The Skeletons in God's Closet: The Mercy of Hell, the Surprise of Judgment, the Hope of Holy War

by Joshua Ryan Butler

To help us reclaim a healthy understanding of the lake of fire, we must first understand that it is an apocalyptic symbol. It is found in Revelation, a book filled with apocalyptic symbols: God is on a throne. Jesus is a lamb. Beasts are roaring, trumpets blowing, and scrolls unfolding. Revelation is written in the apocalyptic genre—a type of literature that relies heavily on symbolic imagery. There is a danger in interpreting these symbols too literally. For example: To say that God is on a throne does not mean he is literally a sedentary old man sitting on a big, gold chair in the sky contemplating his day. To say that Jesus is a lamb does not mean he is literally saying, “Baa!” and chewing grass while wandering around heaven on all fours. To say that a beast rises out of the ocean to terrorize the earth does not mean Godzilla has suddenly stepped out of the Atlantic to trample down our cities.