Scholars largely reject that Jesus taught literal hellfire – what did he probably intend?

Bart Ehrman has addressed the question of whether Jesus was being literal about hellfire, and his position is nuanced. His view is representstive of scholarly consensus. He’s a skeptical scholar against Christianity, so he has no skin in the game in justifying it.

1. Ehrman’s General View

Bart Ehrman is a New Testament scholar and historian who often writes about how Christian doctrines developed over time. He has repeatedly said that Jesus did preach about judgment, but not necessarily in terms of eternal conscious torment in a fiery hell as popularly imagined today.

2. On Jesus and Hellfire

In lectures and writings (including “Heaven and Hell: A History of the Afterlife”), Ehrman argues:

• Jesus believed in a coming kingdom of God and a final judgment, but not in the idea of eternal fiery torment that became common in later Christian theology.
• Jesus may have used symbolic or metaphorical language (like “Gehenna,” the Valley of Hinnom, which was a real place outside Jerusalem known as a trash heap) to refer to divine judgment or destruction—not necessarily a literal hell with flames and torture.
• Ehrman often highlights that the concept of hell as eternal fire owes more to later developments, especially from the Book of Revelation, Church Fathers, and eventually Dante and medieval theology, than from the historical Jesus himself.

3. Direct Quotes or Paraphrases

Ehrman in Heaven and Hell (2020):

“Jesus does speak about a place called Gehenna, often translated as ‘hell,’ but he probably meant it as a metaphor for destruction rather than a place of eternal torment.”

“The idea of eternal torment for sinners is not prominent in the earliest layers of Jesus’ teachings. It was likely a later Christian development.”

4. Scholarly Consensus

Ehrman aligns with many critical scholars who believe:

• Jesus’ teachings about judgment reflected apocalyptic Jewish ideas of his time.
• These often involved annihilation or exclusion from God’s kingdom, not fiery eternal punishment.
• When Jesus talks about “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” it likely reflects grief at exclusion from the coming reign of God, not a literal hell.

---

Here’s a breakdown of several key **Gospel passages** where Jesus speaks about judgment or “hell,” alongside how **Bart Ehrman** and other critical scholars interpret these passages, particularly regarding whether Jesus meant **literal hellfire**:—

## 🔥 1. **Mark 9:43–48 — “Unquenchable fire… where the worm does not die”**> “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into *Gehenna*, where the fire never goes out… where the worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.”

### ⚖️ Ehrman’s Interpretation:* Jesus here refers to **Gehenna**, which was a **real place** (Valley of Hinnom) outside Jerusalem, known historically for **child sacrifice** (Jeremiah 7:31) and later as a burning garbage dump.* Ehrman argues Jesus used **Gehenna symbolically**, not to describe Dante’s hell, but to **evoke destruction**, **shame**, or **exclusion from life**.* He suggests that Jesus’ warning is apocalyptic: those unworthy will be **destroyed** or **miss out on the coming Kingdom**, not eternally roasted.—

## 🔥 2. **Matthew 10:28 — “Fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell”**> “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, fear him who can destroy both soul and body in *Gehenna*.”

### ⚖️ Ehrman’s Interpretation:* The key word is **destroy**, not “torture” or “torment forever.” Ehrman emphasizes that this supports the idea of **annihilation**, not **eternal conscious torment**.* Jesus may have believed that the wicked would be **completely wiped out** by God’s judgment — not suffer eternally.* This passage is often cited by **annihilationists**, a position Ehrman finds historically closer to what Jesus may have believed.—

## 🔥 3. **Luke 16:19–31 — The Rich Man and Lazarus (parable)**> The rich man dies and ends up in torment in Hades, while Lazarus is comforted in Abraham’s bosom.

### ⚖️ Ehrman’s Interpretation:* Ehrman stresses that this is a **parable**, not a literal map of the afterlife.* The story likely **borrows from Jewish folklore** and **Hellenistic ideas** of reversal in the afterlife (rich/poor).* It’s more about **economic justice and repentance now** than afterlife geography.* For Ehrman, this does **not mean Jesus taught a literal fiery hell** — just that he used **illustrative stories** to teach moral urgency.—

## 🔥 4. **Matthew 25:46 — “Eternal punishment” vs. “eternal life”**> “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

### ⚖️ Ehrman’s Interpretation:* Ehrman acknowledges this is one of the strongest verses for eternal punishment, but says the **Greek word “kolasis”** originally meant **pruning** or **corrective punishment**, not torture.* He argues this could refer to **a final judgment with permanent consequences** (like being left out of the kingdom), rather than literal ongoing torment.* The emphasis is on **ethical living now**, not detailed eschatology.—

## 🔥 Summary: Was Jesus being *literal* about hellfire?### According to Bart Ehrman:* Jesus **did teach judgment** and **consequences**.* He likely believed in **a final, dramatic intervention by God** (the Kingdom was at hand).* But the popular image of **fiery eternal torment** owes more to **later theology** (especially post-100 AD) than to Jesus himself.* Ehrman sees Jesus as an **apocalyptic prophet**, preaching repentance in light of **God’s soon-coming reign**, where the wicked would be excluded or destroyed — not necessarily tortured forever.—