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Immortality:

Conditional or Innate?

by Bob Pickle

1. Preface
2. The Wages of Sin is Death
3. Returning to Dust at Death
4. David Not in Heaven
5. Death is a Sleep
6. Body Goes to Hades/Sheol (Grave/Hell) at Death
7. No Consciousness in Death
8. Immortality
9. Sodom and Gomorrha an Example of Hell Fire
10. What the Fire Did to Sodom
11. The Wicked to Be Destroyed
12. The Wicked to Be As Tow (Flax)
13. The Wicked and Earth to Be Consumed
14. The Wicked to Be Reduced to Ashes
15. The Wicked to Be Devoured or Eaten
16. The Wicked to Be Burned Up
17. The Wicked and Their Names to Be Blotted Out
18. Hell's Fire Destroys Both Soul and Body
19. The Wicked to Be Put Out or Put Away or Taken
20. The Wicked Will Perish
21. The Wicked to Be Cut, Dashed, Broken, or Torn in Pieces
22. The Wicked to Melt Away
23. The Wicked to Be No More
24. The Wicked to Be Overthrown
25. The Wicked to Be As Smoke or to Be Dissolved
26. The Wicked to Be Cut Off or Cut Down
27. The Wicked to Be Killed
28. The Wicked to Be Rooted Out or Plucked Out
29. The Wicked to Be As Stubble
30. The Day After Hell's Fire Finally Goes Out
31. The Wicked and Earth Reserved Until Day of Judgment

Preface

This paper is a collection of texts which, taken at face value with no alteration of the meaning of the English words used, indicate that immortality is conditional. Conditional immortality means that death is an unconscious sleep. It also means that hell fire will not last throughout eternity, though it will be hot and will last awhile. On the other hand, innate immortality means that man is naturally immortal and that at least a part of him can never ever die or enter an unconscious state.

On both sides of the question can be found texts in which certain words used cannot carry the same meaning as they do in today's English and still harmonize with one's view of the subject. It is my feeling, though, that conditional immortality has a lot fewer texts in which a lot fewer words must be redefined. If immortality is unconditional, then "death," "die," "destroy," "destruction," "perish," "melt," "burned up," "devoured," "consumed," "not be," "eternal life," "dissolved," "slay," "kill," and other terms and phrases must be redefined. It seems the safest course to seek to take the Bible just as it reads, as far as possible.

To me the most disturbing redefinition is the one for "eternal life." In plain English, according to innate immortality, the wicked have eternal life as well, only in a different place. Their bodies are miraculously kept alive to suffer endless punishing, yet they have never accepted Jesus as their Savior. How can the unsaved live eternally, especially since Jesus said they would perish? (John 3:16). If we already have eternal life, why did Jesus have to die for us?

The texts that, taken at face value, support conditional immortality are listed below. In each of them, if it is not explicitly stated what part of man's being is referred to, then, taking the text at face value in today's English for the purpose of this discussion, it is assumed that the entire being is meant. For example, if it says, "He slept with his fathers," "he" is taken to mean a man in his totality. That this is justified can be seen in the following thoughts.

Many who believe in innate immortality describe man as a triune being: body, soul, and spirit. The soul and spirit are said to leave the body at death and go somewhere else, continuing on in consciousness. One or the other or both are said to be immortal. However, a Greek and Hebrew word study of the words translated "soul" and "spirit" raises serious questions about these ideas. (See the paper, "What is the Soul and Spirit?") Based on the biblical evidence, conditional immortality defines these crucial words differently. Generally, the "spirit" is said to be the spark of life, the "breath of life," that only God can give, and the "soul" is said to be either the entire being or the life of the person. Neither is given consciousness after death.

"The spirit shall return to God who gave it" (Eccl. 12:7). There is no qualification in this verse as to whose spirit returns to God. Therefore the spirits of all, wicked and righteous, returned to God in Old Testament times. If one believes that "the spirit" referred to here is the "breath of life" God breathed into man's nostrils and nothing more, the difficulty with the spirits of wicked people returning to God disappears.

Those who hold to innate immortality often refer to Luke 16. They point out that all souls, both righteous and wicked, waited in Hades until after the resurrection of Jesus. Yet this is confusing. It puts the spirit in heaven with God and the soul in Hades with Abraham during Old Testament times. Were both the spirit and soul conscious? How do they differ? Why would one be in one place and the other be in the other? Also, if the saved left Hades nearly 2000 years ago, why does 1 Cor. 15:51-55 indicate that they do not leave until the second coming of Jesus?

Several of the texts that follow show that it is not just the body that sleeps, and that not just the soul and/or spirit goes to Hades at death. The whole person sleeps, and the body goes to Hades as well.

For these reasons, when the text says "he," it is taken to be the entire person, unless there is clear evidence to the contrary in the verse itself.

What follows are 265 verses from 158 chapters from 35 books of the Bible. Of these, 126 verses from 77 chapters from 25 books deal with the unconsciousness of death. 148 verses from 88 chapters from 27 books deal with the punishment of the wicked. Though the verses may appear more than once in this paper, they are counted but once for the purpose of these totals.

I have done my best to exclude from the totals for the wicked's punishment all verses that might be referring to judgments in this life. Texts which use similar words to refer to happenings in this life, though not included in the totals, do illustrate the meanings of the words in question. Therefore they appear in separate sections called Examples.

While I have tried to make this sampling of texts on this topic exhaustive, many more texts could have been added in the Examples sections.

One last thought. Many God-fearing men have believed in conditional immortality. John Wycliffe, William Tyndale, Martin Luther, and numerous Baptists, to name a few.

Though John Darby did believe in the immortality of the soul, early editions of his book The Hopes of the Church of God make the following interesting statement:

We would express our conviction, that the idea of the immortality of the soul has no source in the gospel; that it comes, on the contrary, from the Platonists, and that it was just when the coming of Christ was denied in the church, or at least began to be lost sight of, that the doctrine of the immortality of the soul came in to replace that of the resurrection. This was about the time of Origen.

Your thoughts and comments upon this subject and these verses are much appreciated.

The Wages of Sin is Death

"In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die" (Gen. 2:17).

"God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die" (Gen. 3:3, 4).

"And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden" (Gen. 3:22, 23).

"Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die."

"The soul that sinneth, it shall die."

"When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die" (Ezek. 18:4, 20, 26). [Two deaths are referred to in this last verse. One who dies in his iniquity shall die again.]

"Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned" (Rom. 5:12).

"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. 6:23).

Returning to Dust at Death

"In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return" (Gen. 3:19). [No mention of continued consciousness or torment somewhere.]

"For now shall I sleep in the dust; and thou shalt seek me in the morning, but I shall not be" (Job 7:21).

"Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay; and wilt thou bring me into dust again" (Job 10:9).

"They shall go down to the bars of the pit, when our rest together is in the dust" (Job 17:16).

"His bones are full of the sin of his youth, which shall lie down with him in the dust" (Job 20:11).

"They shall lie down alike in the dust, and the worms shall cover them" (Job 21:26).

"All flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust" (Job 34:15).

"Hide them in the dust together; and bind their faces in secret" (Job 40:13).

"My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death."

"All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul" (Ps. 22:15, 29).

"What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?" (Ps. 30:9).

"Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust" (Ps. 104:29).

"All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again" (Eccl. 3:20).

"Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it" (Eccl. 12:7).

"Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead" (Is. 26:19).

"And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt" (Dan. 12:2).

David Not in Heaven

"Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day."

"For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand" (Acts 2:29, 34).

Death is a Sleep

"And the LORD said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers" (Deut. 31:16).

"And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee" (2 Sam. 7:12).

"Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders" (1 Kings 1:21).

"So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David" (1 Kings 2:10).

"And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart" (1 Kings 11:21).

"And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead" (1 Kings 11:43).

"And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years: and he slept with this fathers" (1 Kings 14:20).

"And Rehoboam slept with his fathers" (1 Kings 14:31).

"And Abijam slept with his fathers" (1 Kings 15:8).

"And Asa slept with his fathers" (1 Kings 15:24).

"So Baasha slept with his fathers" (1 Kings 16:6).

"So Omri slept with his fathers" (1 Kings 16:28).

"So Ahab slept with his fathers" (1 Kings 22:40).

"And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers" (1 Kings 22:50).

"And Joram slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 8:24).

"And Jehu slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 10:35).

"And Jehoahaz slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 13:9).

"And Joash slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 13:13).

"And Jehoash slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 14:16).

"He built Elath, and restored it to Judah, after that the king slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 14:22).

"And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, even with the kings of Israel" (2 Kings 14:29).

"So Azariah slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 15:7).

"And Menahem slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 15:22).

"And Jotham slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 15:38).

"And Ahaz slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 16:20).

"And Hezekiah slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 20:21).

"And Manasseh slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 21:18).

"So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers" (2 Kings 24:6).

"And Solomon slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 9:31).

"And Rehoboam slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 12:16).

"So Abijah slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 14:1).

"And Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the one and fortieth year of his reign" (2 Chr. 16:13).

"Now Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 21:1).

"He built Eloth, and restored it to Judah, after that the king slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 26:2).

"So Uzziah slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 26:23).

"And Jotham slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 27:9).

"And Ahaz slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 28:27).

"And Hezekiah slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 32:33).

"So Manasseh slept with his fathers" (2 Chr. 33:20).

"Why did the knees prevent me? or why the breasts that I should suck? For now should I have lain still and been quiet, I should have slept: then had I been at rest, with kings and counsellers of the earth, which built desolate places for themselves; or with princes that had gold, who filled their houses with silver: or as an hidden untimely birth I had not been; as infants which never saw light. There the wicked cease from troubling; and there the weary be at rest. There the prisoners rest together; they hear not the voice of the oppressor" (Job 3:12-18).

"For now shall I sleep in the dust; and thou shalt seek me in the morning, but I shall not be" (Job 7:21).

"So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep" (Job 14:12).

"Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death" (Ps. 13:3).

"In their heat I will make their feasts, and I will make them drunken, that they may rejoice, and sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake, saith the LORD. I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter, like rams with he goats."

"And I will make drunk her princes, and her wise men, her captains, and her rulers, and her mighty men: and they shall sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake, saith the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts" (Jer. 51:39, 40, 57).

"And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt."

"But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at the end of the days" (Dan. 12:2, 13).

"He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn" (Mat. 9:24).

"And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose" (Mat. 27:52). [Note on the Greek: "bodies" is in the nominative case, while "saints" and the participle "slept" are in the genitive case. This means that it is the saints who are said to be sleeping, not their bodies. It could well be translated, "many bodies of the sleeping saints." So the entire being sleeps, not just the body.]

"And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth" (Mark 5:39).

"And all wept, and bewailed her: but he said, Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth" (Luke 8:52).

"These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead" (John 11:11-14).

"And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep" (Acts 7:60).

"For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption" (Acts 13:36).

"The wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth; but if her husband be dead [Greek: koimao, "be asleep"], she is at liberty to be married to whom she will; only in the Lord" (1 Cor. 7:39).

"For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep" (1 Cor. 11:30).

"After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep."

"Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished."

"But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept."

"Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed" (1 Cor. 15:6, 18, 20, 51).

"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep" (1 Thess. 4:13-15).

"And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation" (2 Pet. 3:4).

"And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them" (Rev. 14:13).

Body Goes to Hades/Sheol (Grave/Hell) at Death

[Hades and Sheol are the Greek and Hebrew words for "grave" and "hell."]

"But his flesh upon him shall have pain, and his soul within him shall mourn" (Job 14:22). [If this text says that there is consciousness after death, as some claim, then the fleshly body must be conscious as well since it is feeling pain. If the "soul" that is mourning is in sheol ("the grave," vs. 13), then the "flesh" that is in "pain" must be there as well.]

"For I know that thou wilt bring me to death, and to the house appointed for all living" (Job 30:23).

"If I wait, the grave [sheol] is mine house: I have made my bed in the darkness" (Job 17:13).

"Drought and heat consume the snow waters: so doth the grave [sheol] those which have sinned. The womb shall forget him; the worm shall feed sweetly on him" (Job 24:19, 20). [Since it is the body that decays, it must be the body that is in the grave (sheol) here.]

"Like sheep they are laid in the grave [sheol]; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave [sheol] from their dwelling" (Ps. 49:14).

"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave [sheol], whither thou goest" (Eccl. 9:10). [If the spirit or soul was conscious after death, it could not be in the grave (sheol, hades), because whatever is there has no knowledge at all. The body must be referred to here.]

"And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised, which are gone down to hell [sheol] with their weapons of war: and they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities shall be upon their bones, though they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living" (Ezek. 32:27). [I can't imagine people thinking that spirits or souls take their swords to hell with them. This must be a picture of people being buried in the grave with their armor.]

"And in hell [hades] he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame" (Luke 16:23). [If spirits or souls have tongues, eyes, bosoms, and fingers, why would they need bodies too? If spirits or souls don't have such parts, then this parable pictures their bodies in hell/hades.]

No Consciousness in Death

"His sons come to honour, and he knoweth it not; and they are brought low, but he perceiveth it not of them" (Job 14:21).

"For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?" (Ps. 6:5).

"What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?" (Ps. 30:9).

"Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah. Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction? Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?" (Ps. 88:10-12).

"The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence" (Ps. 115:17).

"His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish" (Ps. 146:4).

"For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun."

"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest" (Eccl. 9:5, 6, 10).

"For the grave cannot praise thee, death cannot celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth. The living, the living, he shall praise thee, as I do this day: the father to the children shall make known thy truth" (Is. 38:18, 19).

Immortality

"To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life" (Rom. 2:7). [We could not seek for immortality if we already had it.]

"Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting" (1 Tim. 6:16). [God is here declared to be the only one who has immortality.]

"But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel" (2 Tim. 1:10). [If we already have immortality, Jesus did not bring it to light.]

Sodom and Gomorrha an Example of Hell Fire

"For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment."

"And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly" (2 Pet. 2:4, 6).

"And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire" (Jude 6, 7). [Sodom and Gomorrha are used as an example of what the great white throne judgment and the lake of fire will be like. Eternal fire reduced them to ashes.]

What the Fire Did to Sodom

"For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city."

"Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city."

"Escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed."

"Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground" (Gen. 19:13-15, 17, 24, 25).

The Wicked to Be Destroyed

"And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people" (Lev. 23:30). [Many of these verses must be talking about the final reward of the wicked, for it is often true that the wicked prosper in this life. The book of Job, as well as certain Psalms, was written to teach that though the wicked may prosper now, they will receive their reward in the end.]

"Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations; and repayeth them that hate him to their face, to destroy them: he will not be slack to him that hateth him, he will repay him to his face" (Deut. 7:9, 10).

"Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man" (Ps. 5:6).

"Thou hast rebuked the heathen, thou hast destroyed the wicked, thou hast put out their name for ever and ever" (Ps. 9:5).

"Thou shalt make them as a fiery oven in the time of thine anger: the LORD shall swallow them up in his wrath, and the fire shall devour them. Their fruit shalt thou destroy from the earth, and their seed from among the children of men" (Ps. 21:9, 10).

"Because they regard not the works of the LORD, nor the operation of his hands, he shall destroy them, and not build them up" (Ps. 28:5).

"But the transgressors shall be destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be cut off" (Ps. 37:38)

"God shall likewise destroy thee for ever, he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living. Selah" (Ps. 52:5).

"For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee" (Ps. 73:27).

"When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever" (Ps. 92:7).

"All nations compassed me about: but in the name of the LORD will I destroy them. They compassed me about; yea, they compassed me about: but in the name of the LORD I will destroy them. They compassed me about like bees; they are quenched as the fire of thorns: for in the name of the LORD I will destroy them" (Ps. 118:10-12). [Verse 22 indicates to me that the one here speaking is Christ.]

"The LORD preserveth all them that love him: but all the wicked will he destroy" (Ps. 145:20).

"Whoso despiseth the word shall be destroyed: but he that feareth the commandment shall be rewarded" (Prov. 13:13).

"And the destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake the LORD shall be consumed."

"And the strong shall be as tow, and the maker of it as a spark, and they shall both burn together, and none shall quench them" (Is. 1:28, 31).

"They are dead, they shall not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish" (Is. 26:14).

"For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter. Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood. And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree" (Is. 34:2-4).

"I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire" (Ezek. 28:16).

"Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat" (Mat. 7:13).

"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 soul and body in hell" (Mat. 10:28).

"There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy" (Jam. 4:12).

Examples:

"I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed" (Deut. 4:26).

"Moreover the LORD thy God will send the hornet among them, until they that are left, and hide themselves from thee, be destroyed."

"And he shall deliver their kings into thine hand, and thou shalt destroy their name from under heaven: there shall no man be able to stand before thee, until thou have destroyed them" (Deut. 7:20, 24).

"And what he did unto the army of Egypt, unto their horses, and to their chariots; how he made the water of the Red sea to overflow them as they pursued after you, and how the LORD hath destroyed them unto this day" (Deut. 11:4).

"And Joshua said, Alas, O Lord GOD, wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? would to God we had been content, and dwelt on the other side Jordan!" (Josh. 7:7).

"Now therefore call unto me all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests; let none be wanting: for I have a great sacrifice to do to Baal; whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live. But Jehu did it in subtilty, to the intent that he might destroy the worshippers of Baal" (2 Kings 10:19).

"If it please the king, let it be written that they may be destroyed: and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver to the hands of those that have the charge of the business, to bring it into the king's treasuries" (Est. 3:9).

"And in Shushan the palace the Jews slew and destroyed five hundred men."

"And the king said unto Esther the queen, The Jews have slain and destroyed five hundred men in Shushan the palace, and the ten sons of Haman; what have they done in the rest of the king's provinces? now what is thy petition? and it shall be granted thee: or what is thy request further? and it shall be done."

"Because Haman the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had devised against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur, that is, the lot, to consume them, and to destroy them" (Est. 9:6, 12, 24).

"And I will pour out mine indignation upon thee, I will blow against thee in the fire of my wrath, and deliver thee into the hand of brutish men, and skilful to destroy. Thou shalt be for fuel to the fire; thy blood shall be in the midst of the land; thou shalt be no more remembered: for I the LORD have spoken it" (Ezek. 21:31, 32). [It seems that Ezekiel is borrowing language referring to the final reward of the wicked when speaking of the Ammonites.]

"Herod will seek the young child to destroy him" (Mat. 2:13).

"They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen" (Mat. 21:41).

"But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city" (Mat. 22:7).

"But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus" (Mat. 27:20).

"And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him" (Mark 3:6).

"And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him" (Mark 9:22).

"And the scribes and chief priests heard it, and sought how they might destroy him" (Mark 11:18).

"Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it?" (Luke 6:9).

"They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all."

"But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all" (Luke 17:27, 29).

"He shall come and destroy these husbandmen, and shall give the vineyard to others" (Luke 20:16).

"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10).

"Now Caiaphas was he, which gave counsel to the Jews, that it was expedient that one man should die for the people" (John 18:14). [The greek word for "die" is the usual one for "destroy."]

"Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer" (1 Cor. 10:9, 10).

"I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not" (Jude 1:5).

The Wicked to Be As Tow (Flax)

"And the destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake the LORD shall be consumed."

"And the strong shall be as tow, and the maker of it as a spark, and they shall both burn together, and none shall quench them" (Is. 1:28, 31).

"Which bringeth forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power; they shall lie down together, they shall not rise: they are extinct, they are quenched as tow" (Is. 43:17).

The Wicked and Earth to Be Consumed

"For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God" (Deut. 4:24).

"For a fire is kindled in mine anger, and shall burn unto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains."

"They shall be burnt with hunger, and devoured with burning heat, and with bitter destruction: I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the poison of serpents of the dust" (Deut. 32:22, 24).

"But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away" (Ps. 37:20).

"Consume them in wrath, consume them, that they may not be: and let them know that God ruleth in Jacob unto the ends of the earth. Selah" (Ps. 59:13).

"Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more" (Ps. 104:35).

"And the destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake the LORD shall be consumed" (Is. 1:28).

"Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the LORD of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel" (Is. 5:24).

"Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire. And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day; And shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and they shall be as when a standardbearer fainteth" (Is. 10:16-18).

"For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off" (Is. 29:20).

"For our God is a consuming fire" (Heb. 12:29).

Examples:

"Understand therefore this day, that the LORD thy God is he which goeth over before thee; as a consuming fire he shall destroy them" (Deut. 9:3).

"Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation" (Ex. 32:10).

"And when the people complained, it displeased the LORD: and the LORD heard it; and his anger was kindled; and the fire of the LORD burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp" (Num. 11:1).

"And there came out a fire from the LORD, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense" (Num. 16:35).

"And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty."

"And Elijah answered and said unto them, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty."

"Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties: therefore let my life now be precious in thy sight" (2 Kings 1:10, 12, 14).

"Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord GOD" (Ezek. 22:31).

The Wicked to Be Reduced to Ashes

"I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire."

"Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee" (Ezek. 28:16, 18).

"And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts" (Mal. 4:3).

"And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly" (2 Pet. 2:6).

The Wicked to Be Devoured or Eaten

"Thou shalt make them as a fiery oven in the time of thine anger: the LORD shall swallow them up in his wrath, and the fire shall devour them" (Ps. 21:9).

"Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him" (Ps. 50:3).

"Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the LORD of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel" (Is. 5:24).

"For wickedness burneth as the fire: it shall devour the briers and thorns, and shall kindle in the thickets of the forest, and they shall mount up like the lifting up of smoke. 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" (Is. 9:18, 19).

"Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire. And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day; And shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and they shall be as when a standardbearer fainteth" (Is. 10:16-18).

"I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire."

"Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee" (Ezek. 28:16, 18).

"Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath, as fire, shall devour you. And the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire" (Is. 33:11, 12).

"For the moth shall eat them up like a garment, and the worm shall eat them like wool: but my righteousness shall be for ever, and my salvation from generation to generation" (Is. 51:8).

"O house of David, thus saith the LORD; Execute judgment in the morning, and deliver him that is spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor, lest my fury go out like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings."

"But I will punish you according to the fruit of your doings, saith the LORD: and I will kindle a fire in the forest thereof, and it shall devour all things round about it" (Jer. 21:12, 14).

"What do ye imagine against the LORD? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time. For while they be folden together as thorns, and while they are drunken as drunkards, they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry" (Nah. 1:9, 10).

"And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them" (Rev. 20:9). ["Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup" (Ps. 11:6).]

Examples:

"And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD" (Lev. 10:2).

"But if ye will not hearken unto me to hallow the sabbath day, and not to bear a burden, even entering in at the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched" (Jer. 17:27).

"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. He hath bent his bow like an enemy: he stood with his right hand as an adversary, and slew all that were pleasant to the eye in the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion: he poured out his fury like fire" (Lam. 2:3, 4).

"Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; As the vine tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And I will set my face against them; they shall go out from one fire, and another fire shall devour them; and ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I set my face against them" (Ezek. 15:6, 7).

"Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel" (Amos 5:6).

The Wicked to Be Burned Up

"A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about" (Ps. 97:3).

"And the destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake the LORD shall be consumed."

"And the strong shall be as tow, and the maker of it as a spark, and they shall both burn together, and none shall quench them" (Is. 1:28, 31).

"Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire. And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day; And shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and they shall be as when a standardbearer fainteth" (Is. 10:16-18).

"For wickedness burneth as the fire: it shall devour the briers and thorns, and shall kindle in the thickets of the forest, and they shall mount up like the lifting up of smoke. 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" (Is. 9:18, 19).

"Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath, as fire, shall devour you. And the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire" (Is. 33:11, 12).

"Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame: there shall not be a coal to warm at, nor fire to sit before it" (Is. 47:14).

"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. For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many."

"And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh" (Is. 66:15, 16, 24).

"The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein" (Nah. 1:5).

"For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch."

"And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts" (Mal. 4:1, 3).

"And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire."

"Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire" (Mat. 3:10, 12).

"As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth" (Mat. 13:40-42).

"Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: but the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men" (2 Pet. 3:6).

Examples:

"Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings."

"Set up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction" (Jer. 4:4, 6).

"But if ye will not hearken unto me to hallow the sabbath day, and not to bear a burden, even entering in at the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched" (Jer. 17:27).

"O house of David, thus saith the LORD; Execute judgment in the morning, and deliver him that is spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor, lest my fury go out like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings."

"But I will punish you according to the fruit of your doings, saith the LORD: and I will kindle a fire in the forest thereof, and it shall devour all things round about it" (Jer. 21:12, 14).

"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. He hath bent his bow like an enemy: he stood with his right hand as an adversary, and slew all that were pleasant to the eye in the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion: he poured out his fury like fire" (Lam. 2:3, 4).

"Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; As the vine tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And I will set my face against them; they shall go out from one fire, and another fire shall devour them; and ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I set my face against them" (Ezek. 15:6, 7).

"And I will pour out mine indignation upon thee, I will blow against thee in the fire of my wrath, and deliver thee into the hand of brutish men, and skilful to destroy. Thou shalt be for fuel to the fire; thy blood shall be in the midst of the land; thou shalt be no more remembered: for I the LORD have spoken it" (Ezek. 21:31, 32).

"Seek the LORD, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it in Bethel" (Amos 5:6).

The Wicked and Their Names to Be Blotted Out

"The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven" (Deut. 29:20).

"Thou hast rebuked the heathen, thou hast destroyed the wicked, thou hast put out their name for ever and ever" (Ps. 9:5).

"Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous" (Ps. 69:28).

Hell's Fire Destroys Both Soul and Body

"Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire. And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day; And shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and they shall be as when a standardbearer fainteth" (Is. 10:16-18).

"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 soul and body in hell" (Mat. 10:28).

The Wicked to Be Put Out or Put Away or Taken Away

"Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross: therefore I love thy testimonies" (Ps. 119:119).

"The light of the righteous rejoiceth: but the lamp of the wicked shall be put out" (Prov. 13:9).

"For there shall be no reward to the evil man; the candle of the wicked shall be put out" (Prov. 24:20).

"Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown: yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth: and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble" (Is. 40:24).

Examples:

"How oft is the candle of the wicked put out! and how oft cometh their destruction upon them!" (Job 21:17).

The Wicked Will Perish

"The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish" (Ps. 1:4-6).

"Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little" (Ps. 2:12).

"When mine enemies are turned back, they shall fall and perish at thy presence" (Ps. 9:3).

"The LORD is King for ever and ever: the heathen are perished out of his land" (Ps. 10:16).

"But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away" (Ps. 37:20).

"As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God" (Ps. 68:2).

"For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee" (Ps. 73:27).

"For, lo, thine enemies, O LORD, for, lo, thine enemies shall perish; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered" (Ps. 92:9).

"His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish" (Ps. 146:4).

"A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaketh lies shall perish" (Prov. 19:9).

"A false witness shall perish: but the man that heareth speaketh constantly" (Prov. 21:28).

"They are dead, they shall not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish" (Is. 26:14).

"Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish. Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, even them that contended with thee: they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought" (Is. 41:11, 12). [Verses 18 and 19 indicate to me that what is described above takes place just before the creation of the new heavens and new earth of Rev. 21.]

"Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish" (Mat. 18:14).

"I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish."

"I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3, 5).

"And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:14-16). [In the wilderness, those who did not look at the serpent on the pole died. In the same manner, those who do not look to Christ shall perish or die.]

"And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand" (John 10:28).

"But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money" (Acts 8:20).

"For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law" (Rom. 2:12).

"For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God" (1 Cor. 1:18).

"And through thy knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died" (1 Cor. 8:11).

"For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish" (2 Cor. 2:15).

"And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved" (2 Thess. 2:10).

"For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways" (Jam. 1:11). [Is. 40:6-8 uses similar language to compare the mortal nature of man with the immortal nature of God's Word.]

"But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption" (2 Pet. 2:12).

"The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Pet. 3:9).

Examples:

"And when he looked on Amalek, he took up his parable, and said, Amalek was the first of the nations; but his latter end shall be that he perish for ever."

"And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim, and shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall perish for ever" (Num. 24:20, 24).

"I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed" (Deut. 4:26).

"I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it" (Deut. 30:18).

"Know for a certainty that the LORD your God will no more drive out any of these nations from before you; but they shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you" (Josh. 23:13).

"For the whole house of Ahab shall perish: and I will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel" (2 Kings 9:8).

"And the letters were sent by posts into all the king's provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, even upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to take the spoil of them for a prey" (Est. 3:13).

"For we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain, and to perish. But if we had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen, I had held my tongue, although the enemy could not countervail the king's damage" (Est. 7:4).

"Wherein the king granted the Jews which were in every city to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life, to destroy, to slay, and to cause to perish, all the power of the people and province that would assault them, both little ones and women, and to take the spoil of them for a prey" (Est. 8:11).

"Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish" (Ps. 49:20).

"And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, 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. And if thy right hand offend thee, cut if 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" (Mat. 5:29, 30).

"Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword" (Mat. 26:52).

"And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish" (Mark 4:38).

"From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation" (Luke 11:51).

"Nevertheless I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem" (Luke 13:33).

"And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished" (1 Cor. 15:17, 18).

"By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace" (Heb. 11:31).

"Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: but the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men" (2 Pet. 3:6, 7).

The Wicked to Be Cut, Dashed, Broken, or Torn in Pieces

"Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel" (Ps. 2:9).

"Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver" (Ps. 50:22).

"Let them melt away as waters which run continually: when he bendeth his bow to shoot his arrows, let them be as cut in pieces" (Ps. 58:7).

The Wicked to Melt Away

"Let them melt away as waters which run continually: when he bendeth his bow to shoot his arrows, let them be as cut in pieces" (Ps. 58:7).

"As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God" (Ps. 68:2).

Examples:

"Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you in the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst thereof. As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I the LORD have poured out my fury upon you."

"Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord GOD" (Ezek. 22:21, 22, 31).

The Wicked to Be No More

"For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be."

"Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found" (Ps. 37:10, 36)

"Consume them in wrath, consume them, that they may not be: and let them know that God ruleth in Jacob unto the ends of the earth. Selah" (Ps. 59:13).

"Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth, and let the wicked be no more" (Ps. 104:35).

"As the whirlwind passeth, so is the wicked no more: but the righteous is an everlasting foundation" (Prov. 10:25).

"The wicked are overthrown, and are not: but the house of the righteous shall stand" (Prov. 12:7).

"Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish. Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, even them that contended with thee: they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought" (Is. 41:11, 12).

"For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been" (Obad. 16).

The Wicked to Be Overthrown

"The wicked are overthrown, and are not: but the house of the righteous shall stand" (Prov. 12:7).

The Wicked to Be As Smoke or to Be Dissolved

"But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away" (Ps. 37:20).

"As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God" (Ps. 68:2).

"The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolved: I bear up the pillars of it. Selah" (Ps. 75:3).

The Wicked to Be Cut Off or Cut Down

"Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb."

"For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth."

"For such as be blessed of him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of him shall be cut off."

"For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off."

"Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it."

"But the transgressors shall be destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be cut off" (Ps. 37:1, 2, 9, 22, 28, 34, 38)

"And he shall bring upon them their own iniquity, and shall cut them off in their own wickedness; yea, the LORD our God shall cut them off" (Ps. 94:23).

"But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it" (Prov. 2:22).

"For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off" (Is. 29:20).

"Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off" (Nah. 1:15). [Cf. vs. 10.]

The Wicked to Be Killed

"Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate" (Ps. 34:21).

"How long will ye imagine mischief against a man? ye shall be slain all of you: as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence" (Ps. 62:3).

"Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O God: depart from me therefore, ye bloody men" (Ps. 139:19).

"They are dead, they shall not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish" (Is. 26:14).

"But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked" (Is. 11:4). ["For Tophet is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; he hath made it deep and large: the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it" (Is. 30:33).]

"For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter. Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood. And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree" (Is. 34:2-4).

"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. For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many."

"And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh" (Is. 66:15, 16, 24).

"Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die."

"The soul that sinneth, it shall die."

"When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die" (Ezek. 18:4, 20, 26). [Two deaths are referred to in this last verse. One who dies in his iniquity shall die a second time.]

"And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death" (Rev. 20:14).

"But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death" (Rev. 21:8).

Examples:

"And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea" (Rev. 16:3).

The Wicked to Be Rooted Out or Plucked Out

"God shall likewise destroy thee for ever, he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living. Selah" (Ps. 52:5).

"But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it" (Prov. 2:22).

The Wicked to Be As Stubble

"Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the LORD of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel" (Is. 5:24).

"Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath, as fire, shall devour you. And the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire" (Is. 33:11, 12).

"Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown: yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth: and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble" (Is. 40:24).

"Behold, they shall be as stubble; the fire shall burn them; they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame: there shall not be a coal to warm at, nor fire to sit before it" (Is. 47:14).

"For while they be folden together as thorns, and while they are drunken as drunkards, they shall be devoured as stubble fully dry" (Nah. 1:10).

"For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch" (Mal. 4:1). [Satan is the root and his followers are the branches.]

The Day After Hell's Fire Finally Goes Out

"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away" (Rev. 21:4). [If hell was still burning, this statement could not be true.]

The Wicked and Earth Reserved Until Day of Judgment

"Have ye not asked them that go by the way? and do ye not know their tokens, that the wicked is reserved to the day of destruction? they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath" (Job 21:29, 30).

"For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment."

"The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished" (2 Pet. 2:4, 9).

"But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men" (2 Pet. 3:7).

"And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day" (Jude 6).