The Bible describes hell as a place of eternal destruction from the Lord’s presence, outer darkness, and a furnace of fire. But there is one aspect of hell that most people do not consider, and I believe it will be one of the worst things about hell. You may find it heartbreaking. The darkness of human minds has done terrible things, and many people will face this fact for eternity.
Before we get into all that, we need to remember some of the most heinous acts contrived by human minds and performed by human hands. Once we study this sad blight of humanity’s existence, you will see its connection to the awful fact about hell. Here’s a hint: it has to do with innocent babies and children.
About fifteen centuries before Christ, the Israelites were led into the Sinai Wilderness where they received the Law of Moses. Included in these guidelines were prohibitions against following after other gods, particularly Molech (Leviticus 18:21; 20:2–5). Molech was an Ammonite deity served by burning children alive as human sacrifices. When I read these regulations, I can’t help but wonder why God’s people, or anyone else for that matter, would have to be told not to burn their children to death. But the Lord, in his infinite wisdom and foreknowledge, determined that it was necessary for such warnings to be issued.
After four decades in the wilderness, when the Israelites entered, conquered, and inhabited the land of Canaan, the territory was divided among the twelve tribes. Within Judah’s allotment the city of Jerusalem was established, to the west of which was a valley called ben Hinnom or the Valley of the Son (or Children) of Hinnom (Joshua 15:8; 18:16). For the next five centuries, Israel thrived in the Promised Land, reaching the pinnacle of her national glory under the leadership of King David and on into the reign of his son Solomon.
Unfortunately Solomon was not the man after God’s own heart that his father was (1 Kings 9:4; 11:4), and among his numerous transgressions was the setting aside of a place of worship for Molech (1 Kings 11:7)—the child hungry furnace god. It is unlikely that Solomon ever envisioned the horrific atrocities that would occur once these floodgates were opened, but within the next couple of centuries, Solomon’s own descendants would be offering their children to Molech as burnt sacrifices (2 Chronicles 28:1-3; 33:1-6).
The place where the Jews committed these abominations was called Topheth in the Valley of Hinnom (Jeremiah 7:31). The name Topheth is believed to have come from the Hebrew toph (meaning “drum”), seeing that drums were used to drown out the torturous cries of the burning children. This helped to callus the hearts of Molech’s servants and to prevent parents from having a change of heart after hearing the agony they had caused their own children in their scorching deaths. As God’s Law was ignored and neglected for generations, such heinous sins became commonplace among the Jewish people.
Then around 622 BC, when the Book of the Law was rediscovered in the temple, King Josiah set forth to bring about repentance and to restore pure religion. Among his many reforms was the defilement of Topheth in the Valley of Hinnom (2 Kings 23:10), desecrating the hallowed place with unclean things to render it unfit for any kind of religious activity. From that time onward the valley became a refuse dump for putrid waste, rotting animal carcasses, decaying corpses of executed criminals, and all manner of filth. It was a place where fires burned continually in the futile attempt to deplete the amassing mountains of garbage and to mask the horrid stench.
Fast forward to the time of Christ. In Mark 9:42–48, three times the Lord graphically emphasizes the importance of ridding oneself of whatever leads to sin in order to avoid ending up in the place he describes as Gehenna (γέεννα). For example, he says:
And if your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, than having two hands, to go away into hell, into the unquenchable fire …. where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.
Mark 9:43–44, 481
The term in this passage rendered “hell” in most English translations is derived from the Aramaic Gēhannā and its Hebrew equivalent Ge Hinnom, meaning “Valley of Hinnom.” Similar to picturing heaven with the most beautiful and precious things known to man (as in Revelation 21:11–21), the Lord portrays the destination of the wicked with imagery familiar to his listening audience. The most disgusting place imaginable was the rubbish dump outside of Jerusalem, with its decomposing cadavers covered in maggots (“where their worm does not die”) and its perpetual smoldering (“and the fire is not quenched”).
Other biblical descriptions of hell include:
- Eternal destruction from the Lord’s presence (2 Thessalonians 1:9)
- The furnace of fire (Matthew 13:42a, 50a)
- Outer darkness (Matthew 8:12a; 25:30a)
- The wailing and the gnashing of teeth (Matthew 8:12b; 13:42b, 50b; 25:30b)
- Everlasting fire and everlasting punishment (Matthew 25:41, 46)
- Unquenchable fire (Mark 9:43)
- Vengeance of eternal fire (Jude 7)
- As well as these images from Revelation: “tormented in fire and sulfur,” “the smoke of their torment forever and ever goes up,” “no rest day and night,” “the lake of fire burning with sulfur,” and “tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 14:10-11; 19:20; 20:10, 15).
As horrible and as terrifying as these images are, there are other despicable facts about hell not specifically mentioned in Scripture, but certainly implied. And what is one of those terrible facts about hell? It will be a place where there are no children. In fact, both before and after Christ’s warning about Gehenna in Mark 9, children were the topic of discussion. In verses 33–37, Jesus teaches his disciples an important lesson about meekness and humility by taking a small child in his arms and saying, “Whoever receives one of these children in my name receives me; and whoever receives me, not only receives me but the one having sent me.” Then, in Mark 10:13–16, the Lord seizes another opportunity to impart a similar object lesson. Upset by the disciples having rebuked certain ones for bringing young children to be blessed by him, Jesus says:
Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them, for of such is the kingdom of God. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a child, by no means will enter into it.
The Lord obviously considers children to be the epitome of spiritual purity, innocence, humility, eagerness to learn, receptivity, trust, and among the best examples of what it means to be nonjudgmental. (If you’re wondering what that says about the man-made doctrine of inherited sin, click here.)
I have always loved children. But when my wife and I had our own, it gave me a whole new perspective. Most of us understand the joy that comes into a family when a child is born or adopted (cf. Luke 1:14; John 16:21). As we “receive the kingdom of God as a child,” are we not to be harbingers of joy? (John 15:11; 16:24; 17:13; Acts 8:8, 39; 15:3). A baby’s giggle is contagious. A child’s genuine smile lights up a room. There is nothing more peaceful than a sleeping baby. I remember all the stress and anxiety in my life disappearing whenever I held one of my infant daughters as she slept. We also learn patience from our little ones. Most parents have to admit that we are much more patient now than before we had kids. While the Bible tells us to be patient (1 Corinthians 13:4; 1 Thessalonians 5:14), our children teach us to be patient.
Consider what the Bible says will be both present and absent from God’s dwelling place.
And He [God] will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither sorrow, nor crying, nor pain…. But as for the cowardly, unbelieving, detestable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, these will have their part in the lake burning with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.
Revelation 21:4, 8
Think of all the little babies who have been killed in the name of the “gods” of human self interest—whether at the literal altar of a pagan god, or inside an abortion clinic. The Lord, before ushering in the innocent and his faithful to their everlasting home, will finally bring justice, and heaven will be filled with children—yes, those who have been slaughtered, those who have been stillborn, and all who have died from accidents, sickness, or abuse. Heaven will be full of children, but not a single one will be in hell. To me, that’s one of the worst things about hell. Considering this fact, where do you want to spend eternity? If you’re not sure—absolutely sure—that you’ll spend eternity with Jesus (and all of his children), let’s study the Bible together.
- Scripture quotations in English are the author’s own translation. ↩︎