COULD THE
Updated - 7/23/09
We
have other studies that examine more of what the Bible says about the lake of
fire. They are available for examination:
Please see the study on the
Biblical definition of life and death for more information
PLEASE SEE THE STUDY OF 10
PROOFS OF THE CONSCIOUS RESURRECTION OF THE UNSAVED
PLEASE SEE THE STUDY OF
THE BIBLICAL PROOFS OF THE ETERNAL SUFFERING OF THE UNSAVED
Please see the study
ON THE PHRASE “DAY AND NIGHT”
In
this study we will examine the question, “Could the lake of fire be a volcano
or some similar natural event?”
Below
are several reasons why the lake of fire cannot be a volcano or some other natural
event:
1. One cannot be tormented “day and night” in a
physical fire LIKE A VOLCANO.
Revelation
20:15 indicates that all the unsaved must be cast into the lake of fire. We
read there:
And whosoever was not found written in the
book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
The
ones not written in the book of life are all the unsaved. They are the ones
that must be cast into the lake of fire.
God
talks about the lake of fire in Revelation 20:10. We read there:
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.
In
Revelation 20:10, God indicates that those cast into the lake of fire shall be
“tormented day and night”.
The
family of Greek words from which this word “torment” comes is always
used to indicate conscious experience. These words are never used to refer to
unconscious things like bones or corpses.
According
to 1 Corinthians 2:13, God defines words by how He uses them in the Bible.
Therefore,
God is defining this family of Greek words from which this word “torment” comes
as indicating conscious experience. Later on in this study, we will look at the
verses that define this Greek word translated “torment”. This word means
to be afflicted.
Revelation
20:10 indicates that the unsaved cast into the lake of fire will be tormented
or consciously afflicted “day and night”.
Revelation
14:9-11 agrees that the unsaved are tormented “day and night”. We read
in those verses:
9 And the third angel
followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his
image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
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.
In
verse 10 God says that the unsaved will be “tormented” with fire. That agrees
with the description of the lake of fire found in Revelation 20:10.
Then
God continues the discussion in verse 11 indicating that the unsaved have no
rest “day nor night”. They have no rest or salvation from the torment
“day and night”. This indicates that the torment continues “day and night”.
Therefore,
both Revelation 14:9-11 and 20:10 teach that the unsaved are tormented or
consciously afflicted “day and night”.
One
cannot be tormented or consciously afflicted “day and night” in a physical lake
of fire.
Let’s
consider a physical, literal “lake of fire”. It could be a fiercely burning
lava pit.
If
the “lake of fire” is a literal, physical fire, then it must be fiercely
burning to be truly a “lake of fire”. God is talking about a “lake of fire”. He
is not talking about a bed of hot coals. God says “lake of fire”.
A
strongly burning lava pit could be a literal “lake of fire”.
What
will happen to someone cast into a strongly burning lava pit or a literal “lake
of fire”?
Someone
cast into a literal, strongly burning lava pit will go unconscious in a few
seconds or minutes. He cannot be tormented “day and night” in a literal lake of
fire. His body will be burned up quickly.
The
lake of fire cannot be a literal fire. Those cast into a literal lake of fire,
like a volcano, will go unconscious quickly. Therefore, we know that the lake
of fire is not a literal fire that simply burns up the unsaved.
This
includes the fire that will destroy this universe. This fire is described in 2
Peter 3:10. We read there:
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the
night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the
elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are
therein shall be burned up.
A
fire that will cause the elements of this universe to “melt with fervent
heat” is a very intense fire. Anyone cast into that kind of fire will go
unconscious in a few seconds or minutes. Someone cannot be tormented or
afflicted “day and night” in that kind of fire.
Therefore,
we know that the lake of fire cannot be the same fire that will destroy this
universe. Nor can it be a volcano or other natural event. Those cast into a
literal, physical “lake of fire” go unconscious in a few seconds or minutes.
They are not tormented “day and night”.
Some
people will ignore these kinds of arguments. However, for truth, we must read
the Bible very carefully. We cannot simply gloss-over verses of the
Bible and say “this signifies the total annihilation of everything”. God has
written the Bible in a very precise way.
If
we want truth, we must remember that God has very carefully and very precisely
written the Bible and we must read it carefully to understand what God is
teaching.
In
Hebrews 12:29, God helps us to understand what the lake of fire is. We read
there:
For our God is a consuming fire.
The
unsaved are under the wrath of God and God Himself is the consuming fire that
comes against them in His wrath. The Bible guides us that God Himself is the “fire”
that is tormenting the unsaved in the lake of fire.
This
agrees with other verses that talk about the fire of God’s wrath. Here are some
verses in which God identifies His wrath against the unsaved as “fire”.
God Himself is the “fire”:
Psalms
78:21 Therefore the LORD heard this,
and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up
against
Psalms
89:46 How long, LORD? wilt thou hide
thyself for ever? shall thy wrath burn like fire?
Isaiah
9:19 Through the wrath of the LORD of
hosts is the land darkened, and the people shall be as the fuel of the fire: no
man shall spare his brother.
Isaiah
30:27 Behold, the name of the LORD
cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is
heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:
Isaiah
30:30 And the LORD shall cause his glorious
voice to be heard, and shall shew the lighting down of his arm, with the
indignation of his anger, and with the flame of a devouring fire,
with scattering, and tempest, and hailstones.
Isaiah
42:25 Therefore he hath poured upon him
the fury of his anger, and the strength of battle: and it hath set him on fire
round about, yet he knew not; and it burned him, yet he laid it not to
heart.
Isaiah
66:15 For, behold, the LORD will come
with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with
fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.
Jeremiah
15:14 And I will make thee to
pass with thine enemies into a land which thou knowest not: for a fire
is kindled in mine anger, which shall burn upon you.
Jeremiah
17:4 And thou, even thyself, shalt
discontinue from thine heritage that I gave thee; and I will cause thee to
serve thine enemies in the land which thou knowest not: for ye have kindled a
fire in mine anger, which shall burn for ever.
Lamentations
2:3 He hath cut off in his fierce
anger all the horn of Israel: he hath drawn back his right hand from before the
enemy, and he burned against Jacob like a flaming fire, which devoureth
round about.
Lamentations
4:11 The LORD hath accomplished his
fury; he hath poured out his fierce anger, and hath kindled a fire in Zion, and
it hath devoured the foundations thereof.
Ezekiel
38:19 For in my jealousy and in
the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great
shaking in the
Nahum
1:6 Who can stand before his
indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his fury is
poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him.
In
these verses, God identifies Himself and His wrath as a “fire”. The “lake of
fire” is not a literal, physical fire. God is the “fire” in the “lake of fire”.
Let’s
return to the discussion of the lake of fire.
As
we saw, the lake of fire cannot be a volcano or some other natural fire pit.
Nor can the lake of fire be the destruction of the world at the end of time
described in 2 Peter 3:10. Anyone cast into those kinds of fires will go
unconscious in a few seconds or minutes. One cannot be tormented “day and
night” in these kinds of physical fires.
Some
may argue that the term “day and night” is just a figure of speech.
Someone
may argue that the term “day and night” is not literal, but only a figure of
speech.
However,
normally, those that hold to annihilation insist that the term “day and night”
must be understood very literally. However, when it is understood literally,
then we know that the lake of fire cannot be a physical fire of some kind. One
cannot be tormented “day and night” in a physical fire.
For
discussion, let’s assume that the term “day and night” is a figure of speech.
Then,
we ask the question: What does God mean by the term “day and night”?
We
must obtain the answer to that question by searching the Bible. Let’s consider
some verses with the phrase “day and night”:
Deuteronomy
28:66-67:
66 And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee;
and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life:
67 In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it
were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear
of thine heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which
thou shalt see.
In
Deuteronomy 28:66-67, God is describing an on-going affliction, in which the
one suffering desires evening to pass to morning and, then morning to pass to
evening.
Joshua
1:8 This book of the law shall not
depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that
thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then
thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
1
Kings 8:29 That thine eyes may be open
toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou
hast said, My name shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer
which thy servant shall make toward this place.
1
Kings 8:59 And let these my words,
wherewith I have made supplication before the LORD, be nigh unto the LORD our
God day and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of
his people Israel at all times, as the matter shall require:
2
Chronicles 6:20 That thine eyes may be
open upon this house day and night, upon the place whereof thou hast said that
thou wouldest put thy name there; to hearken unto the prayer which thy servant
prayeth toward this place.
Nehemiah
1:6 Let thine ear now be attentive, and
thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray
before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and
confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee:
both I and my father’s house have sinned.
Nehemiah
4:9 Nevertheless we made our prayer unto
our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them.
Psalms
1:2 But his delight is in the law
of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
The
believer thinks about the law of God “day and night”. That is, he thinks
about it continually.
Psalms
32:4 For day and night thy hand was
heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.
Psalms
42:3 My tears have been my meat day and
night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?
The
afflictions and chastisements were upon the Psalmist “day and night”.
They were on him continually.
Isaiah
28:19 From the time that it goeth forth
it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by
night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.
In
Isaiah 28:19, God is describing an on-going affliction that passes morning by
morning. God links this to the phrase “day and night”.
Isaiah
60:11 Therefore thy gates shall be open
continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring
unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be
brought.
Here,
God links “day and night” with “continually”.
Isaiah
62:6 I have set watchmen upon thy walls,
O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that
make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,
Here,
God is tying “day and night” to never. In other words, “day and night”
represents something that is “continuous” so that there is never a pause.
Jeremiah
9:1 Oh that my head were waters, and
mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of
the daughter of my people!
Jeremiah
14:17 Therefore thou shalt say this word
unto them; Let mine eyes run down with tears night and day, and let them not
cease: for the virgin daughter of my people is broken with a great breach, with
a very grievous blow.
Jeremiah
16:13 Therefore will I cast you out of
this land into a land that ye know not, neither ye nor your fathers; and
there shall ye serve other gods day and night; where I will not shew you
favour.
Mark
5:5 And always, night and day, he was in
the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones.
Here,
God links “day and night” to “always”, which means continuously.
Luke
2:37 And she was a widow of about
fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God
with fastings and prayers night and day.
She
did not depart from the temple. This means that she served God continuously,
which is linked to “day and night”.
Luke
18:7 And shall not God avenge his own
elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
Acts
26:7 Unto which promise our
twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to come. For
which hope’s sake, king Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews.
In
Acts 26:7, the phrase “day and night” is linked to the word “instantly”.
This word “instantly” is related to the Greek word translated “without
ceasing” in Acts 12:5. Again, the phrase “day and night” is linked
to a continuous action.
1
Thessalonians 3:10 Night and day praying
exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is
lacking in your faith?
We
are to pray “without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). That means to pray
continuously, or “day and night” as used in this verse and other verses.
1
Timothy 5:5 Now she that is a widow
indeed, and desolate, trusteth in God, and continueth in supplications and
prayers night and day.
2
Timothy 1:3 I thank God, whom I serve
from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have
remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day;
Here,
God links the phrase “without ceasing” to “night and day”. Again,
God is linking the phrase “day and night” to something that is going on
continuously.
Revelation
4:8 And the four beasts had each of them
six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they
rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was,
and is, and is to come.
In
Revelation 4:8, God ties “they rest not” to “day and night”.
Again, God is linking the phrase “day and night” to a continuous action.
Of
course, there is no literal “day and night” in heaven, but there is the
continuous action of praising God. An action from which “they rest not”.
It goes on continuously.
Revelation
7:15 Therefore are they before the
throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth
on the throne shall dwell among them.
Revelation
12:10 And I heard a loud voice saying in
heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and
the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which
accused them before our God day and night.
If
we examine each of the above verses, we find that God is using the phrase “day
and night” in the sense of something that is going on continuously. In
several of the verses, God includes other language that further links the
phrase “day and night” to an on-going action.
Therefore,
if we want to say that the phrase “day and night” is a figure of speech, then
we have to obtain what it represents from the Bible. We have seen many verses
where God uses the phrase “day and night” to speak of an on-going, continuous
event.
If
we hold that the phrase “day and night” is a figure of speech, then we must
find the definition from the Bible. The definition provided by the Bible is
that this phrase means a “continuous” action.
The
language of Revelation 14:10 and 20:10 in which the unsaved are tormented or
afflicted “day and night” would mean that they are “continuously” afflicted.
This would also mean that the lake of fire cannot be a physical fire like that
of 2 Peter 3:10. Someone cast into a physical fire goes unconscious in a few
seconds or minutes. He is not tormented continuously.
Therefore,
either way that someone wants to understand the phase “day and night”, either
literally or as a figure of speech, yields the same conclusion that the lake of
fire cannot be a physical fire like a volcano nor the fire of 2 Peter 3:10.
Those cast into a physical fire are not tormented “day and night”.
2. All of the unsaved that have ever lived must be
cast into the
We
read in Revelation 20:15:
And whosoever was not found written in the
book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
In
this verse, God says that “whosoever was not found
written in the book of life” must be cast into the lake of fire.
That includes all of the unsaved throughout time. For example, the Biblical
information is that Cain, who killed his brother Abel, never became saved. Cain
is included among those that were “not found
written in the book of life”.
Therefore,
Cain also must be cast into the lake of fire.
But,
the Bible declares in Revelation 14:9-11 & 20:10 that those cast into the
lake of fire are tormented, a conscious affliction.
Therefore,
Cain must awake to consciousness, as indicated in Daniel 12:2 and other verses,
to fulfill the Biblical description of the lake of fire.
The
Bible shows that the word “awake” in Daniel 12:2 always indicates
consciousness. There are three studies that show many of the proofs of the
conscious awaking of the unsaved at Judgment Day:
PLEASE SEE THE STUDY OF 10
PROOFS OF THE CONSCIOUS RESURRECTION OF THE UNSAVED
Please see the study oF
MORE PROOFS OF THE CONSCIOUS RESURRECTION OF THE UNSAVED
PLEASE SEE THE STUDY OF
THE BIBLICAL PROOFS OF THE ETERNAL SUFFERING OF THE UNSAVED
Some
people say that “The dust of Cain will be burned up on the last day. That is
the lake of fire”.
In
Revelation 14:9-11 & 20:10, the Bible defines the lake of fire as being
tormented or afflicted day and night. The Bible always uses this word “torment”
to mean conscious affliction. Therefore, the burning of bones or dust does not
fulfill the Biblical definition of the lake of fire. Cain, and all of the
unsaved, must awake to consciousness to fulfill the Biblical definition of the
lake of fire.
Some
people say that “There is not one verse in the Bible that teaches that the
unsaved who have previously died will ever have conscious existence again.”
Sadly,
that statement is not true. We have prepared many studies that show that the
unsaved will awake to consciousness at Judgment Day.
Another
statement that is made is “Cain is dead. When you’re dead, you’re dead”.
Actually,
Adam died, body and soul, the day he sinned (Genesis 2:17, Romans 8:10, 1
Corinthians 15:29). He did not cease to exist, nor did his body sleep in the
dust. Rather, he became separated from God, who is life (John 14:6). We have prepared
two studies that explore the Biblical definition of life and death for mankind.
Please see the study on the
Biblical definition of life and death for more information
Please see the study on A
BODY “SLEEPING IN THE DUST” VERSUS “DEATH”
When
we examine the Bible carefully, we find that there are no verses that refute
the teaching of Revelation 20:15. We read there:
And whosoever was not found written in the
book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
The
“whosoever was not found written in the book of
life” includes Cain and all of the unsaved throughout time.
God
defines the lake of fire in Revelation 14:9-10 and 20:10 as being “tormented with fire … and they have no rest day nor night”
or “tormented day and night”.
The
family of words from which this Greek word translated “torment” comes
always signifies conscious affliction. It never refers to the burning of bones
or dust. God has established the rule in 1 Corinthians 2:13 that He defines
words by how He uses them in the Bible.
The
Bible declares that Cain, along with all of the unsaved, must be consciously
afflicted, day and night. Therefore, Cain also must awake to consciousness at
Judgment Day to experience this.
Cain,
along with all of the unsaved, must be consciously afflicted in the lake of
fire. Cain will not be cast into a volcano somewhere. God is the consuming fire
that will afflict Cain when God awakes him to consciousness at Judgment
Day.
3. God never uses literal fire to define this family
of words translated “torment”.
If
the lake of fire were a literal fire into which the unsaved are cast to be
“tormented”, then a literal fire should be used to define this family of words
translated “torment”.
In
1 Corinthians 2:13, God teaches that He defines words by how He uses them in
the Bible. The Bible says that the unsaved will be tormented in the lake of
fire. If the lake of fire were a literal, physical fire, like a volcano or the
fire of 2 Peter 3:10, then God would have used the burning by a literal fire as
part of the definition of this family of words translated “torment”.
It
would have been easy for God to recount a historical event in which someone was
burned by a fire and talk about that event using this Greek word translated
“torment”. However, God never uses a literal, physical fire in connection with
this Greek word.
When
we look at how God uses this word “torment”, it is never used in connection
with a physical fire. Below are the verses by which God defines this family of
words translated “torment”:
Matthew 4:24
And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all
sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments <931>, and those which
were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had
the palsy; and he healed them.
Matthew 8:6
And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously
tormented <928>.
In these verses, God is talking about the
afflictions of being sick. Those that are sick are consciously afflicted, but
it is not the affliction of being burned by a literal fire.
Mark 6:48
And he saw them toiling <928> in rowing; for the
wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh
unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.
Here, some men are in a boat on the sea in
the midst of a storm. Therefore, they are toiling in rowing. That is a
conscious affliction, which includes mental anxiety. However, that is not the
affliction of being burned by a literal fire.
2 Peter 2:8
(For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing,
vexed <928> his righteous soul from day to day with their
unlawful deeds;)
This verse is describing Lot when he was
living in
Revelation 9:5 And to them it was given that they should not
kill them, but that they should be tormented <928> five months: and
their torment <929> was as the torment <929> of a scorpion, when
he striketh a man.
In Revelation 9:5, God is using this word
“torment” in reference to being bitten by a scorpion. The scorpion represents
satan or his followers, the unsaved. Nevertheless, the bite of a scorpion or
the bite of satan, has nothing to do with being burned by a literal fire.
Revelation 11:10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall
rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because
these two prophets tormented <928> them that dwelt on
the earth.
In Revelation 11:10, God is talking about the
true believers who brought the Gospel during the church age. They are
represented by two witnesses. It says that these two witnesses tormented or
afflicted the people on the earth. That is because, the True Gospel is an affliction
to unsaved man. He does not like to hear that he is a sinner and under the
wrath of God. This is a mental affliction for him.
Revelation 12:2 And she being with child cried, travailing in
birth, and pained <928> to be delivered.
In
Revelation 12:2, God is using the pain a woman endures during the birth of a
child to typify the afflictions of being tormented. That is a great affliction,
however, it has no relationship to the afflictions of being burned by fire.
When
we examine how God uses this Greek word translated “torment”, we find that God
never uses this word to describe the afflictions of a literal fire. By this,
God is indicating that the lake of fire is not a literal, physical fire, like a
volcano. Rather, God Himself is the “fire” that will afflict the unsaved at
Judgment Day.
When
confronted by a verse that does not agree with their teaching, there are those
that will say “This is just a figure of speech that means that the whole
universe will be annihilated”.
However,
we cannot ignore verses, nor can we push them aside by saying “That is only a
figure of speech”.
God
has carefully written the Bible. God put every word and every letter in it’s
proper place. We cannot ignore any verse or phrase, nor can we change anything
that God has written. We must read it like God has given it.
4.
NEITHER THE SMOKE OF A VOLCANO NOR THE SMOKE OF THE BURNING DESCRIBED IN 2
PETER 3:10 WILL ASCEND FOREVERMORE.
We
read two important verses about the smoke of the unsaved:
Revelation
14:11 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
19:3 And again they said, Alleluia. And
her smoke rose up for ever and ever.
One
argument made against these and other verses is that the phrase “for ever and
ever” should be translated “to ever and ever”, meaning that it comes to
an end at the end of the world. The argument is that the preposition translated
“for” is sometimes translated “to”.
However,
this reasoning is not valid. This preposition is used more than 1,500 times in
the Bible in many different ways. For example, it is used to talk about someone
who went to meet another person (Matthew 8:34). However, this
preposition is never translated “to” when used with the Greek word translated
“ever” in phrases that reference eternity future.
Moreover,
the exact Greek phrase translated “for ever and ever” in Revelation 19:3
and 20:10 is made up of 5 Greek words and is used only 18 other times in the
Bible. All of these 18 references use the same 5 word, Greek phrase translated
“for ever and ever” to speak of the duration of glory, praise and honor to God
or the duration of the eternal Kingdom of God or the duration of God Himself.
Two example verses with this same Greek phrase are shown below:
1
Peter 4:11 If any man speak, let him
speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as
of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified
through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever.
Amen.
Revelation
4:9 And when those beasts give glory and
honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and
ever,
We
must ask two questions:
Does
God receive praise and dominion forevermore or just to ever and ever?
Does
God live forevermore or just to ever and ever?
The
answers to these two questions are obvious. God receives praise and dominion
and lives forevermore. That will never come to an end.
In
these two verses the phrase “for ever and ever” is the exact same 5 word Greek
phrase, with exact same spelling, that we find in Revelation 19:3 and 20:10. We
must remember that God defines words and phrases by how He uses them in the
Bible. God is saying that just as He goes on forevermore, in the same way, the
smoke of the unsaved ascends forevermore.
There
is no possibility that this phrase “for ever and ever” cannot be forevermore
because there is no possibility that God does not go on forevermore. We have
prepared a detailed study examining this Greek phrase.
PLEASE SEE THE STUDY: IS
“FOR EVER AND EVER” REALLY FOREVERMORE
The
Bible shows us that the smoke of the unsaved does ascend up forevermore, just
like God lives forevermore (Revelation 4:9).
Notice
that Revelation 19:3 says that “her smoke”; that is, the smoke of the unsaved
church people, ascends up for ever and ever. It is not just any smoke. It is
the smoke of the unsaved.
Another
argument made is; “The smoke ascending up for ever and ever is just a figure of
speech”.
The
implication is that we can ignore it.
However,
the Biblical rule is that we must compare Scripture with Scripture.
God
is pointing back to verses like Jeremiah 5:14:
Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye
speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this
people wood, and it shall devour them.
The
words of God’s mouth are not literally a “fire”, nor is God Himself
literally a “fire” (Hebrews 12:29). Likewise, the unsaved are not
literally “wood”.
However,
God is using an analogy from this world to teach important Gospel truths. God
directs us to look at what happens when a log is cast into a fire. It burns up
and once the log is gone, finally, the smoke dissipates and stops ascending.
However,
the Bible teaches that in the case of the unsaved in the lake of fire, that
smoke will not stop ascending. That is teaching that the wood, the unsaved, are
never gone. They are continually in that fire. If the unsaved (the wood) were
ever annihilated, their smoke would dissipate and cool off and would stop
ascending.
God
is pointing us to an analogy from this world to teach a Gospel truth.
Sadly,
there are many more arguments for the eternal suffering of the unsaved. They
are covered in a separate study.
PLEASE SEE THE STUDY OF
THE BIBLICAL PROOFS OF THE ETERNAL SUFFERING OF THE UNSAVED
However,
that is the not the subject of this study.
Another
argument made is that Revelation 14:11 & 19:3 don’t actually say that the
unsaved will suffer forevermore.
The
answer is that we cannot “play dumb” when studying the Bible. For example, the
Bible does not actual say “During the Great Tribulation the believers must
leave their church”. There is no direct statement in the Bible that says “Leave
your church.” But, God still expects us to leave.
Regarding
the command to depart from the church, God says things like we read in Matthew
24:15-16:
15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination
of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso
readeth, let him understand:)
16 Then let them which be in
Matthew
24:15-16 is a command to leave the churches when we get to the Great
Tribulation. However, it is not written with simple language. But, God expects
us to study the Bible and obey it. God will not allow us to “play dumb” and say
“The Bible does not say in direct language that we have to leave the church”.
In
like manner, we cannot play dumb and avoid phrases like “her smoke rose up
for ever and ever”.
The
Bible is clear that the smoke of the unsaved will ascend forevermore. However,
any smoke from a volcano or the burning of this universe described in 2 Peter
3:10 will not ascend forevermore. This is another way that we can know that the
lake of fire is not a volcano or similar natural event, nor is the lake of fire
the same fire that is described in 2 Peter 3:10.
We
have seen several proofs that the lake of fire cannot be a physical fire like a
volcano nor can it be the fire of 2 Peter 3:10 that will melt the elements with
fervent heat. We must examine carefully every verse in the Bible for truth on
this or any other subject. We also cannot gloss-over or ignore verses.