The Second Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians
Hell and Hades are not mentioned in this epistle either. We find little of interest until Chapter 10: “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God…” (verses 4-5). Now if we think of Hades and Hell as theories, with all their baggage, both emotional and intellectual, it becomes easier to view them as strongholds. I believe an unbiased look at the evidence (the Biblical text) proves that this stronghold’s props and foundations are rather shaky. Further, we can see the works of Dante, Milton and Baxter for what they are: literature, fictions, imaginations - not the Word of God. Even with the first two being epic poetry, they are still just works of human imagination – impressive as literature, but not founts of Truth - at least, not when they address Hell. Given what we have seen, the Hell doctrine should be viewed as a sort of theological graffiti.
There is no Hell, then, in II Corinthians, but ah, a short section this time.
The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Galatians
Hell is quickly in trouble, for Paul says, “…though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed [anathema].” (1:8). Have we seen that Hell, as preached today, was a part of Old Testament belief? Have we seen that any of the Gospels set forth any Hell doctrine? Have we seen Hell promoted in any epistle? No, we have not. We must assume, then, that Paul is not thinking of Hell as part of “that which we have preached unto you.” On the other hand, since Paul never preached Hell, it just might be one of those other gospels. Good news? No, Hell would not have been good news then, and still isn’t today.
In 5:14, Paul reminds his readers of what Jesus had said before: “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”
Surely, a God Who instructs us so follows the same principle – does He love us enough to refrain sending anyone to Hell? Given what we have so far, we an answer YES! We know this because He loved us enough to send His Son, Jesus the Christ. For His part, Jesus asked God to forgive those who crucified Him, when He could have asked His Father to punish them, and I won’t say by sending them to Hell, for it seems not to exist. Can you really think of a worse crime in the eyes of God than to murder His Son? No, I can’t either…so the rest must be forgiven as well. It just makes sense, in a short epistle where Hell cannot be found.
The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Ephesians
Early on, Paul mentions this, in 1:10: “That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he [Jesus] might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth, even in him.” Now, the fullness of times may be far, far in the future, but that is up to God. What I want the reader to notice is “gather together in one ALL things in Christ” [emphasis added]. Paul makes no exception for anyone – it is all things in heaven and on earth. No one is relegated to Hell, no, all are gathered in Christ, the same Christ Who asked His Father to forgive the worst kind of sinners. “ALL things gathered together” is another fail for the Hell Theory. Some may, and probably will, argue that “all” doesn’t really mean ALL. On the other hand, I’d rather be simple and take God at His Word.
Paul speaks of Jesus in Chapter 4: “…WHEN HE ASCENDED UP ON HIGH, HE LED CAPTIVITY CAPTIVE…(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?..)” (verses 8-9). Now there is no reason to think that this captivity is Hell, for unless you assume it, it is not there in the text – our common slavery to sin fills the bill quite nicely, thank you. In the same way, the phrase “the lower parts of the earth,” is fulfilled by the tomb in which Jesus’ body spent three days and nights – there is no need to assume He went to Hell unless you already assume Hell exists. What Paul says in verse 14 is very telling: “…we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.” I have pointed out a number of times where the text of this Book has been altered in translation, by sleight, by trickery, by cunning craftiness:
A neutral “judgment” was replaced by the more fearsome words “condemnation” and “damnation.”
To reinforce that, “age” was replaced by “world,” to veil God’s plan for heaven and earth over long ages. With “world” in place, it was easy for the church to serve as gatekeeper to the next “world.”
Pagan words such as “Hades” and “Hell” were brought in, again confusing the Truth about man’s fate after death.
God’s Name was diminished to “LORD,” while pagan gods got their unearned due.
I’m sure there are things I’ve missed, but as Jesus said, we need to be as wise as serpents, and not be taken in by such trickery.
In 5:5, Paul reminds the readers of his epistle that, “…no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolator, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.” A lot of people who already have Hell as a construct on the foundation of Christ, assume that these nasty folks go to Hell. As we have shown over and over, Hell is uncreated, unthreatened, unstressed, unpreached, unmentioned and unproven in the pages of this Book. I believe the Bible is a Reference Standard of Truth, and the Hell Theory just does not make the cut. This means that the doctrine of Hell is just one more load of wood, hay and stubble to be burned off. The doctrine’s followers will suffer loss, but be saved as through fire as the Bible says. The damnationists may even be raised in the resurrection of the just. The miserable company of verse 5 will come before a stricter judgment, including loss of inheritance, but Hell will not be a part of it. Read 5:5 again – it does NOT say the listed folks go to Hell – that is an overlay, an assumption. Do you not think here of what Jesus said about the splinter and the beam? We should not think to judge the 5:5 crowd, for our judgment may come back on us if we think they are to sent to Hell…not that we will, either, but still, let us not be present-day Jonahs.
Neither Hell nor Hades are to be found in Ephesians.
The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Philippians
“Perdition” shows up in 1:28, but there is no reason to think it has anything to do with Hell. It seems to refer to the adversaries of the Good News, and their expectation that the followers of Jesus will be
In 2:10, Paul tells us, “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth.” There is no reason to think he is referring to Hell here, but only to those in the grave, who will bow the knee after being resurrected, just like those now alive “in earth.” Further, if these things should be, at some point in the future, they will be, and Hell (even if it exits) will not prevent it.
At 3:14, Paul refers to a prize: “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” What is this prize? Backtrack to verse 11: “If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.” To be in the resurrection of the believers – a worthy goal! However, notice that unlike the modern “fire insurance” preachers who stress Hell-avoidance, Paul has no concern for any possibility of ending up in such a place.
Chapter 3 ends with an answer to those who limit God, Father and/or Son, by ideas such as Hell being final (no exit), or that we place ourselves there, and close the proverbial door behind us. Paul speaks of God’s power to Glorify our carnal bodies, “…according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.” (verse 21). So, Jesus is able to subdue ALL things, but will He? Yes, look at II Peter 3:9 – “The Lord is…not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” There you have it – Jesus is able and Jesus is willing. What can we add to that? Salvation is looking like a done deal, even if the process of salvation is not finished yet.
So, given ABLE and WILLING, we can say with Paul, “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.” (4:4).
Another Pauline letter closes without Hades or Hell, but with much said of joy and love.
The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Colossians
The first chapter of Matthew stated that the Messiah would be named Jesus (CCR footnoted as literally meaning “Savior”) for He would save His people from their sins, with saving them from Hell not mentioned. Years later, Paul in this letter, says the same, “In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins…” (1:14). Again, Hell is not mentioned, so that must not be part of Jesus’ mission or purpose. Let’s get down to it – if Hell does not exist, saving people from it is a fool’s errand. Jesus was and is no fool, so if He did not pursue saving us from Hell, failed to teach His disciples to save us from Hell, and we see His disciples following the same pattern, then concluding that there is no Hell is just intelligent and rational. Now if Hell does exist, and God both doesn’t care who goes there, and has failed to tell us about it, we’re going to have a problem with the idea that God and Jesus are good, loving and truthful. It is very difficult to make a case for God and Jesus being bad, hateful liars. Do you know many Christians who would be willing to say it? Would it be sacrilege or blasphemy? Both? I don’t know, but it would not fly in any church I know of. The conclusion must be then, that Hell does not exist in a Cosmos created by a God Who said, “Let us reason together…” (Isaiah 1:18).
The idea of 1:14 is expanded on in verses 19 and 20: “For it pleased the Father…having made peace through the blood of his [Jesus’] cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth or things in heaven.” Do you see that “all things” here means everything in the created Cosmos? Yes, it would cover everything in Genesis 1 and 2, neither of which mention Hell.
Paul winds up Chapter 1 with, “…warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.” (verse 28). So, what happens to those not presentable as perfect? It’s a fair question, and many would answer that they go to Hell, but what about “every man in his own order”? Let’s not forget too quickly what Paul told us in I Corinthians 15 about the End, and how Death would be the last enemy to be conquered. If a time comes when death is no more, those who are dead MUST be resurrected, and if God is then to be All in all, these not-presentable-as-perfect folks must have had their dross, chaff, wood, hay, and stubble dealt with, cleansed, or burnt off. However it is done, they MUST be presentable at this point, and that means they cannot be in Hell.
I see mention of spiritual treasures in this epistle, but not of Hell.