A Snapshot of the Real ‘Hells’
Four words have been translated as hell in the Bible – Sheol, Hades, Gehenna and Tartaroo. The first one is Hebrew (Old Testament) and the rest are Greek (New Testament). Do all of these words mean the same? (At least that’s what many of the English bible translations imply). Or do they mean different things?
When we refer to Hebrew and Greek dictionaries and the Bible’s own descriptions of these words, we find deeper insight into their meanings. And we also get clarity on many seemingly contradictory verses in the English bibles.
Here is a snapshot of:
1) What are the places indicated by each of those words.
2) Who is to go into which place.
3) The state of entities in each of those places.
4) What can each of those entities expect in the future.
This table has been compiled based on Hebrew & Greek dictionaries and the Holy Bible.
| HELLS | SHEOL / HADES | GEHENNA | TARTAROO |
|---|---|---|---|
| WHAT? | Grave | Jerusalem waste burner; Symbolic lake of fire; Annihilation/second death | Symbolic Chains of Darkness |
| WHO? | Dead Humans | Humans who disobey Jesus & turn to Satan in the Kingdom’s final test; Present Political & Religious Systems; Satan; Death & HADES (in the end) | Fallen Angels |
| STATE | Unconscious sleep | Annihilated / Utterly destroyed | Restricted & bound from becoming visible |
| FUTURE | Resurrection | No coming back! Destruction is permanent / eternal. | Judgment by the Church |
Question For Further Study
Like hell torment, are there other unbiblical Dark Age doctrines that have settled into Christianity? – Read further.
