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Lesson 25 Hope of Israel Ministries BIBLE Correspondence Course 13

interpret the MEANING of “unquenchable fire.” ashes, and is an eternal -- everlasting --
Did YEHOVAH God, over 2500 years ago, punishment, and not an everlasting punishing by
warn the wicked inhabitants of Jerusalem that torment, isn’t it?
He would kindle a fire in Jerusalem’s gates COMMENT: Punishing is a continuous
which would devour the palaces? Jeremiah action. Punishment has a time limit! YEHO-
17:27. Did YEHOVAH say this fire “shall NOT VAH God is merciful!
BE QUENCHED”? 6. Does YEHOVAH promise the
COMMENT: This fire did occur a few righteous a better world after this one is purified
years later and it did DESTROY all the houses of by fire? II Peter 3:13.
Jerusalem (Jeremiah 52:13). Since YEHOVAH
said no person or thing would quench this fire YEHOVAH God Is Love -- and Justice!
(“it shall not be quenched"), and since it is NOT
BURNING TODAY, it obviously went out BY The primary reason so many men and
ITSELF after accomplishing its purpose! organizations of men have a FALSE conception
3. And now for another example. What of “hell” is that they view the doctrine of hell just
PUNISHMENT befell the notorious cities of as an ISOLATED doctrine. They FAIL TO
Sodom and Gomorrah? Genesis 19:24. Was it UNDERSTAND the OVERALL PURPOSE of
LITERAL FIRE that destroyed human beings? YEHOVAH God in putting man on this earth, of
Luke 17:29. What do we read in Jude 7 about offering him the choice of receiving the gift of
this event? Did they have to “suffer the eternal life, if he obeys, or everlasting
vengeance of ETERNAL fire"? Is there still a punishment (not punishing) for disobedience.
fire burning in those cities which YEHOVAH YEHOVAH God created man in His
God set aflame long ago and destroyed? OF own image and likeness (Genesis 1:26). In the
COURSE NOT! Garden of Eden, He instructed man in the way
COMMENT: “ETERNAL fire” means that would lead to ETERNAL LIFE. Then He
a fire whose results are PERMANENT or told man that doing the WRONG thing -- eating
everlasting -- NOT a fire that BURNS FOR- of the fruit of the tree which YEHOVAH had
EVER! Sodom and Gomorrah have NEVER forbidden -- would lead to DEATH (Genesis
been rebuilt. 2:17). But Satan, the FATHER of all lies (John
The fires which burned these cities went 8:44), told the woman, “Ye shall not surely die”
out of themselves when they CONSUMED ALL (Genesis 3:4). He told her she had an “immortal
COMBUSTIBLE MATERIAL! Clearly none of soul”! And man has been believing that LIE ever
these scriptures can be used to show that “fire since!
that shall not be quenched" will torment people YEHOVAH’s purpose is to develop
forever and ever! holy, righteous character in man which will
4. Now try this experiment. Get a pan make man fit to receive ETERNAL LIFE.
and place some paper in it. Now strike a match to YEHOVAH God gave ancient Israel His
the paper. Notice how it BURNS. What commandments, “that it might be well with
HAPPENS to the fire after it consumes the them, and with their children for ever"
paper? IT GOES OUT! Did anyone “quench” it? (Deuteronomy 5:29).
Of course not! Notice that only ASHES are left. YEHOVAH’s decrees are always for
5. Are the wicked to be reduced to man’s good. They are not designed as arbitrary
ASHES by the fire which will destroy the earth’s decrees which YEHOVAH has set in order to
surface? Malachi 4:3. How can ASHES be have some excuse for plunging men into flames
tormented forever and ever? Then the “wages of of fire! Where do men get such ideas about
sin IS DEATH” by a reduction of the sinner to YEHOVAH God? Certainly not from the Bible!

What is “Hell”?