"Original Sin" And Eternal Punishment

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< > CHAPTER EIGHT SOME MISUNDERSTANDINGS (a) Degrees of Suffering in Hell? A misunderstanding of Luke 12,47, "And that servant which knew his Lord's will and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes", and other similar passages, has led people to speak as if there were degrees of punishment in Hell, so that one man would find it more tolerable than his neighbour. "But I say unto you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for thee" (Matt. 11,24) is quoted in support. But our Lord's words in the Matthew passage refer not to Hell but to the day of judgement: and the more tolerable nature of the case will lie in the fact that the Judge Himself will bring forward the prisoner's plea that had he had a full opportunity he would have repented. In Luke 12,47 Our Lord is referring not to His enemies but to His own servants, for whom great chastisement is waiting after death if they have madly thrown away their opportunities and earned the title of "wicked servant".1 Even the scourging of sons will vary in severity according to the gravity of the disobedience. Here may the inheritance be lost, and the unfaithful son find that a faithful servant of the Jewish dispensation has been chosen to wear his crown and rule over him. King's son though he may be, "A wise servant shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren" (Prov. 17,2). But in Hell the punishment in every case is the same because in every case the crime is the same; for all have sinned alike, and loathed their Creator with unmixed hatred and eternal rebellion and trampled on His Salvation with a common determination. If any man will sit down and quietly consider the possibility of facing an eternal future of despair and inactivity, unlit by a single ray of hope, and sharpened by everlasting remorse — end of page 52 — and hatred he will find himself growing cold with an awful horror, and crying out lest such a shocking portion be his. The fear of the Lord will indeed be the beginning of wisdom, and terror will lend speed to his feet as he flies to His God with tears and crying and rests not till he has found safety and forgiveness. (b) Physical Suffering in Hell? Another misunderstanding, this time of Isa. 66,24 quoted by Our Lord in Mark 9,43-48 and referred to in Luke 16,23-25 has led to the curious idea that God will provide the wicked with a strange kind of body, fire-resisting and worm-defying, which shall go on in endless physical torment. How the theologians of the dark ages vied with each other in inventing fresh and more awful horrors for Hell! Dante's Inferno is an example of this perverted and diseased imagination which still persists in Roman Catholic Orthodoxy. The very simple truth is of course that it was upon carcases lying in the valley of Hinnom outside Jerusalem, that the fire and worms of Isa. 66,24 fed, that is, bodies out of which the soul had already fled. How irrational to imagine a special worm capable of living for ever in fire! The actual horror of the fire and worm is, that never again will the soul regain its body nor see the light of the sun. As it says in Dan. 7,11 "the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame." We are told of course that so far from Dives' tongue being on fire in Hell it was lying in the tomb in Palestine and there would decay. The phrase "lying in Abraham's bosom" was the ordinary Jewish description of the faithful dead waiting with faithful Abraham for the resurrection of John 11,24. Between death and resurrection the soul is bodiless, not a perfect condition, but one relieved by the fact that in spirit the dead Christian is conscious of the Lord in Paradise. "For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart and to be with Christ: which is far better" (Phil. 1,23). It is helpful to remember that even the saints' resurrection bodies are not eternal by themselves, but would perish, as did Adam's perfect body, were it not for The Tree of Life, which is restored to them in Paradise, and on the New Earth.2 Much less are the resurrection bodies of the wicked, for whom no such provision is made, everlasting! — end of page 53 — There are other accounts of the state after death given, e.g. in Job 10,21-22. Isa. 14,9-19. Ezek. 28,18; 32,21-32. These do not coincide with the first picture of worm and fire, nor with each other, but are all attempts to make clear to the reader some side of the condition of death. The actual facts, however, which it is intended to illustrate, are those given us of Our Lord's death: His body was in the tomb,3 His spirit had returned to God,4 and His soul was in Hades suffering "the pains of death".5 With this agrees Paul's "absent from the body".6 Job's "darkness" pictures the complete blotting out of all perception after death: Isaiah's fire and worm the awful fact that the body has been destroyed in Hell (Matt. 10,28): Isaiah's "thrones" the contrast between the death of Lucifer, Hitler, and Mussolini, cast out like abominable branches, carcases trodden underfoot (Isa. 14,19), and that of Edward the sixth and George the fifth! Ezekiel's "ashes" picture the final destruction of Lucifer's body (c.f. Isaiah's worm in 14,11), and his "bed" (Ezek. 32,25) the long physical sleep of death. So the comfort of Lazarus points to the cessation of his earthly sores. Bringing, however, all these various passages together literally one would be forced to state that Scripture says that the dead in Hades are sitting on thrones, sleeping in beds, being eaten and covered by worms, groping in darkness, burning in a blazing lake! It is only by vivid pictures that God can give us a full view of the nature of death and illustrate the various pains of disembodiment. Some may have the thought that physical pain in fire would be more awful than disembodiment, and look upon the latter as an attempt to belittle the fearful nature of Hell. Yet actually is there any worse condition even upon the earth than a creeping paralysis which kills the senses one after another, touch, sight, hearing, speech, taste, and finally leaves the soul helpless and hopeless in an immobile body? So at death the soul finds itself bereft of all its senses, bodiless, inert and hopeless. The feelings of such a soul are given in Ps. 73,19, "utterly consumed with terrors." Yet the vital point is that this frightful condition is due not to God's desire to hurt, but simply to His inescapable duty of depriving them of their bodies, which they would only misuse to the hurt of others. — end of page 54 — God is being as kind as He can be in providing such a Hell, not as cruel! Yet this kindness is unspeakably awful! < >
The Disastrous Effects Of The Doctrine Of Original Sin \| By His Stripes We Are Healed \| The Book Of Revelation \| The Second Coming Of Christ \| The Baptism And Gifts Of The Holy Spirit \| The Comforter Is Come

CHAPTER EIGHT

SOME MISUNDERSTANDINGS

(a) Degrees of Suffering in Hell?

A misunderstanding of Luke 12,47, "And that servant which knew his Lord's will and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes", and other similar passages, has led people to speak as if there were degrees of punishment in Hell, so that one man would find it more tolerable than his neighbour. "But I say unto you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for thee" (Matt. 11,24) is quoted in support. But our Lord's words in the Matthew passage refer not to Hell but to the day of judgement: and the more tolerable nature of the case will lie in the fact that the Judge Himself will bring forward the prisoner's plea that had he had a full opportunity he would have repented. In Luke 12,47 Our Lord is referring not to His enemies but to His own servants, for whom great chastisement is waiting after death if they have madly thrown away their opportunities and earned the title of "wicked servant".1 Even the scourging of sons will vary in severity according to the gravity of the disobedience. Here may the inheritance be lost, and the unfaithful son find that a faithful servant of the Jewish dispensation has been chosen to wear his crown and rule over him. King's son though he may be, "A wise servant shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren" (Prov. 17,2). But in Hell the punishment in every case is the same because in every case the crime is the same; for all have sinned alike, and loathed their Creator with unmixed hatred and eternal rebellion and trampled on His Salvation with a common determination. If any man will sit down and quietly consider the possibility of facing an eternal future of despair and inactivity, unlit by a single ray of hope, and sharpened by everlasting remorse

— end of page 52 —

and hatred he will find himself growing cold with an awful horror, and crying out lest such a shocking portion be his. The fear of the Lord will indeed be the beginning of wisdom, and terror will lend speed to his feet as he flies to His God with tears and crying and rests not till he has found safety and forgiveness.

(b) Physical Suffering in Hell?

Another misunderstanding, this time of Isa. 66,24 quoted by Our Lord in Mark 9,43-48 and referred to in Luke 16,23-25 has led to the curious idea that God will provide the wicked with a strange kind of body, fire-resisting and worm-defying, which shall go on in endless physical torment. How the theologians of the dark ages vied with each other in inventing fresh and more awful horrors for Hell! Dante's Inferno is an example of this perverted and diseased imagination which still persists in Roman Catholic Orthodoxy. The very simple truth is of course that it was upon carcases lying in the valley of Hinnom outside Jerusalem, that the fire and worms of Isa. 66,24 fed, that is, bodies out of which the soul had already fled. How irrational to imagine a special worm capable of living for ever in fire! The actual horror of the fire and worm is, that never again will the soul regain its body nor see the light of the sun. As it says in Dan. 7,11 "the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame." We are told of course that so far from Dives' tongue being on fire in Hell it was lying in the tomb in Palestine and there would decay. The phrase "lying in Abraham's bosom" was the ordinary Jewish description of the faithful dead waiting with faithful Abraham for the resurrection of John 11,24. Between death and resurrection the soul is bodiless, not a perfect condition, but one relieved by the fact that in spirit the dead Christian is conscious of the Lord in Paradise. "For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart and to be with Christ: which is far better" (Phil. 1,23). It is helpful to remember that even the saints' resurrection bodies are not eternal by themselves, but would perish, as did Adam's perfect body, were it not for The Tree of Life, which is restored to them in Paradise, and on the New Earth.2 Much less are the resurrection bodies of the wicked, for whom no such provision is made, everlasting!

— end of page 53 —

There are other accounts of the state after death given, e.g. in Job 10,21-22. Isa. 14,9-19. Ezek. 28,18; 32,21-32. These do not coincide with the first picture of worm and fire, nor with each other, but are all attempts to make clear to the reader some side of the condition of death. The actual facts, however, which it is intended to illustrate, are those given us of Our Lord's death: His body was in the tomb,3 His spirit had returned to God,4 and His soul was in Hades suffering "the pains of death".5 With this agrees Paul's "absent from the body".6 Job's "darkness" pictures the complete blotting out of all perception after death: Isaiah's fire and worm the awful fact that the body has been destroyed in Hell (Matt. 10,28): Isaiah's "thrones" the contrast between the death of Lucifer, Hitler, and Mussolini, cast out like abominable branches, carcases trodden underfoot (Isa. 14,19), and that of Edward the sixth and George the fifth! Ezekiel's "ashes" picture the final destruction of Lucifer's body (c.f. Isaiah's worm in 14,11), and his "bed" (Ezek. 32,25) the long physical sleep of death. So the comfort of Lazarus points to the cessation of his earthly sores. Bringing, however, all these various passages together literally one would be forced to state that Scripture says that the dead in Hades are sitting on thrones, sleeping in beds, being eaten and covered by worms, groping in darkness, burning in a blazing lake! It is only by vivid pictures that God can give us a full view of the nature of death and illustrate the various pains of disembodiment.

Some may have the thought that physical pain in fire would be more awful than disembodiment, and look upon the latter as an attempt to belittle the fearful nature of Hell. Yet actually is there any worse condition even upon the earth than a creeping paralysis which kills the senses one after another, touch, sight, hearing, speech, taste, and finally leaves the soul helpless and hopeless in an immobile body? So at death the soul finds itself bereft of all its senses, bodiless, inert and hopeless. The feelings of such a soul are given in Ps. 73,19, "utterly consumed with terrors." Yet the vital point is that this frightful condition is due not to God's desire to hurt, but simply to His inescapable duty of depriving them of their bodies, which they would only misuse to the hurt of others.

— end of page 54 —

God is being as kind as He can be in providing such a Hell, not as cruel! Yet this kindness is unspeakably awful!

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