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The One Purpose of God: An Answer to the Doctrine of Eternal Punishment

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Jan Bonda struggled as a Christian for 50 years with the same thing I struggle with today - reconciling a belief in an infinitely loving and merciful God with One who will punish all non-Christians who ever lived (which would be the majority of world history's population) with eternal damnation.

This work is an introduction to Bonda's version of Universalism - the belief that, at the end of time, God will reconcile ALL people, living and dead, to Himself as Jesus Christ, and that no one (or almost no one) will suffer the eternal torment of Hell that Christianity often warns of to non-believers.

It's an appealing belief - and, to people like me, one which would describe the character of God in a way which I'd be more comfortable with. Bonda (and his translator) acknowledge that espousing such a belief would sound like nothing but a liberal "feel-good" kind of faith without Scriptural support, and there is plenty of that. Relying heavily on the writings of Paul, especially his letter to the Romans, Bonda compares the commonly-held Christian doctrine of eternal punishment to Scriptural references about the final judgement, and he comes to the conclusion that there is, indeed, hope for the many.

It is a hope that I myself wish and pray for. Bonda's work is both thoroughly researched and accessible to the lay reader, which can be hard to do. His references are meticulous (to the point that some footnotes read only in Latin). He has done his homework.

I can't say that I agree with everything Bonda wrote, but I'm extremely glad I read the book. It marked the beginning of a journey to find my own answers, one that will include careful reading of the Bible and books from others with views on both sides of this most important question: Would God will an eternal punishment for the majority of his own children?

In THE ONE PURPOSE OF GOD, Jan Bonda successfully argues that God has only one purpose and desire for mankind- their salvation. This point is presented with in-depth scriptural proofs. Bonda discusses relevant scriptures from throughout the Bible, yet the greater part of the book focuses on the Biblical book of Romans. Most of Romans is covered, and as is typical of this book, startling new interpretations are brought to light.

Bonda's book grew out of his personal struggle with the beliefs of his own Reformed Church tradition, which teaches that God predistines some people to be saved, and other people to be lost. This struggle led him to a deep study of the Bible and a subsequent new belief- hopeful universalism. As a "hopeful universalist" Bonda presents Biblical evidence for a sturdy hope that all people will some day be saved, though he does not believe there can be a 100% certainty of this. Bonda's universalism is strongly Biblically based and centered upon the work of Christ.

I appreciated both the depth and the accessibility of this work. It should be appreciated by theologian and layman alike.

On my initial reading of this book, I found it stimulating and at times shocking. At least one of the Bible passages he used I could have sworn was NOT in the Bible until I looked it up! Actually, the passage was there, and very clear in its meaning. Many of the other texts I was familiar with. Yet, upon reading Bonda's book, I found I had been skimming by these texts, never listening to what the words really said. Occasionally, I felt that Bonda's scriptural interpretations were forced- that there could be other ways of interpreting these texts. Nontheless he stimulated me to do my own Bible study of the texts he used. In the end, I have concluded he was right! But check it out for yourself- this is a stimulating subject, too often ignored or misunderstood- as well as an excellent book.

I've read several books on Christian Universalism, and although they were emotionally satisfying (in other words, I agreed with their conclusions), they weren't scholarly enough to satisfy the nagging biblical questions still left over. Bonda's book is entirely different. First, he tackles this issue as a reformed Presybetarian pastor, which rachets up his credibility enormously. Second, he looks at this from a scriptural standpoint, starting with the Old Testament and going through the New Testament to put his argument in context. Finally, he wraps all this up with church history, where we come to see that never-ending punishment was NOT a prevailing view of the early church, nor was the theology of election, or predestination. Instead, Bonda argues rather elequently that the idea of "the restoration of all things" is very biblical, and that questioning the doctrines our current churches hold dear is not blasphemous, but rather is something the Reformation itself encouraged us to do.

Jason Usry writes "I'm sorry, but this book just doesn't cut it. It's barren of exegesis and full of emotionalism. Fact: the same word that describes the duration of the blessedness of the righteous is used to describe the duration of the torment of the damned. See Matthew 25:46."

My Response:
Matthew 25:46 "And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal."

Notice it says everlasting punishment, not everlasting punishING as he probably reads this into the text, as most who believe in eternal torment do. A punishment of which the consequences are everlasting. Next, to seek out the Greek word and define it by its usage. I would refer Jason to read what many scholars have wrote on eonian, aionion.

St. Gregory of Nyssa speaks of aionios diastêma, "an eonian interval." It would be absurd to call an interval "endless."

St. Chrysostum, in his homily on Eph. 2:1-3, says that "Satan's kingdom is æonian; that is, it will cease with the present world."

St. Justin Martyr repeatedly used the word aionios as in the Apol. (p. 57), aionion kolasin ...all ouchi chiliontaetê periodon, "eonian chastening ...but a period, not a thousand years." Or, as some translate the last clause: "but a period of a thousand years only." He limits the eonian chastening to a period of a thousand years, rather than to endlessness.

Josephus shows that aionios did not mean endlessness, for he uses it of the period between the giving of the law to Moses and that of his own writing; to the period of the imprisonment of the tyrant John by the Romans; and to the period during which Herod's temple stood. The temple had already been destroyed by the time Josephus was writing.

Dr. Mangey, a translator of the writings of Philo, says Philo did not use aionios to express endless duration.

At Isa. 60:15, the adjective is used: "I will make you an eonian (aionion) excellency." This is followed by, "a joy of many generations." Eonian cannot mean endlessness here, for when the eons close, generations cease for there will be no more procreation.

More important, use Strong's & Young's Concordance and look up all ocurrences of the word and see how the Bible uses it.

Bonda does an incredible job re-discovering the true Biblical teaching on salvation and how the church has mis-interpreted it for centuries. A dense and fairly slow read, it is well worth the time!

I started to read this book in 1993 but gave up after 85 pages; it was to difficult for me then and I didn't have a frame of reference. Since that year I've read and heard a lot about the subject, from the Bible as well as from books (the inescapable love of God, Thomas Talbott and Martin Zender goes to hell, Martin Zender, f.i.) and this year I started to read Bonda's book again, and I loved it. It's a book from someone who did'nt look for easy answers, but really wanted to get to the bottom of it.
I learned a lot while reading it!

Jason:

Andy said it best.

People will generally accept facts as truth only if the facts agree with what they already believe.
Andy Rooney

I'm sorry, but this book just doesn't cut it. It's barren of exegesis and full of emotionalism. Fact: the same word that describes the duration of the blessedness of the righteous is used to describe the duration of the torment of the damned. See Matthew 25:46.