Isa 66:24  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.

Mr 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
37  Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

   In my previous two studies on outer darknessand  fire  we caught but a small glimpse of what these two verses mean. It has been argued that man does not actually possess a soul as a separate element of his makeup. Rather he is a soul. We have for example the statement by Peter in 1Pe 3:20;  eight souls were saved by water. Here the word soul is a general reference to the whole person. We sometimes say of a person... "He is a gentle soul". But this kind of language is in no way calculated to teach the makeup of the nature of man nor does it deny the fact that he possesses a soul that is separate from the body and can, as Christ tells us, be lost. In the Bible both are true. Men are referred to as "souls" and are also said to possess a soul.
Lu 21:19 In your patience possess ye your souls.
So, when the wicked die it is said of them that they have "lost their souls". This is that part of the creature that is the true person. The physical body does not constitute the true person for it can change drastically and yet there be no change in the real person. Our bodies are changing all the time and sometimes undergo radical changes such as the loss of limbs in accidents or operations but the person is still the same he always was. That's because the only way to change the personality is by way of the heart, or soul. When a change takes place here then the person truly changes, either for the better or worse. The truth of soul and body being two separate elements of man's constitution is brought into focus in our Lord's teaching concerning  the future of the lost in hell. The aim of this paper is to examine the truth that the whole man, soul and body will undergo the wrath of God for sin in the place called hell. This is plainly set forth for example in the following passage;

Mr 9:43 And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the  fire that never shall be quenched:
44 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
45 And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
46 Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
47  And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to
enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast
into hell fire:
48  Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

   Notice the emphasis given by Christ here on the physical part of man. He mentions the hands; the feet; and the eyes and says that having life, even in a condition of being maimed by the removal of these members is far better then possessing the entire physical body in hell. Why is that? Because, as I pointed out in the previous studies, Christ here teaches that the fires of hell shall never be quenched and the hands, feet and eyes that caused one to sin shall endure the burning flames of the wrath of God forever! Some may attempt to avoid the force of this passage by saying that these are but figures of speech. This could well be the case until we come the the resurrection. It is at that point when these sayings of Christ shall have their literal fulfillment as the wicked are cast, both soul and body that has been resurrected, into hell! Just as Moses beheld the bush that was engulfed in fire but was not consumed... so the righteous shall "look upon the carcasses of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched;"  Folks, these passages are speaking of the physical body of man that shall be resurrected in the last day and cast into the Lake the burns with fire and brimstone where they shall forever be engulfed in flames and yet not be consumed! What a staggering thought! Then Christ reinforces this notion in no uncertain language in the following verse;

Mt 10:28 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.

   The context of this verse tells us that mortal men have power to kill each other but that power is limited. They are able to kill only the body but not the soul. If therefore body and soul were not separate elements this passage would make no sense. Christ then takes this concept and applies it to the fate of the lost and says that we ought to fear Him who is able to do what men cannot do; destroy both... the soul and the physical body in hell! Some tell us that the word "destroy" means that God will consign them to non-existence. Yet the Greek word, Apollumi, does not have this meaning nor is it ever translated as such. The lexicon tells us it means;
1) to destroy, i.e. to put out of the way entirely, abolish, put an end to, ruin, render useless, to kill, to declare that one must be put to death, to devote or give over to eternal misery.
2) to destroy i.e. to lose.

   If the resurrection of the lost will only result in their being sent back into non-being then what is the point of Christ's teaching that men should fear God? What fear is there in knowing that after I live a life of sin I shall be consigned to non-existence where I shall know nothing at all forever... I say, what fear is there in that? But if I am to look forward to the very real prospect of being "given over to eternal misery" by spending eternity in a furnace of fire or a raging lake of hot lava and brimstone and undergoing the unbearable pain and torment, not only in my soul but in my physical body as well, I say.... THAT might begin to frighten me enough to where I should do all in my power to avoid hell! And Jesus Christ told us that God is going to destroy both soul and body in hell. Hell then is not only a place where the souls of men will abide in the lost state undergoing the wrath of God for their sin but their souls will be re-united to the physical body at the resurrection as they then receive the full and just reward for their sin. This is the only way the resurrection passages can make any Biblical sense. Why would God resurrect the body and re-join it to the soul only to send the man back into non-existence? There is no passage in all the Bible that teaches such a thing. Christ Himself taught plainly that the resurrection shall involve the entire population of humanity which will include both saved and lost people. Observe;

Joh 5:28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
 29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.

And from Daniel in the Old Testament;

Da 12:2 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.

   It does not say of the wicked... "some to non-being" or the like; it says they will be awakened not only to shame but to everlasting contempt. They will be eternally contemptible in the eyes of the righteous who "look upon their carcases" because the fire that inflicts God's wrath which will remind all of the rebellious lives they lived... shall never be quenched. And the Apostle Paul tells us in Acts;

Ac 24:15 And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.

Wherefore? Only to send some back into non-being? Notice again;

Re 20: 12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is [the book] of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
 13  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
 14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
 15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

   Here, as it were, the entire creation is ransacked in search of the physical bodies of the race of men and we are all summoned as complete individuals before the judgment bar of God to receive the fruits of our labors. The results of those fruits are realized not just in the spirit but in the physical body as well and whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire both in soul and body! There is simply no escape from the force of the Biblical language. The ultimate destiny of the lost is that they shall be resurrected to endure conscious, endless suffering and torment of their sin and they shall do so in both soul and body, in the Lake that burns with fire... forever! This is the second death.

   Neither does the word "death" in the Bible depict the state of non-being as some would have us think. It may surprise some to see what the New Testament word for death is all about. Let us take a look at it here.

The Greek word is THANATOS. Found over 100 times it is the standard word for death".   Lexicon meaning;
1) the death of the body, i.e. that separation (whether natural or violent) of the soul and
the body by which the life on earth is ended; with the implied idea of future misery in the
state beyond, i.e. the power of death. Since the nether world, the abode of the dead, was
conceived as being very dark, it is equivalent to the region of thickest darkness i.e.
figuratively, a region enveloped in the darkness of ignorance and sin.
2) metaphorically, the loss of that life which alone is worthy of the name, i.e. the misery
of the soul arising from sin, which begins on earth but lasts and increases after the death
of the body.
3) the miserable state of the wicked dead in hell.
4) in the widest sense, death comprising all the miseries arising from sin, as well physical
death as the loss of a life consecrated to God and blessed in him on earth, to be followed
by wretchedness in the lower world.

   In the purest sense of the meaning, death is the entrance way to eternal misery because
of sin. This word is never translated "annihilate"; "non-being" etc. nor does it mean such.
Death according to the Bible, is not a change from existence to non-existence. It is a
change from one state or condition of existence to another state of existence as a result of the separation of the two essential elements of man, soul and body. Those who
die outside of Christ do not go from being to non-being. They go from the condition of
existence in this life as we know it to a condition of total misery and suffering in a place
called Hell because of their sin. There, in that place they are separated fully from God and all that gives man life and well-being. This is the very thing Christ was teaching in Luke 16. For the rich man in hell not so much as a drop of water was available to him. He was separated from all the goodness and blessing of God whereby men know any semblance of life. Thus Abraham tells him that there is a most fantastic and insurmountable separation, a "great gulf" and it is fixed... for all eternity! Well someone might say that since death is separation of soul and body and the resurrection is the re-joining of these again then at the resurrection even the lost will be delivered from death. This is a form of Universalism which teaches that the entire human race will ultimately be saved and enjoy eternal life. The only trouble with this idea is that it overlooks the fact that the wicked, as their souls are reunited to their bodies at the resurrection are cast into the Lake of Fire which is the second death!
Even the lexicon's definition portrays a "thumbnail" sketch of Hell, not non-being! And when we examine how the Bible uses the notion of death we find that non-being is not the condition at all. In Genesis for example God tells Adam that in the day that he eats of the tree he shall surely die. When Adam ate the tree did he then, at that very moment die? A "no" answer does great damage to the Word of God and we must then re-define what God means when He speaks. Yes! The moment he ate the fruit Adam "died". Did he then cease to exist? Not at all. Adam went from one state or condition of existence to another by a process of separation. Before he ate he was in total communion and fellowship with God and enjoyed all the blessings of the fullness of life. But once he disobeyed, God withdrew from Adam and he experienced the separation, the fullness of which culminates in total separation from God of both soul and body in hell!
   In Ephesians 2 vss 1-3 we are informed that the lost, of which you and I once were, are in a state of "death" as they walk around in this world. Does this mean that the lost do not exist?! Not at all. They very much exist albeit in a state of separation and rebellion from God. This meaning of death is spelled out plainly right in the passage for notice;

Eph 2: 11 ¶ Wherefore remember, that ye [being] in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;
 12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

   It doesn't say.. "remember that you did not exist...". Rather it depicts the state of alienation and separation that the lost are in as they drink in the fullness of their sin while they exist in this world in a state of spiritual death.
   And again we are told by Paul in Romans that the wages of sin is death. Did Christ undergo the penalty for our sin on the cross in order to deliver us from the wrath to come? And how did our Savior deliver us from that wrath? By the payment of the debt due to our sin. He experienced death on our behalf. When Christ died as the result of our sin... did He then cease to exist!!! I say, the greatest testimony against the idea of annihilation is the very death of the Son of God Himself. When He died He did not cease to be! Rather He experienced that full and total separation from His Father that is the result of sin. He was abandoned of God and that's why He cries out... "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me". That's what death is dear people, abandonment by God, not cessation of being. May God deliver us.

   If it is true then that the lost shall enter into eternal misery in hell both in soul and body the natural question that comes to mind is... why? Why must God resurrect the bodies of sinful men who died without Christ and re-join them to their souls and then cast them into hell? Isn't hell hell enough with its outer darkness, weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth for ever? Is God some kind of demented fiend that takes great delight in seeing His creatures suffer; and to the fullest possible extent by giving them back their bodies that they may become fuel for the eternal fires of hell??! What necessitates suffering in hell in both soul and body? The answer is that it was in and with the physical body that men carried out their rebellion against God in this life. Men lust with their eyes. They kill with their hands. They fornicate with their physical members. The physical body is the instrument that men use to engage in their sin in this life and it will therefore be the instrument that shall receive the wrath of God for its sin in the next. The body is not something that came to man by some kind of evolutionary process. It is not something that man happened to find himself in possession of by some kind of accident or quirk of nature. No; it is something that was given to him by God for a specific purpose and the Bible is clear on this. Notice;

1Co 6:20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

   The purpose of the body is to bring glory to God. Shall men take that gift which God has given as a stewardship and abuse it by sinning all their lives and then expect that there shall be no consequences for that abuse? Not at all! Dear folks, the bodies of men that raised their fists in rebellion against the God who gave that body by indulging in all the fullness of sin in this life shall never escape the fullness of the torments of hell in the next life for that sin! In their bodies. In the fires of hell... forever! The book of Romans contains many exhortations as to how men are to use their bodies in this life...

Ro 6:19 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your  flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

   This whole chapter bristles with the use of the physical body and the results that will accrue because of that use. Thus Paul finishes with that great statement that the wages of sin is DEATH! This comes as a result of how men use their bodies in this life! Read it carefully and see the importance of the physical body. Then in chap. 12 we observe...

Ro 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye  present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, [which is] your reasonable service.

And in Phillippians...

Php 1:20 According to my earnest expectation and [my] hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but [that] with all boldness, as always, [so] now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether [it be] by life, or by death.

   Do not these verses make more sense now in the light of this truth... that men shall give account of the deeds done in the body as well as the soul? Observe;

2Co 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things [done] in [his] body, according to that he hath done, whether [it be] good or bad.

   Dear friends, be very careful how you use your physical body which is a gift from God and is not your own, for you shall give a full account of every use you make of that body.
Be careful how you dress the body; what you put into the body; how much you put into the body; where you allow the body to lie down; how long you allow the body to lie down; with whom you allow the body to lie down!!
Whatsoever things you do in the body you will receive back again at the judgment and then justice shall have its day if you are not in Christ and God shall require of you all that was ever done in the body. Then it will be too late to attempt to escape the judgment of God as these horrifying words thunder in your ears for all eternity... "Depart ye cursed into the everlasting fire...." and you shall do so in both soul and body..............

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