In spite of the fact that some say hell is not real or eternal, the Bible says otherwise. Hell is both real and eternal! God says it is eternal and that settles it. In Revelation 20:10 we read, “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.” Revelation 14:11, “And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night....”
Jesus spoke of hell when he talked of the wicked, the unjust, the unrighteous, the unsaved at the judgment. “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal” (Matt. 25:46). He describes it as an everlasting fire (Matt. 18:8) and at the judgment will “...say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt. 25:41). Those who blaspheme against the Holy Spirit “...is in danger of eternal damnation” (Mark 3:29). If they do not repent and obey the Gospel, they will be sent “where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:44).
The Lord says hell is everlasting, eternal, just like heaven (Matt. 25:46). Those who do not live so as to go to heaven “...shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power” (2 Thess. 1:9).
Once in hell, there is no escape. The account of the rich man and Lazarus shows this to be true. We read, “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). If there were an escape, then all the passages that speak of torment and punishment being eternal and everlasting would be in error. However, God’s Word is True. It is perfect, without flaw, errorless, contains no error!
Sin causes one to be lost and will forever consign one’s soul to an eternal hell. Forgiveness of sins is the only way to avoid hell. To have forgiveness you must believe in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God and Savior of the world (John 8:24; Mark 16:16), repent of all your sins (Luke 13:3; Acts 2:38), confess faith in Christ (Romans 10:10; Acts 8:37), be baptized in water for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3-18; 2 Peter 3:21), and live faithful to the Lord the rest of your life (1 Cor. 15:58).
—Garland M. Robinson