a denomination of Christians who believe that the final
punishment threatened in the Gospel to the wicked and impenitent,
consists not in eternal misery, but in a total extinction of being; and
that the sentence of annihilation shall be executed with more or less
previous torment, in proportion to the greater or less guilt of the
criminal. This doctrine is largely maintained in the sermons of the late
Dr. John Taylor, of Norwich; Mr. S. Bourn, of Birmingham; and many
others. In defence of the system, Mr. Bourn argues, that there are many
passages of Scripture, in which the ultimate punishment to which wicked
men shall be adjudged is defined, in the most precise and intelligible
terms, to be an everlasting destruction, proceeding from Him who is
equally able to destroy as to create; and who, by our Lord himself, is
said to be “able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” By the
“everlasting punishment of the wicked,” therefore, Mr. B. understands
“everlasting destruction,” literally speaking, “from the presence of the
Lord,” which is “the second death;” from which there can be no
resurrection, and which is set in opposition to “eternal life.” In
speaking of the images used to illustrate this subject, Mr. B. remarks,
that the wicked are compared to combustible materials, as brands, tares,
&c, which the fire utterly consumes: so Sodom and Gomorrah suffer “the
vengeance of eternal fire,” that is, they are destroyed for ever; and
the phrases, “the worm that dieth not, and the fire which is not
quenched,” are placed in opposition to entering into life, and denote
the termination of existence, Mark ix, 43.
To all this it may be answered: 1. That annihilation, as a punishment,
admits of no degrees. 2. If we connect with this a previous state of
torment, (as Mr. Winchester says, “for ages of ages,”) annihilation must
be rather a relief from punishment, than the punishment itself. 3. That
annihilation is rather a suspension than an exertion of divine power. 4.
That the punishment of impenitent men is described as the same with that
of the fallen angels, who are not annihilated, Matt. xxv, 41, but remain
in expectation of future punishment, “Art thou come to torment us before
the time?” Matt. viii, 29. 5. In the state of future punishment, there
is said to be “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” Matt. xxiv, 51. 6. As the
happiness of saints in the future state consists not merely in being,
but in well being, or happiness; so the punishment of the wicked
requires the idea of eternal suffering to support the contrast. It might
be added, that annihilation, as far as we know, forms no part of the
divine economy. One thing is also certain and indisputable: the strong
language of Scripture is intended to deter men from sin; and whoever
attempts to remove the barrier, offers insult to the divine wisdom, and
trifles with his own destiny. But the capital argument is, that it is
unscriptural:--“Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not
quenched,” is, like many others, a declaration, to which no dexterity of
interpretation can give any other good sense, than the continuance of
conscious punishment.
punishment threatened in the Gospel to the wicked and impenitent,
consists not in eternal misery, but in a total extinction of being; and
that the sentence of annihilation shall be executed with more or less
previous torment, in proportion to the greater or less guilt of the
criminal. This doctrine is largely maintained in the sermons of the late
Dr. John Taylor, of Norwich; Mr. S. Bourn, of Birmingham; and many
others. In defence of the system, Mr. Bourn argues, that there are many
passages of Scripture, in which the ultimate punishment to which wicked
men shall be adjudged is defined, in the most precise and intelligible
terms, to be an everlasting destruction, proceeding from Him who is
equally able to destroy as to create; and who, by our Lord himself, is
said to be “able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” By the
“everlasting punishment of the wicked,” therefore, Mr. B. understands
“everlasting destruction,” literally speaking, “from the presence of the
Lord,” which is “the second death;” from which there can be no
resurrection, and which is set in opposition to “eternal life.” In
speaking of the images used to illustrate this subject, Mr. B. remarks,
that the wicked are compared to combustible materials, as brands, tares,
&c, which the fire utterly consumes: so Sodom and Gomorrah suffer “the
vengeance of eternal fire,” that is, they are destroyed for ever; and
the phrases, “the worm that dieth not, and the fire which is not
quenched,” are placed in opposition to entering into life, and denote
the termination of existence, Mark ix, 43.
To all this it may be answered: 1. That annihilation, as a punishment,
admits of no degrees. 2. If we connect with this a previous state of
torment, (as Mr. Winchester says, “for ages of ages,”) annihilation must
be rather a relief from punishment, than the punishment itself. 3. That
annihilation is rather a suspension than an exertion of divine power. 4.
That the punishment of impenitent men is described as the same with that
of the fallen angels, who are not annihilated, Matt. xxv, 41, but remain
in expectation of future punishment, “Art thou come to torment us before
the time?” Matt. viii, 29. 5. In the state of future punishment, there
is said to be “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” Matt. xxiv, 51. 6. As the
happiness of saints in the future state consists not merely in being,
but in well being, or happiness; so the punishment of the wicked
requires the idea of eternal suffering to support the contrast. It might
be added, that annihilation, as far as we know, forms no part of the
divine economy. One thing is also certain and indisputable: the strong
language of Scripture is intended to deter men from sin; and whoever
attempts to remove the barrier, offers insult to the divine wisdom, and
trifles with his own destiny. But the capital argument is, that it is
unscriptural:--“Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not
quenched,” is, like many others, a declaration, to which no dexterity of
interpretation can give any other good sense, than the continuance of
conscious punishment.