RUSHWAVE: Establishing Believers in the Christian Faith

from The Judgment God Desires to Withhold

Chapter 8: Perishing as being Sentenced to Darkness

Hell’s torments can be likened to being sentenced to the most dark, desolate place imaginable.

In God’s righteous judgment, He sentences sinners to what can best be understood as a remote, faraway realm where there is no light. There is only darkness.

[They] will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 8:12
Throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 22:13
For whom the black darkness has been reserved. 2 Peter 2:17
For whom the black darkness has been reserved forever. Jude 13

In this description of punishment, it is not “darkness” to which sinners are sentenced, but “outer darkness.” It is as if the word “darkness” does not adequately convey just how bleak, remote and dark this place is. If one could outline an area of darkness, sinners would be “cast” or “thrown” to the outermost ends of that area. It is as if they are thrown into a black hole on the edge of the universe …

Three aspects of hell are revealed in it being described as a place of darkness: remoteness, desolation and isolation.

Hell’s darkness reveals the wicked have an overwhelming sense of being utterly separated. They are remote in the most distant way conceivable.

Darkness can be experienced different ways. There is a difference between being in darkness while in a beautiful, colorful garden as opposed to a deep, bottomless pit. In a garden where there is no light you are still aware you are surrounded by beautiful things. You can still smell the flowers, touch the trees, and feel the wind. And even if you could not smell, touch or feel these things, you would still be aware you are in a garden — it just happens to be very dark outside. However in a bottomless pit darkness envelopes you. You are aware the darkness is characteristic of where you are: a place that is far, far away from everything else.

The sense of remoteness and inaccessibility in hell is referenced in Jesus’ parable of the evil rich man and Lazarus. Abraham is portrayed as being “far away” from the evil rich man saying “between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us” (Luke 16:23–26). Jesus employs this imagery to reinforce hell is a place where there is a sense of being completely unreachable.

Hell’s darkness reveals the wicked are sentenced to a dismal, barren, desolate existence. There is nothing to stimulate or inspire in hell; there is nothing interesting or fascinating. There is only darkness.

Previously the earthly analogy of being in a bottomless pit was used to emphasize the sense of hell being a remote, distant, faraway place. But we can take that analogy even further to emphasize another aspect. A bottomless pit is not only an inaccessible place. It is a barren, desolate place.

In our earthly lives God grants the gift of sight and thereby allows us to see the wonders of His creation. There is the peaceful sunset and the blue sky filled with white, puffy clouds. There is the meandering stream, the crashing waves of the ocean, and the majestic mountain peaks. Without even considering the other human senses of sound, taste and touch, the ability to see the vast array of colors, motions and scenes within creation instills a sense of awe and wonder.

But in hell, there are no inspiring sights. There is absolutely nothing to arouse awe and wonder — absolutely nothing. Instead, there is just an overwhelming sense of emptiness and desolation.

Hell’s darkness reveals the wicked are utterly isolated. There are no companions or friends in hell; sinners are completely alone.

We can take the analogy of being in a bottomless pit even further. It is one thing to be in a remote, desolate bottomless pit with friends, but quite another to be there completely alone. The presence of companions would provide some degree of comfort in the darkness. But in hell there are no friends for there is no mercy.

It cannot be overstated how terrible this is. In hell there is no one to converse with. There is no one to hear. There are no expressions of sympathy from others to be heard. There are no consolations of “this won’t last forever; you will eventually get out of here.” There are no smiling faces to see; no eyes to connect with. There are no reassuring touches or comforting embraces. There is only complete, utter isolation. Whatever sense of loneliness a person feels in this world, it is nothing compared to that of those in hell.

These three aspects of outer darkness are absolutely terrifying when considered individually. How much more terrifying when considered together?

Perishing involves being tormented and afflicted on account of one’s evil deeds. This torment can be likened to the remoteness, desolation, and isolation one would feel being cast alone into the most unreachable, barren, darkest pit imaginable. The sensation of anguish is deep, intense and overwhelming.

from The Judgment God Desires to Withhold

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