I remember in one of your books you made passing reference to the fact that Hell will not be a place of eternal torment as some understand it but rather of permanent destruction. I wonder if you could explain that a little bit more for me. I've never studied the issue in depth but I've always had an impression that hell involved unending suffering rather than oblivion. -- Greg Baker (Kingston, Jamaica)
Hell is both dreadful and irreversible. In Shining Like Stars (2006 and 2010 versions) you will find an entire study on Judgment. This might be a good place to begin your study.
As for ultimate "extinction," instead of infinite torment, you should be aware that Christians are divided on the proper understanding of the nature of the punishment of the wicked in the world to come. Though a case can be made for either side of the debate, it is my understanding that punishment comes to an end at some point (Luke 12:47-48 -- the passage about "many blows" and "few blows"). Whether this is after days or years or even millions of years I have no clue and prefer not to speculate.
If you would like to dig deeper, see my paper on Terminal Punishment [keyword: Terminal]. In this paper I am only sharing my personal convictions -- with which you are welcome to disagree!
This article is copyrighted and is for private use and study only. © 2003. Reprints or public distribution is prohibited without the express consent of Douglas Jacoby.
