The Last Judgment and the Final State
proved from the New Testament? Who deny the resurrection of the wicked? What Bible proof is there for their resurrection? How does the resurrection of the just differ from that of the unjust? What does
Scripture tell us respecting the time of the resurrection? On what passages do pre-millenarians base their doctrine of a double resurrection? What can be said against this theory?
References for Further Study:
Berkhof, Reformed Dogmatics, II, pp. 319–337; Hodge, Outlines of Theology, pp. 559–573; McPherson, Christian Dogmatics, pp. 446–
454; Hovey, Biblical Eschatology, pp. 23–78; Milligan. The Resurrection of the Dead.
THE LAST JUDGMENT AND THE FINAL STATE
A. The Last Judgment. The doctrine of the resurrection leads right on to that of the last judgment. It is one of the deepest convictions of the human heart and one that is not limited to Christianity, that all men will be judged in the future. The Bible teaches the coming of a final judgment in no uncertain terms. The Old Testament already speaks of it, Ps. 96:13; Eccl. 3:17; 12:14, and the New Testament makes it even more prominent, Matt. 11:22; 16:27; 25:31–46; Acts 17:31; Rom.
2:5–10, 16; 14:12; 1 Cor. 4:5; 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Tim. 4:1; Heb. 9:27; 1 Pet.
4:5; Rev. 20:11–14.
1. THE JUDGE AND HIS ASSISTANTS. Christ, as the Mediator, will be the Judge, Matt. 25:31, 32; John 5:27; Acts 10:42; 17:31; Phil.
2:10; 2 Tim. 4:1. This honor was conferred on Christ as a reward for His atoning work, and constitutes a part of His exaltation. The angels will assist Him in this great work. Matt, 13:41, 42; 24:31; 25:31.
Evidently the saints will also in some sense share in the judicial work
of Christ, Ps. 149:5–9; 1 Cor. 6:2, 3; Rev. 20:4, though it is not possible to determine precisely what part they will take.
2. THE PARTIES THAT WILL BE JUDGED. Scripture contains clear indications of at least two parties that will be judged. It is perfectly evident that every individual of the human race will have to appear before the judgment-seat, Eccl. 12:14; Ps. 50:4–6; Matt. 12:36, 37;
25:32; Rom. 14:10; 2 Cor. 5:10; Rev. 20:12. Some maintain that the righteous will be excepted, since their sins are already pardoned, but this is contrary to such passages as Matt. 13:30, 40–43, 49; 25:31–
46. It is also clear that Satan and his demons will be judged, Matt.
8:29; 1 Cor. 6:3; 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6. Whether the good angels will also be subject to the final judgment is not so easy to determine, though some would infer this from 1 Cor. 6:4. They are represented only as ministers of God in connection with the work of judgment, Matt.
13:30, 41; 25:31; 2 Thess. 1:7, 8.
3. THE TIME OF THE JUDGMENT. Since the last judgment will be a judgment passed on the whole life of every man, it will naturally be at the end of the world, and will follow immediately after the resurrection of the dead, John 5:28, 29; Rev. 20:12, 13. The duration of the judgment cannot be determined precisely. Scripture speaks of "the day of judgment," Matt. 11:22; 12:36, and "the day of wrath,"
Rom. 2:5. It is necessary to infer from these and other similar passages that it will be a day of exactly twenty-four hours. At the same time there is no warrant to conceive of the day of judgment as a day of a thousand years, as the Pre-millenarians do.
4. THE STANDARD OF JUDGMENT. The standard by which saints and sinners will be judged will evidently be the revealed will of God.
Gentiles will be judged by the law of nature, Jews by the Old Testament revelation, and New Testament believers by this
revelation plus the requirements of the gospel. God will give to every man his due. There will be degrees in the punishments of the wicked as well as in the rewards of the righteous, Matt. 11:22, 24; Luke
12:47, 48; 20:47; Dan. 12:3; 2 Cor. 9:6.
B. The Final State.
1. THE FINAL STATE OF THE WICKED. Three points call for consideration here: a. The Place to Which They are Consigned. The place of punishment is usually called "hell." Some deny that hell is a place and regard it merely as a subjective condition, in which man may find himself even now, and which may become permanent in the future. But the Bible certainly uses local terms right along. It speaks of a "furnace of fire," Matt. 13:42, of "a lake of fire," Rev. 20:14, 15 of a "prison," and "abyss," and "tartarus," 1 Pet. 3:19; Luke 8:31; 2 Pet. 2:4, all of which are local terms. b. The State in Which They Will Exist. It is impossible to say precisely what will constitute the punishment of the wicked.
Positively, it may be said that they will be totally deprived of the divine favor, will experience an endless disturbance of life, will suffer positive pains in body and soul, and will be subject to pangs of conscience, anguish, despair, and weeping and gnashing of teeth,
Matt. 8:12; 13:50; Mark 9:47, 48; Luke 16:23, 28; Rev. 14:10; 21:8.
There will be degrees in their punishment, Matt. 11:22, 24; Luke 12:47, 48; 20:47. It will be commensurate with their sinning against the light which they had received. c. The Duration of Their Punishment. Some deny the eternity of the future punishment. They maintain that the Scriptural words for "everlasting" and "eternal" may simply denote a long period of time.
It is true that these words do have a limited meaning in some instances, but in such cases this is generally quite evident from the context. Moreover, there are positive reasons to think that these words do not have such a limited meaning, when they serve to designate the duration of future punishment. In Matt. 25:46 the same word describes the duration of the bliss of the saints and the penalty of the wicked. If the latter is not unending, neither is the former, and yet the everlasting blessedness of the saints is not doubted. Finally, other expressions are used, which do not admit of a limited interpretation. The fire of hell is an "unquenchable fire,"
Mark 9:43, the worm of the wicked "dieth not," Mark 9:48; and the gulf that separates saints and sinners is fixed and impassable, Luke
16:26.
2. THE FINAL STATE OF THE RIGHTEOUS.
a. The New Creation. The final state of believers will be preceded by the passing of the present world and the establishment of a new creation, Matt. 19:28 speaks of "the regeneration," and Acts 3:21 of the "restoration of all things." Heaven and earth will pass away, Heb.
12:27; 2 Pet. 3:13, and a new creation will take its place, Rev. 21:1.
The future creation will not be an entirely new creation, but rather a renewal of the present creation, Ps. 102:26, 27; Heb. 12:26–28. b. The Eternal Abode of the Righteous. Many conceive of heaven also as a condition which men may enjoy in the present and which will become permanent in the future. But the Bible teaches us to think of heaven as a place. It is the house of our Father with many mansions,
John 14:2. Believers will be within, while unbelievers are without, Matt. 22:12, 13; 25:10–12. The righteous will not only inherit heaven, but the entire new creation, Matt. 5:5; Rev. 21:1–3.
c. The Nature of Their Reward. The reward of the righteous is described as eternal life, that is, not merely an endless life, but life in all its fulness, without any of the imperfections and disturbances of the present, Matt. 25:46; Rom. 2:7. The fulness of this life is enjoyed in communion with God, which is really the essence of eternal life,
Rev. 21:3. While all will enjoy perfect bliss, yet there will be degrees also in the blessedness of heaven, Dan. 12:3; 2 Cor. 9:6.
Questions for Review:
What Scripture proof is there for the last judgment? Who will be the Judge? Who will assist Him in the work? What parties will be judged? When will the last judgment be? How long will it last? By what standard will men be judged? How can we prove that hell is a place? In what will the punishment of the wicked consist? How can we prove that their punishment will be unending? Will the new creation be an entirely new creation? What proof is there that heaven is a place? What is the reward of the righteous?
References for Further Study:
Berkhof, Reformed Dogmatics, II, pp. 338–348; Hodge, Outlines of Theology, pp. 573–587; McPherson, Christian Dogmatics, pp. 454–
460; Hovey, Biblical Eschatology, pp. 144–176.
-----
MONERGISM BOOKS
Manual of Christian Doctrine by Louis Berkhof, Copyright © 2018
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of Monergism Books. ePub, .mobi & pdf Editions October 2018 Requests for information should be addressed to: Monergism Books, PO Box 491, West Linn,
OR 97068