What does Polycarp say about Final Judgment?
For this blog, we will look over the passages discussing final judgment that can be found in Polycarp’s letter to the Philippians as well as his martyrdom account. We will go over each of these separately because the martyrdom account is written by a different author.
Polycarp’s Letter to the Philippians
Death being defeated by Christ
In the first chapter, Polycarp uses language similarly found in Acts 2:24:
“And (I have greatly rejoiced) because the strong root of your faith, spoken of in days long gone by, endures even until now, and brings forth fruit to our Lord Jesus Christ, who for our sins suffered even unto death, whom God raised from the dead, having loosed the bands of the grave.”
In that last bit, Holmes translates it as, “having loosed the birth pangs of Hades.” (Holmes, 2006, Pg. 135)
All the living and the dead face Christ at final judgment
Polycarp to Philippians 2.1b-2a: To Him (Jesus) all things in heaven and on earth are subject. Him every spirit serves. He comes as the Judge of the living and the dead. His blood will God require of those who do not believe in Him. But He who raised Him up from the dead will raise up us also, if we do His will, and walk in His commandments, and love what He loved…
Polycarp to Philippians 6.2: If then we entreat the Lord to forgive us, we ought also ourselves to forgive; for we are before the eyes of our Lord and God, and we must all appear at the judgment-seat of Christ, and must everyone give an account of himself.
Promise of life in Christ
Polycarp to Philippians 5.2b: If we please Him in this present world, we shall receive also the future world, according as He has promised to us that He will raise up again from the dead, and that if we live worthily of Him, we shall also reign together with Him, provided only we believe.
The Martyrdom of Polycarp
Coming judgment of fire
In chapter 2, the author(s) speak of Christians who bravely persevered through torture and refused to denounce Christ. They chose to temporary pain instead of eternal damnation. The wording here leans toward more of a Traditionalist view:
“And, looking to the grace of Christ, they despised all the torments of this world, redeeming themselves from eternal punishment by [the suffering of] a single hour. For this reason, the fire of their savage executioners appeared cool to them. For they kept before their view escape from that fire which is eternal and never shall be quenched…”
When facing the proconsul, Polycarp is threatened to be burned alive. Polycarp flips the tables around and threatens the unbeliever that there is a far greater and inextinguishable fire that awaits them if they do not repent and turn to Christ:
“But again the proconsul said to him, ‘I will cause you to be consumed by fire, seeing you despise the wild beasts, if you will not repent.’
But Polycarp said, ‘You threaten me with fire which burns for an hour, and after a little is extinguished, but are ignorant of the fire of the coming judgment and of eternal punishment, reserved for the ungodly. But why do you tarry? Bring forth what you will.”
Immortality to those saved by Christ
In his final prayer before dying, Polycarp prays, “I give You thanks that You have counted me, worthy of this day and this hour, that I should have a part in the number of Your martyrs, in the cup of your Christ, to the resurrection of eternal life, both of soul and body, through the incorruption by the Holy Ghost.” (14.2a)
After Polycarp’s death, the author(s) declare Polycarp’s martyrdom a victory over Satan, having persevered as a follower of Christ. Because of this, the devil pettily responds by preventing the church from obtaining Polycarp’s body:
“But when the adversary of the race of the righteous, the envious, malicious, and wicked one, perceived the impressive nature of his martyrdom, and [considered] the blameless life he had led from the beginning, and how he was now crowned with the wreath of immortality, having beyond dispute received his reward, he did his utmost that not the least memorial of him should be taken away by us, although many desired to do this, and to become possessors of his holy flesh.”
Martyrdom of Polycarp 19.2: For, having through patience overcome the unjust governor, and thus acquired the crown of immortality, he (Polycarp) now, with the apostles and all the righteous, rejoicingly glorifies God, even the Father, and blesses our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of our souls, the Governor of our bodies, and the Shepherd of the Catholic Church throughout the world.
Conclusion
These two writings certainly bring different approaches to the subject of final judgment. Polycarp’s letter doesn’t bring a lot of focus on specific condemnation, except that all will face Christ’s judgment, and Christ’s resurrection to eternal life will be given to those who follow Him. The epistle can fit pretty well into a Conditionalist theology.
The martyrdom account, however, does not follow this pattern. Eternal punishment is mentioned multiple times. Both Polycarp’s words and the narrative compare the temporary persecutions of the world trivial to the fires of hell which is eternal. This would seem to lean toward more of a Traditionalist view.
However, it is worth mentioning that the “crown of immortality” found in Christ is also mentioned more than once. In Polycarp’s prayer, the salvation of Christ brings both body and soul to eternal life. All together, I would be careful to completely swing the Martyrdom of Polycarp into Conditional Immortality or Eternal Conscious Torment. In my opinion, this writing deserves more analysis and discussion in regards to the topic of hell.
Bibliography
Schaff, P. (2016). The Complete Ante-Nicene, Nicene and Post-Nicene Collection of Early Church Fathers. Toronto, Canada.
Holmes, M. (2006). The Apostolic Fathers in English (3rd ed.). Grand Rapids, MI. Baker Academic.