Tell me something, if the Christian God loves his people so much, why would he put them in hell?

Question

Is that his idea of love? Your soul eternally burning?

Answer 1

HELL COMES FROM THE HEBREW WORD ((SHEOL )) IN THE OT AND THE GREEK WORD ((HADES )) IN THE NT BOTH SIMPLY MEAN THE (( GRAVE ))
AND THERE IS AN END TO HELL. AND THE LAKE OF FIRE IS NOT HELL BUT WHAT IS CALLED THE SECOND DEATH IN WHICH THOSE WHO DON'T ACCEPT GOD WILL BE BURNED TO ASHES INTO NONEXISTENCE.
Re 20:14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Re 20:5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Re 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
HERE IS WHAT HAPPENED TO CHRIST. HE WAS NOT LEFT IN HELL BECAUSE HE WAS RESURRECTED AND HE DID NOT SEE CORRUPTION OR WHAT WE CALL DECAY BECAUSE HE WAS IN HELL OR (( THE GRAVE )) FOR ONLY 3 DAYS AND 3 NIGHTS.
Ac 2:27 Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

It is time we recapture and rescue Christianity from Hellenism!
It is time we get back to the Bible, especially in light of the fact that the Protestant Reformation was ostensibly based on sola Scriptura-Scripture alone! If this claim is true, then why should nonbiblical sources be more influential than Scripture in the formation of Christian doctrine? Yet defenders of the immortal soul doctrine will protest that Scripture itself is clear that the soul is immortal. There are some scriptures which do, indeed, seem to clearly teach an eternal conscious existence in hell. We can't ignore these scriptures, if we accept all biblical texts as the Word of God-but we must seek to understand them without reading foreign ideas into them.
Revelation 14:10 refers to people who "will be tormented with fire and brimstone." Verse 11 says that the "smoke of their torment goes up for even and ever; and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image." Now if they don't have immortal souls, how will that be possible? Will God give them immortal souls to facilitate their everlasting punishment? In any event, those who believe in conditional immortality, like the Church of God International, reject the notion of everlasting conscious punishment. So what do we do with a text like Revelation 14:10,11, which was not smuggled into the Scriptures by Plato? These verses seem devastating to our view.
In Matthew 25:41, Jesus refers to those who will depart into "eternal fire." Verse 46 has been especially appealed to by defenders of the immortal soul view. It says the wicked will go away into "eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." If "eternal life" means unending life and conscious existence, then why in the same passage doesn't "eternal punishment" mean unending conscious existence as well?
Matthew 18:8 says that "it is better for you to enter etern maimed or lame than...to be thrown into the eternal fire." Why would the fire be eternal if it has nothing to burn and if the wicked are annihilated, as we teach?
We need to answer all these texts.
Understanding Aionios, or
How Long Is 'Everlasting'?
Surprising as it might seem, "eternal" and "everlasting" do not always mean never-ending, but can actually mean "age-lasting," that is, lasting for a limited period. It is important to bear in mind that what we have are English translations of the Bible and that the Scriptures were originally inspired in Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic. To study to show ourselves approved, we have to acquire some rudimentary understanding of the biblical languages. If we are going to pronounce authoritatively on certain complex doctrinal matters, we must be equipped.
There is an easy way to prove that aionios does not always mean never-ending and that it can mean eternal in its results and consequences.
In Jude 1:7 we read that Sodom and Gomorrah suffered the "punishment of eternal fire." Yet no one believes that Sodom and Gomorrah are burning now. The inhabitants suffered the punishment of eternal fire in the sense that they were completely destroyed; the fire was eternal in its results and effects; it left nothing to be consumed.
There can be no dispute about this for there are no cities named Sodom and Gomorrah burning today! Scripture does not say they suffered the punishment of Gehenna (hell) fire, so one cannot reason that perhaps they are suffering (unknown to us) in hell. They suffered the punishment of a literal fire which swept through the area. (One scholar points out that at least seventy times in the Bible the Greek word aionios qualifies objects of a temporary and limited nature.)
The Hebrew equivalent of aionios in the Old Testament is olam, which can also mean eternal or everlasting, but is also used in reference to a limited span of time. To prove decisively that "forever" or "eternal" do not always mean never-ending, notice the following passages in which olam obviously means age-lasting or a limited time.
In Exodus 12:24 we read that the sprinkling of the blood at the Passover was to be "an ordinance for ever." The Aaronic priesthood was also said to have been a "perpetual statute" (Exodus 29:9; 40:15; Leviticus 3:17). Solomon's temple was supposed to have been everlasting (1 Kings 8:13). The ritual of tending to the light in the tabernacle was to be "a statute for ever" (Exodus 27:21). All the sacrifices and circumcision were said to last "forever." Now how many Christians, even among law-keepers, are still practicing these rituals which the Bible clearly says should be observed forever, as part of an "everlasting covenant"? Clearly, the Hebrew word olam, the equivalent of aionios in the passages quoted, means age-lasting, to be in force for the life of the Old Covenant.
Romans 16:25 talks about the revelation of the mystery which was kept secret "for long ages." What the reader of the English translations of the Bible would not know immediately is that the word translated "long ages" is aionios-the same word translated "forever" in the passages quoted about eternal fire and everlasting punishment. It is indisputable, therefore, that the word carries more than one meaning and cannot, under all circumstances, be interpreted as eternal in the sense of never-ending.
But then there is Matthew 3:12, pulled out by immortal soul advocates to prove their point. It refers to the "unquenchable fire" which will be unleashed on the lost.
Again, just as in the case of the "eternal" fire which destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, the fire threatened by Jesus here is one which will accomplish its purpose of utter destruction, one whose purpose and mission cannot be thwarted by anyone or anything. This is the sense of the phrase.
To prove that this is not speculation, turn to Jeremiah 17:27 where a similar threat was made to a rebellious Israel. Hear the words of Yahweh: "But if you do not listen to me, to keep the sabbath day holy...then I will kindle a fire in its [Jerusalem's] gates, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem and shall not be quenched."
Yahweh threatened an unquenchable fire that could not be put out by all the firemen in the world. It would achieve its purpose: the utter destruction of Jerusalem and its sinning inhabitants. The unquenchable fire, like the eternal fire, refers to the results and consequences of its action, not the duration of its time.
Isaiah 34:9,10 is a clincher. Notice the imagery of the punishment proposed for Edom: "And the streams of Edom shall be turned into a pitch, and her soil into brimstone; her land shall become burning pitch. Night and day it shall not be quenched; its smoke shall go up for ever [notice this similarity with the Revelation texts quoted earlier], from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever."
Yes, there it is! The fire would completely destroy Edom; its smoke would proverbially go up forever, "from generation to generation." The land would be desolate-no more; it would be completely destroyed. That the fire would be "eternal" and "unquenchable" means a fire which no one would be able to quench until it achieved its purpose. See also Isaiah 1:30,31: "For you shall be like an oak whose leaf withers, and like a garden without water. And the strong shall become tow, and his work a spark, and both of them shall burn together, with none to quench them."
There it is-"none to quench them"-clearly meaning both will burn until they become extinct, annihilated!
As Clark Pinnock has suggested in his essay in the book Four Views on Hell, "I believe that the real basis of the traditional view of the nature of hell is not in the Bible's talk of the wicked perishing, but an unbiblical anthropology that is read into the text. If a biblical reader approached the text with the assumption that souls are immortal, would they not be compelled to interpret texts that speak of the wicked being destroyed to mean that they are tortured forever since according to that supposition they cannot go out of existence?....[T]he belief in the immortality of the soul will necessarily skew the exegesis."
This is why we have dealt extensively in this booklet with the discussion of hell, for at the root of the traditional view of an ever-burning hell is the false doctrine of the immortality of the human soul.
The attempt to use Matthew 25:41,46 to prove this false doctrine fails miserably. The fact is, both the righteous and the damned will have their fates sealed eternally. The righteous will enjoy unending life as a reward and the unrighteous will suffer everlasting punishment-their punishment will be final, inexorable, irredeemable. The unrighteous will suffer everlasting punishment, not everlasting punishing!
In his book, Life and Immortality, Basil Atkinson notes that "when the adjective aionios meaning 'everlasting' is used in Greek with nouns of action it has reference to the result of the action, not the process.
"Thus, the phrase 'everlasting punishment' is comparable to 'everlasting redemption' and 'everlasting salvation,' both scriptural phrases. No one supposes that we are being redeemed or being saved forever.
"In the same way the lost will not be passing through a process of punishment for ever but will be punished once and for all, with eternal results. On the other hand, the noun 'life' is not a noun of action, but a noun expressing a state; that is, the life itself is eternal."
Finally, Samuele Bacchiocchi in his insightful book Immortality or Resurrection? says of aionios, translated "everlasting" or "forever": "Ancient Greek papyri contain numerous examples of Roman emperors being described as aionios. What is meant is that they held their office for life. Unfortunately, the English words 'eternal' or 'everlasting' do not accurately render the meaning of aionios which literally means 'age-lasting.'"
Explicit Texts on Destruction
While some have tried to impose their own preconceived ideas on the biblical texts, a clear reading of the texts which refer to the fate of the wicked and the lost indicates that their end is destruction. Let's look at some plain texts.
Malachi 4:1 says that on the Day of the Lord "all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch." That text speaks most forcefully of destruction, and utter annihilation. How could we get any other concept from that text? When we are not imposing preconceived ideas on the biblical text, it is obvious that the fate of the unsaved is destruction.
Psalm 37:38 says that "transgressors shall be altogether destroyed; the posterity of the wicked shall be cut off."
In Matthew 13:30, Jesus also uses the imagery of total destruction to describe the fate of the wicked. The proverbial weeds are gathered to be burned. The metaphor is of total destruction. In Psalm 37:2, we read that the wicked will "fade like the grass"; they "shall be cut off" and "will be no more" (verses 9,10).
Hebrews 10:27 refers the "fury of fire which will consume the adversaries." Defenders of the immortal soul doctrine have often replied to the avalanche of texts showing that the wicked will be destroyed by saying that the word destruction is sometimes used to mean "put out of action." The example is used of Christ who, as it were, destroyed Satan the devil through His action on the stake, yet the devil continues to exist.
It is amazing the ingenious attempts which are made to preserve a cherished, inherited belief. While it is true that words do have several meanings, it takes no linguist with a doctorate to see that the contexts of words determine meaning. That destruction could possibly mean to put out of action and that it does take that meaning in one or a few texts does not mean that we should ignore the clear, ordinary meaning of the word as it is used in the many other texts of Scripture.
It is hard to ignore texts like Isaiah 1:28, which says that "rebels and sinners shall be destroyed together, and those who forsake the Lord shall be consumed."
There is one text that cannot rationally or exegetically be open to any other meaning than the one favored by those who deny ever-burning hell and the immortality of the soul. This text is crystal clear once one really focuses on it.
We return to the case of Sodom and Gomorrah, which were destroyed by eternal fire and are clearly not burning today. This fire was complete in its work of utter destruction. Peter says that God turned "the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes" (2 Peter 2:6). We don't have to wonder whether Sodom and Gomorrah are burning today. Those cities have been already turned to ashes as a result of the eternal fire.
So, clearly, their fire resulted in complete destruction in the ordinary sense of the word. Let's go on, for it gets more interesting. What God did was condemn them to extinction-to annihilation!-not an unending burning. But it gets even more interesting, and now we'll see why there can be no other explanation of this bombshell of a text against the ever-burning hell and immortal soul concepts. In the latter part of verse 6, we are told that God "condemned them [Sodom and Gomorrah] to extinction and made them an example of those who were to be ungodly," meaning that the ungodly will suffer the same fate. What fate? Utter extinction! They will be turned to ashes (which is exactly what Malachi 4:1 says).
It could not be clearer! What Sodom and Gomorrah suffered served as an example of the kind of destruction that awaits the wicked at the end.
(Other important texts applying the word destruction to the fate of the wicked are Philippians 3:9; 1 Thessalonians 5:2,3; and 2 Thessalonians 1:9.)
Only the Body Dies?
An argument often used to distort the biblical truth about man is the view that only the body dies at the withdrawal of man's breath; the soul cannot. Yet Ezekiel 18:4 explicitly states that "the soul that sins shall die." Those same words are repeated in verse 20.
The Messianic text in Isaiah 53 shows that Jesus as a human being went the way of all flesh-He died. And when He died it was not just the body which died but His soul. Notice Isaiah 53:12, which predicted that the Messiah would pour out "his soul to death."
See also Psalm 89:48: "What man can live and never see death? Who can deliver his soul from the power of Sheol [the grave-NKJV] ?"
Matthew 10:28 is abundantly clear: "And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body...." The soul can be destroyed! Why do we refuse to believe the plain statements of Scripture?

Answer 2

Look at it this way, someone who does not believe in God, does not want God in his or her life, does want Jesus or anything to do with Him, when they die, get what they want, an eternity away from God and all His attributes. God won't force you into Heaven, it is a choice you make. By rejecting God, you also reject His place, meant for those who believe and whose sins are forgiven. God cannot allow sin into Heaven, so either you must keep the entire law perfectly your whole life, or accept the forgiveness offered through Christ, there is no other way. God cannot override one of His attributes in favor of another. If you read the Bible, it states that God wants all to come to repentance, all to be in Heaven. But, some refuse the offer so He must judge sin. His righteousness and holiness cannot be overridden by His love.

Answer 3

He gave Adam and Eve a choice they chose to sin like anyman because they eventually gave into temptation. Instead of making perfect robots like some of God's other creatures he loved us soooooooo much he gave us the choice. The free will, we (man) chose to sin and then he still loved us and gaves us sacrifices and other things to try and follow him. He still loved us so much he allowed people not to follow Him, and they knew if they disobeyed it was a sin and wrong. God saw people just couldn't and wouldn't keep up with even trying to make things right. He gave everyone choice to follow their will or His, instead of demanding and forcing they follow His. He gave his only Son to be tortured physically and take the literal pain of hell for everyone on the cross. He sent His Son who was perfect and had never done anything wrong and sacrificed him to the most horrific death possible for people to get to heaven easier and still gave them to the right to deny him for all He did. His love is so great we can't explain it. Now most people will read this and say he still makes you go to hell if you don't believe and why didn't His Son come as God? That takes faith, true untouchable faith and you have to realize about how God couldn't of sacrificed His Son as God because no one would even think of killing Him. He also did it to make people really believe in Him.

Answer 4

perhaps we put ourselves in hell..like lazarus and the rich man..the rich man lived in a gated community insulated with his greed and what money could buy. the poor man begged for his crumbs but the rich man showed no mercy. So mercy I to others show mercy show to me.
Basically if we behave like sponges.. others might tell you to dry up and the deserts will grow..sand dries out sponges and they release their prisoners..but takers don't need money, sponges are real good at stretching the truth. the law of the Lord is perfect enlightening the eyes. love is the whole law and the fulfillment of the law, that we should love god and that we should love our neighbours as ourselves. Jesus is a saviour..revelations says, in the end that all might be saved.

Answer 5

You must not read answers there are a thousand of them on this Question, but the answer is god made a way for you not to go to Hell then gave you a choice so it is you who send your self there. would you give your child to save any one who would believe? I don't think so, that is a Love you do not understand yet.

Answer 6

I am glad you at least you believe there is a hell, because there is a hell and it is hot.
Let me be clear, Jesus is not sending anyone to hell. The people are sending themselves based completely on the life they live and the deeds they do now, in this life. When (God ) Jesus died on the cross he removed the excuses for sin. People that go to hell, do so of their own free will.

Answer 7

THEY put themselves in Hell. We all have free will and if you choose to live your life a certain way, you can find yourself in a very hot place someday. God is a loving God and it pains Him to have to put anyone in Hell. Why do you think He wants His word spread all over the world? He wants people to know Him and come to Him to be saved.

Answer 8

I think it is very unfortunate that human beings attempt to use thier finite minds to 'reason' thier way into making decisions about God and Who He is or isn't. God MADE you, like it or not, believe it or not. Just because a person refuses to listen to truth does not make it untrue. God created your mind. Who are you, or anyone else to say that God is not loving when He has said blatantly otherwise in His own Word?
Bottom line: God commands and expects righteousness. Man broke that standard in the garden of Eden by disobeying, forever seperating mankind from Himself. But because He DOES love us, He made a provision for us to not have to suffer although we DESERVE to go to Hell. God sent His Son Jesus to die as a righteous sacrifice to pay the payment that sin requires. When we trust in Jesus Christ as our only hope of salvation, then God looks at us through the perfection that is given to us through His Son.
TRUTH. like it or not.

Answer 9

1. We choose to go to hell, God doesn't put us there. You ALWAYS have the opportunity to do right or wrong, and if you choose wrong then that is your decision and your fault.
2. Those that are in hell are not the people of God. The people in hell are those who choose to disobey and hate him, and therefore when it is judgement time he will say 'depart from me, I do not know you'. God's people will be right in heaven with him.

Answer 10

As opposed to putting us on this hell hole called "earth"? There is no hell. That's just it. He loves us too much. If all gods love their people so much what's this starvation thing about, or this warzone that most people and their children live in... come on. What the HELL is going on on Earth???

Answer 11

God loves everyone and I'm sure He hates it when He has to put someone in Hell. But it's not His fault everyone has a choice to follow God or to ignore Him.