Question: Will those who reject Yahuwah’s mercy be relentlessly tormented throughout the ceaseless ages of eternity?
Bible Answer: NO. They will be destroyed. The wicked shall be "cut off" forever. They shall utterly "perish." They shall be "consumed," "devoured," and "destroyed" by fire and shall be "no more." They "shall be as though they had not been."
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7Yet he [the wicked] shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where is he? . . .26All darkness shall be hid in his secret places: a fire not blown shall consume him; it shall go ill with him that is left in his tabernacle. |
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2For what portion of Eloah is there from above? and what inheritance of the Almighty from on high? 3Is not destruction to the wicked? and a strange punishment to the workers of iniquity? |
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Psa 5:6 |
6You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; Yahuwah abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. |
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5You have rebuked the nations, You have destroyed the wicked; You have blotted out their name forever and ever. 6O enemy, destructions are finished forever! And you have destroyed cities; Even their memory has perished. |
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Psa 9:17 |
17The wicked shall be turned into hell ["hell"=H7585: sheol (the grave)]… |
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Psa 11:6 |
6Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup. |
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Psa 21:9 |
9You shall make them as a fiery oven in the time of Your anger; Yahuwah shall swallow them up in His wrath, And the fire shall devour them. |
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Psa 28:5 |
5Because they do not regard the works of Yahuwah, Nor the operation of His hands, He shall destroy them and not build them up. |
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Psa 37:9-11 |
9For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on Yahuwah, they shall inherit the earth. 10For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, but it shall be no more. 11But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. Sin and sinners will be destroyed in a fiery hell upon this earth: "But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of irreverent men." (2 Peter 3:7) The meek shall then inherit the New Earth which Yahuwah will make: "For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith Yahuwah, so shall your seed and your name remain." (Isaiah 66:22) |
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Psa 37:20 |
20But the wicked shall perish; |
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34Wait on Yahuwah, And keep His way, and He shall exalt you to inherit the land; When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it. 35I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a native green tree. 36Yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; Indeed I sought him, but he could not be found. 37Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright; For the future of that man is peace. 38But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; The future of the wicked shall be cut off. |
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Psa 52:1,5 |
1Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man? ... 5El shall likewise destroy you forever; He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your dwelling place, And uproot you from the land of the living. |
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Psa 55:23 |
23But You, O Elohim, shall bring them down to the pit of destruction… |
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Psa 59:13 |
13Consume them in wrath, consume them, That they may not be; And let them know that Elohim rules in Jacob to the ends of the earth. |
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Psa 73:18 |
18Surely You set them in slippery places; You cast them down to destruction. |
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Psa 73:27 |
27For indeed, those who are far from You shall perish; You have destroyed all those who desert You for harlotry. |
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Psa 83:14,17 |
14As the fire burns the woods, And as the flame sets the mountains on fire… 17Let them be confounded and dismayed forever… Yes, let them be put to shame and perish. |
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7When the wicked spring up like grass, and when all the workers of iniquity flourish, it is that they may be destroyed forever. |
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Psa 92:9 |
9For behold, Your enemies, O Yahuwah, |
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Psa 140:10 |
10Let burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again. |
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Psa 145:20 |
20Yahuwah preserveth all them that love Him: but all the wicked will He destroy. |
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Prov 2:22 |
22But the wicked will be cut off from the earth, |
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11And you mourn at last, |
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Prov 10:25 |
25When the whirlwind passes by, the wicked is no more, but the righteous has an everlasting foundation. |
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Prov 10:28-30 |
28The hope of the righteous will be gladness, Note: The wicked and unrepentant will be destroyed; they will eternally perish [die]. They will not inhabit the New Earth which Yahuwah will create. Speaking of the righteous, Yahuwah says, "For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me . . . so shall your seed and your name remain." (Isaiah 66:22) |
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Prov 12:7 |
7The wicked are overthrown and are no more, but the house of the righteous will stand. |
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Prov 13:13 |
13He who despises the word will be destroyed, But he who fears the commandment will be rewarded. |
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*Isa 1:28,31 |
28The destruction of transgressors and of sinners shall be together, Note: The wicked will be destroyed/consumed by fire. "No one shall quench" this fire because it will be "unquenchable." (Matthew 3:12; Luke 3:17) To "quench" simply means to "extinguish." In other words, none will be able to put this fire out. It will not go out until everything has been burned up (consumed). The wicked will be very literally turned to stubble and ashes. "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 Yahuwah of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear My name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in His wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith Yahuwah of hosts." (Malachi 4:1-3) |
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24Therefore, as the fire devours the stubble, and the flame consumes the chaff, so their root will be as rottenness, and their blossom will ascend like dust; Because they have rejected the law of Yahuwah of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. |
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16Therefore the Master, Yahuwah of hosts, will send leanness among His fat ones; And under His glory He will kindle a burning like the burning of a fire. 17So the Light of Israel will be for a fire, and His Holy One for a flame; It will burn and devour His thorns and His briers in one day. 18And it will consume the glory of His forest and of His fruitful field, Both soul and body; And they will be as when a sick man wastes away. Note: Foretelling the utter destruction of the Assyrian army: Here we find a prophetic foreshadowing of the ultimate fate of the wicked when Yahuwah's judgment is executed. |
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Isa 10:25 |
25For yet a very little while and the indignation will cease, as will My anger in their destruction. |
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9Behold, the day of Yahuwah comes, cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate; And He will destroy its sinners from it. |
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11Yahuwah, when Your hand is lifted up, they will not see. But they will see and be ashamed for their envy of people; Yes, the fire of Your enemies shall devour them. |
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Isa 26:14 |
14They are dead, they will not live; They are deceased, they will not rise. Therefore You have punished and destroyed them, And made all their memory to perish. |
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Isa 29:6 |
6You will be punished by Yahuwah of hosts with thunder and earthquake and great noise, with storm and tempest and the flame of devouring fire. |
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27Behold, the name of Yahuwah comes from afar, Burning with His anger, and His burden is heavy; His lips are full of indignation, and His tongue like a devouring fire . . . 30Yahuwah will cause His glorious voice to be heard, and show the descent of His arm, with the indignation of His anger and the flame of a devouring fire, with scattering, tempest, and hailstones. |
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Isa 34:1-4 |
1Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it. 2For the indignation of Yahuwah is upon all nations, and His fury upon all their armies: He hath utterly destroyed them, He hath delivered them to the slaughter. 3Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood. 4*And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree. *The wrath of the Lamb: See Revelation 6:14-17. |
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Isa 47:14 |
14Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame: there shall not be a coal to warm at, nor fire to sit before it. |
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Eze 18:4 |
4Behold, all souls are Mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die. |
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15For the day of Yahuwah is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head. 16For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been. |
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9What do ye imagine against Yahuwah? He will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time. 10For while they be folden together as thorns, and while they are drunken as drunkards, they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry. Note: In addition to confirming yet again that the wicked will be devoured, a most wonderful declaration is made in this passage regarding eternity future: "Affliction will not rise up a second time." That is to say that sin, rebellion, and all of the misery that accompanies them will be forever eradicated, never to rise up again! Praise Yahuwah! |
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3Then shall Yahuwah go forth, and fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle. 4And His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, . . . 9And Yahuwah shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one Yahuwah, and His name one. . . . 11And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited. 12And this shall be the plague wherewith Yahuwah will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. |
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*Mal 4:1-3 |
1For, 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 Yahuwah of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. 2But unto you that fear My name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in His wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. 3And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith Yahuwah of hosts. |
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John 3:16 |
16For Yahuwah so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish [G622], but have everlasting life. Note: The text says "perish," not "suffer everlasting life in torment." "Perish" [G622]: From G575 and the base of G3639; to destroy fully (reflexively to perish, or lose), literally or figuratively: - destroy, die, lose, mar, perish. (Strong's Concordance) |
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23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of Yahuwah is eternal life through Yahushua the Anointed, our Master. Note: The text says that "the wages of sin is death." The text does not say "the wages of sin is everlasting life in torment." |
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Php 3:18-19 |
18 . . . the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19Whose end is destruction, whose Elohim is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things. |
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8In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not Yahuwah, and that obey not the gospel of our Master, Yahushua the Anointed: 9Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Master, and from the glory of his power; Note: The text says "everlasting destruction," not "everlasting torment." |
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2 Pe 2:9-12 |
9Yahuwah knoweth how to deliver the reverent out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished: 10But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. 11Whereas angels, which are greater in power and might, bring not railing accusation against them before Yahuwah.12But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; |
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*2 Pe 3:7 |
7But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of irreverent men. Note: "Hell" is not burning right now. The earth upon which we now stand will become a fiery hell. This fire will utterly destroy Satan, his angels, sin, sinners, and death forever. This is the second death. (Revelation 2:11; 20:6; 20:14; 21:8) Sin will be forever eradiated and will never rise again: "What do ye imagine against Yahuwah? He will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time." (Nahum 1:9) Yahuwah will then create a New Earth: "For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith Yahuwah, so shall your seed and your name remain." (Isaiah 66:22) |
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18And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth. |
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7And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 9And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from Yahuwah out of heaven, and devoured them. |
Where did the idea of eternal torment come from?
The doctrine of an eternally burning inferno where the lost will be forever tormented after death was made popular by the Roman Catholic Church (the Whore of Revelation 17), who adopted it from the Greeks and the pagans. The Roman Church found this doctrine to be very profitable in the middle ages, as it enabled her to grow rich through the sale of "indulgences." Nowhere in Scripture does it say that the lost will be tormented for eternity. (For more on The Roman Catholic Beast Power, see "Who is the Beast in the Book of Revelation?")
Misunderstood #1
Isa.66:24 - 24And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses 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.
Mark 9:43-44 -43And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell [G1067: Gehenna], into the fire that never shall be quenched: 44Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
Answer/Explanation: These passages contain two very intriguing phrases which are often misunderstood: (1) "Their worm shall not die." (2) "Neither shall their fire be quenched."
"Their worm shall not die."
The word translated as "hell" in Mark 9:43 is "gehenna" (G1067). Gehenna, called "the Valley of Hinnom" in the Old Testament, was a deep, narrow valley south of Jerusalem where, after the introduction of the fire deities of Ahaz, the idolatrous Jews offered their children to Moloch. Here, the bodies of dead animals and the refuse of the city were cast. Fires burned continuously, and worms infested the carcasses of the expired animals. What the fire did not destroy, the worms consumed. It thus was a type of complete annihilation. Yahushua is using this to illustrate the ultimate fate of the wicked.
Notice here that it is not disembodied souls upon which the worms feed, but "carcasses," (Isaiah 66:24) or dead bodies of men. Those who are cast into the lake of fire will go in bodily form (Mark 9:43-45; Matthew 5:30). Isaiah 51:8 states that "the worm shall eat them like wool," meaning that they will be consumed entirely, and cease to exist.
The worms/maggots which infest and consume a dead body do not die; they simply pupate and become adults which, in turn, lay more eggs. Thus, the cycle continues until the flesh is entirely consumed.
"Neither shall their fire be quenched."
To "quench" simply means to "extinguish." In other words, none will be able to put this fire out. It will not go out until everything has been burned up (consumed). The wicked will be very literally turned to stubble and ashes.
"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 Yahuwah of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear My name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in His wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith Yahuwah of hosts." (Malachi 4:1-3)
An Example of "Unquenchable" Fire:
"But if ye will not hearken unto me to hallow the sabbath day, and not to bear a burden, even entering in at the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched." (Jeremiah 17:27)
This prophecy was later fulfilled in chapter 52:
"Now in the fifth month, in the tenth day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, which served the king of Babylon, into Jerusalem, And burned the house of Yahuwah, and the king's house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, and all the houses of the great men, burned he with fire: And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down all the walls of Jerusalem round about." (Jeremiah 52:12-14)
The fulfillment of this prophecy regarding the unquenchable fire of Jerusalem is again referenced in 2 Chronicles:
"And they burnt the house of Elohim, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof. And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: To fulfil the word of Yahuwah by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years." (2 Chronicles 36:19-21)
Note: Clearly, the fire kindled in Jerusalem (that was not to be quenched) is not burning today. It burned out after everything was consumed. Such is the nature of fire.
Misunderstood #2
Matthew 25:46 - 46And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
Answer/Explanation: "Everlasting punishment" is the fate of the wicked, not "everlasting punishing." Yahuwah's judgment, the punishment of the wicked (i.e. destruction), shall stand forever; the consequences will be everlasting. The wicked shall never live again. "Let burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again." (Psalm 140:10) "Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, but it shall be no more." (Psalm 37:10) "But the wicked shall perish; And the enemies of Yahuwah, like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away." (Psalm 37:20) "But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; The future of the wicked shall be cut off." (Psalm 37:38)
Compare to 2 Thessalonians1:8-9:
"In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not Yahuwah, and that obey not the gospel of our Master, Yahushua the Anointed: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Master, and from the glory of his power." (2 Thes.1:8-9)
Note: Again, it is the "destruction" (the punishment) that is everlasting, not the torment. Nowhere in Scripture does it say that the lost will be tormented for eternity.
Misunderstood #3
Revelation 14:11 - 11And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
Revelation 19:2-3 - 2For true and righteous are His judgments: for He hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of His servants at her hand. 3And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up forever and ever.
Revelation 20:10 - 10And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Answer/Explanation: The term "forever" in the Bible simply means a period of time, limited or unlimited. "Forever" is used 56 times in the Bible in connection with things that have already ended. In Jonah 2:6, "forever" means "three days and nights" (Jonah 1:17). In Deuteronomy 23:3, "forever" means "10 generations." In man's case, "forever" means "as long as he lives" or "until death." (See 1 Samuel 1:22, 28 and Exodus 21:6.) The wicked then will burn in the fire as long as they live, or until death. This fiery punishment for sin will vary according to the degree of sins for each individual, but after the punishment, the fire will go out.
"Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame: there shall not be a coal to warm at, nor fire to sit before it." (Isaiah 47:14)
". . . And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith Yahuwah of hosts." (Malachi 4:1-3)
The teaching of eternal torment has done more to drive people to atheism and insanity than any other invention of the devil. It defames the loving character of our gracious Heavenly Father and has done untold harm to the Christian cause.
As honest Bible students, it is imperative that we study all of the pertinent passages of Scripture on a subject before we draw any definite conclusions. We must always be faithful to the weight of evidence.
Misunderstood #4
The Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man (Luke 16:19-31)
Answer/Explanation: Lazarus and the Rich Man (Luke 16:19-31)
Misunderstood #5
What does it mean to "suffer the vengeance of eternal fire"?
Answer/Explanation: To "suffer the vengeance of eternal fire" is not to "suffer forever in a fire that will never go out." Rather, it is to suffer the eternal consequences of the fire's devastating effect, namely annihilation.
"Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." (Jude 1:7)
Scripture plainly states that Sodom and Gomorrah suffered "the vengeance of eternal fire." However, these cities and their inhabitants are not burning today. The fire burned out after everything was consumed. The consequences, though, are eternal. The sulfur and ash remains in and around the Dead Sea testify to the irreversible consequences of Yahuwah's judgment of fire upon these cities.
The apostle Peter also makes clear that these cities were burned to ashes:
"And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live wickedly." (2 Peter 2:6)
The inhabitants of these wicked cities were turned into ashes just as the prophets under divine inspiration said that the wicked shall be at the final judgment.
"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 Yahuwah of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. . . . And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith Yahuwah of hosts." (Malachi 4:1-3)
Note: There is an eternally burning fire, but it's not what you think!
Hell:
The State of the Dead:
The New Earth: