Truth of Symbolic Fire Revealed
Symbolic Fire in the Holy Bible A-Z
The Truth of Symbolic Fire Revealed
Fundamental Christians proclaim The Holy Bible is literally true. Preachers frequently threaten that hell is literal fire forever, teaching that not believing The Holy Bible is literally true means not being a true Christian and, consequently, at the Final Judgment, being condemned by God — WHO IS LOVE — to be tormented [slow-roasted] in literal fire in hell FOREVER! This is spiritual abuse/terrorism/insanity, since, in fact, The Holy Bible is one of the most highly metaphorical/symbolic books in the world!!!
Logically irrefutable examples abound: mountains singing and skipping like rams; hills singing and skipping like lambs; trees and floods clapping their hands (Ps. 98:8; 114:4-6; Isa. 55:12). Jesus’ followers are the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Mt. 5:13-14). Legalists swallow a camel (Mt. 23:24). Pharisees are whitewashed tombs (Mt. 23:27-29). Hypocrites are serpents and vipers (Mt. 23:33). Disciples are wise as serpents and harmless as doves (Mt. 10:16). False prophets are wolves (Mt. 7:15). Speech is seasoned with salt (Col. 4:6). And Jesus Himself is described as hen, bread, wine, blood, word, light, lamb, water, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, vine, alpha, omega, and sun (Mt. 23:37; 26:26-28; John 1:1-14, 29; 4:10-14; 10:7-14; 14:6; 15:1; Rev. 1:11-16).
In regard to fire in the Bible, the following verses A-Z should convince any person — even those threatened with ECT to believe Biblical literalism — that fire symbolizes purification as surely as the sky is blue and the grass is green. The Bible and the sacred writings of all major religions (and various minor ones) teach universal salvation with crystal clarity when fire, in relation to God and judgment, is wisely understood to purify, not to torture people at all, much less forever!
The Fiery Acrostic, A-Z
A-ll in Gehenna/Hell, “salted with fire” [Jesus’ mixed metaphor for “purified,” Good News Bible] (Mk. 9:49).
B-uilding Christ’s church, that will destroy [ram down the gates of] Hades/Hell [the “gates of Hell shall not prevail,” KJV] (Mt. 16:18).
C-hrist baptizes with the Holy Spirit and with fire. At Pentecost the Holy Spirit appeared as tongues of fire and set upon each of the apostles (Mt. 3:11; Acts 2:1-3).
D-evouring fire and brimstone/burning sulfur are like the tongue and breath of God (Isa. 30:27, 33).
E-very believer’s works/deeds will be tested/refined by fire (I Cor. 3:10-14; II Cor. 5:10).
F-aith is tried/tested by various painful but corrective-fiery trials of life (I Peter 1:7; 4:12).
G-od is a consuming fire [consuming sin, purifying and perfecting sinners in perfect love] (Dt. 4:24; Heb. 12:29).
H-ades/Hell and death, in the lake of fire and brimstone/burning sulfur [NIV], cease to exist (Rev. 20:14).
I-sraelites, enslaved in the iron furnace, were led by God, by night in a pillar of fire, to freedom (Dt. 4:20; Ex. 13:21).
J-esus sending fire on earth, burning chaff/sin with unquenchable fire (Mt. 3:12; Lk. 12:49).
K-now that God was in the burning bush, speaking to Moses, making the ground holy (Ex. 3:1-5).
L-ove: God is love and fire [purifying/perfecting all in perfect love] (Heb. 12:29; I John 4:8, 16-18).
M-essiah/Christ’s refining fire will purify, as gold and silver, the Jewish people (Mal. 3:1-3).
N-otice: fire and brimstone/burning sulfur symbolizes fumigating sin and healing sinners of sin (Rev. 20:10-15).
O-xymoron: eternal torture in literal fire of hell and God’s infinite mercy (Ps. 136:1-26).
P-ersons: angels/messengers/ministers of God are flames of fire (Ps. 104:4; Heb. 1:7).
Q-uality of life on earth transformed by burning up sinful works/chaff (II Peter 3:10).
R-iver/stream of fire flows from God’s fiery throne and fiery presence (Dan. 7:9-10).
S-heol/Hell: God is even present in hell, being omnipresent spirit/love/light/fire in the universe (Ps. 139:7-8).
T-ime in burning sulfur, “day and night,” is proof it is not forever (Jude 6-13; Rev. 20:10; 21:25; 22:5).
U-nquenchable fire burns out as all fires do (Jer. 17:27; Ez. 20:45-48; Mk. 9:43-48).
V-erily, the seven lamps/torches/flames are the seven spirits of God (Rev. 4:5).
W-ord of God as fire, since God is fire, burns in human hearts (Jer. 23:29; Luke 24:32).
X-[Christ in Greek]: eyes as fire, countenance/face as the sun (Rev. 1:14).
Y-es, believers are saved by grace, with behavior refined thru fire at the Judgment Seat of Christ (Eph. 2:8-9; I Cor. 3:15).
Z-ero: All in hell forever. God all in all, above all, through all, in all (I Cor. 15:28; Eph. 4:4-6)!
Beyond the Acrostic
*King James Version throughout; much more information available at ChristianityWithoutInsanity.com. Modern Medicinal Analogy: a fiery lake of penicillin to cure the sin infection. *Heaven: no night / hell: no day; “forever” is a mistranslation of the Greek “aeons/ages” — meaning time, not eternity.
Since Christian Fundamentalists contend the Bible is literally true, this, of course, especially applies to the doctrine of the fire of hell. Based on the Biblical evidence (A-Z above), nothing could be further from the truth! There are two Greek words essential to correctly interpreting Jesus’ parables: “exegesis” and “eisegesis” — the former meaning to read out of what is actually in the text, the latter meaning to read into the text what is not there. In the parable of the Rich Man there is often more eisegesis than exegesis, resulting in the erroneous claim that Jesus taught eternal-conscious torment/torture [ECT] in literal hellfire.
It has been wisely stated that the best commentary on The Holy Bible is the Bible itself. Thus, let us look at what Jesus taught about Hades in the Gospel of Matthew. Our Lord declared that He would build His church, and the gates of Hades/Hell would not prevail against it (Mt. 16:18). This teaching of Jesus is in the form of a war metaphor, in which any city of significant size had a wall built around it with large gates to close and barricade when an enemy army attacked. Such a city might need to be besieged for months, years, even a decade or longer in order to weaken it enough to bring in a battering ram, ram down the gates, and capture the city. In this parable the church is like a mighty army, and Hades/Hell is the walled city. Since the church shall destroy Hades/Hell, no one can be in Hades/Hell forever — as evidenced by all freely and humbly bowing to and sincerely confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God (Phil. 2:9-11).
Also, at the end of the age, death and Hades are going to be thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone [KJV] — burning sulfur [New International Version-NIV] (Rev. 20:10-15). This symbolism is in the form of a medicinal analogy, since sulfur was the wonder drug in the ancient world that penicillin is today. A modern medicinal analogy would therefore be a fiery lake of penicillin to cure all infected with sin. People do not need to live in morbid fear for their own salvation and the salvation of others, but they can rejoice in their own, their loved ones’, and their neighbors’ salvation — since Jesus commanded us to love our neighbors as ourselves and said He would draw all people to Himself! Therefore, all will live in Christ, and God shall become all in all — everything to every one, above all, through all, in all [RSV] (I Cor. 15:22, 28)!
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Boyd C. Purcell, M.Div., Ph.D. National Board Certified Counselor / Board Certified Hospice Chaplain