Q3. Eternal Conscious Punishment

[JoanG]

Unbelievers will live in the torments of burning fire forever. I believe the worse part of this is that we will be shut out of the presence of the Lord forever. We will not be able to feel his love in  our hearts or souls again. I would never be able to feel his kindness again. I would be able to know the feeling of joy again. That seems to be the worse things that I could think would happen.

[Damary Alembi]

Q3. (2 Thessalonians 1:9) According to verse 9, what kind of punishment will unbelievers experience? Comes with blazing fire and judgment. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power.

[Reuben]

Q3. (2 Thessalonians 1:9) According to verse 9, what kind of punishment will unbelievers experience? One definition of “hell” is “a place of eternal conscious punishment for the wicked.” What parts of this definition are confirmed in verse 9. Which parts of the definition trouble you? Why?

They will experience everlasting destruction. It means two things, firstly it lasts forever, eternal, and secondly is associated with destruction, pain, harm, severe trauma. This experience of punishment also is two fold in this passage, firstly His presence , and secondly His glorious power . The heathen, and rebellious will not be in awe at Gods presence, and will not experience His power as glorious, rather they will be absolutely terrified. What is a reality , as it says in Revelation, even with this happening the unbelievers will STILL shake their fists at God in rebellion?

Everlasting destruction is not something I would like to experience, and this is the description of hell. It is a reminder of why we need to continue our walk with God and help preventing others from falling in this place called hell. I am always reminded of how blessed I am that grace was given by a sacrifice of Gods only Son, and by this I am free, and when I get it wrong, I have a Father to ask forgiveness, and a shelter to find rest in.

[Jonathan Edwards]

There is no annihilation.   No possibility of reconciliation with God in the afterlife, no beatific vision, and there will be eternal banishment from the presence of God. Besides this punishment, there will be punishment in eternal hell.

Banishment from the presence of the glorified Jesus will constitute the misery of hell, because the soul is then cut off from the source of all good and of all holiness.

The big mystery is that we believe firmly that God be in all in all and that "in Christ shall all be made alive", while there is still a hell in the universe of God.   The founders of Unitarian Universalism, Christian Science and Jehovah Witnesses couldn't grasp a literal eternal hell.   As a result,  many bizarre doctrines originated from these various sects: denial of the Holy Trinity, actual Blood Atonement and Incarnation of Jesus Christ.

[Jonathan Edwards]

The wicked will not have the Beatific vision; the destruction of all gladness,hope,; never to behold the glories of God.  No chance of being reconciled with God.   The Prophet Ezekiel had a vision of the various Gentile leaders that were cast into Sheol.   All the glories of their empires, grand temples, wartime conquests and fame---could not assist them!    They ended up in Sheol due to disregarding the natural law that God placed in their hearts.

[Krissi]

I've been reading primary sources on the First Great Awakening lately. The sermons at that time have been shocking because of their "negativity," I confess. Earlier generations of Christian evangelists made no effort to create "seeker friendly services" or salve/comfort those attending their services; instead preachers spoke often and in explicit terms about hell, damnation and the horrible consequence of unbelief. No comforting psychology, excuses, alibis or whatever were given to those who reject God. Instead, they were called heathen or the damned and not the more gentle term that I just used, "unbelievers."

Perhaps we've lost something in our evangelistic appeal if we do not talk about hell? I don't know. I have no idea how a Purlitan-like sermon would effect millennials, for example. Perhaps our Puritan forebears were onto something when they frightened those who heard their message ... purposely.

The response of heathen-listeners was to shake, sob, be consumed with fear, beg God for forgiveness, etc. Their reaction, in short, was visceral as well as mental/spiritual. They were very afraid.

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I confess that I never heard of annihilation until this lesson. Any doctrine that softens the notion of hell for unbelievers functions like this, however, which is why most non-believers don't believe in hell. It's not like unbelievers think about hell, admit it exists and roll the dice! That's not what happens. They deny hell's existence.

I have been told on several occasions that some unbelievers were such good people -- so kind, nice and generous -- that God could never consign them to hell; conversely, I have been told that Christians are frauds and child molesters who deserve hell. My point is that our common culture cannot handle the idea of judgment which is why, frankly, it may be useful to bring it up again. The list of verses Pastor Ralph listed is a good start.

As an aside, Jews don't have a developed knowledge of hell. Instead, they believe that "good Jews" sorta hover about, like shades or ghosts -- well-educated people have told me this. When in graveyards, Jews put little pebbles on the gravestones to weigh down the ghosts trying to escape. For them, hell is not a place of punishment but more like a boring playground with lousy equipment that no one wants to play on. There's no judgment in shoel. No God. For most Jews, the afterlife is, at best, a sleeping state ... but forever. A small minority of Jews believe the body will be resurrected when the Messiah comes (not Jesus) and there will be an existence something like the Christian heaven for ALL Jews, good or bad, believing or unbelieving.