In collating the teaching of the Gospels, full em- phasis must be gixen to the ftdlowing postulates : 1. The certainty of retribution is inseparably bound up ivith the revelation of Jesus as to the mill and rhfirricter of God. The Father who ' Seeth in secret' and rewards unobtrusive righteousness (Mt &■"■) will render to the unrighteous the due reward of their deeds (Mt 7" lO^* 12» 15" 18«- ^, Lk 18' [parallel passages omitted throughout]). Hence the urgency of the call to repentance (Mt 4"), and to the obedience of righteousness as in tlie Sermon on the Mount, and, at any cost, to ' crucify the flesl
which prompts to sin (Mt
'). In this
mpt 1 takes His stand with the prophets of old and with the last of their order, John the Baptist (cf. Lk 3'-"). The revelation of the all-perfect Father never weakens, Init ever adds new emphasis to the call to a life of righteousness, and to the certainty of penalty for all unrighteousness.
2. The i-liariiricri.stic teaching of Jesus as to the jienalties if sin is hound up with His gospel of the Kingdom.^The incomparable worth of the King- dom, as the richest 'treasure,' and 'pearl of great price' (Mt IS'^''^), and the supreme q^uest of it as the first duty and sovereign wisdom of life (Mt 6**), have, as their converse, the incompai'able loss which the rejection of the gospel must inevitably entail. This is the supreme penalty — exclusion from the Kingdom, to be cast into the ' outer darkness' (Mt 8'- '22" 25*'), denied by the Lord (Mt 7=^ 10** 25'^ Lk 13^""), shut out from the glad presence of the King (Mt 25'"). The use of the figures ' weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth ' in the sentence of exclusion clearly indicates that remorse is one element in future retribution (cf. Lk 16^ 'Son,
3. n
).
h.iiiniij of the gospel adds to hunum 'ill/, and inereases the severity of the incoiiaUc jjcniiltff of disohrdirnce. —This is the burden of much of tin- ti'ailiini; of Jesus. Light is come into the woil.l, .mil «itli the light a more solemn duty (Jn 3'-' '.)" I.v^- ^^ Itv', Lk 12"- ■•«). It is the apostate disciple \\ hu, as salt which has lost its savour, is cast out (Mt 5"). To His disciples Jesus gives the warnings of God's searching judgment (Mt5--"'-). To those who call Him 'Lord, Lord,' and in His name have done 'many mighty works,' He utters the dread 'Depart' (Mt 7='"^, <f. Lk 13-'""). It is the disobedient hearers of His word who are compared to a foolish builder whose house, built upon sand, is ruined by the storm (Mt 7-"- ^). Those who deny Him, He also will deny (Mt I0-«) ; those who are ashamed of Him, of them will He be ashamed (Mk 8^). It is the unfaithful servant (Mt 24-«-"), the unwatchful (Mt 25'""), the unprofit- able (Mt 25**), who are cast out of the Kingdom. It is the unfruitful branch of tlie vine that is east forth, mthered, gathered, cast into the fire, burned (Jn 15^). The final condition of hopeless doom, the state of ' eternal sin,' is the direct result of self-willed, deliberate resistance to the Divine grace (Mk 3^ ; see Eteenal SiN). And in the larger issues the severity of judgment falls upon cities and generations ' exalted to heaven ' in privilege and opportunity, but doomed because of neglect (Mtll*-« 12^'- •").
In all this there is no reference to those to whom the gospel has not been made known. The mention of the Cities of the Plain (Mt 1015) and that of the men of Nineveh (Mt 12ii) are too in- cidental and indirect to yield any dctei^miniiiir priii<-i)i|f. K\i>n the great Judpuent passage (Mt :
spel preacned ttiom- Imut l\w wliolt-
.iti.i 'lir;,ii >|i>Mii, .\ 111. Ii. ill till- ttaiiiiiiu' "I .Ksiis, tall only upon lllnie Willi lii'iiy illlll :in(l reject His j,^uspel.
i. The fnrd triumph of the Kingdom, and con- sequent Jinril separation of the righteous and the wicked. — This is again and again solemnly a.sserted and described. In the parables of the Tares (Mt 13'^f-) and the Drag-net (Mt IS""-), the ultimate overthrow, and, as the terms used would seem to imply, the final destruction of evil are decisively declared. From the explanation of the parable it is clear that the wheat and the tares represent persons — ' the sons of the kingdom ' and ' the sons of the evil one.' This sharp division of men into two classes entirely distinct is to human vision impossible. The facts of life show the presence of ' wheat and tares,' good and eWl in every man. The difficulty is umiisoImiI. Tlie end is declared, but not the stap- li\ ^^lli-ll it, is reached. The Kingdom is to he .ill n^liti-.m-ni-ss, out of it is to be gathered 'all tlnn-^ that . luse stumbling, and thorn that do inii|uitv' (Mt 13^'). Every |d.ant
ETEENAL PUNISHMENT
ETEENAL SIN
541
not planted by the Father is to be uprooted (Mt 15'*), and eveiy tree which beareth not good fruit is to be cut down and destroyed (Mt 7'").
So far there can be little hesitation in setting forth the teaching of Jesus. The difficulties arise when we seek to determine exactly the nature and duration of the penalties and of the doom. The difficulty is accentuated Viy the fact that Jesus uses freely the religious synibcilisiii current at the time. Gehenna, the wc.im tlmt ilirs not and the tire that is not quenclji'.l. ihr niitfi darkness, the weeping and the wailiiij; iiiid the i;iiasliing of teeth, were familiar figures, and are clearly used because familiar (see Eternal Fike). If, then, we ask how far Jesus gave His sanction to the popular notions behind the symbols, we are confronted with the difficulty of determining what those notions were. The use of these tigures to describe the place of punishment in the world of spirits is admitted, but it is not so clear which of the three doctrines which have divided Christian thought — endless punish- ment, anniliilation, restoration — was held. Sup- port has been found for each opinion, and from the words of Jesus Himself quite opposite conclusions have been reached. In what has been said above, finality would seem to be taught, but other opinions are held. ^ Ln: