Pseudo Messiah

TexUs said:

But would you say, "THE FATHER" will kill his children? Which father? Only one father will ever kill his children?
It makes absolute no logical or grammatical sense taken literally like you want to take it.


But OK. I think you're taking it more symbolically than you're letting on.


So you'd say there are many antichrists.
But anytime you say "the antichrist" you are referring to the beast, is that right?

Click to expand...

1Jn 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that (THE) antichrist (THIS WORD IS SINGULAR) shall come, even now are there many antichrists (THIS WORD IS PLURAL); whereby we know that it is the last time.

Again, THE ANTICHRIST is referring to a particular being. If you can't understand that, just put it on the shelf, maybe you are not meant to know.

Which beast are you referring to, there are two.

tomwebster said:

1Jn 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that (THE) antichrist (THIS WORD IS SINGULAR) shall come, even now are there many antichrists (THIS WORD IS PLURAL); whereby we know that it is the last time.

Again, THE ANTICHRIST is referring to a particular being.

Click to expand...

So a SPECIAL Antichrist, not one THE Antichrist.

tomwebster said:

1Jn 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that (THE) antichrist (THIS WORD IS SINGULAR) shall come, even now are there many antichrists (THIS WORD IS PLURAL); whereby we know that it is the last time.

Again, THE ANTICHRIST is referring to a particular being. If you can't understand that, just put it on the shelf, maybe you are not meant to know.

Which beast are you referring to, there are two.

Click to expand...

Amen Tom! There are two beasts!!

The antichrist or "instead of Christ" is satan himself, claiming to be Christ. The whole world will wonder after him Rev. 13:3

Satan, the "instead of Christ" will come in peacefully and prosperously
Dan 8:24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.

Dan 8:25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.

Satan will be acting like Christ. By peace he destroys many.....It's a false peace. People think he is Christ and all will seem well....but if you worship him because of his deception into believing he is Christ....it can destroy you spiritually.




2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

2Th 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

Perditon- destruction, die, perish
There is only one named that has been sentenced to destruction, to perish and that is satan himself. All those who have lived in the flesh and died have to wait till Judgment day, which will not occur until the end of the millenium

Another clue: who exalts himself above God?


Isa 14:12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

Isa 14:13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:

Isa 14:14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.

TexUs said:

So a SPECIAL Antichrist, not one THE Antichrist.

Click to expand...

In Scripture when the word translated "antichrist" is preceded by the definite article "the" it is talking about a particular individual. Just like in Genesis when the word Adam is preceded by the particular article "The" it is talking about a certain man, "Adam." The antichrist is a particular individual, it does not matter if you agree or not.

tomwebster said:

In Scripture when the word translated "antichrist" is preceded by the definite article "the" it is talking about a particular individual. Just like in Genesis when the word Adam is preceded by the particular article "The" it is talking about a certain man, "Adam." The antichrist is a particular individual, it does not matter if you agree or not.

Click to expand...

So is there only one to come?

On one hand you say it's a particular individual and then on the other you say there's many. It can't be both.

TexUs said:

So is there only one to come?

On one hand you say it's a particular individual and then on the other you say there's many. It can't be both.

Click to expand...

You can believe anything you want, we'll see how it works out for you.

tomwebster said:

Are you so dull you can't understand anything? You can believe anything you want, we'll see how it works out for you.

Click to expand...

Ahhh, yes... Namecalling ad hominem. The last ditch effort of someone who built their house on the sand.

veteran said:

Like I said, hanging onto a fine thread is not how to study God's Word. Good grammar also includes staying in the context of what is being said; it's called 'reading comprehension' in English.


I Jn 2:18
18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist (Greek antichristos) shall come, even now are there many (Greek polloi) antichrists (Greek antichristoi); whereby we know that it is the last time.
(KJV)

The first "antichrist" John mentioned is Greek antichristos (antichrist-singular), made up of two Greek words, anti (against or instead of) and Christos (Christ). Note it does not have Greek polli (many) in front of it like that latter antichristoi (antichrists-plural) does. That's why the first time John used the word "antichrist" it's singular.

But who would want to hang a whole doctrine just on that, since context is just as important as the Greek tense? And what about other Bible witnesses of John's comparison regarding that verse? For every Truth in God's Word there will always be at least two witnesses.

The other 3 examples John gives in 1 John 2:22; 1 John 4:3; and 2 John 1:7 help, but only declare antichrist to be anyone who denies The Father and The Son and that Christ came in the flesh. That of course includes Satan, for he was the first to deny The Father and The Son, which is what the first sin was about when he first rebelled against God in coveting His Throne. Satan's sin was in wanting to be God, and wanting to be worshipped in place of God.


Apostle Paul gave another witness to what John said in that 1 John 2:18 verse...

2 Thess 2:6-11
6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.

That is the same subject John was speaking in 1 John 2:18 about "many antichrists" (polloi antichristoi) that "even now there are many" as compared to a singular "antichrist" (antichristos) "that shall come".


Just who is that "he" that Paul says "that he might be revealed in his time"? It's the one Paul warned of back in the 2 Thess.2:3-4 verses...

2 Thess 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
(KJV)

Notice the tense of that particular "he". It's singular. What that false one is to do is a very, very specific type of working, the SAME type of false working Satan did in the beginning when he first rebelled against God in coveting His Throne (Ezek.28; Isaiah 14).

Do you know what those on the 'many antichrists' only tradition of man want you to do with Paul's warning there? They want you to now go totally against the Greek tense of that singular false one in 2 Thess.2, and say that only means 'many'. They want you to replace all those words I underlined that Paul spoke with the idea of 'many'. How amazing it is they want you to change the tense to instead say, 'many sons of perdition', 'many men of sin', 'they' instead of "himself", and 'they' instead of "he".


8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming:
9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
(KJV)

PAUL IS WARNING OF A SPECIFIC FALSE ONE...
with "that Wicked", not many. The KJV translators even capitalized "Wicked" to let us know they understood Paul spoke of what, 'many'? or a singular Wicked one? The word "Wicked" is capitalized to show it applied as a PRONOUN. It's used as a title here for a specific person. The word "that" (Greek ho) makes it specifically singular.


So what about that "strong delusion" Paul links to "that Wicked" causing many to fall prey to "a lie"? What lie would cause many to fall away from Christ to that strong delusion of "that Wicked" one? What kind of working is that Paul said, with that Wicked coming to exalt himself over all that worshipped, so that he as God will sit in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God?

Now we're back to the first Greek word 'antichristos' John used (which is singular in the Greek with no modifier like polloi). The Greek word 'antichristos' can mean 'against Christ' or 'instead of, or in place of Christ'. Which meaning of that word would apply here from Paul's warning? Paul's warning is definitely about the idea of an "instead of or in place of Christ'.

WHAT LEVEL OF FALSE WORKING...
is that 'instead of or in place of Christ' to do? Paul shows us with, "after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders". The word "after" means 'according to' in the Greek. With "all power" of Satan? What man has ever had that?!?

Do you know what that Greek word for that "power" (dunamis) means? Look it up in your Strong's if you doubt me. It's the same Greek word used to describe miraculous power, like God's Power. That's a very specific idea Paul gave there. He's pointing to a level of miracle working on this earth that only God could do, like what our Lord Jesus did. Paul is letting us know that antichrist that shall come is not about many flesh men claiming to be Christ. It's about a man that will actually perform great miracles on the earth in the sight of men, and miraculous wonders and signs that would if possible, almost deceive Christ's own elect (remember Matthew 24:23-24?). In that 2 Thess.2:11 verse, Paul is showing us God is Who is sending that false one to work 'dunamis' on the earth. God is going to allow that false one to have that kind of power to deceive with, and it's meant for those who have not a love for His Truth in His Word.

DIDN'T OUR LORD JESUS WARN OF A DRAGON COMING TO WORK MIRACLES...
on the earth in the sight of men (given through His servant John)? YES!!!

Rev 13:11-14
11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

Who is The Lamb? The True Lamb is our Lord Jesus, The Lamb Slain. But not this particular lamb here, for this one spake as a dragon while only appearing LIKE a lamb. Does that have anything to do with that "antichrist" (antichristos) definition of 'instead of or in place of Christ'? Most definitely yes! And who is the "dragon" per God's Word? Per Rev.12:9 and 20:2 the "dragon" is another title for Satan himself (look it up if you doubt me). That kind of explains why this dragon here comes "up out of the earth", doesn't it? That's a metaphor for Satan ascending up from the bottomless pit, like the one of Rev.11:7.

12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.
(KJV)

Wow! That's the same kind of false working with miracles which Paul mentioned in 2 Thess.2 isn't it? Yes. It's also the same kind of miracle working used to deceive that our Lord Jesus also warned us of in Matt.24:24.


THAT is how we are to study God's Word. We are not to hang on a sole word from God's Word like "antichrist", but instead allow God's Word to interpret Itself.

Click to expand...

Very good post Veteran!! One has to take all of God's word, not just a verse or 2 or a word or 2. The subject matter should flow throughout the bible. God's word is like a fine woven tapestry....

The bible interprets itself

veteran said:

The other 3 examples John gives in 1 John 2:22; 1 John 4:3; and 2 John 1:7 help, but only declare antichrist to be anyone who denies The Father and The Son and that Christ came in the flesh. That of course includes Satan

Click to expand...

It "only" says that, eh?

It also, of course, includes, I dunno... Anyone who denies the Father and the Son. IE, BILLIONS of people fit the definition.

veteran said:

2 Thess 2:6-11
6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.

That is the same subject John was speaking in 1 John 2:18

Click to expand...

That's your opinion, considering these two verses aren't actually linked by the Bible.

This is an ASSUMPTION on your part.

veteran said:

2 Thess 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
(KJV)

Click to expand...

veteran said:

Do you know what those on the 'many antichrists' only tradition of man want you to do with Paul's warning there? They want you to now go totally against the Greek tense of that singular false one in 2 Thess.2, and say that only means 'many'.

Click to expand...

Only if they make the same error as you and draw the conclusion that 2 Thes 2:3 is speaking of "The Antichrist" when the Bible doesn't even support that. You're forming an argument that would never be made and arguing against it.

veteran said:

The KJV translators even capitalized "Wicked" to let us know they understood Paul spoke of what, 'many'? or a singular Wicked one? The word "Wicked" is capitalized to show it applied as a PRONOUN.

Click to expand...

You should know by now that only a young or immature Christian would buy what's coming from your mouth. Those of us who understand Greek realize the capitalization here means nothing not being in the original text, and that the KJV translators went beyond their translation duties and entered the realm of interpretation, as you have done.


You continue to argue from the belief the KJV translation itself is without error- that's not true. Argue from the actual scripture, from now on. (Yes, this requires taking a look at the Greek).

veteran said:

So what about that "strong delusion" Paul links to "that Wicked" causing many to fall prey to "a lie"? What lie would cause many to fall away from Christ to that strong delusion of "that Wicked" one? What kind of working is that Paul said, with that Wicked coming to exalt himself over all that worshipped, so that he as God will sit in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God?

Now we're back to the first Greek word 'antichristos' John used

Click to expand...

No, we're not.

YOU'RE back there, but the Bible certainly doesn't go back there.
This is the problem with your method of "study". You're linking ideas YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE LINKED TOGETHER, you aren't reading the Bible and letting it speak for itself.
"Maybe the Man of Lawlessness is different than my "The Antichrist"" <- That thought never crosses your mind because it doesn't fit your bias. Yet it holds equal merit considering, again... The Bible never links to the two ideas.



The rest I really don't see as application in the topic so I don't see the point of addressing.

Tex said:

YOU'RE back there, but the Bible certainly doesn't go back there.
This is the problem with your method of "study". You're linking ideas YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE LINKED TOGETHER, you aren't reading the Bible and letting it speak for itself.
"Maybe the Man of Lawlessness is different than my "The Antichrist"" <- That thought never crosses your mind because it doesn't fit your bias. Yet it holds equal merit considering, again... The Bible never links to the two ideas.

Click to expand...

It is clear in those verses who the man of sin/lawlessness is:

2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

2Th 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

Perditon- destruction, die, perish
There is only one named that has been sentenced to destruction, to perish and that is satan himself. All those who have lived in the flesh and died have to wait till Judgment day, which will not occur until the end of the millenium

Another clue: who exalts himself above God?


Isa 14:12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!

Isa 14:13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:

Isa 14:14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.


The man of sin/lawlessness is the "son of perdition". The son of perdition is the only named who is already sentenced to death, perish in the lake of fire.That is satan himself. All flesh, living and dead has to wait till judment day to be judged.

Lucifer wants to be like God....he will also sit upon the mount of the congregation, the sides of the north. He will be like the most high when he's here. He will be playing Christ the Messiah

hereister said:

There is only one named that has been sentenced to destruction, to perish and that is satan himself.

Click to expand...

Nonsense. Satan, his angels, and followers are all sentenced to the lake of fire.
Once more, you've taken that which applies to all unbelievers and apply it specifically and only to Satan in order to prove your point... It doesn't work like that.

Additionally... perdition doesn't necessarily support his destiny but his actions. Steal, kill, and DESTROY- Christ himself says this.

Thirdly, Satan will not be destroyed. Big hole in your theory. Read Revelation 20:10... Where do they go? The lake of fire? Is it destruction or is it eternal torment?
"and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever."

al-Mahdi, otherwise known to shiite Muslims as the Twelfth Imam, is identified by both the Holy Bible book of Revelations, the Muslim Hadith and the Qur'an.

People who believe that al-Mahdi will be the Muslim messiah (and the Christian anti-Christ) are called Twelvers in Iran because they are working for the revealing of the Twelfth Imam.

The prophesies by both faiths are nearly identical, or perhaps I should say a mirror image.

For example, al-Mahdi will call for beheading of all infidels while the book of Revelation says that the preferred method of killing for the AC will be the same.

Revelation speaks of a trade requirement of numbers placed on the hand or forehead. Those that wear the number will be stricken from the Book of Life. Christians fear it, Twelvers want it.

It goes right down the line. Prophesy matches prophecy on both sides of the line. It is really really spooky.
The strange thing is that the Bible says AC will enter the world stage after the Great Apostacy, which is happening NOW.

In both sets of prophecy, the sequence of predictions ends with the return of Jesus.

TexUs said:

Nonsense. Satan, his angels, and followers are all sentenced to the lake of fire.
Once more, you've taken that which applies to all unbelievers and apply it specifically and only to Satan in order to prove your point... It doesn't work like that.

Additionally... perdition doesn't necessarily support his destiny but his actions. Steal, kill, and DESTROY- Christ himself says this.

Thirdly, Satan will not be destroyed. Big hole in your theory. Read Revelation 20:10... Where do they go? The lake of fire? Is it destruction or is it eternal torment?
"and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever."

Click to expand...

Pedition in the Greek:
apōleia

ap-o'-li-a



From a presumed derivative of G622; ruin or loss (physical, spiritual or eternal): - damnable (-nation), destruction, die, perdition, X perish, pernicious ways, waste.

Using it in context, he is the son of destruction...death. Satan is the only one who has been named as being sentenced. The fallen angels have the same fate....but they don't qualify as the son of perdition. "The son" has the article "the", meaning a specific one.
also the son of perdition is also called "that" man of sin/lawlessness, meaning one particular person. It is not plural

No others, outside of the fallen angels and satan have been sentenced yet. If any others have been already sentenced before judgment day, please provide evidence.

This one son of perdition/man of sin, who wants to exalt themself above God and opposes God......when you put it all together, it is not difficult to see that it will be satan himself who will appear as the "instead of Jesus".

hereister said:

Using it in context, he is the son of destruction...death. Satan is the only one who has been named as being sentenced. The fallen angels have the same fate....but they don't qualify as the son of perdition. "The son" has the article "the", meaning a specific one.
also the son of perdition is also called "that" man of sin/lawlessness, meaning one particular person. It is not plural

Click to expand...

His angels are mentioned. And I don't even think the devil is. And I don't even think it matters. Here's why.


“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.'"
Are those on the left part of the angels (messengers/followers)??? Or are they different?
More than this, does Jesus even make that distinction, or is he just saying that the Devil and his followers will go to the eternal fire? I think this is the case.


Therefore I think this is clear... The devil and his followers will end up in hell. This shouldn't be a new concept to you and it shouldn't even be a surprise. Kindof silly you even mention it... Just because "Hitler" wasn't specifically named doesn't mean he escapes the "follower" status proclaiming him to hell. His SIN was specifically named, therefore his destination is hell, barring an acceptance of Christ.


I think the feel from Matthew 25 is, "You will go to the fire with the rest of the evil ones"... Jesus point wasn't to specifically name anyone.
I think this is evidenced by even the fact that this Greek word is used here as "evil" in reference to people OTHER THAN Satan himself, even. (See, John 6:70, 2 Timothy 3:3, 1 Timothy 3:11, Titus 2:3 (And yes a couple of these are rather humorous considering the same words used for the devil are used to describe a woman's unbearable actions, LOL))


So even your "specific mention" argument is weak.
Regardless... The point is that Christ said those who do evil will see eternal torment. You can't link "the man of lawlessness" as Satan, at all, here. You CAN specifically link people to this passage: All who sin, all without Christ. This includes Satan, yes, but it also includes all non believers. Once more, you take what applies to all believers and try to limit it to Satan only. It doesn't work that way.




And I'll say this again. Perdition doesn't even describe Satan's DESTINY (other places in the Bible do, indeed- Revelation), but in this passage, calling him the Son of DESTRUCTION: NO WAY IN LANGUAGE ever supports it being his destiny. You must ignore the "Eternal" part of hell to maintain that. And again, there's no sense of that in language anyway.


Jesus being the Son of God doesn't mean he'll BECOME God. It DESCRIBES HIM! He is God.
Satan is Destruction. It DESCRIBES HIM.
I actually can't think of any example, EVER, in which "Son of ____" is used in any way other than to describe the person. "Son of Texus" would describe my son, not his destiny. But you create an exception to language to support your case... Should throw up red flags to anyone that thinks this through.
This is evidenced again, by Christ even saying he steals, kills, and DESTROYS. It's a DESCRIPTION, not a destiny.


No matter how hard you try, you can't get around those facts.


Your argument is based on a couple of assumptions.
1) "Son of Destruction" describes a title- false as I've shown.
2) "Devil... lake of fire" is a and the only specific mention- false, as I've shown.


So my concluding remark was again, the Bible never links the ideas and passages you are trying to link. It never does.
You are reading into the Bible that which isn't there- in order to support your theory.
INSTEAD OF, reading what's there and letting it form theory.

What is the lake of fire?
We all speak of it, but what is it really?

"Time is the fire in which we burn."
- Gene Roddenbury

Gen 3:24 records the angel's use of a sword or flame of fire to guard the entrance to the Garden of Eden.
It is, perhaps, another way of saying that the first sinners were evicted for all TIME.

There are a number of Biblical references to time=fire such as a man's works being burned up with fire and only the pure metal surviving.

If fire is the destroyer, then how do you burn up a spirit? What is it's ignition temperature. Not a foolish or sarcastic question here....what kind of fire is it?

[email protected] said:

If fire is the destroyer, then how do you burn up a spirit? What is it's ignition temperature. Not a foolish or sarcastic question here....what kind of fire is it?

Click to expand...

To be honest- I don't think Spirits were designed to live outside of a body.

I have many reasons for this, but I'll use one example. Moses.
Moses died, was buried or burned... Here in this earth. YET- he bodily appeared in the transfiguration. What body did he have? The one that was buried was still... buried.
It's my opinion that we are given temporary bodies (the exceptions being Elijah, Enoch, and Christ) in the temporary, or present heaven. The spirit was never designed to be separate from a body.

Therefore the eternal fire affects the body... You would be able to physically feel it.
In 23 Minutes in Hell or whatever that book is called, his vision of hell (maybe he made it up, who knows really) is a body that was caught on fire, burned into ash, and then "materialized" again, and burned down into ash all over again. IE, an eternity of nothing but burning and burning. I think, this is probably a good depiction of what Hell could be- considering what we know Biblically.

I think the fire of hell is a LITERAL fire.


Let's think about this a moment. What happened to the Garden of Eden? It's a legitimate question. As far as we know, it's not here on the earth we can see/feel/touch. Yet God PROTECTED IT, did he not? So, if he's protecting it, where is it?????????????
I'd propose, it's in another dimension. Now, before you call me crazy- think about this. Scientists think there could be many dimensions today. Nobody really knows how they work, but the point is that Eden could be in another dimension, that we can't see due to the nature of sin we are in.
When Stephen was stoned, on this earth, and close to death, he saw Christ on his Throne, right??? How was that possible??? Could it be he was able to see that other dimension, as he was entering death?

In like form: Heaven and Hell I believe are LITERAL and PHYSICAL places, in other dimensions. Hell is a LITERAL fire. Heaven is a LITERAL place.... God will of course merge the two dimensions (Earth and Heaven) later on in the future- which should be even more evidence to the fact the current heaven is an actual, PHYSICAL place. Likewise, I don't see any reason why Hell won't be an actual, physical place.

veteran said:

The "lake of fire" will be a future event, and very real. The abode of hell will go into it (Rev.20:14). The fire that will kindle it will come from God Himself, for God is a consuming fire as written.

Here's what our Heavenly Father said about that future event...

Ezek 28:18-19
18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.
19 All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.
(KJV)

It will be everlasting in the sense only because once that "lake of fire" does its burning of those of the second death, they will be gone forever.


Isa 30:33
33 For Tophet is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; He hath made it deep and large: the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.
(KJV)

The valley of Tophet was a place southeast of Jerusalem where some practiced pagan infant sacrifices, casting their dead bodies there and burning them. God hated that practice, and king Josiah stopped it. That area then became a place to burn garbage. God uses Tophet there as a symbol for the future "lake of fire" event. He declares how that future usage has been ordained of old, and His Breath will kindle it.

So I really don't think God is going to have any problem at all kindling that fire which will burn up even the spirits who rebell against Him.

Click to expand...

Very good Veteran! God calls himself a consuming fire. I don't see him having any trouble doing away with those who choose not to love him on Judgment day. For me, it very easy to understand it in this compuiter world. God can create the souls, he can also "delete" them.... Poof, gone, nonexistant...as if they were never created, never existed.