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| Q44 What shall be done to the wicked at the day of judgement? |
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Q. 44. What shall be done to the wicked at the
day of judgement?
A. At the day of
judgement, the bodies of the wicked, being raised out of their graves, shall be
sentenced, together with their souls, to unspeakable torments with the devil and
his angels forever. (Dan. 12:2; John 5:28-29; 2 Thess. 1:9; Matt. 25:41).
a. The bodies of the
wicked shall be resurrected too on the great day, united with their spirit, but they to eternal shame and
misery in the lake of fire.
- Rev 20:15 “And
whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of
fire.”
- The final and eternal destiny is the lake of fire; hell is the temporary place during the disembodied state between physical death and the general resurrection.
b. “… with the devil
and his angels forever”
- Rev 20:10 “And the
devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where
the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for
ever and ever."
- Yes, with Satan in the lake of fire for eternity.
- Compare Mt 25:41
and Rev 20:10. Are they speaking of the same place?
- Compare Rev 20:1
and Rev 20:10. Are they speaking of the same thing?
c. Distinct and
different casting out of Satan
- Satan was CAST OUT
of heaven down UNTO the earth (Rev 12:9) at the initial rebellion...
- Satan was bound
and CAST INTO the bottomless pit (Rev 20:1)...
- Satan was CAST
INTO the lake of fire at the end of time, Rev 20:10.
- Some angels that
sinned were CAST DOWN to hell and delivered into chains of darkness, reserved
unto the great judgment day (2Pet 2:4, Jude 6).
Q. Do you consider the sin that got Satan and his hosts CAST OUT of heaven to the earth (Rev 12), and the sin that got the angels that sinned CAST DOWN to hell and delivered into chains of darkness, reserved unto the great judgment day (2Pet 2:4, Jude 6) to be one and the same sin or are they two distinct and separate sins?
Let's consider each of these a little bit more.
c (i) Satan was CAST
OUT of heaven down UNTO the earth (Rev 12:9) at the initial rebellion...
- What happened? Pride was the original sin of
Lucifer.
- Before being cast
out of heaven, Lucifer was a high-ranking, majestic, and wise angel; a cherub
who held a position of great authority and perfection. He was created sinless
but fell due to pride, desiring to elevate his throne above God.
His sin of pride and
condemnation are stated here:
1Tim 3:6 Not a
novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the
devil.
The 3-verse
paragraph of Rev 12:7-9 gives a glimpse of this account.
7 ¶ And there was
war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon
fought and his angels,
8 And prevailed not;
neither was their place found any more in heaven.
9 And the great
dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which
deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were
cast out with him.
The fact that there was a war in heaven obviously implied that Satan and his angels RESISTED being OUSTED. They wanted to remain in heaven but were no longer fit because of their sin - "neither was their place found any more in heaven."
It is like Adam and Eve needed to be DRIVEN OUT of the Garden of Eden, Gen 3:24, and securely guarded the garden – cherubim with a flaming sword.
Satan and his angels
were EXPELLED, CAST OUT of heaven DOWN to the earth.
c (ii) Satan was
bound and CAST INTO the bottomless pit (Rev 20:1)
- When did this
happen? It happened at Christ’s first coming and as an effect of His redemptive
work.
This happened at the
BEGINNING of the 1000 years.
- Christ’s work of
redemption curtailed and restricted the power and influence of Satan, described
in Rev 20:1-3.
1 And I saw an angel
come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain
in his hand.
2 And he laid hold
on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a
thousand years
3 And cast him into
the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should
deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and
after that he must be loosed a little season.
“THAT he should
deceive the nations (ethnoi – people groups/nations) no more.”
- Before Christ’s
work of redemption, except the Jews, all the other nations were DECEIVED.
- After Christ’s
work of redemption, God’s redeeming work is revealed to all nations. Rev 7:9
Rev 20:3 declares
that Satan MUST BE LOOSED a little season “till the thousands should be
fulfilled.”
- The 1000 years
refers to the long but definite period spanning the two comings of Christ; the
starting point was His first coming and the terminal point will be His second
coming. “A little season” is negligible in the context of the long 1000 years.
c (iii) Satan shall be CAST INTO the lake of fire at the end of time,
Rev 20:10
- In Rev 20:3, Satan
shall be loosed a little season…
- Then he shall be
cast into the lake of fire. GAME OVER for Satan.
- The redeemed shall be forever and
immutably delivered from him.
- This SHALL happen
at the END of the symbolic “1000 years”, at Christ second coming and during the
great and final judgment.
c (iv) Some angels
that sinned were CAST DOWN to hell and delivered into chains of darkness,
reserved unto the great judgment day (2 Pet 2:4, Jude 6).
- The two passages
are grievously misunderstood by not a few CLUELESS and CARELESS Bible students…
even though the recipients of the epistles understood what was said without further elaboration by Apostle Peter or Elder Jude.
- Many, including
some intelligent folks, flippantly equate this with the original sin
of Lucifer stated above in c(i).
If a man has an
ounce of common sense, he can readily see that these two passages are speaking
of the same event, and it is an entirely different incident from the sin that
got Lucifer and his angels cast out of heaven down to the earth.
But common sense is uncommon today.
The sins involved were completely different, and the consequences/condemnations were completely different, too.
Aren't they SO
OBVIOUS! Thus, the question:
Q. Do you consider
the sin that got Lucifer/Satan and his hosts CAST OUT of heaven unto the earth
(Rev 12), and the sin that got the angels that sinned CAST DOWN to hell and
delivered into chains of darkness, reserved unto the great judgment day (2Pet
2:4, Jude 6) to be one and the same sin or are they two distinct and separate
sins?
If they were the
same, what are some NECESSARY implications?
Thank you for your
attention.
