Hell is a very hot topic; it provokes scalding arguments on all sides. Historically, sermons on Hell have been wielded as weapons of fear to terrorize people into obeying church doctrines. Presently, many congregations tip-toe around the topic of Hell to avoid offending or upsetting people. To the believer, Hell can be a necessary component of the gospel message. To the unbeliever, Hell can seem exceedingly cruel and merciless.
This is the first installment in our “Go to Hell” series. Over the next few articles we’ll explore the concept of Hell as it relates to God, the Bible, and the faith.
Warning! Disclaimer!
Hell is a very hot topic. It’s necessary to repeat this…Hell is a topic that makes people upset. In my experience, teaching or discussing Hell always provokes hard feelings and arguments.
My disclaimer to readers is this: What we believe about Hell has no impact on salvation. That is to say, our doctrinal position on Hell is not a requirement of salvation. God doesn’t require us to believe a particular doctrine on Hell in order for us to receive His salvation and enter His eternal kingdom. Whatever we believe about Hell does not save us. Whatever we believe about Hell does not condemn us. And if anyone disagrees with our interpretation of Hell, that does not necessarily brand him or her a “heretic”.
If our understanding or belief in Hell is not relevant to salvation, and if it sparks argument and division, then what value is there in discussing it?
1. The Bible tells us God will judge all mankind, and anyone who doesn’t have His salvation will be punished for his or her sins. So, God’s judgement (and His subsequent acquittal or condemnation of mankind) is a central component of the Bible. It’s irrefutable that there is a law and a punishment for disobeying that law. So, study of scripture requires that we address the concepts of God’s law, judgement, and justice.
2. How we interpret God’s enforcement of His law impacts how we read and interpret the Bible as a whole. Do we view the Bible as a guide on how to know God and become the kind of people He wants a relationship with? Or do we view the Bible as a system of hard laws with extreme consequences?
3. How we interpret God’s enforcement of His law impacts how we view Him. Do we view God as merciful, compassionate, and just? Or do we view God as harsh, demanding, and brutal?
4. How we interpret God’s enforcement of His law impacts how we present Him to others. Do we teach and reflect God as loving, kind, and just? Or do we project God as harsh, overbearing, and demanding? Do we call people to draw near to God’s love or to flee in terror from His wrath?
Three Major Views on God’s Punishment
There are three major doctrines on how God will carry out His punishment on the unredeemed:
1. Eternal Torture — This is the classic belief in Hell as fiery torment of the wicked. This doctrine teaches God will cast unredeemed people into a fiery netherworld where they will live forever in eternal, conscious, torture. Nobody can escape the torture of Hell, and it never ends.
2. Annihilation — This is the belief that the wages of sin is death, and God will permanently execute the unredeemed. This doctrine teaches God’s fiery wrath will destroy those who are condemned under His law. Souls are not inherently immortal, and the wicked will not survive judgement.
3. Universalism — This is the belief that everyone, without exception, will ultimately receive God’s salvation. This doctrine teaches that nobody will be placed in eternal torture or be permanently destroyed. It’s not God’s will that anyone will perish, and His perfect love and salvation will culminate in everyone being redeemed from the penalty of sin.
Bokim Ministries believes annihilation; we teach that God will destroy everyone who does not have His salvation. Death and destruction is consistently stated throughout the scriptures, and it is consistent with the character and justice of God.
Is it God’s Character to Torture People?
Before we dive into a deep, theological, analysis of scripture (in upcoming articles), let’s consider the nature and character of God. Does God torture people for vengeance’s sake? Is the doctrine of Eternal Torture consistent with what we know about God, His nature, His character, His reputation, and His name? Because, if a doctrine is not consistent with who and what God is then it is a false doctrine.
If God is love but a teaching portrays Him as hate, how can the teaching be true? If God is merciful but a doctrine portrays Him as merciless, how can the doctrine be true? God’s nature and character is the litmus test for evaluating all teachings and doctrines of the Bible.
God’s Attributes
In our Study Methodology, we teach Testing as a component for study and interpretation of scripture. In our Study Methodology, we covered the Thirteen Attributes of YHWH’s Mercy as one means to test interpretations of scripture. Here, we will consider three of God’s attributes as they relate to doctrines of God’s punishment (please see our study on the Thirteen Attributes for full detail of the Biblical text). The portion of scripture we will be referencing is:
YHWH descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of YHWH. YHWH passed before him and proclaimed, “YHWH, YHWH, God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:5-7)
Merciful
God is רַחוּם (Rachum), merciful. God is full of compassion, like a parent towards a child. God is selfless and self-sacrificing, showing mercy and compassion towards us with no demand or expectation of receiving anything in return.
Eternal Torture: The doctrine of Eternal Torture flies in the face of God’s merciful nature; it portrays God as absolutely merciless. God is seen as casting people into a fire, sustaining them so that they can burn forever without being consumed, and He keeps this going forever without any hope of the torture ending. There is no reasonable way to reconcile the mercy of God with the doctrine of Eternal Torture. The everlasting, conscious, torment of being burned alive cannot possibly be viewed as an act of mercy.
Annihilation: Execution can be viewed as an act of mercy. Execution is, of course, terrible and unpleasant. However, execution only lasts for a finite time then it’s over. Justice is fulfilled because the unrepentant sinner has paid the price for violating God’s law, but the punishment is not extreme or unnecessarily prolonged. If God’s punishment is an immediate destruction of the condemned, that is merciful in the sense that suffering is minimized and brought to an end.
Universalism: If God were to pardon everyone for sin so that nobody is either tortured or destroyed, that would be exceedingly merciful on His part. Universalism is actually the most merciful of the three main viewpoints on God’s final judgement of sinners.
Gracious
God is חַנּוּן (Channun), gracious. He hears when we call to Him, and he generously responds to our distress. God gives us what we need, even when we don’t deserve it. God does this without any obligation; He is genuinely graceful and giving.
Eternal Torture: There is no graciousness in Eternal Torture. The doctrine is the antithesis of graciousness; it says God’s grace has come to an end, and all that’s left is relentless anger and vengeance that knows no bounds. The idea of everlasting, conscious, torture is that God’s grace has a limit and anyone who crosses that limit is subject to infinite wrath without any hope of a gracious reprieve.
Annihilation: On the surface, destruction in God’s fire may appear to lack graciousness. After all, God has come to a point where He will no longer hold back punishment and spare those He condemned. So, at that point He stops responding to sinners’ cries of distress.
If we consider the bigger picture, annihilation is gracious. God’s grace has been offered prior to judgement, it’s available to everyone, and nobody has a valid excuse for rejecting God’s grace. The time must come when God will maintain justice and hold us accountable for our decision. At that point, God cannot abandon justice merely because people faced with punishment will cry and be upset.
The graciousness of annihilation is that God will administer His justice in a way that is not unnecessarily unpleasant. Justice need not be cruel, unusual, or extreme to be just and effective. Justice can be administered with a grace and civility extended towards even the most atrocious convicted criminal.
Universalism: Everyone receiving a pardon they don’t deserve is exceedingly gracious. Of the three viewpoints, Universalism represents the most gracious response God could make towards sinners who reject His Messiah.
But Who Will By No Means Clear the Guilty…
נָקָה לֹא נָקָה (naquah lo naquah), literally “cleanse not cleanse”. The phrase is idiomatic and means that God “cleanses but does not cleanse”. The idea of this attribute is that God will cleanse us of the guilt of sin but will not arbitrarily dismiss the penalty of sin. God is just, and for His Torah to have any real power and authority it must be upheld and enforced. If God were to completely turn a blind eye to lawlessness, then law itself would have no power or relevance; it would be empty. The message of the Bible is that there is a penalty for sin, and the penalty must be paid for with the shedding of blood. There is no getting off the hook without payment for the penalty of sin. Either we personally pay the price of sin, or a substitutionary sacrifice is made on our behalf, there is no third option.
Eternal Torture: The doctrine of eternal torture certainly imposes a penalty for sin. This doctrine does account for an upholding of law with payment either made for us or by us. So, we could say Eternal Torture is consistent with the idea that the penalty of sin must be addressed. However, the doctrine of Eternal Torture addresses the penalty of sin by denying every other attribute of God. The doctrine focuses exclusively on punishment while denying mercy, graciousness, kindness, love, and justice.
Annihilation: Annihilation does address the penalty of sin. God has provided the sacrifice for our salvation and atonement. God has given us a forbearance on judgment so that we have ample time to turn away from sin and receive His salvation. But if we reject repentance and atonement then God does not clear us of our guilt, and we must then pay the price of sin on our own behalf. Annihilation provides for the justice of God without compromising His other attributes.
Universalism: Universalism fails to address the justice of God. If people can refuse to repent, reject salvation, and reject atonement but still enter the kingdom of heaven then God’s attribute of justice and accountability is voided. God simply cannot overlook sin; lawlessness must be addressed and resolved.
Conclusion
Eternal Torture represents extreme punishment. The idea of eternal, conscious, torment in the fire of Hell defies all reasonableness. The doctrine denies God’s attributes of love, kindness, mercy, and graciousness. The doctrine profanes the name of God by portraying Him as brutal, cruel, and extreme. We can only accept Eternal Torture if we ignore God’s attributes and rationalize that endless torture is somehow a just and acceptable form of punishment.
Universalism represents extreme grace. The idea of unconditional forgiveness for everyone, even those who reject God and His salvation, is in line with most of God’s attributes but denies His justice. The doctrine profanes the name of God by portraying Him as indifferent to sin and rebellion. We can only accept Universalism if we ignore God’s attribute of being just and if we dismiss the authority and power of Torah. We would have to accept the idea that God will not really hold anyone accountable for sin.
Annihilation represents the most balanced viewpoint of God’s judgement. The doctrine aligns with all God’s attributes. The doctrine allows for love, kindness, mercy, and graciousness without denying justice and accountability. Justice is administered with minimal suffering; capital punishment is fearful yet reasonable. The name of God is upheld, as is the authority and power of His Torah.