What Is Hell?
Denying God’s Holiness
Hell is eternal conscious punishment where sinners are separated from God’s gracious presence. So let me say a word about each of these things. Hell is eternal. Hell lasts forever after this life. “It is appointed for men once to die, then comes the judgment” (Heb. 9:27).
After that comes either eternal life or hell, which is forever. It’s eternal. It’s conscious. We’re told that we’ll be punished forever and ever. There’s eternal torment (Rev. 14). We’re separated from the presence of the Lord and the glory of his might.
The Justice and Goodness of God
Thomas R. Schreiner
Thomas Schreiner offers a comprehensive analysis of eternal destruction, examining themes of sin, death, and redemption repeated throughout the New Testament and other passages of Scripture.
Matthew 25:46 says the righteous will experience eternal life and the wicked eternal punishment. So it’s eternal and it’s conscious and it’s punishment. Different images are used for hell. “The worm does not die and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:48). It’s described as the outermost darkness. It’s described as torment.
I think these are images and they’re pictures. They’re not necessarily literal. But they are conveying that hell is horrible, that it is painful, and that it is so painful that you want to do anything you can to avoid it.
Why is there hell? Because sinners have denied the holiness of God. God is infinitely holy, and because God is infinitely holy, sin against him warrants infinite punishment.
Thomas R. Schreiner is the author of The Justice and Goodness of God: A Biblical Case for the Final Judgment.
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