Home Christian Writings Is Hell eternal? Page 17

Is Hell eternal?

Hell Fire

Part 01 – Is Hell eternal?
Part 02 – Scriptures used to support an eternal Hell
Part 03 – New Testament scriptures that dispel an eternal Hell
Part 04 – Old Testament scriptures that dispel an eternal Hell
Part 05 – Other resources about Hell

This page will let scripture answer the most common questions on this topic. Following that, we will look at scriptures that are used to support the idea of an eternal Hell to get a balanced view. The last two pages will take a more substantial look at scriptures that talk about the wicked and their fate.

Will the wicked perish?

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

2 Peter 2:12
But these men blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like brute beasts, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like beasts they too will perish.

Luke 13:3
I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.

In order to understand the word ‘perish’, how is this word used in other biblical topics?

Hebrews 1:10-12
10 He also says, “In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.
11 They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment.
12 You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they will be changed. But you remain the same, and your years will never end.

Colossians 2:21-22 21
21 Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”?
22 These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings.

Will the wicked be destroyed?

Matthew 7:13
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.

Philippians 3:19
Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.

2 Thessalonians 1:8-9
8 He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 
9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power

How is the word ‘destruction’ used in other biblical topics?

1 Corinthians 5:5
To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

2 Peter 2:1
But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

How will the wicked be destroyed?

2 Peter 3:7
By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

Luke 17:28-30
28 “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. 29 But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.
30 “It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed.

The wicked are cast into hell, but isn’t Hell eternal?

Revelation 20:14
Then death and Hell were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.

Revelation 21:8
“But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.“

So there will be no eternal suffering in hell?

Romans 6:23
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”

Revelation 21:4
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.”

So the wicked will cease to exist?

Psalms 104:35
“Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more. Bless thou the LORD, O my soul. Praise ye the LORD.”

Psalms 37:10
“For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.”

Adam came to life when he became a living soul, but can a man lose his soul?

Mark 8:36
What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?

1 Peter 1:9
for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

But isn’t the human soul immortal?

Matthew 10:28
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in Hell.

Genesis 3:21-24
22 And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.”23 So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken.24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

Are you sure that the wicked will be completely consumed or burned up though?

Psalms 37:20
“But the wicked will perish: Though the Lord’s enemies are like the flowers of the field, they will be consumed, they will go up in smoke.”

Malachi 4:1
“For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.”

Does God want to destroy the wicked?

Ezekiel 33:11
Say to them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn from your evil ways!

2 Peter 3:9
“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

Will sin ever happen again once all the wicked are destroyed?

1 John 3:9
No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.

2 Peter 1:4
Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

Luke 20:35-36
But those who are considered worthy to share in the age to come and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage. In fact, they can no longer die, because they are like the angels. And since they are sons of the resurrection, they are sons of God.

We know that sin causes death and we will no longer die because sin has been dealt with.

1 Corinthians 15:54-55
54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come to pass: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” 55 “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”

When will the wicked be completely destroyed?

Matthew 13:40
“As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world/age.“

2 Peter 3:10.
“But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.”

Okay so wicked men will be destroyed along with the old creation, but what about Satan?

Hebrews 2:14
“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;“

Ezekiel 28:18
“Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffic; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.”

The last verse may be referring to a man instead of Satan, however we know that the Devil will be destroyed from the previous verse above.

After reading this page you may argue that I have given scripture, but not all of it. There are of course other verses that seem to teach an eternal hell or eternal suffering for the wicked. The next page will cover these scriptures to provide a balanced view. The last two pages in this study will list the most prominent verses in the Bible that teach that the wicked will be destroyed, perish, and die. There will be many more verses than quoted on this page and they are divided into Old and New Testament verses. These pages will be useful if you wish to study in more depth what scripture says about the fate of the wicked.

Discussion

Viewing 20 posts - 321 through 340 (of 732 total)
123…161718…353637
  • Author
    Posts
  • March 15, 2015 at 9:44 pm#790653
    NickHassan
    Participant

    Hi t8,

    Of course the earth [and it’s harvest] is destined for destruction under the judgement of God.

    Those who are alive in Christ are taken up to be with him in safety.

     

    Then comes the final judgement AND for many the second death

    March 15, 2015 at 11:38 pm#790665
    Miia
    Participant

    If annihilation existed it would offer hope to those in hell – but tragically, hell is a place without hope.

    People who commit suicide usually do so with the false belief that in taking their own life they will end the unbearable situation they are in – only to find that they take it with them into the afterlife…

    They had a false hope – and it is this same false hope of annihilation that you hold up to people with your teaching.

    Wow, you really are twisted in your teachings as a teacher, DavidL.
    Arrogance is different than ignorance.

    March 15, 2015 at 11:47 pm#790666
    Miia
    Participant

    Will the wicked perish? Yes.

    Will the wicked be destroyed? Yes.

    Will the wicked be thrown into the Second Death? Yes.

    Can God destroy both body and soul in Hell? Yes..

    Does the spirit of man go back to God who gave it? Yes.

    Is it true that only the righteous will inherit life eternal? Yes.

    Is it true that only the righteos will partake of God’s living spirit for eternity? Yes.

    So the wicked will not have eternal life in Hell fire? No because Hell itself is thrown into the Second Death and because man does not possess by right an eternal soul. God can destroy it and he will do that very thing because God is in the business of saving souls, but not all souls, only the souls of the righteous.

    What I have noticed about DavidL is that he likes to use words against us that are associated with cults. Unfortunately for him, I myself and others only use scripture. So he is attacking scripture and he persecutes us for doing so. By what spirit spurs a man to do that? Is that not the behaviour of the Pharisees.

    Really good belief, understanding and points.

    March 15, 2015 at 11:50 pm#790667
    Miia
    Participant

    Bd,

    The wages of sin is death. It can’t get much simpler than that.

    The Qur’an took an untrue belief and worsened it (yes I know what is in the Qur’an regarding the eternal destination of non believers).

    March 16, 2015 at 8:25 am#790673
    DavidL
    Participant

    Annihilation is not what the Bible itself teaches when it uses words like perish, destroy, death, second death, hell etc…

     

    What you teach here is again another belief based on human reasoning – that is, interpreting Scripture according to the intellect rather than by the Spirit… a teaching also found among cult groups who deny the trinity…

     

    But if you put all the confusion of Scriptural debate aside for one minute, and think about it – annihilation (ceasing to exist)… if it were possible, would offer a concept of hope to those in a hopeless place – in other words it would contradict the very definition of hell… sadly this is the same kind of false idea that those who take their own lives hope for.. a complete end that never happens.

    March 16, 2015 at 9:15 am#790676
    NickHassan
    Participant

    Hi,

    The wages of sin is death-the first death. All have sinned.

    Being reborn from above and becoming slaves to righteousness rom 6 can allow us to become sons of God jn 1.12

    March 16, 2015 at 9:41 am#790678
    kerwin
    Participant

    DavidL,

    It is literally impossible to teach that Scripture teaches of either eternal life or eternal torment as the Koine Greek language does not have a word for eternal. Any translator translating Koine Greek wording to eternal must therefore be using some type of reasoning to come to the conclusion that the words mean eternal.

    Which translators do you trust to translate as they are carried along by the Spirit of God?

    I do not trust any of them.

    March 16, 2015 at 10:17 am#790679
    kerwin
    Participant

    @carmel,

    Kerwin,

    YOU SAID SO,

    DUE TO THE FACT THAT FOR A REASON THAT ONLY YOU KNOW,

    YOU ARE NOT IN A POSITION TO JUSTIFY YOURSELF

    therefore:

    MY POST STANDS

    Peace and love in Jesus

    Charles

    I am just telling you to test your own teachings and that is exactly what Scripture teaches you to do. I testify that that your teaching is not clear as you wander away from the subject of the conversation in such a way that it looks like you are attempting to change the conversation. Your response to me is still a diversion from the conversation.

    I do not want me to teach you where you wander off as my words are useless if you are too blind to see for yourself.

    The post of yours we are addressing says:

    Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever “– therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken. So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life.

    Where does it say in the above scripture that GOD WILL DESTROY SOULS!

    The passage you quoted has nothing to do with the time after Judgement Day. It does mention “eternal life” but it would still be a “red herring” if I were to ask “where does it say in this passage that any human will have eternal life?” which I know it does not say it does not say in that passages even though there are passages that do do say a certain type of humans that will have ages for ages of life. It is just not written this passage from Genesis.

    This is so obvious that any reasonable human would see it. Since you did not it is clear you are not a reasonable man, at least as this point goes.

    March 16, 2015 at 2:51 pm#790697
    bodhitharta
    Participant

    Okay, no one who believes that hell is not real has not answered the questions.

    Why does Jesus call it a PLACE
    Why does Jesus say in this PLACE their is TORMENT such as Gnashing of teeth
    Why does Jesus even tell a story about someone being in a place of TORMENT called HELL
    what is Jesus talking about when he says:

    Mark 9:43-44
    43 And if thy hand cause thee to fall, cut it off. It is better for thee to enter into life maimed than, having two hands, to go into hell, into the fire that

      never

    shall be quenched,

    44 where ‘their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.’

    Now interesting enough Jesus is quoting scripture here

    Isaiah 66:22-24King James Version (KJV)

    22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain.

    23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord.

    24 And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.

    Isaiah uses the word “Carcases” so I looked up if Carcass always means a dead Body in the Bible and it doesn’t. Carcass just means Body, in some verses it uses the term “Dead Carcass” which shows that Carcass just means body.

    1 Kings 13:2221st Century King James Version (KJ21)

    22 but camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which the Lord said to thee, “Eat no bread, and drink no water,” thy carcass shall not come unto the sepulcher of thy fathers.’”

    What is absolutely terrifying is that these verses are exactly what Jesus describes in talking about Lazarus and the rich man. Lazarus was seeing this rich man in torment and he hated seeing it (abhorring)

    Secondly Death does not mean non existence in the Bible it usually means separation so the second death seems to be “Final separation” not “extinction” lets see if I can show this point.

    Revelation 21:821st Century King James Version (KJ21)

    8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers,and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

    Notice the scripture says they will “have their part” it doesn’t seem to say or suggest they will be burned up or become extinct because how can they have a part in something if they are extinct or annihilated?

    Now pay attention and you will clearly see HELL emerge:

    14 Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the Tree of Life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.

    15 For outside are dogs and sorcerers, and whoremongers and murderers and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.

    Now first the scriptures assure us that these evil doers will have a part in the lake of Fire and then it assures us this place is outside the kingdom but it actually says they are OUTSIDE meaning that they are existing and conscious. This is the same thing Jesus is saying when he talks about Lazarus.

    Matthew 8:22
    But Jesus said unto him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their dead.”

    Obviously here Jesus is talking about the spiritually dead burying the physically dead but notice the spiritually dead is for all intents and purposes alive but separated from God.

    2 Thessalonians 1:921st Century King James Version (KJ21)

    9 These

      shall be punished

    with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,

    The destruction is separation otherwise it would have just said Everlasting destruction besides the fact that if it was extinction or Anihilation there would be no reason to use the word Everlasting as destruction in and of itself would have sufficed.

    Jesus said it the way he said it because it is THE TRUTH

    March 16, 2015 at 6:31 pm#790704
    kerwin
    Participant

    Bodhitharta,

    I believe in Gehenna as well as Sheol. They are two different places, Gehenna is the lake of fire where those thrown in have their souls and bodies destroyed while Sheol is where the souls of the dead go and wait until judgement day. The wicked side is unpleasant while the righteous side is a paradise.

    I believe Islam has the same concepts but they seem to have at least some of the same controversies about those concepts.

    March 16, 2015 at 10:30 pm#790708
    Miia
    Participant

    Hi Bd,

    Mark 9:43-44
    43 And if thy hand cause thee to fall, cut it off. It is better for thee to enter into life maimed than, having two hands, to go into hell, into the fire that

    never

    shall be quenched,

    44 where ‘their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.’

    “Hell” is further described by Jesus as the place where both the body and soul will be destroyed. Look:

    “Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell.”

    Notice your verse says the FIRE is not quenched and the WORM dies not.
    It does not say that the PERSON never dies.

    Compare the worm dies not with Deut 28:26 and Jer 7:33:

    “And the dead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the air, and for the beasts of the earth, and none will frighten them away.”

    In 2 Sam 21:10,  Rizpah prevents the birds from devouring the corpses of her sons (for perhaps several months) by continually scaring them away.

    So, Deut and Jer say that “None will frighten away the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth from (consuming) the dead bodies”. Similarly, “the worm dies not”.
    The bodies will be consumed, and those listening to Jesus at the time would have been familiar with this.

    It’s signifying total destruction.

     

    March 16, 2015 at 10:40 pm#790711
    Miia
    Participant

    What is absolutely terrifying is that these verses are exactly what Jesus describes in talking about Lazarus and the rich man. Lazarus was seeing this rich man in torment and he hated seeing it (abhorring)

    It’s a parable Bd. Or it could be the holding place before judgment.

    March 16, 2015 at 11:07 pm#790712
    Miia
    Participant

    What is absolutely terrifying is that these verses are exactly what Jesus describes in talking about Lazarus and the rich man. Lazarus was seeing this rich man in torment and he hated seeing it (abhorring)

    Secondly Death does not mean non existence in the Bible it usually means separation so the second death seems to be “Final separation” not “extinction” lets see if I can show this point.

    Revelation 21:821st Century King James Version (KJ21)

    8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers,and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

    Notice the scripture says they will “have their part” it doesn’t seem to say or suggest they will be burned up or become extinct because how can they have a part in something if they are extinct or annihilated?

    Ah, Bd, the Greek is not “shall have their part”, the Greek is “the portion of them in the lake”. So, the fearful, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, whore mongers, sorcerers and idolaters and all liars: the portion of them is in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

    Now first the scriptures assure us that these evil doers will have a part in the lake of Fire and then it assures us this place is outside the kingdom but it actually says they are OUTSIDE meaning that they are existing and conscious.

    Order: First it says sinners are outside the kingdom (heavenly Jerusalem for the righteous living on earth i.e., now) then comes the second death.

    Matthew 8:22
    But Jesus said unto him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their dead.”

    Obviously here Jesus is talking about the spiritually dead burying the physically dead but notice the spiritually dead is for all intents and purposes alive but separated from God.

    Yes, and that’s now.

    with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,

    This is when Jesus comes again (in flaming fire.) They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord (final and total destruction).

    March 16, 2015 at 11:34 pm#790716
    kerwin
    Participant

    miia,

    It’s a parable Bd. Or it could be the holding place before judgment.

    It is the holding place as after death since in it you can tell Judgement Day has not occurred and so the World To Come has not happened. If Judgement Day had occurred the rich man would not have a reason to go back to the Land of the Living as his brothers would either be with him or with Lazarus.

    March 17, 2015 at 5:02 am#790719
    DavidL
    Participant

    Kerwin..

     

    Which translators do you trust to translate as they are carried along by the Spirit of God?

    I do not trust any of them.

     

    Do you put your understanding of Biblical Greek up against those who were put in a position of interpreting Scripture..?!

     

    Should I trust what you say over what the Bible says…?!

     

    God’s Word is sure – preserved by the same Spirit that inspired it.!

     

    ..but if the words of Scripture cannot be trusted – then what makes your words any more reliable..!!

     

     

    March 17, 2015 at 8:30 am#790725
    GeneBalthrop
    Participant

    To all……It is better to enter into the kingdom of GOD “MAINED” (suffering loss of things that maybe closest to us), THEN HOLDING ON TO IT, and cast into the fire (intense judgement) where “THEIR” worm (the evil in them) does not die, and as a result the fire (intense judgement on them) is not quinched (put out or stopped ).

    WE ALL Must come to true repentence being willing to sacrifice all evil things connected to us, or that worm (evil) that is working in us all, is still active, and will require more (FIRE) OR intense judgements, bringing greater torments. If we truly repent of the evil and truly obey GOD THE FATHER with our whole hearts, and THE WORM WILL DIE, GOD IS ABLE TO GIVE US POWER TO DESTORY IT.

    That parable must be spritually understood to get the true meaning from it. IMO

    peace and love to you and yours. ……………gene

    March 17, 2015 at 10:38 am#790732
    bodhitharta
    Participant

    Miia

    If you call what Jesus described the holding place until the Judgement isn’t it still a place of torment?

    It seems the issue here was would God allow anyone to be tormented day and night, isn’t that the main issue here?

    March 17, 2015 at 12:21 pm#790741
    Miia
    Participant

    If you call what Jesus described the holding place until the Judgement isn’t it still a place of torment?

    Hi Bd,
    We don’t know much about any holding place. I would assume from what i gather in scripture it is the “outer darkness” which Jesus spoke about.

    It seems the issue here was would God allow anyone to be tormented day and night, isn’t that the main issue here?

    It is supposed to be the main issue of this thread: if God would allow anyone to be tormented “forever and ever” more so than “day and night”.

    Bd, we can be tormented here day and night. Torment seems like forever, does it not?

    And what about the “weeping and gnashing of teeth” which Jesus mentioned. “weeping and gnashing of teeth can signify torment, suffering, anguish, sorrow, loss, and regret. Now these could mean here, now, in this life, or it could be in some temporary holding place which we don’t know much about, but it would not be “being burnt alive without dyeing”, it would be personal. When “the books are opened” – possibly it means our heart and our mind is opened to what we have done or not done, our sins, our refusal to truth, and our refusal of God and the son of God. Make sense? Point is: even weeping and gnashing of teeth, whether in this life or something temporary to come, or at judgment day itself when people are sentanced to the second death, all signify weeping and gnashing of teeth, don’t you think?

    See, God doesn’t hold his anger forever, Bd, scripture says that.

    God is love, scripture says that too. So how is love described in the bible and how do we see that reflected today (bearing in mind that love will grow cold in these end times). Love is (1st Corinthians 13:4) patient, kind, it is not self seeking, it is not easily angered. Love keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with truth. Love protects, love trusts, loves hopes, and loves perseveres. And eventually, all that will remain IS love.

    God is not a hypocrite.

    One day you will see this Bd. (you will 🙂

    March 17, 2015 at 12:22 pm#790742
    Miia
    Participant

    t is the holding place as after death since in it you can tell Judgement Day has not occurred and so the World To Come has not happened. If Judgement Day had occurred the rich man would not have a reason to go back to the Land of the Living as his brothers would either be with him or with Lazarus.

     

    Possibly so Kerwin.

    March 17, 2015 at 12:34 pm#790743
    NickHassan
    Participant

    Hi mila,

    Yes KW is right.

    That explains why Hades and Death can be cast in the lake of fire once their roles have expired at Judgement

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