Revelation 21:8 (Cowards going to hell?)

[HopingForJesus]

"But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."

Obviously Revelations says a lot about who is going to hell as do other books of the bible. Those who have read my posts may know I have OCD and a fear of hell. I am afraid of many things and have anxiety every day. I try to face my fears sometimes, other times I hide from them. Obviously, I need to pray about this too. A lot of people suffer from anxiety and have trouble facing their fears. I guess that makes me a coward. As a believer in Christ who does not want to sin all the time what should I do other than pray to God and ask for his help. I have been asking for his help but maybe I need to pray about this specifically and I guess I feel like there is this big target sign on my back.

 

[TruthSeeker2012]

"But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."

Obviously Revelations says a lot about who is going to hell ...

There is no literal hell.

1. It's not taught in Scripture in original languages.

2. God is not a revengeful monster who will torture the lost forever in terrible and horrendous pain that will never cease.

3. The Bible says the lost and Satan will turn to ashes and be destroyed! Heb 2:14, (Psalm 145:20); they will die (Ezekiel 18:4); they will perish (John 3:16); they will be cut off (Psalm 37:28); they will be consumed (Psalm 37:20); they will be burned up (Psalm 97:3); and they shall be no more (Psalm 37:10, Oba 1:16).

4. The Koine Greek word "aionios" is used in Revelation 20:10 and Matthew 25:46 and has been translated forever and ever! But in Koine Greek it doesn't mean endless at all! The term "for ever, eternal, everlasting" as used in the Bible, means simply a period of time, limited or unlimited. It is used 56 times in the Bible in connection with things that have already ended.

5. Immortality is the key. And only the saved will get it! Hence, the lost wont get it and will DIE and not LIVE in some fire. If people were to burn in fire forever, that would mean they are given immortality as well, but this contradicts 1Cor 15:53 and 1 John 5:12! And only the saved will have access to the tree of life in heaven! The lost wont and so hence, cannot live forever in some fire. Surely you are not claiming the lost will be given immortality and live forever without access to the tree of life?

6. Read about the city of Edom in Isa 34:6-11 It says Edom was to burn forever and never be quenched! But its NOT burning today and in fact in verse 11 it says it will be occupied again after this so called forever FIRE! The problem lies in English translations, and eternal and forever and ever, does not always mean endless in the Bible.

Is EDOM burning today? NO! English translation says forever, but the original language it doesn't say or mean forever as you can clearly see that the next verse says it will be occupied again. How is that possible if v10 was to be taken literally as eternal fire etc... Think about it!

In Isa 34:10 it says the smoke from the fire on Edom will rise forever and never be quenched! Is this smoke rising today? NO it is not as Edom is in ashes today!

7. Eternal hellfire stems from Devils first lie[Gen 3:4], then came pagan philosophy, Jewish apostasies, Catholicism then protestantism, and it's not biblical at all!

Suffice to say, in the Hebrew and Greek, Sheol[Hebrew] and Hades,Tartaroo and Gehenna[Greek] is a place of death, darkness & silence. In other words, the grave! But the English word "Hell" means an eternal burning place of agony! But in the original Hebrew/Greek, there is no such word as "hell".

 

[Leonfrost]

The above post says it all. There are a great many mistranslations which need to be addressed, and this is one of them.

To extrapolate: I don't believe that you will be denied heaven for your anxiety. You follow God. You place your trust in Him. You know that you are anxious and afraid, and God knows that as well.

After some googling, I have come to the conclusion that the cowardice mentioned in this verse refers to not proclaiming our faith in God, out of fear of repercussions. Afraid to serve God, I suppose.

 

[Jonathan95]

I also have OCD/Scrupulosity, I fear hell a lot, and I am afraid of disappointing Jesus and making him sad.

 

[TruthSeeker2012]

I also have OCD/Scrupulosity, I fear hell a lot, and I am afraid of disappointing Jesus and making him sad.

Matthew 11:28 [FONT=arial, sans-serif]"[/FONT]Come to Me[FONT=arial, sans-serif], [/FONT]all who are weary[FONT=arial, sans-serif] and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.

Remember, salvation and God accepting you is NOT based on what you DO or DO NOT DO, it's based on whom you trust.

John 14:1-3 Do not let your heart be troubled; Trust in God. Trust in me also. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. 3 If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.

Do you trust in Jesus? If you answered yes, then read John 14:1-3 and tell me if Jesus was telling the truth in these verses or lying?

"..Who has bewitched you?.. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?"

You are thinking God sees you as you see yourself. But God sees you as a perfect son because legally Father sees you "IN CHRIST.

Hasn't anyone ever told you the GOOD NEWS?

[/FONT]

 

[NewUser777]

There is no literal hell.

I don't know what kind of twisted brand of the Gospel you're pedaling here, TruthSeeker, but you are on very thin ice.

Exactly what are you trying to do here? Are you telling people that if they don't make heaven, it's ok, they will only die? That is absolutely false.

Jesus himself told the pharisees "What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore justice and the love of God." Luke 11:42

That means there is something awaiting the Pharisees that is very BAD and very PAINFUL. Now what could that be? Death? LOL

The Great White Throne judgment awaits all those who don't know God. If your name isn't written in the Lamb's Book of Life, you WILL stand before God at this judgment, which is only for sinners. This judgment has not occurred yet. Where do you think the individuals are who are awaiting this? Do you think they are in the ground? Their souls are very much alive in hades, and hades is not a fun place. Read about the rich man ... Luke 16:22-23

And after the Great White Throne judgment, those souls are cast into the lake of fire. I am not going to debate whether this is eternal or not. Does it matter? The fact is you will miss your chance to spend eternity with a holy God who loves you. If you die and you do not know God, you WILL go through torment.

This is what leads me to ask why you are even posting this?

Everyone should be afraid of going to hades and the lake of fire. It's healthy.


To the OP: Being cowardly is denying Christ. Ask God for strength to stand when your faith is tested. Every one of us needs to do that. If you do deny Christ in life, ask forgiveness, and move on. Reading the Bible and prayer will strengthen you as you grow in your walk with God.

For the record, God is greater than OCD.

 

[BFine]

"But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."

*The above refers to people who lived their life according to their own desires, they denied Christ/didn't seek him for Salvation.

Those who struggle with mental illness rest in the fact that Christ is your Savior if you sought him for Salvation. He is able to KEEP you, no one can pluck YOU from his HANDS!

The Lord said so in John 10:28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.
Memorize that verse...or
Write it on paper and post it everywhere in your home if that is what it takes to
combat negative thoughts.

 

[HopingForJesus]

I believe that there is a literal Heaven and unfortunately a literal hell. I appreciate the good intentions of some trying to convince me there is no hell, but I just cannot change what I believe what I have been taught, read in the Bible, and studied. Jonathan, pay attention to the answers to these posts as well then because they will help you in your lowest moments of OCD torment. May God comfort you. NewUser777 thank you for your explanation. I will never deny Christ. Bfine thank you for the good scriptural reminder that I need to write on my heart. I appreciate your continual patience and help to those on this forum.

 

[PaladinValer]

The cowardly are those who are too afraid to live their faith in the face of those who might or will persecute them. It has nothing to do with those who have a lot of fears and frights.

Stop reading the Bible and learn about it first. Then read it. Context is what you are missing here.

 

[TruthSeeker2012]

I don't know what kind of twisted brand of the Gospel you're pedaling here, TruthSeeker, but you are on very thin ice....

Your whole post was filled with deceit and erroneous doctrine and you are spreading a false god who is a monster and not the God of Bible. You have been tricked to believe in a literal hell when it's never taught in the Hebrew or Greek.

 

[TruthSeeker2012]

I believe that there is a literal Heaven and unfortunately a literal hell. I appreciate the good intentions of some trying to convince me there is no hell, but I just cannot change what I believe what I have been taught, read in the Bible, and studied. Jonathan, pay attention to the answers to these posts as well then because they will help you in your lowest moments of OCD torment. May God comfort you. NewUser777 thank you for your explanation. I will never deny Christ. Bfine thank you for the good scriptural reminder that I need to write on my heart. I appreciate your continual patience and help to those on this forum.

The redeemed are given 2 major things that the lost are not, which gives them the ability to live forever with God.

1. Immortality.

2. Access to the Tree of Life.

The lost will be denied those 2 things, hence, they will DIE and PERISH and be no more!

It's impossible for the lost to live forever in "eternal hell" because they will not have immortality and not have access to the Tree of Life, 2 important things needed to live forever.

Scholars are beginning to wake up to themselves, and realising that hell is not in Bible.The original "Authorized Version" of the King James Bible contained the word "Hell" 54 times from Genesis to Revelation. The New King James Bible contained the word "Hell" only 32 times and the American Standard and New American Standard (both revisions of the KJV) only 13 times. And the NIV OT doesn't contain the word hell even once!

And there are literally scores of Bible translations which do NOT contain the word "Hell" even ONCE! That's because they were written by Scholars who LOVE the truth and have EMBRACED the truth!

Jesus' Teaching on Hell by Samuel Dawson. Most of what we believe about hell comes from Catholicism and ignorance of the Old Testament, not from the Bible. This study will cause you to re-examine current teaching on hell and urge you to further study on what happens to the wicked after death.

The word "Hell" is disappearing from the pages of English Bible translations and HAS already completely disappeared from many of them.

God bless.

 

[docpotter]

I don't know what kind of twisted brand of the Gospel you're pedaling here, TruthSeeker, but you are on very thin ice.

Exactly what are you trying to do here? Are you telling people that if they don't make heaven, it's ok, they will only die? That is absolutely false.

Jesus himself told the pharisees "What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore justice and the love of God." Luke 11:42

That means there is something awaiting the Pharisees that is very BAD and very PAINFUL. Now what could that be? Death? LOL

The Great White Throne judgment awaits all those who don't know God. If your name isn't written in the Lamb's Book of Life, you WILL stand before God at this judgment, which is only for sinners. This judgment has not occurred yet. Where do you think the individuals are who are awaiting this? Do you think they are in the ground? Their souls are very much alive in hades, and hades is not a fun place. Read about the rich man ... Luke 16:22-23

And after the Great White Throne judgment, those souls are cast into the lake of fire. I am not going to debate whether this is eternal or not. Does it matter? The fact is you will miss your chance to spend eternity with a holy God who loves you. If you die and you do not know God, you WILL go through torment.

This is what leads me to ask why you are even posting this?

Everyone should be afraid of going to hades and the lake of fire. It's healthy.


To the OP: Being cowardly is denying Christ. Ask God for strength to stand when your faith is tested. Every one of us needs to do that. If you do deny Christ in life, ask forgiveness, and move on. Reading the Bible and prayer will strengthen you as you grow in your walk with God.

For the record, God is greater than OCD.

I agree with you New User 777 , there are many scriptures where " hell " is not just death , but clearly a place quite opposite of heaven .

 

[docpotter]

"But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."

Obviously Revelations says a lot about who is going to hell as do other books of the bible. Those who have read my posts may know I have OCD and a fear of hell. I am afraid of many things and have anxiety every day. I try to face my fears sometimes, other times I hide from them. Obviously, I need to pray about this too. A lot of people suffer from anxiety and have trouble facing their fears. I guess that makes me a coward. As a believer in Christ who does not want to sin all the time what should I do other than pray to God and ask for his help. I have been asking for his help but maybe I need to pray about this specifically and I guess I feel like there is this big target sign on my back.

HopingforJesus , I think the coward mentioned in the bible is someone who would not tell another person about Christ when they feel a strong prompting to do so , or someone who is just bullied by the world into being politically correct rather than telling , and living the truth of the bible boldly .

PS -I'm not saying you have to run down the street grabbing everyone by the collar and and shaking then and saying " you have to get saved now " !! , but at those times in life when you know you have to speak up , doing so : )

 

[Jonathan95]

Matthew 11:28 [FONT=arial, sans-serif]"[/FONT]Come to Me[FONT=arial, sans-serif], [/FONT]all who are weary[FONT=arial, sans-serif] and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.

Remember, salvation and God accepting you is NOT based on what you DO or DO NOT DO, it's based on whom you trust.

John 14:1-3 Do not let your heart be troubled; Trust in God. Trust in me also. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. 3 If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.

Do you trust in Jesus? If you answered yes, then read John 14:1-3 and tell me if Jesus was telling the truth in these verses or lying?

"..Who has bewitched you?.. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?"

You are thinking God sees you as you see yourself. But God sees you as a perfect son because legally Father sees you "IN CHRIST.

Hasn't anyone ever told you the GOOD NEWS?

[/FONT]

Yes I trust in Jesus.

The cowardly are those who are too afraid to live their faith in the face of those who might or will persecute them. It has nothing to do with those who have a lot of fears and frights.

Stop reading the Bible and learn about it first. Then read it. Context is what you are missing here.

I've been afraid a few times, that I might have got laughed out, or bullied if they saw me reading Christianforums in school. But I don't care anymore what they think, so now I've read it many times, they haven't seen/cared.

 

[TruthSeeker2012]

Yes I trust in Jesus.



I've been afraid a few times, that I might have got laughed out, or bullied if they saw me reading Christianforums in school. But I don't care anymore what they think, so now I've read it many times, they haven't seen/cared.

Amen.

Mark 8:38 [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels.[/FONT]

 

[Jonathan95]

Amen.

Mark 8:38 [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels.[/FONT]

I knew that verse when I did that, but I didn't think that situation meant I was ashamed.