Study 13: The Lake of Fire and the Second Death -- Answer Key¶
Revelation 20:14; 21:8; 2:11; 20:6
A Note on How to Study
Throughout this series, we distinguish between what the Bible explicitly says and what people infer from the Bible. These are not the same thing.
- Explicit: You can point to a verse and quote it. The text directly says this.
- Inference: Someone claims the Bible teaches something, but no single verse says it. They have drawn a conclusion -- possibly a good one, possibly not -- but the conclusion itself is not in the text.
This distinction is especially important in this study. The phrase "lake of fire" evokes vivid images -- but what does the text itself say about it? And what does the text's own explanation -- "the second death" -- actually mean?
Section A: The Lake of Fire -- What the Text Says¶
1. Read Revelation 20:14. The verse states: "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death." What does the text say the lake of fire IS?
The text says the lake of fire IS the second death. This is a direct predicate nominative -- an identification statement. The text does not say "the lake of fire involves torment" or "the lake of fire represents separation from God." It says "This is the second death."
"And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death." -- Revelation 20:14
2. Read Revelation 21:8. Eight categories of wicked people "shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." When the text describes what happens to human beings in the lake, what term does it use -- "torment" or "the second death"?
The text uses "the second death." When addressing human subjects, the text identifies the lake's function as death -- specifically, a second death. It does not use the word "torment" (basanizo) for humans in the lake.
"But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." -- Revelation 21:8
3. The phrase "lake of fire" (limne tou puros) appears five times in the Bible -- all in Revelation (19:20; 20:10; 20:14; 20:15; 21:8). It appears nowhere else in Scripture. What does this tell you about treating the "lake of fire" as a concept found throughout the Bible?
The "lake of fire" is unique to Revelation. It does not appear in any Old Testament passage, any Gospel, or any Epistle. The concept cannot be imported from other parts of Scripture, because no other part of Scripture uses the phrase. The Greek word limne (G3041, "lake") occurs 10 times in the NT: 5 literal uses in Luke (the Lake of Gennesaret) and 5 "lake of fire" uses in Revelation.
Section B: Who Enters the Lake?¶
4. Read Revelation 19:20. Who is cast into the lake of fire first? Are these human beings or symbolic entities?
The beast and the false prophet are cast into the lake first. They are cast in "alive." These are symbolic entities within John's apocalyptic vision -- not literal human beings.
"And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him... These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone." -- Revelation 19:20
5. Read Revelation 19:21. What happens to the human "remnant" in this passage? Does the text use the same vocabulary for the humans as for the beast and false prophet?
The human remnant is "slain" (apektanthesan) -- killed with the sword. The text uses different vocabulary for humans (slain) than for the symbolic entities (cast alive into the lake). This is a deliberate distinction.
"And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse." -- Revelation 19:21
6. Read Revelation 20:10. Who is tormented "day and night for ever and ever" in the lake? Is this statement applied to human beings or to the devil, beast, and false prophet?
The torment formula ("tormented day and night for ever and ever") is applied to the devil, the beast, and the false prophet -- non-human and symbolic entities. The text does not apply this formula to human beings.
"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 20:10
7. Read Revelation 20:15. "Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." Does this verse add any statement about torment for these human subjects?
No. The verse states that humans are cast into the lake of fire but does not add any torment formula. No basanizo (torment) language appears. The preceding verse (Rev 20:14) identifies the lake as "the second death."
"And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." -- Revelation 20:15
8. Read Revelation 20:9. What does the fire from heaven do to the human armies? The word is "devoured" (katephagen). What does "devoured" mean?
"Devoured" means consumed, eaten up, destroyed. Fire from heaven devoured the human armies. This is destruction vocabulary, not torment vocabulary.
"And fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them." -- Revelation 20:9
Section C: What Does "Second Death" Mean?¶
9. The word "death" (thanatos) appears three times in Revelation 20:14 alone: "death (thanatos) and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death (thanatos)." When the text identifies what the lake of fire does, does it use death vocabulary or torment vocabulary?
The text uses death vocabulary. Thanatos (death) appears three times in this single verse. The text chose "death" -- not "torment" (basanizo) -- to identify what the lake of fire does. The author's own name for the lake's function is "death."
10. Read Romans 6:23. "The wages of sin is death" (thanatos). This is the same Greek word used in "second death." According to Paul, what is the penalty for sin?
The penalty for sin is death -- thanatos. This is the same word used in "second death" (deuteros thanatos). Paul defines the wages of sin as death, and the lake of fire is identified as "the second death."
"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." -- Romans 6:23
11. The adjective "second" (deuteros) implies a first. Read Revelation 2:10-11. Verse 10 says "be thou faithful unto death" -- that is, physical death (the first death). Verse 11 promises overcomers will "not be hurt of the second death." How does the text distinguish between the first death and the second death?
The text pairs them in immediate context. "Faithful unto death" refers to physical death -- the first death that all humans experience. The "second death" is a distinct, subsequent death. The ordinal adjective "second" (deuteros) creates this distinction: there is a first death (physical) and a second death (at the lake of fire).
"Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." -- Revelation 2:10
"He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death." -- Revelation 2:11
12. If the "second death" meant eternal conscious torment rather than death, why would the text call it "death" at all? What does the word "death" normally mean?
The word "death" (thanatos) normally means the cessation of life. If the text meant to describe ongoing conscious torment, calling it "death" would be misleading -- torment is the opposite of death. The text had torment vocabulary available (basanizo, basanismos) and chose not to use it for the identification statement. It chose "death" -- twice calling the lake "the second death."
Section D: Death and Hades Cast into the Lake¶
13. Read Revelation 20:13-14. Death and hades "delivered up the dead" and then were "cast into the lake of fire." What happens to death itself?
Death and hades are cast into the lake of fire. Death itself -- personified as a force throughout Revelation (riding a pale horse in 6:8, Christ holding its keys in 1:18, delivering up the dead in 20:13) -- is thrown into the lake. The result is stated in Rev 21:4: "no more death."
"And death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death." -- Revelation 20:13-14
14. Read Revelation 21:4. "There shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." This appears immediately after the lake of fire passages. What is the result of death being cast into the lake?
The result is "no more death." The casting of death into the lake achieves the elimination of death itself. The unqualified statement "no more death... neither shall there be any more pain" describes a future state in which death and pain have been permanently removed.
"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." -- Revelation 21:4
15. Read 1 Corinthians 15:26. "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." Read Isaiah 25:8. "He will swallow up death in victory." What do these passages say happens to death?
Death is destroyed. Death is swallowed up. Both passages use destruction/abolition vocabulary for death itself. This matches Rev 20:14, where death is cast into the lake (resulting in Rev 21:4, "no more death").
"The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." -- 1 Corinthians 15:26
"He will swallow up death in victory." -- Isaiah 25:8
16. Read 2 Timothy 1:10. Christ "hath abolished death." The Greek word is katargeo (G2673) -- the same word used in 1 Corinthians 15:26. What does this vocabulary tell you about the fate of death?
The vocabulary is consistent: katargeo means to render inoperative, to abolish, to do away with. Death is abolished, destroyed, swallowed up. The vocabulary chain across Isaiah, Hosea ("O death, I will be thy destruction" -- Hos 13:14), Paul, and John consistently uses destruction/abolition language for death itself.
"But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death." -- 2 Timothy 1:10
Section E: Overcomers and the Second Death¶
17. Read Revelation 2:11. "He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death." The verb adikeo (G91) means "to wrong, injure, or harm." What kind of language is this -- torment language or harm/injury language?
This is harm/injury language, not torment language. The text says overcomers will not be "hurt" or "harmed" by the second death. The second death is described as something that injures or harms -- consistent with death vocabulary, not with a framework of eternal conscious experience.
"He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death." -- Revelation 2:11
18. Read Revelation 20:6. "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power." The word "power" is exousia (G1849), meaning authority or jurisdiction. What does it mean that the second death has no authority over first-resurrection participants?
It means the second death cannot exercise jurisdiction or authority over those in the first resurrection. The language treats the second death as a force or power that has dominion over certain subjects but not others. This is authority/death language, consistent with treating the second death as actual death rather than ongoing torment.
"Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years." -- Revelation 20:6
19. Read Matthew 25:41. The everlasting fire was "prepared for the devil and his angels." According to this verse, who was the fire originally prepared for -- human beings or non-human entities?
The fire was prepared for the devil and his angels -- non-human entities. Its primary designation is for supernatural beings, not for human beings. This is consistent with Revelation's pattern: the torment formula is applied to the devil, beast, and false prophet (Rev 20:10), while humans receive the designation "the second death."
"Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." -- Matthew 25:41
Explicit or Inference? -- Answers¶
A. "The lake of fire IS the second death" (Rev 20:14). - Explicit. Revelation 20:14 directly states: "This is the second death." It is a predicate nominative -- a direct identification statement in the text.
B. "The second death means eternal conscious torment." - Inference. No verse defines the second death as eternal conscious torment. The text defines the second death using thanatos (death), not basanizo (torment). This claim requires adding a concept -- "death means torment" -- that the text does not contain.
C. "The torment formula ('tormented day and night for ever and ever') is applied to the devil, beast, and false prophet -- not to human beings" (Rev 20:10). - Explicit. Revelation 20:10 directly states who is tormented: "the devil... where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever." No verse applies this formula to humans in the lake.
D. "There shall be no more death" (Rev 21:4). - Explicit. Revelation 21:4 directly states this.
E. "The second death means separation from God." - Inference. No verse defines the second death as separation from God. The text uses thanatos (death) without qualifying it as "separation." The concept of "death as separation" is a theological framework applied to the text, not derived from it.
F. "The wages of sin is death" (Rom 6:23), and "death" is the same Greek word used in "second death." - Explicit. Romans 6:23 states "the wages of sin is death" (thanatos). The "second death" (deuteros thanatos) uses the same word. This is an observable vocabulary fact.
What the Bible Says vs. What People Say the Bible Teaches¶
| The Bible explicitly says... | People often claim the Bible teaches... |
|---|---|
| The lake of fire IS the second death (Rev 20:14) | The lake of fire is a place of eternal conscious torment |
| The text uses thanatos (death), not basanizo (torment), to identify the lake | The second death means something other than death |
| The torment formula is applied to the devil, beast, and false prophet (Rev 20:10) | The torment formula applies to all subjects in the lake |
| No torment formula is stated for humans in the lake (Rev 20:15) | Humans experience the same torment as the devil |
| Human armies are "devoured" by fire (Rev 20:9); the human remnant is "slain" (Rev 19:21) | All subjects in the lake experience identical fates |
| "There shall be no more death" after the lake events (Rev 21:4) | Conscious suffering continues forever after the judgment |
| The wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23) | The wages of sin is eternal torment |