Christian Commando is on the right track. Many billions have lived and died without ever knowing the name of Jesus Christ and without ever having an opportunity for salvation. Are we to believe that they are now roasting in a man-made “hell” devised by pagan poets (Dante Alighieri’s (1265-1321) famous work Divine Comedy)? If the unsaved, upon death, go directly to hell, then well over half the people who have ever lived are there!
Now what is the truth about hell?
Since no one has ever returned from the dead from “hell”, (except Jesus in the first resurrection) - and offered a firsthand report, we must either choose to believe the ideas of men or search the scriptures for what God reveals.
Remember to let the Bible interpret the Bible. Always keep its truth simple, and the deceptive ideas of men will fall like a house of cards.
The Bible does speak about the subject of hell and hell fire in numerous passages. Christ referred to it several times, as did some of the apostles. The prophets also mentioned it several times in the Old Testament. The Bible uses three Greek words in the New Testament, and one Hebrew word in the Old Testament, explaining the meaning of hell. Let’s examine these words.
The Hebrew word translated hell in the Old Testament is sheol. It has a New Testament counterpart, hades. Actually, if you look up sheol in a concordance, it will reference the Greek word hades. They both mean “the grave, pit, world of the dead or hell.” Hell is the tomb. In saying this, we have just discovered that all people do, in fact, go to “hell” at death! Since the Bible does say, “it is appointed unto men once to die” (Heb. 9:27), then everyone does die and go to hell - literally. All people eventually go to the grave.
The word hades is the most common word used in the New Testament for “hell.” (Actually, some New Testament translations have exchanged the word hell for hades.) Virtually all sources agree that sheol and hades are the same and that both refer to the grave.
It was only with the passing of time that the pagan view of hell, as a blazing underground inferno, came to replace this original intent of the word.
The second Greek word translated as “hell” is found only once in the New Testament. Notice II Peter 2:4:- “For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment.” The word used here is tartaros and refers to angels, not people. It means “a prison, incarceration, place of restraint or a dark abyss.” This verse describes the imprisoning of the angels on earth as their “place of restraint” or “prison” after their rebellion during the pre-Adamic age.
We are now prepared to examine the third and final Greek word translated twelve times as hell in the New Testament. Jesus spoke of it when He said, “And if your hand offend you, cut it off: it is better for you to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched. And if your foot offend you, cut it off: it is better for you to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched. And if your eye offend you, pluck it out: it is better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:43-48)
This verse repeatedly refers to “hell” and “fire unquenched.” It also speaks three times of “worms that die not.” We will return to these terms.
In Matthew 5:22, Christ spoke of those who could “be in danger of hell fire.” Examined another of His warnings; “fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matt. 10:28). Christ describes destruction in this verse, not ongoing punishment.
In each case, the terms hell and hell fire are always translated from the remaining Greek word for hell, gehenna. It can be translated either as hell or hell fire. Understanding its meaning will explain the lengthy quote from Mark 9 cited above.
From Hasting’s Dictionary comes the following definition of this word: “Gehenna: the word occurs twelve times in the New Testament. This term ‘gehenna’ represents ‘the Valley of Hinnom’ (Neh. 11:30; II Kings 23:10, etc). The place was…a deep narrow gorge in the vicinity of Jerusalem, understood to be on the south side. It is repeatedly mentioned in the Old Testament (Jer. 19:6, etc.). It became an object of horror to the Jews, and is said to have been made the receptacle for bones, the bodies of beasts and criminals, refuse and all unclean things. The terrible associations of the place…the fires said to have been kept burning in it in order to consume the foul and corrupt objects that were thrown into it, made it [an]…unmistakable symbol of dire evil…absolute ruin. So it came to designate the place of future punishment.”
Some of the bodies that were cast into this valley never made it into the fires burning below. They would get hung up in the brush and trees on the ledges near the rim. In describing the wicked, when Christ stated that “their worms die not,” He was referring to the bodies of certain criminals that were thrown over the edge of the ravine but did not burn up because they got stuck on a ledge. They literally rotted and decomposed where they were. The maggots that entered their bodies completed the decomposition process without interruption from either the fire or anything else. These worms “died not,” so to speak, because they later developed into flies. This graphic picture is part of the reason that Gehenna was such a place of revulsion to all who were familiar with it!
The Valley of Hinnom - Gehenna - came to represent a place of final punishment - a place of “absolute ruin” - for all who go there. The reference to hell fire actually refers to the “lake of fire” described in Revelation 20:13-15: “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. And death and hell [hades] were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”
All who enter this lake suffer permanent death. They suffer complete destruction - a final punishment that is everlasting - eternal - permanent! It is not punishing but is rather punishment that is everlasting. Christ understood this just as anyone that knew of the fires in the Valley of Hinnom recognized that the bodies of criminals and animals thrown there burned up.
Jude 7 speaks of the ancient cities of Sodom and Gomorrah having received the “vengeance of eternal fire” for their sins. Those cities are not burning today and have been so completely destroyed that archaeologists have never been able to prove with certainty their exact location. What happened to these cities does not reflect a permanent state of visible fire burning for all to see today. Their destruction was eternal. When those cities completely burned up, the fires went out. However, their punishment continues to this day!
It should be clear why Paul recorded that the wages of sin is death, not eternal punishing and torment in an ever-burning hell. Most people have seen fires go unquenched. But they always burned out after they consumed whatever combustible material was available to them. Read Jeremiah 17:27 and 52:13. Over twenty-five hundred years ago, after God warned Jerusalem that He would burn her with an “unquenchable fire,” if she did not repent, this happened. I have also seen Jerusalem on TV & in documentaries. You, too, have probably seen it many times on television and some of you have even visited. It is not still burning today.
A God of mercy and compassion could never torture anything or anyone—let alone do it for all eternity. Carefully consider these verses:
Psalm 104:35 “Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more.” Simply take this verse for exactly what it says, adding nothing to it. It is consistent with all that we have seen so far about the fate of the wicked. The next series of verses is stronger.
Psalm 37:9-12; 20; 22; 29: “For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yes, you shall diligently consider his place, and it shall not be. But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. The wicked plots against the just, and gnashes upon him with his teeth…But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away…For such as be blessed of Him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of Him shall be cut off…The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.” There is no confusing this description of the fate of the wicked. Also, note that the meek do not inherit heaven but rather inherit the earth. Christ quoted this same verse when describing the inheritance that true Christians will receive (Matt. 5:5).
So from the evidence put forth here, it would seem Christ was in the tomb from just before sun-down on Wednesday, the start of "the preparation of the Passover" John 19:14. However, verse 31 goes further by stating, “for that sabbath day was an high day” and being 72 hours in the tomb (3 days) he would have risen late Saturday (the Sabbath) afternoon before sun-down by the Spirit of God and not on Sunday the first day of the week as not "to see corruption" Acts 2:27.
Now what is the truth about hell?
Since no one has ever returned from the dead from “hell”, (except Jesus in the first resurrection) - and offered a firsthand report, we must either choose to believe the ideas of men or search the scriptures for what God reveals.
Remember to let the Bible interpret the Bible. Always keep its truth simple, and the deceptive ideas of men will fall like a house of cards.
The Bible does speak about the subject of hell and hell fire in numerous passages. Christ referred to it several times, as did some of the apostles. The prophets also mentioned it several times in the Old Testament. The Bible uses three Greek words in the New Testament, and one Hebrew word in the Old Testament, explaining the meaning of hell. Let’s examine these words.
The Hebrew word translated hell in the Old Testament is sheol. It has a New Testament counterpart, hades. Actually, if you look up sheol in a concordance, it will reference the Greek word hades. They both mean “the grave, pit, world of the dead or hell.” Hell is the tomb. In saying this, we have just discovered that all people do, in fact, go to “hell” at death! Since the Bible does say, “it is appointed unto men once to die” (Heb. 9:27), then everyone does die and go to hell - literally. All people eventually go to the grave.
The word hades is the most common word used in the New Testament for “hell.” (Actually, some New Testament translations have exchanged the word hell for hades.) Virtually all sources agree that sheol and hades are the same and that both refer to the grave.
It was only with the passing of time that the pagan view of hell, as a blazing underground inferno, came to replace this original intent of the word.
The second Greek word translated as “hell” is found only once in the New Testament. Notice II Peter 2:4:- “For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment.” The word used here is tartaros and refers to angels, not people. It means “a prison, incarceration, place of restraint or a dark abyss.” This verse describes the imprisoning of the angels on earth as their “place of restraint” or “prison” after their rebellion during the pre-Adamic age.
We are now prepared to examine the third and final Greek word translated twelve times as hell in the New Testament. Jesus spoke of it when He said, “And if your hand offend you, cut it off: it is better for you to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched. And if your foot offend you, cut it off: it is better for you to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched. And if your eye offend you, pluck it out: it is better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: where their worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:43-48)
This verse repeatedly refers to “hell” and “fire unquenched.” It also speaks three times of “worms that die not.” We will return to these terms.
In Matthew 5:22, Christ spoke of those who could “be in danger of hell fire.” Examined another of His warnings; “fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matt. 10:28). Christ describes destruction in this verse, not ongoing punishment.
In each case, the terms hell and hell fire are always translated from the remaining Greek word for hell, gehenna. It can be translated either as hell or hell fire. Understanding its meaning will explain the lengthy quote from Mark 9 cited above.
From Hasting’s Dictionary comes the following definition of this word: “Gehenna: the word occurs twelve times in the New Testament. This term ‘gehenna’ represents ‘the Valley of Hinnom’ (Neh. 11:30; II Kings 23:10, etc). The place was…a deep narrow gorge in the vicinity of Jerusalem, understood to be on the south side. It is repeatedly mentioned in the Old Testament (Jer. 19:6, etc.). It became an object of horror to the Jews, and is said to have been made the receptacle for bones, the bodies of beasts and criminals, refuse and all unclean things. The terrible associations of the place…the fires said to have been kept burning in it in order to consume the foul and corrupt objects that were thrown into it, made it [an]…unmistakable symbol of dire evil…absolute ruin. So it came to designate the place of future punishment.”
Some of the bodies that were cast into this valley never made it into the fires burning below. They would get hung up in the brush and trees on the ledges near the rim. In describing the wicked, when Christ stated that “their worms die not,” He was referring to the bodies of certain criminals that were thrown over the edge of the ravine but did not burn up because they got stuck on a ledge. They literally rotted and decomposed where they were. The maggots that entered their bodies completed the decomposition process without interruption from either the fire or anything else. These worms “died not,” so to speak, because they later developed into flies. This graphic picture is part of the reason that Gehenna was such a place of revulsion to all who were familiar with it!
The Valley of Hinnom - Gehenna - came to represent a place of final punishment - a place of “absolute ruin” - for all who go there. The reference to hell fire actually refers to the “lake of fire” described in Revelation 20:13-15: “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. And death and hell [hades] were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”
All who enter this lake suffer permanent death. They suffer complete destruction - a final punishment that is everlasting - eternal - permanent! It is not punishing but is rather punishment that is everlasting. Christ understood this just as anyone that knew of the fires in the Valley of Hinnom recognized that the bodies of criminals and animals thrown there burned up.
Jude 7 speaks of the ancient cities of Sodom and Gomorrah having received the “vengeance of eternal fire” for their sins. Those cities are not burning today and have been so completely destroyed that archaeologists have never been able to prove with certainty their exact location. What happened to these cities does not reflect a permanent state of visible fire burning for all to see today. Their destruction was eternal. When those cities completely burned up, the fires went out. However, their punishment continues to this day!
It should be clear why Paul recorded that the wages of sin is death, not eternal punishing and torment in an ever-burning hell. Most people have seen fires go unquenched. But they always burned out after they consumed whatever combustible material was available to them. Read Jeremiah 17:27 and 52:13. Over twenty-five hundred years ago, after God warned Jerusalem that He would burn her with an “unquenchable fire,” if she did not repent, this happened. I have also seen Jerusalem on TV & in documentaries. You, too, have probably seen it many times on television and some of you have even visited. It is not still burning today.
A God of mercy and compassion could never torture anything or anyone—let alone do it for all eternity. Carefully consider these verses:
Psalm 104:35 “Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more.” Simply take this verse for exactly what it says, adding nothing to it. It is consistent with all that we have seen so far about the fate of the wicked. The next series of verses is stronger.
Psalm 37:9-12; 20; 22; 29: “For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yes, you shall diligently consider his place, and it shall not be. But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. The wicked plots against the just, and gnashes upon him with his teeth…But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away…For such as be blessed of Him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of Him shall be cut off…The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.” There is no confusing this description of the fate of the wicked. Also, note that the meek do not inherit heaven but rather inherit the earth. Christ quoted this same verse when describing the inheritance that true Christians will receive (Matt. 5:5).
So from the evidence put forth here, it would seem Christ was in the tomb from just before sun-down on Wednesday, the start of "the preparation of the Passover" John 19:14. However, verse 31 goes further by stating, “for that sabbath day was an high day” and being 72 hours in the tomb (3 days) he would have risen late Saturday (the Sabbath) afternoon before sun-down by the Spirit of God and not on Sunday the first day of the week as not "to see corruption" Acts 2:27.