Is Hell a Real Place of Torment?

Is hell a place of eternal suffering?
No. The original words translated as “hell” in some older Bible translations (Hebrew, “Sheol”; Greek, “Hades”) basically refer to “the Grave,” that is, the common grave of mankind. The Bible shows that people in “the Grave” are in a state of nonexistence.

The dead are unconscious and so cannot feel pain. “Neither work, nor reason, nor wisdom, nor knowledge, shall be in hell.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10, Douay-Rheims Version) Hell is not filled with sounds of pain. Instead, the Bible says: “Let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave [hell, Douay-Rheims].”—Psalm 31:17; King James Version (30:18, Douay-Rheims); Psalm 115:17.

God has set death, not torment in a fiery hell, as the penalty for sin. God told the first man, Adam, that the penalty for breaking God’s law would be death. (Genesis 2:17) He said nothing about eternal torment in hell. Later, after Adam sinned, God told him what his punishment would be: “Dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19) He would pass out of existence. If God were actually sending Adam to a fiery hell, He surely would have mentioned it. God has not changed the punishment for defying his laws. Long after Adam sinned, God inspired a Bible writer to say: “The wages sin pays is death.” (Romans 6:23) No further penalty is justified, because “the one who has died has been acquitted from his sin.”—Romans 6:7.

The idea of eternal torment is repugnant to God. (Jeremiah 32:35) Such an idea is contrary to the Bible’s teaching that “God is love.” (1 John 4:8) He wants us to worship him out of love, not fear of eternal torment.—Matthew 22:36-38.

Good people went to hell. The Bibles that use the word “hell” indicate that faithful men, such as Jacob and Job, expected to go to hell. (Genesis 37:35; Job 14:13) Even Jesus Christ is spoken of as being in hell between the time of his death and his resurrection. (Acts 2:31, 32) Obviously, then, when “hell” is used in these Bibles, it simply refers to the Grave. b