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Where are all the ashes?
If Annihilationists were right, one might expect to see the end of the wicked more often equated with non-existence. Of course, not all Annhilationists say that man ceases to exist, sometimes they will say he is reduced to ashes. One nice thing about the ashes argument is that there is a Biblical “ashes” motif that…
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Ignatius an Annhiliationist?
In a recent video, Chris Date (CD) claims that Ignatius of Antioch was an annihilationist (link). CD generally uses the term “conditional immortality” to describe his position. Before getting into a discussion of Ignatius himself, CD includes the bizarre claim that Tatian of Adiabene (c. 120-180) is the “oldest Christian advocate of eternal torment” (30:45…
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Is the Spirit Immortal?
Unlike animals, humans have an immortal soul. Ecclesiastes 3:21 Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth? Early Christians understood and believed in the existence of disembodied spirits. Acts 12:15 And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed…
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Clement and Eternal Conscious Torment
Chris Date (CD) has a video in which he claims that Clement of Rome held to “conditional immortality” (link – if you’re interested to hear what he has to say about Clement of Rome, you can jump forward to timestamp 26:00 and listen to 44:09). First, note that we refer to the book we refer to as…
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Polycarp and Eternal Torment
Chris Date has a video arguing for the idea that Polycarp of Smyrna held to conditional immortality (link to video). CD’s arguments hang on several points: 1) Ignatius writes to Polycarp that Polycarp views immortality and eternal life as being the prize set before him (Ignatius’ Epistle to Polycarp, Chapter 2). However, this would only…
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Some Thoughts on Meros (μέρος)
One of the key texts regarding hell is Revelation 21:8, which states: But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part (τὸ μέρος αὐτῶν) in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. Some folks commenting…
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What about Olam (עוֹלָם), Ad (עַד), and Nesah (נֶצַח)?
If you are going to consider the subject of the eternal torments of hell, you cannot limit yourself to the New Testament. You also should not limit yourself to English, but should also consider the usual words translated as “eternal” or the like in the Old Testament text. Olam, Ad, and Nesah One fairly common…
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Gnashing (Brygmos βρυγμός) of Teeth
Amongst the various descriptions of suffering in hell, one notable description is the gnashing of teeth. In the New Testament, Matthew provides this description six times, and Luke just once. While we use a gerund, the Greek is usually a noun, Brygmos. Matthew 8:12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into…
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What about Apollymi?
Sometimes a person who is an annihilationist will argue as follows (Please note that I’m not endorsing any aspect of this representation except the spelling of the lexical form of the Greek word): 1) The most common description of the fate of the wicked is that are destroyed, using the verb, ἀπόλλυμι (apollumi or apollymi). 2)…
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The Lake of Fire and the Abyss
In any discussion on Hell, I would be remiss to omit discussion of the Abyss, sometimes translated the “deep” or the “bottomless pit.” In most places in the Scripture, the abyss seems to be watery place (for example, the Spirit of God moves over the watery abyss in Genesis 1). The main exceptions in the…