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The Age of All Ages
by George Sidney Hurd
The following is an excerpt from the book The Triumph of Mercy.
“to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever (“into the age of the ages” τοῦ αἰῶνος τῶν αἰώνων), Amen.” (Eph 3:21)
The Greek phrase traditionally rendered “forever and ever” is in reality “into the ages of the ages” (εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων, eis tous aiónas ton aiónon). However, in one instance the Greek construction is very distinct. In Ephesians 3:21 it is not “the ages of the ages” but rather “the Age of the ages.” The verse should be translated as we find in the literal translations:
“to Him be the glory in the ecclesia and in Christ Jesus for all the generations of the eon of the eons! Amen!” (Concordant Literal Version)
Although traditional translations make no distinction between “the ages of the ages” and “the age of the ages,” we know that it was intentional and not just an orthographic error made by Paul, and there is a great difference between “the ages of the ages” and “the Age of the ages.” When we use the singular followed by the same word in plural in this manner, we are expressing the idea that that which is in singular form has preeminence over that which appears in plural. In every instance where we find this construction in the Bible, we understand that the first, which appears in singular form, is singular in importance, significance or eminence, compared to the rest which follow in the plural form. When we say, “King of kings,” or “Lord of lords,” we understand that it is saying that that particular King is preeminent over all other kings. The expression “Song of songs” means the most outstanding Song of all songs. The same is true with the “Holy of holies” which is usually translated “the Most Holy”:
“…The curtain will separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place (tou hagiou ton hagion).” (Ex 26:33)
“…and the veil hath made a separation for you between the holy and the Holy of holies.” (Ex 26:33 Young’s Literal Translation)
The tabernacle was divided by the veil separating “the holy” from the “Holy of holies” which is usually rendered “most holy.” We all understand this distinction, and it is surprising that the translators who were consistent in translating “King of kings,” “Lord of lords” “Song of songs” and “Holy of holies” or “most holy,” failed to distinguish between “the ages of the ages” and “the Age of the ages.” When we understand that the Age of the ages is the age which is preeminent among all others - the culmination of all ages, then the full import of Ephesians 3:21 is revealed:
“to Him be the glory in the ecclesia and in Christ Jesus for all the generations of the eon of the eons! Amen!” (Concordant Literal Version)
Or expressing the full sense of the word “generations” (genos) one could say:
“to Him be the glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all descendants of all generations, into the Age of the ages, Amen!”
The conjunction “and” (kai) is included in most translations, based upon the Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament, which further clarifies that both the Church and Christ Jesus will be revealing the glory of God to coming generations. Also, a more precise translation reveals who will be seeing the Glory of God revealed in Christ and in His Church. It will not just be the angels. The phrase “throughout all generations” indicates that it will be revealed in the Church and in Christ Jesus “to all descendants of all generations up to and including those of the final Age of ages.” The word “generations” refers to descendants or generations – not so much as to a period of time, but rather to those born or generated. Angels do not generate and therefore do not have generations. Therefore, it is saying that in the Age of ages all will see the glory of God as displayed in Christ and His Bride, the Church. The prophecies of Scripture speak of a time coming when all people of all generations will see the Glory of the Lord, and here we see that it will be revealed in Christ and in His Church, the Bride:
“The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” (Isa 40:5)
“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Hab 2:14)
“Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. 2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you. 3 The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.” (Isa 60:1-3)
Many mistakenly think that the last age before entering eternity is the millennium, which they consider as being the full extent of Christ’s reign. Afterwards, according to them, all will be judged and go to their eternal destiny, whether it be heaven or hell. Nevertheless, we see reference to several future ages and not just one:
“that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” (Eph 2:7)
Each time we see “forever and ever” in traditional translations it must be kept in mind that it is literally “into the ages of the ages,” referring to future ages and not “forever.” Eternity is not divided up into units of time such as days, years, centuries and ages, but rather it is a reality which always is and exists independently from time. It is a misconception to think of eternity as an infinite succession of ages. We do not know how many ages there will be before the final Age of ages comes to a close, but the Scriptures would not speak of the “end of the ages” (Heb 9:26 lit. sunteleia ton aionon) if everlasting meant a succession of ages without end.
Although we do not know how many future ages are included in God’s plan for the ages, we know that there is more than one future age, and that in the final age – the Age of ages, His glory will have been seen by all flesh - by all generations through the Church and through Jesus Christ (Eph 3:21), and all will have been made subject to Him, bowing the knee and confessing Him as Lord before the final Age of the ages comes to an end, because it says:
“Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power… 28 Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.” (1Cor 15:24,28, cf. Phil 2:10-11)
What is it that Christ will be doing together with His Bride in the coming ages? Tradition tells us that the kingdom of Christ ends after the millennial age. In Ephesians 2:6-7 we see that we are already seated with Him and that we will be reigning with Him, not only in the coming age but in the coming ages:
“and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” (Eph 2:6-7)
The word “show” has the idea of “exhibiting or displaying.” To whom are we going to demonstrate or exhibit the abundant grace of God if not to those who are in outer darkness in need of His grace? The nations will walk in her light (Rev 21:24; Is 60:1-3). The Father will then be glorified in the Church and in Jesus Christ to all the descendants of all generations (Eph 3:21). We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to manifest His abundant grace, producing in others the praise of the glory of His grace:
“just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love… 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved… 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth — in Him.” (Eph 1:4,6, 9,10)
What is the mystery of the ages? That He chose us in Christ from before the foundation of the world, that we might manifest the abundant riches of His grace to all generations, and that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times – the Age of ages, all shall be gathered together in Christ, both those who are in heaven and those who are on the earth. The mystery of the ages is His plan for the ultimate restoration of all, with all finally being brought together in Him and subjected to Him. Then comes the end when Christ Himself will subject Himself to the Father and God will be all in all (1Cor 15:28; Phil 2:10-11).
The ages of the ages
The expression “the ages of the ages” refers to ages which are preeminent over all past ages. Even as the Age of the ages focuses on one particular age, and we show its particularity by capitalizing the singular “Age,” “the ages of the ages” refers to a plurality of ages which are more significant than any prior ages, and for that reason, are called “the ages of the ages.” They are more significant because they commence with the Millennial reign of Christ and culminate with the greatest and final Age of the ages when, having subdued all to Himself at the end of time, He delivers up the kingdom to the Father. It is significant that in the Old Testament the expression “the ages of the ages” does not appear. It isn’t until we enter into the New Covenant that this phrase is used expressing that all future ages will stand out above all prior ages. Christ will not reign forever and ever, as some mistranslations would have us think, but rather “for the ages of the ages,” or until His enemies have been made His footstool.
“Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever (into the ages of the ages)!” (Rev 11:15)
Also we see that His reign ceases when His objective is achieved, bringing all into subjection. Hebrews 1:13 says, “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool?” We also see the limited duration of His reign in 1Corinthians 15:25-28:
“For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. 26 The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. 27 For ‘He has put all things under His feet.’ But when He says ‘all things are put under Him,’ it is evident that He who put all things under Him is excepted. 28 Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.”
Revelation 11:15 is not a contradiction of Hebrews 1:13 and 1Corinthians 15:25-28. “Forever and ever,” as we have seen, is only for “the ages of the ages” and ends at the end of the ages when all enter into God in eternity. However, the “ages of the ages” are the greatest ages of all ages, “the times of all times” because Christ will be reigning with His Bride, the Church, and all the earth will be covered with the knowledge of the glory of God as the waters cover the sea. Then we enter into eternity where God is all in all and there will no longer be need of hierarchies.
The end does not come with some in heaven and the majority in an eternal hell, but with the restoration of all, resulting in God being all in all. What a glorious end of the ages! Until God becomes all in all, the ages will continue. There will not be an eternal dualism with some in God and others eternally in opposition to Him, but rather He shall truly be all in all. Glory to His name!
The following is an excerpt from the book The Triumph of Mercy.
“to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever (“into the age of the ages” τοῦ αἰῶνος τῶν αἰώνων), Amen.” (Eph 3:21)
The Greek phrase traditionally rendered “forever and ever” is in reality “into the ages of the ages” (εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων, eis tous aiónas ton aiónon). However, in one instance the Greek construction is very distinct. In Ephesians 3:21 it is not “the ages of the ages” but rather “the Age of the ages.” The verse should be translated as we find in the literal translations:
“to Him be the glory in the ecclesia and in Christ Jesus for all the generations of the eon of the eons! Amen!” (Concordant Literal Version)
Although traditional translations make no distinction between “the ages of the ages” and “the age of the ages,” we know that it was intentional and not just an orthographic error made by Paul, and there is a great difference between “the ages of the ages” and “the Age of the ages.” When we use the singular followed by the same word in plural in this manner, we are expressing the idea that that which is in singular form has preeminence over that which appears in plural. In every instance where we find this construction in the Bible, we understand that the first, which appears in singular form, is singular in importance, significance or eminence, compared to the rest which follow in the plural form. When we say, “King of kings,” or “Lord of lords,” we understand that it is saying that that particular King is preeminent over all other kings. The expression “Song of songs” means the most outstanding Song of all songs. The same is true with the “Holy of holies” which is usually translated “the Most Holy”:
“…The curtain will separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place (tou hagiou ton hagion).” (Ex 26:33)
“…and the veil hath made a separation for you between the holy and the Holy of holies.” (Ex 26:33 Young’s Literal Translation)
The tabernacle was divided by the veil separating “the holy” from the “Holy of holies” which is usually rendered “most holy.” We all understand this distinction, and it is surprising that the translators who were consistent in translating “King of kings,” “Lord of lords” “Song of songs” and “Holy of holies” or “most holy,” failed to distinguish between “the ages of the ages” and “the Age of the ages.” When we understand that the Age of the ages is the age which is preeminent among all others - the culmination of all ages, then the full import of Ephesians 3:21 is revealed:
“to Him be the glory in the ecclesia and in Christ Jesus for all the generations of the eon of the eons! Amen!” (Concordant Literal Version)
Or expressing the full sense of the word “generations” (genos) one could say:
“to Him be the glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all descendants of all generations, into the Age of the ages, Amen!”
The conjunction “and” (kai) is included in most translations, based upon the Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament, which further clarifies that both the Church and Christ Jesus will be revealing the glory of God to coming generations. Also, a more precise translation reveals who will be seeing the Glory of God revealed in Christ and in His Church. It will not just be the angels. The phrase “throughout all generations” indicates that it will be revealed in the Church and in Christ Jesus “to all descendants of all generations up to and including those of the final Age of ages.” The word “generations” refers to descendants or generations – not so much as to a period of time, but rather to those born or generated. Angels do not generate and therefore do not have generations. Therefore, it is saying that in the Age of ages all will see the glory of God as displayed in Christ and His Bride, the Church. The prophecies of Scripture speak of a time coming when all people of all generations will see the Glory of the Lord, and here we see that it will be revealed in Christ and in His Church, the Bride:
“The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” (Isa 40:5)
“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” (Hab 2:14)
“Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. 2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you. 3 The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.” (Isa 60:1-3)
Many mistakenly think that the last age before entering eternity is the millennium, which they consider as being the full extent of Christ’s reign. Afterwards, according to them, all will be judged and go to their eternal destiny, whether it be heaven or hell. Nevertheless, we see reference to several future ages and not just one:
“that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” (Eph 2:7)
Each time we see “forever and ever” in traditional translations it must be kept in mind that it is literally “into the ages of the ages,” referring to future ages and not “forever.” Eternity is not divided up into units of time such as days, years, centuries and ages, but rather it is a reality which always is and exists independently from time. It is a misconception to think of eternity as an infinite succession of ages. We do not know how many ages there will be before the final Age of ages comes to a close, but the Scriptures would not speak of the “end of the ages” (Heb 9:26 lit. sunteleia ton aionon) if everlasting meant a succession of ages without end.
Although we do not know how many future ages are included in God’s plan for the ages, we know that there is more than one future age, and that in the final age – the Age of ages, His glory will have been seen by all flesh - by all generations through the Church and through Jesus Christ (Eph 3:21), and all will have been made subject to Him, bowing the knee and confessing Him as Lord before the final Age of the ages comes to an end, because it says:
“Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power… 28 Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.” (1Cor 15:24,28, cf. Phil 2:10-11)
What is it that Christ will be doing together with His Bride in the coming ages? Tradition tells us that the kingdom of Christ ends after the millennial age. In Ephesians 2:6-7 we see that we are already seated with Him and that we will be reigning with Him, not only in the coming age but in the coming ages:
“and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” (Eph 2:6-7)
The word “show” has the idea of “exhibiting or displaying.” To whom are we going to demonstrate or exhibit the abundant grace of God if not to those who are in outer darkness in need of His grace? The nations will walk in her light (Rev 21:24; Is 60:1-3). The Father will then be glorified in the Church and in Jesus Christ to all the descendants of all generations (Eph 3:21). We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to manifest His abundant grace, producing in others the praise of the glory of His grace:
“just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love… 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved… 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth — in Him.” (Eph 1:4,6, 9,10)
What is the mystery of the ages? That He chose us in Christ from before the foundation of the world, that we might manifest the abundant riches of His grace to all generations, and that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times – the Age of ages, all shall be gathered together in Christ, both those who are in heaven and those who are on the earth. The mystery of the ages is His plan for the ultimate restoration of all, with all finally being brought together in Him and subjected to Him. Then comes the end when Christ Himself will subject Himself to the Father and God will be all in all (1Cor 15:28; Phil 2:10-11).
The ages of the ages
The expression “the ages of the ages” refers to ages which are preeminent over all past ages. Even as the Age of the ages focuses on one particular age, and we show its particularity by capitalizing the singular “Age,” “the ages of the ages” refers to a plurality of ages which are more significant than any prior ages, and for that reason, are called “the ages of the ages.” They are more significant because they commence with the Millennial reign of Christ and culminate with the greatest and final Age of the ages when, having subdued all to Himself at the end of time, He delivers up the kingdom to the Father. It is significant that in the Old Testament the expression “the ages of the ages” does not appear. It isn’t until we enter into the New Covenant that this phrase is used expressing that all future ages will stand out above all prior ages. Christ will not reign forever and ever, as some mistranslations would have us think, but rather “for the ages of the ages,” or until His enemies have been made His footstool.
“Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever (into the ages of the ages)!” (Rev 11:15)
Also we see that His reign ceases when His objective is achieved, bringing all into subjection. Hebrews 1:13 says, “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool?” We also see the limited duration of His reign in 1Corinthians 15:25-28:
“For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. 26 The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. 27 For ‘He has put all things under His feet.’ But when He says ‘all things are put under Him,’ it is evident that He who put all things under Him is excepted. 28 Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.”
Revelation 11:15 is not a contradiction of Hebrews 1:13 and 1Corinthians 15:25-28. “Forever and ever,” as we have seen, is only for “the ages of the ages” and ends at the end of the ages when all enter into God in eternity. However, the “ages of the ages” are the greatest ages of all ages, “the times of all times” because Christ will be reigning with His Bride, the Church, and all the earth will be covered with the knowledge of the glory of God as the waters cover the sea. Then we enter into eternity where God is all in all and there will no longer be need of hierarchies.
The end does not come with some in heaven and the majority in an eternal hell, but with the restoration of all, resulting in God being all in all. What a glorious end of the ages! Until God becomes all in all, the ages will continue. There will not be an eternal dualism with some in God and others eternally in opposition to Him, but rather He shall truly be all in all. Glory to His name!
- Published on
by George Sidney Hurd
What did James Strong, the compiler of The Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, have to say about the prevalence of the belief in the final restoration of all during the first centuries of Church history?
In my previous article, The Testimony of the Fathers, as well as in the book, The Triumph of Mercy, I cited numerous prominent Church Fathers, as well as several notable authorities on Church History such as Philip Schaff, Johann Gieseler and J.W. Hanson, who all affirmed that Universalism was the prevailing doctrine concerning the final destiny of mankind during the first centuries of the history of the Church, being taught in four out of the six major theological schools of that time. Even Augustine who opposed the doctrine conceded, saying: “There are very many in our day who, though not denying the Holy Scriptures, do not believe in endless torments.” [i]
However, in spite of the informed testimony of these and many more authoritative sources, most who deny the final restoration of all refuse to concede that it was the prominent belief of that time – that in spite of the fact that these historians were not themselves Universalists.
Here I am adding to their testimony that of John McClintock and James Strong, the publisher of The Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. The following is the entry under “Universalism,” cited from their ten-volume encyclopedia, The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature, published in 1895. Again, while neither scholars were themselves Universalists, nevertheless, they here confirm what has been the unanimous consensus of nearly all Church historians.
Here they begin by mentioning the four major schools of theology that taught Universalism during the first centuries of Church history, and then they follow the thread of saints who held fast to the belief in the final restoration of all throughout history up to their day in the 19th century in spite of the fact that the emperor Justinian in the 6th century had declared eternal torment to be the only permissible belief concerning the destiny of the lost, anathemizing all who taught Universalism or Annihilationism. It is rather lengthy, but it helps one to see that Universalism was not merely some fringe deviation from Traditional Christianity as many who defend the doctrine of eternal torment would have one believe. In fact, the first original established tradition within the Church was the apocatastasis, or the final restoration of all until a Roman emperor outlawed it.
+++++++++++++++++++
John McClintock and James Strong
The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature
Universalism:
1. In The Early Centuries.
In 195 Clemens Alexandrinus, who was president of the Catechetical School at Alexandria, advocated Universalism on the ground of the remedial character of all punishment. His pupil and successor in the school, Origen Adamantius, famous alike for his learning, piety, and zeal, taught Universalism on the ground of the ever-continuing freedom of the will, the deep mental and spiritual anguish occasioned by the light and knowledge of the truth until it leads to repentance, and then the harmony of the soul with God. Origen's position, abilities, and untiring efforts for the spread of the Gospel gave him great influence with his pupils, and with the Church at large, in whose behalf he became a voluminous writer. In addition to his position and work in the SCHOOL OF ALEXANDRIA, he also had care for several years, in connection with Pamphilius, of the theological SCHOOL AT CAESAREA, one of whose distinguished pupils was the celebrated Gregory Thaumaturgus, a great admirer of his master's theories, and finally, about A.D. 235, his strong defender and ardent eulogist. Pamphilius, and Eusebius, the first Church historian, also defended Origen's doctrines from charges brought against them by the Western Church, and in answering the complaint that he denied all future punishment they quote from his writings in contradiction thereof, not only his positive assurances of future and severe punishment, but his equally positive assertion that such correction is purifying and salutary. In A.D. 364, Titus, bishop of Bostra, wrote in advocacy of Universalism, contending that, although there are torments in the abyss of hell, they are not eternal, but that their great severity will lead the wicked to repentance and so to salvation. Gregory of Nyssa, A.D. 380, also advocated Universalism on the same grounds. Contemporary with him was the justly celebrated defender of orthodoxy, Didymus the Blind, a successor of Origen in the school at Alexandria, and a zealous Universalist. Prominent among his scholars was Jerome, eminent alike for his abilities, his inconsistencies, and instability. Universalism as taught by Origen is clearly and ably set forth by Jerome in his commentaries on the epistles, and in his letters. John, bishop of Jerusalem at this period, was also an advocate of Universalism on Origen's theory.
Another contemporary, Diodorus, a teacher of great repute in the SCHOOL AT ANTIOCH, and afterwards bishop of Jerusalem, was also a Universalist, who, in opposition to the then general prevalence of allegorical interpretation, strictly adhered to the natural import of the text in his many commentaries on the Scriptures. He defended Universalism on the ground that the divine mercy far exceeds all the effects and all the desserts of sin. His pupil and successor in the school, Theodore of Mopsuestia, A.D. 420, called "the crown and climax of the school of Antioch," and by the Nestorians, whose sect he founded, "the interpreter of the Word of God," and whose writings were text-books in the SCHOOLS OF EASTERN SYRIA, was a prominent and influential Universalist.
His theory was that sin is an incidental part of the development and education of the human race; that, while some are more involved in it than others, God will overrule it to the final establishment of all in good. He is the reputed author of the liturgy used by the Nestorians, a Church which at one time equaled in its membership the combined adherents of both the Greek and Latin communions, and which has had no rival in military zeal. In the addresses and prayers of this liturgy, Universalism is distinctly avowed. Theodoret, A.D. 430, bishop of Cyprus in Syria, a pupil of Theodore of Mopsuestia, was also a Universalist, holding the doctrine on the theory advocated by the Antiochian school. For some time prior to this, certain opinions of Origen on pre-existence and on the salvation of the devil had been in dispute and pronounced heretical by a synod; but his doctrine of the universal salvation of the human race had not been involved in this condemnation.
At a local council called by the emperor Justinian at Constantinople, A.D. 544, Origen's doctrine of universal salvation was declared heretical. Nine years later another council was held by the same authority at the same place, when condemnation was pronounced on the Nestorians, although their belief in Universalism was not mentioned. It has been common to call this an ecumenical council, but without warrant (see the action of the Latin Church in refusing to recognize it or to send a legate to it). Doderlein, in his Institutes of Christian Theology, after quoting the decree of Justinian against Origen, says, ‘That was not the belief of all, and in proportion as any one was eminent in learning in Christian antiquity, the more did he cherish and defend the hope of the termination of future ‘torments.’ Drexelius, in his defense of eternal punishment, gives this testimony, ‘That God should doom the apostate angels and men at the day of retribution to eternal torments seemed so hard and incredible a doctrine to some persons that even Origen himself who was mighty in the Scriptures, and no less famous for his admirable wit and excellent learning, presumed to maintain in his book of principles that both the devils and the damned, after a certain period of years, the fire having purged or cleansed them from their pollutions, should be restored to grace. Augustine and others set forth his error and condemned him for it. But, notwithstanding their condemnation, this error has found a great many in the world who have given it a kind of civil reception. The Anti-heretics so called, dispersed this error throughout all Spain under various interpretations." Gieseler, the ecclesiastical historian, says, ‘The belief in the inalienable capacity of improvement in all rational beings and the limited duration of future punishment, was so general, even in the West, and among the opponents of Origen, that, even if it may not be said to have arisen without the influence of Origen's school, it had become entirely independent of his system.’ And Augustine bears this testimony: ‘Some - nay, very many - from human sympathy commiserate the eternal punishment of the damned and their perpetual torture without intermission, and thus do not believe in it; not, indeed, by opposing the Holy Scriptures, but by softening all the severe things according to their own feelings, and giving a milder meaning to those things which they think are said in them more terribly than truly.
Universalism almost wholly disappeared during the period known as the Dark Ages, although there are occasional glimpses of it even in the mutilated records which the papal Church has permitted to descend to us. In the 7th century, Maximus, the Greek monk and confessor taught Universalism; in the 8th, Clement of Ireland was deposed from the priesthood for teaching that when Christ descended into hell he restored all the damned; while in the 9th, John Scotus Erigena, a famous philosopher who stood at the head of the learned of the court of France, was a bold defender of Universalism. In the 11th century, the Albigenses were, according to papal authorities, Universalists; In the 12th, Raynold, abbot of St. Martin's, in France, was charged before a council with holding "that all men will eventually be saved;” In the 13th, Solomon, bishop of Bassorah, discussed the question of universal salvation, answering it in the affirmative. The Lollards in the 14th century taught Universalism in Bohemia and Austria; and at the same period a council convened by Langman, archbishop of Canterbury, gave judgment against Universalism as one of the heresies then taught in that province. In the early part of the 15th century, a sect called ‘Men of Understanding’ taught Universalism in Flanders, advocating it on the ground of the German Mystics, as did Tauler of Strasburg, and John Wessel, who, with others, have been called ‘the Reformers before the Reformation,’ whose writings Luther industriously studied and greatly admired.
2. In Modern Times.
With the Reformation, Universalism made a fresh appearance early in the 16th century, chiefly among some of the Anabaptist sects. The seventeenth article of the Augustine Confession, 1530, was expressly framed to ‘condemn the Anabaptists, who maintain that there shall be an end to the punishments of the damned and of the devils.’ Denk, Hetzer, and Stanislaus Pannonius were the most eminent defenders of Universalism at this period. Later in the century, Samuel Huber, divinity professor at Wittenberg, taught Universalism, it is alleged by Spanheim; and because, says Musheim, he would not go back to the old methods of teaching, "he was compelled to relinquish his office and go into exile.’
Early in the 17th century, Ernest Sonner, professor of philosophy at Altorf, published ‘a theological and philosophical demonstration that the endless punishment of the wicked would argue, not the justice, but the injustice, of God.’ John William Petersen, at one time court preacher at Lutin, and subsequently superintendent at Lunenberg, adopted and defended Universalism with such zeal that he was cited before the consistory, and, as he could not conscientiously renounce his convictions, was deprived of his office and forced into private life. In his retirement he wrote and published three folio volumes on Universalism, entitled Musterion Apokatastaseos Paltan, in which he mentions many who had defended that doctrine. The volumes appeared between the years 1700 and 1710. They opened a century of spirited controversy, of which Mosheim says, ‘The points of theology which had been controverted in the 17th century were destined to excite keener disputes in the 18th, such 'as the eternity of hell torments, and the final restoration of all intelligent beings to order, perfection, and happiness.’ Dietelmair, an opponent of Universalism, wrote on its history about the middle of this century. In the preface to his work he speaks of the contests which raged vehemently enough within the very bounds of the orthodox Church in the end of the last century ‘the’ beginning of the present.” Among the defenses of Universalism contained in the first volume of Petersen's work was the Everlasting Gospel, attributed to Paul Siegvolk, which was but an assumed name of George Klein-Nicolai, deposed for his Universalism as preacher of Friessdorf. He published other works in defense of Universalism, but the most rapid and lasting popularity belonged to the Everlasting Gospel, which in forty-five years passed through five editions in Germany. In 1726 John Henry Haug, professor at Strasburg, having procured the assistance of Dr. Ernest Christoph Hochman, Christian Dippel, Count De Marcey, and others, commenced the publication of the Berleburger Bibel, an entirely new translation and commentary of the Holy Scriptures. They made themselves familiar with all the writings of the Mystics, and in their great work taught and defended Universalism from the Mystical standpoint. Their work fills eight large folio volumes, the last of which was published in 1742. Strong persecution assailing them, and no printer being willing to risk his office in doing their work, they were compelled to purchase their own type and a small press. When the Church they had established was at last broken up by their enemies, the members fled to America, taking their press with them, and it was set up by Christopher Sower in Germantown, Pa. One of De Marcey's intimate friends was George De Benneville, born of French parents in London in 1703. Before he was twenty years of age he commenced preaching in France, where he was arrested and condemned to die, but was reprieved on the scaffold by Louis XV. Making his way into Germany, he there preached Universalism several years, and then came to America. In 1727 appeared Ludvig Gerhard's Complete System of the Everlasting Gospel of the Restoration of All Things, together with the Baseless Opposite Doctrine of Eternal Damnation. The author was at one time professor of theology in the University of Rostock, and his publication called forth, according to Walch, no less than fourteen volumes in reply. Jung, Stilling in the latter part of the 18th century, an able defender of Christianity against German rationalism, was an ardent and eminent Universalist. Prof. Tholuck wrote, in 1835, that this doctrine “came particularly into notice through Jung-Stilling, that eminent man who was a particular instrument in the hand of God for keeping up evangelical truth in the latter part of the former century, and at the same time a strong patron to that doctrine. ‘During the present century, Universalism has made rapid progress in Germany. Olshausen says of it that it ‘has, no doubt, a deep root in noble minds, and is the expression of a heart-felt desire for a perfect harmony of the creation.’ Dr. Dwight wrote in 1829, ‘The doctrine of the eternity of future punishment is almost universally rejected...’
In England the Protestants, in drawing up their Forty-two Articles of Religion, in 1552, condemned Universalism. Ten years later, when the convocation revised the doctrines of the Church, the number of articles was reduced to thirty-nine, omitting, among others, the one condemning Universalism. Since that time Universalism has not been a forbidden doctrine in the Church of England, but has been advocated and defended by some of the most eminent members of its communion-such men as Dr. Henry More, Sir George Stonehouse, Bp. Thomas Newton, Dr. David Hartley, William Whiston, Dr. Thomas Burnet, Revs. Frederick W. Robertson, Charles Kingsley, Stopford Brooke, and Canon Farrar, and indirectly by archbishop Tillotson. The Presbyterian Parliament of 1648, which temporarily overthrew Episcopacy, passed a law against all heresies, punishing the persistent holders of some with death, and of others with imprisonment. ‘That all men shall be saved’ was among the heresies punishable in the latter manner. This law was not long operative, for the Independents, headed by Cromwell, soon overthrew the law-makers. Gerard Willstanley published a work in advocacy of Universalism only a few days after the passage of the law, which was soon followed by similar works from his pen. William Earbury fearlessly preached Universalism. Richard Coppin was active in its advocacy, publishing largely in its exposition and defense, and was several times tried for his offence. Samuel Richardson, an eminent Baptist, also wrote strongly in its behalf. Sir Henry Vane (the younger), member of the Parliament dissolved by Cromwell, and in 1636 governor of Massachusetts, was a Universalist. Jeremy White, one of Cromwell's chaplains, preached Universalism, and published a work which has passed through several editions. Jane Lead, a Mystic, was the author of several Universalist books. Henry Brooke, a literary writer, avowed his belief in Universalism in his Fool of Quality, and in a poem on the Messiah. William Law, author of the Serious Call, declared in his Letters, ‘As for the purification of all human nature, I fully believe it, either in this world or some after ages.’ The English literary reviews of the last century contain many notices of works in defense of Universalism. In 1750 James Relly, who had been a preacher in Whitefield's connection, shocked at the doctrine of reprobation, was by meditation and study led into another scheme of redemption, some of the peculiarities of which may be said to have had their origin with him. Accepting as true the common theory that all men, having sinned in Adam, justly incurred eternal damnation, and that Christ had borne this infinite guilt and punishment in behalf of all who should be saved, Relly was moved to find, if possible, some ground of justice in such a scheme. The divine law explicitly declares that "the soul which sinneth, it shall die," and that the innocent shall not suffer for the guilty. How could a transfer of human sin and penalty to Christ be consistent with that law? How could it be reconciled with equity? The divine sovereignty, without regard to inherent justice in the plan, could not account for it for the absoluteness that could set justice aside might just as easily, and more mercifully, have gone straight to its aim by remitting instead of transferring sin and its deserts. To say that the sufferings of Christ were merely accepted as satisfaction for human deserts, only reckoned as such, by God's sovereign pleasure, was no adequate explanation, since they were thus only a fictitious, not a real, satisfaction; and, further, any sufferings whatsoever, even those of a man, would have answered just as well as an arbitrary acceptance of the coequal of God. The perfect consistency of God's procedure, its absolute harmony with justice and equity, Relly found, as he claimed, in such a real and thorough union of Christ with the human race as made their acts his, and his theirs. All men, he held, were really in Adam and sinned in him, not by a fictitious imputation, but by-actual participation; equally so are all men in the second Adam, ‘the head of every man,’ and he is as justly accountable for what they do as is the head in the natural body, accountable for the deeds of all the members united to that head. Accordingly Christ, in his corporate capacity, was truly guilty of the offence of the ‘human race, and could be, as he actually was, justly punished for it; and the race, because of this’ union, really suffered in him all the penalty which he endured, and thus fully satisfied justice. There is no more punishment, therefore, due for sin, nor any further occasion for declaring the demands of the law, except to make men feel their inability to obey, and thus compel them to an exclusive reliance on Christ the head. He has effected a complete and finished justification of the whole world. When man believes this he is freed from the sense of guilt, freed also from all doubt and fear. Until he believes it he is, whether in this world or in another, under the condemnation of unbelief and darkness, the only condemnation now possible to the human race. In illustration and defense of this theory, Relly wrote and published several books, preached zealously in London and vicinity, and gathered a congregation in the metropolis. After his death in 1778, two societies were formed from his congregation; but both have now ceased to exist, as has the society gathered by Winchester about 1789, and the Church founded by David Thom, D.D., in Liverpool in 1825. The Unitarians in England are all believers in Universalism, as are also many of the Congregationalists.
3. In America
Universalism is the result of the proclamation of a variety of theories, some of them at a very early date, all resulting in one conclusion - the final holiness of the human race. Sir Henry Vane as was said above, was a Universalist. It is not known that while in America he made any public avowal of that belief; but the presumption is that he did not stand alone. In July, 1684, Joseph Gatchell, of Marblehead, Mass., was brought before the Suffolk County Court for discoursing "that all men should be saved," and, being convicted, was sentenced ‘to the pillory and to have his tongue drawn forth and pierced with a hot iron.’ Dr. George DeBenneville, also mentioned above, came to America in 1741, expressly called of God, as he believed, to preach the Gospel in the New World. For more than fifty years he preached in various parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and the Carolinas. He was not an organizer, but simply a preacher, and quite a voluminous writer, though only a few of his productions were published. For several years he was welcomed to the pulpits of the ‘Brethren’ (Dunkers). It was no doubt at his suggestion that Siegvolk's Everlasting Gospel was translated into English, and published by Christopher Sower, printed, probably, on the identical press on which the Berleburger Bibel had been struck off. This edition was reviewed by Rev. N. Pomp, a German minister in Philadelphia. Alexander Mack, an eminent preacher among the Dunkers, replied to Pomp, defending Siegvolk's views. This work was never published, but the MS. is still preserved. There was found among Dr. De Bonneville's papers, after his death, in 1793, a Commentary on the Apocalypse, which was printed in German, at Lebanon, Pa., in 1808. There was also Universalism in the Episcopal Church. Rev. Richard Clarke, rector of St. Philip's in Charleston, S. C., from 1754 to 1759, was a pronounced advocate of it; as was Rev. John Tyler, rector of the Church in Norwich, Conn., who wrote a work in its defense, which was published by someone to whom he had loaned his MS., about 1787. Some of the Congregationalists of New England were believers in Universalism; among them Dr. Jonathan Mayhew, minister of the West Church in Boston from 1747 to 1766, who distinctly avowed his belief in it in a published Thanksgiving Sermon, Dec. 9, 1762. Dr. Charles Chauncy, minister of the First Church in Boston from 1727 to 1787, issued a pamphlet on the subject in 1782, which was reviewed by Dr. Samuel Mather. In 1784 his larger work The Salvation-of All Men was published, a second edition following in 1787. Dr. Joseph Huntington, minister in Coventry, Conn., from 1762 to 1794, left a work in favor of Universalism, entitled Calvinism Improved, which was published in 1796.” [End Article] [ii]
Conclusion
Therefore, in summary, we can see that Universalism is not a new doctrine. In fact, it was the original predominant doctrine of the early Church until entering into the Dark Ages in the fifth and sixth centuries. Even in the Dark Ages there were voices in the darkness proclaiming the pure gospel of restoration of all things, at the risk of their own ecclesiastical position and even their own lives. With the invention of the printing press, placing the Bible in the hands of the people, the reformation began and the number of individuals who broke with the tradition of eternal punishment for the majority and embraced Universalism greatly increased.
In the last few years there seems to be a restoration of this forgotten doctrine. The reformation of the sixteenth century restored the truth of Justification by faith and other doctrines of the Bible which the Church had lost sight of. In my opinion we are seeing the beginnings of a new reformation, and this time it involves the rediscovering of the truth of Universal restoration. The Church needs to awaken to this truth in order that, in the time of the manifestation of the sons of God, we might have the vision for the liberation and restoration of all of creation as prophesied (Rom 8:18-23). If we do not want to repeat the history of the Jews who, when their Messiah came, did not know the time of their visitation, we must expand our vision so as to see that salvific work of the cross does not end with us – that we are just the firstfruits, the church of the prototypes, and that the rest of mankind will be made alive in due time (James 1:18; 1Cor 15:22-23). It is time that we comprehend that we who first trusted in Christ are His workmanship, destined to be manifested to the praise of the glory of His grace in the coming ages (Eph 1:12; 2:7-10).
[i] Enchiridion, Chapter 112
[ii] John McClintock, James Strong, Enciclopedia de la Literatura, Bíblica, Teológica y Eclesiástica, 1895, Toma 10 páginas 109-133
What did James Strong, the compiler of The Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, have to say about the prevalence of the belief in the final restoration of all during the first centuries of Church history?
In my previous article, The Testimony of the Fathers, as well as in the book, The Triumph of Mercy, I cited numerous prominent Church Fathers, as well as several notable authorities on Church History such as Philip Schaff, Johann Gieseler and J.W. Hanson, who all affirmed that Universalism was the prevailing doctrine concerning the final destiny of mankind during the first centuries of the history of the Church, being taught in four out of the six major theological schools of that time. Even Augustine who opposed the doctrine conceded, saying: “There are very many in our day who, though not denying the Holy Scriptures, do not believe in endless torments.” [i]
However, in spite of the informed testimony of these and many more authoritative sources, most who deny the final restoration of all refuse to concede that it was the prominent belief of that time – that in spite of the fact that these historians were not themselves Universalists.
Here I am adding to their testimony that of John McClintock and James Strong, the publisher of The Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. The following is the entry under “Universalism,” cited from their ten-volume encyclopedia, The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature, published in 1895. Again, while neither scholars were themselves Universalists, nevertheless, they here confirm what has been the unanimous consensus of nearly all Church historians.
Here they begin by mentioning the four major schools of theology that taught Universalism during the first centuries of Church history, and then they follow the thread of saints who held fast to the belief in the final restoration of all throughout history up to their day in the 19th century in spite of the fact that the emperor Justinian in the 6th century had declared eternal torment to be the only permissible belief concerning the destiny of the lost, anathemizing all who taught Universalism or Annihilationism. It is rather lengthy, but it helps one to see that Universalism was not merely some fringe deviation from Traditional Christianity as many who defend the doctrine of eternal torment would have one believe. In fact, the first original established tradition within the Church was the apocatastasis, or the final restoration of all until a Roman emperor outlawed it.
+++++++++++++++++++
John McClintock and James Strong
The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature
Universalism:
1. In The Early Centuries.
In 195 Clemens Alexandrinus, who was president of the Catechetical School at Alexandria, advocated Universalism on the ground of the remedial character of all punishment. His pupil and successor in the school, Origen Adamantius, famous alike for his learning, piety, and zeal, taught Universalism on the ground of the ever-continuing freedom of the will, the deep mental and spiritual anguish occasioned by the light and knowledge of the truth until it leads to repentance, and then the harmony of the soul with God. Origen's position, abilities, and untiring efforts for the spread of the Gospel gave him great influence with his pupils, and with the Church at large, in whose behalf he became a voluminous writer. In addition to his position and work in the SCHOOL OF ALEXANDRIA, he also had care for several years, in connection with Pamphilius, of the theological SCHOOL AT CAESAREA, one of whose distinguished pupils was the celebrated Gregory Thaumaturgus, a great admirer of his master's theories, and finally, about A.D. 235, his strong defender and ardent eulogist. Pamphilius, and Eusebius, the first Church historian, also defended Origen's doctrines from charges brought against them by the Western Church, and in answering the complaint that he denied all future punishment they quote from his writings in contradiction thereof, not only his positive assurances of future and severe punishment, but his equally positive assertion that such correction is purifying and salutary. In A.D. 364, Titus, bishop of Bostra, wrote in advocacy of Universalism, contending that, although there are torments in the abyss of hell, they are not eternal, but that their great severity will lead the wicked to repentance and so to salvation. Gregory of Nyssa, A.D. 380, also advocated Universalism on the same grounds. Contemporary with him was the justly celebrated defender of orthodoxy, Didymus the Blind, a successor of Origen in the school at Alexandria, and a zealous Universalist. Prominent among his scholars was Jerome, eminent alike for his abilities, his inconsistencies, and instability. Universalism as taught by Origen is clearly and ably set forth by Jerome in his commentaries on the epistles, and in his letters. John, bishop of Jerusalem at this period, was also an advocate of Universalism on Origen's theory.
Another contemporary, Diodorus, a teacher of great repute in the SCHOOL AT ANTIOCH, and afterwards bishop of Jerusalem, was also a Universalist, who, in opposition to the then general prevalence of allegorical interpretation, strictly adhered to the natural import of the text in his many commentaries on the Scriptures. He defended Universalism on the ground that the divine mercy far exceeds all the effects and all the desserts of sin. His pupil and successor in the school, Theodore of Mopsuestia, A.D. 420, called "the crown and climax of the school of Antioch," and by the Nestorians, whose sect he founded, "the interpreter of the Word of God," and whose writings were text-books in the SCHOOLS OF EASTERN SYRIA, was a prominent and influential Universalist.
His theory was that sin is an incidental part of the development and education of the human race; that, while some are more involved in it than others, God will overrule it to the final establishment of all in good. He is the reputed author of the liturgy used by the Nestorians, a Church which at one time equaled in its membership the combined adherents of both the Greek and Latin communions, and which has had no rival in military zeal. In the addresses and prayers of this liturgy, Universalism is distinctly avowed. Theodoret, A.D. 430, bishop of Cyprus in Syria, a pupil of Theodore of Mopsuestia, was also a Universalist, holding the doctrine on the theory advocated by the Antiochian school. For some time prior to this, certain opinions of Origen on pre-existence and on the salvation of the devil had been in dispute and pronounced heretical by a synod; but his doctrine of the universal salvation of the human race had not been involved in this condemnation.
At a local council called by the emperor Justinian at Constantinople, A.D. 544, Origen's doctrine of universal salvation was declared heretical. Nine years later another council was held by the same authority at the same place, when condemnation was pronounced on the Nestorians, although their belief in Universalism was not mentioned. It has been common to call this an ecumenical council, but without warrant (see the action of the Latin Church in refusing to recognize it or to send a legate to it). Doderlein, in his Institutes of Christian Theology, after quoting the decree of Justinian against Origen, says, ‘That was not the belief of all, and in proportion as any one was eminent in learning in Christian antiquity, the more did he cherish and defend the hope of the termination of future ‘torments.’ Drexelius, in his defense of eternal punishment, gives this testimony, ‘That God should doom the apostate angels and men at the day of retribution to eternal torments seemed so hard and incredible a doctrine to some persons that even Origen himself who was mighty in the Scriptures, and no less famous for his admirable wit and excellent learning, presumed to maintain in his book of principles that both the devils and the damned, after a certain period of years, the fire having purged or cleansed them from their pollutions, should be restored to grace. Augustine and others set forth his error and condemned him for it. But, notwithstanding their condemnation, this error has found a great many in the world who have given it a kind of civil reception. The Anti-heretics so called, dispersed this error throughout all Spain under various interpretations." Gieseler, the ecclesiastical historian, says, ‘The belief in the inalienable capacity of improvement in all rational beings and the limited duration of future punishment, was so general, even in the West, and among the opponents of Origen, that, even if it may not be said to have arisen without the influence of Origen's school, it had become entirely independent of his system.’ And Augustine bears this testimony: ‘Some - nay, very many - from human sympathy commiserate the eternal punishment of the damned and their perpetual torture without intermission, and thus do not believe in it; not, indeed, by opposing the Holy Scriptures, but by softening all the severe things according to their own feelings, and giving a milder meaning to those things which they think are said in them more terribly than truly.
Universalism almost wholly disappeared during the period known as the Dark Ages, although there are occasional glimpses of it even in the mutilated records which the papal Church has permitted to descend to us. In the 7th century, Maximus, the Greek monk and confessor taught Universalism; in the 8th, Clement of Ireland was deposed from the priesthood for teaching that when Christ descended into hell he restored all the damned; while in the 9th, John Scotus Erigena, a famous philosopher who stood at the head of the learned of the court of France, was a bold defender of Universalism. In the 11th century, the Albigenses were, according to papal authorities, Universalists; In the 12th, Raynold, abbot of St. Martin's, in France, was charged before a council with holding "that all men will eventually be saved;” In the 13th, Solomon, bishop of Bassorah, discussed the question of universal salvation, answering it in the affirmative. The Lollards in the 14th century taught Universalism in Bohemia and Austria; and at the same period a council convened by Langman, archbishop of Canterbury, gave judgment against Universalism as one of the heresies then taught in that province. In the early part of the 15th century, a sect called ‘Men of Understanding’ taught Universalism in Flanders, advocating it on the ground of the German Mystics, as did Tauler of Strasburg, and John Wessel, who, with others, have been called ‘the Reformers before the Reformation,’ whose writings Luther industriously studied and greatly admired.
2. In Modern Times.
With the Reformation, Universalism made a fresh appearance early in the 16th century, chiefly among some of the Anabaptist sects. The seventeenth article of the Augustine Confession, 1530, was expressly framed to ‘condemn the Anabaptists, who maintain that there shall be an end to the punishments of the damned and of the devils.’ Denk, Hetzer, and Stanislaus Pannonius were the most eminent defenders of Universalism at this period. Later in the century, Samuel Huber, divinity professor at Wittenberg, taught Universalism, it is alleged by Spanheim; and because, says Musheim, he would not go back to the old methods of teaching, "he was compelled to relinquish his office and go into exile.’
Early in the 17th century, Ernest Sonner, professor of philosophy at Altorf, published ‘a theological and philosophical demonstration that the endless punishment of the wicked would argue, not the justice, but the injustice, of God.’ John William Petersen, at one time court preacher at Lutin, and subsequently superintendent at Lunenberg, adopted and defended Universalism with such zeal that he was cited before the consistory, and, as he could not conscientiously renounce his convictions, was deprived of his office and forced into private life. In his retirement he wrote and published three folio volumes on Universalism, entitled Musterion Apokatastaseos Paltan, in which he mentions many who had defended that doctrine. The volumes appeared between the years 1700 and 1710. They opened a century of spirited controversy, of which Mosheim says, ‘The points of theology which had been controverted in the 17th century were destined to excite keener disputes in the 18th, such 'as the eternity of hell torments, and the final restoration of all intelligent beings to order, perfection, and happiness.’ Dietelmair, an opponent of Universalism, wrote on its history about the middle of this century. In the preface to his work he speaks of the contests which raged vehemently enough within the very bounds of the orthodox Church in the end of the last century ‘the’ beginning of the present.” Among the defenses of Universalism contained in the first volume of Petersen's work was the Everlasting Gospel, attributed to Paul Siegvolk, which was but an assumed name of George Klein-Nicolai, deposed for his Universalism as preacher of Friessdorf. He published other works in defense of Universalism, but the most rapid and lasting popularity belonged to the Everlasting Gospel, which in forty-five years passed through five editions in Germany. In 1726 John Henry Haug, professor at Strasburg, having procured the assistance of Dr. Ernest Christoph Hochman, Christian Dippel, Count De Marcey, and others, commenced the publication of the Berleburger Bibel, an entirely new translation and commentary of the Holy Scriptures. They made themselves familiar with all the writings of the Mystics, and in their great work taught and defended Universalism from the Mystical standpoint. Their work fills eight large folio volumes, the last of which was published in 1742. Strong persecution assailing them, and no printer being willing to risk his office in doing their work, they were compelled to purchase their own type and a small press. When the Church they had established was at last broken up by their enemies, the members fled to America, taking their press with them, and it was set up by Christopher Sower in Germantown, Pa. One of De Marcey's intimate friends was George De Benneville, born of French parents in London in 1703. Before he was twenty years of age he commenced preaching in France, where he was arrested and condemned to die, but was reprieved on the scaffold by Louis XV. Making his way into Germany, he there preached Universalism several years, and then came to America. In 1727 appeared Ludvig Gerhard's Complete System of the Everlasting Gospel of the Restoration of All Things, together with the Baseless Opposite Doctrine of Eternal Damnation. The author was at one time professor of theology in the University of Rostock, and his publication called forth, according to Walch, no less than fourteen volumes in reply. Jung, Stilling in the latter part of the 18th century, an able defender of Christianity against German rationalism, was an ardent and eminent Universalist. Prof. Tholuck wrote, in 1835, that this doctrine “came particularly into notice through Jung-Stilling, that eminent man who was a particular instrument in the hand of God for keeping up evangelical truth in the latter part of the former century, and at the same time a strong patron to that doctrine. ‘During the present century, Universalism has made rapid progress in Germany. Olshausen says of it that it ‘has, no doubt, a deep root in noble minds, and is the expression of a heart-felt desire for a perfect harmony of the creation.’ Dr. Dwight wrote in 1829, ‘The doctrine of the eternity of future punishment is almost universally rejected...’
In England the Protestants, in drawing up their Forty-two Articles of Religion, in 1552, condemned Universalism. Ten years later, when the convocation revised the doctrines of the Church, the number of articles was reduced to thirty-nine, omitting, among others, the one condemning Universalism. Since that time Universalism has not been a forbidden doctrine in the Church of England, but has been advocated and defended by some of the most eminent members of its communion-such men as Dr. Henry More, Sir George Stonehouse, Bp. Thomas Newton, Dr. David Hartley, William Whiston, Dr. Thomas Burnet, Revs. Frederick W. Robertson, Charles Kingsley, Stopford Brooke, and Canon Farrar, and indirectly by archbishop Tillotson. The Presbyterian Parliament of 1648, which temporarily overthrew Episcopacy, passed a law against all heresies, punishing the persistent holders of some with death, and of others with imprisonment. ‘That all men shall be saved’ was among the heresies punishable in the latter manner. This law was not long operative, for the Independents, headed by Cromwell, soon overthrew the law-makers. Gerard Willstanley published a work in advocacy of Universalism only a few days after the passage of the law, which was soon followed by similar works from his pen. William Earbury fearlessly preached Universalism. Richard Coppin was active in its advocacy, publishing largely in its exposition and defense, and was several times tried for his offence. Samuel Richardson, an eminent Baptist, also wrote strongly in its behalf. Sir Henry Vane (the younger), member of the Parliament dissolved by Cromwell, and in 1636 governor of Massachusetts, was a Universalist. Jeremy White, one of Cromwell's chaplains, preached Universalism, and published a work which has passed through several editions. Jane Lead, a Mystic, was the author of several Universalist books. Henry Brooke, a literary writer, avowed his belief in Universalism in his Fool of Quality, and in a poem on the Messiah. William Law, author of the Serious Call, declared in his Letters, ‘As for the purification of all human nature, I fully believe it, either in this world or some after ages.’ The English literary reviews of the last century contain many notices of works in defense of Universalism. In 1750 James Relly, who had been a preacher in Whitefield's connection, shocked at the doctrine of reprobation, was by meditation and study led into another scheme of redemption, some of the peculiarities of which may be said to have had their origin with him. Accepting as true the common theory that all men, having sinned in Adam, justly incurred eternal damnation, and that Christ had borne this infinite guilt and punishment in behalf of all who should be saved, Relly was moved to find, if possible, some ground of justice in such a scheme. The divine law explicitly declares that "the soul which sinneth, it shall die," and that the innocent shall not suffer for the guilty. How could a transfer of human sin and penalty to Christ be consistent with that law? How could it be reconciled with equity? The divine sovereignty, without regard to inherent justice in the plan, could not account for it for the absoluteness that could set justice aside might just as easily, and more mercifully, have gone straight to its aim by remitting instead of transferring sin and its deserts. To say that the sufferings of Christ were merely accepted as satisfaction for human deserts, only reckoned as such, by God's sovereign pleasure, was no adequate explanation, since they were thus only a fictitious, not a real, satisfaction; and, further, any sufferings whatsoever, even those of a man, would have answered just as well as an arbitrary acceptance of the coequal of God. The perfect consistency of God's procedure, its absolute harmony with justice and equity, Relly found, as he claimed, in such a real and thorough union of Christ with the human race as made their acts his, and his theirs. All men, he held, were really in Adam and sinned in him, not by a fictitious imputation, but by-actual participation; equally so are all men in the second Adam, ‘the head of every man,’ and he is as justly accountable for what they do as is the head in the natural body, accountable for the deeds of all the members united to that head. Accordingly Christ, in his corporate capacity, was truly guilty of the offence of the ‘human race, and could be, as he actually was, justly punished for it; and the race, because of this’ union, really suffered in him all the penalty which he endured, and thus fully satisfied justice. There is no more punishment, therefore, due for sin, nor any further occasion for declaring the demands of the law, except to make men feel their inability to obey, and thus compel them to an exclusive reliance on Christ the head. He has effected a complete and finished justification of the whole world. When man believes this he is freed from the sense of guilt, freed also from all doubt and fear. Until he believes it he is, whether in this world or in another, under the condemnation of unbelief and darkness, the only condemnation now possible to the human race. In illustration and defense of this theory, Relly wrote and published several books, preached zealously in London and vicinity, and gathered a congregation in the metropolis. After his death in 1778, two societies were formed from his congregation; but both have now ceased to exist, as has the society gathered by Winchester about 1789, and the Church founded by David Thom, D.D., in Liverpool in 1825. The Unitarians in England are all believers in Universalism, as are also many of the Congregationalists.
3. In America
Universalism is the result of the proclamation of a variety of theories, some of them at a very early date, all resulting in one conclusion - the final holiness of the human race. Sir Henry Vane as was said above, was a Universalist. It is not known that while in America he made any public avowal of that belief; but the presumption is that he did not stand alone. In July, 1684, Joseph Gatchell, of Marblehead, Mass., was brought before the Suffolk County Court for discoursing "that all men should be saved," and, being convicted, was sentenced ‘to the pillory and to have his tongue drawn forth and pierced with a hot iron.’ Dr. George DeBenneville, also mentioned above, came to America in 1741, expressly called of God, as he believed, to preach the Gospel in the New World. For more than fifty years he preached in various parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and the Carolinas. He was not an organizer, but simply a preacher, and quite a voluminous writer, though only a few of his productions were published. For several years he was welcomed to the pulpits of the ‘Brethren’ (Dunkers). It was no doubt at his suggestion that Siegvolk's Everlasting Gospel was translated into English, and published by Christopher Sower, printed, probably, on the identical press on which the Berleburger Bibel had been struck off. This edition was reviewed by Rev. N. Pomp, a German minister in Philadelphia. Alexander Mack, an eminent preacher among the Dunkers, replied to Pomp, defending Siegvolk's views. This work was never published, but the MS. is still preserved. There was found among Dr. De Bonneville's papers, after his death, in 1793, a Commentary on the Apocalypse, which was printed in German, at Lebanon, Pa., in 1808. There was also Universalism in the Episcopal Church. Rev. Richard Clarke, rector of St. Philip's in Charleston, S. C., from 1754 to 1759, was a pronounced advocate of it; as was Rev. John Tyler, rector of the Church in Norwich, Conn., who wrote a work in its defense, which was published by someone to whom he had loaned his MS., about 1787. Some of the Congregationalists of New England were believers in Universalism; among them Dr. Jonathan Mayhew, minister of the West Church in Boston from 1747 to 1766, who distinctly avowed his belief in it in a published Thanksgiving Sermon, Dec. 9, 1762. Dr. Charles Chauncy, minister of the First Church in Boston from 1727 to 1787, issued a pamphlet on the subject in 1782, which was reviewed by Dr. Samuel Mather. In 1784 his larger work The Salvation-of All Men was published, a second edition following in 1787. Dr. Joseph Huntington, minister in Coventry, Conn., from 1762 to 1794, left a work in favor of Universalism, entitled Calvinism Improved, which was published in 1796.” [End Article] [ii]
Conclusion
Therefore, in summary, we can see that Universalism is not a new doctrine. In fact, it was the original predominant doctrine of the early Church until entering into the Dark Ages in the fifth and sixth centuries. Even in the Dark Ages there were voices in the darkness proclaiming the pure gospel of restoration of all things, at the risk of their own ecclesiastical position and even their own lives. With the invention of the printing press, placing the Bible in the hands of the people, the reformation began and the number of individuals who broke with the tradition of eternal punishment for the majority and embraced Universalism greatly increased.
In the last few years there seems to be a restoration of this forgotten doctrine. The reformation of the sixteenth century restored the truth of Justification by faith and other doctrines of the Bible which the Church had lost sight of. In my opinion we are seeing the beginnings of a new reformation, and this time it involves the rediscovering of the truth of Universal restoration. The Church needs to awaken to this truth in order that, in the time of the manifestation of the sons of God, we might have the vision for the liberation and restoration of all of creation as prophesied (Rom 8:18-23). If we do not want to repeat the history of the Jews who, when their Messiah came, did not know the time of their visitation, we must expand our vision so as to see that salvific work of the cross does not end with us – that we are just the firstfruits, the church of the prototypes, and that the rest of mankind will be made alive in due time (James 1:18; 1Cor 15:22-23). It is time that we comprehend that we who first trusted in Christ are His workmanship, destined to be manifested to the praise of the glory of His grace in the coming ages (Eph 1:12; 2:7-10).
[i] Enchiridion, Chapter 112
[ii] John McClintock, James Strong, Enciclopedia de la Literatura, Bíblica, Teológica y Eclesiástica, 1895, Toma 10 páginas 109-133
- Published on
by George Sidney Hurd
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“What meaneth this?” This was the question asked by those who heard and saw what was taking place on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended upon the hundred and twenty disciples who were in one accord in the upper room, awaiting the promise of the Father. What occurred provoking this question from the multitudes? Acts 2 describes what took place:
“And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. 5 Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the crowd came together, and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 They were amazed and astonished, saying, "Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 ‘And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born? 9 ‘Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs — we hear them in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God.’ 12 And they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’” (Acts 2:2-12 NASU).
For them, just as with any other generation that has witnessed a visitation of God upon His people, they were bewildered, amazed and marveled saying: “What does this mean?” For them it was something new that they had never seen or experienced before, nor had they read about anything similar in the Bible. It was something totally new.
In these last days, once more we are seeing manifestations of the presence of God that are new to us; the majority of mankind have lived their entire lives without having witnessed the things which take place in a visitation from God. What bewilders people more than anything else are the effects that the presence of God has on the bodies of those who are being touched by the Spirit of God; things like falling prostrate, weeping, laughing, trembling and becoming drunk in the Spirit.
The Bible speaks of the “latter rain” of the Spirit (Zec 10:1). It speaks of the “latter glory” (Hagai 2:9) which will become manifest in such a way that “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea” (Hab 2:14). It speaks of an outpouring of the Spirit such as has never been seen before:
“And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. 29 And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. 30 "And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood and fire and pillars of smoke.” (Joel 2:28-30)
Many who have believed in these promises and desired to see and experience this great visitation of God are in danger of not entering into it, as was the case with Jews in the time of Christ, as well as many others in subsequent visitations.
Some don’t enter in because they don’t have a true hunger for God. They are like the mockers in Acts 2:13 that observed those who were affected by the presence of God and said: “They’ve had too much wine.” Others don’t enter in because it didn’t begin with them. Many of the religious leaders among the Jews of Jesus’ time fell into this category. When God visits His people “the proud He knows from afar” (Psa 138:6). The Lord says: “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones” (Isa 57:15).
Still others fail to enter in because the Holy Spirit doesn’t move within the limitations they have set. They have set mental barriers which they will not allow the Holy Spirit to penetrate. When the Spirit moves as He wills and not as they will, they reject the move of God, calling it carnal emotionalism, or worse yet they attribute it to demons, just as the Pharisees did with Jesus (Matt 12:24). The fact that there are often evidences of carnal exhibitionism or manifestations of demons does not negate the reality of the visitation. When the Holy Spirit was upon Jesus and the Apostles there were also manifestations of demons, but in every instance the presence of the Holy Spirit set the captives free.
Many think that it isn’t of God if they feel frightened by it. However, we see in the Bible that when God appeared in the Bible, He often had to say to them “fear not.” When He appeared on Sinai it says that “they trembled and stood afar off. Then they said to Moses, "You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die” (Ex 20:18-19).
The manifestations we are observing in this present visitation are not new. In every true revival throughout history some or all these manifestations have been present. We all accept those revivals as genuine because of the transformation which resulted in individual, churches, cities and entire nations. All the leaders in those revivals, while recognizing and correcting abuses and carnal excess, defended the manifestations, even in the face of great opposition. The following testimonies of manifestations in revivals throughout history a just a few examples.
TESTIMONIES OF REVIVALS THROUGHOUT HISTORY
18th Century Revivals
“Many have experienced an increase in their religious affections way beyond anything they had previously experienced; there have been instances where people remained prostrate in a sort of trance, at times continuing twenty-four hours without moving, and with their senses deactivated while they were in ecstasy, being taken to heaven and seeing visions of wonderous and delightful things. It was common to see people shouting, fainting, convulsing and other similar manifestations, at times in anguish and other times with great admiration and joy. Here it wasn’t the custom to have meetings which lasted all night, nor was it common to continue late into the night; but often that is what took place; some were so affected and their bodies so overwhelmed, that they couldn’t go home, but were obliged to remain where they were all night.” (The Great Awakening, p.550)
“Many of those I personally know have in our day experienced tremendous and extraordinary raptures. But in the most sublime raptures I have had knowledge of, where the emotions of admiration, love and joy, have been most highly elevated, the following things have together been evident: Often remaining in meetings for long periods of time, contemplating the glory of the divine perfections y the excellencies of Christ, to such a degree that the soul continues as it were perfectly caught up and surrounded in light and love, a sweet and inexpressible consolation and rest and joy of soul, at times for five or six hours without interruption. Extraordinary revelations of divine things, and the religious affections were so often accompanied with tremendous effects upon the body… The person would by deprived of all ability to remain standing or speak…sometimes the soul has been so enraptured with a sort of almighty joy, that the person couldn’t keep from leaping with all their strength, with great joy and rejoicing.” (Thoughts concerning the Present Revival by Jonathan Edwards)
“Many of the youth and children appeared to be overwhelmed by a revelation of the majesty and glory of divine things…while many more at the same time were overcome with anguish over their sinful miserable condition, with the result that the whole meeting hall was completely full of shouts, faintings and similar things…many were so affected that they remained prostrated for hours.” (The Great Awakening, p.546)
19th Century Revivals
The Kentucky Cane Ridge Revival in 1801 – “The sound was like the roaring of Niagara Falls. The vast sea of humanity appeared to be agitated as in a storm… Some were singing, others praying, others crying out asking for mercy with the most pitiful cries, while others shouted loudly. Observing the scene before me, a very strange sensation such as I have never felt came over me. My heart began to beat fiercely, my knees and lips began to tremble and I felt that I wasn’t going to be able to remain standing. A strange and supernatural power went over the entire collective mind of the multitudes gathered there. In a moment I saw at least five-hundred slain in an instant as if a line of a thousand cannons had opened fire on them, followed by screams and shouts that rent the very heavens…” (James B. Finley)
Peter Cartwright, Tent Evangelist – “No matter if they were saints or sinners, they were moved by a song or anointed sermon and overcome by a convulsive trembling in their whole body, something that they couldn’t by any means avoid, and the more they resisted, the more they shook… As soon as one began to shake one could see how their elegant hats, caps and hair pins when flying, and the shaking of the head would be so strong and rapid that their hair sounded much like the whip of a carriage conductor.” (Cartwright, Autobiography by Peter Cartwright, pp.17,18)
Charles Finney – “I hadn’t spoken on the subject for more than fifteen minutes when suddenly an astounding solemnity seemed to descend upon them; the congregation began to fall from their seats in every direction and cried out for mercy. If I had had a sword in each hand, I wouldn’t have been able to cut them down as rapidly as they fell. Nearly the whole congregation was either on their knees or prostrate.” (Revival, por Winkle Pratney, p.24)
1870 Holiness Conferences in Sacramento, Santa Clara andy San Francisco – John Inskip the president of the National Holiness Association reported that he saw many prominent leaders of the California Conference “slain to the ground by the power of God and lay prostrate for hours full of glory.” (A Survey of 20th Century Revival Movements in North America, p.21)
1889 Revival Meeting of Mary Woodworth Etter – “The power of God was upon the entire congregation and all around the city of Oakland. The Holy Spirit fell upon the people while we preached. They would remain frozen as if facing death. Many of the most educated and best dressed men fell backwards in their seats with their hands raised to God, remaining under the power of God Almighty. Men and women everywhere fell like trees in a great storm. Some had visions of God. Almost all of them came out of their visions shouting praises to God.” (A Survey of 20th Century Revival Movements in North America, p.24)
20th Century Revivals
The Welch Revival, 1904 – “Two women were filled with the Holy Spirit and unable to contain themselves, began to shout loudly. Everyone gathered around Evan Roberts, who smiled as if to reassure them, although he himself was overcome with wonder. People began to shout: “No more Jesus, or I will die! Some cried out for mercy, others wept, sang or praised God. All this, together with many fainting or falling prostrate on the floor under the agony of conviction was, as the historian Eifion Roberts said, ‘as incredible as without precedent.’” (A Survey of 20th Century Revival Movements in North America, p.35)
The Azuza Street Revival, 1906 – “The meetings were nearly continuous. Thirsty souls found themselves under the power of God in almost every moment, day or night… The presence of God became more than wonderful. In this old building with bare floors and low ceiling, God tore strong men and women apart and reformed them for His glory. It was a marvelous reconstruction process. Pride and self-imposition, self-importance and self-esteem could not survive there.” (A Survey of 20th Century Revival Movements in North America, p.56)
Primative Pentecostal Revival: Meeting with Mary Woodworth Etter – “In every service for nearly three months, the power that was so common in the days of Finney, Johnathan Edwards, etc., that knocked people down, has been manifested… Many have seen balls of fire and lights in and around the tent… Jesus has appeared to many in the meetings and many on different occasions saw a great multitude of angels right above the audience.” (Woodworth Etter, p.168)
Campmeeting, 1913 – “Thousands have gathered from all over the state, some have come from other countries and we believe that it is the biggest meeting in these past days. The president, brother Scout, said that two hundred ministers were on the platform, seated together in communion and brotherly love. The Lord was present demonstrating His approval of the Word, with powerful signs and miracles, especially with healings and baptisms in the Holy Spirit and fire. The prostrating power was manifested and many were laid prostrate with power.” (Woodworth Etter, p.250)
Evangelist Dr. Charles Price, 1920 – “The power fell. Hundreds were saved and hundreds healed. The first person I prayed for for their physical healing fell under the power of God. Y was astonished. I prayed for the second and the same thing happened. I trembled in the presence of God but both of them, getting up and proclaiming that they had been healed, gave me strength and I continued praying. Afterwards, dozens and dozens were slain under the power of God at the same time. The multitudes came in such great numbers that we had to rent a bigger building.” (The Story of my Life, Charles S. Price, p.29)
The Latter Rain Movement, 1948 – “At the close of the ‘40s it seemed that the wind of the Spirit of God was blowing with a greater force. God was moving in revival power. It began through the minister Reverend Hawtin and the Biblical Institute Sharon in North Battleford, Saskatchewan. There was such an infusion of divine power in healings, miracles and speaking gifts that it drew much attention. Thousands congregated from every part of the continent and around the whole world to the Camp meeting Conventions.”
These are just a few examples demonstrating how God moves with supernatural manifestations in times of Revival. For a concise description of many similar moves of God during the past several centuries I recommend the website, Beautiful Feet.
THE TESTIMONY OF SCRIPTURE
God tells us in His Word that in the last days He is going to do new things that He hasn’t done in the past: “Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isa 43:18,19). We need to be prepared and open to receive new things from the Lord in these last days. If the Apostles and the hundred and twenty had not been willing to receive new things from the Lord they wouldn’t have accepted speaking in tongues, since it was something new that God hadn’t done before. For something to be of God it isn’t necessary that there should be examples in the Bible because God is free to do new things. We only know that He will not do anything new which contradicts His character as it is revealed to us in His Word. Nevertheless, we see indications in the Scriptures that all the manifestations we are seeing in our day were characteristic of distinct manifestations in biblical times.
Falling
The most common phenomenon that we are seeing in the present revival is people falling prostrate under God’s power. His presence overcomes our physical strength, often leaving us weak and unable to walk without assistance or much effort. Some have visions, hear His voice, feel His anointing or simply feel a joy and deep peace as they rest under His influence.
Examples in Scripture:
Revelation 1:17 “And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, "Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.” When John saw Jesus Christ glorified in vision, he lost all strength and fell as a dead man at His feet.
John 18:6 “Now when He said to them, "I am He," they drew back and fell to the ground.” When Christ said “I AM” the company of soldiers who came to arrest Him fell to the ground. Often even the unrepentant fall as slain in the manifest presence of the great I AM.
Daniel 10:8-9 “Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, and no strength remained in me; for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength. Yet I heard the sound of his words; and while I heard the sound of his words I was in a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground.” When Daniel had this vision, his companions were frightened and ran away. He lost the ability to remain standing and fell under the weight of glory with his face to the ground.
Trembling
Also, people who are touched by God often begin to tremble with varying intensity. For some only their mouth or hands tremble, while others have strong contortions and convulsions. Whenever, the spiritual voltage is increased, things begin to happen with our fragile bodies. This manifestation often indicates “spiritual surgery” o that one is receiving a fresh anointing.
Examples in Scripture:
Jeremiah 23:9 “My heart within me is broken because of the prophets; All my bones shake. I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine has overcome, because of the Lord, and because of His holy words.
Habakkuk 3:16 “When I heard, my body trembled; my lips quivered at the voice; Rottenness entered my bones; and I trembled in myself...”
Psalm 99:1 “The Lord reigns! The nations tremble...”
Drunk in the Spirit
In Ephesians 5:18 it says: “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit.” Being filled with the Spirit can produce an effect similar to being drunk on wine. The person feels the presence of God so strongly that his normal abilities to walk, think and speak are affected. In contrast to wine, being drunk in the Holy Spirit never produces the sins of the flesh. To the contrary, it produces greater holiness and passion for Jesus.
Examples in Scripture:
Jeremiah 23:9 Jeremiah said: “...I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine has overcome, because of the Lord, and because of His holy words.”
Zachariah 10:7 With reference to the “latter rain” (v.1) Zechariah said: “Those of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as if with wine. Yes, their children shall see it and be glad; Their heart shall rejoice in the Lord.”
Acts 2:13 “Others mocking said, ‘They are full of new wine.’” The fact that the mockers said that they were drunk when they were full of the Holy Spirit implies that they had the appearance of being drunk.
Laughter
Laughter experienced as a manifestation of the presence of God is a laughter resulting from joy unspeakable and full of glory. Psalm 16:11 says: “In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Fullness of joy is expressed in laughter. God gives His people joy and laughter to deliver us from stress, dead religion, fatigue, legalism and dead formalism. The anointing brings “the oil of joy for mourning and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” (Isa 61:3)
Examples in Scripture:
Psalm 126:1-2 “When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing.”
Isaias 51:11 “So the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness; Sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
Proverbs 17:22 “A merry heart does good, like medicine.”
Dancing, Leaping and Running
At times the joy unspeakable and full of glory produced by the Holy Spirit is so glorious that it produces spontaneous dancing. Others, overwhelmed with joy leap or run to give expression to what they are experiencing.
Examples in Scripture:
2Samuel 6:14 “Then David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod.”
Jeremiah 31:4 “You shall again be adorned with your tambourines, and shall go forth in the dances of those who rejoice.”
Malachi 4:2 “But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall.”
Weeping
Often when someone is touched by the Lord it manifests with weeping. It can vary in intensity from a few tears to intense weeping with sobbing. It often indicates that one is being emotionally healed or freed from bondages. At times a season of weeping is followed by great joy and spiritual renewal.
Examples in Scripture:
Nehemiah 8:9 “all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law.” The revelation of the Word brought deep emotions of repentance and joy.
2Chronicles 34:27 “because your heart was tender, and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and against its inhabitants, and you humbled yourself before Me, and you tore your clothes and wept before Me, I also have heard you," says the Lord.”
Inability to Speak
At times one can become so effected under the power of God that they are unable to utter words. When their tongue is finally loosed and they are able to speak, they often prophesy.
Examples in Scripture:
Daniel 10:15-16 “When he had spoken such words to me, I turned my face toward the ground and became speechless. 16 And suddenly, one having the likeness of the sons of men touched my lips; then I opened my mouth and spoke.”
Ezekiel 3:26-27 “I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth, so that you shall be mute and not be one to rebuke them, for they are a rebellious house. 27 But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to them, 'Thus says the Lord God.'”
Visions, Dreams and Prophetic Revelations
A characteristic of this visitation is that the presence of God is accompanied with revelations from God en visions, dreams and prophetic revelations. This is a fulfillment of the prophesy of Joel 2:28: “And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.”
Examples in Scripture:
Numbers 11:29 When the Holy Spirit fell upon some of the elders of Israel and they began to prophesy, Joshua complained to Moses. Moses responded saying: “Are you zealous for my sake? Oh, that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!”
1Samuel 19:20 “the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied. Here we see that even the messengers of Saul who were in rebellion against God couldn’t avoid prophesying when the Spirit came upon them. Afterwards the same thing happened to Saul in verse 24 when he came to arrest David.
Demonic Manifestations
During the ministry of Jesus upon the earth and afterwards in the book of Acts, there were many manifestations of demons (Matt 9:32-34; Mark 1:23-26; 5:2-11; 9:14-29; Luke 4:33-37; 6:17-19; Acts 5:16; 8:6-8; 16:16-18; 19:11-12). Wherever the Holy Spirit is manifesting with power, the demons that have bound the people are exposed and there are demonic manifestations. Revivals are a time of deliverance for the captives.
Every believer is seated with Christ in heavenly places and for that reason we have authority over all the power of the enemy. For that reason, in the Great Commission Jesus said that those who believe will cast out demons (Mark 16:17).
Testing the Spirits
It is true that our adversary is an imitator, and he can imitate the manifestations of the Holy Spirit, just as Pharoah’s magicians imitated the signs God performed through Moses. Also, there are always those who will try to produce the manifestations of the Spirit in the flesh. The enemy will do everything in his power to shut down the ministry of the Spirit, and the way he often does so is by getting us to resist the true manifestations of the Spirit for fear of the false.
Some would rather be “safe and dry” than take the risk and get into the river of God, without realizing that, by despising the manifestations of the Spirit they are quenching the Spirit, instead of testing all things and holding fast to that which is good (1Thess 5:19-22). Rather than quenching the Spirit we are to test the spirits to see whether they are of God (1Jn 4:1). One of the main ways to test the manifestations is to look at their fruit. Do they result in true repentance, a renewed passion for Jesus and a transformed life? The work of Satan does not produce such fruit and neither do fleshly manifestations.
Do Not Resist the Holy Spirit
Seeing the abundance of examples in the Scriptures and in history, we should embrace this move as a revival sent by God. Now is the time to enter into this move of God. Those who resist it now will find it difficult to enter afterwards. Fernando Sosa, a pastor of revival in Mexico said: “Today a fresh wind of the Spirit is blowing. Those who enter into it will easily enter into the next wind that will blow upon the earth, that will be even greater than at the beginning. Many will want to enter it but won’t be able to because its power will push them away.”
Jonathan Edwards gave this warning back in 1730: “Therefore, let us all be warned so as not to in any manner oppose or do the least thing to hinder or oppose the work. On the contrary, let us do everything possible to promote it. Christ has now come from heaven in a notable and marvelous manifestation of His Spirit and it is the responsibility of all His disciples to recognize it and honor it.
Those who remain on the margin questioning this strange action, without knowing what to do with it, refusing to receive it and always ready to speak prematurely against it, as did the Jews of old, would do well to tremble at the words of saint Paul: ‘Behold, you despisers, marvel and perish! For I work a work in your days a work which you will by no means believe though one were to declare it to you.’
May all those who consider this work as a cloud and as darkness, as was the pillar of the cloud and fire for the Egyptians, take heed that it not be for their destruction, as it illumines the Israel of God.”
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“What meaneth this?” This was the question asked by those who heard and saw what was taking place on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended upon the hundred and twenty disciples who were in one accord in the upper room, awaiting the promise of the Father. What occurred provoking this question from the multitudes? Acts 2 describes what took place:
“And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. 5 Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the crowd came together, and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 They were amazed and astonished, saying, "Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 ‘And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born? 9 ‘Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs — we hear them in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God.’ 12 And they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’” (Acts 2:2-12 NASU).
For them, just as with any other generation that has witnessed a visitation of God upon His people, they were bewildered, amazed and marveled saying: “What does this mean?” For them it was something new that they had never seen or experienced before, nor had they read about anything similar in the Bible. It was something totally new.
In these last days, once more we are seeing manifestations of the presence of God that are new to us; the majority of mankind have lived their entire lives without having witnessed the things which take place in a visitation from God. What bewilders people more than anything else are the effects that the presence of God has on the bodies of those who are being touched by the Spirit of God; things like falling prostrate, weeping, laughing, trembling and becoming drunk in the Spirit.
The Bible speaks of the “latter rain” of the Spirit (Zec 10:1). It speaks of the “latter glory” (Hagai 2:9) which will become manifest in such a way that “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea” (Hab 2:14). It speaks of an outpouring of the Spirit such as has never been seen before:
“And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. 29 And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. 30 "And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood and fire and pillars of smoke.” (Joel 2:28-30)
Many who have believed in these promises and desired to see and experience this great visitation of God are in danger of not entering into it, as was the case with Jews in the time of Christ, as well as many others in subsequent visitations.
Some don’t enter in because they don’t have a true hunger for God. They are like the mockers in Acts 2:13 that observed those who were affected by the presence of God and said: “They’ve had too much wine.” Others don’t enter in because it didn’t begin with them. Many of the religious leaders among the Jews of Jesus’ time fell into this category. When God visits His people “the proud He knows from afar” (Psa 138:6). The Lord says: “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones” (Isa 57:15).
Still others fail to enter in because the Holy Spirit doesn’t move within the limitations they have set. They have set mental barriers which they will not allow the Holy Spirit to penetrate. When the Spirit moves as He wills and not as they will, they reject the move of God, calling it carnal emotionalism, or worse yet they attribute it to demons, just as the Pharisees did with Jesus (Matt 12:24). The fact that there are often evidences of carnal exhibitionism or manifestations of demons does not negate the reality of the visitation. When the Holy Spirit was upon Jesus and the Apostles there were also manifestations of demons, but in every instance the presence of the Holy Spirit set the captives free.
Many think that it isn’t of God if they feel frightened by it. However, we see in the Bible that when God appeared in the Bible, He often had to say to them “fear not.” When He appeared on Sinai it says that “they trembled and stood afar off. Then they said to Moses, "You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die” (Ex 20:18-19).
The manifestations we are observing in this present visitation are not new. In every true revival throughout history some or all these manifestations have been present. We all accept those revivals as genuine because of the transformation which resulted in individual, churches, cities and entire nations. All the leaders in those revivals, while recognizing and correcting abuses and carnal excess, defended the manifestations, even in the face of great opposition. The following testimonies of manifestations in revivals throughout history a just a few examples.
TESTIMONIES OF REVIVALS THROUGHOUT HISTORY
18th Century Revivals
“Many have experienced an increase in their religious affections way beyond anything they had previously experienced; there have been instances where people remained prostrate in a sort of trance, at times continuing twenty-four hours without moving, and with their senses deactivated while they were in ecstasy, being taken to heaven and seeing visions of wonderous and delightful things. It was common to see people shouting, fainting, convulsing and other similar manifestations, at times in anguish and other times with great admiration and joy. Here it wasn’t the custom to have meetings which lasted all night, nor was it common to continue late into the night; but often that is what took place; some were so affected and their bodies so overwhelmed, that they couldn’t go home, but were obliged to remain where they were all night.” (The Great Awakening, p.550)
“Many of those I personally know have in our day experienced tremendous and extraordinary raptures. But in the most sublime raptures I have had knowledge of, where the emotions of admiration, love and joy, have been most highly elevated, the following things have together been evident: Often remaining in meetings for long periods of time, contemplating the glory of the divine perfections y the excellencies of Christ, to such a degree that the soul continues as it were perfectly caught up and surrounded in light and love, a sweet and inexpressible consolation and rest and joy of soul, at times for five or six hours without interruption. Extraordinary revelations of divine things, and the religious affections were so often accompanied with tremendous effects upon the body… The person would by deprived of all ability to remain standing or speak…sometimes the soul has been so enraptured with a sort of almighty joy, that the person couldn’t keep from leaping with all their strength, with great joy and rejoicing.” (Thoughts concerning the Present Revival by Jonathan Edwards)
“Many of the youth and children appeared to be overwhelmed by a revelation of the majesty and glory of divine things…while many more at the same time were overcome with anguish over their sinful miserable condition, with the result that the whole meeting hall was completely full of shouts, faintings and similar things…many were so affected that they remained prostrated for hours.” (The Great Awakening, p.546)
19th Century Revivals
The Kentucky Cane Ridge Revival in 1801 – “The sound was like the roaring of Niagara Falls. The vast sea of humanity appeared to be agitated as in a storm… Some were singing, others praying, others crying out asking for mercy with the most pitiful cries, while others shouted loudly. Observing the scene before me, a very strange sensation such as I have never felt came over me. My heart began to beat fiercely, my knees and lips began to tremble and I felt that I wasn’t going to be able to remain standing. A strange and supernatural power went over the entire collective mind of the multitudes gathered there. In a moment I saw at least five-hundred slain in an instant as if a line of a thousand cannons had opened fire on them, followed by screams and shouts that rent the very heavens…” (James B. Finley)
Peter Cartwright, Tent Evangelist – “No matter if they were saints or sinners, they were moved by a song or anointed sermon and overcome by a convulsive trembling in their whole body, something that they couldn’t by any means avoid, and the more they resisted, the more they shook… As soon as one began to shake one could see how their elegant hats, caps and hair pins when flying, and the shaking of the head would be so strong and rapid that their hair sounded much like the whip of a carriage conductor.” (Cartwright, Autobiography by Peter Cartwright, pp.17,18)
Charles Finney – “I hadn’t spoken on the subject for more than fifteen minutes when suddenly an astounding solemnity seemed to descend upon them; the congregation began to fall from their seats in every direction and cried out for mercy. If I had had a sword in each hand, I wouldn’t have been able to cut them down as rapidly as they fell. Nearly the whole congregation was either on their knees or prostrate.” (Revival, por Winkle Pratney, p.24)
1870 Holiness Conferences in Sacramento, Santa Clara andy San Francisco – John Inskip the president of the National Holiness Association reported that he saw many prominent leaders of the California Conference “slain to the ground by the power of God and lay prostrate for hours full of glory.” (A Survey of 20th Century Revival Movements in North America, p.21)
1889 Revival Meeting of Mary Woodworth Etter – “The power of God was upon the entire congregation and all around the city of Oakland. The Holy Spirit fell upon the people while we preached. They would remain frozen as if facing death. Many of the most educated and best dressed men fell backwards in their seats with their hands raised to God, remaining under the power of God Almighty. Men and women everywhere fell like trees in a great storm. Some had visions of God. Almost all of them came out of their visions shouting praises to God.” (A Survey of 20th Century Revival Movements in North America, p.24)
20th Century Revivals
The Welch Revival, 1904 – “Two women were filled with the Holy Spirit and unable to contain themselves, began to shout loudly. Everyone gathered around Evan Roberts, who smiled as if to reassure them, although he himself was overcome with wonder. People began to shout: “No more Jesus, or I will die! Some cried out for mercy, others wept, sang or praised God. All this, together with many fainting or falling prostrate on the floor under the agony of conviction was, as the historian Eifion Roberts said, ‘as incredible as without precedent.’” (A Survey of 20th Century Revival Movements in North America, p.35)
The Azuza Street Revival, 1906 – “The meetings were nearly continuous. Thirsty souls found themselves under the power of God in almost every moment, day or night… The presence of God became more than wonderful. In this old building with bare floors and low ceiling, God tore strong men and women apart and reformed them for His glory. It was a marvelous reconstruction process. Pride and self-imposition, self-importance and self-esteem could not survive there.” (A Survey of 20th Century Revival Movements in North America, p.56)
Primative Pentecostal Revival: Meeting with Mary Woodworth Etter – “In every service for nearly three months, the power that was so common in the days of Finney, Johnathan Edwards, etc., that knocked people down, has been manifested… Many have seen balls of fire and lights in and around the tent… Jesus has appeared to many in the meetings and many on different occasions saw a great multitude of angels right above the audience.” (Woodworth Etter, p.168)
Campmeeting, 1913 – “Thousands have gathered from all over the state, some have come from other countries and we believe that it is the biggest meeting in these past days. The president, brother Scout, said that two hundred ministers were on the platform, seated together in communion and brotherly love. The Lord was present demonstrating His approval of the Word, with powerful signs and miracles, especially with healings and baptisms in the Holy Spirit and fire. The prostrating power was manifested and many were laid prostrate with power.” (Woodworth Etter, p.250)
Evangelist Dr. Charles Price, 1920 – “The power fell. Hundreds were saved and hundreds healed. The first person I prayed for for their physical healing fell under the power of God. Y was astonished. I prayed for the second and the same thing happened. I trembled in the presence of God but both of them, getting up and proclaiming that they had been healed, gave me strength and I continued praying. Afterwards, dozens and dozens were slain under the power of God at the same time. The multitudes came in such great numbers that we had to rent a bigger building.” (The Story of my Life, Charles S. Price, p.29)
The Latter Rain Movement, 1948 – “At the close of the ‘40s it seemed that the wind of the Spirit of God was blowing with a greater force. God was moving in revival power. It began through the minister Reverend Hawtin and the Biblical Institute Sharon in North Battleford, Saskatchewan. There was such an infusion of divine power in healings, miracles and speaking gifts that it drew much attention. Thousands congregated from every part of the continent and around the whole world to the Camp meeting Conventions.”
These are just a few examples demonstrating how God moves with supernatural manifestations in times of Revival. For a concise description of many similar moves of God during the past several centuries I recommend the website, Beautiful Feet.
THE TESTIMONY OF SCRIPTURE
God tells us in His Word that in the last days He is going to do new things that He hasn’t done in the past: “Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isa 43:18,19). We need to be prepared and open to receive new things from the Lord in these last days. If the Apostles and the hundred and twenty had not been willing to receive new things from the Lord they wouldn’t have accepted speaking in tongues, since it was something new that God hadn’t done before. For something to be of God it isn’t necessary that there should be examples in the Bible because God is free to do new things. We only know that He will not do anything new which contradicts His character as it is revealed to us in His Word. Nevertheless, we see indications in the Scriptures that all the manifestations we are seeing in our day were characteristic of distinct manifestations in biblical times.
Falling
The most common phenomenon that we are seeing in the present revival is people falling prostrate under God’s power. His presence overcomes our physical strength, often leaving us weak and unable to walk without assistance or much effort. Some have visions, hear His voice, feel His anointing or simply feel a joy and deep peace as they rest under His influence.
Examples in Scripture:
Revelation 1:17 “And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, "Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.” When John saw Jesus Christ glorified in vision, he lost all strength and fell as a dead man at His feet.
John 18:6 “Now when He said to them, "I am He," they drew back and fell to the ground.” When Christ said “I AM” the company of soldiers who came to arrest Him fell to the ground. Often even the unrepentant fall as slain in the manifest presence of the great I AM.
Daniel 10:8-9 “Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, and no strength remained in me; for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength. Yet I heard the sound of his words; and while I heard the sound of his words I was in a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground.” When Daniel had this vision, his companions were frightened and ran away. He lost the ability to remain standing and fell under the weight of glory with his face to the ground.
Trembling
Also, people who are touched by God often begin to tremble with varying intensity. For some only their mouth or hands tremble, while others have strong contortions and convulsions. Whenever, the spiritual voltage is increased, things begin to happen with our fragile bodies. This manifestation often indicates “spiritual surgery” o that one is receiving a fresh anointing.
Examples in Scripture:
Jeremiah 23:9 “My heart within me is broken because of the prophets; All my bones shake. I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine has overcome, because of the Lord, and because of His holy words.
Habakkuk 3:16 “When I heard, my body trembled; my lips quivered at the voice; Rottenness entered my bones; and I trembled in myself...”
Psalm 99:1 “The Lord reigns! The nations tremble...”
Drunk in the Spirit
In Ephesians 5:18 it says: “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit.” Being filled with the Spirit can produce an effect similar to being drunk on wine. The person feels the presence of God so strongly that his normal abilities to walk, think and speak are affected. In contrast to wine, being drunk in the Holy Spirit never produces the sins of the flesh. To the contrary, it produces greater holiness and passion for Jesus.
Examples in Scripture:
Jeremiah 23:9 Jeremiah said: “...I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine has overcome, because of the Lord, and because of His holy words.”
Zachariah 10:7 With reference to the “latter rain” (v.1) Zechariah said: “Those of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as if with wine. Yes, their children shall see it and be glad; Their heart shall rejoice in the Lord.”
Acts 2:13 “Others mocking said, ‘They are full of new wine.’” The fact that the mockers said that they were drunk when they were full of the Holy Spirit implies that they had the appearance of being drunk.
Laughter
Laughter experienced as a manifestation of the presence of God is a laughter resulting from joy unspeakable and full of glory. Psalm 16:11 says: “In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Fullness of joy is expressed in laughter. God gives His people joy and laughter to deliver us from stress, dead religion, fatigue, legalism and dead formalism. The anointing brings “the oil of joy for mourning and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” (Isa 61:3)
Examples in Scripture:
Psalm 126:1-2 “When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing.”
Isaias 51:11 “So the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness; Sorrow and sighing shall flee away.”
Proverbs 17:22 “A merry heart does good, like medicine.”
Dancing, Leaping and Running
At times the joy unspeakable and full of glory produced by the Holy Spirit is so glorious that it produces spontaneous dancing. Others, overwhelmed with joy leap or run to give expression to what they are experiencing.
Examples in Scripture:
2Samuel 6:14 “Then David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod.”
Jeremiah 31:4 “You shall again be adorned with your tambourines, and shall go forth in the dances of those who rejoice.”
Malachi 4:2 “But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall.”
Weeping
Often when someone is touched by the Lord it manifests with weeping. It can vary in intensity from a few tears to intense weeping with sobbing. It often indicates that one is being emotionally healed or freed from bondages. At times a season of weeping is followed by great joy and spiritual renewal.
Examples in Scripture:
Nehemiah 8:9 “all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law.” The revelation of the Word brought deep emotions of repentance and joy.
2Chronicles 34:27 “because your heart was tender, and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and against its inhabitants, and you humbled yourself before Me, and you tore your clothes and wept before Me, I also have heard you," says the Lord.”
Inability to Speak
At times one can become so effected under the power of God that they are unable to utter words. When their tongue is finally loosed and they are able to speak, they often prophesy.
Examples in Scripture:
Daniel 10:15-16 “When he had spoken such words to me, I turned my face toward the ground and became speechless. 16 And suddenly, one having the likeness of the sons of men touched my lips; then I opened my mouth and spoke.”
Ezekiel 3:26-27 “I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth, so that you shall be mute and not be one to rebuke them, for they are a rebellious house. 27 But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to them, 'Thus says the Lord God.'”
Visions, Dreams and Prophetic Revelations
A characteristic of this visitation is that the presence of God is accompanied with revelations from God en visions, dreams and prophetic revelations. This is a fulfillment of the prophesy of Joel 2:28: “And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.”
Examples in Scripture:
Numbers 11:29 When the Holy Spirit fell upon some of the elders of Israel and they began to prophesy, Joshua complained to Moses. Moses responded saying: “Are you zealous for my sake? Oh, that all the Lord's people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!”
1Samuel 19:20 “the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied. Here we see that even the messengers of Saul who were in rebellion against God couldn’t avoid prophesying when the Spirit came upon them. Afterwards the same thing happened to Saul in verse 24 when he came to arrest David.
Demonic Manifestations
During the ministry of Jesus upon the earth and afterwards in the book of Acts, there were many manifestations of demons (Matt 9:32-34; Mark 1:23-26; 5:2-11; 9:14-29; Luke 4:33-37; 6:17-19; Acts 5:16; 8:6-8; 16:16-18; 19:11-12). Wherever the Holy Spirit is manifesting with power, the demons that have bound the people are exposed and there are demonic manifestations. Revivals are a time of deliverance for the captives.
Every believer is seated with Christ in heavenly places and for that reason we have authority over all the power of the enemy. For that reason, in the Great Commission Jesus said that those who believe will cast out demons (Mark 16:17).
Testing the Spirits
It is true that our adversary is an imitator, and he can imitate the manifestations of the Holy Spirit, just as Pharoah’s magicians imitated the signs God performed through Moses. Also, there are always those who will try to produce the manifestations of the Spirit in the flesh. The enemy will do everything in his power to shut down the ministry of the Spirit, and the way he often does so is by getting us to resist the true manifestations of the Spirit for fear of the false.
Some would rather be “safe and dry” than take the risk and get into the river of God, without realizing that, by despising the manifestations of the Spirit they are quenching the Spirit, instead of testing all things and holding fast to that which is good (1Thess 5:19-22). Rather than quenching the Spirit we are to test the spirits to see whether they are of God (1Jn 4:1). One of the main ways to test the manifestations is to look at their fruit. Do they result in true repentance, a renewed passion for Jesus and a transformed life? The work of Satan does not produce such fruit and neither do fleshly manifestations.
Do Not Resist the Holy Spirit
Seeing the abundance of examples in the Scriptures and in history, we should embrace this move as a revival sent by God. Now is the time to enter into this move of God. Those who resist it now will find it difficult to enter afterwards. Fernando Sosa, a pastor of revival in Mexico said: “Today a fresh wind of the Spirit is blowing. Those who enter into it will easily enter into the next wind that will blow upon the earth, that will be even greater than at the beginning. Many will want to enter it but won’t be able to because its power will push them away.”
Jonathan Edwards gave this warning back in 1730: “Therefore, let us all be warned so as not to in any manner oppose or do the least thing to hinder or oppose the work. On the contrary, let us do everything possible to promote it. Christ has now come from heaven in a notable and marvelous manifestation of His Spirit and it is the responsibility of all His disciples to recognize it and honor it.
Those who remain on the margin questioning this strange action, without knowing what to do with it, refusing to receive it and always ready to speak prematurely against it, as did the Jews of old, would do well to tremble at the words of saint Paul: ‘Behold, you despisers, marvel and perish! For I work a work in your days a work which you will by no means believe though one were to declare it to you.’
May all those who consider this work as a cloud and as darkness, as was the pillar of the cloud and fire for the Egyptians, take heed that it not be for their destruction, as it illumines the Israel of God.”
- Published on
by George Sidney Hurd
The following is an excerpt from the book, Extermination or Restoration.
The definition of death is important, both to the Traditionalist and to the Annihilationist. Traditionalists define it as separation, with the second death consisting of an eternal death or separation from God. The Annihilationists on the other hand, must argue that the second death simply means physical annihilation or cessation of being, after being resurrected and condemned at the White Throne Judgment.
As a Universal Restorationist, I see the second death – not as the cessation of existence, nor eternal separation from God, but a death or separation eonian from the carnal and soulish self-life in the purifying lake of fire. [i] It is the death to self that even we as the sons of God must undergo now in this life through the afflictions which sanctify us or separate us from that which is carnal and soulish, producing in us that holiness without which no one will see the Lord (Heb 12:14).
Those who do not die to the flesh and the soulish self-life now in this life - denying themselves, will not take part in the first resurrection and will be hurt by the second death. However, the second death is eonian rather than eternal and results in the final restoration of all (Acts 3:21; Rev 20:6; Rom 11:36, etc.). Ultimately all death – both the first and the second, will be done away with - not by means of a mass extermination comparable to Hitler’s infamous death-camps, but by bringing all into subjection to Christ and making them alive. Death is not the ultimate answer to death, as Annihilationist affirm. It is the resurrection life of Christ which will finally swallow up all death, resulting in God being all in all (1Cor 15:22,26-28, 2Cor 5:4).
Lexical Definition
Under normal circumstances we would simply consult the lexicons for an accurate biblical definition of any given word in the Scriptures since they have been compiled by scholars who have extensively examined the different meanings of words in their original languages, not only in the New Testament but also in the secular literature of that time.
Thayer defines death (thanatos) as “properly, the death of the body, i.e. that separation (whether natural or violent) of the soul from the body by which the life on earth is ended.” Vines expository Dictionary of Biblical Words defines death saying: “thanatos “death,” is used in Scripture of: (a) the separation of the soul (the spiritual part of man) from the body (the material part), the latter ceasing to function and turning to dust, e. g., John 11:13; Heb 2:15; 5:7; 7:23. In Heb 9:15). (b) the separation of man from God; Adam died on the day he disobeyed God, Gen 2:17, and hence all mankind are born in the same spiritual condition, Rom 5:12,14,17,21).” Vines defines the verb form, apothnesko saying: “lit., ‘to die off or out,’ is used…of the separation of the soul from the body, i. e., the natural "death" of human beings.”
These are some of the most accurate and authoritative lexical sources for Greek definitions available. However, admittedly even some of the best of scholars can be so influenced by their own traditional bias that they unintentionally nuance their definitions of certain words according to their beliefs. Therefore, whenever there is doubt, we should make use of a concordance and examine each context in which the word appears in order to confirm their findings. Upon examining the context where death is referred to in Englishman’s Greek and Hebrew Concordance, I was able to confirm the existence of an underlying idea of separation expressed by the words for death. The Bible refers, not only to physical death, but to at least four other deaths, and we can see that in each case the word death does not refer to cessation or annihilation but to separation:
The following is an excerpt from the book, Extermination or Restoration.
The definition of death is important, both to the Traditionalist and to the Annihilationist. Traditionalists define it as separation, with the second death consisting of an eternal death or separation from God. The Annihilationists on the other hand, must argue that the second death simply means physical annihilation or cessation of being, after being resurrected and condemned at the White Throne Judgment.
As a Universal Restorationist, I see the second death – not as the cessation of existence, nor eternal separation from God, but a death or separation eonian from the carnal and soulish self-life in the purifying lake of fire. [i] It is the death to self that even we as the sons of God must undergo now in this life through the afflictions which sanctify us or separate us from that which is carnal and soulish, producing in us that holiness without which no one will see the Lord (Heb 12:14).
Those who do not die to the flesh and the soulish self-life now in this life - denying themselves, will not take part in the first resurrection and will be hurt by the second death. However, the second death is eonian rather than eternal and results in the final restoration of all (Acts 3:21; Rev 20:6; Rom 11:36, etc.). Ultimately all death – both the first and the second, will be done away with - not by means of a mass extermination comparable to Hitler’s infamous death-camps, but by bringing all into subjection to Christ and making them alive. Death is not the ultimate answer to death, as Annihilationist affirm. It is the resurrection life of Christ which will finally swallow up all death, resulting in God being all in all (1Cor 15:22,26-28, 2Cor 5:4).
Lexical Definition
Under normal circumstances we would simply consult the lexicons for an accurate biblical definition of any given word in the Scriptures since they have been compiled by scholars who have extensively examined the different meanings of words in their original languages, not only in the New Testament but also in the secular literature of that time.
Thayer defines death (thanatos) as “properly, the death of the body, i.e. that separation (whether natural or violent) of the soul from the body by which the life on earth is ended.” Vines expository Dictionary of Biblical Words defines death saying: “thanatos “death,” is used in Scripture of: (a) the separation of the soul (the spiritual part of man) from the body (the material part), the latter ceasing to function and turning to dust, e. g., John 11:13; Heb 2:15; 5:7; 7:23. In Heb 9:15). (b) the separation of man from God; Adam died on the day he disobeyed God, Gen 2:17, and hence all mankind are born in the same spiritual condition, Rom 5:12,14,17,21).” Vines defines the verb form, apothnesko saying: “lit., ‘to die off or out,’ is used…of the separation of the soul from the body, i. e., the natural "death" of human beings.”
These are some of the most accurate and authoritative lexical sources for Greek definitions available. However, admittedly even some of the best of scholars can be so influenced by their own traditional bias that they unintentionally nuance their definitions of certain words according to their beliefs. Therefore, whenever there is doubt, we should make use of a concordance and examine each context in which the word appears in order to confirm their findings. Upon examining the context where death is referred to in Englishman’s Greek and Hebrew Concordance, I was able to confirm the existence of an underlying idea of separation expressed by the words for death. The Bible refers, not only to physical death, but to at least four other deaths, and we can see that in each case the word death does not refer to cessation or annihilation but to separation:
Spiritual Death
God warned Adam saying: “but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Gen 2:17). Or more literally, “dying you shall die.” Hence, the Greek translation of the Old Testament (LXX) renders it: thanato apothaneisthe - “in death you will be dying.” Also, Young’s Literal Translation says: “dying thou dost die” and the Concordant Literal Version renders it: “to die shall you be dying.” Whatever the correct rendering should be, one thing is clear – Adam died that very day, even though he didn’t physically die for another 930 years.
In what sense then did Adam die on that very day? By his act of independence from God - partaking of the forbidden fruit, he broke communion with God, becoming separated from God or dead towards God. Neither Adam nor God ceased to exist on that day. What happened was that Adam died spiritually in the sense of becoming separated from God.
Those Annihilationists who are Physicalists (those who deny the distinction between the body or outer man, and the soul or inner man), understand the rendering “you shall surely die” to be referring to the death of the whole person in the sense of ceasing to exist. They believe that, for one to say that the soul continues existing in a conscious state after physical death, is to fall for Satan’s lie: “you shall not surely die.”
However, God clearly said that they would die that very same day. So obviously, according to God’s warning, a death actually occurred on that same day, but it obviously wasn’t a physical death. The evidence that this death was spiritual separation from God is seen by the fact that they suddenly became aware that they were naked and hid from God.
In reality, by denying that Adam and Eve’s death occurred the same day that they partook of the forbidden fruit, Physicalists fall into agreement with Satan’s statement that they wouldn’t really die the same day they ate of the fruit. Satan still presents man with the lie that sin doesn’t result in spiritual death (James 1:13-16). While sin also shortens physical life, Satan’s ploy isn’t normally to claim that we won’t die physically, since we all already know that we will eventually die.
When God created Adam, He breathed into him the breath of lives (Heb. plural) (Gen 2:7). What lives did Adam receive at that moment? First of all, he became alive in union with God, while at the same time becoming alive in his newly formed body. Before the fall, Adam was predominantly spirit in essence. His body was formed of the dust of the ground, but God breathed a spirit into his body. He then became a spirit inhabiting a flesh-suit. However, the part of Adam which died or became separated on that very day was his spirit which enabled him to have communion with God who is spirit. God, before destroying mankind in the flood, lamented saying: “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh” (Gen 6:3). Adam’s race ceased being predominately spirit and became carnal flesh. From the day of Adam’s fall, all are born after fallen Adam’s own kind – spiritually dead or separated from God. Instead of being a spirit clothed in a flesh-suit, our spiritual life was gone - being separated from God, leaving only flesh.
Neither man’s spirit nor God ceased to exist when this death took place. Indeed, we are not entirely separated from God. In Him we all live and move and have our being, including the unregenerate (Acts 17:28). Nevertheless, all of us in Adam are born dead towards God, who is spirit, since the spirit which God gave us is dead or separated from Him. Paul says that we were alienated from the life of God (Eph 4:18). We were all spiritually dead until our spirit was born again or regenerated:
“And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins… Even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” (Eph 2:1,5,6)
Notice that both our death and vivification here is presented in the past tense. For those in Christ, the spirit or inner man has already been made alive. In Adam, not only will all eventually die physically but, in him, we are born into this world with dead spirits inherited from Adam due to his one offense and resulting spiritual death (Rom 5:15). We are not sinners because we sin, but rather we sin because we are born sinners as a result of Adam’s inherited sin. Adam’s spirit died towards God the moment he committed that one independent act. And all of us, as his seed, are also born with a dead spirit. However, not in the sense of being nonexistent but rather separated from God, the source of life.
That which must be born again of the Spirit in order to see the kingdom of God is the human spirit (John 3:3-6). God’s remedy for spiritual death is regeneration and His remedy for physical death is resurrection unto immortality. Both spiritual and physical death came upon all mankind in Adam. But both deaths will ultimately be reversed for that same “all” who died in Adam, in Christ - the last Adam and the Savior of the whole world (Rom 5:15, cf. 1Cor 15:21-23; John 1:29; 1John 2:2).
When Christ shed His blood on the cross, it accomplished a universal reconciliation for all of His creation, whether visible or invisible (Col 1:16,20). The moment we respond to this reconciliation, becoming reconciled in our hearts, He causes us to be born again, thereby becoming partakers of the divine nature, in union with Him through Christ (2Cor 5:19-21; John 1:12-13; 1Cor 6:17). In Christ there is no longer separation, (death) because we who were once afar off have been brought near by the blood of Christ (Eph 2:13; Col 1:21-22). Having received His eternal life, nothing nor anyone will ever be able to take away that life which we have received - separating us from Him again (Rom 8:35-39; John 10:28-29).
So, we see that death in relation to God does not speak of cessation but of separation. The same can be said concerning our death to sin (Rom 6:10-11). We continue to exist as individuals, and sin will also continue for a time. Neither we nor sin have ceased to exist, but we have been sanctified or separated from sin in Christ and therefore are dead to sin. Only in the sense of separation can we be said to have died to sin since both we and sin still exist.
The same is true of the Law. We exist, and the Law also exists, but we have died to the Law – having been freed or separated from it, in order that we may live in relationship with God through Christ who is now our very life (Rom 7:1; Gal 2:19-21). The second death, which we shall consider in more detail at a later time, is also referring to a death which is the separation or sanctification of the spiritual from that which is fleshly and soulish. It is a death which all must die - either now in this life or later, receiving one’s part in the purifying lake of fire and brimstone which is the second death (Rev 2:11; 21:8).
Physical Death
Once we understand that our spirit and soul are distinguishable from our bodies; that the rebirth of our spirit unto eternal life takes place at the moment we receive Christ and is distinct from the birth of our physical bodies, and that our soul and regenerated spirit have a conscious existence apart from the body, it becomes much easier to understand that physical death is not the cessation of our existence but merely the separation of our inner-man from our outer-man.
The Old Testament saints who died before Christ’s ascension were said to have been “gathered unto their people” (Gen 25:8,17; 35:29; Nu 20:24,26; Deut 32:50, etc.). That it is not referring to a common grave is evident since they often died and were buried far from the graves of their ancestors. Also, David’s expectation is clearly an immediate reunion with departed loved ones when he said of his son who had just died: “I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me” (2 Sam 12:23). Therefore, the gathering cannot be referring to their cadavers in a mass grave but rather to the gathering of souls which are reunited at death.
Also, dying is often referred to as departing from the body which speaks of separation rather than cessation. For example, when Rachael was dying after giving birth to Benjamin it says: “As her soul was departing (for she died)…” (Gen 35:18). We also see that when God raises someone from the dead, as He did through Elijah when he raised the widow’s child, the soul leaves with death but comes back upon being brought back to life:
“And he (Elijah) stretched himself out on the child three times, and cried out to the Lord and said, "O Lord my God, I pray, let this child's soul come back to him." 22 Then the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came back to him, and he revived.” (1Kings 17:21,22)
Those who deny conscious life after death commonly respond by saying that by “soul” is meant simply the “life force” rather than a conscious individual soul that leaves or returns to the body. However, that is not the language of Scripture. When it is prophesied of Christ saying: “You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption” (Acts 2:27), did He mean to say, “you will not leave my ‘life force’ in seol?” Of course not! What He was saying is that He was confident that God would not leave him in a state of death or separation from His body while it was lying in the tomb and He Himself was in hades or the unseen realm of the souls of the dead. When Jesus told us not to fear those who can kill the body but not the soul, did He mean by that, that they could kill the body but not the “life force?” The answer should be obvious. While man may kill the body, separating it from the soul, the soul continues existing. Such examples could be multiplied but this should be sufficient to demonstrate that the soul does not cease to exist when one’s body dies.
Since the essence of our soul is spirit, both terms are sometimes used interchangeably. When Jesus rose Jairus’ daughter it says: “Then her spirit returned, and she arose immediately” (Luke 8: 55). The spirit was separated from the body in death. Once again, Annihilationists often respond, saying that “spirit” (Gr. pneuma) can also mean “breath” and therefore it simply means that she stopped breathing when she died and then began to breathe again when Jesus raised her from the dead. However, it is evident that “spirit” here is referring to the human spirit and not simply to one’s breath.
Jesus, after declaring “it is finished,” said: “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit” and then “He yielded up His spirit” (Luke 23:46; Matt 27:50; Ps 31:5). Are we to believe that Jesus was actually saying: “into Your hands I commit my ‘breath” and then “yielded up His ‘breath?” Also, Steven, when he was dying said: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts 7:59). Obviously, by saying “spirit” they were referring to their conscious inner man. Paul, referring to the entire man as spirit, soul and body, clearly presented them as real aspects of our personhood which are in the process of being sanctified. Certainly, Paul wasn’t saying that God was sanctifying our breath, life force and body! (1Thess 5:23)
Also, all the references to one being in the body or leaving the body, not only indicate a conscious existence apart from the body but also make it clear that death is a separation – not a cessation of existence (2Cor 5:6-9; 2Peter 1:13-15). Additionally, both Jesus and Peter referred to their death as a decease or departure (Gr. exodos), a term which clearly speaks of a separation at death (Luke 9:31; 2Peter 1:15).
Paul speaks of his soul as “departing” (analuo – lit. “to be loosed upwards”) (Phil 1:23-24), and his body or “tent” as being “destroyed” (kataluo – lit. “to be loosed downwards”) (2Cor 5:1). Paul understood that at death his soul or conscious self would go upwards, whereas his body would go downwards. This clearly speaks of death as the separation of the soul from the body.
While this is by no means an exhaustive treatment of the nature of death, I believe it presents sufficient and conclusive evidence that conscious existence does not come to an end at death but is merely the separation of our spirit and soul from the body. Therefore, Annihilationists must look elsewhere for evidence that life for the unjust is terminated at the second death.
God warned Adam saying: “but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Gen 2:17). Or more literally, “dying you shall die.” Hence, the Greek translation of the Old Testament (LXX) renders it: thanato apothaneisthe - “in death you will be dying.” Also, Young’s Literal Translation says: “dying thou dost die” and the Concordant Literal Version renders it: “to die shall you be dying.” Whatever the correct rendering should be, one thing is clear – Adam died that very day, even though he didn’t physically die for another 930 years.
In what sense then did Adam die on that very day? By his act of independence from God - partaking of the forbidden fruit, he broke communion with God, becoming separated from God or dead towards God. Neither Adam nor God ceased to exist on that day. What happened was that Adam died spiritually in the sense of becoming separated from God.
Those Annihilationists who are Physicalists (those who deny the distinction between the body or outer man, and the soul or inner man), understand the rendering “you shall surely die” to be referring to the death of the whole person in the sense of ceasing to exist. They believe that, for one to say that the soul continues existing in a conscious state after physical death, is to fall for Satan’s lie: “you shall not surely die.”
However, God clearly said that they would die that very same day. So obviously, according to God’s warning, a death actually occurred on that same day, but it obviously wasn’t a physical death. The evidence that this death was spiritual separation from God is seen by the fact that they suddenly became aware that they were naked and hid from God.
In reality, by denying that Adam and Eve’s death occurred the same day that they partook of the forbidden fruit, Physicalists fall into agreement with Satan’s statement that they wouldn’t really die the same day they ate of the fruit. Satan still presents man with the lie that sin doesn’t result in spiritual death (James 1:13-16). While sin also shortens physical life, Satan’s ploy isn’t normally to claim that we won’t die physically, since we all already know that we will eventually die.
When God created Adam, He breathed into him the breath of lives (Heb. plural) (Gen 2:7). What lives did Adam receive at that moment? First of all, he became alive in union with God, while at the same time becoming alive in his newly formed body. Before the fall, Adam was predominantly spirit in essence. His body was formed of the dust of the ground, but God breathed a spirit into his body. He then became a spirit inhabiting a flesh-suit. However, the part of Adam which died or became separated on that very day was his spirit which enabled him to have communion with God who is spirit. God, before destroying mankind in the flood, lamented saying: “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh” (Gen 6:3). Adam’s race ceased being predominately spirit and became carnal flesh. From the day of Adam’s fall, all are born after fallen Adam’s own kind – spiritually dead or separated from God. Instead of being a spirit clothed in a flesh-suit, our spiritual life was gone - being separated from God, leaving only flesh.
Neither man’s spirit nor God ceased to exist when this death took place. Indeed, we are not entirely separated from God. In Him we all live and move and have our being, including the unregenerate (Acts 17:28). Nevertheless, all of us in Adam are born dead towards God, who is spirit, since the spirit which God gave us is dead or separated from Him. Paul says that we were alienated from the life of God (Eph 4:18). We were all spiritually dead until our spirit was born again or regenerated:
“And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins… Even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” (Eph 2:1,5,6)
Notice that both our death and vivification here is presented in the past tense. For those in Christ, the spirit or inner man has already been made alive. In Adam, not only will all eventually die physically but, in him, we are born into this world with dead spirits inherited from Adam due to his one offense and resulting spiritual death (Rom 5:15). We are not sinners because we sin, but rather we sin because we are born sinners as a result of Adam’s inherited sin. Adam’s spirit died towards God the moment he committed that one independent act. And all of us, as his seed, are also born with a dead spirit. However, not in the sense of being nonexistent but rather separated from God, the source of life.
That which must be born again of the Spirit in order to see the kingdom of God is the human spirit (John 3:3-6). God’s remedy for spiritual death is regeneration and His remedy for physical death is resurrection unto immortality. Both spiritual and physical death came upon all mankind in Adam. But both deaths will ultimately be reversed for that same “all” who died in Adam, in Christ - the last Adam and the Savior of the whole world (Rom 5:15, cf. 1Cor 15:21-23; John 1:29; 1John 2:2).
When Christ shed His blood on the cross, it accomplished a universal reconciliation for all of His creation, whether visible or invisible (Col 1:16,20). The moment we respond to this reconciliation, becoming reconciled in our hearts, He causes us to be born again, thereby becoming partakers of the divine nature, in union with Him through Christ (2Cor 5:19-21; John 1:12-13; 1Cor 6:17). In Christ there is no longer separation, (death) because we who were once afar off have been brought near by the blood of Christ (Eph 2:13; Col 1:21-22). Having received His eternal life, nothing nor anyone will ever be able to take away that life which we have received - separating us from Him again (Rom 8:35-39; John 10:28-29).
So, we see that death in relation to God does not speak of cessation but of separation. The same can be said concerning our death to sin (Rom 6:10-11). We continue to exist as individuals, and sin will also continue for a time. Neither we nor sin have ceased to exist, but we have been sanctified or separated from sin in Christ and therefore are dead to sin. Only in the sense of separation can we be said to have died to sin since both we and sin still exist.
The same is true of the Law. We exist, and the Law also exists, but we have died to the Law – having been freed or separated from it, in order that we may live in relationship with God through Christ who is now our very life (Rom 7:1; Gal 2:19-21). The second death, which we shall consider in more detail at a later time, is also referring to a death which is the separation or sanctification of the spiritual from that which is fleshly and soulish. It is a death which all must die - either now in this life or later, receiving one’s part in the purifying lake of fire and brimstone which is the second death (Rev 2:11; 21:8).
Physical Death
Once we understand that our spirit and soul are distinguishable from our bodies; that the rebirth of our spirit unto eternal life takes place at the moment we receive Christ and is distinct from the birth of our physical bodies, and that our soul and regenerated spirit have a conscious existence apart from the body, it becomes much easier to understand that physical death is not the cessation of our existence but merely the separation of our inner-man from our outer-man.
The Old Testament saints who died before Christ’s ascension were said to have been “gathered unto their people” (Gen 25:8,17; 35:29; Nu 20:24,26; Deut 32:50, etc.). That it is not referring to a common grave is evident since they often died and were buried far from the graves of their ancestors. Also, David’s expectation is clearly an immediate reunion with departed loved ones when he said of his son who had just died: “I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me” (2 Sam 12:23). Therefore, the gathering cannot be referring to their cadavers in a mass grave but rather to the gathering of souls which are reunited at death.
Also, dying is often referred to as departing from the body which speaks of separation rather than cessation. For example, when Rachael was dying after giving birth to Benjamin it says: “As her soul was departing (for she died)…” (Gen 35:18). We also see that when God raises someone from the dead, as He did through Elijah when he raised the widow’s child, the soul leaves with death but comes back upon being brought back to life:
“And he (Elijah) stretched himself out on the child three times, and cried out to the Lord and said, "O Lord my God, I pray, let this child's soul come back to him." 22 Then the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came back to him, and he revived.” (1Kings 17:21,22)
Those who deny conscious life after death commonly respond by saying that by “soul” is meant simply the “life force” rather than a conscious individual soul that leaves or returns to the body. However, that is not the language of Scripture. When it is prophesied of Christ saying: “You will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption” (Acts 2:27), did He mean to say, “you will not leave my ‘life force’ in seol?” Of course not! What He was saying is that He was confident that God would not leave him in a state of death or separation from His body while it was lying in the tomb and He Himself was in hades or the unseen realm of the souls of the dead. When Jesus told us not to fear those who can kill the body but not the soul, did He mean by that, that they could kill the body but not the “life force?” The answer should be obvious. While man may kill the body, separating it from the soul, the soul continues existing. Such examples could be multiplied but this should be sufficient to demonstrate that the soul does not cease to exist when one’s body dies.
Since the essence of our soul is spirit, both terms are sometimes used interchangeably. When Jesus rose Jairus’ daughter it says: “Then her spirit returned, and she arose immediately” (Luke 8: 55). The spirit was separated from the body in death. Once again, Annihilationists often respond, saying that “spirit” (Gr. pneuma) can also mean “breath” and therefore it simply means that she stopped breathing when she died and then began to breathe again when Jesus raised her from the dead. However, it is evident that “spirit” here is referring to the human spirit and not simply to one’s breath.
Jesus, after declaring “it is finished,” said: “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit” and then “He yielded up His spirit” (Luke 23:46; Matt 27:50; Ps 31:5). Are we to believe that Jesus was actually saying: “into Your hands I commit my ‘breath” and then “yielded up His ‘breath?” Also, Steven, when he was dying said: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (Acts 7:59). Obviously, by saying “spirit” they were referring to their conscious inner man. Paul, referring to the entire man as spirit, soul and body, clearly presented them as real aspects of our personhood which are in the process of being sanctified. Certainly, Paul wasn’t saying that God was sanctifying our breath, life force and body! (1Thess 5:23)
Also, all the references to one being in the body or leaving the body, not only indicate a conscious existence apart from the body but also make it clear that death is a separation – not a cessation of existence (2Cor 5:6-9; 2Peter 1:13-15). Additionally, both Jesus and Peter referred to their death as a decease or departure (Gr. exodos), a term which clearly speaks of a separation at death (Luke 9:31; 2Peter 1:15).
Paul speaks of his soul as “departing” (analuo – lit. “to be loosed upwards”) (Phil 1:23-24), and his body or “tent” as being “destroyed” (kataluo – lit. “to be loosed downwards”) (2Cor 5:1). Paul understood that at death his soul or conscious self would go upwards, whereas his body would go downwards. This clearly speaks of death as the separation of the soul from the body.
While this is by no means an exhaustive treatment of the nature of death, I believe it presents sufficient and conclusive evidence that conscious existence does not come to an end at death but is merely the separation of our spirit and soul from the body. Therefore, Annihilationists must look elsewhere for evidence that life for the unjust is terminated at the second death.
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Her Gates are always Open
by George Sidney Hurd
The following is an excerpt from the book, The Triumph of Mercy.
Revelation chapter 20 ends with the Great White Throne Judgment, where the dead are judged according to their works, and all whose names are not found written in the book of life are cast into the lake of fire. From the traditional point of view, the eternal destiny of every rational being will then be eternally sealed without any further possibility of salvation for those not found written in the book of life at that time. In chapter 21, after the judgment, we see the New Jerusalem descend from heaven upon the new earth. The rest of the chapter is a description of this heavenly city. Until one comes to the end of the chapter, one might think that as the door of Noah’s ark, so also the door of opportunity is forever closed for those outside who might wish to enter. And that is what tradition teaches us. Nevertheless, from verse 24 onwards, we see that the gates of the New Jerusalem are always open and will never be shut to the nations:
“And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it. 25 Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). 26 And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. 27 But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. 22:1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him” (Rev 21:24-22:3)
There are several things in these verses which indicate there will be restoration beyond the Great White Throne Judgment. In the first place, we see in verse 8 of chapter 21 that those sentenced in the judgment will receive “their part” in the lake of fire. Since they are not found written in the book of life they will be judged and sentenced, each one according to his works. This in itself implies a measured sentence that has an end. In the same way that the words of Jesus: “you will not get out until…, and “many stripes…few stripes,” necessitate a sentence of limited duration; the expression “their part” also implies a measured punishment of a limited time. “Many stripes” cannot mean “eternal stripes” any more that “many ages” can mean eternity. That which is measured is not infinite.
In regard to those who are not found written in the book of life, there is nothing in all of Scriptures that indicates that one’s name cannot be written in it at a later time. Indeed, we see that in Christ, all without exception will be made alive, each in his own due time (1Cor 15:22-23). In fact, we do see mention of the book of life after the White Throne Judgment. No one will be able to enter the gates of the New Jerusalem unless their names are found written in the book of life (21:27). If there were no possibility of leaving the lake of fire and having one’s name subsequently written in the book of life, why would the book of life be mentioned with reference to entering the gates of the New Jerusalem? For a further consideration of the book of life, see my article The Book of Life.
In the last verses of Revelation, after the Great White Throne Judgment in the new earth, we see that the invitation is still open for all those who desire, to enter into the gates of the New Jerusalem and drink of the water of life freely:
“Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. 15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.” (Rev 22:14-15)
“And the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say, ‘Come!’ And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.” (Rev 22:17)
Here we see the Spirit and the bride giving the invitation to “whoever desires” to “wash their robes” and have their names written in the book of life so as to be able to enter through the gates and drink freely of the water of life. At that time, in the new earth, the Church is the Bride, the wife of the Lamb, who dwells with Him in the New Jerusalem. The water of life flows from the throne of God in the New Jerusalem, forming the river of life, with the tree of life on either side, which tree is for the healing of the nations (22:1-2). Psalm 87 also seems to refer to a yet future time when the nations will enter the gates of Zion in which we see springs of living water (verse 7). In verses 5 and 6 we see that they will have their names recorded as having been spiritually reborn there.
None of the details of this invitation by the bride in Revelation 22 would have had any application to the old pre - White Throne Judgment earth. Prior to the Second Coming, the Church was not yet the Bride - the Wife of the Lamb, but here it is the Bride who says “come.” The New Jerusalem didn’t descend upon the new earth until after the White Throne Judgment, and therefore there was no place on the pre-judgment earth where one could enter the gates and partake of the tree of life and drink from the river of life. These are new earth conditions and yet we see that there are still those outside being invited by the Lamb’s wife to enter and drink freely from the river. If the lake of fire is eternal and hidden away in the core of the earth, then where do these unclean sinners come from that need to wash their robes? Traditionalists have great difficulty explaining how people can still be present on the new earth in need of cleansing and healing after all the unjust have already been cast into the Lake of Fire following the Great White Throne Judgment, but it harmonizes perfectly with the final universal restoration of all.
It is my conviction that the lake of fire is not a geographical lake in a literal sense any more than it is a literal sea out of which the beast arises in chapter 13 (13:1). Neither do I believe it is literal fire and brimstone.
“…He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night.” (Rev 14:10-11)
In the description of the judgment declared against Edom by the prophet Isaiah, we see a very similar description which few would take in a literal sense:
“Its streams shall be turned into pitch, and its dust into brimstone; its land shall become burning pitch. 10 It shall not be quenched night or day; its smoke shall ascend forever (olam). From generation to generation it shall lie waste; No one shall pass through it forever and ever.” (Isa 34:9-10)
These expressions are very graphic and obviously hyperbolic. Their streams and land did not literally turn to pitch, or their dust into sulfur, and their smoke isn’t still ascending today. It says that no one would be able to pass through Edom continually from generation to generation, but one can pass through Edom without any problem today. Also, we see that Isaiah’s prophecy, although it singles out Edom, is directed against all nations in verses 1-3:
“Come near, you nations, to hear; and heed, you people! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, the world and all things that come forth from it. 2 For the indignation of the Lord is against all nations, and His fury against all their armies; He has utterly destroyed them, He has given them over to the slaughter. 3 Also their slain shall be thrown out; their stench shall rise from their corpses, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood.” (Isa 34:1-3)
This prophecy is full of hyperbolic expressions of judgment which we understand as being symbolic and not literal, such as “the mountains will be melted with their blood,” “the hosts of heaven shall be dissolved,” “The sword of the Lord is filled with blood, it is made overflowing with fatness,” “its streams shall be turned into pitch and its dust into brimstone” “its smoke shall ascend forever,” etc. Even taking this prophecy as a preview of an eschatological event, we would still understand these expressions as hyperbole, emphasizing severity of judgment and not literal. The mountains will not literally be melted by their blood; the rivers will not literally turn to pitch and their smoke will not literally ascend forever. Much less should we understand that every individual of these nations is burning and putting off smoke or will be doing so forever. The smoke arises from their cities and not the inhabitants, even as the unquenchable fire in Ezekiel 20:46-48 is “the forest of the South” and not its inhabitants. These expressions of judgment, even though they are graphic, do not ever speak of judgments that go beyond physical death and the destruction of their cities.
Also, we see later in the same book of Isaiah that the judgment against the nations is not eternal. In Isaiah 60 we see a clear reference to the healing of the nations who will be saved and walk in the light of the New Jerusalem and will enter her gates which will always be open, just as we see in Revelation 21 and 22:
“Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. 2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you. 3 The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. 4 Lift up your eyes all around, and see: They all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be nursed at your side. 5 Then you shall see and become radiant, and your heart shall swell with joy; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you, the wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you. Therefore your gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day or night.” (Isa 60:1-5,11)
It is probable that the lake of fire is a spiritual condition rather than a geographical location, and those who are in it can see the New Jerusalem but will not enter until they have fulfilled their “part” or sentence in the lake of fire. The invitation of the Bride is extended to all, but it will be just as it is now; no one responds to the call until they are granted repentance and are drawn by the Spirit. Although they will see the light of the New Jerusalem and will hear the invitation of the Bride to enter, they will continue in the lake of fire until they repent of their sins and have been purified of their uncleanness by the purification of fire and sulfur. Another description of their spiritual condition in addition to the expression “lake of fire” is “the outer darkness.” Outer darkness is an expression which, if taken literally, is incompatible with literal fire, which always produces light, especially in dense darkness:
“And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matt 8:11-12, cf. 22:13; 25:30).
The symbolisms are utilized to express the experience of those who live in rebellion towards God, who is a consuming fire, and to describe how it is to live far from Him who is the Light. The lake of fire and sulfur emphasizes corrective punishment and purification, and the outer darkness emphasizes the separation away from the glory and radiance of His presence (“but outside are dogs…” Rev 22:15). I believe that the weeping and gnashing of teeth will be occasioned by observing from afar the joy of the saints in the New Jerusalem and not being able to enter until they have fulfilled their part in the lake of fire in outer darkness, and until the Spirit draws them into the New Jerusalem through the invitation of the Bride.
Another cause of their weeping and gnashing of teeth will be the result of being excluded from the wedding feast. They will never enjoy the privilege of being the Bride, the Wife of the Lamb. The marriage will have already been consummated in the Second Coming of Christ, when He comes for his Church. Christ will receive His Bride unto Himself to dwell with Him in the New Jerusalem, which He has prepared for His wife. From the heavenly New Jerusalem, she will reign with Him for a thousand years upon the earth.
At the end of the thousand-year millennium all the rest will be judged before the Great White Throne; God will make a new heaven and earth and then the New Jerusalem will descend from heaven upon the new earth. The rest “of the nations of those who are saved” will inhabit the new earth but not the New Jerusalem, which is the exclusive habitation of the Bride, the Wife of the Lamb: “And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it” (Rev 21:24). The saved of the nations who are not the Bride - the Wife of the Lamb, will walk in the light of the New Jerusalem but they will not be of the New Jerusalem.
Those in outer darkness, in the lake of fire, suffering the second death, remain away from the presence of the Lord and His glory in the outer darkness. They can only see from afar, weeping and gnashing their teeth in the awareness of what they lost. Someday they will be granted repentance and their names will also be written in the book of life. Then they will be able to walk in the light of the New Jerusalem like the other saved individuals of the nations and enter through its gates which will never be shut, but they will never be the Bride, the Wife of the Lamb.
Those who respond to the invitation and wash their robes will be able to enter through the gates and drink of the water of life and partake of the tree of life but, as I understand it, they will never enjoy the privilege of being the Bride - the Wife of the Lamb, who exclusively has the privilege of entering into the intimacy of the inner chamber of the Lamb. Until the end, we see the distinction between the Wife inhabiting the New Jerusalem and the nations who walk in her light. That is not to say that at the end of the ages, in eternity, this distinction will still exist, since by that time God will be all in all – all having become subjected to Christ (1Cor 15:28). However, for the ages of the ages (i.e. as long as time exists), the wife will continue inviting whoever wills to enter in and drink freely of the water of life until the last soul has been restored.
So, we see that the gates of the New Jerusalem in the new earth will never be shut. The invitation will continue to be extended to those who are outside to wash their robes and enter through the open gates to partake of the river of life and the tree of life for their healing. His mercy really does endure forever! Christ will reign until all are subject to the Father that He might be all in all. This would not be possible with a traditional model which doesn’t allow for another opportunity after the Great White Throne Judgment, but it harmonizes perfectly with Universalism which anticipates the eventual restoration of all, when in the fullness of time, all will be reunited in Christ, both those who are in heaven and those who are on earth (Eph 1:10).
The following is an excerpt from the book, The Triumph of Mercy.
Revelation chapter 20 ends with the Great White Throne Judgment, where the dead are judged according to their works, and all whose names are not found written in the book of life are cast into the lake of fire. From the traditional point of view, the eternal destiny of every rational being will then be eternally sealed without any further possibility of salvation for those not found written in the book of life at that time. In chapter 21, after the judgment, we see the New Jerusalem descend from heaven upon the new earth. The rest of the chapter is a description of this heavenly city. Until one comes to the end of the chapter, one might think that as the door of Noah’s ark, so also the door of opportunity is forever closed for those outside who might wish to enter. And that is what tradition teaches us. Nevertheless, from verse 24 onwards, we see that the gates of the New Jerusalem are always open and will never be shut to the nations:
“And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it. 25 Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). 26 And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. 27 But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life. 22:1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him” (Rev 21:24-22:3)
There are several things in these verses which indicate there will be restoration beyond the Great White Throne Judgment. In the first place, we see in verse 8 of chapter 21 that those sentenced in the judgment will receive “their part” in the lake of fire. Since they are not found written in the book of life they will be judged and sentenced, each one according to his works. This in itself implies a measured sentence that has an end. In the same way that the words of Jesus: “you will not get out until…, and “many stripes…few stripes,” necessitate a sentence of limited duration; the expression “their part” also implies a measured punishment of a limited time. “Many stripes” cannot mean “eternal stripes” any more that “many ages” can mean eternity. That which is measured is not infinite.
In regard to those who are not found written in the book of life, there is nothing in all of Scriptures that indicates that one’s name cannot be written in it at a later time. Indeed, we see that in Christ, all without exception will be made alive, each in his own due time (1Cor 15:22-23). In fact, we do see mention of the book of life after the White Throne Judgment. No one will be able to enter the gates of the New Jerusalem unless their names are found written in the book of life (21:27). If there were no possibility of leaving the lake of fire and having one’s name subsequently written in the book of life, why would the book of life be mentioned with reference to entering the gates of the New Jerusalem? For a further consideration of the book of life, see my article The Book of Life.
In the last verses of Revelation, after the Great White Throne Judgment in the new earth, we see that the invitation is still open for all those who desire, to enter into the gates of the New Jerusalem and drink of the water of life freely:
“Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. 15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.” (Rev 22:14-15)
“And the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say, ‘Come!’ And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.” (Rev 22:17)
Here we see the Spirit and the bride giving the invitation to “whoever desires” to “wash their robes” and have their names written in the book of life so as to be able to enter through the gates and drink freely of the water of life. At that time, in the new earth, the Church is the Bride, the wife of the Lamb, who dwells with Him in the New Jerusalem. The water of life flows from the throne of God in the New Jerusalem, forming the river of life, with the tree of life on either side, which tree is for the healing of the nations (22:1-2). Psalm 87 also seems to refer to a yet future time when the nations will enter the gates of Zion in which we see springs of living water (verse 7). In verses 5 and 6 we see that they will have their names recorded as having been spiritually reborn there.
None of the details of this invitation by the bride in Revelation 22 would have had any application to the old pre - White Throne Judgment earth. Prior to the Second Coming, the Church was not yet the Bride - the Wife of the Lamb, but here it is the Bride who says “come.” The New Jerusalem didn’t descend upon the new earth until after the White Throne Judgment, and therefore there was no place on the pre-judgment earth where one could enter the gates and partake of the tree of life and drink from the river of life. These are new earth conditions and yet we see that there are still those outside being invited by the Lamb’s wife to enter and drink freely from the river. If the lake of fire is eternal and hidden away in the core of the earth, then where do these unclean sinners come from that need to wash their robes? Traditionalists have great difficulty explaining how people can still be present on the new earth in need of cleansing and healing after all the unjust have already been cast into the Lake of Fire following the Great White Throne Judgment, but it harmonizes perfectly with the final universal restoration of all.
It is my conviction that the lake of fire is not a geographical lake in a literal sense any more than it is a literal sea out of which the beast arises in chapter 13 (13:1). Neither do I believe it is literal fire and brimstone.
“…He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night.” (Rev 14:10-11)
In the description of the judgment declared against Edom by the prophet Isaiah, we see a very similar description which few would take in a literal sense:
“Its streams shall be turned into pitch, and its dust into brimstone; its land shall become burning pitch. 10 It shall not be quenched night or day; its smoke shall ascend forever (olam). From generation to generation it shall lie waste; No one shall pass through it forever and ever.” (Isa 34:9-10)
These expressions are very graphic and obviously hyperbolic. Their streams and land did not literally turn to pitch, or their dust into sulfur, and their smoke isn’t still ascending today. It says that no one would be able to pass through Edom continually from generation to generation, but one can pass through Edom without any problem today. Also, we see that Isaiah’s prophecy, although it singles out Edom, is directed against all nations in verses 1-3:
“Come near, you nations, to hear; and heed, you people! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, the world and all things that come forth from it. 2 For the indignation of the Lord is against all nations, and His fury against all their armies; He has utterly destroyed them, He has given them over to the slaughter. 3 Also their slain shall be thrown out; their stench shall rise from their corpses, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood.” (Isa 34:1-3)
This prophecy is full of hyperbolic expressions of judgment which we understand as being symbolic and not literal, such as “the mountains will be melted with their blood,” “the hosts of heaven shall be dissolved,” “The sword of the Lord is filled with blood, it is made overflowing with fatness,” “its streams shall be turned into pitch and its dust into brimstone” “its smoke shall ascend forever,” etc. Even taking this prophecy as a preview of an eschatological event, we would still understand these expressions as hyperbole, emphasizing severity of judgment and not literal. The mountains will not literally be melted by their blood; the rivers will not literally turn to pitch and their smoke will not literally ascend forever. Much less should we understand that every individual of these nations is burning and putting off smoke or will be doing so forever. The smoke arises from their cities and not the inhabitants, even as the unquenchable fire in Ezekiel 20:46-48 is “the forest of the South” and not its inhabitants. These expressions of judgment, even though they are graphic, do not ever speak of judgments that go beyond physical death and the destruction of their cities.
Also, we see later in the same book of Isaiah that the judgment against the nations is not eternal. In Isaiah 60 we see a clear reference to the healing of the nations who will be saved and walk in the light of the New Jerusalem and will enter her gates which will always be open, just as we see in Revelation 21 and 22:
“Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. 2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you. 3 The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. 4 Lift up your eyes all around, and see: They all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be nursed at your side. 5 Then you shall see and become radiant, and your heart shall swell with joy; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you, the wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you. Therefore your gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day or night.” (Isa 60:1-5,11)
It is probable that the lake of fire is a spiritual condition rather than a geographical location, and those who are in it can see the New Jerusalem but will not enter until they have fulfilled their “part” or sentence in the lake of fire. The invitation of the Bride is extended to all, but it will be just as it is now; no one responds to the call until they are granted repentance and are drawn by the Spirit. Although they will see the light of the New Jerusalem and will hear the invitation of the Bride to enter, they will continue in the lake of fire until they repent of their sins and have been purified of their uncleanness by the purification of fire and sulfur. Another description of their spiritual condition in addition to the expression “lake of fire” is “the outer darkness.” Outer darkness is an expression which, if taken literally, is incompatible with literal fire, which always produces light, especially in dense darkness:
“And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matt 8:11-12, cf. 22:13; 25:30).
The symbolisms are utilized to express the experience of those who live in rebellion towards God, who is a consuming fire, and to describe how it is to live far from Him who is the Light. The lake of fire and sulfur emphasizes corrective punishment and purification, and the outer darkness emphasizes the separation away from the glory and radiance of His presence (“but outside are dogs…” Rev 22:15). I believe that the weeping and gnashing of teeth will be occasioned by observing from afar the joy of the saints in the New Jerusalem and not being able to enter until they have fulfilled their part in the lake of fire in outer darkness, and until the Spirit draws them into the New Jerusalem through the invitation of the Bride.
Another cause of their weeping and gnashing of teeth will be the result of being excluded from the wedding feast. They will never enjoy the privilege of being the Bride, the Wife of the Lamb. The marriage will have already been consummated in the Second Coming of Christ, when He comes for his Church. Christ will receive His Bride unto Himself to dwell with Him in the New Jerusalem, which He has prepared for His wife. From the heavenly New Jerusalem, she will reign with Him for a thousand years upon the earth.
At the end of the thousand-year millennium all the rest will be judged before the Great White Throne; God will make a new heaven and earth and then the New Jerusalem will descend from heaven upon the new earth. The rest “of the nations of those who are saved” will inhabit the new earth but not the New Jerusalem, which is the exclusive habitation of the Bride, the Wife of the Lamb: “And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it” (Rev 21:24). The saved of the nations who are not the Bride - the Wife of the Lamb, will walk in the light of the New Jerusalem but they will not be of the New Jerusalem.
Those in outer darkness, in the lake of fire, suffering the second death, remain away from the presence of the Lord and His glory in the outer darkness. They can only see from afar, weeping and gnashing their teeth in the awareness of what they lost. Someday they will be granted repentance and their names will also be written in the book of life. Then they will be able to walk in the light of the New Jerusalem like the other saved individuals of the nations and enter through its gates which will never be shut, but they will never be the Bride, the Wife of the Lamb.
Those who respond to the invitation and wash their robes will be able to enter through the gates and drink of the water of life and partake of the tree of life but, as I understand it, they will never enjoy the privilege of being the Bride - the Wife of the Lamb, who exclusively has the privilege of entering into the intimacy of the inner chamber of the Lamb. Until the end, we see the distinction between the Wife inhabiting the New Jerusalem and the nations who walk in her light. That is not to say that at the end of the ages, in eternity, this distinction will still exist, since by that time God will be all in all – all having become subjected to Christ (1Cor 15:28). However, for the ages of the ages (i.e. as long as time exists), the wife will continue inviting whoever wills to enter in and drink freely of the water of life until the last soul has been restored.
So, we see that the gates of the New Jerusalem in the new earth will never be shut. The invitation will continue to be extended to those who are outside to wash their robes and enter through the open gates to partake of the river of life and the tree of life for their healing. His mercy really does endure forever! Christ will reign until all are subject to the Father that He might be all in all. This would not be possible with a traditional model which doesn’t allow for another opportunity after the Great White Throne Judgment, but it harmonizes perfectly with Universalism which anticipates the eventual restoration of all, when in the fullness of time, all will be reunited in Christ, both those who are in heaven and those who are on earth (Eph 1:10).
- Published on
by George Sidney Hurd
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The Following is an excerpt from the book, The Triumph of Mercy.
“And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 Then one said to Him, ‘Lord, are there few who are saved?’ And He said to them, 24 ‘Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from,’ 26 then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’ 27 But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’ 28 There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. 29 They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. 30 And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.” (Luke 13:22-30)
“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” (Matt 7:13-14)
The passages we are examining here are the response of Jesus to the question: “Are there few who are saved?” Something very important to keep in mind in the teachings of Jesus is that, even though He was the mediator of the New Covenant, He still ministered under the Old Covenant. And if the law was the ministry of death (2Cor 3:7), some of the sayings of Jesus were like the nails that closed the coffin once and for all to those who hoped in salvation by works. To those who said that they had never killed anyone, Jesus said that they were in danger of Gehenna for just saying damaging words to others. To those who boasted that they had never committed adultery, He said that just looking at a woman with sexual desire constituted adultery. He took the law, which is humanly impossible to keep and made it infinitely more impossible for man to fulfill.
To some who already recognized their need for salvation, Jesus revealed that salvation was by grace through faith alone. To Nicodemus, He compared salvation to the healing of the rebellious Israelites when they were saved from dying of snakebites by just one look of faith in the direction of the serpent of bronze (Jn 3:14-16). To others, who still considered themselves to be righteous, He pointed out something in their life where they were lacking in order to remove all hope of being saved by their own works.
When the rich young ruler in Mark 10 asked Jesus: “Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?” Jesus responded by mentioning one by one the 10 commandments. The law promised life for those who observed it perfectly, which obviously no one has ever been able to do except for God Himself in the person of Christ. Nevertheless, the rich young ruler, thinking that he was righteous according to the law, responded saying: “Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth.” Then Jesus, in order to destroy any illusion that he could save himself by his own works said: “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me."
What was Jesus’ intention in making such a demand upon this man? Was He reinforcing his belief that salvation depended upon his own works? No. He had followers like Lazarus and others who were rich and yet He did not place this requirement upon them. The motive of Jesus is obvious. He wanted to remove from him all hope of saving himself, causing him to seek the grace and mercy of God as his only hope of salvation. When the rich young ruler asked: “Good teacher, what must I do to be saved?” Jesus began His response by emphasizing that there is no one good except God alone. His motive was to commit all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all (Rom 11:32).
Why did Jesus say that “those who are well had no need of a physician, but those who are sick, and that He didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance?” (Mark 2:17). Because those who consider themselves to be righteous don’t sense any need of mercy. A person only begins to seek God when he becomes aware of his condition as a sinner. All are sinners, but for an individual to seek salvation he must first come to see his need. He must realize that his only hope of righteousness is the righteousness of God in Christ, received as a free gift of grace apart from works (Rom 3:19-25).
We see that Jesus put no demand upon the criminal being crucified beside Him. The criminal simply said to Jesus: “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom,” and Jesus replied: “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:42,43). And He extends the same invitation to all saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink” (John 7:37).
He offered salvation freely to the Samaritan woman who had had five husbands and was presently living with a man out of wedlock, saying: “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water” (John 4:10). In contrast, when speaking to the self-righteous, He made salvation by self-works even more hopelessly impossible. Why? To exclude them? No, but rather to commit them all to disobedience in order to ultimately have mercy on them all.
After His conversation with the rich young ruler, Jesus said to his disciples in so many words that it was impossible for a rich man to be saved. In Matthew 19:25 we see their reaction to the demand Jesus made to the rich young ruler: “When His disciples heard it, they were greatly astonished, saying, ‘Who then can be saved?” In Jesus’ reply we discover what it is that He wants all of mankind to understand concerning their salvation: “But Jesus looked at them and said to them, ‘With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (v. 26).
Jesus didn’t just say this in reference to the rich, but to all. What Jesus wanted to make clear before going to the cross and initiating the New Covenant in His blood, was that self-salvation isn’t just difficult – it’s impossible. But for God nothing is impossible, and He desires that all be saved, and so shall it be. Nevertheless, the prostitutes and the tax collectors will enter the kingdom before the self-righteous religious people. Why? Because the self-righteous religious people are the last to recognize their need for God’s mercy and salvation (Matt 21:31-32).
“For God has committed all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all.” (Rom 11:32)
Returning to the passage in Luke 13 where Jesus answers the question: “Lord, are there few who are saved?” there are some very important observations which we should make. In the first place, it is clear that those who are lost are not eternally lost, as is traditionally taught. What Jesus says is that some will not be permitted entrance into the kingdom of heaven initially, but He makes no reference to eternal exclusion. On the contrary, what we see in verse 30 is that those esteemed as being the first candidates to enter, such as the Pharisees and religiously self-righteous, will actually be the last to enter, while those least expected to enter, such as the harlots and tax collectors, will enter first (Matt 21:31-32). The word “first” in Greek is protos and in this context refers to those who are first in time or sequence. Also, the word “last” is eschatos which here refers to those who are last in sequence to enter. “First” and “last” are not necessarily referring to importance in the kingdom but rather to sequence. Jesus elsewhere refers to first and last in importance but uses different terms: “least” elachistos and “greatest” megos (Matt 5:19; 11:11). If the exclusion of the lost were eternal, then Jesus would not have spoken of some who would be the first to enter and others who would be eschatologically the last to enter.
Neither do we see eternal perdition presented in the parallel passage in Matthew 7:13-14. Due to the traditional dogma of an eternal hell, we unconsciously assume that the word “destruction” (apoleia) means eternal destruction. But how can destruction be eternal if Jesus said: “for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost [apollumi “destroy or lose”?] (Luke 19:10). Will He somehow not be able to do what He came to do? Jesus used the same word in both cases; “destruction” being the noun form and “was lost” being the verb form. He is the Good Shepherd who leaves the 99 sheep in the fold to seek the only lost one until He finds it (Luke 15:4). Is it possible that, in spite of this, some will be eternally lost? No! A thousand times No! He is the One who said: “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw (drag) all unto Myself” (John 12:32). Is it possible for Him to have said it and not be able to do it? Percentage wise, the traditional view often presents Christ as ultimately eternally losing 99% of those He died to rescue, with only the 1% safe in the fold. Did not the Good Shepherd lay down His life for the whole world?
In the second place, when we compare the passages concerning the narrow gate with the last chapters of Revelation, beginning with the Second Coming of Christ for His Bride, we see that the initial exclusion of the majority from the kingdom of heaven is not an eternal exclusion. Those who are not already His at His coming will not take part in the wedding feast and therefore will not be of the Bride of Christ, the Lamb’s wife, and they will not dwell in the New Jerusalem (Rev 21:9-10). However, that is not the end of the story.
After the Great White Throne Judgment of Revelation 20, which takes place a thousand years after the Second Coming, those who did not enter by the narrow gate and are not found in the book of life will be cast into the lake of fire. Tradition would tell us that from this point on all will have gone to their final destiny where they will be forever, without any possibility of restoration for those who are in the lake of fire. All the saints will be in heaven and all the rest will be in hell forever. However, in Revelation we see a different scenario.
In Revelation 21 we see the New Jerusalem, the wife of the Lamb, descending out of heaven upon the new earth. At that point another distinct group of people is introduced – the nations who will walk in the light of the New Jerusalem - the habitation of the Bride, the wife of the Lamb (21:24).
Now we no longer have just two groups – the Church in the New Jerusalem and the condemned in the lake of fire – but also the third group - the saved of the nations (21:25). Who are they? Obviously, at first they will only consist of those found written in the book of life at the Great White Throne Judgment. They will be made alive and glorified at that time, but since the wedding already took place a thousand years prior to this judgment, they will not make up part of the wife of the Lamb who inhabits the New Jerusalem, but rather they will walk in the light of the New Jerusalem (21:24).
However, we also see others of the nations in the outer darkness who cannot enter the New Jerusalem while they remain unclean and do not yet have their names written in the book of life (21:27). The book of Revelation ends with the Spirit and the Bride of the Lamb extending the invitation to all those who are outside and are thirsty and want to partake of the water of life to enter and drink freely. Her gates shall not be shut. However, they will remain outside in outer darkness until they repent and wash their robes in order to be able to enter. Nevertheless, the invitation continues to be extended to all those who are thirsty and wish to enter, just as it is now.
“Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. 15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.” (Rev 22:14-15 NIV)
Some who are in outer darkness will enter sooner, while others will be the last to enter, but when all is said and done, God will be all in all (1Cor 15:28) when, in the dispensation of the fullness of time, both those in heaven and those on earth will have been reunited in Christ (Eph 1:10). After the Great White Throne Judgment, those being made alive and glorified will be made alive on an individual basis - “each one in his own order” (1Cor 15:22-23). But in the end all will have submitted to Him, bowing the knee and confessing Him as Lord to the glory of God. Then the time will have finally come when all will have entered in by the narrow gate which leads to life.
In the third place, in the context of the passage concerning the narrow gate, Jesus wasn’t speaking to individuals who already recognized that they were sinners and in need of salvation as many think, but rather He was confronting the Pharisees and self-righteous religious people who trusted in themselves. They were the ones unwilling to humble themselves low enough to enter by the narrow gate. They are the ones who will be standing outside and knocking when it is too late to enter into the marriage feast. In Luke 18:13-14 we see that it was the tax collector, and not the Pharisee, who was received by the Lord. Jesus explained the reason saying: “…for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:14). Only the poor in spirit will inherit the kingdom of God, because only they are willing to humble themselves and enter by the gate which is too uncomfortably narrow for the self-righteous.
Therefore, there is nothing in Christ’s teaching about the narrow gate which implies eternal perdition. To the contrary, what He taught is in harmony with the final restoration of all, beginning with those who early recognize their need of God’s mercy.
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Does God Get What He Wants?
by George Sidney Hurd
The following is an excerpt from the book The Triumph of Mercy.
“For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” (1Timothy 2:3-6)
This passage clearly tells us that God desires the salvation of all men, and also that, with that end in mind, Christ Jesus gave Himself a ransom for all. This harmonizes perfectly with Universalism which affirms that God will indeed save all in due time. But with the traditionalists who believe that the majority will never be saved, it is necessary to change the obvious sense of this passage. The Arminians and the Calvinists have two very distinct ways of explaining why this text doesn’t mean what it appears to mean.
Two Traditional Opinions
The Arminians
The Arminians are in agreement with the text in the sense that Christ Jesus paid the ransom for the whole human race – that He gave Himself a ransom for all. Nevertheless, according to them, the majority will never be saved, due to their belief that the will of God for man is frustrated by man’s own free-will. In order to maintain some semblance of sovereignty for God, they must argue that the word “desire” (thelo), in this instance, does not mean something that He will achieve, but rather it is merely a wish or aspiration. Barnes, in his commentary on 1Timothy 2:4 is representative of the explanation given by the Arminians:
“[Who will have all men to be saved] That is, it is in accordance with his nature, his feelings, his desires. The word ‘will’ cannot be taken here in the absolute sense, denoting a decree like that by which he willed the creation of the world, for if that were so then all men would be saved. But the word is often used to denote a desire, wish, or what is in accordance with the nature of anyone. Thus it may be said of God that he ‘wills’ that his creatures may be happy because it is in accordance with his nature, and because he has made abundant provision for their happiness though it is not true that he wills it in the sense that he exerts his absolute power to make them happy. God wills that sickness should be relieved, and sorrow mitigated, and that the oppressed should go free, because it is agreeable to his nature; though it is not true that he wills it in the sense that he exerts his absolute power to produce it. A parent wills the welfare of his child. It is in accordance with his nature, his feelings, his desires; and he makes every needful arrangement for it. If the child is not virtuous and happy, it is his own fault. So God wills that all people should be saved. It would be in accordance with his benevolent nature. He has made ample provision for it. He uses all proper means to secure their salvation. He uses no positive means to prevent it, and if they are not saved it will be their own fault. For places in the New Testament where the word here translated ‘will’ θέλω , means to desire or wish, see Luke 8:20; 23:8; John 16:19; Gal.4:20; Mark 17:24; 1Cor. 7:7; 11:3; 14:5; Matt. 15:28.” [i]
It is not without importance to note that none of the passages he cites here to show that thelo at times expresses a simple desire or wish have reference to the will of God. The will of man can be frustrated by circumstances beyond his control. That’s why James said that our determinations should be conditioned by, “if God wills (thelo)…we will do this or that” (James 4:13-15). We can make a determination to do something and not be able to do it because it ultimately depends upon the determinative will of God. James continues saying, “all such boasting is evil” (v. 16). Nevertheless, according to Arminianism, what God desires for us is subordinate to the “free-will” of man to such a degree that they, in essence, invert the words of James to say, “if man wills, God will do,” instead of saying “if God wills, man will do.” Such boasting is not good, according to James. It is the essence of humanism, putting the will of man above the will of God.
There is an abundance of Scriptures that clearly indicate that the will of God, when all is said and done, cannot be frustrated by the will of man:
“Whatever the Lord pleases (thelo) he does, in heaven and on earth.” (Ps 135:6)
In this passage the same Greek word thelo, is used in the LXX. Some say that the other words expressing “desire” (boule, bouleuo, boúlomai) express more strongly the idea of deliberation than thelo. [ii] Thelo is said to express determination in contrast with boule. Marvin Vincent, commenting on thelo as used in 1Timothy 2:4 says: “He desires the salvation of all. Thelo (to desire) indicates a determined purpose.” [iii] Be that as it may, we find that both words are used to express the will of God concerning our salvation. Peter uses the word boúlomai to express that God is not willing (boúlomai) that any of us should perish.
“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing (boúlomai) that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9) [iv]
Even taking into account whatever distinction of meaning there may be between thelo and boule, we see in the Scriptures that neither His thelo nor His boule can ultimately be frustrated by man:
“The Lord of hosts has sworn, saying, ‘surely, as I have thought, so it shall come to pass, and as I have purposed (bouleuo), so it shall stand.” (Isa 14:24)
“Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure (boule),’ 11 Calling a bird of prey from the east, the man who executes My counsel, from a far country. Indeed I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it.” (Isa 46:10-11)
But if there should still remain doubt as to whether or not He exercises His will in a determinative way for the salvation of all mankind, let us look again at what He declares in Isaiah 45:
“Tell and bring forth your case; yes, let them take counsel together. Who has declared this from ancient time? Who has told it from that time? Have not I, the Lord? And there is no other God besides Me, a just God and a Savior; there is none besides Me. 22 Look to Me, and be saved, all you ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. 23 I have sworn by Myself; the word has gone out of My mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, that to Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall take an oath, 24 saying (LXX, legon), ‘Surely in the Lord I have righteousness and strength.’ To Him men shall come, and all shall be ashamed who are incensed against Him.” (Isa 45:21-24)
Here we see that it is not simply a passive desire or an aspiration of God that all be saved, but rather that He himself has sworn that all shall be saved – that every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall take an oath of loyalty to Him.
This contradicts what Barnes and other Arminians affirm when he says: “The word ‘will’, cannot be taken here in the absolute sense, denoting a decree….” And why do they insist so much that it cannot be understood in an absolute sense? Barnes explains their reasoning: “for if that were so then all men would be saved. However, the salvation of all is precisely what Paul affirms in 1Timothy. After saying in 2:4 that God desires all men to be saved and that Christ gave Himself as a ransom for all; in 4:10 he goes on to say that He is “the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe.” According to Paul, Christ gave Himself as a ransom for all, and His mission will not be frustrated by the free-will of man. Even those who have not yet believed will believe in due time. Those who believe in universal salvation can take these passages in their plain and obvious sense. But when these texts are approached with the presupposition of eternal punishment, combined with the exaltation of the free-will of man against the free-will of God to save, it then becomes necessary for them to change the obvious meaning of Scripture in order to maintain their traditions.
That is not to say that God never lets men make decisions independently on their own. God allows us to make our own decisions in order that we may learn from our mistakes and mature. What these texts do say is that God has the last word. What God desires He does, in heaven and on earth, and what he desires is the ultimate salvation of all mankind, and in His own time it shall be accomplished.
God, as Creator and Father of all, permits us to exercise our will within certain parameters the same as any father who wants his son to mature and learn to make wise decisions. But what would we say of a father who never intervenes even when his son’s decisions could cause irreparable harm or death? Love promotes the exercise of free-will decisions in our children for the development of their personalities. However, at the same time, we exercise influence to guide them, and if necessary, deny the free expression of their will in certain circumstances until they learn to make more mature decisions. No good father would give his son’s will free reign without parental intervention when necessary. That would be parental negligence and indifference – not love. And much less would one of us let our son commit suicide without restraining intervention. How can we attribute to our Father God something infinitely worse?
Barnes, as cited above, unwittingly presents God as if He were the worst, most indifferent and negligent Father of all. He said, referring to man’s salvation: “(God) has made ample provision for it. He uses all proper means to secure their salvation. He uses no positive means to prevent it, and if they are not saved it will be their own fault.” [v] This is an example of how much the traditional doctrine of eternal punishment can harden our hearts. The attitude of God that Barnes presents here is as if a father were to say concerning his son: “Well, I provided for my son all that he needs to live a happy life. I’m not going to tie him to the railroad tracks, but if he decides to take his life it will be his own fault.” However, what they attribute to God is much worse than this illustration depicts. They sing hymns affirming that the mercy of God endures forever, but at the same time teach that if one does not accept His provision of salvation on time, God himself will cast them into an eternal lake of fire without any hope of ever being saved for all eternity.
According to them, God has so much respect for man’s free-will that He wouldn’t even intervene to prevent His children from going to an eternal hell, even knowing that they are headed there because they are blinded by inherited sin. Nevertheless, at the judgment, when they finally come to themselves and bow the knee to Him, confessing Him as Lord, they will be cast into the lake of fire, without mercy and against their free-will that He is said to honor so much, forever and ever.
Continuing with the example of the father and son, it would be as if the father; seeing that his wayward son did not gratefully receive his provision promptly, were to tie his son on his knees to the train rails, without showing mercy to his son’s confession that he had acted shamefully, and turning a deaf ear to his promises to be an obedient son, given another opportunity, until finally the train runs over him. Of course, this illustration falls short because the train passes, but according to them, hell never ends.
This parable is very different from the one Jesus used to illustrate Father God’s heart toward his prodigal son, but it is nevertheless descriptive of the father of the Arminians towards a wayward, ungrateful son in the far country. They would allow that the Father is as presented in Jesus’ parable as long as the son’s heart continues beating, but does the Father’s love and mercy end in a heartbeat or are His love and mercy eternal even as the Bible declares?
The Calvinists
The Calvinists, in contrast to the Arminians, believe that, according to the Scriptures, God is absolutely sovereign and cannot be frustrated by the free-will of man. A Calvinist, John Gill, says the following concerning the same passage in 1Timothy 2:4:
“The salvation which God wills that all men should enjoy, is not a mere possibility of salvation, or a mere putting them into a salvable state; or an offer of salvation to them; or a proposal of sufficient means of it to all in his word; but a real, certain, and actual salvation, which he has determined they shall have... wherefore the will of God, that all men should be saved, is not a conditional will, or what depends on the will of man, or on anything to be performed by him... but it is an absolute and unconditional will respecting their salvation, and which infallibly secures it...but the will of God concerning man’s salvation is entirely one, invariable, unalterable, and unchangeable ... but it is his ordaining, purposing, and determining will, which is never resisted, so as to be frustrated, but is always accomplished: the will of God, the sovereign and unfrustratable will of God, has the governing sway and influence in the salvation of men.” [vi]
So far Gill gives us the impression that he is eloquently arguing in favor of Universalism - that God wills all men to be saved and nothing nor anyone can frustrate His desire. However, since Calvinists do not believe that God wills to save all, they must argue that all here does not mean “all.” After declaring that all men will be saved, he “clarifies” that all men does not mean “all men”:
“nor are any saved, but whom he wills they should be saved: hence by all men…cannot be meant every individual of mankind, since it is not his will that all men, in this large sense, should be saved, unless there are two contrary wills in God; for there are some who were before ordained by him unto condemnation, and are vessels of wrath fitted for destruction; and it is his will concerning some, that they should believe a lie, that they all might be damned; nor is it fact that all are saved, as they would be, if it was his will they should; for who hath resisted his will? But there is a world of ungodly men that will be condemned, and who will go into everlasting punishment.” [vii]
Here we see a representation of the Calvinistic position that says that God always gets what He wants but He simply doesn’t want to save all. On the contrary, some (the majority according to them) were predestined by God to an eternal hell and He wants them to believe the lie, in order that they might be damned. That doesn’t resonate with me as being the good news for all people that the angel announced to the shepherds (Luke 2:10).
Based on this position, they must argue that “all men” does not refer to all without exception but rather to all without distinction. In other words, a few, representative of every nation, race, social rank, age and sex. Nevertheless, they say that “all men” refers to everyone without exception when Paul says that “all have sinned” (Rom 5:12). But how can we possibly say that Christ’s victory was much greater than Adam’s defeat if in Adam all without exception are lost but in Christ only “all without distinction” are saved? (cf. Rom 5:15-17).
To illustrate how illogical this explanation is to limit “all” - saying it doesn’t mean all without exception but only “all without distinction,” let us imagine that an embassy with 3,000 people inside is taken by terrorists and all 3,000 are held as hostages. Then the Special Forces storm the embassy in an attempt to save them. After a great conflict, only 30 of the 3,000 are saved alive. The rest are killed by the terrorists. What would be the reaction of the families of the victims and the rest of the public if they were informed that the rescue operation was a total success – the Special Forces were able to save “all without distinction”? Would it be possible to consider that a total victory just because the survivors were composed of representatives of every nation, sex and age group? Such distinctions cause us to attribute to God that which is absurd and unacceptable even on a human level.
The Common Denominator between Arminians and Calvinists
There is a common denominator that the Arminians and Calvinists hold in common against the Universalists. The common denominator is not the Gospel. Christian Universalists also believe the same gospel that salvation only comes through Christ’s redemptive work on the cross. Biblical Universalists also believe in the inspiration and authority of the Scriptures. So, what is the presupposition that they hold in common against the Universalists? The common denominator is that both camps assume that not all will be saved. Gill the Calvinist says that all cannot mean “all,” “since it is not his will that all men, in this large sense, should be saved.” Barnes, as an Arminian, on the other hand argues that it is his will that all men be saved but it is not a determinative will, “for if that were so then all men would be saved.” The point of reference for both sides is the presupposition that not all will be saved. Both sides, because of their traditional doctrine of eternal punishment for the majority of mankind, must argue that the text doesn’t mean what it seems to mean; namely that God has made provision for the salvation of all and has determined that all will be saved. The Arminians get around having to say that God will save all by subordinating God’s sovereignty to the “free-will” of man, and the Calvinist gets around saying God will save all by saying that all doesn’t mean “all.” In contrast, the Universalist can say that God is sovereign and will indeed save all without violating man’s free-will. God in His sovereignty has sworn that every knee will bow before Him, and every tongue will confess Him as Lord under oath. And that includes all in heaven, on the earth and under the earth (Is 45:21-22; Phil 2:10-11).
Free-Will?
While the tendency among the Arminians is to limit the sovereignty of God to protect the free-will of man, the Calvinist tends to minimize or even deny the free-will of man in order to protect the sovereignty of God. It is true that there are many limitations to what we call “free-will.” None of us were able to choose the environment in which we were born. We didn’t choose to be born with a bent to sin. We didn’t choose our parents. We couldn’t choose whether to be born in a Christian home or an atheist or Muslim home. We couldn’t choose between being born in the United States or Iran, and for the majority, their free-will is of little or no avail for changing their social status or nationality. All these things and many more, limit or influence our “free-will.” It is more likely that one born into a loving Christian home in a time of spiritual revival will exercise their “free-will” to accept Christ than an Indian in the heart of the jungle who has never seen civilization; much less heard the gospel. Certainly, at best our “free-will” is limited by the hand of cards that life has dealt to us. If the eternal destiny of every person were to depend upon a decision for Christ with the limitations of their “free-will” during the brief span of their lifetime, then there would be much inequity in the world which would be very difficult to reconcile with the love and justice of God. But if we understand that Christ is the Savior of all mankind without exception, including those who have not believed as of yet (1Ti 4:10), then it becomes possible to trust that God, in His time, will bring justice, grace and mercy to all.
I believe that what we find in the Scriptures is that God’s sovereignty is always absolute. His council will stand and all that He desires will be done (Is 46:10), and what He desires is the salvation of all. Also, the victory of Christ on the cross reconciled the whole world to Himself and obtained the salvation of all. But at the same time, no one benefits from that salvation against their own will. God has reconciled the world to Himself in Christ, but we do not enjoy that reconciliation until we have been reconciled to God in our hearts and minds (2Cor. 5:19-20; Col. 1:21). Christ is the Savior of the whole World, but we do not experience this salvation until we put our faith in the Savior. The problem with the traditional position is their insistence that the only opportunity that God gives us is in this life, and obviously not all are reconciled to God, accepting His salvation in this life. In fact, the vast majority never even heard the good news of salvation in their lifetime.
The disparity between the sovereignty of God and the free-will of man does not exist with the Universalist. The debate between Arminianism and Calvinism is rooted in the presupposition of the traditionalists that say that it is necessary to be saved within the nanosecond of our earthly existence. As it is obvious that not all are saved in this life, they must justify this reality. The Calvinists put the blame on God, saying that He doesn’t want to save all. The Arminians put the blame on man’s free-will, saying that man doesn’t want to be saved. The Universalist, however, can say with the Scriptures that God wants all to turn to Him and be saved, and He has sworn that, sooner or later, every knee shall indeed bow, and every tongue shall confess Jesus as Lord of their own free-will (Isa 45:21-24; Phil 2:10-11).
God does not have to violate one’s free-will in order to cause them to turn to Him. His patience and His power of influence are infinite, and He is capable of bringing them voluntarily to their knees, confessing Him as Lord, instead of sending them to an eternal hell against their “free-will” as soon as their heart stops beating. God, working in us to desire and to do His good will, is what will finally result in all voluntarily submitting themselves to Him.
“That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father… 13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” (Phil 2:10,11,13)
It was God working in the life and circumstances of Jonah in the storm and the great fish, and in the life of Paul on the road to Damascus that caused them to will and to do His good pleasure. God changed their “free-will” to align it with His and didn’t wait for them to choose His will on their own – something they would have never done. They would have never chosen the good will of God by their independent free-will until God produced the desire in them, and the same is true of you and me and everyone else who has ever bowed the knee and confessed Jesus Christ as Lord (Rom. 3:11-12). “No one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit (1Cor 12:3). God accomplishes what He desires, and what He desires is that all be saved, and so shall it be done according to His predetermined will.
[i] Barnes Notes, Commentary on 1Timothy 2.
[ii] Vines Expository Dictionary of the New Testament on boúlomai.
[iii] Marvin Vincent, Vincent´s Word Studies of the New Testament on 1Timoteo 2:4.
[iv] In this passage we see God’s determinative will exercised in the salvation of all His elect, the Church of the firstfruits, before the day of the Lord commences at the Second Coming. The limiting expressions “beloved” and “toward us” show clearly that he is here specifically referring to the elect and not the rest of the world who will believe through us in the coming times of the restoration of all. The Lord will not return until the “fullness of the Gentiles” has come into the Church and all of us as His “firstfruits” have been harvested.
[v] Barnes Notes, Commentary on 1Timothy 2.
[vi] John Gill, New John Gill Exposition of the Entire Bible. Commentary on 1Timothy 2:4
[vii] John Gill, New John Gill Exposition of the Entire Bible. Commentary on 1Timothy 2:4