The Bible, including the Lord Himself, has clearly described the horrors of Hell. Some may be surprised to hear that Jesus warned and spoke of Hell much more than He did Heaven.
The Purpose & Justice of Hell
The idea of Hell may be disliked or despised, but it serves a great purpose in the revelation and vindication of God’s justice. Jesus declared that Hell was prepared for Satan and his angels and is reserved for lawless sinners. God has established good, holy, and just laws for the greatest good of His creation, but when those laws are violated, God requires justice—with Hell being the appropriate punishment. Just as it is not wrong for a judge to sentence a guilty criminal to prison, neither is it wrong for God to send sinners to Hell. God demonstrates His justice and wrath, which would otherwise be unknown, by personally sending sinners to Hell. Tim Conway points out that how awful Hell is reveals and is proportionate to how vile sin is, explaining that “Hell is reasonable when we see in the one who is sentenced to that place wickedness that is infinite.”1
Matthew 7:23; 25:41; 1 Samuel 2:6; Luke 12:5; Isaiah 66:23-24
The Fire of Hell
Hell is a place of continual burnings in a fury of fire where the fiery justice and wrath of God is poured out on those who have sinned against Him and died without coming to Christ. Jesus described Hell as an agonizing furnace of fire, where contempt and self-hatred cling to souls like maggots on rotting flesh. The fire will never be quenched and none will ever be relieved of their pain. They will have no rest day or night but will be tormented with fire forever and ever, weeping and gnashing their teeth. Sinners will be crushed and torn to pieces and yet go on in conscious existence; they will wish to be annihilated but their misery will go on.
Matthew 13:42, 49-50; 18:9; 24:51; Luke 16:22-28; Psalm 2:9; 50:22; Isaiah 33:14; Revelation 9:6; 14:10-11; 20:10
The Darkness of Hell
Jesus described Hell as being thrust into outer darkness. It is a place that is as dark as darkness itself, where even light is like darkness. Those who are in Hell will exist in a domain of utter despair and hopelessness from which they will never return.
Matthew 8:12; Jude 1:13; Job 10:21-22
The Eternality of Hell
Jesus taught that Hell is the place of eternal punishment, where lost souls are tormented day and night forever for their sins. Though our physical bodies would be reduced to ashes through fire, the Bible declares that in the final resurrection both the righteous and the wicked will be raised in spiritual bodies suitable to withstand eternity. The reason Hell must be eternal is because sin is an abominable offense against an eternal God, because sinners will never be able to pay its price in full, and because sinners in Hell will go on hating and despising God for the rest of eternity.
Matthew 5:28-29; 25:41, 46; Acts 24:15; 1 Corinthians 15:42-44; Revelation 14:10-11; 16:9-11; Deuteronomy 33:27
The Destructiveness of Hell
The doctrine of purgatory—that a place of fire purges sin and cleanses sinners—was never taught by Jesus and is found nowhere in the Bible. Jesus said those who do not enter Heaven are cast into a place of eternal, not temporal, punishment. As Tim Conway has said, “[Hell] doesn’t make better; it destroys everything that has any semblance of good. The image of God that is upon [lost souls] will be eternally defaced and defiled. [They] will become more and more … contemptible as the eternal ages pass by.” He further explained that while lost souls may (and should) be pitied during this life, yet afterward they will never be pitied by God or His people because at that time, their true evil nature will be fully exposed; they will be seen as they really are—lawless reprobates—and they will be abhorred by Heaven.2
Matthew 25:46; 2 Thessalonians 1:9; Proverbs 1:24-31; Isaiah 66:23-24
The Presence of God in Hell
Contrary to popular belief, Satan will not be the ruler in Hell; he will not have a kingdom of rebels who get to continue sinning, and there most certainly will be no party. The Bible teaches that the one who rules in Hell is the Lamb of God—Jesus Christ. Satan himself and everyone else in Hell will be tormented in the presence of the Lamb and His holy angels. God is a consuming fire, and those who are there have fallen into His hands—which the Bible says is a terrifying thing.
Matthew 25:41; Revelation 14:10-11; 20:10; Hebrews 10:26-31; 12:29
Hades & Sheol
Immediately after death lost souls depart to what the Bible calls Hades or Sheol. Hades is the prison where lost souls are confined in order await the final judgment—where they will be raised back up to stand before God’s throne in order to be judged for their sins and to receive the sentence of eternal condemnation. Hades is a place of fiery torment that consumes all its inhabitants, where God’s anger burns down to its lowest parts. Souls in Hades tremble in fear and agony with all their sins and shame exposed before God, pleading for relief they will never get, and hoping that none of their friends or family ends up there with them. They are stirred and aroused in meeting new arrivals, whom they taunt, disgrace, and curse. There is no activity, planning, or knowledge among the dead in Hades like there is among the living on earth. They cannot thank or praise God and there is absolutely no hope for His mercy, because the only thing they have to look forward to is His justice and wrath. When it is time for them to be judged, they will try to cling to the depths of Hades to hide from God in dread but there He will take them and execute His judgment.
Psalm 9:16-17; 146:4; 1 Peter 3:18-20; Deuteronomy 32:22; Job 24:19; 26:5-6; Proverbs 7:27; 9:18; Luke 16:22-28; Ecclesiastes 9:10; Revelation 6:16; Isaiah 14:9-11; 38:18; Amos 9:2
The Lake of Fire & Second Death
When the Lord Jesus Christ returns to the earth, the resurrection will commence, followed by the final judgment. All the lost souls in Hades will be raised to appear before God’s throne and be judged for all their sins. After their sentencing, they will be cast into the lake of fire for the punishment of their sins—the second death, or eternal condemnation. This judgment will be irreversible and there will be no hope or mercy. The only mercy available is through Jesus Christ and is plainly offered throughout our lives; but if it is rejected, no other mercy remains.
Daniel 12:2; John 5:28-29; 2 Thessalonians 1:9; Revelation 20:11-15; Proverbs 1:24-31; Hebrews 10:26-27
The Majority Ends up in Hell
Jesus said the vast majority of mankind will end up in Hell. This is because all have sinned against God and despise Him; no one seeks Him, He is in none of their thoughts; they all love the darkness and hate the light. Jesus said the gate and path that leads to salvation and eternal life is small and narrow—and only few are able to find it. Just look at the world—the great majority are only interested in living how they want, following after sinful passions and lustful desires. They have entered the broad gate leading to destruction. Jesus also said many people seek eternal life but will never find it. They believe they can get themselves to Heaven by their own beliefs, methods, or religion. Many people want to go to Heaven, but don’t want to be bothered with conforming their lives to God’s word. But Jesus is the only way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him. But even among those who identify themselves with Christianity, Jesus warned that a majority of these even are not His true disciples. Not everyone who calls Jesus Lord will go to Heaven—only those who do the will of God will enter.
Romans 3:10-11, 23; Psalm 10:4; Matthew 7:13-14, 21-23; Luke 13:23-24; John 3:19-20; 14:6
Article by Dane Gardow (www.truthsource.net)
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