Love and punishment are not mutually exclusive

 

There is the need for punishment and consequence. we punish our children for their misbehaviors, we can expect no less from God. But, no loving parent would send the child to their room forever nor would they inflict pain everyday of their child's life.

 

Jesus told the story of a rich man and a beggar as an example of eternal punishment. Jesus said the rich man lived the good life while the beggar starved at his gate. In the next life, the beggar is in paradise while the rich man is in hell. The story ends with Abraham and the beggar refusing to dip their fingers in water to relieve the rich man's misery. The only act of compassion is the rich man's request that someone warn his brothers. Where is the justice in this story? Even when judged by the command of an "eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth," the rich man's sentence seems excessive. How do we justify punishing a lifetime of sin with an eternity of suffering? At what point are the scales balanced?

 

How does eternal punishment bring glory to God or is it strictly God's retribution?

 

Love and punishment are not mutually exclusive. But parental punishment is never designed to inflict pain. It desires to redeem, shape, or protect. When it is excessive, it becomes abuse. Eternal punishment contradicts even the harshest concepts of justice its only purpose is to create pain and suffering.