B. W. wrote:Concerning descriptions about hell in the bible:
Fire is both literal and allegorical. Duet 32:22 the word fire describes an area of molten rock at where the foundations of the mountains are. Fire is a fire that does not consume as Isaiah 66:24 speaks of. Fire is used both in literal and figurative senses within the bible and with that is how one should view the fires of hell as both because that is what they are.
Darkness is likewise is both literal and allegorical as it does throughout the bible. Darkness symbolic for a person’s dark side, or gloom, ruin, moral rot, sin, death, etc.. or literal cave like darkness…
Ezekiel 32:18-30 describes the current hell as a pit as does Revelation 20:3 and Revelation 9:1, 2, 11 and Numbers 16:30, Job 33:28, Isaiah 14:15, Isaiah 24:22, Zechariah 9:11…
In any cavernous region within the earth, the deeper you go, the hotter it gets. Go deep enough, you’ll see flames but if you are in the upper regions, you feel heat and be in darkness. Since the bible describes hell as a bottomless pit so we can understand it, think of it like that. Also think of passageways inside a cavern – some may see fire’s of molten rock and other passageways bathed in dark gloomy light… That would be a good description of it as it matches all the biblical references of the pit, fire, and darkness regarding hell.
Hope that helps: it is best not to get hung up on all this. The real problem is that people refuse to acknowledge sin. Sin is taught as a mistake, a boo boo, someone else’s fault, a psychological issues easily treated with therapy or positive confessions alone so much so that people no longer think they deserve wrath.
You and I, we, need to explain the gravity of sin. Either the wrath of God abides over people or not. Bible says it does. The way it is taught in many parts of the church, it - not so much. Jesus came to set at liberty captives; therefore, the goodness of God does indeed lead one to repentance. Repentance is a life altering event…altering the course of ones life. Never hide the truth. Be bold and proclaim the name of the Lord.
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I think you are right that people do not take sin seriously enough. Muslims say sin is just a mistake. Neither Judaism or Islam believe in the concept of original sin; therefore, neither sees the need for salvation coming from the Christ. They are going to be just fine if they do the best they can and repent.
When I was an atheist I never worried about heaven or hell -- no God -- no heaven or hell. Now that I am a Christian I still don't worry about it because if there is a heaven I have assurance I will be there and if there is a hell I know I won't be there.
The whole subject was brought to my attention when some Jews I know complained about the "X-tian" view of hell, so I looked into it. Notice that some Jews will not write Jesus' name or Christian or Christianity -- it's disguised by deliberately misspelling -- "Jebus" for Jesus for instance and the put an "x" for Christ. There is a Scripture that says Jews cannot say the name of another God and they think Jesus is another God. Not all Jews go this far, perhaps just the Orthodox.
It seems that somewhere beneath the earth there is much heat -- the "pit"?
Clipped from an article on the Internet:
Scientist and Bible teacher, Henry Morris also agrees the Bible plainly teaches that hell is in this earth:
"So far as we can tell from Scripture, the present hell, is somewhere in the heart of the earth itself. It is also called 'the pit' (Isa. 14:9, 15: Ezek. 32:18-21) and 'the abyss' (Rev. 9:2). . .
The writers certainly themselves believed hell to be real and geographically 'beneath' the earth's surface. . .
To say this is not scientific is to assume science knows much more about the earth's interior than is actually the case. The great 'pit' [hell] would only need to be about 100 miles or less in diameter to contain, with much room to spare, all the forty billion or so people who have ever lived, assuming their 'spiritual' bodies are the same size as their physical bodies."
(Henry M. Morris, The Bible Has the Answer, p. 220)
The Birmingham News, April 10, 1987 had an article entitled "Earth's Center Hotter Than Sun's Surface, Scientists Say". The article stated that scientists have recently discovered, "THE EARTH'S INNER CORE HAS A TEMPERATURE OF OVER 12,000 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT!"
Source:
http://www.666soon.com/tour.htm
Muslims believe that all will eventually end up in heaven, with the exception of those who associate other Gods with God, like Christians who believe in the Trinity -- that sin is unforgivable.
Thanks for your comments.
