In The Myth of Heaven I began to address some of the misconceptions and myths surrounding eternal life and what heaven is in the Christian worldview. Of course, one can not address the Christian concept of heaven without also addressing the doctrine of hell.
To be fair, no one really likes to discuss hell. The majority of people, including most Christians, would much rather talk about heaven! This innate sense of revulsion when addressing the reality of hell has lead many to reject the Biblical teachings of hell altogether, while still others have adopted a skewed belief in hell that is far from accurate.
When thinking of hell, most people envision a subterranean cavern filled with fire and brimstone, where evildoers and sinners burn forever and are tortured night and day for all eternity as punishment for all their wrongdoings in life. Other, more comical interpretations depict hell as a realm ruled by Satan himself and populated by little red devils with pitchforks and the spirits of those who would not bow to God's oppressive rules, where revelry and self indulgence continues for all eternity. In both extremes, the iconography surrounding hell can be traced back to Greco-Roman paganism.
According to ancient Greco-Roman beliefs, a person's ghost-like spirit—their psyche (ψυχή)—continued to live on after death with no memory of its previous life, and would go on to dwell forever in one of three places: Elysium, the Asphodel Fields, or Tartarus.
Elysium was to the Greco-Roman pagans what most people today think of as heaven—a paradise of everlasting bliss and contentment. However, quite unlike the popular view of today which holds that good people go to heaven and bad people go to hell, entrance into Elysium was not dependent on one's moral goodness. Rather, Elysium was reserved only for the most heroic individuals of classical mythology and those closest to the gods. That said, following Alexander the Great's campaigns in the east, some Greeks began to incorporate a form of reincarnation into their religious beliefs. According to this view, a person's soul could chose to be reborn after death. They would remember nothing of their past life and could only be re-born as a human after 3,000 years of death and re-birth as lower animals. If a person's soul went through this 3,000 year cycle of death and re-birth three times, they could potentially earn enough merit to gain entrance into Elysium where they would remain for all eternity.
In contrast to the heroes and demigods of Elysium, souls who were average or mediocre, being neither utterly evil nor having achieved great renown for themselves through acts of heroism and bravery, would be doomed to wander the dismal, sunless lands of the Asphodel Fields forever. While the most wicked souls of all would be thrown into Tartarus, the fiery subterranean chasm where the Titans were imprisoned and where human souls would burn forever in rivers of lava as devine retribution for their evil actions.
In any case, the ever-fluid Greco-Roman afterlife was a realm governed entirely by arbitrary judgments based on a system of virtue, merit and reward. A person's deeds in life determined where their soul would dwell and the degree of punishment or reward they might receive—even though they retained no knowledge of themselves or their past life. The Greeks and Romans, as well as those Jews belonging to the Sadducee sect of Judaism, did not believe in a bodily resurrection of the dead. (Mark 12:18-27, Acts 23:6-10) Instead, a person's mortal body was seen as simply a vessel for their soul. However the traditional Jewish belief was that a person's being was comprised of both body and soul. Being made in the image of God, both body and soul were seen as equally necessary for a person to be complete. Upon death, a person's soul would depart their body and return to God. But the body would not be abandoned in the grave forever. Instead, the hope of the Jew, and later the Christian, was in the physical resurrection of the dead at the end of days. (Job 19:25-27, Daniel 12:13, John 11:17-27)
According to Judeo-Christian thought, in the resurrection the bodies of all who have died will be raised to life never to die again and will be rejoined with their souls to spend eternity either in heaven with God or in hell based on their relational standing with God in life. (Romans 4:1-8) Those counted as righteous will be raised to everlasting life and their good deeds in life will be judged and rewarded accordingly. (1 Corinthians 3:10-17) Likewise the unrepentant and the wicked will also be raised from the dead to be judged and sentenced according to the evil they have done and the sins they have committed. (Daniel 12:1-4, Revelation 20:11-15) This concept of a physical resurrection of the dead and a final judgement was unique to the Jewish culture in the First Century and was completely unknown to the Greeks and Romans. (Acts 17:16-34, Acts 26, 2 Corinthians 5)
That being said, there are uncanny parallels between the ancient Greco-Roman religion and Roman Catholic teachings on the nature of the soul and the afterlife. Most people in the west are unaware of the fact that they have unwittingly adopted the Greco-Roman belief that the soul is separate from the body and that the body is merely a vessel for the soul to discard on its way to heaven. Likewise, the doctrine of Purgatory in Catholicism mirrors the Asphodel Fields in Greco-Roman mythology as an abysmal place in between heaven and hell. This synchronization of pagan ideas has created a tradition of merit-based salvation within Catholicism that is completely at odds with the Biblical teaching that salvation comes by grace through faith alone, and is not a reward for the good things we have done in life. (Ephesians 2:8-9, Hebrews 10:10-18)
Furthermore, much of the iconography of hell made popular during the Middle Ages and Renaissance bears a striking resemblance to descriptions of Tartarus found in classical Greco-Roman mythology. Therefore we must ask ourselves: is the modern idea of hell as a pit of fire, brimstone and endless torture what the Biblical authors where trying to convey to their readers? How did people in the First Century understand the Gospels and the rest of the New Testament within their cultural frame of reference?
Like many modern writers, the authors of the New Testament used terms and figures of speech that were familiar to their audiences. Some even quoted from extra-biblical writings in order to emphasis a particular point they were trying to convey. (ie. The Apostle Paul quotes Greek poets in Acts 17:27-28, and Jude quotes from the extra-biblical Book of Enoch when writing to Jewish Christians in Jude 14-15.) This means that in some cases it is entirely plausible that the Jewish authors of the New Testament occasionally used language and terminology from Greco-Roman culture in order to convey spiritual truths to people born outside of the Jewish frame of reference.
For example, in 2 Peter 2:4 the Apostle Peter uses the word tartaroó (ταρταρόω) to describe a place where some of the spiritual beings who joined Lucifer (Satan) in his rebellion against God are being held until the Day of Judgment. This is the only occurrence of Tartarus, or any variation of Tartarus, found in the Bible.
Hades (ᾍδης) in its various forms, is used a total of 11 times in the New Testament when referring to the "place of the dead," "death," or "the grave" and is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word sheol (שְׁאוֹל) which occurs 65 times in the Bible.
When speaking to his Jewish followers about God's righteous judgment, Jesus used the word Gehenna (γέεννα) to describe hell as a place of eternal destruction where "maggots never die and the fires never go out." (Matthew 9:42-48) To the average reader, Jesus' use of Gehenna is unremarkable. But to the Jew living in First Century Israel, this real-world location was historically significant and carried with it deep cultural connotations.
Before the Babylonian Exile (ca. 587 BC.) the Valley of Hinnom (Which is translated as Gehenna in Greek.) was the sight of child sacrifice and pagan worship in the southern kingdom of Judah. (2 Chronicles 28:1-3, 33:6, Jeremiah 7:31, 19:2-6) When King Josiah ascended to the throne of Judah following the assassination of his father Amon, he began a series of sweeping religious reforms in an attempt to turn the people of Judah back to worshiping Yahweh. (2 Kings 22-23:30) As part of his reforms, Josiah ordered that the pagan altars in the Valley of Hinnom be defiled so that no one would ever sacrifice their children there again. (2 Kings 23:10)
From that time onward, the Valley of Hinnom was used as a garbage dump by the residents of Jerusalem. Gehenna was literally a hellish place where fires smoldered without end and filled the air with smoke and the odor of death, decay and burning refuse. By the time of Christ, Gehenna had become synonymous with eternal destruction, God's judgment of the wicked, and ceremonial uncleanness in the Jewish culture.
In all, Gehenna is used to describe hell 12 times in the New Testament.
Additionally, the Book of Revelation makes 6 references to a place called the Lake of Fire which Jesus described as a place of final judgement prepared for Satan and his demons in Matthew 25:41.
The Greek wording in this case is far less ambiguous than some of the other words translated as hell in English, and refers simply to a lake (λίμνη) of fire (πυρός). In truth, it is the Lake of Fire that is hell—the final judgement of Satan, his demons, and the unrepentant humans they have deceived and led to their ultimate ruin. Everything prior to this final act of judgment is merely temporary.
That said, much confusion has arisen over the centuries due to the fact that some English Translations have done a great disservice to the text of Scripture by translating nearly all of these unique terms as hell, when the true meaning of the words in question are in fact much more nuanced.
Not only did Jesus teach that hell was a place of unquenchable fire, smoke, and endless destruction and death, he also referred to hell as a place of darkness where there would be "wailing and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 8:5-12, 13:34-43, 13:47-50, 22:13-14, 24:45-51, 25:14-30, Luke 13:22-30)
Some have interpreted this verse to mean that those in hell will be in such extreme physical torment that all they can do is gnash their teeth in pain. And this may certainly be true. However, to the Jews living at the time of Christ, the act of snarling or gnashing ones teeth at someone was a way of showing disrespect, animosity or deep anger towards a particular person or thing. (Psalm:35:14-16, 37:12, 112:10, Lamentations 2:16, Acts 7:51-57)
With this in mind, Jesus seems to be describing hell as a place where people will be filled with unspeakable grief and remorse and yet continue to show nothing but disrespect and utter contempt for God even in the midst of their anguish. The reality of hell as a place of deep emotional torment is further emphasized by Jesus in his parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man. (Luke 16:19-31)
In the story, Jesus tells of a rich man and a beggar named Lazarus who both die and go into the afterlife. Lazarus is taken to paradise by the angels while the rich man is sent into Hades. There, the rich man can see Lazarus and Abraham but cannot cross over to where they are. Calling out to Abraham, the rich man says that he is "in anguish in flames." However his choice of words reveal a much deeper meaning that is not immediately apparent in English.
The Greek word translated as anguish in this passage is odynōmai (ὀδυνῶμαι). Odynōmai only appears once in the Bible and refers specifically to deep personal anguish, emotional pain, mourning, or anxiety. In essence, the anguish experienced by the rich man in Hades is an all-consuming sorrow.
The Greek word translated as anguish in this passage is odynōmai (ὀδυνῶμαι). Odynōmai only appears once in the Bible and refers specifically to deep personal anguish, emotional pain, mourning, or anxiety. In essence, the anguish experienced by the rich man in Hades is an all-consuming sorrow.
Additionally, the Greek word for flame(s) in this passage is phlogi (φλογὶ) and occurs only one other time in Acts 7:30 when Stephen recounts the story of God speaking to Moses from the burning bush. Therefore, the flames experienced by the rich man in this parable could conceivably be understood as a representation of the Shekinah glory of God and not literal flames at all.
God's holiness is described as an unquenchable fire in Deuteronomy 4:24 and Hebrews 12:28-29, and could be lethal to humans who approached in an unworthy or careless way. (Leviticus 10:1-5) The unquenchable fire from God described in the Old Testament also behaved differently than normal fire. In 1 Kings 18:30-38 the fire from the Lord burned up not only flammable materials but also inflammable materials including water, dirt and stone.
God's holiness is described as an unquenchable fire in Deuteronomy 4:24 and Hebrews 12:28-29, and could be lethal to humans who approached in an unworthy or careless way. (Leviticus 10:1-5) The unquenchable fire from God described in the Old Testament also behaved differently than normal fire. In 1 Kings 18:30-38 the fire from the Lord burned up not only flammable materials but also inflammable materials including water, dirt and stone.
God's presence was also described as a pillar of cloud and fire in Exodus 13:21 and Exodus:40:38. And a ceremonial fire was to be kept burning on the alter of Yahweh at all times symbolizing the presence of God among His people. (Leviticus 6:12-13) This vivid imagery of God's presence is echoed in Acts 2:1-4 when the Holy Spirit appeared as "tongues of fire" on the Day of Pentecost.
That said, fire also symbolized God's righteous anger and judgment of sin and wickedness—as in the real-word example of Gehenna. Further support for this powerful symbolism is found in passages like Deuteronomy 9:1-3, Isaiah 30:33 and Jeremiah 7:20. Burning coals were similarly used as a metaphor for deep personal shame. (Proverbs 25:21-22, Romans 12:19-21) So a more literal interpretation of hell is equally plausible.
In support of the traditional interpretation of hell, the rich man in Jesus' parable does state that he is in "a place of torment" in Luke 16:28. However, in the Greek, the word for torment is basanos (βάσανος) which can mean either "sickness" or "to examine by torture." Additionally, basanos originally referred to a touchstone used by ancient goldsmiths to test the purity of gold. Within the greater context of the passage, the "torture" experienced by the man in the story could very well be understood as both physical and psychological.
To have ones innermost sins exposed to the glory and holiness of an infinitely perfect God while still in an unrepentant state, without the hope of forgiveness and reconciliation would be a terrible fate indeed. It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Hebrews 10:29-31) Yet this is exactly what the Bible describes as hell: a place of eternal anguish and torment, where one is permanently restrained and separated from God.
It was to save us from this eventuality that Jesus came and died in our place. Even though he was innocent, Jesus was beaten until he was hardly recognizable as human, mocked and ridiculed; despised and rejected by his own people. Abandoned and alienated by his closest friends and family he was led to a hill outside Jerusalem and crucified like a criminal, ceremonially unclean and symbolically separated from God and His people. (Deuteronomy 21:22-23, Isaiah 53, Hebrews 13:11-15)
Jesus' death on the cross painted a vivid picture of the seriousness of sin and where a life of sin will ultimately lead us: to a permanent separation from God. Yet he died for us. By taking our sins upon himself as the man Jesus Christ, God's infinite justice could be satisfied within Himself so that His infinite love and mercy could be extended to anyone who would repent, turn to Him and believe.
Just as Jesus' death represents the cost of sin and the doom of all mankind apart from grace, so too Christ's resurrection represents the future resurrection of the dead and the new life made available to all mankind through faith in Jesus the Messiah. (1 Corinthians 15:14-23)
In summary, while hell may not be a place of literal fire and brimstone, like Gehenna in this world or Tartarus in Greco-Roman mythology, this in no way diminishes the utter horror of what hell is. Hell is not a place where evil people and sinners are tortured by demons for all eternity. Nor is hell the kingdom of Satan. The Biblical hell is a place of final judgement for rebel humans and spiritual beings alike. A place of eternal separation from God, utterly devoid of all goodness and relationship, where one remains fully conscious of what one has lost, longing for God yet hating Him; consumed by sin, regret, and the agonizing knowledge that you are forever lost. In this regard, the reality of hell is far worse than many people realize. But the reality of heaven is far better than any one can fully comprehend!
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