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The Sabbath-School

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International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Jan 29, 1885

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 11, No. 5.

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The Sabbath-School.

By Ellet Joseph Waggoner

LESSON FOR THE PACIFIC COAST—FEB. 28.

Punishment of the Wicked—Continued.

1. What is given to those who believe on Christ? John 3 : 36.
2. What is to be the fate of those who believe not the Son?
3. What does the Psalmist say will be the result to the wicked, if the Lord's wrath is kindled only a little? Ps. 2 : 12.
4. Then what will be their condition if his wrath abides on them?
5. What contrast did the wise man make between the continuance of the righteous and that of the wicked? Prov. 10 : 25.
6. With what words of the Psalmist does this agree? Ps. 1 : 1-4.
7. What is to be done with the chaff? Matt. 3 : 12.
8. To what other perishable substances are sinners compared? Hos. 13 : 3.
9. To what is their destruction compared? Isa. 5 : 24.
10. How has the beloved disciple described the fate of the wicked? Rev. 20 : 9.
11. In what manner will they be devoured? Nahum 1 : 10.
12. Into what shall the wicked consume? Ps. 37 : 20.
13. Of what was man formed? Gen. 2 : 7; 18 : 27.
14. After the fire of the last day, what will the wicked be? Mal. 4 : 3.
15. In view of this fact, what does one of the prophets say of the wicked? Obadiah 16.
16. What corroborative testimony can you give on this point? Ps. 37 : 9, 10.
17. Quote another text which proves that a time will come when there will be no wicked in existence in the universe. Rev. 5 : 13.
18. Who is the author of the doctrine that the wicked shall not die? Gen. 3 : 4.
19. Who is the serpent? Rev. 20 : 2.
20. For what purpose did the devil invent that doctrine? Eze. 13 : 22.
IF the reader will only take pains to look up the references given in this lesson, he certainly will not need comments to aid his understanding of the subject. Just note the strong expressions that are used concerning the wicked: They "shall not see life." John 3 : 36. They pass away as does the whirlwind. Prov. 10 : 25. They are "like the chaff which the wind driveth away." Ps. 1 : 4. This chaff is to be burned up with a fire so intense that it cannot be extinguished. Matt. 3 : 12. "They shall be as the morning cloud, and as the early dew that passeth away, as the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out of the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney." Hosea 13 : 3. "As the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust." Isa. 5 : 24. "They shall be devoured as stubble fully dry." Nahum 1 : 10. They shall consume "into smoke." Ps. 37 : 20. "The day that cometh shall burn them up," and "they shall be ashes" under the feet of the righteous. Mal. 4 : 1, 3. "They shall be as though they had not been." Obadiah 16. "For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be; yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be." Ps. 37 : 10.
ONE who reads these texts may well wonder how those who profess to believe the Bible implicitly can hold to the doctrine that the wicked shall exist in torment to all eternity. That doctrine squarely contradicts every one of the texts which we have quoted. Yet the contradiction is no more emphatic than was the serpent's contradiction of the words of the Lord, when he said to the woman, "Thou shalt not surely die." Gen. 3 : 4. This was the origin of the doctrine of eternal life for the wicked. It is the only doctrine held by religionists, that can be traced directly to the devil. His object in inventing this doctrine was to induce Eve to transgress the command of the Lord; and it has been for the purpose of holding men in the bondage of sin, that he has kept the doctrine prominently before all mankind ever since.
IN Ezekiel 13 : 22 we have the testimony of the Lord on this subject. When threatening punishment upon certain evil ones, he says it is, "Because with lies ye have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad; and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way, by promising him life." Let us see how this result has been accomplished.
WE do not know the exact motive of the one who introduced this doctrine of eternal life for the wicked, into the Christian church. It was no doubt mainly a result of his heathen training, and without any definite motive. But so far as he had any definite idea, it was designed to deter men from sin and to frighten them into repentance. This is why all denominations have advocated it in times past. We have often heard it said by ministers, that if the doctrine of eternal torment were not preached, sinners would have no fear of the consequences of sin. Just as if the Lord did not know what he was about when he made death the penalty for sin! The Lord has said, "The wages of sin is death," and, "The soul that sinneth, it shall die;" but these persons say, in effect: "No, no, Lord; you must not tell people that for if you do they will all keep sinning." And so, making light of the real penalty, and ignoring the love of God as the great factor in turning men to righteousness, they presume to improve upon his word.
AND so the doctrine of eternal torment was for many years taught in all its horrible enormity. People accepted it as the word of God, because the priests and ministers said that it was such. Thousands were frightened into a nominal profession of Christianity, and to the infliction of severe punishments upon themselves, thinking by so doing to avert the wrath of God. It is safe to say that no real converts were made in consequence of the propagation of this doctrine; but "the church" gained immense sums of money by the sale of "indulgences," or releases from punishment, to poor, deluded sinners; this money was spent by the popes in self-aggrandizement and riotous living, and the devil was doubtless satisfied.
BUT there was always a class of people who, believing that the word of God taught this horrible doctrine, repudiated the Bible entirely. They would have nothing to do with a book which taught, as they supposed, such barbarous cruelty. And thus the doctrine has fostered infidelity. Others believed the doctrine, and settled down into stolid indifference, while others determined to have as good a time as possible while they were on earth. The terrible French Revolution, when all religion was proscribed, and God and the Bible were insulted and ignored, was a recoil from this terrible doctrine of eternal torment. And now, in our own day, we find that the church itself is passing from that extreme of error, to the other extreme. Instead of being the leading topic of sermons, as formerly, the doctrine of eternal torment is seldom mentioned. On the contrary hundreds, yes thousands, of ministers who are called "orthodox," openly hold that God will not punish anybody; or that if he does, it will only be for a time, and that then all men will be restored to his favor. Now anybody who stops to think can see that if men believe this, there is absolutely no incentive for them to change their course of life. The fear of punishment has been taken away, and if they are taught that all men will ultimately be saved, whether they now wish to be or not, they can see no necessity for believing on Christ. And so we see the object that Satan had in the beginning is attained, the wicked are strengthened in their wickedness and carnal security, by the promise of life. The safest and best way is to hold and teach only the simple truth, and leave the results with the Author of truth. E. J. W.