Statments in Parables.
all of these are found in parables. By their very nature they are symbols because they are part of a symbolic discourse. We cannot argue for a literal interpretation. Most Christians will not take the baptism of fire literal. They want to see it testing, the refiniers fire to make us pure gold and all that. But why take this use of a symbol literally?
Mat 8: 5 And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 6 And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. 7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. 8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. 10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 11 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.
I find that even Christians who argue against a literal hell tend to assume that this referring to Christians. But it's obviously not since Jesus knew nothing (ostensibly) about "Christians." There were no Christians in Jesus life time, he's saying Jews who reject him as Messiah will be rejected.
all the rest of these are in parables
Mt 13:42 And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Mt 13:50 And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Mt 22:13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Mt 24:51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Mt 25:30 And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Interesting this repetition "weeping and gnashing of teeth." I can't find a reference to where it comes from. But it seems like probably a quotation or a standardized phrase. That might make it more a symbol if it is a standarized short hand for referring to something, or not.
This is not a parable and it seems to say that the wicked will be punsihed in hell.
Mt 23:33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
But the same statement would make as much sense if it referred to annihilation. "How can you escape the annihilation?" Hell is symbol of judgment and annihilation that comes from rejecting God it works equally well. In all of these verses not a single one of them says that hell is eternal conscious torment. Most Christians just assume so but no reason to assume this. There are some passages that say the fire is eternal but that doesn't mean punishment is eternal and conscious. Eternal fire is symbol for the eternal and final nature of spiritual death; annihilation is eternal as well.
Moving on Paul we see that Paul's understanding seems to have been that the wicked or those who separate themselves from God and die in that state of annihilated. This seems to be so because for him the comparison is between life and death. Damnation is death, which is really cessation of existence if you think about it, or so it seems. Christians tend to assume that spiritual death is a sort of eternal dying process that one is conscious of forever, but there is just no reason to assume to. It never actually says this.
Salvation for Paul is clearly life, so the two are juxtaposed.
terms for life
three terms, zoe, pseche, bios. But the one for eternal life is basically zoe. the word for salvation, so'dzo is related to it.
Zoe 2:832,290
Phonetic Spelling Parts of Speech dzo-ay' Noun Feminine
Definition
(again this is the corsswalk's lexicon I'm using on defintions)
1. life
1. the state of one who is possessed of vitality or is animate
2. every living soul
2. life
1. of the absolute fulness of life, both essential and ethical, which belongs to God, and through him both to the hypostatic "logos" and to Christ in whom the "logos" put on human nature
2. life real and genuine, a life active and vigorous, devoted to God, blessed, in the portion even in this world of those who put their trust in Christ, but after the resurrection to be consummated by new accessions (among them a more perfect body), and to last for ever.
too many veres to give examles. In every epistel of Paul. Salvation is always life. take a few examples form Romans.
Ro 2:7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:
Ro 7:10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death.
Ro 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Ro 8:6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Ro 8:10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
Ro 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Here's a good one because it juxtaposes life and death, as salvtion and damnation. in the same passage we see the two alternatives between salvation and being lost are choices between life and death:
Ro 6:23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Terms for "destruction/perdition"
suntrimma: that which is broken or shattered, a fracture calamity, ruin, destruction
Rom 3:16 Destruction and misery are in their ways:
olethros = destruction: uin, destroy, death "for the destruction of the flesh, said of the external ills and troubles by which the lusts of the flesh are subdued and destroyed"
2Th 1:9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
1Ti 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
destruction = kathairesis: tear down pull down
2Co 10:8 For though I should boast somewhat more of our authority, which the Lord hath given us for edification, and not for your destruction, I should not be ashamed:
Apoleia 1:396,67
Phonetic Spelling Parts of Speech
ap-o'-li-a Noun Feminine
Definition
1. destroying, utter destruction
1. of vessels
2. a perishing, ruin, destruction
1. of money
2. the destruction which consists of eternal misery in hell
The second definition says it means destruction in hell. That is a gloss by crosswalk or Stong's, it is not a true definition of the word. It's a interpretation based upon reading back Christian doctrine into the meaning of the text, this is a constant short coming of religious lexicons. This is why one should always use Liddell and Scott, it has no theological bias. Lidell and Scott's Intermediate Lexicon, the term is derived form the word apollumai to destroy utterly, to waste utterly. Nothing about hell in it. (p88).
Also the only word used for Perdition in the NT. Perdition means destruction and its' used in connotation of damnation.
Ro 9:22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
Php 3:19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.
1Ti 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
for my money Paul did not write Hebrews, but it is Pauline circle and probably refects his thinking.
Heb 10:39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.
It is also interesting to see how other authors use it.
2Pe 3:7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
2Pe 3:16 As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
the passage above from 1 Tim uses the same word twice in the same passage, once translated "periditon" and again "destruction." So ?But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition." actually says "which draw men in destruction and destruction. Flooish repition in English but the translation doesn't need to be word for word. It would be better to say "even destruction" or "destruction upon destruction." So it's for emphasis and means total and complete destruction.
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