The Hebrew concept of "sheol", literally meaning cave, but more often referring to death or the place where departed spirits go. In the King James Version, and older translations of the Bible, Sheol was translated as Hell, though it referred to something very different from Christian concepts of Hell.
In modern translations:
New Revised Standard Version - Sheol
New International Version - the depths
The Message - underground
Good News - the world of the dead
Sheol was not heavenly or full of torment, it was not a place of reward or punishment, it was simply where the dead ended up. Though it is described as the farthest point from heaven, God was in Sheol too. It was not the domain of Satan. It was a place of nothingness and even rest: Job suggested he would rather have died as a baby and spend his life in Sheol than suffer the tragedies of his life; David asked his heirs to make his enemies suffer BEFORE they go to rest in Sheol.
Our best known reference to Sheol probably comes from Psalm 139. Read the Psalm below and take time to imagine a God who would "go to Hell" for you...
Psalm 139: 1-12
O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from far away.
3 You search out my path and my lying down,
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
O Lord, you know it completely.
5 You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is so high that I cannot attain it.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from far away.
3 You search out my path and my lying down,
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
O Lord, you know it completely.
5 You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is so high that I cannot attain it.
7 Where can I go from your spirit?
Or where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning
and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
10 even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me fast.
11 If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light around me become night’,
12 even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is as bright as the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
We reviewed Chapters 1-2 of Wright's book, beginning with the questions asked in Keith Wright's survey. Some commented on Question 3: Who is going to Hell? and Question 6: As you think of your relatives and friends, do you believe that any are going to Hell?
For those who actually believe that there is a hell, whose purpose is eternal punishment: Who decides?
Wright describes some life situations where belonging to a certain church or group defined who would be saved, and suggests that for some the fear of hell is reduced to think that there are clear categories and steps for avoiding Hell. And yet the requirements get steeper: certain beliefs, lifestyle choices, giving the tithe...
Jesus' references are to live with justice and care for the vulnerable - that's how his God holds us accountable!
We looked at some references in our own hymn book to Hell:
In Voices United (UCC) #213 - Rejoice the Lord is King and #161 - Welcome Happy Morning.
We looked at the traditional wording of the Apostles' Creed, and the version in Voices United, p. 918, where the older "he (Jesus) descended to Hell" has been revised to "he descended to the dead".
The reasons Wright wrote the book were discussed:
1. The message of Hell he finds inconsistent with the witness to God's long and renewing love in scripture.
2. It leads to exclusivity and making God too narrow.
3. It has turned many good people away from faith and church.
4. It relies on a particular theory of salvation, namely, atonement theology.
What does salvation mean to you?
In Chapter 2, Wright looks at the various cultures neighbouring Israel and their approach to Hell to help us understand some of the aspects of Hell that were absorbed into Christian culture.
The Mesopotamian belief in the separation of the realms of Inanna, Queen of Earth and Heaven, and Ereshkigal, Queen of the Underworld. When Inanna visited below, she was held "ransom" for the life of another.
The Egyptian Book of the Dead. where Anubis judges whether the soul will live again or suffer forever.
The Zoroastrian belief in a cosmic battle of light versus darkness, good versus evil, resulting ultimately in earth as Heaven or Hell.
The Israelites lacked a "life after death" theology, other than Sheol. They "lived on" through their descendants. About 300 BC, the "intertestamental" period (between Hebrew and Christian scriptures or the Old and New Testaments) gave rise to many foreign influences. The threat of eternal punishment or reward were then held up to Jews who were wavering or witnessing to their true faith. If they suffer for their faith on earth, there will be reward in heaven. If they take the easy way out on earth... Judgement Day!
Jesus talked more about the Kingdom of God/Heaven coming in the present time on earth, rather than End Times and other realms. When he did speak about Hell it was usually to underline how urgent the choices were: your life is wasted. His image of future life or end times was based on the image of family or household (John 14: In my Father's house there are many rooms...)
Two articles from CNN's Belief page were handed out as reading for next week: Frank Schaeffer and Mark Driscoll's response to the film Hellbound and the question: Should we abandon the idea of hell?
