Hell fire isn’t what most think it is.
Was the chicken or the egg first? That question comes to mind when we consider the popular teachings of hell. Was it bad theology that brought on poor translations of certain verses in Revelation, or was is bad translating that created poor theology? Whichever it was, we now know that the theory of an ever burning hell where people suffer forever is not what the Bible teaches. There are several verses that give an entirely different view. First we will look at those, then deal with how the two verses in Revelation that say “forever and ever” are to be understood.
As we have mentioned before, Christians today want the coming of Christ to be a “soft” landing full of grace and mercy. On the other hand, they still subscribe to the notion that God is a God who tortures people in the fires of hell throughout eternity. They are wrong on both counts: God is coming to destroy sin and sinners while saving the righteous, but He does not prolong the death and misery of anyone. The verses in the Bible that seem to say He does need to be understood in context of many other verses on the same subject.
Isaiah 65:17-18 says, “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things will not be remembered nor come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing, and her people for gladness. I will also rejoice in Jerusalem, and be glad in My people.” No parent can have joy while they know their child is suffering. God is the same. He could find no joy in eternity if some of His creatures were being tortured in hell fire. The fact that He enjoys eternity is a good indicator that no one will be burning in hell
Similarly, “forever and ever” have to be understood against the backdrop of several other expressions in the Bible. Speaking of the destruction of hell fire, Malachi 4:1-3 says that “they are left neither root nor branch” and “they will be ashes under the soles of your feet.”
Revelation 20:10 says that the “fire came down from heaven and devoured them.” To devour means to leave nothing. Jude 7 says that the cities of Sodom and Gomorra are given to us as examples of “eternal destruction.” We know that those cities are not burning today. In fact, Lamentations 4:6 says that their destruction was accomplished in a “moment.” So we must understand “eternal” in this case as the consequence of the destruction, not its duration.
In light of these verses, how can we make sense of the two passages in Revelation that say “forever and ever”? Revelation 14:11, says, “And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever.” Revelation 20:10 states that “they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”
How do we understand “forever and ever” in light of the lost being burned up and left neither root nor branch, being turned to ash, being devoured, and being destroyed in a moment? We have to go back to what the Greek literally says and start from there. It says, “They will be tormented day and night unto the ages, our ages.” “The ages, our ages” is often translated “forever and ever” in the Bible. In some contexts that is a good translation, but not in the context of hell fire.
When Jesus spoke of hell fire, He spoke of the future. In other words, He knew that no one was burning at that time. He said in a parable found in Matthew 13, “And in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.’” He then said plainly what He meant by the parable: “Therefore, just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire.”
Again, in the same chapter, Jesus spoke another parable of the dragnet. In it He said, “So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth, and take out the wicked from among the righteous, and will cast them into the furnace of fire.”
Notice that this happens at the “end of the age.” What is meant by “the age”? And what is meant by “our age”?
Several verses in the Bible distinguish between “the present age” and “the age to come.” Jesus spoke of more than one age: “The enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are the angels,” Matthew 13:39.
In Matthew 12:32, Jesus said concerning sinning against the Holy Spirit, “It will not be forgiven him, either in this age, or in the age to come.”
If “this age” is the present time we live in and the “age to come” represents eternity when the sin experiment is all over, than we can easily understand the meaning of hell burning “unto the ages; our ages.”
Daniel 7:27 says, “Then the sovereignty, the dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One.” When this laboratory experiment is over, when sin and Satan are destroyed, God will share His everlasting Kingdom with His people. That will be the beginning of “their age.”
Hell fire is of short duration and bridges the two ages‚ It is the last event of the “present age,” and ushers in the “age to come.” So, while the lost burn from the present age until the age to come, that is actually just a moment in time.
Think of the ending scene in Lion King. Fire came down from heaven, devoured Scar, cleansed the earth, rain put out the fire, and then new life sprang forth in full and vivid colors. Simba took his place on a high rock overlooking the new world and lifted his son for all to see, and their reign began. That is a pretty close description of what will happen at the end of the millennium.
The present age is the period of time given for the sin experiment. The age to come is eternity realized when sin and Satan will be no more. Hell fire is the transition point between the two ages. So, in Revelation when it says that the fire burns “until the ages, our ages” it means just that.
Keep studying your Bibles,
Dennis
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