We find the following statement in Romans 10:4: “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”

Many use this Scripture for the false concept that Christ came to end or abolish the law, and that we are free to break the law (which, they claim, does not exist anymore for us), and that all we need in order to be righteous in the eyes of God is a belief in Christ.

It is true, of course, that with the death of Jesus Christ, the sacrificial system found its completion, so that we are no longer bound to keep Old Testament rituals, including animal sacrifices and physical circumcision. We are no longer under a temporary tutor of rituals which brought us to Christ (Galatians 3:24). Those ritual laws and sacrifices were added because of sin and transgressions until the Seed (Jesus Christ) would come (Galatians 3:19; Romans 5:20). Sin is the transgression of the law (1 John 3:4, Authorized Version). It is obvious then that Galatians speaks about two different sets of laws—the law of temporary rituals and sacrifices which was added and the permanent spiritual law which defines sin (Romans 7:14). While the ritual law has been fulfilled in Christ and is no longer in force and effect for us, the spiritual law (some call it moral law) is still binding and, as we will see, can be obeyed by us when the love of God and the faith of Christ reside in us and when we are following Christ’s lead.

The Bible makes it very clear that theoretical faith “in” Christ is not enough, and that we will not inherit salvation when we refuse to keep God’s spiritual law of the Ten Commandments. When a rich young ruler asked Christ what he needed to do to have eternal life (Matthew 19:16), Christ answered that in order to have eternal life, to enter the kingdom of God and to inherit salvation (compare verses 24, 25), he had to keep the commandments (verse 17), clarifying that He spoke about the Ten Commandments (verses 18-19).

James confirms the biblical teaching that we must still keep the Ten Commandments today, showing that even the violation of one of the Ten Commandments convicts us as transgressors of the law which will judge us. He says in James 2:8-12: “If you really fulfill the royal law according to Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself,’ you do well; but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. For He who said, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ also said, ‘Do not murder.’ Now if you do not commit adultery, but you do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty.”

It is absolutely false to say that Christ came to do away with the spiritual law of the Ten Commandments and the spiritual statutes and judgments which define and explain the Ten Commandments even further. For instance, the Fourth Commandment enjoins us to keep the Sabbath day holy (Exodus 20:8-11). But other passages show that God is not just talking about the weekly Sabbath day (the time from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset), but also seven annual Holy Days, which are also called “Sabbath” in Scripture (compare Leviticus 23:27, 32, 39, Authorized Version). Another example is the Seventh Commandment, prohibiting adultery (Exodus 20:14). Other Scriptures show that God does not only prohibit sexual relationships involving at least one married partner, but also fornication (sexual relationships between unmarried partners), as well as sexual sins such as homosexuality. The Ninth Commandment prohibits bearing false witness against our neighbor (Exodus 20:16), but this is not limited to giving false testimony in a court of law, but it also includes lying, slander, libel, false reports and spreading unsubstantiated rumors.

In addition, Christ made clear that not only the literal violation of one of the Ten Commandments (and of the statutes and judgments) constitutes sin, but that even the underlying motives and desires are already enough to convict us as transgressors of the law. For instance, not only is committing murder a violation of the Sixth Commandment and therefore sin, but anger and hatred (which could lead to literal murder) are already forbidden as well (Matthew 5:21-22; 1 John 2:11; 3:15). Not only is committing adultery sinful, but looking “at a woman to lust for her” already constitutes adultery with her in the heart (Matthew 5:27-28).

Christ came to exalt the law and make it more honorable (Isaiah 42:21). He did so by keeping it perfectly, without ever sinning; by emphasizing strongly that we must keep it today and revealing to us how it can be done; and by explaining the intent of the law. God shows us through the law that we must not only refrain from carrying out the literal act of a prohibition, but that we must already control our emotions and desires which, if unchecked, would lead to such literal violations. We read that out of the heart “proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies” (Matthew 15:19; compare also Mark 7:21-23).

Christ stated very forcefully that those who practice lawlessness and the transgression of the law will NOT inherit God’s Kingdom. He said in Matthew 7:21-23: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who DOES the will of the Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'” The Swiss Zuercher Bible says: “…you who practice what is against the law.”

John echoed Christ’s statements with these powerful words: “He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in Him” (1 John 2:4). He also said this: “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3).

We will answer below how we can obtain the love of God—which keeps His commandments—and how it is actually possible to keep His commandments.

But first, let us explain what Paul meant in Romans 10:4 when he said that Christ was the “end of the law.” From what we have seen so far, this passage cannot mean that the spiritual law of the Ten Commandments and of the spiritual statutes and judgments has “ended” or has been done away with, so that it would not have any force and effect for us today.

The Greek word for “end” is “telos.” It can mean “end,” “goal,” “aim,” “purpose” and “result.” For instance, we read in 1 Timothy 1:5: “Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.” It is obvious that this passage does not say that the commandment has been abolished. Just the opposite is expressed here: Its purpose or aim or goal is love out of a pure heart, as well as having a good conscience and unwavering faith.

Peter expressed exactly the same thought in 1 Peter 1:9 when he states that you will be “receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.” Peter did not want to say that our faith would ever end [in fact, it never will end, compare 1 Corinthians 13:13]; rather, he stressed the point that the goal or aim of our faith is the inheritance of our salvation.

Another example can be seen in James 5:11 where we read: “Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is compassionate and merciful.” Here, the word “end” is very clearly used as a description of God’s goal, aim or purpose: God intended to show Job through his trials that He was compassionate and merciful. God had to reveal to Job his sin of self-righteousness which had to be repented of, but throughout the book of Job, God showed His compassion and mercy with Job even when he began to launch some very harsh criticism against God.

Christ describes Himself as “the beginning and the end” (Revelation 21:6; 22:13). He did not mean to convey that He had a beginning or that He would cease to exist, but He wanted to show that nothing exists or came into existence without Him, and that His goal, purpose, aim and result will be accomplished. Nobody can prevent His Will from being carried out.

And so, the German Pattloch Bible renders the phrase in Romans 10:4 as follows: “Final goal [Endziel] of the law is Christ for righteousness for everyone who believes.”

This leads us to the question as to why is Christ the “end”—that is, the aim, goal or purpose—of the law “for righteousness to everyone who believes.”

Righteousness is defined as keeping God’s commandments (Deuteronomy 6:25). But we cannot keep God’s law, based on our own strength. We need Christ to make us righteous. When we sin, we commit unrighteousness (1 John 5:17), but when we repent and believe in Christ’s Sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins, then we are washed clean and become righteous again. The law shows us what sin is (Romans 3:20; 7:7), but it does not make us righteous. Only God, through the Holy Spirit, can do this.

We read earlier (in 1 John 5:3) that this is the love of God that we keep His commandments. This is the case because His commandments define for us what God’s love is (Romans 13:8-10). When we love our neighbor, we fulfill the law which tells us how to love our neighbor (by not murdering him, stealing from him, committing adultery with his wife, lying to him, etc.). The Bible also shows us how we CAN receive the love of God (“This is what the love of God IS: keeping His commandments,” New Jerusalem Bible). Romans 5:5 tells us that “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit [which] was given to us.”

The important point to realize is that Christ must make us righteous. It is actually Christ, dwelling in us through the Holy Spirit, who fulfills the law through us—if we allow Him to do so, and if we don’t resist His lead. Romans 8:3-4, 9 states:

“For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh [our flesh was too weak to keep it], God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit… Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ he is not His.”

The German Revised Luther Bible translates Romans 8:4: “…so that the righteousness, demanded by the Law, would be fulfilled in us.”

The Living Bible translates Romans 8:4: “So now we CAN obey God’s laws if we follow after the Holy Spirit and no longer obey the old evil nature within us…”

We can only keep the righteous requirements of the law, IF Christ lives in us through the Holy Spirit, and IF we follow Christ’s lead. When God’s Holy Spirit lives within us, then the love of God and the faith of Christ live within us. And THAT is what will make us righteous.

Romans 3:21–22 (Authorized Version) talks about the “righteousness of God which is by faith OF Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe.”

We need to believe in Jesus; that Jesus is the Son of God; that He died for us; that His Sacrifice forgives our sins and removes our death penalty (because the wages of sin is death, Romans 6:23)—but that belief is just the beginning. The faith necessary for salvation is Christ’s faith—the faith OF Christ—living in us and enabling us to keep the law.

The Bible teaches that the faith of Christ—Christ’s faith in us—makes us righteous. Those who believe in Christ must have the faith OF Christ living IN them.

Philippians 3:9 (Authorized Version) says: “… and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through faith OF Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.”

The faith of Christ in us is a living, obedient faith, which brings forth good works (James 2:20, 26). We are called upon to uphold the OBEDIENCE of the faith (Romans 1:5; 16:26). And remember: This IS the love of God (which is given to us by the Holy Spirit) that we keep His commandments.

All of this is expressed in Paul’s profound statement in Romans 10:4 that Christ is the real purpose of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. The law shows us what sin is, and Christ in us fulfills the law through us, thereby enabling us to obtain God’s righteousness, if we believe that Christ forgives us our sins (doing away with our unrighteousness) and that He, through the Holy Spirit in us, helps us to obey the righteous requirements of the law.

For more information, we recommend the study of our free booklets:

“Paul’s Letter to the Galatians–How to Understand it.”

“God’s Commanded Holy Days.”

“And Lawlessness Will Abound.”

“Old Testament Laws–Still Valid Today?”

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

In the previous Q&A, we discussed the fact that the incorrigible wicked will be punished and “tormented” in the Third Resurrection. In this context, we quoted passages mainly from the gospel according to Luke and the Book Revelation. But the concept of physical punishment in the Third Resurrection is clearly revealed in other Scriptures as well. Even though some of the following Scriptures may ALSO refer to the disobedient in this day and age and to the time of Christ’s Return, in their ultimate application, all of them picture in vivid detail the ultimate fate of the incorrigible sinner. We should also note that those who qualify for the Kingdom of God will be considered worthy and “ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled” (2 Corinthians 10:6). They will, under Jesus Christ, punish disobedient and rebellious people (compare Revelation 2:26-27; Psalm 149:5-9).

First, let us review passages which describe in general God’s view of rebellious sinners.

Proverbs 12:2 tells us:

“A good man obtains favor from the LORD, But a man of wicked devices He will condemn.”

We read in Psalm 37:28:

“For the LORD loves JUSTICE, And does not forsake His saints; they are preserved FOREVER, but the descendants of the wicked [those who act as the wicked does] shall be CUT OFF.”

Isaiah 41:11-16 states:

“… They shall be as NOTHING. And those who strive with you shall PERISH. You shall seek them and not find them… [they] shall be as NOTHING, As a NONEXISTENT THING… the wind shall carry them away…”

The following passages describe in more detail God’s punishment of rebellious sinners.

Deuteronomy 32:35-43 describes God’s judgement of the wicked in these vivid terms:

“Vengeance is Mine, and recompense… For the day of their calamity is at hand… I will whet My glittering sword [God’s Word is compared with a two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12; Revelation 1:16; 19:15; Isaiah 11:4) which will judge and condemn the wicked], and My hand takes hold on JUDGMENT, I will render vengeance to My enemies, and repay those who HATE Me… My sword shall devour FLESH… Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people, For He will avenge the blood of His servants, And render vengeance to His adversaries…”

Paul makes very clear that God will take vengeance on those who oppose Him and refuse to obey Him. He states in 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9:

“.. it is a RIGHTEOUS thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you… in flaming FIRE taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be PUNISHED with EVERLASTING destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power…”

Jude 14-15 adds:

“… Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to EXECUTE JUDGMENT on ALL, to CONVICT ALL who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which UNGODLY SINNERS have spoken against Him.”

We read in 2 Peter 2:9-21:

“… the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation and to RESERVE the UNJUST under PUNISHMENT for the day of JUDGMENT, and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. They  are presumptuous, self-willed… and will utterly perish in their own corruption and will receive the wages of unrighteousness… having eyes of adultery and that CANNOT cease from sin… and are ACCURSED children… These are wells without water, clouds carried by a tempest, to whom the gloom of darkness is reserved forever…  For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them.”

We also read in Hebrews 10:26-31:

“For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain FEARFUL EXPECTATION OF JUDGMENT and fiery INDIGNATION which will DEVOUR the adversaries. Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of HOW MUCH WORSE PUNISHMENT, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?  For we know Him who said, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord. And again, ‘the LORD will JUDGE His people.’ It is a FEARFUL THING to fall into the hands of the living God.”

Christ echoes this sentiment in Luke 12:5: “I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell [Gehenna fire]; yes, I say to you, fear Him.”

We must respect God and honor Him, but we have every reason to fear Him and be terrified, if we choose to willfully sin against Him.

A remarkable statement can be found by Christ in one of His parables. Addressing the “evil servant” in Matthew 24:48-51, who is beating his fellow servants and eats and drinks with the drunkards, Christ explains that the master of that servant will come “on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

This passage explains very clearly the fate of the evil servant in the Third Resurrection. This is shown especially by the use of the phrase “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” which is strictly applied to the time of the Third Resurrection. A parallel account can be found in Luke 12:45-46, where the wicked servant will share the fate of “the unbelievers” (compare Revelation 21:8). The Broadman Bible Commentary writes: “… the wicked servant shall be… assigned his proper lot with those accursed forever.”

Both Matthew and Luke use the word “dichotomeo,” which is translated in English as “cut in two” (or “cut asunder” in the Authorized Version). These are the only two places in the New Testament where this expression is used.

The meaning of this phrase has been the object of considerable controversy.

Barnes’ Notes on the Bible writes that “this kind of punishment was anciently practiced. Sometimes it was done by the sword, sometimes by saws. It was practiced among the Chaldeans [Daniel 2:5; Daniel 3:29], and among the Hebrews [2 Samuel 12:31; 1 Samuel 15:33; 1 Kings 3:25; Hebrews 11:37]. It was also practiced by the Egyptians and Romans. It is not, perhaps, here to be taken literally, but signifies that the wicked servant should be severely punished.”

The Expositor’s Greek Testament adds that the “probable meaning is: will cut him in two (so to speak) with a whip = thrash him, the base slave, unmercifully. It is a strong word, selected in sympathy with the master’s rage.”

The Pulpit Commentary states: “This mode of death was inflicted in some cases… the difficulty is that the utter destruction of the malefactor implied in his literal cutting asunder is not consistent with his subsequent consignment to the lot of the hypocrites…  we may take the Lord’s words as applying first to temporal punishment…”

Some have suggested that the expression refers just to separation from the saints or from spiritual grace or from all blessings promised to the righteous. Even though this is clearly included, more than that is conveyed.

Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words gives the following explanation:

“Some take the reference to be the mode of punishment by which criminals and captives were cut in two; others, on account of the fact that in these passages the delinquent is still surviving after the treatment, take the verb to denote to cut up by scourging, to scourge severely, the word being used figuratively. As to [Matthew] 24:51, it has been remarked that the cutting asunder was an appropriate punishment for one who had lived a double life [he will be counted among the hypocrites]. In both passages the latter part of the sentence applies to retribution beyond this life… In the [Septuagint, a translation of the Hebrew Bible into Koine Greek,] the verb is used in Exodus 29:17 of the dividing of the ram as a whole burnt offering at the consecration of the priests… The corresponding noun is found in [Genesis] 15:11, 17; [Exodus] 29:17; [Leviticus ] 1:8; [Ezekiel] 24:4.”

What we can see from these passages is that the wicked servant will receive some kind of physical and psychological punishment, before he is thrown into the lake of fire with the hypocrites and the unbelievers. We might not know exactly what that punishment will be. But it is clear from Scripture that the punishment of the incorrigible sinners will include torment and fearful expectation BEFORE their existence ends. It will be much more severe than just a fleeting moment of annihilation in the Gehenna fire. They will receive “heavy stripes”  or “scourging”… including stripes of a psychological nature.

When those who commit the unpardonable sin stand before the Judgement Seat of Christ, they will be confronted with the terrible deeds which they had committed, but they will not feel any remorse. They will refuse to repent of their wicked conduct. Filled with wrath and hate, they will hear Jesus Christ’s words condemning them to punishment and eternal death, and they will be tormented by the realization that they ARE going to receive “stripes” and that they will be subsequently destroyed forever. Because of this, their hate and rage will even increase. Their wicked nature and conduct will be manifested in front of everyone. There will never be any doubt about God’s unfailing justice and just punishment.

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

In previous Q&As, we discussed the concept of godly punishment in this day and age, in the Millennium and the Great White Throne Judgment, including for the purpose of betterment as well as leading a person to repentance and conversion, while helping the person so that he or she does not fall away.

But there is another aspect of godly punishment, which has also been alluded to in previous installments. This aspect is very important and finds its full application in the Third Resurrection.

Sadly, there are those who have had their opportunity. They have committed the “unpardonable sin.” They knew and understood perfectly well that they had to submit to Christ, but they refused to do so. They became bitter, hateful, resentful and malicious. They made the unchangeable decision NEVER to repent. If a person has reached that stage that he CANNOT repent, because he has made the final decision NOT to WANT to repent, then God will not force repentance on such a person. God grants repentance, but a person must want to receive it. A person, though, who maliciously rejects Christ would only continue to live in misery and pain–and that is why God will save such a person from eternal misery, by DESTROYING him or her in a lake of fire.

The Third Resurrection describes those sinners who have made the final and irrevocable decision to rebel against God. They have refused to ever obey God, and they have developed a hostile attitude towards Him, filled with hatred and contempt, which prevents them from ever repenting of their terrible sinful conduct and nature. They will be raised to physical life to be burned up and destroyed in the lake of fire.

The Bible does not teach the concept of an ever-burning hell-fire in which the “immortal souls” of the wicked will be tortured for ever and ever. The Bible does not teach the concept of a purgatory either, in which “immortal souls” will be tortured for a while to obtain purification so that they can ultimately leave purgatory and ascend to heaven.

On the other hand, the Bible does not negate the fact that the incorrigible sinner has to pay for his evil conduct. He or she will be punished in the Third Resurrection, before being destroyed and annihilated in the Gehenna fire. Otherwise, sins would go unpunished, which is not in accordance with God’s righteous judgments.

Some have wondered why there should be a Third Resurrection, if their fate was already sealed at the time of their death. Why wouldn’t God just throw those incorrigible sinners into the lake of fire who are still alive at the end of the Great White Throne Judgment period, and why wouldn’t He leave the others of times past in their graves—rather than resurrecting them again to physical life to destroy them forever?

We address the concept of a Third Resurrection in chapter 12 of our free booklet, “Biblical Prophecy–From Now Until Forever.”

We explain in detail that every human being has a spirit in man which goes to God in heaven when man dies. This spirit is not the person, nor is it immortal or eternal, nor does it have a conscious existence when the person dies. Man’s spirit does not continue to live consciously, apart from the body. Rather, God “stores” it, so to speak, in heaven, until He unites it at the time of the resurrection of man with a new spiritual or physical body.

The spirit in man records all the human characteristics of the person, as well as his or her outward appearance. At the time of the resurrection, the spirit of the dead person is combined with a newly created body of the dead person. This means, all the experiences, memories and ideas of the former life are back in the resurrected individual, and the resurrected person will also look the same way he or she did in their former life. There must be a final Third Resurrection to everlasting condemnation when the spirit in man is placed back in the (newly created) physical body of the person here on earth; otherwise, the spirit in man would remain in heaven and with it, the recording of the personalities, thoughts and memories. But somehow, everything which was recorded by the spirit in man must be erased, so that it is as if the incorrigible sinners had never existed (Obadiah 16).

In order to destroy the entire human being, the spirit in man must be destroyed as well. This will be accomplished in the Third Resurrection when the human spirit, combined with the (newly created) physical body, will be thrown into the lake of fire. Realize that the human spirit of the incorrigible sinners will still be in heaven at the time just prior to the Third Resurrection. Therefore, THERE MUST BE a Third Resurrection; otherwise, their spirit would remain in heaven, while those incorrigible sinners would stay buried in their graves.

However, Christ said in John 5:28-29 that ALL who are in their graves will come forward when they hear the voice of the Son of Man, and we read in Daniel 12:2 that some who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake to shame and everlasting contempt. We also read in 1 Corinthians 15:22 that all who died in Adam will be made alive in (or by) Jesus Christ.

But there is another all-important reason why there MUST BE a Third Resurrection.

We explain in our afore-mentioned booklet that “God is a God of JUSTICE. In raising those who have committed the unpardonable sin to physical life, their attitude will become manifest to all alive at that time. When they witness their conduct, they will never be able to question God’s compassionate and uncompromising justice; as well as His merciful wisdom to free those hateful human beings from their emotional misery and pain.”

And God’s justice requires punishment for sin.

The Bible confirms that those who are raised to physical life will be punished before being destroyed in the lake of fire. This punishment is psychological as well as physical. Even though many do not seem to grasp this, it should be obvious that the very act of being burned up in a lake of fire involves physical pain. But it also involves psychological pain when the sinner is faced with his or her immediate fate, after their judgment and condemnation have been pronounced.

The psychological punishment of the unrepentant incorrigible sinner is vividly portrayed by Jesus Christ in His parable about Lazarus and the rich man, in Luke 16:19-31. While Lazarus is resurrected in the First Resurrection, the rich man faces his fate in the Third Resurrection. We discuss this parable at great length on pages 29-32 of our free booklet, “Do We Have an Immortal Soul?”

To briefly summarize the relevant points in the context of this Q&A,  “Luke 16:22… tells us that the rich man died and was buried… Luke 16:23 explains that the rich man lifted up his eyes in ‘hell,’ ‘being in torments,’ and seeing Abraham ‘afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.’ Verse 24 goes on to tell us that the rich man asks Abraham to send Lazarus ‘that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool’ the tongue of the rich man, as he is ‘tormented in this flame.’… The word ‘hell’ is a translation of the Greek word ‘hades.’ ‘Hades’ … describes the grave or death.

“What Christ is saying here is that the rich man lifted up his eyes, while in the grave—in other words, he is being resurrected from the dead. And when he opens his eyes from his ‘sleep’ of death, he sees Abraham and Lazarus ‘afar off,’  and he notices that flames are awaiting him. He is actually seeing the flames of the ‘lake of fire,’ referred to in Revelation 20:14. He is close enough to experience some physical pain from the flames—but his real anguish and torment is one of a psychological nature. That is, he knows that he had committed the unpardonable sin and that he will now have to face the eternal consequences—a death from which there will be no resurrection.

“What is being described here is the [T]hird [R]esurrection. We read in Revelation 20:13–14 that ‘death and hell [‘hades’ in the Greek] delivered up the dead’ (which would include the rich man), and that ‘death and hell [‘hades’ in the Greek] were cast into the lake of fire.’ The rich man was resurrected to physical life to be cast into the lake of fire. And those who are to be cast into the lake of fire will suffer psychological torment when they face that moment. They will face ‘everlasting punishment’ [compare Matthew 25:46]—that is, a punishment with everlasting consequences for all eternity—their existence will end forever… Their psychological torment is described in Matthew 13:42: They will be ‘cast…into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.’

“Luke 13:28 adds, ‘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.’…

“In Luke 16:27–28, the rich man asks that Lazarus be sent to his brothers to warn them about what would await them if they ended up like he [Verse 28: “… lest they also come to this place of torment”]. Abraham denies that request (v. 29) because by that time it is too late. The [T]hird [R]esurrection occurs after everyone, including the rich man’s brothers, have had their chance.”

The repeated reference in Luke 16 to “torment” in the context of godly punishment can also be found in additional passages.

In Revelation 14:9-11, we read:

“Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast [an end-time political leader, as well as the political system that he represents] and his image [made by an end-time religious system, as well as by a religious leader representing that system] and receives his mark on his forehead or on his head [permitting or preventing him to buy and sell, Revelation 13:16–17], he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb [Jesus Christ]. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”

We discuss this passage in great detail in chapter 18 of our free booklet, “Is That In the Bible? The Mysteries of the Book of Revelation.”

We explain therein that the term “forever” can mean “age-lasting,” and that the passage in Revelation 14:11 refers to the Return of Jesus Christ at a time when people worship the beast and receive its mark.

We stated in particular:

“All of this will occur BEFORE the Millennium. The smoke of their torment will ascend for a while—as long as the necessary conditions exist to allow smoke from burned bodies to ascend. The unrepentant wicked will ultimately be burned up. That will happen AFTER the Millennium and the Great White Throne Judgment. However, the passage in Revelation 14:11 does not address that time period. It merely serves as a forerunner and a warning.

“Most people who will worship the false political and religious system of Babylon, as well as its human representatives, won’t fully comprehend what they will be doing—they will not commit the unpardonable sin leading to the second death, from which there will be no resurrection (Revelation 20:14–15; 21:8). Rather, God will bring them back to life in a Second Resurrection, when the gravity of their wrong conduct will be revealed to them, and when they will be given an opportunity to repent and accept God’s Way of Life.”

Nevertheless, we need to emphasize that even for those who will be punished by Christ when He returns, reference to “torment” is made. The same terminology is used in Revelation 9:5, where a war is described between the beast power and the kings of the east. We read that “they (soldiers of the beast power with military weaponry) were not given authority to kill them (those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads, verse 4), but to torment them for five months. Their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man.”

So we see that torment includes physical pain. But it most certainly includes psychological pain as well. We read in 1 John 4:18 that there is “no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear has torment.”

Torment is caused by the anticipation of punishment for sin (while the sinner is unwilling to repent of his or her sins). James 2:19 explains that demons believe in God, but they tremble. Satan and his demons are spirit beings. They cannot die. They cannot experience physical pain either. But they tremble when they think of the psychological torment which they will have to endure when God proceeds to punish them. Knowing his ultimate fate, Satan has great wrath, because he knows that his time is short (Revelation 12:12).

We read in Matthew 8:29 that demons asked Christ whether He had come “to torment [them] before the time.” In Mark 5:7 a demon pleaded with Christ not to torment him.

But punishment and torment for Satan and his demons will come. Revelation 20:10 reads that the “devil, who deceived [the people], was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone… And they [Satan and his demons] will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” This passage is fully explained in chapter 23 of our before-mentioned booklet on the Book of Revelation. In the context of this Q&A, we would just like to emphasize the fact that Satan and his demons will be “tormented” in the future. We state:

“We read in Matthew 25:41 that the lake of fire was ‘prepared for the devil and his angels.’ Therefore, it will be the devil and his demons who will be tormented in the lake of fire, for as long as that lake exists. Since spirit beings cannot die (compare Luke 20:36), they will be tormented—in a spiritual way—while being confined to the lake of fire, when they come to the realization that they are unable to deceive man anymore, and when they see all their ‘works’ and evil ‘accomplishments’ replaced by the good and prosperous ways of God.”

In the second part of this series, we will discuss additional Scriptures which reveal the concept of physical punishment in the Third Resurrection.

(To Be Continued)

Lead Writer: Norbert Link