THE CASE FOR UNIVERSAL SALVATION: PART THREE
Objections to universal salvation:
The understanding that all humans are/will be saved and granted immortality is a growing but yet minority position within the Christian community. Objections to this position are usually grounded in the belief that salvation is only available during this physical life. It is further believed that salvation is only granted to those who while in the flesh repent of their sins, strive to live righteously and place faith in the sacrifice of Christ. As already indicated, some believe that only those predestinated to be saved are saved while all others are predestinated to be “lost.”
A common belief is that if a person isn’t “saved” before physical death, there will be eternal punishing or annihilation. Even among those who feel the "unsaved" may have opportunity for eternal life after physical death, the belief remains that not all will be saved and some will have to be annihilated or consigned to eternal punishing or some kind of conscious eternal separation from the presence of God. This position is felt to be supported by Scriptures that show judgment, condemnation, perishing, destruction and punishment administered to and against the unrighteous.
Matthew 7:13-14 is sometimes cited to show Jesus teaching that only a few will be granted eternal life while the vast majority of humans are destroyed. Others see Jesus teaching that a few will go to heaven while the vast majority will go to hell. Is Jesus, in Matthew 7, teaching about the eternal destiny of the righteous versus the eternal destiny of the wicked?
The two gates:
Matthew 7:13-14: Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction (Greek: ἀπώλειαν (apōleian), and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
The Greek word translated “destroy” in Matthew 7:13-14 is a tense of the Greek word apollumi. This word, in its various tenses, is found 92 times in the NT narrative. This Greek word means "to destroy." However, it does not have an intrinsic meaning of permanent destruction as can be seen by how it is used by NT writers. It can be seen by context to often mean a temporary loss or ruin. The people of Sodom are seen as being destroyed (apollumi) in Luke 17:29. As previously discussed, Jesus taught that these people will rise up in a judgment. Their destruction was only physical and temporal, not permanent.
When Jesus was sleeping in a boat and a huge storm came up, the disciples pleaded with Jesus to save them from the storm so they wouldn't perish. "And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish" (apollumi) (Matthew 8:25 KJV). If the disciples would have drowned, would their loss of life have been permanent? Would their lives have been destroyed forever?
At Jesus’ trial the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus destroyed (apollumi) (Matthew 27:1). Obviously, Jesus was not permanently destroyed. Then there is the parable of the lost (apollumi) sheep and the prodigal son.
Luke 15:3-6: Then Jesus told them this parable: Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses (apollumi) one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost (apollumi) sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, Rejoice with me; I have found my lost (apollumi) sheep.
Luke 15:24: for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost (apollumi) and is found.' And they began to be merry.
Here we find apollumi does not define perishing, destruction or death as a literal cessation of life or as a permanent loss or ruin. The term is used here to show how a temporary loss doesn't have to be permanent but can lead to restoration. When Jesus sent His disciples to go to the lost (apollumi) sheep of the house of Israel (Matthew 10:6), he was sending them to people who were lost in that they had eternal death abiding in them because of sin. He sent the disciples to bring them a message of restoration from such death.
In the great majority of the 92 appearances of apollumi in the NT, it is used to describe a temporary loss from which there can be restoration. The parable of the lost sheep is instructive of the attitude God has toward his human creation in wanting to save them from apollumi. Jesus plainly said He had come to save the apollumi.
Luke 19:10: For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost (apollumi)."
Luke 9:56: For the Son of Man did not come to destroy (apollumi) men's lives but to save them.
John 3:16: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish (apollumi) but have everlasting life.
John 3:17: For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn (Greek krino) the world, but to save the world through him.
2 Peter 3:9: The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish (apollumi), but everyone to come to repentance.
These statements show that when apollumi is used in the NT in regard to human life, it is not used to describe a permanent loss of life but a temporary loss from which there can be recovery and restoration. In John 3:16, Jesus is saying that those who believe in Him will not experience eternal death but will be given eternal life instead. John 3:17 is highly instructive as to God’s intentions as to the salvation of mankind. John 3:17 virtually qualifies 3:16. By Jesus saying in 3:17 that God sent Him (Jesus) not to condemn the world but to save the world, Jesus is saying that all will come to believe in him and avoid perishing.
Some will point to John 3:18 where Jesus tells Nicodemus that those who do not come to believe in Him (Jesus) are condemned and John 3:36 where John the Baptist speaks of those who reject Jesus not seeing life and the wrath of God remaining on them. Such condemnation and remaining wrath is generally seen as an eternal/permanent separation from God through either annihilation or eternal conscious punishment in hell.
John 3:18: Whoever believes in him is not condemned (Greek krinó), but whoever does not believe stands condemned (krinó) already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.
John 3:36: Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.
I submit that these statements cannot be speaking of a permanent condemnation and wrath involving permanent loss of eternal life or, worse yet, eternal life as eternal conscious torment. If this were the case, we would have to conclude the majority of humanity (billions and billions of people) will be in this condemned category as the great majority of humanity (past and present) have not and do not come to express belief in Jesus during their physical sojourn on planet earth.
Such a conclusion flies in the face of the many Scriptures we have discussed that indicate all humans will be given eternal life in the presence of God. In view of the many Scriptures that indicate eternal life for all in the presence of God, John 3:18 and 36 and other sayings like it, must be seen as dealing with temporal circumstances and not eternal ones. Anything less than this creates highly problematical inconsistency and contradiction in Scripture.
This brings us back to the saying of Jesus as recorded in Matthew 7:13-14.
Matthew 7:13-14: Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction (Greek: πώλειαν (apōleian), and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Jesus makes this statement near the end of His Sermon on the Mount where He provides a great deal of instruction as to how to live the Kingdom life. To understand Jesus’ presentation of the two gates we must place this teaching in the overall context of what He had taught to this point. To this point, Jesus is teaching what it means to be in the Kingdom. What it means to live by Kingdom standards. He is showing that Kingdom living is not some far off goal to be attained far into the future or first attained once we leave this physical life. Jesus was teaching how we are to live in the here and now.
When Jesus instructs His listeners to enter the narrow gate rather than the wide gate, He is not talking about heaven versus hell. He is not talking about eternal life versus eternal death. He is talking about living according to the instruction He had just provided which He summarized in stating the Golden Rule. He is talking about experiencing the benefits of living according to the standards of behavior He had been teaching. He was teaching that living by these standards leads to a life of joy, peace and success as opposed to the destructive consequences of living a life characterized by behavior that is contrary to the teachings in the Sermon on the Mount.
Jesus is laying before His listeners the choice of the narrow or wide road. The one road is called the straight and narrow because it is a road that has perimeters and boundaries of behavior. It is a road that establishes a specific direction in which to travel. The narrow road maps out the route we are to travel in order to fulfill the way of life God wants for us to live. Jesus says, enter this gate. Go down this road. The result will be a satisfying life.
The wide gate leading to the broad road doesn’t have set parameters. This road doesn’t have a specific direction. This road often changes direction and does not have an established route of travel. This road can lead to all sorts of problems and difficulties in life. This road can lead to destructive consequences that bring pain, suffering and tribulation. This road can bring gloom, despair and agony. Jesus says the many walk down this road which is to say the many simply follow the way of wrong choices and suffer the consequences of those choices.
When placed into the context of what Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount, there is no reason to believe the eternal destiny of the righteous and wicked are being addressed here. Jesus is simply making a point about how things are with human behavior and pointing to the way that leads to positive versus negative consequences.
The sheep and the goats:
In Matthew 25 is the parable of the sheep and goats. The sheep are those who have behaved righteously and the goats are those who have behaved wickedly. The righteous are seen as entering into eternal life while the wicked are seen as being sent away to eternal punishment. Since eternal punishment is contrasted with eternal life, some believe the eternal punishment spoken of is the eternal annihilation of the wicked. Others see in this passage the wicked experiencing eternal conscious torment. Is either of these conclusions warranted?
Matthew 25: 31-33: "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
The context of this parable is the return of Christ. As shown in detail throughout this website, the return of Christ occurred in the first century in association with the destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem. This event is clearly predicted by Jesus in what is referred as the Olivet Discourse recorded in Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21. The return of Christ was a return in judgment against first century Israel for their refusal to acknowledge Jesus as the promised Messiah (Luke 19:41-44) and their overall failure to live righteously.
Matthew 25 is a continuation of Jesus’ answer to the questions presented to Him by His disciples as recorded in Matthew 24:3. The disciples asked Jesus when the temple would be destroyed and what would be the sign of His coming and the end of the age. Jesus answers their question by showing what would take place in anticipation of these events. This matter is discussed in detail in my series, "When Does Christ Return."
Many see Matthew 25:31-46 as pertaining to a final judgment where the saved go to heaven and the unsaved are annihilated or go into everlasting punishment. Eternal fire is seen as a fire that simply burns people up or burns forever and inflicts eternal torment on the unrighteous. Is either of these perspectives correct?
Matthew 25:41, 46: Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal (Greek: αἰώνιον (aiōnion)) fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Verse 46: Then they will go away to eternal (αἰώνιον (aiōnion)) punishment, but the righteous to eternal (αἰώνιον (aiōnion)) life.
The Greek aion:
The Greek (αἰώνιον (aiōnion) seen in Matthew 25 is the adjective form of the Greek noun aion. Strong’s Greek Lexicon shows aion to have the basic meaning of a segment or space of time, age or ages. This word in its various tenses appears hundreds of times in the NT and is rendered as eternal, everlasting, forever and age or ages.
It must be noted that aion does not have an intrinsic meaning of something that goes on without end. Depending on context, it can mean a long or short segment of time. It can mean a forever lasting segment of time. Its meaning must be determined by the immediate context wherein the word is found or in the greater context of the whole of Scripture.
One writer I studied explained that since aion is used in the Scriptures to refer to age's past (Colossians1:26), ages present and ages to come (Ephesians 1:21), and the end or consummation of ages (Matthew 28:20), this definitely indicates aion can refer to a temporary state and not necessarily an endless one.
For example, Revelation 14:10-11 speaks of those who worship the beast as being tormented with burning sulfur and the smoke of their torment rising forever and ever. Here the Greek aion is rendered “forever and ever.” Since I believe this is a fulfilled event, I don’t believe there is still smoke arising from these burning tormented souls. The same goes for Revelation 19:3 where the great prostitute (Jerusalem) is seen as condemned and the smoke of her destruction goes up forever and ever (aion). The smoke from her destruction is not still going up.
These are examples of aion/aiōnion meaning a limited duration of time, a meaning that has been embraced by various scholars I read who have written on the subject of the meaning of aion.
In the Septuagint (Greek translation of the OT), aion is used to translate the Hebrew olam. Olam is used dozens of times in the OT to designate a wide variety of time segments, including both limited time and everlasting time. There are many examples of limited time.
When Jonah was in the belly of the great fish, he spoke of being hemmed in by the earth forever (olam) [Jonah 2:6]. For Jonah, forever was only three days and nights in the water. A slave was seen as belonging to his master forever (olam) [Exodus 21:6]. Yet death would end such servitude. In Leviticus 25:46 foreigners living among the Israelites are seen as being made a slave forever (olam).
The Levites are seen as carrying the ark of God, and ministering before God forever (1st Chronicles 15:2). Are they still doing this? Animal sacrifices are seen as being established forever (olam). Yet we know they are no longer required. 2nd Chronicles 2:4 speaks of the temple services continuing forever (olam). Obviously, such services were discontinued when the temple was destroyed. Isaiah 34, in what appears to refer to a past event, addresses the destruction of nations and speaks of their smoke going up forever (olam) [Isaiah 34:10]. I don’t think the smoke of these nations is still going up.
The use of aion to translate olam shows the broad range of time frames this word can represent. Other occurrences of olam show a true everlasting time frame. David speaks of the glory of God enduring forever (olam). There are multiple dozens of OT Scriptures that by context show (olam) to truly mean forever just as there are multiple dozens of NT Scriptures where by context aion can be seen to truly mean eternal/everlasting.
Jesus spoke of the age (aion) that was and the age (aion) to come. The age that was, was not everlasting whereas the age to come is seen as everlasting. Context must always be the determining factor as to how aion is to be understood.
As discussed in depth in my series dealing with the timing of the return of Christ, the end of the age (aion) spoken of in the NT narrative is not about the end of the world but about the end of a segment of time called the Old Covenant age. The context of Matthew 24 and 25 is not some final judgment at the end of the physical world but a judgment that occurred at the time the temple was destroyed when Christ came in judgment against first century Israel. I again refer you to my series When Does Christ Return?
The context of Matthew 25 is Jesus coming in judgment against first century Israel. Dozens of NT passages point to the expected wrath that was to come upon Israel. This coming wrath had nothing to do with the eternal fate of those being punished at the time. It was a wrath with physical consequences directed at physical first century Israel for their failure to recognize Jesus as their Messiah and respond to His message. It was punishment directed against the Jewish society which was persecuting the developing Christian community.
Therefore, a passage such as 2nd Thessalonians 1:6-3 which speaks of 1st century Israelites being punished with everlasting destruction is not speaking of permanent destruction, a destruction from which there can be no recovery. The context here is the soon to occur destruction of those causing trouble for 1st century Christians. It is a temporal destruction much like that of the residents of Sodom and Gomorrah. Sodom and Gomorrah are seen as suffering the punishment of eternal fire.
Jude 1:7: Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal (αἰωνίου (aiōniou)) fire.
Obviously, Sodom and Gomorrah are not still burning. Their inhabitants are not still being punished by an eternal fire. The people of these two cities were physically burned up. What is instructive is that the people of Sodom and Gomorrah are not seen as being permanently destroyed by the punishment of eternal fire. They were not permanently annihilated. This was a destruction of their physical bodies. It was a temporal destruction, not an everlasting destruction. This is made plain in Matthew 10:14-15.
Matthew 10:14-15: If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. I tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
The people of Sodom and Gomorrah are seen as facing a judgment that, comparatively speaking, is less severe than for those who reject the message being delivered by the disciples Jesus sent to preach in the surrounding towns. This implies the people of Sodom and Gomorrah continued to exist in some manner after having been physically destroyed or that they would be brought back to life at some future time. Peter used the fiery destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah as an example of what will happen to the unrighteous of his day. Peter speaks in terms of the ungodly being burned up
2nd Peter 2:6: If he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly….
Peter uses the burning of Sodom and Gomorrah as a template for the kind of destruction that was coming upon 1st century Israel. But just as the people of Sodom and Gomorrah were not permanently destroyed, I see no reason to believe that the destruction of the 1st century Israelites was a permanent destruction.
Like Jesus, Paul and other NT writers, Peter was anticipating the end of the Old Covenant age. The Church was experiencing a great deal of persecution from the Jewish religious community. There are dozens of references in the NT to this persecution and the judgment that would bring it to an end. This judgment had nothing to do with the eternal fate of those being judged. This was a temporal judgment restricted to a specific segment of time (aion). We know literal fire was involved in the destruction of Jerusalem just as was the case with Sodom and Gomorrah.
Some believe that since both life and punishment are presented as eternal in the same context in Matthew 25, eternal must mean the same thing in both cases. This reasoning is problematical because when Jesus discussed eternal life, He spoke in terms of never dying as seen in the passages from the Gospel of John.
John 5:24: "I tell you the truth; whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned (Greek krisis); he has crossed over from death to life.
John 8:51: I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death."
John 11:26: Whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
To never die is to embark on a segment of time (aion) that is truly without end. To never die is to experience salvation. It is to have the eternal death penalty for sin atoned for by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Eternal life brought about through the Christ event (salvation) is always seen as everlasting in the NT Scriptures. Eternal punishment by fire is not seen as everlasting as seen in our discussion of Sodom and Gomorrah.
If the eternal fire of Matthew 25 is a fire that burns people up but does not permanently annihilate people, why is this fire seen as prepared for Satan and his angels? It appears from Scripture that Satan and angels are non physical spirit entities. How could a physical fire harm them? The following Scripture is instructive relative to this issue:
Hebrews 2:14-15: Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy (Greek καταργήσῃ (katargēsē) him who holds the power of death--that is, the devil-- and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.
The word “destroy” is a tense of the Greek word katargeo, which means: “to make ineffective, powerless, abolish, wipe out” (Arndt, Gingrich, Bauer, Greek-English Lexicon). Thayer’s Greek Lexicon renders it as “to render idle, unemployed, inactive and inoperative.” Strong’s Lexicon defines this word as inoperative, abolish.
Jesus came to abolish Satan’s power of death and drive him from the world as seen in what He said as recorded in John, "Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out" (John 12:31).
1st John 3:8b: The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy (Greek: λύσ (lysē) the devil's work.
Here the writer uses a Greek word that means to annul, loosen, remove, release, and overthrow as seen in Strong’s and Thayer’s Greek Lexicons.
Since it doesn’t appear that fire, as we know it, would affect Satan and his angels, Jesus apparently was using fire in Matthew 25 symbolically of the abolishment of Satan and his angels. Jesus was saying Satan would be made ineffective, powerless, inactive, inoperative and overthrown as this is what the Greek words rendered “destroy” in Hebrews and 1st John mean.
It must be kept in mind that the narrative of Matthew 24 and 25 has to do with events that were shortly to come to past, namely the return of Christ in judgment against first century Israel which resulted in the destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem. The sheep and goats metaphor pertained to that event and only that event. The righteous are seen as being received into the Kingdom and the wicked are seen as being told to depart from Jesus into eternal fire which appears to be a metaphor for being denied entrance into the Kingdom.
In Matthew 25:30, Jesus spoke of the wicked servant being thrown into the darkness, “where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Was there to be a literal weeping and gnashing of teeth or is this illustrative of the spiritual pain experienced by those on the outside looking in? Jesus uses this same expression in association with the wicked being thrown into a fiery furnace
Matthew 13:40-42: "As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
It should be evident that being thrown into a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth is figurative language used to describe the anguish of those who failed to acknowledge Jesus as the promised Messiah to Israel. To be thrown into a literal fiery furnace would mean immediate death with no time to weep or gnash teeth.
Notice that this is to occur when Christ comes with His angels at the end of the age. As covered in depth in my series on the return of Christ, the end of the age spoken of throughout the NT is the end of the Old Covenant age that occurred when Christ returned in association with the destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem in AD 70. Therefore, this is a past event.
In Matthew 25:46 Jesus says “Then they (the wicked) will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.
It is instructive that the Greek word rendered “punishment” in Matthew 25:46 is kolasin and is used throughout Greek literature to mean corrective punishment as opposed to retributive punishment. This is found in the secular writing of such philosophers as Plato and Aristotle and Christian writers such as Clement of Alexandria.
Thayer’s Greek Lexicon defines kolasin as “correction, punishment and penalty.” Thayer speaks of Aristotle using this word to describe discipline. He cites the Greek philosopher Plutarch using this word to describe those undergoing the penalties of the other world and that Christian writer Justin Martyr and Clement of Rome used this word in like manner as to the afterlife. Could we be looking here at the punishment of the wicked as remedial in nature where upon completion are numbered with those who did not have to experience such remedial punishment? Food for thought.
The self mutilation passages:
What about the self mutilation passages found in Matthew and Mark? Here we see Jesus speaking about cutting off body parts to avoid being cast into eternal fire.
Matthew 18:8-9: If your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal (Greek aion) fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell (Greek Gehenna).
Mark 9:43-48: If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell (Gehenna), where the fire never goes out. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell (Gehenna). And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell (Gehenna), where "`their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.'
Is Jesus recommending self mutilation here to avoid the eternal fire of a place called hell? Is Jesus really saying one can enter into life maimed? We have already seen that when aion is used in connection with the death of the wicked it does not mean an eternal period of time. What about the fire of hell?
The Greek Gehenna:
The Greek word Gehenna appears twelve times in the NT and is generally translated as "hell" in English Bibles. Gehenna is the Greek rendering of the Hebrew Ge Hinnom, which literally refers to the Valley of Hinnom known in Hebrew as Gai Ben-Hinnom which literally means the Valley of Hinnom's son. In the Hebrew Scriptures, Gai Ben-Hinnom was a valley on the outskirts of Jerusalem. This valley is located below the southern wall of Jerusalem. It stretches from the foot of Mount Zion eastward to the Kidron valley. In ancient times children were sacrificed to the pagan god Molech in Gehenna, a practice that was outlawed by King Josiah (See 2 Kings, 23:10).
In a prophecy of a coming destruction upon the nation of Judah by the nation of Babylon, Jeremiah quotes God as saying “They have built the high places of Topheth (Topheth means “place of fire”) in the Valley of Ben Hinnom to burn their sons and daughters in the fire--something I did not command, nor did it enter my mind. So beware, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when people will no longer call it Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter, for they will bury the dead in Topheth until there is no more room. Then the carcasses of this people will become food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and there will be no one to frighten them away” (Jeremiah 7:31-33). In Jeremiah chapter 19 this pronouncement is repeated in even more graphic terms.
As is true of the book of Jeremiah, much of the book of Isaiah is about the Babylonian destruction of Judah which included the destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem. Isaiah prophecies a restoration of Judah and ends his prophecy by observing that those who return to Jerusalem will “go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind" (Isaiah 66:24).
It is commonly believed that over time, Gehenna became a dump where garbage, dead bodies of criminals and carcasses of dead animals and general debris was burned. It is believed it was still being used in this manner during the time of Christ and that is why Jesus used it to describe the fate of the wicked. However, there is no Biblical, secular or archeological evidence that this is how Gehenna was being used subsequent to its use as seen in the OT. Today this area is a residential area south of the old city of Jerusalem. When I was in Israel some years ago, I walked around in Gehenna. You might say I spent some time in hell.
That Gehenna was being used as a constantly burning garbage dump during the time of Jesus is open to question. However, it is evident Jesus used Gehenna to illustrate that there are negative consequences associated with behavior contrary to righteousness. He very likely used Gehenna in this manner because of its association with the punishment of the wicked as seen in Jeremiah and Isaiah.
Since Gehenna is seen as the burial place of those killed during the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem, Jesus may very well have seen Gehenna as the burial place for those who would be killed in the coming destruction of Jerusalem in His day. First century Jewish historian Josephus describes how during the Roman siege of Jerusalem, corpses were thrown over the walls into the encircling valleys because there was no longer room to bury them in the city (Josephus: War 5.12.3).
Nowhere, however, is Gehenna pictured as a place of eternal torment for the wicked dead. The very imagery of Gehenna is of a place where things are burned up and no longer exist. Even if Jesus did mean for Gehenna to represent a literal place of punishment of the wicked dead, it would have to be a place where such dead are burned up and cease to exist in order to be consistent with the activity associated with the literal Valley of Hinnom.
Therefore, to see Gehenna as a literal place of continuing punishment for the unrighteous dead is very problematical. Jesus appears to be using Gehenna to highlight the negative consequences associated with sinful behavior as he uses the imagery of self mutilation to emphasis the need to strive hard to behave righteously.
Matthew 23:15: "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell (Gehenna) as you are.
Here we see Jesus using Gehenna in a pejorative sense to expose the religious leaders of His day who were misleading converts to Judaism into behaviors contrary to righteousness. This is another example of Jesus using the well know garbage dump outside of Jerusalem to signify that bad behavior leads to bad consequences.
It should be apparent that when Jesus speaks of Gehenna, he is using apocalyptic/hyperbolic language to get a point across. Jesus used the garbage dump outside of Jerusalem to signify the ungodly will be punished.
In the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21) Jesus describes the coming destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem in apocalyptic/hyperbolic terms. He speaks of the sun being darkened, the moon not giving its light and stars falling from the sky. Similar language is used in the vision of this same event that Jesus gave to John in the Revelation. Peter uses similar language in describing what will occur just prior to the return of Christ which Peter saw as occurring in his generation (Acts 2).
There is a lot in the NT about fleeing the wrath to come. John the Baptist spoke of fleeing from the wrath to come (Matthew 3:7 and Luke 3:7). He was speaking of a coming judgment where those who didn’t repent of their evil ways would be thrown into unquenchable fire (Matthew 3:12 and Luke 3:17). John's use of the term unquenchable fire appears to be a reference to Gehenna as Jesus uses the same Greek word to describe the fire of Gehenna (Mark 9:43-48). Like Jesus’ use of Gehenna fire as a place of punishment, John also used Gehenna to signify the coming wrath upon the wicked.
In the Olivet Discourse, Jesus speaks of wrath upon the people and then appears to define the nature of this wrath. “There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled” (Luke 21:23-24). Here the coming wrath is seen as falling by the sword and being taken prisoner.
We see throughout the NT narrative references to a coming wrath upon those who persisted in behaving contrary to righteousness. This coming wrath is not some wrath that was to occur thousands of years into the future but a wrath that was to occur in the generation of those hearing the warnings about this wrath. Here is what Paul wrote in his letter to the Romans:
Romans 2:5-8: But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. God "will give to each person according to what he has done."To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.
In a letter to the Colossians, Paul wrote that because of a failure to put to death behaviors associated with the sinful nature, "the wrath of God was coming" (Colossians 3:6).
In Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians, he speaks of how they were waiting for Jesus to return "who rescues us from the coming wrath" (1st Thessalonians 1:10). This wrath is seen as being directed against those who were persecuting the Thessalonian Christians. Paul says “the wrath of God has come upon them at last” (1st Thessalonians 2:16). In his second letter to the Thessalonians Paul says this:
2nd Thessalonians 1:6-9: God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power.
Some believe that Romans 2:6-16 debunks universal salvation. Well known theologian NT Wright takes this position in his essay entitled “Towards a biblical view of universalism.” Wright claims that Romans 6:6-16 flies “in the teeth of” the word all in Romans 5:18 and 11:32 meaning all humans that have ever lived receiving eternal life in the presence of God. Romans 2:6-16 speaks of being repaid according to what one does. It speaks of those who have been persistence in doing good will be given eternal life and those who reject the truth and follow evil will face wrath and anger. This passage speaks of there being trouble and distress for every human being who does evil (Jew and Gentile) but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good (Jew and Gentile) This is all seen as occurring on “the day of God's wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed“ (verse 6) and “on the day when God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ” (verse 16).
Wright apparently sees this entire passage, and many like it, as pertaining to all humans throughout time and therefore those seen as evil will face a permanent wrath from God at an end of time judgement. Such judgement will result in those who failed to meet certain standards of righteousness and/or didn’t place faith in Jesus as being in some manner eternally separated from the presence of God. This is seen as negating universal salvation.
Since Scripture shows that faith in Jesus is a required dynamic in having His sacrifice become efficacious in the granting of eternal life, if Wright is right, we would have to conclude the majority of humanity (billions and billions of people) will permanently be the recipients of God’s wrath as the great majority of humanity (past and present) have not and do not come to express belief in Jesus during their physical sojourn on planet earth.
However, such a conclusion flies in the face of the many Scriptures we have and will be discussing that indicate all humans will be given eternal life in the presence of God. Anything less than this creates a highly problematical inconsistency and contradiction in Scripture. What Wright doesn’t understand is that much of the narrative in the NT that deals with the wrath of God, reward and punishment and judgement pertains to the anticipated occurrence of the return of Christ in that first century generation at which time the dynamics of God’s wrath, reward and punishment and judgement would be played out.
In Romans 2, as is true of much of Paul’s teaching and much of the teaching found throughout the NT, what is being dealt with is the anticipated first century return of Christ in judgment upon those who rejected the gospel message and were persecuting those who accepted the gospel message. Being punished with everlasting destruction, as seem in 2nd Thessalonians 1:6-9, appears to be the same kind of apocalyptic/hyperbolic language used by John the Baptist and Jesus in describing the consequences associated with their listeners rejecting the gospel message. This is a description of an about to occur temporal event and not a description of the eternal condition of those involved.
Paul is here dealing with the anticipated first century return of Christ in judgment upon those who rejected the gospel message and were persecuting those who accepted the gospel message. Speaking of their everlasting destruction appears to be the same kind of apocalyptic/hyperbolic language used by John the Baptist and Jesus in describing the consequences associated with their listeners rejecting the gospel message.
The Revelation given to John, which pertains to the coming of Christ in judgment upon first century Israel, speaks of the wrath of God and Christ ten different times. In Revelation 6:16-17 we see men calling on the mountains and the rocks to fall on them to hide them from "the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?" Revelation 11:11 speaks of God's wrath having come. In Revelation 16:19 God is seen as pouring out the fury of his wrath on Babylon which is actually first century Jerusalem (See my series "When Does Christ Return" for a discussion of this issue).
In reading through the NT narrative, it becomes apparent that the references found in the NT to punishment, destruction, perishing and being thrown into the fire have nothing to do with the eternal fate of mankind. These pronouncements are instead tied to the anticipated wrath that was prophesied to be poured out upon first century Israel. This was a wrath that involved the physical destruction of the temple, the city of Jerusalem and the physical suffering, death and captivity of tens of thousands of Jews.
The eternal fate of humanity is not in the judgment/punishment and wrath passages of the Scriptures we have reviewed but in the redemptive passages where it is established that the will of God is that all humanity be reconciled to Him. That is the reason for the Christ event. Jesus didn’t go through the agony of the crucifixion to save the relatively few individuals who supposedly are predestined to receive salvation or the relatively few who happen to recognize the significance of His sacrifice and choose to place faith in Him. The Son of God was/is the Father’s agent to facilitate reconciliation and salvation for all of humanity as the Scriptures we have discussed in this series clearly show.
Matthew 10:28/ Luke 12:4-5:
Matthew 10:28: Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy (Greek: ἀπολέσαι (apolesai) both soul and body in hell (Gehenna).
Luke 12:4-5: "I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell (Gehenna). Yes, I tell you, fear him.
Some see this saying of Jesus as showing that man can only kill the body but not the soul. While the body dies, the soul continues to live on in some other dimension of existence. Only God is able to destroy the soul and it is believed He will do just that to the unrighteous by casting them into Gehenna.
In the Scriptures, the English word soul is translated from the Hebrew word nehphesh. The Greek equivalent is pseuche. Nehphesh appears multiple hundreds of times in the OT and in English translations is generally rendered as "soul" but is also rendered various times as "life," "creature," "being" and "person." The Greek pseuche appears 105 times in the NT and is rendered as "soul" or "life"
Soul (Nehphesh) is identified in Scripture as the life of both man and beast. The nehphesh becomes alive when given breath and dies when that breath is removed. Both man and animals are seen as having the breath (Hebrew n'shuh-mah) of God and when the n'shuh-mah leaves the nehphesh the nehphesh dies.
The Hebrew Scriptures show that the life of the body is the soul and this life (nehphesh) is actually in the blood (Leviticus 17:11-14, Deuteronomy 12:23, Genesis 9:3). When the body dies the soul dies. See a comprehensive discussion of this issue at What Happens After Death Part One.
Since the Hebrew Scriptures clearly show the soul dies when the body dies, what does Jesus mean in saying His disciples should not fear those who kill the body but can't kill the soul but rather fear the one who can destroy body and soul in Gehenna? Is Jesus saying the soul continues to exist after the body dies and only God can destroy both soul and body? Jesus can’t be saying the soul (pseuche) survives death of the body as that is plainly shown in Scripture not to be the case.
The use of Gehenna in Matthew 10:28 and Luke 12:4-5 is instructive as Gehenna is often used in association with other imagery relating to the need to take action to avoid sin. Of the eleven occurrences of Gehenna in the NT, six times it is used in association with cutting off a body part associated with sinning in order to escape Gehenna. It is generally recognized that Christ is not teaching physical mutilation but simply emphasizing the need to be diligent to avoid sinning. This being the case, it is reasonable to conclude Jesus is using the image of the literal garbage dump called Gehenna to do the same. He is using it to say there will be judgement/punishment for those who fail to repent.
In view of how apollumi is used in the NT, it appears Jesus is using apollumi of the soul in Gehenna as a picture of God’s judgement upon the unrighteous and not as a permanent annihilation of the soul. The context of both Matthew 10 and Luke 12 appears to suggest Jesus is contrasting the killing of the righteous with the killing of the unrighteous. Jesus is instructing his disciples not to fear being killed for righteousness sake but to instead fear Him who can bring judgement upon the unrighteous signified by being thrown into Gehenna.
Jesus was discussing with His disciples the persecutions and even death they would encounter in taking the Kingdom message to Israel before His return. In Matthew 10:23 Jesus plainly tells his twelve disciples they will not finish going through the cities of Israel before he comes. In Luke 12:56, Jesus addresses the crowd and chides them for not recognizing events that were about to occur. This shows that what Jesus had been discussing related to the judgement that would occur at His return in their generation.
Jesus' return would bring judgement upon first century Israel which would result in the destruction of life. Jesus pictured this destruction by his reference to Gehenna. This was destruction of the wicked just as occurred with the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. However, death incurred by the people of Sodom and Gomorrah was not a permanent death as it is clear the people of Sodom and Gomorrah are seen as having life restored at the time of resurrection and judgement. There is every reason to believe the same is true of those destroyed at the time of the AD 70 judgement.
What about Lazarus and the rich man:
In the Lazarus and the rich man story in Luke 16, the rich man is seen as suffering in a place called hell (Greek Hades) while Lazarus is seen as being with God in the heavenly realm. Some see the Lazarus/rich man account as literal and indicative of what happens in the afterlife,
Hades is equivalent in meaning to the Hebrew Sheol. In the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures (Septuagint), Sheol is translated Hades. Sheol is consistently seen in the Hebrew Scriptures as the grave. While Sheol is often used metaphorically in the OT to represent despair and dread, it is literally seen as a place where decay of the physical body occurs and not as a place of conscious awareness.
Psalm 16:9-10: Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the grave (Sheol), nor will you let your Holy One see decay.
Peter quotes from this Psalm in saying that Jesus “was not abandoned to the grave, (Hades) nor did his body see decay” (Acts 2:31). Paul wrote, "For when David had served God's purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his fathers and his body decayed. But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay” (Acts 13:36-37).
Isaiah sees Sheol as a place of maggots and worms (Isaiah 14:11). Solomon sees it as a place where “there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom” (Ecclesiastes 9:10).
As is true of Sheol in the OT, Hades is sometimes used in the NT in a metaphorical sense to make a point. In Matthew 16:18 Jesus is quoted as saying the gates of Hades would not prevail against the Church. In other words, death would never wipe out the church. In 1st Corinthians 15 Paul speaks of Hades as being defeated by resurrection from the dead which is to say death would be defeated by life. In the Revelation Hades is used four times and is seen as being equivalent to being dead. There is not a hint in the Revelation that Hades is an abode of the living.
While some see the Lazarus/rich man account as literal and indicative of what happens in the afterlife, such conclusion runs contrary to passages in both the Old and New Testaments where Sheol/Hades are seen to simply be the abode of lifeless and decaying dead bodies, in other words, the grave. As already covered, Sheol is often used in a figurative sense in the OT to signify sorrow, anguish and torment.
I submit that Jesus, in Luke 16, is using Hades in a metaphoric sense to simply get a point across. Jesus is using an illustration to show the religious leaders that even if someone were to rise from the dead to instruct them in the ways of righteousness, they would not listen because of their impertinent hearts. Jesus is using the rich man to represent the religious leaders of his day in contrast to the beggar Lazarus. In view of the manner Sheol/Hades is used throughout Scripture, it is unwarranted to conclude Jesus was here reflecting on the actual state of the dead.
Revelation 20-22:
Some see Revelation 20-22 falsifying universal salvation. Chapter 20 of the Revelation speaks of a great multitude of resurrected dead standing before a white throne where books are opened including a book called the “book of life.” It is recorded that “If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:15). This is commonly seen as the eternal annihilation of the wicked or their eternal conscious torment. Most Christians see this event as occurring at a future to us return of Christ when resurrection of all dead humans is believed to take place.
The general Christian belief is that those whose names are found written in the book of life are those who while in the flesh came to place faith in Christ and those thrown into the lake of fire are all those who did not while in the flesh come to faith in Christ (the great majority of humanity). Under this perspective, it is only during our physical lifetime that salvation to eternal life can be obtained.
Since salvation is generally viewed as receiving eternal life in the presence of God in the heavenly realm, those seen as being thrown into the lake of fire are seen as being separated from God's presence and the heavenly realm which is seen as being equivalent to experiencing eternal death. This is often viewed as the second death spoken of in Revelation 20. Depending on one's point of view, this second death constitutes either annihilation or eternal conscious torment. In either case, it is believed this makes the concept of universal salvation improbable.
The Book of Revelation:
It is generally believed by the Christian community that the events described in the Revelation are yet to occur in our future at the time of a future to us return of Christ. However, while many scholars believe the Revelation was written somewhere in the 80’s to 90’s AD, there is strong evidence it was written prior to AD 70 and is a prophecy about events connected with the destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem by the Romans between approximately AD 66 and AD 73. Therefore, The Revelation is about a past event, not a future event. For a comprehensive discussion of the dating of the Revelation, go to: Commentary on the Revelation.
The Revelation is book-ended by statements showing that what was written was about to take place and included the return of Christ. For a comprehensive discussion of the timing of the return of Christ and all events associated with that return, go to: When Does Christ Return. That the Revelation is all about events that were about to occur at the time this prophecy was written is evident from the narrative itself.
Revelation 1:1-3: The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.
Revelation 22:6: The angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place."
Revelation 22:7: "Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book."
Revelation 22:10: Then he told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near.
Revelation 22:12: "Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.
Revelation 22:20: He who testifies to these says, "Yes, I am coming soon."
These statements as to the timing of the events described in the Revelation coordinate well with the multiple dozens of statements made by Jesus, Paul, Peter and other NT writers showing the return of Christ and all related events were about to occur in their generation. I again refer you to my series on the return of Christ.
If indeed the Book of Revelation is all about events associated with the return of Christ and the destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem around AD 70, Revelation 20-22 must be looked at as pertaining to that time as well. Therefore, like the rest of the events described in the Revelation, the events described in chapters 20 through 22 occurred nearly 2000 years ago.
The Revelation is filled with a great deal of metaphorical, figurative and symbolic language. The challenge in reading the Revelation is to determine what is to be taken literally and what is to be understood as metaphorical, figurative or symbolic. The challenge is to determine what is to be understood as pertaining to temporal things and what is to be understood as pertaining to eternal things.
For example, Revelation 21 speaks of a new heaven and a new earth, replacing the first heaven and the first earth which had passed away. There no longer is any sea. The writer speaks of seeing a Holy City called the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven and describes this city as shinning with the glory of God and having brilliance that was like that of a very precious jewel. This city is shown as having a great high wall with twelve gates and with twelve angels at the gates.
This city continues to be described in Revelation 22 where a river of life is seen as flowing through the city with the "tree of life" standing on both sides of the river. The leaves of the tree are seen as being for the healing of the nations. It is said that there is no night in this city. It is said that "No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him" (Revelation 22:3).
Has the physical heaven and earth passed away? Has the sea disappeared? Is there no longer night? Do we see a city called the New Jerusalem presently on planet earth with the characteristics described in Revelation 21? Obviously this is not the case in any literal sense. As discussed in my series on the return of Christ, it is apparent that what we see here in Revelation 21 and 22 is a highly metaphorical picture of movement from the Old Covenant system of death to the New Covenant system of life. It is apparent that the New Jerusalem is representative of the bride of Christ which is the church.
Revelation 21:9-10: One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, "Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb." And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.
The angel invites John to see the bride, the wife of the Lamb and then proceeds to describe the Holy City, Jerusalem coming down out of heaven. While the church as the bride of Christ is not explicitly stated as such in Scripture, in Ephesians 5:25-27 Paul speaks of Christ loving the church and presenting her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In 2nd Corinthians 11:2, Paul speaks of promising the Corinthians to one husband which is Christ. These statements certainly coordinate with what we see in Revelation 21 regarding the bride being the Lamb’s wife and this bride being represented in the glowing description of the New Jerusalem.
It is instructive that in 22:3 we are told that no longer will there be any curse. We see in Scripture that it is the curse of the Law that produces death whereas life is produced through the Christ event (Galatians 3:10-14). Under the New Covenant the curse is removed.
It is instructive that after John is told not to seal up the words of this prophecy because the time is near (22:10), he is told the following:
Revelation 22:11: Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy.
Revelation 22:14-15. Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.
Revelation 22:17: The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
Physical life on planet earth is seen as continuing to go on with some responding (whoever wishes) to the now available free gift of God and others not responding (those seen as outside the city).
All of what is written in Revelation 21 and 22 is in the context of the soon to occur return of Christ, an event that was anticipated to occur soon after the Revelation was written and an event that Jesus, Paul, Peter and other NT personalities taught would occur in their generation. Let us know focus on what is written in Revelation 20.
Revelation 20:
In chapter 20 we see Satan being bound for a thousand years. We see that after a thousand years Satan is released and deceives the nations into doing battle against God’s people. We see beheaded souls brought back to life to reign with Christ for a thousand years. This is seen as the first resurrection. We see what is called "the lake of fire" identified as the second death (20:14). We see death and Hades being thrown into this lake of fire. There is reference to an entity called the beast and the false prophet who are thrown into a lake of burning sulfur where they are tormented for ever and ever. Later on the devil is also thrown into this same lake to experience eternal torment. Finally, we see dead people who have been made alive being judged as to what they did while in the flesh. Those whose names are not written in the book of life are thrown into the lake of fire.
Since the Revelation is filled with a great deal of metaphorical, figurative and symbolic language, how much of what we see in Revelation 20 can safely be taken as literal? Is the thousand years literal? What does it mean for Satan to be bound a thousand years? Being thrown into the lake of fire is seen as the second death. Is the lake of fire a literal fire? Is the second death a literal death or is it representative of something else?
Death and Hades are seen thrown into the lake of fire. What does it mean for death and Hades to be thrown into the lake of fire? To be thrown into the lake of fire is to experience the second death? How does death and Hades experience the second death? Death is an event and Hades is a place. Does death and Hades being thrown into the lake of fire represent the doing away with death and Hades?
Does being thrown into the lake of fire destroy that which is thrown in? We see the beast and false prophet, who are presumed to be physical beings, thrown into the lake of fire and experiencing conscious torment day and night for ever and ever and not death (Revelation 20:10). So, is the second death conscious torment and not the cessation of life as death is normally understood to be?
Is the devil, the beast and the false prophet thrown into a literal lake of burning sulfur and tormented for ever and ever as indicated? If this is true for them, is for ever and ever torment in a lake of fire also true for all those whose names are not written in the book of life? When the phrase "ever and ever" is used in the Revelation, a tense of the Greek word aion is used which, as explained elsewhere in this series, can mean a restricted period of time or a forever period of time. Context must determine how it is being used. What does it mean when used in association with being tormented in the lake of fire and how can we know?
We know from the NT narrative that a coming wrath was about to fall upon first century Israel. The NT narrative speaks often about this coming wrath. This wrath would be administered by the risen Christ through the vehicle of the Roman armies. It would be a condemnation of first century Israel for their failure to acknowledge Jesus as their Messiah and their wicked behavior in general.
If what is written in the Revelation is all about the wrath to be poured out upon first century Israel, is what is written in the Revelation about a temporal punishment and not an eternal punishment?
As already cited, Revelation 20:10 shows the devil being thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown and they are seen as being tormented day and night for ever and ever. Being tormented with burning sulfur is a common theme in the Revelation and seen in the OT as well.
Revelation 9:17-18: The horses and riders I saw in my vision looked like this: Their breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their mouths came fire, smoke and sulfur. A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur that came out of their mouths.
Revelation 14:9-11: A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: "If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name."
Revelation 19:21-22: But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. The rest of them were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.
Revelation 21:8: But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars--their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."
Psalm 11:5-6: The LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked and those who love violence his soul hates. On the wicked he will rain fiery coals and burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot.
Ezekiel 38:21-22: I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign LORD. Every man's sword will be against his brother. I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him.
All the above passages indicate that physically alive humans are tormented and/or killed with burning sulfur. In Revelation 9:18 a third of mankind is killed in part by the action of sulfur. In Revelation 14:9-11 worshipers of the beast and his image are tormented by burning sulfur. In Revelation 19:21-22 the beast and false prophet are thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur while the rest of them (whoever the "them" are) are killed with a sword that comes out of the mouth of him who rides on the white horse.
In Revelation 21:8, the unrighteous are thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur which is defined as the second death. If the second death is a literal death (cessation of life), it must be presumed that this happens after these individuals have experienced a first death and have subsequently been resurrected, judged and condemned to a second death. However, this passage is unclear as to whether these unrighteous folks are thrown into the lake of fire while still biologically alive or after biological death. If thrown into the lake of fire while biologically alive it would appear the designation "second death" does not mean death as cessation of life but conscious punishment.
Does the lake of fire cause death which is commonly understood to be the cessation of life? Revelation 14:9-11 reveals that those who worship the beast and his image and receive his mark will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the lamb and the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. It is recorded that there is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name.
Since burning sulfur is clearly associated with the lake of fire, it would appear that those being tormented with burning sulfur as seen in Revelation 14 are experiencing the lake of fire. Yet the indication is that these folks do not die in the lake of fire but continue to be tormented indefinitely.
As cited above, the devil, beast and false prophet are seen as being tormented for ever and ever in a lake of burning sulfur (Revelation 20:10). The beast and false prophet are seen as being thrown alive into this lake of fire (Revelation 19:21-22). The beast and false prophet appear to be physical beings and yet they are seen as being tormented in a lake of fire without being burned up. As discussed above, those who worship the beast and his image are thrown into the lake of fire. These appear to be physically alive humans who have not yet experienced their first death. Yet the lake of fire is seen as the second death.
As covered in Part One of this series, all humans are made alive after biological death and are judged as to how they behaved while in the flesh. Such judgement is seen as determining level of reward or lack thereof and it would be reasonable to believe such judgement also determines punishment for unrighteous behavior while in the flesh. As discussed in Part One of this series, receiving deliverance from eternal death because of the Christ event does not mean we are not held accountable for our behavior while in the flesh.
The fact all humans are seen as being judged subsequent to biologically dying tells us two things. It tells us all humans will be resurrected to life so that they can face judgement and the fact they will face judgement tells us all humans will be held accountable for their behavior in the flesh.
Romans 14:9, 10b-12: For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. For we will all stand before God's judgment seat. It is written: "`As surely as I live,' says the Lord, `every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.'" So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.
As previously discussed, punishment is often seen as temporal in the Scriptures. This being the case, we need to be careful in concluding that Revelation 20 is revealing the permanent destruction of the wicked (annihilation) or them experiencing conscious eternal punishment.
It is instructive that in Genesis 19:24 we see the LORD raining down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah. In Luke 17:29 Jesus speaks of fire and sulfur from heaven destroying the residents of Sodom. Yet Jesus speaks of the people of Sodom facing a future to Him judgement which shows they were not permanently destroyed but will be resurrected (Matthew 11:24). Here we see death by sulfur a temporal and not a permanent death.
While resurrection and judgement of all those who had previously died appears to be included in the events of Revelation 20, it is also apparent that the Revelation as a whole is about the wrath to come upon those living at the time the Revelation was written.
The punishment seen administered throughout the Revelation, including chapter 20, appears to be largely directed against those living at the time the Revelation was written. Since much of this punishment is described in metaphoric and symbolic language, being thrown into the lake of fire may be a symbolic representation of the suffering brought upon first century Israel by the fire used by the Romans to destroy the temple and the city of Jerusalem.
Because of the highly metaphoric, figurative and symbolic language used throughout the Revelation, I feel it quite inappropriate and presumptuous to use Revelation 20 or any other narrative in Revelation to draw definitive conclusions as to the eternal fate of the unrighteous. On the other hand, I believe we can draw definitive conclusions as to the ultimate fate of all humanity from the passages of Scripture quoted and discussed in Parts One and Two of this series.
From these passages of Scripture, it should be clear that all humans will be resurrected to life and face Judgement. It should also be clear that this is a resurrection to immortal life, a kind of life that was made possible through the death and resurrection of Jesus who is seen as destroying death and replacing it with immortal life.
2nd Timothy 1:9-11: who (God) has saved us and called us to a holy life--not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
It should be apparent from the many Scriptures quoted and discussed in Parts One and Two of this series that Jesus has destroyed death for all of humanity and not just for some of humanity as apparently believed by those who teach some are predestined to be saved and others are predestined not to be saved. The only thing predestinated relative to the granting of salvation is that through the grace of God, established "before the beginning of time," Christ Jesus has destroyed death and replaced it with immortal life.
Paul clearly wrote, "For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive" (1st Corinthians 15:22). In his second letter to the Corinthians Paul wrote that "one (Christ) died for all, and therefore all died” (2nd Corinthians 5:14). In the death of Jesus is the death of all humanity. In the resurrection of Jesus is the resurrection of all humanity. As cited above, Paul wrote to the Corinthians that all are included in the death of Christ. To Timothy he writes "If we died with him, we will also live with him" (2 Timothy 2:11). How do we live with Him? The resurrection of Jesus was to immortal life. To live with Christ is to live as he lives which is to live eternally. If indeed all humanity died in Christ, all humanity will be made alive in Christ.
If all humans indeed receive immortal life through the Christ event, there is no such thing as annihilation in a lake of fire or by any other means. It is instructive that nowhere in Scripture is there an explicit teaching that subsequent to biological death the wicked are annihilated.
What is seen in Scripture is that all humans will have life restored subsequent to biological death and face judgement for things done while in the flesh. Will only a few, comparatively speaking, live forever in the presence of God while the great majority of humans will live forever in a state of separation from the presence of God?
If such should be the case, are those living in separation from God experiencing eternal punishment? As discussed in Part Two of this series, eternal punishment for sin committed in this very short physical existence compared to eternity would be an extreme example of the penalty not fitting the crime. It would totally negate the Scriptural presentation of God as merciful and just.
Salvation is seen in Scripture as eternal life replacing eternal death. Eternal life is seen as being experienced in the presence of God and not in separation from God. God has reconciled the world to Himself through the Christ event as clearly taught in 2nd Corinthians 5. While all humans will be judged as to how they conducted themselves while in the flesh, the results of this judgement will not result in separation from God.
In Part Four of this series, we will continue to evaluate the objections to universal salvation.