Eternal torment or Annihilation? What happens to the Wicked...
Response to comment [from a Christian]: "Hell is not eternal, it says so right here: Revelation 20:14"
That is false. We were created
to live forever somewhere.
See:
Is hell eternal?
And death and hell were cast into the lake of
fire. This is the second death.
And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into
the lake of fire [Rev.
20:14–15].
"And death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second
death even the lake of fire. And if any were not found written in the
book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire.
You will notice that in my translation I have changed “death and hell
were cast into the lake of fire” to “death and Hades were cast into the
lake of fire.” Sheol or hades (translated hell in the New Testament) is
the place of the unseen dead and is divided into two compartments:
paradise and the place of torment (see
Luke 16:19–31).
Paradise was emptied when Christ took the Old Testament believers with
Him at His ascension. “Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high,
he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. (Now that he
ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower
parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up
far above all heavens, that he might fill all things)” (Eph.
4:8–10). Christ did two things: He gave
gifts to men down here, but He also took with Him to heaven those Old
Testament saints who had died and were in the place called paradise. But
the place of torment will deliver up the lost at the judgment at the
Great White Throne. All who stand at this judgment are lost, and we are
told that they are cast into the lake of fire, which is the second
death. The Lord also called it “outer darkness.” We believe that this is
symbolic of something worse than literal fire or outer darkness. It is
eternal separation from God, for death means separation." McGee, J.
Vernon: Thru the Bible Commentary. electronic ed. Nashville : Thomas
Nelson, 1997, c1981, S. 5:1061
Response to comment [from a Christian]: "...[D]o the wicked get to live forever too..."
Yes. They live forever. When you offend an eternal God, your punishment is rightly eternal.
20:6 Blessed. Those who die in the Lord (14:13) are blessed with the privilege of entering His kingdom (see note on 1:3). second death. The first death is spiritual and physical, the second is eternal in the lake of fire, the final, eternal hell (v. 14). It could exist outside the created universe as we know it, outside of space and time, and be presently unoccupied (see note on 19:20). thousand years. See note on v. 2.
Response to comment [from a Christian]: "...[W]e see where the grave or death or eventual destruction of the wicked, was translated using Greek words that since they had no exact ones to use, became a mix of mistranslation, pagan influence, and Greek myth associated with the word, but its original meaning was simple death or the destruction of the wicked at the end. “Hades” was simply the word closest in meaning to the Hebrew “Sheol”. The new versions now leave the word 'Sheol' untranslated, which is better than the Greek words used which cause confusion if the necessary basic Hebrew to Greek word translation used at the time is not understood."
שְׁאוֹל she˒ôwl, sheh-ole’; or
שְׁאֹל she˒ôl, sheh-ole’; from 7592; hades or the world of the dead
(as if a subterranean retreat), incl. its accessories and inmates:—
grave, hell, pit.
The punishment of hell is eternal (Isa 33:14; Re 20:10).
[Re 20:15]
Response to comment [from other]: "Infinite torment for
finite sins makes no sense. Or to put it another way - How can
you reap infinite torment from finite sins?"
When you can create a universe, you can
make the rules (Ge 2:17; Eze 18:4).
You fail to appreciate the exceeding sinfulness of sin (Ro 7:13, Jas 1:15 ). If you hit your neighbor, you might be arrested and go to jail for a while.
If you hit the President, you will be arrested and go to jail for a longer while.
Sin is that which is opposed to good (Jas 4:17, 1 Jn 3:4, Jas 2:10,11; 1 Jn 3:4). It is rebellion against God (De 9:7; Jos 1:18).
If you offend a holy God (Re 18:5, Nu 15:30; Ps 74:18), your punishment is rightfully eternal. He has done all he can to save us (Ro 5:8).
See:
My God Would Never Send me to Hell
Response to comment [from a Christian]: A good thought on the question. http://carm.org/hell-eternal
That's right. If God is not just, God is not good.
Response to comment [from a Christian]: "[H]ell is not forever..."
Death and hell are
consigned to the lake of fire (the place of final punishment [(Rev.
20:14]). Punishment of the wicked is everlasting (Matt. 13:40;
18:8; 25:41, 46; Jude 7; Rev. 1:18; 14:11; 20:10).
See:
2 Thess 1:8-9 J. Vernon McGee
Response to comment [from a Christian]: "Just think about it for a moment and ask yourself, 'Does the punishment fit the crime if it lasts eons and eons for even one of the unsaved?'."
It does (Job 4:8; Pr 22:8; Ro 6:21; Ga 6:8).
Response to comment [from a other]: "[A]nd when a person dies Ecclesiastes 12:7 ...the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it."
Gen. 2:7; 3:19, 23; Eccl. 3:20
You Make Beautiful Things Out of The Dust - By: Gungor
"What Jesus will do with you is determined on
what you will do with him." ~ Adrian Rogers
John 3:18–20,
Jn 3:36
Eternal
torment or Annihilation? What happens to the Wicked...