Hell Debate

Most Christians would agree that those who do not make it to heaven, will most assuredly go to hell. Most would also agree that one day, we will stand before the Almighty Judge, and Creator of the universe. We will either hear, "Well done" (Mt. 25) or we might hear, "Depart from me, I never knew you" (Mt. 7). So what happens if we are told to depart from the presence of God? Do we go straight to hell to suffer eternal damnation? Are we there forever? The answer to these questions might surprise you.

"Evangelical Christians disagree over whether this punishment is eternal in duration or in consequence." In other words, are the damned burning forever or completely destroyed? Perhaps the decision is eternal (permanent, irreversible), and not the punishment.

First, let us establish the reason for hell. “Thus, the existence of a place of punishment for the wicked after this life is necessary to maintain the justice of God.” (H. Willmington) The most interesting fact I've ever heard was about the guest list for hell; we (humankind) were never on it. Hell was created for Satan, Anti-Christ, False Prophet, and possibly the fallen angels. This means we were never intended to arrive in the fiery pit. Consider this quote from Dr. Elmer Towns:

“The saddest epitaph inscribed for any person is undoubtedly written upon the life of Satan; for in the death of Christ there was no provision made for Satan and his diabolical host. With no hope, Satan and his demons are given additional stimulus to deceive the naïve and to pursue a life of sensual gratification.” (E. Towns)

Classical View: Unending Torment of the Wicked

The church has believed that the wicked will be thrown into hell and tortured forever. In the Old Testament, very little was focused on the subject. We definitely seen more of God’s judgement being handed down on earth instead of in the afterlife. Daniel 12:2 points out an everlasting disgrace for those who are not with God. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 3:17, that God will destroy anyone that destroys their temple. Revelations reminds us of a second death where the “dead” are thrown into the lake of fire. These are the ones whose name were not written in the Book of Life.

How could there be everlasting disgrace if the wicked are annihilated? Where is the shame? Why would God bring the wicked back to life only to destroy them again? This torture is forever! Consider Isaiah 66:24, "And as they go out, they will see the dead bodies of those who have rebelled against me. For the worms that devour them will never die, and the fire that burns them will never go out. All who pass by will view them with utter horror." An ultimate disgrace for someone was to not be buried, but to be left on the ground and eaten by maggots. The imagery of Isaiah's passage describes this cultural custom. "With all these things in mind, one is forced to the sobering conclusion that gehenna (hell) is God's final dumping and burning place for all unsaved men and apostate angels." (H. Willmington)

Jesus spoke more about hell than he did of heaven. In Matthew 25, we see Jesus contrasting eternal life with eternal punishment. He makes a distinction between the righteous and unrighteous, between the sheep and the goats. He speaks of the sheep entering in his father’s kingdom and experiencing all that has been prepared for them. Then he speaks to the goats and sends them away from him. He calls them cursed and sends them into the eternal fire along with the devil and demons. There seems to be a place of eternal punishment for the wicked and eternal life for the righteous. Jesus again in John chapter 5 tells of the dead being judged and eternal life versus the judgment of the corrupt. If the righteous are living eternally in heaven, wouldn’t the unrighteous suffer eternally in hell?

According to Luke 16, the rich man is being tormented in hades (hell). He is suffering an unquenchable fire. He begs for a drop of water on his tongue. Abraham explained to him that no one can cross over after this event of dying. Once you die, there is no going back. This story seems to have the grand effect on the early church’s tradition of heaven and hell. This was a parable or an illustration for Jesus to make a point to his listeners. The question is, did this event actually happen? Was it an example of things to come?

If this is about the real torment one would experience then it coincides with the rest of scripture. It sounds like the rich man was tormented by fire day and night. There was also a feeling of loneliness and rejection. To be separated from God would be torment enough, but this seems to be more than just separation. There seems to be the suffering for those whom rejected the Lord. Also we see the conscious state of the rich man. This would imply after one dies and certainly after the Day of Judgment, many will be conscious and know exactly what they’ve done and why they are there.

Jesus told us in Matthew 13 that there would be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Therefore, this proves there will be some form of consciousness. Jesus also says it would be better to be drowned than to be a stumbling block and experience hell. Consider this statement from Jesus regarding Judas:

“But how terrible it will be for the one (Judas) who betrays him (Jesus). It would be far better for that man if he had never been born!” (Mark 14:21)

This brings up a good question. Why would Jesus say it would be better for him not to have ever been born if hell isn’t eternal? Why would God bring back the dead only to annihilate them? “The Great White Throne Judgment will determine the degree of punishment the rejecters will endure, based upon the nature of their evil work. All those sentenced will be consigned “into the lake of fire” where they will suffer according to their personally assigned sentences.” (Tim LaHaye)

Scriptures to Consider

And they will be tormented with fire and burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the Lamb. The smoke of their torment will rise forever and ever, and they will have no relief day or night, for they have worshiped the beast and his statue and have accepted the mark of his name.” Revelation 14:10-11

Then the devil, who had deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur, joining the beast and the false prophet. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Revelation 20:10

And anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire. Revelation 20:15

Annihilationist View: The Wicked Shall Be No More

This view holds a strong argument towards people reading the Bible with a pagan philosophical presupposition. The beliefs of the human soul being immortal. Immortality is a gift from God, therefore, if you are not one of His, then you lose this gift and are annihilated. "Scripture certainly teaches that the wicked are punished eternally, but it does not teach that the wicked endure eternal punishment." (Boyd/Eddy) Confused? The process of their punishment is not eternal, it is a finality. In other words, the decision is forever so. Hell is eternal in consequence, not duration.

The fire is unquenchable in the sense that it will not be put out before it consumes those who are thrown into it. The worm will not be stopped from devouring the corpse that is left. In Mark 9:48, we find Jesus quoting from the Old Testament prophet Isaiah (Isa. 66:24). If we want to get technical, Christ is quoting Himself or at the very least, His Father. There are at least 8 Scripture references that pertain to this unquenchable fire.

One might say that the Old Testament writers had no clue or idea of an afterlife. This is simply not true and mistaken. They had an enormous arsenal of afterlife motifs. In fact, the New Testament Apostle Peter, calls our attention to their understanding.

"Later, God condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and turned them into heaps of ashes. He made them an example of what will happen to ungodly people." (2 Peter 2:6)

"But the rebels and sinners will be completely destroyed, and those who desert the Lord will be consumed." (Isa. 1:28)

In both Psalm 9:6 and 34:16, the psalmist tells us the wicked will be destroyed and never remembered. No trace of the wicked can be found in the second chapter of Daniel. The wicked have a fatal future ahead of them. We find discritptive phrases all throughout the Old Testament such as, "dashed to pieces, cut off, vanish like smoke, disintegrated into nothing, consumed like dry straw, burned up, with their lamp distinguished."

Throughout the Old Testament, God threatens the wicked with annihilation. This teaching is even stronger in the New Testament. Jesus describes hell as a 'consuming fire' (Matt. 7:19; 13:40; John 15:6). If the narrow gate leads to life, then the wide gate leads to death (destruction). According to James, 'sin gives birth to death' (James 1:15). Paul tells us the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).

Jesus said, "Fear only God who can destroy both soul and body in hell." Matthew 10:28b

"The New Testament also frequently expresses the destiny of the wicked by depicting them as dying or perishing (apollymi)." (Boyd/Eddy) One question that stands out can offer a lot of reasoning to the topic at hand. Is the soul eternal? "When all the biblical evidence is assessed apart from the Hellenistic philosophical assumption that the soul is innately immortal, it becomes clear that the fate of the wicked is annihilation, not unending torment." (Boyd/Eddy) God's love couldn't harbor His anger for the wicked forever.

Conclusion

No matter how long one believes the wicked will remain in hell, the point is that they will be separated from God. This 'second death' is not where you would want to find yourself after your life on earth. If hell is your destiny, then the lake of fire is where you will either burn up and receive your second death, or burn in the flames forever. Regardless of amount of time, this punishment is horrible. God is just and He will punish the wickedness of sin.

We will all stand before Him one day.

I plead with you to choose life and follow Him.

Source: Boyd, G and Eddy, P., Across the Spectrum, (Michigan: Baker Academic, 2009)