In The Bible Hell by John Wesley Hanson, published in 1888, the author goes through a word study of the four words translated “hell” in various English Bible versions. The author contrasts the manner in which these words in both the Old and New Testaments are used and understood by the authors who used the words in question, in contrast with subsequent interpreters who attached to the words meanings from heathen idolatry, meanings alien to the Bible’s true teachings.
The author’s preface summarizes his purpose and a summation of his conclusions as follows: “The brief excursus on the word ‘Hell’ contained in this volume, aims to treat the subject in a popular style, and at the same time to present all the important facts, so fully and comprehensively that any reader can obtain in a few pages a birds-eye-view of ‘The Bible Hell.’