If there is no hell, and Jesus was tempted by Satan, how does that all mesh?
Just what is Satan in this mix?
So I do a quick google for the new testament and hell and get....
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Matthew 13:42: "And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth."
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Matt 25:41: "Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." This passage relates to Jesus' judgment of all the world.
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Mark 9:43-48: And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched." The reference to fire is repeated three more times in the passage for emphasis.
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Luke 16:24: "And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame." This is a plea described as coming from an inhabitant of Hell.
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Revelation 20:13-15: "...hell delivered up the dead which were in them...And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."
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Revelation 21:8: "But the fearful, and unbelieving ... shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone." Brimstone is sulphur. In order for sulphur to form a lake, it must be molten. Thus, its temperature must be at or below 444.6 °C or 832 °F.
spite of the flames, Hell is totally dark:
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Matthew 8:12: "But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness..."
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Matthew 22:13: "...take him away, and cast him into outer darkness."
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Matthew 25:30: "And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness..."
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Torturing prisoners with sulphur:
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Revelation 14:10: "...and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb." The "Lamb" here refers to Jesus. It is not clear whether Jesus and the angels are present as torturers or merely as observers.
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Worms -- apparently flesh-eating:
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Mark 9:44-48: "Where their worm dieth not..." The immortal worm is repeated three times in this passage for emphasis. One point of interest is that the author of Mark refers to "their worm" not to "the worms." That seems to imply that each prisoner has his own worm.
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Extreme thirst:
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Luke 16:23-26: "And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame."
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Prisoner's reaction to the torment:
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Matthew 8:12: "...there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
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Matthew 13:42: "... there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth."
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Matthew 13:50: " there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth."
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Matthew 25:30: "... there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
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Matthew 25:46: " And these shall go away into everlasting punishment."
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Mark 9:43-48: "...it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched" The unquenched fire is mentioned three times in this passage for emphasis.
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Revelation 14:11: " And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night..."
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Mind you I'm not going to fact check any of this, but I'm pretty sure its not a metaphor for the separation from god. My guess is that interpretation was a more modern one in an attempt to make the silliness and cruelty of a god who you condemn you to torture for eternity seem less ridiculous.
So no I think to a Christian, provided they believe in the new testament, hell is a real place with real physical suffering. Not the vague separation from god but pure pain.
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Originally Posted by Baraka_Guru
On the topic of hell, one of the more interesting conversations on religion I've had involved me (as a born and raised atheist) and a friend of mine (who's Jewish). Having been exposed to the Christian aspect of morality for the most part, I was curious to know what the Jews believe. I expressed my discontent surrounding the Christian belief that I was hellbound because I didn't believe in God and that I viewed Jesus as merely a philosopher.
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I think many rabbis would not agree. The thing about Judisim is that there is no one set 'way'. Some claim there is in fact a hell, others that there is not.