Ten Reflections on the Final Judgment

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All the Bible verses quoted in this article are from the King James Version, unless otherwise noted.

The judgment by God mentioned in the Bible refers to God’s judgment of sinners. Sinners are those who violate His commandments. God judges individuals, families, cities, nations, peoples, and the whole world.

The first instance of personal judgment was the judgment of Adam and Eve, as recorded in Genesis 3:16-19. The first recorded instance of global judgment is in Genesis 7, where God used a global flood to destroy all living creatures on earth, except for Noah’s family, consisting of eight people, who were saved because Noah obeyed God by building a large ark and the creatures he brought into it. The first recorded instance of city judgment is in Genesis 19:12-25, where the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire. The first instance of national and ethnic judgment is the judgment of Egypt and its people, including the ten plagues, recorded in Exodus 7:14-12:33.

The upcoming second global judgment will be through the seven years of Great Tribulation, as prophesied in Revelation 6:1-19:21. And finally, there will be the final judgment, as prophesied in Revelation 20:11-15.

11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

The final judgment will occur after the Millennium Kingdom period ends. In this article, we would like to share with you some thoughts we have about the final judgment.

We would like to make it clear that these are our reflections and understandings, based on certain details in the Word of God, and not official doctrine from the Bible. These reflections are based on the Word of God to infer some issues related to biblical prophecy. Whether you accept or do not accept what we share in this article will not affect the salvation of each individual.

Our first reflection is on the transformation of the fleshly bodies of the citizens of the Millennium Kingdom. This refers to those whose fleshly bodies have not yet been transformed. We believe that immediately after the Lord Jesus Christ defeats all those who follow Satan in rebellion against God at the end of the Millennium Kingdom period and casts Satan into hell, all those with untransformed fleshly bodies will be transformed and brought into heaven. This will be their first experience of heaven, and perhaps Christ will reward each person according to their deeds. It will also be the time when all the saints of the Lord, from the time of Adam to the moment the Millennium Kingdom ends, will be present in heaven and will witness the old heaven and earth of the material world burst apart and burn, as prophesied by the Apostle Peter:

“But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?” (2 Peter 3:10-12)

We believe that this marks the beginning of the final judgment. Following this will be the judgment of all those who are not within the salvation of God, from the time of Adam until the final battle in the Millennium Kingdom, which is prophesied in Revelation:

Revelation 20:7-10

7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,

8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.

9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.

10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

Our second reflection is on the old heaven and old earth of the material world being destroyed and burned up. We believe that there will be an atomic explosion throughout the universe. According to scientists, the material universe is expanding. This means that every galaxy in the universe is moving farther away from each other. Scientists also state that for every distance equivalent to 3.26 million lightyears (one megaparsec), galaxies move away from each other at a speed of 67.4 km/s due to the universe’s expansion. The expansion of the universe is the expansion of space itself, entirely and uniformly. The rate of expansion is increasing, and at some point, the expansion may become so rapid that the entire universe could explode, possibly even causing atoms to burst apart.

Of course, just as the heavens and the earth were formed by a word from God, they will also dissolve by a word from God, whenever He wishes. At that time, all objects will be burned into chemical elements, which we refer to as matter particles, as they are the raw materials that make up the material world. Currently, humanity recognizes 118 chemical elements. These atoms are incredibly small. They are so small that, on average, each drop of water can contain up to thirty thousand trillion (30,000,000,000,000,000,000,000) atoms. Among them will be atoms that once made up the fleshly bodies of the deceased.

Throughout the history of human death, some bodies have decomposed in the sea, some on the surface of the earth, and some underground. The term “Hades” has two meanings: physically, it refers to graves or places where dead bodies are buried; spiritually, it refers to the temporary holding place for the souls of those who are not saved. On the day of the final judgment, the sea, the earth’s surface, and the depths of the earth will burst into particles of matter, but the chemical elements that made up the bodies of the deceased will be supernaturally restored. The phrase “Death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them” refers to Hades in a physical sense, that is, graves, which release the chemical elements that formed the bodies of the deceased. Death is the separation of the soul from the flesh. When it is said that death gives up the dead, it means that death no longer has the power to separate the soul from the flesh, so they are resurrected.

Our third reflection is on the resurrected bodies of those who died without salvation. We believe that each person will receive a supernaturally resurrected fleshly body when death no longer has power over their flesh. We think their resurrected fleshly bodies will be as beautiful as God originally intended, at least as beautiful and healthy as Adam and Eve before the fall. This is to show them how much God loves them and the good He had planned for them if they had trusted and obeyed Him, as He has said:

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

However, they do not have a spiritual body like those who are saved. The spiritual body is a divine body through which humans interact with God and the angels. They are condemned to eternal separation from God, so they do not need a spiritual body. At the moment of their death, their spiritual body, which is their divine body, returns to God, who gave it:

“Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” (Ecclesiastes 12:7)

“Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power.” (2 Thessalonians 1:9)

We believe that with each sin of theirs being announced and judged, the beauty and health of their resurrected fleshly body will diminish little by little. By the time all their sins have been judged, their fleshly bodies will have become old and ugly. They will bear that body and suffer eternally in the lake of fire, also known as hell.

Our fourth reflection is on the place where the final judgment will take place. According to the prophecy in Revelation, by that time, the old heaven and earth will have vanished. Therefore, the Triune God, the angels, and the people of God will all be in heaven. At that time, only Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet of the Antichrist will be in the lake of fire. We think that perhaps all those being judged will appear before God with their resurrected bodies, right in Hades. Christ and the Church from heaven will judge them. It is also very possible that Christ, the Church, and the angels will descend to the Paradise region of Hades to judge them. After the judgment is finished, they will be cast into the lake of fire, and then death and spiritual Hades will also be cast into the lake of fire. This means that at that time, the lake of fire will rise and cover every place in Hades, just as the Great Flood once caused water to rise and cover the entire earth. Then those who are unsaved will be baptized in fire, salted with fire.

“Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.” (Mark 9:48-49)

Spiritual Hades is not located underground, as many mistakenly believe. After the earth vanishes, Hades and the lake of fire within Hades will still exist.

Our fifth reflection is on the structure of Hades. Based on the words of the Lord Jesus in Luke 16:19-31, we have meditated and envisioned the structure of Hades as illustrated below.

In Hades, the highest place is likely at the center, called Paradise. This is the temporary dwelling place of the souls of the saints who have passed away, from Adam to the thief crucified next to the Lord, to whom the Lord promised to enter Paradise with Him. The souls of the saints remained there, waiting for Christ to complete His atoning death for humanity and resurrect. After Christ’s resurrection, He brought the saints into heaven. The souls of the saints were reunited with their spirits, which are their spiritual bodies, in heaven.

“Wherefore He saith, When He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.” (Ephesians 4:8)

Below Paradise is a bottomless abyss where the fallen angels are imprisoned. We understand its bottomlessness to be similar to that of black holes in the physical universe. It can be seen that Paradise is like the Garden of Eden of old, suspended above the surface of the bottomless abyss, symbolizing the restored earth during the Millennial Kingdom.

Surrounding the bottomless abyss is the area where the souls of the unsaved are temporarily held, from the time of Adam until the end of the Millennial Kingdom. Around this temporary holding area is the lake of fire, whose intense heat torments the souls being held in the holding area.

Illustration of Spiritual Hades
Illustrator: Phạm Trịnh Minh Anh

In the words of the Lord Jesus about Hades, He reveals that the soul of the rich man who did not believe in the Lord was in Hades, and he looked up to Paradise and saw the souls of Lazarus and Abraham. The rich man asked Abraham to send Lazarus to dip his finger in water to cool his tongue. But Abraham replied:

“And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.” (Luke 16:26)

We understand that spiritual Hades is a part of the spiritual realm, and heaven is also a part of the spiritual realm.

Our sixth reflection is on the spiritual realm, which the Bible refers to as the third heaven. This spiritual realm surrounds the physical universe with its two heavens. The first heaven is the atmosphere around the earth, which extends an average of 10,000 km above sea level. Or, it could be considered the larger space belonging to our solar system, with the sun as the center and the eight planets revolving around it. The farthest planet, Neptune, is 30 times the distance from the sun to the earth, averaging 4.503 billion km.

The second heaven is the entire remaining space of the physical universe. According to scientists, the most powerful telescopes currently available to humanity can only see areas of the universe as far as 46 billion light-years from Earth. With the speed of light at 360,000 km/second, the distance of one light-year is 9,460,730,472,580.8 km. Multiplying that number by 46 billion gives us the farthest distance humans can currently observe from Earth in the universe.

Illustration of the Third Heaven
Illustrator: Phạm Trịnh Minh Anh

We believe that heaven is located to the north of the earth, referred to as “above the heavens,” meaning above the first and second heavens of the physical world. Hades is located to the south of the earth, referred to as “beneath the earth,” meaning beneath the position of the earth, not beneath its surface or within the ground. The Bible clearly uses the terms above the heavens, on the earth, and beneath the earth.

A literal translation of the original Greek text of the Bible:

“For this reason *God also exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus, every knee in heavens, on earth, and beneath the earth should bow, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11)

“Every knee in heavens” refers to all angels and God’s people in heaven. “Every knee on earth” refers to all humans living on earth. “Every knee beneath the earth” refers to all human souls and the fallen angels imprisoned in Hades, and later, imprisoned in the lake of fire, also known as hell.

There are two Bible verses that speak about the north and the south, along with references to the far north, which suggest to us the directions of heaven and Hades in relation to the earth.

“The north and the south Thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in Thy name.” (Psalms 89:12)

“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.” (Isaiah 14:13)

Tabor is the mountain to the west of Galilee. According to tradition, the Lord was transfigured on this mountain. Hermon is the mountain to the east. Both are known for their beautiful scenery. In Psalm 89:12, they symbolize the west and the east. However, the meaning of God’s creation of the north and the south may imply that He created heaven in the north of the earth and Hades in the south of the earth.

Our seventh reflection is on how the judgment will be carried out. We believe that since God is omnipotent, Christ will be able to judge all sinners at once, rather than waiting to judge one person before moving on to another. This is similar to how countless people can interact privately on various topics with a computer equipped with artificial intelligence at the same time. The people of God in the Church may join Christ in judging those who claim to be God’s people but do not live according to His Word. They will also bear witness to the sins of those individuals and testify against those who heard the Gospel from them but did not accept it.

We believe that the basis for the universal judgment of everyone is the Ten Commandments of God. For those who have accepted the Gospel but have not remained faithful and have lost their salvation, they will also be judged according to the new commandment of Christ and the sanctifying commandment of the Holy Spirit.

“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” (John 13:34).

“That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.” (Acts 15:29).

Every sin that a person commits from the time they are conscious of their wrongdoing until they die will be judged justly. The severity of the punishment depends on how much harm the sin caused to others. Two people may commit the same sin but receive different punishments because the consequences of their wrongdoing differ.

Example 1: Both commit pickpocketing and steal the same amount of money. However, if the money is stolen from a wealthy person, causing no harm other than the annoyance of losing it, the punishment will be light. But if the money is stolen from a poor person, who intended to use it to buy medicine for their sick child, and the person is then unable to buy the medicine, causing the child to die from illness, and the person, in their grief, commits suicide and dies, the thief’s punishment will be severe, as it involves the loss of two lives.

Example 2: The crime of murder harms the family of the victim and can negatively impact the descendants of the victim for generations. Therefore, the murderer must endure a punishment that corresponds to the harm they caused to others.

We believe that if someone has ever sincerely done a good deed, not because they were forced to, not to seek praise, but simply to help others, their act will be rewarded. This reward may reduce their suffering to some extent while they are punished for their sins.

We believe that each sinner will be shown the image of themselves committing their sins, as if watching a movie that records their life in complete and detailed form. They will also be granted a marvelous awareness to fully understand the love, holiness, and justice revealed in every judgment spoken by Christ. Because of this, they will fully submit to His judgment, and their knees will bow to honor Him.

Our eighth reflection is about those who sincerely accepted the Gospel, then fell back into sin, returned to living in sin, and died in a state of loss. We think that they will not be judged for the sins they committed before accepting the Gospel, because when they accepted the Gospel, all those sins were forgiven. They will only be judged for each sin they committed after returning to sin and losing their salvation. The Bible calls this ‘falling from grace.

“Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;” (Hebrews 12:15)

That will be a very painful and regretful experience for such people, as they did not hold on to the salvation the Lord gave them. The people of the Lord must endure suffering to follow Him. The following Bible verses are worth remembering and often reflecting upon on the journey of following the Lord:

“Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:22)

“Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” (2 Timothy 2:3)

“For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps.” (1 Peter 2:21)

“But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.” (1 Peter 5:10)

“Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” (Revelation 2:10)

Our ninth reflection is on the eternal fire of the lake of fire. The Bible’s term “lake of fire” is similar to the worldly expression “sea of fire,” which refers to a fire so immense that it engulfs everything in its path. This is why people say “engulfed in a sea of fire.” Anyone who has witnessed or seen videos of forest fires knows how the flames cover everything in their path, rising higher than the trees and consuming everything in their burn. The Bible states that the fire in the lake of fire contains sulfur. Sulfur is a chemical element that can burn and is used for purification. In God’s punishments involving fire, both fire and sulfur are present. Perhaps He uses sulfur to symbolize the removal of impurities caused by sin.

The fire of the lake of fire will never go out, indicating the eternal existence of sinful angels and people in hell. Hell means a prison of fire, making it an appropriate name for the lake of fire, where those who sinned and opposed God are imprisoned. The following statement is repeated three times by the Lord Jesus:

“Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.” (Mark 9:44, 46, 48).

“Their worm” likely refers to the worms on the physical bodies of those imprisoned in hell. Being gnawed by supernatural worms that never die on a supernatural body that never dies is part of the punishment in hell for those who do not have God’s salvation.

Our tenth reflection is about how God’s people in the Church will also judge the angels. In the Bible, there is only one mention of God’s people in the Church judging the angels:

“Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?” (1 Corinthians 6:3)

We think that the Church will judge the fallen angels alongside Christ, as the Church reigns with Him. It seems that the Apostle Paul was divinely revealed this mystery. Unfortunately, we do not have any further details in the Bible about the judgment of angels. It is possible that at the end of the End Times, all fallen angels will be imprisoned with Satan in the bottomless pit. This is the place where the fallen angels from Noah’s time were confined, having corrupted humanity by entering human form. During the End Times, they will be released from the bottomless pit, appearing as locusts and harming humanity. Afterward, they might join with other fallen angels, taking the form of 200 million horsemen to slaughter one-third of humanity. Revelation chapter 9 prophesies these two events.

After judgment, the fallen angels will also be thrown into hell. God’s purpose for creating the lake of fire was to serve as the place of punishment for fallen angels, not for humanity. However, because humanity rejects His salvation, they too will face punishment in hell. The words of the Lord Jesus about hell are very clear:

“Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.” (Matthew 25:41)

Satan, the angels who followed him in sin, and those who reject God’s salvation will all face eternal punishment in hell. The punishment is eternal because they have offended the Eternal One.

We firmly believe that demons are not the prison guards administering punishment to humans in hell. The demons themselves will also be punished, likely more severely than humans, as they have committed more sins and more grievous sins than humans. Therefore, all dreams or visions depicting demons tormenting humans in hell are false and do not come from God. This is merely a scheme by Satan to scare people into joining false churches that claim to be of Christ but are founded by Satan. These are the false churches, the tares, unlike the wheat Church of God. These “churches” preach heresy, condone sin, and lead people to destruction.

We hope that this message provides many insights for God’s people as they reflect on the final judgment. We pray that God will protect us, so none of us will be among those judged. The day of the Lord’s return is very near. Let us encourage one another to stand firm in the faith, live according to God’s Word, and be ready to welcome Christ.

May the Word of God sanctify us and strengthen us. May we all hold fast to our faith, remaining faithful to the Lord until the day Christ returns. May the love, grace, and fellowship of the Triune God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, cover you, brothers and sisters. Amen!

Timothy Christian Huynh
Priscilla Christian Huynh
08/12/2023

Note:

About Using “*God” and “holy spirit”

Wherever the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts of the Bible uses a definite article with a noun to denote GOD, we translate it into English as *God or “the God” to refer to God the Father. We understand that “God,” without a definite article, was used as a collective noun for all and any of the three Persons of the Godhead. And “God,” with a definite article, was used to refer to God the Father.

In the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament, the term “holy spirit” (πνευματι αγιω) without the definite article “the” (το) is used to denote the power of God, which is given by God the Holy Spirit. “The Holy Spirit” (το πνευματι το αγιω) is God, and “holy spirit” (πνευματι αγιω) is the power that comes from God.