From Newsgroup: alt.bible

Bible doctrines based on the Scriptures, not the demons.

Many are of this sort:

-- New King James
2 Timothy 3:7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge
of the truth.

The demons have lit up their brains to accept their 'dark light':

-- Living Bible
2 Timothy 3:13 In fact, evil men and false teachers will become worse
and worse, deceiving many, they themselves having been deceived by
Satan.

That is sad, since they are usually sincere in wanting to serve God
and Jesus. But the demons are cleaver, tricky, and quite deceptive.
'Lying' is their golden goose:

-- New King James
1 Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some
will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and
doctrines of demons,

Most churches will not deny that we are in the Bible's "latter times".
So we have to be real careful absorbing Bible truths. As God's word
says:

-- King James
1 Thessalonians 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.

For example, take the "Lake of Fire". The demons have deceived most
professed Christians that the fire is literal. But we are to "prove
all things". So is it? NO!!! The proof is what is tossed into it.

One thing is DEATH. Can DEATH be tortured and burned with a literal
fire? Another thing is HELL. Same question, can HELL be tortured and
burned with a literal fire?

-- King James
Revelation 20:14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire.
This is the second death.

Revelation is the most symbolic book in the Bible as noted below.

Rev 20:14 even tells you what the "Lake of Fire" represents; "the
second death". The first death we all inherited from Adam. (Rom 5:12)
After they die, there will be a resurrection of those dead (Acts
24:15), and many will be judged adversely (Jer 25:33), So they will
die again. That is the "second death" which is permanent.

And what about the wild beast with 7 heads and 10 horns? Where is that
beast today? Also on its 7 heads, there is written blasphemous
names. (Rev 13:1) Who and how did someone climb up to its head, and
write something, 7 times, if it is supposed to be literal?

Has science discovered it yet? They never will since it is obviously
symbolic. Thus this SYMBOLIC beast is tossed into a SYMBOLIC fire.

" How Can the Bible Help You?
Find out with our free interactive Bible study program."
Go to: jw.org (9/27/2026)
zebrabible@proton.me

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.bible

The reason Satan's Witness liars want to deny the literal fulfillment of Scripture, is to promote a false gospel. They want to comfort men with
the DELUSION that they can reject Christ as Savior, yet still escape
eternal, conscious torment in the lake of fire without Christ:

========================================
Thu, 11 Jun 2026 14:36:38 -0400,
<dmbl2l1osulua32fhs2oksci4gt1dpbsfr@4ax.com>
Satan's Witness <zebrabible@proton.me> wrote: ========================================

[Christrose wrote]

Everything you try to brainwash people with in here is a calculated
denial of the true gospel and an effort to lure men into the comfort of
believing they can reject Christ till death and still somehow either be
saved or not experience conscious eternal torment.

[Watchtower James wrote]

Now you got it.

Symbolism in Revelation

To begin, when Revelation uses symbolic language, it almost always
indicates such by using phrased such as "like" or "as". For example,
Jesus' voice is "like" a trumpet or "like" the sound of many waters, or
His hair is white "like" wool. In such instances, it is self-evident
that it's giving a comparison that we understand to explain something we
do not. The vast majority of the symbols in Revelation fit this category.

Secondly, when Revelation uses symbolism which is not "like" or "as", it EXPLAINS what the symbols mean. For example, when it says Jesus is
holding seven stars in His right hand and standing among seven
lampstands (Revelation 1:12rCo16), it immediately explains, rCLthe seven
stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are
the seven churchesrCY (Revelation 1:20).

Similarly, the great red dragon is explicitly identified as rCLthat
ancient serpent, who is called the devil and SatanrCY (Revelation 12:9).
This consistent patternrCoeither using clear similes or offering direct explanationsrCoshows that Revelation does not leave its symbols to private interpretation. When the text does not indicate symbolic meaning, the
burden of proof rests on anyone who insists it should be read
symbolically rather than plainly.

The claim that the second death is merely symbolic and does not involve conscious punishment contradicts the plain teaching of Scripture.
Scripture repeatedly affirms that the second death is real, final, and includes conscious punishment for the unrighteous.

"And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of
fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and
they will be tormented day and night forever and ever."
(Revelation 20:10, ESV)

This verse directly contradicts the claim that there is no torment. The
devil, beast, and false prophet are not annihilatedrCothey are *tormented* eternally.

"And if anyonerCOs name was not found written in the book of life,
he was thrown into the lake of fire." (Revelation 20:15, ESV)

The lake of fire is not symbolicrCoit is the final destination for the unrighteous, following the resurrection and final judgment. It is the
*second death*, and not merely symbolic or unconscious.

"These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous
into eternal life." (Matthew 25:46, ESV)

Jesus explicitly states that the punishment is *eternal*, not temporary
or symbolic. The parallelism with rCLeternal liferCY confirms that both destinies are equally enduring and conscious.

"In a flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know
God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They
will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the
presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might," (2
Thessalonians 1:8-9, ESV)

This passage describes conscious suffering (rCLthey will sufferrCY), not extinction or symbolic meaning. Eternal destruction refers to the irreversible, conscious ruin of their existencerConot annihilation of being.

"And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and
they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast
and its image..." (Revelation 14:11, ESV)

Torment "forever and ever" and rCLno rest, day or nightrCY cannot be reconciled with the idea of unconsciousness or nonexistence.

"Fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matthew
10:28, ESV)

Jesus warns of hell (*Gehenna*) as a place where both body and soul are destroyedrConot annihilated in the sense of nonexistence, but ruined in conscious judgment. The use of the word "destroy" (Greek: *apollymi*)
can mean ruin, not necessarily extinction.

Moreover, divine justice is not measured by human emotional standards
but by God's holiness and righteousness:

"For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait
for him." (Isaiah 30:18, ESV)

"Righteous are you, O Lord, when I complain to you; yet I would
plead my case before you. Why does the way of the wicked
prosper?" (Jeremiah 12:1, ESV)

Human empathy does not overrule divine revelation. GodrCOs justice
includes wrath against sin and eternal punishment for unrepentant rebellion:

"It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
(Hebrews 10:31, ESV)

The second death is not a metaphor or symbol of unconsciousness. It is
the eternal, conscious punishment of those who reject the gospel, and Scripture bears consistent, explicit witness to that reality.
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2