Working Assumptions

We’ve mentioned before that we tend to favor annihilationism. That’s the notion that Hell/the Abyss is not eternal, and that everyone already there or going there will be annihilated at Judgment Day. Nobody roasts in Hell eternally.

But as Catacomb Resident (as Tomb Refugee) notes on Sigma Frame Blog, it’s not a doctrine. It’s just our working assumption. That’s because we cannot possibly know for sure. Heiser shared in a podcast that the statements in the Bible about Hell and the Lake of Fire are sourced from outside the canon. Jesus spoke about Hades (Hell) in terms of burning torment based on the common conceptions of His day, but it’s not found in the Old Testament in any clear statement.

Since He spoke so frequently in parables, it would be perfectly acceptable to use whatever imagery was popular at the time. We do it without giving it any thought, and there’s no reason Jesus had to waste time worrying about it. He spoke in the language of His people. John did the same in his Revelation.

At any rate, the sources on the imagery are ambivalent, suggesting that the Lake of Fire is both eternal torment and annihilation. We lean to annihilation because Psalm 82 depicts God as threatening the rebellious members of His staff with annihilation just like mortals. While the entire scene remains veiled in symbolism, it’s as close as we come to a clear statement in favor of annihilation.

When Scripture is ambiguous, it’s not a doctrine. The most it can be is a supposition, an estimate for some practical purpose. Our estimate is that the Devil and his allies on the Elohim Council, along with the Watchers, Nephilim, etc. already in the Abyss will all be annihilated on Judgment Day and the Elect will take their places in Eternity.

It makes sense of other things that are clearly stated as doctrine. We don’t put much trust in speculative theology, and we especially don’t care for western mythology injected back into the Bible.