Degrees Of Punishment

Because you are stubborn and refuse to turn from your sin, you are storing up terrible punishment for yourself.   Romans 2:5

The punishment experienced in hell by a person who rejects the Son of God will be a direct reflection of the particular sins committed by that individual. God’s justice is perfect, so nobody will be punished for a sin he or she didn’t commit.

Just as there are degrees of reward in heaven, so there will be degrees of punishment in hell. Jesus referred to this on a number of occasions. He spoke about a city that refused to receive the Good News: “It will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town” (Matthew 10:15, NIV). Receiving the Good News brought a new level of responsibility and accountability.

Jesus also distinguished between a servant who knew what his master wanted and a servant who did not: “A servant who knows what the master wants, but isn’t prepared and doesn’t carry out those instructions, will be severely punished. But someone who does not know, and then does something wrong, will be punished only lightly” (Luke 12:47-48).

Jesus makes it clear that the greater the light we have from God, the greater our responsibility is to respond in obedience. The Bible also points to degrees of punishment when it says, “Just think how much worse the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God” (Hebrews 10:29).

Some imagine that, having chosen the wrong path, they might as well cut loose and live wildly. That’s a terrible mistake. God will punish sins with perfect justice. A person in hell would give anything to have committed even one less sin.

If you see today that you’ve chosen the wrong path, that’s God’s grace reaching out to you. It’s not too late for you to turn around and run to him. He has provided a way out of the punishment you deserve, through the sacrifice of his Son. Through faith in him, you can live under God’s grace rather than his wrath.

For further reading, see Luke 12