TheImmortalityoftheSoul 10202320

B Y THE S A ME A U THO R .
G o m m e n ta r tes on S t p a ul s E p i st les
’
. .
I R OMANS N i th Edi tio 7 8 6d . n n . . .
2 C O R I N T HI A N S S i th Edi tio n r o s 6d . x . . .
G A L A T I A N S Ffl h E d i
'
3 t i t on 5 3 . . .
4 E P H E S I A N S ,
PH I L I PP I A N S ,
C O L O S SI A N S . Thi r d Th o sa n d
u .
7 s . 6d .
gar B t h W sl ya s h av w a t h l gia
I n Dr . A ee t e e e n e no eo o n
wh ta k s h i p l a
o e o g h b of l i i g p sit rs
s ce a m n t e e st v n ex o o .
I ist all a h i v
no sm t h av rri d i o its in h di i n
c e em en to e ca e nt n t e t o
a bo k s o w ll w rk d a t h
o on as th Epistl e h o e em e e e to t e
Ro s T h is s ss is h r war d of s l i d d s b r w r k
m an . ucc e t e e o an o e o .
T h writ r h as h gr at
e e r t f k owi ng h is w i d d of
t e e me i o n o n m n an
ex pr ssi g h is
e ni g w it h l id ity ; d h is l t rary sk i ll
m ean n uc an i e
en abl s h i m gi v h is r ad rs st of th r s l ts attai d by
e to e e e mo e e u ne
sc h l arsh i p w it h t d istra ti g t h
o l r d b y a p rad of
ou c n e un e a ne a e
Gr k ee B t h is. r tha a m m tat r ; h a pp l i s h

u e m o e n co en o e e t e
l s s f h E pistl w it h i pr s i v ar st ss d f i li g
es o n o t e e m e s e e ne ne an un a n
g d
oo tast —T H S U D YR W
e . E AT R A EV I E .
T h is is f h gr at st ta t m m tari s R m n s
o ne o t e e e ex n co en e on o a
an d it is r f it is a l s a p d i of t h l gy as t
m o e, or o co m en um eo o , m us
n ee ds b h as wit h a w r ke t e c th E p ist l t h at d a ls at
e o on e e e
a ll ad q at l y with its s b! t A g i d agai as w t r

e u e u ec . a n an n e u n
o v r h pag s w
e t e d l igh t d W t h s e h appy r d ri g
e a re e e i om e en e n ,
h sk i l f l
t e rav ll i g of s
u k tty ph r s h k
un e n o me no a e , t e ee n c ut
of t h gh t i o h h art f s
ou t gh t
nt t — TH e e o om e ou se n e n c e .
!
E
CH S N W
R I TI A O R LD .
LO N D O N : HO D D ER A ND ST O UG HTO N .
“
Wn o At o m : H H
AT I MMO R TA LI TY
S E C O N D ED I TI O N
P R E FA C E
T HE fo llo win g pages are a reprint o f articles

pu bl ished in T HE Ex p o s i r o n during the l ast six
'
months .
The y are a protest a gainst a doctrine which ,
during lo n g centuries has b een a l most universa ll y

,
accepted as divine truth taught in the Bi bl e ,
b ut whic h seems to me altogether a l ien to it in

b oth phrase and thought and derived on ly from
,
Gree k Philosophy . Until recent times this ,
a l ien doctrine has b een comparativel y harmless .
But as I have here shown it is now producing

,
'
most serious results M y protest against it is

.
an appea l which no Protestant can disa ll ow

, ,
from the traditiona l teaching o f the Church to

the supreme authorit y o f Ho ly Scripture O f the .
j ustice o f this appea l my readers must judge

,
.
It w i ll o f course b e said o f this as o f some

,
PR E F A C E
ot h er doctrines that if not explicitly taught in

, ,
the Bible i t is implied and assu med there But

, .
they who ask us to accept an i mportant d octrine

on this groun d must prove clearly that it is so
i mplied an d assume d Fo r w e cannot accept
.
their mere dictum as evidence They who clai m .
for their teac h ing the authority o f Go d must

prove t h at it comes from Him Such proof in .
t h is case I have never seen

,
.
C
R I HMO N D ,
A ug ust 2 5 111 , 1 90 1
CON T E NT S
C HA TE R P I
I MM O R TA L I TY B EFO R E C HR I ST
C HA T E R P II
THE TEAC H I NG OF C H R I ST
C HA T E RP III
I MMOR TA L I TY I N T HE EA R LY C HU R C H
C HA T E R P IV
I MMO R TA L I TY IN M O D ER N T H EO L OG Y
C HA P T E R V
PR A C I I CA L
‘
C O N S E!U E N CES . T HE D OO M o r T HE L OST 88

I MMO R T A L I T Y B EFO R E C HR I ST
DU R I N G l ong a ges unti l some thirty y ears ago
, ,
the doctrine of The I m m or t a li ty of t he Soul was

accepted a l most without contradiction as funda
menta l to Christianity and even to re l igion In .
the fo ll owing pages I sha ll discuss the history

of the phrase and the doctrine the evidence on ,
which the doctrine rests and its worth as a

,
factor of Christian thought .
We sha ll find the phrase and doctrine among

the Gree k s ; other similar y et di fferent doctrines ,
b ut not the phr ase among the Egyptians ; and

,
the phrase and doctrine in some Jewish writers

short ly b efore or soon after t he appearance of
Christ .
T HE G R EEK S .
That the so ul of man is i m m o r t a l or de a t hle ss,

I
2 I M MO R TALITY B EF O R E C HR I ST
or in other wor d s that every soul will exist in
h appiness o r misery for en dl ess ages is a con ,
s ic u o u s feature O f the teachi n g O f P L A T O But

p .
t h at this d octrine was by n o means universal

among the Greeks O f h is day we learn from ,
p 7 . 0 o f h is P lz x do where
,
we read I n W,
h at
“
relates to t h e soul m e n are apt to be incre d ulous ;

they fear that w hen she has left the body h er
place may be nowhere and that o n the very ,
d ay o f deat h she may be d estroye d and perish ,
S a f Ka i d o k hé r a c
'
( q pn
ta S fi e tr
‘
Te w .
n ) imme d iately
o n h er release from t h e body issuing fort h like
smoke o r air and i n her flight vanishing away

into not h ingn ess .
I n t h e pages following Socrates is represented

,
as arguing against this popular belief He .
endeavours first t o prove th at t h e soul exis ted

before birt h an d t h en that it will exist after
,
d eat h O n p 7 0 h e goes o n t o say

. . Whether
,
“
the souls O f men after deat h are o r are not in

H a d es ,
may be argued in this manner — Th e
ancient d octrine o f w h ic h I have been speaking
a ffi rms t h at they go from h ence into the ot h er
worl d an d return h it h er and are born f rom
, ,
THE G R EEK S 3
the dead Now if this b e true and the living

.
,
come from the dead then our sou l s must exist

,
there : for if n o t ho w cou l d they b e born

, ,
again !
Lower down at the foot O f p 7 2 an

,
.
,
interlocutor sa y s Y our favourite doctrine that

,
“
,
k nowl edge is simp l y reco l lection if true also , ,
necessarily implies a previous time in which we

have l earnt that which we now recol l ect But .
this woul d b e impossi bl e unless o u r sou l had

b een in some p l ace b efore existing in the human
form Here then is another proof that t he soul
.
is an i m m o r t a l something dd iv a r o v n éo uce v o
’ ’
i
‘
i
v
p x)
I v r c t/ a t .
O n p 7 7 the argument and dialogue continue

.
, .
I thin k said Si m m ia s that K e b e s is satisfied

, , .
Although he is the most incredulous o f mortals ,
y et I thin k that he is persuaded of this that ,
our sou l existed b efore we were b orn Bu t that .
after death the soul wi l l continue to exist is not

y et proved even to m y own satisfaction I .
cannot get rid O f the fee l ing O f the many to

which K e be s was referring that when t h e man ,
dies the soul may b e scattered and that t h is ,

4 I MMO R TALITY B EF O R E C HR I ST
may be t h e end O f her Fo r a d mitting t h at
.
,
she may h ave been born elsewhere an d framed

o u t O f other elements an d w as in existence before
entering t h e human bo d y why after h aving

,
entered in an d gone o u t again may s h e not

herself be d estroye d and come t o an end ! Very
true Sim m ia s sai d K e be s ; t h at o u r soul e x iste d
, ,
before w e were born w as t h e first h alf o f t h e

,
argument an d this a ppears to have been prove d

,
.
T h at the sou l will e x ist after d eat h as well as

before birt h is t h e ot h er h alf o f w h i ch t h e proof
,
is still w anting an d h as t o be sup plie d .
O n t h e pages following Socrates argues t h at

,
the soul is n o t compoun d e d an d therefore cannot

,
be d issolve d ; t h at it is unseen an d t h at wh ile,
th e seen changes t h e unseen remains ; an d t h at

at d eat h t h e soul goes t o the pure an d t h e
always-existing an d t h e i mmort a l an d the u h
c h angeable t o wh i ch it is akin
, .
O n p 81 h e says t h at the soul w h ic h h as

.
,
l earnt t h e lessons o f p h ilosop h y goes at d eath

t o t h e d ivine an d i m morta l an d rational an d ,
dw ells in peace but that t h e sensual are d ragge d

d o w n into gloom unt il t h ey a r e i m pri son e d in
T HE G R EE K S 5
another body appropriate to their former lives .
“
M e n who have fo ll owed after gluttony and
wantonness and drun k enness and have no thought
,
of avoiding them wi l l pro b a b ly pass into asses

,
and beasts O f that sort And those who have

.
chosen the portion O f inj ustice and tyranny and

vio l ence will pass into wo l ves or into haw k s or
k ites
. Whither e l se can we suppose them to
go ! And Socrates goes o n to argue at length
that the true phi l osopher has no need to fear
that at death his sou l wi l l cease to b e .
Having thus endeavoured to prove that the

soul wi ll surv ive death the dia l ogue goes o n to
,
adduce evidence that b y its own nat ure the soul

O f man can never cease t o b e .
O n p 88 a serious question is raised

.
, .
“
Suppose we grant even more than you sa y ,
and besides ac k now l edging that the sou l existed

b efore b irth admit a l so that after death the sou l s
of some exist and will continue to exist and
'
wi l l b e born and die again and again and that

,
there is a natura l strength in the sou l which

wi ll ho l d out and b e b orn man y times never ,
t he le ss we may sti l l b e inc l ined to thin k that

6 I MMO R TA LITY B EF O R E C HR I ST
sh e w ill weary in t h e labours O f successive birt h s

an d may at last succumb i n o n e O f h er d eaths
an d utterly peris h an d t h is deat h an d dissolution
O f the body whic h brings d estruction t o the
soul may be unknown t o any o f us for n o ,
o n e O f us can h ave ha d any experience O f it

an d if so I main tain t h at he who is confi d ent
, ,
about deat h has but a foo l is h confi d ence unless ,
h e is able t o prove that t h e soul is altogether

fi dv a r év i
‘
i m m or t a l a mt i mpe r i sha ole :
p x)
I v dv re Ka .
dva i k e fip o v But if h e cannot prove it h e who

’
.
, ,
is about to die must nee d s fear about h is soul

lest whe n it is unyoke d from t h e body it may
”
altoget h er peris h .
Against this serious O bj ection Plato s peaking , ,
t h rough t h e li ps O f Socrates argues at great ,
lengt h .His arguments move o u r pity Fo r .
t h ey are t h e painful e ff orts o f a goo d man strain

i n g h is eyes in t h e twilight an d uncertainty O f
,
Greek ph ilosop h y t o catc h a glimpse O f a ray

,
o f lig h t from beyond t h e grave : an d f o r us ,
w alking i n t h e lig h t O f t h e promise o f life i n

Christ Jesus t h ey h ave n o practical value I n
,
.
these arguments w e frequently fin d t h e phrase

T HE G R E EK S 7
t lz e so ul it occurs four times o n

i s i m m or t a l :
p 9 5 and not l ess than twent y times in the who l e

.
,
dia l ogue M oreover its meaning is indisputab le

.
,
.
P l ato uses the phrase to assert that every human

so ul b y it s very nature will continue in conscious
, ,
existence for end l ess ages .
This teaching is put to no bl e moral use O n .
p 1 0 7 we read
. If the soul is rea lly immorta l
“
,
what care shou l d b e ta k en O f her not only for ,
this time on ly which we ca l l l iving b ut for a ll ,
time And the danger wou l d see m to b e awful

.
if one sha ll neg l ect her For if death were an .
end O f all a fortunate thing it wou l d b e t o the

,
wic k ed when dead to be quit of the body and ,
at the same time of their wic k edness along with

the sou l But now since the soul is manifest l y
.
,
immorta l there is no other escape or salvation

,
from wic k edness except for it to b ecome as good

and as Wise as possibl e For the soul takes .
nothing e l se with her into Hades except educa

tion and nurture which are said very much to
,
help or injure the dead man straightway at the

”
beginning O f his j ourne y thither .
At the conc lusion o f the w or k w e read that

8 I MM O R TALITY B E F O R E C HR I ST
t h o se guilty O f great cri mes w ill be cast into
Tartarus w h ence t h ey will never go o u t ; that
,
t h ose less guilty w ill be cast into Tartarus for a

ti me an d t h en if th eir victims take pity o n them
,
t h ey w ill be allowed to escape ; and t h at t h e

rig h teous w ill go t o the mansions of th e blessed .
T h e same teac h ing clothe d in th e same ,
’
l anguage is foun d i n Plato s R ep ubli c
,
The .
writer argues in bk x pp 6 0 8— 6 1 0 that vice

,
. . .
,
cannot d estroy the soul and that therefore ,
nothing else can D o the inj ustice and other

.
“
ba d ness O f t h e soul waste and consume the soul !
do th ey by in h ering in h er an d clinging t o her

at last b ring h er t o d eath an d separate her from
the bo d y ! Certain l y n o t An d it is unreason .
able to suppose that anyt h ing can perish from

wi th out t h roug h external operation o f evi l wh ich ,
coul d n o t be destroye d from w it h in by internal

corruption Lower d o w n h e says :
. But t h e “
soul wh ich cannot be d estroye d by evil in h erent

,
or external must it not b e something always

,
existing an d i t always e x isting immortal !

,
Certainl y An d i f so the souls m u st always be

.
'
t h e same : for t h ey w ill not become fewer if ,

T HE G R EEK S 9
not one perishes ; nor more Here again we .
find frequent ly the same phrase t /z e so ul i s ,
i m m or t a l The b oo k conc l udes with a tremendous

.
Vision of judgment in which all men good and b ad

,
receive beyond death exact ret ri b ution according

to their wor k s .
Simi l arly in P l ato s M e n o p 81

’
The sou l
,
.
“
O f man is immortal and at one time has an end

,
which the y call d y ing and then again is b orn

, ,
but never perishes : da dk k v o da c 8 06867 07 6 ’
We must therefore live our l ife in the most ho ly

The sou l then as b eing immortal ,
”
and having b een b orn again man y times etc , .
We have the same phraseo l ogy and teaching in

the Plz e dr us where on pp 24 5 —6 we read
t
, , .
, ,
“
Ever y sou l is immorta l For that which is
.
a l wa y s in motion is immorta l But if that .
which is moved by itse l f is dec l ared to b e im

morta l he who sa y s that this is the essence and
,
description of the soul wi ll not b e put to con

fusion Fo r the b ody as b eing moved from
.
,
without is sou ll ess : b ut that which is moved

,
from within has a sou l this b eing the nature of

,
the sou l B ut if this b e so that which is se l f

.
,
Io I MMO R T A L IT Y . B E FO R E C HR I ST
move d being no ot h er t h an soul necessarily t h e ,
soul must be unbegotten and i mmortal .

!
The immortality O f t h e soul is d iscusse d at

great length in bk i o f C i c ER O s Tu sr ula n. .
’
D i sput a t i o n s He a d mits the wi d e diversity o f

.
opinion o n t h e subj ect SO in art 9 : . Some .

“
imagine d eath to b e the d eparture o f the soul

from the body : oth ers th ink t h at the soul and
bo d y perish together an d that the soul is e x t in
,
uishe d in t h e bo d y O f those who think that

g .
the soul d eparts some think it to be immediately

,
d issipate d others that it continues fo r a ti me

, ,
”
ot h ers t h at it continues al w ays We frequently .
meet t h e ph rase i m m or t a l i ta s a n i m or um o r im “
”
mortality O f souls o r other equivalent phrases
, ,
arts I I I 4 1 6 I 7 In art 16 we rea d

e.
g . .
, , , . .
,
t h at Phe r e cyde s a Syrian first sai d t h at the

“
, ,
”
souls o f men are etern al ; t h at h is disciple ,
Pythagoras h eld t h e same opinion ; an d t h at

,
Plato w as sai d to have come t o Ita l y an d there

l earnt t h e Pythagorean teac h ing about the eternity
O f souls I n art 3 2 Cicero speaks of the Stoics
. .
,
as saying t h at h uman souls sur v ive death b ut ,
n o t fo r ever He accepts Plato s metaphysical

.
’
THE E G Y PTIA N S n
arguments for the end l ess permanence o f the

human sou l ; and indeed quotes at fu l l length
the passage from the Plue dr us given a b ove in
part But of Plato s conspicuous and noble
.
’
teaching of moral retri b ution beyon d death he ,
has b ut slight ho l d He rather looks upon .
b odi l y l ife as an evi l and death as re l ease from

,
it ; thus contradicting Plato O f the moral issues .
involved he seems to have thought l itt l e

, .
That Pythagoras taught that the soul is i m

m or t a l ,is al so asserted b y D iogenes La e r t iu s
( bk. viii I.
9) and by other ancient writers The .
same phrase th at man s soul is immortal is used

,
’
b y Herodotus bk ii 1 2 3 This proves that t he

, . . .
phrase and thought were ear l ier than Plato .
T O what ext e nt the doctrine O f the immorta l ity

O f the soul w as accepted b y the masses in ancient
Greece we do not k now But in l ater day s the

, .
popularity O f Plato m ade it wide l y k nown as ,
matter for disc ussion among educated Gree k s ,
and R omans .
T H E EG Y P T I A N S .
We turn now to teaching a b out the soul muc h

12 I MMO R TALITY B EF O R E C HR I ST
earlier t h an t h e earliest Greek p h ilosop h ers wh ose
o pinions h ave come d o w n to us .
Throug h out T H E B O O K O F T HE D EA D ,
recently publishe d i n Englis h by D r Wallis .
Budge curator O f Egyptian antiquities in the

,
British M useum immortal and en d less life beyon d

,
t h e grave w ith all good things very much like

, ,
t h e goo d things o f earth is promise d t o the,
rig h teous o n condition o f O bservance o f certain

religious d uties SO c h xx xi rubric : If t h is
. . .
,
“
c h apter be known by the d eceased h e s h all come ,
fort h by d ay h e shall rise up an d w alk upon t h e

,
earth among t h e living an d he s h all never fail

,
”
an d come t o an en d ne ver never never , ,
But ,
.
t h is immortality O f blessing is never supporte d ,
as are t h e re w ar d s fo r wh ic h Plato looke d b y any ,
teac h ing about the in d estructible nature o f t he

soul Its permanence is al w ays represente d as a
.
re war d O f rig h teousness an d rel igion About th e .
fate O f t h e wic ke d little is sai d But apparently

, .
t h eir d oom w as anni h ilation .
In D r Bu d ge s Introd uction t o The B oo/e of

.
’
t he D e a d p cvii w e read : The evil heart o r “

, .
, ,
t h e h eart whic h h a d faile d t o balance t h e feather

T HE E GY PTIA N S I 3
sym bolic O f the law was given to the monster

,
A m m it to devour ; thus punishment consisted of

instant annihi l ation unless we imagine that the
,
destr uction o f the heart w as extended over an

”
indefinite period . The j udgment scene here
referred t o is reproduced from the famous papyrus
,
o f Ani ,
now in the British M useum and also
pub l ished b y D r Budge as frontispiece to his
.
,
edition O f The B oo le of t he D e a d The man .
b eing j udged stands before sca l es in which his

heart is being weighed The god Thoth records
.
the resul t Behind him stands a monster read y

.
to devour him if in the b a l ance his heart is

found wanting .
In an admirable l ittle book W ie de m a n n s ,

’
Egypt i a n D oct r i n e of I m m or t a l i ty (t r anslation b y

Grevel ) we read ;
, Nowhere are we clearly
“
informed as to the fate of the condemned who

could not stand before the god O siris We are .
told that the enemies O f the gods perish that ,
they are destroyed or overthrown ; b ut such

vague expressions a fi o r d no certainty as to how
’
far the Egyptians in genera l be l ieved in the ,
e x istence of a hell a s a place O f punishment or

I4 I MM O R TALITY B EF O R E C HR I ST
puri fication f o r the wicke d ; o r w h eth er as seems,
more probable t h ey h el d some general belief

,
that w h en j udgment was pronounce d against a

man h is h eart an d oth er immortal parts were
not restore d t o h im Fo r suc h a man n o r e
.
e di fi ca t io n an d n o resurrection were possible .
T h e immortal elements were divine an d by ,
nature pure an d imperishable ; but t h ey coul d

be preserve d from entering the O siris from r e ,
entering t h e h ull o f th e man who had prove d

h imself un w orth y o f them T h e soul in d ee d
.
, ,
as suc h d i d n o t die although personal anni hila

,
tion was t h e lo t o f t h e evil d oer in wh om it h ad

d welt But it w as t h e h o pe o f continue d indi
.
v i du a lit
y wh ic h t h eir d octri ne h el d o ut t o t h e
Egy ptians ; t h is it wa s w h ich t h ey promise d t o
t h e good an d in all probability denied t o t h e
wicke d After j ud gment the righteous entered
.
into blesse d ness unc h ange d in appe arance as in

,
nature ; t h e only d i ff erence being t h at w h ile ,
t h e e x istence whic h they ha d le d u pon eart h

h a d been limite d in its d uration t h e life o f the
,
”
w orld t o come was eternal .
T h e above is confirme d by Canon Rawlinson

T HE E GY PTIA N S
in Hi st ory of A n ci e n t Egypt vo l i p 3 1 8
his ,
. . .
“
Ul timate ly after many trials if purit y was
, ,
not attained the wic k ed sou l underwent a fina l

,
sentence at the hands of O siris Judge of the ,
D ead and being pronounced incurable su fi e r e d

’
, , ,
!
comp lete and a b solute annihi l ation .
Herodotus reports (bk ii 1 2 3 ) that the

. .
Eg y ptians were the first who taught that man s ’
sou l is immortal ; using the phrase soon after

wards so common in the writings of Pl ato .
Indisputa b l y the Eg y ptians anticipated Plato b y

teaching that b e y ond death retri b ution awaits
a l l men good and b ad But as we have just
.
,
seen they did not b ase this doctrine as did

, ,
Plato and proba bly P ythagoras on the end l ess ,
and essentia l permanence of a ll human souls .
We need not wonder that Herodotus a Gree k ,
stranger visiting Eg y pt did not find out this

,
important di ff erence b etween teaching familiar to

him and the b e l ief of the Eg y ptians
. .
Herodotus also sa y s that some Gree k s b orrowed

from the Eg y ptians the doctrine of the trans
migration O f human sou l s into the b odies o f
various k inds of animals But P l ato taug h t as
.
,
16 I M M O R TALITY B E F O R E C HR I ST
do t h e Hindus th at this transmigration is strict l y
,
retributive T h e Egyptians looked at t h e power

.
t o assume various forms as a re w ar d given to t h e
righteous .
In all ancient literature so far as I know , ,
the p h rase e v e ry soul i m m o r t a l o r phraseo l ogy ,
equivalent is foun d on l y i n the school o f Greek

,
philosop h y o f which Plato is the most conspicuous

representative D octrine equivalent t o that con
.
v e e d by these w ords O f Plato un d erl ies t h e

y
religion o f t h e Hindus ; but is not so far as ,
I kno w foun d in any school O f thoug h t whic h

,
in fluenced the Je w s o f o u r Lor d s d ay o r t h e ’
early Christians Common t o Plato an d t h e

.
Hin d us w h atever be the li nk o r connection is

, ,
also t h e d octrine o f retributive transmigration ;

w h ich also is I believe unkno w n elsew here in
, ,
ancient literature .
T HE J Ew s .
That a l l h uman souls are immortal o r that t h ey ,
w ill think an d feel fo r ever is n o t taug h t o r ,
im plie d in the O l d Testament That man w as .
ma d e in t h e i mage o f G o d by a d efinite act an d

, ,
T HE J E WS I 7
in fulfi l ment o f a de l i berate purpose O f God is ,
conspicuous l y taught i n Gen i 2 6 2 7 ii 7 and . .

, , .
reveals the infinite superiority o f man to the

lower animals But this by no means implies
.
th at he wi l l necessari l y continue to exist for

endless ages after the moral purpose of his
existence has fina l ly fai l ed and when existence
has b ecome an unmixed curse Certainly these .
passages are a very unsafe basis for dogmatic

assertion that all human souls good and b ad wi ll
exist for ever .
I n Ecc l xii 7 we read that at death the spirit

. .
wi l l return to God who gave it But this return .
to God imp l ies on l y (se e 14

) the j udgment
o f the dead not necessarily their end l ess per
,
m a n e n ce
. I n D a n xii 2 we read that many
. .
“
who s l eep in the dust o f the earth wi ll awa k e ,
some to eternal l ife and some to shame to eternal ,
”
a b horrenc e This l ast word does n o t necessaril y
.
imp l y etern a l consciousness b ut on l y the lasting

,
e ff ect on others of the doom of the lost So .
Isa l xvi 24
. . the y shal l b e an a b horrence to
“
all fl esh
. That retri b ution b e y ond the grave ,
so important an element in Christian teaching ,
2
18 I M MO R TALITY B EF O R E C HR I ST
oc cu pies so small an d indefinite a place in t h e

O l d Testament in contrast t o its large place in
,
the religion of ancient Egypt an d in the teac h ing

o f Plato ,
i s o n e o f the most perplexing facts in
O l d T e stament t h eology .
After the close o f t h e canon retribution beyond ,
the grave became more definite in the thought o f

Israel SO Ju d it h xvi 1 7
. The Lord Almig h ty
.
will take vengeance o n them in t h e day o f

j u d gment t o put fire an d w orms in their fl e s h ;
,
an d they shall w ail feeling t h e pain for ever

, , .
I n Wisdom ii 2 3 we read t h at God create d

.
“
”
man fo r i ncorruptibility B ut this d oes n o t
.
imply t h at i n all cases t h is purpose w ill be

accomplishe d Fo r it is equally true that God
.
create d man in or d er t h at h e might love an d serve

his Creator Are we then t o infer t h at in all
.
men t h is purpose also will be attained ! T h e

w riter continues i n c h iii 1 4 : T h e souls o f
. .
- “
righteous men are i n Go d s hands ; an d torment ’
s h all n o t touc h them T h ey seemed in the eyes

.
,
o f foolis h ones t o be d ead

,
a n d their d eparture
was rec k oned an inj ury an d their j ourney from

,
us a calamity B ut t h ey are i n pe ace Fo r even

. .
,
T HE J E W S 19
it in the sight of men they b e punished their ,
hope is full of immorta l it y .
In the b oo k of E N O C H we read of a resurrection

O f the dead of destruction a n d torment by fire
,
for the wic k ed and O f eternal l ife and en dl ess

,
day s for the righteous So ch li 1 : Sheol

. . .
“
wi ll give b ac k that which it has received and ,
”
he ll wi ll give b ac k that which it owes A lso .
ch liii 2
. . Sinners wi l l perish b efore the face
“
of the Lord of Spirits and will b e removed from

o f! the face of His earth continua ll y for ever ,
”
and ever And ch l iv 6
. And cast them
. .
° “
on that day into a b urning furnace that the ,
”
Lord O f Spirits may ta k e vengeance upon them .
A l so ch l viii 3
. And the righteous wil l b e in
.
“
the l ight of the sun and the e l ect in the l ight

,
of eterna l l ife : there wi l l b e no end to the days

of their l ife and the da y s of the ho ly wi ll b e
,
W ithout number And the y wi ll see k the l ight

.
and find righteousness with the Lord of Spirits

and there wi ll b e peace to the righteous But .
we have no definite teachi n g a b out the end less

permanence of the sou l .
A few references to the immorta l ity of the

20 I M M O R TALITY B EF O R E C HR I ST
soul are foun d in the voluminous theological

writi n gs o f P H I L O an Egyptian Je w an O l d er
, ,
contemporary o f Christ In his work o n The .
Cr e a t i o n of t he Wo r la
’
‘
4 6 i n a comment
, on ,
Genesis 11 7 we rea d
.
,
O ne may rightly sa y “
that man is o n the boundary -line O f a mortal an d

an immortal nature partaking so far as is needful
,
o f each an d t h at h e h as been born both mortal

an d i mmorta l mortal as to t h e body but as
, ,
t o the min d immortal Similarly O n D r ea m s

.
, ,
bk i 2 2 wh ere men good and bad are spoken

. .
,
o f as incorruptible an d immortal But the

“
.
w ritings O f Philo are permeate d by the philosop h y

o f Plato ; an d cannot therefore be appeale d t o
as embodying independent Jewish t h oug h t .
J OS E P H U S reports i n his Wa r s bk ii 8 1 1
, , . . .
,
that the Pharisees believe d that the bodies are “
indeed corruptib l e and thei r substance not a b iding

but that the souls continue immortal always ;
that t h e souls o f t h e righteous pass the ocean
to a place o f rest and b l essi n g but that the ,
wic k ed go t o a subterranean abo d e full O f “
ceaseless punishments This teac h i n g Josephus

.
’9
compares w ith that o f the Greeks He attributes .

T HE J E W S 21
similar teaching to the Essenes Also in his .
J n t i oui t i e s bk xviii 1 3 5 he sa y s that th e

, . . .
, ,
Pharisees believed that souls have immorta l “
strength ; and that the Essenes ma k e souls “
to b e immortal . But these statements o f

Josephus cannot b e accepted as decisive evidence
that the Jews of his day accepted the natural
immortalit y of the sou l For l i k e Phi l o he
.
, ,
wrote in Gree k was fami l iar with Gree k philo

,
soph y and was eager to ca ll attention to elements

,
common to this last and the Jewish Scriptures .
O n the other hand this doctrine O f P l ato would

,
b e w elcome to the Pharisees as in l ater days it ,
was we l comed by Christian teachers b ecause of the ,
support it rendered to the a ll important doctrine of

-
retri b ution b e yond the grave which was common ,
to the Pharisees and to P l ato M oreover we .

,
must remem b er that for three centuries b efore

Christ the Jewish nation had been either under
Gree k ru l e or at least in c l ose contact with
Gree k thought We may therefore not unfairly
.
attribute to P l ato and his schoo l of whose ,
in fl uence in the age preceding that o f Christ

Cicero a rds a b un dant proof the doctrine of ,
22 I M M O R TALITY B E F O R E C HR I ST
the natural immortality o f the soul so far as it

influenced Jew ish t h ought I n other wor d s we
.
,
have so far found n o trace O f t h is doctrine

outsi d e the school O f th ought of which Plato is
the best known representative And we are unable
-
.
t o determine how far this school o f t h ought w as
prevalent amo n g the Jews o f t h e A postolic age.

C HAPTER I I
T HE T EA C HI N G OF C HR I ST
IN ch i we found a b undant proof that Plato

. .
taught retri b ution beyond the grave bl essing for ,
the righteous and terri bl e su ff ering for t h e

wic k ed ; and that he supported this teaching b y
endeavouring to prove that the soul O f man is in
its very n ature i n destructi bl e that it will never
,
finall y cease to thin k and feel We found a lso

.
decisive evidence that l ong b efore the time of

,
Plato the ancient Egy ptians lived in h ope o f

,
endless life b e y ond the grave for the righteous

a n d re l igious and expected apparent l y extinction
,
for the wic k ed We found proof that during

.
the three centuries b efore Christ the godl y Jews

”
loo k ed forward to eterna l life and warned ,
the wic k ed of punishment awaiting them b e y ond

deat h
. A Jewish contemporary of Christ a ,
23
24 I M M O R TALITY
stu d ent o f Plato accepts in a fe w places t h e

,
teac h ing o f t h is last about the immortality o f

t h e so ul : an d Joseph us a later contem porar y
,
o f Paul ,
says t h at the same teac h ing was h el d by
the Pharisees an d Essenes o f h is o w n d ay .
R e t r i b ution beyond the grave is implie d cle a rly

in t h e teac h ing o f John the Baptist recor d e d in
M t iii
. . 1 0 —12 Fo r the rewar d an d p unis h ment
.
t h ere d escribe d ca n h ave n o place in t h e present

life . T h e same is im plie d i n t h e teac h ing o f
C h rist in t h e Sermon o n t h e M ount : M t vii . .
— E
1
9 27 . arlier i n t h e same d iscourse ( on 1 3 .
,
w e rea d o f t wo pat h s o n e leading t o dest r uct i on

,
an d the other t o l if e .
I n a parable recorde d i n M t x iii 2 4 3 0

.
- .
,
e xplaine d in w 3 9 4 3 C h rist d eclares t h at at

.
-
,
t he com pletion o f the age at His bi dd ing t h e

, ,
”
w icke d w i ll be cast into t h e furnace o f fire
“
,
w here s h all be w eeping and gnas h ing o f teet h ,
an d t h at then t h e rig h teous w ill s h ine a s t h e

“
sun i n th e kingdom o f t h ei r Fat h er O n t h is

.
teac h ing emp h asis is lai d by its re petition in

,
8 — Simi l ar teac h ing at an im ortant

no .
4 5 0 .
, p
turnin g point in t he life o f Ch rist is foun d in
-
,
T HE TEA C HI NG OF C HR I ST 25
ch xvi 2 7 :
. .The So n o f M an wi l l come in
“
the glory O f His Father with His ange l s : and

then He will give back to each according to his
action . A vision o r j udgment is given in
’
ch . xxv 3 4
1 - 6 where
. all the nations are
,
“ ’9
gathered b efore Christ sitting on a thr one of

glory and receive their award from His lips
,
.
He w elcomes the righteous into eternal life “

,
and dismisses others under a curse into eternal , ,

“
”
punishment The a b ove teaching is confirmed
.
by other passages in the First Gospe l a n d b y ,
paralle l s in the Second and Third Gospels .
In John iii 1 6 we meet with the alternative

.
,
”
“
may not perish but may h ave eternal life In .
ch v 2 8 2 9 Christ announces that at a definite

. .
, ,
“
hour He wi l l summon all the dead t o a
resurrection of l ife or o f j udgment .
In Acts xvii 3 1 Paul is reported to have said

.
,
at Athens that God has fi x ed a da y on w h ich

He w i l l judge the world b y a M a n whom He
has mar k ed o u t for that honour b y raising Him
from the dead Before Fe l ix as we read in
.
,
ch xxiv 2 5 Paul reasoned a b ou t the comin g

. .
,
“
j udgmen t ,
26 I M M O R TALITY
T h ese scanty references in a dd res ses o f Paul

are abun d antly confirme d by h is Epistles In .
R o m ii 6—1 2 we rea d t h at G o d wi ll give back

. .
“
”
t o eac h accord ing t o h is w orks in close accord ,
wit h M t xv i 2 7 ; inclu d ing glory honour

. .
, ,
peace an d etern a l life fo r t h e rig h teous an d

, ,
f o r t h e w icke d anger an d fury a ffliction an d ,
h elplessness an d d estruction
,
SO c h xiv I O . . .
We all shal l stan d at t h e j udg ment seat 0 -
”
God . Ex act retribution is conspicuously
announce d in 2 Co r v 1 0 All o f us must
. .
nee d s be ma d e m a nifest before t h e j u d gment seat

-
of C h rist in or d er that eac h may O btain t h e

,
things d one t h roug h h is bo d y w h ether goo d ,
o r ba d . I t is announce d w it h equal de fi n it e n e ss
an d solemnity in Gal vi 7 8 : “
Be no t
. .
,
d eceive d ; Go d is n o t mocked Fo r wh atever .
a man so w t h is h e w ill also reap Because h e

,
.
t h at sows for his o wn flesh s h all from the flesh , ,
rea p corru ption But he t h at sows fo r the

.
”
Spirit shall fro m t h e Spirit reap eternal life
, , .
In Ph iii 1 9 we rea d o f some wh ose en d is

. .
,
“
”
d estruction T h is can on ly mean destruction
.
beyon d the grave : fo r destruction o f the body

T HE TEA C HI NG OF C HR I ST 27
b y death is the l ot of a ll men good and b ad ,

.
In 2 Th i 8 9 we read of Christ givi n g j ust

. .
, ,
punishmen t to them that k now not God and

o b e y not the Gospe l of our Lord Jesus who ,
shal l pay penalty even eternal destruction from

,
the presence of the Lo rd and from the glory of ,
His strength ”
O n the other hand in 2 Tim
.
,
.
iv 7 8 at the cl ose of his life the Apost l e

.
, ,
writes,
“
I have fought the good fight I have ,
finished the course I have k ept the faith ,

.
Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown

O f righteousness which the Lord the righteous ,
Judge wi ll give me in that day ; and not to

,
me on l y b ut to all them that have loved His

,
appearing .
The above passages refer evidently to a retri

b u t io n beyond the grave ; and with others simil ar , ,
th ey leave no room for dou b t that this was a n -
important element in the teaching of Pau l .
In 1 Peter v 4 we read O f the unfading crown

.
,
of glory awaiting faithful shepherds o f the floc k

of Christ .
A m ore tremendous vision of j udgment is

found in R e v xx 1 1 — 1 5
. I sa w a great white
.
“
28 I M MO R TAL ITY
t h rone an d Him t h at sa t upon it from w h ose

, ,
face fle d t h e eart h an d t h e heaven an d place ,
was n o t fou n d fo r t h em An d I sa w t h e d ea d
.
,
the great an d t h e small standing before t h e ,
t h rone : an d books w ere opene d ; an d anot h er

book was opened wh ich is the Book o f Life
, .
An d t h e d ea d were j u d ge d from t h e things

w ritten i n t h e books accor d ing t o t h eir works
, .
An d the se a gave u p t h e dea d in it : an d deat h

an d Ha d es gave up t h e d ea d in t h em And .
they were j u d ge d eac h accor d ing to t h eir works

, .
An d d eat h an d Ha d es were cast into t h e lake o f

fire T h is is t h e secon d death t h e lake o f fire
.
, .
An d if any w as n o t foun d w ritten i n the Book

o f Life h e w as cast into t h e lake o f fire
, .
T h e above quotations wh ich represent teac h ing

,
running through t h e entire N e w Testament are ,
complete d ocumentary evi d ence t h at retribution

beyon d d eat h f o r all actions d one o n eart h was
an i mportant an d conspicuous element o f t h e
teac h ing o f Christ an d His Apostles .
T h e re w ar d a w aiting the righteous is in

M t xi x 1 6 2 9 an d its parallels in c h xx v 4 6
. .
, , . .
,
Luke x 2 seventeen times i n t h e Fourt h

5 .
,
T HE TEA C HI NG O F C HR I ST 29
Gospe l eleven times in the addresses and letters

,
of Pau l and six times in the First Epistle of

,
John descri bed b y the term et e r n a l l if e The

,
.
’
Word e t e r n a l a i im o s from a i w an a ge or
,
e ,
a ,
lifetime may be literally rendered a ge l a st i ng

,
-
.
In Prov xxii 2 8 xx iii 1 0

. . R emove not ,
.
,
“
eternal landmark s which thy fathers set it ,
descri b es a b oundary which has stood for ages

Simi l arly PS l xxvii 5 where e te r n a l years
. .
,
’8
are para ll el to ancient days “
But much more .
frequent ly it refers to t h e future The ordinances .
O f the Levitica l ritual ar e very frequently

E x xii I 4 17 2 L xxiii 2
e.
g . . .
4 e v ,
1 4 , 1
3 1 4 1 ,
. .
, , , ,
— descri b ed as eternal statutes vé t o v a la mt o u ’
p p , .
Simi l arly in Gen xvii 8 xlviii 4 Canaan

, . .
,
.
,
is promised t o the seed o f A b raha m for an “
”
eternal possession This use in the Septuagint
.
,
where the word is found some hundred and

fifty times must have influenced the meaning
,
attached to it by the writers an d early readers

o f the New Testament who frequently quote ,
the Septuagint I t for b ids us to interpret the

.
word e t e r na l i n the New Testament as in itse l f

equiva l ent to e n dle ss For no Christian wi l l claim .
30 I M M O R TALITY
en dless permanence for t h e Levi tical or d i n ances .
But t h is use o f the word casts n o sha d o w o f

doubt o n th e absolute en d lessness o f t h e life
promise d by Christ to His faithful servants For .
t h is rests o n groun d s in d epen d ent o f the wor d

before us Fo r as w e rea d in Jo h n iii 1 6 Go d
.
,
.
,
gave His Son in or d er that t h ey may not perish

an d cessation o f the life promi sed t o t h em woul d
be per d ition I n Lu ke i 3 3 we rea d that O f the
. .
K ing d om o f Christ t h ere will be n o en d an d

of that K ing d om they are citizens The in .
h eritance aw aiting t h em is in I Peter i 4 sai d

,
.
,
to be incorruptible an d unfa d ing SO is the crown .
o f glory : c h v 4 . But cessation of blesse d ness

. .
w ould be both decay an d corru ption That the .
life promise d by C h rist t o those Who pu t fait h ‘
in Hi m an d O bey Him is absolutely en d less is ,
still furt h er remove d from a ll possibility o f d oubt

by the i mmortal life o f Ch r ist Himse l f w h ic h
His h uman b rethren will share : see Jo h n xiv I 9 .
,
R o m viii 1 7 3 5 -3 9 R e v iii 2 1
. .
, ,
. . .
T h is promise o f life in Christ Jesus an d t h e

h ope o f endless blessed ness thereb yevoke d in us
rest sec u rely o n t h e w or d o f Christ confir me d by
T HE TEA C HI N G OF C HR I ST 3 1
Him who gave His

onl y b egotten Son in order
-
that ever y one who b elieves i n Him may not

perish b ut may have eternal l ife and raised Him ,
from the dead so that our faith and hope

,
I Peter i may b e in God For no historic

( . 21
) .
fact is more certain than that Jesus of Nazareth

promised to all who put faith in Him a new
life of devotion to God on earth and end l ess ,
b lessedness beyond the grave .
I n awfu l contrast to this bl essed l if e stands ,
throughout the New Testament the dest r uct i o n ,
of the wic k ed : dhe flp o s oi n i he t a oin o hhvpt t

, a ,
'
.
These words are found in the New Testament

in this technical theologica l sense more than
thirty times They are rendered in the R V
. . .
dest r uct i on and dest r oy p e r di t i o n a n d pe r i sh lose

, ,
a n d lost ; and convey in Greek the combined

significance of these Eng l ish equivalents They .
denote neither su ff ering nor extinction nor do ,
they exc l ude these ideas b ut simp l y r u i n the

, ,
l oss o f a ll that gives worth to existence whether ,
the ruined Object ceases to b e or continues in a

worth l ess mode of existence These words and.
,
th e ir cognates and equivalents are frequently ,

3 2 I M MO R TALITY
u se d by P lato t o denote the extinction o f th e

soul But w hile t h us u sing t h em h e puts h is
.
, ,
meaning beyon d d oubt by careful circumlocution

see p 5 0 O n t h e ot h er h an d they are
. .
,
frequently used in Greek literature in cases in

whic h t h ere is n o t h ought o f extinction but ,
only o f utter ruin SO Luke x v 6 9 3 2 . .

, , ,
w h ere the lost w as afterw a r d s foun d ; an e m i a ;

i ip e dn
'
Ka , et .
In a dd ition t o t h is loss O f en d less blesse d ness ,
we fin d in t h e teaching o f C h rist recor d e d in
the Synoptist Gospels an d i n t h e Book o f

R evelation pictures o f actual an d acute su ff ering ;
e.
g . M t
,
viii I 2 x
. iii 4 2 5 0 x xii
. I
, 3 xx iv 5
. 1 , , .
,
.
,
Luke x v i 2 3 — 2 5 . .
It is w ort h y o f note t h at by C h rist an d t h e

Apostles t h is promise o f blessing an d t h is
t h reatening o f punis h ment are never d irectly o r
in d irectly sup po rte d as t h e ho pe o f re w ar d after
,
d eath is conspicuously supporte d in t h e writings

of Plato by any d octrine o f the essential an d
,
en d less permanence o f the h uman soul Bot h .
p h rase ology and t h oug h t o f Plato are altoget h er

absent from t h e N e w Testament T h e w or d i m .
T HE TEA C HI NG O F C HR I ST 33
is found there on ly in 1 Cor xv 5 3 5 4

m or t a l i ty . .
, ,
in reference not to the sou l b ut to the bod y ,
which though mortal must put on immorta l it y ;

and in 1 Tim v i 1 6 as an attri b ute of God
. .
, .
An equiva l ent term i n cor r upt i hi li ty (ddfla p o ia )

, ,
or a b sence O f decay i s found in reference to ,
the b od y in I Cor xv 4 2 5 0 5 3 5 4 ; and . .

, , ,
in other references in R o m ii 7 Eph v i 2 4 . .

, . .
,
2 Tim i 10
. The cognate adj ective is used
. .
as an attri b ute of God in R o m i 2 3 1 Tim . .

, .
i 1 7 ; as a description of the reward o f the

.
righteous in 1 Cor ix 2 5 I Pet i 4 ; of . .

,
. .
their risen b odies in I Cor xv 5 2 ; and in . .
other references in 1 Pet i 2 3 iii 4 The . .

, . .
infinite value of t he sou l is recognised b y Christ

in M t xv i 2 6
. But the N e w Testament
. .
never asserts or implies its essential and endless

permanence ; or i n other words that i n virtue
, , ,
of its own nature o r by the wi l l of God every ,
'
human soul will think and feel for an endless

succession O f ages .
The a b ove denia l will find presumptive support

in ch iv where I sha ll refer to the a b sence o f
. .
,
any direct appeal to the Bi bl e in various modern

34 I M M O R TALITY
t h eological w orks which maintain t h e immortality
o f t h e soul .
I t is worthy o f note that w h ereas as we saw ,
Plato taug h t t h at the sou l o f man is

on
p 3
.
,
i mmortal (dvai he flp o v) and imperishable C h r ist ,
asserts o r implies the possibi l ity o f its destruction .
5 0 Mt x 28 : . Fear Hi m t h at is able to
.
“
” ’
dest r oy bot h bo d y an d soul
’ ’
o m o he o a c
d xp
°
v r i z .
Similarly c h x v i 2 5 : W h oever d esires t o

. .
save h is soul will lose it ou r o k e o e t a zz r

nv
’ ' ’ '
.
The w ord d estruction use d frequently in the ,
N e w Testament t o describe t h e d oom o f t h e

w icked is quite a l ie n t o the thoug h t an d phrase
,
of Plato I n t h is respect mo d ern popular

.
,
C h ristian esc h atology is much nearer to Plato

’
t h an t o C h rist O n t h e ot h er h and Christ s
.
,
romise of life eternal f t h e righteo us an d

p or
His t h reatening o f destruction f o r t h e w icke d

were anticipated in a re m arkable way as we ,
—
sa w o n pp 1 2 1 5 in t h e teaching o f the ,
.
ancient Egyptians .
It has been suggeste d t h at t h e en d less pe r

m a n e n ce o f all h uman sou l s even o f the w icke d , ,
about w h om alone there can be any question ,

T HE TEA C HI N G OF C HR I ST 35
may be inferred from the descriptions in the ,
S y noptist Gospels and the Boo k of Reve l ation ,
of the actua l torment of the l ost impl y i n g ,
continued existence without an y suggestion that

,
their su fferings will ever cease This inference .
would b e l e gitimate if the end less su ff ering of

the l ost were taught clearly and without con
t r a dic t io n by the various writers of the New
Testament . B ut in this case the immortality

, ,
of the soul as an inference from the endless

,
su ff ering of the l ost cou l d not b e appealed to

, ,
as has frequentl y b een done in support of this ,
latter doctrine O therwise we should b e arguing

.
,
in a circ l e B ut as I S ha l l show in ch v the

.
,
. .
,
doctrine of the endless su ff ering of the lost is

supported b y at most some six or seven passages
of Hol y Scripture and these b y no means
,
decisive ; and against these must b e se t a sti ll

larger num b er of passages quite as definite which
seem to assert or imp l y the ultimate extinction
of sinners or of evi l This doctrine also lie s
’
open to most tremendous and to many minds ,
insupera bl e mora l Objection

, A doctrine itself
.
resting on a foundation so unsafe cannot b e

36 I MM O R TALITY
m ad e a safe foun d ation for anot h er doctrine so

important as the immortality of t h e soul .
O n the ot h er h a n d since in t h e New Testament

,
life beyond the grave is reserve d for the rig h teous ,
an d t h e wic k e d are said to be d estroyed it has ,
been inferre d t h at t h e punishment o f t h e wicked

will be ultimate extinction This inference also
.
is unsafe Fo r t h e life referred t o is much more

.
than existence . I t is the norma l an d blesse d

state o f a rational crea ture o f God An d the
.
loss o f t h is life may be fi t ly d escribe d as d e

struction even though the ruine d ones continue
,
t o e x ist : f o r it is t h e loss o f all t h at gives

w ort h to e x istence.
We have now seen t h at t h e d octrine o f t h e

immortality O f the soul i e t h e essential and
, . .
en d less permanence o f all h uman souls so ,
promi nent in t h e te aching o f Plato h as n o place

,
in t h e teaching o f Christ an d His A postles .
The di ff erence is signi ficant I n the absence o f

.
an historic revelation Plato ap pealed in p roof

, ,
o f a retribution beyon d t h e grave a most im

,
portant element in mora l ity a n d religion t o the ,
spiritual nature o f the soul But Christ claime d

.
T HE TEA C HI N G OF C HR I ST 37
to b e a Teacher sent from God to announce

eternal life for a l l who put faith in Him And
.
,
in support of His c l aim and o f His gospe l

of l ife eternal His fo ll owers appea l ed to His
,
resurrection from the dead T O appea l now to

.
the immorta l ity of the sou l in support O f the

Christian hope is to illumine the l ight of the
,
Gospel with the dim torch O f Greek philosoph y .

C HAPT ER I I I
I MM O R TA LI TY I N T HE EA R L Y C HUR C H
IN ch i w e saw t h at Plato taught that t h e soul
. .
of man is immortal t e t h at fo r goo d o r ill

, . .
, ,
immortality is its inalienable attribute ; in co n

trast as w e sa w in ch ii t o C h rist an d His
,
. .
,
A postles who taught t h at incorru pti b ility— i e

,
. .
a state without d ecay— an d eternal life are the

rewar d a w aiting t h e righteous w h ereas destruction ,
awaits t h e wicke d We s h all now consider what

.
the early Christian writers living i n an intellectual

,
environment greatly influence d by the teaching

o f Plato sai d about t h e immortality o f t h e soul
,
an d about t he eternal life promise d by C h rist

t o t h e rig h teous .
T h e earliest C h ristian w riters repro d uce the

thoug h t an d i n l a rge measure the language o f
, ,
the New Testament an d say nothing about o r

, ,
rej ect the immortality o f the soul C L E M E N T o r

,
.
38
I N T HE E A R L Y C HU R C H 39
R O M E, in his Epistle To t he Co r i n t hi a n s ch 3 5 , .
,
speak s of life in immorta l it y as a gift O f God

“
to the righteous SO I G N A T I U S To Poly ca rp

.
, ,
ch 2
.
,
Be sober as God s athlete : t he prize
“
,
’
is incorrupti b i l it y and l ife eterna l He writes .

”
To t he M a gn e s i a n s ch 2 0 a b o ut ,
the medicine
.
,
“
of immorta l it y an antidote so as not to die b ut

,
”
to l ive in Jesus Christ a l ways .
In J u sT I N s D i a logu e w i t h Tryp ho chs 5 6 we

’
,
.
, ,
have a conversation of the writer with an aged

Christian a b out the immortal ity of the soul as
taught by P l ato This doctrine b oth spea k ers
.
,
repudiate on the ground that the soul has b een

begotten and therefore cannot b e immortal
,
.
The o l d man continues I do not sa y that

,
“
a ll souls die : for that were truly a piece of

good fortune for the wic k ed ( This means .
,
apparent l y that they do not die when the b ody

,
dies ). The souls of the pious remain i n a

“
better place whi l e those of the unj ust and the

,
wic k ed are in a worse waiting for the time of ,
j udgment Thus some who have appeared

.
worthy of God n ever die ; b ut others are

punished so l ong a s God wi ll s them to exist
40 I M M O R TALITY
an d be punished N o w the soul partakes
.
o f life ,
S i nce Go d wills it to live T h us t h en .
it w ill n o t even partake o f life when Go d d oes

no t w ill i t to live Fo r to live is not its
.
,
attribute as it is Go d s ; but as a man d oes

,
’
not live always an d the soul is not for ever

j oine d t o the bod y since w henever this harmony
,
must be broken up the soul leaves the bo d y

an d t h e man exists n o longer even so whenever , ,
the bo d y must cease t o exist the s pirit o f life ,
is remove d from it an d there is no m ore soul

but it goes back t o the place from w hence it w as
ta ken
. T h e whole d ialogue leaves no room t o
’
d oubt t h at Justin d i d n o t h ol d Plato s d octrine
o f the en d less permanence o f all h uman souls .
T H EOP H I L U S To A ut oly cus bk ii 2 7 w rites ,

. .
,
But some will sa y t o us Was man by nature ,
mortal ! Certainly n o t Was h e th en im .
mortal ! N eit h er do w e a fli r m th is But o n e .
wi ll sa y Was he then n othing

,
! N o t even this
hits the mark He was by nature neither mortal
.
nor immortal Fo r if He had ma d e him im

.
,
mortal from t h e beginning He w oul d h ave ,
ma d e him God Again if He ha d ma d e him

.
,
mortal God wou l d seem to be the cause of

,
his death .Neither then immortal nor yet

mortal did He ma k e him b ut as we have said , ,
a b ove capa b le o f b oth ; so that if he shoul d

,
incline to the things of i m mortal ity k eeping ,
the commandment of God he sho u l d receive ,
as reward from Him i mmortal ity and shoul d ,
become God ; b ut if o n the other hand he

, ,
shou l d turn to the things o f death diso b eying ,
God he should himself he the cause o f death

,
to himself For God made man free and with

.
,
po wer over himse l f That then which man

.
, ,
b rought upon himself through care l essness and

diso b edience this now God b estows o n him as
,
a gift through His ow n k indness and pit y

, ,
when men o b e y Hi m For as man diso b e y ing

.
, , ,
drew death upon himse l f so o b e y ing the wi ll of

, ,
God he who desires is a bl e t o gain for himse l f

,
l ife eterna l For God has given us a l aw and

.
hol y commandments ; and ever y one who k eeps

these can b e saved and Ob taining the r e su r r e c
, ,
”
tion can inherit incorrupti b i l it y
,
.
Somewhat l ater I R EN AEU S writes in bk ii 3 4 3 ,

. . .
,
that The Father of a ll imparts continuance for

4 2 I M M O R TALITY
ever an d ever o n t h ose w h o are save d Fo r .
life d oes not arise from u s n o r from o u r o wn

,
nature but is bestowe d according t o th e grace

,
of God .An d therefore he w ho shall preserve

t h e life besto wed upon h im and give th anks to
Him t h at imparted it s h all receive also length
,
o f days for ever an d ever . But he who s h all

rej ect i t an d prove h imself ungrateful to his
M aker inasmuch as he has been create d an d
,
has n o t recognise d Hi m who bestowed t he gi ft

upon him d eprives h i mself o f t h e privilege o f
,
continuance fo r ever an d ever An d fo r t h is .
reason t h e Lor d declare d t o t h ose w ho sho w ed

themselves ungrateful t o Him I f ye h ave not ,
been faithful in that w h ich is little w h o shall ,
give yo u that which is great ! i n d icating that

th ose who in this b rief temporal life have show n
, ,
themselves ungrateful to Him who bestowe d it ,
s h all j ustly not receive from Him lengt h o f d ays

”
f o r ever and ever .
O n the other h an d in b k V 4 1 ( cf c h 7
,
. . .
,
. . .
I r e n m u s speaks o f t h e soul as o n e o f t h e things

whic h are by nature immortal and to wh ich ,
”
it belongs by their o wn nature to live This .
IN T HE E AR LY C HU R C H 43
apparent contradiction revea l s the i nfluence of

”
two contradictor y l ines of thought .
At the c l ose of the second centur y C L E M E N T

O F A L EX A N D R I A writes Le t us observe God s
’
“
,
commandments and fo ll ow His counse l s : the y

are the short and direct way that l eads to
eternity i e to eternal existence ; and again
,
. .
,
“
When b aptized we b ecome enlightened ;
,
en l ightened we b ecome sons as sons we b ecome

,
”
perfect and immortal See R e d 1 3 6 .
! .
,
.
From a fragment of a l ost wor k O n t he Soul the ,
fo ll owing words are quoted i n M ign e s edition of ’
C l ement vo l ii p 7 5 1
,
. All sou l s are immortal
. .
,
even of th e god l ess to whom it were b etter not

,
to b e incorrupti bl e B ut nothing similar is

.
found i n Clement s extant voluminous works

’
In the midd l e of the second centur y T A T I A N

writes in his Addr e ss t o t he G r e e ks ch 1 3
, ,
.
“
The soul is not in itse l f immortal O Gree k s , ,
b ut mortal Y e t it is possi bl e for it not to die

. .
I f indeed it k nows not the truth it dies and is ,
disso l ved with the b od y b ut r ise s again at l ast at

,
the end o f the wor l d wi t h the b ody receiving ,
”
death by punishment in immorta l ity A b out .
44 I M MO R TALITY
the d emons he says i n ch 1 4 :
, , .
“
That w hic h
is n o w their c h ief d istinction that t h ey do n o t
,
d ie like men t h ey w ill retain when about to

,
su ff er punis h ment t h ey w ill not partake o f ever

lasting life so as t o receive this instea d o f d eat h
, ,
in a blesse d immortality And as w e t o w hom

.
,
i t n o w easily h appens to d ie after ward s receive

,
t h e immortal w ith enj oyment o r t h e painful w ith

i mmortality so t h e demons who abuse the present
,
life t o purposes o f wrong d oing d ying continuall y

,
even w hile they live will h ave h ereafter t h e same

,
i mmortality like that wh ic h t h ey h a d d uring

,
the life t h ey live d but in its nature like t h at

,
o f men w ho actually performe d w h at the d emons

,
prescribe d t o t h em d uring t h eir lifetime . Th e

p h rases pun i shm e n t i n i m m or t a li ty an d t he p a i nf ul
w i t h i m m o r t a li ty deviate from th e p h raseology o f
t h e N ew Testament Fo r there the term i m m ar

.
t a li ty an d its equiv a lents i n co r r upt i hi li ty an d

e t e r n a l l i e are use d only t o describe a state of
f
blessing T h us Tatian approaches t h e language
.
o f Plato w ith whose w ritings h e w as familiar

, .
We turn n o w t o a very able treatise o n The

R e sur r e ct i on of t he D e a d by A T H E N A G O R A S an ,
Athenian phi l osopher who became a Christian in

the l atter ha l f of the second centur y He writes
.
in ch 1 3 that God made man of an immorta l

.
“
soul and a b od y ; in ch 2 4 of men possess

.
,
ing an immorta l soul and a rational j udgment ;

in ch 2 0 of the sou l as incorrupti bl e
.
,
and
in ch 2 3 of an immorta l nature
.
,
“ ”
Here for
.
the first time pro b a bly in Christian l iterature

we find the favourite phraseolog y of P l ato : and ,
reme m b ering that the writer was a student o f

Plato b efore he became a Christian we cannot ,
dou b t the source from which it was derived .
The writer s aim is to prove the resurrection

’
of the b od y and in his e ff ort to do this he

:
shows much s k i ll His main argument is that

.
the creative purpose of God included b oth sou l

and b od y ; that each of these is an integral part
of the man is concerned in his actions and
, ,
therefore must share his j udgment and final

destin y Some of his arguments seem to imp ly
.
that the creative purpose must necessari ly b e

accomp l ished ; and he te ll s us in ch 2 5 that
, .
,
the end of an intell igent creature is to d e l ight

in contemp l ation of God But he admits that
.
46 I M MO R TALITY
many men fail o f this end He d oes n o t d is.
cuss t h e ultimate fate o f the lost ; and leaves us

in uncertainty whether o r n o t all wil l fina l ly be
save d His o n e point is to prove that in the
.
destiny o f man t h e bo d y w ill share In t h is he .
di ff ers wi d ely from Plato w ho claims immortality ,
only f o r the soul .
We come n o w t o T ER T U L L I A N who in N ort h , ,
Africa wrote in Latin at t h e beginning o f t h e

,
t h ir d century He accepts from Plato t h e

.
d octrine o f t h e immortality o f the soul So in .
c h 3 o f h is treatise On t he R e sur r ect i on of t he

.
Fle sh Some things are known even by nature

the immortality o f the soul for instance is hel d , ,
by many ; t h e knowledge o f G o d is possesse d

by all I will use therefore t h e opinion o f a
.
, ,
”
Plato w hen asserting Every soul is immortal .
But as a Christian h e rej ects the t h eory o f the

, ,
uncreate d pre existence o f t h e soul

- So h is .
treatise O n t he Soul ch 4 When w e ackno w

, .
le d ge that the soul originates in the breath o f

God it follows t h at w e attri b ute t o it a beginning
,
.
T h is Plato refuses representing it as n o t born

,
”
an d n o t ma d e I n ch 1 0 he says I t belon gs
. .
,
“
to firm faith to sa y with P l a to that the soul is

simpl e i e uniform in su b stance
, . . Throughout .
these two wor k s Tertu ll ian constant ly spea k s

,
of the soul a s immortal in P l ato s sense of the ’
word and sometimes of the wic k ed as in end l ess

,
su ff ering SO R e sur r e ct i on of t he Flesh ch 3 4

.
,
.
“
We so accept the sou l s immorta l ity as to ’
be l ieve it lost not in the sense of destruction

,
”
b ut of punishment i e in Gehenna ,
. A l so. .
in ch 3 5 :
. If an y one supposes that the
“
destruction of soul and flesh i n Gehenna refers

to an annihi l ation and end of b oth substances ,
as if the y were to b e consumed not punished , ,
l et him remem b er that the fire of Gehenna is

announced to b e eterna l for eternal punishment , ,
and l et him recognise that eternity of k il l ing is

more to b e feared than anything tempora l which
man could inflict ”
He argues in ch 1 4 of his
.
, .
treatise On t he Soul th at since the sou l is S imp l e not

, , ,
composite it cannot b e disso l ved or cease to b e

, .
No one can read these two treatises o f Ter

tu l lian and compare them with earl ier Christian
,
l iterature without fee l ing that this impu l sive

,
African has intro d uced into C h ristian l iterature ,

4s I MMO R TALITY
or given greater prevalence to t wo ne w an d ,
lower elements the nat ur al immortality o f t h e

,
soul an d the endless torment o f the lost In .
t h e su ff erings o f these last he e x ults with fien d ish

d elight : O n Publi c Ex hi bi t i on s c h 3 0 B ut, . .
I forbear t o quote his awful lines

Somewhat later in a far d i ff erent sp i ri t O R I G E N
, , ,
the earliest Christia n Biblical scholar accepte d ,
the immortality o f the soul and from i t inferred

,
that all sou l s will ultimately be saved I n his .
Fi r st Pr i n cip le s bk iii 1 3 we read :

,
. .
,
I t is “
n o t wit h out reas on then that he who is abandone d
is abandone d t o t h e D ivine j u d gment an d that ,
G o d is long su ff ering with certain sinners ; but

—
because it wi l l be fo r their a d vantage with respect ,
to the i mmortality o f the soul and the unen d ing

w orld t h at they be not quickly broug h t into
,
a state o f salvation but be con d ucted t o it m ore

,
slo w ly after having e x perience d many evils Fo r

,
.
as physicians who are ab l e t o cure a man quickly

when they suspect that a hi dd en poison exists
in t h e body do th e reverse o f h ealing making
, ,
this more certain through t h eir very desire t o

heal d eeming i t better t o retain t h e patient for
,
a considera bl e time under inflammation and sic k

ness in order that he ma y recover his hea l th
,
more sure ly rather than to appear to produce

,
a rapid recovery and afterwards to cause a

,
re l apse and thus that hasty c u re last onl y for

a time ; in the same wa y God a l so who k nows,
the secret things of the heart and foresees future

events in His l ongsu ff ering permits certain events
,
to occur and b y means of those things which

,
happen from without extracts the secret evil in ,
order to cleanse him who through care l essness

has received the seeds o f sin . Fo r God
gover n s sou l s not with reference l et me sa y
, ,
to the fifty years of the present life b ut w ith ,
reference to the l imit l ess age : for He made

the thin k ing principle in its nature immortal and
k indred to Himse l f and the rationa l so u l is not ,
”
as it is in this life excluded from cure
,
.
In the a b ove quotations we se e two practical

and opposite consequences of the doctrine o f
the immorta l ity of the soul Tertu l lian inferred
.
from it the end l ess su ff ering of the l ost O rigen

inferred the u l timate sal vation of a l l men Each .
o f these i nferences seems t o me legitimate ; and
4
50 I MMO R TALITY
each is prevalent n o w They reveal t h e greatness
.
o f t h e issues involve d in the doctrine before us .
Very perplexing is the following apparent

contradiction bet ween t wo closely relate d works
o f AT H A N A S I U S In f h i treatise
.
3 2 33 o, s
Con t r a G en t e s h e speaks several times o f the

,
so ul as i m m or t a l ; and argues that j ust as the

“
,
senses o f the bo d y it being mortal contemplate

, ,
mortal things SO the soul since it contemplates

, ,
an d takes i nto calcu l ation immortal th ings must ,
”
necessarily also itself be i m m or t a l an d live al w ays .
He t h us repro d uces t h e phrase an d thought o f

Plato as accepted by Athe n agoras an d Tertullian
,
.
O n t h e other han d in h is famous treatise O n

, ,
t he I n ca r n a t i o n of t he Wo r d of G od he w rites as
,
t h ough the lost woul d sink into t h e n o n existence -
from which originally the Creator called them .
SO For the transgression o f the command

4
ment w as turning them bac k to t h eir natural
state ; so that j ust as while n o t existing they
,
have begun to be so also naturally in course o f

, ,
time they m a y undergo corru p tion into non

,
existence For if being once b y nature non

.
,
existent by the coming and the philanthropy of

,
IN T HE EA R L Y C HU R C H 51
the Word th e y were ca l led into exist e nce it was ,
a consequence that men having b een emptied ,
of thought a b out God and having turned away

to things non existent— for the evi l things are
-
non existent and the good things existent since

-
,
the y have come into b eing from the Existent

God— shou l d b e emptied even of existing alway s .
This means that the y be disso l ved and remain ,
in death and corruption For man is by nature .
morta l having come into b eing out of things

,
not existing But b ecause of his l i k eness to Hi m

.
,
that exists if he guard it by his contemp l ation of

,
Him he would disarm the corruption b y nature

,
and re m ain incorrupti bl e .
Simi l ar ly in 6 he spea k s of men though made

, ,
in the image of God as disappearing and b eing

,
de st r oy ed in consequence o f sin ; and gives this

as a reason for the mission and gift of the So n
to save man It was u n fi t t in g that b eings once
.
“
made rational and parta k ers of His Word shou l d

pe r i sh and turn again b y corruption
,
into ,
”
non ex i stence
-
.
The on ly exp l anation of this contradiction

which I can suggest is that the a b ove incompati bl e
52 I M M O R TALITY
statements o f d octrine reflect di ff erent types o f
’
teaching prevalent i n the Church in Athanasius
d ay each going in my opinion beyon d the
, , ,
teaching o f the Bi b le v iz ( 1 ) the essential

, .
permanence o f all human souls an d ( 2) that the

,
destruction threatened to those w h o rej ect salvation

involves ultimate loss o f existence T h e in co m .
a t i b ili t o f these types o f teac h ing had apparently

p y
not arrest ed the attention o f the youthful
theologian destine d t o moul d so greatly an d so
beneficial l y t h e theology o f the Church of Christ .
The prevalence in t h e West o f t h e doctrine

, ,
o f the i mmorta l ity o f t h e soul i n t h e sense o f

,
its essential an d endless permanence is d ue ,
robably to t h e immense influence o f AUG USTI NE

p .
This great father was familiar with the systems

of the Greek philosophers ; and among t h em
gives t h e palm t o P l ato But h e contra d icts
.
Plato s teaching that h uman souls are p r e existent

’
-
and w ithout beginning ; an d meets an argument

t h at w h atever h a d a beginning must also h ave
an en d His w hole teaching about t h e future
.
punishment o f sin rests o n t h e assumption that

the human soul is immortal SO his Ci ty of God
.
,
bk xiii 2 :
. . The human soul is tru ly a ffi rmed
to be immortal it is said to b e immortal
because in some way it does not cease to l ive
”
and fee l Simi l arly bk xxi 3 : D eath will
. .
“
be eterna l ; since the sou l through not having

,
God wi ll not b e a bl e to l ive nor by d ying to

, ,
”
escape the pains of the b od y So a l ittle lower
.
“
The sou l can su ff er pain and cannot die Here .
is found a thing which since it has sense of pain

, ,
is immortal And much more of the same sort

. .
To su m up The phrase t he soul i m m or t a l

.
, ,
so frequent and conspicuous in the writings of

Pl ato we have not found in pre Christian
,
-
literature outside the influence of Greek philo

soph y ; nor have we found it in Christian
l iterature until the l atter part of the second
centur y We have noticed that a ll the ear l iest
.
Christian writers who use this phrase were fami l iar

with the teaching O f P l ato ; that one of these ,
Tertu ll ian express ly refers b oth phrase and

,
doctrine to him ; and that the early Christian

writers never support this doctrin e by appea l s to
the Bi bl e b ut on l y by arguments simi l ar to those
,
of P l ato We have l earnt that b y this phrase

.
54 I M M O R TALITY
Plato an d th e earliest C h ristian writers who use

it asserted t h e en dl ess and essential permanence
o f al l h uman souls an d appea l ed to this doctrine
,
i n proof o f retribution beyond the grave But .
we h ave faile d t o find any trace o f this doctrine

i n the Bible . O n t h e other hand Christ an d ,
His Apostles teach c l ear l y and frequently r e

t r ib u t i o n beyond d eath and eternal l ife with
,
Go d fo r all who put fait h in Christ T h e hope .
of immortality however rests in t h e Ne w

, , ,
Testament not o n t h e nature o f t h e soul but

, ,
”
o n the romise O f life i n Christ Jesus
“
p .
T h e d oc t rine o f the immortality o f t h e soul

d i ff ers further from t h e immortality promised in
t h e N e w Testament in that t h is last is n o t for
th e bo d y only as Plato taught but f o r the w h ole
, ,
man bo d y an d soul
,
.
D oubtless t h e d octrine before us w as w elcome

In t h e earl y Churc h as in a still earlier day t o
,
some d evout Jews because o f the support i t

,
ren d ers t o the all important d octrine of retribution

-
beyon d the grave But as we have seen it is

.
, ,
altogether alien bot h in phrase an d thoug h t t o

, ,
t h e teac h in g o f C h rist an d His A postles .

C HAPTE R IV
I M MO R T A L I T Y IN M O D ER N T HEO L O G Y
W E shal l now consider the doctrine of the

Immorta l it y of the Sou l as treated b y representative
modern theo l ogians .
M y first reference shal l b e to an excel l ent wor k

wel l k nown in al l Protestant Churches and
nations the Chr i st i a n D ogm a t i cs o f D R V A N

,
.
O OS T ER ! EE
.
In —
6 6 7 1 the writer discusses M an s
’
“
original nature . But he nowhere asserts the

endless permanence of the sou l O n the contrary .
,
he sa y s in 68 4 . O f the soul we k now too

,
“
litt l e to find by an appeal to its constitution

, ,
su fl i c ie n t ground for our demonstration ; we

cannot even represent to ourselves this sou l or ,
its independent continuance separated from the

b odi l y l ife ; and the uncertain can hardly b e
proved b y the unknown Throughout . 6 8 he
55
56 I M M O R TAL ITY
speaks o f t h e h ope o f immortality an d of the
“
”
i mmortality o f m a n . This last p h rase he d efines
t o mean “
not merely t h e continuance o f life ,
”
but also o f the sense o f life D r O osterzee
. .
asserts c l early that the soul o f man is designe d

by G o d for immortal life an d t h at retribution
,
beyon d the grave awa its all men good and bad ,
.
But he does n o t attempt to prove that all human

souls will exist and think an d feel fo r ever .
I n 6 9 t h e writer d iscusses t h e i mage o f Go d

in man ; an d asserts that it w as not d estroye d ,
thoug h sa d ly marre d by sin He says in art 7

,
. .
“
While we must regar d this image as natural
an d capable o f pro pagation w e must d eny t h at
,
it is as somet h ing accidenta l even in the least

, ,
d egree capable o f being lost It was not merely

.
an i d eal after w hic h man w as t o strive but ,
actually a treasure w h ich h e was to keep an d ,
h an d over t o posterity unimpaire d The image .

‘
o f Go d in man cannot be d estroye d Even in .
h ell it can burn but cannot be consumed : it

,
’
may be tormente d but cannot be extirpate d
,
Bernar d of Clairvau x Certainly for it forms

( ) .
,
an original elemen t o f o u r h uman nature ; an d

I N M OD ER N T HEOLO GY 57
if we were who l l y despoi l ed of it we should ,
then b e as l itt l e men as the b ird when deprived

of the means o f fl y ing can b ear the name of
”
bird. This comparison l eaves open the question
whether the soul ma y ever cease to exist : for
indisputabl y a b ird ma y b oth l ose it s wings and
b y dissipation into inorganic matter cease to b e
in an y sense a b ird M oreover a treasure which
.
,
we are bound to k eep and to hand over to

“
posterit y un impaired ma y nevertheless b e lost .
Y e t D r O osterzee seems to b e l ieve in the end

.
l ess permanence of al l human sou l s But this .
is not p l ain ly stated ; and no attempt is made

to p r ove it .
In 14
9 the theor y of the fina l restoration
of a l l men is discussed ; and we have a few
words a b out a n nihilation .In art 2 we read
.
°
“
Annihi l ation of the inc u ra bl y evi l would we ,
readi ly confess appear most acceptab l e to us

, ,
if we shou l d give to our tho u ghts the highest

authority in this province . For it is very
difli cu lt to conceive o f an end l ess existence in
connection with one who is entire ly separated
from God the source of l ife on which account
, ,
58 I M M O R TALITY
accor d ingly Scripture has d escribed t h is co n
d ition as t h e second d eath But this t h eory
.
,
if I rightl y understand him Dr O osterzee rejects

, .
as d isproved by R e v Vi 1 6 xiv 1 1
. .
, . .
O n t h e whole the important d octrine o f the

,
immortality o f the soul i e the essential per

, . .
m a n e n ce o f all h uman souls t h ough apparently

,
assume d is no part o f the d efinite teaching o f

,
this volume ; and the writer d oes nothing w hat

ever i n any way to prove it .
We come now t o a work m arke d by d eep

an d loving insig h t into the things o f Go d an d
by great beauty o f d iction D R P O P E S Com ,
.
’
e n di um o T e o lo y I n l i we rea
p f h .
g v o 2
p 4 3 . d . .
i n reference to the i mage o f God in man

“
,
t h at it was Essential and I n d estructible : the

“
self conscious and self d etermining personality o f

- -
man as a spirit bearing the stamp o f likeness

,
to G o d an d capable o f i mmortality w as the ,
reflection in t h e creature o f the D ivine nature .
From beginning to en d the ho l y recor d

regar d s t h is i mage as une ff aced and i ne ff aceable ,
”
an d still existing i n every human being This .
la n guage is further ex pl ained o n p 4 2 6 : N o .

“
IN M OD ER N T HEOLO GY 59
c l earer evidence of the indestructi b i l ity of the

D ivine l i k eness cou l d b e given than that of the
sanction thrown around human l ife ; it is inviolate ,
od m a de H f cours
f g f
or i n t he i m a e o G e ma n O e .
this does not decide the question whether or

not immorta l it y was part of the indestructi ble
image though it might seem that we a ffi rm it
,
”
b y using the term indestructi bl e O n this .
last important question the writer sa y s nothing

whatever He seems to b e unwi l ling to state
.
his own opinion .
D r Pope returns to the immortality o f the

.
soul in v o l iii p 3 7 2 He says

. . The im
. .
,
“
morta l ity o r continued conscious existence of

man s spirit is everywhere assumed in Scripture
’
”
and nowhere proved That the spirit will
.
survive the b ody is assumed or stated through

out the New Testament in terms as decisive
as the clearest categorical assertion ; e g in . .
2 Cor V. 10 where Pau l asserts that we must

.
,
al l b e manifested b efore the j u dgment seat of

Christ in order that each may receive according to
his conduct on earth ; S imi l arl y John v 2 8 2 9 .
, ,
He b ix 2 7 e t c
. . But t h is is very di ff erent
, .
60 I M M O R TALITY
from assuming the endless e x istence of all human

souls O ur author says that the immortality o f
.
’
man s spirit is in Scripture nowhere proved I s .
the divinity o f Christ proved t h ere ! I t is : f o r

in the New Testament we find d ecisive d ocu
mentary evidence that Christ o n earth c l aimed
a superiority to men and a unique and close
relation to God involving i n contrast t o all ,
mere creatures a share o f t h e D ivine nature

, .
But throughout t he Bible we have no suc h proof ,
d irect o r in d irect o r any clear suggestion o f

, ,
the endless permanence o f al l human spirits .
D r Pope a dd s :
. The absolute i mmortality o f
“
t h e h uman spirit is not in question as yet An d .
i t does not come into question thro u g h out his

work .
.
—
O n p 4 0 3 after a quotation o f Jo h n v 2 4 2 9 .
, ,
the w riter adds : The fu l ler revelation o f

“
immortality an d eternal life i nclu d es t h erefore , ,
t h e foreannouncement o f a resurrection o f the

wh ole man and o f the whole race o f man
, ,
to an end l ess existence But o f this last a l l

’I
important statement n o shadow o f proof is given .
O n p 4 2 1 w e rea d o f
. the misery o f the “
I N M O D ER N THE OLO GY 61
conscious eterna l exclusion from the vision of

God ; and that whatever the word eternal in
M att xxv 4 6 means to the righteous it means
. .
“
”
al so to the wic k ed .
O n pp 4 3 5 —4 4 D r Pope discusses the theor y

. .
o f the annihi l ation of the wic k ed He sa y s .
.1 The question of man s natura l immortalit y

’
is not all owed to b e a b solute ly decisive ; and

perhaps more has b een made to depend on this
in the controversy than it wi ll b ear Those who .
m a intain that in the image of God impressed ,
upon man there was a reflection in the creature

,
of His eternit y and that this natural image was

,
not destro y ed b y the Fa ll are in possession o f

,
an argument which settles the matter at once .
This is undou b tedly the view of Scripture which ,
nowhere asserts or proves the dea t h l essness of

the human spirit an y more than it ass erts or
proves the b eing of God To us therefore the
.
, ,
”
question is determined at the outset Now .
,
in Gen i are thirty statements which imp l y

.
decisive ly the existence of an inte ll igent Creator

who spea k s and acts and are there f ore equiva lent
,
to categorical assertions of the existence of God

62 I M M O R TALITY
an d t h ese are followe d by i nnumera b le similar
statements throughout the Bible But n o such .
statements implying t h e d eathlessness o f the

human spi rit are to b e found there .
O n p 4 3 7 we rea d
.
, I t may be a dd e d t h at
“
annihilation is t o a ll intents and purposes an

”
eternal punishment o f S in committe d in time .
O n p 4 4 2 w e re ad
.
,
It must be a d mitte d that
“
the t h eologians o f this new school (annihi l ation )

have stea d fastly asserte d some fun d amental prin
c i le s They h ol d fast the d octrine o f t h e eternal
p .
punishment o f sin . This is a most im portant

admission Fo r the phrase e t e r n a l p un i shm e n t
.
,
solemn l y used by Christ in M t x xv 4 6 in a w ful

. .
contrast t o t h e e t e r n a l lif e awaiting the righteous ,
is t h e strongest argument from the Bible for the

endless su ff ering o f the lost This argument is
.
surren d ered by D r Pope w h o anticipate d my

.
,
volume o n The La st Thi ngs by asserting that

final extinction of men created by God for endless
blessedness w oul d be eternal punishment (See .
on p .
7 0 a quotation
,
from I r e n az u s
) H e
. a l so
anticipate d me by en d eavouring t o prove t h at
extinction o f the lost is not taught i n the Bible .
IN M OD ER N T HEOLO GY 63
O n the other hand he agrees with R e v E White

,
. .
by say ing on p 4 4 3 that Christ comes not to

, .
,
“
save an immorta l sinner ; b ut to give a morta l

”
sinner who had sinned the Off er of immortalit y
, ,
.
And I do not se e that he ha s b rought any serious

o bjection to the doctrine of annihi l ation except ,
by overturning as I do arguments in its favour

, ,
.
Certain ly he has done nothing to prove the

immorta l it y of the sou l .
M uch more definite and va l ua bl e in reference ,
to the su bject b efore us than either of the wor k s ,
quoted a b ove is D R LA I D L A W S admira bl e book

,
.
’
on The B i hle D oct r i n e of M a n In l ecture v i . .
he discusses M an s nature and a future life

“ ’ ”
.
O n pp 2 24 ff we read :
. . D uring most of the “
Christian centuries the Scripture doctrine concern

,
ing the l ife to come has b een he l d as b ound up

with and b ased upon that of the indestructi b i l it y
of the human sou l M a n is a b eing who must .
l ive after death must l ive for ever Conscience

, .
dec l ares that present conduct and character are to

influence an eterna l hereafter Na y the very ma k e .
,
of the sou l tell s of the time l ess and change l ess

S phere to which it b e l ongs The doctrine o f .
64 I M M O R TAL ITY
th e natural and necessary immortality o f the
human soul has been religiously c h eris h e d as o f
the very essence o f the scriptural o r C h ristian
belief in a life t o come M ore cautious
.
Christian opponents o f the prevailing method o f

i d entifying d ivine revelation as to a future life
w ith the tenet o f the soul s in d estructi b ility have
’
preferre d t o rest the doctrine o f survival o n the

resurrection o f Jesus an d the a ffi rmations o f
’
Scripture without insisting o n th e soul s n atural
,
i mmortality . T h e Bible d oes not a fli r m

t h e i mmortali t y o f the soul in any abstract o r
general form M uc h less d oes it d efine t h e
.
constitution o f t h e soul as involving its necessary

indestructibility So much w e may freely c o n
.
”
ce d e
. This last is a most important concession .
T h roughout the volume D r Lai d law does not .
appeal t o t h e Bible in proof o f t h e popular

d octrine o f the endless permanence o f a ll human
sou l s Nor does h e assert plainly t h at h e accepts
.
th is doctrine .
T h e w riter continues “
But when it is sai d
that t h e notion of a separable soul o r spirit in
man is unscriptural is nothing but a philosophical
,
IN M OD ER N T HE OLO GY 65
figment and that the sou l s separate existence is

,
’
no necessary part of Christian b elief we are ,
prepared on the strongest grounds to demur .
The personal existence of human b eings after

death is a doctrine that pervades the who l e sy stem
of Scripture The Bi bl e sustains and i l lumines
.
,
’
in the most remar k abl e and varied ways man s ,
instinctive b elief that he was made for an ever

l asting existence . I t wou l d b e wrong to
import into these terms (br e a th and spi r i t ) the
metaphysical idea of an indissolu bl e su b stance ,
and thus commit the Scripture to the phi l osophical

argument that the soul cannot die b ecause it
cannot be disso l ved or dissipated But the aut h or
.
of the Boo k of Wisdom seems to b e fairly

fo l lowing the doctrine of Genesis when he says ,
For God created man to b e immortal and made

,
him to be an image o f His own pecu l iar nature .

’
With all this I hearti l y agree .
D r Laid l aw then ( on page 2 2 9 ) distinguishes

.
b etween the B i bl e mode of a fli r m in g man s

“ ’
futur e existence and the methods O f other re l igions

”
and phi l osophies especially that of Plato which
, ,
ha s such c l ose a ffi nities with scriptural doctrine

66 I M M O R TALITY
as t o h ave been greatly i d entifie d w ith Christian
eschatology elaborate d by t h e schoolmen as th e
,
foun d ation o f the faith an d often preache d from

,
the Christian pulpit as a substitute f o r the fuller

”
l ig h t o f t h e gospel o n life and immortality .
SO o n p 2 3 3
. Gradual l y i n Christian schools
, ,
the Greek i nfluence prevaile d and even in t h e ,
Christian C h urch the idea o f the soul s im m o r ’
tality fo r long took the place o f the Scripture

d octrine o f a future life I n ot h er words o u r
.
,
aut h or a d mits as is prove d by me in c h i

, . .
,
t h at th e popu l ar d octri ne o f t h e i mmortalit y

o f t h e soul w a s derive d from Plato .
D r Lai dl a w writes o n p 2 4 0 :
.
,
T h is t h eory
.
of conditional immortality o r o f the u l timate

‘ ’
anni h ilation o f t h e wicked may c laim o n e a d

,
vantage over its rival the theory o f universal

,
restoration . I n its a ppeal to the certainty o f

future punishment an d to the irrevocab l e character
of future d estiny it is somewhat more in
,
accor d ance t h an t h e other with the fin d i n gs at

once o f conscience a n d o f Scripture But both .
theories are in co m petent solutions o f the awful

problem wh ic h t h ey attempt I t is O bvious t h at .
IN M OD ER N T HE OLO GY 67
neither of them can be made to consist with

the who l e doctrine of Scripture as to the future
of man . But the writer does not discuss the
popu l ar theory of the endless su ff ering o f the
lost nor does he give his own interpretation of
,
the teaching of the Bi b le a b o u t the future punish

ment of S in .
By asserting that the popular doctrine of the

natural immorta l ity of the so ul — i e o f the . .
necessar y and endless permanence of all human

—
souls has no p l ace in the Bi b le and di ff ers ,
from the teaching of t he New Testament and ,
that it was derived from Plato and by his own ,
rejection of this doctrine as destitute of adequate

proof Dr Laidlaw has anticipated my teaching
,
.
in this volume It is worth y of note that whi l e

.
,
rejecting as not taught in the Bi b le the theor y

, ,
of conditiona l immortality he does not quote

,
any passage of Hol y Scripture as contradicting it .
We come now to D R S A L M O N D S vo l ume

.
’
on The Chr i st ia n D o ct r i n e of I m m or t a lity This .
titl e he appropriately exp l ains in the pre f ace ed 1 ,

.
“
It will b e seen that the word Immortal it y ‘
’
is used in the large sense which Pau l gives it

68 I M M O R TALITY
wh en h e speaks o f this mortal putting o n ‘ ’
’
‘
immortality Life eternal life the immortality
.
, ,
o f the man not the i mmortality o f the soul is

, ,
the message o f the Bible a l ike i n O ld Testament ,
and in New in Christ an d in Apostle in Jo h n

, ,
”
an d i n Paul The w riter e x pounds in general
.
,
agreement wit h the present work t h e opinions of ,
the Je w s an d o f various ancient nations about a

future life ; and in d icates correctly the essential
d i ff erence bet w een t h e teaching o f Plato an d
t h at o f t h e New Testament He a d ds o n .
,
p . t h at w h en Christ came Helleni c “

,
t h oug h t rule d the w orl d .
D r Salmond ex pounds also the teach ing o f

.
Christ t h e general apostolic doctrine and the

, ,
Pauline d octrine O f C h rist he says o n p 3 1 6 .

,
.
,
His gift t o men is n o t t h e in culcation o f the

truth o f an en d less e x istence not any dogma ,
O f t h e soul s deat h less perpetuity but the ’
reve l ation o f a hig h er life and the inspiration ,
o f a h ope stronger than any S peculation sacre d ly ,
governing con d uct an d accessible t o the humblest ,
soul ”
. O f Paul he says o n p 4 5 8 He never ,
.
,
Th e r e fe r e n ce s a re to t h e fo u rt h e d iti o n !u st p ub l is h e d
,
.
I N M OD E R N T HE OLO GY 69
contemp l ates a simpl e immorta l it y of soul ; he

never argues for man s surviva l mere ly on the
’
”
ground that there is a mind or spirit in him .
It is quite c l ear that in D r Sa l mond s View

, .
’
the Bi bl e does not teach the endl ess permanence

of al l human sou l s This l ast doctrine which
.
,
has occupied SO l arge a p l ace i n popu l ar theolog y ,
he passes over a l most in silence .
Of the doctrine of Annihi l ation

“
o ur
author sa y s on p 4 7 3 that
,
. It had a l arge
, ,
“
and we ll understood p l ace in pre Christian

- -
specu l ation It assumed di ff erent shapes and

.
,
was taught in di ff erent interests in the faiths

and philosophies of the o l d wor l d He thus .
”
admits in harmon y with ch 1 1 o f this b oo k that

,
. .
,
Plato s doctrine o f the immortality o f the sou l

’
was far from universa l in the ancient wor l d .
O n p 4 7 4 D r Salmond says in m y opinion

. .
,
j ust ly that the advocates o f conditional i m m o r

,
talit y have overstated their case by c l aiming as

on their side the earl iest Christian writers B ut .
he mistrans l ates his most important quotation

in proof of the end l ess su ff ering o r the l ost v iz ,
.
words attri b uted to Po ly carp in ch xi of t he . .

Epistle O f the Churc h at Smyrna w h ic h s h oul d ,
”
be n o t per petual torment of eternal fire but
,
“
,
“
the fire o f t h e coming j udgment an d eternal
punis h ment ; same w ords as i n M t x xv 4 6 . . .
T h e same mis translation is given in Dr Pusey s .

’
Et e r n a l Pun i shm e n t p I 5 3 , . .
O ur author says o n p 4 7 5 that Iren ae us

, .
,
“
speaks also o f immortal souls an d o f t h e
‘ ’
‘
eternal d uration o f punis h ments
’
B ut .
u nfortu nately D r Salmon d d oes not say w h ere

.
I r e n m u s uses t h ese p h rases Possibly he refers .
t o t h e two passages mentione d o n p 4 2 of t h is .
book I ren ae us frequently quotes M t xxv 4 1

. . .
,
” ”
“
per p etual o r eternal fi r e ; e g b k s iv
“
. . . .
28 .2 iii 2 3 3 but so far as I h ave notice d

,
. .
h e d oes not expoun d t h e meaning o f the wor d

e te r n a l i n t h is verse o r in v 4 6 O n the other ‘
. .
h an d he argues in bk v 2 7 2 as I do o n
, , . . .
,
p 1 7 6 o f my L a st Thi ngs that t h e goo d t h ings

.
,
from Go d being eterna l an d endless t h e privation ,
of them also is for this reason e t e r n a l a n d

, ,
e n dle ss a i oi m o g K a i dr e he fi r rog N otice t h at

n . .
here the wor d en dless is adde d t o the word e t e r n a l

as a descri p tion o f t h e loss o f end l ess b lessing .
IN MOD ER N T HE OLO GY 7 1
This suggests strong ly that t he words were not

s y non y mous ; for otherwise the addition wo u l d
b e meaning l ess tauto l og y .
In contending against the theor y of conditional

I mmorta l ity D r Sa l mond sometimes betra y s a
,
.
disposition to accept the doctrine of the end l ess

permanence of a ll human souls He quotes with .
approva l on p 4 87 a writer who says that the

,
.
,
notion of a sou l immorta l enough to l ive through

death b ut not immortal enough to live for ever
, ,
is too chi l dish to b e entertained b e y ond the

”
l itt l e school o f l itera l ists who de l ight i n it .
Again on p 4 9 7 he as k s :
,
. If man is not
,
“
inherentl y immorta l wh y shou l d the sinful man ,
”
su b sist at all after death ! The answer t o this
question is eas y God has decreed that whatever
.
,
a man sows this he S hall also reap And b ecause

, .
,
f o r this reaping there is not space in the present
life He has decreed that after death comes

,
judgment this l ast involving conscious existence

,
at l east for a time But this moral necessit y for

.
the survival of the wic k ed a ff ords no proof

or presumption that the y wi ll a b ide for ever
in su ff ering For though we can se e a mora l
.
,
7 2 I M M O R TALIT Y
necessity for j u d gment after deat h w e can conceive

,
n o moral ends t o be serve d by en d less permanence
o f evil in t h is awful form an irremovable blemis h

,
on t h e rescue d an d glori fie d universe o f G o d .
Certainly t h e above suggestion is not absur d I t .
h a s been vin d icated as legitimate by n o t a few

mo d ern t h eologians who cannot be d ismisse d
”
as chil d ish
“
.
An all i mportant point in D r Salmon d s book

- .
’
i s t h at w h ile evi d ently disliking t h e doctrine o f

t h e ulti mate e x tinction o f t h e wicke d an d ,
apparently favouring t h e tra d itional d octrine o f

the endless permanence o f all h uman souls t h is ,
involving en d less su ff ering o f t h e lost he d oes

,
not state plai nly h is o w n belief Certainly he

.
br i ngs n o proof from t h e Bible o r elsew h ere f o r

t h e popular d octrine o f th e immortality o f the
soul He thus a ff or d s strong presumption that
.
i t is n o t taught there and t h at i t d oes n o t rest

,
o n any reliab l e evi d ence .
T h at in a work o n The C h ristian D octrine

“
of Immortality the w riter d oes not d iscuss o r

mention t h e d octrine o f the Immortality o f
th e Soul w h ic h h as exerted so remarkable an
,
IN MOD ER N THE OLO GY 73
influence on al l Christian thought is a serious ,
defect in this interesting vo l ume .
D R W E LL D O N b ishop of Calcutta in his

.
, ,
attractive b oo k on The Hope of I m m or t a l ity ,
endeavours to say something for the immorta l it y

of the sou l without appeal ing to the Bi b le But he .
is not ver y sure of his ground For o n p 3 he .

, .
,
writes : I do not aspire to prove Immortality

“
,
but to ma k e it pro b a bl e His doubt is far .
reaching For on p 5 he says : N O histori cal

.
,
.
,
”
fact is certain And he fears ( see p 1 0) that
. .
his book may leave his readers in some “
”
uncertainty ; a probab l e consequence which ,
strange to sa y he does not regret

, .
D r W e lldo n d efines clearl y o n p 5 7 the

.
, .
,
opinion he endeavours to make proba bl e The .

“
soul is immorta l i e everl asting It does not

, . . .
merely survi v e death ; it survives everlasti n gly .
I t survives in virtue of the character which

distinguishes it from all that is dissolu bl e and
”
destructi bl e Again on p 6 3 he w rites
.
, .
:
The soul which lives after death is not onl y

spiritual b ut emotional and rational It is the .
whole immaterial part of man It survives and .

74 I M M O R TALITY
survives eternally in the fulness o f its i ntellectua l ,
mora l and spiritual powers

, .
The thir d chapter o n The V alue o f the

,
“
”
Belief is an able and beautiful statement o f
,
the moral w orth o f a belief that beyon d the

grave en dl ess reward awaits the righteous In .
c hs . iv an d v the writer ad d uces the evi d ences

. .
,
external an d internal fo r immortality U n fo r

,
.
t u n a t e l y I n so d oing
, h e omits as outside the
, ,
scope o f his work the one groun d o n w h ic h

,
the Christian h ope rests securely viz t h e promise , .
of l ife in Christ Jesus wit h its historical an d

experimental cre d entials This omission is most .
serio u s . For Dr W e lldo n s book leaves t h e

.
’
impression t h at this hope rests only o n what he

a d mits t o be the uncertain grounds here adduced .
W h enever these outlying proofs are brought

for w ar d they ought t o be supplemented by t h e
,
more soli d proof given t o us in Christ The .
evidence ad d uce d is h alting and uncertain So .
far as it goes i t a ff ords a probability that man

w ill survive death And this survi val the writer
.
acce pts as proof or presumption o f the truth o f

his main thesis v iz that a l l human souls will
, .
,
I N MOD E R N T HE OLO GY 75
in virtue of their nature survive for ever ; thus

,
confounding survival with end l ess survival .
The l ast chapter discusses The Christian “
”
Ampl ification of the Belief in Immortal it y .
Li k e some other writers Dr W e lldo n says

, .
Christianit y does not prove immortality It .
assumes immorta l it y ; or to spea k exactl y it ,
b reathes a spiritual atm o sphere in which the

assumption of immortality is fe l t to b e natural
”
or even necessary This is a terri ble under
.
statement For Christ and His Apostles asserted

.
again and again in plainest language that eternal

life awaits a ll who put faith in Him : and in
proof of this assertion God raised Him from
the dead Consequent ly the Christian hope of
.
immortalit y rests not on the uncertain grounds

,
adduced in this b oo k b ut on the sure word o f

,
our risen Lord .
O n p 3 4 2 we read :
. O f He ll as it is call ed , ,
and of the discip l inary process to which unha l lowed

soul s are su bjected when this l i fe is ended it is ,
impossi b le to form a conception save through

the contrast in which it stands to the b e a t ifi c
state ; for it has not b een the wi l l of God t o
76 I M M O R TALITY
reveal more t h an its mere S ha d o wy outline Dr . .
W e lldo n suggests the hope that when the soul “
stan d s at the j udgment bar t h e misery o f sin-

, ,
the pain o f loss the burning sense o f all t h at

,
mig h t have been an d ye t is not an d may never

be above all the ever present consciousness o f
,
alienation from Hi m t o w h om man s spiritual ’
being tends u nce a singly will be an agony so s h arp

,
an d subtle as t o e x tort an exceeding bitter cry

f o r the par d on and peace o f Heaven
”
.
Although D r W e lldo n asserts e g o n p 3 4 9

.
,
. . .
,
t h at immortality is the inalienable prerogative

“
”
o f man his essay a ff or d s fair presumptive proof
,
t h at this is not taug h t in t h e Bible ; w hich is

my contention in t h is volume What degree o f
.
probability he h as claime d f o r h is assertion his ,
rea d ers w ill j u d ge .
The last book t o wh ich I shall refer as d efen d ,
ing t he immortality o f the soul is a most attractive ,
an d in many respects e x cellent volume o n Chr i st i a n

The o logy recently published b y an American
theologian D R W N C L A R K E He asserts
, . . . .
,
on p 1 9 2 that M A N 1 3 I M M O R T A L t h at is to
.
,
“
,
sa
y t h
,
e human persona l ity is undying The spirit .
IN M OD E R N T HE OLO G Y 77
is the person and what is here a fli r m e d is that

,
the human spirit with its essentia l powers in which

,
it resem bl es God is destined to l ive on end l ess ly

,
.
A human being will never cease to b e a human

”
being . But for this statement he does not
, ,
quote Ho ly Scripture O n p 1 9 8 he writes . .
The influence of Jesus certain ly has supported

in Christians the conviction that a ll men live for
ever ; for among Christians this b e l ief has been
he l d with on l y occasional variations not mere l y
, ,
as a natural conviction b ut as a Christian

certainty Christ does not a ffirm in so man y
.
words that all men l ive for ever but He power ,
ful l y teaches it by His attitude and mode of

appeal to men .
O n pp 4 5 0 4 5 3 Dr C l ark e refe rs to the

.
- .
doctrine of conditional immorta l it y ; b ut without

approval He denies a b odi ly return o f Christ
.
and a judgment at the end of the world So .
p 4 5 8 : If the coming of Christ is conceived

.
“
as spiritua l not visi bl e and as a pro ce ss not an

, , ,
event a change in one s idea o f the resurrection

,
’
wi ll necessari l y follow If no visi bl e descent of

.
Christ is loo k ed for no simu l taneous resurrection

,
78 I M M O R TALITY
of h umanity o n the eart h will be e x pected .
I f we accept t h e vie w o f Christ s coming that

’
has been expresse d o n previous pages we s h all ,
naturally think that each human being s r e su r r e c

’
tion takes place at h is d eat h an d consists i n t h e

,
rising o f the man from death t o life in anot h er

real m o f life . According t o this view
resurrection is not simultaneous for all but c o n ,
t in u o us o r successive ; an d f o r n o h uman being

,
is t h ere any intervening perio d o f dise m b o di

ment ”
. Ho w far remove d t h is teac h ing is from
that o f the New Testament I h ave in my volume
,
o n The L a st Th i n s en d eavoure d to prove

g .
In h is d iscussion o f final d estinies o n pp 4 7 4

, .
4 80,
D r Clarke
. expresses a hope that for most
or fo r all men there may be probation an d
salvation beyond the grave O n p 4 7 7 h e
. .
remin d s us that t h ere are passages i n t h e New

Testament in which t h ere seems t o be h ope t h at
G o d w ill yet gain t h e love an d devotion o f all
souls There arises also the question whether
.
Go d w oul d not be just so far d efeate d if an

endless dua l ism were established i n His universe
by the endless sway o f S i n over a part o f His
I N MOD E R N T HE OLO GY 79
inte ll igent creatures From such considerations

.
comes the hope of man y that God wi ll fina l l y

”
b ring all sou l s from sin to ho l iness SO on .
p 4 7 8 : It is hard to b e l ieve that God inde

.
“
”
finite ly perpetuates s u ff ering that is not useful .
These two vo l umes b y Bishop W e lldo n and

,
D r Clar k e revea l the natura l tendenc y of the

.
,
doctrine of the immorta l ity o f a l l human sou l s .
The y who b elieve that to every man God has

given an inte ll igence which whatever he may do , ,
wi l l for an end l ess succession of ages k now and

fee l ma y we ll b e pardoned if they cherish a hope
,
that this imperishab le gift wi l l b e to him not an ,
end l ess curse b ut u l timatel y an endless b lessing

, .
Thus as with O rigen in the third century so with

, ,
man y now Plato s doctrine of the immortal ity

,
’
of the sou l has b een the parent of a doctrine

of universa l sa l vation The y a l so i ll ustrate the
.
danger invo l ved in adding to the theo l ogy of the

Church even in the supposed interests of the
,
Christian l ife doctrines not taught in the B i bl e

, .
We have no right to go b eyond the p l ain and

a b undant teaching of the Sacred B oo k And .
,
to do so is perilous in the extreme

, .
80 I M M O R TALITY
To su m mo d ern works O f the s ix
p u .
quote d i n t h is chapter not o n e attempts t o ,
prove from the B ible although some o f t h em ,
endeavour to prove in ot h er w ays o r assume ,
w ithout proof the en d less permanence o f all

,
h uman souls T h is a ff or d s a presumption har d ly

.
distinguishable from certai nty th at this doctrine

is not directly o r in d irectly taught in the Holy
Scriptures An d in a matter pertai ning altog e ther
.
t o the unseen w orld ot h er proof is worthless , .
It may t h erefore be d ismisse d a s n o part o f t h e

Gos pe l o f Christ .
T h e most cons picuous protest in o u r time

against the d octrine o f t h e i mmortality o f t h e
soul in the sense o f the end l ess survival o f all
,
human sou l s is that ma d e by the R EV ED W A R D

,
.
W H I T E in h is L if e i n Chr i st publis h e d in 1 87 5 , ,
a t h ir d e d ition revised an d enlarge d i n 1 87 7

, , .
This bol d protest ren d ere d great service by

claiming a reconsideration o f the whole subject .
I t w as h owever in my View weakened by the

, , ,
writer s en d eavour t o prove t h at the Bible teaches

’
the ultimate extinction of the lost thus h imself ,

I N M OD ER N T HE OLO GY 81
going as I thin k b eyond the teaching of Ho ly

, ,
Scripture in another direction M r White s boo k . .

’
also l ies open to o bjection on sundry matters of

detai l . But in spite o f all this it remains a
, ,
most honourabl e protest against prevalent and

popu l ar error .
The teaching of M r White is a bl y supported .
b y D R E PET A V EL o f Lausanne in a very

. .
, ,
useful vo l ume entitled The Pr o ble m of I m m or t a li ty .
A very remar k a bl e and va l ua bl e protest against

the same doctri n e is found in G L A D S T O N E S ’
St u di e s subse r v i e n t t o t he w o r ks f
o B i shop B ut le r .
On p . 1 the writer ca lls attentio n to the two

4 2
meanings frequently confused or identified e g

, , . .
b y Bishop W e lldo n quoted a b ove o f the phrase ,
i m m or ta li ty of t he so u l Viz its survival o f death

,
.
or it s endless survival He points out that .
But l er s argument in his J n a logy pt i ch 7

’
,
. . .
,
“
is a plea not for immorta l ity proper ly so ca ll ed , ,
b ut for persistence of life as against the specia l

occasion of death There are those who
.
sa y these two things survival and immortalit y , ,
are b ut o n e ; and who seem to suppose that the

case of surmounting death is l i k e that o f Ob taining
6
82 I M M O R TALITY
a p assport wh ic h w ill carry us over the frontier
o f some foreign country ; wh ere t h is once d one , ,
w e h ave n o other i mpediment t o apprehend But .

,
o n suc h an as sumptio n o f the i d entity o f survival
w it h immortality it is t o be observe d t h at it is
,
a pure a ssumption an d not h ing more We have

, .
n o title to postulate i n l i m i n e that o w ers w hic h

p ,
may be so a dj uste d o r equippe d as t o face t h e

conti ngency o f d eat h must therefore be in all,
res pects suc h a s t o be certain o f faci n g w ith a

like i m punity every ot h er contingency wh ich for ,
aug h t w e know t h e d i mness o f th e f uture may

,
enfol d in its ample bosom Such questions may .
remain open an d w ithout prej u d ice fo r in d e

,
pen d ent d iscussion .
M r Gla d stone d enies strongly an d again an d

.
,
again t h at t h e Bible ever teaches in t h e proper

, ,
sense o f t h e phrase t h e i mmortality o f t h e soul

, .
SO o n p 1 9 7 f
,
. . Another consi d eration o f t h e
“
h ig h est importance is that the natural immortality

o f t h e soul is a d octrine wh olly un k no w n t o t h e
Holy Scriptures an d stan d ing on n o hig h er plane

,
t h an t h at o f a n ingeniously sustaine d but gravely ,
an d formi d ably conteste d phi l osophical opinio n, .

IN MO D ER N T HEOLO GY 83
And surely there is nothing as to which we ought

,
to be more on our guard than the entrance into

,
t he preci nct of Christian doctrine either without ,
authority or b y an a b use of authority of phi l o ,
sophical spec u lations disgui sed as truths of D ivine

R eve l ation They bri ng with them a grave
.
restraint on mental liberty b ut what i s worse is ,
that their b asis is a pretension essential ly fal se ,
and productive b y rational retri b ution of other

falsehoods Under these t w o hea d s we may
.
,
perhaps find that we have am ple warrant for

dec l ining to accept the tenet of natur a l im m o r
”
tal ity as a truth of D ivine R evelation .
Contrast t h is plain statement which if untrue, , ,
ma y b e disproved b y one quotation from t h e

Bibl e with the equivocal l anguage quoted above
,
from writers who assert or assume o r do not

, ,
deny the doctrine in question

,
.
The venera bl e statesman denies that this

doctrine was taught in the ear l iest age of the
Church So on p 1 84 :
. . The secret of this
“
menta l freedom the condition which made it

,
possi bl e was the a b sence from the scene o f any

,
doctrine of a natura l immorta l it y inherent to the

84 I M M O R TALITY
soul Absent it may be termed f o r all practi cal

.
,
p urposes ,
until the thir d century ; f o r though
it w as ta u g h t by Tertullian i n conne x ion w it h
t h e Platonic i d eas it w as n o t given forth as
,
belonging t o t h e d octrine o f Christ or His

Apostles . I t seems t o m e as if it were from
the time o f O rigen that we are to regar d the
i d ea o f n atural as oppose d to t h at o f Christian
, ,
immortality as beginni ng t o gai n a firm foothol d

”
in the Christian C h urc h This is an i m portant
.
confirmation o f ch iii o f this volume

. . .
O n p 1 88f w e read
. . It seems in d isputable
,
“
t h at the materia l s f o r t h e opinion that the soul

is by nature i mmortal wh ether we call it d ogma
,
o r hypothesis were fo r a long perio d in course

,
o f stea d y accumulation ; t h ough t h is w as not so

from the first After some generations however
.
, ,
the mental temper and disposition o f C h ristians

incline d more an d more t o its reception Wit h .
o u t t h ese assum tions i t woul d be impossible to

p
account for t h e w holesale c h ange w hich has taken
place in the mind o f Christendom w ith regard
t o the subj ect o f natural i mmortality I t would
.
be di ffi cult I think to name any other subj ect

, ,
IN MOD E R N T HEOLO GY 85
connected with re l igious b e l ief ( though not

proper ly b e l onging to it ) on which we can point
to so sweeping and a b so l ute a re o l ution of v
opinion from the period b efore O rigen when

, ,
t he idea of an immorta l ity proper l y natura l was
un k nown or nearly hidden to the centuries of

,
the l ater M idd l e Ages and of modern time when , ,
at least in the West it had b ecome practicall y

,
undisputed and universal .
In further agreement with p 5 2 of th is b oo k

.
,
M r G l adstone say s on p 1 9 1
. .It seems how
“
,
ever to b e general ly felt that the determining

,
epoch in the history of seminal Christian thought

upon this su bject w as the life of St Augustine .
,
together with that period fo ll owing c l osely upon

it when the Western Church became rapidly
,
im b ued with his theo l ogy in almost its entire

”
compass .
C N O N GO
A R E —
in vol ii pp 2 1 0 2 1 4 of his
, .
. .
recent work on The Ep i st le t o t he R o m a n s accepts ,
without modification the teaching in Gl adstone s ’
St udi e s and in m y own vo l ume on The La st

Thi ngs in reference b oth to the future punishment
of sin and the immorta l ity of the soul O n .
86 I M M O R TALITY
p 2 1 2 h e w rites
. Careful attention t o the
“
origin o f the d octri n e o f the necessary immortality

or in d estructibility o f eac h h uman soul as ,
state d for instance by Augustine o r Aquinas w il l ,
probably convince us that it was n o part o f the

original Christian message o r o f really cat h olic
,
doctrine It w as rat h er a speculation o f Platon ism

.
taking possession o f t h e Church An d this

.
consideration leaves open possibilities o f t h e

ultimate extinction o f personal consciousness in
the lost wh ic h Augusti nianism somewh at ru d ely
closed .
T h e writer protests as I d o agai nst t h e assertion

, ,
t h at t h e souls o f the lost will be at t h e last

e x tinguis h e d. T h ese positive positions are no
more j ustifie d t h an t h ose o f o u r forefat h ers wh ich
w e h ave d eprecate d We must recognize the
.
limits o f positive knowle d ge .
T h is confirmation by a theologian so eminent

,
as Canon Gore o f t h e protest now restate d an d

,
amp l ifie d in t h is book is o f utmost v a l ue An d .
a gainst it I kno w not h ing So far as I h ave

.
rea d no mo d ern writer h as d one anyth ing wh at

,
ever t o prove fro m th e Bible o r in any other

,
I N M O D ER N T HE OLO GY 87
way the end l ess permanence of the human soul

,
.
This is strong presumptive evidence that no val id

proof of this doctrine can b e b rought ; and thus
confirms m y contention in ch ii that it was not
. .
taught b y Christ
.
C HA P T E R V
PRA C T I C A L C O N SE!UEN C ES . T HE DO OM
O F T HE L O ST
W E h ave n o w trace d t h e popu l ar an d tra d itional

doctrine o f the en d less permanence o f al l h uman
souls t o the teaching o f Plato an d t o the sc h ool
o f Greek p h ilosop h ers o f w h ic h h e is t h e most
illustrious re presentative ; an d h ave endeavoured
t o prove that it was altogether alien fi o m t h e
'
p h rase an d thoug h t o f C h rist an d His Apostles

so far as His teac h ing an d theirs are embo d ie d
in t h e New Testament an d t h at it entere d into
, ,
an d subsequently became prevalent in the C h urch

,
mai nl y through th e in fluence o f Plato apparently

,
in t h e latter part o f the secon d century We .
h ave also consi d ere d t h e teac h ing o f several

modern t h eologi ans but h ave n o t foun d any
,
o n e who seriously en d eavours t o rove t h at the

p
i m mortality o f the soul is taught in the Bi b le .
as
PR A CTI C AL C O N SE!U E NC ES 89
In this chapter I shall discuss a few passages

in the B i bl e which shed some l ight on th e nature
of the human sou l the inferences we ma y fairl y
,
draw from them and the b earing of these in

,
f e r e n ce s and of the popular doctrine of the

immortalit y of the sou l on Christian thought ,
and especia ll y on the u l timate doom of those

who r eject the Gospe l of Christ .
In Gen i 2 6 man is raised conspicuous ly a b ove

. .
a ll other creatures of God b y the deli berate

purpose Le t Us ma k e man in O ur image
'
“
, ,
”
according to O ur l i k eness and b y his destination
,
to
“
rul e among the fish of the se a and among
the b irds of the heaven and among the cattle and
”
i n a l l the earth ; by the careful and repeated
statement in v 2 7 of the accomp l ishment of
.
this purpose ; and by the b lessing and command

in o 2 8 I t is worthy of note that i n ch ix 6
. . . .
,
even after the fall and again in Jas iii 9 man

,
. .
,
is sti l l said to b e made in the li k eness of God .
All this ca ll s attention to the superiorit y of man

to the other anima l s and this superiorit y resides
chiefl y though not exc l usive l y in the soul of man
, , .
The unique superiority of man b oth b ody and ,

90 I M M O R TALITY
soul is furt h er emp h asize d in ch 11 7 where
, . .
,
he is sai d to h ave been forme d o u t o f dust by

a definite act o f G o d an d his soul is attribute d
,
t o a speci a l inbreat h ing of life from G o d .
T h at even fallen man is d escribe d as sti ll ma d e

in t h e image o f God i mplies that this image ,
w as not altoget h er lost by sin An d we notice .
t h at man s i ntelligence an d self determination su r

’
—
v iv e d t h e fall O n t h e other h an d w e rea d

.
,
in Co l iii 1 0 t h at t h e ne w m a n is rene we d
. .
“
for knowle d ge accor d ing to t h e image o f Him

,
”
t h at create d h i m T h is suggests irresistibly
.
t h at t h e image o f G o d inclu d e d a moral likeness

to t h e Creator .
U pon t h is image o f G o d lig h t is Sh e d by Ro m , .
v iii. 2
9 :
“
W h om H e forekne w H e also fore ,
or d aine d t o be conforme d t o t h e image o f His

So n i n or d er t h at h e may be Firstborn among
,
many bret h ren We h ave h ere the eternal

.
Fat h er contem plating t h e eternal Son w it h absolute

satisfaction an d resolving before t h e w orl d w as
, , ,
t o surroun d Him w ith later born sons who in ,
create d human form w ill bear His image In,

.
consequence o f man s sin t h is creative purpose

’
,
PR A CTI C AL C O N S E!U E NC E S 9 1
involved the su ff ering and death of the eterna l

Archety pe But when Paul wrote the p rice
.
, ,
had been paid ; and he announces the coming

accomp l ishment of t he original creative purpose .
Casual references in the O ld Testament e g ,

. .
Eccl iii 2 1 xii 7 Jo b xxxii 8 call attention

. .
, .
, .
,
to the dignity of man s spirit and to its essential ’
superiority to the life of anima l s But they do .
nothing to prove or suggest i ts end l ess permanence

when through man s o b durate disobedience God s
,
’
,
’
purpose of merc y towards the indi v idua l has b een

fina l l y frustrated For throughout the New .
,
Testament the eternal life promised by Christ

,
is made conditional o n faith and o bedience : j ust

as in Gen ii 1 7 continuance of the l ife given
,
. .
,
in Paradise is made conditional on o b edience t o

a specific D ivine command .
Some Christian writers have endeavoured to

support the doctrine that a ll human sou l s will
thin k and fee l for ever by metaph y sical arguments
derived li k e those of Plato from its immaterial
, ,
and uncompounded nature O thers have suggested .
that since sin is utter ly against the creative

,
purpo se of God i ts ultimate resu l t must be to

,
extinguish t h e rati onal existence w hich He has
given A ll such arguments seem to me valueless
. .
Fo r life an d reason an d si n are to us insoluble

mysteries Certain l y He who o u t o f n othing
.
calle d the reasoning soul of man can if He wi ll

, ,
sen d it back t o the non—existence from w h ic h it

came But the d estruction threatene d to those
.
who rej ect the sa l vation o ff ere d by Christ is n o

‘
proof t h at He wi l l d o so Fo r in many cases

.
obj ects said to be de st r oy ed (se e p 3 2 ) evi d ently

.
continue t o exist without prospect o f extinction .
O ur only sources of knowledge touching the

ultimate destinies of men are the historic revela
tions from G o d recorded i n the Bible an d especially
t h e supreme revelation given t o us in C h rist an d
recorde d in the N ew Testament .
The Bible teaches clearly t hat man as create d

was d estine d by G o d t o s h are His en d less blesse d
ness But this by no means implies t h at every
.
man will exist for ever even w h en existe n ce h as

become an unmi x e d curse .
T h e real significance o f t h e doctrine o f the

i mmortality o f the soul is it s bearing on the
T HE D OOM O F T HE LO ST 93
u l timate destiny of the wic k ed This so l emn .
su bject demands now b rief consideration .
The on ly clear passage in the O l d Testament

on this topic is D a n xii 2 : M any of them . .
that s l eep in the dust o f the earth shall awa k e ,
some to eternal life and some to shame to , ,
”
eternal a b horrence .
Throughout the New Testament e g M t V I I ,

. . . .
xxv 2— 6 John iii 1 6 2 R m

13 ,
1 4 3 4
, . V
9 o ,
.
, .
, .
— —
ii 7 1 2 2 Th i 7 9 R e v xx 1 2 1 5 we read
.
— . . .
.
, , ,
of two paths one leading to l ife eterna l and the

, ,
other to destruction This last denotes as we .

,
sa w o n p 3 1 utter ruin the loss of all that

.
, ,
gives worth to existence whether o r not the ,
l ost o bject ceases to exist o r continues in a

worth less existence .
Some other passages spea k of this ruin as

final So Ph iii 1 9 whose end is destruction
. . .
,
“
2 Cor xi 1 ministers of Satan whose end wi l l

.
5 .
, ,
be accordi n g to their wor k s He b v i 8 whose . .

,
end is to b e b urnt Final it y is also imp l ied .

’7
I n the frequent metaphor of the destruction o f

vegetab le matter by fire So M t iii 1 2 the . . .
,
“
cha ff He will bur n up with fire unquencha b le -

94 I MMO R TALITY
c h x iii 3 0
. collect first the tares and bin d
.
,
“
,
them into bun d les to bur n them up v ,4 0

‘
.
,
“
j ust as then t h e t a res are gat h ered together
an d bur n t up with fire so shall i t be at the
-
,
”
completion of t h e age This meta phor implies .
finality Fo r no o n e who had any hope o r

.
thought o f their ulti mate restoration coul d co m

pare the d oom o f the w icked t o c h a ff o r wee d s
cast into the fire an d there bur n t up Finality -
.
is also i mplie d in M t xxvi 24 : Good w ere it . .
”
fo r hi m if that man ha d n o t been born Fo r .
if endless blesse d ness even in some cases after ,
long su ffering were t h e ultimate destiny o f all

,
men existence w ould in every case be an ultimate

,
blessing T h ese passages prove t h at universal

.
salvation w as far from the t h ought o f t h eir writers .
O ther passages s peak o f t h e acute su ff eri n g

o f t h e lost So M t V iii 1 2 x iii 4 2 5 0 xx ii
. . .
, .
, ,
.
13 xx iv 5 1 x xv 3 0 Luke xiii 2 8 : There

,
.
,
.
,
.
“
s h a ll be wai ling an d gnashing of teeth Also .
ch x vi 2 3 2 4 2 5 : lifte d up h is eyes being

. .
, ,
“
in torments I am in anguish in this flame

. .
But i n these places nothing is said a b out t h e

d uration o f the su ff ering .
T HE DOO M O F T HE LO ST 95
The onl y passages in the Bi b le which suggest

the endless su ffering of the lost are the follow
ing
We have D a n x i i 2 a l ready quoted
. .M any ,
of them that S leep i n the dust of the earth sha l l

awa k e some to eternal l ife and some to shame
, , ,
”
to eterna l a bho r r en ce This l ast word is found
.
also in Isa lxvi 24 as a description of the corpses

. .
,
of the wic k ed : They shal l be an abhorrence

“
”
to all flesh . It describes not su ff ering which , ,
is far removed from our thought o f a corpse ,
b ut the horror produced in the b eholders Such .
horror may continue a s a memor y long after , ,
the o bject which evo k ed it has passed awa y ;

but not after the o bject has been restored The .
a b ov e passage cannot therefore be appealed to

in proof of the endless su ff ering of the l ost .
In M t xviii 8 xxv 4 1 we read of eternal

. .
, .
,
“
o r age—
( l as ting
) fire B ut this does not i mp ly
’
.
the endlessness of that which is cast into the fire .
Indeed the same words are used in Jude 7 to

descri b e th e fire which destro y ed Sodom and
Gomorrah : they l ie b e fore us as a pattern
“
,
undergoing j ust punishment of e te r n a l fi r e The .

96 I M M O R TALITY
fire w as g la st i ng in t h e sense that the d esolation
a e -
w rought by it lay before th e eyes o f Israel f o r

long a ges .
Another terrible picture o f the future punis h

men t O f S in is found in M ark ix 4 3 4 8 O ur— . .
Lor d h ere bi d s His hearers t o make any sacrifice ,
even surrender h an d o r foot o r eye rather than ,
“
g o away into Gehenna
”
T h is last word. H e ,
at once expounds by t h e a dd ition t o t h e fire ,
”
unquenchable I n a secon d warning we h ave
.
S imply the p h rase cast i nto Ge h enna

“
In .
a t h ird we h ave the same phrase w it h t h e

,
remarkab l e a dd ition w h ere their w orm d ies

,
“
”
not an d the fire is n o t quenc h e d
, .
T h is last phrase recalls at once Isa l x vi 24 . .

,
referre d t o above The p rophet sees a new

.
h eaven an d a new eart h Y e t ami d t h at glory

.
, ,
t h e glorified ones w ill go forth an d behol d t h e

corpses o f t h ose w ho h ave sinned T h e w ords .
before us suggest continuance o f th e awful spectacle .
Fo r if t h ere were n o corpses t o fee d upon the

, ,
w orm w oul d die : and if th ere were n o fuel

, ,
the fire w oul d be extinguis h ed .
T h e easiest e x planation o f these w or d s i n

T HE D OO M O F T HE LO ST 97
M ar k ix .
4 8is that the y were added to conve y
the idea of intense su ff ering l i k e that caused ,
b y the gnawing of a worm or by fir e For .
”
we have here no mention of corpses B ut “
.
the change from will not die will not

”
b e quenched in Isa l xvi 2 4 to the present
. .
tense in M ar k ix 4 8 their worm does not die

.
,
”
and the fire is not quenched suggests continuous ,
su ff ering in the present rather than endless

su ff ering in the future This change of tense
.
and the di ffi cult y of the metaphor forbid us to

rel y upon this passage as an assertion of the
end less torment of the lost .
Ver y conspicuous is the solemn announcement
in M t xxv 4 6
. .
,
these shall go away into
“
ete r n a l un i shm en t but the righteous into eternal

p ,
”
l ife
. We have already seen on p 2 9 that , .
,
the word et er n a l denotes a ge la st i ng and is -

,
frequentl y in the Septuagint app l ied to o bjects

whose duration is b y no mean end l ess But .
its precise meaning in this passage is immaterial ,
b ecause other p a ssages in the New Testament

imp l y as we shall se e that the punishment o f
, ,
the wic k ed wi ll be end l ess This meaning how .

98 I M M O R TALITY
ever lies not in the word but i n other N e w

, ,
Testament teaching .
We no w ask D oes age la st i ng pun i shm e n t

,
-
involve age lasting su ff ering

- ! Already we have
seen t h at in t h e Synoptist Gospels the punish
ment o f the wicked i ncludes acute su ff ering .
And indisputably the word a ge-la st i ng describes

the d uration o f the punish ment o r at least o f its ,
e ff ect But t h e future punishment o f sin w ill

.
inclu d e n o t only actual su ff ering b ut loss o f

, ,
the en d less blesse d ness for w h ich all men w ere

create d . Consequently w het h er o r not the
,
su ff ering continues t h e punishment will be as

,
lasting as the life forfeite d Fo r punis h ment

.
d oes n o t cease till t h e punishe d o n e is restore d

t o t h e con d ition in w h ic h h e woul d h ave been
if h e ha d not sinne d Consequently we need

.
n o t fear t h e parado x t h at a man may be un d er
going punishment eve n after he has ceased t o

exist : fo r if loss o f existence b e a j u d icially
,
inflicte d consequence o f si n it is itse l f a punish

,
ment . Similarly t he CI V l l penalty o f death is

,
not measured by the pain inflicted b ut by t h e

loss o f life No . o ne thinks apart from ,
T HE DOO M O F T HE LO ST 99
r etri b u t ion b e yond the grave that the punish ,
ment is over when the crimina l is dead This .
is we ll put by Augustine in his Cit v of G o d ,
b oo k xxi 1 1 . He who for some great crime

is punished with death do the l aws rec k on his ,
punishment by the space of time in which he

is put to death which is ver y b rief and not
, ,
b y this that he is removed for ever from the

,
”
societ y of the l iving ! I n se mp i t e r n um a uf e r un t
de soci e t a te v i v e n t i um Just SO whatever b ecomes
.
,
of the l ost their punishment continues so l ong

,
as the y are not restored to the favour and l ife
of God . I n other words the phrase e t e r n a l ,
un i shm e n t does not imp ly and the verse b efore

p ,
us does not assert end l ess su ff e ring SO D r

, . .
Pope quoted on p 6 2
,
. .
A sti l l more tremendous Vision of punishment

is found in R e v xiv 9—1 1 :. .If any one “
w orships the b east and his image and receives ,
a mar k on h is forehead or on his hand a l so ,
h e sha ll drin k of th e wine O f the fur y O f God .
These l ast words descri b e the s t u pif yin g e ff ect

Of this punishment The strange coll ocation
.
of words fo ll owing , which is mixed unmixed

“
in the c u p o f His anger suggests a combination

,
of di ff erent elements together w ith un d ilute d

intensity T h is terrible description o f su ff ering
.
is then strengt h ened by a change o f metaphor

t h ey sh all be tormente d with fire an d su l phur .
A Visible memento o f su ff ering is seen in t h e “
”
smoke o f their torment ; an d w e are to ld t h at
”
“
f o r ages o f ages it goes up
“
Even this
.
d oes n o t close the awful picture A few more

.
w or d s take u s almost i nto t h at sulphurous flame ,
an d re veal the ceaseless unrest o f the su ff erers

”
t h ere : an d t h ey have no rest day an d nig h t
“
.
An announcement o f su ff ering so terrible requires

careful specification o f t h e su ff erers : w ho wo r
ship the wild beast an d h is image an d i f any ,
o n e receives t h e mark o f his name .
This passage suggests per h aps but d oes n o t

,
expressly assert the endless su ff ering o f t h e

,
persons w hose doom is thus described Fo r t h e .
smo k e may go up even when the su ff ering o f

w hich it is a Visibl e memento h as cease d .
Age lasting torment is asserted i n R e v xx 1 0

- . .
The d evil was cast into the lake o f fire and

sul phur wh ere are the wild b east and the false
,
T HE DOOM O F T HE LO ST IOI
prophet : and they shal l b e tormented day and

”
night for the ages o f the ages But these .
words refer not to men b ut to persons o r ,
a b stractions whose active si n has been age l asting - .
These two passages in highly figurative langu age

, ,
from the most o b scure b oo k in the B i bl e a ,
boo k whose origin is vei l ed in inso l u b le mystery ,
are a ver y uns a fe foundation for i mportant

Christian doctrine .
It ma y b e admitted that the a b ove passages ,
or some of them suggest if they do not assert

, , ,
the end l ess su ff ering of the lost We now as k .

,
Are they su ffi cient to justify a confident assertion

that those exc l uded from the City of God will
undergo end l ess su ff ering ! For the following
reasons I thin k not
,
.
We find in the New Testament other passages

which ta k en by themse l ves suggest o r seem to
, , ,
assert doctrines which we are compe l led to rej ect

, .
To thousands of devout men R o m viii 2 9 . .

,
ix 1 4— 2 3 Eph i 4 5 John xv 1 6 have

.
, . .
, ,
.
,
se emed to assert the doctrine of unconditional

election and predestination now a l most universa l ly
,
re pudiat e d .And M t xvi 2 7 2 8 xxiv 3 4

. .
, , .
,
seem t o assert t h at C h rist would come t o j udge

t h e worl d during t h e lifetime o f those aroun d
Hi m These passages are quite as clear i n a
.
,
sense we cannot accept as are any w h ich seem ,
t o assert t h e en d less su ff ering o f the lost Th ey .
warn us not to accept especially in proof o f ,
a doctrine open to serious O bj ection a fe w te x ts ,
from t h e Bi bl e A l l the great doctrines o f the

.
Gospel are supported by abundant an d d ecisive

teac h ing o f Holy Scripture An d n o d octrine .
oug h t t o be asserte d w it h confi d ence unless thus

supporte d .
M oreover against t h is d octri ne may be se t

,
ot h er passages as clear an d as numerous as t h ose

quote d above .
In M t iii 1 2 the B aptist says

. .
,
The cha ff ,
“
He will bu r n up wit h fire unquenc h able ;

-
”
similarly U 1 0 cast into the fire
“
.
, T h is teac h .
ing is confirme d by Christ w ho says in c h xiii 3 0 , . .

,
“
At the time o f the harvest I shall say to the
reapers Gather first t h e tares an d bind them into
,
’I
bun d les to bur n them up N otice here twice .
an d again in v 4 0 the strong word K a n n a da e r

.
-
.
I t s u ggests irresistibly the extinc tion o f t h e

T HE DOOM O F T HE LO ST 19 3
o bjects bu r n t up For n o process k nown to us

-
.
is more li k e annihi l ation than is the destruction

of vegeta bl e matter by fi re ; whereas it has
nothing in common with end l ess su ff ering The .
same metaphor is found in John xv 6 He b v i 8 .

,
. . .
These passages I do not quote in proof of the

,
u l timate extinction of the lost ; b ut on l y to S ho w

how serious are the consequences o f b ui l ding
important doctrine on a few verses of the Bi b le .
Equa l ly opposed to the traditiona l d octrine of

the end l ess su fle r in g of the l ost is another group
‘
of passages v iz those which assert or imp ly

, .
the universa l reign of Christ 5 0 I sa xlv 2 3 . . .

,
quoted in R o m xiv 1 1 as inc l uding b oth Jews

. .
and Gentiles : As I l ive says the Lord to M e

“
, ,
every k nee shal l bow ; and ever y tongue shall

confess to God This great prophecy a cate
.
,
o r i c a l and solemn assertion refers evidently t

g ,
o
the willing homage of happy souls I t cannot .
b e fu l fi ll ed in the end l ess wail of the l ost The .
same ma y b e said of the purpose expressed i n

Ph 11 1 0 :
. .
“
That at the name of Jesus ever y
k nee ma y ho w of those i n heaven and on earth
,
and under t he eart h ; and every tongue confe s s

t h at Jesus C h rist is Lor d to t h e glory o f Go d
,
t h e Fat h er Similarly I Co r x v 2 8
. .Th e .
° “
So n Himself shal l be subj e cte d t o Him w h o

subjecte d a ll things t o Hi m in order that G o d
,
”
may be all things i n all These two passages
.
d escribe t h e ultimate aim o f t h e w ork o f Christ .
An d alt h ough t h e accomp l is h ment o f t h is purpo se

,
of infinite blessi n g i s contingent in reference t o ,
eac h in d ivi d ual o n h is o wn personal submission

,
t o C h rist it is in t h e last d egree unlikely that

,
t h is D ivine purpose o f uni versal h omage t o Christ

will be fo r ever frustrate d .
Certainly t h ese two groups o f passages from ,
all four Gospels an d from the un d isputed e pistles

o f Paul ,
are equal in number and weight t o t h e
passages from t h e Synoptist Gospels only an d
t h e B ook o f R evelation w h ic h suggest o r seem
to imply t h e endless su ff ering o f t h e lost .
V ie we d in t h e light o f the t wo other grou ps ,
t h is last group is an altogether unsafe foun d ation

f o r confi d ent assertion in Go d s name that t h ose
’
con d emned in the great d ay w ill undergo en d less

su ff ering .
N otice now th e e x treme seriousness o f t h e

T HE DOO M O F T HE LO ST 1 05
popu l ar doctrine which in this b oo k I have

discussed I f we accept as indisputa bl e truth
.
,
as it ha s be en accepted during fifteen centuries ,
the doctrine of the end l ess permanence of a ll

human souls the few and uncertain passages
, ,
quoted a b ove which sugges t or seem t o assert

,
the end l ess su ff ering of the l ost are rein forced

by the more numerous and much more decisive
passages which assert or imp ly the finality of
their doom e g Ph iii 1 9 2 Cor xi 1 5 He b
,
. . . .
,
. .
, .
vi. 8 1 Pet iv 1 7 M t xxvi 2 4 M ar k xiv 2 1

, . .
, . .
, .
,
and those which compare the doom of the l os t

to the destruction of vegeta bl e matter by fire .
In other words the doctrine b efore u s leaves

,
O pen on l y o n e alternative either the endl e ss ,
su ff ering of the lost or their u l timate restoration

to the favour of God and eterna l lif e .
Not on l y against the end l ess torment o f the

l ost as our fathers taught it
, b ut against an y ,
form of end l ess su ff ering or of an end l ess ,
pro l ongation O f an existence which is on l y a

he l p l ess consciousness of utter ruin the mora l ,
sense of thousands of inte ll igent and devout men

and women is in stern revo l t The more care .
fully t h ey consi d er it th e less are t h ey able t o
,
h armonize it wit h the infinite love o r even w it h ,
the j ustice o f Go d T o such persons it is useless

,
.
,
t o say that they are unab l e t o esti mate the evil
of sin an d the punishment it d eserves

,
Fo r .
,
ami d h uman fallibility an d error there is in ,
man an inborn sense o f j us tice and o f the due

proportion o f S in an d punis h ment whic h i n all ,
ages h as been recognized as a reflection i mperfect

, ,
but real o f t h e j ustice O f G o d

,
T h ere are .
children o f ten years O l d w h o if told that t h eir ,
father h ad punishe d anot h er c h il d h owever ,
naughty by burning h im t o d eath w ould at

, ,
once an d j ustly re pu d iate t h e statement wit h

i n d ignation M oreover the picture o f C h rist
.
,
i n t h e N ew Testament an d His teac h ing a s,
recor d e d th ere clai m and secure the homage

,
of t h e moral sense o f man an d this h om a ge,
pai d by that in us w h ich i s noblest an d best

t o t h e teaching an d c h aracter o f C h rist is t h e
most powerful proof o f Hi s divine excellence .
A doctrine w h ich i nstea d o f gaining t h e homage

,
o f o u r moral sense d rives it into revolt h as n o

, ,
moral authority ov e r u s M an s se nse o f ri gh t

’
.
and wrong needs to be educated ; and at best

is fa ll i b le
. B ut as taught b y Pau l in R o m ii
,
. .
14,
1 5
,
it is a divine transcript of the La w of
God ; and as such it cannot b e si l enced even
,
by quotation from the Ho l y Scriptures .
The practical consequence is that not a few ,
assuming as not Open to questio n that ever y ,
human sou l wil l thin k and fee l for ever have ,
been driven to hope and expect that a ll men wi l l

u l timatel y be received into the a b ode of the
blessed Thus as with O rigen the doctrine of
.
, ,
the immorta l ity of the soul has b een the parent

O f universa l ism In other words this doctrine
.
,
closes a wa y of escape from serious di ffi cult y

which the Bi ble leaves open to us By so doing
.
,
it has driven man y to force a way violent ly

through a door which the Sacred Writers do
not leave open .
We wi ll now after eliminating the doctrine

,
of the Immortality of the Sou l restate b riefly

,
the teaching of the New Testament a b out the

future punishment of si n .
The various writers of the New Testament

an d Christ as His wor d s are there recorde d divid e
th e h uman race at th e last j u d gment into t wo

wi d ely separate d classes T h e o n e class will be
.
receive d into a glory o n w h ic h falls n o shadow ;

the ot h er will be banis h e d into a d arkness in
w h ic h we look i n vain for o n e ray o f lig h t .
Betw een t h ese classes stan d s an i mpassable barrier .
T o o u r view this dual d ivision presents serious

,
di ffi culties
. It finds no p l ace f o r a large number
o f persons who seem to us unwort h y o f eith er
blessedness o r d estruction T h is di ffi culty the
.
,
N e w Testament d oes not h ing to remove o r

mitiga te C h rist promises to all w h o pu t fai th
.
i n Hi m etern a l h appiness ; but h aving sai d all,
th at is nee d ful f o r o u r salvation He d oes not h ing

,
t o satisfy o u r curiosity about t he d estiny o f the
p ersons j ust referre d t o We .must leave them

t o t h e w is d om an d love o f o u r Fath er in h eaven .
T h e various w riters o f t h e N e w Testament

d escri be t h e punis h men t t o be inflicte d o n t h e
great d ay as rui n utter h o peless an d final T h e
, , ,
.
Syno ptist Gospe ls also re present Christ as teac h ing ,
an d the B o ok o f R evelation teac h es in plain an d ,
awful lan guage t h at t h e lost will su ff er acute

,
an d continuous pain T h is actual su ff erin g is

.
T HE D OO M O F T HE LO ST 1 09
implied in the teaching b y Pau l and other writers

, ,
that retri b ution wi ll b e according to wor k s For .
proportion a te retri b ution invo l ves degrees of

punishment : and degrees of punishment imp ly
consciousn ess ; for unconsciousness is a l i k e to a l l .
M oreover consciousness of end l ess and g l orious

,
l ife forfeited through o u r o wn inexcusa bl e fo ll y

and sin involves remorse and menta l anguish
b e y ond conception T o be compel l ed in the
.
,
unsparing light of eternity to contemplate our,
own past sins when a ll fascination of si n has

,
worn away and our rej ection of th e infinite love

,
of God and our consequent and deserved loss

of the g l ories of heaven and this without room
,
for amendment o r hope of restoration will b e ,
an und y ing worm and unquenchab l e fire I n .
other words the vivid pictures in the S y nopti st

,
Gospels and in the Boo k of R eve l ation do b ut

de l ineate a necessar y inference from teaching
permeating the entire New Testament .
O f this acute su ff ering the w riters of the

,
N e w Testament se e no end ; nor do the y teach

anything which l ogica l ly imp l ies that it wi ll ever
end O n the other hand the y do not go ,
I M M O R TALITY
so far as expressly an d i n d isputa b ly t o assert
the endless perman ence o f th ese rui n ed an d
wretch ed ones and th e consequent endlessness
,
of th eir torment Th e curtain is raised for a

.
momen t revea l ing th e anguish o f th e lost ; an d

,
then fa ll s hi ding them from o u r View

, .
This picture o f j udgment reveals to us in te lli

gent persons created by Go d in ord er that th ey
may share His en dl ess blesse d ness yet t h roug h
, ,
thei r o wn sin an d their rej ection o f salvation

from sin s h ut o u t without hope o f ret urn from
, , ,
the glory an d happiness fo r wh ic h t h ey were

create d .
T o t h i s teac h ing n o O bjection can be ma d e o n

,
the ground o f t h e c h aracter o f Go d It can not .
be objecte d t h at His purpose w i l l be d efeate d .
Fo r His purpose in creating man wa s t o surroun d

the eternal Son with later born son s who by
their o wn free c h oice h ave accepted Hi m as t h eir
Lord . This purpose will find eternal an d glorious
realization N o r can we obj ect to the d oom o f
.
the lost a s unj ust Fo r o f n o o n e case are al l

.
the facts b efore us We kno w not the greatness

.
o f the si ns which will be punished by e x clusion

T HE DOOM O F T HE LOST 1 1 1
from the g l or y of God ; and therefore cannot

compa r e the sin and punishment The analogy .
of parenta l and ro ya l l ove for b ids u s to sa y that

the l ove of God is inconsistent with severe
punishment of sin or indeed with the fina l
,
exclusion of S inners from the happy family of

God . O n the other hand the principles of
,
human j ustice warn us not to put into the

th r eatenings of the New Testament more tha n
its words legitimate ly convey .
The a b ove teaching may b e traced b y decisive

documentary evidence to the pen of the Apost l es
and Evange l ists an d to the l ips of Christ .
This teaching has in ancient and modern times

, ,
been supplemented or limited in three directions

by other teaching a b out the u l ti mate destin y of
th e wic k ed.
I
. To the pictures of actual su ff ering found in
the New Testament the traditiona l teaching of
,
the Church has added the assertion that this

su ff ering wil l b e endless This addition is a
.
necessa ry consequence of the doctrine of the

immortalit y of the sou l unconscious l y b orrowed ,
as we have seen from Gree k philosophy

,
.
From the days o f Te r tullian t o d ays r e

membered by men stil l living imagination ran ,
riot in d epicting the physical su ff erings O f t h e

lost an d comparing them to the excruciating
bo d ily pain cause d b y fire I n recent days others
.
,
have recoile d from bodily t o r m e n t and have put

t h e w or d sufi r i ng in its p l ace But t h e word
.
t or m en t is foun d in the New Testament as a
description o f t h e future punish ment o f si n .
M oreover it is difli c u lt o r i mpossi b le t o conceive

,
a lost an d ruine d soul in full possession o f c o n

,
scio u sn e s s,
knowing itse l f t o be fi na ll y s h ut out
from the City o f G o d in j ust punishment o f
inexcusable sin other wise than as in unspeakable
,
misery .
N o w al l will a d mit that n o th eory about the

future punishmen t O f S in ought t o be put forth
as revealed truth u nless supported by clear an d
abun d ant teaching o f th e Bible This theory
.
,
which i n m any min d s l ies open t o most serious

o bj ection has as I have en d eavoure d t o show
, , ,
no adequate support in Holy Scripture And .

,
from th e nature o f th e case it can have n o

,
a dequate support elsewh ere .

2 . O th ers especia lly in recent times have added

, ,
to and limited the teaching of the New Testa

, ,
ment by endeavouri ng to prove that the su ff ering

therein depicted wi ll u ltimate l y after di ff erent ,
degrees of su ff ering in proportion to di ff erent

degrees of gui l t b e lost in unconsciousness
,
.
This theory maintains the fina l it y o f the punish

ment of the wic k ed and at the same time avoids
,
the di ffi culties involved in the endlessness of

their su ff ering and the consequent ly endless
permanence o f evi l It finds some support in .
the metaphor not uncommon in the New Testa

,
ment o f th e destruction o f vegeta b le matter

,
by fire to describe the doom of the ungod l y ,
and indeed in the word de st r uct i on frequently ,
used b y Pl ato to describe the extinction o f the

sou l which he denies
,
But this metaphor and .
this u se of the word de st r uct ion seem to me

an altogether in su fli ce n t ground for definite
assertion This second theory i s b ut a human
.
attempt to remove a di ffi cu l ty w hich the New

Testament l eaves unsolved .
3 O
. t hers have not only gone b eyond the New
Testament b ut have a s I think con tradicted it
, ,
8
i
by asserting w it h m o r e o r less con fid ence that

all men will ultimately be saved T his last.
theory h a s foun d some support in passages which

speak o f th e ulti mate an d universal triumph o f
good taken i n connection with th e tra d itional
,
assumption o f th e indes t ructibility o f the human

soul But as w e have seen this assumption i s
.
, ,
without foun d ation An d this theory d estitute Of

.
,
so li d foun d ation is i n various ways directly an d

, , ,
in d irectly con tra d icted i n th e N ew Testamen t .
T h e t h eory o f a probation beyon d death o f ,
w h ich w e have n o reliable i n d ication in th e Bible ,
h a s n o practical bearing o n the ultimate d estiny

o f those who d ie in si n Fo r a further probation
.
involves a possibili ty o f further failure And this .
brings back in full force t h e o ld di fficulties

, ,
.
R etribution beyond the grave an d especia l ly

th e future punish men t o f sin are t o us reason ,
about them as we may insoluble mysteries The

,
.
entire teaching o f the Bible abun d ant l y su fli cie n t

,
as it i s to gui d e u s safe l y along the way o f life ,
is altogether i nsu ffi cient t o ena b le us to anticipate

the sentence which the great Ju dge will pro
nounce o n the men an d w omen arou n d u s .
T HE DOO M O F T HE LO ST 1 1 5
B ut to ever y careful student of the New Testa

ment two doctrines stand out as c l earl y and
frequentl y taught there : ( I ) that eterna l l ife in
infinite b l essing awaits all who put trust in Christ
and wal k in Hi s steps ; ( 2) that ruin comp l ete ,
and final awai ts t hose who rej ect the sa l vation

,
He o ff ers and persist in what they know to b e

si n
. These doctrines may b e traced b y decisive
documentar y evidence to His l ips as part o f
the message from God which He announced to
men A s His servants we are bound es pecia ll y
.
, ,
those who are recognized teachers in His Church ,
to announce these solemn truths to a l l who wil l

hear us To go fur t her is to overstep the limits
.
,
Of the revelation given to u s in Christ and to ,
announce in His name that which He has not

spo k en To add to is a s perilous as to ta k e
.
,
awa y from the words of the prophecy of this

,
“
”
B oo k .We have no right to assert in God s ’
nam e an y thing more than we can trace by

a b undant and decisive evidence to the l ips of
Christ and the pen of the Apost l es and Evange l
i st s
. And the teaching which can b e so traced
is a l l we need .
B Y T HE SA ME A UT HO R .
Thi r d E di tio n , Cr o w n 871 0, Pr i ce 6 s . 6d .
T HR O U G H C HR I ST TO GOD
A St ud y in S i c en t i fi c Th e o lo g y .
Seco n d E di t . on, Cr o w n 800, Pr ice 6 s . 6d .
T HE NEW L I FE IN C HR I S T
A Stu d y i n Pe r s o n a l R e l i gi o n .
Th e se v o l um e s a e a n a t te m pt to r e a c h by a m e t h o d
r ,
stri c t ly h ist o ri ca l a d p h i l o s o p h i c a l i p pul a r fo r m d e fi n it e

n , n o ,
a d a ss u r e d
n re s u l ts t o uc h i g th e u s e fo u d ati o s o f n n en n n
r e l i g i o n T h e se re sul ts a e c o m b i e d in t o a c o e c t e d
. r n nn
stat e m e n t o f th e G o spe l o f C h r ist Suc h co m p re h e siv e . n
vi e w o f th e G o spe l as a wh o l e is o f u tm o s t va l ue to a ll
C h r istia wo rk e rs c l e ri c a l o la y A d as a stat e m e n t o f
n ,
r . n ,
t h e e vi d e e o n wh i h
nc re sts the C h ris tia n fai th t h is wo rk
c ,
is spe c i lly h l pf l to a ll wh o h a v e to d e fe n d as we ll a s to
a e u ,
e p o u d t h e G o s pe l
x n ,
A l t h o gh ba s e d t h r o u gh o t o
. c a re f l
u u n u
c riti ca l s tu d y o f t h e B i bl e th e e p o siti o n a d a rg u m e ts w i ll
,
x n n
b e u d e rst o o d by a ll i n t e ll i g e t r e a d e rs
n O n th e o t h e r n .
h an d a s e m b o d y i g o ri g i l r e s e a r c h t h e y c l ai m t h e
,
n na ,
a tt e n t io n of t h o se fa m il i a r wi t h th e r e s l ts o f m o d e rn u
sc h o l ars h i p .
Fr o m THE S C O T S MA N .
The vl
o um e is o ne o f co n spi c uo u s m ri t
e . It is pr d ti
th e o uc on
o f a str g on m an we ll e qu ipp d e fo r th e w o rk he h as t h i m s lf
se e
”
t o do .
Fr o m THE SA T U R DA Y R EV I EW .
Le ar n e d w e ll w ritt e n w e ll arra ge d a n d i t e r e sti n g

,
-
,
- n ,
n .
Eve rywh e r e th e a u t h o r d isp l a y s m uc h s k i ll b o t h i n e xe g e is a n d , s
i n d o ct r i n a l stat e m e n t A o ti e a bl e fe at u r e
. f t h e bo o k is t h e
n c o
w a y in wh i ch th e arg u m e t is a d!u st e d to m e e t o ur m o d rn n e
p rp l iti s
e ex e . Dr B t m a a g s w it h g r at s k i ll t i t w av
. ee n e e o n er e e
i t th g
n o e ener a l t h m a p w r f l ap l g ti arg m t
e e o e u o o e c u en .
!
Fr o m THE G U A R D I A N .
W e S p o k e i n v e r y h i g h t e r m s o f prais e o f t h e fi rst v o l um e
“
,
a n d n o w w e d e sir e t o c a ll att e n ti n t o t h e s o u n d w o r k i n t he o
s e co n d vo l um e q u it e w o rt h y o f its pr e d e ce ss o r a n d full o f va l u ab l e
, ,
m at e ria l s fo r t h o s e e n g ag e d i n past o ra l w o r k .
Fr o m THE LO N DO N !U A R TER LY REV I EW .
The t w o v o l u m e s a r e t h e r e fo r e c o m pa n i o n v o l um e s wh i c h ,
e v e ry d e v o u t r e a d e r w i ll st u d y w it h g r o w i g d e l i g h t a d pr o fi t n n .
T he l i m pi d st yl e th e c l e ar a n d w e ll o r d e r e d m ars h a ll i n g o f
,
-
arg u m e n ts a n d t he fr e s h l i gh t t h ro w n o n a ll p o i ts w h i c h a r e
,
n
dis c u ss e d a r e c o n spi cuo u s h e r e as i n a ll Dr B e e t s wr iti g s

’
, . n .
He h as th e rar e fa c u l t y o f m a k i g h is s u b!c t s o l um i n o u s t h at n e
he c arr i e s h is r e a d e rs fo r w ar d w it h h i m st e p by st e p ,
.
Fr o m THE C HU R C H !U A R TER LY R EV I EW .
NO C at h o l i c c a n fai l t o r e !
“
o i ce t h at J e s u s C h rist , o ur L o rd
a n d t h e irs s h o u l d b e pre a c h e d w it h s o m uc h i n d u stry
,
and s h uc
d e v o ut l o y a l t y .
”
Fr o n t THE R O C K .
A ri h a dd iti
c on to t h e l i b rar y o f d o gm ati c t h e o l o gy .
”
Fr o m H U CH T M S
THE C R I E .
IVer ca n e co m men d h is w r k as t h at f
o o an e ar st C h ristia
ne n ,
a l ar t h i k r
c e n e , an d an a rat s h l ar
cc u e c o .
Fr o m T HE I N D EPEN D EN T .
Dr B t is
“
.
mp t
ee t i B i bl i a l s h l ars h ip
so co d e en n c c o ,
an so
ear st d m pr h siv i h is a m i ati

ne an co f the t a hi g
en e n ex n on o e e c n
o f S ript r c t h at it is l ss a d t y t h a a p l as r t t dy h is
u e, no e u n e u e o s u
w r ks
o H h as h is f t fi r m ly d w
. e p th s s l id d ee o n u on o e o an
en d ri g r k fa ts
u n w h i h t h fat h rs st d b t h a q ai ts
oc - c on c e e oo ,
u e c u n
h i m s lf w it h th d b ts
e d q sti i g s f m d r s h l ars
e ou an ue on n o o e n c o ,
an d s ks t ee s h w t h m th pat h w h i h m y l a d t h m t t h
o o e e c a e e o e
b r a d p l a s f sa f t y
o ce d r st o e an e .
L N DO N HO DD ER A N D STO UG HTO N
O : .
BY T HE SA M E A UT HO R .
S eco n d Edi ti o n . S m a ll cr o wn 800, clo th gil t, Is . 6d

.
A K EY TO
U N LO CK T HE B I B LE .
1
°
THE B I B LE AS A Bo o m —2 . THE B IB L E A s AN A N CI ENT B OO K .
3 . THE B I B LE As T HE B OO K or G OD .
I . T HE N EW T E STA M E N T .
a!
4 . CO N TEN T S A ND PU R PO S E —5 . A U H SH
T OR IP A ND D A TE —6 . CO R
R ECTN ES S O F O UR C O PI E S A ND V ER S NSIO . THE A R T or I NTER PR E
T A TI O N . — 8 MET A P
. H OR AND P ARAB L E .
—
9 . T HE N e w TE S MNTA E T As
B I OG R A PH Y A ND HS I TO R Y .
-I o . T HE NE w TE S TA M E NT As D OC N TR I E.
II . T HE O LD T E ST A M E N T .
12 . CO N TR A ST o r T HE O LD A ND NEw — 1 3 . . C O N T E NT S, A U H SH
T OR I P,
D AT E — 13 . THE O LD TE S TA ME NT As HS I TO R Y .
- 14 . T HE R L USE IGIO
HN
T EA C I G or T HE O LD TE S TA ME NT . THE I N T ER PR ETA TI O N or
P H Y— ROP EC . 16 . T HE B IB L E A ND SC I EN C E —1 7 . . THE B I B LE IN T HE
C HU H RC .
THE SPE CTA TO R .
P ro fe ss o r B e e t w h o s e p l a ce a m o g th e be st e xe ge ti c a l wr it e rs
“
,
n
o f th e d ay is ass ure d give s us h e re a n e xce ll e n t s u m m ary o f ,
B i bl i ca l k n o wl e dg He stat e s c o cl usi o n s rat h e r t h a n arg u m e n ts

e . n .
Th e c o m pass o f h is v o l u m e m a k e s a n y o t h e r c o u rs e i m p o ss i bl e .
He h as t h e n to b e tr u st e d by h is r e a d e rs
, , B t he i s s o sa e . u n
a n d ca ti o u s a d w it h a l s o o b vi o u s ly d e t e rm i n e d to b e h o n e st
u , n ,
th at s uch tr u st is w e ll d e s e rve d .
”
T HE L O N DO N !U A R TER LY R EV I EW .
An a l t g t h r a d m ira bl h a dl i g
o e e e n n o f a no bl e s ub!e c t Th o se .
w ho u se it ar f lly w i ll fi d it a tr
c e u n ue h e l p e r to i n t e ll i g e n t de
”
vo t io n .
LO N D O N : T HE R EL I G I O US T R AC T SOC I ETY .
B Y T HE SA ME A UT HO R .
S i xth Th o u sa n d . D e m y 800, 20 8 pp . Pa p er Co v er s , IS . 6d . clo th, 28.
T HE C R E D E N T I A L S O F T HE G O SPE L
A S tat e m en t o f th e R e as on o f th e Ch i r stia n Ho p e .
CONTENTS .
1 . N TR O D U CTO R Y
I .
II . T HE EVI D E N C E W I T H I N .
III . THE E VI D E N C E I N T HE M A T E R I A L W O R L D .
IV . C H R I S T I A N I T Y C O M PA R E D W I T H O T H ER R EL I G I O N S .
V . C H R I S T A N D T HE C H R I S TI A N D O C UM EN TS .
VI . THE H I STO R I C A L A R G U M E N T .
VII . O BJ ECT I O N S .
VII I . T HE R E S U LT .
APPENDI XBS .
I . T HE O R I G I N O F THE M ORA L SE N SE .
II . FR E E DO M C ESS I TY
OR NE .
III . SC IE N TI FI C A G N O ST I C I S M .
IV . T HE B I B L E A N D SC I N C E E .
V . B I B LI C A L R A T I O N A L I S M .
”
Dr . Ma rcus Dads i n Th e Ex po si to r
r s arsh ll d i d f
I f th e fo ce f th C h ristia
m p s m by D r a e n e e n ce o e n o on .
B t
ee t h sa
a re v t ra s wh s l rs d fa i gs h a v b s b f r
e m e e e n o e co o u an c n e ee n ee n e o e ,
t h y rtai ly pr t d r h is
e ce n ad w fr t
e se n d th unld e co m m n a ne on , an e o
w ap s h av b
e on a l t r d i t ar s f pr isi
e ee n Th hi g e e n o m o ec o n. e n e on
wh i h h arg
c t t t r s is t h r rr ti f
e um e n L rd ; 'd t h is i
u n e e su ec on o o ur o an s
h a d l d i a w is w ll i f rm d d
n e n l si v m a r T h r is m h
e , e - n o e , an co n c u e nn e . e e uc
t hat is fr h ly t h gh t d adm irably p t t hr gh t th b k ; d

es ou an u ou ou e oo an ,
h w v r w ll r a d i ap l g ti l it rat r y
o e e e e is h will fi d m h t
n o o e c e u e an one , e n uc o
i t r st d m h t
n e e an vi i h h pt rs wh i h d a l with th r s rr ti
uc o co n n ce n t e c a e c e e e u ec on
an d th ira le m A t t h is p i t Pr f
c u o us r B t ak s a d isti t a dva
. o n o e sso ee m e nc n ce
i
n th arg m t d d s r v s h t ha ks f all wh
e u en , an i t r st d i the e e t e n o o are n e e e n e
df
e e n ce f C hristi a it y
o Th b k is t h r g h t w ritt in ad m ira bl
. e oo ou ou en n an e
Styl e.
'
LO N D O N : W ESLEY A N -METHO D I ST B O O K R O O M,
2, CA S TLE STR EET , C I T Y ROAD, E C . .

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B Y THE S A ME A U THO R .

I R OMANS N i th Edi tio 7 8 6d . n n . . .

Gr k ee B t h is. r tha a m m tat r ; h a pp l i s h

a ll ad q at l y with its s b! t A g i d agai as w t r

T HE fo llo win g pages are a reprint o f articles

The y are a protest a gainst a doctrine which ,

during lo n g centuries has b een a l most universa ll y

accepted as divine truth taught in the Bi bl e ,

b ut whic h seems to me altogether a l ien to it in

Gree k Philosophy . Until recent times this ,

a l ien doctrine has b een comparativel y harmless .

But as I have here shown it is now producing

most serious results M y protest against it is

an appea l which no Protestant can disa ll ow

from the traditiona l teaching o f the Church to

j ustice o f this appea l my readers must judge

It w i ll o f course b e said o f this as o f some

ot h er doctrines that if not explicitly taught in

the Bible i t is implied and assu med there But

they who ask us to accept an i mportant d octrine

their mere dictum as evidence They who clai m .

for their teac h ing the authority o f Go d must

t h is case I have never seen

C O N S E!U E N CES . T HE D OO M o r T HE L OST 88

the doctrine of The I m m or t a li ty of t he Soul was

the fo ll owing pages I sha ll discuss the history

which the doctrine rests and its worth as a

factor of Christian thought .

We sha ll ﬁnd the phrase and doctrine among

b ut not the phr ase among the Egyptians ; and

the phrase and doctrine in some Jewish writers

That the so ul of man is i m m o r t a l or de a t hle ss,

s ic u o u s feature O f the teachi n g O f P L A T O But

t h at this d octrine was by n o means universal

relates to t h e soul m e n are apt to be incre d ulous ;

d ay o f deat h she may be d estroye d and perish ,

smoke o r air and i n her ﬂight vanishing away

I n t h e pages following Socrates is represented

as arguing against this popular belief He .

endeavours ﬁrst t o prove th at t h e soul exis ted

d eat h O n p 7 0 h e goes o n t o say

the souls O f men after deat h are o r are not in

the dead Now if this b e true and the living

come from the dead then our sou l s must exist

there : for if n o t ho w cou l d they b e born

Lower down at the foot O f p 7 2 an

interlocutor sa y s Y our favourite doctrine that

k nowl edge is simp l y reco l lection if true also , ,

necessarily implies a previous time in which we

this woul d b e impossi bl e unless o u r sou l had

O n p 7 7 the argument and dialogue continue

I thin k said Si m m ia s that K e b e s is satisﬁed

Although he is the most incredulous o f mortals ,

y et I thin k that he is persuaded of this that ,

our sou l existed b efore we were b orn Bu t that .

after death the soul wi l l continue to exist is not

cannot get rid O f the fee l ing O f the many to