Good question. It really depends on your belief system and open mindedness to things outside it whether you will get a satisfactory answer.
In my opinion hell is more a temporary state of mind in between lives when you review your most current life and what you did. No one will be in hell
forever. Some may be longer then others if they take longer to learn the lessons of the physical plane.
The very black and white standard modern traditional Christian belief of heaven and hell and life and death in general is is very limited in light.
The fact that you are asking questions is a good sign. Don't ever let anyone stifle your questioning things that do not make sense, and be willing to
discard them eventually if they cannot be reconciled. be careful though not to discard things to quickly as often further light and knowledge will
suddenly bring them into focus. Put them on the shlf for a while and see what turns up.
There is light in the Bible and other scriptures and esoteric writings however it depends on your eternal evolutionary level as to how much of it you
can discern. For instance reincarnation is taught in the bible but most modern Christians will bristle at such an Idea.
Here is a good article on it:
www.freeread.com...
We go through many lives to learn and progress through eternity to higher and higher levels of existence until we reach relative perfection. Some
will take much longer then others and a very few will refuse to progress and the matter and light gathered together at that point in the cosmos to
make them unique and who they are will if they refuse to progress eventually be dispersed back onto the cosmic mix so to speak and redistributed to
other new points of light who will become beings and souls. These are the few the bible calls sons of perdition.
All of us have had several lives where we were not good people and this often accounts for the men or women you see who seemingly have rough lives
but never did anything to deserve it. Well they did in a previous life and they are paying off that karma and learning why they should never choose
that path again in future lives, but look to uplift humanity and work toward peace and brotherhood of all men and women.
Karma is also taught in the bible. "Cast your bread upon the waters and it will come back to you a hundred fold" Many don't realise this means
good or bad. The universe has a way of returning everything you send out back to you good or bad. You can even see this working in your current
life.
Here is an another article that will give you an idea how of this works:
www.freeread.com...
Earth can be classified as hell also it has no light of its own and operates only on borrowed light from the sun and it's inhabitants and the
scriptures teach Satan is the god of this world
But it is a good example of free will, earth is what we make of it. For some it seems like heaven and for others it seems like hell depending on thier
circumstances. Here is a good parable on heaven and hell:
www.freeread.com...
We are actually the ones making the decisions as to what circumstances we will be born into based on what areas we need experience and learning in.
God does not send anyone to hell. We choose everything we go through and eventually in the end the last weary traveler will make it home!
[edit on 4-7-2010 by hawkiye]