The Conditionalist Faith of Our Fathers, vol. 1

IV. Sound Interpretative Principles Emerge for Guidance

The fact that the adjective aionios is applied to some things that are “endless” does not for a moment prove that it always means endless, for such a rendering would, in many passages, be manifestly impossible and absurd. Further, the adjective “eternal” (aionios) and the adverbial phrases that express eternity (such as “forever,” and “forever and ever”), indicate an indeterminate duration, whereof the maximum depends upon the nature of the person or thing that it modifies. CFF1 437.4

It is clearly infinite when predicated of God and eternal things, which are above and beyond time, or of beings who live by faith in communion and connection with Him. On the contrary, it is only relative for other beings, such as mortal man. Thus the sufferings of perishable creatures logically cannot be prolonged longer than is compatible with their perishable nature. CFF1 437.5

The length must be inferred and determined from the context and the nature of the thing or persons under consideration. For example, in Romans 16:25, 26the mystery of the gospel, hidden in times past—“chronoas aioniois” (along with eternal times, but which have come to an end)—is placed in contrast with aioniou Theou (“eternal God,” Romans 16:26, R.S.V., endless and independent of all time). To hold that aionios in the one instance must mean the same as the other is manifestly an absurdity. CFF1 437.6

The Old Testament equivalents of aion and aionios were applied to the passing Aaronic priesthood, the inheritance given to Caleb, the period of the slave’s life, the burning of the fire upon the altar, the leprosy of Gehazi, et cetera ² One notable case in point was “the land thereof shall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall die waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever” (Isaiah 34:9, 10). And in Deuteronomy 23:3, 6“for ever” is limited to the “tenth generation.” Such examples afford sound principles fo our guidance. CFF1 439.1

1. VAST SCOPE OF MEANING OF “AION” EXHIBITED

In the Authorized Version aion is frequently translated “world.” Later, the revisers usually rendered aion by “age,” at least in the margin. The Greek word for “world,” in its material framework, is, of course, kosmos, while aion is earth’s history in the larger setting of eternity. It is finite man in a finite world, preceded and followed by the timeless eternities of past and future. God, the King of the “ages,” laid His redemptive plans before the ages began to unroll, and sent forth His Son at the appointed time to consummate His matchless plan for the redemption of humanity. CFF1 439.2

In its backward look in depth, aion was a period lost in the mists of past eternity—the farthest dawn of time (Luke 1:70; John 9:32; Acts 15:18; Jude 25). But it may refer not only backward to time without beginning, but forward as well, as without end in the future. Thus we see that one group of aion texts tells of that which is divine and endless—God Himself (Romans 16:26); His attributes (1 Timothy 6:16); His kingdom (2 Peter 1:11); His covenant (Hebrews 13:20), et cetera. CFF1 439.3

Another group tells of the “ages” planned by God (Romans 16:25; 2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 1:2). A third group tells of His various acts and activities—“punishment” (Matthew 25:46); “judgment” (Mark 3:29; Hebrews 6:2); “destruction” (2 Thessalonians 1:9); “salvation” (Hebrews 5:9); “redemption” (Hebrews 9:12), et cetera. And there are lesser categories, but there is no conflict. Let us note a few important points. CFF1 440.1

2. GOD HAS INFINITY; MAN DOES NOT

There is a common misconception that any existence beyond this life is eternal, and that anything that is indefinitely extended is infinite and endless. But infinity is an attribute of God alone. He is the “King eternal, immortal, invisible,” et cetera (1 Timothy 1:17), “who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto” (1 Timothy 6:16). Therefore, intrinsic eternity of being cannot be the attribute of any creature, or he would be equal to his Creator. CFF1 440.2

Man does not, and cannot, possess God’s infinite attributes. Man can and does have wisdom, intelligence, power, and other attributes of free moral agents. But because of the very fact of his creation he must be dependent upon God for all that he is and has (Acts 17:28). CFF1 440.3

God gives to man “life.” But this life is subordinate to God’s own absolute, original, underived, self-existent life. God may prolong man’s life, even without end. But such life is ever conditioned on God’s will, power, and pleasure. It is contingent, and cannot be an independent life. The life everlasting, or immortality—which He has promised to all who are united to Him—is everlasting simply because such beings are in vital connection with Him. Such life is not absolute, but conditional. It is because He thus keeps them that the redeemed will be immortal. CFF1 440.4

Again, because the wicked will live again after the first death, some jump to the conclusion that such life after death will be endlessly perpetuated. But the Scriptures solemnly assure us that the wicked dead are to be raised, judged, and destroyed with an everlasting destruction, which is the “second death” (Revelation 20:6, 14, 15; Revelation 21:8). CFF1 441.1

The present earth and sinners are not to be forever in process of destruction by the purifying fires of the last day. The new earth is to rise from its ashes (Revelation 21; 22; 2 Peter 3:10, 13). And the new earth, purified from all the pollutions of sin and free from all the deformities of the curse, is to be the everlasting abode of the righteous forever. Those are the contrasts left on record for our guidance. CFF1 441.2

3. “AIONIOS”—ETERNAL IN RESULTS, NOT IN PROCESS

Many illustrious scholars recognize that the meaning must be sought not in aionios but in the noun to which it is attached. ³ Let us apply the principle: If the noun stands for that which is essentially eternal, then the accompanying adjective (aionios) is properly translated eternal. But if it is applied to that which is temporal and terminable, then aionios simply means lasting to the natural limits of the noun. Thus the “eternal God” (Romans 16:26, R.S.V.), “eternal Spirit” (Hebrews 9:14), and “eternal kingdom of our Lord” (2 Peter 1:11, R.S.V.) are all clear and incontrovertible. Here the adjective has the meaning of endless, for the existence of Deity and His divine attriutes and kingdom are without end. CFF1 441.3

But when aionios modifies nouns of action, such as an “eternal judgment” (Hebrews 6:2), “everlasting punishment” (Matthew 25:46), and the everlasting fires of Gehenna, it must be understood as lasting “forever” in the sense of everlasting results rather than an everlasting process. It is the verdict of the judgment that is immutable and stands forever—eternity of result, not of process. The same is true of “eternal redemption” (Hebrews 9:12). This is not an endless process, but the eternal result of Christ’s once-for-all redemptive activity for man’s salvation. CFF1 441.4

Similarly with “eternal destruction.” A thing is not destroyed until the act of destroying comes to an end. The results of the destructive process are therefore eternal. When aionios modifies “punishment,” the process is not one of eternally punishing but the eternal result of a terminative process. When a criminal is hanged, electrocuted, or gassed, the process is not one of eternal hanging, electrocuting, or gassing. The criminal is deprived of life forever. CFF1 442.1

In the case of “eternal fire” (Jude 7), the duration is determined by the nature of the fire, which burns until it consumes that upon which it is feeding, and then ceases—as with Sodom and Gomorrah, where the complete destruction of the cities is set forth as an example of the puros aioniou which will destroy the wicked. CFF1 442.2

4. Revelation 20:10—EXAMPLE OF LIMITED TORMENT

That the terms aion and aionios often denote a limited period, and not always one of eternal duration, is apparent even from Revelation 20:10. CFF1 442.3

“And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever [eis toes aionas ton aionon, “to the ages of the ages”].” CFF1 442.4

The limitation in the text is explicit. The verse does not refer to all the wicked, but speaks only of the devil and the symbolic “beast” and the “false prophet.” The “lake of fire,” as the place and means of torment, is mentioned in Revelation 20:14. But there it is the declared symbol of complete and final utter destruction. “Death and hades” are cast into the lake of fire, after which it is recorded, “There shall be no more death” (Revelation 21:4). It comes to an end. Whatever was cast into the lake of fire, after it has wrought its destruction, no longer exists. In Revelation 20:15 is the declaration that “whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” This marks the final disposition, through destruction, of all who are not saved in the kingdom of God. ⁴ CFF1 442.5

Again, Revelation 14:11represents the duration, or period, of the unrest of a special group. It, too, represents a limited period that will end. As seen elsewhere, this allusion to the smoke ascending is clearly a figure of speech, and to make that the basis of a doctrine which contradicts all the plain teaching of the Word on this question, as well as making God infinitely cruel, cannot be the proper exegesis. ⁵ CFF1 443.1

5. BEWARE OF UNSCRIPTURAL FOUNDATIONS AND UNSOUND REASONING

The rendering of the same word (aionios) once by “everlasting” and the other by “eternal”—as they appear twice in the same verse—is a purely arbitrary translator variation. Note it: “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment [kolasin aionion, “everlasting in result”]: but the righteous into life eternal [zoen aionion]” (Matthew 25:46). CFF1 443.2

But, far more important, we must beware of eisegetically reading into the word kolasis (“punishment”) a sense that it does not possess. “Punishment,” here, is the opposite of life only if that punishment be “death”—which it is. The eternal result is the same in both cases. There is no validity, for example, to Augustine’s argument that if we do not make aionios kolasis mean endless punishing, ⁶ we have no assurance that the aionios zoe that follows means endless living—and that we thereby lose our promise of everlasting happiness. CFF1 443.3

Such an Immortal-Soulist contention is utterly invalid. Our sure and certain hope of everlasting happiness rests on no such flimsy foundation as the disputed meaning of a Greek adjective, which is often used of things that are transitory. We have the clear, positive, and explicit foundations of God’s nonfigurative affirmations recorded for our assurance. ⁷ Sound doctrine is based on solid Scripture, and sound reasoning therefrom. CFF1 443.4