“The Lake of Fire” (The Second Death)
(Revelation 20:14-15) “Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
In the New Testament we are told clearly that when a person dies and their soul leaves their body that they go to one of two places. They either end up in heaven above with the LORD or are incarcerated in hell below to be held over for the Great White Throne for sentencing.
We know from the New Testament that the Lord Jesus Himself said before His death and resurrection that there was a place called “Hades”. The English word we use to describe this place is “Hell.”
It has been said that “Hell is the Devils best kept secret.”
The equivalent word in the Old Testament to describe the same place was called “Sheol” or “the place of departed spirits,” that place where the spirits of those who had physically died went to, both the saved and the unsaved.
In the parable the Lord Jesus told of the rich man and Lazarus we see two compartments or places in Sheol, or Hades. The rich man, who was an unsaved man, was in torment, while Lazarus a poor saved man was being comforted by Abraham. Between the two compartments was a great gulf that could not be crossed (Luke 16:23-24).
Before the Lord Jesus had died and been resurrected no human being had entered heaven above. He Himself said “No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man” (John 3:13). The title He used “the Son of Man” was referring to His humanity. He was fully God yet fully man in the one physical body (John 14:9-10.
After His physical death on the cross the Lord Jesus went into Sheol. He went to that compartment where Abraham, Lazarus and all who were born again dwelt. His suffering on the cross was over when just before He gave up His spirit and soul, He, in triumph, called out “It is finished” and as He died He said “Father into your hands I commit my spirit.”
The work of salvation was complete. (Luke 23:40) (John 19:30).
After He had physically died the spirit and soul of the Lord Jesus descended into Sheol or Hades. He was not tortured there, as being taught by the false Charismatic hyper faith money heretic preachers. Instead, He went to that compartment in Sheol to join Abraham, Lazarus and all the saved ones who had physically died in the Old Testament and also during the intertestamental period.
From Sheol He proclaimed the gospel to the spirits on the other side of the great gulf being those who did not believe Noah and come into the Ark of salvation (1 Peter 3:19-20).
This compartment He went to was also called Paradise, being a place of rest and tranquillity of the soul. It can also be symbolised as a type of the Garden of Eden.
How do we know this? Well, He told the dying thief crucified alongside of Him that he would be with Him in Paradise (Luke 23:43). Paradise was not a place of torment. The work of salvation was complete! No more sacrifices for sin were needed as the Book of Hebrews affirms (Hebrews 7:27; 9:25-28; 10:12).
On the cross the Lord Jesus did not cease to be God the Son, He never shed His divinity as some false teachers promote, but He did experience separation from fellowship with God the Father. Hence, He cried out on the cross, “My God, My God why have you forsaken Me?”
He experienced Hell on the cross being separated from fellowship with His Father in heaven, bearing upon His shoulders the sins of the whole world (John 1:29) (1 John 2:1-2).
As we read; “For our sake He (God) made Him (Jesus) to be sin (a sacrifice for sin) who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become (or made) the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
At the cross a divine exchange occurred.
God placed upon His Son our sin and its penalty and treated Him as if He had sinned, even though He was without sin, so that He might place upon us who by birth and nature are great sinners, His very own righteousness, being the righteousness of Messiah (1 Corinthians 1:30) (Philippians 3:9). This is the righteousness of God received by faith in the Lord Jesus (Romans 3:21-26).
Now when the Lord Jesus was resurrected at the same time Many of the Old Testament and intertestamental saints were also physically resurrected, their tombs opened and they appeared to many people (Matthew 27:52-53).
When the Lord Jesus ascended to heaven He emptied that compartment in Sheol (Paradise) of all the righteous taking them with Him to heaven (Psalm 68:18) (Ephesians 4:8), but leaving behind the unsaved in that compartment of Sheol in torment to await that Great White Throne judgement at the end of the Millennium (Revelation 20:11-15).
Hell then is not the lake of fire but the harbinger or foretaste of the lake of fire to come when Hades is emptied of its dead, a holding cell as it were, until the time when the final sentencing will come for people to be consigned to the lake of fire for eternity where they will be tormented forever (Revelation 14:9-11).
Their resurrection also will be a bodily one but with their sinful fallen fleshly bodies which they will take with them into the lake of fire forever (Revelation 20:13).
Many preachers today do not preach about hell or the lake of fire, and in many seeker friendly, seeker sensitive church circles it is not ‘fashionable’ to preach about it. They may mention almost in passing a separation from God but leave it there, not wanting to offend people.
However, the Lord Jesus spoke a lot about hell and judgement. Many today in the pulpits in churches and behind lecterns in auditoriums tragically have the right Jesus but have Him all wrong.
The Lord Jesus is God’s last word to this world. Unless people truly repent and believe in Messiah and His blood to save them and obey Him they will perish in the eternal flames (John3:16-18, 36 NASB).
The Messiah our Lord Jesus, God’s Passover Lamb is the only way back to God and the only fire escape from hell and ultimately from the Lake of fire (John 14:6).
What else are we told in God’s Word about the Lake of Fire?
1. The Lake of Fire was initially prepared for the devil and his angels, and those who do not support Jesus’ brethren the Jewish people will end up there.
(Matthew 25:41) ““Then He (the Messiah our Lord Jesus) will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”
The context of this verse is when the Lord Jesus has returned to establish His Messianic kingdom on earth for a thousand years. All the people of the nations still living on earth will be judged on how they treated His brethren in the flesh, the Jewish people in the previous age. He will separate the sheep from the goats.
The righteous ones being ‘the sheep’ will be standing on His right side and the unrighteous ones being the goats will be standing on the left. The sheep are the saved ones and the goats are the unsaved ones.
Those who loved the Jews and supported them in their time of need in this world will receive their eternal reward and have their place in God’s eternal kingdom. Those who hated and despised the Jewish people will be dismissed and sentenced to that lake of fire even though initially it was prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:31-46).
So then, The Lake of Fire was initially prepared for the devil and his angels, and those who do not support Jesus’ brethren the Jewish people will end up there.
2. The lake of Fire will be for all who have followed Satan in this life and have received the mark of his beast empire.
(Revelation 14:9-11) “Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will 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 goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”
Malachi the prophet wrote; “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of Hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch” (Malachi 4:1) .
No wonder Hell and the Lake of Fire is Satan’s best kept secret. He wants to bring men and women to these places of eternal torment. This is why it is vitally important to preach the gospel of the kingdom, which not only includes the cross and salvation, but also the coming judgement and its eternal consequences in Hell and the Lake of Fire.
The beast empire is coming with its Antichrist and with its mark of allegiance to the empire and its ideology without which no one can buy or sell, and with its image that must be worshipped on pain of death (Revelation 13:14-17).
The way technology is advancing with AI and facial recognition, going cashless, and with advanced digital ID’s is a stark reality in today’s world. George Orwell the author in his book 1984 was quite prophetic I think even though he was not a Christian. Time will tell of course, however time is rapidly running out!
The time is rapidly approaching when all of us still living will have to choose either Christ or the Antichrist, and either the cross or the crescent. No one of us will be left in a vacuum or in a neutral zone. Many of us will be martyred, some will be imprisoned but others of us will escape.
Already in every Islamic country and in Communist China, North Korea and in Russia persecution is already a daily reality for our brothers and sisters in Messiah in these countries and it is coming to the western democracies.
It may seem hard to see how things will work out for us as the Body of Messiah when this time of the Great Tribulation comes, however, God will in some way supernaturally provide for us as the Body of Messiah, as He did for Elijah the prophet when Jezebel wanted his head. God preserved him. Also God encouraged His servant by telling Elijah that there were 7,000 in Israel preserved by Him, those who had not bowed the knee to Baal.
Whatever we will have to face in the future Peter the apostle gave us an encouraging word when he wrote…
“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Messiah, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Messiah, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you” ( 1 Peter 4:12-14).
So then the lake of Fire will be for all who have followed Satan in this life and have received the mark of his beast empire.
3. The lake of Fire will be the lot of the Antichrist with his beast empire and with the false prophet when the Messiah returns
(Revelation 19:19-21) “And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against Him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulphur. And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of Him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh”
Israel today is centre stage in world affairs and God’s prophetic time clock for the nations. In the coming confrontation we will see the Messiah, Michael the archangel and the armies of heaven fighting with the armies of the Antichrist and his beast empire.
Today we see the armies that are preparing to attack Israel gathering their forces. Turkey wants to advance into Syria in order to attack Israel. The terrorist groups in Iraq and Syria are also plotting their strategies against Israel. The UN and the EU, Great Britain, Canada and Australia are also becoming increasingly hostile to Israel.
The Arab kingdoms in Saudi Arabia are also uniting in their hostility towards Israel in light of what is happening in Gaza, Lebanon and in Judea and Samaria. Israel is in their crosshairs. At present President Trump in America is standing firm in his support of Israel.
“The perfect storm” is looming on the horizon for Israel and the nations. When the armies of light and darkness have clashed in Israel and that “storm” has passed, the Rider on the White Horse will be left standing, Israel will be saved, and the saints will inherit the Kingdom.
As for the Antichrist, his beast empire and the false prophet they will be forever consigned to that eternal lake of Fire. After the Millennium Satan will be released from his prison and after his final rebellion, which will be immediately dealt with, he will join them there (Revelation 20:7-10). So the lake of Fire will be the lot of the Antichrist with his beast empire and with the false prophet when the Messiah returns.
4. The lake of Fire will the second death and be filled with those whose names are not written in the Book of Life.
(Revelation 20: 11-15) “Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead, who were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
Let’s now look at this text…
“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.”
This is the final judgement at the end of the Millennium when all of the dead will be raised to life to stand before the Great White throne of the Lamb, not to be judged, but to receive sentencing, because they have already been judged for their rejection of Him and the salvation that is only found in him (John 3:18; 14:6) (Acts 4:12).
No longer will there be a separation between what is on earth with the heavens. Everything will have been laid bare by fire before the eyes of Him who sits on that Great White Throne (2 Peter 3:10). And then we read…
“And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne”
The unsaved from every walk of life, from the domestic world, the religious world, the business world, the military world and from the political world will be standing there without exception.
These who at the Second Coming of Messiah had tried to hide themselves in the caves among the rocks of the mountains, and had called upon the mountains to fall upon them and to hide them from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the lamb, because the great day of their wrath had come (Revelation 6:15-16). Now they stood before that Great White Throne! And then we read…
“…and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.”
These books will be the records of what they said and did when living on earth. The Lord Jesus said to the Pharisees who rejected Him; “You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good? For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil. But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the Day of Judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matthew 12:34-40).
Every word, every action, every motive and intent of the heart will be laid bare before Him whose eyes are a blazing fire, that can penetrate the deepest thought and motives of the heart and the actions that they produce (1 Samuel 16:7).
The Lord Jesus when specifically speaking about false prophets He said…
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them” (Matthew 7:15-20.
The apostle John tells us in the Book of Revelation the kinds of people who will go into the lake of fire. John wrote…
“But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulphur. This is the second death” (Revelation 21:8).
Now we see the main book, being the Book of Life containing all of the names of those who have been saved, both in the previous age before the Millennium and I would also like to suggest those saved during the Millennium. Both the saved and the unsaved will be resurrected. The saved of course will have glorified bodies but the unsaved rotten decaying bodies of their flesh (Daniel 12:1-3) (John 5:28-29).
In the Millennium people will still be born and need to be taught about the everlasting covenant made by the blood of Jesus in the previous age. They will live to a very old age but still die (Isaiah 65:20). In the Millennial Temple sacrifices and offerings will be made to the Messiah but they will be memorials to His atoning work, not sacrifices for sin (Isaiah 2:1-5) (Micah 4:1-5) (Zechariah 14:6-21) (Ezekiel 40:38-43:13-27).
And so we read…
“And the sea gave up the dead, who were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds.”
Here we are told that the sea gave up the dead that were in it, their decayed and rotting bodies resurrected. Death and hades (Hell) or Sheol gave up their dead who were in them and together they were judged according to their deeds. Finally we read…
“Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
What is most important thing we must know is that we have our names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life having experienced the second birth. When we were physically born this was the first birth. When we were spiritually reborn from above by the Spirit of God we received our second birth. Unless we are spiritually reborn we will never be able to enter into the Kingdom of God nor perceive the things pertaining to living in the kingdom of God (John 3:3).
The person born naturally does not have spiritual insight; however the person who is supernaturally reborn by the Spirit receives spiritual insight.
Rabbi the apostle Paul wrote…
“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind (the thoughts, feelings and the purposes) of Messiah” (1 Corinthians 2:14-16).
A person maybe very religious, be a church attender, do good works, partake of the sacraments, attend the prayer meetings and may have even been through theological college and have theological degrees of one sort or another.
They may have contributed to the welfare of society or been involved in chartable deeds or involved in other enterprises for the good of others, however, without the new spiritual rebirth from above, being the second birth, they will not make it into the kingdom of God but will inevitably end up in the lake of Fire.
No one can ever be saved by good deeds or by seeking to live a morally upright life because we all fall short the standard of living God requires for anyone who would enter His kingdom (Romans 3:10-18).
It is only by God’s unearned, unmerited favour that we can be saved through faith and not by works we produce. As we read…
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Messiah Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8-10).
As it is also written…” Therefore, if anyone is in Messiah (joined to Him through faith), he is a new creation. The old (way of life) has passed away; behold, the new (way of life) has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
It is only by the second birth that we can be saved from the second death. With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible for Him who believes in Messiah for their salvation (Matthew 9:26; 19:24-26).
Being born again by the Holy Spirit is receiving Messiah into one’s life. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Lord Jesus, and is equal to Him in divinity as the third person in the Tri-Unity of God, and the Spirit dwells in all who are born again (Romans 8:9).
As the apostle John writes…”
“He (the Lord Jesus) was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world did not know Him. He came to his own; and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13).
There is a mystery to the new birth. One can repent and receive the Lord Jesus by faith and this is what they need to do to be saved (2 Corinthians 7:10). However, we must also allow for the fact that the Spirit Himself, like the wind, blows where He wills to blow. He knows the motives of the heart. Without faith we cannot be saved and if we get saved then we will want to be baptised (Mark 16:16).
The act of Baptism in itself does not save us , but is the outward witness that we have died to the old way of life and risen into a new way of life (Romans 6:3-4). The water symbolizes the baptism that now saves us, not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God, through the resurrection of Jesus Messiah.
The outward act of baptism is the sign of an inward spiritual life and a cleansed conscience by the blood of Messiah (Hebrews 9:14).
Even the faith we express must be imparted to us by the sovereign work of the blessed Holy Spirit which the Lord Jesus implied when He said; “The wind (Spirit) blows where it (He) wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:8).
As an example take a tree standing on a very dry and windless day. It is not moving. However, when a wind springs up that tree comes alive. You cannot see where that wind comes from or where it is going, however, that tree that stood lifeless now comes alive as the wind blows upon it.
Just putting your hand over your heart and inviting the Lord Jesus to come into your life and receiving some emotional experience without firstly repenting of all known sin with a willingness to forsake it will not save you.
There must be an inward spiritual work deep down on the inside accompanied by the witness or confirmation of the Spirit that you are now a child of God. You will have the desire and privilege to be regularly led by the Spirit, to call God your heavenly father and to begin to trust Him with a child- like faith for the rest of your life in this world (Romans 8:14-16) (Hebrews 11:6).
Having said this God’s Word also tells us how we can be born again if we meet God’s conditions. Repentance of course must always come first accompanied by faith. Rabbi the apostle spoke to the elders at Ephesus;
“I did not shrink back from declaring anything that was helpful to you as I taught you publicly and from house to house, testifying to Jews and Greeks alike about repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Messiah (Acts 20:20-21).
Repentance must always come first before seasons of spiritual refreshing come from the presence of the LORD.
As we see Peter preaching in Solomon’s Colonnade; “Repent, then, and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped away, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus, the Messiah, who has been appointed for you. Heaven must take Him in until the time comes for the restoration of all things, which God announced long ago through His holy prophets” (Acts 3:19-21).
Rabbi the apostle Paul also wrote; “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing His riches on all who call on Him” (Romans 10: 8-12).
Epilogue:
The Lake of fire also called the second death, is an invisible but tangible reality in the unseen spiritual realm in eternity that waits for Satan, the Antichrist, those in his beast empire, the false prophet, those who worship the image of the beast empire and receive its mark of ownership.
It waits for those who are cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars.
It waits for all those who despise and oppose Israel. It waits for all who are trusting in religious observances, good works and morality. It waits for all who refuse to repent and embrace the Lord Jesus as their personal Saviour and Lord and trust in His atoning redeeming blood as their sin bearer and saviour from sin and the lake of fire.
Eternity is a very long time. Our life down here is a vapour, like a very tiny drop of water in the open sea. What is living even to be 80 or even 90 years old compared to eternity? There is only one fire escape from the lake of fire and that is the salvation God has provided in the Lord Jesus the Messiah.
God loves us and has sent His Son to die for our sins and can do no more in providing our salvation. His Spirit is hovering over your spirit man if you have not been born again. He wants to come into your life and dwell there by His Spirit, but are you willing to meet the conditions, namely a heartfelt repentance towards God and a living faith towards the Lord Jesus (Acts 20:21).
Hell is a real place! The lake of Fire is a real place! The salvation from the power of sin and the judgement is also a tangible spiritual reality. If you sense inwardly the Spirit of God blowing and you feel His convicting work deep down on the inside of you then surrender to Him. Invite Him in, don’t delay. Your eternal destiny depends on your response. The lake of fire is real but so is heaven! (Revelation 21:1-4).
The blessed divine sensitive, loving, wise and infinitely good and compassionate Holy Spirit will produce in you supernaturally, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, for against these things is no law in earth or in heaven to compare with it, because those who are led by the Spirit, and keep in step with the Spirit will find that they have His inward power to put to death moment by moment the desires of the sinful nature with its passions and desires (Galatians 5:22-25).
As the prophet Isaiah wrote; “Seek the LORD while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. Let the wicked man forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that He may have compassion, and to our God, for He will freely (abundantly) pardon” (Isaiah 55:6-7).
Hell is real and the lake of Fire for all of eternity is also real and the Lord Jesus and only by faith in Him to save you by His redeeming and cleansing blood is the only fire escape from that lake of Fire that burns for all of eternity, and that will never be extinguished!
