The existence of Hell and eternal judgement has to be the most difficult aspect of God for man to grasp. By Hell, we are talking about the notion of an eternal, conscious, soulish existence, in a bottomless pit of “outer darkness,” pain, misery, and even “hell fire.” When I first believed the gospel, I believed that there was probably a place of punishment. But I was not at all certain as to the quality or nature of it. I never really believed that such a place as Hell could exist, that a pit of magma is where people would go. Because, first of all, isn’t Hell a spiritual punishment? Wouldn’t it require a spiritual state of existence? And as such, there needn’t be any physical descriptors of this place. Therefore, I ignorantly assumed that the writings in the Bible were most likely an attempt to attribute a likeness to the place; though any choice of words would betray the spiritual nature of it. I had never read the Bible in regard to this myself, and so this was just my natural thinking at the time. I am sure my position was mostly the product of the scoffing and skepticism that is so often shown toward such matters in our society today.
But if you were to read the Bible, it is quite clear that a Hell does exist. Jesus Christ said that:
Matthew 12
40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
The story of Jonah is one where God wanted Jonah to tell a city, Ninevah, to repent. But Jonah refused and fled. Long story short, Jonah was thrown off a ship, into the sea, where he was swallowed up into the belly of a whale.
Jonah 2
1 Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish’s belly,
2 And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice.
Christ is suggesting that the “belly of hell” is located in the “heart of the earth.” This sounds silly, because why would a spiritual realm be geolocated at the center of the Earth? I just do not see a need for this. And it doesn’t really make sense if you think about how Hell is supposed to be eternal, but creation is not eternal.
In fact, all of creation, according to thermodynamics, will decay and die of maximum entropy. This heat death is inescapable if things should continue as they are, without miraculous intervention. Not a single iota of useful energy would exist given enough time, according to physics. This conclusion, drawn from science, is also spoken of in the Bible stating that creation “shall wax old as doth a garment.”
Hebrews 1
10 And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:
11 They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
12 And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.
But then I noticed something that was revealing. How did Jesus Christ know that the Earth had a center to it? This implies that the Earth is round, or at least multisided\geometric. And that at the center of the Earth, there is a core of liquid fire and brimstone. Brimstone being an old word for sulfur, which is the fourth most abundant element at the core of the earth. During his day, people most likely believed that the earth was flat. So, Jesus’ description of Geology is 100% correct, without the luxury of modern science, and despite prevailing thought of geo-centric-flat-Earthism during his day. Some naysayers would refute this by saying that Jesus must have seen volcanoes which prompted the idea of Hell. This indeed could be one way for Jesus Christ to have concluded that there is fire at the heart of the Earth. Even so, it still remains that Jesus Christ gave a perfect description of the Globe: having, at its core, immense heat and liquid iron and sulfur. This is undeniable.
If Jesus didn’t know that this was the case (and if he were making things up as he went) don’t you think that a more abstract, spiritualized, and unfalsifiable claim would have been a much safer statement? Wouldn’t a false teacher take the safe bet and just say that Hell is the grave, or that depression is Hell, or that our actions manifest Hell, or something like that? But no, He decided to tell you exactly how the Earth is, 2,000 years before modern science could confirm it. That’s how you know Jesus Christ is God, because nothing he said was wrong.
Even so, it still doesn’t make sense to locate it at the center of the Earth. Knowing that the Earth will cease to be, one day. But then I read about how “death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death” (Revelation 20:14). That at the end of the world (or after your personal death, depending on your eschatology) God will roll up creation “as doth a scroll” and judge every human being that is currently in Hell or on Earth. The end result is them being cast into the lake of fire.
So, at the moment, Hell is said to be at heart of the earth. Perhaps it abides in a higher dimension that we cannot see. According to the Bible, there are demonic spirits, “spirits of the air” that are doing things in a realm that we cannot see. This realm is superimposed over this 3-dimensional world that we live in. Maybe Hell is like that. Maybe Hell is in this invisible dimension, at the heart of the earth. And at the end, everyone in Hell will be judged, then put in the lake of fire, wherever that is.
And how about the severity of Hell? We are talking about an endless existence of misery. It goes on forever and ever. A trillion years would have passed, and that is but the beginning. It is just unfathomable. The scriptures are clear in telling how intolerable Hell really is:
Matthew 5
29 And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
30 And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
Hell is so bad, that it’s better to amputate and mutilate your body, than it is to enter into Hell. That is how you can understand the severity of Hell. Some people would like to make Hell a place of annihilation, that the suffering ends at Hell. but if that is the case, then why is it better to mutilate yourself here on Earth, if you are just going to get annihilated? It must be that this “annihilation” whether ephemeral or eternal is so intolerable that you must avoid it at all costs.
Matthew 5
45 And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched
It is a fire that will never be quenched. It is also mentioned in Matthew 25:41 as “everlasting fire.”
Hell is also called “everlasting destruction.” Notice the inclusion of the word “everlasting” prior to the word destruction. As if to overwrite any sense of closure that might be implied by the word “destruction,” and implant a sense of continuity. A continuous destruction.
2 Thessalonians 1
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
I guess you could argue that “everlasting destruction” might mean permanent destruction. That once you are destroyed, there is no coming back. But if that is the case, it doesn’t explain why self-mutilation is better than Hell. Besides, in Revelation it says that the “smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night.” So, I would not count on annihilationism to be true.
So far in this discussion, we have reason to believe that Hell is a permanent state of condemnation and torment, and it goes on into eternity without end. I can continue to quote more, and more passages to prove this; but suffice it to say that Hell is terrible. There cannot be anything worse that can befall a man than to be placed into Hell. Therefore, I think we should just take heed to the warning. We can only make conjectures as to the logistics of it all, but who’s going to care once you are in Hell itself? Therefore, I think it’s most wise to move on from the itinerary, and focus on the nature of the judgement, and how to avoid Hell altogether.
Many people have wrestled with the idea of eternal judgement and still have a hard time stomaching the idea of Hell. In fact, a lot of unbelievers appeal to the extremity of Hell as evidence against the notion of God. That God cannot be both good and send people to Hell at the same time. People that are inclined to think this way tend to chalk off the Bible as a fairytale, a myth, or a book of control written by those in power.
In fact, some Bible critics think that the Bible is a book of control. That the church uses the threat of Hell as a tool to make people behave, and to tithe, and to support religious organizations. If this were true, then the Bible would directly correlate your actions and behavior with the punishment of Hell. That if you attack a guard, or disrespect a governor, or don’t pay your taxes, you would then be burned in an eternal Hell. But that isn’t what Christ said at all. In fact, in Luke 13:2-5, a messenger told Jesus about a group of Galileans who were killed at the hands of Pontius Pilate (Pilate was the fifth prefect of the Roman province in Judea, at the time). Jesus rhetorically asked, “Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things?” He preemptively answered his own question with, “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” Christ then asked, “Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?” He then answered, “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”
Jesus basically divorces our sense of cause-and-effect, when it comes to our actions and the evils that befall us. He says this so that every man can see his own need for salvation. He is telling them that everyone will suffer an unfortunate end, if they do not repent. Repent means to turn to God. How, then, does one turn to God? By believing on Jesus Christ for salvation. It doesn’t cost you anything to believe, so the Bible isn’t a book about controlling you. It is a book about making sure that you don’t go to Hell.
With that critique dealt with, we still have to wrestle with the notion of Hell and a good God. Of those who wrestle with this dilemma, many point to the need for justice. That God gives a law, people transgress it, and therefore are punished; unless they appeal to his mercy (Jesus Christ). This is true, but you would naturally object by noting how cruel, unusual, and extreme the punishment is. We are talking about fire on your soul-body for eternity, after all! As solely an academic response, there are a few answers:
- Because you sinned against an infinite being, you deserve an infinite punishment.
People draw the differences between killing a cockroach, killing a cat, killing a man, killing a baby, and killing a pregnant woman. As the being increases in value, your penalty for offending that being increases. And God is infinitely higher than all, therefore infinite punishment.
- Because you continue to sin in Hell (anger, malice, blasphemy, evil thoughts) your punishment is self-perpetuating in Hell.
This also makes sense. Because Christ went into Hell for only 3 days and 3 nights, to pay for the sins of the whole world. And because it is impossible for Christ to sin, he never sinned while in punishment. Therefore, after a finite amount of time, “the grave could not hold him” and he rose to life.
These reasons are true, but I feel they are lacking in explanatory depth. We need to understand why God feels that it’s right to do this. And I think that is precisely the problem, I don’t think that it is possible for us to understand such things, to any satisfying depth. As a Christian, the best way to cope with this is to ask for God to remove the terror of Hell from your heart. “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). God is faithful to answer that prayer. I do, however, draw a distinction between fearing Hell and having a burden for souls. This book is written to convince you to not burn in Hell, as silly as that sounds. People are so blind, that they have to be persuaded to not take the risk of burning in Hell for all eternity. With that said, the remainder of this chapter will try to shed some light as to how all this is true.
In the beginning, God created man in his own image and likeness. This could mean that man has freewill and is an eternal soul. Even so, man is not like God. God is described as the creator, eternal life, pure strength, security, peace, joy, comfort, pure light, and all good things (entire Bible: too many sources to cite). God made man to enjoy these attributes of God. But for man to freely enjoy God, he must have the ability to do otherwise. This is demonstrated by the inclusion of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, in the garden of Eden.
In the book of Genesis, God allowed the tree to exist in the garden because otherwise, it would be impossible for man to disobey. And if man could not disobey, then man has a form of contrived autonomy, but not freewill. Man could not have done otherwise, even if the desire is in his heart to do so. The Bible says that God “desirest truth in the inward parts” (Psalm 51:6). Furthermore, the Bible describes the eyes of the Lord as going to and fro, searching for those whose hearts are “perfect toward him” (1 Chronicles 16:9). We can only be perfect toward God by faith and not by wrought obedience. Our works are never perfect, but faith reaches into the absolute. God, from the beginning, has always sought faith in the heart of man. It seems that in order for man to freely love and trust God, there would have to be a way for him to do otherwise. In the garden, the only rule was to not touch the tree. The tree of knowledge of good and evil is then exactly as its name suggests: as soon as you touch the fruit of that tree, the fruit of your action is knowledge of good and evil. It gives you this knowledge by introducing evil i.e. your sin, which is disobedience to God (who is good). That is why Adam and Eve hid themselves from God, because God is good, and they were now made evil by their sin. Therefore, whether you believe the genesis account to be literal, metaphorical, or a combination of both; it follows that the tree had to exist alongside man, because it’s a required part of Man’s freewill.
When people say that Hell is separation from God, most do not really appreciate what that entails. It is the most intolerable thing that could ever happen to anyone. So much so, that when Christ was crucified, he echoed the Psalmist by saying, “My God, My God, Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me?” (Psalms 22:2, Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34). Christ bore the sins of the whole world on the cross. The separation that would have been imposed on man is so extreme, that it eclipses the physical pain of the scourging and of the crucifixion.
Once man strays from God, we are immediately cut off from all of God. God is not divided (1 Corinthians 1:13). We cannot enjoy some of God’s attributes such as joy, peace, and strength, without having all the rest of God. These virtues and all desirable things are an extension of the very nature of God. These things do not exist as some abstract thing, outside of God. The Bible makes unequivocal statements like God is Righteousness, not just that he is righteous (1 Colossians 1:30). You cannot have righteousness, without having God. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they died because they were divorced from all of God. They believed the devil, which means they have rejected the truth. Jesus Christ is “the way, the truth, the life” (John 14:6). That is why when they decided to stray from the truth, they also strayed from the life; therefore, they died. God is also mercy (Psalm 130:7). If you refuse the mercy of God, Jesus Christ, you will be in a state of existence where there is no mercy. Not a single iota of mercy. It’s unfathomable. Therefore, Hell exists by definition. Hell is a “bottomless pit” because it is a God-sized vacuum.
God made man to walk with him in the cool of the day. And Hell was made for the devil and his angels. The way the devil went to Hell is not the same as it is for man, seeing how the devil was ever before the throne of God. There was no snake to beguile him, he was that snake. There was no temptation, except that which he has of his own. He has absolutely no excuse. The devil is the epitome and inventor of evil; so much so, that he became evil even though God had originally made him good. The devil is the originator of all darkness, lies, hypocrisy, and death. When the devil sinned, that caused a rippling effect through time. God knew that his sin would result in Hitler, terrorists, mass murderers, and all evil things conceivable. In fact, there are evils that came about that not even God could conceive on His own.
Jeremiah 19
5 They have built also the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings unto Baal, which I commanded not, nor spake it, neither came it into my mind
When the devil sinned, it indirectly resulted in scenarios like the one above. Where people were sacrificing their new born babies alive, to Baal, through fire. The Carthaginians and Phoenicians were known for this practice. The babies would cry as they were cooked alive. These barbarians would beat drums and play flutes to drown out the cries, because even they knew it was wrong. God is justified in making Hell, especially for these barbaric savages.
Without appealing to the mercy of God, you are left with nothing but righteous indignation and wrath, in Hell. There is no place in the universe that you can hide. If you do not abide in the shelter, in the mercy, in the shadow of the almighty (Jesus Christ) you are left naked before a pure white light that devours darkness. “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1).
God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29). The kind of wrath that God has is akin to our anger and hate towards those unsavory characters that we all too often hear about in the news. The way people react in disgust toward Hitler, terrorists, and mass school shooters is but a fraction of the hate God has toward sin. The only difference is the infinite strength, power, and purity of God’s hate. That is why the Bible says that it’s a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:31).
1 John 1
5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all
There can be absolutely no darkness in God, no sin, no lies, no hypocrisy. Otherwise, God would cease to be God. That is why he is called the I AM THAT I AM. He changes not. It is logically impossible for God to overlook sin and accept your sin into himself. That is why God must vouch for you. The only logical way for God to accept you, is if you appeal to his mercy. Just as justice is an attribute of God, so is his mercy. God is the epitome of mercy. His mercy is unending. Mercy is such an inseparable virtue of God, that it is one of the most commonly used words strewn throughout the entire Bible. Even in the old testament, the Israelites had the Ark of the Covenant, which had a “Mercy Seat” placed on top. Man’s only interface with God is on the grounds of mercy. Not merited favor, nor is God a respecter of persons; instead, it is on the basis of mercy. God offers mercy universally, to anyone who wants to believe. Even to those sick and twisted baby killers.
Therefore, to be saved, we must appeal to his mercy. Not to the law or to judgement, because then God is forced to deny you. You must know who God is, and appeal to his mercy only. That honors God, because He is merciful and yet perfect in every other way. But there are no other entries to God. You are not good enough, you are not light enough, not pure enough, not strong enough, not smart enough, you are not anything enough to even be spoken of in the same breath as God. You can only appeal to mercy in truth. That is why it’s by faith in the grace and mercy of God (Jesus Christ).
The extremeness of Hell is a reflection of the binary nature of God. There are no in-betweens with God, you are either saved or you are not. You either get perfect bliss or perfect torment. Life on Earth is the only “grace period” for man. After you die, you will either enter a world of pure light, or pure darkness. Earth is the only grey area we have.
This is portrayed by a lot of the blurry moral dilemmas that we face day to day. Like the infamous trolley psychological dilemma where you are given a choice of allowing a trolley to continue on its course to kill 5 people, or actively change the tracks to kill just 1. We have a hard time intuitively deciphering such things, because of our ignorance of absolutes. We even see this in the material world, where nothing we make is as it seems. When you draw a straight line, if you zoom in close enough, you see that there are deviations and a jaggedness to that “straight line.” The Avogadro Project produced what we call the world’s most round object, yet it’s not literally perfectly round. If you get down to the size of the atom it’s, once again, jagged and not perfectly round. This whole fallen world is like the Flintstone’s in how nothing is perfectly round or straight. Everything is but an illusion of what we call it. Most things are more than close enough for our purposes, but nothing is ever as perfect as described. Even in Chemistry and Mechanical Engineering, we calibrate our work to within a range of tolerances. Technological and industrial advancement has led us to a point of extreme refinement, yet absolutes are still outside of our grasp. We are ever perfecting our crafts, in pursuit of perfection, yet we fall short. Even in math, infinity serves as a theoretical limit, yet there cannot be an infinite number of discrete objects. For example, the infinite divisibility problem says that we can continue to divide an object in half, take the remainder and divide that in half. In theory, you could do this forever; but in practice, you get to the point of an atom, which cannot be further divided. In this sense, it could be that the atom serves as a veil for this physical world. It prevents you from going into the theoretical\qualitative infinite, it prevents you from seeing God. In the Spirit world, there are only absolutes. God is pure goodness, so Heaven and Hell are the embodiments of those absolutes.
“Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption” (1 Corinthians 15:50). God said that the Earth is cursed because of the fall. This curse sounds a lot like the second law of thermodynamics: entropy. Entropy is the reason why the universe and all things therein will die, given enough time.
Romans 8
20 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
When we all die, this veil of space, time, matter (the veil of flesh) is removed and we are exposed to eternity, to absolutes, to God. It’s almost as though while we inhabit these bodies, our souls\spirits are confined to the limitations of our thinking faculties that operate in time, in accordance to the laws of nature. That our thoughts are restricted to the things of this world, to finite things. It’s because of man’s inherent limitations that after a certain point, faith is required to grab hold of the absolute. Paul calls this the infirmity of the flesh.
1 Corinthians 13
12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known
1 Corinthians 15
51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
Life on this planet is currently in a state of ignorance and blindness. “And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind” (John 9:39).
We are all ignorantly deriving benefits from God, even without acknowledging him. People think that they will have a second chance in Heaven, or the afterlife to acknowledge God. But the Bible says that it is appointed to man once to die, and then the judgement (Hebrews 9:27). The veil of decision making is now. It’s today.
2 Corinthians 6
2 For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
Besides, the point of the Earth is to make it possible for man to believe in him, of their own freewill. God desires faith from man, but not out of coercion. We live in a world filled with both light and darkness. There are enough delusions and lies in this present world to convince you to not believe in God. Yet, there are even more compelling reasons to believe that God exists. God desires man to come to him, of his own freewill. God did not create the Earth to make a pleasant habitat for his little creatures. No, God created man in his own image. God desires that all men seek him.
Acts 17
24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
25 Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;
26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:
28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.
If God were to force people to come to him in the end, then why does God allow any evil to happen in the first place? Why would God even allow the world to continue as it is, if that were the case? He might as well have created robots to do his will: never to do evil, never to sin, never to suffer. But we see that suffering is a part of this world, because of the freedom that man has. If God would not prevent you from doing evil unto others, then he will not force you to believe on him.
One may ask: why doesn’t God just annihilate people who refuse to believe on him? Why allow man to go to Hell forever? I think that the answer to this is because it may be impossible to destroy the soul of man. That man has an immaterial soul that cannot cease to be. If this were the case, then there remains only Heaven or Hell for man in the afterlife. That is why it’s not impossible for a good God to create Hell. In fact, Hell would exist by definition. If there are free creatures that leave God, and refuse to be redeemed by God’s mercy, there is nowhere else for them to go. There is nothing but the polar-opposite of God’s goodness left those that refuse to be saved.
One may object by saying: Why doesn’t God just create an Earth for those that do not want to be saved, so that they are not in Hell for all of eternity? The answer is that nobody wants to live forever, on the Earth. Some would like to live for a long time on the Earth (maybe several hundred years). But given enough time (think a few million years) you would grow unimaginably tired and worn out of living. Even if you were in good health and do not age, you would become bored and sick of everything that the world would have to offer. Depression, lack of fulfillment, and a numbness sets in. You grow weary of all the mundane things of life. Yet you continue to go on. You have tried everything there is to try. There is nothing new under the sun for you. There are no new stimuli that can satisfy you, yet you continue to go on. Now take that to a few trillion years. You long for completeness, for closure, but it eludes you. And again, to a few quadrillion years. How about a couple googolplex years? Take that to eternity. Exactly, that would be Hell. Hell is like the life that man currently lives without God, just placed in eternity. That is why life without God becomes Hell. Especially if you live long enough to exhaust all of the pleasures this world can offer.
Revelation 9
6 And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.
Without God, man would be left to his own devices. And he would devolve into Hell itself. His desires would never be fulfilled, because God is the ultimate desire built-into every man.
Psalm 9
17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.
This idea is supported in the Genesis account of Adam and Eve’s banishment from the garden:
Genesis 3
22 And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
23 Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
24 So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.
God drove man out of the garden, out of mercy, so that he would not eat of the tree of life; so that man would not live in his fallen state forever. Because that would be as undesirable as Hell, if not Hell itself. Instead, God drove man out and put a “flaming sword” and Cherubims to “keep the way of the tree of life.” This imagery is exactly like what is displayed in the last book of the Bible, Revelation. Christ is pictured as seated on a throne, with Cherubims flying around his throne; just as there are Cherubims about the tree of life. Furthermore, the Cherubims and the sword are placed at the east of the garden of Eden; just as the sun rises in the east. Which is why Christ says, “I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star” (Revelation 22:16). Christ is life, he is that tree of life. “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6).
Which is why Christ told his disciples:
John 6
53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
This metaphor is really talking about Christ as the tree of life. To inherit eternal life, man has to eat from the tree of life. To eat from the tree of life, is to believe the gospel. “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).
Not only is Christ the tree of life, but he is also the way to the tree of life. That is why Christ says “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture” (John 10:9-16). That is why there is a flaming sword that “keeps the way of the tree of life.” God is giving man a chance to enter into eternity, preserved in God’s own righteousness (Romans 3:22). The way to the tree of life is by grace, through faith. Jesus Christ is grace (Titus 2:11). God is bound by his word, that “flaming sword” is the word.
Hebrews 4
12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
John 12
44 Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.
45 And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me.
46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.
48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.
49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.
50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.
And so, that is the condition that we are all currently in. If, at the end of your life, you approach that tree of life, you will be met with that flaming sword. That sword is the word of God. If you come unworthily (without ever having believed in Christ) you will live forever in torment, in Hell. But if you come to that tree of life, having believed in Christ, you will live forever in Heaven.
God is bound by his word to judge in this manner.
Isaiah 55
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
At the end of time, everything will be brought back to God, who dwells in eternity. Who will render to everyman according to his works. Those who believed have inherited Christ as their works, therefore their works are perfect and they are rewarded perfection. But those that refuse to trust Christ will assume the burden of their sins.
Philippians 2
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Those that are saved, have eaten of the tree of life, at the accepted time. The saved have already bowed the knee and have inherited eternal life. Those that refuse, will bow the knee eventually, but the fiery sword of the word will slay them with everlasting destruction.
Revelation 14
10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever 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.
Note how this is done in the presence of the lamb and contrast that with what Paul writes in 2 Thessalonians.
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
The unsaved are punished with everlasting destruction away from the presence of the Lord, from the glory of his power. The glory and power of God is the gospel, as described in Romans 9:23 and Romans 1:16. While in Hell, the gospel cannot help you. This happens because God is no longer your Lord in Hell. He is still Lord, and you will bow the knee, but you did not do what God told you to do. God gave man 1 commandment: believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Those in Hell refused, and so God is no longer their Lord in that capacity. He leaves them to themselves. Yet they are described as being punished in the presence of the lamb.
Luke 19
27 But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.
Christ is the lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Offered to everyman, freely, yet they refused. The grief that people have in Hell is the knowledge that they could have been saved, yet they foolishly declined. And the degree of punishment can be measured by how closely they came to the knowledge of truth, yet refused to believe. Which is why Christ wept over those cities where he had done miracles. He said that it would be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah than it will be for them, because those cities did not have Christ so blatantly performing miracles before their eyes. Therefore, regret is at least part of the torment of Hell. They were in the presence of the lamb while on Earth. And once more in Hell. Yet he is of no use to them because the “acceptable time” has passed.
Hebrews 4
2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.
Isaiah 49
8 Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages
Hell is man going into eternity, without God. The gospel will not profit those in Hell because Earth is the only acceptable time. Therefore, Hell is the removal of God’s mercy and good presence.
The unsaved would not obey the gospel, they would not believe. God’s wrath is made known by his abandoning the unsaved. When God shows wrath, he does so by hiding his presence (Isaiah 54:8).
What about the fire and wrath? God is compelled (by his justice) to render unto man the just punishment for his sins. People like Adolf Hitler have inflicted torture and pain on innocent people. If God were to let them off unpunished, he would be unrighteous. God is the defender of the helpless and will deliver justice to those that have done such things. Still, God desires that all men be saved, and yet he is bound by his nature to respect man’s will. If man refuses to return to God by grace, then man is accepting absolute punishment. Punishment that is poured out on all the unredeemed “without mixture” (Revelation 14). This is partly because man is not an island unto himself. We have all taken part in the sins of this world. By you simply existing, you are causing harm to everything and everyone around you. We live in a world of scarcity and it’s akin to a zero-sum game. If we look at how every act has a rippling effect far into the future, all of our collective actions are extremely destructive. For example, by not raising Hitler properly, his parents are indirectly responsible for the atrocities that ensued later on in Adolf’s life. Even though, at the time, the ideologies that Hitler was exposed to may have seemed harmless, they eventually resulted in mass catastrophes. That is why the Bible says, “whatsoever is not of faith is sin” and “to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin” (Romans 14:23; James 4:17). In order for one to live a perfect life first requires omniscience, to know all of the possible outcomes of all actions, and then obedience to that knowledge. We are not God, so we are all guilty of sins. That is why salvation is based solely on faith. God is looking for those who “doeth truth” who recognize that they are not righteous. If you refuse, then God is compelled to render punishment. Because God is omnipresent. He is everywhere, and there is nowhere that you can sin and then hide away from the presence of God. That is why there is positive retribution based in God’s perfect, righteous indignation. And God has reserved wrath for all people that have sinned and yet refuse to believe the truth. God cannot look upon sin, and will render unto these people, the wages of their works. Hell is the wage of sin. It’s a place of unbridled, unmixed, indignation poured out on anything that is not redeemed by the gospel. Hell is the end result of being left desolate, being abandoned forever, being made an enemy of God himself.
Man will step into eternity one day, and will receive either blessing or cursing. There is no alternative.
Deuteronomy 30
19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:
Just like Noah’s Ark, a flood is coming to wash the whole world away. The only way of escape, is by entering the ark. It doesn’t matter who you are: if you are in the ark, you will be saved; If you are outside of the ark, you will be damned. There is no alternative. It is black and white. Life and Death. Blessing and Cursing. There are no in-betweens.
Jesus Christ is the ark. That is why he says, “Come thou and all thy house into the ark” (Genesis 7:1). He didn’t say go into the ark. He said come into the ark, Christ is the ark.
Matthew 11
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
How do you go to God?
Acts 16
30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
There really is no good reason to go to Hell. I suggest you do not go there. You may ask why couldn’t God have made man, or the world, in such a way that Hell did not exist? Or in such a way that we would not be in this predicament?
The ultimate answer is in this prayer.
Luke 22
41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,
42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.
44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
While the immediate context of his prayer is in regard to the crucifixion, this passage gives an account as to the nature of atonement. That, there is no other way for man to be saved. If God could annihilate man, he would have. If God could force a free creature to believe, he would have. But these things are logical impossibilities and\or they are not possible for some logistical reason. We do not need to know exactly why. It is just a fact. Like gravity. We do not know how or why gravity works, we just accept that it does. Likewise, God is telling us, there is no other way for man to exist and be saved.
Remember, we are not talking about a finite being who has to respond to circumstances, as they present themselves. God is fully aware of all possible outcomes, of all events that could ever transpire in the world, at all times. That’s why when Christ prays, his prayers are loaded statements. Because he already knows everything, he is just revealing these deeper truths.
When Christ prays in Gethsemane, his prayer reaches outside of time, before creation. God could have avoided this situation, if it were possible. Especially since it is his own will to avoid this. God would have made the cup pass, if it were possible. But, it is not possible. Therefore, regardless of the mechanism or the reason why, we are just left with the answer: It is not possible for God to have created man in any other way. Hell is the necessary cost of creation, and Christ bore that cost on the cross.
The severity and permanence of Hell is made clear in the infamous passage about the rich man and Lazarus:
Luke 16
19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
20 And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
21 And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father’s house:
28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
This passage shows how that the rich man was sent to Hell and could see Lazarus a far off. I doubt this to be a literal representation of Hell: that those in Hell could behold people in Heaven, and vice versa. But the point is that at the moment of death, the rich man lifted up his eyes in Hell. Hell is a place of fire and torment. And now the rich man is made to beg for a drop of water from Lazarus. And he will never get that drop of water. Abraham, who represents God, would like to help; but says that there is a great gulf fixed, such that no man can traverse across from either direction. The great gulf fixed is most likely symbolic of man’s decision, of his freewill. It is logically impossible for God to force a free creature to come to Heaven. The person has to make that decision prior to death. After death, their eternal state is set in permanence. God cannot do the illogical: he cannot force you to freely go to Heaven. Same with those that are saved. Once saved, you cannot perish. Otherwise, the word saved would lose all meaning. Saved means that you are preserved, you will not perish. Therefore, it is logically impossible for Lazarus to go to Hell, in order to deliver that drop of water. Hence, the great gulf fixed: “so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.”
Therefore, believe in Christ. Even if you do not like God, it’s smart to just accept the way of escape. There are a lot of things in life that are imposed upon us. Some people are born without arms and legs, some with mental disabilities, some people are white, some black, some are abandoned as children etc…
There are a lot of brute facts that are just imposed upon us. The existence of Hell is just one more thing that exists. Think of it like the moon, or the planets. It’s just something that is there. There is nothing that you can do to undo the fact that it exists. You cannot wish it away. You cannot ignore it. Or you could, but that doesn’t change the fact that it exists.
If you are sane, you will take the way of escape. God does not ask for you to be perfect, to live a certain way, to tithe, nor does he ask you to attend a church every Sunday, or to do good deeds. No.
All that God asks is for you to accept the free gift of eternal life.
You may object by saying that this is coercion, you have no choice but to believe in order to avoid Hell. Yes, this is the true. Not the coercion, but the fact that you have no choice if you believe these things to be true. You are impelled to accept Christ, given the facts at hand. But you aren’t really coerced, because you can choose to not believe in any of this. You could ignore all of this and go about your life in ignorance. But in the end, you will go to Hell! Your subjective beliefs will take a backseat to object fact, once you lift your eyes in Hell.
If you are sane, you will play it safe, you will bow the knee now, and accept eternal life and Heaven. Because you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by believing. Contrarywise, you have nothing to gain, and everything to lose by denying the gospel. You should just believe in the gospel, just in case it happens to be true.
God is holding out his hand, asking you to get your ticket punched. Just take it.
Proverbs 22
3 A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.
Once you enter Hell, you will regret it 100% immediately, and forever. It doesn’t matter who you are. It is an objective FACT that you are going to wish that you believed while on Earth. It is the ultimate fail of all time. There is no return. It is permanent. It is unchanging. It is the worst thing that could befall a man. As soon as you go to Hell, you are going to want to beg God to get you out. You are going to wish for the chance to beg at the feet of the Son of God, but it’s too late. You are going to weep over the fact that you didn’t just take a second to ask God for forgiveness. All of your pride will go out the window, the moment you go to Hell. Where it would have been offensive for you to grovel at a man’s feet on Earth, would be your only wish in Hell. You would wish that you could go back to the mercy seat (Jesus Christ) and grovel for your life. Sad thing is that God does not ask for begging, he just asks for you to be a reasonable person, and believe the truth.
In Hell, you will weep, and gnash your teeth for all eternity. All of the experiences you had that were pleasurable will have faded away in their glory, but remain to haunt you. You will also remember all of the chances that you had to believe and go to Heaven. You are dispossessed of all your accolades, of your family, of all your things. Nobody will remember you. You are kept isolated in “outer darkness.” You are left alone with yourself and the wrath of God.
And you have no excuse. It’s not a game. There are no parties in Hell. There is only weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth in Hell (Matthew 13:42). There is no light in Hell, no air in Hell, no water in Hell, no peace in Hell, no joy in Hell, no rest in Hell, no sleep in Hell, no breaks in Hell, nowhere to sit in Hell, no mercy in Hell, no pride in Hell, there is nothing except for righteous indignation and wrath in Hell. You will be utterly humbled. But it’s too late for this to make a difference, you are merely brought low because you are low. It’s just that in Hell, this becomes self-evident. Therefore, believe the gospel and escape Hell.
John 5
24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
John 14
11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.
You might then ask: Why would God create the world knowing that this would happen?That some would go to Hell? To that, I say I don’t know. There are times when I think of the terror of Hell and how bad it is for those that are there. I sometimes wish that no created thing ever existed, for the sake of those that would invariably choose Hell. At the same time, there is no excuse for anyone in Hell. Salvation is free, and yet they refused.
Ezekiel 33
11 Say unto them: “As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?”
That’s my question. Why do people choose Hell? Just believe in Christ and go to Heaven. It is evil and self-destructive to deny the truth, and choose Hell. But people are “stiff-necked” as the Bible repeatedly testifies.
Knowing the omniscience and goodness of God, I can only surmise that on balance, the cost of those in Hell is worth the benefit. That the reward of eternal life for those that receive it heavily outweighs the suffering that is self-inflicted for those in Hell.
Romans 8
18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
If Hell is unimaginably terrible, then Heaven is unimaginably good. If the agony in Hell is complete, then it follows that the joy in Heaven must also be just as, or even more complete. The problem a lot of people have with envisioning Heaven is that we are too comfortable here on Earth. We think Heaven would be like the Earth, just slightly better in some ways. The devil is at work in this world to try to make people forget God in this regard. He allows certain innovations and worldly pleasures to be accessible, to make the Earth more and more comfortable. Devil worshipers use the old adage “as above, so below.” And we see some of this with the technological advancements, and increases in longevity, and comforts. But this is flawed. Heaven is nothing like the Earth. Heaven is the apex of the fulfillment of all things. Heaven is unimaginably desirable. The most fulfilled life lived by the most rich, well-traveled, well educated person on Earth is Hell, contrasted against Heaven. That is how good Heaven is. It is the polar opposite to Earth and Hell.
So, who are they that reject God, to prevent God from blessing the rest of us with Heaven? Heaven is so good and so desirable, that you would thank God for creating the world. For having created and saved you. For giving you life, even if it means that some people are in Hell. Especially since God has done everything he could to redeem all people. Even entering creation, itself and speaking with man face-to-face. He even wrought miracles, and some still choose death. What more could God have done? Should he force man to believe? But if he were to do that, then we are back to having puppets instead of human beings.
And it’s not as though God created man solely for himself. God is wholly independent. He does not need us, like we need him. It’s not as though God creates man to damn man, and that somehow glorifies God. No, the Bible says that it’s God’s desire to fellowship with man, and to bestow us with exceeding riches of grace and kindness (Ephesisans 2:6-7). Even at his crucifixion, God had joy in the midst of the suffering, because of what he will do for us. “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).
Zephaniah 3
17 The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.
God created man, for man to enjoy God. Hell, is the necessary cost and byproduct of man’s foolishness.
What about people that have never heard? I answer this question in more depth, in another section. Because, this touches upon freewill, God’s foreknowledge, his sovereignty and how he judges man’s knowledge. The answer, in short, is that nobody is eternally wronged. Because Abraham never heard the name Christ. He didn’t even have a Bible. All he had was himself and God. Yet he believed. In Romans 2, it says that man is without excuse. If there is a person who would believe, God would make sure that they believe what they must to be saved.
How could you enjoy Heaven when you know that there are people in Hell? Heaven is not a place like Disney Land, where it is enjoyable because of some knick-knacks, bells, and whistles. No, Heaven is enjoyable because God is the personification of joy. Once in Heaven, it’s literally impossible to have anything but satisfaction, joy, and bliss forever.
Revelation 21
4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
Hebrews 8
12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.
Isaiah 43
25 I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.
Revelation 22
1 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
1 Thessalonians
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
2 Corinthians 2
9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
There will be no remembrance of the former things that could defile our conscience or hearts, in Heaven. That would include knowledge of those in Hell. They chose to go there, and their memory will die with them, in Hell.
This discussion of Hell has spilled into many areas of theology. There is a wide breadth of knowledge that has to be strewn together to make sense of the reality of Hell. Still, it is difficult to grasp how serious, epic, and imminent Hell really is. There is nothing that could ever have any significance to you, if you end up in Hell. Therefore, avoiding Hell has to be the main objective of your Earthly life. You can fulfill that objective in a single moment of time, by believing on Jesus Christ.
Mark 8
36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
37 Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
This is the meaning of life, the gospel. And so, I will close out by giving you the gospel one last time, in this chapter:
John 11
25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
27 She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.
