3702 — Tormented Forever and Ever
By Editor
Matt. 25:41 speaks of everlasting punish-ment, not everlasting punish-ing,—not a progressive process, but a completed act, a punishment which meets its finality. It is set over against what the righteous receive—life eternal; and the opposite of life eternal is eternal death, eternal cessation of existence. Let the Word of God tell us just what the meaning of "everlasting punishment" is. Turn to 2 Thess. 1:9. "Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction." Certainly this is very emphatic. The same thing is taught in Rom. 6:23: "The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." John the Baptist teaches the same thing: "He will . . . gather His wheat into the garner; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." Matt. 3:12. Rev. 20:10 declares that "the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are [were cast], and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever." The whole cue to this text turns on the word "tormented." The original Greek word is "basanos," a touchstone, or a stone from Lydia, called in Latin "lapis Lydius," used as a test stone to show alloy in metals by rubbing the metals upon it—at least it was supposed that it would do this—to try whether the metal was pure, or whether it contained alloy. God's touchstone is fire. "Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is." 1 Cor. 3:13. The same thing is set forth in a text before referred to, Matt. 3:12: "He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." See also Isa. 33:14: "Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?" And we are told in the next verse, "He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly." So when the presence of God shall set on fire the very foundations of the earth, the righteous will endure as did the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace. Those who know not God will perish, and perish forever and ever in the fires of the last day. For a fuller explanation of these texts and others, see Bible Students' Library, No. 111, "Tormented Forever and Ever." Price 2c.