Heaven Or Hell? You Decide. Trivia Quiz

Answer: Hell is a place of torment, not of fun and games

The King James Version of Mark 9:43 presents a conversation of Jesus as He spoke among His disciples; following is a portion of this quotation by Jesus -

"And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched...")

(For a better clarity, read the entire segment of the chapter that includes verses 42-49.)

(In no way does this text imply that anyone should do bodily harm to themselves; it was merely being pointed out that hell is a place of incredible torment, and that it should be avoided at all costs.)

Answer: It's not in the Bible

Nothing even remotely resembling this idea for those who inherit the kingdom of God is found anywhere in the Bible. This concept is due in part to ancient Greek and even earlier Egyptian views of the afterlife.

In Revelation 14:1-3, we do see a description of John's vision concerning one group of people, however, and harpists do factor into that text, where they are said to accompany a specific group of singers.

"And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps: And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth."

Answer: they would lock and unlock things on earth and in heaven

Matthew 16:19 says, "And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

This statement from Jesus came immediately after Simon Peter had proclaimed Jesus to be the son of God. Jesus had told him that no man had revealed that knowledge to him, but rather that it had come to Peter via the heavenly Father.

(Notice that keys in the plural were mentioned. One was for the purpose of locking; the other for unlocking.)

Answer: he wanted Lazarus to bring him water and to testify to his brothers

In the King James Version of Luke 16:19-31, we read the following story, as Jesus spoke simultaneously with His disciples and with those of the Pharisee sect who were listening in.

"There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.

And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and SEND LAZARUS, THAT HE MAY DIP THE TIP OF HIS FINGER IN WATER, AND COOL MY TONGUE; FOR I AM TORMENTED IN THIS FLAME.

But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest SEND HIM TO MY FATHER'S HOUSE: FOR I HAVE FIVE BRETHREN; THAT HE MAY TESTIFY UNTO THEM, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead."

The rich man was NOT having a good time and was burning in a state of torment, according to this scripture, and he really did NOT wish to share his misery with anyone else. He was NOT unconscious of his suffering, but was VERY conscious of his condition; he was NOT simply burned up and merely destroyed; he was NOT able to relieve his condition, and he was NOT desirous to have his brothers join him in his pain and torment!

Answer: False

This is a completely false statement for a number of reasons. First of all, there is only ONE street in this city of New Jerusalem, and it is not PAVED with anything; it is MADE of solid gold. Secondly, this is NOT a vision of 'heaven' at all; John had previously stated just a few verses prior that he had seen the holy city, New Jerusalem, descending down OUT OF HEAVEN. Thirdly, there is nowhere in the Bible that indicates that angels sing; they ALWAYS are recorded as SPEAKING, not SINGING. Fourth, the gates of New Jerusalem are not MADE of pearls, they are SOLID pearls, and if you study out the dimensions of this city, they are HUGE, extending for miles and miles, both in height and width, all twelve of them.

Read Revelation 21 and 22 very slowly and carefully, out loud to yourself, to receive the full impact of John's vision of what is commonly and mistakenly referred to as "heaven".

Answer: True

The King James Version of Isaiah 5:14 says exactly that.

"Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it."

Other translations use the words "death" or "grave" interchangeably for the word rendered "hell" in this text. Many modern Jewish readers of Isaiah do not accept this concept of hell as pertaining to the afterlife.

According to the New Testament, Hell was originally designed for the devil and the fallen angels, or demons that rebelled against God in heaven. (See Matthew 25:31-46 which presents a parable or story that Jesus used to explain things to His disciples. That parable shows the differences in people, metaphorically referring to them as sheep and goats.)

"Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal."

I personally believe that since man was never intended to be cast into hell, and man voluntarily goes there by his own choice, and is not SENT there by God, then hell has had to increase in size in order to accommodate the larger crowd than that originally planned for it.

I further believe that God does not send anyone to hell, but that he DOES allow man to go there, if a person so chooses; otherwise God would not be a fair-minded Being. In other words, why would He FORCE someone to be with Him and make them offer Him praise for all eternity if an individual truly DID NOT WISH to do so?

Answer: True

The King James Version of Hebrews 12:22-24, renders its text this way:

"But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel."

A common view of "heaven" is actually described as the magnificent and holy city of New Jerusalem, which is where most Christians believe that God and mankind will dwell together forever in a state of harmonious balance.

Answer: True

Some see this "prison" as actually representing hell itself, or at least as a representation of death. "Sheol", in the Hebrew language, means something akin to 'grave, pit, or abode of the dead', and thus may represent the domain of those who are in the grave.

Matthew 28:5-6 in the King James Version reads this way - "And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay."

1st Peter 1:18-21 says - "Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God."

Then in 1st Peter 3:18-22 we read - "For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water. The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him."

The Greek word, "phylake", from which the word "prison" originates, as rendered in Peter 3, shows us a visualization of one standing guard, or watch over prisoners.

Answer: an ark of God's testament

"And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail."

See Revelation 11:19 (King James Version).

(This vision of John is a part of that one described as the "sounding of the seventh trumpet.")

Answer: the devil

A few excerpts from Revelation 20, in the King James Version, reveal to us a vivid picture of the devil's future, along with those whose names are not found in the book of life, including the demons that are under Lucifer's command.

Revelation 20:1-3 reads, "And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season."

Revelation 20:7-10 reads, "And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever."

Revelation 20:14-15 says, "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."