Whatever reconciliation we find here or hereafter it must have at bottom God's unutterable hatred of sin but also God's unutterable love and pain over every sinful soul which He has made. This theory of Endless Torment and Endless Sin certainly does not appear to satisfy this test, and it has in addition to face the stern revolt of Reason and Conscience. II _The theory of Universalism, i. e., that all men shall at length be saved_. This opinion is based on the more hopeful side of Scripture that we have referred to, but it ignores or explains away what contradicts it in the darker and sterner side. If one could forget that, it would be the most inspiring of all the guesses that have been made. As presented by its best exponents, such men as Allen and Jukes and Cox, it is wonderfully attractive and at first sight seems to satisfy many of the conditions of the problem. It takes account of a just and awful retribution for every sin, and takes account also of the mysterious hope in the Hereafter which runs through the Bible. It believes that the power of God has infinite resources and that the love of God has unwearying persistence and that no soul can ultimately resist such resources and such love. Even Hell itself it deems God's final effort when all other means have failed. The reader who thinks there can be no possible excuse for such a theory should glance at a few of the passages quoted in its favour: "God who wills that _all men_ should be saved" (1 Tim. ii. 4), and "who wills that _all men_ should come to repentance" (2 Peter iii. 9). And this will or determination of God is "_immutable_" (Heb. vi. 7). Again, "Now is the judgment of this world, now shall the Prince of this world be cast out, AND I, if I be lifted up, will draw _all men_ unto Myself" (John xii. 31, 32). "_All flesh_ shall see the salvation of God" (Luke iii. 6). "His grace bringing salvation to all men" (Titus ii. 11). "We trust in the living God who is the Saviour of _all men, especially_ of those who believe" (1 Tim. iv. 10). "He is the propitiation _not for our sins only, but also_ for the sins of the _whole world_" (1 John ii. 2). "He was manifested that He might _destroy_ the works of the devil" (1 John iii. 8) [and _destroy_ the devil (bruise the serpent's head) Gen. iii. 15]. "He shall _overcome_ the strong man armed (the devil) and take away his armour and divide his spoils" (Luke xi. 21, 22). "He was manifested to _put away_ sin by the sacrifice of Himself" (Heb. ix. 26). "God hath not cast away His people whom He foreknew ... and so _all Israel shall be saved_" (Rom. xii. 25-33). "The times of the _Restoration of all things_ which God hath promised by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began" (Acts iii. 21). "As in Adam _all_ die, even so in Christ shall _all_ be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the first-fruits; afterwards they that are Christ's at His coming. Then cometh the end ...