Saturday, November 10, 2012

Mercy on all and Punishment for many


I recently got into an enjoyable and wide-ranging theological conversation with a pair of divinity school friends. It was prompted by discussion of the new Archbishop of Canterbury, but covered a great deal of ground (ecclesiology, supersessionism, the relationship between tradition and dynamism, biblical interpretation, homosexuality, and more). This is not meant as a recap of the conversation, but a response to one particular area of disagreement.

At one point we arrived at a discussion of hell and universalism. It surprised me when one of my fellow students advocated a form of universalism—a surprise because the fellow knows his Bible extremely well and, unlike some modern universalists like Rob Bell, respects it and the tradition through which we receive it. He propounded a view more grounded in Barth than in Bell’s feel-good sentimentality. Much about the universality of God’s “Yes” in Christ’s Crucifixion and Resurrection, as well as, relatedly, the necessary “Yes” inherent in Creation, Election, and Redemption. Thoughtful stuff, philosophically developed, and easy to agree with. However, this choice was (as the other student pointed out, rightly in my opinion) motivated rather too much by a modern tendency to determine the Good by what is good for man. Moreover, however compelling its broad philosophical strokes might be, it runs at cross-purposes (pun intended) with the overall arc of the Bible. Indeed, the author of Hebrews calls teachings about eternal punishment part of the elementary doctrine of Christ—it’s something that should be well-settled and non-controversial. Christ is clearly the focal point of the Story, but although He means life for some, He means judgment for others (see, e.g., Luke 12:7-9 “And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God, but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God.” Cf. 1 Cor. 1:18, 2 Peter 3:5-7, Rev. 20:11-15, et al.).

I’m not going to respond in depth to the philosophical argument here—I would be hard-pressed, after one conversation, to present his perspective fully and fairly enough to warrant a developed critique. However, I will push back on one verse that seems to support his view. It’s by no means unique in the Bible: many verses can seem to lend weight to the notion, although they are outnumbered by verses pushing the other way—verses that recognize judgment, that recognize that “broad is the way that leads to destruction,” verses with such chilling and evocative language as “where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.”

This verse that he mentioned is Romans 11:32 “For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.”

Seems pretty clear, huh? If the New Testament had been originally written in English, we’d have a bit of a problem…we’d have to weigh this aphorism of sorts against all the (numerous) verses that qualify or even contradict it. I suspect, taking the English Bible as a whole, we’d be left with something like “Well, clearly God does not save all, so in what sense does He have mercy on all? Merely because of the potential salvation through Christ? Because of God’s longsuffering patience? Something else?” That, I think, would be somewhat unsatisfying. Thankfully, turning to the Greek helps out a bit.

Here’s an entry for “pas, pantes” which is the word translated “all” in Romans 11:32 (used here in the collective sense). The explanatory paragraph immediately following is included with the definition in the original (this is from biblestudytools; the meaning of “pas, pantes” given at greekbible.dom is the same).
1. individually
a. each, every, any, all, the whole, everyone, all things, everything
2. collectively
a. some of all types
“... "the whole world has gone after him" Did all the world go after Christ? "then went all Judea, and were baptized of him in Jordan."Was all Judea, or all Jerusalem, baptized in Jordan? "Ye are of God, little children, and the whole world lieth in the wicked one". Does the whole world there mean everybody? The words "world" and "all" are used in some seven or eight senses in Scripture, and it is very rarely the "all" means all persons, taken individually. The words are generally used to signify that Christ has redeemed some of all sorts-- some Jews, some Gentiles, some rich, some poor, and has not restricted His redemption to either Jew or Gentile ..”

Those examples are fairly illuminating. The example (carrying a somewhat different nuance) that always comes to mind for me is Acts 2:5 “Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven.” “Every” is here translated from the same word that is translated “all” in Romans 11:32…yet does not mean “all” in the sense we commonly use in English. Obviously there were not men from “every” nation or “all” tribes. There were neither Mayans nor Olmecs, Finns, Sami, Australian Aborigines, or (I’m assuming) anyone from Japan or China. Although China at least is an outside possibility...but in any event, there were not men from every nation. The Greek word was not so exhaustive as that. Romans 11:32 does not in fact pose a problem to what the remainder of the Bible teaches: that judgment is a fact of fallen Creation, and that some receive eternal life and others eternal punishment.

I’ll close with a few passages among the many more that evidence this. The reality of judgment and Hell is not something to welcome, but it is indeed reality; it is also important to realize this, for it tells us not only about the fate of many among our fellow man but also ought to increase our gratitude and praise of God: what a (deserved) fate we have been saved from! Perhaps more significantly—it tells us something about God. He is a God who loves, and a God who hates evil; a God who forgives, and a God who judges; a God of mercy and grace, and a God who punishes. He is Good. But He is not safe, and evil’s days are numbered.

1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

2 Corinthians 2:15-16 “For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.”

2 Thessalonians 1:5-10 “This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering—since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed.”

2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 “…with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Romans 8:5-8, 13 “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God… For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”

Matthew 25:31-33, 41, 46 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left…Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels…. And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
(This passage from Matthew should be placed alongside this one from John 5): “The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life…Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.”

Romans 2:2-8 “We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury.

The list goes on and on. Indeed this is an elementary doctrine.

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