What is hell?
This subject has not been discussed for a while, and while many shy away from the subject it is a Bible topic that is very relevant to Christians. If you lived in the first century or before, you were very well aware of the meaning of hell, but during the period of apostasy has been extremely misrepresented. In fact so badly so that most have come to believe that God is going to torture people eternally in it. To put your mind at ease, and please research if my words are true, hell is quite simply and literally defined as the abode of the dead. That is an extremely accurate definition. (Not mine, but Bible dictionaries).
Hell is an English word, therefore was not found in the original Bible, rather was translated from the Hebrew word Sheol, and the Greek word Hades, which most have heard before. In our time the word hell was made very popular through the King James Version of the Bible which was the primary version that most of the English world used for centuries, and many still do. Sheol occurs 65 times in the Bible and is translated in the King James Bible 31x as hell, 31x as grave, and 3 times as pit. So, hell, grave, and pit is Sheol, they all mean the same thing, as William is Bill, Will, or Liam. Grave of course is the easiest to understand, and over time hell was used to basically scare people into serving God. Consistency in translation would likely have squelched the God dishonoring doctrine from forming, but because of that inconsistency most today do not understand what is actually being said. I find however, that more and more faiths are understanding it better now than 50 yrs ago Dan 12:4.
Sheol is exactly the same place/thing as Hades, how can we discern that? We can look at a prophecy and it's fulfillment to see this. Psalms 16:10 states: Ps 16:10leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. and the Strongs assists us with:lwaX Sh@'owl (sheh-ole'); Noun Feminine, Strong #: 7585
And Acts 2:31 states: Ac 2:31before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption again the Strongs: a/&dhß Hades (hah'-dace); Word Origin: Greek, Noun Location, Strong #: 86
See how they are the same place/thing? Note as well going there has nothing whatsoever to do with sin, as we see that Jesus went there upon death as well. Everyone who dies goes there. And while most are unaware of this, everyone will get out upon resurrection, hell will be emptied: Re 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. Isn't this great news?
Ok, now that we have that covered, where has the torturous hell that people refer to come from? Again, if you lived in the first century down you would understand what is being said. The third word translated hell many times along with a Greek word translated fire, is a Hebrew word Gehenna. It occurs 12 times in the New testament, and is represented symbolically in Revelation as the lake of fire which is mentioned only 2 times in Scripture, and both times defines itself as the second death. Jesus pointed to individuals being cast into it. What does this mean?
Point blank it means the second death as the Bible states. The Bible tells us at: Hebrews 9:27) . . .it is reserved for men to die once for all time, but after this to receive a judgment, but those who fail the judgment, then are cast into the lake of fire, of which there is no recovery, the second death. Or in other words permanent death. Remember God stated from the very beginning to Adam and Eve disobedience will result in death, and He told them what death was, they would return to the ground that they were taken from. Much later the Bible defines death: (Ecclesiastes 9:5-10) 5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing at all, nor do they have any more reward, because all memory of them is forgotten. 6 Also, their love and their hate and their jealousy have already perished, and they no longer have any share in what is done under the sun. . . . 10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do with all your might, for there is no work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the Grave, where you are going.
What is different about Gehenna? It is actually a judgment, a permanent judgment for those who do not receive salvation. The second death. Jesus gave an example of a way to receive that judgment: Mt 12:31Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
They have no forgiveness, therefore they have received the judgment of the lake of fire. Take heart however, this is an extremely hard judgment to get, as you have to know God well, and literally work against His purposes to get that judgment. Few truly know God well, in fact, most do not even know His name if you ask. I am certainly not recommending that you do not continue to learn about God, coming to know Him better. Please learn something about Him every day.
I hope this helps, many will think I am wrong, and I encourage you to do the research for yourself. Remember this however, only God can keep you alive, and if you state that people are going to be tortured eternally in a volcano of fire, you may blame the individual or satan, but in reality you are stating that God is doing that to them. Think about it, satan can not provide life, only God. The Bible states God is Love, and one of His qualities is Justice, neither would apply. What could any individual do in the max of 120 yrs that would warrant that? Remember God is exacting, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, life for life, exacting. That is why Jesus had to be sent as Adam was perfect and lost life for us, therefore a perfect man had to be sacrificed to appease the exacting law. A corresponding ransom.
Another way to think about it through a parents eyes. All children are disobedient on occasion, let us say the child did something really bad, would you heat the stove red hot and put their hand on it? What would you think of someone who did? Remember as well that would only happen momentarily. Do you honestly think you have a keener sense of justice, or are you more loving than God?
Everlasting life, or everlasting death, is the actual outcome of all of us. Thanks for reading this.
This subject has not been discussed for a while, and while many shy away from the subject it is a Bible topic that is very relevant to Christians. If you lived in the first century or before, you were very well aware of the meaning of hell, but during the period of apostasy has been extremely misrepresented. In fact so badly so that most have come to believe that God is going to torture people eternally in it. To put your mind at ease, and please research if my words are true, hell is quite simply and literally defined as the abode of the dead. That is an extremely accurate definition. (Not mine, but Bible dictionaries).
Hell is an English word, therefore was not found in the original Bible, rather was translated from the Hebrew word Sheol, and the Greek word Hades, which most have heard before. In our time the word hell was made very popular through the King James Version of the Bible which was the primary version that most of the English world used for centuries, and many still do. Sheol occurs 65 times in the Bible and is translated in the King James Bible 31x as hell, 31x as grave, and 3 times as pit. So, hell, grave, and pit is Sheol, they all mean the same thing, as William is Bill, Will, or Liam. Grave of course is the easiest to understand, and over time hell was used to basically scare people into serving God. Consistency in translation would likely have squelched the God dishonoring doctrine from forming, but because of that inconsistency most today do not understand what is actually being said. I find however, that more and more faiths are understanding it better now than 50 yrs ago Dan 12:4.
Sheol is exactly the same place/thing as Hades, how can we discern that? We can look at a prophecy and it's fulfillment to see this. Psalms 16:10 states: Ps 16:10leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. and the Strongs assists us with:lwaX Sh@'owl (sheh-ole'); Noun Feminine, Strong #: 7585
And Acts 2:31 states: Ac 2:31before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption again the Strongs: a/&dhß Hades (hah'-dace); Word Origin: Greek, Noun Location, Strong #: 86
See how they are the same place/thing? Note as well going there has nothing whatsoever to do with sin, as we see that Jesus went there upon death as well. Everyone who dies goes there. And while most are unaware of this, everyone will get out upon resurrection, hell will be emptied: Re 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. Isn't this great news?
Ok, now that we have that covered, where has the torturous hell that people refer to come from? Again, if you lived in the first century down you would understand what is being said. The third word translated hell many times along with a Greek word translated fire, is a Hebrew word Gehenna. It occurs 12 times in the New testament, and is represented symbolically in Revelation as the lake of fire which is mentioned only 2 times in Scripture, and both times defines itself as the second death. Jesus pointed to individuals being cast into it. What does this mean?
Point blank it means the second death as the Bible states. The Bible tells us at: Hebrews 9:27) . . .it is reserved for men to die once for all time, but after this to receive a judgment, but those who fail the judgment, then are cast into the lake of fire, of which there is no recovery, the second death. Or in other words permanent death. Remember God stated from the very beginning to Adam and Eve disobedience will result in death, and He told them what death was, they would return to the ground that they were taken from. Much later the Bible defines death: (Ecclesiastes 9:5-10) 5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing at all, nor do they have any more reward, because all memory of them is forgotten. 6 Also, their love and their hate and their jealousy have already perished, and they no longer have any share in what is done under the sun. . . . 10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do with all your might, for there is no work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the Grave, where you are going.
What is different about Gehenna? It is actually a judgment, a permanent judgment for those who do not receive salvation. The second death. Jesus gave an example of a way to receive that judgment: Mt 12:31Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.
They have no forgiveness, therefore they have received the judgment of the lake of fire. Take heart however, this is an extremely hard judgment to get, as you have to know God well, and literally work against His purposes to get that judgment. Few truly know God well, in fact, most do not even know His name if you ask. I am certainly not recommending that you do not continue to learn about God, coming to know Him better. Please learn something about Him every day.
I hope this helps, many will think I am wrong, and I encourage you to do the research for yourself. Remember this however, only God can keep you alive, and if you state that people are going to be tortured eternally in a volcano of fire, you may blame the individual or satan, but in reality you are stating that God is doing that to them. Think about it, satan can not provide life, only God. The Bible states God is Love, and one of His qualities is Justice, neither would apply. What could any individual do in the max of 120 yrs that would warrant that? Remember God is exacting, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, life for life, exacting. That is why Jesus had to be sent as Adam was perfect and lost life for us, therefore a perfect man had to be sacrificed to appease the exacting law. A corresponding ransom.
Another way to think about it through a parents eyes. All children are disobedient on occasion, let us say the child did something really bad, would you heat the stove red hot and put their hand on it? What would you think of someone who did? Remember as well that would only happen momentarily. Do you honestly think you have a keener sense of justice, or are you more loving than God?
Everlasting life, or everlasting death, is the actual outcome of all of us. Thanks for reading this.
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