Gnashing of Teeth

Jesus speaks of the gnashing of teeth a lot in his parables and teachings.  Therefore we hear it a lot.  But I wonder if we have ever thought about what it actually means or signifies.

I find myself thinking about a certain dog in a certain comic with a menacing Dennis as its master.

When it does appear it often appears at the end of a story or description or explanation.  It is often what we are left with.  So it ought to have significance and not just be glossed over as a quaint turn of phrase from the time.

If you look up a definition for gnashing you will find it describes the grinding of teeth in anger.  It is an expression of rage.  Often a rage inspired by great pain.  I once heard an example of gnashing as being what you instinctively do if you hit your thumb with a hammer or stub your toe badly.  You squeeze your eyes closed, grind your teeth and vocalise your reaction through your closed teeth.  You get the idea.

However in scripture that gnashing of teeth of often partnered with weeping.  We hear described, the weeping and gnashing of teeth.  And here it takes on a new kind of dread.  Anger and pain coupled with a tremendous sorrow.  And in many scriptural contexts the implication is that the weeping and gnashing of teeth will last an eternity.

It’s a part of our faith analogy to which we don’t often go if we are honest.  But Jesus did on a number of occasions.  And many of those occasions are about the Kingdom of God.  We are in a little part of the Christian Year known as the Kingdom Season and Advent, shortly to be upon us, is set against the hope of the kingdom to come.  So we’d better sit up and take notice of what Jesus means and what it could mean to us.

Jesus’ first reference to weeping and gnashing of teeth comes in Matthew 8:12 where He compares the kingdom of heaven where “many” come from all parts of the world to “recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” Those who don’t come near are described as being in the  “outer darkness” where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth, a description of a horrible fate. In His parable of the weeds sown in the field, Jesus again describes the fate of those who reject Him, this time adding to the description “the fiery furnace” into which they will be cast (Matthew 13:41-42). The story of the guest who comes to the wedding feast of the Lamb without the proper clothing (salvation) is cast into outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 22:11-13), as is the wicked servant described in Matthew 24:44-51 and the worthless servant in the parable of the talents, which was the story that prompted my reflection.

All these references to weeping and gnashing of teeth have one thing in common—the undeniable fact that those who do are outside the kingdom, those who reject God and goodness, will find themselves in a kind of darkness, and will suffer  this frustration.  

A Vicar once preached on the gnashing of teeth in eternity and a worried elderly lady in the congregation afterwards presented the problem. 'I don't have any teeth'.  The Vicar replied solemnly. 'Teeth will be provided.'

The contrast is what we find in Revelation.

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away"

The pain that causes the gnashing of teeth will be unknown in heaven, and there will be no weeping, no wailing, and no tears. The sorrow and death that cause us to weep and mourn will be a thing of the past. Sickness, death, persecution, and sin will be no more.

At one time you would have found this polarisation of the afterlife into a place of horror and suffering and a place of peace and comfort, common currency in frightening people towards some form of reluctant salvation. 

The threat of the place of teeth gnashing was also used by those in authority to scare people into a submission to suit their needs or the needs of a particular community.

Society at large now ridicules this part of the Christian purveyance and doesn’t take it seriously.  And when the evangelistic process relies heavily on this kind of rhetoric then it too loses its credibility and the ability to impart anything about God, Christ and the Christian faith is hampered.

We could, then, all sit back and say, well, we won’t bother with them then. They’ll find out one day and realise they were wrong.

Or we could say, prayerfully, what is God now telling us about this part of the faith story that is being challenged and taken apart.  For remember God can speak to us through those who we think don’t have faith.

Like many things to do with our faith and its interpretation it deserves another look to see where God is now pointing us.

When we look at references to the weeping and gnashing, they are all concerned with a negative eternal experience following an active rejection of God, and, probably by implication, following an evil motivated life style.

The thing is they are references that are only used by Jesus.  Only Jesus dares to tell us about this dreadful condition.  Not Paul, or the prophets, or Abraham or Moses, or Ruth or Sara, or John the Baptist.  Only Jesus dares to tell us this, and when he does he says that the judgement will by ‘my father in heaven’.  In other words it is a God centred decisions as to who ends up teeth gnashing. 

For too long human beings have tried to invent calculating and defined ways to describe people as either saved and safe or unsaved and dangerous.  And even if we could define someone as a definite believer who are we to then say that someone else who doesn’t reach that same profile is therefore lost in the outer darkness. 

In Jesus’ parables only God is the discerner or all that.  We are the tellers of the gospel and the supporters and nurturers, and the rest is between that person and God.

And here’s another clue.  The weeping and gnashing of teeth appears in stories.  Stories of feasts and servants, debts and talents.  Its all part of the analogy to describe the indescribable.  In John 14 Jesus depicts the afterlife experience as a house with many mansions, many rooms, actually many dwelling places.  That doesn't mean the faithful are going to find themselves in a nicely decorated double glazed Barrets home.  The analogy was to convey the sense of dwelling; of being with God, and the peace and comfort that will bring.

Likewise the image of rolling tears and dental tensions, was a way of putting over the feeling of being without God.  If God is light, then without God is darkness.  We mustn’t presume that because someone doesn’t use the words we use or the religious phrases we use that they are without God.  Likewise someone can emulate the Christian profile and be far from the God of love.

St Paul says to his Thessalonians, Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.  And Jesus did more about encouraging his followers than he did about warning about the darkness.  And he found pre-existent faith as well….you faith has cured you’’’’he would say.

As Christians we do care that people come close to the God of love, the God of light, and that they do so for all sorts of positive reasons.  Come into the light because you want to see, not because you are afraid of the darkness.

Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.