I wanted to share another excerpt from the book with you. Part of the misunderstanding when it comes to the doctrine of eternal punishment has to do with a language barrier. The New Testament was written in Greek and the modern translations we have today are in a completely different language. Words don’t always mean what they did 2,000 years ago and translators usually translate what they believe the writers were saying instead of literally translating what is written.
This is wrong and has led to false doctrine being taught in the church in the form of eternal punishment from our loving and powerful God. The Good News of Jesus has been minimalized and shrunk down to exclusivity to show who’s “in” and who’s “out.” The Good News is not only better than that, it’s different than that.
Here is a lengthy excerpt from chapter 2:
I sort of enjoyed learning a new language. It was fun and I find it stimulating to learn new things. It’s only by learning and studying a foreign language that you discover how powerful words can be. Some words are interchangeable in English and Spanish, like the word no.
No means no.
Other words can be kind of confusing. Take, for example, the Spanish word molestar. This word translates in English to bother. It is also related to the English verb to molest. So the sentence, “they continued on their journey unmolested” was never meant to have a sexual connotation. If you were unfamiliar with the language or not paying close attention it could be easy to get confused on what the person was trying to say. The sentence really reads, “they continued on their journey unbothered.” You’ve probably used a “do not disturb” door hanger at a hotel before. Most of them also have the Spanish translation which says, “no molestar”. Things aren’t always black and white when it comes to understanding words, particularly those of a religious tone.
Jesus says a few things that have been taken out of context and also mistranslated. When we read the Scriptures, we find some things that don’t seem to fit with the character of God. Burning, fire, torment, and eternal punishment seem a bit harsh for seventy-eight years lived on this Earth. The reason they don’t seem to fit is because they don’t fit. They’ve been taken out of context to fit peoples beliefs. Let’s look at a few instances where the language barrier has got the best of us.
In 1862, Robert Young translated the Scriptures using the most literal meaning of the words possible. Instead of trying to interpret what was being said, he simply translated what the words actually said (imagine that). This approach allows you and I to then interpret and decide what was originally being said. The other approach relegates us to interpreting someone else’s interpretation, whether they are right or wrong, it’s kind of like the telephone game. In the next chapter we’re going to talk in depth about Hell. In this chapter, we’re going to talk about the words eternal and forever and how they’ve been translated.
There are two passages that Christians like to use to support the doctrine of eternal punishment. At first glance, they seem pretty clear cut. When you look at what the earliest manuscripts actually said, it’s almost criminal how poorly they’ve been translated to support a particular doctrine. The first comes from Matthew 25. Jesus is speaking about judgment and how you will be judged based on how you respond to the sick and the needy. What He says is direct and extremely serious. He is telling us there are very real consequences for our actions here on Earth. You know, that whole reap what you sow thing. Karma. Treating others like you want to be treated. It’s a big deal.
The last verse from Matthew 25 says it very clearly, “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
Wow.
How can this be taken any other way except to say that you get one shot, there are no “do overs”? The problem is in the translation. Mr. Young does a fantastic (and accurate) job of translating what the literal word used here was. What Jesus actually said, according to Matthew was, “And these shall go away to punishment age-during, but the righteous to life age-during.” This is from the Young’s Literal Translation. Age-during isn’t a common phrase today but its’ meaning is completely different than eternal. Jesus didn’t say the word eternal; He said age-during (or something close to it). Age-during means an indefinite period of time. Is there a price to pay? Yes. Is this price eternal punishment? No. He’s not talking about eternity here. He’s talking about how we’ll be punished before the final judgment. The two don’t necessarily go hand in hand. It’s another grey area.
This doesn’t make God unjust or allow people to live life however they want. There are still very real consequences for our actions and God will judge fairly, how He sees fit. What that looks like, we don’t know. The character and nature of God is to restore, to correct, and to show mercy. Why would He be any different on the other side of eternity?
You posted on my post so I thought it only fair to return the favor:)
Could you clarify what you mean in regards to Matthew 25:46. The same word in the Greek for “eternal” is used in regard to “punishment” and “life”. Can you clarify your argument on this.
Sure thing! Eternal is not the word that was used. The word used was age-during, an indefinite period of time. This is the time before the final judgment. Jesus wasn’t talking about eternity here, he was talking about after we die.
Hope this helps,
Jackson
so how do you explain John 3:26 in greek?
It would be so nice if people would just decide to love God because He is God. He is our Creator, therefore He is the Boss, period. If we believe that He is real and that there is life after death with Him, why dont we just try to do our best to please Him and abide His commandments?. Simple!. We make things difficult for ourselves.
Haha! my bad, I meant John 3:36
So, i did some quick research, to get you started, and, the word “abide” in the greek, carries the idea of “continuing”, “enduring”, “dwelling”, “immovable without yielding” – in re. to John 3:36 (KJV)
Fantastic thought! Here’s what John 3:36 says in the Young’s Literal Translation:
He who is believing in the Son, hath life age-during; and he who is not believing the Son, shall not see life, but the wrath of God doth remain upon him.
It’s clear that not believing in Jesus brings judgment from God for an indefinite period of time. We are not threatened with an immoral eternal Hell. We are told to believe in the Son. Your point is great- love Him because He loves us.
1 John 4:19 says, We love each other because he loved us first.
We love God because He loves us, He made us, He gave us life and wants us to continue to have life.
John 3:36 is a good verse. In the orginal context of this verse and many others aionios means forever eternal life. Take a look at this study of the original Greek, not Young’s Translation of the Greek. All translators make decisions, but if you miss the context, you misinterpret words. This mistake is make all of the time. Many folks disregard different genres of Scripture thinking it must then just be a metaphore, but why can’t the writers of the Bible use metaphor to make a real life (or eternal life) point? The events in Revelation are real events, but the best way John could explain them is by figurative language and metaphors. Heaven and Hell are forever eternal places that should be taken very seriously, especially as believers.
http://www.word-gems.com/time.aionios.html
Blessings on the Journey!
Thank you for your opinion
Because He loves us, and He cares, and He knows what’s coming our way if we dont accept Him, He spent all that time inspiring the bible to be written, sent His Son to be sacrificed, stirrs up our conscience with the help of the Holy Spirit. So, if He’s gone through all of that trouble, I am not taking any chances, I cant see past the next 3 seconds in my life, let alone eternity. So, I do my best to live for Him, I dont wanna find out what is like in hell, not even for a few minutes, not feeling God’s presence and love at all, has to be terrifying.
I completely agree with you and spent a lot of time writing to the effect in my book. The first chapter deals with that thought process.
*that not the
We agree that love is the key issue. What does God mean by love? What do we know about love (very litte, compared to Him)? If we don’t know what love really is, how can we answer more difficult questions – like the consequences of not being a loving being?
Matt. 25:41 refers to the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels. Are you suggesting that the Devil and his angels are reconciled with God?
It seems to me that Matt 25:31-41 shows clearly that we have the choice to feed and give drink to the Lord’s brothers, or we can choose to do nothing. If we do nothing (reject God), verse 41 says we go to the same place prepared for the Devil and his angels. Revelations 20:7 also mentions that the Devil “was thown into the lake of fire and sulphur…and they will be tormented day and night, for ever and ever.” Rev 20:15 says “whoever did not have his name written in the book of the living was thrown into the lake of fire. Rev 21:8 spell out who will go to the second death (lake with fire and sulphur.”
There may a question about what exactly the “lake of fire” is. I just don’t see that there is a question about whether and how long the lake of fire will exist.
There is no question that God is love and that we are to love one another (as well as non-believers, otherwise, why would we bother to tell them the good news). There probably should be questions regarding what God means by the word “love.” The fact that we love Him because he first loved us implies that we have less knowledge about what love is than he does. Until we know what God means by love, completely, I don’t see how we can find the answers to other questions, like what hell is, what eternal seperation is and who it applies to.
I believe that you (we) are focused on learning to love God, learning what love is, applying whatever knowledge you (we) have, however imperfect, to loving others. I believe that, love, is really the issue that believers and non-believers are really interested in, obsessed with; America’s obsession with sexuality (erotic love) is, at it’s root, a search for the real thing – love, hope, faith – peace of mind (write another book about that).
I think the average person can figure out what they need to know about the word eternal, what hell means or doesn’t mean. Can they figure out what love means, without God’s help? Isn’t that what we can help them with? Talking about anything else dilutes the primary message, doesn’t it?
I know, too many questions in this comment. But I think that is my point. We should focus on the little we know rather dividing (and, God forbid, conquering) over what is impossible to know with perfect certainty.
I
Hey Keith,
Thanks for your response. You are a smart man and from my experience with you, you have a brilliant mind. I agree with much of what you said and would say that we can’t be certain of most things. Without naming specific doctrine/beliefs/faith issues, it is safe to say that faith and trust play a critical role in the way we choose to believe.
I’d like to show you one area that I believe you are mistaken though when it comes to Jesus and the Lake of Fire. You stated that Matthew 25:41 refers to “eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels.” This cannot be for all of eternity because Matthew wrote age-during here which means an indefinite period of time.
If it were for all of eternity, he would have written something like John did in Revelation 20:10 which says, “and the Devil, who is leading them astray, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where [are] the beast and the false prophet, and they shall be tormented day and night — to the ages of the ages.”
The phrase “to the ages of the ages” means forever and ever. When it comes to judgment for mankind, there is not one place in all the Scriptures that says they will be punished/tortured forever and ever while it does say this for the Devil, the false prophet, and the beast.
So, I would argue that we can be sure people will not spend eternity in Hell but that there is still a very real judgment awaiting those who reject God and 1 day, 1,000 years, or 10,000 years will be Hell- separated from God. It doesn’t matter that it’s not eternal, it’s still serious and Jesus saved us from this death, from this punishment we deserve because of our sins.
Keep the good discussions going and unfortunately most people can’t or won’t study it out for themselves. They won’t research, read, and diligently study the words you mentioned which is a main reason I wrote the book.
Jackson
Instead of putting it all here, I am, rather, going to simply provide the link to my blog: http://djfick.blogspot.com/2011/06/is-eternity-really-eternal.html
I think your exegesis is suspect.
You are entitled to your opinion friend but I’m just reading what the Scriptures say. I used to believe in eternal punishment but the Scriptures overwhelmingly showed otherwise. Have you ever read the New Testament in a literal translation like the YLT?
Jackson
Have you ever read it in the Greek?!
In the literal Greek, no. I cannot read Greek. I have read it many times in the English words literally translated from the Greek in various literal translations.
Indefinite period of time is another way to say eternity. I believe you are misguided. Eternal damnation is all over the Bible in both testaments; verses of which are too numerous to mention here.
I corrected my previous comment.
Indefinite period of time is just that, indefinite. We don’t know how long it is. If it was forever and ever, it would have said so. The Greek word used, Aeon, also proves this. Eternal damnation is not taught in the Bible and if God will eternally punish people, then He is not love. If salvation is a free gift, received by grace, but the consequence for not receiving it is being tormented forever, then there’s something really wrong with God. Was that really the best He could do? If 90% of the world is going to be punished forever, Jesus didn’t really pay the price for all of humanity.
I am curious why you never posted my comments.
Eric