Immortality or Resurrection by William West (philippa perry book txt) 📕

derives from the latest period in ancient Israel's history, and it was more fully developed by early Christianity...There is no fully developed teaching about Hell in the New Testament, though there are frequent mentions of it. Only in the course of later church history was it elaborated into official church doctrine. Today the New Testament statements and their later explanation are taken literally by some Christians, regarded as allegory or myth by some, and denied altogether by others."
Encyclopedia Britannica, Volume 2, Page 402, "Old English. Hel, a Teutonic word from a root meaning 'to cover.'"
Encyclopedia Americana, Volume 14, Page 81, "Much confusion and misunderstanding has been caused through the early translators of the Bible persistently rendering the Hebrew Sheol and the Greek Hades and Gehenna by the word hell. The simple transliteration of these words by the translators of the revised editions of the Bible has not sufficed to appreciably clear up this confusion and misconception."
[1]. HEL AND OTHER PAGAN TEACHING WERE BROUGHT INTO THE BIBLE [as Hell] BY REINTERPRETING FOUR WORDS FIFTY-SEVEN TIMES in the King James Version, but much fewer times in later translations, and none at all in many translations. The American Standard Version, which many say is the most accurate translation ["This honored version of 1901, long held to be the most accurate translation in the English language" Star Bible catalog Page 3, 1996], uses it 13 times; and even then has a footnote which says, "Gr. Gehenna" or "Gr. Tartarus."
Csonka says, "Every good Bible student know Hades is not Hell" Truth Magazine, 1995, Page 17. Then why do so many in the Lord's church teach it is?
"The word Gehenna does not occur in the LXX or Greek literature...In contrast with later Christian writings and ideas, the torments of hell are not described in the NT...Neither does the NT contain the idea that Satan is the prince of gehenna, to whom sinners are handed over for punishment" The Dictionary of New Testament Theology, Volume 2, Page 208-209.
One writer in the Lord's church [who believes in Hell] said, "The New Testament is loaded with metaphors that describe Hell" and then he says Gehenna is one of the metaphors. On the page before he said that Gehenna is not used in secular Greek literature, not used in the Septuagint, and not by Josephus in the last part of the first century in any of his writings. When he said they did not use Gehenna, he is using it to mean Hell; therefore, he is saying Hell was not used by any of the above. Neither is it in any of the Apocryphal books. The first time Gehenna (not Hell) is used by any Christian writer was by Justin Martyr in about A. D. 150 and he said the unrighteous will suffer and then pass out of existence. NO ONE KNOW OF OR USED “HELL” FOR THE FIRST 15O YEARS! THEN IT WAS A HELL THAT LASTED FOR ONLY A LIMITED TIME THEN ENDED!
[2]. NOT IN VOCABULARY: Heaven and Earth are named together about 30 times, and each is named separately 100's of times, but not one time is Hell named or even spoken of. Why? No doubt, it would have been if Hell was real and there is such a place. We are told not to swear by Heaven or Earth [Matthew 5:34], but today men swear by Hell more than both Heaven and Earth together. Why were they not told not to swear by Hell? It was because Hell is a word that was not in their vocabulary? No word with the meaning of today's English Hell was used in the ancient writing as a swear word or any other way; no such word was in their vocabulary and they knew of no such place. THE CONCEPT OF THE PLACE CALLED HELL, OR THE NAME HELL IS NOT IN THE BIBLE, AND DOES NOT OCCUR IN ANY WRITING OF EITHER THE HEBREWS OR THE GREEKS UNTO LONG AFTER THE BIBLE. THE OLD TESTAMENT HEBREW, OR THE NEW TESTAMENT GREEK, HAS NO WORD THAT IS EVEN CLOSE TO TODAY'S ENGLISH WORD "HELL." It is not in Greek literature in New Testaments times or before, first century writers did not use it, Josephus or any other historian of that time did not use it, it is not in the Septuagint, it was unknown about unto long after the last book of the Bible was written.
HOW DO WE KNOW ABOUT THIS PLACE CALLED HELL? WHERE DID HELL COME FROM? Not by faith that comes by hearing God's word. It is from the doctrines and precepts of men [Matthew 15:9]. It was not used in the first century because it was a place they knew nothing about. The word "Hell" is of Saxon origin about the 3rd to 5th century A. D. and originally was any covered over place such a roof or a grave. The nearest thing I can find to the English word Hell is in Greek Mythology and Nurse Mythology [According to Socrates, Plato and other Greek philosopher], was a shadowy subterranean realm somewhere under the earth where souls went unto they could be reincarnated; but this shadowy place was far from being as terrible or as dreadful a place as today's Hell is, and "souls" would only be in it unto they were reincarnated. This underground place did not have the name Hell and is nothing like the Hell that grew out of it in the Dark Age.
"Three hundred years or so ago the word 'Hell' was commonly used to refer to any dark or foreboding place. A grave could be referred to by that term without readers or hearers automatically envisioning 'the lake of fire, which is the second death' [Rev. 20:15]. The hole dug in the ground to receive the body of a deceased loved one is certainly a foreboding place. A prison, dungeon, lunatic asylum, or a valley such as the valley of Hinnom outside of Jerusalem with equal propriety could be spoken of as 'Hell' three or four hundred years ago. That is no longer so...in our time 'Hell' has a fairly settled meaning...its use conjures up visions of the awesome lake of fire judgment reserved for sinners" Russell Boatman, Dean at Saint Louis Christian College, Christian Church, "What The Bible Says, The End Time," College Press, Page 305.
"Hell has entirely changed its old harmless sense of dim under-world: and that meaning, as it now does, to myriads of readers...it conveys meanings which are not to be found in any of the New or Old Testament words for which it is presented as an equivalent" Canon Farrar, Excursus II, "Eternal Hope."
A doctrine as terrible as Hell must not be assumed, but demonstrated by unquestionable proof. Such proof is not in the Bible. Heaven is in the Bible over 600 times, but Hell not one time. Why? The Bible is full of warnings. Paul warned that many "shall not inherit the kingdom of God" [1 Corinthians 5:9], but he never said anyone would "go to Hell." Paul said he declared the whole counsel of God [Acts 20:27]; yet not one time [even in the King James Version] did he use the word Hell. Why? T. L. Andrews said our English word Hell has come to mean the eternal abode of the sinner where this tormenting punishment takes place? Florida College Lectures, 1997, Page 168. When? The English word Hell did not exist in Paul's time. It therefore come to mean the eternal abode of sinners long after the New Testament; and came from man, not God. Therefore Paul could not, and did not use it.
IF HELL WERE A REAL PLACE, WHICH WAS KNOWN ABOUT IN THE TIME OF CHRIST, OTHERS OF THAT TIME WOULD HAVE KNOWN ABOUT IT AND USED ITS NAME; BUT NONE DID. Gehenna was the name of a real place near Jerusalem [the city dump], which the people near Jerusalem would know about, and they have would understand what Christ was saying when He used its name as a place of destruction. The rest of the world would not know about Jerusalem's trash dump or know what its name was, and would not have understood. If Paul had used the name Gehenna in Rome or in writing to Gentiles, it is unlikely that any would have known what or where Gehenna was. When the Greek philosophy about the underworld was brought into the church by the "church fathers," what Christ had said about Gehenna was made to order for them to misuse. "Gehenna" was soon mistranslated into Hell; probably it came from "Hel" [see above]. Whatever is not taught in the Bible cannot be a Bible doctrine. If it is the doctrine of man, is it not sinful to teach it as God's word?
Hell is not a Bible word. It is a word chosen by Bible Translators to translate four Bible words, sheol, hades, Gehenna, and Tartarus. Not one of the four has the meaning of Hell as it is used today. Not only is there no Hebrew or Greek word for Hell, but also at first even the English word Hell did not mean a place of torment after death as it does today; like many English words it has had a radical change of meaning. In Old English it was a covered place. A farmer would say, "I helled my potatoes" meaning he put them in a hole and covered them to keep them from the cold. Helling a house meant to cover it with a roof. Helmet, a covering for the head is derived from the same word. Hell was never the best translations of hades, but formerly it would have been acceptable in Old English. It is not an acceptable translation of hades in modern English and has been abandoned by many of the newer translations. When the King James Version was made, the doctrine of Hell was completely developed and the translation of sheol and hades into Hell were a mistranslation. Most likely a deliberate mistranslation for in 1611 it had taken on the modern meaning of a place of torment after death.
Those who believe in Hell use the word as if both the place and the name are used repeatedly in the Bible. Their proof texts are metaphors, parables, and symbolical language as is found in the book of Revelation. If there is a place as terrible as Hell, why is it never spoken of in clear words that the common person could not misunderstand? If Hell were real, it would be strange if a doctrine as important as Hell would have been would have to depend on an interpretation of a parable or symbolical language.
[3]. NOT IN EARLY CREEDS The two earliest creeds, The Apostles Creed, traditionally ascribed to the 12 Apostles, and the Nicean Creed, 325 A. D., were both doctrinal statements saying what those that used them believed, but neither one contained the concept of Hell.
[4]. TODAY'S PREACHING - versus - FIRST CENTURY PREACHING. Heaven is taught throughout the Bible [used about 635 times in the New American Standard Bible], but there is nothing about today's Hell. Adam was warned that he would die if he ate, but not that he would go to Hell. Moses warned about death to those who did not keep the law, but he said nothing about Hell. The Bible is as silent as a tomb on it. It