I think the Bible has way to many contradictions and confusing stories, codes, prophecies, etc. for me to decide exactly what I believe. One thing I wonder is, why would hell be forever and ever?
Say a guy lives 60 years, and is a real shit for most of them.
Why would God torment him forever and ever for something he did for only 60 years?
Because we all have a choice. If we choose to live without God in this life, we don’t get the choice to live with Him in the next one.
Also, I don’t think hell is somewhere where God actually goes out of His way to torment people. I just think it’s the total absence of God. I guess that’s pretty unpleasant, however. It’s not that God wants people to suffer, but he does want people to love Him, as a free choice. And if they choose not to, then the consequence is they don’t get to spend eternity with Him. He gives them every opportunity to be reconciled to Him while they’re alive, and requires nothing of anyone except acknowledgement.
So does God have a choice to cut someone’s punishment short when he feels they’ve suffered enough, or is he bound to the promise to give everyone the same punishment, shoplifter and mass murderer alike?
Well, some believe in purgatory.
Appropos nothing, in Buddhist cosmology hell is temporary, just as other lifetimes are.
Hell is also temporary in Jewish theology, or so I’ve been told.
I read too that hell would be temporary except in some cases (rejecting god, or something), according to muslim theologians.
Also, the OP could want to checkthis recent thread , related to his question…
Hell is more of a natural consequence of separation from God than a punishment; it’s not an intended destination.
I heard that hell is a void totally exempt of feeling, emotion, love and the warmth of God. This is so because it is for you to confront your fears and reflect on yourself and when you realise what you are and what you’ve done in your life then you are ‘brought out from the cold’ It’s like a place of purging all your negative self.
If Hell is the absence of God, then I`d say that this world is a pretty close approximation to it.
Damn straight!
If Hell is not forever, then what are the real consequences of going there? You could live a life full of sin and still eventually make it to Heaven. There is then no true incentive to behave in the manner the God would want us to in the life.
But the real reason I think of Hell as a place that one will be in forever is that I think its a place that exists outside of time, just as God exist outside of time. Time is a meaningless concept in terms of eternity.
If I recall correctly, Hell isn’t forever. After some predetermined time everyone in Hell is cast into the Lake of Fire.
Maybe a scripture expert will come along and refute this.
What if I reflect on myself and decide that I am a pretty swell guy?
How sad for you.
There’s also the belief that all those who don’t get into heaven are just wiped out of existance altogether. I believe that’s an aspect of certain Jewish beliefs.
But yeah, most people preach nowadays that Hell is the absence of God. Perhaps even being given the knowledge that She exists and then being shunned and forever having that longing and feeling of emptiness. Sucks, but hey, that’s why it’s called a “punishment.” You’d think if God was going to do something on a grand scale, He’d do it right.
Hell is narrated as “forever” pretty much because people really want to believe in permanence. Healthy market for stories that deny impermanence, and where there’s demand, there will be supply.
Goodness that comes only out of fear of punishment is not true goodness. Frankly, if there is a Hell, I’d suspect that a section of it is filled with people who did “good” only because they were afraid of going there. But then again, I’ve a fondness for Twilight Zone stories.
Funny how things moderate over the years, isn’t it? Nowadays, Hitler is in for the exact same treatment that Dante meted out for the virtuous pagans.
Drastic wrote:
That is only true if you see Hell as a punishment inflicts. I see Hell as no more a punishment that simply the choice that one makes by the actions in their lives. The nature of man leads us to sin and be separated from God. God throws us a lifeline to safety and rescue, it is then our choice to take it or leave it. So Hell is the natural consequence of sin, not a punishment from God. God tries to save us from the consequence of our own past actions.
That is suppost to read:
That is only true if you see Hell as a punishment ‘God’ inflicts.
Hell is an eternity of having to listen to and read debates on what Hell is! 
It’s true for anyone who formulates Hell in such a manner, and behaves rightly only because of that narrative. But I think we’re on the same page there, at least.