The Devil

I used to not want to think about hell. It was there, but I figured if I didn't think about it, I didn't have to deal with the realness of it. In fact I thought hell was over exaggerated, partly influenced by my sister's belief that hell was a made up place by man to scare people into being "good" (whatever good means) and the lack of understanding what it was. As I learned more about God, Jesus, and the Bible, I looked for every imaginable way around the idea that people could go to hell. I sought answers in the Bible with natural revelation being the main "out" for God. He couldn't be the cruel overlord my antagonist atheist and agnostic friends portrayed him to be, could he?

Jump forward in time 30 years. I didn't see then, what I see and know now. Hell was not created for mankind, it was created for the rebellious sons of God (fallen "angels" or Elohim in Hebrew) from the supernatural realm (what we think of as heaven). These fallen Elohim came and deceived Adam and Eve and corrupted those who lived before the flood Genesis describes in chapters 6-8 of the Bible. Those fallen Elohim are "being kept in gloomy darkness until the final judgement" as Jude writes in Chapter 1:6 of his letter. Hell is also the end destination for those beings we call demons - the dead offspring of those fallen Elohim and female humans. These half-breeds are known from scripture as the Nephilim, the "mighty men of renown" before the flood, and after the flood as giants (Rephiam, Anakim, and some Philistine) See Genesis 6 & 15, Joshua 21, Deuteronomy 2, 1 Samuel 21, 1 Chronicles 20.

Their intent was to corrupt the blood line from which the messiah would come because the messiah would bring judgement on them. God said, "he (the messiah) will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel." (Genesis 3:15). These were the people groups whom Joshua and Israel were to annihilate in the Old Testament. These gods required human sacrifice and temple prostitution (many were children). Now knowing who they were and understanding that their desire was to corrupt and use mankind as slaves, concubines, and even food (yes, food) (1 Enoch 7), removes the angst I had wondering why God would want to destroy so many people. https://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/4372130/jewish/The-Tragic-History-of-Molech-Child-Sacrifice.htc

What I knew then vs what I know now, makes hell far more real. It has also given me a clear picture of why Jesus came, died, and came back to life. He came not only to be our example of how to love God and people, but to rescue people from the deception of the fallen whose only desire now, is to take as many people with them to hell, a place not meant for humans to ever see or experience.

What is your view of hell now vs when you first heard about it?