By: Brian Chilton, PhD | January 11, 2026
In our last entry for a case for an eternal hell, we offered a biblical defense for the view of eternal conscious torment. Granted, the viewpoint is not the most delightful to hold. In some ways, I often wonder if maybe God uses some form of anesthesia for a person in hell, though the person would not be destroyed. Of course, that is far beyond the scope of our conversation at this time.
Nonetheless, the eternal nature of hell stems from two important doctrinal beliefs: first, the belief in the eternal nature of hell, and second, the belief in the immortality of the soul. The immortality of the human soul is distinct from the immortality of God. Human immortality has a definitive start point with no end, whereas God’s immortality has no beginning and no end. Human immortality is based on participation, while God’s immortality is based on His essence.
The question for this article is whether the earliest disciples held to the belief of an immortal soul for all people, which would imply a belief in an eternal hell. We will examine four disciples who were trained by the apostles of Jesus. Then, we will examine the beliefs of four of the biggest theologians in church history, otherwise known as the Big A’s: Athanasius, Augustine, Anselm, and Aquinas.
I. Case from Early Patristic Writers
Clement of Rome (disciple of Simon Peter; c. 30-100)
Clement of Rome was a direct disciple of Simon Peter. He lived from 30-100 AD. Clement was an early church father who lived and served near the end of the first-century. Clement was appointed co-bishop of Rome along with Linus and Cletus, but he eventually became the lead bishop of the church.[1] Clement’s theology is scant. It is largely preserved in two letters he wrote to the Corinthian church.
Clement of Rome does not say much about the immortality of the soul or hell, for that matter. Most of 1 Clement is based on proper conduct and an appeal to the Corinthian church to remain humble, just as Christ, David, and other champions of the faith were.
However, he does mention immortality in the resurrection. Clement writes, “How blessed and wonderful, beloved, are the gifts of God! Life in immortality, splendour in righteousness, truth in perfect confidence, faith in assurance, self-control in holiness!”[2] Unfortunate for our cause, Clement does not say much about the immortality of the soul. But he does mention the immortality that comes in the resurrection. If the condemned are resurrected just as the saints, then we must wonder why a resurrection would occur for the condemned if they were not built to be immortal, even in hell.
Clement does indicate that he may hold to an eternal hell. In chapter 51, he compares the persecutors and transgressors of the church to the Pharaoh who hardened his heart against the Lord. Clement then states, “For it is better that a man should acknowledge his transgressions than that he would harden his heart, as the hearts of those who were hardened who stirred up sedition against Moses the servant of God, and whose condemnation was made manifest [unto all]. For they went down alive into Hades, and death swallowed them up.”[3] Here, Clement likely references Revelation, where it said that death and Hades were cast into the Lake of Fire, which itself seems to imply that death had died, thus implying the eternal nature of hell (Rev. 20:13).
Ignatius of Antioch (disciple of John; c. 35-107 AD)
Ignatius was a disciple of John the apostle. He lived from 35-107 AD. Ignatius was also known as Theophorus, which means “God-bearer.” He became the bishop of Antioch of Syria during the late first-century. Unfortunately, Ignatius, like Clement, does not offer us much in the way of a viewpoint on the duration of hell. Like Clement, Ignatius focused on specific issues of the church and did not focus on other theological issues. His main focus was on the unity of the church, combating false teaching—especially Gnosticism/Docetism, and reflecting on his own martyrdom. Ignatius does not offer any specific material that would incline us to hold that he was either a conditionalist or an eternalist regarding hell. He did say that immortality was a gift given in the Eucharist, but he may have connected the concept back with his teaching about Christ being an impassible Being entering into a passible body. Like Clement, Ignatius focuses on the resurrection rather than spiritual immortality. So, we really do not have a clear indicator of his beliefs on hell since he was focused more on the promise of heaven.
Polycarp (disciple of John; c. 69-155 AD)
Polycarp was an early church leader who was also a disciple of the apostle John. Polycarp was much more practical than theoretical in his theology. His focus was on piety and righteous living and said nothing about the immorality of the soul or the fate of the condemned. Thus, we cannot draw anything about Polycarp’s beliefs on the nature of hell, outside of his warnings to avoid hell.
Papias of Hierapolis (disciple of John; 70-163 AD)
Papias was another disciple of John who lived from 70-163 AD. Papias was a contemporary of Polycarp and the Bishop of Hierapolis in Asia Minor. Papias wrote a five-volume work called An Exposition of the Oracles of the Lord. The collection contained oral traditions about Jesus from the apostles and their disciples. It contained both the teachings of Jesus and historical information. It is heartbreaking to note that only fragments of this massive work remain. Though we do not have anything that pertains to the immortality of the soul or the duration of hell, we do have an indicator that could imply that Papias could have believed in eternal conscious torment. Papias may have been what we would term today as a dispensationalist. His work contained a teaching on the millennial reign of Christ after Christ’s return to earth. His text states, “Amongst these he says that there will be a millennium after the resurrection from the dead, when the personal reign of Christ will be established on this earth.”[4] Now, there is no way we can validate whether Papias was an eternalist. But if Papias held to an ancient form of dispensationalism, then it seems more probable than not that he held to the immortality of the soul and the eternal state of hell.
To be fair, we just don’t have enough data to say whether these four early church leaders were conditionalists or eternalists when it comes to hell. While our case has not necessarily been strengthened in this section, neither has the conditionalist. These early church leaders were more focused on the promises of heaven and resolving early church issues than they were on the state of hell. So, since we cannot deduct anything from the earliest church fathers, what can we learn about the nature of hell from the four biggest theologians of church history?
II. Case from the Big A’s
Athanasius of Alexandria (296-373 AD)
Athanasius of Alexandria was a champion of orthodoxy. He lived from 296-373 AD. Athanasius served as the Bishop of Alexandria. However, he was exiled five times due to his struggles with the heretical teachings of Arius of Alexandria. Arius taught that Christ was a created being and was not eternal. Athanasius taught that Christ was eternal and took on flesh at the incarnation. His teachings led him to write On the Incarnation of the Word of God. This continued debate escalated to the point that the church had to call the Nicene Council of 325. During the council, it was deemed that Athanasius’s theology was correct and Arius was wrong.
Some have claimed that Athanasius was a conditionalist. However, I cannot draw the same conclusion from the teachings of his works. For instance, Athanasius strongly endorses the immortality of the soul in his book Against the Heathen. He holds that an immortal rational soul must exist if the mortal body can know eternal things. He asks, “How, since the body lasts but for a time, does man imagine of things eternal, so as to despise what lies before him, and desire what is beyond?”[5] When looking at his teachings on the soul, of the 286 references to the soul, nothing related to conditionalism was found.
Therefore, while we cannot say conclusively that Athanasius was an eternalist, claims of his being a conditionalist are also unfounded. Given Athanasius’s teaching on the nature of the soul leads me to believe that we have a better case for him being an eternalist than a conditionalist.
Augustine of Hippo (357-430 AD)
Admittedly, the case for an eternal hell from early Christian thinkers has not produced a ton of fruit thus far. However, the tide is about to turn with Augustine of Hippo, a man who was both an esteemed theologian and philosopher. Augustine of Hippo lived from 357 to 430 AD. He was originally from Tagaste, a Roman town in the province of Numidia, now modern-day Souk Ahras, Algeria. His father, Patricius, was a Roman, and his mother, Monica, was a devoted Christian. Augustine was a highly intellectual young man and was sent to Carthage at the age of 16 to study law.
In his book, City of God, Augustine defended the eternal nature of hell based on three compelling reasons: Scripture, tradition, and reason. In Book XXI of City of God, Augustine, citing Matthew 25:46 and Matthew 13:41-43, argues that the resurrected bodies of both saints and sinners last forever. In chapter two of Book XXI, he asks how it is that bodies could remain forever in a fire without being burned up. He answers this question in chapter 3 by pointing out that the devil and demons of hell have some form of body, yet they are also in hell for eternity. Then, he makes a compelling point about the two deaths mentioned in Scripture. Augustine maintains that the first death separates the soul from the body against her will, whereas the “second death holds the soul in the body against her will.”[6] Nonetheless, Augustine, who is one of the most influential early Christian thinkers, strongly adhered to eternalism.
Anselm of Canterbury (1093-1109 AD)
Anslem is our third major theologian. He lived from 1093-1109. Anselm was from Aosta, a town in northern Italy. He grew up under the influence of his godly mother, Ermenberga. Sadly, his father, Gundulf, was known to be an abrasive and cruel man, leading Anselm to leave home in 1056 to join a Benedictine monastery in Le Bec in Normandy. Later in his life, Anslem became the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1093.[7]
In Curs Deus Homo Book II, chapter XXI, Anselm argues that sin creates an infinite debt that could only be paid by a divine human agent, which is Christ. Because of the nature of this infinite sin, the punishment must be eternal unless satisfaction for the debt has been made. Only Christ, being God who became man, can atone for human sin. If someone denies the atoning work of Christ, then the person has no way to pay off an infinite debt. Furthermore, Anselm contends in Book II, chapter 14, that the infinite punishment of hell is proportionate to the offense the person committed against God. Furthermore, Anselm strongly teaches the immortal nature of the soul in Monologion, chapter 69, where he maintains that if the soul’s purpose is eternal, the soul must be immortal, and Monologion, chapter 72, arguing that every human soul is immortal.
Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274 AD)
Lastly, we have Thomas Aquinas, a scholar par excellence. Aquinas, who lived from 1225-1274, was from the castle of Rocca Sicca near Aquino in the territory of Naples, Italy. Aquinas is often called the “Angelic Doctor.” Thomas was known for his genius, wisdom, and ability to organize scholastic doctrines in a remarkably complete system, combining mysticism with intellectual rigor.
When it comes to the nature of hell, Aquinas, like Augustine and Anselm before him, maintained that the soul was immortal and that hell was eternal. He confronts the question of whether the worm of Scripture is corporeal or spiritual. Aquinas argues that the worm ascribed to the condemned must be of a spiritual nature “because it originates from the corruption of sin, and torments the soul.”[8] For those who hold that an eternal hell is unjust, Aquinas answers that mortal sin is an offense against the infinite dignity of God, thus its punishment fits the crime—eternal, not temporal.[9] Much more could be said about Aquinas’s viewpoint on the immortal nature of the soul. For more information on his belief in the immortality of the soul, see Summa Theologica Part 1, Question 75, Article 6; Part I, Question 75, and Articles 2-7; and Part I, Question 89.
Conclusion
Admittedly, the earliest Christian theologians did not offer much of a case either for or against the eternalist (aka., traditionalist), viewpoint. Some conditionalists have maintained that these early writers were conditionalists. However, the data does not support those claims. The earliest Christian writers focused on the promise of heaven and desired to see unity in their churches, especially when facing persecution and the influx of heretical movements. Yet, there are at least some signs that they may have been eternalists, especially given the early dispensationalist views of Papias.
Our case intensifies when we look at the four most influential theologians in church history, particularly Augustine, Anselm, and Aquinas. These theologians offered a much greater systematic theology than their earlier counterparts. Their arguments are rock solid and, in many ways, airtight. Even though their arguments do not prove eternalism in and of themselves, they do lay a strong foundation for the eternalist view.
In our final segment, we will look at some theological and philosophical challenges often offered against the eternalist viewpoint. We will discuss those topics in our final entry in our case for an eternal hell.
About the Author
Brian G. Chilton, M.Div., Ph.D.
Dr. Brian G. Chilton (PhD, Liberty University) is the founder of Bellator Christi Ministries and the co-host of the Bellator Christi Podcast. He serves as a hospice chaplain and an Adjunct Professor of Apologetics for Carolina College of Biblical Studies, a Dissertation Mentor/Adjunct Professor for Liberty University in the PhD in Applied Apologetics program, and an Adjunct Professor/Dissertation Reader at Carolina University in the DMin program. Dr. Chilton's primary area of research is on early Christianity, oral traditions, NT creeds, the blend of divine sovereignty and human freedom, and near-death experiences (NDEs).
Notes
[1] Clement of Rome, “First among the Fathers,” in Pillars of Grace (AD 100-1564) (Lake Mary, FL: Reformation Trust, 2011), 2:49-50.
[2] Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 35.
[3] Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 51.
[4] Papias, “Fragments of Papias IV” in The Apostolic Fathers with Justin Martyr and Irenaeus, ed. Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Coxe, vol. 1, The Ante-Nicene Fathers (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Company, 1885), 154.
[5] Athanasius, Against the Heathen 32.3.
[6] Augustine, City of God XXI.3.
[7] Brian L. Hanson, “Anselm,” in Essential Lexham Dictionary of Church History, Michael A. G. Haykin, ed (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2022), Logos Bible Software.
[8] Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica Supplementum 97.2.
[9] Aquinas, Summa Theologica Supplementum 99.
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