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Hell in the Scriptures “In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction..." —2nd Thessalonians 1:8,9
So many people today don't believe in a
literal place called Hell that burns with fire and brimstone
(Revelation 21:8), where all who die in their sins without Jesus
Christ go to be punished for all eternity. Sadly, there are
countless people who twist the Scriptures in an attempt to teach
that Hell is not what the Bible says it is... a place of flaming
torment. Here are many Scriptures to consider...
Numbers 26:10…
Korah and the
men who rebelled with him against Moses were swallowed into Hell
beneath.
The contrast here is between Heaven
and Hell; not between Heaven and the grave. Also notice the
interesting phrase... "If I make my bed in hell." Everyone who goes
to Hell chooses to go there by rejecting Jesus as their Christ. It
is sinful men who make their own bed in Hell. No sinner must go to
Hell. The gift of eternal life is freely offered to all mankind
through faith in Christ Jesus (John 14:6; Acts 10:43; Revelation
22:17).
It wouldn't make any sense if "hell"
merely meant the grave. What point would there be in condemning the
wicked to hell if that's the same place where the righteous go?
Clearly, Hell is a place only for the wicked who die in their sins.
The righteous go to heaven to be with the Lord (2nd Corinthians
5:8).
Clearly, this Scripture defines
"hell" as being more than the grave. The Bible speaks about
"descending into the pit." The Bible also speaks of being "cast into
Hell," which clearly implies judgment from a holy God. If "hell"
merely meant grave as Mormons, Jehovah's Witness and other false
prophets teach, then God would have said that the righteous shall be
cast into hell too; but the Bible NEVER says that anywhere!!! Only
the wicked shall be cast into Hell, a bottomless pit, where Satan is
called "the angel of the bottomless pit" (Revelation 9:11).
The Bible plainly teaches that all
sinners are condemned to Hell. If "hell" simply means grave, then
what harm or worry is there in fornicating, getting drunk, raping,
murdering, partying with illegal drugs and committing all sorts of
other sins? There would be none. If there is NO place of punishment
in eternity, then there is NO justice for all the victims of crimes
committed in this earthly life. So then what advantage is there to
being righteous? If one believes that the Bible is God's Word, then
you absolutely must believe that Hell is a literal place of torment
and anguish, that burns with searing flames of fire and brimstone,
where sinners are punished for their sins against a holy God. This is a very interesting Scripture. The word "gates" denotes the entrance (also the exit) of Hell. I heard one preacher say that the gates of Hell cannot prevent the Gospel from snatching souls from the depths of Hell. Of course, one who dies in their sins without the Lord is hopelessly lost for ever and ever. There are no second chances once a soul leaves this earthly life. There is NO such place as Purgatory and no amount of prayer or contributions to one's church can lessen God's flaming vengeance upon those who die in their sins without Jesus Christ.
This Scripture plainly teaches that
the Church's arch enemy is Satan and the forces of Hell. We also see
this evidenced by Ephesians 6:12. Our battle is not against flesh
and blood (humanity); but against principalities, powers and
spiritual wickedness in high places (the gates of Hell).
The Bible speaks of being "a child of
Hell." Matthew 5:9 speaks of the "children of God." Galatians 3:26
wonderfully states, "For ye are all the children of God by faith
in Christ Jesus." Amen! Jesus called the scribes and Pharisees
the children of Hell. Every Mormon, Jehovah's Witness, Catholic,
Seventh-Day Adventist, Scientologist, Christian Scientist, Moonie,
Buddhist, Hindu, Zoroastrian, Wiccan, Muslim, Judaist, Lordship
Salvationist, and New Ager is a child of Hell.
Jesus warned about the "damnation of
Hell," and He spoke about "escaping" the damnation of Hell. If hell
is merely the grave, or not so bad a place as fools today teach,
then why would we need to escape it's damnation? If the wicked go to
the same eternal place as the righteous, then why do we need to
escape it? What is the damnation for the Pharisees and scribes if
their fate is no different than the fate of the righteous? Common
sense tells the honest student of the Bible that Hell must be a
literal place of torment and fire, i.e., damnation. The Bible teaches that love for personal sins is the primary reason why sinners won't come to Jesus to be saved (John 3:20). We read from the Scriptures that hell's fire will never be quenched. The "worm that dieth not" may refer to one's conscience which will eat away at them for eternity. The worst part about Hell won't be the flames of torment, it will be knowing in your heart that Jesus fully paid for your way to Heaven, and you could have gone to Heaven; but you loved your sins more and refused to come to the Savior to be saved.
To clarify, a person does NOT have to
forsake committing sins to be saved; but ironically it's one's love
for sin that prevents them from coming to Jesus... "lest his deeds
should be reproved" (John 3:20). Jesus said in John 5:40, "And ye
will not come to me, that ye might have life." To be saved, a
person MUST acknowledge that they are GUILTY before God of violating
His holy Word (Romans 3:19). Most people are not willing to repent;
but instead choose to continue denying and making excuses for their
sins. God only requires us to admit our guilt before Him and to seek
forgiveness through His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus prophesied imminent judgment and doom upon the wicked inhabitants of Capernaum. It is important to notice that the Bible continually speaks of being "cast down to hell" and "thrust down to hell," which clearly indicate God's angry hand of judgment. Psalm 7:11 proclaims that "God is angry with the wicked EVERY DAY." In lieu of the fact that the world is filled with billions of wicked Christ-rejecters, God must be One angry God. John 3:36 tells us that the "wrath of God" abideth upon all Christ-rejecters. The Bible teaches that God's wrath abideth on the wicked.
Again we see that "hell" is more than
just a symbolic term. Although one's life may seem like hell on
earth, it cannot be compared to burning in the torments of fire and
brimstone for all eternity.
This Scripture clearly evidences the
"Second Death" mentioned in Revelation 21:8. Men may kill us once;
but God can kill us forever in Hell. This Scripture would make no
sense at all if "hell" merely refers to the grave or a place of
non-suffering. What fear would there be? In view of all the Scriptures I've just shared with you concerning the reality of Hell, who could honestly say that Luke 16:19-31 is merely a parable? Jesus DIDN'T say it was a parable. Jesus never used specific names in His parable; but he speaks of Lazarus and Abraham in this passage of Scripture. It is clearly NOT a parable.
Furthermore, even if it was a
parable, then what was Jesus trying to describe? It would be
misleading for Jesus to speak of Hell as a literal place of
"torment" and "flames" if it weren't so. Consider Jesus' Words in
John 14:2... "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it
were not so, I would have told you..." Jesus was a Man of
His Word—He said what He meant and meant what He said. Hell is a
place of torment and fire.
Again we find a Biblical reference to
"fire of Hell." If "hell" is merely the grave, then how could God cast the fallen angels into hell (Greek: Tartarus)? Angels do not die in the human sense. You don't bury them six-feet under. We clearly read that these fallen angels (i.e. demons) are reserved in chains of darkness awaiting judgment.
There are three different Greek words
for our English word "hell" today: Hades, Gehenna and Tartarus.
Gehenna is the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:11-15). Tartarus
is a special jail for demons reserved unto judgment. Hades is where
lost sinners go now when they die (a tormentuous place of fire,
torment and suffering).
Here we see that death and Hell are
two separate things. I always capitalize Heaven and Hell because
they are literal places and these are their proper names. If "hell"
merely meant grave, then there would be no distinction between death
and hell.
How can you argue with the Biblical term "second death"? Obviously
there is a punishment that goes beyond the grave. The Bible teaches
that lost sinners will stand trial and be sentenced to the Lake
of Fire based upon their WORKS. Also, the Bible teaches that
death and Hell (Hades) were cast into the Lake of Fire (Gehenna).
This plainly shows that hell means much more than the grave. The
Hebrew word "Sheol" is the Old Testament equivalent to "Hades" in
the New Testament for "hell." Sheol doesn't strictly mean the grave.
It can mean a whole lot more, and often does. Psalm 9:17 is a
perfect example: "The wicked shall be turned into Hell." Obviously
this means much more than merely the grave, because that's
also were the righteous go. It would make no sense. The clear
interpretation is that the wicked and all those who forget God will
be punished in eternity. Conclusion The Bible contains an overwhelming amount of evidence showing that Hell is a literal place that burns with fire. Those people today who scoff and deny the existence of a literal Hell that burns with fire are calling God a liar. Either you believe the Bible is God's Word or you don't. There is NO middle ground. "Beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts. These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit" (Jude 1:17-19).
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The
Bible contains an overwhelming amount of irrefutable evidence
teaching that Hell is indeed a literal place of torment, where those
who die in their sins without Jesus Christ are punished in flaming
fire and vengeance by God (2nd Thessalonians 1:8,9). 