The standard view of punishment and salvation within Christianity is that, upon death, all believers in Christ go to eternal bliss in heaven, while those who did not put their faith in Jesus are eternally tortured in hell. Many Christians, if asked about the foundation of this belief, will claim that it is the only biblical view and can point to several Scripture passages to argue their case; others will appeal to tradition, since this is the interpretation that has been taught by the majority of Christianity for about 1,500 years. Nonetheless, this is not the interpretation which makes the best sense of all relevant biblical passages. In this paper, I will be arguing for a very different view of punishment and salvation.
The Sentence of Gehenna
The majority of Christians believe that after death, unbelievers will go to a place called ‘hell’ to be punished for their failure to have faith in Jesus. Most even believe that the torture in ‘hell’ will last for eternity, while others believe that this punishment will be temporary, and refine unbelievers for ultimate salvation. However, many would be surprised to hear that the word “hell” is not found in the Bible at all. Rather, the word which is translated as “hell” twelve times in modern Bible translations is geenna, which is in fact a proper noun meaning “Gehenna” (Valley of Hinnom).
The Valley of Hinnom is a valley to the southwest of Jerusalem, which was first used to define the boundary of the territory of Judah (Josh. 15:8; 18:16; cf. Neh. 11:30). Later on, it became the site of child sacrifices to the Canaanite god Molech, which caused the Israelites to consider it defiled (2 Chron. 28:3; 33:6; Jer. 7:31; 32:35; cf. 2 Kgs. 23:10). Because of this, when the first siege and destruction of Jerusalem took place in 587 BC, God declared that the bodies of the dead Judeans would be cast into the Valley of Hinnom to be eaten by wild animals (Jer. 19:3-7).
Later Jewish writings began to call the place of postmortem punishment “Gehenna,” which is partially why modern translations translate geenna as “hell.” Nonetheless, this tradition arose only well after Jesus’ ministry. The first explicit references to Gehenna as a place of postmortem punishment, rather than the literal Valley of Hinnom, are in 4 Ezra 7.26-36 and Sybilline Oracles 4.176-191, both written after AD 70. [1] Such a tradition could not have arisen and circulated in time to be understood by all of Jesus’ listeners. Instead, Jesus’ listeners would have associated the Valley of Hinnom with child sacrifice and the destruction of Jerusalem, as it is in the Old Testament.
Do the New Testament references to Gehenna make more sense in light of the Old Testament view of the Valley of Hinnom or on the “hell” view? In multiple passages about Gehenna, Jesus indicates that it is a place into which one’s physical body can be thrown (Matt. 5:29-30; 18:8-9; Mark 9:43-48). This means that it must be a physical location rather than a non-corporeal place of punishment. When talking about Gehenna in Mark 9:43-48, Jesus quotes an Old Testament passage, which talks about corpses decaying and burning in a location visible from Jerusalem (Isa. 66:20-24). This strongly implies that Jesus was referring to the literal Valley of Hinnom when he spoke of geenna, rather than a place of postmortem punishment, which Gehenna was not associated with until after AD 70.
Furthermore, Jesus also refers to “the sentence of Gehenna” in a crucial passage which demonstrates the historical referent of his warnings about the Valley of Hinnom:
“You snakes, you brood of vipers, how can you escape the sentence of Gehenna? For this reason I send you prophets, sages, and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town, so that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar.
“Truly I tell you, all this will come upon this generation. Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you, desolate.” (Matt. 23:33-38)
Here, Jesus promises that the hypocritical scribes and Pharisees whom he is addressing will receive “the sentence of Gehenna.” He also says that it will come upon “this generation” (Gk: tēn genean tautēn), which consistently refers to the first-century Jewish religious leaders in the gospel of Matthew (11:16; 12:39, 41, 42, 45; 16:4; 17:17). Later on, he equates this with a judgment on Jerusalem which will cause its “house” (the Temple) to become “desolate.” All of this was fulfilled in AD 70, when Jerusalem was besieged, the Second Temple was burned, and:
the seditious at first gave orders that the dead should be buried out of the public treasury, as they could not endure the stench of their dead bodies. But afterwards, when they could not do that, they had them cast down from the walls into the valleys beneath. (Josephus, Wars 5.12.3)
This judgment on Jerusalem graphically fulfilled “the sentence of Gehenna” prophesied by Jesus, and it came upon the first-century Jewish leaders, just as he had promised. This parallels the destruction of Jerusalem that took place in 587 BC, in which the dead bodies were also cast into the Valley of Hinnom, and the valley was associated with Jerusalem’s fall (Jer. 7:31-33; 19:2-7).
Only one question remains: if the judgment of Gehenna was fulfilled completely in AD 70, then how is it that Jesus also describes this as “unquenchable” or “eternal fire”? (Matt. 18:8-9; Mark 9:43, 48; cf. Matt. 3:12) As it happens, this also draws upon Old Testament imagery. Throughout the writings of the prophets, “unquenchable fire” consistently symbolizes God’s judgment upon a nation, especially with regard to the 587 BC siege of Jerusalem and exile of Israel (Jer. 4:4; 7:20; 17:27; 21:10-12; Ezek. 20:47-48; Amos 5:5-6). Hence, when Jesus talks about “unquenchable fire” in the Valley of Hinnom, he is still referring to the second fall of Jerusalem and exile that took place in AD 70.
In summary, when Jesus spoke of Gehenna in the gospel accounts, he was not referring to a non-corporeal realm of ‘hell’ in which unbelievers would be punished after death. Instead, geenna refers to the literal Valley of Hinnom outside of Jerusalem, which became associated with child sacrifices and the destruction of Jerusalem in the Old Testament (Jer. 7:31-33). Jesus prophesied that “the sentence of Gehenna” would come upon his first-century contemporaries and would be associated with the fall of Jerusalem and the Temple (Matt. 23:33-38), and this was graphically fulfilled in AD 70, when at the end of the Roman siege and destruction of Jerusalem, the bodies of the dead were cast into the Valley of Hinnom.
The Furnace and Lake of Fire
Jesus in the book of Matthew also describes a judgment in his parables about the kingdom of God, which he says will take place “at the conclusion of the age.” This judgment is described as follows:
“The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the conclusion of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the conclusion of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” (Matt. 13:37-43)
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the conclusion of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.“ (Matt. 13:47-50)
These parables are typically thought to describe a final judgment at Christ’s Second Coming. But is this the most likely interpretation?
First of all, in both instances, the judgment is said to take place at “at the conclusion of the age” (tē sunteleia tou aiōnios). This is a technical phrase which is used later in Matthew’s gospel in conjunction with the destruction of the Second Temple complex (24:1-3; cf. Mark 13:1-4; Luke 21:5-7), which took place in AD 70. Other NT writers state that they are living at “the conclusion of the ages” (Heb. 9:26) or “the end of the ages” (1 Cor. 10:11; cf. Acts 2:17; Heb. 1:2). Paul said that “the rulers of this age” had crucified Jesus (the Jewish leadership), and they were already “being destroyed” (1 Cor. 2:6-8). This is the age of the Old Covenant, which was “passing away” after Christ’s death (Heb. 8:13), and finally reached its end when the physical Temple was destroyed in AD 70 (Heb. 9:8-10).
If this is the case, how should “the furnace of fire” be understood? We must look to Old Testament parallels to understand this symbol:
“Because you have become dross, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. As one gathers silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into a furnace, to blow the fire upon them in order to melt them, so I will gather you in my anger and in my wrath, and I will put you in and melt you. I will gather you and blow upon you with the fire of my wrath, and you shall be melted within it. As silver is melted in a furnace, so you shall be melted in it, and you shall know that I the Lord have poured out my wrath upon you.” (Ezek. 22:19-22)
In other passages, “the furnace” is also used as a metaphor for the Egyptian and Babylonian exiles (Deut. 4:20; 1 Kgs. 8:51; Isa. 48:10; Jer. 11:4). Therefore, this symbolizes a period of judgment for unfaithful Israel, especially the siege of Jerusalem and exile which took place in 587 BC. This was repeated in AD 70, when Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans and the Jews were exiled again.
Moreover, the general tenor of the “parable of the wheat and tares” in Matt. 13:24-30 fits the AD 70 judgment very well. Darnel, or tares, are plants which greatly resemble wheat during the early stages of growth, which is explicitly noted by Jesus (Matt. 13:29). Thus, “the evildoers” in this parable are those who would appear to be God’s people, but ultimately turn out to be wicked. This can only refer to first-century apostate Israel which appeared righteous on the outside, but its true colors showed when the unbelieving Jews persecuted Christ’s followers until their judgment at the fall of Jerusalem (Matt. 23:25-39). Jesus even referred to them as the children of the devil (John 8:44; cf. Matt. 13:38). The kingdom of God was ultimately taken from them and given to another (Matt. 21:43-45; cf. 13:41).
How is the “furnace of fire” related to another punishment described in the New Testament, the “lake of fire” (Rev. 20:14-15)? Most Christians understand them to be the same thing, and I believe that this is correct. Some national judgments in the Old Testament are depicted as a lake or stream of fire (Isa. 30:31-33; 34:9-10; Dan. 7:10-11), which seems to be the background of Revelation’s symbolism. This punishment is also described as “the second death” (Rev. 20:14). The covenantal curses against unfaithful Israel are referred to as “death” in Deut. 30:15-20; this is elaborated in the prophets, where the exiles are symbolized by dead bodies (Isa. 26:19; Ezek. 37:1-13). Thus, the combined imagery of “the lake of fire” and “the second death” suggests the second national death (exile) of Israel which began with the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70.
This is supported by the fact that Revelation is bookended by statements that “these things must soon take place” and “the time is near” (1:1, 3; 22:6, 10). Based on the biblical literary device of inclusio, [2] this means that the entire prophetic book, including the “lake of fire,” must have been fulfilled shortly after it was written in the first century. Admittedly, this is difficult to reconcile with some aspects of the vision in Rev. 20:11-15, especially the passing away of “heaven and earth” in v. 11. Nonetheless, it is worth noting that the destruction of heaven and earth is also mentioned in Rev. 6:12-17, a passage which was definitely fulfilled in AD 70 based on Jesus’ own words (Luke 23:28-31). See my commentary on Rev. 20:11-15, and my comments below on 2 Peter 3:10-13, for a fuller discussion of this.
The Sheep and the Goats
In the book of Matthew, Jesus describes another judgment which is commonly known as ‘the Sheep and the Goats’ because of the metaphor that is used. Here, we are only concerned with the nature and timing of the judgment, and not any other implications, so I will only quote the pertinent sections of this lengthy prophecy:
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world’… Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You who are accursed, depart from me into the eonian fire prepared for the devil and his messengers’… And these will go away into eonian punishment, but the righteous into eonian life.” (Matt. 25:31-34, 41, 46)
The key to understanding this passage is to recognize that the imagery of ‘separating sheep from goats’ is used in regard to judgment only one other time in Scripture, in Ezekiel 34:17-24, where it is a judgment of believing and unbelieving Israelites that is in view. Likewise, in Zech. 10:2-3, the false teachers of Israel are described as “male goats” whom God will “punish.” This strongly suggests that Jesus has in view a judgment on unbelieving Israel, and especially the Israelite leadership.
Furthermore, Jesus says that this judgment will occur “when the Son of Man... will sit on the throne of his glory.” The New Testament states that the Son of Man “came on the clouds” to be enthroned at God’s right hand (Dan. 7:13-14) at two separate times: first, at his exaltation (Matt. 26:64; Acts 2:29-36), and again at the AD 70 judgment (Matt. 24:30). Because no judgment took place when Jesus was exalted to heaven, this judgment must have occurred at Jesus’ second enthronement in AD 70, in which case the judgment may be equated with the First Jewish-Roman War.
The difficulty with this interpretation is that Jesus says that “all nations will be gathered before him,” which suggests that it is gentiles who are being judged. However, elsewhere in the Olivet discourse, “all nations” refers to representatives of all nations — after all, it is not true that every single gentile heard the gospel or hated Christians before AD 70, although “all nations” did (Matt. 24:9-15; cf. Rom. 10:18). Moreover, the Jewish diaspora was said to comprise “all nations under heaven” when they were gathered in Jerusalem for the Passover (Acts 2:5-11). According to Josephus, the siege of Jerusalem in AD 70 began on Passover, and millions of diaspora Jews were there (Wars 5.3.1; 6.9.3), so the inhabitants of Jerusalem during the siege could indeed be called “all nations.”
At the time that the Old Covenant passed away, the kingdom of God would finally be received by Christians with full force, according to the Hebraist (12:26-28; cf. Luke 21:31-32; Rev. 11:13-15). This took place at “the conclusion of the [Old Covenant] age” in AD 70 (Matt. 13:40, 43; 24:3). Therefore, it was at this time that Christians “inherit[ed] the kingdom prepared for [them] from the foundation of the world” (Matt. 25:34). In contrast, the unbelieving Jews were punished with “eonian fire” at this time. [3] The fire is said to be prepared for “the devil and his messengers,” which likely reflects the New Testament concept that the unfaithful Jews were children of the devil and followed his will (John 8:41-44; Rev. 2:9; 3:9). No Christians were harmed in the siege of Jerusalem, because they all fled to Pella in accordance with Jesus’ warnings (Luke 21:20-24). [4]
What about “eonian punishment” and “eonian life” in v. 46? These are typically translated as “eternal punishment” and “eternal life,” which gives the impression that they refer to punishment and salvation in the eternal state. However, the adjective aiōnios derives from the noun aiōn (“age”), and should be translated as “eonian” or “of the [coming] age” rather than “eternal.” [5] Notably, in the prophecies of Jeremiah, the 70-year exile is repeatedly referred to as aiōnios (18:16; 23:40; 25:9 LXX). After AD 70, the Jewish people were exiled from their homeland for nearly 2,000 years, which (in light of Jeremiah) certainly qualifies as aiōnios.
In summary, the judgment in Matt. 25:31-46 is not a description of the final judgment, but depicts the Israelite people as sheep and goats (cf. Ezek. 34:17-24; Zech. 10:2-3). The diaspora from “all nations” was gathered in Jerusalem during the AD 70 siege, and the Jewish unbelievers and false teachers there were punished with fire, while the Jewish believers were saved to Pella and received the spiritual blessings of the kingdom with full force. This aligns with the AD 70 theme of the Olivet discourse (Matt. 24:1-3), as Jesus did not finish saying “all these things” until Matt. 26:1 (cf. 23:36; 24:34).
Destruction of the Persecutors
Paul rarely speaks about specific judgment events, usually preferring to talk about the ongoing rewards and punishments which God provides to people (e.g., Rom. 2:5-10). However, in one instance, Paul wrote to the Thessalonian church about a punishment that would arrive on their persecutors:
For it is indeed just of God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to give relief to you who are afflicted as well as us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in a fiery flame, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. These will suffer the punishment of eonian destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes to be glorified by his saints and to be marveled at on that day among all who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed. (2 Thess. 1:6-10)
This passage seems at first to be describing the Second Coming, as it states that Jesus will be “revealed from heaven” and that the Lord “comes to be glorified by his saints.” But is this the best interpretation of Paul’s words here?
First of all, note that Paul believed that this judgment would bring a reprieve for both “you who are afflicted as well as us.” This implies that the judgment would take place in the near future, when most of the currently-afflicted church of Thessalonica, and their oppressors, were still alive. But who were the oppressors of the Thessalonian church? According to Acts 17:5-13, there were many unbelieving Jews from the diaspora in Thessalonica, who stirred up the gentiles there to persecute Christians. That these were the primary oppressors of the Thessalonians is confirmed by 1 Thess. 2:14-16, in which Paul singles out unbelieving Jews as persecutors of the church. The judgment on unbelieving Israel took place in AD 70 at the destruction of Jerusalem (cf. Luke 19:41-44); thus, Paul is most likely referring to this judgment.
This is confirmed by Paul’s description of the oppressors’ punishment, which he refers to as “eonian destruction, away from the presence of the Lord.” In the Old Testament, the “presence of Yahweh” was believed to dwell in the land of Israel, so leaving Israel was equivalent to leaving God’s presence (Gen. 4:16; 2 Kgs. 13:23; Jon. 1:3, 10; cf. 2:4). When the people were exiled in 587 BC, this is described as God casting them out of His presence:
Because of Yahweh’s anger, it happened in Jerusalem and Judah that He finally cast them from His presence; and Zedekiah rebelled against Babylon. (2 Kgs. 24:20; Jer. 52:3)
“Therefore behold, I will forget you and utterly forsake you and the city I gave to you and your fathers, and cast you from My presence. I will bring upon you perpetual shame and reproach, which will not be forgotten.” (Jer. 23:39-40)
The people of Israel were again cast “away from the presence of the Lord” in AD 70, when they were exiled from their homeland after the fall of Jerusalem. Notably, the LXX translates Jer. 23:40 as “eonian reproach and eonian disgrace” (LXX: oneidismon aiōnion kai atimion aiōnion), just as Paul describes it as “eonian destruction” (Gk: olethron aiōnion).
What about the fact that Paul says Jesus was “revealed from heaven” at this time? This doesn’t require a physical Second Coming in AD 70, because Paul also states that God’s wrath is presently being “revealed from heaven” against those who do evil (Rom. 1:18; cf. 2:5). This phrase seems to merely describe the manifestation of righteous judgment, not a visible manifestation in heaven. Furthermore, Jesus did “come to be glorified” when the Temple was destroyed in AD 70; this was not a return to Earth, but a coming to God to receive power and glory as the enthroned ruler of God’s kingdom (Dan. 7:13-14; Matt. 24:3, 30).
Thus, like many of the other judgment passages in the New Testament, 2 Thess. 1:5-10 was fulfilled in the AD 70 fall of Jerusalem. This interpretation is further supported by the fact that 2 Thess. 1 is widely recognized to allude to Isaiah 2:6-20, which is a prophecy about the judgment of the rebellious house of Jacob.
Destruction of Heavens and Earth
Another judgment passage is found in 2 Peter 3, which describes the Day of the Lord and destruction of the heavens and earth. Although this passage only briefly mentions the judgment of the wicked, it is still important for our purposes. This is what Peter writes:
First of all know this, that in the last days scoffers will come, following their own evil desires and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation!” They deliberately ignore this fact, that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago, and an earth was formed out of water and through water, through which the world of that time was deluged with water and perished. Yet by the same word the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of impious men.
Now do not ignore this fact, beloved, that one day with the Lord is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. The Lord is not slow about the promise, as some esteem slowness, but is patient toward you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.
Yet the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works in it will not be found. Since these things are being dissolved in this way, what sort of person should you be? In holy conduct and piety, expecting and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved with fire, and the elements are melting with fervent heat. Yet, according to His promise, we are awaiting new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells. (2 Pet. 3:3-13)
First, note that the author states that the “scoffers” will come “in the last days.” Peter elsewhere claims that “the last days” and “the last times” were already present in his day (Acts 2:16-17; 1 Pet. 1:20; cf. Heb. 1:2; 1 John 2:18). He even states in his first epistle that “the end of all things has drawn near” (1 Pet. 4:7). [6] Furthermore, the “coming” which Peter refers to is connected with the Transfiguration (2 Pet. 1:16-19). This can only refer to the “coming of the Son of Man” which Jesus prophesied would occur before all the disciples passed away, which is directly before the Transfiguration in all three synoptic accounts (Matt. 16:27-17:8; Mark 9:1-8; Luke 9:26-36). [7] In the Olivet Discourse, this “coming” is elaborated as the coming of the Messiah in judgment against Jerusalem (Matt. 24:1ff), which was fulfilled in AD 70.
The complaint of the scoffers in 2 Pet. 3:3-4 confirms that the “coming” referred to here is the judgment of Jerusalem. They claim that “since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation!” This would only be a valid criticism of the prophecy if there were a time limit on the prophecy’s fulfillment, related to the death of “the fathers” (apostles). Otherwise, it would be quite difficult for the scoffers to win anyone over with this argument. Notably, Peter does not deny this fact, and with good reason: Jesus did indeed predict that his “coming” against Jerusalem would take place before all the apostles died (Matt. 16:27-28).
But if the “coming” prophesied in 2 Peter 3 is the AD 70 fall of Jerusalem, how can it be associated with the destruction of the heavens and earth? The key to understanding this is the fact that Scripture often describes God’s covenants symbolically using creation language. For example, consider the following passage:
“I have put My words in your mouth and hidden you in the shadow of My hand, stretching out the heavens and laying the foundations of the earth and saying to Zion, ‘You are My people.’” (Isa. 51:16)
Here, the establishment of God’s covenant with Israel is poetically described as the creation of the heavens and earth. In line with this, the destruction of the First Temple and beginning of the Babylonian Exile is depicted by Jeremiah as the un-creation of heaven and earth, in which the earth once again becomes “formless and empty” and all humans and animals disappear (Jer. 4:16-26; cf. Gen. 1:2). Likewise, the covenantal curses against Israel are depicted as God’s wrath “burning to the depths of Sheol… devouring the earth and its increase” (Deut. 32:22).
Therefore, when Peter talks about heaven and earth being destroyed by fire, he is not referring to the destruction of the physical creation, but the abrogation of God’s (old) covenant with Israel. The New Testament never looks forward to the destruction of the physical creation, but rather the renewal of the creation at Christ’s Second Coming (Acts 3:21; Rom. 8:18-23). Likewise, the “elements” (Gk: stoicheia) do not refer to the physical elements, but the statutes of the Old Covenant, in line with the use of this word elsewhere in the New Testament (Gal. 4:3, 9; Col. 2:8, 20; Heb. 5:12). Peter clearly anticipates the near fulfillment of this destruction, because he twice refers to it in the present tense (2 Pet. 3:11-12).
In summary, the judgment described in 2 Peter 3 does not refer to the future Second Coming and a destruction of the physical creation, but the coming of Jesus in judgment against Jerusalem in AD 70. The heavens and earth whose destruction is associated with the “Day of the Lord” in this prophecy are not the physical creation, but the Old Covenant which was passing away after Christ’s death (Heb. 8:13). Likewise, the “new heavens and a new earth” to which Peter looks forward are not a second physical creation, but the New Covenant which fully arrived after the physical Temple was destroyed (Heb. 9:8-10). There will be no future destruction of the physical creation, but rather a renewal of the creation (Acts 3:21; Rom. 8:18-23), so any passage which talks about the destruction of heaven and earth must refer to the violent end of the Old Covenant that occurred in AD 70.
Other Judgment Passages
We have already covered most of the New Testament judgment passages that refer to AD 70, but there are a few less-known passages which I believe to describe the first-century judgment of unfaithful Israel. First, Jesus’ condemnation of Capernaum, Bethsaida, and Chorazin in Matthew 11:21-24 was fulfilled in the first century. Here is the passage in question:
“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, on the day of judgment it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades. For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I tell you that on the day of judgment it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom than for you.”
First of all, note that it is the cities themselves which are said to be under judgment; although the people within the cities would certainly be judged along with them, that is not the focus of Jesus’ prophecy. He compares the punishment of these cities with the punishment of “the land of Sodom,” not the people of Sodom (who certainly would not have “remained until this day”).
When were the cities of Capernaum, Bethsaida, and Chorazin destroyed? Josephus specifically states that Bethsaida (“Julias”) was destroyed by the Romans in AD 68 (Wars 4.7.6). Although the destructions of Capernaum and Chorazin are not specifically mentioned, he says that the Romans fell upon any city which had not been fortified, so that “Galilee was all over filled with fire and blood” in the summer of AD 67 (Wars 3.4.1). Eusebius of Caesarea states in his Onomasticon that the original village of Chorazin was merely a ruin by the fourth century. In contrast to the destruction of these Galilean cities, the cities of Tyre and Sidon and the land of Sodom were spared by the Romans, in line with Jesus’ predictions. Thus, the “day of judgment” referred to in Matt. 10:15 and 11:21-24 was the First Jewish-Roman War (AD 67-70).
The next judgment passage is found in John 5, in which Jesus refers to a “resurrection” at which some people will be rewarded and others will be punished:
Do not be astonished at this, for the hour is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and will come out: those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation.
Although this passage is typically understood to refer to the future bodily resurrection of all people, this is not in line with the usage of the phrase “the hour is coming” elsewhere in John’s gospel. Jesus states that “the hour is coming” to refer to the period leading up to and culminating in the events of AD 70, namely, with regard to the cessation of Temple worship in Jerusalem (John 4:21-23) and the Jewish persecution of Jesus’ followers (16:2, 32). When John wrote his first letter, he believed that they were already living in “the last hour,” because the signs Jesus spoke of were coming to pass (1 John 2:18; cf. Matt. 24:3-5).
But how can this “resurrection” have been fulfilled in the first century if no one was bodily resurrected at that time? In the immediate context of this passage, Jesus uses resurrection as a metaphor for the spiritual change that takes place when a person begins to follow him (John 5:24-25). Likewise, Paul exhorts his audience to “rise up from the dead” so that “Christ will shine on you” (Eph. 5:14; cf. 2:5-6). Ezekiel uses the metaphor of people rising from their graves to describe Israel’s return from exile (37:11-13; cf. John 5:28). Therefore, in context, the “resurrection” described in John 5:28-29 should not be seen as a bodily resurrection, but as a metaphor for those who believe in Christ.
This still leaves the question of how some people could have been resurrected to judgment, if this is a metaphor for believing in Christ. Nonetheless, Jesus recognizes the very real possibility for believers to fall away from their faith; later on in John’s gospel, he states that those who “do not abide in [the Vine]” will be “gathered, thrown in the fire, and burned up” (15:1-6). Based on Old Testament parallels, the branches of the vine being “thrown in the fire” most likely represents the AD 70 siege of Jerusalem (Ezek. 15:1-7).
The Hebraist also recognized that those who returned to Old Covenant Judaism faced a “prospect of judgment and furious fire” which would take place “in a very, very little while” (Heb. 10:26-31, 37-39; cp. 6:4-8). Therefore, like the other instances of “the hour is coming” in John’s gospel, John 5:28-29 describes the period leading up to and culminating in the AD 70 fall of Jerusalem, at which time those who stayed faithful received the benefits of the New Covenant with full force (Heb. 9:8-10) and those who strayed back to the Old Covenant were judged. [8] Simeon spoke of this as “the falling and rising [Gk: anastasin] of many in Israel” (Luke 2:34).
The final judgment passage to be considered here is Rev. 14:9-11, which states that the followers of the Beast will be “tortured with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the Lamb; the smoke of their torture goes up forever and ever, and there is no rest day and night…” Does this passage describe eternal torture of unbelievers or something altogether very different? First of all, it is important to know that this is a fairly clear allusion to Isaiah 34:9-10:
“And the streams of Edom shall be turned into pitch and her soil into sulfur; her land shall become burning pitch. Night and day it shall not be quenched; its smoke shall go up forever. From generation to generation it shall lie waste; no one shall pass through it forever and ever.”
This passage describes the temporal, national judgment on Edom which took place in the sixth century BC. The former land of Edom is obviously no longer a burning waste, and its former capital, Petra, is now a major tourist attraction. However, the nation of Edom ceased to exist after this judgment. Therefore, this language seems not to describe eternal torture of individuals, nor the literal destruction of the land, but the fall of a nation from which it will not recover.
Which nation does Rev. 14:9-11 symbolize the fall of? Fortunately, we find the answer in Rev. 19:3, which repeats this language: “[God] has judged the great Harlot… Hallelujah! The smoke goes up from her forever and ever.” As discussed in my commentary on Revelation, the Harlot represents first-century Jerusalem, while the Beast represents apostate Israel. [9] The unbelieving Jewish leaders of the first century persecuted and killed Christ and his followers. Their punishment for this was the destruction of Jerusalem which took place in AD 70 (Luke 19:27, 41-44; Matt. 23:33-24:2; Rev. 18:20-24). Thus, the torture of the Beast’s followers in Rev. 14:9-11 does not refer to eternal torture of individuals, but in fact to the first-century judgment on apostate Israel and Jerusalem.
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[1] Chaim Milikowsky, “Which Gehenna? Retribution and Eschatology in the Synoptic Gospels and in Early Christian Texts,” New Test. Stud. 34 (1988), 239.
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inclusio
[3] See the “furnace of fire” imagery in Ezek. 22:17-22 and Matt. 13:42, 50, as well as the literal fire that engulfed Jerusalem in AD 70 (Wars 6.5.1).
[4] Eusebius, Church History 3.5.3; Epiphanius, Panarion 29.7.8.
[5] Ilaria Ramelli and David Konstan, Terms for Eternity: Aiônios and Aïdios in Classical and Christian Texts, (Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, 2013); consider that aiōnios is used to refer to temporal things in the LXX at Gen. 17:17, 8, 13, 19; 48:4; Exod. 12:14, 17; 27:21; 28:43; 29:28; 30:21; 31:16, 17; Lev. 6:18, 22; 7:34, 36; 10:9, 15; 16:29, 31, 34; 17:7; 23:14, 21, 31, 41; 24:3, 8, 9; 25:34; Num. 10:8; 15:15; 18:8, 11, 19, 23; 19:10, 21; 25:13; 1 Chron. 16:17; Job 3:18; 10:22; 21:11; 41:4; Psa, 76:4; 78:66; 105:10; Isa. 24:5; 55:13; 60:15; Jer. 5:22; 18:16; 20:17; 23:40; 25:9, 12; 51:39; Ezek. 35:5; 35:9; Jon. 2:6; Mic. 2:9.
[6] The Greek verb engizō (“to draw near”) always refers to events that have come near in place or time; compare 1 Pet. 4:7 with Matt 21:34; 26:45-46; Luke 21:8, 20, 28; 22:1; Acts 7:17.
[7] Some scholars argue that the “coming” prophesied in Matt. 16:27-28 was actually fulfilled by the Transfiguration, but this is not possible for three reasons. (1) This “coming” is said to be “with his angels” and to involve judgment of the wicked; this did not take place in any way at the Transfiguration. (2) Jesus’ statement in Matt. 16:28 implies that some of the disciples would die prior to the “coming,” especially given that the context is a prediction of persecution and martyrdom (16:24-26); the Transfiguration took place only a week later, long before any disciples died. (3) Peter says that the Transfiguration confirmed the validity of the prophecy (2 Pet. 1:16-18), not that it directly fulfilled the prophecy.
[8] This interpretation of John 5:28-29 also applies to Daniel 12:2, which speaks of many awaking in a future time of trouble for Israel, some of whom would awake to “eonian reproach and shame” (LXX: oneidismon kai... aischunēn aiōnion). Notably, Jeremiah uses similar language to describe the first fall of Jerusalem: “eonian reproach and eonian disgrace” (23:40 LXX: oneidismon aiōnion kai atimion aiōnion). The time of trouble was the First Jewish-Roman War (Matt. 24:21; cf. Dan. 12:1), when many awoke to salvation (Rom. 13:11; Eph. 5:14), some of whom fell back and were ashamed at the fall of Jerusalem (Heb. 6:4-8; 10:26-31, 37-39).
[9] See also Kenneth Gentry’s paper, “Jerusalem and the Babylonian Harlot.”
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