Now that would be hell

In the comments to some of my post about the death of the Rev. Jerry Falwell I mentioned that the best response to his critics both on the left and the secular right was the simple fact that he is now in heaven and they will never be. Unless they repent and become like the Rev. Falwell.

This reminded me of certain verses from the bible.

. . . but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matthew 8:11-13

. . . and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 13:41-43

"Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' Matthew 22:12-14

and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 24:50-51

"Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 25:29-31

" In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves being thrown out. Luke 13:27-29

All of these verses refer to the souls of the lost being cast into eternal hell. All of them have in common the phrase "gnashing of teeth" on the part of the damned. It would be easy to think that gnashing teeth is a sign of profound grief; however it is not.

Acts chapter 7 puts the phrase into context. After Stephen, one of the 7 original deacons, had caused a stir by his powerful and convincing preaching accompanied by the performance of miracles he was arrested and brought before the authorities in Jerusalem. When asked to give an account for his actions he delivers a brilliant and inspired oration about the work of God in the history of the Jewish people and about their consistent failures in their service to Him. He ended this way:

54 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him.

55 But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God;

56 and he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."

57 But they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse.

58 When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul.

59 They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!"

60 Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" Having said this, he fell asleep.

Notice that when Stephen's preaching convicted the hypocritical leaders to the point where their rage overflowed into murderous fury they were said to "gnash their teeth" at him.

What will drive the damned souls being judged and cast into hell to "gnash their teeth" is the realization once and for all that the Falwells of the world were right all along. What will generate the weeping is the magnitude of the tragedy which has overtaken them and the utter hopelessness of their situation. But the fury will come from the fact that those damn stupid fundamentalist thumpers were right and that the educated and sophisticated intellectuals were wrong.

In that day Marx and Lenin and Nietzsche and Darwin will not be able to do anything but writhe beside them in the flame. And that knowledge, at least at first, will be the worst punishment of all.