How do we know which verses refer to hell, and which ones don't? A good place to start is at Rev. 20:11-14:
"And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it...And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire."
This is the definitive verse pertaining to final judgment. It's the very end of the world, Christ is on His throne, and the wicked are cast into the lake of fire. It parallels Matt. 25:31-46, where we also see Christ on the throne casting the wicked into the lake of fire. Before doing so He issues the decree "Depart from me!" These verses give us the the images that constitute the Final judgment: Christ on the throne, the decree to depart, and the lake of fire. Does this mean every reference to judgment missing these images is not referring to Final judgment? In and of itself, no. But we will find substantial evidence that this does seem to be the case. Let's take a look at the Bible references to hell with regard to the images each one contains. We will will selest from the following imagas and/or words: Christ on the throne, Decree of banishment, Lake of fire, Hell, Furnace of fire, Outer darkness, Weeping, Torment, Slaying, being beaten, and Imprisonment. References to incineration fall into the Lake of fire category. At the end we will notice some interesting facts.
Matt. 3:12 Lake of fire
Matt. 5:29 Hell
Matt. 7:22 Decree of banishment
Matt. 8:11-12 Outer darkness, Weeping
Matt. 10:28 Hell
Matt. 13:30 Lake of fire
Matt. 13:38-42 Furnace of fire, Weeping
Matt. 18:8 Hell
Matt. 18-34 Weeping/Torment
Matt. 22:13 Outer darkness, Weeping/Torment
Matt.24:50-51 Weeping
Matt. 25:30 Outer darkness, Weeping/Torment
Matt. 25:31-46 Throne, Decree of banishment, Lake of fire
Luke 12:47-48 Being beaten
Luke 12:59 Imprisonment
Luke 13:25-28 Decree of banishment/Weeping
Luke 19: 27 Slaying
Mark 9:43 Hell
2 Peter 3:10 Lake of fire
Rev. 14:10 Torment
Rev. 20:14 Lake of fire
Rev. 22:15 None of images are in this verse
It should be noted that Luke 13:25 contains a decree of banishment and weeping. Verse 27 records the decree; verse 28 records the weeping. Notice, however, that the verse does not say "then there shall be weeping." It just says there's weeping. The weeping of verse 28 probably preceded the decree of verse 27, just as in Matthew 25, where the dialogue with Christ occurs before the decree to depart.
The final tally is as follows: 12 passages that make reference to hell, the lake of fire, incineration, Christ on the throne, or a decree of banishment. None of those passages contain responses of conscious torment. Eight passages record torment (nine if you count imprisonment as torment). None of them mention any of the images noted, except Luke 13, which we've covered. In other words, certain images never intersect with certain other images. Images that indicate hell as recorded in Rev 20:12-14 never intersect with images that suggest a conscious response. Despite a total of 22 references to hell and weeping and/or torment, the two never intersect.
This is even more striking when you consider the fact that every time Matthew mentions outer darkness or the furnace of fire, he follows it up with the phrase "weeping and gnashing of the teeth" (Matt. 8:12, 13:42, 22:13, 25:30). This is the standard epilogue to verses containing these images. And yet when he mentions hell or the lake of fire (Matthew 5:29, 10:28, 18:8, 25:31-46), he does not add the standard epilogue. And this despite the fact that the passages themselves cry out for the epilogue to be added. Just look and judge for yourself.
Passages mentioning Outer darkness and Furnace of fire
Matt. 8:12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matt. 22:13 Therefore said the king to his servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matt. 25:30 And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matt. 13:42 And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Passages mentioning Hell and the Lake of fire
Matt. 5:30 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.
Matt. 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both body and soul in hell.
Matt. 25:41 Then shall he say unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.
Matt. 18:19 Wherefore if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.
Notice how the second set of verses end with hell and fire, just begging for the same epilogue as the first set. And yet no epilogue is given. Mark does give an epilogue after a verse that's similiar to Matt. 18:9, but it's a very different epilogue. Mark 9:43 reads:
"And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter life maimed, then having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched."
A series of like verses follow, one about the foot, one about the eye. Each verse is followed by the phrase "Where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." There is no mention of weeping and gnashing of teeth. Notice what replaces it: "Where the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched." It is not man that dies not in the lake of fire; it's the fire (God's wrath) and the worm. The attention shifts from man, who no longer exists, to the fire, which is all that's left. It's a picture not of torment, but of silent, unending desolation.
The Interim Period
It would seem, if we are reading this correctly, that there is a judgment which results in torment for a finite duration, and then a final judgment which results in extinction. This leaves an interim period between the beginning of God's judgment and its end. Only by identifying a clear biblical basis for the reality of this interim period can a serious case for extinction be made. That's due to the fact that the Bible clearly teaches that there will come a time of judgment for the wicked. It will clearly result in torment. There's no getting around this. If we're going to make a case for the extinction of the wicked, we must explain the passages that have them enduring torment upon the Lord's return. We must explain where they are--and for how long--in a verse like Luke 13:28:
"There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out."
Most scholars who argue for extinction assert that the interim period is the time the wicked actually spends in the lake of fire prior to being snuffed out. There is, however, a problem with this position. The centerpiece of any argument for extinction is that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). If, however, the wicked must suffer a period of torment after death, then what we're really saying is that the wages of sin is death plus. In other words, death alone isn't severe enough. Which is precisely what the traditionalist contends. This position gives too much ground, and it is not the one being taken here.
It is the contention here that the interim period consists of a time of earthly torment called the tribulation. It's this period that's in view in the gospel verses that warn of the wicked suffering torment in the form of being cast into a furnace of fire, or outer darkness, or having the door shut on them. These images correspond to images of the Day of the Lord, which is a period of earthly torment, and to images of earthly torment presented in Revelations 9. The exact same language is used.
The Rapture
The usual case for extinction does not rely on the certainty of a rapture or a tribulation. This one does. There must be a time of earthly torment of the wicked (the tribulation) from which the just are exempt (the rapture). The time of torment, in effect, consists of a separation of the wicked from the just; extinction is the separation of the wicked from God. The gospel passages indicate that the torment of the wicked will concur in time with the taking of the just into heaven. Therefore, we will attempt to establish from the Bible that the sequence of end-time events will proceed as follows: 1) The rapture, 2) The tribulation, and 3) A final judgment resulting in the extinction of the wicked. We will use as proof texts Rev. 3:10, 7:3, 9:2-18, 14:9-11, 1 Thessalonians 5:3, Mark 13:19-20, and other assorted verses from the Old Testament prophets that refer to the Day of the Lord. These verses, when taken together, seem to point to a separation of the just and the wicked (the rapture), which occurs just before a period of earthly torment (the tribulation).
Mark 13:19: "For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation...And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect's sake...he hath shortened the days."
The verses that lead up to these verses give every indication that what's in view is earthly torment. It does not, however, indicate a rapture.
Revelation 4:10: "Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth."
This verse suggests a time of enormous trial upon the earth--one from which the just will be exempt. Taken alone, however, it is poor evidence of a rapture; the temptation could refer to something spiritual, such as false gospels or apostasy.
1 Thessalonians 5:2-3: "For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction shall come upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape."
The Old Testament prophets, particularly Zephaniah, discuss the day of the Lord. It is a time of earthly tribulation. The reference to labor pains is found in Isaiah 13:8. This verse, like the previous two, gives only a hint that the just will be shielded from this day, suggesting the day will not overtake them like a thief (4), and that they have not been appointed to wrath (9).
Revelation 7:2-3: "And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God; and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of God in their foreheads."
Revelation 9:4-5: "And to them it was given that they should not hurt the grass of the earth...but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months..."
Now we see a separation taking place. The just are inoculated against God's wrath, which is to fall upon the earth, by virtue of the seal that's given them. It is this wrath that's being described in the next verse we will look at, which is often cited as a proof text for hell.
Revelation 14:9-11: "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, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God...and shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name."
The torment with fire and brimstone parallels Revelation 9:18, which states: "By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone..." This was done in the "presence of the Lamb and his angels," whereas hell is a place outside of God's presence (Rev. 22:15). The torment falls only upon those with the mark of the beast; evidently those with the seal of God have been spared. Now the evidence for a rapture is beginning to pile up. The language of the smoke going up forever parallels the language in Isaiah 34:8-10, which is referring to the day of the Lord:
"For it is the day of the Lord's vengeance, and the year of recompense for the controversy of Zion. And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up forever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it forever and ever."
We know from 1 Thessalonians 5:2 that the day of the Lord refers not only to judgments on ancient Israel, but to the end times as well. Of course the idea of a rapture, followed by a tribulation, followed by judgment day, is nothing new. Many churches teach tis scenario. Where we part company with them is in the assertion that all of the language of judgment in the Bible that refers to conscious torment is referring to the torment endured by the wicked during the tribulation. There is no allowance made that some verses allude to earthly torment and some to hell. The position here is that none of the passages alluding to hell record responses of conscious torment, and none of the passages alluding to conscious torment have hell in view. All references to conscious torment have identical parallels in other parts of the Bible which describe the day of the Lord. Not every verse describing earthly torment uses the term the day of the Lord, but that is the day in view when we are discussing the period of unparalled trial that will fall upon the entire world just before the very end of time.
Let's use an illustration from the gospel of Matthew. Matthew 22:13 reads
"Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
This verse seems to be teaching eternal torment. How do we know what's really in view? Let's go back to the definitive verse on hell, Rev. 20:11-15, where Christ is on his throne and casts the wicked into the lake of fire. Just as in Matt. 25:31-46, there's no response recorded on the part of those cast into the lake. Does the language of Matt. 22:13 match the language of these two verses? Christ is not on his throne, there's no decree to depart, and there's no lake of fire. Does this automatically mean the verse can't be referring to hell? In and of itself, no: it's God's perogative to use different language to describe the same event. That's why we compare scripture with scripture. Is there another place in the Bible that uses similiar language? We find that darkness is emphasized in verses pertaining to the day of the Lord.
"...the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand; a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness..." (Joel 2:2) Shall not the day of the Lord be darkness, and not light? Even very dark, and no brightness in it? (Amos 5:8)
The outer darkness of Matt. 22:13 seems to be a better match with these verses than with the lake of fire. Verses that record conscious torment always have corresponding language and images in other parts of the Bible that depict earthly torment. Let's look at some examples.
Luke 13:25 has a door being shut. It appears to teach eternal torment. Genesis 7:16 also features a door being shut in regard to earthly torment.
Matthew 22:13, 24:50-51, 13:38-42, 8:11-12, 25:30, 18:34, and Luke 12:59 all feature weeping and/or torment in apparant references to eternal torment. Amos 8:10 features weeping in regard to earthly torment.
Matthew 22:13, 8:11-12, and 25:30 feature torment associated with outer darkness. Outer darkness is emphasized in Joel 2:2, Amos 5:20, Isaiah 13:10, and Zephaniah 1:5--all verses pertaining to earthly torment.
Matthew 13:38-42 features a furnace of fire in which the wicked apparently must endure eternal torment. Revelations 9:2 uses the term furnace of fire to describe earthly torment.
Revelations 14:11 has the "smoke of their torment" going up forever and ever in an apparent reference to eternal torment. Isaiah 34:10 describes smoke going up forever in regards to earthly torment.
What exactly does this tell us? It is our contention that the Bible gives us two types of verses about judgment: one pertains to final judgment and records no response of conscious torment; the other pertains to earthly torment and does record a response of conscious torment. When Matt. 22:13 tells us that the wicked will be cast into outer darkness to weep and gnash their teeth, we can do one of two things: we can automatically assume it's a reference to hell, or we can actually look at the images being presented and evaluate them in light of other scripture references that offer identical images in regard to judgment. For those who see the sense of the latter method, we offer the examples cited above. One of those examples tells us that Joel 2:2 and Amos 5:20 present images of outer darkness in regard to judgment.
Let's look at the image of a shutting of a door. These images appear in both Old and New Testament passages that pertain to judgment. God told Noah that judgment was about to come. He collected his family and went into the ark. The Lord shut the door of the ark (Gen. 7:16). In shutting Noah in, he also shut everyone else out. God also shuts a door in Luke 13:25:
"When once the master of the house is risen up, and had shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know not whence you are..."
Is God shutting the door of heaven on the wicked? In a very real way, yes. The wicked are shut out of any chance for salvation as God pours out His wrath upon the earth. They are damned--not to eternal torment in the lake of fire, but to a finite period of earthly judgment that ends in extinction in the lake of fire.
Matthew 13:38-42 has the wicked cast into a furnace of fire where there's weeping and gnashing of teeth. This verse is used to teach eternal torment; the furnace of fire is identified with the lake of fire. The only problem with that is that Rev. 9 actually describes man being tormented on earth by "fire and brimstone" (18), which is as "the smoke of a great furnace" (2). Moreover, the "sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit" (2). Here we have two images--darkness (Joel 2:2, Amos 5:20), and a furnace of fire--that correspond to passages describing earthly torment.
