The Truth About Hell
Are Sinners Tortured in Hell Forever?

Some people are very sensitive to the thought of seeing other people suffer. Small birds, mammals, and even rats can draw our sympathy if we see them fall into a fire or being run over by a car.

In the Bible there is a concept that frightens a lot of people. Its about Hell and Hell fire. Some people have even rejected God because of this topic. It is reasoned by some: How can a God be so loving, yet burn people forever?

So, what does God really do with the wicked? Does He burn them in such a way so that they burn forever in unending suffering? Let's explore the Bible for answers.

The Bible is very clear that the wicked do Not suffer for ever and ever and ever. In the Bible we repeatedly see that the wicked are destroyed. They will perish, they will be burned up until they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, they will be no more, they will cease to exist, etc. look at the Biblical texts below:

16. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16

One of my favorite Bible texts about the love of God. Nowhere in that text do we have the idea that the alternatives are to live forever in Heaven or to live forever in Hell. No, the real alternatives are to perish or to have eternal, everlasting life.

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

The consequence for sin is death, not burning forever. God's gift is eternal life, which is very different from the penalty of sin.

As we look at more verses, we can see that the Bible is consistent with itself.

9. For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the LORD, They shall inherit the earth.
10. For 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.
11. But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

20. But the wicked shall perish; And the enemies of the LORD, Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away. Psalm 37: 9-11, 20.

38. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; The future of the wicked shall be cut off. Psalm 37: 9-11, 20, 38.

The wicked will be no more, they will cease to exist, they will perish, they will vanish away. In fact, verse 38 says they will all be destroyed together, in one place, at one time; But the meek, those who wait on the LORD, will inherit the earth and live forever.

2. As smoke is driven away, So drive them away; As wax melts before the fire, So let the wicked perish at the presence of God. Psalm 68:2.

Again, the wicked will perish like smoke in the presence of God. In the fire they will not burn forever, Instead, they will perish like wax in the fire. This fire is in the presence of God.

35. May sinners be consumed from the earth, And the wicked be no more. Bless the LORD, O my soul! Praise the LORD! Psalm 104:35.

The wicked will be consumed from the earth and be no more. There will be nothing left of the wicked.

1. For behold, the day is coming, Burning like an oven, And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up, Says the LORD of hosts, That will leave them neither root nor branch.
2. But to you who fear My name The Sun of Righteousness shall arise With healing in His wings; And you shall go out And grow fat like stall-fed calves.
3. You shall trample the wicked, For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet On the day that I do this, Says the LORD of hosts. Malachi 4:1-3.

Malachi makes it extremely clear. The wicked will be stubble. They will be ashes under the soles of the feet of the righteous. In addition we see again that it will happen all at once: Because the Lord says that the day is coming when the wicked will be burnt up, they will be stubble. And we find that this burning has an end because later on God promises that we will trample the wicked since they will be ashes under our feet. He will not keep them burning forever, but He will finish this work. God will burn them up.

14. Behold, they shall be as stubble, The fire shall burn them; They shall not deliver themselves From the power of the flame; It shall not be a coal to be warmed by, Nor a fire to sit before! Isaiah 47:14.

Isaiah also says the wicked will be stubble. In addition, he says that they will not be able to escape from the fire and the fire will do its job. When it is finished burning, their will not even be a coal or a fire to be warmed up with. The wicked will be entirely consumed by the fire! They will be burned up. So the ashes will be cold for there will not be a fire to sit next to, nor even a warm coal.

20. The LORD preserves all who love Hims, But all the wicked He will destroy. Psalm 145:20.

All the wicked will be destroyed. They will not survive.

9. You shall make them as a fiery oven in the time of Your anger; The LORD shall swallow them up in His wrath, And the fire shall devour them. Psalm 21:9.

The fire will devour them and they will be no more.

4. Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father As well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die.

20. The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself. Ezekiel 18:4, 20.

God owns all souls, so He has the right to do what He wants with His people. He has declared that the soul who sins, that person will die, and it will be as though they had never been.

15. For the day of the LORD upon all the nations is near; As you have done, it shall be done to you; Your reprisal shall return upon your own head.
16. For as you drank on my holy mountain, So shall all the nations drink continually; Yes, they shall drink, and swallow, And they shall be as though they had never been. Obadiah 1:15-16.

The distruction of the wicked will be so complete that it will be as though they had never existed before.

10. Therefore I endure all things for the elect's sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.
11. It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him:
12. If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: 2 Timothy 2:10-12.

I am not sure what all this means, but the righteous become the children of God by adoption and they actually become joint-heirs with Christ?! And to be glorified together with Jesus?! I do not think it is possible to imagine the degree in which God and Jesus will honor the righteous. It will be that they will be able to call God their father or daddy because they have become adopted into the family of God!

In this amazing description of the righteous' experience, the righteous will actually reign with Christ! Not only do they become joint heirs with Jesus and glorified together, but they are also allowed to reign with Him as well. In 1 Corinthians, we see that the righteous will even act as judges:

2. Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
3. Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life? 1 Corinthians 6:2-3.

The righteous judge not only the wicked but also the wicked angels.

In Revelation 20:4-6 below, we see that the righteous live and reign with Christ for a thousand years. They judge the wicked and they will be priests of God and of Christ. They are blessed and holy because they were raised in the first resurrection. This is the resurrection of the righteous when Jesus came. The wicked will not be resurrected until the 1000 years are finished. That is when the wicked will be judged and they will experience the second death from which they will never live again. They will cease to exist.

4. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
5. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
6. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. Revelation 20:4-6.

Yes, it is true that God knows who is righteous and who is wicked; He has already separated the righteous from the wicked. But remember, it says in Revelation 20:4 that "judgment was given unto them:" Remember, God is allowing the righteous to be joint-heirs with Christ! He is allowing them to be glorified together with Christ! So, God is giving this special privilege to the righteous, to judge the wicked.

Lets not forget that it is after the 1000 years that the wicked will be raised to life again. This is when they will be judged.

13. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
14. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. Revelation 20:13-15

So, just as soon as the 1000 years are finished and the righteous are finished with their judgement, then the wicked are raised to life, only to be destroyed by the fire according to their judgement. They will be judged according to the judgement of the righteous at that time.

So, there is a special judgment that occurs over the wicked. Since the wicked are judged according to their works at this time, it looks like the righteous themselves will determine the amount of suffering that is metered out when the wicked are placed in the lake of fire which is their second death.

The point is this: while you may presently wonder whether Hitler and Stalin will sufficiently pay for their crimes; At that time, you will personally be able to look into their judgement to check for yourself whether it is sufficient and just. You may personally take part in the judgement of them yourself. Obviously we don't know the specifics of how it will be done.

But this process does suggest that God will be opening Himself to us in such a way so that we will more fully understand the reasons why God has done what He has done. I think it possibly that this whole process will be a way to help us become healed. Lets face it, we are all sick and damaged individuals; But God will help us take a 1000 years to consider all these things so that when all the wicked are raised up again to receive their final punishment; The righteous will be able to say with a much fuller understanding and knowledge: "Just and true are your ways oh LORD"!

The fact that God actually takes 1000 years to allow the righteous to see and judge everything for themselves, shows the value that God places upon the righteous and their understanding of God and the whole process of judging the wicked.

How could the righteous ever be happy if they were to watch the wicked being destroyed while still having serious moral questions about their destruction? Could they truly say with honesty: "Just and true are your ways oh LORD"?

The righteous will not be forced to say things in heaven. Force is what happens in today's world where satanic powers try to force conscience against their will. No, But rather, the righteous will be able to talk about God from personal experience. This, I believe, will be the beginning of the fulfillment of the New Covenant that Jeremiah spoke about in Jeremiah 31:31-34 (See also Hebrews 8:7-13), where God will write His law in their hearts!

31. "Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah--
32. "not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD.
33. "But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
34. "No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more." Jeremiah 31:31-34

There will never be a better fulfillment of this prophecy than when the righteous will be in heaven (and later in the new earth).

When the righteous go to heaven, the Lord will have forgiven their sins and He will remember their sin no more. At that time no one will teach his neighbor and brother to "know the LORD"; Because, God's law will be fully in their minds and written in their hearts. They will be the children of God!

God will write His law on the righteous' hearts and minds because their God opens to them the reality of who He is and what He has done for them. They will know the LORD. Not one of the righteous will be left out.

The phrase "Their work does not die, and the fire is not quenched" is repeated several times. Also it is mentioned that the fire will never be quenched:

43. If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched--
44. "where 'Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.'
45. "And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame, rather than having two feet, to be cast into hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched--
46. "where 'Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.'
47. "And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire--
48. "where 'Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.'
49. "For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt.
50. "Salt is good, but if the salt loses its flavor, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another." Mark 9:43-50

The "hell" is translated from the Greek word "gehenna." This is identified as the valley of Hinnom which is just outside the walls of Jerusalem. Garbage was thrown into the fire and what was not destroyed by the fire was eaten by maggots (worms). So gehenna symbolizes hell which is a place of total destruction.

In this verse, Jesus is saying that the fires of hell cannot be quenched or put out by anyone. The phrase "Their worm does not die, And the fire is not quenched.'" obviously comes from Isaiah 66:24 which says:

23. And it shall come to pass That from one New Moon to another, And from one Sabbath to another, All flesh shall come to worship before Me," says the LORD.
24. "And they shall go forth and look Upon the corpses of the men Who have transgressed against Me. For their worm does not die, And their fire is not quenched. They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh." Isaiah 66:23-24

If they are looking at the dead bodies of the wicked, then the wicked are actually dead! They are looking at the dead corpses of men! This means that the worm that does not die, must not refer to the wicked themselves. They cannot both be dead and continually alive!

So it must be that the worm, which "does not die", actually refers to the worms that eat the bodies. The two activities that destroy the trash in gehenna, which are the fire and worms, do not stop until the trash and bodies are completely destroyed. Historically, since the trash is continually added to gehenna outside of Jerusalem, the process never ends. So the worms do not die and the fire is not quenched.

However when the wicked are fully destroyed at the end, they will be destroyed all together in one place, all at the same time:

38. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; The future of the wicked shall be cut off. Psalm 37: 38.

So the worm will not stop doing its eating and the fire will not stop consuming until everything is completely destroyed.

Here is another verse that refers to the wicked as being eaten by both moths and worms:

7. "Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, You people in whose heart is My law: Do not fear the reproach of men, Nor be afraid of their insults.
8. For the moth will eat them up like a garment, And the worm will eat them like wool; But My righteousness will be forever, And My salvation from generation to generation." Isaiah 51:7-8

I think this relates to what Isaiah said:

14. Behold, they shall be as stubble, The fire shall burn them; They shall not deliver themselves From the power of the flame; It shall not be a coal to be warmed by, Nor a fire to sit before! Isaiah 47:14.

The wicked will not be able to deliver themselves from the fire that destroys them. However, then Isaiah is quick to say that there will not be a coal to be warmed at nor a fire to sit before. So, the fire will not be quenched while the wicked are yet burning but it will go out only when there is nothing left to consume.

It is a fire that is not quenched. Here is an interesting parallel: I am also reminded that Jeremiah said Jerusalem will be burned with a fire that will not be quenched:

7. "But if you will not heed Me to hallow the Sabbath day, such as not carrying a burden when entering the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched."'" Jeremiah 17:27

So, the fire that burned the gates of Jerusalem were not quenched! Yet we know that the city was totally destroyed just as Jeremiah said it would:

19. Then they burned the house of God, broke down the wall of Jerusalem, burned all its palaces with fire, and destroyed all its precious possessions.
20. And those who escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon, where they became servants to him and his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia,
21. to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths. As long as she lay desolate she kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years. 2 Chronicles 36:19-21.

That fire did not stop, it was not quenched until all was fully burned with fire.

So when Jesus says that the fire will never be quenched He means just that. The fire will not be put out, so the wicked will be fully destroyed. It is only when there is nothing left to burn will the fire go out. Then the fire will go out naturally. But the fire will never be quenched before it does its job.

In Isaiah 47, we can see that the wicked will not be able to deliver themselves from the fire:

14. Behold, they shall be as stubble, The fire shall burn them; They shall not deliver themselves From the power of the flame; It shall not be a coal to be warmed by, Nor a fire to sit before! Isaiah 47:14.

Thus the fire will not be quenched before it's job is done and the wicked will not be able to remove themselves from this flame.

This issue reminds me of another text of Scripture that relates to what "forever" can mean:

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. Revelation 14:11

"The smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever", from Revelation 14:11 obviously comes from Isaiah 34:10. It is the description of the destruction and desolation of Edom. Most of the book Revelation actually is connected with the Old Testament.

10. It shall not be quenched night or day; Its smoke shall ascend forever. From generation to generation it shall lie waste; No one shall pass through it forever and ever. Isaiah 34:10

It is clear that Isaiah was not saying that the smoke would be ascending forever since he also says in the very next few verses that the land would then become a waste for generations. He says that it would be a place that only wild animals would inhabit. The animals would take over the land:

11. But the pelican and the porcupine shall possess it, Also the owl and the raven shall dwell in it. And He shall stretch out over it The line of confusion and the stones of emptiness.
12. They shall call its nobles to the kingdom, But none shall be there, and all its princes shall be nothing.
13. And thorns shall come up in its palaces, Nettles and brambles in its fortresses; It shall be a habitation of jackals, A courtyard for ostriches.
14. The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the jackals, And the wild goat shall bleat to its companion; Also the night creature shall rest there, And find for herself a place of rest.
15. There the arrow snake shall make her nest and lay eggs And hatch, and gather them under her shadow; There also shall the hawks be gathered, Every one with her mate. Isaiah 34:11-15

The description of the smoke, is only a temporary action. Once the smoke is gone, then the animals take over. So, this text really speaks of complete destruction, not that the smoke would be forever rising, but that it would become a wasteland. The fire would do its job and then nothing would be left. If the area would be forever burning and smokey, the wild animals would never inhabit the area. Animals run away from smoke and fire.

The destruction of Edom matches the destruction of the wicked at the end. They will also vanish away once the fire does its job of destroying the wicked.

11. But the wicked shall perish; And the enemies of the LORD, Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away. Psalm 37: 20.

The fire will not be quenched until everything is burned up.

This is an important question because there are some very prominent statements in Revelation that seem to suggest that they burn forever and ever:

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. Revelation 14:11

10. And 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 for ever and ever. Revelation 20:9-10

Do the wicked get tormented day and night for ever and ever? I have devoted a whole web page to this very problem. Click to see: Are we tormented day and night for ever and ever? (A new window will appear).

Another question is this: Often Satan is pictured as being in control of Hell where he tends the fires of the agonizing wicked. Thus Satan is pictured as tormenting the wicked. Is that truly what is going to happen? Is that happening now? Click to see: Is Satan in charge of Hell or is he and his angels destroyed in the fire? (A new window will appear)

From various verses in the Bible, we see that living people have souls.

2. And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. Genesis 2:7.

Man becomes a living soul when the dust of the ground and the breath of life comes together. When we die, the soul no longer exists because the dust returns to the earth and the spirit or breath returns to God.

7. Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it. Ecclesiastes 12:7.

And when that happens all thoughts stop. The dead do not know anything.

4. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. Psalms 146:4.

3. All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils;
4. My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit. Job 27:3-4

The righteous receive immortality as a gift from our Lord at His Second Coming. So when Jesus comes to take us home with him, those who are still alive will be changed, and those who have fallen asleep in death, Jesus will raise them up in new bodies. Their bodies will be immortal. So at that point, the righteous will have an immortal soul.

20. For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21. who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself. Philippians 3:20-21

51. Behold, I tell 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 trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will 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 has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."
55. "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?"
56. The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
57. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:51-57.

The Bible is very clear about this issue of the soul. The word "soul" is found around 1600 times and never once uses the expression "immortal soul" The word mortal means subject to death. The word immortal means not subject to death.

In the Bible we see that the soul who sins shall die:

4. Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die." Ezekiel 18:4

Its interesting the way it is said: "The soul who sins shall die". The word "soul" could be replaced by the word "person" The person who sins shall die. it means the same thing.

Jesus said that both the body and the soul could be destroyed in hell.

28. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matthew 10:28

God can destroy both soul and body. However man can only kill the body. That certain something, the soul, the actual person, can still be put together by God when only the body is destroyed.

Immortality is an attribute of Divinity. Only God is naturally immortal:

15. which He will manifest in His own time, He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords,
16. who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. 1 Timothy 6:15-16

Satan's first lie in the Garden of Eden was about death. He stated that the effect of disobedience was not death but life. He said, "you shall not surely die"

4. Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die." Genesis 3:4.

God's word says, "the wages of sin is death"

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

Death is the absence of life. Sin brings forth not eternal life in hell, but total, absolute, banishment from the presence of God by annihilation. The Bible is clear. Man is mortal ("Shall mortal man be more just than God?" Job 4:17) and we seek for immortality

7. eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; Romans 2:7.

If we are seeking immortality, then it is certain that we presently do not have immortality!

The righteous receive immortality as a gift from our Lord at His Second Coming.

51. Behold, I tell 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 trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will 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 has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."
55. "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?"
56. The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
57. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:51-57.

The wicked sinners receive their eternal reward as well. "Sin when it is finished, bringeth forth death" (James. 1:15). The choice then is between eternal life and eternal death.

16. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16

In the story of the rich man and Lazarus, it seems that the rich man is suffering in Hell. How would this story, that Jesus told Himself, agree with the idea that there is no hell?

All through the Bible, it talks about death as a sleep. Jesus Himself, when He heard of Lazarus's death, mentioned that he fell asleep.

11. These things He said, and after that He said to them, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up."
12. Then His disciples said, "Lord, if he sleeps he will get well."
13. However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep.
14. Then Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead". John 11:11-14. NIV

So it should be clear that Jesus knew that dead people are as if they were asleep. Also since the whole Bible, over and over, refers to the dead as sleeping (over 60 times); If we took the Rich Man and Lazarus story of Luke 16:19-31 literally, It would go against all the rest of the Bible. We would be making one part of the Bible go against all the other parts of scripture. It doesn't make sense that Jesus would say one day that the dead sleep, and in another time, He says they think and do things. Since the Rich man and lazarus story seems to go against all the rest of the Bible, it would seem that there is something wrong with our interpretation of the story.

There is another point that the story does not fit with the rest of the Bible (if we take a literal point of view of the story). At the second coming of Jesus, He will sound the trumpet, and all the dead will rise.

15. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
16. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
17. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord for ever.
18. Therefore encourage each other with these words. 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18

If the righteous dead are already alive and doing things, why does Jesus have to wake them up when He comes the second time? They would already be awake!

Lets look at the Rich Man and Lazarus story itself. The story that Jesus gave about the rich man and Lazarus is either a literally description or it is just a story or a parable.

Here are 4 reasons why it could not possibly be literalistic:

1. The beggar died and was taken by the angels to Abraham's bosom. No one believes that Abraham's literal bosom is the abode of the righteous dead. It is a figurative or parabolic expression. By the way, the angels will gather the saints, but according to Matthew 24:31, this will take place at the coming of Jesus, not at a person's death.
2. Heaven and hell were separated by a gulf, and yet the persons in each could converse with each other. There are probably few individuals in the world who believe that this will be literally true of the saved and the lost (Luke 16:26).
3. The rich man was in hell with a body. He had eyes, a tongue, etc. (Luke 16:24). How did his body get into hellfire instead of into the grave? I know of no one who teaches that the bodies of the wicked go into hell as soon as they die. This story could not be literal.
4. The request for Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and come through the flames to cool the rich man's tongue is obviously not literal. How much moisture would be left and how much relief would it give? The whole story is unrealistic and parabolic.

Jesus told this story to make a point. That even if people came back from the dead, it would not convince anyone! Sure enough, when the real Lazarus was raised from the dead, they still did not believe. The Jews only wanted to kill him to hide the evidence.

So, what is it like to be dead? and, why doesn't God raise his people up when they die. Some time ago, I answered a girl's question concerning her brother who died quite suddenly. She could not seem to be able to think of her brother as not doing anything at the present time.

I told her that when her brother died in the accident, everything went black. He lost consciousness. The very next second, as far as he knows, he will wake up to see the second coming of Jesus who is coming to get every one of us.

He will be very amazed to know how long he was asleep. It doesn't matter to him because he didn't experience any time. Its as if it never happened. When we experience the sleep of death, time doesn't matter.

Monty, a friend of mine, told me this story. He is a Native American.

He said that when he was small, their family use to go to their grandparents farm. They would have fun playing with the animals and experiencing all the sights and sounds of a farm. Late in the evening, they would start for home in their car, but the kids would get sleepy on the long drive and soon would be fast asleep in the back of the station wagon.

When they arrived home, their parents would pick up the sleeping children and put them to bed. The next morning the kids would wake up and be surprised that they were in their own bedroom. The last thing they remember is that they were in the car. How did they get in here?

When we die, it is just like what the kids experience when they get really tired. There is no sense of any time.

There is another issue. If we have a brother or sister, mother or father, and they were alive in heaven right now and was able to see you and your family and see how you are suffering right now, would they be happy. They would be able to see your condition, but not be able to help you like they did before.

It reminds me of people who are tortured by seeing their children or wives tortured. I think God knew what He was doing when He chose to do what He did. He loves us very much and is planning to take us to live with Him as family!

When we die, there is no concept of time. So the very next thing we see is when we wake up to see Jesus. In Isaiah, we find that this hiding in the grave is actually a blessing:

19. Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.
20. Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.
21. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain. Isaiah 26:19-21

Job also speaks of the same thing:

12. So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.
13. O that thou wouldest hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me! Job 14:12-13

In these texts, both Isaiah and Job point out that God's people will enter into the chambers of the grave until the indignation is past, until the misery, war, sickness, and sadness, until God's wrath is finished and done away with. It is clear that this is an act of kindness. God let's His people rest until all this trouble is past. It is then that God comes out of His place to punish the wicked, It is also then that the righteous will be raised up from the dead.

Now, what happens to the wicked dead. They sleep just like the righteous, except they will rise up in a different resurrection. The wicked dead will be raised up 1000 years later in the resurrection of the wicked.

What does the Bible say will happen when we die? Click to see: Death is a sleep

When Jesus comes He will gather all the righteous people together. Click to see: the righteous dead are brought back to life

Where do people go when Jesus comes. Do both the righteous and wicked actually live together? Click to see: The 1000 year Millennium

What will happen to the wicked who are dead? Click to see: Are the wicked tormented day and night for ever and ever?

Is Satan in control of Hell? Click to see: Is Satan in charge of Hell or is he and his angels destroyed in the fire?

So, was man created to live for ever? Yes, he was made to live forever. However, God made a stipulation that Adam and Eve must obey Him. God setup a test for them:

16. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;
17. "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die." Genesis 2:16-17

Adam and Eve were told that they would die if they ate of that tree but Satan tempted Eve not to believe God:

2. And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden;
3. "but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.'"
4. Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die.
5. "For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." Genesis 3:2-5

For the first time Eve, then Adam also, had to think about death. Before they fell, there was no death and Both Adam and Eve were made to live forever. But now, after sin has entered the world, there is death and destruction everywhere in the world.

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

It is because we have sinned that we must die because the wages of sin is death. If it wasn't for God's gift to us, of eternal life, we would all be doomed.

In 1 Corinthians 15:22 we see that we all die because of Adam's sin.

20. But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
21. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead.
22. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.
23. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ's at His coming.
24. Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. 1 Corinthians 15:20-24

In today's world no one has immortality because we all die.

But, some people try to say, because of verse 22, that all people will live forever because of Christ!

However, if we continue to read into verse 23 we find the truth of what Paul was saying. When we read Verse 23 we see that it actually tells us who it is that will be made alive (It tells us who will live forever). All will be made alive, first Jesus, who is the firstfruits, then those who are Christ's at His coming. It is only those who belong to Jesus, they alone will be raised to life and be made immortal.

So, all sons of Adam will die, but all those who are Christ's will be made alive at His coming!

In this sinful earth, all people are mortal. We will not live forever and we will all die unless Jesus comes in our lifetime.

17. Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker? Job 4:17

12. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Romans 6:12

11. For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. 2 Colossians 4:11

Man is mortal. That is why we all seek for immortality. We want to live forever:

7. eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; Romans 2:7.

The righteous receive immortality as a gift from our Lord at His Second Coming. A few verses down in 1 Corinthians we read that "this mortal must put on immortality!" Those who are raised to life when Jesus comes will be given immortality. They will put on immortality:

51. Behold, I tell 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 trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will 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 has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."
55. "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?"
56. The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
57. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:51-57

Jesus will raise up His people when He comes! When that happens, the dead will be raised incorruptible and changed. They will not have sinful bodies with disease and pain. Also, the righteous dead in Christ, will be raised and they receive immortality. God's people become immortal! In sin, they were not immortal but now that they are raised up to life, are changed in that they now have incorruptible and immortal bodies. They will live forever!

If the wicked are mortal and they do not receive immortality, how can they even suffer in eternity forever in hellfire? The wicked are never given the gift of eternal life so they will die in the fires of Hell.

Jesus even warns us to fear Him who is able to destroy both our soul and body in the fires of Hell:

28. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matthew 10:28

Nowhere does the Bible say that the wicked receive immortality so that they can suffer forever. The wicked are still mortal and they will die as the Bible so clearly states:

9. For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the LORD, They shall inherit the earth.
10. For 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.
11. But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

20. But the wicked shall perish; And the enemies of the LORD, Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away. Psalm 37: 9-11, 20.

19. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; The future of the wicked shall be cut off. Psalm 37: 9-11, 20, 38.

2. As smoke is driven away, So drive them away; As wax melts before the fire, So let the wicked perish at the presence of God. Psalm 68:2.

35. May sinners be consumed from the earth, And the wicked be no more. Bless the LORD, O my soul! Praise the LORD! Psalm 104:35.

1. For behold, the day is coming, Burning like an oven, And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up, Says the LORD of hosts, That will leave them neither root nor branch.
2. But to you who fear My name The Sun of Righteousness shall arise With healing in His wings; And you shall go out And grow fat like stall-fed calves.
3. You shall trample the wicked, For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet On the day that I do this, Says the LORD of hosts. Malachi 4:1-3.

14. Behold, they shall be as stubble, The fire shall burn them; They shall not deliver themselves From the power of the flame; It shall not be a coal to be warmed by, Nor a fire to sit before! Isaiah 47:14.

The wicked are NOT immortal, so they will burn up and die and there will be nothing left of them. They will be ashes under the soles of your feet, they shall be stubble, there will not be even a coal to warm anything up. There will only be stubble!

So, the opposite of eternal life is eternal death. The punishment is forever since it lasts forever. They will be dead forever. The choice then is really between eternal life and eternal death.

For additional information on the wicked dead Click to see: Are the wicked tormented day and night for ever and ever?

Let's look at the verse:

22. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 1 Corinthians 15:22.

It does seem like the verse says that Jesus shall raise all people! However, let's look at more of the surrounding verses:

20. But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
21. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead.
22. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.
23. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ's at His coming.
24. Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. 1 Corinthians 15:20-23.

If we look at verse 23, we see that it tells who the "all" are. All will be made alive, first Jesus, who is the firstfruits, then those who are Christ's at His coming. It is only those who belong to Jesus, they alone will be raised to life and be made immortal.

So, all sons of Adam will die, but all those who are Christ's at His coming will be made alive!

I have looked at some of these "after-life" stories. They are interesting stories but the idea, that people burn forever or that souls never die, comes from Pagan sources, not the Bible! It does not come from the Bible!

The Bible is very clear, God will destroy all the wicked!

20. The LORD preserves all who love Hims, But all the wicked He will destroy. Psalm 145:20.

The Bible says that fire will completely devour them so that there will be nothing left of them:

9. You shall make them as a fiery oven in the time of Your anger; The LORD shall swallow them up in His wrath, And the fire shall devour them. Psalm 21:9.

And it will be as if they had never existed!

15. For the day of the LORD upon all the nations is near; As you have done, it shall be done to you; Your reprisal shall return upon your own head.
16. For as you drank on my holy mountain, So shall all the nations drink continually; Yes, they shall drink, and swallow, And they shall be as though they had never been. Obadiah 1:15-16.

How can the wicked never die if it will be as if they had never existed?

You are being taught things that are not in the Bible! The Bible even teaches that souls die:

4. Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father As well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die.

20. The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself. Ezekiel 18:4, 20.

Even in the New Testament we find that the soul can be destroyed. In fact, these words are spoken by Jesus:

28. "And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matthew 10:28

We are not to fear man because all they can is kill our body. But we are to fear or respect God who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

God is not going to make the wicked suffer for ever and ever. He will destroy the wicked. He wants to get rid of sin and He also wants to save us from this permanent death.

We must respect God and repent because God loves us so much! Think of this: All of us are going to die. We are all getting older and older and sooner or later, we will die. Then what happens after that?

When Jesus comes again, as the Bible talks about, He will bring all of His righteous people back to life and they will live forever and ever with God! This is what the Bible teaches, we cannot even imagine all the things that God will do for us at that time!

Yes, the wicked will face destruction in fire from God, and that destruction does indeed have eternal consequences. They will never ever live again. they will cease to exist at all.

This is why it is said that the punishment is eternal because the effect of the fire is eternal. Once the wicked are fully destroyed they will eternally be lost. There is indeed eternal consequences but it is not an eternal burning; but instead, it will be an eternal state of non-existence. They will no-longer exist!

From then on, the righteous will be able to live in peace without the very horrible effect of sin.

I believe that anyone who would tell you that they have had a vision about heaven or hell, if it goes against what the Bible says; I believe that their experience could be from evil angels.

I believe that these people are being deceived. We must remember that Satan and his evil angels want to destroy us. They will do it anyway they can.

I will talk more about this deception in answering the next question.

Yes, I believe that anyone who would tell you that they have had a vision about heaven or hell, if it goes against what the Bible says; I believe that their experience could be from evil angels.

So, yes, I believe that these people are being deceived. We must remember that Satan and his evil angels want to destroy us. They will do it anyway they can.

It should be clear from the Bible that we sleep in the ground after we die. There is no consciousness at all. If you want to know what the Bible says about death then click on: What happens when we die?

It should also be clear from the Bible that there is no thinking soul that goes to heaven. Instead, we wait until Jesus comes again to take us up with Him. If you want to know what the Bible says about the second coming of Jesus then click on: The Second Coming of Jesus Christ!

29. Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.

34. For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
35. Until I make thy foes thy footstool. Acts 2:29,34-35.

Even David, Whom God says: "is a man after My own heart", is not in heaven. He is in the grave. So we have an indication here in Acts that David will be saved, for he was told to wait a little while till God makes our foes our footstool. So the dead will wait until this trouble and strife in this world is past. Only then will Jesus raise His people from the dead.

Many people believe that we live as spirits, ghosts, or angels after we die. It may seem to be a harmless error; However, this misunderstanding can lead to a very dangerous situation.

If people who die are actually in the grave not knowing anything as the Bible describes, then who is it that people see and talk to when they are faced with some dead relative coming back to warn them of some danger or supposedly to comfort? Or even the visit to Hell or Heaven as you mention. Who is it that showed them hell and Heaven?

I have a friend who has a lot of strange things happen in their home. He says he talks to his dead grandmother. She appears in the sky to him and talks to him. Also, sometimes, the telephone will ring and when one of the boys pick it up, its their dead uncle on the phone, and they recognize his voice!

Since dead people cannot visit people, some other impostor must be masquerading as some dead relative or friend. Who could it be?

I believe that Satan and his evil angels are doing these things, and they get access to these people because they think that people continue to think and do things when they die. They do not know that people simply go to sleep when they die, so they don't realize that they are really talking to demons.

In the future, Satan will use this ignorance of what the Bible says to attack people. If people don't realize that dead people can't think or do anything, then they are gullible. They are left wide open to any evil suggestion that the demons might want to tell them.

I believe this is an extremely important subject because ignorance of it, allows Satan to tell people lies about all sorts of things. And the people are not even alerted to the possibility that it may be an evil spirit that they are talking to. Satan only wants to destroy us and this ignorance puts unsuspecting people right in his hands!

Satan and his evil angels are the obvious answer. We already know that they want to deceive the whole world. To learn more of their purpose against us, click on: Activities of our Ancestors. This link takes a look at different phenomena occurring today which are demonic in nature. What better way to deceive than to have it come from a dead "friend", or even a UFO?

Another interesting link looks at how Satan has attacked God. The battle between God and Satan is outlined in the Bible. So click on: How is he trying to win his war against God ?

It is the work of Satan to deceive and destroy us. What better way then to give people false information about Heaven, maybe they will say that we don't need to worry about being "good" because everyone is going to heaven.

While it is true that salvation is a gift to anyone who believes, we must realize that the Bible is very clear what true belief does to our life habits and goals. Look at some of the following Bible text.

31. "Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.
32. "And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him." Acts 5:31-32 NKJV.

19. "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.
20. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
21. "To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. Revelation 3:19-21 NKJV.

Yes God can and does forgive our sins, but only to those who obey God! Jesus loves us so much that He rebukes and chastens us so that we might repent from our sins. It is to the one who overcomes these sins that God will save. For more information on how we are saved, click on: Are You Saved?

Remember, the Lord truly loves us to the extent that He wants us to live with Him. This is not wishful thinking. He even now is working on our behalf to save us from sin. He is now preparing to take us home with Him. So let's plan to be among the saved. This will be the biggest homecoming that we will ever experience. I am sure that the whole universe of created beings are also looking forward to this event. We must not miss our chance to witness and feel the happiness of those who love the Lord by living with Him!