The Fire

Hell, “where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.”   Mark 9:47-48, ESV

A person in hell lives under the judgment of God, who is a “devouring fire” (Hebrews 12:29), forever.

The psalmist faced the awesome truth that no one can evade the presence of God when he said, “I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there” (Psalm 139:7-8).

When Paul said that the wicked will be “forever separated from the Lord” (2 Thessalonians 1:9), he meant they will be excluded from enjoying God’s presence in the new Jerusalem. Every eye will see him—the righteous will see God in his beauty; the wicked will see God in his fury.

God revealed his presence to Moses and Elijah through fire. Malachi spoke of God as being like a refiner’s fire, and the writer of Hebrews described God as a devouring fire. That is why it is a fearful thing to fall into his hands.

One of the most famous sermons on the subject of hell is a sermon by Jonathan Edwards called “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” It’s a frightening sermon about the terrors of hell. Some have suggested that this is a good example of religious leaders trying to control people through fear.

Others have said that anyone who talks like this has a sick mind, but if that’s your conclusion, you’d need to say the same thing about Jesus. The clearest teaching about hell is not from medieval theologians or Jonathan Edwards, but from Jesus Christ himself. He did not have a sick mind. Jesus is the Son of God, and he said these things because he wants us to know that hell is real—and he doesn’t want you to end up there.

As troubling as the imagery of the fire of hell is, perhaps the greatest pain of hell is knowing that there is a God of love, and yet the opportunity of enjoying him is gone forever.

For further reading, see Psalm 139