All You Want to Know About Hell: Three Christian Views of God's Final Solution to the Problem of Sin

It should be hard to write a book on hell that is a page turner, but Steve Gregg has done just that in his examination of the three Christian views of God’s final solution to the problem of sin. The Publisher’s title, of course, could be taken in a number of different ways. Is this book (emphasis on “All”) really an exhaustive encyclopedic volume on hell? No. Does it provide a thorough enough treatment of the subject for most interested readers (emphasis on “You”)? Yes. I actually interpreted the title in a different way. All I want to “know” (experience) of hell is some thoughtful Christian thinking on the subject… and that is exactly what I found in this book.There is something many may secretly want to know about hell. Given the terrible nature of the traditional doctrine, conservative Christians might wonder if there are other legitimate interpretations of the biblical material. Few like the traditional view, but not many have been exposed to a fair treatment of its alternatives. This is the right book at, in my opinion, the right time for Christians to give a fresh evaluation to the subject of hell.Part of writing the right book on this subject is starting with the right question. At the heart of Mr. Gregg’s book is the WHY question. Why hell? What is the purpose of this place? He helps the reader by reminding us of three basic facts about fire. Fire can cause pain. Fire can consume. Fire can refine. These facts about fire correspond to the three views of hell respectively. Does God expose the wicked to fire (either literally or metaphorically) as retributive punishment, to extinguish, or to purify?I won’t attempt to cover all the best this book has to offer. It contains a great collection of relevant quotes, information, and exegesis. Buy the book! But I will summarize my appraisal of how the author handles each of the three views.On the Traditional ViewThe view that hell is a place of endless torment seems to have been the majority position amongst Christians for quite some time. It is legitimate, in my opinion, to give the sharpest critique to the position in power. The power of tradition is too often underestimated amongst Evangelicals. Sometimes we need our traditions to be shaken in order to actually read the Bible well. There are some jabs thrown, which some will interpret as an unfair bias, but I believe the author has done us a great service in his handling of the traditional view. He accomplishes this by reminding us (or teaching us) of the fact that all three views existed in the first few centuries of the early church and by alerting us to the fact that the traditional doctrine is, indeed, based on merely possible interpretations of a small handful of passages.On the Conditionalist ViewThis view receives the shortest treatment of the three, but the author does provide some of the best defenses and objections to the doctrine sometimes referred to as annihilationism. Truth be told, some of the more important showcases of the strength of this view come in its offer of alternative interpretations of the passages used to defend the traditional view. That is not to say, however, that the conditionalist view doesn’t have a vast array of scriptures seemingly in its favor. Indeed, Gregg tends to paint this perspective as the one with the most (at least) surface-level support.On the Restorationist ViewWhat sets Mr. Gregg’s book apart from some others designed for Evangelical audiences is its inclusion of the restorationist view. Conditionalism has arguably (though quite tentatively) been accepted into the Evangelical debate, but restorationism is an even more discomforting dinner guest for many conservative Christians. This author, though, welcomes the evangelical universalists to the table for discussion. He wonders if a common objection to this view (it is too good to be true) should actually be turned on its head (is it too good NOT to be true?) given the revelation we have of God’s character. A key question in all of this is, of course, whether repentance is possible post-judgment. The lack of clarity on that subject in Scripture is highlighted.I can’t think of a better resource for a Christian to be introduced to the strengths and weaknesses of each perspective. Not only are the individual chapters well-written and full of insight, the author also provides helpful summary charts of the arguments at the end of the book.Since my review, up to this point, may sound a bit like a marketing campaign for this book (I do hope the book gets into many hands!), I will offer two mild critiques (which may reveal my own biases on this subject).First, it felt, at times, like the author depended on conditionalist arguments to deconstruct some of the traditionalist sounding verses, but then used the space created by that exegesis to create room for, primarily, the restorationist view. I argued earlier that it is appropriate to deal a bit more harshly with the view currently in power, perhaps it is also necessary to deal a bit more generously with the view newest to the evangelical table?Second, I would have personally enjoyed more discussion about the possibility of a hybrid model (we get just 1 paragraph/100 words of this sort of consideration at the conclusion of the book). I think this would have been beneficial because a mixed model would seemingly eliminate some of the rough edges around the first two views and make any dogmatic stance on the third view all the less compelling. The author certainly makes the restorationist view sound more appealing when he speculates that 1% or less of human beings throughout history will end up saved unless the restorationist view is true. Aside from questioning such a speculative number, I will simply point out that a merged model would resolve the emotional tension of that argument. That being said, one book cannot accomplish everything on a subject as important as hell.If you’re looking for a book that will tell you what to think on this subject, this isn’t the right book. This book will help you with HOW to think about hell and provide you with many of the most important considerations. I’ll let the author speak for himself concerning the overall purpose of the book: “The one fact, above all others, which I have desired to get across, is that our view of hell is inseparably joined to our view of God. I believe that many Christians have simply assumed that they already know what the Bible teaches about hell, and have formed their notions of the character of God to accommodate their theory. My suggestion is that this is doing things backwards.” Our thoughts on hell matter precisely because the purpose of hell says something about the character of our God. The author helps us to think longer and larger about this life and death subject.

Eternal torment, annihilationism, and universalism cannot all be true. Yet Gregg shows there is prima facie evidence in scripture for all three. Gregg charitably presents the scriptural and philosophical arguments for each view and then cross-examines each from the viewpoints of critics. Consistent with the quality you'd expect from Gregg if you've read his other books and listened to the Narrow Path, the result is one of the finest works on soteriology I've ever read.I'm a universalist. On page 285 Gregg cites Jesus's statement that it'd be better if Judas hadn't been born as a problematic statement for universalism. Gregg says a universalist may try to make sense of this solemn statement from our Lord by understanding Jesus as saying it would have been better for *Jesus* if Judas hadn't been born. But in my opinion there's a better explanation. As George Sidney Hurd points out in a blog post, Jesus says it'd be better if the subject wasn't *born*, *not* that the subject never *existed*. In other words, it would have been better for Judas if he (Judas) had been a miscarriage. Hurd points to Ecclesiastes 6:3.Evangelicals have held all three views throughout church history, as Gregg points out throughout the book. Hopefully differences in soteriology will cease to be grounds for denying fellowship to brothers and sisters in Christ as the church faces a Western world that is increasingly hostile towards us (regardless of which of the three views on hell we happen to hold). We who accept Jesus as Lord need unity now more than ever.

This is an excellent resource. I will use it extensively in my efforts to spread the Greater Hope in Universal Reconciliation. It is obvious which view Steve Gregg leans toward, but that isn't necessarily a negative thing. The view that presents the best case is not unlikely to draw the author or reader closer to it's case.Steve did an excellent job in presenting the best case for each view. He did not straw man any view he disagrees with, but honestly presented an accurate depiction of the view as though a condoner of the view was presenting it himself. He may have critiqued certain views as he was giving a case for them, which seems to be biased, but in reality we are commanded to test all things; especially the doctrine we hold as our own.If anyone is interested in learning more about Christian Universalism, feel free to view the following page: [...]If you would like to challenge your view or either of the other two, join us in the group on Facebook entitle: Evangelical Universalism: Invitation and DebateMy grading system on a scale of 5 stars is as follows:1 star is obviously the worst of all ratings. It basically says the book should never have been written, that the author is far from qualified or equipped in authorship, and the book must have been self-published because no publishing company would ever publish their work. This, of course, doesn't degrade self-publishing.2 stars is a bit better than 1 star. It says it is possible that a publisher would publish their work, but the publisher made a bad decision. It's not worth reading even once; an utter waste of time/3 star is a good rating. It says the publisher didn't make a bad decision in publishing their work. The book was worth the read, but is likely not going to be read again.4 stars is a very good rating. The publisher made a very wise decision in publishing their work. The book was very well written, intriguing, and is definitively worth reading again, or maybe twice. The majority of good books will get 4 stars.5 stars is obviously the best rating available. Very few books should be rated 5 stars. Unfortunately, many people give books 5 stars just because they enjoyed the read, even if they never pick it up again. Even if it is read one or two more times, it doesn't deserve 5 stars. 5 stars is reserved for the best of the best, the most elite, books that will be historic i.e. read by generations. Books should only receive 5 stars if they will be read many more times and used as a tool in future endeavors.Steve Gregg is one of the most humble individual I (don't) know. (although I intend to.) I'm sure he'd be hesitant in accepting a 5 star rating. While this book is far from the best book ever written, it is among the elite; regarding its genre. I rarely give books 5 stars and was hesitant in giving this one 5 stars, but ultimately decided it fits the criteria listed above.Well done, Steve. Well done.

This is an exceptionally well-written and informative book on the subject of hell. Steve Gregg has clearly spent many years mulling over the issues involved. Most evangelicals have traditionally seen it as a no-brainer. Hell is eternal conscious torment. End of discussion. A close look at all the biblical data would suggest that it is not quite as simple as that. Gregg analyses the Annihilationist and Universalist positions, as well as the traditional view. It's clear from the way he writes that he is closest to the Universalist position, and furthest from the traditional one.Let's be fair: God has made provision for the salvation of all mankind in Christ (John 1:29; Romans 5:18-19; 2 Corinthians 5:19; Colossians 1:20); all mankind will come and worship before the Lord (Psalm 22:27; Isaiah 45:23; Philippians 2:10-11; Revelation 5:13); and God's anger is but for a moment, not forever (Psalm 30:5, 103:9; Lamentations 3:31). Is it not inconceivable that the passages referring to everlasting punishment should be interpreted through the above grid, rather than these grand and glorious passages always making way for the bleak and depressing ones in terms of priority? And just what exactly do 'aionion' and 'olam' mean anyway?Gregg deals with the usual straw man arguments presented by those defending the traditional view. Readers may also be interested to know that all three views were held during the early centuries of the Christian faith. There's nothing novel, or soft and sentimental, about alternatives to eternal conscious torment. Augustine, holding to the traditional view, counted the Christian Universalists of his day as among the orthodox. Why can't evangelicals do likewise today concerning their fellow evangelicals who hold to a universal hope? Indeed, the reaction is usually a defensive and emotional one, with silly statements such as: "They don't believe in hell!"Exponents of all three views hold to the reality of hell. It's a question of how the biblical data is interpreted, and not just a few proof-texts. This book is the shape of things to come. It is written by an evangelical to evangelicals. The subject will not go away, and believers committed to Scripture will want to have a fresh look at what the Bible really has to say.

I've always held firmly to the eternal torment view of hell but over the past years, having returned to scripture to review my understanding of this and other subjects, I've been humbled by my obvious reliance on the views of others rather than the truth of scripture. I have been harsh in the past with those who even mentioned the possibility of repentance after death and always rejected conditionalism because other cults had this as a belief system. I have been considering my understanding of the final state and Steve's book has been a wonderful help in the journey. My mind isn't settled on the issue although I'm humbled enough to welcome any brother or sister in Christ who holds either of the three views as just that, my brother and sister. I highly recommend this book. Whatever camp you remain in after giving it a read, and considering the truth of scripture, if you end up like me, loving those that love Jesus irrespective of their view of hell the book will have done its job.

Well written and researched book.

This book is a must read for anyone who wants to get a comprehensive picture of the various dogmas about hell. I have already read quite a few books on this subject and can therefore testify that the sentence "You won't find another book that presents a more balanced presentation of the evidence for and against each of the views" is not an empty advertising phrase, but the truth. Highly recommended!

Das Buch bietet einen guten Überblick über die drei Sichtweisen der „Hölle“ im Christentum: die traditionelle Sicht, Annihilationismus und Universalismus. Es ist in seiner Darstellung umfassend und ausgewogen und somit sehr empfehlenswert für alle, die sich mit der Thematik beschäftigen möchten. Schade, dass es keine deutsche Übersetzung gibt.