The idea that God would give finite humans infinite punishment in hell is a hellish thought. Thankfully, the clearest verses in the Bible don’t appear to teach that.
Even so, our study isn’t quite done. There are a few less-than-clear verses to address. I’ll also talk about a couple of theories that are taught in some churches.
Casualties of War
Undying worms and unquenchable fire? If that’s Jesus describing hell, then it certainly sounds like hell is eternal. However, take those verses in context and you may find that they they mean something else entirely. In speaking to His disciples, Jesus says the following:
“And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out. It’s better to enter the Kingdom of God with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, ‘where the maggots never die and the fire never goes out.’”
Mark 9:47-48
The Greek word in Mark 9:47 that’s translated as “hell” is actually “Gehenna“. Gehenna is a small valley near ancient Jerusalem where (at one time) it’s sewage collected (maggots), its garbage burned (fire), and (importantly to Mark 9:48) the dishonored dead were tossed.
Mark 9:48 is actually a quote from a prophecy in Isaiah. Isaiah prophecies of a time when Israel will rule the nations. For Israel to rule, Israel’s enemies must first be destroyed. The bodies of Israel’s destroyed enemies will be burned in a very earthbound Gehenna or something like it.
So, taken in context, Jesus was warning His disciples that they had better keep themselves from sinning by any means necessary. Otherwise, they risked being tossed into the burning trash heap along with Israel’s enemies.
A Casualty of Translation
This verse from Revelation is interesting because it states that the beast and the false prophet (two prophesied enemies of God who will probably be human) will be tormented forever. Or will they?
“And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”
Revelation 20:10
The word “are” was inserted by translators to represent a silent verb. From what I’ve read, those particular translators goofed. Those in the know say silent verbs should have the same tense as the main verb, so the inserted verb should have been “were”. Some translations like the ESV and the NIV have the proper tense.
The Greek word translated as “forever and ever” is “aion”. Vine’s Dictionary says “aion” should be translated with a sense of indefinite duration, which is not necessarily an eternal duration. Strong’s Concordance says “aion” can be translated as “age”, meaning a period of time.
With those things in mind, a better translation of Revelation 20:10 might read as follows:
And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet were also; and they will be tormented day and night for an age.
Assuming Too Much
I can’t find it in the Bible, but hang around Christians long enough and you may hear the following theory: “God’s Spirit is eternal. We were created in God’s image, so our spirit is also eternal. Therefore, those sent to hell will be there eternally.”
If we’re to assume that being created in God’s image means our spirit is inherently eternal just like God, then why don’t we also assume that our spirit is inherently all-powerful just like God? Of course we don’t believe the latter. Nor can I find Biblical support for the former.
Inferring Too Much
Another popular theory that’s inferred from this verse goes like this: “Death means separation from God. Therefore, the unbeliever’s death is actually eternity in hell separated from God.”
If death really means separation from God, and if unbelievers are to endure that so-called death forever, then death would never end. Yet that’s impossible because Scripture says that death itself will come to an end:
“He will swallow up death for all time”
Isaiah 25:8 (abbreviated)
“The last enemy that will be abolished is death.”
1 Corinthians 15:26
“Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire.”
Revelation 20:14 (abbreviated)
If you look at the Greek word that’s translated as “abolished”, it pretty much means abolished. If the theory that “death” means separation from God were true, then death would never be abolished. But, praise God, death itself is going to die!
It’s All a Bit Much
I haven’t forgotten the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. It’s a hellish parable, but it’s not talking about anyone’s final destination. Therefore, it’s not talking about the hell that we’re discussing on this page. These folks discuss that at length.
The preceding link gets pretty deep. If you ever find yourself confused, just remember to interpret that which is confusing by the light of that which is clear. I believe the verses on the previous page are very clear.
The clearest Light of all is Jesus Christ. If you know the grace and truth that is Christ, you need not worry about hell because you are destined for heaven.