John A. Broussard

Back in the heyday of Christianity, hell was a very real place. To die with even a single mortal sin staining one's soul meant eternal suffering in a hell of fire and brimstone.

To get a dramatic view of that hell, I recommend Dante's Inferno.

Closer to us in time is Jonathan Edwards' Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. Here's a choice passage from that wonderful sermon:

"The use of this awful subject may be for awakening unconverted persons in this congregation. This that you have heard is the case of every one of you that are out of Christ.-That world of misery, that lake of burning brimstone, is extended abroad under you. There is the dreadful pit of the glowing flames of the wrath of God; there is hell's wide gaping mouth open; and you have nothing to stand upon, nor any thing to take hold of, there is nothing between you and hell but the air; it is only the power and mere pleasure of God that holds you up."

Current inerrantists (and I'm going by the admittedly small and biased sample I've encountered in this forum) have a very different view of hell. It ranges from simply being snuffed out--which will be the fate of humanists, agnostics, atheists, skeptics, infidels, most non-Christians and even a smattering of heretical Christians--to nothing more than deprivation of the sight of god, something they generally regard as being to god's considerable relief.

The reason I bring up the subject here is to find out what verses in the bible inspired the older version of hell as a place of eternal, fiery torment.

More important is to learn what explanation current inerrantists give for viewing those verses in quite a different light, and how they justify this new and far more benign interpretation.

Chris Weimer

John - I did a pretty fairly comprehensive look at Matthew's passages a while back. I at first argued against it, but then on a double take, I think positively Matthew argues for a literal hell.

Chris Weimer

http://www.iidb.org/vbb/showthread.php?t=62667
http://www.iidb.org/vbb/showthread.php?t=113597

John A. Broussard

I agree.

I don't know how anyone could possibly deny the literal hell in Matthew, but somehow or other modern inerrantists seem to be able to work their way around those verses.

That's why I started this thread, to find out how they do it.

Mars Man

Now John A. Broussard san, why in the world would you want to start such an interesting, and very 'hot' topic of conversation just as the weekend is here, and I won't have time to sit at the PC until about Tuesday, and then come back and find some 8 pages to have to read before I can jump in ?

Just joking of course......hee,hee.... I'll try to throw in my two brimstone's worth after I come back on line. This week was filled up, and I couldn't and it'S already Friday....Get back with you in this one !!!!! Have a good one !!!:thumbs: :wave:

judge

An obvious question.
Do you take all the eschatological language in matthew literally.
If not how do you decide which parts are literal and which are not?

Roger Pearse

You need not worry longer about this probem. I am quite happy to confirm that when you die you will endure eternal suffering in a hell of fire for each and every unforgiven sin staining your soul.

Problem solved...

All the best,

Roger Pearse

John A. Broussard

I hadn't thought of that.

This is much like the problems of infinity that plague the mathematicians. Can there be something more than infinity? Can there be more than one eternal suffering reserved for me?

I suppose there can be a splitting up of selves into various portions corresponding to all the unforgiven sins, each of which will suffer for all of eternity.

Fascinating concept.

gregor

My perception is the change was started by the Catholic Church, which hasn't really placed God's revelation exclusively in the language of the Bible.

And I love this pithy prose:

Roger Pearse

Field-tests are the only way to get an answer. Invite your mother-in-law to stay for Christmas and, just as she draws up in the drive, insert the rough end of a pineapple up your backside. Over the next 24 hours, it will become clear to you whether you are suffering from one infinity of suffering, or two.

"We're not here to let stupidity be its own punishment" -- from the Vision Statement of the Spanish Inquisition.

Just imagine it like being cured from schizophrenia and then finding out that your psychiatrist billed each personality separately.

All the best,

Roger Pearse