Age of Ages

 I already used Scripture to interpret Scripture proving that Aionion/Aionios can't always mean Eternal.  And I also have my kind of rhetorical KJV only Universalism post.

So I was reading a website against Universalism yesterday that acknowledged that Aionion/Aionios doesn't inherently mean Eternal or Forever.  In fact they said something I hadn't seen before yet, that the phrase commonly translated "for ever and ever" (in verses like Revelation 14:11), which is two forms of Aion used side by side, would most literally be translated "Age of the Ages".

I found that pretty enlightening.  I know that some Secular ancient Greek usage of Aion seemingly used it as a term for all of Time, and this makes sense in that context.  The Eon with other smaller Eons within it is from when Time began in Genesis 1:1 (as well as John 1:1) to when Time as we currently know it at least will end either in the last verse of Revelation 20 or some point soon after New Jerusalem descends, possibly at Revelation 21:8&9.

This article however made the same objection I made back before I was a Universalist.  That the same word is used to define the Life of Believers, sometimes with the clear intent of contrasting them.

First of all my confidence in the never ending life of believers isn't dependent on Aionion/Aionios verses.  Jesus promised those who believe in Him that we will Never Die in John 11:26.

Meanwhile some of our promises of Aionion Life are specifically in the Aion to Come (world to Come in the KJV).  That future Aion will be one that doesn't end because it is ruled by God dwelling with Humanity. But the Judgment of the wicked is limited to the current Age of the Ages.

This notion that his judgment on the wicked must be equivalent to the life of believers ignores the clear teaching of passages like Psalm 30:5 that His Anger endures but a moment.

Fact is, it creates contradictions in The Bible to interpret Aionion verses as referring to endless punishment or annihilation, because we're told Sodom will be restored in Ezekiel 16, and that Jesus is the Savior of ALL not just Believers in 1 Timothy 4:10.

And now today I found a YouTube video on the Age of Ages phrase.

That video possibly suggests that the Age of the Ages is the coming age, which is also interesting.

Here is another.