punishment

The parable from the Gospel According to Matthew 25:31–46 (NABRE) portrays the end of time and shows Jesus separating sheep from goats—those who have earned eternal reward from those going to eternal punishment.

Ancient Greek has more than one word that can mean some sort of punishment. The word ποινή (poine) is the ultimate root of the English word punish and contains some sense of repayment or paying back for a wrong. This view of punishment is one of balancing the scales or righting the wrong.

The passage in the Gospel According to Matthew, however, uses a different word, κόλασις (kolasis), which comes from the idea of pruning or cutting away improper growth. The sense here is that something is fundamentally wrong and must be corrected by removal of that which is improper. Consider why the author might have chosen this view of punishment as the eternal consequence of sin. What do you think this suggests about the fundamental nature of sin and sinners?

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