SCRIPTURES ABOUT THE DESTRUCTION OF ISRAEL
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THAT ARE MISAPPLIED TO HELL
Israel's destruction, her weeping, gnashing of teeth, outer darkness
Many of the passages spoken by John the Baptist and by Jesus about Israel's rejection of Christ and its destruction are misapplied to Hell. Matthew 24 is often misused to prove Israel will be restored, and Christ will return to earth and rule the world forever from Jerusalem, and that the saved will forever live on this earth, not in Heaven.
Judgment of Israel Matthew 21-25
Cleaning of the Temple Matthew 21:12-16
The fig tree Matthew 21:18-22
Israel's rulers question Christ's authority. Parable of the two sons Matthew 21:23-32
Parable of the wicked husbandman who Christ will destroy and give the vineyard
to another Matthew 21:33-41
The stone Israel rejected made head of the corner; the stone will scatter as dust.
The kingdom taken from Israel and gave to another Matthew 21:42-46
Parable of the marriage feast. His armies destroyed those invited and invited others Matthew 22:1-14
Seven woes on Israel leaders, how can they escape the judgment of Gehenna; all
these things shall come upon this generation. Matthew 23:13-36
Their house left desolate Matthew 23:37-39
The questions and His answer Matthew 24:1-51
Parable of the fig tree. This generation shall not pass away, till all these things be accomplished Matthew 24:32-34
Israel the unfaithful servant Matthew 24:45-51
Unprofitable servant cast into outer darkness Matthew 25:30
THE JEWS THAT CAME TO JOHN THE BAPTIST
"But when he saw the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said unto
them, you offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth; therefore, fruit worthy of repentance: and think not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham to out father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to rise up children unto Abraham. And even now the axe lies at the root of the trees: every tree; therefore, that brings not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. I indeed baptize you in water unto repentance; but he that comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire: whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor; and he will gather his wheat into the garner, but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire"
[Matthew 3:7-12]. John was the Elijah that was to come [Matthew 17:11; 11:10]. Cutting down a tree or forest is a common symbol of judgment and destruction of cities and nations in the Old Testament [Isaiah 10:34; Jeremiah 46:22-23; 22:7-8; Ezekiel 31:3-14].
If a tree is cut down, there is hope that it will sprout again from the stump [Job 14:7-8; Isaiah 11:1], but when the axe is put to the root there is no hope that the tree will ever sprout again.
Adam Clarke said this is "the desolation which was about to fall on the Jewish nation."
Lightfoot: "By the axe being now laid to the root of the tree, may fitly be understood, first, the certainty of their desolation; and second, the nearness, in that the instrument of their destruction as already prepared, and brought close to them; the Romans that should ruin their city and nation, being already master and rulers over them."
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B. W. Johnson: " Think not to say...we have Abraham to our father. They believed that Abraham's race was to be saved, if all else was destroyed...' The axe is laid at the root of the tree' a sign that the tree is to be cut down. The tree meant is the Jewish nation. Every tree. A fruitless fig tree was afterward made by our Lord to representative of the whole Jewish nation (Luke 13:6)." Also, Matthew 3:10-12 " And with fire. The term fire is used in verse 10, and there means a destroying agency; it is used again in verse 12 in the same sense; it is used in verse 11, also, the intervening verse, and must be used in exactly the same sense as in the other two verses. It cannot mean a curse in verses 10
and 12, and a blessing in verse 11, without a word of explanation. It is strange, therefore, that all commentators should not agree that the baptism of fire is a baptism of trial and suffering. There were two classes before John. Some would repent and be baptized finally in the Holy Spirit; there were others who would remain impenitent, and be baptized in the awful trials that would come upon Israel" B. W. Johnson, "The People New Testament With Notes,"
1889, Gospel Light Publishing Company.
OUTER DARKNESS, WEEPING
AND THE GNASHING OF TEETH
"But the sons of the kingdom shall be cast forth into the outer darkness: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth" [Matthew 8:12]. Even according to those who believe in Hell, no one is cast out of Heaven, but when this "weeping and the gnashing
of teeth" is made to be after the judgment in Hell, it is the "sons of the kingdom"
that are cast into the outer darkness. In using this passage to prove the outer darkness is Hell it makes some that be in Heaven but they will be cast out of Heaven into Hell after the judgment. If "and yourselves cast forth without" is cast into Hell where those who believe in hell say the "weeping and gnashing of tenth" will be, then this makes those from the east and west go to Heaven after the judgment day. They have some going into Heaven, and some being cast out of Heaven after the kingdom has been delivered up to God, therefore, after the judgment. This is more than those trying to prove Hell want to prove, for they do not think any will be cast out of Heaven after the judgment and no one who is in Heaven after the judgment will go to Hell so why is this passage used in a way that makes it prove there will be some cast out of Heaven into Hell after the judgment?
J. W. McGarvey, Matthew 8:11: "And I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and the west, and
shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of Heaven [Jesus here predicts the conversion of the Gentiles, since that fact is suggested to him by the faith of this centurion. The east and the west represent the extreme points of the compass in the directions in which the world was most thickly inhabited. But Jesus refers rather to spiritual separation than to geographical distances--Mal. i. 11; Isa. xlix. 19; Jer. xvi. 19; Zech. viii. 22.]
12 But The Sons Of The Kingdom [The child of anything in Hebrew phraseology expressed the idea of special property which one has in the thing specified, as, for instance, children of disobedience (Eph. ii. 2). Jesus here means, then, the Jews, to whom the kingdom belonged by hereditary descent--Rom. ix. 4] shall be cast forth into the outer darkness:
there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth. [In this paragraph Christ's kingdom is set forth under the simile of a great feast, a familiar simile with Jesus (Matt. xxvi. 29; Luke xxii. 30). The Jews were accustomed to speak of the delights of the Messianic kingdom as a feast with the patriarchs (Luke xiv. 15), but lost sight of the fact that Gentiles should share in its cheer and fellowship (Isa. xxv. 6). Marriage feasts and other great feasts of the Jews were usually held in the evening. Inside, therefore, there would be joy and light and gladness, but outside there would be darkness and disappointment, tears and bitter self-reproach (Matt. xxv. 10-13). The despised outcasts should be brought in and placed at the festal board, while the long-invited guests-the natural and fleshly heirs of Abraham's invitation-would be excluded (Matt. xxi. 43)" The Fourfold Gospel, Page 272, 1914, Standard Publishing Company.
J. W. McGarvey, Luke 13:28 28: "There shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth, when you shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and yourselves cast forth without. 29
And they shall come from the east and west, and from the north and south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God.
30 And behold [little as you may think it], they are last who shall be first, and they are first who shall be last. [A familiar proverb of Christ's (Matt. xix. 30; xx. 10), to be interpreted by such passages as Matt. xxi. 31 and Rom. ix. 30, 31. The Jew who thought the Gentile had no hope at all, and that he himself was sure of salvation, would be surprised to find that his opinion was the very reverse of the real fact as time developed it]." The Fourfold Gospel, 1914, Standard Publishing Company. The Jews were cast forth out of the kingdom, but nothing is said about casting into "Hell."
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B. W. Johnson, Matthew 8:12: " but the children of the kingdom. The Jews, the natural children of Abraham, the
'Father of the faithful,' heirs of the promises made to him. Cast out because they rejected the Messiah, in whom all the promises center. Into outer darkness" The People's New Testament With Notes, Gospel Light Publishing Company.
The three times "outer darkness" is used by Christ [Matthew 8:12; 22:13; 25:30]
are in three parables, which refer to God's dealing with the Jews being cast out as God's chosen people and their destruction as a nation, but has been changed to be the lost in Hell are in outer darkness.
The seven times " weeping and gnashing of teeth" is used by Christ [Matthew 8:12; 13:42; 13:50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Luke 13:28] all seven are about the Jews being cast out as God's chosen people has also been changed to be the lost in Hell that are weeping and gnashing their teeth; none of the seven passages mention Gehenna--Hell although they are often used to prove there is a place called ―Hell.‖ In Matthew 13:39 and 13:50
the Greek is the end of the ―age‖ not the end of the world, the end of the age that then was, the Jewish age when they were cast out as God‘s chosen people. To those who thought they were and would always be God‘s chosen people, being told that they would be cast out was no small thing.
Although many of the wisest preachers and writers whose writings have stood the test of time like B. W. Johnson, Adam Clarke, Lightfoot, H. Leo Boles, Barnes, R. C. H.
Lenski and many others say the "weeping and gnashing of teeth" is speaking of the Jews being rejected as God's chosen people, some still misuse this as did Stephen Wiggins in the Firm Foundation, 2006, Page 6. Gehenna is not in any of the seven passages with
"weeping and gnashing of teeth." If he did any study it would be difficult to believe he did not know the weeping and gnashing of teeth has no reference to "Hell." Is this not just a desperate attempt to find a passage that teaches eternal torment?
SIX PARABLES CONDEMNING ISRAEL
[1] Israel, the fruitless fig tree [Luke 13:6-9]: "And he spoke this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came seeking fruit thereon, and found none. And he said unto the vinedresser, behold, these three years I came seeking fruit on this fig tree, and found none: cut it down; why does it also cumber the ground? And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: and if it bear fruit thenceforth, well; but if not, you shall cut it down." Barren national Israel would be cut down. "And seeing a fig tree by the way side, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only; and he said unto it, Let there be no fruit from you hence forward forever” [Matthew 21:18-19; see John 1:11].
[2] The rich man and Lazarus [Luke 16:19-31]: See "Part one" of this chapter.
[3] The two sons [Matthew 21:28-32]: Christ speaking to “the chief priests and the elders” of Israel said, "But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, Son, go work today in the vineyard. And he answered and said, I will, sir; and he did not go. And he came to the second and said the same thing. But, he answered and said, I will not; yet he afterward regretted it and went. Which of the two did the will of his father? They said, the latter. Jesus said to them, Truly I say to you the tax-gatherers and harlots will get into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you
in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax-gatherers and harlots did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not ever feel remorse afterward so as to believe him."
[4] Israel, the husbandman [Matthew 21:33-45]: Still speaking to “The chief priests and the elders” Jesus said, "Hear another parable: there was a man that was a 345
householder, who planted a vineyard, and set a hedge about it, and dug a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandman, and went into another country. And when the season of the fruits drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandman, to receive his fruits. And the husbandman took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another. Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them in like manner. But, afterward he sent unto them his son, saying, they will reverence my son. But the husbandman, when they saw the son, said among themselves, this is the heir; come, let us kill him, and take his inheritance. And they took him, and cast him forth out to the vineyard, and killed him. When; therefore, the lord of the vineyard shall come, what will he do unto these husbandman? They say unto him, he will miserably destroy
those miserable men, and will let out the vineyard unto other husbandmen, who shall render him the fruits in their seasons, Jesus said unto them, did you never read in the scriptures, the stone which the builders rejected, the same was made the head of the corner: this was from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes? Therefore say I unto
you, the kingdom of God shall be taken away from you, and shall be given to a nation
bringing forth the fruits thereof. And he that falls on this stone shall be broken to pieces:
but, on whomsoever it shall fall, it will scatter him as dust. And when the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he spoke of them" Israel beat and killed many of the prophets and killed the Son of God and was scattered as dust in A.
D. 70 when no Jews were left in Jerusalem or the country around it. Most Millennialists admit that this refers to the Jewish rejection of Christ; the kingdom was taken from the Jews and given to the Gentiles at the death and resurrection of Jesus, but Millennialists think it will be taken from the Gentiles and given back to the Jews.
[5] The marriage feast Matthew 22:1-14: Also still speaking to “The chief priests and the elders” Jesus said, "And Jesus answered and spoke to them again in parables, saying, The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king, who gave a wedding feast for his son. And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. Again, he sent out other slaves saying, Tell those who have been invited, Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fattened livestock are all butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast. But, they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. But, the king was enraged
and sent his armies, and destroyed those murders, and set their city on fire. Then he said to his slaves, the wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find there, invite to the wedding feast. And those slaves went out into the streets, and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests. But, when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw there a man not dressed in wedding clothes, and he said to him, Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?
And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and cast him into the outer darkness; in that place there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen." The Jews killed the prophets God send to them, and they and their city were destroyed and the Gentiles were brought into the kingdom.
[6] The narrow door Luke 13:24-30: "Strive to enter in by the narrow door: for many, I say unto you, shall seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the master 346
of the house is risen up, and has shut the door, and begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, open to us; and he shall answer and say to you, I know you not where you are; then shall you begin to say, we did eat and drink in your presence, and you did teach in our streets; and he shall say, I tell you, I know not were you are; depart from me, all you workers of iniquity. There shall be weeping and the gnashing of teeth,
when you shall see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God
and yourselves cast forth without. And there shall come from the east and the west, and
from the north and the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God. And behold,
there are last who shall be the first, and there are first who shall be last" This is about the coming rejection of Israel and the Gentiles being accepted into the kingdom of Heaven, which is the church. Not about some being cast out of Heaven, which is what it would be if the weeping and gnashing of teeth were in Hell. Israel was the "sons of the
kingdom" ["children of the kingdom" King James Version] that was cast into outer darkness, not those who never believed. The Jews, who were then the children of the kingdom, were cast out of the light and are no longer God's chosen people, into the darkness of the world without the light of God's revelation. "O Jerusalem...behold
your house is left unto you desolate" [Luke 13:34-35]. Those who believe in Hell leave out the rest of what Christ said in the next two versus when He says the Gentiles will come into the kingdom, and verse 30 the Gentles who were last become first. If this weeping and gnashing of teeth, casting out, and the Gentiles coming in were after the judgment, the Gentiles would be coming into the kingdom in Heaven after the judgment, and ― and yourselves cast forth without” would also be being cast out of Heaven after the judgment.
"Therefore say I unto you, the kingdom of God shall be taken away from you [the Jews], and shall be given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof" [Matthew 21:43].
WEEPING AND GNASHING OF TEETH
Both are used in the Old and New Testament.
1]. Weeping for miseries and grief, both for personal miseries and as a nation are used to often to list them, use any good concordance. It is used in the New Testament the same way it was in the Old Testament. See Matthew 2:18; Mark 5:28; Luke 7:38; 8:52: John 11:33; 20:11 Acts 9:39; 21:13; Philippians 3:18 and James 5:1. The weeping is the Jews when they see Israel being cast out as God's chosen people, and Jerusalem and the Temple being destroyed, and the end of their national identity See Matthew 24, Daniel 9, and 10.
2]. Gnashing of teeth shows anger and rage of the persons gnashing their teeth, not pain, and is used in both the Old and New Testament. "They hiss and gnash the teeth"
Lamentations 2:16, See Psalms 35:16; Micah 3:5. Used the same way in the New Testament. " And they gnashed on him with their teeth" [Acts 7:54]. Those who stoned Stephen were angry with him, not in pain; they were not dead and in Hell, they were alive and on this earth. If gnashing of teeth were in Hell, as many teach it is, whom are they going to gnash with their teeth, each other? Does anyone believe some in Hell will be angry with others in Hell and gnash them with their teeth? The gnashing of teeth is the anger and rage of the Jews towards those doing the destroying [the Roman army], and maybe even toward God for letting the destroying be happening. Gnashing of teeth is because of anger or rage. It is not because of the person doing the gnashing of his or her teeth are being tormented in Hell. In the Bible in both the Old and the New 347
Testament, gnashing of teeth is always because of anger of the person doing the gnashing. It is misused today to show those being tormented in "Hell" are gnashing their teeth because of their own pain.
In the Old Testament: Gnashing of teeth is because of anger on the part of the one doing the gnashing.
In the New Testament: Gnashing of teeth is changed by those who believe in Hell to be a person in Hell gnashing his or her teeth because of pain.
Weeping and gnashing of teeth are two different things, which are sometimes both found together, but most often are not together. Neither one ever occurs in the same passages with hades or Gehenna. That either one or both will be in Hell is an assumption that is preached over and over. Could an immaterial, invisible part of a person gnash its teeth?
The Centurion Gentile Matthew 8:5-13 : "And when he was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, and saying, Lord, my servant lying in the house sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. 7 And he said unto him, I will come and heal him. And the centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant shall be healed. For I also am a man under authority, having under myself soldiers: and I say to this one, Go, and he goes; and to another, Come, and he comes; and to my servant, Do this, and he does it.
And when Jesus heard it, he marveled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven: but the sons of the kingdom shall be cast forth into the outer
darkness: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go your way; as you have believed, [so] be it done unto you. And the servant was healed in that hour." After seeing the faith of this Gentile, Jesus says the Gentiles will sit in the kingdom and the sons [Jews] will be cast forth. The same as at the marriage feast (above), the Jews, because they rejected Christ as their king was cast out of the kingdom. The church, not Israel, is now God's kingdom. Those who teach Hell read the prophecies of Christ about the judgment of Israel in AD 70 and move the weeping and gnashing of teeth to Hell after the Judgment Day is over. They have not found one passage that says anything about the lost after the judgment. Nothing can happen to nothing. After the second death there could be nothing said, for there will be nothing to say anything about. There is this life, then the first death, a resurrection to life from the first death, then the second death for the lost, but nothing is said about a third life for the lost after the second death. They need something to prove eternal life in their Hell, and try to make it look as if weeping and gnashing of teeth could only be because of eternal torment in Hell; although both weeping and gnashing of teeth are used throughout the Old Testament and those who believe in Hell do not believe weeping and gnashing of teeth in the Old Testament have any reference to a time of punishment after the Judgment Day, but they assume that in the New Testament both are used in reference to punishment in Hell after the judgment day. Weeping and gnashing of teeth has a reference to Hell only when they want or need them to.