THE DREAMS - 10-19-2001 -    I was managing an apartment building. It seemed to be all black people at first, but it didn't stay that way. In the beginning, in the office, and lobby were a mess and I started cleaning it up. A black woman was in charge of this area and came in yelling about what a mess it was, while I was still cleaning it. There was a lot of clothes laying around on the floor, of all colors. I picked them all up to take them upstairs to my apartment. Another woman came into the office, wanting to move out. In order to move out, a person has to go through a process of move-out inspection. I went to the file to look for her move-in inspection sheet for comparison. There was none. All I found were a few really old inspection sheets where people were either still living there or moved out in a body bag. They were that old.and yellowed.  On the other hand, there was a whole ream of pristine white move-in inspection sheets that had never been used. (A ream is 500 sheets) So, to do the move-out inspection, I had to use a move-in inspection sheet. There were no move-out inspection sheets. Did no one ever move out once they moved in?  Maybe this was the first one.!!! There was a kitchen near the office and I decided I would cook something to eat for the workers. I couldn't figure out to turn on the lights in the room. It was too dark to see well in there. Another woman showed me a toggle switch on the wall. I pushed it and a light came on but the light was like a brilliant spotlight and it was on a timer and went back off again in a short time. The food all burned in the pan meanwhile. I couldn't even pick the burned parts off of the pan to eat. There was also a fish-tank in the room, but it didn't have much water in it and the gold-fish were rather wallowing on the bottom, trying to stay in the water that was there. I found a small green net to move them into another container but then I almost forgot to give them water. Meanwhile the fish had splayed out in the shape of golden starbursts. I managed to save them just in time before they died. I then went out into the hallway to find the stairway to the upstairs to go to my apartment which I hadn't been to yet. I found a stairway that went down, and a huge black man waylaid me in the stairwell. He blocked the doorway behind me with a large beam about 12 inches by 12 inches thick with a lock over it. Below the stairs at the next doorway, I saw another black man stick his head in to let the guy behind know he was there. Instinct told me what would happen to me if I went down those stairs, so I got up my bravery, faced the black man behind me, shoved my way past him and took the beam back off the door and left the stairwell.  He had a look on his face of astonishment at my bravery and didn't follow me. This was a really large building. I looked down the next stairway that had no door on it. An elderly Japanese couple accompanied by their grandson or great-grandson, all dressed in green and white pajamas were coming up the stairs. I knew that wasn't the way I was to go, so I went to the next stairway that went up with no door on it. An identical or the same Japanese couple with the child was just starting to come down the stairs. They were also wearing green and white pajamas. I didn't feel that was the correct stairway for me either. The next stairway with no door on it, had an old crippled man with a bent back and scoliosis and a huge port-wine stain on the right side of his face. He was just coming down the stairs. He looked harmless, so I asked him if he would accompany me to my apartment so I wouldn't have to go alone. I knew I would be safe once I got inside my apartment, and I would be safe in the morning when I came back out to go to work because black people who don't work sleep in late. (Experience tells me that) The old man and I climbed the stairs to the next floor. Here the walls, floor, and ceiling were made bright-red, shiny bricks. I asked the man if this building was an old factory. He said it used to be an old mill. As we walked along the hallway, it was like being in an old refurbished mall. There were areas like where stores had open areas for displaying goods. I didn't recognize any, if the items were normal objects. They all looked metallic and were painted a variety of colors of paint, such as bright orange, bright green and bright blue.  I didn't look closely enough at them to identify what kinds of parts they were. The next open doorway on the right was to a large theatre. It was rather dark inside, only the light from the hallway illuminated it enough to show me that ramps went down the aisles between the seats and there was a stage in the darkness at the front-bottom of the room. We were actually at the top-back of the room. It seems to be as large as Radio-City Music hall. The next area on the left was a library of sorts. The old man said he was in charge of this area nd he collected War magazines and books. All the books and magazines were about war and there were hundreds of them. We continued on down the hallway and I woke up while walking. I felt exhaustingly tired. I got up and made myself a cup of tea, but I was still exhaustingly tired, so I went back to bed. As soon as I fell asleep, I was right back in the red-brick hallway, but I was alone. I was hoping I could find my way back to where the crippled man with the awful port-wine stain on his face was, the 1st room I went past with an open door, I could see inside and saw a huge black man sitting near the doorway on an easy chair looking out at me. He looked very much like the first black man who had tried to stop me. I scurried past that room and was afraid to go past it again. I don't know how this hallway was illuminated, there was no lights evident anywhere. I came to an area where there were many wooden doors on the right. I was looking hopefully for a stairway, but I didn't think any of those wooden doors would go to a stairway. They looked more like basement doors where they keep garbage dumpsters in. I came next to an area where I met lots of people. These people were mostly Caucasian, but there were a few younger black men here also as well. I saw a man who was holding onto a chubby girl's arm. She had on the most beautiful gold bracelet. I looked closer at the bracelet and saw that the girl had a broken arm that wasn't healed properly and was askew and had horrible bruising beneath the broken part. She was just admiring her new bracelet, which was probably an award of some kind for doing something I couldn't imagine. Other Caucasian women were around. They were all trashy looking with gaudy makeup and frizzy hair. I came to a place where there were some Caucasian women with little baby girls. I felt safer here so I sat down on a chair and one of the women placed her adorable chubby baby on my lap to hold. The baby didn't have a diaper on and her little yellow dress which was short showed her private parts which were extremely swollen and looked like yeast was growing on them. I pulled the little girl's dress down and handed the baby back to her mother who looked annoyed to get her back. I got up and left that area. I couldn't handle that either. I continued on down the hall looking for a door which looked like might go to a stairway. There were all kinds of doors, some metals, some wooden, none of them normal size. Finally I found a door that looked like it went to a stairway through it wasn't marked EXIT. I opened it and it opened into a wide stairway, about twice to 3 times the width of a normal stairway. I started to go down a few steps, but I could see already that the bright red-brick above was gradually getting darker the farther I went and there was a black door at the bottom of the stairway. I decided not to go down this stairway and quickly went back up to where the brick was bright-red and back into the hallway. again I was seeing plenty of Caucasian people walking up a nd down the hallway, and lots of different kinds of doors. One double door had a push pedal at the bottom so I stepped on it and a red metal door next to it opened and revealed a red metal box in the wall just large enough to hold one person standing up. I shuddered at what I imagined that box was for and got away from that as fast as I could. Then I met a Mexican woman dressed like peasant with a long flowered dress. She was walking with her little Mexican daughter who was similarly dressed. I begged her, "Could you please show me the door to the stairway so I can get out of here?" She turned and walked down the halls as though expecting me to follow her, which I did. She opened a door in the wall which I expected to be a stairway, but it wasn't. We were immediately outside in the sunshine without even going through the door. I knew I hadn't even stepped through the doorway, all I had to do was ask and she opened the way. Outside the sun was shining, the sky was blue, the grass was green and I was in the middle of a busy city with traffic going by. when I looked back to see where we had come from, I didn't even se a building I could recognize. I must have looked startled. I asked her where we were. She answered with a question, "Where do you need to be". I said, "Phoenix Street". She pointed down the street and said, "Phoenix Street is 4 miles that way." I was stunned. How could I have walked 4 miles through those long red-brick hallways?" I woke up just standing on the street with Maria and her daughter.

Revelation 17 - 1  One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, "Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters. 2  With her the kings of the earth committed adultery and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries." 3  Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a desert. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. 4  The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. 5  This title was written on her forehead: MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.  6  I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus. When I saw her, I was greatly astonished.

The image called, "Our Lady of Guadalupe," appeared on the cloak of an Aztec Indian in 1531, during an apparition of the Virgin Mary, seems to be one and the same. It is the only depiction of the Virgin, showing her pregnant, and she has a sunburst around her, with a crescent moon under her feet. In 1531 a "Lady from Heaven" appeared to a poor Indian at Tepeyac, a hill northwest of Mexico City; she identified herself as the Mother of the True God, instructed him to have the bishop build a temple on the site and left an image of herself imprinted miraculously on his tilma, a poor quality cactus-cloth, which should have deteriorated in 20 years but shows no sign of decay 469 years later and still defies all scientific explanations of its origin. It apparently even reflects in her eyes what was in front of her in 1531! There is reason to believe that at Tepeyac Mary came in her glorified body, and her actual physical hands rearranged the roses in Juan Diego's tilma, which makes this apparition very special. An incredible list of miracles, cures and interventions are attributed to Her. Yearly, an estimated 10 million visit her Basilica, making her Mexico City home the most popular Marian shrine in the world, and the most visited Catholic church in the world next to the Vatican.   Altogether 24 popes have officially honored Our Lady of Guadalupe. His Holiness John Paul II visited her Sanctuary three times: on his first apostolic trip outside Rome as Pope in 1979, and again in 1990 and 1999. The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe is celebrated on December 12th. In 1999, Pope John Paul II, in his homily from the Solemn Mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, during his third visit to the sanctuary, declared the date of December the 12th as a Liturgical Holy Day for the whole continent.   During the same visit Pope John Paul II entrusted the cause of life to her loving protection, and placed under her motherly care the innocent lives of children, especially those who are in danger of not being born. From; http://www.sancta.org/intro.html

In 1531 miracles began to happen. Jesus' own mother appeared to humble Juan Diego. The signs -- of the roses, of the uncle miraculously cured of a deadly illness, and especially of her beautiful image on Juan's mantle -- convinced the people there was something to be considered in Christianity. Within a short time, six million Native Mexicans had themselves baptized as Christians. The first lesson is that God has chosen Mary to lead us to Jesus. No matter what critics may say of the devotion of Mexicans (and Mexican descendants) to Our Lady of Guadalupe, they owe their Christianity to her influence. If it were not for her, they would not know her son, and so they are eternally grateful. The second lesson we take from Mary herself. Mary appeared to Juan Diego not as a European madonna but as a beautiful Aztec princess speaking to him in his own Aztec language. If we want to help someone appreciate the gospel we bring, we must appreciate the culture and the mentality in which they live their lives. By understanding them, we can help them to understand and know Christ. Our Lady of Guadalupe is patron of the Americas. From: http://www.catholic.org/saints/saints/guadalupe.html

WHAT IS HELL?

Those sent to hell are outside (Matthew 8:12) and shut out from the presence of the Lord (2 Thessalonians 1:9). Matthew 8:12  But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." 2 Thessalonians 1:9 - They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power Hell is a place of darkness Matthew 22:13; Matthew 25:30) or, more specifically, blackest darkness (2 Peter 2:15-17; Jude 1:12-13). Matthew 22:13  "Then the king told the attendants, `Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' Matthew 25: 30  And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 2 Peter: 15-17 - They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness.  16 But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey--a beast without speech--who spoke with a man's voice and restrained the prophet's madness. 17  These men are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them. Jude 1:12-13  These men are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm--shepherds who feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted--twice dead. 13  They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever. No doubt, there is smoke in hell (Revelation 14:9-11) Revelation 14: 9-11 -  9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: "If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, 10  he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11  And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name." because it is a place of fire (Matthew 5:22; Matthew 18:8-9; Matthew 25:41; Mark 9:43; Luke 16:24; Jude 1:6-7, 22-23) Matthew 5:22 - But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, `Raca, ' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, `You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. Matthew 18: 8-9 - 8 If your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.9 And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. Matthew 25:41 "Then he will say to those on his left, `Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Mark 9:43-48 ; 43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out.45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. 47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, 48 where "`their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched Luke 16:23-24 In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.24 So he called to him, `Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' Jude 1:6-7 And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home--these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. 7 In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire. Jude 1: 22-23  22 Be merciful to those who doubt; 23 snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear--hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh. blazing fire (Daniel 7:11), "Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. consuming fire (Isaiah 33:14), The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings? unquenchable fire (Isaiah 1:31; The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: "Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?" Matthew 3:12)  His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire." Hell is known as the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14-15), - 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. the fiery lake (Revelation 19:20; Revelation 20:10; Revelation 21:8), Revelation 19:19-20 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army. 20  But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. Revelation 20:10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever. Revelation 21:8 But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars--their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death." and the fiery furnace (Matthew 13:42, 50). Matthew 13:42 - They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth Matthew 13:49-50 49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50 and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. It is described as gloomy dungeons (2 Peter 2:4), 2 Peter 2:4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell,[1] putting them into gloomy dungeons[2] to be held for judgment; the pit (Job 33:29-30; "God does all these things to a man-- twice, even three times-- 30 to turn back his soul from the pit,[8] that the light of life may shine on him. Psalm 28:1; To you I call, O LORD my Rock; do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who have gone down to the pit. Psalm 30:3, 8, 9; O LORD, you brought me up from the grave[2] ; you spared me from going down into the pit. 8 To you, O LORD, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy: 9 "What gain is there in my destruction,[4] in my going down into the pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness? Psalm 69:15; Do not let the floodwaters engulf me or the depths swallow me up or the pit close its mouth over me. Psalm 88:4-6;  For my soul is full of trouble and my life draws near the grave.4 I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am like a man without strength.5 I am set apart with the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom you remember no more, who are cut off from your care. 6 You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths. Psalm 103:2-5; Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits-- 3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, 5  who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. Psalm 143:7; Answer me quickly, O LORD; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit. Proverbs 1:10-16; My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them. 11  If they say, "Come along with us; let's lie in wait for someone's blood, let's waylay some harmless soul; 12  let's swallow them alive, like the grave,[2] and whole, like those who go down to the pit; 13  we will get all sorts of valuable things and fill our houses with plunder; 14  throw in your lot with us, and we will share a common purse"-- 15 my son, do not go along with them, do not set foot on their paths; 16  for their feet rush into sin, they are swift to shed blood. Isaiah 14:15 - 20; But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit. 16 Those who see you stare at you, they ponder your fate: "Is this the man who shook the earth and made kingdoms tremble, 17 the man who made the world a desert, who overthrew its cities and would not let his captives go home?" 18 All the kings of the nations lie in state, each in his own tomb. 19 But you are cast out of your tomb like a rejected branch; you are covered with the slain, with those pierced by the sword, those who descend to the stones of the pit. Like a corpse trampled underfoot, 20 you will not join them in burial, for you have destroyed your land and killed your people. The offspring of the wicked will never be mentioned again. Isaiah 38:17-18; 17 Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back. 18  For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth. Ezekiel 26:20-21;  then I will bring you down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of long ago. I will make you dwell in the earth below, as in ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, and you will not return or take your place[2] in the land of the living. 21  I will bring you to a horrible end and you will be no more. You will be sought, but you will never again be found, declares the Sovereign LORD." Ezekiel 28:8; They will bring you down to the pit, and you will die a violent death in the heart of the seas. Ezekiel 31:14 - 16; Therefore no other trees by the waters are ever to tower proudly on high, lifting their tops above the thick foliage. No other trees so well-watered are ever to reach such a height; they are all destined for death, for the earth below, among mortal men, with those who go down to the pit. 15 "`This is what the Sovereign LORD says: On the day it was brought down to the grave[1] I covered the deep springs with mourning for it; I held back its streams, and its abundant waters were restrained. Because of it I clothed Lebanon with gloom, and all the trees of the field withered away. 16  I made the nations tremble at the sound of its fall when I brought it down to the grave with those who go down to the pit. Then all the trees of Eden, the choicest and best of Lebanon, all the trees that were well-watered, were consoled in the earth below. Ezekiel 32:18-30), "Son of man, wail for the hordes of Egypt and consign to the earth below both her and the daughters of mighty nations, with those who go down to the pit. 19  Say to them, `Are you more favored than others? Go down and be laid among the uncircumcised.' 20 They will fall among those killed by the sword. The sword is drawn; let her be dragged off with all her hordes. 21 From within the grave[2] the mighty leaders will say of Egypt and her allies, `They have come down and they lie with the uncircumcised, with those killed by the sword.' 22  "Assyria is there with her whole army; she is surrounded by the graves of all her slain, all who have fallen by the sword. 23  Their graves are in the depths of the pit and her army lies around her grave. All who had spread terror in the land of the living are slain, fallen by the sword. 24  "Elam is there, with all her hordes around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword. All who had spread terror in the land of the living went down uncircumcised to the earth below. They bear their shame with those who go down to the pit. 25  A bed is made for her among the slain, with all her hordes around her grave. All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword. Because their terror had spread in the land of the living, they bear their shame with those who go down to the pit; they are laid among the slain. 26  "Meshech and Tubal are there, with all their hordes around their graves. All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword because they spread their terror in the land of the living. 27  Do they not lie with the other uncircumcised warriors who have fallen, who went down to the grave with their weapons of war, whose swords were placed under their heads? The punishment for their sins rested on their bones, though the terror of these warriors had stalked through the land of the living. 28  "You too, O Pharaoh, will be broken and will lie among the uncircumcised, with those killed by the sword. 29  "Edom is there, her kings and all her princes; despite their power, they are laid with those killed by the sword. They lie with the uncircumcised, with those who go down to the pit. 30  "All the princes of the north and all the Sidonians are there; they went down with the slain in disgrace despite the terror caused by their power. They lie uncircumcised with those killed by the sword and bear their shame with those who go down to the pit. and the depths (Psalm 63:9; They who seek my life will be destroyed; they will go down to the depths of the earth. Psalm 71:20; Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up. Psalm 86:13; For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths of the grave Proverbs 9:18; But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of the grave Lamentations 3:55; I called on your name, O LORD, from the depths of the pit. Matthew 11:23-24; 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths.[4] If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day.24 But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you." Luke 10: 15 - And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depth and it contains dead bodies (Isaiah 66:24). "And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind." Those in hell are twice dead (Jude 1:12-13); -These men are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm--shepherds who feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted--twice dead. 13 They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever. they have died the second death (Revelation 2:11; - He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death. They are punished (Matthew 25:44-46  "They also will answer, `Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' 45 "He will reply, `I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' 46  "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." Destruction (Matthew 7:12-14; John 17:12; Romans 9:22; Galatians 6:8; Philippians 3:19; 1 Thessalonians 5:3; 2 Thessalonians 2:3; 1 Timothy 6:9; 2 Peter 2:1-3; 2 Peter 3:7, 16; Revelation 17:8, 11) Matthew 7:12-14 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. 13 "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. John 17:12; While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled Romans 9:22; What if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath--prepared for destruction? Galatians 6:8; The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Philippians 3:19; Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. 1 Thessalonians 5:2-3 -  you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3  While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 2 Thessalonians 2:3 Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 1 Timothy 6:9; People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. 2 Peter 1-3 - 1  But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them--bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2  Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3 In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping. 2 Peter 3 - 7 - By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. 2 Peter 3 - 16 - He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. Revelation 17:8, 11) The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and will come up out of the Abyss and go to his destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because he once was, now is not, and yet will come. 9  "This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits. 10  They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for a little while. 11 The beast who once was, and now is not, is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction. Those in hell suffer shame, disgrace (Isaiah 1:29), "You will be ashamed because of the sacred oaks in which you have delighted; you will be disgraced because of the gardens that you have chosen. and everlasting contempt (Daniel 12:2), Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. because God's wrath remains on them (John 3:36). Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him." They are in agony and torment (Luke 16:23-28) In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, `Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' 25 "But Abraham replied, `Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26  And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.' 27 "He answered, `Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.' torment Revelation 14:9-10-11 9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: "If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, 10 he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb.  11  And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name." In hell, everyone is salted with fire (Mark 9:47-49) 47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, 48 where "`their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.' 49 Everyone will be salted with fire. and is burning (Isaiah 1:31; Isaiah 33:14). Isaiah 1: 31 - The mighty man will become tinder and his work a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the fire." Isaiah 33:14 - The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: "Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?" They are cut to pieces (Matthew 24:50-51). The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of.51 He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Both body and soul are destroyed in hell (Matthew 10:28). Matthew 10:28 - 28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. It is certainly no wonder that there is weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 8:11-12; Matthew 13:41-42, 49-50; Matthew 22:12-13; Matthew 25:29-30; Luke 13:28). Matthew 8:11-12 - I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12  But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matthew 13:41-42 - 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.42 They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 13:49-50 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50 and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 22:13 12 `Friend,' he asked, `how did you get in here without wedding clothes?' The man was speechless.13 "Then the king told the attendants, `Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' Matthew 25:29-30 29 For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.30 And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' Luke 13:28). "There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. As horrible as hell and its suffering is, it gets worse. For once one goes to hell, there is no end to it. In hell, the worm does not die (Isaiah 66:24; Mark 9:48). The fire never goes out indeed, it is not quenched Isaiah 66:24 - And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind." Mark 9:43-49). 43 - If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. 45  And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, 48 where "`their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.' 49 Everyone will be salted with fire. The horrors of hell last day and night (Revelation 20:10), - And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever. forever (2 Peter 2:17-19 - These men are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them. 18  For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error. 19  They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity--for a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him. Hell is eternal (Matthew 18:7-8-9; Matthew 25:34-43, 46 Matthew 18:7-9 7 "Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come! 8 If your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire.9 And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. Matthew 25: 34-46 "Then the King will say to those on his right, `Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'  37 "Then the righteous will answer him, `Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40  "The King will reply, `I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' 41  "Then he will say to those on his left, `Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42  For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43  I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' 44  "They also will answer, `Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' 45  "He will reply, `I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' 46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." and everlasting (Isaiah 33:14; Daniel 12:2; Isaiah 33:14 -The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: "Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?" Daniel 12:2 - Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. Jesus gives us very serious warnings about avoiding hell. He tells us it would be better to be thrown into the sea with a millstone around the neck than to risk being sent to hell (Mark 9:42; Luke 17:2). Mark 9:42-43 - "And if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck. 43  If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. 45  And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell,  48 where "`their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.' 49 Everyone will be salted with fire. Luke 17:2 - It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. He warns us it would be better to forfeit parts of our bodies rather than to risk going to hell (Matthew 5:29-30; Matthew 5:29-30 - If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. And we are warned not to fear others but to instead fear God, who has the power to throw into hell (Luke 12:5). But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. If we use all of these descriptions of hell to make a mental image of the eternal place of punishment, it is hard to imagine why anyone would risk going there. Hell exists. It is a real place of agony and suffering.

Occurrences of the words "Sheol" and "Hades" in the Bible I) THE WORD SHEOL Genesis 37:35 And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted ; and he said , For I will go down into the Sheol unto my son mourning . Thus his father wept for him. Genesis 42:38 And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead , and he is left alone: if mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go , then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the Sheol . Genesis 44:29 And if ye take this also from me , and mischief befall him , ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the Sheol. Genesis 44:31 It shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die : and thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to the Sheol. Numbers 16:30 But if the LORD make a new thing , and the earth open her mouth , and swallow them up , with all that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the Sheol ; then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the LORD . Numbers 16:33 They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the Sheol , and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation . Deuteronomy 32:22 For a fire is kindled in mine anger , and shall burn unto the lowest Sheol , and shall consume the earth with her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the mountains . 1 Samuel 2:6 The LORD killeth , and maketh alive : he bringeth down to the Sheol , and bringeth up . 2 Samuel 22:6 The sorrows of Sheol compassed me about ; the snares of death prevented me; 1 Kings 2:6 Do therefore according to thy wisdom , and let not his hoar head go down to the Sheol in peace . 1 Kings 2:9 Now therefore hold him not guiltless : for thou art a wise man , and knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him; but his hoar head bring thou down to the Sheol with blood . Job 7:9 As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away : so he that goeth down to the Sheol shall come up no more. Job 11:8 It is as high as heaven ; what canst thou do ? deeper than Sheol ; what canst thou know ? Job 14:3 O that thou wouldest hide me in the Sheol , that thou wouldest keep me secret , until thy wrath be past , that thou wouldest appoint me a set time , and remember me! Job 17:13 If I wait , the Sheol is mine house : I have made my bed in the darkness . Job 17:16 They shall go down to the bars of the Sheol , when our rest together is in the dust . Job 21:13 They spend their days in wealth , and in a moment go down to the Sheol . Job 24:19 Drought and heat consume the snow waters : so doth the Sheol those which have sinned. Job 26:6 Sheol is naked before him, and destruction hath no covering . Psalms 6:5 For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the Sheol who shall give thee thanks ? Psalms 9:17 The wicked shall be turned into Sheol , and all the nations that forget God . Psalms 16:10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in Sheol ; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption . Psalms 18:5 The sorrows of Sheol compassed me about : the snares of death prevented me. Psalms 30:3 O LORD , thou hast brought up my soul from the Sheol : thou hast kept me alive , that I should not go down to the pit . Psalms 31:17 Let me not be ashamed , O LORD ; for I have called upon thee: let the wicked be ashamed , and let them be silent in the Sheol . Psalms 49:14 Like sheep they are laid in the Sheol ; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning ; and their beauty shall consume in the Sheol from their dwelling . Psalms 49:15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of the Sheol : for he shall receive me. Selah . Psalms 55:15 Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into Sheol : for wickedness is in their dwellings , and among them. Psalms 86:13 For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest Sheol . Psalms 88:3 For my soul is full of troubles : and my life draweth nigh unto the Sheol . Psalms 89:48 What man is he that liveth , and shall not see death ? shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the Sheol ? Selah . Psalms 116:3 The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of Sheol gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow Psalms 139:8 If I ascend up into heaven , thou art there: if I make my bed in Sheol , behold, thou art there. Psalms 141:7 Our bones are scattered at the Sheol's mouth , as when one cutteth and cleaveth wood upon the earth . Proverbs 1:12 Let us swallow them up alive as the Sheol ; and whole , as those that go down into the pit : Proverbs 5:5 Her feet go down to death ; her steps take hold on Sheol . Proverbs 7:27 Her house is the way to Sheol , going down to the chambers of death . Proverbs 9:18 But he knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths of Sheol . Proverbs 15:11 Sheol and destruction are before the LORD : how much more then the hearts of the children of men ? Proverbs 15:24 The way of life is above to the wise , that he may depart from Sheol beneath . Proverbs 23:4 Thou shalt beat him with the rod , and shalt deliver his soul from Sheol . Proverbs 27:20 Sheol and destruction are never full ; so the eyes of man are never satisfied . Proverbs 30:16 The Sheol ; and the barren womb ; the earth that is not filled with water ; and the fire that saith not, It is enough . Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do , do it with thy might ; for there is no work , nor device , nor knowledge, nor wisdom , in the Sheol , whither thou goest . Song of Solomon 8:6 Set me as a seal upon thine heart , as a seal upon thine arm : for love is strong as death ; jealousy is cruel as the Sheol : the coals thereof are coals of fire , which hath a most vehement flame . Isaiah 5:14 Therefore Sheol hath enlarged herself , and opened her mouth without measure : and their glory , and their multitude, and their pomp , and he that rejoiceth , shall descend into it. Isaiah 14:9 Sheol from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming : it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth ; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations . Isaiah 14:11 Thy pomp is brought down to the Sheol , and the noise of thy viols : the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee. Isaiah 14:15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to Sheol, to the sides of the pit . Isaiah 28:15 Because ye have said , We have made a covenant with death , and with Sheol are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge , and under falsehood have we hid ourselves: Isaiah 28:18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled , and your agreement with Sheol shall not stand ; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through , then ye shall be trodden down by it. Isaiah 38:10 I said in the cutting off of my days , I shall go to the gates of the Sheol : I am deprived of the residue of my years . Isaiah 38:18 For the Sheol cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth . Isaiah 57:9 And thou wentest to the king with ointment , and didst increase thy perfumes , and didst send thy messengers far off , and didst debase thyself even unto Sheol . Ezekiel 31:15 Thus saith the Lord GOD ; In the day when he went down to the Sheol I caused a mourning : I covered the deep for him, and I restrained the floods thereof, and the great waters were stayed : and I caused Lebanon to mourn for him, and all the trees of the field fainted for him. Ezekiel 31:16 I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall , when I cast him down to Sheol with them that descend into the pit : and all the trees of Eden , the choice and best of Lebanon , all that drink water , shall be comforted in the nether parts of the earth . Ezekiel 31:17 They also went down into Sheol with him unto them that be slain with the sword ; and they that were his arm , that dwelt under his shadow in the midst of the heathen . Ezekiel 32:21 The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of Sheol with them that help him: they are gone down , they lie uncircumcised , slain by the sword . Ezekiel 32:27 And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised , which are gone down to Sheol with their weapons of war: and they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities shall be upon their bones , though they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living. Hosea 13:14 I will ransom them from the power of the Sheol ; I will redeem them from death : O death, I will be thy plagues ; O Sheol , I will be thy destruction : repentance shall be hid from mine eyes. Amos 9:9 Though they dig into Sheol , thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven , thence will I bring them down : Jonah 2:2 And said , I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD , and he heard me; out of the belly of Sheol cried I, and thou heardest my voice . Habakkuk 2:5 Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine , he is a proud man , neither keepeth at home , who enlargeth his desire as Sheol , and is as death , and cannot be satisfied , but gathereth unto him all nations , and heapeth unto him all people: II) THE WORD HADES Matthew 11:23 And thou , Capernaum , which art exalted unto heaven , shalt be brought down to Hades : for if the mighty works , which have been done in thee , had been done in Sodom , it would have remained until this day . Matthew 16:18 And I say also unto thee , That thou art Peter , and upon this rock I will build my church ; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it . Luke 10:15 And thou , Capernaum , which art exalted to heaven , shalt be thrust down to Hades . Luke 16:23 And in Hades he lift up his eyes , being in torments , and seeth Abraham afar off , and Lazarus in his bosom . Acts 2:27 Because thou wilt not leave my soul in Hades, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption . Acts 2:31 He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ , that his soul was not left in Hades , neither his flesh did see corruption . 1 Corinthians 15:55 O death , where is thy sting ? O Hades , where is thy victory ? Revelation 1:18 I am he that liveth , and was dead ; and , behold , I am alive for evermore , Amen ; and have the keys of Hades and of death . Revelation 6:8 And I looked , and behold a pale horse : and his name that sat on him was Death , and Hades followed with him . And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth , to kill with sword , and with hunger , and with death , and with the beasts of the earth . Revelation 20:13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it ; and death and Hades delivered up the dead which were in them : and they were judged every man according to their works . Revelation 20:14 And death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire . This is the second death .

From Isis Unveiled - by Helena P. Blavatsky: http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/isis/iu2-01.htm Thus we may infer that the only characteristic difference between modern Christianity and the old heathen faiths is the belief of the former in a personal devil and in hell. "The Aryan nations had no devil," says Max Muller. "Pluto, though of a sombre character, was a very respectable personage; and Loki (the Scandinavian), though a mischievous person, was not a fiend. The German Goddess, Hell, too, like Proserpine, had once seen better days. Thus, when the Germans were indoctrinated with the idea of a real devil, the Semitic Seth, Satan or Diabolus, they treated him in the most good-humored way." The same may be said of hell. Hades was quite a different place from our region of eternal damnation, and might be termed rather an intermediate state of purification. Neither does the Scandinavian Hel or Hela, imply either a state or a place of punishment; for when Frigga, the grief-stricken mother of Baldur, the white god, who died and found himself in the dark abodes of the shadows (Hades) sent Hermod, a son of Thor, in quest of her beloved child, the messenger found him in the inexorable region -- alas! but still comfortably seated on a rock, and reading a book.* The Norse kingdom of the dead is moreover situated in the higher latitudes of the Polar regions; it is a cold and cheerless abode, and neither the gelid halls of Hela, nor the occupation of Baldur present the least similitude to the blazing hell of eternal fire and the miserable "damned" sinners with which the Church so generously peoples it. No more is it the Egyptian Amenthes, the region of judgment and purification; nor the Onderah -- the abyss of darkness of the Hindus; for even the fallen angels hurled into it by Siva, are allowed by Parabrahma to consider it as an intermediate state, in which an opportunity is afforded them to prepare for higher degrees of purification and redemption from their wretched condition. The Gehenna of the New Testament was a locality outside the walls of Jerusalem; and in mentioning it, Jesus used but an ordinary metaphor. Whence then came the dreary dogma of hell, that Archimedean lever of Christian theology, with which they have succeeded to hold in subjection the numberless millions of Christians for nineteen centuries? Assuredly not from the Jewish Scriptures, and we appeal for corroboration to any well-informed Hebrew scholar. The only designation of something approaching hell in the Bible is Gehenna or Hinnom, a valley near Jerusalem, where was situated Tophet, a place where a fire was perpetually kept for sanitary purposes. The prophet Jeremiah informs us that the Israelites used to sacrifice their children to Moloch-Hercules on that spot; and later we find Christians quietly replacing this divinity by their god of mercy, whose wrath will not be appeased, unless the Church sacrifices to him her unbaptized children and sinning sons on the altar of "eternal damnation"! Whence then did the divine learn so well the conditions of hell, as to actually divide its torments into two kinds, the poena damni and poenae sensus, the former being the privation of the beatific vision; the latter the eternal pains in a lake of fire and brimstone? If they answer us that it is in the Apocalypse (xx. 10), we are prepared to demonstrate whence the theologist John himself derived the idea, "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 for ever and ever," he says. Laying aside the esoteric interpretation that the "devil" or tempting demon meant our own earthly body, which after death will surely dissolve in the fiery or ethereal elements,* the word "eternal" by which our theologians interpret the words "for ever and ever" does not exist in the Hebrew language, either as a word or meaning. There is no Hebrew word which properly expresses eternity; oulam, according to Le Clerc, only imports a time whose beginning or end is not known. While showing that this word does not mean infinite duration, and that in the Old Testament the word forever only signifies a long time, Archbishop Tillotson has completely perverted its sense with respect to the idea of hell-torments. According to his doctrine, when Sodom and Gomorrah are said to be suffering "eternal fire," we must understand it only in the sense of that fire not being extinguished till both cities were entirely consumed. But, as to hell-fire the words must be understood in the strictest sense of infinite duration. Such is the decree of the learned divine. For the duration of the punishment of the wicked must be proportionate to the eternal happiness of the righteous. So he says, "These (speaking of the wicked) shall go away [[eis kolasin aionion]] into eternal punishment; but the righteous [[eis zoen aionion]] into life eternal." The Reverend T. Surnden,** commenting on the speculations of his predecessors, fills a whole volume with unanswerable arguments, tending to show that the locality of Hell is in the sun. We suspect that the reverend speculator had read the Apocalypse in bed, and had the nightmare in consequence. There are two verses in the Revelation of John reading thus: "And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun, and power was given him to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God."*** This is simply Pythagorean and kabalistic allegory. The idea is new neither with the above-mentioned author nor with John. Pythagoras placed the "sphere of purification in the sun," which sun, with its sphere, he moreover locates in the middle of the universe,* the allegory having a double meaning: 1. Symbolically, the central, spiritual sun, the Supreme Deity. Arrived at this region every soul becomes purified of its sins, and unites itself forever with its spirit, having previously suffered throughout all the lower spheres. 2. By placing the sphere of visible fire in the middle of the universe, he simply taught the heliocentric system which appertained to the Mysteries, and was imparted only in the higher degree of initiation. John gives to his Word a purely kabalistic significance, which no "Fathers," except those who had belonged to the Neo-platonic school, were able to comprehend. Origen understood it well, having been a pupil of Ammonius Saccas; therefore we see him bravely denying the perpetuity of hell-torments. He maintains that not only men, but even devils (by which term he meant disembodied human sinners), after a certain duration of punishment shall be pardoned and finally restored to heaven.** In consequence of this and other such heresies Origen was, as a matter of course, exiled. Many have been the learned and truly-inspired speculations as to the locality of hell. The most popular were those which placed it in the centre of the earth. At a certain time, however, skeptical doubts which disturbed the placidity of faith in this highly-refreshing doctrine arose in consequence of the meddling scientists of those days. As a Mr. Swinden in our own century observes, the theory was inadmissible because of two objections: 1st, that a fund of fuel or sulphur sufficient to maintain so furious and constant a fire could not be there supposed; and, 2d, that it must want the nitrous particles in the air to sustain and keep it alive. "And how," says he, "can a fire be eternal, when, by degrees, the whole substance of the earth must be consumed thereby?"** The skeptical gentleman had evidently forgotten that centuries ago St. Augustine solved the difficulty. Have we not the word of this learned divine that hell, nevertheless, is in the centre of the earth, for "God supplies the central fire with air by a miracle"? The argument is unanswerable, and so we will not seek to upset it. NOTES: * Ether is both pure and impure fire. The composition of the latter comprises all its visible forms, such as the "correlation of forces" -- heat, flame, electricity, etc. The former is the Spirit of Fire. The difference is purely alchemical. ** See "Inquiry into the Nature and Place of Hell," by Rev. T. Surnden. *** Revelation xvi. 8-9. * Aristotle mentions Pythagoreans who placed the sphere of fire in the sun, and named it Jupiter's Prison. See "De Coelo," lib. ii. FROM:  http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/isis/iu2-05.htm The struggle between Ahriman,* Darkness, and Ormazd, Light, has been going on in the world continually since the beginning of time. When the worst arrives and Ahriman will seem to have conquered the world and corrupted all mankind, then will appear the Saviour of mankind, Sosiosh. He will come seated upon a white horse and followed by an army of good genii equally mounted on milk-white steeds.** And this we find faithfully copied in the Revelation: "I saw heaven opened, and beheld a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called faithful and true. . . . And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses" (Revelation xix. 11, 14). Sosiosh himself is but a later Persian permutation of the Hindu Vishnu. The figure of this god may be found unto this day representing him as the Saviour, the "Preserver" (the preserving spirit of God), in the temple of Rama. The picture shows him in his tenth incarnation -- the Kalki avatar, which is yet to come -- as an armed warrior mounted upon a white horse. Waving over his head the sword destruction, he holds in his other hand a discus, made up of rings encircled in one another, an emblem of the revolving cycles or great ages,*** for Vishnu will thus appear but at the end of the Kaliyug, answering to the end of the world expected by our Adventists. "And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword . . . on his head were many crowns" (Revelation xix. 12). Vishnu is often represented with several crowns superposed on his head. "And I saw an angel standing on the Sun" (17). The white horse is the horse of the Sun.**** Sosiosh, the Persian Saviour, is also born of a virgin,***** and at the end of days he will come as a Redeemer to regenerate the world, but he will be preceded by two prophets, who will come to announce him.****** Hence the Jews who had Moses and Elias, are now waiting for the Messiah. "Then comes the general resurrection, when the good will immediately enter into this happy abode -- the regenerated earth; and Ahriman and his angels (the devils),* and the wicked, be purified by immersion in a lake of molten metal. . . . Henceforward, all will enjoy unchangeable happiness, and, headed by Sosiosh, ever sing the praises of the Eternal One."** The above is a perfect repetition of Vishnu in his tenth avatar, for he will then throw the wicked into the infernal abodes in which, after purifying themselves, they will be pardoned -- even those devils which rebelled against Brahma, and were hurled into the bottomless pit by Siva,*** as also the "blessed ones" will go to dwell with the gods, over the Mount Meru. NOTE: * Ahriman, the production of Zoroaster, is so called in hatred of the Arias or Aryas, the Brahmans against whose dominion the Zoroastrians had revolted. Although an Arya (a noble, a sage) himself, Zoroaster, as in the case of the Devas whom he disgraced from gods to the position of devils, hesitated not to designate this type of the spirit of evil under the name of his enemies, the Brahman-Aryas. The whole struggle of Ahura-mazd and Ahriman is but the allegory of the great religious and political war between Brahmanism and Zoroastrianism.