February 7: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
“And they shall go forth and look Upon the corpses of the men Who have transgressed against Me. For their worm does not die, And their fire is not quenched. They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.” Isaiah 66:24
In today’s world, there are many who view capital punishment as too severe—even for murder. It is difficult for some to accept that God puts to death those who oppose Him. But Isaiah writes that He does: “But you who forsake the LORD . . . I will destine you to the sword, and all of you shall bow down to the slaughter . . . the Lord GOD will put you to death . . . and the slain of the LORD will be many” (Isaiah 65:11,12,15,16 ESV; see also Revelation 19:20-21).
It is unfortunate that some commentators use our opening verse to support their belief in an ever-burning hell. This verse contains Hebrew parallelism, two ways of expressing the same concept. Here, that concept is death for unrepentant sinners. The worm here cited refers to maggots that feed upon dead flesh. The fire [that] is not quenched refers to total destruction: it burns until there is nothing left to burn. Someone who uses this verse to mean eternal torture of living souls would do well to note that corpses are being observed.
When Jesus quoted this parallel expression three times (see Mark 9:43-48), He was emphasizing man’s golden opportunity to let go and be free of the baggage (sin) that stands between him and the only Source of never-ending life. God’s word, inspired by His Spirit, has the power to make that happen in an individual’s life by pointing out what sin is (see Romans 3:20) and teaching us to overcome it through faith in Christ. But those who resist the Holy Spirit subject themselves to the very real danger of a hardened heart (Acts 19:8-9; Romans 2:5; Hebrews 3:13), making it progressively difficult to relinquish sin and embrace the Savior.
Before the earth is recreated for the redeemed, there is a period of time that there will be no person alive on it. Jeremiah was given a vision of this time: “I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form, and void; And the heavens, they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and indeed they trembled, And all the hills moved back and forth. I beheld, and indeed there was no man, And all the birds of the heavens had fled. I beheld, and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness, And all its cities were broken down At the presence of the LORD, By His fierce anger.” (Jeremiah 4:23-26; see also Isaiah 24:19; Romans 1:18; Revelation 14:10; 19:11-21) With no man alive on the earth, Satan will be here; along with his minions. They will have a thousand years to ponder the horrendous results of Satan’s ridiculous idea that he could rule better than God (Revelation 20:2). He will also have a thousand years to ponder his own demise (see Ezekiel 28:18-19).
It is the God of love who tells of these things ahead of time.
Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He has . . . a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. Only with your eyes shall you look, And see the reward of the wicked. Because you have made the LORD . . . the Most High, your dwelling place. Revelation 19:15,15; Psalm 91:8,9