 1. When he does, an overwhelming
amount of evidence points to these days being literal 24-hour days just
as we experience today. (Perhaps most noteworthy is the fact that each
of these days is described as having both an “evening” and a
“morning”—1:5,8,13,19,23,31.) Similarly, the word “eternal” also must be
understood in light of its immediate and remote contexts.
Although Smith saw fit to indoctrinate his readers on how the Hebrew word for eternal (
olam)
frequently is used to mean something other than eternal in duration, he
completely neglected to mention any of the numerous Old Testament
passages where
olam is used to mean a
literal forever (as
noted above—Genesis 21:33; Ecclesiastes 12:5; et al.). Why mention one
usage, but ignore the other? Furthermore, it seems quite inappropriate
for someone to comment on a
New Testament verse like Matthew 25:46 (originally written in
Greek), and basically deal only with how that corresponding
Hebrew word is used in the
Old Testament, all the while neglecting the overwhelming majority of instances in the New Testament where the word means “unending.”
The word
aionios is used seventy times throughout the New
Testament. Three times it is used to describe God’s eternal nature
(Romans 16:26; 1 Timothy 6:16; Hebrews 9:14). It is found over forty
times in the New Testament, in reference to the unending happiness of
the righteous (e.g., John 10:28; Romans 5:21; 6:23; 1 John 1:2). And
five times it is used in reference to the punishment of the wicked (cf. 2
Thessalonians 1:9; Jude 7). In Matthew 25:46, the word appears
twice—once in reference to “eternal punishment,” and once in reference
to “eternal life.” Simply put, if the punishment mentioned in this verse
is temporary, then so is heaven. Contextually, the two are linked. Just
as Jesus expected His disciples to understand heaven as a place of
permanent, unending happiness for conscious souls of people, He likewise
intended for them to understand hell as a place of permanent, unending
torment for conscious souls. The fact that Christ made a special point
of repeating
aionios in the same sentence requires that we stay
with the plain meaning of the word. Both heaven and hell will be eternal
(unending!) in duration.
Matthew 25:46 serves as a death knell to the theory of annihilationism.
Those who teach the limited duration of hell either refrain altogether
from commenting on this particular verse, or the comments they make,
like Smith’s, are disorderly and void of evidentiary support. In Homer
Hailey’s work on God’s judgments (in which half of the book was
dedicated specifically to defending the position that hell is not
eternal),
he never once gave a clear explanation of this verse.
The only comment he offered that might remotely be considered an
“explanation” of Matthew 25:46 is found on page 153, where it follows
immediately after his only quotation of this verse. Hailey wrote:
It is sometimes said that Jesus gave a full and accurate picture of
hell. Certainly, it was accurate, but it was not the complete teaching
on the subject. Much would be added by the Holy Spirit through Paul and
Peter, and through John in Revelation. The seven times Jesus used the
word Gehenna, He used it from the Jewish point of view. He left
the universal aspect of the subject to be revealed by the Holy Spirit
(2003, emp. in orig.).
Certainly the Holy Spirit inspired others to write on this subject. But
that does not mean that what Jesus said about “eternal punishment” is
wrong (or not worthy of comment). How can someone write a book titled
God’s Judgements & Punishments, yet never explain the Lord’s comments on “eternal punishment”?
Even after granting annihilationists the fact that
aionios can
extend at times beyond the meaning of duration, and also may be used on
occasion in a qualitative sense (see Guhrt, 1978, p. 832), as we have
already seen, “the temporal sense is rarely forfeited” (Carson, 1996, p.
523). First and foremost, the word has to do with
duration. Moreover, whenever
aion is brought into the discussion, the case against annihilationism is strengthened considerably. If God “lives for ever (
aion) and ever (
aion)”
(Revelation 1:18; 10:6; 15:7), and glory is to be given to Him “for
ever and ever” (Revelation 1:6; 4:9-10; 5:13; 7:12), and if the saved
“shall reign for ever and ever” with the Lord in heaven (Revelation
22:5), then the wicked assuredly “will be tormented day and night for
ever and ever” (Revelation 20:10; cf. Revelation 14:11). “Forever and
ever” is “the formula of eternity” (Vincent, 1889, 2:418). Without a
doubt, it denotes duration, even when describing the punishment of the
wicked in hell. As Moses Stuart concluded in his book,
Exegetical Essays on Several Words Relating to Future Punishment:
[I]f the Scriptures have not asserted the endless punishment of the
wicked, neither have they asserted the endless happiness of the
righteous, nor the endless glory and existence of the Godhead. The one
is equally certain with the other. Both are laid in the same balance.
They must be tried by the same tests. And if we give up the one, we
must, in order to be consistent, give up the other also (1830, p. 57).
TAKING COMPARISONS TO HELL TOO FAR
Sodom and Gomorrah
Another argument of the annihilationist goes something like this: (1)
Sodom and Gomorrah were burned to ashes, and were completely
annihilated; (2) in the New Testament, hell is likened to Sodom and
Gomorrah; thus (3) hell will not be eternal. Those who attempt to
explain away the Bible’s teaching on the eternality of hell are well
known for making such an argument. Immediately after quoting 2 Peter 2:6
and Jude 7, where the inspired writers compared the future judgment of
the unrighteous to the condemnation of Sodom and Gomorrah, F. LaGard
Smith asked if hell’s fire was indeed an “[e]ternal fire...that keeps on
burning its victims forever?” (p. 173). His answer:
Not if Sodom and Gomorrah are anything to go by. The fate of those two
abominable cities stands as the quintessential illustration of a consuming
fire. In the wake of that catastrophic fire—however long it
burned—nothing was left of the two cities, not even a trace! For anyone
still insisting that hell is all about ongoing torment in fire and
brimstone, serious thought needs to be given to a specific day in
history when fire and brimstone literally rained down on the wicked.
To be sure, there would have been suffering in the process—undoubtedly
even some “weeping and gnashing of teeth.” But their suffering would not
have lasted long (p. 173, emp. in orig.).
Two pages later, he stated matter of factly: “ ‘Eternal punishment’
will no more be punishment throughout an endless eternity than was the
immediate, devastating punishment suffered by the people of Sodom and
Gomorrah” (p. 175). Is Smith right? Will the destruction of those in
hell after the Judgment be exactly like the one-time physical
annihilation of Sodom and Gomorrah?
What Smith and others who hold to the theory of annihilationism seem to
forget is that analogies are meant to be carried only so far. When
Jesus compared His disciples to sheep (John 10), He obviously did not
mean that His followers are the most senseless people on Earth. Rather,
He was stressing that His disciples are dependent upon Him to direct
their paths in the way of righteousness, just as sheep are dependent
upon the leadership of a shepherd to keep them from harm. Biblical
comparisons that are pressed beyond their intended design produce
needless (and sometimes dangerous) misunderstandings of Scripture. Those
who teach that the command in the parable of the tares to allow both
the wheat and the tares to “grow together until the harvest” (Matthew
13:30) somehow prevents the church from exercising discipline upon
wayward members, have overextended Jesus’ parable. Such an
interpretation stands at odds with what Jesus and Paul taught elsewhere
(cf. Matthew 18:15-17; 1 Corinthians 5:1-13; 2 Thessalonians 3:6,14-15).
Likewise, those who point to the earthly comparisons that Jesus and the
inspired writers made with the ultimate punishment of the unrighteous
in hell have carried the analogies too far.
The physical punishment that Sodom and Gomorrah suffered for their heinous sins was destruction of their
physical
lives. “The Lord rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah...out
of the heavens” (Genesis 18:24). For the next 2,000 years, this unique
fiery judgment served as a constant reminder to the descendants of
Abraham of God’s hatred toward sin. Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos, and
Zephaniah all reminded their Hebrew brethren of this devastating event,
as they communicated God’s wrath upon sinners. It seems only natural
then, that when Jesus and the apostles and prophets of the first century
chose to illustrate the spiritual “everlasting destruction” (2
Thessalonians 1:9) of the souls of the unrighteous in hell, they
compared it to the infamous physical destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
The devastating event that had occurred over 2,000 years earlier was one
of the best
earthly examples that God’s messengers could use to
convey the idea of the type of judgment, pain, and suffering that
eventually would be brought upon the unrighteous.
The comparison of Sodom and Gomorrah’s temporal destruction with that
which the souls of the unrighteous will experience spiritually in hell
was meant to be about the
type of judgment and punishment suffered, not the
duration of
the punishment. Like the judgment of the immoral citizens of these two
cities of old, the eventual punishment upon all of the unrighteous will
be final, deliberate, devastating, and hot—like the fire and brimstone
that devastated the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah. However, whenever
spiritual truths are illustrated using earthly examples there are
limitations—at least two of which are apparent in this instance. First,
unlike the kind of fire that burned in Sodom and Gomorrah, which caused
excruciating
physical pain to those who dwelt in those cities, the “fire” of hell will torment
spiritual
bodies (cf. Luke 16:24). It obviously will be a different kind of
“fire” than what we see upon the Earth, because heaven and hell are not
physical places, but spiritual. Second, and perhaps most important, the
New Testament explicitly teaches that the fiery destruction of the
unrighteous in hell differs from that of Sodom and Gomorrah in that the
flames of hell will burn forever. Whereas “Sodom...was overthrown
in a moment”
by fire (Lamentations 4:6, emp. added), the fire and destruction of
hell is described in the New Testament as “unquenchable” (three
times—Matthew 3:12; Mark 9:43,48) and as “eternal” (six times—Matthew
18:8; 25:41,46; Mark 3:29; 2 Thessalonians 1:9; Jude 7). If the Bible
nowhere used such terminology to describe the punishment of the wicked
in hell, then we might come to the same conclusion Smith and others have
in regard to the annihilation of the wicked. The truth of the matter,
however, is that God conspicuously and purposefully revealed the
significant difference between the type of
temporary flames that consumed Sodom and Gomorrah, and the
unending
flames that burn in hell, by using such terms as “eternal” and
“unquenchable.” Jesus even used the term “eternal” in reference to hell
in the same sentence He used the word to describe heaven (Matthew
25:46). How much clearer could He have made it that heaven and hell are
both eternal in duration? If God wanted to get across to mankind that
hell is a place of everlasting torment, what else should He have done
than what He did?
But someone might ask, “How is ‘eternal’ used in Jude 7 in reference to
the punishment of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah if their punishment
was simply temporary? Is the word ‘eternal’ used in a different sense in
this passage?” Although Sodom and Gomorrah’s “suffering...of eternal
fire” (Jude 7) is used by proponents of the theory of annihilationism to
assert that the wicked will not suffer forever in hell, “the term
‘suffering’ (
hupechousai—literally to ‘hold under’) is a
present-tense participle, which asserts that the ancient citizens of the
twin cities were suffering
at the time that this letter was penned.
The ‘eternal fire’ was not that which was rained upon Sodom and
Gomorrah, but that into which they entered at death to suffer eternally”
(Jackson, 2003, 39:30, emp. in orig.; see also Hiebert, 1989, p. 239).
The immoral inhabitants of these cities suffered a one-time physical
death by fire, and currently are suffering in torment while awaiting
their sentence to hell (cf. Luke 16:19-31).
Additional evidence from Jude shows that the example of Sodom and
Gomorrah was in no way intended to be construed to teach
annihilationism. Within the immediate context of the passage, after
mentioning Sodom and Gomorrah, the inspired Jude said: “Likewise also
these dreamers...” (vs. 8). He next recorded a compendium of sins of
which “these dreamers” were guilty. Then, in verse 13, just six verses
from the statements concerning the wicked twin cities, Jude commented
that these sinners were “wandering stars for whom is reserved
the blackness of darkness forever”
(emp. added). His point was clear: just as the inhabitants of Sodom and
Gomorrah once suffered earthly destruction, and were at present
enduring continuing punishment (as evinced by the present-tense
participle), those wicked men during the time of Jude could look forward
to the same darkness and punishment for no less time than “forever.”
Chaff, Tares, and Withered Branches
Other biblical comparisons to the punishment of the wicked that some
offer as proof of its temporality include the chaff mentioned by John
the Baptizer (Matthew 3:11-12), as well as the tares and the withered
vine branches discussed by Jesus (Matthew 13:24-30,36-43; John 15:1-10).
Allegedly, since all three of these combustible components “burn up”
when cast into fire, rather than burn continually, then there is no
existence for any wicked soul beyond that of being “burned up.” After
expounding on these three illustrations of hell, Homer Hailey asked (in a
chapter he wrote titled “Examples of Eternal Punishments”): “Considered
strictly from the words of Jesus, and what He intended to teach,
is there anything
in these figures from which we can conclude that one who is cast into
the fire continues consciousness or suffers beyond the point of having
been burned up?” (p. 144, emp. added).
Although Hailey meant for this to be a rhetorical question with the “obvious” answer being “no,”
there is something that indicates the punishment continues forever and ever; John said that Jesus “will burn up the chaff with
unquenchable (asbesto) fire”
(Matthew 3:12, emp. added). This fire differs from that of normal
flames in that it is perpetual. Greek lexicographers Danker, Arndt, and
Gingrich defined
asbestos as “inextinguishable” fire, and then listed “eternal” (
aionios;
Matthew 18:8; 25:41) as its closest synonym (2000, p. 141). If the
wicked are annihilated in hell, one is forced to ask what possible
purpose “unquenchable fire” serves? Why have an “inextinguishable” fire
for “extinguishable” souls? Why should the fire burn forever if its
purpose
comes to an end? Furthermore, since Jesus used the word “unquenchable,”
it is evident that His parallels to physical materials burning were
incomplete, and needed to be qualified in order for His point to be
communicated.
A second thought regarding the three above-mentioned comparisons to
hell is that “their illustrative value, in terms of punishment, is
limited. They are strictly material objects; human beings are not!”
(Jackson, 2003, 39:30). Any physical example that inspired men used to
give their audience a glimpse into the future punishment of the wicked
fails to give an adequate picture of the unending
duration of
hell. Obviously, the duration of hell is not what John and Jesus
attempted to illustrate with those particular analogies. Furthermore, if
the punishment of the wicked is not eternal, because the chaff, tares,
and withered vine branches to which this punishment is compared are not
eternal, then pray tell, will the righteous be annihilated as well?
After all, in the parable of the tares, the wheat represented the
righteous, whom Jesus said “will shine forth
as the sun” in
heaven (Matthew 13:43, emp. added). If the Sun is a physical object that
will be extinguished when Jesus returns, then, using the “logic” of
annihilationists, shouldn’t the righteous be annihilated as well? Peter
wrote:
The heavens and the earth...are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. ...The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved,
what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which
the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?
Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a
new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:7,10-13, emp. added).
Since all that are in the physical heavens
(including the Sun) “will
be dissolved” at the coming of the day of God, and since the kingdom of
heaven will be illuminated by the glory of God instead of the Sun
(Revelation 21:23; 22:5), then clearly when Jesus compared the souls of
the righteous to the Sun, He was not referring to the Sun’s temporary
existence in the heavens. The eventual
extinction of the Sun was
not the point of comparison with the righteous. The comparison is of the
Sun’s “brilliance and splendor” (Lenski, 1943, p. 540), which the
saints will acquire from “the glory of God” (Revelation 21:23) after
being separated from those who will be cast “into outer darkness” (cf.
Matthew 22:13; 25:30). In contrast to the righteous who will “reign
forever and ever” in the presence of the Lamb (Revelation 22:5), the wicked will burn “day and night
forever and ever” (Revelation 20:10) in “the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41).
Gehenna
A final picture of the wicked’s punishment can be derived from an understanding of the Greek word
gehenna.
This word appears twelve times in the New Testament, and literally
means “Valley of the Sons of Hinnom” (Danker, et al., 2000, p. 191)—the
name given to the valley south of the walls of Jerusalem. This valley
was notoriously connected to the sinful, horrific practice of child
sacrifice associated with the pagan god Molech. Josiah, the righteous
king of Judah, in his efforts to restore true worship, ransacked the
pagan worship arena and “defiled Topheth, which is the Valley of the Son
of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter pass through
the fire to Molech” (2 Kings 23:10; cf. 2 Chronicles 28:3; 33:6). As a
result, the valley became a refuse dump for discarding filth, dead
animals, and other garbage (see Jeremiah 7:32).
Allegedly, since all that was thrown into this earthly model of hell
was “ultimately consumed” (see Smith, 2003, p. 176), then the wicked who
will be cast into “hell fire” (Matthew 5:22) likewise will be
annihilated. This is yet another comparison to hell that has been
pressed beyond its intended design. The
length of time in which humans, animals, and garbage burned in the valley of Gehenna is
not the
emphasis of the comparison. The burning dump in the valley of Gehenna
served as a great example of what hell will be like for the damned,
because it had been a place of
fiery torment in the days when children were
tortured by fire
in the idolatrous worship of Molech. It then was decimated and polluted
by King Josiah so as to make it an undesirable place to live, work, or
perform religious ceremonies, even for the heathens. Jews associated
this place with sin and suffering, which “led to the application of its
name, in the Greek form of it, to the place of final and eternal
punishment” (McGarvey, 1875, p. 55).
One must recognize that no earthly example can ever perfectly parallel
“eternal punishment,” because nothing physical lasts forever. Every
earthly example that gives mankind some insight into the hideousness of
hell, falls short in this aspect. That which once burned in the valley
of Gehenna has been consumed. The burning fire of this repugnant valley
has long been quenched. Hell’s fire, on the other hand, “shall never be
quenched” (Mark 9:43), the figurative “worm” that eats on the flesh of
hell’s inhabitants “does not die” (Mark 9:48), and the wicked who find
themselves in hell (due to their rejection of the grace of God) “shall
suffer the punishment of
eternal destruction” (2 Thessalonians 1:9, emp. added, RSV).
In many of the instances in which a physical example is given to
illustrate the horrors of hell, it is of extreme interest that Jesus and
the inspired writers added descriptive words like “unquenchable” and
“eternal” to denote the difference between the physical illustration and
the spiritual reality of the future spiritual punishment.
http://www.apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=11&article=1474&topic=354
____________________________________________________________________________
PART 2
he Eternality of Hell [Part II]
[EDITOR’S NOTE:
Part I of this two-part series appeared in the
January issue. Part II follows below, and continues, without introductory comments, where the first article ended.]
DOES DESTRUCTION IMPLY ANNIHILATION?
According to F. LaGard Smith, “The primary scriptural cornerstone for the case [for the annihilation of the wicked—EL/KB]
is Matthew 10:28” (2003, p. 167). Since Jesus told His disciples, “Do
not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But, rather,
fear Him who is able to
destroy both soul and body in hell”
(Matthew 10:28), His statement supposedly proves that hell is merely a
picture of complete extermination of the souls of the wicked.
Annihilationists, including both Seventh-Day Adventists and Jehovah’s
Witnesses, have (mis)used Matthew 10:28 for centuries to propagate their
error. In his book,
After Life, Smith cites this particular
verse more than any other verse from Scripture. Surely, annihilationists
allege, Jesus would not have employed the word “destroy” in this verse
if He did not mean extermination.
The phrase “to destroy” in Matthew 10:28 is derived from the Greek word
apollumi,
which is used 92 times in the New Testament. It is translated by such
terms as perish, destroy, lose, and lost. While it is true that
occasionally
apollumi is used to mean death (Matthew 2:13; 8:25;
26:52), most often it simply signifies the idea of suffering a loss of
well-being and the loss of being blessed. In Luke 15, Jesus spoke of the
shepherd’s lone sheep that was “lost” (
apollumi), but not annihilated (vs. 6). In that same chapter, He told of the father’s prodigal son who was “lost” (
apollumi),
not extinguished (vss. 24,32). The wineskins of which Christ spoke in
Matthew 9:17 did not pass into nonexistence, but were “ruined” (
apollumi).
Jesus did not come to seek and to save those who did not exist; rather
He came to save those who were alive physically, but ruined spiritually
by sin [i.e., lost (
apollumi)—Luke 19:10]. Paul stated that the Gospel is “veiled to those who are perishing” (
apollumi) in sin, not to those who are exterminated by sin. Considering the fact that even when
apollumi
is used to mean “death” (Matthew 2:13; 8:25; 26:52), total annihilation
of the person is not under consideration (for the soul still would be
alive). Therefore, one can rightly conclude that there is not a single
instance in the New Testament where
apollumi means “annihilation”
in the strictest sense of the word. The Scriptures clearly teach that
those who, at Judgment, will be “destroyed” because of their wickedness,
will be like the “beast” who will “go to perdition” (
apoleia,
Revelation 17:8,11) in “the lake of fire and brimstone,” where they will
be, not annihilated, but “tormented day and night forever and ever”
(Revelation 17:8,11; 20:10). “Destruction” does not equal
“annihilation.”
Respected Greek scholars also disagree with the annihilationist’s
position that the Greek term underlying our English word “destroy” in
Matthew 10:28 means “annihilation.” W.E. Vine, in his
Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words,
explained: “The idea is not extinction but ruin, loss, not of being,
but of well-being” (1940, 1:302). Specifically, in regard to Matthew
10:28, he stated: “of the loss of well-being in the case of the unsaved
hereafter” (1:302). A.T. Robertson added: “ ‘Destroy’ here is not
annihilation, but eternal punishment in Gehenna” (1930, 1:83). In the
Theological Dictionary of the New Testament,
professor Albrecht Oepke commented on the meaning of destroy, stating
that it is “definitive destruction, not merely in the sense of
extinction of physical existence, but rather of an eternal plunge” into
Hell (1964, 1:396). Lexicographer Joseph Thayer agreed with these
assessments, saying that “destroy” in Matthew 10:28 means
“metaphorically, to devote or give over to eternal misery” (1962, p.
64). [NOTE: Considering that the publisher’s
introduction to the fourth edition of Thayer’s lexicon indicates “Thayer
was a Unitarian” who denied such things as “the eternal punishment of
the wicked” (p. vii), it is logical to conclude that his definition of
apollumi could only be the result of an informed knowledge of the word’s true meaning.]
Even when we use the word “destroy” in modern times, frequently
something other than annihilation is intended. Suppose a married couple
involved in a violent car wreck survived the accident and returned to
the scene the next day with a newspaper reporter to see the wreckage. If
the couple spoke of their badly mangled car as being “destroyed,” would
anyone think that the newspaper reporter would be justified in writing a
story about how the couple’s car allegedly “went out of existence”
during the wreck? To ask is to answer. When a sports journalist covers a
high school basketball game and writes about the Clearwater Cats
“destroying” the Blue Horn Bombers, will any person even slightly
familiar with the English language understand “destroy” in the article
literally to mean “annihilate”? Certainly not. Even in
twenty-first-century English, “to destroy” frequently means something
other than “to exterminate.”
In the well-known parallel text to Matthew 10:28, Luke recorded: “My
friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that
have no more that they can do. But I will show you whom you should fear:
Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to
cast into hell;
yes, I say to you, fear Him!” (Luke 12:4-5, emp. added). To be destroyed
is equivalent to being cast into hell. Since the New Testament
indicates that hell is the place of “everlasting fire” (Matthew 25:41)
“that shall never be quenched” (Mark 9:43, 48), and is the future abode
of the wicked where they will suffer “everlasting punishment” (Matthew
25:46), we can know that to be destroyed in hell (Matthew 10:28) is
equivalent to suffering eternal misery.
Paul used the unique phrase “eternal destruction” in his second letter
to the church at Thessalonica (1:9). The Greek word translated
“destruction” in this verse, however, is
olethros, not
apollumi.
Olethros
appears a total of four times in the New Testament, three of which
refer to the “destruction” of those who rebel against God (1
Thessalonians 5:3; 2 Thessalonians 1:9; 1 Timothy 6:9). Like
apollumi,
olethros does not connote annihilation. In 1 Timothy 6:9, Paul used
olethros
to describe the miserable spiritual condition of those who lust after
riches. These individuals were not annihilated, but were in a state of
“ruin” (NASV, RSV, NIV) because they had “strayed from the faith” (vs. 10). Regarding the appearance of
olethros
in 1 Thessalonians 5:3, Gary Workman asked: “[I]f the fate of the
ungodly is sudden annihilation at the second coming of Christ (1 Thess.
5:3), how are they going to stand before his seat? (2 Cor. 5:10)” [1992,
23:32]. Furthermore, “[S]ince that destruction is ‘sudden,’ there could
not be any torment at all—which is contrary to Bible teaching” (p. 32).
In fact, in 2 Thessalonians 1:9
[t]he expression “everlasting destruction” is used in apposition to
“suffer punishment” (literally meaning, “to experience just payment”). A
part of the “deserved” aspect is that of “affliction.” Note that verse 6
says “...God considers it just to repay with affliction those who
afflict you....” “Affliction” implies conscious suffering; it stands in
opposition to the concept of annihilation.... As Gerstner observed:
“Extermination is not affliction; it is the prevention of affliction”
(Jackson, 2003a, 39:31).
There simply is no solid evidence to justify interpreting “eternal destruction” as “annihilation.” Paul used
olethros
in this verse to mean “the loss of a life of blessedness after death,
future misery,” not extermination (Thayer, 1962, p. 443; cf. Wuest,
1973, p. 41). The wicked face “
eternal ruin
DOES DEATH IMPLY ANNIHILATION?
Throughout the New Testament, the fires of hell are depicted as being
the “second death.” The picture painted in Revelation 20 tells of a
burning lake of fire into which the devil and all his cohorts will be
cast, including wicked humans whose names are not written in the Book of
Life. Verse 14 of chapter 20 declares: “Then Death and Hades were cast
into the lake of fire. This is the second death.” The inspired writer
James remarked that if one of the brethren turns away from Christ, then
if someone turns the wayward brother back, he will “save a soul from
death” (James 5:20). James’ statement speaks directly to the fact that
the sinning soul is destined for spiritual death. In John 6, Jesus
described Himself as the bread that came down from heaven. Those who eat
this “living” bread will “live forever” and not die (John 6:48-51,58).
All who will not eat this living bread will die. Jesus’ comments here
clearly refer to the second death in hell.
What Does the Word “Death” Mean?
All those involved in the debate of afterlife issues understand that
hell is called the second death, and that a person’s soul is said to die
in hell. But what does the word
death actually mean? Those who advocate annihilationism have put forth the idea that the word
death must mean “to go out of existence.” Along these lines, Smith wrote:
Those whose names are found written in the book [of life—EL/KB]
will inherit life with God forever. For those whose names are missing,
there is no lasting life whatsoever, tormented or otherwise. Only death.
The second and final death.... As the greater weight of scriptural
evidence indicates, the only option is eternal life versus eternal
death. Blessed existence versus non-existence (pp. 189,190).
From statements peppered throughout his book, and especially from the
final two parallel sentences in this quotation, it is obvious that Smith
defines the word
death as nonexistence.
In truth, however, the concept of death as used in the Bible does not
mean non-existence, but rather “separation.” In regard to physical
death, it refers to the separation of the soul from the physical body.
In regard to spiritual death, in connotes separation of the soul from
God.
The
Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon gives the following primary definition of the Greek word that is translated “death” (
thanatos):
“(1) the death of the body (1a) that separation (whether natural or
violent) of the soul and the body by which life on earth is ended” (see “
Thanatos,”
1999). The fact that physical death is viewed in the Bible as
separation is evident from several Scriptures. The inspired writer James
offered a clear picture of this idea of death when he wrote: “For as
the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead
also” (James 2:26). According to James, faith separated from works is a
dead faith, in the same way that a body which is separated from the soul
is a dead body. Notice that a body separated from a soul is not a
nonexistent body. On the contrary, the body still exists and lies
lifeless, but is separated from the soul and thus presumed to be dead.
The narrative describing Rachel’s death in Genesis provides further
evidence that the Bible depicts physical death as the separation of the
soul from the body. As Rachel was giving birth to Benjamin, her labor
became so intense that her life was in danger. The text reads: “Now it
came to pass, when she was in hard labor, that the midwife said to her,
‘Do not fear; you will have this son also.’ And so it was, as
her soul was departing (for she
died), that she called his name Ben-Oni; but his father called him Benjamin. So Rachel
died
and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem)” [Genesis
35:17-19, emp. added]. Rachel’s death occurred when her soul departed
(i.e., leaving her physical body). Her body continued to exist for some
time and was buried, but it was recognized as a
dead body as soon
as it was separated from Rachel’s soul, not when the body eventually
decayed in the tomb. Here again, the biblical picture of death revolves
around the concept of separation, not nonexistence.
Luke 8 contains additional evidence that separation of the soul and
physical body is the actual meaning of physical death. Jairus came to
Jesus pleading for the life of his sick daughter. While en route to the
house, someone came from Jairus’ house, explaining that the girl had
already died. Jesus encouraged Jairus not to doubt, and continued toward
the house. Arriving at the ruler’s house, Jesus sent everyone out
except Peter, James, John, and the parents of the child. He approached
the child’s dead body, took her hand and said, “Little girl, arise.”
Immediately after this comment, the text states: “Then her spirit
returned, and she arose immediately” (Luke 8:40-55). Note that both the
girl’s body and her spirit existed at the time Jesus entered the room.
Her body, however, was dead because her spirit had departed from it.
When her spirit returned to her body, it was made alive again. Once
more, the biblical text presents the idea that the concept of death is
not one of nonexistence, but of separation.
John 19:30 offers another example that establishes physical death as
separation of the soul and body. In the final moments of Christ’s life
during the crucifixion, after all of the prophecies had been fulfilled,
Christ cried, “It is finished.” Immediately following this last cry, the
Lord bowed His head, and “He gave up His Spirit.” At this point, when
His soul departed from His body, He was dead. Joseph and Nicodemus
buried the dead (still existent) body of Christ in a new tomb, while the
soul of Christ had departed.
Even after looking at these several biblical examples, some
annihilationists might continue to argue that physical death still means
“nonexistence,” because those who die no longer exist in the physical
world. But notice
what the Bible describes as dead—
the body.
James stated that “the body without the spirit is dead.” The body
continues to exist for some time, but is said to be dead immediately
when the soul leaves it. And the spirit is
not said to be “dead.”
While the idea that physical death is defined by separation and not
nonexistence is clear from the Bible, the idea that spiritual death is
defined by a soul’s separation from God and not by a soul’s nonexistence
is even more clearly set forth in Scripture. In Paul’s letter to the
Ephesians, he wrote: “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses
and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this
world.... But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with
which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive
together with Christ...” (Ephesians 2:1-2,4-5). When the Ephesians
committed sins in their unsaved condition, they were described as
“dead.” Obviously, however, they were not nonexistent. Instead, they
were separated from God by those sins. In fact, verse twelve of the same
chapter says that during their time of sinfulness, they were “without
Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from
the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.”
The Ephesians were spiritually dead in their sins. This spiritual death
was a separation from God, Christ, and hope, yet it was
not a
state of nonexistence. In chapter 4 of the same epistle, Paul told the
brethren that they should “no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles
walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding
darkened, being alienated from the life of God” (Ephesians 4:17-18). The
sinful Gentiles described here were in the same state of spiritual
death the Ephesians were in prior to their becoming Christians. That
death was an alienation (or separation) from the life of God, yet, here
again, it was not a state of nonexistence.
The inspired apostle Paul also wrote to Christians in Colossae,
declaring, “And you, being dead in your trespasses and the
uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him,
having forgiven you all trespasses” (Colossians 2:13). Paul obviously
did not mean that the Colossians had been physically dead in their sins.
Neither did he intend to assert the nonsensical idea that at one time,
while they were sinning, their souls were in a state of nonexistence. On
the contrary, their souls existed, but were separated from God because
of their sins, and thus they were labeled as dead. The Old Testament
prophet Isaiah explained this principle clearly when he wrote: “Behold,
the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear
heavy, that it cannot hear, but your iniquities have
separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear” (Isaiah 59:1-2, emp. added).
Paul presents very clearly in 1 Timothy 5:6 the concept that spiritual
death is separation from God, not nonexistence. In this chapter, Paul
instructed the young Timothy about which widows should receive
assistance from the church treasury. In his discussion, Paul mentioned
widows who trusted in God and continued in prayer. He contrasted those
widows with one who “lives in pleasure” or indulgence of the flesh.
Concerning such a widow, he wrote: “But she who lives in pleasure is
dead while she lives.” As is the case throughout the New Testament,
individuals who live in sin are considered spiritually dead. They are
referred to as dead by the Holy Spirit because they have separated
themselves from God via their sin. The sinning widow continued to exist
physically, and her soul continued to exist, yet she was called dead.
The biblical picture of spiritual death is not one of nonexistence, but
one of a miserable existence separated from God.
The antithesis of death is “life” (
zoe). As we have seen from numerous passages, one way that the word
life
is used in the Bible is to describe the state in which the physical
body is joined or connected to the soul of a person. Furthermore,
spiritual
life, the opposite of spiritual
death, is used
in the New Testament to describe the condition in which a separated soul
is brought back to, and joined with, its Creator. Paul described this
condition when he wrote: “And you, who once were alienated and enemies
in your mind by wicked works,
yet now He has reconciled in the
body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and
irreproachable in His sight” (Colossians 1:21-22, emp. added). Sin
alienates a person from God and leads to spiritual death. God, through
Christ, allows those dead, separated souls to be cleansed of that sin
and have spiritual life, which reconciles them to Him. That is why John
wrote: “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God
does not have life” (1 John 5:12).
It is evident, then, from a close look at the Scriptures that the word
death
does not mean a state of nonexistence—either in the physical realm or
the spiritual realm. The Bible describes bodies that were dead, yet
still very much in existence. The inspired record describes individuals
who were spiritually dead, yet existing in that dead condition
nonetheless. The misguided ploy to define “the second death” (Revelation
20:11; 20:6,14; 21:8) as a state of nonexistence is merely a failed
attempt to avoid the actual meaning of the biblical text. The second
death describes nothing more (or less) than the total separation of
wicked, unsaved souls from the God Who created them.
Of all those wicked people who will ask “in that day” (i.e., the Day of
Judgment), “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out
demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?” (Matthew
7:22), Jesus, the righteous Judge (John 5:22; 2 Timothy 4:8), will
declare (sentencing them to a second death), “I never knew you;
depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matthew 7:23, emp. added). Of those evil people who neglect the needy, He will say, “
Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41, emp. added).
“Eternal destruction” awaits those who are cast away “
from the
presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power” (2 Thessalonians
1:9, emp. added). As both Jesus and the apostle Paul declared, the
second death is not annihilation, but eternal separation “from the
presence of the Lord.” Death in no way implies a state of nonexistence.
HOW CAN A LOVING GOD PUNISH PEOPLE ETERNALLY?
It seems obvious that the idea of annihilationism did not originate
from a straightforward reading of the biblical text. After looking at
the way biblical verses must be bent, stretched, ripped out of context,
and twisted to support the concept of annihilationism, one cannot help
but wonder why this idea is so attractive to certain well-educated
individuals. While we do not have the space here to examine all of the
reasons for the acceptance of this false doctrine, one very pertinent
motive for accepting annihilationism does surface regularly in the
writings and lectures of those who adhere to annihilationism
In April 1988, while speaking on the subject of “A Christian Response
to the New Age Movement” at the annual Pepperdine University lectures in
Malibu, California, F. LaGard Smith asked the members of his audience:
I also wonder if you feel as uncomfortable as I do in our traditional
view of hell. Do you readily accept the traditional view of hell that
says God sort of dangles you over the fires that burn day and night?...
Is that what hell is all about? Haven’t you struggled with the idea of
how there can be a loving God and anywhere in his presence permit that
to exist? Doesn’t it seem like cruel and unusual punishment? (1988).
Notice his line of reasoning. Smith is “uncomfortable” with the
“traditional view” of hell. What does he suggest has caused this
cognitive dissonance on his part? He states that eternal punishment in
hell seems (to him) like “cruel and unusual punishment.” Smith does not
believe that a “loving God” could permit eternal torture of impenitent
sinners. Fifteen years later, in his book,
After Life, Smith was
even more assertive in his view that God is “not a twisted, cruel God
who tortures the wicked, dangling them over licking flames” (p. 183). Do
not miss his point. According to Smith,
if God punishes the wicked eternally in a flaming fire (rather than annihilating them), then God is both “twisted” and “cruel.”
Smith’s complaints bear a striking resemblance to the countless attacks
that have been made upon the God of the Bible by skeptics and infidels.
The renowned agnostic, Bertrand Russell, once stated:
There is one very serious defect to my mind in Christ’s moral
character, and that is that He believed in hell. I do not myself feel
that any person who is really profoundly humane can believe in
everlasting punishment (1957, p. 17).
Russell’s self-defined sense of humanness balked at the idea of an
everlasting punishment, which he offered as one of his primary reasons
for rejecting Christ (since Jesus taught on an everlasting hell).
Russell further noted:
Christ certainly, as depicted in the Gospels, did believe in
everlasting punishment, and one does find repeatedly a vindictive fury
against those people who would not listen to His preaching.... I really
do not think that a person with a proper degree of kindliness in his
nature would have put fears and terrors of that sort into the world.... I
must say that I think all this doctrine, that hell-fire is a punishment
for sin, is a doctrine of cruelty. It is a doctrine that put cruelty
into the world and gave the world generations of cruel torture; and the
Christ of the Gospels, if you could take Him as His chroniclers
represent Him, would certainly have to be considered partly responsible
for that (pp. 17-18).
Smith and Russell both “feel” that there exists an irreconcilable moral
dilemma between a loving God and an eternal Hell. Due to this belief,
Russell felt compelled to reject
the Christ of the gospel
accounts Who forcefully presents, to any unbiased reader, the idea of an
eternal hell. On the other hand, Smith, not willing to reject the
Christ of the Gospel, rejects the
eternal hell presented in the
New Testament. Both have rejected a facet of New Testament teaching
based on a subjectively perceived moral dilemma.
That dilemma, however, has been created more from a sense of emotional
discomfort than from an honest study of the Bible and God. As J.P.
Moreland accurately stated when questioned about the eternality of
conscious punishment, many people “tend to evaluate whether it’s
[eternal punishment—EL/KB] appropriate, based on
their feelings or emotional offense to it” (as quoted in Strobel, 2000,
p. 172). He went on to state: “The basis for their evaluation should be
whether hell is a morally just or morally right state of affairs, not
whether they like or dislike the concept” (p. 172). The alleged moral
dilemma presented by Smith and Russell is one that is based on emotions,
not on accurate assessments of morality and justice. Upon further
investigation, there proves to be no dilemma at all. Allow us to
explain.
God is Love
It would be extremely difficult for a person to read the Bible and miss
the fact that God is described as a loving and caring Creator. In 1
John 4:7-8, the writer declared that love issues directly from God and
that, in fact, “God
is love.” First John 4:16 states: “And we
have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and
he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.” Throughout the
Scriptures, God’s love for His creatures is repeated time and time
again. One of the most familiar passages of Scripture, known even to the
masses, is John 3:16, which declares: “For God so loved the world that
He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not
perish but have everlasting life.”
It is here, however, that a very important point must be made. Our
“politically correct” society has influenced many people to believe that
a loving person would never cause harm or discomfort to the object of
his love. In an interview with Lee Strobel, J.P. Moreland addressed this
issue when he observed:
Yes, God is a compassionate being, but he’s also a just, moral, and
pure being. So God’s decisions are not based on modern American
sentimentalism.... People today tend to care only for the softer virtues
like love and tenderness, while they’ve forgotten the hard virtues of
holiness, righteousness, and justice (as quoted in Strobel, p. 174).
What does the Bible mean when it says that “God is love”? In today’s
society, the concept of love quite often is misunderstood. Many people
seem to think that a “loving person” is one who always tries to keep
others out of
every pain or discomfort. Punishment often is
looked upon as an “unloving” thing to do. But that is not the case. In
fact, a loving person sometimes will
cause pain to others in
order to accomplish a greater good. For instance, suppose a mother tells
her 4-year-old son to stop putting the hair dryer into his little
sister’s bath water, but the child continues his mischievous and
dangerous activity? Is it not likely that the boy will be punished?
Maybe he will get a swift swat on the leg, or have to sit in the corner
of a room. The physical pain or mental discomfort inflicted on the child
is for his own good and/or the good of his sister. This mother loves
her children, but still punishes them. In fact, the Proverbs writer
stated that a parent who
does not discipline his/her child (which includes corporal punishment) simply
does not love that child (Proverbs 13:24; cf. 22:15; 23:13-14; 29:15).
God is Just
God is hardly a one-sided Being. He has many different attributes that
need to be considered. Yes, one of those attributes is His love. But
another is His justice. Psalm 89:14 states that “righteousness and
justice” are the foundation of God’s throne. Deuteronomy 32:3-4
declares: “For I proclaim the name of the Lord: ascribe greatness to our
God. He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice,
a God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He.”
What is justice? Justice is the principle that crime must be punished.
It is not difficult to recognize justice. Suppose a certain judge in a
large U.S. city let every murderer walk away from his courtroom without
any punishment. Even though many of the murderers had killed several
people in cold blood, the judge would just wave his hand, pat the
murderer on the shoulder, and say something like, “I am feeling very
loving and generous today, so you are free to go without any
punishment.” The judge obviously would not be administering justice, and
he should promptly be relieved of his position. In the same way, if God
did not provide punishment for the sinful actions that humans commit,
then justice could not be the foundation of His throne.
It can be shown, then, that a loving person could punish those that he
loves, and that justice demands that some type of punishment or penalty
must be endured or paid for actions that break the law. But the problem
still remains that
eternal punishment seems to some to be too harsh and permanent to come from a loving God.
There is one other principle of justice that needs attention at this
juncture. Punishment almost always lasts longer than the actual crime.
When a gunman walks into a bank, shoots two tellers, robs the bank, and
is successfully apprehended, tried, and found guilty, his punishment is
of a much longer duration than his crime. The actual shooting and
looting might have taken only three minutes to accomplish, but he most
likely will pay for those three minutes by spending the remainder of his
life in prison. Those who contend that hell will not be eternal say
that forever is “too long.” But once a person concedes that punishment
can (and generally does!) last longer than the crime, his argument
against an eternal hell becomes self-defeating. Once a person admits
that the punishment can last longer than the crime, it is simply a
matter of who gets to decide how long the punishment should be.
Skeptics, infidels, and others admit that punishment can be longer than
the crime, but then they contest that “forever” is too long. Who says
forever is too long? Would a hundred years be too long to punish a child
molester? What about two hundred? It soon becomes obvious that
determinations of “too long” are arbitrarily made by those (like
skeptics and infidels) who want to reject the God of the Bible or (like
annihilationists) the hell of the Bible.
In his debate with renowned atheistic philosopher, Antony Flew, Thomas
B. Warren pressed this point masterfully. Before one of the debating
sessions, Warren gave Flew a list of questions to be answered (a facet
of the debate that was agreed upon before the debate started). One of
the questions was a “true or false” question that read as follows: “It
is not possible that the justice of God would entail any punishment for
sin.” To this question Flew answered “false,” indicating that it is
possible that the justice of God could entail some punishment for sin.
The next “true or false” question offered by Warren stated: “It is
possible that this infinite justice of God might entail at least one
minute of punishment when this life is over”—to which Flew answered
“true.” Warren then commented:
He answered “true.” Now note, it might entail at least one minute of
punishment and not be out of harmony—the basic concept of God would not
be self-contradictory. What about two minutes, Dr. Flew? What about
three minutes, four minutes, an hour, a day, a year, a month, a hundred
years, a million years? Where do you stop? Would a billion years be long
enough? Could God punish a man a billion years and still be just and
loving? You can see that he has given up tonight.... He has shown his
inability to answer these questions in harmony with the atheistic
position and the implications which follow from it. He himself is on
record as saying when a man cannot do that, then it is clear that he
holds a false position (Warren and Flew, 1977, p. 150).
Once the point is conceded that a loving God could punish sin with at
least one minute of punishment after this life, then the only question
left to answer is: Who is in the best position to determine how long
punishment should be? Would it not be a righteous judge who knew every
detail of the crime, including the thoughts and intents of the criminal?
God is exactly that. He is not motivated by selfishness, greed, or
other vice, but sits on a throne of righteousness (Psalm 89:14).
Furthermore, He knows
all the facts of the case (Proverbs 15:3)
and the intents and thoughts of the lawbreakers (Psalm 44:21). Only God
is in a position to determine how long sin should be punished.
Furthermore, it is ironic that those who are claiming that “forever” is
“too long” to punish people for sins, have themselves sinned. Of course
a person who is guilty of sin is going to want to lessen the punishment
of that sin. Once again we must ask, would a person guilty of sin be in
a better position to determine how long sin should be punished than a
sinless, perfect God (1 John 1:5)? To ask is to answer.
Yet again, the idea that eternity is “too long” only tugs at human
emotions when dealing with punishment, never with reward. Who would
argue that heaven cannot be eternal because God would be unjust to
reward us for “too long.” On the contrary, the eternality of heaven and
hell stand and fall together. And both are deeply rooted in the justice
and mercy of God. When Jesus spoke to the people of His day about the
ultimate fate of humanity in eternity (as we discussed earlier), He
stated that the wicked would “go away into
everlasting (
aionios) punishment, but the righteous into
eternal (
aionios) life” (Matthew 25:46). The Greek word rendered “eternal” in the English, is the same Greek word (
aionios) rendered earlier as “everlasting.” Observe that precisely the same word is applied to the
punishment of the wicked as to the
reward
of the righteous. Those who are willing to accept Christ’s teaching on
heaven should have no trouble whatsoever accepting His teaching on hell.
WHY DO AFTERLIFE QUESTIONS MATTER?
One pertinent question that should properly be addressed in any
discussion of this nature is simply, “What does it matter?” Why should
these questions be discussed at length? In answer to such appropriate
questions, it must be stated that God, through His inspired Word, saw
fit to include these issues in the list of “all things that pertain to
life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). That fact alone is enough to justify
such a discussion.
But that is not the only reason afterlife issues are of utmost
importance. In a discussion regarding Roman Catholicism’s unofficial
doctrine of limbo, F. LaGard Smith wrote:
[A]fterlife issues become a litmus test of the legitimacy of
underlying theological assumptions. Whenever any afterlife scenario
lacks coherence with other clear biblical teaching regarding what
happens after death, red flags are raised immediately as to the validity
of any doctrines upon which that afterlife theology is based (p. 242).
Smith correctly noted that what a person believes about the afterlife
often stems from that person’s beliefs about God and the Bible—what
Smith calls his or her “underlying theological assumptions.”
Interestingly, an outstanding case of this statement’s validity can be
seen in Smith’s own dealings with afterlife issues.
As was quoted earlier, Smith stated that God is “not a twisted, cruel
God who tortures the wicked, dangling them over licking flames” (2003,
p. 183). When one dissects such a statement, he can view Smith’s primary
“underlying theological assumption,” which becomes evident via the
following syllogism. First, any God Who “tortures the wicked, dangling
them over a licking flame” is “twisted and cruel.” But the God of the
Bible is not “twisted and cruel.” Therefore, the God of the Bible could
not, and would not, torture the wicked by dangling them over a flame
that lasts forever. Notice that his “underlying theological assumption”
is that any God Who would torture the wicked in everlasting fire is
twisted and cruel. Because of his assumption, Smith must twist the
Scripture in a way that would not allow for God to punish the wicked
forever in hell.
The problem with Smith’s argument is that he
falsely assumes
that a God Who punishes people forever in hell is twisted or cruel. As
we have shown, eternal punishment of the wicked in unending flames does
not violate any of the attributes of God, including His love. It is the
case that a loving, just, righteous God could cast the wicked into an
eternal hell, where they would be punished by fire forever, and still be
a loving God. Smith’s views on the afterlife have been shaped by this
false assumption, and thus are built upon a faulty foundation.
What is worse, since the assumption is false, the implications of
Smith’s argument impugn the very nature of God. Follow the logic. If any
God Who tortures the wicked by “dangling them over licking flames” is
“twisted and cruel,” and if the Bible teaches that God does, in fact,
torture the wicked in licking flames unendingly, then the God of the
Bible must by necessity be both “twisted” and “cruel.”
It is no wonder that Smith so adamantly defends his position that the
Bible does not teach that the wicked will be punished forever in hell
fire. He, like so many other annihilationists, has painted himself into a
corner. If the Bible does, in fact, teach that the wicked will be
punished forever in hell then all those who have stated that any God Who
would allow such is “twisted and cruel,” have in reality accused the
God of the Bible of being “twisted and cruel”—an extremely dangerous
accusation to make, to be sure (since the Bible
does teach that God
will punish the wicked forever in hell).
Make no mistake about it: a person’s beliefs about afterlife issues are
of utmost importance to that person’s spiritual well-being and future
eternal destination. As Wayne Jackson correctly stated:
The dogma of annihilation is not an innocent view with harmless
consequences. It is a concept that undermines the full force of that
fearful warning of which the Almighty God would have men be aware. There
is many a rebel who would gladly indulge himself in a lifetime of sin
for an eternal nothingness (Jackson, 2003b).
It is ironic that the picture of nonexistence painted by
annihilationists and described as hell, is almost identical to the
picture of nonexistence painted by Buddhists and labeled as the ultimate
reward (also called Nirvana). Buddhists’ “heaven” closely resembles
many annihilationists’ idea of hell!
Does it really matter what a person believes in this regard? Jackson again spoke to that question when he wrote:
Those who contend that the wicked will be annihilated are in error. But is the issue one of importance? Yes. Any theory of divine retribution which undermines the full consequences of rebelling against God has to be most dangerous (1998, 33[9]:35, emp. added).
CONCLUSION
Those who argue that a “loving God” cannot punish impenitent sinners
for eternity, simply have neglected to realize the heinousness of sin.
What could possibly be so bad that it would deserve an eternity of
punishment? God’s divine answer to that is simple—unforgiven sin. Adam
and Eve’s sin brought into the world death, disease, war, pestilence,
pain, and suffering. The cumulative weight of the sin of mankind from
that day until the Day of Judgment was, and is,
so overwhelming that it cost God the lifeblood of His only Son.
To see the atrociousness of sin, cast your eyes back 2,000 years to the
excruciating violence, mockery, and torture perpetrated on the only
human ever to live a perfect life without sin—Jesus Christ (Hebrews
4:15). Does God
want the wicked to be punished for eternity in
hell? Absolutely not! Scripture, in fact, speaks expressly to that
point. “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count
slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should
perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). Paul wrote
that God “desires all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of
the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4). The Old Testament prophet Ezekiel recorded
the words of God concerning the wicked: “ ‘Do I have any pleasure at all
that the wicked should die?’ says the Lord God, ‘and not that he should
turn from his ways and live?’ ” (Ezekiel 18:23).
The answer to that rhetorical question is a resounding “No.” God does not
want
the wicked to die in their sin and be lost forever in eternal
punishment. He will not, however, override the freewill of humans, and
force
them to accept His free gift of salvation. Nor will He contradict His
own revealed Word in order to save those who have not obeyed the gospel
(2 Thessalonians 1:8) by coming into contact with the saving blood of
Christ (Ephesians 1:7). The Scriptures are crystal clear on these
important points.
REFERENCES
Danker, Frederick William, William Arndt, and F.W. Gingrich, (2000),
Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press).
Gerstner, John H. (1990),
Repent or Perish (Ligonier, PA: Soli Deo Gloria Publications).
Goodspeed, Edgar J. (1943),
The Goodspeed Parallel New Testament (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press).
Jackson, Wayne (1998), “The Use of ‘Hell’ in the New Testament,”
Christian Courier, 33:34-35, January.
Jackson, Wayne (2003a), “Homer Hailey’s Last Book,”
Christian Courier, 39:29-31, December.
Jackson, Wayne (2003b), “The ‘Second Death’—Separation or Annihilation?” [On-line], URL: http://www.christiancourier.com/penpoints/separationAnnihilation.htm.
Oepke, Albrecht (1964), “
Apollumi,”
Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, ed. Gerhard Kittel (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans), 1:394-397.
Robertson, A.T. (1930),
Word Pictures in the New Testament (Nashville, TN: Broadman).
Russell, Bertrand (1957),
Why I am not a Christian (New York: Simon & Schuster).
Smith, F. LaGard (1988),
A Christian Response to the New Age Movement, Audio-taped lecture presented at Pepperdine University, Malibu, California.
Smith, F. LaGard (2003),
After Life (Nashville, TN: Cotswold Publishing).
Strobel, Lee (2000),
The Case for Faith (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan).
Thayer, Joseph (1962 reprint),
Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan).
Thanatos: 2505” (1999), Logos Library System:
Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon (Logos Research Systems: Bellingham, WA).
Vine, W.E. (1940),
An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words (Old Tappan, NJ: Revell).
Warren, Thomas B. and Antony Flew (1977),
The Warren-Flew Debate (Jonesboro, AR: National Christian Press).
Workman, Gary (1992), “Is There an Eternal Hell?”
The Spiritual Sword, 23:30-34, April.
Wuest, Kenneth S. (1973), “Treasures,”
Wuest’s Word Studies from the Greek New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans).
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Sadly there are some today t hat deny hell is real even and that had fallen for The emergence Church false gospel that has no justice.
