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RE: The Curmudgeon's Bible - II Thessalonians 1
I have heard many compelling interpretations of scripture suggesting that cleansing flame rather than punishment is intended in many depictions of "hellfire."
I believe that, even as scripture is a two-edged sword, the presence of God will serve both purposes.
For those of us who are believers, it will be the final cleansing and purging of every taint of sin or stain in our existence, leaving us pure and pristine and absolutely regenerated.
For those who maintain their rebellion against their maker to the very end, it will be a just and terrifying retribution that metes out pain in the same measure as they have done to others in their lives, but upon completion of that task, it will mercifully consume and completely extinguish them.
I believe that the same flame of Jesus' personal presence will also purge and restore the entire physical universe, utterly renewing it to a super-Edenic state.