Does Goedbericht deny judgment?

Originally posted on August 16, 2007 – by Andre Piet

From a visitor of goedbericht.nl I received the following email:

Dear Sir/Madam,

By coincidence I came across your website while looking up some biblical matters. To my shock I saw that you state on your site that all people are saved and are Christ’s possession, whether they themselves are aware of it or not. This is quite a powerful distortion of biblical truth, which teaches that all people are by nature outside of Christ and can only enter the Kingdom of God through rebirth (John 3). The Bible is so clear that only those will inherit heavenly salvation who repent of their evil works, and that those who persist in their ungodly (without God) lives will perish. There most certainly are two ways (Matthew 7, Enter through the narrow gate, for narrow is the way which is leading away into life… and few there are who are finding it, Matt. 22, many are called, few are chosen). This does not diminish the Gospel—on the contrary. But the Bible also teaches that those who disobey the Gospel will have it worse in the day of judgment (Matt. 11). Revelation 21 also indicates that there will be people outside, namely the dogs, fornicators, sorcerers, etc. Hebrews 10 also shows the dreadful consequences of rejecting the Gospel. In 1 Thess. 2 it also says what the fate is of those who are disobedient to the Gospel, …who shall be paying the penalty of eonian extermination…, etc. Horrifying, but biblical. The texts you cite on your website, which could point to a universal reconciliation, must be placed in the context of the entire Bible. It is truly clear that there is an election from eternity in which God saves some people (from pure grace) and leaves other people in their lost state (which is entirely deserved because of sin). In this way, sin and grace stand directly opposed to each other, and God’s virtues are glorified both in saving sinners and also in the righteous punishment of those who do not truly turn to God and hold on to their sins. The Lord Jesus also clearly shows in the Gospel that those who cling to their sins will be lost, and those who, by grace, may put their sins to death, will be saved. So not all people will be saved—a terrible truth on the one hand, but also a righteous one. The Bible teaches it this way, but it also shows that it is very much possible to be saved because God is merciful and very gracious.

I look forward to your response.

Let me be clear. Goedbericht.nl fully acknowledges the biblical facts presented in this letter. Judgment, fire, death, and lostness (for those who do not acknowledge God) are a reality about which Scripture speaks in unmistakable terms. Nowhere on the Goedbericht site is this denied or even slightly downplayed. On the contrary. What is emphatically denied, however, is that judgment, death, and lostness would have the final word. In Scripture, judgment always has a “until” (see e.g., Isaiah 32:14,15). Death will ultimately be swallowed up in victory, and what is lost is always found again in the Bible.

What blinds the writer of the letter is the word ‘eternity’ and ‘eternal’. After all, if there is eternal judgment, then it must be judgment without end—so reasons the writer. That is the bottleneck of the great misunderstanding. The point is that Scripture, from the original text, knows of no such thing as an ‘endless eternity’. The biblical root word aion (or olam) absolutely does not mean ‘eternity’ but ‘eon’ (age). Without exception. And the adjective ‘aionios’ does not mean ‘eternal’ but ‘eonian’ (age-lasting). For more information on this, see the article “aion is not the same as eternity.” This is not some eccentric, sectarian interpretation of goedbericht.nl, but can be verified in all major reference works.

The Winkler Prins Encyclopedia (1950, vol. 7, p. 797) says:
“Aion, aeon does not mean endless duration but epoch.”

The Biblical Encyclopedia (p. 239) on ‘eternity’:
“The Hebrew ‘olam,’ which in the OT is translated as ‘eternity,’ is related to a verb that means ‘to hide.’ It therefore indicates something that in the past or in the future is (still) hidden… It thus has the meaning of a very long time.”

In the Korte Verklaring (on Ecclesiastes 1:4), Prof. Aalders writes:
“Moreover, one must remember that the word ‘eternal’ in Hebrew generally does not have the meaning we are accustomed to assign to it. It only expresses a long time, which in a particular case can approach our idea of eternity.”

Realize what the consequence of this is!
If it is commonly known among scholars of Hebrew and Greek that “eternal” does not mean “endless,” then how is it possible that this is not proclaimed from the pulpit? Why does one nevertheless hold on to the idea that at the future return of Jesus Christ, the “never-ending eternity” begins (“eternal bliss or eternal woe,” in the jargon)? While Scripture explicitly speaks of “the coming eons or ages” which will begin. Eons in which God, through judgment and justice, will carry out His plans and accomplish His purpose with every creature. Is He not the GOD who NEVER forsakes the works of His hands?!

The question is not whether we choose the many texts that point to judgment and justice OR choose the many texts that point to Universal Reconciliation — we should believe all that “has been written” (cf. Luke 24:25). There is a time of judgment, there is a time of justice. Absolutely. But that is always educational and prompted by God’s love.
“…For a moment is His anger; a lifetime is His benevolence…” (Psalm 30:6).

See also: 16 Biblical facts in a row.

Delen: