Thoughts on Universalism

I want to highlight a few scriptures, that I think really spell out this idea of ‘eternal punishment’ and how essential it is to actually understanding the scriptures.

I understand that an entire theology can’t be based upon a single verse! But I believe that depth in a few verses shows the broadness of this teaching throughout scripture in general. And if this pattern were to be continued with other verses, they would yield the same results.

The Idea of Everlasting Punishment

2 Thessalonians 1:6–10 NIV

6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8 He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might 10 on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.

Points:

God is Just - and we see this BECAUSE he will pay back those who are causing trouble, not because he will spare them.

This word, δίκαιον, means ‘just’, ‘righteous’, ‘pure’, ‘innocent’, and ‘right’.

So Paul effectively says, in the greek, We know that God is pure, and just, and righteous, and correct - BECAUSE he will pay back those who are causing trouble.

‘He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus’

We can say with certainty here, that the punishment critera is ‘not knowing God and not obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ’.

There’s nothing particularly special about this phrase in the greek. It means what it says - the people who do not know God AND do not obey the gospel of our lord Jesus Christ are the ones under the term ‘punishment’.

There’s actually a different greek word used for ‘punishment’ here - its the word ‘ἐκδίκησιν’, which means ‘vengeance’ or ‘retribution’, often used in connection with ‘actions related to the people who are opressing or harming others’ (such as Acts 7:24, talking about how Moses came and killed the egyptian who was mistreating the hebrews).

This throws you a bone on the idea of works - Paul (and Jesus, and James, and many others) honor the idea that truly knowing God means obedience to His word, and obedience that doesn’t result in actual activity is not obedience.

I think this verse actually helps articulate my understanding about that point - that the key is OBEDIENCE, not merely WORKS. James teaches us that faith results in obedience (James 2:22 “You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.”) and that a faith that can only be shown and expressed by words alone is useless (James 2:20-21).

So the sense is, you go to a person and say, ‘show me your faith’, and all they can do is teach - that is a useless faith. But go to another person and say, show me your faith, and they say, ‘Jesus commanded me to take care of the poor - here I am doing that’, that person’s faith is obviously alive.

The point is, if you have faith but not obedience (so, you KNOW something, but refuse to OBEY it), then you can tell that your faith is dead.

So, the thief on the cross was not denied life because he was denied the ability to produce practically. Jesus promised him paradise that day - and the thief received that paradise. He demonstrated faith (knowledge that Jesus was Lord, and was bringing a Kingdom), but also obedience (he honored christ by rebuking the other thief who heaped insults on Jesus). Works are merely the indicator that we are in fact obeying (after all, if Jesus ordered us to love one another, how could we obey without actually doing that?).

Those people ‘will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might’

This phrase, ‘punished with everlasting destruction’, in the greek is ‘δίκην ὄλεθρον αἰώνιον’

δίκην, means ‘execution of a sentence’ - as in, a judge has ruled, and decision has been decreed.

it is not the concept of ‘a debate is being had’ or ‘judgment is being processed’ or ‘it’s a trial’- it is the final word. At the point of this utterance, the judge has already decided.

αἰώνιον being the greek word for ‘eternal’.

Like many words even in english, while it’s possible for it to have multiple meanings, we must rely on the context clues.

Chill may mean ‘to lower temperature’ and it may also mean ‘to bring your emotional level to a lower point’. You can’t possibily argue that both definitions are interchangeable in all circumstances.

In the original greek, it’s primary tense was ‘unending, or with unlimited duration’. It can also be understood as, ‘since all time, or time (long ago)’.

It gets used 70 times in the new testament. This word almost exclusively gets translated ‘eternal’. Out of the 64 times the word is used in the New Testament translated with the sense, ‘eternal’, it is used 7 times to refer to punishment, and 57 times to refer to either life, or to the nature of God or the kingdom itself.

This is a major, major problem if every single use of the word actually means ‘only for a set period of time’

)It’s other translations in the New Testament are ‘everlasting’ (in this verse), or ‘beginning / the beginning’ both used to refer to the idea that something occurred before the beginning of time (time being an unending concept) (2 Timothy 1:9 and Titus 1:2)

In the New Testament, there is only a single verse that the text obviously translates this word as ‘long, but with having an end’ - Romans 16:25, talking about the mystery of God having been hidden ‘αἰώνιον’ or ‘long ages past’ - because Romans 16:26 immediately states ‘but it has now been made known’, which makes it clear that this translation is using the secondary tense of the word - ‘since all time’.

ὄλεθρον meaning ‘ruin, worthlessness or destruction’. The exact definition and use of this word is, something is damaged so badly and completely that it no longer has any value, and is beyond any chance of repair or restoration.

The greeks would choose this word to say, ‘This thing is completely and utterly gone, absolutely unrepairable or unrestorable’. If you got in a bad accident, the front end of your car is totally twisted- your car is destroyed, but could be fixed. If you got into a major accident, your car caught on fire, and burned to absolute ashes, that the fire crew then scooped up and threw into a river, and set the river on fire for good measure - that car is ὄλεθρον.

The double pairing of both words in this phrase - ὄλεθρον and αἰώνιον - is what leads translators to say, this is a complete and permanent destruction.

Paul is actually beating a dead horse by pairing these two words together - ὄλεθρον was more than enough to convey that the destruction was absolutely complete. He’s effectively saying, This ETERNAL destruction that’s TOTALLY URNEPAIRABLE OR UNRESTORABLE.

So the 3 part meaning of this phrase, δίκην ὄλεθρον αἰώνιον, is,

a judgment has already been made an handed down, a sentence has been issued;

this sentence is destruction beyond all hope of restoration, in a way that cannot be rebuilt

this destruction will endure

The day that Jesus comes, he will be ‘glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed’.

So on this return, it’s stating clearly - that the people who will be praising on that day are the people who have believed in Him.

The order of operations is clear - Jesus returns, and is praised by those who have believed.

In fact, the greek word for ‘have believed’ - πιστεύσασιν - is an aorist participle.

A participle is something that is occuring at the same time as something else, along side it(so, believing occuring alongside jesus returning)

An aorist tense for the particle means that it started PRIOR to the event - so, the belief that is occuring ALONGSIDE Jesus returning predated Jesus returning

So saying that ‘have believed’ is an aorist participle means that the BEST translation is ‘Jesus will be marveled at and glorified among all the people who have believed prior to his return’

The idea that God desires all to be saved - but this isn’t the same as ‘all will be saved’

2 Peter 3:9–17 NIV

9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. 11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. 13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. 14 So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. 15 Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16 He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. 17 Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position.

God is patient, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance

It’s EXTREMELY important to understand this verse in context. Peter argues before that people will begin to become skeptical about the return of the Lord because it’s going to take a long while.

2 Peter 3:3–7 NIV

3 Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 6 By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. 7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

So Peter says, there will be people coming who will say ‘so, where is this RETURN that Jesus told us all about?’ (verse 4).

But those people ‘deliberately forget’ Noah (verse 5-6), where people were ‘eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up until the day Noah entered the ark’ (Matthew 24:38).

And peter pointedly says, that same word, that same God, that destroyed the world in judgment by water, is reserving this earth as well for fire

And peter specifically says, the earth is being kept ‘for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly’.

This word destruction is the same one as above in Thessalonians- and carries the same connotation. Complete, and without chance of repair or restoration.

So, Peter says, ‘therer will be people scoffing and doubting that Jesus will return’. But don’t forget - the Lord is delaying. He’s not ‘dropping the ball on his promise’.

so the context of Peter saying, ‘the Lord wants everyone to come to repentance’ is not an expression of, ‘this is what the Lord is informing us will happen’ - it’s a statement of, ‘The Lord has been patient and taking his time in returning, so that everyone has a chance to come to repentance’

The Day of the Lord will come like a thief - so what should we do about it?

Peter reminds the believers in 2 Peter 3:6-7 that judgment is coming. Then he tells them that the Lord is taking his time so that repentance is a possibility ‘for everyone’.

But then Peter says - BUT, the day of the lord will come like a thief.

Jesus explains that this means, it’ll come when we don’t expect it. one day, it’ll just be here (Matthew 24:36-44). In fact, the coming of this time is so much of a mystery, that even Jesus Himself doesn’t know when it will occurr (Matthew 24:36).

Peter specifically connects this idea of the day of the lord to ‘the elements being destroyed by fire’ (verse 10), which he states in verse 7 is the coming of the judgment of the Lord.

So because we know this, Peter asks the question, ‘what kind of people ought you to be?’

The basics are pretty agreed upon. ‘You ought to live holy and godly lives’ (verse 11). Peter says that while that day will bring destruction, WE can look forward to a new heaven, a new earth, where righteousness dwells (verse 12-13).

But Peter says, since we’re looking forward to this day of judgment - ‘make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with him’ (verse 14).

In fact, Peter goes so far as to tell people, 2 Peter 3:17–18 “Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.”

So he says, I’ve warned you ahead of time to make sure you lived holy and godly lives when that day comes

Peter also says that we need to be on guard, so that we may not fall from our position of security.

So Peter says, if we do not heed his warning, and we do not guard ourselves, on that day we can be ‘carried away by the error of the lawless’ and fall from our secure positions

And to Peter, the opposite of ‘falling from your secure position’ is ‘grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ’ (verse 18).

‘The Error of The Lawless’

Peter uses this word ‘lawless’, and he’s the only one in the New Testament to use it. The word is ἀθέσμων. and it means, surprisingly - lawless.

The other time Peter uses this phrase, is in 2 Peter 2:7. This section is about Peter blasting false prophets and teachers (2:1) who will secretly introduce destructive heresies (2:2), and how the condemnation and destruction held for these people ‘has not been sleeping’ (2:3).

This word destruction that Paul uses to refer to false prophets and teachers - same as the above words for destruction!

2 Peter 2:4-9 reads as follows:

2 Peter 2:4–9 NIV

4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment; 5 if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; 6 if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7 and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless 8 (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)—9 if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment.

So peter says, if you look at the character and history of God, you can highlight several events:

God sends the angels to hell, and binds them in chains for judgment

He brought the flood onto the world on ungodly people, but protected noah

He condemned Sodom and Gomorrah, but rescued Lot

So, if this is true, then we can trust God for two things:

1, that he knows how to rescue the Godly from trials and

2, that he knows how to ‘hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment’ (V 9).

So Peter looked at the full character and history of God, and told his readers, that they could rely on the Lord to save the Godly and punish the wicked.

This sounds like a contradiction, but it isn’t - when you understand the logic and sequence.

Peter says, trust that the lord will judge those false teachers and prophets.

Other people say, ‘Oh, but Jesus hasn’t returned yet! Nothing has changed since the beginning of time!’ and begin to doubt the return of the Lord

Peter says, the lord isn’t slow in keeping that promise - he’s being very patient, trying to allow the most possible people to come for reptenance, before he returns

When he returns, judgment will come - and we need to trust that those false teachers and prophets, and those ungodly people, will face their destruction.

Every knee will bow / Every Tongue Will Confess/He Reconciled All Things- but this isn’t the same as salvation

A good verse that explains this succinctly is 1 Colossians 1:21-23

Colossians 1:21–23 NIV

21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. 22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—23 if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.

So, Paul has a clear ordered here:

We were once alienated because of our evil behaviour.

We got this one down pat. MOVING ON.

He has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy

This is verse 22. Paul makes it clear, this reconciliation is what makes us holy in the sight of the lord, without blemish and without accusation.

Paul, in Romans 5:10, points out the difference between reconciliation by death and salvation by other means:

Romans 5:10 NIV

For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!

Paul here even says, if we were reconciled by death, salvation is an offering of MORE than that.

I know that in this specific verse, it doesn’t tie the aspect of salvation to it - because it does it in the very next verse.

If you continue in your faith:

Verse 23 adds a conditional to verse 22. It says, this reconciliation can present you before the Lord as holy and unblemished - ‘IF you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel’.

So both sides of the equation need to be honored - the reconciliation can make us free of accusation IF we continue in faith.

This doesn’t demean the power of the cross - Paul spells it out clearly in 1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” .

The cross is the very power of God Himself to those who are under salvation - but to those who are perishing, it is mere foolishness.

In other verses, the writers make this connection of ‘every knee shall bow’ clear that it is not all sunshine and roses:

Isaiah 45:22–25 NIV

22 “Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. 23 By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. 24 They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone are deliverance and strength.’ ” All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. 25 But all the descendants of Israel will find deliverance in the Lord and will make their boast in him.

Isaiah says, in this order:

God calls out to the entire earth to be saved

He solemnly swears, by Himself, that every knee will bow and every tongue will confess

BUT then he says, all who raged against the Lord will be put to shame, and it’s the descendents of Israel who will be the ones that find deliverance in that day(and, by virtue of the cross, believers also share in this promise - Romans 4:11-13)

Romans 14:10-12

Romans 14:10–12 NIV

10 You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. 11 It is written: “ ‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’ ” 12 So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

Paul uses the phrase, ‘every knee will bow before me’ (which is a quotation of above in Isaiah) to point out that we shouldn’t judge our brother or sister.

Why would this phrase be relevant to the conversation, if it means, we’ll all be saved and forgiven completely by God, no matter what?

Paul is using this phrase correctly, to mean, ‘Every single person in all of creation will stand before the Judge - so don’t act flippantly’.

In conclusion, this phrase isn’t about salvation - it’s about God’s position as absolute judge over all creation. Additional verses on this topic:

Hebrews 4:13 “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

Psalm 96:13 “Let all creation rejoice before the Lord, for he comes, he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in his faithfulness.”