Gehenna is a Greek word that comes from the Hebrew word Ge-Hinnom, which means “Valley of Hinnom” or “Valley of the sons of Hinnom.” (“Ge” being “Valley” and “Hinnom” being “Hinnom”). Other names include: “the high place of Topheth/Tophet,” the “Valley of Ben Hinnom,” and “the Valley of Slaughter.”
In the Bible, there are two versions of Gehenna. One is a physical location known for child sacrifices, and the other is the spiritual destination of the sinful and wicked. Because of this, most Bibles translate spiritual Gehenna as Hell.
Gehenna in the Bible
Gehenna first appears in the book of Joshua as the boundary between the tribes of Judah and Benjamin.
“Then it ran up the Valley of Ben Hinnom along the southern slope of the Jebusite city (that is, Jerusalem). From there it climbed to the top of the hill west of the Hinnom Valley at the northern end of the Valley of Rephaim.”
Joshua 15:8
According to the text, Gehenna is a valley located just southwest of Jerusalem. Later in the Biblical narrative, the valley becomes famous for the practice of sacrificing children to Molech.
Child Sacrifices
Sacrifices to Molech were surprisingly common in ancient Israel. King Ahaz, for example, killed several of his sons in the Valley of Hinnom.
“He [King Ahaz] burned sacrifices in the Valley of Ben Hinnom and sacrificed his children in the fire, engaging in the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.”
2 Chronicles 28:3
King Manasseh also took part in these sacrifices.
“He sacrificed his children in the fire in the Valley of Ben Hinnom, practiced divination and witchcraft, sought omens, and consulted mediums and spiritists. He did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger.”
2 Chronicles 33:6
Molech worship took a downturn during the time of Josiah’s reign. Josiah desecrated the valley during his campaign to purge the idols from Israel. However, after his death, the sacrifice starts up again; It is not until the Babylonian captivity that the worship of Molech comes to a proper end.
The Valley of Hinnom in Prophetic Writing
Jeremiah, the Prophet, also talked about and condemned the practice. In chapter Jeremiah 19:1-6 he shatters a jar in the valley to illustrate its role in Israel’s future destruction. In that passage, God renames Hinnom to “the valley of slaughter.”
The Prophet Isaiah also talked about the high place of Topheth inside of the valley. Topheth is believed to be the name of the high place where sacrifices were performed. His prophecies contain some of the fieriest and most apocalyptic depictions of the Valley of Slaughter.
“Topheth has long been prepared; it has been made ready for the king Its fire pit has been made deep and wide, with an abundance of fire and wood the breath of the Lord, like a stream of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.”
Isaiah 30:33
Isaiah’s descriptions likely influenced the way Jesus and other Rabbis described the spiritual location of Gehenna. For example, in Mark 9:44, Jesus says that Gehenna is a place,
“where their worm doesn’t die, and the fire is not quenched.”
Which is a direct quote from Isaiah 66: 24.
The last mention of Gehenna in the Old Testament is in Nehemiah 11:30, which just talks about the people who moved in after the captivity.
Gehenna in the New Testament
In Jesus’ day, Gehenna was often used as a metaphor or illustration for the concept of Hell and the Jewish version of Purgatory. Though the Valley of Hinnom was still a real place south of Jerusalem, the New Testament only references the spiritual location. Consequently, in most Bibles, “Gehenna” is translated as “Hell.”
Why did Jesus use Gehenna?
Jesus likely used the word Gehenna when referencing Hell because it was what most people he was preaching to understood. The Valley of Sloter is often described as a place of eternal torment for the wicked in Jewish apocryphal writing and tradition. The Targum, a first-century AD record of the oral Aramaic version/ interpretation of the Old Testament, uses the term Gehenna. The term/ idea also appears in popular books like Enoch.
There is a common belief that Jerusalem’s waist was dumped and burned in the Valley of Hinnom. Many have suggested that this is why the location was used to illustrate Hell. A place where worms eat garbage nonstop, and the fires never die. However, this is a very late tradition presented by Rabbi David Kimhi in the Middle Ages. Consequently, the accuracy of this tradition is questionable at best.
Hinnom likely became the illustration of Hell because of its history of fiery child sacrifices, apocalyptic prophetic descriptions, and association with religious rebellion. Its appearance many times in Apocryphal (Deuterocanonical) and non-canonical literature.
The Christian Eschatology of Gehenna
In Christian Eschatology, Gehenna is typically (if not always) considered the same as Hell—the eternal home of those who reject God. In Christianity, Gehenna is rarely associated with the concept of Purgatory.
The Judas Tradition
One fascinating Christian tradition suggests that the porters filed the Pharisees bought with the money given to Judas was in the Valley of Hinnom. This idea is based on Jeremiah 19:1-2.
“This is what the Lord says: “Go and buy a clay jar from a potter. Take along some of the elders of the people and of the priests and go out to the Valley of Ben Hinnom, near the entrance of the Potsherd Gate. There proclaim the words I tell you,”
Despite the loose connection between these two stories, the idea that the Pharisees bought a potter’s field in the valley of Hinnom after rejecting their God has a lot of thematic and symbolic relevance.
The Jewish Eschatology of Gehenna
In the Talmud and Jewish tradition, Gehenna is understood to be a mixture of the Christian concepts of Hell and Purgatory. According to the Rabbis, some people who go to Gehenna are purified through “hellfire” for 12 months, while others who commit certain sins stay there forever.
“They said: The judgment of the wicked in Gehenna lasts for twelve months.”
Shabbat 33b
“The Gemara asks: Does it enter your mind that everyone descends to Gehenna? Rather, say: Anyone who descends to Gehenna ultimately ascends, except for three who descend and do not ascend, and these are they: One who engages in intercourse with a married woman, as this transgression is a serious offense against both God and a person; and one who humiliates another in public; and one who calls another a derogatory name.”
Bava Metzia 58b
However, it should be noted that the exact details of how Gehenna works do vary in Jewish thought. Not all Rabbis agree that some people stay in Gehenna forever.
Which is Better: Hell or Gehenna?
Personally, I think that the term Gehenna, in many ways, is a better word than Hell. Its connection, the evils of Molech worship, and the history of apocalyptic prophetic descriptions give it a weight that the world Hell just doesn’t have.
When I think of Hell, I imagine a lake of fire and the smell of burning sulfur. However, when I think of Gehenna, my mind transports me to a fiery crater created by people who murdered their children for demonic assistance. I see a place just outside of the walls of God’s kingdom where his enemies are eaten by worms and consumed by fire.
“And they [humanity] will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; the worms that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.”
Isaiah 66:24
Sources and Further Reading
- Definition: Merriam-Webster
- Encyclopedia Britannica
- The Jewish Encyclopedia: See for more information about the Jewish view.
- McNamara, Targums and Testament
Pingback: 19 Verses About Gehenna: "The Vally of Slaughter" | LFC
Pingback: Matthew 5: Commentary & Reference | LFC
Pingback: Matthew 10:Commentary and Reference | LFC
Pingback: Matthew 18:Commentary and Reference | LFC
Pingback: Matthew 23: Commentary and Reference | LFC