Who has most reason to fear hell: he who is in ignorance whether there is a hell, and who is certain of damnation if there is; or he who certainly believes there is a hell and hopes to be saved if there is?
(Pascal, Pensees, 239)

Who is more arrogant within his soul, who is more impious than one who dares to sorrow at God's judgment?
(Dante, The Inferno, C.20.28-30)

Introduction

It would be difficult indeed to find a belief less palatable to both Christian and non-Christian than the doctrine of hell. For the Christian, it is a topic that may be glossed over, euphemized, or (worse) ignored altogether. For the unbeliever it is not only a source of contention, but an offensive weapon of debate with those who wish to communicate God's love and mercy to others. How, one might ask, can a God of love and mercy send anyone to eternal hell? Or, How can God justify eternal punishment for temporal sins? Attacks against the gospel message centering on hell's severity, and its population abound. What is worse, they appear to be working.

Belief always affects action, and the influence of bewilderment over the doctrine of hell can (and has) led not only to a lackluster witness, but to the loss of one's faith. As the popularity of this important doctrine declines, pastors become fearful about teaching on the subject. Sermons on hell decrease in both frequency and fervor. When teaching on the subject grows thin, it is the critic's views that come to the forefront, leaving the church with doubts as to hell's truthfulness. The outcome is watered-down doctrine... homespun explanations of judgment that poorly reflect the words of the God they are supposedly defending. At this point other matters of faith may come into question. With judgment issues confused, salvation questions may surface that lead to a denial of the fundamental truths of Christianity. It is certainly imperative, then, that a proper understanding of hell's fairness be communicated to the people of God. If we cannot grasp the fairness of God in this and other issues, how can we expect non-believers to grasp them?

• Hell is not "where the devil lives". He is not the ruler of hell, in fact he is not even there yet.
• Hell was not created to put "bad people" in. It was created for the devil and his demons, however, any humans who do not follow God will be thrown into hell as with them.
• Hell is not a cavern where demons devise cruel and unusual punishments for human souls. Demons will be in hell, but they will be being tortured, not torturing.
• Hell is not somewhere underground. The lake of fire will not come into play until after the earth is destroyed.

What is Hell?

Now that we know some of the things hell is not, let us look at what it is. The word translated "hell" in english is the Greek word Gehenna. "Gehenna" is the Greek form of the Hebrew "Genhinnom", an actual place in Israel which we would call "the valley of Ben Hinnom". Also known as the valley of slaughter, this place was where many horrible practices had been performed, such as human sacrifice and killing children for the pagan god Molech. Eventually this valley became Israel's "garbage dump". In it would be thrown refuse as well as dead animals and the dead bodies of criminals. This "dump" was perpetually on fire to rid the land of these unclean things. Jesus, who spoke more about hell than love, used this word 11 times to describe the suffering of those who do not trust in Him before death. Hell is described in the Bible in various ways. Among them:

• Fire - fiery furnace - unquenchable fire
• The lake of burning sulfur (brimstone) - the lake of fire
• Everlasting contempt
• Perdition
• The place of weeping and gnashing of teeth
• Eternal punishment
• Darkness - Outer darkness
• The second death

There is no doubt from a Biblical perspective that hell will be a very real place. Some believe that hell will be a perpetual burning for the one whose soul is cast into it, others believe that the use of fire to describe hell is symbolic. Either way, we can see that it will not be "a party". If a perpetual fiery death heap is used as a symbol, what that symbol stands for must be suffering beyond imagination.

What is Hades?

Due to the King James practice of translating both "gehenna" and "hades" as "hell" some confusion has arisen over what these terms mean. If hell is used as a term for the grave then it makes some sense, but if it is used as the final place of torment for the lost then we know that they are not the same - for hades is thrown into the lake of fire at the end of time. Hades is better seen as "the grave". In Hebrew it is called "sheol". It is the place of the dead. Unbelievers go to Hades when they die to await the final judgment. Believers go to be with Christ (Corinthians 5:7; Philippians 1:21-23). It is thought that before the time of Christ, Hades had two "compartments". One was for the righteous dead who awaited Christ (this compartment is referred to as "Abraham's Bosom" or "Paradise"), the other was for the wicked dead and it was here that they spent the intermediate state (Luke 16:19-31). When Christ died on the cross, He said to the man who believed in Him, "today you shall be with Me in Paradise" (Luke 23:43). Without going into great detail, it is believed that Christ went to Paradise to set the captives free and take them to God the Father. Now Hades is only one compartment, and it will give up its dead at the final judgment where they (and Hades itself) will be thrown into the lake of fire.

Fairness: Two Considerations

The fairness of hell has been called into question on two basic levels: One, hell's nature (including its duration), and two, who will be suffering there. First, we must determine what hell will be like. Is it best characterized by demons torturing lost souls with brilliantly contrived horrors like those presented in Dante's Inferno?1 Or is hell merely a sad and lonely place outside Heaven as seen in C.S. Lewis' The Great Divorce? 2 The biblical description of hell needs to be understood in light of scripture and not of human imagination. Second, we must inquire into the inhabitants of this place. Is hell to be populated by those whose lives failed to tip the scales of justice on the side of good? Or is it filled with those who either did not (or, worse, could not) choose the correct religion? The answers one gives to these two questions will largely determine their conclusion as to the matter of hell's fairness. Confusion over one or both points regarding hell will inevitably lead to false conclusions about the fairness of the God who created it.

We must use caution here, for as in other discussions of doctrine that touch on issues of eternal bliss or suffering, emotions can too easily come into play as determinative of the outcome. No Christian should have an ax to grind in favor of eternal suffering for any lost soul who will enter into it. Scripture makes it quite clear that whatever hell may ultimately be, we all deserve to be there (Romans 1-3), and surely would be were it not for the sacrifice of Christ in our place. A cavalier attitude toward those headed for eternal destruction should never characterize a heart that has become indwelt by the God Who said, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live . . . (Ezek. 33:11).

Who Will Be In Hell?

Central to the question of God's fairness is the identity of the inhabitants of hell. The modern mind seems to view eternal destiny as a direct consequence of how we lived this life, and in a manner of speaking this is true. That being said, however, it must also be recognized that the picture of God judging persons by the use of a sliding scale of worthiness based on a comparison of good versus bad deeds is false. It is a concept that may seem fair from our human point of view, but as will be shown, is contrary to the teaching of scripture.

A dichotomy is set up in scripture between two extremes of existence in eternity. In many descriptions of either state, we can find descriptions of the other (Matt. 25; Rev. 20-21). A study of who is in either, then, gives us a clearer picture of who is in the other for the two are mutually exclusive (Luke 16:19-31). Scripture makes it evident that heaven is the everlasting abode of those who had received Christ as their Lord and Savior in life, and thus were saved by Him. Those who chose to turn from Christ cannot enter heaven, and are therefore placed for eternity outside the kingdom in hell. It is not so much a question of why? as of what?. Hell is not a punishment designed to
rehabilitate the wicked, but the logical consequence of an eternal state that follows from the temporal.

Many view this as a fright tactic used by God to force obedience. The logic, they might say, is like a madman who sets up an atomic bomb to explode in a certain city, later goes in and disarms it, then asks the city to honor him for saving them. The problem with this idea (using whatever imagery you choose) is that it is a false analogy. In the above story the correct telling would have a madman make the bomb, set it to kill us all, and then have the head of another city allow us to enter in safely. It would then be accurately seen that we have the choice of which city to stay in, and cannot blame another for where we end up.3

Others see hell as a method of punishing those who chose the wrong religion. This is a much more serious charge, as culture is sometimes cited as the determining influence on one's religious choice. It may seem to some that because Christians assert that only Christians will enter heaven (and that all else, by definition, will enter hell) that Christianity is some sort of exclusive club that punishes outsiders, even those who had no chance of joining. Christianity is also accused of being exclusivistic in that it allows no alternative to itself as a means for entrance into eternal happiness. Of course, the truthfulness of this teaching cannot be attacked on these grounds, for it is equally exclusivistic to say that there is only one kind of gas that will not kill us if we breathe enough of it, yet it is undeniably true. If,
however, God set up a world where only a select few had the possibility of turning to Him and escaping hell, His fairness might well come into question. What must be discovered is whether or not those who enter hell had a choice on earth that would have saved them from an eternity of suffering.

Who will be in heaven?

God has revealed Himself to us, and in doing so has shown not only His perfect nature in judgment, but also His perfect love in mercy. First we see that His invisible attributes are shown in nature, in His creation (Romans 1; Psalm 89). Just as a painting reveals much about its creator, the world we live in reveals God's majesty and creativity. Second, He reveals Himself in our hearts. All people groups in the world share a common set of morals, despite their religious beliefs. All seem to acknowledge the existence of right and wrong, and usually the laws governing these societies are remarkably similar, although the manifestations of those laws may differ. These kinds of revelations are referred to as "general" revelations. These serve to provide man with a knowledge of something beyond himself; they manifest the questions that man has tried to answer since the beginning.

Particular manifestations of God into this world are called "special". God has revealed Himself to the Old Testament prophets, in His word, and finally in His Son. It is this final revealing that provides the answers to the questions that general revelation poses. Through Him we see that worship of nature is worthless (Romans 1:20-23), as is striving for perfection through religion (Romans 2), or law (Romans 3:20) for no one is perfect and can hope to fulfill God's perfect will (Romans 3:23).

Only the perfect may enter heaven.

God is perfect. He has perfect power (which cannot be diminished by sin), perfect love (which cannot be diminished by partiality), perfect knowledge (which cannot be diminished by surprise), perfect being (which cannot be diminished by change) etc. A list of God's attributes is, in reality, a list of perfections. For in every way He is perfect, complete, lacking in no way. Anything less than this perfection is what the Bible calls sin. Sin is likened to an archery term that means "to miss the mark", anything outside the bullseye is "sin".4 Far more extensive than any list of "do's and do-not's", sin is anything that is outside God's perfect will (James 2:10 cf. 1 John 1:8; Romans 3:23). God cannot tolerate sin, and being perfectly just, He will not allow sin to remain in His presence (Psalm 5:4-6; Hab. 1:13).

Therefore, to be in fellowship with God, we must be perfect just as He is (Matt 5:48). No one is perfect, and yet God commands it. If we claim to love God, we must be obeying His commands (1 John 5:3; John 14:15). How, then, can He command us to do the impossible? What are we to do with this? The answer lies in the greatest commandment, upon which hangs the entirety of God's law: "You shall love the Lord your God . . ." (Matthew 22:36-37).

Just as in a human relationships we strive to please the ones we love by obeying their will (especially when it goes against ours), love for God is the same. Though there are some who obey only out of fear, God's perfect will is for us to love Him. Christ was not showing us what we must do to be good enough for God, He was showing us that we can never be as good as God... The disciples asked Jesus an important question, What shall we do, that we may work the works of God? Jesus answered, This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent. (John 6:28-29). It is through our love for God, our faith in Christ, that perfection is attributed to us.

The Atonement

So we see that the love of God is what brings one to salvation -- not good works, for we could never be good enough for a perfect God. Once this common misunderstanding is exposed, explaining hell is much simpler. Hell is where all things not of God must reside in the end. Death is separation (physically it is the separation of soul from body, spiritually it is the separation of our spirit from God's), and eternal death is eternal separation from God in hell. Death is the penalty of sin (going against God's will separates us from Him), and yet Christ died for us. His death comprised all the penalty for the sin of mankind. He who was without sin died for those with sin (2 Cor. 5:21). If we trust in that sacrifice, and believe in the one who God sent to accomplish it, we will be saved from eternal death (forever being
separated from God), and brought into eternal life (forever in the presence of God).

Christ's atoning work on the cross gives us much insight into the nature of the punishment we will escape when we turn to Him.5 The Bible records that in the crucifixion Christ experienced conscious and excruciating pain (Luke 24:46; John 20:27-29).6 This very pain, in fact, was meant for us (Isa. 53:4-11; 1 Peter 2:21). Christ also suffered separation from God the Father evidenced by His death cry quotation of Psalm 22:1 (cf. Matt. 27:46). Our separation from God is what is known as spiritual death; it is this death that began in the garden of Eden with Adam. Spiritual separation from God is a fate which we would all continue to suffer forever were it not for His intervention. Christ's spirit also separated from His body (physical death), which most people will experience as well, but with a crucial
difference: although a Christian's spirit will separate from his body, . . . he who believes in Me shall live even if he dies, (John 11:25 ). When a believer dies physically he continues to live eternally with God (Phil. 1:21-23). So in Christ's death we have a picture of the eternal suffering we would have experienced ad infinitum had not Christ suffered in our place.

When we come to understand these things, it is much easier to see our need for Christ. Christ is God revealed in the form of humanity. He was, is, and will forever remain perfect. God's commandment to be perfect means believing in His Son who makes perfects us. Christ came not only to reveal God, but to bring to mankind the ability to attain the impossible. Being the perfect sacrifice for our sins, Christ's death for us made it possible for us to have a relationship with a perfect God.

In the end, then, it is only those who choose to turn from God who will be in hell. God should no longer be seen as throwing someone into hell, but rather as allowing the free choices made by that person to come to fruition. C.S. Lewis put it this way: ...think of this bad man's perdition not as a sentence imposed on him, but as the mere fact of being what he is. 7

What about those who never hear the gospel?

An apparent flaw in this logic is often pointed out by both non-believers and believers alike. We can quite easily imagine a person who never gets the chance to hear (and thus, it is argued, respond to) the good news of Christ. Surely there were people all over the world who died the day after Christ died, and they could not have heard the message in time. Even today there remain unreached people groups in remote areas of the world who have yet to have the gospel explained to them. What of these? Many would respond that they are let into heaven anyway, but is this true? Taken to its logical conclusion, the idea that the ignorant automatically inherit heaven is untenable. If this were the case, the best thing the early believers could have done with Christ's message was to forget it, and find some way of keeping others from ever hearing it.8 That would have ensured entrance into God's kingdom for all people for all time!
Besides this, the Bible makes it quite clear that ignorance is not an automatic ticket to heaven. Consider a few examples
which illustrate this impossibility: anyone not found in the book of life (the redeemed of the Lamb of God - Christ) is thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:12,14 ); the gospel is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes (Romans 1:16 ); there is no other name [Jesus Christ's] under heaven by which we must be saved (Acts 4:10,12). If we must respond to God's message to be saved, then how can someone who never had a chance to hear the gospel possibly be condemned?

It would appear from scripture that the theoretical unreachable person simply does not exist. Revelation
reveals that people from every nation, (every) tribe, (every) people and (every) language will be in heaven (7:9).9 We also know that God will judge all people fairly (Psalm 98:9); it would hardly be fair to judge someone for not doing something of which they are incapable. So, according to scripture, there is no unreachable people group. How God manages this feat may be debated, but the answer must fall within the parameters set thus far.

Why all are without excuse

General revelation is the two-part way that God has revealed Himself to all of mankind. The first is external to the person. Romans 1:19-20 states emphatically that God has made it plain to the world that He exists. His invisible qualities have been clearly seen through what He has made. Psalm 19:1-3 proclaims that the heavens declare the glory of God... leaving all of mankind without excuse with regard to His presence. The Second is internal and deals specifically with our conscience. Romans 2:13-16 states that the requirements of the law are written on our hearts, our consciences, so that all mankind may know that they are in need of help. If this light that God gives is received and accepted, God's message will not be hampered by people or physics. That God can and does reveal Himself in
miraculous ways is evident from scripture; He did so for Melchizedek (Genesis 14), Balaam (Numbers 22), the Magi (Matthew 2), the Ninevites (Jonah 3), Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 2 & 4) and Philip (Acts 8:26-40).10 In the end time, God even sends out an angel to proclaim the gospel to every living person (Rev. 14:6).

In each of the above cases it must be noted that it is always man's choice to receive the light given, and then receive more light; or to stop along the way and refuse more of God's revelation. In the case of creation, this external light can reveal God, but it can also be ignored. Worse, if man only receives the light of creation and chooses not to follow further, he will end up in idolatry -- the worship of what has been made. In the second case, where man is made aware of morality, the light can be shut out and that man is left with only himself and his own idealistic goals; the result is humanism - the worship of mankind. God gives us the evidence we need to believe in Him, but He does not violate our free will by making it impossible to not choose Him. Our desire for God, our love for God, our faith in God will
indeed influence our interpretation of the evidence (Hebrews 11:1), but that is a built in safeguard... for our love and obedience (not just an intellectual assent to the facts) is what God desires from us.

John 3:17-21 records that, He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light is come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their deeds were evil. . . (see also John 6:45). God will indeed judge fairly, and as all men receive a measure of faith (Rom. 12:3), so they will each be judged by the amount to which they responded.

It also appears from scripture that certain people will be judged differently based on their ability to understand the light they are given. For instance children who die before a certain age (2 Timothy 3:15, Matthew 18:3) go to be with God (2 Samuel 12:22-23), along with those who lack the mental ability to understand the gospel (James 4:17; 1 Corinthians 1:26-30, 3:18-20) and, possibly, the "person who would have turned to God, but dies" (Psalm 139; Matthew 11:21). 11

While it would seem incoherent to presume to pass a moral judgment on the source of our morality, it is also unreasonable to presume that we can see flaws in a plan that an omniscient God initiated. Furthermore, it is crystal clear that God cares much more than we ever could for the lost. Ezekiel 18:23, 32 says, For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. And Hebrews 11:6 tells us, "He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." We know from John 6:37 that, ". . . the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out." Why? For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16).

Hell's Inhabitants: First Conclusion

We have seen that God has made it possible for all people to receive His salvation. Although we may disagree on the exact methods God uses, we know that He does in fact use them. He has provided enough evidence for a true faith based on facts, although He allows those who wish to ignore Him the ability to do so. Someone might ask, Why didn't God give him just a little longer? The reason: it would not make a difference. Given 100, or 1,000 years, a person could make the same choice; in fact experience seems to show that longer life spans do more to harden hearts than to soften. God alone knows our hearts perfectly, and He allows us the time necessary to make a decision for or against Him. When that final decision has been reached, He allows it to remain so.

Hell was not created for people, but for Satan and his demons (Matt. 25:41), they will exist forever in the place that God has set aside for evil when it is removed from His presence forever (Matt. 13:24-30). Although few would consciously choose hell in particular as their final destination, no one will be in hell who did not, by conscious choice, reject God and His offer of heaven. For God to force people into hell would violate their freedom of choice to love, which would be evil in itself.12 Much as hell is heaven for worms, heaven would be hell for an atheist who would be forced to do forever that which he never wanted on earth.13 A person who chooses separation from God in life is rewarded in kind -- and that is hell, separation from God for eternity. In agreement with the atheist Sartre, C.S. Lewis writes, the damned are, in one sense, successful rebels to the end; that the doors of hell are locked on the inside. In another place Lewis observes, There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, in the end, ‘Thy will be done.' All that are in Hell, choose it.14

What Is The Nature Of Hell?

The images one has in mind of hell do much to skew the conclusion one will reach as to the question of hell's fairness. Dante's picture of a multilevel pit with ever-worsening tortures (usually containing some clever ironic twist), and newspaper comic strips, have made hell seem like anything from unimaginably frightening to laughable.15 The biblical idea of hell, then, must be carefully examined before any sensible discussion of its fairness can begin.

In any study of scripture a prime consideration is always what a certain saying or word would have meant to those to whom it was addressed. The Greek word usually translated hell in the English Bible is geenna or Gehenna. Gehenna means Valley of the Sons of Hinnom, and refers to a valley just outside the city of Jerusalem.16 This valley was the site of many abominable deeds, not the least of which was child sacrifice (2 Chr. 28:1; 2 Kings 23:10). God called this place, quite appropriately, the Valley of Slaughter (Jer. 7:32). The valley later became Jerusalem's city dump, where not only refuse, but unclean bodies were thrown. The garbage and bodies became fuel for a fire that burned continually, and food for worms that would never go hungry. In Jesus' time, Gehenna was seen as a picture of
the final abode of idolaters and blasphemers after their resurrection and judgment.17 The idea of a fiery, worm-ridden place of torment was also reflected by Talmudic literature in the intertestamental period (Wisdom of Sirach 8:9; 4th Macc. 12:12).

The word is used twelve times in the New Testament to refer to the place of the wicked dead. Eleven of the twelve instances are found in the gospels and are from the lips of Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself spoke of hell more often than heaven (and surely understood what the word meant to His hearers). If Christ had meant something other than what His listeners would have expected, He apparently took no efforts to reveal it. To the contrary, He often spoke in terms that seem designed to reinforce the descriptions and ideas already in the minds of the Jews (such as: judgment in Matt. 23:33; unquenchable fire Mark 9:34; worms that do not die Mark 9:48). We may conclude, then, that hell is described in the Bible as a place of fire, where worms feed eternally on the bodies of the dead.

Conflicting Views

Three major views seem to characterize the way Christians have perceived hell: the literal, the metaphorical, and the conditional views. Briefly, the literalist takes all references to hell as literal descriptions of the kind of punishments that await those going to hell, as well as the eternal nature of these punishments. The metaphorical view sees the same descriptions as a poetic means of communicating hell's nature, accepting some seemingly contradictory descriptions, as well as spiritual symbols used to symbolize the greater reality. Finally, the conditionalist, relying more heavily on the Old Testament's imagery of death, views hell as destruction - with no more conscious suffering than the brief knowledge of the damned that they would not enter into God's eternal glory. Adherents of each view claim scriptural authority for their beliefs, and each view is held and has been held by believers throughout the centuries.18 We would do well to seek at least a basic understanding of the methods and arguments for each view, for what hell is has much to do with who will
be there.

Hell seen as Conditional Immortality

The view represented here is one that many find favorable due to its lessening of the punishment unbelievers will experience. Often the arguments for this idea follow more philosophical reasons than scriptural, using the same arguments against hell that non-believers find so appealing. Scripturally it is pointed out that death is often described as the destruction of the wicked in the Old Testament (Psalm 37; Mal. 4:1-2). Following this, the New Testament is said to support this view as well (Matt. 10:28; 13:30-50; 1 Cor. 3:17; 2 Thess. 1:9; Gal. 6:8; Phil. 1:28, 3:19; 2 Peter 2:1-6, 3:7; Heb 10:39). The thrust of the argument concerns what exactly is eternal about the punishment of the wicked.19 Is it that the act of punishing never ends, or that the punishment is destruction that will never be reversed? Obviously, if the wicked are eternal, then their punishment must likewise be never-ending; however, the conditionalist argues that it is a basic mistake in interpretation to see the wicked as being eternal. Human nature is not eternal, it is stated, but instead believers will be resurrected to eternal life.20 This theoretically solves the problem of where to put the eternal souls of the wicked. Also cited as proof is the concept of equivalence in punishment (Ex. 21:24): how could God punish eternally those who only sinned temporally? If this is God's ethical standard, then how could He (seemingly) violate it Himself? Also the question is raised as to God's purpose in allowing sinners to suffer forever: what good would it do? While these questions may only reflect a misunderstanding of hell's purpose, conditional immortality says that these questions need not be answered at all, for that is not what the reality of hell is in the first place.

Problems with this view, attractive as it may seem, arise when one simply adds up all the evidence in scripture for the historical view. The word destruction does not necessarily mean annihilation in the first place, as a thing may be being destroyed forever, without ever going out of existence.21 Second, destruction is only one of many ways that the fate of the wicked is described, and much like other seeming paradoxes of scripture (i.e. the doctrine of the trinity) all must be accepted as being true at the same time. For instance, terms used to describe hell in addition to destruction include: torment in Revelation 20:10 and weeping and gnashing of teeth in Luke 13:28. While it may be possible to view destruction as annihilation, it is not possible to see torment that results in physical responses as equivalent to
non-existence. More on this will be shown below.

Hell - The Literal View

In the Old Testament, pictures of the fate of the wicked are presented as conscious suffering in Sheol, or the grave. It is described as the land of gloom and deep shadow (Job 10:21), pain (Job 14:22), a place that apparently burns with fire (Dt.32:22; Isa. 33:14-15, 66:24). In the New Testament the afterlife for the wicked is described as fire (Matt. 5:22; 13:18-29, 25:41; Heb. 10:27), darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 22:13, 25:30), and gloomy dungeons (2 Peter 2:4). These judgments are said to be eternal in nature (Heb. 6:3; Jude 7; Revelation 14:10-11). The Greek word for eternal (aionios) used in these verses is to be taken as meaning without end unless context determines a set limit.22 It is further argued that as the word aionios is used in the New Testament
fifty one times to refer to the happiness of the righteous, twice of the duration of God's glory, and seven times of the punishment of the wicked, that they must all share the same meaning.23 If God's glory and the life of the righteous are eternal in the sense of never-ending, then so is the punishment of the wicked (Matthew 25:46). The fact that it is used both of the state of the blessed and of the state of the wicked would appear to negate any reference to an end of those states.24 Hell should properly be thought of, then, as an unending existence in a state of torment.

Hell - The Metaphorical View

Although the literal description of hell has been presented as the orthodox view following the teachings of Augustine, Spurgeon, and Edwards, many notable theologians in the past and present hold to a metaphorical view (Luther, Calvin, C.S. Lewis, J.I. Packer, Billy Graham... etc.).25 In agreement with the literal view, those who hold to a metaphorical view see hell as eternal in duration, whereas they disagree regarding the nature of hell itself. Because many of hell's descriptions would seem to contradict one another if they shared a physical reality (such as fire and darkness together - see Jude 7 & 13; or Matt. 3:10-12 & 8:12), the conclusion is reached that these are symbols used to give a picture of what truly exists in the place of the wicked.26 Just as God's judgment, and even God Himself, are pictured as fire (1 Cor. 3:15; Dt 4:24; Rev. 1:14), so hellfire is a picture of God's wrath. Also pointed out are descriptions of heaven that are seen as metaphorical (i.e. the description of heaven in Revelation 21 as a city made of gold and gems).

We have seen that the word in Greek for hell, geenna, is itself derived from the city dump that burned perpetually beyond the city walls. Obviously that dump was not eternal, nor could it burn immaterial souls; therefore, it is argued, we are to take it as a picture of what hell really is, and not a literal description. In addition, since a physical body would naturally burn up in fire, the fire of hell must be at least some different kind of fire than we know, or the bodies the damned will inhabit must be different than the bodies we now possess. It seems simpler to say that just as the lost will inhabit spiritual bodies, it will be a spiritual fire that burns them.

R.C. Sproul once answered, No, to a student who inquired if he believed the descriptions of hell were literal, but his explanation of that answer was less than comforting: "Then I said I thought a person who is in hell would do everything in his power to be in a lake of fire
rather than to be where he is... we use a symbol to represent a reality. The reality always exceeds in its substance what the symbol contains." 27

When we think of what the American flag means to us as a symbol and use that same ratio of meaning applying it to the descriptions of hell, we are given a frightening reality that is beyond our imagination. Either way, it is most certainly a terrifying expectation to the one who will enter into it (Heb. 10:27).

Hell's Nature: Second Conclusion

Hell's eternal nature has found a strong foothold in Christian tradition, and while we never want to make tradition our plumb line for truth, we must question whether or not God would allow His people to be so grossly mistaken on a given doctrine for 2,000 years. It seems that the Bible does in fact present physical death as the end or destruction of the physical person, but that some sort of existence continues nonetheless (Hebrews 9:27-28; Revelation 20:14 -- where Hades gives up the dead for judgment). The suffering of hell also seems to continue after it has begun (see Revelation 20:11-15 -- where the Beast and the False Prophet are still alive after 1,000 years in the lake of fire).28 The fact that Christ pictured sinners suffering at all after death, in hell, shows that they are in fact, conscious. The
torment of hell would make no sense if it were destruction, for the nonexistent cannot suffer. Finally, the juxtaposition of eternal life in Christ and eternal punishment in hell (Matt. 25:46) would be confusing if it were not contrasting two like things (as regarding their duration, of course, not their nature).

While these issues will no doubt continue to be debated, for our purposes, the traditional view of eternal punishment will be held as the Biblical view of hell. Whether or not the punishment is of a literal, physical nature is not the most important consideration, so long as one does not try to make a symbolic view of hell into a less severe form of suffering. It would seem unusual and even deceptive for Christ to use such vivid and terrifying imagery (an imagery that the Jews would have recognized as referring to the place of the wicked) to describe a place that is only a vague shadow of the suffering to which He referred.

The question of hell's fairness, then, cannot be sidestepped by appeal to its nature or duration. The Bible quite clearly represents a hell that is characterized by conscious, eternal suffering apart from God, and apart from hope.

Degrees of Suffering

Where can we go from here? Does God simply throw all who reject Him into the same horror-filled lake of fire to burn forever without regard to what kind of people they were in life? The answer lies in an often-neglected teaching of the Bible with respect to the degree to which individuals will suffer in hell.

No one who knows the Bible well doubts that in heaven there will be varying rewards for God's servants (Matt. 5:12, 46, 6:1-27; Luke 6:23, 35; Eph. 6:8; Col. 3:24; Heb. 11:26).29 If God distinguishes between different Christian's degrees of reward in heaven, why would He not distinguish between degrees of punishment in hell?

The scriptural basis for this argument is considerable. Luke 12:47-48 tells of differing blows for servants based on knowledge of master's will. Matthew 10:15 says there will be more tolerable suffering for various cities in hell than for others. Matthew 16:27 says that Christ will give to each man according to what he has done, and yet we know this cannot be salvation-related, for salvation is by grace through faith alone, not by works (Eph. 2:8-9).30 Finally, Revelation 20:12-15 and 22:12 show a judgment of works (apparently for those going to the lake of fire) for what men have done.31

Now, it is difficult for us to imagine a lake of fire with varying degrees of punishment, but again, we must let scripture speak for itself and not allow our intellect (or imagination) to dispute with the facts of God's word. Due to the fact that hell will have varying degrees of punishment, it is far easier to understand God's mercy and perfect judgment, even toward those who reject His love in this life.

Torment vs. Torture

Another important distinction to be made is this: the difference between torment (which is internally generated) and torture (which is from without). Nowhere in Scripture are people said to be tortured in hell. Torment yes, torture, no. This distinction is very important indeed - for it tells us that the suffering one undergoes has some connection to their inner condition. It makes sense that a person who must spend eternity knowing that they had a free chance to spend it with God but chose instead to ignore that offer will suffer. When all evil has been separated form all good imagine what existence in the realm of evil would be like - torment.

Universalism

Whatever problems one might have of the literal view of Hell, no metaphorical interpretation changes the fact that Hell is real and that unbelievers will go there after death forever. The contrary view is known as Universalism - the idea that all people will be saved. It is a heretical view, having been condemned at the Fifth Ecumenical Council of Constantinople in A.D. 553. Most of the arguments for Universalism are essentially appeals to pity which, while emotionally powerful, do not hold up to scrutiny. God is better than we are, more just, more merciful, more loving, etc. Thus, if someone ends up in Hell it is not due to a lack of any of these qualities and to think we have a better idea of what they entail is the height of arrogance. God allows each of us to decide whether we will spend eternity with Him or without Him - it's just that simple. I will not attempt an exhaustive treatement of the arguments put forth for universalism because many of them are just variations on the same form. Here are a few:

Psalm 110:1 says that all Christ’s enemies are eventually submissive to Him so they must be saved. Subjugated does not mean submitted (Eph. 1:3; Rom. 8:17)! These lost people are called “enemies” which is not a description of the saved who are called “friends” (John 15:15). and “sons” of God (John 1:12).

1 Corinthians 15:24-25 is much the same. Paul is not speaking of the salvation of the lost but rather their condemnation (cf. John 15:15). These enemies are subjugated to God, not saved by Him (cf. 2 Tim. 2:12; cf. Matt. 19:28; Luke 19:17-19). Paul declares that only those who “believed” are “saved” (15:2). The gospel is the power of God for slavation (15:1-5) but only for thos ewho believe (Romans 1:15-17).

The restoration of all things in Acts 3:21 is taken by universalists to mean that all people will eventually be saved. While it is true that God desires that all men be saved (2 Peter 3:9), as does the apostle Paul (cf. 1 Tim. 2:4), some people are simply not willing to accept God’s grace (cf. Matt. 23:37). Since God is love (1 John 4:16) and humans are free, God cannot force them to freely love Him. This verse is referring to the restoration of all things to Israel, not to the salvation of all people. Nothing is said here about the ultimate salvation of all human beings (Matt. 19:28).

Romans 5:18-19: are all men justified? No, Paul speaks of being “justified by faith” (v. 1), and not automatically by what Christ did for us. Sin came to all people through descent - but this is not paralell to salvation (cf. John 1:11-12). The many [all] being “made righteous” does not refer to their actually being saved but rather their being made savable by the removal of judicial guilt inherited from Adam (cf. 5:1). Rather, salvation is “the gift” (v. 16), which is something that needs to be received (v. 17); and not all receive the gift (cf. Matt. 23:37; 25:40-41). The rest of the epistle makes it unmistakably clear that not everyone will be saved (Rom. 1-2). Paul concludes that apart from justification by faith the world is “guilty before God” (3:19; 6:23; 9:3; 11:1ff).
The whole point of Romans is to show that only those who believe will be justified (1:17; cf. 3:21-26).

In 2 Corinthians 5:19 it is argued that "the world” was reconciled to God by Christ’s salvific work, so all are saved on the basis of His sacrifice (Rom. 11:15). However, Paul indicates that actual reconciliation is for those who are “in Christ,” not for all human beings (v. 17). The whole world is potentially reconciled to God, not actually. If all were already saved by what Christ did for them, what do we make of Paul’s exhortation to be “ambassadors for Christ” and to be “pleading” with the world to “be reconciled to God.”

Philippians 2:10-11 says every tongue will confess Christ. Yes, but what will they confess? They will confess the fact that He is Lord; there is no reference to their believing in Him or the gospel message, which is necessary for salvation (1 Cor. 15 cf. Rom. 1). Even demons believe truths about God but they are not saved (James 2:19). Simply acknowledging that Jesus is Lord will not save anyone - this is not the gospel.

1 Peter 3:18-20 says that Christ preached to the spirits in prison. But there is no suggestion that Jesus offered the hope of salvation. The text does not say that Christ evangelized them, but simply that He proclaimed the victory of His resurrection to them (cf. Eph. 4:8; Col. 2:15). Further, the Bible is clear that there is no second chance after death (cf. Heb. 9:27; Rev. 16:19-31; 20:11-15; cf. Prov. 29:1; John 3:36; 5:24). In fact, the phrase “spirits in prison” may not even refer to human beings (Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7; 2 Peter 2:4; cf. Gen. 6:1-4). Also, in 1 Peter 4:6 the gospel “was preached” (in the past) to those who “are dead” (now in the present) - nowhere does Peter say that this alleged gospel preaching resulted in the salvation of all to whom it was given.

Universalists argue that a God of love would never allow any of His creatures to perish. If God wants to save all, and if He can save all (i.e., He is all-powerful), it would seem to follow that He will save all (e.g., 1 Tim. 2:4; 2 Peter 3:9). This is false, and based on sentimentality rather than true love. While God does love the world (John 3:16) and doesn’t desire that any should perish (cf. 2 Peter 3:9), His very nature as love demands that He not force His love on anyone (cf. Matt. 23:37). It would be unloving and contradictory for God to force people to love Him.

Universalists argue that Hell does not perform a good function if it cannot be used for reform. However, contrary to both Scripture and fact, the reformatory view of justice assumes that all persons freely choose to be reformed (cf. Matt. 23:37; Rev. 20:10-15) and that no decisions are final (Heb. 9:27).The reformatory view of justice is contrary to the reality of justice, which is penal, not reformatory - God’s absolute justice demands that a penalty be paid for sin (Lev. 17:11; Ezek. 18:20). The reformatory view of justice is contrary to the substitutionary death of Christ (1 Cor. 15:3; 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Peter 3:18). If sin need not be punished, why did Jesus have to pay the awful price for sin? God is indeed interested in reformation: Reformation is what this life is all about.
But if people refuse to be reformed during this life, then punishment is what the afterlife is about.

So why can't God simply choose to not punish sin - just save everyone? Could not God, perfect in love and mercy, turn His eyes from sin and simply ignore it? Put another way, did Christ have to die in the first place? The answer lies in the fact that while God is perfect in mercy, He is also perfect in justice. God's righteousness comes from His very nature (Isa. 6:3; Jn 17:11). He is just, He does not simply act justly. Just as all human governments throughout time have recognized the need for punishment of wrongdoing, so it is in God's very nature to punish evil. For God to let it slide would be an affront to his very being. The fact that God will not dismiss sin lightly is expounded upon in His word (Gen 18:25; Ex. 23:7; 34:7; Romans 2:5-6). God punishes sin temporally (Heb. 12:6), in the intermediate state (Luke 16), and will punish forever (in the eternal state) those who never turn from their evil (Revelation 20). Balanced with this perfect judgment is God's perfect mercy, that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). God, having taken our sin and our punishment, has made His perfect justice compatible with His perfect love, that all who will may now come to Him without fear (John 6:37; 1 John 4:18).

In summary:

• Universalism is contrary to Scripture. The Bible makes it very clear that there will be an eternal hell and that there will be people in it (Matt. 25:41; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Rev. 20:11-15). Jesus had more to say about Hell than He did about Heaven (Matt. 10:28; 13:40; 25:41; Mark 9:43; Luke 16:23-29). Romans 9 declares that only the elect (not everyone) will be saved (cf. v. 14ff; cf. 2 Peter 3:9) and there are numerous passages of Scripture that speak of the eternal destiny of lost people (see the articles on Hell for more).
• Universalism Is contrary to the image of God which includes the freedom to choose.
• Universalism Is contrary to God's love because forced love is a kind of assault.
• Universalism Is contrary to God’s justice - since God is absolutely holy He must punish sin.
• Universalism is contarry to God's Word. It is based on verses wrenched out of context, and it ignores other clear passages that teach the opposite.
• Universalism is contrary to church history - the best thinkers of the church were opposed to Universalism: Justin Martyr (FA, I.XXVIII); Irenaus (AH, I.V.XXXV); Cyprian (EC, V.XXX.VII); Lactantius (OTW, VII.III); Augustine (E, 99); Thomas Aquinas (ST, II.78.2; II.87.5); John Calvin (ICR, III.21.7; 23.1, 8); Jacob Arminius (WJA, III.377); Charles Hodge (ST, III.878); William G. T. Shedd (HCC, II.414-19); Millard Erickson (CT, 1234-35); Earl Radmacher (S, 173); etc. Those quoted in support of Universalism (such as Origen) are often heretics or at the very least liberal scholars whose opinions should be suspect in the first place.

Conclusion

It has been thus far shown that hell is a real place of torment for those who will spend eternity there apart from God, and that the torment experienced by each individual will reflect the degree to which they sinned in life. It has further been shown that those who inhabit this terrible place are there not because of a lack of good deeds, but instead because of the choice each made during their life on earth regarding whether or not they would love the God Who created them. It has been shown that God has provided every person with the possibility of salvation, turning none away who would come seeking Him.

God has supplied enough evidence for those who hope for Him (Heb. 11:1), He calls yet He does not coerce. For man to have freedom to love (which is the highest good - Mark 12:28-30), he must have the choice to not love (the lowest evil?). God puts these two before each person: life or death. Choosing life brings fellowship with God in this life (Rev. 3:20) and in the next (John 6:68, 10:28). Choosing death brings separation from God in this life (Eph 2:13) and in the next (Matt. 25:41). The duration of that state is a moot point, for once one has made the final choice (a point that God alone knows), the consequence of that choice is fixed.

Hell shows God's perfection in justice, implores the reception of His perfection in mercy, and proves His perfection in fairness. Hell is God's affirmation of mankind's freedom to reject Him. It is the horrible finality of the knowledge that the one thing all humans have longed for (but have never found in the cheap, substitute pleasures that the world offers) is now forever out of reach. C.S. Lewis summed it perfectly with the following words:

They enjoy forever the horrible freedom they have demanded, and are therefore self-enslaved just as the
blessed, forever submitting to obedience, become through all eternity more and more free. . . .
'What are you asking God to do?' To wipe out their past sins and, at all costs, to give them a fresh start,
smoothing every difficulty and offering every miraculous help? But He has done so, on Calvary. To
forgive them? They will not be forgiven. To leave them alone? Alas, I am afraid that is what He does.32

Notes

• All Scripture references taken from The New American Standard Bible, (La Habra, California: The Lockman
  Foundation) 1977.
• 1. Dante Alighieri, The Inferno, trans. John Ciardi (New York: Mentor Books, 1954, Paperback 1964), 205-210.
  Dante's Inferno is a type of the medieval world's ideas of what hell might be like. Consider the fate of the thieves
  in the eighth circle of hell (Canto XXIV): they are bound at the hands (which they used to steal) by serpents that
  strike them. When bitten, the sinner burns in fire and is later reconstituted... only to assume the form of the
  reptile itself (his body stolen). --See note 15 as well--
• 2. C.S. Lewis, The Great Divorce (Macmillan, 1964; New York: Touchstone, 1996), passim.
  Lewis pictured hell as a drab city in this allegorical book.
• 3. This bomb threat illustration prompted a question answered by Glenn Miller on his Think Tank website:
  http://www.webcom.com/ctt/gutripper.html
• 4. Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary New Testament (Chatanooga: AMG, 1994), 129.
  Dr. Spiros Zodhiates defines amartanw (hamartano) as: To sin, to miss a mark on the way.
• 5. Robert Morey, Death and the Afterlife (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1984), 102.
• 6. Norman Geisler and Ron Brooks, When Skeptics Ask (Wheaton: SP publications, 1990), 120-123.
  and
  Josh McDowell, The New Evidence That Demands A Verdict (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1999), 221-225.
• 7. C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain (Macmillan, 1962; New York: Touchstone, 1996), 109.
• 8. Christian Research Institute president Hank Hanegraaff uses this illustration often when this question is asked on the
  Bible Answer Man broadcast.
• 9. See Glenn Miller's examples from Think Tank website: http://www.webcom.com/~ctt/HNoHear.html
• 10. From Glenn Miller's Think Tank answer to this question
  http://www.webcom.com/~ctt/HNoHear.html
• 11. Ron Rhodes, The Complete Book of Bible Answers (Eugene: Harvest House, 1997), 221.
• 12. Norman Geisler, Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1999), 311.
• 13. I believe this idea was first put in print by C.S. Lewis, but I am unsure.
• 14. C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain, 114
• 15. Examples could include:
• --Dante Alighieri's vision of the inferno has become legendary, as well as his gift for creating tortures that ironically
  reflect the sins that characterized the sinner's life on earth. In Canto XVIII, the Flatterers (those who sinned with false
  words of sweetness) are seen drowning in excrement (see: Dante Alighieri, The Inferno, 161-162).
• --Gary Larson, creator of The Far Side comic strip, made a practice of picturing hell in humorously ironic tortures.
  Any collection of his work will feature one or more.
• --Simpsons creator Matt Groening has also poked fun at the concept of hell in both the aforementioned cartoon
  (where Homer, a donut lover, is forced to consume hundreds of donuts at once - supposedly a torture - only to
  bankrupt hell of the deserts and ask for more), and in his most recent work Futurama (where a character attempts to
  escape hell by winning a fiddle contest, in an apparent tribute to the Charlie Daniel's Band song with the same theme).
• 16. Bauer, Walter, Gingrich, F. Wilbur, and Danker, Frederick W., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and
  Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979), LOGOS word study on Gehenna.
• 17. Robert Morey, Death and the Afterlife, 87-88.
  and
  William Crockett, John Walvoord, Zachary Hayes, and Clark Pinnock, Four Views on Hell, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan,
  1996), 18-19.
• 18. William Crockett, John Walvoord, Zachary Hayes, and Clark Pinnock, Four Views on Hell (Grand Rapids:
  Zondervan, 1996), 14.
• 19. Ibid., 156
• 20. Ibid., 148
• 21. Zodhiates, Word Study Dictionary, 246 & 1036-1037.
  Neither oleqros nor apwleia (both translated as destruction) carry the meaning
  of annihilation according to Dr. Spiros Zodhiates. Context must be determinitive, but many times it refers only to death
  (Heb. 11:28 cf. Ex. 12:23). Zodhiates also points out that at death the body does not cease to exist, but that its
  constituent parts only undergo change or decay. This leads to the idea that destruction is a process, not necessarily an
  event. Therefore eternal destruction is not only possible, but it can only be performed upon that which exists.
• 22. Ibid.,107.
  aiwnios, as defined by Zodhiates means belonging to the age . . . to time in its duration . . . Therefore, eternal
  must be understood in the context of the time frame being considered. For events on earth, it is temporal, for the earth is
  temporal. for events in the afterlife, which has no time constraints, it is non-ending.
• 23. Crockett, Walvoord, Hayes, and Pinnock, Four Views on Hell, 23-24.
• 24. Norman Geisler, Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics, 312
  and
  Ron Rhodes, Reasoning from the Scriptures with the Jehovah's Witnesses (Eugene: Harvest House, 1993), 333.
• 25. Crockett, Walvoord, Hayes, and Pinnock, Four Views on Hell, 12 & 44.
• 26. Robert Morey, Death and the Afterlife, 101.
• 27. R.C. Sproul, Now, That's A Good Question! (Wheaton: Tyndale House, 1996), 303-304.
• 28. Norman Geisler, Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics, 312
  NOTE: It may seem at first that this reflects an eschatological bias toward Premillennialism, however so long as
  the one thousand years refers to any amount of time, the conclusion remains correct.
• 29. Ron Rhodes, Reasoning from the Scriptures with the Jehovah's Witnesses, 332
  and
  Norman Geisler, Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics, 312
• 30. Ron Rhodes, Book of Bible Answers, 279.
• 31. Kay Arthur, Behold, Jesus is Coming! (Eugene: Harvest House, 1995), 127-130.
  32. C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain, 114.