"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS'” (Matt. 7:21-23).
"I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matt. 8:11-12).
Then He left the crowds and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him and said, "Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field." And He said, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the tares are the sons of the evil one; and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels. So just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then THE RIGHTEOUS WILL SHINE FORTH AS THE SUN in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear” (Matt. 13:36-43).
"So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 13:49,50).
"Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 25:30).
"Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire (Young’s Literal Translation – “age-during”) which has been prepared for the devil and his angels’” (Mat 25:41).
"These will go away into eternal punishment (Young’s Literal Translation – “age-during”), but the righteous into eternal life (Young’s Literal Translation – “age-during”)" (Mat. 25:46).
"If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire [where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE, AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED]. If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into hell [where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE, AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED]. If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell, where THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE, AND THE FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED. For everyone will be salted with fire” (Mk. 9:42-50).
Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham's bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried out and said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.' (Lk. 16:22-24). Note: Ultimately, death and Hades are cast into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:14).
Jesus’ summary of the end of the wicked (taken from the verses above)
- Salted with fire – This is experienced by both the godly and wicked (Mk. 9:49).
- The wicked will experience eternal (i.e., literally, age-during) punishment in a furnace of fire which involves agony, weeping, and gnashing of teeth, and ultimately are burned up (terminated) as illustrated by the tares which are burned with fire (Matt. 13:40). Even sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness (Hmm… maybe Pharisees who do not really know Christ? - Matt. 7:20-23; 25:41; Lk. 13:27).
- THEIR WORM DOES NOT DIE – Vines Complete Expository Dictionary of NT Words says: "a worm which preys upon dead bodies," is used metaphorically by the Lord in Mk. 9:48; in some manuscripts Mk. 9:44, 46, cf. Isa. 66:24. The statement signifies the exclusion of the hope of restoration, the punishment being eternal.
- Gnashing of teeth is done as an evidence of anger. When Stephen spoke to the Jewish Council, “They were furious and gnashed their teeth at him” (Acts 7:54).
- “The wicked plot against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them” (Psa. 37:12; Psa. 35:16; 112:10; and Lam.2:16).
- In these passages, wicked persons gnash their teeth at righteous persons as they plot against them or disapprove of them. Gnashing teeth was a sign of disrespect and anger.
- How long is “age-during?” Answer: It depends on what it is describing. For Jonah, it was three days. For heaven it is eternity, since heaven is described as an age and an age (multiple ages coupled together). For Hades it is limited, since Hades is cast into the Lake of Fire. For a full treatment of this subject, see Age, Eternity, & Immortality Explored In-Depth.
Various viewpoints some hold
- A second chance? Some scholars believe that after death, people will be offered another opportunity to experience God’s love and repent and avoid eternal destruction. There appears to be no verse in the Bible that would say this is not a possibility. If this does occur, it is assumable that some will repent and come to Jesus. Others will likely remain angry and gnash their teeth at Him. The verse some might use to say there is no second chance to repent is Hebrews 9:27 – “it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment.” However, there is a lot of wiggle room in this verse. I can say I went to Singapore and after that to Australia. That doesn’t address the period of time between Singapore and Australia, or the things which I may have done during that period of time, or what happened after I went to Australia. So, Hebrews 9:27 leaves open much room for many additional things to happen and Christ presenting His amazing love to everyone, so that they have a full, free opportunity to accept Him is certainly not excluded by Hebrews 9:27.
- Ultimate Reconciliation believes: "If I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to Myself" (Jn. 12:32). Thayer’s Greek Definitions - “Draw” is literally “drag:” (metaphorically, to draw by inward power, lead, impel). Ultimate Reconciliation believes “love wins.” This is different from the view of Universalism which believes that there are many ways to God, and you don’t need to go through Christ. However, the Bible is clear: Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” (Jn. 14:6).
Research articles by Mark Virkler
- Three Views of Hell - An introduction to what these three views are
- Age, Eternity & Immortality Explored In-Depth – Demonstrates from Scripture that the word translated eternity can be as short as three days, and that immortality is extended ONLY to those accepting the gospel. The wicked are NOT immortal, so they perish.
- Research Hell, Hades, Lake of Fire, Book of Life – Read every verse in the New Testament which contains these words so you know exactly what they say.
- Explore every verse from Young’s Literal Translation containing the Greek words aion/aionios – YLT never uses the word eternal, but instead “age-during”.
- Explore what Jesus said about the end of the unrighteous – Get it direct from the Master.
- Sheol – The Old Testament Word for Hades
- 38 New Testament Verses on Fire
