Introduction
Topics on spiritual gifts and baptism among others ignite heated debates amongst scholars. Similarly, the topic on hell is large and complicated and it equally sparks debate amongst different people depending on one’s beliefs and perceptions. Two theological concepts form the basis of this controversial debate, viz. the existence of eternal punishment through fire and the view that the unrighteous have a chance to repent after death but before the judgment day (Kvanvig 2010, 61). The controversy revolves around what exactly unfolds to the wicked after their demise. The debate takes a form argument where the classical view differs with the annihilationist perspective (Boyd and Eddy 2009, 232).
The controversy is compounded by the view that different people interpret the scriptures disparately (Burley 2006, 178). For example, the annihilationist adherents assert that the words used to describe the final home for the wicked, viz. hell, should be interpreted literally as used (McFarlane 1990, 406). However, the traditionalists have a deeper interpretation of the scriptures by deriving an entirely different meaning of the same reading. This paper seeks to explore the hell debate by considering the different views on the issue. In this paper, the words used in the scripture to describe hell will be identified and explained. In addition, the paper will also explore the history surrounding the concept of hell and analyze the two central views that characterize the protestant evangelicalism to draw a personal conclusion on the concept of hell based on the analyses.
Terms used in the bible to refer to hell
Some of the words used to refer to hell in the New Testament include geenna, which is a Greek term meaning the eternal home for sinners (Burley 2006, 181). The term is the most used in the scripture and it appears twelve times. The second most used word is hades, which refers to the grave or simply the place where the dead are laid to rest (Holten 1999, 42) and it appears ten times in the scripture. The third word that is commonly used in the scripture is tartaroo, which denotes the action of sending the wicked to hell and it appears only once in the scripture (Smith 2012, 107). The words are derived from Greek and the first one (geenna) means a place deeper than the grave as per the Greek language and culture (Kvanvig 2010, 252). Similar words are also evident in the Old Testament where words like seol are common (Watson 1994, 222). The meaning of the terms depends on where it appears in the bible. For example, in Hebrew, the term seol is taken to mean hell or rather the home for the unrighteous (Boyd and Eddy 2009, 277). In the book of Proverbs, the term refers to the home for all people after death whether righteous or unrighteous.
Biblical teachings about Hell
Biblically, Jesus describes hell fire as “unquenchable fire”, which is preserved for all those who do not repent their sins before meeting their demise (Holten 1999, 52). According to the scriptures, Jesus will send angels to collect and throw the wicked people into a furnace where they will suffer eternally (McFarlane 1990, 419). In the judgment day, Jesus will send sinners to hell. The scripture describes the term to be used when sending the wicked to the eternal fire as “depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire” (Fudge 2011, 77). These words clearly indicate that hell fire shall last forever and that the wicked shall perish for the rest of their after death lives. The use of the term eternal fire, according to those who belong to the classical school of thought, means that the souls of the wicked shall remain in hell forever. According to the classical adherents, the main purpose of hell is to separate the wicked from God’s righteousness.
Annihilationist view vs. classical view
The annihilationist view refutes the scriptural idea that God will punish the unrighteous for all eternity (Watson 1994, 304). Instead, they argue that God’s punishment for the wicked will be short lasting after which they will be annihilated or rather destroyed meaning that they cannot suffer forever. The length of the punishment will vary from one individual to another depending on the nature of the sins committed (Kvanvig 2010, 249). On the other hand, the classical view holds that hell fire will continue forever. Both schools support their arguments by quoting biblical verses as explained in the following section.
Traditionalists cite Revelation 20:10 in their argument of eternal suffering of the wicked. The verse explains that the wicked shall be tormented and the smoke from the punishing fire shall go up “day and night forever and ever” (McFarlane 1990, 402). Traditionalists claim that the combination of the two terms “day and night” and “for ever and ever” in the aforementioned verse is convincing enough that the fire shall last forever. In their response, the annihilationist view claims that the term “day and night” means that smoke will go up as long as the targeted sinners exist (Boyd and Eddy 2009, 34). Given that fire is meant to destroy, the fire will thus consume the sinners and the smoke go away.
However, the annihilationist views remains silent on the other part “forever and ever” in their counter argument. The annihilationist view also claim that its assertion is supported by some other verses in the scripture that define the eternal fire as a “second death”, which is a clear indicator that the fire shall cause death of the soul, and thus end the suffering (Holten 1999, 41). In their response, the traditionalists argue that death signifies separation, and thus in this case, the term “second death” signifies eternal separation between God and the wicked (Watson 1994, 265). The traditionalists further argue that if the term “eternal torment” did not mean eternal fire, John, the writer of the verse, would have clarified its meaning in his latter writings on the same issue.
The annihilationist view also supports its argument by quoting the Old Testament, which illustrates how God destroys cities (Smith 2012, 107). The scripture describes fire used to destroy cities as one that reduces them to nothing, hence meaning that it leaves everything destroyed (Harvey 1997, 239). Therefore, based on the above teachings, the annihilationist view holds that hell fire shall be used to destroy sinners. In addition, the wicked shall not remain in hell forever as asserted by the traditionalists. The term “torment” as used in Revelation 14:10 is taken by the annihilationist view to mean “moments of destruction” and not eternal suffering as interpreted by the traditionalists (Kvanvig 2010, 263). The same verse (Revelation 14:10) indicates that cloudy smoke is seen in the process of destroying cities. They argue that the smoke signifies the destroying fire and it only lasts for the period of destruction, and thus fire can only last for a given period and then go away after the burning object is consumed. However, the traditionalists decline the annihilationist view of attributing fire to destruction.
The conscious nature of hell has also been noted as an issue causing heated debate between the two schools of thought. According to the classical view, hell exists in a conscious state (Boyd and Eddy 2009, 256). In a bid to make its assertions sound, the classical view refers to the teaching in Romans 2:89, which describes the pain and anguish that the wicked shall experience in hell (McFarlane 1990, 397). Those in support of the classical view claim that for the described pain to be felt, the wicked people must be in a conscious state. In addition to the aforementioned verse, the classical view cites teachings by Jesus Christ in the New Testament that center on the conscious state of hell. In his teachings, Jesus clearly painted a picture of hell as being eternally conscious in both scenery and duration (Burley 2006, 170).
On the other hand, the annihilationist view refers to the New Testament that describes God’s love for humanity and it rules out the possibility of such a loving God to leave his people to suffer in eternal hell (Janes 2011, 495). This argument is based on the logical view because human beings have equal standards of justice. However, the classical view refutes this perspective by adopting a logical view in response to the annihilationist idea. The classical view claims that a criminal must pay for his or her acts unless he or she ceases to exist consciously and in that case, justice will not have been served (Fudge 2011, 267). They argue that a wrong against God is infinite since He is infinite and thus any wrong done against Him deserves an infinite chastisement (Watson 1994, 245).
The conditional immortality doctrine is similar to the annihilationist view as it defines hell as a place where the wicked shall suffer for a specified period after which they will be destroyed (Harvey 1997, 247). This doctrine has drawn wide support from a section of Christian Protestants. In addition, certain prominent theologians such as John Wenham and John Scott support the doctrine. This section of Christians has rejected the traditional teachings on soul immortality by arguing that the soul dies together with the body.
The Seventh-day Adventist and Jehovah Witness are good examples of sects that belong to the conditional immortality school of thought (Holten 1999, 37). The two sects do not recognize the existence of an entity by the name “soul” that survives after death (Kvanvig 2010, 243). In other words, they are of the view that the soul dies with the body after which they will only resurrect in the judgment day. In addition, the two dominions do not believe in eternal suffering of sinners. Instead, they hold that the sinners will be subjected to punishments that will be determined by God in the judgment day and after serving the punishment, they will be destroyed. Both the soul and the body shall be equally destroyed and the suffering will end at that point. Therefore, these sects are opposed to the concept of soul immortality.
Conclusion
The scripture is mainly comprised of good news, but it also covers the topic on hell, which is deemed unattractive for most people. The topic on hell has ignited heated debate amongst Christian theologians who interpret the scripture in their own different ways. The hell debate is mainly formed of the traditionalist and the annihilationist views. Both schools differ on what exactly happens to the wicked after death. The traditionalists believe in life after death and eternal punishment for the wicked. The annihilationist view equally believes in life after death, but it differs with the traditionalist view on eternal fire. Both sides agree on the existence of hell, but the annihilationist view counters the argument by traditionalists that the wicked shall perish in hell forever. I
n its argument, the annihilationist view states that the wicked shall be exterminated. In light of the above description of the various views by different theologians and the scripture at large, it can be concluded that all people shall die before being raised from death to appear before God for judgment. However, according to the scriptures, some people will be ruptured if the event happens before they die. The judgment will grant either eternal life or condemnation to hell. In addition, there is no other way that leads to the glory of God apart from Jesus Christ who died on the cross for the sake of humankind. Christians should thus rely on the scripture for unbiased information on the nature of hell and the glory of God.
Reference List
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