Hell: The Grave, or Eternal Suffering? Can't figure the Bible out...?

Question

For the living are conscious that they will die; but as for the dead, they are conscious of nothing at all, neither do they anymore have wages, because the remembrance of them has been forgotten. - Ecc. 9:5

And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and RECEIVE his mark in his forehead, or in his hand ... he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb
And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Rev. 14:9-11

AND:

His spirit departs, he returns to the earth; In that very day his thoughts perish. Ps. 146:4

Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. Mt. 25:41

???????????

Answer 1

these were written my men hundreds upon hundreds of years ago who had ZERO contact with Jesus and his followers and no one knows for sure literally what is being said, much of it is left to interpretation of the reader.

You will have to decide yourself what it means. to me it means a bunch of garble to confuse you.

good luck!

Answer 2

It is true in death there is no consciousness.

One needs to understand that not everything in Revelation is literal. For example - "The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation..."(Rev.14:10). This cannot be literal. However, the fire that destroys the devil and the wicked is literal. We do not know how long that fire will burn but it will seem like an eternity to them that experience it. The punishment is everlasting, not the punishing. The picture of hell is derived from the ever burning place outside the city where the dead carcasses and all the trash were burned constantly.

Rev. 20:9,10 talks about the fire coming "out of heaven" to destroy the wicked on the earth and devil being cast into the "lake of fire". Then in the first verse of the next chapter it talks about "new heaven and new earth". Obviously, the fire has to go out before the new earth can be created.

Answer 3

Passages in the Bible should not be taken literally. And if there is any contradiction between the Old and New Testament the latter should prevail. Simply because the New Testament is the new covenant and the fullness of divine revelation.

The existence of hell or separation from God is very real. However, what form hell assumes or in what manner a damned person will suffer, is open to debate. No one has come back to report the temperature in hell. And no human can judge whether another is damned.

Theologians suggest that hell be seen as a state of total rejection of God. Like heaven, it is not a place and is not subject to time.

There are also many accounts in the Bible, which employ a literary device used by Jewish Old and New Testament writers called Midrash. Midrash is the substantive of the Hebrew word darash which means to search, to investigate, to study and, also, to expound on the fruits of the research. The aim of Midrash is to draw from Scripture a lesson for the present.

Midrash could also be defined as a "reflection on Scripture in the light of the actual situation of God's people and of the developments of God's action on its history." It proposes to explain the meaning of Scripture in the light of the later historical experience of God's people. This kind of interpretation often opened the door to embellishments of the sacred accounts, anachronisms, and a freedom in handling and maneuvering the data of tradition that were at times a little too candid and certainly very imaginative.

For more information about Midrash please go to this link. ://www.catholicity.com/encyclopedia/m/midrashim.html


Sources:
New Advent Catholic Encylopedia
New World Dictionary-Concordance to the
New American Bible

Answer 4

It is not that the dead are not conscious, but rather that they're not conscious of anything that's going on among the living. You quote Ecc 9:5 but read verse 6: "...never again will they have any share in all that happens under the sun". That's what verse 5 is saying.

Ps 146:4 in the NRSV says "on that very day their plans perish". That is, when someone dies, they can't continue to do things.

Hell is eternal torment.

Answer 5

Gehenna, Hades, Sheol, Hell all equal the common grave for mankind.

The mix up came with misleading teachings that when the older egyptians disposed of DEAD bodies by throwing them into a fiery pit to burn so they wouldn't cause illness or even death because of their decaying process. Over time this procedure became distorted to represent "hell fire" as being where "bad people go" where they would burn forever.

So you see that hell is the common grave for mankind and is not a place of eternal fiery damnation for mankind. It, Gehenna, Hades was where dead bodies were thrown to burn them to ashes, much like that of the "cremation" techniques.

Hope this has helped, and remember, the Bible is for intelligent people (anyone who uses common sense and their smartness) and there are many parables, and examples used throughout the Bible. An intelligent one can make sense of the entire Bible through much prayer and the holy spirit.

Answer 6

Hell will NOT burn forever. The word "for ever" means "for as long as time lasts in that specific case." For example, Hannah pledged that Samuel would serve in the temple "for ever." (1 Samuel 1:22) This does not mean he will be their as long as time lasts. Verse 28 clarifies that Samuel would serve in the temple for "as long as he liveth." In Jonah 2:6 the word "for ever" means "three days and three nights." (Jonah 2:17) Furthermore, the Bible teaches that "the wages of sin is" not eternal life in hellfire, but "death" (Romans 6:23). So eternal hell fire is a false teaching that has no support in the Bible. The fire will go out once everything has burned.

And how is heaven supposed to be without tears (Rev. 21:4) if we'll be able to see sinners burning all eternity? Just doesn't make sense.

Answer 7

THE SPRIPTURES MUST BE RIGHTLY DIVIDED AND STUDIED

1Cor. 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
15:23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. 15:24 Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. 15:25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. 15:26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. 15:27 For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. 15:28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all. 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
John 6:39,40,44[ raised up at last day ], 14:3 [ prepares a place ]; Mark 13:27;
Heb.12:22; Rev.3:12; the gather, 1Thes.4:15-17; the caught up Rom.16:20 and Satan is underfoot. Rev.12:7-12 [ Satan has a short time underfoot ];

Rev.20:1-6,12,13; [ 2Pet.3:13; Rev.21:1-5; All new is a must for eternal life ];
The heavenly are with Jesus to resurrect the earthly for the new earth.
John 5:26-29;
Acts 24:15;
Dan.12:2;
Isa.26:19;
Eze.37:12-14;
Psm.104:29,30;

The fire is everlasting. Luke 20:34-36 [ angels do not die ]; Rev.21:8 [ people die the first death and the second death ]; Rev.20:7-10 [ FIRE COMES DOWN
FROM HEAVEN AND DEVOURS GOG AND MAGOG, SATAN IS THROWN INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE AT END OF THE 1000 YEARS ];

Answer 8

Heaven and Hell are very real places. When a person dies they immediately go to either Heaven or Hell. What makes the difference is - WHAT their relationship to Jesus Christ is. The person who knows they are a sinner and trusts the Lord Jesus as Saviour will never have to worry about Hell. The verse above like Ecc 9:5 are talking about that physically when a person dies they are no longer interacting with this world with their senses. Their soul though is immediately in the presense of the Lord if they are saved or in Hell if they have never trusted Jesus as their Saviour.
This can tell you more on how to be sure to miss Hell and go to Heaven - http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0085/0085_01.asp
http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/1034/1034_01.asp

Answer 9

All different places. The grave is indeed silent. Those tortured in the presence of the Lamb can't be in Hell, because Hell is outer darkness without God. And those who go into the 'everlasting fire' don't last long.

Answer 10

Ecc.9:5 is reffering to spiritual death; that unrepentant sinners will not earn glory, or be remembered, for their works even if they're good works, because they are dead to faith.

Ps. 146:4 is reffering to the fact that his thoughts will perish because when he dies he no longer THINKS anything, he will Know the truth.

Yes, Hell is everlasting fire!