Many today struggle with the doctrine of Hell. It is emotionally heavy. It can feel inconsistent with our understanding of a loving God. Kirk himself said this view brings him “relief.” I understand that sentiment. But a central danger of Annihilationism is that it often begins with emotional instinct rather than biblical text.
Emotional Comfort vs. Scriptural Authority
Our feelings, while real, cannot become the foundation for doctrine. Scripture must shape our understanding of God, even when it confronts our emotional expectations. The question is not, What feels merciful? But what does the Bible say?
What the Bible Actually Teaches
When Jesus speaks about final judgment, His language is consistent and sobering.
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Matthew 25:46 puts “eternal punishment” and “eternal life” in the same sentence. The same Greek word (aiōnios) describes both realities. If one is truly everlasting, the other cannot be temporary.
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Mark 9:48 says the worm “does not die” and the fire “is not quenched.” This does not describe a momentary event or simple disappearance.
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Revelation 14:11 describes torment whose smoke rises “forever and ever,” with “no rest day or night.”
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Revelation 20:10 says the devil, beast, and false prophet are tormented “day and night forever and ever.”
These passages use the vocabulary of ongoing consequence, not extinction. While the Bible sometimes uses words like “destroy” or “perish,” those terms do not always mean “cease to exist.” In Scripture, death frequently means separation from God, from life, from blessing, while the person still exists.
The Broader Biblical and Historical Context
Jesus and the apostles spoke within the framework of Second Temple Judaism, which understood divine judgment as an ongoing process. Jesus did not soften this view; He intensified it. And for 2,000 years, the historic church, across cultures and denominations, has recognized ECT as the consistent reading of Scripture. This consensus was not built by cruelty but by exegesis.
The Pastoral Dimension
Many shift toward Annihilationism because of:
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reactions to abusive “hellfire preaching,”
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a desire for a more emotionally palatable Christianity,
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or the feeling that eternal judgment makes God appear unloving.
These concerns are understandable. But we do not correct bad preaching by altering biblical doctrine. We correct it by teaching the truth with accuracy, humility, and tears.
You are allowed to struggle with the doctrine of Hell. You should grieve over it. But to claim, “The Bible does not teach eternal punishment,” goes beyond pastoral sensitivity. That becomes reinterpretation driven by emotion rather than Scripture.
A Word to Former Adventists
There is irony here. Many of us left SDA teaching precisely because we recognized how texts were redefined to support doctrines like soul sleep and annihilation. Now, a well-known Evangelical adopts the very view we once had to unlearn. SDA apologists may celebrate this, but truth is not determined by trending beliefs or celebrity endorsements.
A Word to Those Asking the Question
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If the person asking is SDA: Emphasize that even if Kirk holds Annihilationism, he still affirms salvation by grace alone, unlike the SDA’s Investigative Judgment doctrine.
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If the person asking is Evangelical: Use this as an opportunity to explain why the church historically affirmed ECT, not out of harshness, but out of fidelity to the words of Jesus Himself.
I respect Kirk Cameron as a brother in Christ, but I believe his shift is the result of emotional reasoning rather than biblical clarity. The good news is not that Hell doesn’t exist, but that Jesus saves us from a very real, very serious judgment.
A. The Greek Words Behind the Hell Passages
Understanding the Greek vocabulary removes much of the confusion surrounding Hell and final judgment. Here are the core terms and what they actually mean in biblical usage not in emotional or modern reinterpretation.
1. Aiōnios (αἰώνιος) — “Eternal / Everlasting.”
Used for both eternal life and eternal punishment.
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Matthew 25:46
“eternal (aiōnios) life”
“eternal (aiōnios) punishment”
In Greek, the word does not mean “temporary” or “age-limited.” It carries the idea of unending duration, especially when referring to God, life, or final judgment. If you make “eternal punishment” temporary, you must make “eternal life” temporary as well, because Jesus ties them together using the same adjective.
2. Gehenna (γέεννα)
Commonly translated as Hell.
This term refers to the Valley of Hinnom, an actual place outside Jerusalem associated with idolatry and judgment. By Jesus’ time, it had become a symbol of final divine judgment. When Jesus uses “Gehenna,” He is not referring to ordinary physical death or temporary destruction. For His Jewish hearers, Gehenna meant irreversible divine punishment.
Key passages:
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Matthew 5:22, 29–30
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Matthew 10:28
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Mark 9:43–48 (unquenchable fire, undying worm)
3. Apollymi (ἀπόλλυμι) — “Destroy / Perish.”
Often cited by annihilationists.
The problem: ἀπόλλυμι does not mean “cease to exist.”
It means ruin, loss, or destruction of well-being, not annihilation.
Examples:
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The “lost” (apollymi) sheep in Luke 15 obviously still exist.
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Wineskins “ruined” are not obliterated.
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Jesus says the world is “perishing,” yet still exists.
In Greek usage, the word refers to the condition of ruin, not the cessation of being.
4. Kolasis (κόλασις) — “Punishment.”
Used in Matthew 25:46. It means corrective or judicial punishment, never self-extinction. The punishment happens to a subject who exists to experience it.
5. Phrases of ongoing duration
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“The worm does not die.”
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“The fire is not quenched.”
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“no rest day or night”
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“forever and ever” (εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων)
These are Greek expressions for continuous, ongoing action, not a momentary event.
B. How the Early Church Understood Final Judgment
Long before medieval theology or “hellfire preaching,” the church fathers spoke with remarkable unity about conscious, eternal punishment.
1. Ignatius (c. AD 110)
Warned of those who “will depart into unquenchable fire.”
2. Justin Martyr (c. AD 150)
Described the wicked as experiencing “eternal punishment” and the righteous “eternal life,” reflecting Matthew 25:46.
3. Irenaeus (c. AD 180)
Affirms the wicked endure eternal separation and suffering, though he sometimes speaks about “loss” or “ruin”, not annihilation.
4. Tertullian (c. AD 200)
Explicitly teaches conscious torment for the wicked “without end.”
5. Lactantius, Basil, Chrysostom, Cyril of Jerusalem
All speak of a never-ending, conscious state of judgment.
6. Augustine (c. AD 400)
Firmly defends ECT using the parallel between “eternal life” and “eternal punishment.”
One exception: Origen suggested universal restoration, but the church officially condemned this view in later councils.
Bottom line:
For 400+ years before any medieval developments, the fathers consistently interpreted eternal punishment as ongoing, conscious, and irreversible.
C. A Biblical Critique of Annihilationism
Annihilationism seems compassionate, but it collapses when tested against Scripture’s language, context, and logic.
1. It begins with emotion, not exegesis.
Most arguments start with: “It feels wrong for God to punish forever.” But emotion cannot reinterpret clear biblical terms.
2. It redefines words unnaturally.
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“Eternal” becomes “temporary.”
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“Punishment” becomes “non-existence.”
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“No rest day or night” becomes “no rest until they are gone.”
This stretches the text beyond recognition.
3. It misunderstands biblical “death.”
Spiritual death is separation, not obliteration. The prodigal son was “dead,” yet clearly alive.
4. Jesus intensifies judgment rather than minimizing it.
His descriptions are more graphic than the Old Testament, not less.
5. Revelation uses courtroom, not crematory, imagery.
The wicked are judged as persons, not vaporized like fuel.
6. It diminishes the seriousness of sin.
Sinning against an infinite God is not a finite moral offense. Punishment corresponds to the gravity of the One offended, not the duration of the act.
D. A Pastoral Explanation for Sermons or Blogs
If you’re preaching or writing, here’s a simple, compassionate, truth-centered way to frame the doctrine:
1. Hell is not about divine cruelty. It is about divine holiness.
God takes sin seriously because He is holy and just.
2. Hell is not meant for terror; it is meant for warning.
Jesus did not preach hell to intimidate unbelievers but to call them to repentance.
3. God invites every person to avoid judgment.
Hell is real, but Jesus came so we never have to go there.
4. We must teach the truth with tears, not triumph.
A pastor weeps over hell; he does not weaponize it.
5. The greater the danger, the clearer the warning must be.
If hell were small, the warnings would be small. Because the danger is great, the warnings are urgent and loving.
Pastoral Summary
Hell is hard, but it is biblical. Its purpose is not to crush the human heart but to awaken it. The good news is not a painless judgment, but a powerful Savior.
Former Adventists Philippines
“Freed by the Gospel. Firm in the Word.”
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