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IF you Believe in the existence of Hell, what do you think that it is?

I'm curious about what those who believe there is a hell think, and of course, WHY. Thanks.

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Hell exists, of course, God said so. It is a place of eternal torture. ( that lights up your day rite)

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Thanks for feedback! Nothing like a little fire to shed some light on things! :)

Rich
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There is heaven and hell, heaven is where the people that believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, and he'll is for the people that don't, I think he'll is a place with eternal pain and suffering

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Thanks for your answer. Why do you think that?
Curious.
Rich :)
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I know that because it is in the bible
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hell is real. however the word itself is not in the bible. i believe that hell is a dark place. the fire pit i thank is a huge stereo type. its a place youre lost in and you cant go anywere. all is pain full no light

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Look up Ezekiel 31:16 this is just one of many references where he'll is stated. Actually he'll is mentioned more in the bible than heaven is.
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Thanks for the feedback. Are you sure you haven't seen the word in the bible? I'm thinking there's going to be a lot of folks who disagree with you on that one. I appreciate your thoughts.
Rich
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The word 'hell' occures 57 times in the King James Version, 17 in the English Standard Version, 15 in the New International Version, 97 times in The Message.

Not sure why some of you think hell isnt even mentioned. Even in versiins that dont use the specific word its still hell. Geihinnom=hell, Gehenna=hell, Sheol=hell
For the record the Quran has a long list of names for what they refer to as the 'lake if fire' as well so even muslims agree that there is definately a hell.
A rose by any other name is still a rose and hell by whatever name used is still hell, a place of terrible suffering (whether physical or mental), total absence of anything and everything good.
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Auxarcs, I think that you'd appreciate this:http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_Hebrew_word_for_hell. (What is the Hebrew Word for Hell?)

This too: http://www.watchtower.org/e/20110401a/article_01.htm (Is Gehenna a Place of Fiery Torment?)

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to ask.
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I'd like to think hell is like as it was portrayed in the movie Little Nicky :) Hitler, it's time for your 3 o'clock Pineapple :)

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green
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Heh. Thanks for the feedback. I tried watching that movie 3 times...admittedly an Adam Sandler fan. But it just didn't hold my interest. Maybe I'll give it another go. That line was classic...

Rich :)
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My birthday is the same day as Adam Sandler, I think it's cool but no one else does
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That's because they are jealous. They, themselves, aren't cool, nor do they share your cool birthday. Don't take it personally, you cool CutieLlamas13. I'm old. I know these kinds of things. :)
Rich
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There is no such thing as hell, the Bible does not mention it even once, God is not cruel and wouldnt let you burned and suffer in a place like that. I grew up believing that hell did existed but now i know it doesnt.

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Hell is mentioned MANY times in the bible. It is actually mentioned more than heaven is.
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Thanks for that. One more question: How do you know now that it doesn't ?

Curious, is all, about how you, and everyone answering, are arriving at conclusions. I truly appreciate your time.
Rich
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The Bible speaks if hell often.
King James version: 54 references to hell
English Standard version: (what my church uses) 17 references to hell
New international Version: 15 references to hell
The Message Bible: 97 references to hell
New American Standard: 13 references to hell

English Standard Version
Matthew 5:22, 529-30,10:28,16:18,18:9,23:15,23:33
Mark 9:43,9:45,9:47,
Luke 12:15
Acts 6:1,9:29,11:29,
James 3:16
2 Peter 2:4

Even bibles like The Complete Jewish Bible mention hell but by other names like Geihinnom.
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Hell very much does exist. God is not cruel but He is firm. He does not condemn us to hell but He allows us to condemn ourselves there if that is the path we choose. He is not cruel but He can be hard. Hes not a marshmallow designer God we can make as soft and gooey as we want. He gave us all free will and two choices and consequences for those choices. Choose Him and in the end of times you will be with Him in 'heaven' but choose Not Him (this is the default choice for EVERYONE who does not choose Him) and you WILL end up in 'hell' at the end of times. And it is not on God, its all on US! He loves us all and wants all of us to choose Him but He will allow us all to make our own choices and He WILL allow us to experience the consequences of those choices. To take away the consequences is the same as taking away choice which would be violation of free will and He wont violate free will.
There IS a hell and many people WILL suffer there for eternity and no matter how much theyll want to try and blame God its really completely due to their own freely made choices.
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@Melany1: Thanks for the good read. Loved it.

Rich
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Thank you, to each and every one of you, for your response. It's getting interesting...
Rich
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Melany1-- Are you seriously going to believe something you read on the internet over His Word? That's pitiful.
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read your bible melany1
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The 'fire and brimstone' hell to me is just a metaphor....I think it would be more of a cold,desolate area...I believe that each individual would experience their own hell.

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Thanks for your input. A lot of people I know say the same thing. They keep asking me what I think, and I make them mad because I say I haven't had the kahunas to ask the ASK community for their input. And, I haven't entirely formulated an opinion of what I think hell to be like, for myself yet. So I say I don't know. They look at me as if I'm crazy, or that there's no way a person can be a Christian and not have a solidified opinion of it. Ah well.

Thanks again.
Rich
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lovemydodge

To quote "hell is not a place you go to if you're not a Christian. It's the failure of your life's greatest ambition."

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Ha! Great thought. Hell being the failure of one's greatest life ambition...ouchy!

That would be definitely hellish.

Thanks!

Rich :)
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This is definitely an interesting question and I, too, am interested to see how others reply. I believe that hell is different for everybody. is your worst fear, the worst, most horrible, and the most painful thing you could ever imagine going through, over and over and over again for eternity. I hope that made sense. I am a recovering drug addict, and the thing I dread most in life is going through withdrawals. I am petrified to ever feel that again. I imagine that if I were to go to Hell, it would be like me going through the worst possible withdrawals for the rest of eternity. Yours would be the thing you dread most, and of course for all of us it will be much, much more severe and intense than we could ever fathom.

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Hey, thanks for your answer. And I hope that you don't have to keep repeating the process of going through that. That is hellish. When I quit drinking I almost died several times. Should have had professional care...like rehab or a hospital. I never want to go through that again.

Then, dealing with reality, after getting clean, is hell. And you gotta stay in that hell and face the music...only without the booze, or in your case, the other kind of substance(s).

Hang in there. It gets better. Be strong.

Rich

One more thing: If you are in the military, or a vet, you can get counseling via militaryonesource.com
and here's a free assistance site, for everything imaginable:
http://www.freeaddictionhelpline.com/?gclid=CKqsveS2kLACFYYSNAodgjZApg

Peace to you.
RS
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Hell is eternal, inescapable, and infernally hot. This describes a black hole pretty well; there is no doubt that it's called "an abyss" in many cases, and abyss is a deep hole. My idea is that hell is a black hole for souls.

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Interesting concept. Thanks for replying.

Rich
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It exists and it will be bad beyond anything anyone can ever imagine but what it will look like or how itll work no one knows. It will be a place completely devoid of anything good. A place of terrible misery and suffering -whatever form that takes.

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Thanks for your input. 'preciate it.
Rich
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The Bible refers to hell with the word Hades. It is described as fire and brimstone--burning sulfur. A place of eternal punishment for those who are not believers in Christ.

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Ah, translation.

Which is why I am inclined to believe those things about which we do not know or understand definitively, may have logical, conclusive evidence for/against those things, and all the answers to our questions.

Hypothesizing here:
What if translation is key?
Maybe like the tower of Babel, the language barrier broken down to scatter the tongue is proportional to humanity's ill-fated attempts to understand?

Thinking...

Appreciate everyone's feedback. Keep it coming!
Rich
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Correct, all of this was lost in translation at some point. http://resurrectionhope.xanga.com/275673632/item/.

The link above has many sources that gives the Hebrew, Greek, and English words for what means "the grave." Also, check this out: http://www.watchtower.org/e/20110401a/article_01.htm (Is Gehenna a Place of Fiery Torment?).
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Yes there is a Hell. A family member with near death experience can attest to seeing Heaven, so the other I believe exists too. A good book to use as reference is My Descent into Hell by Howard Storm. He wrote about his experience visiting Hell. Also there is a book Heaven is So Real by Cho Thomas about her experience visiting Heaven. One chapter describes her seeing loved ones in Hell.

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I believe visions of hell in near death experiences are scare tactics to steer those involved onto the right track. God created us, the good & propensity towards evil. He's an all forgiving God & I'll never believe he could convict anyone to eternal damnation.
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While there are supporters in all the camps of thought on the subject of Near Death experiences [NDE], it is an interesting phenomenon.
Lots of good books and movies have used NDE's as a basis for riveting story plot.

While I personally believe that there are some folks who have had legitimate experiences convincing themselves and those around them that NDE is truly a glimpse of what's on the other side of this life, or what's to come, etc., I've no doubt that there are fraudulent reports, as well. Recently there was a small kid who claimed to have had the experience. But the more media attention he received, and no doubt with encouragement from his church and family, it seemed more and more fantastic. Such cases, in my mind, lend to the credibility of such particular recounts.

I don't necessarily buy into the idea that the more legitimate, less sensational reports, documented for scientific reasons rather than make-a-buck-with-book-movie hype, are or always are...what the person believes they've experienced.

That's not to say that I am entirely dismissive and un-open to the possibility that it is very real, indeed. I just become skeptical when human beings are involved. Being one I know a thing or two about it.
Two good movies that touch on the subject of such phenomenon, are: What Dreams May Come http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120889/
And
Phenomenon
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117333/

Anyway. Thanks for the input. Man! Everyone's really making me think!

Rich:)
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I believe in NDE's. If you have the Biography channel, there's this show called I Survived, Beyond & Back. They have accounts from respectable people in the community about their NDE's. Yes, there will always be fraudulent people out there making up stories for a quick buck. I think they're easy to spot personally. The people on this show are credible. They see things very similar in nature too like their deceased loved ones & they're all about the same age.. 30. There was a lady who had an experience who said she saw her aunt on the other side who had committed suicide & couldn't believe she didn't go to hell. The aunt told her she asked God for forgiveness & her penance is she has to reincarnate.
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Thanks for the input. :)
RS
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Thanks for all the comments. I hope a few people will read the books or go to websites mentioned. I believe there is a Heaven and a Hell and God is a very forgiven God and will forgive even in our last moments.
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Hell is distance from God. I don't believe in eternal damnation. I believe in an all forgiving God. God created us. He knows what we're capable of. Think of parents supporting their child through the most horrendous of accusations. They love their kids unconditionally. I believe that's how God feels about His children & we are all his children. All pieces of God.

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Thanks for the feedback. Great prof pic or avatar or whatever you call them-thar' picture thingys we use to identify ourselves with. I'm thinking of changing mine to my cat, too.

Rich
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Hell is the eternal separation from God and the blessed. Hell is the place where the souls (and ultimately, the bodies) of unrepentant sinners go for all eternity. Hell was originally created for Satan and the other fallen angels who rebelled against God at the beginning of time. However, with the fall of man through original sin, people too can now go to hell as punishment for unrepentant sins against God. According to the Catechism, hell is "reserved for those who to the end of their lives refuse to believe and be converted". It is for those who die in a state of mortal sin and who intentionally do not repent before death. References in the Bible to hell as a punishment for sin includes Isaiah 3:11, Romans 2:5-8, and 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. Hell is also referred to as "Gehenna". It has been described as a prison; a place of torment and misery; a pit; a place of darkness; an unquenchable fire where the worm does not die; and a lake of fire. Human images used to describe hell include wailing, gnashing of teeth, pain, stench, unquenchable thirst, binding chains, and incredible darkness. (My answer continues in the comments)

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Few doctrines in Scripture are more frequently affirmed than hell; there are a dozen such references from Jesus Himself. Hell is a necessary requirement of God's justice. The existence of hell is a dogma of the Faith that Catholics are required to believe. How can there be a hell if Jesus loves us unconditionally? While it is absolutely true that Jesus loves all people unconditionally, this does not mean Jesus saves people unconditionally. We humans were created with the tremendous gift of free will. We can freely choose God or reject Him. He did not make us robots programmed to obey Him. He created us in His image and likeness (which necessarily includes free will), and this creation was an act of love. Now with free will comes the possibility that we will freely choose to reject God. What God desires, however, is our freely given love and obedience. He constantly invites us to love Him, but we will not (indeed, cannot) force us. There is no such thing as "forced love." For love to be actually love, it must be freely given.

Hope this helps! - ManOfKnowledge
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It does help. Thanks MofK. Always interesting.

Rich :)
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Thank YOU for your nice comment.
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Hell is m the absence of God.

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thanks for input! :)
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hell is very real it is a fiery pit that was made by the devil when he was sent down to the underworld for trying to take over heaven so god made him go to the underworld to rule so yes hell is real

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I appreciate the feedback! :)
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Fang17, where in the Bible does it mention that? One thing to know: Sheol & Hades aren't the the same as Gehenna. All three are different from the word Tartarus too.

The "hell" of Dante's Inferno (part of the Divine Comedy) is how people portray "hell" but Sheol and Hades have a completely different meaning.


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Does anyone want to tackle Revelation 20:4 with regards to hell & the lake of fire?

Revelation 20:4 (KJV)- And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the seconf death.

(I'm @ work so I'll have more in the reply).

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I'm up for it. A bit busy at the moment, myself, but 'stay tuned'! :)
RS
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...Revelation 20:14...I'm sure that was a typo since you were at work when u wrote...

Haven't forgotten. Still gathering info and picking through it. Want to make sure I'm not taking things out of context, and trying to make sure that translations used are relevant.

Even then, it's only going to be my conclusion in response. Not intended to sway anyone one way or the other.

RS
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Basically, a lot of people think like this: hell=lake of fire. How can that be the case when "hell" will be thrown into the "lake of fire?"

Simply put, the word "hell" refers to the common grave. In Hebrew, it's she'ohl. In Greek, it's hai'des and infernus in Latin.

I implore everyone on here to Google this: The Encyclopedia Americana (1942), Vol. XIV, p. 81. (check out "Hell"- Is the Grave for an info overload)

I'm a Jehovah's Witness and this is a pretty good article: http://www.watchtower.org/e/200909/article_01.htm

This isn't one of our sources but the chart here is pretty interesting: http://www.heavendwellers.com/hd_hell_chart_2.html

Feel free to ask anymore questions if anyone has any.
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Another thing Rich, Jonah came out of hell soaking wet (Jonah 2:2 in your copy of the Bible...some translations use she'ohl).
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Hey there, GermNero21: Always loved Jonah 2:2 for that very reason. Good article, you are right. Thanks for that. Didn't look at the chart yet, though. Because of time constraint and wanted to get back to you about Rev 20:14. First:
Question: Why do I love JW's?
Answer: They have a knack for wording questions all of us have without all the (I love this word) "Gobbledygook" a lot of us can't get past in order to ask the questions.

Rev 20: 14.
"The metaphor of ?sleeping in the dust of the earth? and then awakening captures precisely the core idea of resurrection of the dead. The bodies of the dead have long ago decayed and turned to dust, so this is no resuscitation of a corpse, nor is it even Ezekiel?s vision of reclothing dry bones with sinew and skin. This is an entirely new concept that has begun to develop in Jewish thought and Jews like Jesus, as well as the Pharisees, believed that on the ?last day,? the dead would be raised. What people mix up is the literal idea of resuscitation or the ?standing up? of a corpse, and the fully developed Jewish idea of resurrection at the end of days. The latter does not involve collecting the dust, the fragmentary decaying bones, or other remains of the body and somehow restoring their form. According to the book of Revelation, even the ?sea? gives up the dead that are in it?which can hardly mean one must search for digested bodies that the fish have eaten and eliminated?as unpleasant as the thought may be (Revelation 20:11-15)."

I'm not sure I agree with everything the author or the above, since I rarely ever completely agree with anyone all of the time. To include other Christians, Atheists, or whomever. It "Ain't Personal" by any means. But the guy that wrote the above has a blog, and I've started to read it once in a while.
http://jamestabor.com/2012/04/14/why-people-are-confused-about-the-earliest-christian-view-of-resurrection-of-the-dead/

More later...:)
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Thanks, I appreciate that.
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Hell is to be blotted out by God which is to say only God can destroy a soul and man (in the flesh) can only kill or destroy your flesh body so only the creator God can kill or destroy your soul(which is to last for eturnity except you refuse God you get no eturnity cuz eturnity is perfect no eveil in perfect) so God blots you out of every minds memory so your eturnity is perfect. To be blotted out is not exsiting our Father would not cause suffering for eturnity for eturnity shall be perfect no negitive at all thats perfect Be sure to claim Him as your Father you'll have perfect eturnity - His promise to us

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Thanks for your input! :)
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cheesewaffle4

I think if you don't go to heaven you go there. And the bible says the devil is like a dragon and hell is like a lake of fire where everyone is in eternal pain. Sad to think about.

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I appreciate your feedback! :)
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There is no biblical account of Hell. Most of the preconceptions we have are derived from Dante's Divine Comedy or a variation of it.

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Thanks for your feedback! :)
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This is all too true. The poem "Paradise Lost" also influenced how one interprets hell, tartarus.

Hell (Sheol & hades) is different from Gehenna and both are different from Tartarus.
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I know i've been there

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t's all too real
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IMAmermaid

it is a real place, uhm, God created it as a punishment for the people who don't take Jesus as their savior while they live here on earth, the Bible describes it as a burning lake of fire. i hope all of yall get saved, 'cause God wants all of you to go 2 heavan, and so do i :)

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God didn't create Hell as a punishment. Satan and the other fallen angels created Hell. The Catholic Church teaches that Hell isn't a pit of fire, or your worst fears. It is being away from God, which probably feels like pure agonizing torture.

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