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“Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28).
Today’s verse is very similar to yesterday’s, for both of them mention that awful word hell. It is often used as a swear word today, and many people speak of it very lightly. But hell is a real place.
Some people have interpreted the word “destroy” to try and prove that people who go to hell are annihilated, which simply means that they cease to exist. But this is not the meaning of the word destroy. The word destroy means to make something unable to be used for the purpose for which it was made. You could take an ax, and in a few minutes you could destroy a wooden chair, but the wood would not cease to exist. The chair would just not be usable for someone to sit on.
According to Revelation 4:11, all things, including you and I, were made for God’s pleasure. Those who go to hell will never give God any pleasure, and in that sense they are destroyed. But they will not cease to exist. It is a most solemn thought.
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