Lesson 24: Objections to the Existence of Hell, part 1

 Luke 16:22.24 - "The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried…And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame."

These verses make it pretty obvious that a place of eternal torment, hell, really does exist. Please keep in mind who it was that said this. It was Jesus. Instead of listening to Jesus and taking heed of His warning about hell and getting saved, however, most people put forth objections to hell as to why they say it cannot be true.

The first objection to hell is called Universalism.

Universalism would have us believe that everybody will eventually get saved regardless of their actions or beliefs or choices, and thus nobody goes to hell because there is no need for one. If this were true, then why do we need to share the gospel? If everybody is going to heaven, then why evangelize? The truth is, Jesus tells us to evangelize. Furthermore, if universalism is true, then this would mean that the devil himself will eventually go to heaven. Yet the Bible says that Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil, not to save him. Universalism denies the clear teaching we have already read about two eternal places – heaven and hell – not just one.

The second objection to hell is that If there is a hell, it is only temporary.

Some people think that those who end up in hell will somehow, someway, eventually be able to get out. They say it is just too harsh to be tormented forever. But that is not what the Bible says.


Matthew 25:46 - “And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

You cannot get any clearer than that. How long is eternal life? Forever. In the exact same text, how long is eternal punishment? Just as long. Hell is not temporary. It is just as forever as heaven is forever.

The third objection to hell is called Annihilationism.

Some people, since they cannot deny the texts that clearly reveal that hell exists, once again try to soften the harshness of God's retribution by saying something like this: "If hell does exist, then people who go there do not suffer endlessly. They simply cease to be, or in other words, they are annihilated." But that is not what the Bible says.

Revelation 20:7,10 - "And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison…and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever."

These verses clearly say that the beast and the false prophet have not been annihilated in hell; they are still alive suffering torment after being there for a thousand years! Besides, annihilation would not be a punishment, it would be a release from punishment. Since the Bible declares that hell is a place of eternal punishment, annihilation cannot be true.

* What is the objection to hell’s existence you hear most often?