Not all great doctrines of the Bible are positive in nature.  The doctrine of eternal punishment is not anything over which to rejoice, but it is a reality—a reality that too many choose to either deny or ignore.  What is eternal punishment?

The place of eternal punishment is referred to in the New Testament as Gehenna, a figurative reference to the Valley of Hinnom, where, in Old Testament times, children were sacrificed to Molech (Jeremiah 32:35).  By the days of Jesus, this place had been turned into a city garbage dump.  Anything viewed as being unclean, including the carcasses of animals, and even the bodies of executed criminals, were cast into this dump.  To keep down the huge amount of refuse, fires were kept burning to consume the waste.  The word Gehenna is the Greek equivalent to the Hebrew word Hinnom, and Jesus figuratively referred to it to describe the place of eternal punishment.  The New Testament translates the term Gehenna as hell.

Matthew 5:30 (ESV)
³⁰  And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.

It is not surprising to find John referring to this place as a “lake of fire” (Revelation 20:14-15), given the figurative use Jesus made of Gehenna, a place that was on fire continuously.

Eternal punishment is a place where souls will be punished forever.  Some deny that there is going to be eternal punishment for those who are lost, saying that the lost simply cease to exist when they die, but that is contrary to the plain teaching found in the Word of God.  Jesus taught that there is going to be eternal punishment for those who fail to do the will of God.

Matthew 25:46 (ESV)
⁴⁶  And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

The word eternal here is aiōnios and means, “perpetual, forever, or everlasting” (Strong).  Notice that the life in this passage will only last as long as the punishment.  If one concludes that the punishment in this passage is less than forever, he must conclude the same about the life.  Life will be experienced in heaven, while punishment will be experienced in hell, and both are eternal.  This is the consistent teaching on the Bible doctrine of eternal punishment.  When John described the fate of those who worship the beast, he said the following:

Revelation 14:10-11 (NKJV)
¹⁰  He himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. ¹¹  And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”  

This place of punishment is described by Jesus as a fiery furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:42).  The only way to avoid it is by obeying the gospel of Christ (Romans 1:16) and getting our names into the book of life (Revelation 20:15).  Hell is a place that is too real, too dark, too painful, and too long to hesitate obeying the gospel and living faithfully to God unto death (Revelation 2:10).

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.