We have now considered Jesus’ teachings from a linguistic standpoint, to see if his actual words have been translated correctly, and at their context in Jesus’ sermons and conversations, to see what allowances may reasonably be made for deliberate exaggeration on Jesus’ part or misunderstanding on ours. But we are still left with the conclusion that Jesus is earnestly warning us that, unless we turn to Him for forgiveness and help, the bulk of humanity is set on a road that will lead us into destruction. And we are still left asking ourselves, “Why does it have to be ते वाईट? If God really loves us, surely He could have come up with a better solution?”

You are far from being the only one to have felt that way. Most of us have; including Jesus’ first disciples and other early followers. We have already briefly suggested possible reasons why things might not be that simple, in the sections entitled “Why is God So Strict?” आणि “अनिवार्य प्रेमाची अशक्यता.” पण आता, faced with Jesus’ own plain statements on the subject, plus a number of unresolved questions about what exactly he meant, it is time to turn to the rest of the Bible, and especially the New Testament, to see how Jesus’ own disciples understood and explained his message.

The Awfulness of Eternal Punishment

“हे शाश्वत शिक्षेत जातील, पण नीतिमान अनंतकाळच्या जीवनासाठी.” ([x]चटई 25:31-33; 41-46[/x])

By far the most concerning feature of Jesus’ teaching is his reference to ‘eternal punishment.’ In the section entitled, ‘येशूचा शब्दसंग्रह‘ we examined the suggestions that ‘eternal’ referred to the eschatological period rather than its duration and that ‘punishment’ should be understood in a corrective sense. पण, although such interpretations can be found in Greek literature of other periods, these meanings are not supported by their use elsewhere in the New Testament or in the Greek Septuagint version of the Old Testament. Nor are they supported by the original meanings of the Hebrew words they translate. For a more detailed discussion of this issue see परिशिष्ट ए.

Human attitudes to the idea of eternal punishment are somewhat ambivalent. एकीकडे, we are creatures of such brief duration that a single night of toothache feels to us like an eternity; so seriously attempting to grasp the concept of any punishment continuing unabated for ever fills us with horror. दुसरीकडे, most of us would subscribe to the idea that the punishment should ‘fit the crime.’ It is not uncommon to hear victims of particularly heinous crimes demand that the perpetrator should, ‘Burn in Hell for ever!’ But how do we measure that? How many lifetimes should a mass murderer endure? And if human beings were intended by God to live forever, rather than the mere span of our natural lives, then what आहे the real value of a life? How do we measure the true consequences of our wrong actions in the light of the suffering and offence caused, or their potentially eternal consequences for others?

We have previously seen the problem this caused for the author of the The ‘Targum Jonathan’; who chose to render the final words of [x]Isaiah 66:24[/x] (which in the Hebrew reads,”their worm shall not die, त्यांची आग विझणार नाही; आणि ते सर्व मानवजातीसाठी घृणास्पद असतील.” ) as, “their souls shall not die, त्यांची आग विझणार नाही; आणि दुष्टांचा न्याय गेहेन्नामध्ये होईल, जोपर्यंत नीतिमान लोक त्यांच्याबद्दल म्हणतील, we have seen enough.” आणि, similarly, the Talmudic scribes sought to limit the duration of Gehenna to a maximum of 12 महिने. तरीही, when Jesus cites this passage in [x]मार्क 9:43-48[/x] and alludes to it in [x]मॅथ्यू 18:8-9[/x], he instead emphasizes the eternal and unquenchable nature of Gehenna fire.

तर, when Jesus speaks of Gehenna fire as being eternal and unquenchable, what does he mean? If you listen to some of the gorier descriptions of hell, it is like being burned alive, or forced to drink acid; and then, when about to expire from the agony, being revived and the whole process started again … and again … for ever. Descriptions of that sort can certainly be found in Christian literature from the dark ages and also in the Quran: but are they in the Bible?

The nearest I can find to such a description is the Lake of Fire in the book of Revelation: so let’s look at that.

What is the Lake of Fire?

This expression is found 5 times in Revelation, where John describes his vision of God’s final judgements. मध्ये [x]रेव्ह. 19:20[/x], we are told that the beast and its false prophet were ‘thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.’ मध्ये [x]रेव्ह. 20:10[/x] we are told that the devil himself is also thrown in, and that these three ‘will be tormented day and night forever and ever.’ This strongly implies that the lake of fire will have a permanent existence; which is consistent with Jesus’ teaching concerning Gehenna. मग, we are told,

Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. If anyone was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire. ([x]रेव्ह 20:14-15[/x])

The throwing in of Death and Hades is a very clear statement that these intermediate states between human death and judgement, however we visualize them, are now finished. पण, most importantly, we are told that this lake of fire is ‘the second death’ and that it is the ultimate destination of any whose names are not found in the ‘book of life;’ which includes any of the following:

पण भ्याडांसाठी, अविश्वासू, पापी, घृणास्पद, खुनी, लैंगिक अनैतिक, जादूगार, मूर्तिपूजक, आणि सर्व खोटे बोलणारे, their part is in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, जो दुसरा मृत्यू आहे.” ([x]रेव्ह 21:8[/x])

पण, earlier in Revelation, one group of those destined for the lake of fire is singled out for a special warning:

Another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a great voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead, or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is prepared unmixed in the cup of his anger. He will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb. The smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. They have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name. ([x]रेव्ह 14:9-11[/x])

These verses specifically state that those who choose to worship the beast and take his mark on themselves will share the same fate of never-ending torment as the beast, the false prophet and satan himself. It is perhaps particularly noteworthy that the Greek word ‘lambano’ (translated ‘receives’) has the following Strongs definition:

G2983 – lambano – “A prolonged form of a primary verb, which is used only as an alternate in certain tenses; to take (in very many applications, literally and figuratively [probably objective or active, to get hold of; whereas G1209 is rather subjective or passive, to have offered to one; while G138 is more violent, to seize or remove]) …”

The point is that the warning applies to someone who goes as far as to actively identify themself as a worshipper and follower of the beast. And this is नंतर the gospel has been proclaimed to all nations आणि Babylon has fallen ([x]रेव्ह 14:6-11[/x]). By this time the true nature of the gospel versus the rule of the beast should be pretty obvious to anyone: so this is describing a person who has chosen, deliberately and knowingly, to worship and serve the beast.

For the Devil and His Angels?

At this point we should take particular note of these words of Jesus:

Then he will say also to those on the left hand, 'माझ्यापासून निघून जा, तू शाप दिलास, सैतान आणि त्याच्या देवदूतांसाठी तयार केलेल्या चिरंतन अग्नीत;’ ([x]चटई 25:41[/x])

The Greek word ‘angel’ literally means ‘messenger.’ Those who choose to serve the beast become his ‘angels.’ पण [x]रेव्ह 14:11[/x] appears to be the only place in the entire Bible that definitively speaks of humans being tormented unendingly in the lake of fire. तर, if Jesus’ words are taken literally, it can be argued that it was not God’s intention that humans should suffer eternally in this manner; and that this is the only case in which they do.

Does Gehenna Always Involve Conscious Suffering?

Many Christians interpret all the references to the lake of fire as describing the same condition; and therefore conclude that anyone thrown in there will suffer eternal, unremitting torment. But even many of those who take this view agree that the actual level of suffering may vary depending on the severity of the sins committed.

मात्र, although the descriptions of the lake of fire explicitly refer to everlasting torment only in the case of ‘the devil and his angels,’ येशू’ own repeated emphasis that, “there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth,” in his references to Gehenna strongly imply that some form of conscious suffering and bitter remorse, of undefined duration, इच्छा apply to all that are cast into the fire ([x]चटई 8:12; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; लूक 13:28[/x]). And the frequent association with fire, not just flame, suggests that this may involve acute physical pain. (We should also keep in mind that there were several active volcanoes in the Mediterranean region; so the concept of a deadly and destructive lake of fire would not be entirely unknown.)

What is ‘Second Death’?

अभिव्यक्ती, 'दुसरा मृत्यू,’ is found four times in the book of Revelation ([x]रेव्ह 2:11; 20:6; 20:14; 21:8[/x]); where it is identified as the lake of fire. Its context, as the दुसरा मृत्यू, is given by Jesus himself:

Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. उलट, fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna. ([x]चटई 10:28[/x])

To truly understand what this means, we need to consider the biblical view of death. Human life and death are not primarily about the cessation of bodily functions: but about our ability to relate with the world about us and with God. God told Adam that on the day he sinned he would die. He did not die physically until many years later: but on that very day his relationship with God and access to the tree of life was cut off. Your soul does not die when your body dies. Only God has the power to destroy the soul. That destruction begins with permanent separation from God, which is the second death: but even that separation does not necessarily imply an immediate end to existence. It is clear, उदाहरणार्थ, that ‘the devil and his angels’ will continue to ‘exist;’ yet cut off forever from the presence of God.

What is Meant by Destruction?

The word ‘destruction’ is often associated with the ultimate fate of the wicked.

… when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, giving vengeance to those who don’t know God, and to those who don’t obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus, who will pay the penalty: eternal destruction (G3639) from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might … ([x]2Th 1:7-9[/x])

“अरुंद दरवाजाने आत प्रवेश करा; कारण दरवाजा रुंद आहे आणि विनाशाकडे नेणारा मार्ग रुंद आहे (G684), and many are those who enter in by it.” ([x]चटई 7:13[/x])

What if God, willing to show his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath made for destruction (G684) ([x]रोम 9:22[/x])

… the enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction (G684) … ([x]पीएचपी 3:18-19[/x])

The beast that you saw was, and is not; and is about to come up out of the abyss and to go into destruction (G684). (रेव्ह 17:8)

Two words may be translated as ‘destruction’ in this context, as indicated by the Strongs reference numbers in brackets above:

• G3639 – olethros – From ollumi a primary word (to destroy; a prolonged form); ruin, ते आहे, मृत्यू, शिक्षा: – destruction.
• G684 – apoleia – From a presumed derivative of G622; ruin or loss (physical, spiritual or eternal): – damnable (-nation), destruction, मरणे, perdition, X perish, pernicious ways, waste.

Most of us would like to think that ‘destruction’ implies that those thrown into the fire are instantly annihilated and cease to exist. Unfortunately neither of these words has ‘cease to exist’ as its primary meaning. उलट, they imply a process of ruination. And when we consider the concept of destruction by fire, with which Gehenna is commonly associated, both we and the original readers would understand that fire does not instantly consume its victims and normally leaves some kind of residue.

What Remains?

The lake of fire itself will remain forever. But as for what else remains to be seen, neither Jesus nor the rest of the New Testament have much to say about this. The only further description of this scene is provided in the final chapter of Isaiah:

“For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me,” परमेश्वर म्हणतो, “so your seed and your name shall remain. It shall happen, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me,” परमेश्वर म्हणतो. “ते पुढे जातील, आणि माझ्यावर अन्याय करणाऱ्या माणसांच्या मृतदेहांकडे पाहा: कारण त्यांचा किडा मरणार नाही, त्यांची आग विझणार नाही; आणि ते सर्व मानवजातीसाठी घृणास्पद असतील.” ([x]Isa 66:22-24[/x])

‘Dead bodies’ is the Hebrew word, ‘peger,’ which particularly signifies a limp or lifeless corpse, whereas an alternate word, ‘geviyah,’ simply means ‘body’ — whether alive or dead.

Most people, on reading the expression ‘their worm shall not die’, probably visualize this as a description of maggots feeding on rotting corpses. पण, whereas it is relatively easy to visualize a fiery crater burning incessantly, it is harder to conceive of an inexhaustible supply of maggot food.

But there is another potentially more significant symbolism here. During our earlier consideration of the vocabulary of Jesus, it was pointed out that Mark’s gospel records Jesus explicitly commenting on this very passage:

जर तुझा हात तुला अडखळायला लावतो, तो कापून टाका. अपंग जीवनात प्रवेश करणे तुमच्यासाठी चांगले आहे, गेहेन्नात जाण्यासाठी तुमचे दोन हात ठेवण्यापेक्षा, अविभाज्य आग मध्ये, 'जिथे त्यांचा किडा (G4663) मरत नाही (G5053), आणि आग विझत नाही.’ जर तुमचा पाय तुम्हाला अडखळत असेल, तो कापून टाका. लंगड्या जीवनात प्रवेश करणे तुमच्यासाठी चांगले आहे, तुमचे दोन पाय गेहेन्नात टाकण्यापेक्षा, कधीही विझणार नाही अशा अग्नीत – 'जिथे त्यांचा किडा (G4663) मरत नाही (G5053), आणि आग विझत नाही.’ जर तुझा डोळा तुला अडखळायला लावतो, बाहेर टाका. एका डोळ्याने देवाच्या राज्यात प्रवेश करणे तुमच्यासाठी चांगले आहे, अग्नीच्या गेहेन्नात टाकण्यासाठी दोन डोळे असण्यापेक्षा, 'जिथे त्यांचा किडा (G4663) मरत नाही (G5053), आणि आग विझत नाही.’ ([x]मार्च 9:43-48[/x])

We noted at that time that, whereas the Greek word (G4663) in both Mark and the the Septuagint translation of [x]आहे 66:24[/x] is commonly translated as ‘maggot,’ 'ग्रब’ or ‘worm,’ मूळ हिब्रू [x]आहे 66:24[/x] is different. The normal Hebrew equivalent would be ” [x]rimmah[/x]” (H7415): but instead it uses a very specific term, “[x]tole’ah[/x]” (H8438). This translates as the name of one very specific kind of grub ('किरमिजी रंगाचा ग्रब', [x]Kermes ilicis[/x]) or else of the vivid scarlet or crimson dye for which that grub was famous. (And since the Greek uses a generic term for ‘grub,’ it seems that the focus is on the grub itself, rather than just its colour.)

Now this grub has a most unusual life cycle. The adults करू नका feed on decaying flesh: but rather on the sap of oak trees. But when the female is about to lay its eggs, it fuses itself to a stem or leaf, forming what looks like a swollen red gall that acts as a living shield for its young; until they hatch and then consume the dying mother. The red colouration initially produced by the mother is so vivid that it colours the leaves, the young twigs and the grubs themselves (which are collected and dried to make dye). A few days after the grubs hatch, what remains of the mother falls off and becomes a white, waxy material, resembling a blob of wool.

Now this word “[x]tole’ah[/x]” is the same word for ‘worm’ that is found in [x]स्तोत्र 22:6[/x], where it describes Jesus hanging on the cross.¹ And it is the same word used in [x]Isaiah 1:18[/x]:

“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson [x][“tole’ah”][/x], they shall be as wool.”

So we have, in this strange allusion, a vivid picture of how Jesus shielded us from judgement on the cross. He laid himself over us; surrendering his own life in order that we might feed on him and live ([x]जॉन 6:51-56[/x]). And He then reappears as the sinless one, to share his righteousness with us.

But in what sense do these grubs not ‘die’ (G5053)? In every one of its other 9 एन.टी. घटना, this word denotes a biological death: but the context here suggests a more metaphorical sense.

Is it suggesting that, कसा तरी, those consigned to the lake of fire actually survive? This seems improbable, since we are talking here about the second death, which destroys both soul and body [x]चटई 10:28[/x]. Yet even when the grubs are killed, their vivid red colouration remains, leaving a grim reminder that what took place here was, in God’s eyes, the greatest tragedy of all time! का? Because it wasn’t for lack of mercy that they died!

The apostle John tells us concerning Jesus that …

He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, आणि फक्त आमच्यासाठी नाही, but also for the whole world. ([x]1जं 2:2[/x])

Jesus has already done everything necessary to provide a free pardon for anyone who comes to Him for mercy.

जे पिता मला देतात ते सर्व माझ्याकडे येतील. जो माझ्याकडे येतो त्याला मी कोणत्याही प्रकारे बाहेर टाकणार नाही. कारण मी स्वर्गातून खाली आलो आहे, माझ्या स्वत: च्या इच्छेनुसार नाही, पण ज्याने मला पाठवले त्याची इच्छा. ही माझ्या पित्याची इच्छा आहे ज्याने मला पाठवले, त्याने मला दिलेले सर्व काही मी गमावू नये, पण शेवटच्या दिवशी त्याला उठवले पाहिजे. This is the will of the one who sent me, that everyone who sees the Son, and believes in him, should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” ([x]जॉन 6:37-40[/x])

The Lord … is patient with us, कोणाचा नाश व्हावा अशी इच्छा नाही, परंतु सर्वांनी पश्चात्ताप केला पाहिजे. ([x]2 पीटर 3:9[/x])

Even to the very end of your life, God is still longing to save and forgive you. पण इव्हिल्स विशियस स्पायरल is constantly at work, seeking to keep you from ever coming to Jesus. Remember the 2 criminals dying beside Jesus on the cross? One turned to Jesus and found instant pardon for all his misdeeds! But the other was so hardened he could not recognize love even when it was staring him in the face. Even as Jesus was praying for his tormentors, he treated Jesus with the same contempt as those who engineered his death. ([x]लुक 23:34-43[/x])

Beware, भाऊ, lest perhaps there be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief, in falling away from the living God; but exhort one another day by day, so long as it is called “today;” lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. ([x]Hebrews 3:12-13[/x])

Working together, we entreat also that you not receive the grace of God in vain, for he says, “At an acceptable time I listened to you, in a day of salvation I helped you.” बघा, now is the acceptable time. बघा, now is the day of salvation. (2 करिंथकरांस 6:1-2)

… how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation… ? ([x]Hebrews 2:3[/x])

तळटीप

वाचा …

1. See this article: “I am a Worm” येथे http://delevensschool.org/en/psalm-226-worm/