Hell is a reality. It is the place called "Gahena" in the Old Testament. An OT city would throw their refuse into a burning pile. This fire rarely went out. And so the analogy to hell is made making way for the revelation that hell is where the nonbelievers will end up - in a place of eternal burning.

This burning may not be literal. Regardless, no one in hell will be remembered. They will be forgotten by God and live eternally in hell.

The meaning of life is that God is building His Church. The Church is the people who are saved by God. Once the LORD's Church is completed, then all those who do not belong to His Church will be thrown into the flames - jaust as in the OT city which threw its refuse into the ever-buring fire.

The following verses are evidence of the reality of hell:

Matthew 5:22
But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.

Matthew 5:29
If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

Matthew 5:30
And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.

Matthew 10:28
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Matthew 16:18
And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades [ Or hell] will not overcome it.

Matthew 18:9
And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

Matthew 23:15
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

Matthew 23:33
“You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?

Mark 9:43
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out.

Mark 9:45
And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.

Mark 9:47
And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell,

Luke 12:5
But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.

Luke 16:23
In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.

James 3:6
The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

2 Peter 2:4
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment;...

Deuteronomy 32:22
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. NOTE: amazingly I just read this now (10/29/05) and realized that in Revelation God promises to destroy the earth with fire... it harmonizes with this verse in the OT! All glory to God!

2 Samuel 22:6
The sorrows of hell compassed me about; the snares of death prevented me;

Job 11:8
It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know?

Job 26:6
Hell is naked before him, and destruction hath no covering.

Psalm 9:17
The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

Psalm 16:10
For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

Psalm 18:5
The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me.

Psalm 55:15
Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.

Psalm 86:13
For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.

Psalm 116:3
The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow.

Psalm 139:8
If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.

Proverbs 5:5
Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

Proverbs 7:27
Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death.

Proverbs 9:18
But he knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths of hell.

Proverbs 15:11
Hell and destruction are before the LORD: how much more then the hearts of the children of men?

Proverbs 15:24
The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell beneath.

Proverbs 23:14
Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.

Proverbs 27:20
Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied.

Isaiah 5:14
Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.

Isaiah 14:9
Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations.

Isaiah 14:15
Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.

Isaiah 28:15
Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:

Isaiah 28:18
And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.

Isaiah 57:9
And thou wentest to the king with ointment, and didst increase thy perfumes, and didst send thy messengers far off, and didst debase thyself even unto hell.

Ezekiel 31:16
I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall, when I cast him down to hell with them that descend into the pit: and all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, shall be comforted in the nether parts of the earth.

Ezekiel 31:17
They also went down into hell with him unto them that be slain with the sword; and they that were his arm, that dwelt under his shadow in the midst of the heathen.

Ezekiel 32:21
The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of hell with them that help him: they are gone down, they lie uncircumcised, slain by the sword.

Ezekiel 32:27
And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised, which are gone down to hell 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.

Amos 9:2
Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down:

Jonah 2:2
And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice.

Habakkuk 2:5
Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine, he is a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all people:

Matthew 5:22
But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

Matthew 5:29
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.

Matthew 5:30
And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it 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.

Matthew 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.

Matthew 11:23
And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.

Matthew 16:18
And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Matthew 18:9
And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.

Matthew 23:15
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

Matthew 23:33
Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

Mark 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:

Mark 9:45
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:

Mark 9:47
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:

Luke 10:15
And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell.

Luke 12:5
But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.

Luke 16:23
And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

Acts 2:27
Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

Acts 2:31
He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.

James 3:6
And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.

2 Peter 2:4
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;

Revelation 1:18
I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

Revelation 6:8
And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.

Revelation 20:13
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.

Revelation 20:14
And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. Revelation 20:13-15 (in Context) Revelation 20 (Whole Chapter)

You may be wondering what's the point of all this - all these verses? The point is that man loves to deny the existence of hell written in the Bible. So this is evidence - 'hell' is mentioned throughout the Bible. It is a warning to those who do not believe and a reminder to those who do, yet continue to follow the world and its ways.

My wish is that you would believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as the promised Messiah, and only Begotten Son, of our LORD God Almighty as He prophesied to us through the Old Testament, in Jesus' name, amen.

Sabbath, 10/29/05, 10:07 AM EST USA
I remember that my conclusion about hell was that it is separation from God. The Bible doesn't say that explicitly or implicitly. And I know it is dangerous to deviate from the meaning and text of God's word. If we come up with something we should have at least a few verses which harmonize with the way God has openned our eyes, namely, according to the Bible. For God's word alone is truth and there is no wisdom in man's words - including mine. (As I have said: don't follow me, rather follow Christ.)

The idea was that since Christ descended into hell, then He must have been separated from God. But this is a contradiction since Christ is one with the Father and so there is no way that Christ could be separated from God. I thought about this and realized that the idea of "hell is separation from God" must be dropped. In the end the people who descend into hell will be forgotten, but that is only in the end.

Christ, and all of God's elect, cannot be removed from God's grip. No one will take a child who belongs to God - no one. Praise God!

I still have no understanding for this.