Three Views On Hell
“Every doctrine of hell implies a doctrine of God, and every doctrine of God will shape one’s theology of hell.”
If one is going to talk about heaven, it is necessary to talk about hell. For most modern Christians, if heaven is the place of clouds and harps, then hell is the dark, fiery place of eternal torment for those who do not know Jesus Christ. These are the images that we are taught as children and (more importantly) by popular culture.
However, as I discussed last week, heaven isn’t a place “up there” where saints will sing harmoniously while lounging on couches made of fluffy white nothingness. Heaven is the reality of following Christ in the here and now in which we seek to bring the kingdom of God to our current circumstances. But of course, it isn’t fully here yet; we eagerly wait for Christ’s return to our earth to make all things new and whole again. This shift in worldview dramatically affects how we interact with our world from day to day; in short, our eschatology (what we believe about the end of all things) informs our worldview, which impacts our ethics (what we do with what we believe).
Therefore, it’s worth examining how our concepts of hell have influenced our worldviews and ethics, too.
What is Hell?
There are three dominant Protestant perspectives on hell: eternal conscious torment, terminal punishment (annihilationism or conditional immortality), and universalism. Some include purgatory in this list as well but it will not be discussed here today.
Eternal conscious torment
In the interpretation most commonly held by evangelicals, hell is a physical place determined and ruled by God, in which all unrepentant people are tormented by flames of fire and other terrors forever. This perspective maintains that such a punishment is a necessary judgment for the unrepentant person’s rebellion against God. It argues for the seriousness of sin and the utter holiness of God in comparison and points to literal interpretations of Scriptures such as Is. 66:22-24, Matt. 18:6-9, 2 Thess. 1:6-10, and Rev. 20:10-15.
Hell is a literal and eternal place of torment for the unrepentant.
Supporters of this view argue that this biblical doctrine of hell compels believers to see the urgency of evangelism; after all, you certainly wouldn’t want yourself or any of your loved ones to be in such a terrible place of torment for all eternity. Eternal conscious torment focuses on God’s terrible wrath against sin, but promises mercy through Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross. These folks are passionate about bringing the gospel message to all people and all nations but sometimes this view is accused of overemphasizing images of fiery torment in order to compel people to salvation through fear.
Terminal Punishment
Also called annihilationism or conditional immortality, this interpretation says that hell is the situation in which those who do not accept Jesus’s atonement made for them through his suffering and death are required to atone for their own sins by their own limited suffering and, when their suffering is fulfilled, their death. In this case, “death” refers to being cut off from the sustainability of God’s eternal life and thus the person disappears from existence altogether at the last judgment (Matt 10:28, John 3:16, Heb. 10:39, Rom. 6:23).
Primarily, “eternal life” is understood qualitatively, not quantitatively. The Greek word aiónios, which is often translated as “everlasting” can equally be translated as “of an age to come.” Thus, those who repent will receive sustaining life from God “in the age to come” when Christ returns; those who do not repent do not receive this life and they die upon Christ’s return at the final judgment. Furthermore, the fires of judgment are understood as termination or utter destruction of the wicked, rather than eternal torment (Ps. 1:1-4, Matt. 7:15-29, 2 Peter 2:6). In keeping with a symbolic rather than a strictly literal reading of Revelation, the eternal torment of the devil and his angelic followers is understood as evil’s final defeat.
Hell is the complete and utter destruction of evil, including the unrepentant.
Supporters of this perspective state that God’s goodness is emphasized alongside his holiness: God's goodness and holiness demand a complete eradication of sin, which occurs through the unrepentant person’s own payment for their sin (for the repentant this occurs through the blood of Christ). His mercy toward the unrepentant does not allow for an everlasting place of fiery torment; instead, God’s everlasting mercy snuffs them out of existence. Those who take this perspective are passionate about the goodness and hope of Christ’s work on the cross but sometimes they are accused of reducing the seriousness of sin and the need for adequate punishment of sin, particularly by those holding to eternal conscious torment.
Universalism
This perspective is the view that in the end, God will reconcile all people to himself. That is, all people will eventually be saved. This view is a minority though not a new idea, dating back to Origen (c.184-c.254) and Augustine (354-430). Universalism takes pains to say that sin is taken seriously and that there is eschatological punishment on the day of judgment, but that in the end there will be deliverance (Rom. 11:32, 1 Cor. 15:22, Phil. 2:9-11, Col 1:18-20).
Primarily, all of creation is from God, for God, and oriented toward God for all eternity (Gen. 1:24-26, Col. 1:15-17). Secondly, all have sinned and deserve divine punishment from which divine rescue is not deserved (Gen. 3, Rom. 3:23). Thirdly, in Christ’s humanity, death, and resurrection, sin is completely destroyed for all people (2 Cor. 5:14, 1 John 2:2, Heb. 2:9).
Therefore, judgment for sin is necessary, but universalists suggest that restoration follows judgment (see examples in Isaiah 19:22 and Ezekiel 16:53), which then suggests that all people have the opportunity to be saved, even after their death for God’s mercy and love is not limited by death. I won’t detail the entire argument, but interested readers can read it in Four Views on Hell.
Hell is the judgment of sin, after which all of creation and humanity are restored to God.
Supporters of this view emphasize God’s reconciling and restorative work in all of his creation: at the end of all things, he restores natural creation and humanity to a new creation by the power of Christ’s finished work on the cross. These folks are often passionate about matters of social justice and partner with organizations that seek to bring restoration to their communities, but sometimes this perspective is accused of eliminating human free will as well as vastly reducing evangelistic urgency.
Each of these perspectives has solid arguments and each can make those arguments from Scripture. Each one also has pitfalls. Regardless of which one you find yourself camping in, I invite you to consider the perspectives of the other interpretations. Be curious about them; recognize that there are true followers of Christ in each category. Be hospitable to those who believe differently than you on this matter.
Think about it.
What are the strengths and pitfalls of your preferred interpretation?
How does your interpretation of hell influence how you live your life? How does it influence your approach to evangelism, church, and issues of social justice?
Puzzle it over. Your doctrine of eschatology matters because it describes your doctrine of God, and both influence your lived-out Christian ethics. The end to which you are headed impacts the choices you make today.
As for me, I no longer hold to eternal conscious torment as I was taught as a child; it simply doesn’t match my theology of a loving, generous, merciful, good God who desires that all be brought to reconciliation with him. That said, I don’t quite know which of the other two to align with; I am drawn to both for various reasons. But this is faith: continuing to ask questions and to trust in a God who is much, much larger than my questions. For all I know, hell could be something else entirely. I can only trust in the character of God as I know him and seek to understand him more.
For more reading:
Parry, Robin A. Reforming Hell, “7 Myths About Universalism,” blog. https://reforminghell.com/7-myths-about-universalism/
Sprinkle, Preston ed. Four Views on Hell: Second Edition. Zondervan: 2016.
Walls, Jerry L. Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory: Rethinking the Things that Matter Most, “If God is Love, Why is There a Hell?” Brazos Press, 2015, 67-90.
Wright, NT. Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church, “Purgatory, Paradise, and Hell.” HarperCollins Publishers, 2014, 165-188.
