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Questions Christians Ask
Is Hell for Real? And other questions about judgment, eternity and the God of love
The word Hell conjures up all kinds of nightmares in people's minds. But also presents a difficulty for many Christians. How can a God who the Bible says literally " is love" condemn anyone to an eternity of torment? Will punishment be eternal? Is Hell for real?
In this short, accessible book, pastor and author Erik Raymond reviews this important subject for everyone with pastoral warmth and biblical clarity.
In this short, accessible book, pastor and author Erik Raymond reviews this important subject for everyone with pastoral warmth and biblical clarity.
96 pages, Perfect Paperback
Published August 1, 2017
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85 people want to read
About the author
Erik Raymond
10 books23 followersErik Raymond is the senior pastor at Redeemer Fellowship Church in Metro Boston. He is a frequent contributor to many websites and periodicals, and blogs regularly at Ordinary Pastor, hosted by the Gospel Coalition.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
September 20, 2019
The church in the Middle Ages celebrated the doctrine of hell. Step into any cathedral in Europe built during that time and you’re likely to find demons a fixture of your experience. Not so in the 21st Century. The doctrine of hell is a doctrine that, at times, seems to only be trumpeted by the fundamentalist extreme.
How can we make sense of a God who would damn human beings to hell? In Erik Raymond’s words in Is hell for real?:
“How is it possible that God could be honored by [hell]?”
“How does this serve to show God’s goodness, love and mercy?”
Raymond explains that in the New Testament, three terms for hell are used: Hades (the New Testament equivalent of Sheol), Tartarus (borrowed from Greek mythology where the worst people were thrown), and Gehenna (borrowed from name of the valley of Hinnom where the rubbish of Jerusalem was dumped and burned, it is the most common word used for hell).
Raymond then considers what is hell like?
1) It lasts forever: “Depart…into the eternal fire…Then they will go away to eternal punishment…” (Mt. 25:45-46); “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt” (Dn 12:2); “And the smoke of their torment will rise forever and ever” (Rev 14:10).
2) It causes torment: “fire of hell” (Mt 18:9); “weeping and gnashing of teeth (Mt 8:12); “unquenchable fire” (Mt 3:12); “outer darkness” (Mt 22:13).
Raymond then asks us consider why there would be a hell. The answer to this is because of God’s character. Raymond reminds us that God is eternal, infinite, unchanging, holy, righteous, good, loving, jealous for his glory. It is because of God’s character, that there is the necessity for eternal punishment. Raymond says, “[H]ell is the essential response of God’s character to sin.” dread.’” Raymond re-frames our understanding of sin particularly because of who we are sinning against. “What’s the difference?” Raymond asks, “It’s the one who is sinned against.” Who we sin against matters, Raymond asserts. “If God is serious about his glory, then we can expect hell to be severe.”
Raymond believes that we have so diluted our understanding of God that we have also diluted our understanding of sin. Raymond reflects, “One reason for the dilution of the concept of sin is that our contemporary understanding of it has been relativized. We think that sin is what really bad people do.” A good judge, Raymond says, renders judgment against the guilty. A bad judge lets the guilty off the hook.
Raymond then spends some time encouraging his reader to choose eternal life through the rescue of Jesus. “What did the sacrifice of Christ aim to accomplish? It was to pay the debt for our sin by satisfying God’s wrath.” “As Charles Spurgeon says, ‘He drank damnation dry.’” What a beautiful picture of the sacrificial work of Christ.
Raymond has written a helpful and concise introduction to the question of hell and it is worth the read. I was left wondering who Raymond’s audience ultimately was, however. If Raymond is writing someone who has a passing understanding of Christianity but does not have strenuous objections to the faith, then I believe he has hit his mark. If, however, he was hoping that this book would allow for deeper engagement over the question of hell for the serious believer or a serious engagement over the ethics of hell from an unbeliever, then I think you will be left wanting.
For me, where this is seen the most is Raymond’s cursory engagement with the three other options open to the Christian. Raymond includes a paragraph within the book itself and then devotes an appendix to these other options. Those are:
1) Universalism: all are ultimately saved;
2) Conditional immortality: only Christians receive the gift of immortality;
3) Annihilationism: those who are not Christians will experience a time of suffering after death and then will be annihilated. Annihilationists believe that the language of eternal judgment deals with the finality of the punishment. The word destruction is also used to refer to eternal judgment.
Of these options he spends the most time with universalism and does a fair job with it. From my perspective does a weaker job with Annihilationism. When confronting the concept of Annihilationism, Raymond spends most of his time defending why God could be justified in allowing for eternal conscious torment. That is fine. But I think Raymond does a weaker job dealing with how Annihilationists deal with the texts of hell. I would have loved to see Raymond deal with these other options within the main text of the book as he walks through the various texts as opposed to bracketing them off into an appendix.
I still lean toward an eternal conscious torment perspective, but I believe that there are some serious challenges from an Annihilationist perspective that deserve more than fleeting consideration.
Raymond himself mentions that “John Calvin suggested it seemed as if God used these expressions ‘to confound all of our senses with.’” Raymond, though, doesn’t seem to acknowledge that there are pieces of the pictures of hell we are given that we have a hard time fitting together. Unsurprisingly, given the subject matter, Jesus relies heavily on metaphor when referring to hell. We are given pictures of lambs and goats, of a worm that doesn’t die, of smoke and fire, of utter darkness, and then, in the case of the rich man and Lazarus, a conversation between a damned man and God.
I appreciate that Raymond is trying to draw a clear picture for the reader, but to me, Raymond minimizes the metaphorical language and even the apparently the contradictory nature of some of the language.
It’s for these reasons that I believe this is the weakest contribution in the very good “Questions Christians Ask” series. That said, it is still worth the read and more than a helpful starting place.
For more reviews see www.thebeehive.live.
How can we make sense of a God who would damn human beings to hell? In Erik Raymond’s words in Is hell for real?:
“How is it possible that God could be honored by [hell]?”
“How does this serve to show God’s goodness, love and mercy?”
Raymond explains that in the New Testament, three terms for hell are used: Hades (the New Testament equivalent of Sheol), Tartarus (borrowed from Greek mythology where the worst people were thrown), and Gehenna (borrowed from name of the valley of Hinnom where the rubbish of Jerusalem was dumped and burned, it is the most common word used for hell).
Raymond then considers what is hell like?
1) It lasts forever: “Depart…into the eternal fire…Then they will go away to eternal punishment…” (Mt. 25:45-46); “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt” (Dn 12:2); “And the smoke of their torment will rise forever and ever” (Rev 14:10).
2) It causes torment: “fire of hell” (Mt 18:9); “weeping and gnashing of teeth (Mt 8:12); “unquenchable fire” (Mt 3:12); “outer darkness” (Mt 22:13).
Raymond then asks us consider why there would be a hell. The answer to this is because of God’s character. Raymond reminds us that God is eternal, infinite, unchanging, holy, righteous, good, loving, jealous for his glory. It is because of God’s character, that there is the necessity for eternal punishment. Raymond says, “[H]ell is the essential response of God’s character to sin.” dread.’” Raymond re-frames our understanding of sin particularly because of who we are sinning against. “What’s the difference?” Raymond asks, “It’s the one who is sinned against.” Who we sin against matters, Raymond asserts. “If God is serious about his glory, then we can expect hell to be severe.”
Raymond believes that we have so diluted our understanding of God that we have also diluted our understanding of sin. Raymond reflects, “One reason for the dilution of the concept of sin is that our contemporary understanding of it has been relativized. We think that sin is what really bad people do.” A good judge, Raymond says, renders judgment against the guilty. A bad judge lets the guilty off the hook.
Raymond then spends some time encouraging his reader to choose eternal life through the rescue of Jesus. “What did the sacrifice of Christ aim to accomplish? It was to pay the debt for our sin by satisfying God’s wrath.” “As Charles Spurgeon says, ‘He drank damnation dry.’” What a beautiful picture of the sacrificial work of Christ.
Raymond has written a helpful and concise introduction to the question of hell and it is worth the read. I was left wondering who Raymond’s audience ultimately was, however. If Raymond is writing someone who has a passing understanding of Christianity but does not have strenuous objections to the faith, then I believe he has hit his mark. If, however, he was hoping that this book would allow for deeper engagement over the question of hell for the serious believer or a serious engagement over the ethics of hell from an unbeliever, then I think you will be left wanting.
For me, where this is seen the most is Raymond’s cursory engagement with the three other options open to the Christian. Raymond includes a paragraph within the book itself and then devotes an appendix to these other options. Those are:
1) Universalism: all are ultimately saved;
2) Conditional immortality: only Christians receive the gift of immortality;
3) Annihilationism: those who are not Christians will experience a time of suffering after death and then will be annihilated. Annihilationists believe that the language of eternal judgment deals with the finality of the punishment. The word destruction is also used to refer to eternal judgment.
Of these options he spends the most time with universalism and does a fair job with it. From my perspective does a weaker job with Annihilationism. When confronting the concept of Annihilationism, Raymond spends most of his time defending why God could be justified in allowing for eternal conscious torment. That is fine. But I think Raymond does a weaker job dealing with how Annihilationists deal with the texts of hell. I would have loved to see Raymond deal with these other options within the main text of the book as he walks through the various texts as opposed to bracketing them off into an appendix.
I still lean toward an eternal conscious torment perspective, but I believe that there are some serious challenges from an Annihilationist perspective that deserve more than fleeting consideration.
Raymond himself mentions that “John Calvin suggested it seemed as if God used these expressions ‘to confound all of our senses with.’” Raymond, though, doesn’t seem to acknowledge that there are pieces of the pictures of hell we are given that we have a hard time fitting together. Unsurprisingly, given the subject matter, Jesus relies heavily on metaphor when referring to hell. We are given pictures of lambs and goats, of a worm that doesn’t die, of smoke and fire, of utter darkness, and then, in the case of the rich man and Lazarus, a conversation between a damned man and God.
I appreciate that Raymond is trying to draw a clear picture for the reader, but to me, Raymond minimizes the metaphorical language and even the apparently the contradictory nature of some of the language.
It’s for these reasons that I believe this is the weakest contribution in the very good “Questions Christians Ask” series. That said, it is still worth the read and more than a helpful starting place.
For more reviews see www.thebeehive.live.
June 13, 2020
Is Hell for Real? And Other Questions About Judgment, Eternity and the God of Love by Erik Raymond Is another solid addition to the series, Questions Christians Ask by published by The Good Book Company. It is a little book on a big subject. But it’s brevity does not diminish its clarity, sincerity, and doctrinal integrity. Raymond writes with care and compassion for those who struggle with this difficult doctrine. At the same time he does not compromise on the character of God and the necessity of divine judgment. He clearly explains the need for propitiation and a personal response (repentance and faith) to the gospel before one dies and faces final judgment.
Increasingly, universalism and inclusivism are threatening not only the gospel message but also the gospel mission among evangelicals. This book would be a great read for teams equipping for evangelism and missions.
Increasingly, universalism and inclusivism are threatening not only the gospel message but also the gospel mission among evangelicals. This book would be a great read for teams equipping for evangelism and missions.
May 23, 2019
Very informative little book. I used it as a basis for a Bible study on eternity.
September 4, 2018
The topic of hell is not an easy one to address, especially in a culture that is very much politically correct. Is hell a fiery pit of continual torture or is it a place we can escape from or will eventually be consumed by? What of universalist doctrine that states all will eventually be saved or concepts like purgatory or the levels of hell? There has often been a debate that a good God could not cast people into hell, but then how does that affect the themes of justice? Although a short book, the themes it touched on were definitely not lighthearted. I appreciate Raymond's courage to address many of them, though in the end of the day, I can't say I entirely agree 100% with his theology. I do appreciate his illustrations and his desire to reach others by evangelism, but some of his ponderings are not quite in line with my own belief structure.
December 15, 2021
I think, from memory, that this is the fifth book in the series 'Questions Christians Ask' that I have read, and by far the least enjoyed!
From the beginning, I just felt that the writer didn't seem to have grasped 'his brief' as set out in the title of the book, 'Is Hell for Real?' By the time I had read the final page, I just knew that this wasn't a book that I would readily give to someone else if they were asking questions about hell.
Much of the material reserved for the two appendices should have been, in my opinion, included in the body of the book, as it went to the heart of the topic.
Sadly, a 2-star read at best.
From the beginning, I just felt that the writer didn't seem to have grasped 'his brief' as set out in the title of the book, 'Is Hell for Real?' By the time I had read the final page, I just knew that this wasn't a book that I would readily give to someone else if they were asking questions about hell.
Much of the material reserved for the two appendices should have been, in my opinion, included in the body of the book, as it went to the heart of the topic.
Sadly, a 2-star read at best.
Read
January 5, 2020This was a good, quick, theologically-sound book on hell...and therefore quite possibly the most sorrowful book there is. It's definitely a topic that we tend to ignore or twist until we're comfortable. But discomfort on Earth is so vastly different and unimportant when it comes to the long run of eternity and where that lies. It's important understand hell and that it exists—but also know that we have Jesus, who didn't want us to go there, died for us, wept over Jerusalem.
It also addresses viewpoints such as universalism and annihilism, which I thought was highly useful.
It also addresses viewpoints such as universalism and annihilism, which I thought was highly useful.
November 25, 2021
Hell has been trivialized through movies and TV shows that people do not give it the importance or impact it can have on the concepts of eternity and salivation.
This short book by Erik Raymond helps us look into the concept and reality of hell as well as understand the purpose of God through the story of salvation.
A quick read to realign our journeys to the important and not to forget we are made for eternity, to live forever in Heaven with Him.
This short book by Erik Raymond helps us look into the concept and reality of hell as well as understand the purpose of God through the story of salvation.
A quick read to realign our journeys to the important and not to forget we are made for eternity, to live forever in Heaven with Him.
April 26, 2023
I've read several books out of this series now and I'm truly enjoying them. They're short enough to be read by those who don't like reading and they're biblical enough that I don't mind recommending them. I'll keep reading others from the series!
August 3, 2022
Good Summary
Great introduction to a vast topic. Easy to read but not lacking. I recommend this book for any wondering about hell and want a quick but sound read.
Great introduction to a vast topic. Easy to read but not lacking. I recommend this book for any wondering about hell and want a quick but sound read.
October 10, 2022
This book fulfils its purpose admirably, addressing the challenging doctrine of hell clearly, without evasion, and without falling into the trap of trying to make excuses for God. It is sombre when it needs to be, but calls us to rejoice in God's mercy in light of how seriously hell tells us that he takes our sin. The FAQ format of the closing section is very helpful both for the enquirer and the Christian.
October 16, 2024
Quick read which makes an emotionally charged subject simple to understand.
January 9, 2025
Second Book of the year. I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed it. I think this provides a great point of view in how to tell others about the reality of hell in a practical and honest way.
May 6, 2025
Short and to the point.
December 30, 2022
Very helpful and clear about what the bible says about hell and very well explained!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews