by Kedren Penny

Hell

On earth, every constructed form of government involves varying punishments for various crimes. The severity of this justice depends on the perceived severity of the crime. So, when it comes to divine justice and punishments, it is important to know how the supreme Judge of the Universe will punish. 

Some people throughout time have believed that Hell is merely the enlargement of every human sin when separated from God, while others believe in a literal fire that burns without consuming. Others believe hell is a place where men are filled with regret, but are unable to repent, and others still believe hell is merely the end of existence. 

Uniform Justice

Though it seems the scale of earthly and divine sentences are vastly different, many Scriptures attest to the uniformity of divine justice in the afterlife. James 2:10 speaks to this fact when it says, “if you keep the whole Law, but fail at one point, you are guilty of it all.” The logic goes that the judgement is the same for a person who has told one lie and a person who has murdered several people in cold blood. The more contextual reading of this verse shows that since God is infinitely more holy and authoritative than any earthly system, the scale of his punishments is justly increased. 

All sin is deserving of death, and so just as Romans 6:23 says, “the wages of sin is death.” We should fault the government if they execute someone who did not return their library book, but we cannot fault our own Creator for eternally punishing someone who lies to Him. In fact, Scripture reassures us of the character of our God, so that we know whatever judgement comes or how it will take place, God is to be praised for his judgement is right. Our job as believers is to trust in the righteousness of God (Psalm 37:5).

Varied Punishments

Other Scriptures however, offer hints that the punishments in hell may either be dispensed differently or will affect people differently. This is not to say that some people may not feel very punished in hell, but that others may “feel more heat.”

Cornelius Plantinga wisely said that “all sins are equally wrong, but not all sins are equally bad” (Biola). This quote succinctly explains how all sins are condemnable in the eyes of God, but some sins naturally are worse because they affect more people. One such verse is when Jesus stands before Pilate, he says that the one who turned Him over to Pilate has the “greater sin” (John 19:11). For anything to be “greater,” there must be a scale. What other Scriptures back that up? 

All sins are condemnable in the eyes of God, but some sins naturally are worse because they affect more people

When Jesus pronounces his woes over Bethsaida and Chorazin, He declares that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgement for Sodom and Gamorrah than it will be for that town. Again, the words “more” and “greater” require an explanation that is more than just a flat punishment for all mankind. Also, Paul speaks of sexual sin as being a worse type of sin because it is sinning against your own body (1 Corinthians 6:18). “All sin will negatively affect the mind and soul of a person, but sexual immorality will immediately and directly affect one’s body” (GotQuestions).

“Not only does God regard some sins as greater and some lesser, but Jesus tells us that there is a greatest sin. Jesus states, ‘whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.’” (Matt 12:32, str.org).

Because of these passages and more, it seems illogical to assume that the only place degrees of punishment should take place is in the flawed justice systems of our world. Even in the Old Testament, God sets up laws with different severities of punishments.

It is important to keep in mind, however, that the major temptation of the “degrees of sin” view is that people will often try to minimize the severity of their transgression. That is why it is important to remember, like we said earlier, that all sins deserve death, and breaking one law is like breaking them all. All sins are deserving of Hell.

Truth Equals Responsibility

Furthermore, it seems that this view of varying degrees of punishment would be supported by the text of Romans 1:18-32, which holds people accountable for their knowledge of God’s General Revelation (creation and moral law). One section of that passage says. “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened” (vs. 19-21). 

This shows that everyone is in some way a witness to God’s power, and thus someone who does not believe is not merely an unbeliever, but a denier. The unrighteous “suppress the truth” (vs. 18). This means that everyone understands the logical existence of a Creator, but some suppress the truth in their minds. So, everyone has a baseline reason for belief, but some push it down further than others, and so are judged accordingly.

Additionally, in one of Jesus’ parables, he says, “the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more” (Luke 12:48). 

Jesus is saying that one is punished for their level of knowledge and/or conscious rejection of Him. Those who reject more of Jesus, sin more, and thus experience a greater degree of punishment. This still aligns with the Scriptures that speak of uniform punishments, because those are simply the baseline punishment that all humans fall under for sinning without the grace of Jesus Christ. Once that line is crossed, all fall under judgement, but you can, in a sense, “earn more” judgment.

Moral Compass

An argument commonly used to prove the existence of God is called the Moral Argument. This argument claims that, if humans feel that something is “wrong,” it comes from an outside source.The argument is constructed as such: “Premise 1: If God does not exist, then objective moral values and duties do not exist. Premise 2: Objective moral values and duties do exist. Conclusion: Therefore, God exists” (CrossExamined).

This argument can be expanded to give us a view on God’s character. If we are relational beings, God must be a relational being. If we are creative beings, then God must be a creative being. If we have a sense of justice, God must have a sense of justice. Now, of course God’s relational, creative, and judicial capabilities are more than we can fathom, but it follows that we mirror Him in that way. This is another part of being “In the image of God” (Genesis 1:27). 

But, if my sense of justice is scaled based on the offense (I do not want the test cheater to die, but I support the death sentence for murderers), then why is God’s judgment a flat tax of eternity in hell? Is God really so big that there is no difference between lying about my room being clean, and overseeing the mass slaughter of a people group? Even if this is the case, by definition, me lying about my room being clean (though wrong) does not affect as many other image bearers of God than the 9/11 attacks did. Our sense of wanting relative justice should be reflected in the one who gave us that sense.

Conclusion

In conclusion, all sin deserves the punishment of hell, but hell will not be the same for each person. God will remain just in that Hitler will be punished more than the unreached tribes because he rejected what he knew of Christ and his sin affected many other Image Bearers of God. Hell will not be a uniform experience, nor will anyone be happy to be there. God’s punishments are just because of His own magnificent glory and holiness. 

Since we do not have the power of God, earthly punishments do not have the scale of eternal punishments. We can hold without tension that God is just and sins are not equally bad. The undeniable way in which sins are equal is in their ability to be forgiven by the blood of Christ. Hope in that.