What is your view of hell?

[HAZARD]

4 hours ago, OpenMind said:

Hell is a Lie

I believe the concept of hell as typically depicted is a lie.  There is no place of eternal torment full of fire and tormenting demons.  The reason I say this is because it's not in scripture.  

The concept of eternal punishment was common in many pagan religions when Christianity began, including the Norse, the Teutons, the Romans, the Greeks, the Egyptians and the Chinese.  The Roman Catholic Church is well known to have used fear to drive people, and their money, into the church and effectively used the image of hell to depict the horrors of the consequence of disobedience to the church. 

I don't believe the concept of hell was invented by the RCC perse, but rather it is an amalgamation of pagan concepts that seeped into Christianity with the help of the RCC as it suited their purpose.

Modern Bible Translations are Inaccurate

The King James Version is probably the biggest reason people continue to believe in it today as the words Sheol, Gehenna and Hades are translated as "Hell".  Sheol and Hades actually mean "the grave" or "the unseen place", which is the place where everybody goes upon death, but the KJV translators disingenuously translated these words as "Hell" when speaking of the wicked dying, but translated those same words as "the grave" when speaking of the righteous dying.  That's blatant bias designed to shape the thinking of the reader.

For example, 1 Corinthians 15:55

O death where is thy sting?  Or grave (Hades) where is thy victory?

But the same word in Luke 10:15 is translated as hell.

And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell (Hades).

There are literally hundreds of such examples.

Gehenna refers to a valley outside of Jerusalem where the Pagans used to sacrifice their children in fire and which was being used as a garbage incinerator in Jesus' time.  Yet this word also is translated as hell.

Matthew 5:29

And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell (Gehenna).

Jesus was talking about physical fiery death here, not a place of eternal torment.

Early Christians Believed in Universalism

The second reason why I don't believe in a place of eternal torment is because the early Christians didn't either.  The concept of hell did not exist in Christianity for the first four centuries.  The original apostles creed (before the RCC corrupted it) made not a single mention of eternal punishment.  The grave stones of early Christians proclaimed joy and hope for all, depicting the Lord Jesus with a goat over his shoulder signifying that even the wicked will be found by the shepherd.  And it is from these early Christian centuries, when death was no longer regarded as death but sleep in the hope of salvation, and from which we get the word cemetery, which comes from the Greek word dormitory, which means "the sleeping place".  Death was no longer sadness but a reminder of hope and joy.  Every single piece of evidence of early Christian life is in line with the concept of universalism.

The Bible Itself Teaches  Universalism

Revelation 13:8  And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him.

Colossians 1:20 having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself.

Acts 3:21: restitution of all things

Hebrews 1:2 heir of all things

Galatians 3:8 In thee shall all nations be blessed

John 17:2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him

John 3:35 The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand

Luke 3:6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God

Luke 6:35 he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

1 Timothy 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved

1 Timothy 2:6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time

2 Peter 3:9 not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance

Romans 11:32 that he might have mercy upon all

Romans 11:36 For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things

Ephesians 1:10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ

Ephesians 1:22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things

John 3:13 Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands

John 12:32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me

John 3:35 The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand

John 6:37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me

Luke 15:4 What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

John 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

Titus 2:11 The grace of God has appeared bringing salvation for all people

John 1:29 Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world

1 Timothy 4:10 the living God, who is the Saviour of all men

John 4:42 and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world

1 John 3:8 the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil

2 Timothy 1:10 our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death

Revelation 1:18 I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of death and hades

Revelation 20:14 death and hades were cast into the lake of fire

I Corinthians 15:22 In Christ shall all be made alive

Philippians 2:10-11 Every knee shall bow and every tongue confess

Sadly Openmind, you seem to have a closed mind. Dozens of Scriptures teach and speak of an eternal Hell where punishment lasts for ever and ever.

[OpenMind]

20 minutes ago, HAZARD said:

Does for ever, and for ever and ever mean forever or not?

Sure, but the scripture doesn't say forever.  It says aiṓnios.

[OpenMind]

19 minutes ago, HAZARD said:

Sadly Openmind, you seem to have a closed mind. Dozens of Scriptures teach and speak of an eternal Hell where punishment lasts for ever and ever.

On the contrary.  You show me any scripture where it says what you claim and I'll show you that you're wrong.

[HAZARD]

1 minute ago, OpenMind said:

On the contrary.  You show me any scripture where it says what you claim and I'll show you that you're wrong.

Take your time studying all these Scriptures.

Whats written in the Scriptures regarding Hell.
Hell is mentioned in many dozens of Scriptures throughout the Bible. There are five departments in the underworld of departed Spirits, not one of these places is associated with or is the grave where bodies are buried.
These five departments are;

One). Paradise;
In Luke 16:19-31; 23:43, we have pictured total comfort and water in this prison because the rich man saw Lazarus afar off in comfort and bliss and asked him to dip his finger in water and cool his tongue (Luke 16:19-31).

This was the abode of the righteous souls from Adam after dying and leaving their bodies, being held captive by the devil against their wills till Christ's death and resurrection (Heb. 2:14-15; Eph. 4:7-11).Before Jesus Christ conqured the power of death and Hell, the devil had these powers. (Col. 2:14-17; Heb. 2:14-15; Rev. 1:18).

It was into this prison the repentant thief went with Christ the day they both died (Luke 23:43). This prison is located in the heart of the Earth as is clear from (Matt. 12:40 and Eph. 4:7-11).

Jesus not only went into this prison but He also went into another prison, "Tartarus," and preached to the fallen angels being held there in their own special prison, "And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day." (Jude 1:6). "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;" (2 Peter 2:4).

Jesus having conqured Hell and death and the grave during His crucifiction and during the three days He was in the underworld, He captured all the righteous souls that were in Paradise and took them to Heaven when He ascended on high (Eph. 4:7-11).

Jesus now has the keys to Hell and death (Rev. 1:18).

When we check every Scripture provided in God's Word, we cannot believe Jesus did not go to Hell, preach to the SPIRITS there, and He also captured all the righteous souls, Abraham, Moses, Isac, David, and all the others rightious souls that were in Paradise and took them to Heaven when He ascended on high.

The five departments of Hell are;

One). Paradise, which we are speaking of here;

In Luke 16:19-31; 23:43, we have pictured total comfort and water in this prison because the rich man saw Lazarus afar off in comfort and bliss and asked him to dip his finger in water and cool his tongue (Luke 16:19-31). This was the abode of the righteous souls from Adam after dying and leaving their bodies, being held captive by the devil against their wills till Christ's death and resurrection (Heb. 2:14-15; Eph. 4:7-11). Before Jesus Christ conqured the power of death and Hell, the devil had these powers. (Col. 2:14-17; Heb. 2:14-15; Rev. 1:18).
It was into this prison the repentant thief went with Christ the day they both died (Luke 23:43). This prison is located in the heart of the Earth as is clear from Matt. 12:40 and Eph. 4:7-11. Jesus not only went into this prison but He also went into another prison, "Tartarus," and preached to the fallen angels being held there in their own special prison. Jesus having conqured Hell and death and the grave during His crucifiction and during the three days He was in the underworld, He captured all the righteous souls that were in Paradise and took them to Heaven when He ascended on high (Eph. 4:7-11). Jesus now has the keys to Hell and death (Rev. 1:18). Rightious souls who die now no longer go here. They go straight to Heaven when they die.

Two). Tartarus; This prison is the special prison for the fallen angels that sinned both before and after the flood. There is nothing recorded in Scripture that teaches demons or human beings ever go into this prison. In these passages it is clear that there is a real Hell that is not the grave and that Spirit beings are confined in chains until judgment (1 Pet. 3:19; 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6-7).

Three). Hell itself; (Matt. 16:18; Luke 16:19-31). This is the torment part in the unseen world and was, still is, and will yet be the abode of all the wicked souls and spirits of men from Able to the end of the Millennium. Then, at this time all the wicked will be liberated out of this prison and will be given their own immortal bodies and be judged before being cast into the "lake of fire" forever (Rev. 20:11-15; 21:8).

Four). The Bottomless Pit or Abyss is the abode or prison of demons and certain angelic beings. No human being is ever thrown into the abyss. It is a very deep chasm in the lower parts of the Earth. It is translated "deep" (Luke 8:26-31; Romans 10:7) and "Bottomless Pit" in Rev. 9:1-3, 11; 11:7; 17:8; 20:1-10). All these Scriptures prove that there are prisons in the lower parts of the Earth for departed sinning spirits, and they are not and could never be the same as a grave on the surface of the Earth.

And Five). The Lake of Fire, is the eternal Hell and perdition of wicked men, demons, fallen angels, and all rebellious creatures of all ages who have ever rebelled against God, and who have refused to repent when they could have. It is called "The Gehenna of Fire" and is always translated Hell (Matt. 5:22, 29, 30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15, 33; Mark 9:43-45, 47; Luke 12:5; James 3:6). This prison is also called "the second death, which is the lake of fire" (Rev. 2:11; 20:6, 14). This final Hell was prepared for the devil and all his angels (Matt. 25:41-46), and for all other rebells, and it is ETERNAL in duration (Rev. 14:9-14; 20:10-15; Isa. 66:22-24; Matt. 25:46). There is no record in Scripture of anyone being the lake of fire at present. Scripture does show that the beast and the false prophet will be the first to be cast into it. This will happen before the Millennium (Rev. 19:20). They will still be there 1,000 years later when the devil and all other rebels will be cast into it (Rev. 20:10-15).

Scripture also teaches that there will be degrees of punishment in Hell as far as remorse and torment of the conscience is concerned (Matt. 10:15; 11:22; 12:41; 23:14; Mark 6:11; 12:40; Luke 10:14; 11:31, 32; 20:47).

 These degrees of punishment will be because of the kind of sins committed by one that were not committed by another. No man will be punished or could have remorse over something he did not do. They will all regret rebelling against God and man and failing to believe in Jesus, and repenting of sin.

 

In the near future men on Earth will be able to look into a real burning Hell under the Earth. This is plainly stated in Isa. 66:22-24 where the

 prophet predicts that all natural men in the New earth will be able to look into Hell upon the men that have sinned against God.

Rev. 14:9-11 also proves that men will be tormented in the presence of God and angels forever. These passages are literal and should be understood just as they read.

[HAZARD]

9 minutes ago, OpenMind said:

Sure, but the scripture doesn't say forever.  It says aiṓnios.

We speak-da englies and we hava-da englies bibles wat isa da writn in englies. we no undestant aionios speak?

We do know what forever means, The name Forever is of English origin. The meaning of Forever is "infinity".

Edited April 26, 2019 by HAZARD

[OpenMind]

4 minutes ago, HAZARD said:

We speak-da englies and we hava-da englies bibles wat isa da writn in englies. we no undestant aionios speak?

If you think the disciples wrote the Bible in English then I guess you can believe whatever you want.

[OpenMind]

7 minutes ago, HAZARD said:

Take your time studying all these Scriptures.

Whats written in the Scriptures regarding Hell.
Hell is mentioned in many dozens of Scriptures throughout the Bible. There are five departments in the underworld of departed Spirits, not one of these places is associated with or is the grave where bodies are buried.
These five departments are;

One). Paradise;
In Luke 16:19-31; 23:43, we have pictured total comfort and water in this prison because the rich man saw Lazarus afar off in comfort and bliss and asked him to dip his finger in water and cool his tongue (Luke 16:19-31).

This was the abode of the righteous souls from Adam after dying and leaving their bodies, being held captive by the devil against their wills till Christ's death and resurrection (Heb. 2:14-15; Eph. 4:7-11).Before Jesus Christ conqured the power of death and Hell, the devil had these powers. (Col. 2:14-17; Heb. 2:14-15; Rev. 1:18).

It was into this prison the repentant thief went with Christ the day they both died (Luke 23:43). This prison is located in the heart of the Earth as is clear from (Matt. 12:40 and Eph. 4:7-11).

Jesus not only went into this prison but He also went into another prison, "Tartarus," and preached to the fallen angels being held there in their own special prison, "And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day." (Jude 1:6). "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;" (2 Peter 2:4).

Jesus having conqured Hell and death and the grave during His crucifiction and during the three days He was in the underworld, He captured all the righteous souls that were in Paradise and took them to Heaven when He ascended on high (Eph. 4:7-11).

Jesus now has the keys to Hell and death (Rev. 1:18).

When we check every Scripture provided in God's Word, we cannot believe Jesus did not go to Hell, preach to the SPIRITS there, and He also captured all the righteous souls, Abraham, Moses, Isac, David, and all the others rightious souls that were in Paradise and took them to Heaven when He ascended on high.

The five departments of Hell are;

One). Paradise, which we are speaking of here;

In Luke 16:19-31; 23:43, we have pictured total comfort and water in this prison because the rich man saw Lazarus afar off in comfort and bliss and asked him to dip his finger in water and cool his tongue (Luke 16:19-31). This was the abode of the righteous souls from Adam after dying and leaving their bodies, being held captive by the devil against their wills till Christ's death and resurrection (Heb. 2:14-15; Eph. 4:7-11). Before Jesus Christ conqured the power of death and Hell, the devil had these powers. (Col. 2:14-17; Heb. 2:14-15; Rev. 1:18).
It was into this prison the repentant thief went with Christ the day they both died (Luke 23:43). This prison is located in the heart of the Earth as is clear from Matt. 12:40 and Eph. 4:7-11. Jesus not only went into this prison but He also went into another prison, "Tartarus," and preached to the fallen angels being held there in their own special prison. Jesus having conqured Hell and death and the grave during His crucifiction and during the three days He was in the underworld, He captured all the righteous souls that were in Paradise and took them to Heaven when He ascended on high (Eph. 4:7-11). Jesus now has the keys to Hell and death (Rev. 1:18). Rightious souls who die now no longer go here. They go straight to Heaven when they die.

Two). Tartarus; This prison is the special prison for the fallen angels that sinned both before and after the flood. There is nothing recorded in Scripture that teaches demons or human beings ever go into this prison. In these passages it is clear that there is a real Hell that is not the grave and that Spirit beings are confined in chains until judgment (1 Pet. 3:19; 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6-7).

Three). Hell itself; (Matt. 16:18; Luke 16:19-31). This is the torment part in the unseen world and was, still is, and will yet be the abode of all the wicked souls and spirits of men from Able to the end of the Millennium. Then, at this time all the wicked will be liberated out of this prison and will be given their own immortal bodies and be judged before being cast into the "lake of fire" forever (Rev. 20:11-15; 21:8).

Four). The Bottomless Pit or Abyss is the abode or prison of demons and certain angelic beings. No human being is ever thrown into the abyss. It is a very deep chasm in the lower parts of the Earth. It is translated "deep" (Luke 8:26-31; Romans 10:7) and "Bottomless Pit" in Rev. 9:1-3, 11; 11:7; 17:8; 20:1-10). All these Scriptures prove that there are prisons in the lower parts of the Earth for departed sinning spirits, and they are not and could never be the same as a grave on the surface of the Earth.

And Five). The Lake of Fire, is the eternal Hell and perdition of wicked men, demons, fallen angels, and all rebellious creatures of all ages who have ever rebelled against God, and who have refused to repent when they could have. It is called "The Gehenna of Fire" and is always translated Hell (Matt. 5:22, 29, 30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15, 33; Mark 9:43-45, 47; Luke 12:5; James 3:6). This prison is also called "the second death, which is the lake of fire" (Rev. 2:11; 20:6, 14). This final Hell was prepared for the devil and all his angels (Matt. 25:41-46), and for all other rebells, and it is ETERNAL in duration (Rev. 14:9-14; 20:10-15; Isa. 66:22-24; Matt. 25:46). There is no record in Scripture of anyone being the lake of fire at present. Scripture does show that the beast and the false prophet will be the first to be cast into it. This will happen before the Millennium (Rev. 19:20). They will still be there 1,000 years later when the devil and all other rebels will be cast into it (Rev. 20:10-15).

Scripture also teaches that there will be degrees of punishment in Hell as far as remorse and torment of the conscience is concerned (Matt. 10:15; 11:22; 12:41; 23:14; Mark 6:11; 12:40; Luke 10:14; 11:31, 32; 20:47).

 These degrees of punishment will be because of the kind of sins committed by one that were not committed by another. No man will be punished or could have remorse over something he did not do. They will all regret rebelling against God and man and failing to believe in Jesus, and repenting of sin.

 

In the near future men on Earth will be able to look into a real burning Hell under the Earth. This is plainly stated in Isa. 66:22-24 where the

 prophet predicts that all natural men in the New earth will be able to look into Hell upon the men that have sinned against God.

Rev. 14:9-11 also proves that men will be tormented in the presence of God and angels forever. These passages are literal and should be understood just as they read.

If you want me to address a specific point, you're going to have to be more specific.  You brought up about a dozen different points there and I'm not going to respond to each one of them.

[HAZARD]

Just now, OpenMind said:

If you want me to address a specific point, you're going to have to be more specific.  You brought up about a dozen different points there and I'm not going to respond to each one of them.

Don't worry about responding to any particular point, Just read every Scripture, which you have not had the time to do yet, and believe what you read that's all.

[HAZARD]

2 minutes ago, OpenMind said:

If you think the disciples wrote the Bible in English then I guess you can believe whatever you want.

The disciples never wrote the whole Bible? 

Over forty different authors wrote the sixty six books of the Bible during a period of 1,800 years; and they all had one theme. The creation and redemption of the human race by God through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.

These books of the Bible were written by men from all walks of life such as Kings, Priests, Judges, lawyers, Princes, Shepherds, Soldiers, Courtiers, Statesmen, Musicians, Inventors, Singers, Poets, Preachers, Prophets, Fishermen, Farmers, Tentmakers, Publicans, Physicians, Rich men and Poor men.

They were written in various lands of three continents, Europe, Asia, and Africa. They were written in different ages and by many men, some who never saw each other or knew what the others wrote on the same subjects, yet when their writings were all assembled into one book, there is not one contradiction among them.

 

Suppose forty medical men, each in a different land and age, would write just forty books on how to cure a disease, what kind of cure would such a collection make?

How much unity would one find among their writings?

Collect together forty books of man on any subject and one will find many contradictions and controversies among the authors.  Who but a divine author could produce such a work through men?

[OpenMind]

Just now, HAZARD said:

Don't worry about responding to any particular point, Just read every Scripture, which you have not had the time to do yet, and believe what you read that's all.

Obviously I've read all the scriptures.  And I've not just read them, but also studied them, including the meanings of the original Greek and Hebrew writings.  The fact is that the English word "forever" is a bad translation, as I've already pointed out, and not only this word, but so many words translated into English which have different meanings in their original written language. 

So to simply "believe what you read" is folly, if you fail to acknowledge that the English words you're reading are not the original written words, and the meanings of those English words don't match the meanings of the original written words.