The Sad Fate of The
Unrepentant
24 "And they shall go out and look at the dead bodies of those who have rebelled against me, for their worm shall never die; their fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be a disgusting sight to all mankind" (Isaiah 66:24).[1]
In The Last Days of Human History,
The Unrepentant Will Face A Tragic And Horrible Fate
They will suffer eternal death and torment. Remember, death means to be separated. It does not mean to cease to exist. Physical death simply means that the soul is separated from the human body. Eternal death means that the soul is eternally separated from God's presence. Thus, the sinners of the earth who fail to repent are doomed to be eternally separated from God. Note that they will suffer throughout all eternity: the worms that devour their dead bodies will never die, which suggests that their souls will suffer eternally. And the fire that burns them will never be quenched. What a frightening, graphic picture of hell! The unrepentant will leave behind a disgusting, repulsive legacy. The picture being painted here is that of the Valley of Hinnom, which was located on the outskirts of Jerusalem. It was the garbage dump for the city, where the bodies of diseased or unclean corpses were sometimes burned. Christ used this picture to describe the sufferings of hell (Mk. 9:43–48; Mt. 5:22; Lu. 16:23; Lu. 16:24).
|
OUTLINE |
SCRIPTURE |
|
The Sad Fate of The Unrepentant a) They will be dead (separated from God) & punished eternally in an unquenchable fire b) They will have a disgusting, repulsive legacy |
24 And they shall go forth and
look upon the carcasses 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. |
V "But of the tree of the knowledge of
good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest
thereof thou shalt surely die" (Ge. 2:17).
V "The soul that sinneth, it shall die.
The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father
bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon
him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him" (Eze. 18:20).
V "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our
Lord" (Ro. 6:23).
V "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace" (Ro. 8:6).
V "But every man is tempted, when he is
drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it
bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death" (Js. 1:14–15).
V "Let him know, that he which converteth
the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death and shall
hide a multitude of sins" (Js.
5:20).
V "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" (Re. 21:8).
Thought 2. The person who turns to the Lord, obeying His commandments, and living a righteous life, will not face eternal death. But the unrepentant who refuses to turn away from his sins will suffer the just punishment for his or her evil behavior.
V "And these shall go away into
everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal" (Mt. 25:46).
V "And to you who are troubled rest with
us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not
the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting
destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power"
(2 Th. 1:7–9).
V "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 Pe. 2:9).
Thought 3. The ungodly and unrighteous of this earth will spend eternity in a place Jesus Christ called hell.
V "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" (Mt. 5:22).
V "But I say unto you, That whosoever
looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already
in his heart. And if thy right eye offends 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" (Mt. 5:28–29).
V "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" (Mt.
10:28).
V "Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot
offend thee, cut them off, and cast them
from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than
having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. 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" (Mt. 18:8–9).
V "Ye
serpents, ye generation of vipers,
how can ye escape the damnation of hell?" (Mt. 23:33).
V "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" (Lu.
12:5).
Thought 4. Many other Scriptures teach that the ungodly and unrighteous will be doomed to hell.
V "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" (Mt. 13:41–42).
V "And it came to pass, that the beggar
died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died
and was buried; And in hell 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" (Lu. 16:22–24).
V "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 spared not the old world, but saved
Noah the eighth person, a preacher of
righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly.… 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 Pe. 2:4–5, 9).
V "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 Pe. 3:7).
V "And the smoke of their torment
ascendeth up forever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship
the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name" (Re. 14:11).
V "And whosoever was not found written in
the book of life was cast into the lake of fire" (Re. 20:15).
V "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" (Re. 21:8).
Thought 5. Several commentators close the great book of Isaiah with statements that are well worth quoting:
(1)
The
Bible Knowledge Commentary says this:
This awesome way in which the majestic book of Isaiah concludes points to the need for unrepentant people to turn to the Lord, the only God, the Holy One of Israel.2
(2)
In closing, his comments on vv.
22–24, H.C. Leupold says this:
Peace eternal and death eternal! On this note, the book of Isaiah comes to a close.3
(3)
In his commentary on The Book of Isaiah, John N. Oswalt says this:
Thus, Isaiah's great book comes to its end in ways, not unlike those in which it began, with a reaffirmation of the great choice that lies before the human race: judgment or hope. But there is one great difference. The hope that the final chapters affirm is on the other side of judgment. Indeed, what they tell us is that since the Holy One of Israel is the Creator and the only God, even judgment can be turned to hope if we will let Him do it for us. No tragedy, no disaster, no fate that has befallen us because of our stubborn self-worship need be the final word for us while we yet breathe. This is the great good news of Isa. 52:13–53:12: God has entered into our judgment and taken it on Himself, and because of that, he can declare that finally, nothing can keep us from his love—except our own determination to persist in rebellion. This cosmos will be remade, and to all eternity, it will ring with the praises of those who, though "walking in darkness, have seen a great light" (9:1 [Eng2]), of those who live in that holy mountain where none will hurt or destroy (11:9; 65:25), of those from whom the shroud has been torn away forever (25:7).4
(4)
In The
Preacher's Commentary on Isaiah, David McKenna says this:
Once Isaiah saw God's vision for the future,
he never looked back. The progression of his prophecy from the current events
of his lifetime to the new exodus from Babylonian exile, followed by the coming
of the Messiah and the redemption of all nations, gives us our marching orders.
Sounding again the double imperative for Israel and the redeemed of all
generations to come, Isaiah urges us to leave the comfort and the splendor of
our Jerusalems to become His servants in the world.
Depart! Depart! Go out from there,
Touch no unclean thing;
Go out from the midst of her,
Be clean,
You who bear the vessels of the Lord.
For you shall not go out with haste,
Nor go by flight;
For the Lord will go before you
And the God of Israel will be your rear guard. (Is. 52:11–12).5
(5)
The excellent commentator Matthew Henry
says this:
Let the redeemed of the Lord with all
humility, and not without a holy trembling, sing their triumphant songs.6-[2]
Isaiah brings his book to a close with great drama. For the faithless, there is a sobering portrayal of judgment. For the faithful, there is a glorious picture of rich reward: "So will you always be my people, with a name that will never disappear." The contrast is so striking that it would seem that everyone would want to be God's follower. But we are often just as rebellious, foolish, and reluctant to change as the Israelites. We are just as negligent in feeding the hungry, working for justice, obeying God's Word, and taking up his causes. Make sure you are among those who will be richly blessed.[3]-7
Father God, thank you again for all you have done for us. We praise you and give you honor and blessing for who you are. May we live lives that reveal your love for this world, and may we, as your children, love others as you love us. In Jesus' name, we pray, Amen.
Isaiah Brings His Book To A Close With Great Drama. For The Faithless, There Is A Sobering Portrayal Of Judgment. For The Faithful, There Is A Glorious Picture Of Rich Reward.
[1] Taylor, Kenneth Nathaniel. 1997. The Living Bible, Paraphrased. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House.
2 John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, Editors. The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Old Testament, p. 1121.
3 H.C.
Leupold. Exposition of Isaiah, Vol.2,
p. 379.
4 John
N. Oswalt. The Book of Isaiah,
Chapters 40–66. “The New International Commentary on the Old Testament.” (Grand
Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1998), p. 693.
5 David
McKenna. Isaiah 40–66. The Preacher’s
Commentary on Isaiah. (Nashville, TN: Word Publishing, 1994, 2003), pp.
665–666.
6
Matthew Henry. Matthew Henry’s Commentary,
Vol.4, p. 397.
[2] Leadership Ministries Worldwide. 2005. Isaiah: Chapters
36–66. Vol. II. The Preacher’s Outline & Sermon Bible.
Chattanooga, TN: Leadership Ministries Worldwide.
3-7 Life Application
Bible Notes. 2007. Tyndale.
No comments:
Post a Comment