Everlasting Punishment

Section 1

The Bible

1Deuteronomy 6:4–6

4Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:

5And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

6And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:

2Deuteronomy 7:9

9Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;

3Psalms 145:8

8The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.

4I John 4:8 God is

8God is love.

Science and Health with Key to the Scripturesby Mary Baker Eddy

1140:25–27

The Christian Science God is universal, eternal, divine Love, which changeth not and causeth no evil, disease, nor death.

26:17

Mercy without
partiality

“God is Love.” More than this we cannot ask, higher we cannot look, farther we cannot go. To suppose that God forgives or punishes sin according as His mercy is sought or unsought, is to misunderstand Love and to make prayer the safety-valve for wrong-doing.

32:8–11

Deity
unchangeable

God is not moved by the breath of praise to do more than He has already done, nor can the infinite do less than bestow all good, since He is unchanging wisdom and Love.

44:17–22

Watchfulness
requisite

Simply asking that we may love God will never make us love Him; but the longing to be better and holier, expressed in daily watchfulness and in striving to assimilate more of the divine character, will mould and fashion us anew, until we awake in His likeness.

Section 2

The Bible

5Exodus 24:3 Moses

3Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do.

6Numbers 12:1 (to :), 2, 3, 5–8, 10, 11, 13, 15

1And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married:

2And they said, Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the Lord heard it.

3(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)

5And the Lord came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth.

6And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.

7My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house.

8With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the Lord shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?

10And the cloud departed from off the tabernacle; and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow: and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous.

11And Aaron said unto Moses, Alas, my lord, I beseech thee, lay not the sin upon us, wherein we have done foolishly, and wherein we have sinned.

13And Moses cried unto the Lord, saying, Heal her now, O God, I beseech thee.

15And Miriam was shut out from the camp seven days: and the people journeyed not till Miriam was brought in again.

7I Kings 8:27 will (to ;), 28, 30 and hear, 39 and

27will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee;

28Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to-day:

30and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place: and when thou hearest, forgive.

39and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;)

8Lamentations 3:22, 23

22It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

23They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

Science and Health

535:30 (only)

The design of Love is to reform the sinner.

65:3–6

Sorrow and
reformation

Sorrow for wrong-doing is but one step towards reform and the very easiest step. The next and great step required by wisdom is the test of our sincerity, — namely, reformation.

7542:19–21

Retribution
and remorse

Let Truth uncover and destroy error in God’s own way, and let human justice pattern the divine.

8537:9–10, 14–16

A knowledge of evil was never the essence of divinity or manhood.

Error excludes itself from harmony. Sin is its own punishment. Truth guards the gateway to harmony.

9323:6–9

A bright
outlook

Through the wholesome chastisements of Love, we are helped onward in the march towards righteousness, peace, and purity, which are the landmarks of Science.

Section 3

The Bible

9Psalms 86:15 thou

15thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.

10Isaiah 38:17 thou hast cast

17thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.

11John 8:1–11

1Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.

2And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.

3And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst,

4They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.

5Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?

6This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.

7So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.

8And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.

9And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.

10When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?

11She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.

Science and Health

1011:1 Jesus’, 8–10

Jesus’ prayer, “Forgive us our debts,” specified also the terms of forgiveness. When forgiving the adulterous woman he said, “Go, and sin no more.”

Remission
of penalty

The moral law, which has the right to acquit or condemn, always demands restitution before mortals can “go up higher.”

11497:9

We acknowledge God’s forgiveness of sin in the destruction of sin and the spiritual understanding that casts out evil as unreal. But the belief in sin is punished so long as the belief lasts.

125:23–25 Sin

Cancellation
of human sin

Sin is forgiven only as it is destroyed by Christ, — Truth and Life.

13444:16–19

Charity
to those
opposed

Let us be faithful in pointing the way through Christ, as we understand it, but let us also be careful always to “judge righteous judgment,” and never to condemn rashly.

14327:8–10, 12–13 (to 1^st .)

What a pitiful sight is malice, finding pleasure in revenge! Evil is sometimes a man’s highest conception of right, until his grasp on good grows stronger.

The way to escape the misery of sin is to cease sinning.

15405:5–9, 18

Mental
conspirators

Christian Science commands man to master the propensities, — to hold hatred in abeyance with kindness, to conquer lust with chastity, revenge with charity, and to overcome deceit with honesty.

The good man finally can overcome his fear of sin. This is sin’s necessity, — to destroy itself. Immortal man demonstrates the government of God, good, in which is no power to sin.

16304:14

The perfect man — governed by God, his perfect Principle — is sinless and eternal.

Section 4

The Bible

12Matthew 16:24

24Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

13Matthew 18:21–33

21Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?

22Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.

23Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.

24And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.

25But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.

26The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

27Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.

28But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellow-servants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.

29And his fellow-servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

30And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.

31So when his fellow-servants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.

32Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:

33Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow-servant, even as I had pity on thee?

14Ephesians 4:32 be

32be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.

Science and Health

1717:6–7

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.And Love is reflected in love;

186:3

Pardon and
amendment

Divine Love corrects and governs man. Men may pardon, but this divine Principle alone reforms the sinner. God is not separate from the wisdom He bestows. The talents He gives we must improve. Calling on Him to forgive our work badly done or left undone, implies the vain supposition that we have nothing to do but to ask pardon, and that afterwards we shall be free to repeat the offence.

19329:26

The pardon of divine mercy is the destruction of error. If men understood their real spiritual source to be all blessedness, they would struggle for recourse to the spiritual and be at peace; but the deeper the error into which mortal mind is plunged, the more intense the opposition to spirituality, till error yields to Truth.

208:28–30

We should examine ourselves and learn what is the affection and purpose of the heart, for in this way only can we learn what we honestly are.

219:11

If selfishness has given place to kindness, we shall regard our neighbor unselfishly, and bless them that curse us; but we shall never meet this great duty simply by asking that it may be done. There is a cross to be taken up before we can enjoy the fruition of our hope and faith.

22325:7

Jesus gave the true idea of being, which results in infinite blessings to mortals.

23266:18 Universal

Universal Love is the divine way in Christian Science.

Section 5

The Bible

15Matthew 3:2 Repent

2Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

16II Peter 3:9

9The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Science and Health

2419:17–24

Efficacious
repentance

Every pang of repentance and suffering, every effort for reform, every good thought and deed, will help us to understand Jesus’ atonement for sin and aid its efficacy; but if the sinner continues to pray and repent, sin and be sorry, he has little part in the atonement, — in the at-one-ment with God, — for he lacks the practical repentance, which reforms the heart and enables man to do the will of wisdom.

25339:17, 31

Only those, who repent of sin and forsake the unreal, can fully understand the unreality of evil.

You conquer error by denying its verity. Our various theories will never lose their imaginary power for good or evil, until we lose our faith in them and make life its own proof of harmony and God.

Section 6

The Bible

17Psalms 52:8 I trust

8I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.

18Matthew 16:21

21From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.

19Luke 22:39, 40, 47–51

39And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him.

40And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.

47And while he yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him.

48But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest thou the Son of man with a kiss?

49When they which were about him saw what would follow, they said unto him, Lord, shall we smite with the sword?

50And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear.

51And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him.

20Matthew 5:7

7Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

Science and Health

2648:17

Defensive
weapons

Judas had the world’s weapons. Jesus had not one of them, and chose not the world’s means of defence. “He opened not his mouth.” The great demonstrator of Truth and Love was silent before envy and hate. Peter would have smitten the enemies of his Master, but Jesus forbade him, thus rebuking resentment or animal courage. He said: “Put up thy sword.”

27316:7

Christ, Truth, was demonstrated through Jesus to prove the power of Spirit over the flesh, — to show that Truth is made manifest by its effects upon the human mind and body, healing sickness and destroying sin.

2826:21–23

Proof in
practice

Jesus’ teaching and practice of Truth involved such a sacrifice as makes us admit its Principle to be Love.

2925:26

Implicit faith in the Teacher and all the emotional love we can bestow on him, will never alone make us imitators of him. We must go and do likewise, else we are not improving the great blessings which our Master worked and suffered to bestow upon us. The divinity of the Christ was made manifest in the humanity of Jesus.

Section 7

The Bible

21III John 1:11 (to :)

11Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God:

22Luke 6:36, 37

36Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

37Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

23Ephesians 5:1, 2

1Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

2And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour.

Science and Health

3011:22–27

Desire for
holiness

We know that a desire for holiness is requisite in order to gain holiness; but if we desire holiness above all else, we shall sacrifice everything for it. We must be willing to do this, that we may walk securely in the only practical road to holiness.

31568:24–30

Pæan of
jubilee

For victory over a single sin, we give thanks and magnify the Lord of Hosts. What shall we say of the mighty conquest over all sin? A louder song, sweeter than has ever before reached high heaven, now rises clearer and nearer to the great heart of Christ; for the accuser is not there, and Love sends forth her primal and everlasting strain.

32454:18–19

Love inspires, illumines, designates, and leads the way.