Consequently, he is either a false teacher or untaught. Are we supposed to believe that God was influenced by Greek philosophy? His argument reveals that he does not understand the teachings of the Bible. The Holy Spirit was the determining influence of what was written in the Bible and not Hellenistic philosophy. When he did that, he ignored the biblical teaching of 2 Peter 1:20-21 which states the Holy Spirit wrote all of the Bible. Thus his argument is faulty.Īlso, he employs a secular argument when he states that Greek secular philosophy affected Scripture. He also quotes extensively from Psalms (such as Psalms 1:3-4 9:6 34:16), but the vast majority of Psalms were written before the sixth century. In sharp contrast, Greek philosophy did not emerge until the sixth century, which occurred about 900 years later. One example is that he quoted from Deuteronomy 29:20 which he claims proves the wicked cease to exist, but Deuteronomy was written in 1445-1405 B.C. But he is wrong because Greek philosophy did not exist when the earliest books of the Old Testament were written. He quotes example verses in both the Old and New Testament to support his view. As a starting point, it should be noted that o ne author claims that Hellenistic philosophy influenced what the Bible teaches about the destiny of the wicked. What Does the Bible Say About Annihilationism?Īnnihilationism is a false teaching that cannot be objectively supported. 1:9 2 Peter 3:7, et al.) (2) the apparent inconsistency of eternal conscious punishment with the love of God (3) the apparent injustice involved in the disproportion between sins committed in time and punishment that is eternal and ( 4) the fact that the continuing presence of evil creatures in God’s universe will eternally mar the perfection of a universe that God created to reflect His glory. Here is his summary,Īrguments advanced in favor of annihilationism are: (1) the biblical references to the destruction of the wicked, which, some say, implies that they will no longer exist after they are destroyed (Phil. Wayne Grudem summarizes four arguments that have been used to support the view of annihilationism. These two passages illustrate how they defend their viewpoint. Therefore, they would interpret this verse to mean that believers have eternal life, but unbelievers will cease to exist eventually. Here is the verse,įor God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. Thus their interpretation of 2 Peter 3:7 seems to support their view.Īlso, they reinterpreted passages as John 3:16 to mean that suffering in hell is a short period of time, but the salvation of believers is forever. The Greek word, apoleia, can be translated as “waste,” or “ruin.” Those who believe in annihilationism usually claim the wicked will suffer in hell, but eventually, will be totally wasted, ruined, or destroyed at some point after death. The term annihilationism is taken from the Greek word, apoleia, which is translated as “destruction” in 2 Peter 3:7.īut by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. So, what does the Bible say about annihilationism? To them, God would be immoral if He causes the wicked who have rejected Jesus Christ to suffer for eternity in hell. Those who teach annihilationism do not believe that God would cause the wicked to suffer in hell forever. What does Bible say about annihilationism? Is hell forever? Bible Answer:Īnnihilationism states that the wicked are destroyed eventually rather than suffering in hell forever.
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