If We Don’t Forgive Others, Will We Go To Hell? – Pt 01

Summary

Grace in Focus Podcast

Episode: "If We Don’t Forgive Others, Will We Go To Hell? – Pt 01"

Date: July 6, 2026
Hosts: Bob Wilkin and Sam Marr

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Main Theme

This episode examines the often-asked question: If a believer does not forgive others or harbors anger, are they at risk of going to hell? Hosts Bob Wilkin and Sam Marr delve into Matthew 5:21-22, interpreting its implications for salvation, divine judgment, and Free Grace Theology. The discussion focuses on keeping justification (being saved) distinct from sanctification (Christian growth and obedience), a hallmark of the Grace Evangelical Society.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Listener’s Question and Its Relevance

• Context: Ann, leading a ladies’ Bible study, wonders if failing to forgive, especially based on passages like Matthew 5:21-22, could send a believer to hell.
• Common Concern: This is a typical question Bible teachers face regarding challenging passages and assurance of salvation.
• Assurance Principle:

  “Whatever that passage means, it can’t contradict ‘For by grace you have been saved through faith…’ (Ephesians 2:8-9).”
  (Wilkin, 02:13)

2. Initial Approach to Problem Passages (01:50–03:00)

• Wilkin’s Advice: Always interpret questionable passages in light of clear gospel promises (e.g., John 3:16, Ephesians 2:8-9).
• Quote:

  “We know it doesn’t contradict John 3:16, John 5:24, Ephesians 2:8,9... I’m secure forever.”
  (Wilkin, 02:46)

3. Matthew 5:21-22 – Reading the Passage (03:16–03:35)

• The verses are read and broken into three escalating statements by Jesus concerning anger, insults (“Raca”), and calling someone a fool.

4. Three Types of People—Not One Scenario (03:36–06:00)

• Wilkin draws from Zane Hodges’ interpretation: Jesus mentions three distinct types of people, not successive offenses of the same person:

  1. Angry “with his brother without cause” — presumed to be a believer (in family of God), liable to judgment.
  2. One who says “Raca” to his brother — an escalation, liable to the council.
  3. One who says “you fool” (not to his brother) — indicated as an unbeliever, in danger of “Gehenna.”

• Ten Commandments Context: Jesus expands on “You shall not murder”—explaining murder is deeper than physical act.

  “He’s discussing that and says, ‘Let me expand on that…’”
  (Wilkin, 04:01)

• Dispensational View:
  Matthew 5-7 is seen as teaching for the coming Millennial Kingdom, a future time when Jesus’ rule will be stricter.

  “This is the law which will be in effect in the millennial kingdom. It’s not in effect today…”
  (Wilkin, 04:28)

5. Definition of “Gehenna” and “Hellfire” (06:53–08:40)

• Translation Issue: “Hellfire” is a mistranslation; the Greek term is “Gehenna.”

• Gehenna vs. Hades:

  • Hades/Sheol: Place of the dead (Luke 16:19-31). Believers and unbelievers went there before Christ’s ascension.
  • Gehenna: Possibly the Lake of Fire (final judgment), judgment in this life, or the literal Valley of Hinnom (a burning trash heap outside Jerusalem).

  “In my study of the word fire, it most often refers to judgment in this life… For example, in John 15…the branches which are not abiding are thrown into the fire and burned. Those are believers thrown into fiery judgment…”
  (Wilkin, 08:07)

6. Application—Is Gehenna Eternal Hell or Earthly Judgment? (08:41–11:48)

• Wilkin: The “third person” is likely an unbeliever risking earthly death (via capital punishment) and ultimate spiritual consequence (lake of fire), but the text says “in danger of Gehenna fire,” not a guaranteed fate.

• Old Testament Context:

  • Murder = capital punishment, but there was no OT penalty for being angry with your brother or calling him “Raca.”
  • Jesus’ “but I say” statements introduce new revelation—higher moral expectations, especially for the Kingdom.

• Judgment/Gehenna: This is about possible (not certain) consequences, not a direct warning of hell for believers.

  “Whoever says you fool shall be in danger of hellfire. It doesn’t mean he’s going to experience Gehenna fire.”
  (Wilkin, 11:44)

7. Assurance for the Believer (12:08–12:48)

• Central point: A believer, by trusting Christ, is secure; this passage cannot be used to say a believer is in danger of losing salvation.

• Wilkin summarizes:

  “The promise is you have everlasting life. Therefore…[this verse] isn’t talking about you as a believer being condemned…”
  (Wilkin, 12:17)

• Theological Foundation: The Bible does not contradict itself. If Christ promises eternal life, that reality is never upended by difficult texts.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the interpretive priority of clear gospel texts:

  “Whatever that passage means, it can’t contradict 'For by grace you have been saved through faith…’”
  (Wilkin, 02:13)

• On Gehenna terminology:

  “Hellfire is a bad translation. What does the Greek have here?”
  (Wilkin, 07:29–07:34)
  “Gehenna. There really is no word in the Bible that means hell.”
  (Wilkin, 07:34–07:44)

• On the believer’s assurance:

  “As a believer, Christ made a promise… you have everlasting life. Therefore...this verse isn’t talking about you as a believer being condemned to the lake of fire because Christ promised you that isn't going to happen.”
  (Wilkin, 12:17–12:31)

• On wrestling with tough passages:

  “It’s okay to wrestle with it and understand what it is talking about.”
  (Wilkin, 12:46)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Listener question and framing: 01:03–01:43
• Assurance from the gospel: 01:43–03:00
• Reading and examining Matthew 5:21-22: 03:16–03:35
• Three types of people in the passage: 03:36–06:30
• Meaning of Gehenna/‘hellfire’ and related Greek/New Testament terms: 06:53–08:40
• Application—who faces what type of punishment: 08:41–11:48
• Reiterating security and promise of everlasting life for believers: 12:08–12:48

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Conclusion

Wilkin and Marr, referencing both Scripture and Free Grace scholarship, clarify that Matthew 5:21-22 must not be read as a threat to a believer’s salvation. Instead, it should be understood in a nuanced context—referring to new, millennial kingdom standards, emphasizing seriousness of anger and insults, and distinguishing between judgment for believers and eventual, possible condemnation for unbelievers. Believers are exhorted to rest in the promises of Christ and not be shaken by difficult texts, but encouraged to dig deeper for their true meaning and context.

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Transcript

[A]

The following is a listener supported ministry from the Grace Evangelical Society. A question that gets asked frequently. If I don't forgive others, will I go to hell? It comes from what Jesus said in Matthew 5, 21 and 22. So let's think about what are the possibilities for the interpretation of this passage. Thank you for listening today. This is Grace in Focus. We are a ministry of the Grace Evangelical Society. Our web site is faithalone.org we have many theological free grace oriented articles, articles at that site which you can read and research for free. You can also find our blog there and subscribe for free to our magazine Grace in Focus. It is a great piece that we produce six times per year every other month and it is free all except for postage if you live outside of the 48 contiguous United States. So get signed up for it [e-mail] now with today's discussion, here are Bob Wilken and Sam Marr.

[B]

All right, hey everybody, we've got a question today from Ann. She's leading a ladies Bible study online. They're talking about the Ten Commandments. And one of the ladies in her Bible study asked a question about Matthew 5, 22. And I know you and Ken and others have talked about this verse a lot and I think Zane Hodges has written about this. But the question is if someone believed in Jesus promise of everlasting life, so they're saved, they're born again, but they couldn't forgive someone who hurt them or even called them fool in their heart. Or I think in the, in the new King James it says raqqa, will that person go to hell?

[C]

Okay, so that's a really good question, Ann. And it's the type of question that all of you listening face, right? If you're teaching a Sunday school class, you're going to hear this kind of question. If you teach a home Bible study or Bible study at work, you're going to get this kind of question. There's two things I would say. Number one, you need to always use the approach that was used to me when I came to faith in Christ. The Guy shared Ephesians 2, 8, 9 with me and then I started sharing, yes, but what about James 2? And what about Hebrews 6? What about Hebrews 10? And this went on for five sessions. And he'd give a short answer to each of those passages, but he would say this, whatever that passage means, it can't contradict for by grace you've been saved through faith and that not of yourselves. It's the gift of God, not of works as anyone should boast. So the first thing I would say about this is, if you're teaching a study, you can always say, it can't mean that if I call someone a fool, then I'm going to hell. Because John 3:16 is real clear. Whoever believes in him will never perish, but has everlasting life. And so that's a done deal the moment I believe I'm secure forever. So we can always say, look, I'll do some research on this passage. I'm not really sure, but I'll get back to you. But we know it doesn't contradict John 3:16, John 5:24, Ephesians 2:8, 9. Now, secondly, look at the context. Can you read Matthew 5:21 22?

[B]

You have heard that it was said to those of old, you shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment. But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother Raka shall be in danger of the council. And whoever says, you fool, shall be in danger of hellfire.

[C]

Okay, first of all, I think we need to recognize, and this is something Zane Hodges pointed out, that there's three different people being considered here, not one. It's not just if anyone says, you fool, he'll be in danger of hellfire. And by the way, this is an appropriate question on the Ten Commandments, because Jesus is expanding on the discussion of you shall not kill, you shall not murder. Actually, it's not you should not kill, it's you shall not murder. Because there are different Hebrew words for murder or killing. And murder in war is not forbidden, but killing someone outside of war is forbidden, unless it's, of course, capital punishment, in which case that's permitted, too. So he's discussing that and he says, let me expand on that and say, if you're angry with his brother without a cause, he'll be in danger of the judgment. Now, I would say that this and dispensationalists typically understand Matthew 5, 6, 7 as being teaching about the coming millennial kingdom. This is the law which will be in effect in the millennial kingdom. It's not in effect today, right now, if someone is angry with his brother without a cause, he's not in danger of some sort of judgment from some council in the United States or any country around the world. But during the millennium, the judgment of the Lord Jesus Christ all around the planet is going to be much stricter than it is today. So there will be a judgment for someone who's angry with his brother without a cause. I have the words his brother circled. Hodges points out that two of these three examples refer to his brother and the third does not. So Hodges says the first one is clearly a born again person. And if he's angry with his brother without a cause, then he's liable to some sort of judgment being brought before a tribunal or something. And then whoever says to his brother again, raca, empty head, knucklehead, numbskull, something like that, he'll be in danger of the council. So maybe the council is a step worse than the judgment. Maybe the first judgment is directly from the ruler, but the second one is from something called the council, which I assume rulers over various cities will appoint councils that will handle judgment. That is more difficult. The first one is angry without a cause. The second one is you're not just angry, but you've now called him Raca. And so that's worse. And you're going to get a worse experience at the council. But the third one is someone who says, you fool. Notice he doesn't say it to his brother. I take it this is an unbeliever who says, you fool, and he'll be in danger of. Well, hellfire is a bad translation. What does the Greek have here?

[B]

Gehenna.

[C]

Gehenna.

[A]

We will return to our program content shortly, but we're taking this break to let you know that Grace and Focus is shortly going to be transitioning to digital delivery only. We've appreciated this fine radio station, and being part of its lineup has been a privilege indeed, but we're going to say goodbye to this time slot and make room for another ministry right here. You can continue to listen to Grace in Focus. Just pick the time of day anytime 24 7, and find us on Spotify, Apple, and many other podcast outlets.

[C]

Hellfire is a bad translation. What does the Greek have here?

[B]

Gehenna.

[C]

Gehenna. I have a chapter in My book, the 10 Most Misunderstood Words, and I point out there really is no word in the Bible that means hell. There's a word that means Hades. And in the New Testament, guess what that Greek word is?

[B]

Hades.

[C]

Hades. And there's a word in the Old Testament that's comparable to Hades that's called Sheol. And Sheol and Hades are the place of the dead. And prior to Jesus ascension, everybody went to Hades or Sheol, believers and unbelievers. We know this from Luke 16, 1931, where you've got the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man is an unbeliever. Lazarus is a believer. They both go to Hades. But the rich man goes to the torment portion of Hades. And poor man Lazarus, he goes to Abraham's bosom, which was the good part. But this isn't talking about Hades or Sheol. This is talking about Gehenna. Now, we don't know exactly what Gehenna means. It's possible it refers to what will be called the lake of fire in the life to come. It's possible this refers to Hades, and it's possible this refers to judgment in this life because there was a place outside of Jerusalem where they would burn trash continually, and it was the Valley of Hinnom. Gehenna may refer to that. Jody Dillo argues that Gehenna refers to judgment in this life. Do the study. But in my study of the word fire, it most often refers to judgment in this life. It does refer to the fire in Hades and it will refer to the lake of fire. But it predominantly refers to refers to judgment in this life. For example, in John 15, the branches which are not abiding are thrown into the fire and burned. Those are believers that are thrown into fiery judgment, and they experience judgment. So I would say here that the third person is an unbeliever who's in danger of the death penalty. I think that's what Gehenna fire means, is that he may lose his life. And of course he. If the unbeliever loses his life, he's going to be bound for Hades now and the lake of fire later. But it doesn't necessarily mean he's in danger of immediate death.

[B]

So what was the judgment in the Old Testament for murder?

[C]

The judgment in the Old Testament for murder was death. You take a life, your life is taken. Now, sometimes God in his mercy suspended that, like David killing Uriah or David committing adultery. The penalty for that was also death. And in both cases, God suspended that. But for the most part, most people who committed murder were killed. But in the Old Testament, there was no penalty for being angry with your brother without a cause. There was no penalty for calling your brother Raca. So these are new things Jesus is saying. See notice he says, you have heard, but I say verse 21, you have heard, but I say, he's giving new revelation. And then when he says the guilty of the Gehenna fire, that's new revelation too. So I would say that most likely this third element refers to an unbeliever who's going to experience some sort of fiery judgment. And it could be resulting in premature death. And if it does, unless he comes to faith between the time he calls someone you fool and the time he is executed, unless he comes to faith during that time, he's going to spend eternity in the lake of fire. But I don't think Gehenna fire refers to Hades. It might refer to the lake of fire. But notice he's saying he shall be in danger of the council. Whoever says you fool shall be in danger of hellfire. It doesn't mean he's going to experience Gehenna fire.

[B]

Right.

[C]

So it would seem there's a whole range of judgments that could be given, one of which is this Gehenna fire, which I think could result in premature death or something like that. But there's probably a bunch of a range of things before that. Because he doesn't say will experience Gehenna fire. He's in danger of it.

[B]

Yeah. And the important, most important thing to remember here is what you said at the beginning. As a believer, Christ made a promise. You believe that promise. The promise is you have everlasting life. Therefore this verse, whatever it means, isn't talking about you as a believer being condemned to the lake of fire because Christ promised you that isn't going to happen.

[C]

Yep.

[B]

So he wouldn't, he wouldn't contradict himself. And as long as you believe that the Bible is infallible, it doesn't contradict itself. It's God's word breathed. Then you shouldn't have fear of a verse like this. But it's okay to wrestle with it and understand what it is talking about.

[C]

And Ann should tell her friend to keep grace in focus.

[A]

Be sure to check out our daily [e-mail] they are short and full of great teaching just like what you've heard today. Find them@faith faithalone.org resources blog. We would love to hear from you. Maybe you've got a question, comment or some feedback. If you do, please don't hesitate to send us a message. Here's our email address. It's radioaithalone.org that's radioaithalone.org and when you do very important. Please let us know your radio station call letters and the city of your location on our next episode. Let's continue today's discussion. We hope you'll join us again and in the meantime, let's keep grace in focus. The proceeding has been a listener supported ministry from the Grace Evangelical Society.