Gehenna is a place of judgment mentioned in the Old Testament. When Jesus’ speaks of hell He several times refers to it as Gehenna. Since Jesus refers to Gehenna in identical terms as those used in Isaiah 66 doesn’t this mean that hell cannot possibly be a place of eternal torment?

The place described in Isaiah 66 is one where Divine judgment falls on wicked humanity at the beginning of the Millennium. When Jesus returns to the earth to establish His millenial kingdom He will do several things. He will imprison Satan in the bottomless pit for 1,000 years (Revelation 20:1-3). He will judge the unbelievers who remain alive on the earth at this time. (Matthew 25:31-46) He will throw the Antichrist and the False Prophet into the Lake of Fire. (Revelation 19:20) He will defeat the armies of the world that have united in warfare against Him (Revelation 19:19-21) at the battle of Armageddon.

Isaiah does not tell the identity of the wicked ones who are slain and cast into the place of judgment. Possibility they are the corpses of the soldiers slain in battle. Possibly they are those who refuse to obey Jesus during the millennium. Whoever they are makes no difference to the point of Isaiah. God promises shameful death to those who rebel against His Messiah.

Since Jesus referenced this place of judgment in His descriptions of hell, doesn’t that mean hell is just a temporary place of physical punishment? Hell cannot possibly be a place of eternal torment if the Bible never describes it as a place of eternal suffering and if the Bible never uses familiar, earthly imagery to describe eternal realities.

The Bible is very clear that the suffering of the wicked is an eternal suffering. Two passages will suffice to show this Biblical truth. Revelation 14:9-11 says, “If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.” In this passage those who receive the mark of the beast, that is all the unsaved during the time of the Great Tribulation, will suffer eternal punishment. The smoke of their torment ascends up forever. Lest anyone imagine this only refers to the smoke that tormented them, the passage goes on to say they have no rest, day nor night. Their torment is a constant, unending torment.

Revelation 20:10 says, “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.”
Three persons, two humans and one angel, are cast into the lake of fire. Their torment is eternal, forever and ever. Their suffering is continual, day and night. God has plainly declared in His Word that the judgment of the wicked is one of eternal suffering.

The Bible is prolific in its use of the earthly and familiar to describe the eternal. Jesus uses the manna in the wilderness to describe Himself. He describes believing in Him in terms of eating His flesh and drinking His blood. Does this mean that Jesus will fade in the midday sun like manna did? Is Jesus available six days a week, but not on Saturday? Is cannibalism necessary for conversion? The questions themselves show the absurdity of such an argument. What about the serpent in the wilderness? Is Jesus a bronze snake? Is salvation only for those who have been bitten by poisonous vipers? The tabernacle in the wilderness was a picture of the heavenly tabernacle. Does this mean the heavenly tabernacle was made of badger skins? These are just a few of the many examples of the Bible using physical, temporary things to teach of eternal things. Such things aid our understanding of truth, but must be understood in light of the point being made and in light of the broader context of Scripture.

Jesus’ use of Gehenna does not disprove eternal torment. His picturesque language does not limit the suffering of the wicked. It graphically depicts in understandable terms the unending punishment the unsaved will endure.