What is Hell?
by Robert Rosskopf
The Greek words "sheol", "hades", "tartaros", and "gehemma" are all translated as "hell" in most modern Bibles, but do not all refer to the same place. When most Christians think of hell, they are actually referring to tartaroo, the spirit prison where the wicked go after death to await the resurrection. Here is the definition according to Strong's Concordance:
"From Tartaros (the deepest abyss of Hades); to incarcerate in eternal torment -- cast down to hell."
http://strongsnumbers.com/greek/5020.htm
Tartaros is not Hell itself, but a place in Hell. The anglicized "hell" actually comes from Sheol, which translates to netherworld. Hades is another word that represents the unseen world of spirits. In this sense, all men will go to hell (sheol) when they die, except for those few who are promised that they will not taste of death.
http://strongsnumbers.com/hebrew/7585.htmGehenna is another word that is commonly translated as hell, but it does not refer to the spirit world. It describes the abode of the wicked after the resurrection.
http://strongsnumbers.com/greek/1067.htm
Jesus told the story of Lazarus, a beggar who died and went to Abraham's bosum. There he enjoyed the rich rewards of paradise. Another man, a rich man, died and also went to hell (hades). Along way off he sees Lazarus, sitting with Abraham, and implores Abraham to let Lazarus come and administer to him. But Abraham explains that they are separated:
| "And
beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so
that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they
pass to us, that
(Luke 16:26 KJV) |
All three men are in the same place - Hades, or the spirit realm of the dead, but the righteous are separated from the wicked and cannot intermingle. Jesus himself would later visit Hades, preaching his gospel, and thus open the way for the wicked to repent and cross that gulf.