Have you ever wondered why there are some scriptures that seem to clearly say that one’s suffering in hell is eternal, unending, without end? Then there are other scriptures that seem to say the opposite, that one’s life is snuffed out in hell, that the wicked are reduced to ashes in the fires of hell and live no more. I wrestled with these apparent contradictions for a long time, asking God to please enlighten me as to what His Word actually said and taught in this matter. I read no commentaries, seeking God’s truth in the matter. I sought no preacher’s input. I looked into the Word of God alone. What follows is what I found within the pages of Holy Writ – the Bible.
Abraham asked a question of God all born human need to consider and weigh carefully, “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (See Genesis 18:25). And just shortly before Abraham asked God that question, God Himself asked Abraham a question: “Is any thing too hard for the Lord?” (See Genesis 18:14). And now I will ask a question, “Can God devise a punishment for sin that is totally just and fair and shows forth unarguably that mercy is dear to the heart of our Creator? Is any thing too hard for the Lord?”
But there is one glaring FACT we all need to consider as we seek the answer to the question, “What is the punishment of the wicked?” That fact is presented to our minds early on – in the second chapter of Genesis. In the 7th verse of Genesis 2, we read these plain and simple, easy-to-understand words: “And the Lord God formed man OF THE DUST OF THE GROUND, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man BECAME a living soul.”
Actually there are three all-important revelations of divine truth that are given in that one verse: 1) Human beings have a purely chemical composition. We were formed from the dust of the ground, or the various chemical elements that are found in the earth itself. 2) We do not possess a “soul” or have a “soul” living somewhere inside us. The text says “man BECAME a living soul.” We ARE souls. And 3) the word “soul” in that verse is the English translation of the Hebrew word nephesh, which merely means “a living, breathing creature.” And, what is even more interesting, is that the term “living creature” found in Genesis 1, verses 21 and 24 is the English translation of this same Hebrew word nephesh. And the living creatures, or nephesh, mentioned in those verses are sea life and animal life created prior to Adam’s creation. ALL of them became “souls,” too. They were all living, breathing creatures.
One term one will not find in the Book of Genesis, or in any other Bible text, is the term “immortal soul.” Nowhere in all the Bible is that term ever used. It is an oxymoron. It is a contradiction in terms. Living, breathing creatures are not immortal. We all die. Wise king Solomon wrote, “I said in my heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts, for that which befalls the sons of men befalls beasts, even one thing befalls them, as the one dies, so dies the other. Yea, they have all one breath, so that a man has no preeminence above a beast, for all is vanity. All go unto one place. All are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.”
And bear in mind that the apostle Paul plainly declared that “ALL SCRIPTURE IS GIVEN BY INSPIRATION OF GOD, AND IS PROFITABLE FOR DOCTRINE, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be perfect (complete), thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (See 2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Many preachers would be well advised to listen to the apostle Paul and Solomon AND GOD! In failing to do so, many will someday hear the same words from God’s mouth spoken to the friends of Job, “You have not spoken of me the thing which is right!” (See Job 42:8). I really do feel badly for them. Most of them mean well. They have zeal, but not according to knowledge. Many of them have placed themselves in positions of leadership over professing Christians. God never placed them there. And someday they will regret deeply the life course they chose
To be continued…….
Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),
Donald Wiley