REV. XXI, 4. John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be
unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to
come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne.
REV. XXII, 3. And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God
and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him.
REV. VII, 15. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve
him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne
shall dwell among them.
16. They shall hunger no more neither thirst any more: neither shall
the sun light on them, nor any heat.
17. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them,
and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall
wipe away all tears from their eyes.
9. HELL A PLACE OF ENDLESS MISERY.
The chief objections that have been urged against the doctrine of the
eternal punishment of the finally impenitent, are the following:
1. The disproportion between the actions done in time and endless
punishment. While it is not denied that punishment is merited, it is
contended that there should be some proportion between the crime and
the duration of the penalty. To this objection we deem the following
arguments a sufficient answer:
What is the moral proportion between one day and a month, or one day
and a year? Does nothing depend on the nature of the crime? Suppose a
man commits a petty larceny, would the objector say a month's
imprisonment is enough? Another man commits murder, would the objector
say that a year's punishment would suffice? But should the latter
criminal be punished a month and the other a year? It is urged that
the nature of the crime determines that. If this is granted it is
apparent that the proportion is one of _turpitude_, and not of _time_.
Society, and all civil governments, proceed upon the principle that
the time occupied in the perpetration of a criminal act is not to be
taken into account in considering the punishment that is to be
awarded. This is manifestly correct; for less time is usually occupied
in committing murder than in perpetrating a burglary; and, on the
principle of strict proportion, the burglar should undergo a longer
punishment than the murderer. But the moral instincts of society
overrule its sentimentalities, and demand that the gravity of the
crime shall determine the gravity of the punishment.
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