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onday: Here I am, in the middle of nowhere. This
camping trip idea is not getting off to a very good start. It’s raining and the
tent leaks. The hiking seemed to take forever, and I still can’t understand how
it could all have been up hill! How did I ever let my brother talk me into
this? When we get home―if we ever get home―he’s going to have to do something
great to get back on my good side. Maybe he should sponsor a shopping spree（狂购）at the mall!
Tuesday: Things are looking up. The sun came out
today, so we were able to leave the tents and dry out. We’re camped at the edge
of a small lake that I couldn’t see before because of the rain and fog. The
mountains are all around us, and the forest is absolutely beautiful. We spent
most of the day dragging out everything out of our backpacks or tents and
putting it where the sun could dry it out. Later in the afternoon we tried to
catch the fish for dinner, but the fish were smarter than we were. At night we
built a fire and sang songs happily.
Wednesday: We hiked to the far side of the lake and
climbed to the top of a small peak. From there we could see how high the other
mountains were and how far the forest spread around us. On the way up we passed
through a snowfield!
Thursday: I caught my first fish! We followed the
stream that fed the lake. After about two miles, we came to a section that
Carol said looked “fishy”. She had a pack rod(竿),
which can be carried in a backpack. I asked to cast it, and I caught a fish on
my first try. Carol caught a few more. But they were just too pretty to eat for
lunch so we put them back in the stream.
Friday: I can’t believe we are going home already. It
will be nice to get a hot shower, sleep in a real bed, and eat junk food, but
the trip has been wonderful. We’re already talking about another camping
adventure next year where we canoe down a river. It’s hard to believe, but I
think this city girl has a little country blood in her veins.
1.The writer went on this camping trip
because________.
A．she enjoyed
camping
B．she wanted to
go fishing
C．she was
influenced by her brother
D．she was tired
of staying at home
2.The whole morning of Tuesday, the writer ________.
A．hiked along
the lake&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& B．dried out her
belongings
C．climbed the
mountain&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& D．caught the
fish for dinner
3.It can be inferred that Carol had a pack rod with
her because ________.
A．she could not
afford to buy a regular fishing pole
B．she needed it
to get their main source of food
C．she thought
the writer of the journal might need it
D．she expected
to go fishing while they were hiking
4.It is likely that the writer will
________.&&
A．go on another
camping trip
B．invite Carol
to go fishing together
C．make her
brother buy her something
D．convince her
brother to go camping
阅读答案：
试题分析：本文记叙了一行人出去旅行的经历，从对这样的旅游很抗拒，到最后喜欢上这样的活动的详细记载。
1.C 推理题。根据第一段第4行How did I ever let my brother talk me into this?说明我是被我的兄弟说服了一起来的，故C正确。
2.B 细节题。根据第二部分The sun came out
today, so we were able to leave the tents and dry outWe spent most of the day
dragging out everything out of our backpacks or tents and putting it where the
sun could dry it out.说明在星期二，我们主要就是把单选晒干，故B正确。
3.D 推断题。根据第4部分we came to a section that Carol said looked “fishy”.
She had a pack rod(竿), which can be carried in a backpack.和Carol caught a few more.说明她想这样做，所以我们We followed the stream that fed the lake.顺流而上，故D项正确。
4.A 推理题。根据文章最后一部分2,3行We’re already talking about another camping adventure
next year where we canoe down a river说明他们已经在谈论明年出去的事情了，故明年他们仍然有可能出去，故A正确。
考点：考查应用文中的旅游日记
点评：本文内容简单易懂，考查细节题为主，要注意文本内容的理解。关键是找出原文的根据，认真核查题支和原文的异同，常犯错误有：绝对化语言，范围扩大或缩小，以偏概全，张冠李戴等。带着问题，再读全文，找出答题所需要的依据，完成阅读。
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　　网友评论：（只显示最新10条。评论内容只代表网友观点，与本站立场无关！）Where Is the Lake of Fire?
101 Bible Secrets
Where Is the Lake of Fire?
The information in this Appendix may be surprising to many people, but it can
be shown from the Bible and history that the Lake of Fire is presently in
existence on this earth. At the present the Lake is within one of its
periodic “quiet” cycles and fire is not now observed within it, but it is
destined to erupt again before the second advent of Christ. Interestingly, this
Lake was long ago known as a Lake of Fire and in history it has spewed forth its
sulfuric and fiery eruptions in times when God chose to judge sinners for their
ways. It will again be used to judge the wicked (Revelation 19:20) and Death and Hades
are destined to be thrown into it (Revelation 20:14). The early Jewish theologians knew
that this lake was a place of judgment and they mention it in their ancient
records (Lightfoot, Works on Hebrew and Talmud, vol.1, pp.15–16). In this
Appendix will be given the scriptural and historical information that is needed
to identify this Lake of Fire. What is interesting is the fact that you could go
there now, see it with your own eyes, and come away without experiencing any
heat (rather than that of the sun, which is very hot in that region). The Lake
of Fire is on earth today and this Appendix will identify its location.
The New Testament mentions the existence of a lake which is destined to
become the place of judgment for the Beast, the False Prophet, Satan (after the
Millennium), and wicked human beings. It is called “The Lake of Fire,” or more
accurately, “The Lake of the Fire”. It is “the Fire” which is found in the lake
that makes the lake unique, and that fire is the fire of judgment. The fuel that
feeds the fire in this lake is brimstone (an old name for sulfur).
Is there such a lake on earth today that fits the description of this “Lake
of the Fire”? The answer is “yes.” In fact, this lake has been in existence for
at least 4000 years. People have traveled to its region and have reported seeing
fire and columns of smoke ascending from its central sections. Such eyewitness
reports have been given from earliest times. They also have testified to the
presence of sulfurous fumes coming from the lake. And one scientist in our
modern era has observed a hue of absinthe (the wormwood of Revelation 8:11)
hovering on occasion over the lake.
Where is this biblical lake located? It is not difficult to discover its
whereabouts if one will pay attention to some of the identifying factors
associated with the lake. Let’s notice some of these points.
The first important matter to consider is what constitutes “a lake” as humans
are able to perceive it. The dictionary defines a lake as an area of depression
in the earth which contains a liquid (normally water). It always has higher
ground surrounding it, and in the case of ordinary lakes, it represents the
central area of a drainage region into which streams and/or rivers flow. Since
the apostle John in the Book of Revelation used the ordinary and simple term for
“lake,” it could be reasonably believed that he had a conventional lake in mind,
though he said it was “The Lake of THE Fire.” Note the definite article
qualifying the word “fire.” The apostle John was referring to a lake that had
“THE fire” in it which was reserved for God’s judgment.
Secondly, this particular lake had fire associated with it that was fueled by
sulfur. In some way, that chemical must be found in its midst.
Thirdly, John tells us that the lake will be in existence and active with
fire prior to the Millennium (Revelation 19:20). This means it will be fully in
evidence before the second advent of Christ to this earth.
Fourthly, the Beast and False Prophet who fight against Christ at his advent
will be thrown into this lake. Since it is made plain in the Bible that the
final battles to be fought just prior to the Millennium will be at or around
Jerusalem, it could reasonably be suggested that the lake would be located in
the same vicinity. Indeed, it is plainly shown that the wicked will be tormented
with fire and brimstone
“in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence
of the L and the smoke of their torment ascends up for the ages of the
ages: and they have no rest day or night” (Revelation 14:10–11, not “forever and ever”
see Greek).
This is an exact reference to Isaiah 34:8-10.
“For it is the day of
the Lord’s vengeance, and the year of recompense for the controversy of Zion.
And the streams [of Edom] shall be turned into pitch, and the dust into
brimstone, and the land [of Edom] shall become burning pitch. It shall not be
q the smoke shall go up for the age [not forever see
Hebrew]” from generation to generation it shall lie waste. This burning of Edom
(an area that borders the southern and southeastern portions of the Dead Sea)
occurs when “the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be
rolled together as a scroll” (Isaiah 34:4),
Just like the Book of Revelation says
will happen at the second advent of Christ (Revelation 6:14). This region of Edom will
have its streambeds flowing with rivers of fire. This pitch and brimstone will
flow into the Dead Sea located just east and south of Jerusalem. Since this
judgment takes place so near to Jerusalem, it could be reasoned that
“The Lake
of the Fire” was certainly in the vicinity.
There is also a fifth point. John says the lake has the factor of death
associated with it. “The Lake of the Fire...is the second death.” This is where
Hades (hell) and Death are to be cast (Revelation 20:14). Hades and Death are the
proper names of angelic powers who control those areas and conditions of
judgment. This reference shows that “The Lake of the Fire” cannot be a symbol of
the ordinary grave (Hades), because Hades (an angelic power) is “thrown” into
Sixthly, the lake cannot be Gehenna (another name of “hell” in the King James
Version). The area of Gehenna (sometimes called Tophet) is a valley located on
the southern edges of Jerusalem. In no way can the Valley of Hinnom (Gehenna) be
considered “a lake.” It is also not the “bottomless pit” (Greek: abyss) because
that is a pit in the earth with a door that a key can open (Revelation 9:1–2).
Admittedly, the description of the abyss is figurative, but it is not suitable
to connect a door and key with an entrance to “a lake.”
A final factor to consider is John’s teaching that this Lake of the Fire will
cease to exist after the Great White Throne period. This is because John says
“the former things [including the Lake of the Fire]
are passed away. Behold, I
make all things NEW” (Revelation 21:4–5). The area in which this lake is found will one
day be healed and made new. Interestingly, there are some important scriptures
that speak of a prominent lake being healed when the periods of God’s judgments
are completed.
These seven factors are not of themselves enough to identify the lake, but
they give us some excellent clues which can become significant when we look at
other scriptures and a number of historical indications.
A Major Key
There is a prime New Testament reference which goes a long way in solving the
identification of “The Lake of the Fire.” It is found in the Book of Jude. This
New Testament writer was the brother of James, and the half-brother of our Lord.
He said that there was, in his time, an example of eternal fire (age-lasting
fire) that was an active and present witness to what the judgment of God would
be like in the future. That example was the geographical area where the cities
of Sodom and Gomorrah once existed. Jude called attention to the ruined
condition of that region as well as the fire that was still burning in the
locale. That’s right, the area around the ancient cities of Sodom and Gomorrah
was still having fires and smoke in the time of Jude. Notice carefully what he
said on the matter.
“Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them in like manner, giving
themselves over to fornication [promiscuity]
and going over to strange flesh,
are set forth [are presently set forth] for an example, suffering [are presently
suffering] the vengeance of age-lasting fire” (Jude
verse 7, not “eternal” fire
because the fires have long gone out—see proper Greek understanding).
When one looks at that verse closely, it tells us very much about the
environment around the Dead Sea as it existed in the time of Jude. There were
then active fires and smoke in the area. Strabo, the first century geographer,
described the neighborhood as “a land of fires” (XVI, 764). Some of the fires
were fed by the seepage of naphtha (an old name for petroleum), bitumen, and
other gaseous fumes.
A hundred years before Strabo, there is the record of a Jewish author who
described the Dead Sea area.
“Wisdom saved a man [Lot]
from a destruction of the godless, and he escaped
the fire that came on the Five Cities, cities whose wickedness, is still
attested by a smoking waste” (Wisdom of Solomon 10:7, italics mine).
This historical reference indicates that the Dead Sea region was then, back
at that time, still smoking from subterranean fires. Diodorus Siculus, who also
lived in the 1st century BC said:
“The fire which burns beneath the ground
and the stench render the inhabitants of the neighboring country sickly and very
short lived” (Book II, 48).
A few years later, in the time of Christ’s childhood, the Jewish writer Philo
gave witness to the burnings and smoke that was still ascending.
“The fire is
most difficult to extinguish, and creeps on pervading everything and smoldering.
And a most evident proof of this is to be found in what is seen to this day: for
the smoke which is still emitted, and the brimstone that men dig up there” (On
Abraham XXVII).
This fire and smoke was also seen coming from the midst of the Dead Sea as
well. The geographer Strabo called the Dead Sea a lake (as did Josephus, the
early Jewish historian—War IV,8,4), and described the fiery characteristics
which came from its center: “In the midst of the lake
is a source of the fire and also there are great quantities of asphalt in the middle. The eruption is
uncertain, because the movements of fire have no order known to us, as it is of
many other basis.”
Josephus continues:
“Together with the asphalt there arises a great deal of soot, smoke, and
[gases] invisible to the sight, by which brass, silver, and everything shining,
even gold is tarnished.”
Around the area were “drops of pitch distilling from the rocks and boiling
streams.”
“The lake was formed by earthquakes and boiling outbursts of fire, and hot
water impregnated with bitumen and brimstone [sulfur]”
(Strabo, Book XVI, 764).
It is interesting to note that the eruptions of fire, smoke, and asphalt were
not of continuous duration. Only at irregular times did such phenomena occur,
but the occasions were frequent enough that eyewitnesses around the time of
Christ and the apostles called it a lake of fire and smoke. In actual fact, we
are told by Henry Maundrell (who traveled from Europe to Palestine in AD 1697)
that most of the map makers prior to the seventeenth century show
ascending above the surface of the water” (Journey, p.454, Bohn Edition).
However, when Maundrell visited the area, no smoke was seen by him. Yet the
explorer Volney in AD 1787 was told that smoke periodically could be observed
coming out of the Dead Sea.
“The south of Syria, that is, the hollow through which the Jordan flows, is a
country of volcanoes: the bituminous and sulfurous sources of the Lake Asphaltis
[the Dead Sea], the lava, the pumice stones thrown upon its banks, and the hot
baths of Tiberius, demonstrate that this valley has been the seat of
subterranean fire, which is not yet extinguished. Clouds of smoke are often
observed to issue from the lake, and the new crevices to be formed upon its
banks” (Travels, vol.1, pp.28l, 282).
Volney was a very astute observer and he customarily inquired of the
inhabitants about the characteristics of the lands that he visited. It seems,
then, that as late as the eighteenth century, there were still some rare
outbursts of smoke and fire coming from the middle of the Dead Sea.
There have been no actual reportings since that time to my knowledge. It is
true, however, that after major earthquakes, a great deal of asphalt has broken
up in the bottom of the lake and risen to the surface. The lake itself has
seemingly been rather quiet of activity over the past 200 years and it has not
erupted as formerly described by those who lived near the time of Christ.
The first scientific investigation of the Dead Sea by Lynch in AD 1848
recounted that there was “a strong smell of sulfurette hydrogen” a
sulfurous odor in the night....the north wind was quite fresh and accompanied
with a smell of sulfur” (Journal of R. Soc. vol. XVIII,p.127). Interestingly,
this is the very description of some of the factors comprising
“The Lake of the
Fire and Brimstone [Sulfur]” in the Book of Revelation, but, of course, there
was no literal smoke seen by Lynch that he could without doubt vouch for. But he
did, however, on one occasion report a strange phenomenon that happened. At one
time there “appeared” to be smoke coming from the center, though Lynch
attributed it to an illusion. Note what he said.
“At one time today the sea assumed an aspect peculiarly somber. The great
evaporation enveloped it in a thin, transparent vapor, its purple tinge
contrasting strangely with the extraordinary color of the sea beneath and, where
they blended in the distance, giving it the appearance of smoke from burning
sulfur. It seemed a vast cauldron of metal, fused but motionless. In the
afternoon of the same day it looked like molten lead. At night it had the exact
hue of absinthe [or wormwood]” (J.R.G.S., ibid. pp. 276, 324).
In the Book of Revelation, absinthe is called “wormwood” (Revelation 8:11) which
caused waters to become bitter. What the explorer Lynch observed is interesting.
The scene gave the impression of smoke from burning sulfur ascending above the
surface of the Dead Sea, while parts of the lake gave the appearance of a vast
cauldron of molten lead. Is this illusory occurrence seen by Lynch what the
ancients were talking about? Maybe, in part. But there is simply too much
evidence from competent observers of the past to dismiss all the eye-witness
accounts as illusionary. Indeed, only at certain times in the past did the lake
erupt with its fiery display. And for the last 200 years (maybe much longer),
the lake has been relatively inactive. The prophecies, however, suggest (and we
will show this later in this Appendix) that a new and more violent eruption of
sulfurous fire and smoke is destined to emerge from the lake and surrounding
areas, and that “The Lake of the Fire” mentioned in the Book of Revelation will
be very much active at the time of Christ’s second advent to this earth. Such a
possibility should surprise none of us moderns because we have all witnessed the
eruption of Mount St. Helens in Washington state which is about 50 miles from where I
live in Portland, Oregon. The Dead Sea area may well be getting ready for a
renewal of its fiery activity. There are yet a few years before this will occur.
In fact, it will happen at an exact time in prophetic history.
The Lake of Fire Is the Dead Sea
We will now show biblical evidence that the Dead Sea is the prophesied
of the Fire.” Let us recall that Jude said that the area of Sodom and Gomorrah
was a present example (in Jude’s time) for the eternal (age-lasting) fire that
God has designed for the punishment of the wicked (Jude verse 7). The Bible tells us
that those cities of which Jude spoke are now under the Dead Sea. The former
Valley of Siddim in which Sodom and Gomorrah were situated
“is the salt sea”
(Genesis 14:3).
These cities were positioned in the northern part of where the Dead Sea now
is. They were not in the southern part of the lake. This is made plain in the
biblical revelation. Abraham and Lot looked over Sodom and Gomorrah from the
site of Bethel located a short distance north of Jerusalem. And in no way would
it have been possible for Abraham and Lot to have seen the southern part of the
lake from Bethel (Genesis 13:10). The Bible, on the other hand, makes the clear
statement that those two cities were “east” of Bethel (Genesis 13:11), not
south-by-east. Even the biblical description of the four northern kings
attacking Sodom and Gomorrah, shows the kings circling the Valley of Siddim on
the east and then south, and finally attacking Hazazon-tamar (En-Gedi—now
half way up the western side of the Dead Sea) before they encountered the King
of Sodom (Genesis 14:7–8). This, again, shows that Sodom and Gomorrah lay in the
northern regions of the Dead Sea. We are also told that the Wilderness of Zeboim
(a near spelling of Zeboiim, the neighbor city of Sodom) was directly east of
Beth-horon and Bethel (1 Samuel 13:18). This also leads one from Bethel eastwards
towards Jericho. All these geographical indications direct us to the northern
parts around the Dead Sea, not the south.
The northern half of the lake is its deepest part. Its surface is about 1300
feet below normal sea level, and soundings have been made in its northern sector
of another 1300 feet to reach its bottom. It is truly the lowest area on earth
below normal sea level.
The Dead Sea is a part of what is called the Jordan rift—a great
depression (or fault line) in the earth that starts north of Mount Hermon and
continues southerly with the Jordan River, the Sea of Galilee, and the Dead Sea
in its nether regions. The rift continues south to the Gulf of Aqaba, the Red
Sea, into Africa, and ends up near the source of the Nile River. It is the
longest known fault line on earth. From satellite pictures, it is a very
prominent feature on the surface of the earth and well distinguished from other
land formations.
The Chasm of the Jordan—the Example of Punishment
There is a reason why Jude centered his example of future judgment on the
ancient area of Sodom and Gomorrah. To him the Dead Sea (with its sulfurous
smoke and fiery characteristics) was the perfect exemplar given by God for his
vengeance upon evil angels and wicked humans. He could simply point to the
smoldering cauldron of the Dead Sea and tell the rebellious people that they
would finally experience the ravages of that Lake of Fire when it would burst
forth in a final and catastrophic eruption at the end of the age. Jude could
also point to historical examples to substantiate his prophetic beliefs. His
prototypes of punishment were recorded in the first book of the Bible—the
Book of Genesis. In fact Jude’s reference to judgment went back before the Flood
of Noah. Enoch, the great grandfather of Noah, was a prophet who foretold even
the second advent of Christ (Jude 14). He was also a prophet who gave many
warnings of judgment. He even foretold the exact year for the occurrence of the
Flood of Noah. [See Question Fifty-Four of this book where this is explained.]
This may be fine and good, but what has this to do with the judgment of Sodom
and Gomorrah which was an example of the end-time vengeance of God? It has very
much to do with it. One should pay careful attention to the fact that Noah (the
man who was saved through the Flood) was the tenth generation from Adam (Gen.5).
God gave the Pre-Flood world exactly ten generations before their judgment came.
The fact that the Flood happened in the tenth generation from creation was
important to early biblical interpreters. This is because Enoch, according to
Jude, also prophesied of the second judgment to occur on earth when the Lord
would appear from heaven with ten thousands of his saints (Jude verses 14–16). This
particular judgment was to be with fire, not water. Moreover, God promised that
no more universal punishment would come through the use of water
(Genesis 8:21–22). When one compares later prophecies of the Bible, the next
adjudication was to arrive on earth in the form of fire and brimstone. In
ancient times it became popular to view history and prophecy in a cyclical
fashion (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Things reoccur!
It is important to note that Noah was the tenth generation from Adam: 1)
A 2) S 3) E 4) C 5) M 6) J 7) E 8)
M 9) L and finally 10) Noah—in whose time the Flood destroyed
the world. Now note the next generation to follow Noah after the Flood. It was
1) S then 2) A 3) S 4) E 5) P 6) R 7) S 8)
N 9) T 10) Abraham. The tenth generation from the watery destruction
in the time of Noah was Abraham. With Noah, God began a new creation in a
physical way, but with Abraham (also a tenth generation individual), God began a
new spiritual creation. He began to use a man who would produce a nation of
people (Israel) from whom would come the Messiah to rescue people from all the
judgments of God and bring them into a perfect salvation. This is accomplished
through the efforts of Christ Jesus.
But God also did something else in the time of Abraham that was a repeat of
what happened in the time of Noah. A further judgment against rebellion and sin
took place in that tenth generation just as one took place in Noah’s tenth
generation. God did not bring the later destruction by water, but it was by
fire. This was the time that fire and brimstone fell on Sodom, Gomorrah, and the
Valley of Siddim.
So thorough was the devastation that the fire within the Jordan Valley
appeared as though it were a complete destruction of the earth by the burning of
fire. That opinion was expressed by Lot’s daughters. “There is not a man [left]
in the earth,” was their appraisal (Genesis 19:31). They thought that the world had
come to an end by the fire and brimstone and that there was not a man left in
all the earth but their father Lot. After all, it was the tenth generation from
Noah. What a surprise to the girls when they discovered that only the Jordan
rift valley was destroyed. It was a great enough devastation, however, that it
became the example of the future judgment when God will rain down a fiery rebuke
on rebellious men at the end of the age.
In order to warn men of this future judgment, Jude saw the Jordan Valley as a
contemporary example of a bursting forth of periodic flames of sulfurous origin
with columns of smoke coming from the surrounding land and the lake. It was a
further admonition of what would occur at the end of the age—only this time
with even more intensity. This is why Jude placed the example of God’s judgment
for the future directly into the Jordan rift valley of his time—right to the
area of the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea was once “The Lake of the Fire,” and it is
destined again to become that same “Lake of Fire” at the time of Christ’s second
advent. It is soon to erupt (probably in its northern end) with a fiery display
that will be awesome. We should briefly remind ourselves of the parable given by
Christ about Lazarus and the Rich Man (Luke 16:19-31). The locale of that story
is precisely in the area of the Jordan rift and the northern region of the Dead
Sea. Here was the Rich Man after death in the place of fire. He looked and saw
Lazarus in the bosom of Abraham. Between Abraham and the Rich Man was a
gulf fixed” (Luke 16:26). I have pointed out in Question Forty-One that the
great gulf of Christ’s parable was clearly the Jordan rift valley. The Rich Man
was east of the Jordan River, and Lazarus and Abraham were west of it. The
latter two were inheriting the promises of the land of Palestine given to
Abraham, but the Rich Man (Judah) was not allowed to enter. He had to remain in
the region of the fires near the northern edge of the Dead Sea but east of the
Jordan River. This was an area where there once were continual and unrelenting
flames and they existed in the time of Christ.
The significance of the parable (and that’s what it was, a parable, not an
actual occurrence), was to show that the region of the “great gulf” was a place
of punishment. It was directly in the same location that Jude placed the example
of eternal [age-lasting] fire to try the wicked (Jude verse 7).
The Valley of Hinnom
With the information that the great chasm (or gulf) of the Jordan rift (with
the smoking Dead Sea in its midst) is the place of punishment for the wicked, we
can now understand much better the position of Gehenna (the Valley of Hinnom) in
this scheme of future punishment. Christ frequently referred to Gehenna as a
place of fiery judgment (Matthew 5:22,29,30; 10:28; Mark 9:47; Luke 12:5, etc.)
This particular valley was situated outside the southern walls of Jerusalem. It
was a place where the fires to the pagan god Moloch were sanctified (Jeremiah 32:35;
Ezekiel 20:31). It was also called Tophet.
“For Tophet is ordained of old, yea,
for the king [the evil king]
has ma the
pile thereof i the breath of the Lord like a stream of
brimstone, does kindle it” (Isaiah 30:33).
It is the prison where some “high ones”
[angels] and kings on earth will be incarcerated. Within the stretch of its
confines is a very deep pit (a bottomless pit) and it is the place of
containment for evil angels and finally for Satan during the Millennium (Revelation
20:1–3). We will see in a moment that indications show that this pit of
imprisonment (the abyss) is associated with the Valley of Hinnom (Tophet).
The Valley of Hinnom commenced at Jerusalem and journeyed eastwards at a
precipitous rate until it emptied into the northern parts of the Dead Sea. The
watercourse is know to this very day as the Wady en-Nar (Arabic: The Streambed
of Fire). This Valley of Hinnom (that is, the Gehenna mentioned by Christ) was
about fifteen miles long. It plummeted into the Dead Sea (the Lake of the Fire).
This means that Gehenna and the Lake of the Fire were typically connected.
The ceremony of the Scapegoat (Azazel) on the Day of Atonement was a part of
this typical story (Leviticus chapter 16). Two goats were selected. One was to be sacrificed
in Jerusalem, while the other was to be taken by an able bodied man into the
wilderness east of Jerusalem. Indeed, the Scapegoat was to be taken down the
Valley of Hinnom to a place about three miles east and south of Jerusalem called
Beth Chaduda where the goat was allowed to go over a very deep cliff (like an
abyss) so that he would never come in contact with civilization again (Yoma 67b; Targum Jerusalem Leviticus 14:10). This part of the wilderness was where
the demons were supposed to be. It was near this region where Christ was tempted
of the Devil (Matthew 4:1–11). The place was a part of the drainage system of the Wady en-Nar—the extension of Gehenna, the Streambed of Fire. From this area,
the Streambed of Fire ran directly eastwards into the Dead Sea (the Lake of the
Fire). This region between Beth Chaduda and the Dead Sea contained the abyss
mentioned in the Book of Revelation. It will be a place of temporary confinement
of Satan and his angelic powers for the Millennium.
“And I saw an angel come
down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit [the abyss]
and a great
chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon [just like the “fit man” of
Leviticus 16:21 led the Scapegoat], that old serpent, which is the Devil and
Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the abyss, and shut him
up [away from mankind and civilization], and set a seal on him that he should
deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years should be fulfilled: after
that he must be loosed a little season” (Revelation 20:1–3).
The place that the Azazel
Goat (the Scapegoat) was taken in the ritual of the Day of Atonement, is where
Satan will be kept for the Millennium. Again, it is also the place in the
wilderness where Christ defeated Satan during his forty days of temptation.
Everything fits perfectly in this prophetic scenario.
The Place of the Scapegoat
No one can adequately grasp the typical teaching about Gehenna, the abyss
(bottomless pit), and the Lake of Fire, without realizing what the area is like
in which the Scapegoat was taken. The geographical name of this region is: The
Wilderness of Judaea. It is one of the most unique areas on earth. That
wilderness is an utter desert of the worst kind and yet it was right next door
to the region “of olive oil, and honey: a land wherein
you shall eat bread
without scarceness, you shall not lack any thing in it” (Deuteronomy& 8:8–9). The
margin between “paradise” and “utter desolation” is often no more than one, two,
or three miles. People who travel to the area are amazed at the abrupt contrast.
George Adam Smith, who wrote the classic book called The Historical Geography
of the Holy Land, gave some graphic descriptions of this wasteland to the east
of Jerusalem. Though I have seen it myself many times, the words of a
professional geographer cannot be surpassed for description. Note what Prof.
Smith had to say about this land of the Scapegoat where Christ was tempted by
Satan the Devil.
“The wilderness of Judaea: In the Old Testament this land is called the
Jeshimon, a word meaning Devastation (p.211).
It is one of the driest and most
poisoned regions on our planet (p.183).
Those fifteen miles of chaos [east of
Jerusalem], sinking downward to a stretch of the Dead Sea, show the influence of
the desert on Jewish imagination and literature. It gave the ancient people of
Judaea the sense of livi the sense of how narrow is the
border be the awe of the power of God, who can make
contiguous areas so opposite in character (p.212).
For hours, as you travel
across these hills, you may feel no sign of life, except the scorpions and
vipers which your passage startles, in the distance a few wild goats or
gazelles, and at night the wailing of the jackal and the hyena’s howl
From the heart of the country [near Jerusalem]
the wilderness of Judaea carries
violence and desolation right down to the same desolation of the Dead Sea valley
There could hardly be an area more foreboding and awesomely stark on
the surface of this earth.”
What is so striking is the contrast: A beautiful and well watered land on the
west side with the crests of the Holy Land, and then (so quickly and abruptly)
the thorough desolation of the “Land of the Scapegoat”—the region traversed
by Gehenna (the Streambed of Fire), the location of the abyss (bottomless pit),
and then the Dead Sea (the Lake of the Fire).
This is the very region where Christ battled Satan for forty days—and won!
But this is also where Satan will be bound (the area of the Scapegoat) for 1000
years (Revelation 20:1–3). There could be no harsher area for confinement. This is the
region of the abyss (the bottomless pit) of the Book of Revelation.
The abyss into which Satan is shut up is not the Lake of Fire. He is only
placed in the abyss for 1000 years. It is after the Millennium that Satan is
cast into the Lake that burns with Fire and Brimstone—which is the Dead Sea
(Revelation 20:10). Satan will be kept in a deep pit (a prison) east of Jerusalem—between Beth Chaduda and the Dead Sea within the region of the Valley of Fire
(the eastern parts of Gehenna).
In a book written about 100 years before the birth of Christ and attributed
to Enoch, we have more information about these matters as understood by Jewish
people who lived back at that time. This Book of Enoch is not a canonical book
of the Bible, but it is refereed to by Jude in verses 14 and 15 of his epistle.
It does describe a great deal of information that is very compatible with
teachings found in the Book of Revelation. The book gives much typical teaching
about Gehenna, the abyss, and the Lake of Fire, as believed in many Jewish
quarters in the time of Christ.
In this book the ancient Enoch was supposed to have seen in vision the manner
in which God would judge evil angels and wicked men. In Enoch 54:1 he sees
“a deep valley with burning fire.” This is the streambed of Gehenna as it leaves
Jerusalem for its eastward trek to the Wilderness of Judaea and the Dead Sea.
Once a person starts down the streambed from Jerusalem, he gets closer to the
wilderness. He then comes in contact with the kings and the mighty [the angelic
powers in confinement] mentioned in Isaiah 24:21–22. This is the place of the
pit (or the abyss). It answers to the Beth Chaduda region where the Scapegoat
(the Azazel) is cast into an abyss—down a steep and precipitous cliff.
The Book of Enoch says this is where “iron chains are placed on those who
descend into its bosom”—the bosom of the abyss. This is the place (or places)
where the evil angels are going to be temporarily confined.
“These are being
prepared for the hosts of Azazel, so that they may take them and cast them into
the abyss [the bottomless pit] of complete condemnation” (Enoch 54:5).
will imprison those angels, who have shown unrighteousness in that burning
valley [that is, the eastern parts of Gehenna, the Wady en-Nar)
in the mountains
of Israel.” This is the very place where the Scapegoat (the Azazel goat) was
taken in the ritual of the Day of Atonement. As said before, this was in an area
down the Wady en-Nar east of Beth Chaduda (about three miles eastward of
Jerusalem—see the early Jewish work the Mishnah, Yoma, VI,8).
The Book of Enoch goes on to say that it is the same place where a
“star had
fallen from heaven...into the abyss: now that abyss [the bottomless pit]
narrow and deep, and horrible, and dark” (Enoch 88:1,2). The apostle John in the
Book of Revelation spoke of the same place.
“I saw a star fall from heaven into
the earth: and to him was given the key to the bottomless pit [the abyss]. And
he opene and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the
smoke of a great furnace” (Revelation 9:1–2).
The Book of Enoch also said the
archangels of God will take hold of Azazel (the Scapegoat) with his angels
cast them into the burning furnace” (Enoch 54:6).
The Book of Enoch (as does the Book of Revelation) recognizes the abyss as
only a place of temporary punishment. Professor R.H. Charles, who translated the
Book of Enoch, said this “prison is the burning valley [Gehenna], and this is
the preliminary prison, not the final” (Pseudepigrapha, vol.II,p.231). John in
the Revelation said the same thing. Satan is placed in the abyss for 1000 years.
He is only placed in the Lake of the Fire (a different place) after the
Millennium is over (Revelation 20:1–10).
As said before, the typical location of this abyss is where the Scapegoat was
taken—a few miles east of Jerusalem down the Valley of Fire (the eastern
extension of Gehenna). This abyss was some how supposed to be connected with the
lowest waters “under the earth” and sometimes those waters were considered hot
and boiling. This is where angels and Satan are to be bound. These are the ones
that the apostle Paul refers to when he spoke about those
“under the earth” in
Philippians 2:10. The apostle Peter said that angels had been placed there as
early as the Flood of Noah (I Peter 3:19,20). Christ even went to preach to
those angels in that prison after his resurrection from the dead.
But as said before, this abyss is not the final place of punishment for the
rebellious. That last place is “the Lake of the Fire.” That “lake” is located on
down the mountain from the abyss just east of Beth Chaduda. It descends further
to the lowest habitable spot on this earth. That is the Dead Sea (the Lake of
Fire). The Book of Enoch calls this area the “valley of the angels who led
astray mankind burned beneath that land” (Enoch 67:7). This is a reference to
the Jordan rift valley in which the Dead Sea was located. This is the area
mentioned by Jude set forth as an example of age-lasting fire (Jude 7). The
depths of Tartarus (where the evil angels were kept) was somehow connected with
these judgment waters of the Dead Sea. Into these depths will flow
“streams of
fire,” according to the Book of Enoch (67:7). Remarkably, there is a prophecy of
the future (connected with Christ’s second advent) that says all the streambeds
of the country of Edom (located in the southeastern watershed of the Dead Sea
area) will become filled with fire and burning pitch.
“For it is the day of the
YHWH’s vengeance, and the year of recompenses for the controversy of Zion. And
the streams shall be turned into pitch, and the dust into brimstone, and the
land [of Edom] shall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched night nor
the smoke thereof shall go up forever [to the age]: from generation to
generation it shall lie waste” (Isaiah 34:8-10).
This happens at the exact time
the heavens depart as a scroll (Isaiah 34:4) and this is directly quoted in the
Book of Revelation as a time associated with Christ’s second advent back to
earth (Revelation 6:12–14).
These several streams of Edom will flow into the Dead Sea. The streams will
traverse part of the Valley of Jehoshaphat (called in Joel 3:12-14 the Valley of
Decision). This area of the southern portion of the Dead Sea will be the
location of the greatest military action in history. The nations of the world
will assemble at Armageddon and journey to Jerusalem and this Valley of Decision
(at the southern end of the Dead Sea) to fight with Christ at his second advent.
This is the same battle when Gog (the leader of these armies in the Valley of
Decision) will have “great hailstones, fire, and brimstone” coming down on him
and his rebellious army. The whole countryside near the Dead Sea will once again
become a fiery furnace when the judgment of God begins to occur at the coming of
Christ back to this earth.
The Re-Activization of the Dead Sea Fires
The Dead Sea east of Jerusalem is the Lake of Fire mentioned in the Book of
Revelation. Today when one goes to the area, there are no fires or smoke to be
seen coming from its midst. Throughout most of the historical period since the
time of Abraham, however, it was normally described as a lake which periodically
erupted with sulfurous flames and columns of smoke that could be seen emerging
from its center. But for some reason, over the past two centuries or so, the
lake has been quiet. Though some earthquakes have occurred in the region which
have loosed a great deal of asphalt from its bottom (and this has risen to the
top), nothing has happened that would cause any of us to call the Dead Sea a
“Lake of Fire” as most people of the past would have described it.
This is all going to change, however. The Book of Revelation shows clearly
that the Lake of the Fire will be in existence at the second advent (Revelation
19:19–20). We may not have many years left to see its re-activization to occur.
An event is mentioned by the apostle John which could well be the catalyst that
does the job. When the sixth seal of the Book of Revelation is opened, a most
remarkable thing takes place.
“And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great
and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became
and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree
casts her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven
departed as a scroll when i and every mountain and island
were moved out of their place” (Revelation 6:12–14).
This gigantic earthquake is associated with the time when the heavens depart
as a scroll. There is only one place in all the Bible which speaks of this exact
phenomenon. That is Isaiah 34:4–9 when it says that the streams of Edom will
become burning pitch when
“all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the
heavens shall be rolled up together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall
down, as the leaf falls off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig
tree, For my sword shall be bathed in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon
Edom and upon the people of my curse, to judgment.”
Note this: All the streams of Edom flow into the Dead Sea.
These fiery streams of Edom will flow directly into the Dead Sea. But there
is more. This is also the exact time that “the sun shall be turned into
darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the
Lord come” (Joel 2:31). This is when the nations of the world assemble in the
Valley of Jehoshaphat.
“Assemble yourselves, and come, all you nations, and gather yourselves
together round about... Let the nations be wakened, and come up to the valley of
Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the nations round about...
Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of YHWH is
near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the
stars shall cease their shining... And the heavens and the earth shall shake”
(Joel 3:11-16).
At the great earthquake, and when the nations are gathered around the Dead
Sea area (in the Valley of Jehoshaphat), that is when the sun, moon, and stars
are darkened. Since the streams of Edom (which are in the same general region)
will become burning pitch, and fire and brimstone will rain down on the heathen
at the great shaking against Gog and his forces (Ezekiel 38:19–22), there will be a
great conflagration from heaven around the Dead Sea. Christ said there will also
be darkness over Jerusalem (Matthew 24:29; 2 Thesalonians 1:7–8).
In another place Christ said to remember the example of Lot (Luke 17:22-37).
Lot fled from the cities of the plain of Jordan—from the Dead Sea area.
That’s when the whole of the Jordan rift valley went up in smoke. Jude said this
area was the example of the future judgment that was to come upon the rebellious
(Jude verse 7). And this is the exact region of the Valley of Jehoshaphat (though that
location is in the southern part of the Dead Sea area). The prophecies actually
consign the whole of the rift valley east and south of Jerusalem to a fiery
And throughout the region of the Jordan rift valley we are told that the
blood will flow as high as horses bridles. It will do so for 1600 furlongs
(Greek: stadia). That equals about 184 miles (Revelation 14:20). The valley in which
this will happen is “without the city.” The city under discussion was
Babylon”—Jerusalem at the end of the age. And the Jordan rift valley from
Mount Hermon to the end of the watershed south of the Dead Sea is almost exactly
1600 furlongs in length.
This prophecy is clearly concerning the rift valley east of Jerusalem
great chasm or gulf in which Sodom and Gomorrah once were and where the parable
of Lazarus and the Rich Man was placed. It is also where the Dead Sea is
located. Since the whole of the Jordan rift depression went up in fire and smoke
and brimstone in the time of Abraham and Lot (Genesis 19:28–29), this territory will
once again become the fiery crucible that it once was.
Jude tells us that the first incineration was only a type (an example) of the
final holocaust. Jude said: “Likewise [in the same fashion], will the judgment
occur when “the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints” (Jude
verse 14). It is
primarily the smoke that comes from the re-igniting of the Dead Sea that causes
the sun, moon, and stars to be darkened. This is when the Dead Sea will once
again become “the Lake of the Fire” that it was periodically in the time of
Even the sun being darkened at the time of Christ’s crucifixion was probably
an eruption of the Dead Sea (Matthew 27:45), and Peter must have been referring to
a recent darkening of the sun and moon when he mentioned Joel’s prophecy in Acts
2:17-20. That darkening smoke referred to in the prophecy had to emerge from the
Valley of Jehoshaphat, in the area south of the Dead Sea. God could have
bestowed, at Christ’s crucifixion, a foretaste of the judgment to come from the
Lake of Fire.
This all means that the Dead Sea region is once again to become
“the Lake of
the Fire”. It will occur just before the Day of the Lord when gigantic
earthquakes and heavenly disturbances take place. There are yet, however, a few
more years before this occurs. I have taken over 800 people on tours to the Dead
Sea (and I plan to take several more in the years ahead), but there is a day
coming when the Dead Sea will erupt with a holocaust that will make Mount St.
Helens (of recent date) seem like child’s play. It will be a spectacle to see.
And thankfully, the Bible teaches that all of God’s people will be able to
escape (as did Lot) this wrath of God’s vengeance to come (1 Thessalonians 5:9).
The Lake of Fire to be Healed
Once Christ has returned to this earth and established his kingdom, Ezekiel
says that a river of fresh water will emerge from underneath a new Temple that
will be built in the high country of Israel (Ezekiel chapter 47). This fresh water stream
will go eastward into the Dead Sea. It could well follow the old watercourse of
the Wady en-Nar (the Streambed of Fire) and change the characteristics of the
land bordering it. This is no doubt what will occur because we are told that an
abundance of fruit trees and medicinal plants will flourish around its banks
(Ezekiel 47:12). This would mean that there would no longer be any Gehenna (Valley
of Fire) going through that terrible wilderness. In actual fact, we have the
express teaching of the Bible that Gehenna (otherwise called Tophet) will become
holy to the Lord. Note this important scripture.
“And the whole valley of the dead bodies, and of the ashes, and all the
fields unto the brook of Kidron, unto the corner of the horse gate toward the
east, shall be holy unto the Lord” (Jeremiah 31:40).
This will be the end of Gehenna when the whole area will be made holy unto
God. And with the Book of Ezekiel telling us that a river of fresh water will
issue forth from the new Temple (and gets larger as it approaches the Dead Sea),
perhaps the river is fed by other streams as it descends and this will result in
parts of the Wilderness of Judaea being healed (especially those quarters on the
banks of the river).
The region of the abyss east of Jerusalem, however, where Satan will be
imprisoned, will remain in desolation as well as parts surrounding the Dead Sea
(Ezekiel 47:11). The great quantities of fresh water flowing into the Dead Sea will
cause it to become fresh and clean. It will have a great number of fish within
its borders.
“And it shall come to pass, that the fishers shall stand upon it from En-gedi
even unto En- there shall be a place
their fish
shall be according to their kinds, as the fish of the great sea [the
Mediterranean], exceeding many” (Ezekiel 47:10).
How long it will take for the Dead Sea to become “alive” is not recorded.
Since there will be a long period of time when peace and safety will be on
earth, and a time when many of the deserts will blossom, it could be that
several years (or even centuries) will take place before the whole of the Jordan
rift area is healed. But it will be healed and made beautiful again. This is
still not the end, however. The Book of Revelation says there will be one or
more outbursts of fire and brimstone that will issue from the lake. It will
happen again at the end of the Millennium and the Dead Sea will once more become
a Lake of Fire. This will occur when God sends down fire out of heaven
(Revelation 20:9) to judge the wicked at the conclusion of the 1000 years.
This happens when Satan is finally released from the abyss (the bottomless
pit) and he is allowed to cause a final rebellion to God. Dire consequences will
come from God because of this. And no wonder! People on earth will have
witnessed for such a long time the beauties and blessing of the Kingdom of God
on earth—even with Gehenna and the Lake of Fire healed, and yet they allow
themselves to be tempted of Satan the Devil. Because of this, God will
re-activate the old area of punishment. This time, Satan will be cast into the
renewed Lake of Fire. This will last throughout the period of the Great White
The Bible nowhere tells us how long those ages within that judgment period
will last. Some have applied for reference Isaiah 65:17-24 to this space of
time. This is not possible. The scene in Isaiah is millennial, and is not
applicable to a later period. It could mean that in the Millennium a generation
could be reckoned a hundred years. If so, the millennial duration would answer
to ten generations of peace before the judgment at the end of the Millennium
when Satan is released from the abyss. If so, then there would have been ten
generations for the Pre-Flood world— also ten generations
until the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah in Abraham’ and ten generations
of the Millennium, which sees a fiery judgment also at its end. It could well
mean that the “ages” that accompany the Great White Throne may also last for a
similar period. There is also another explanation. Since the seven days of the
Feast of Tabernacles represent the millennial period of 1000 years, and the Last
Great Day attached to that festival (called the octave) answers well with the
White Throne Judgment period, then the 1000 years of the Millennium divided by
the seven days of Tabernacles would equal about 143 years for each day, then
perhaps the Great White Throne period might equal near that same space of time.
No one knows this for certain.
The Lake of Fire to Permanently Cease
When the time of the Great White Throne Judgment period is over, God will
then create a new heavens and a new earth (Revelation 21:1). All the former things
(including the Lake of Fire) will pass away (Revelation 21:4–5).
“Behold, I make all
things NEW” (Revelation 21:5). This is when God the Father himself finally comes to
this earth to establish his residence here (Revelation 21:2–3). There will be a new
Jerusalem totally unlike any that preceded it. There will be no need for any
earthly Temple (Revelation 21:22), but there will be a river of water come forth from
the throne of God (Revelation 22:1–2). The physical example of water coming from the Shekinah (the cloud with the sapphire throne that gave water to the children of
Israel in the wilderness for forty years) and the Temple that existed in
Ezekiel’s prophecy (the millennial Temple) with water flowing from it, will have
served as a foretaste to this new water source in the new earth.
There will even be nations that God will allow to be on earth at that time
(Revelation 21:24–26; 22:2–5). This means there will be a “new creation” of humans,
because all humans who will have lived from the time Adam to the end of the
Great White Throne will now be spiritual beings (1 Timothy 2:4–6). This “new
creation” of humans could well be a hint that God has further “creations” of
human beings in mind both for this earth, and in other regions of the universe—because the heavens are designed to receive inhabitants (Deuteronomy 30:4). Since the
prime characteristic that describes God is his role as “creator” (Genesis 1:1), it
could be that this creation of new sons and daughters will continue throughout
all eternity. We could no doubt play a part in helping God in this continued
creation. After all, we are his children and we will not only see him as he is,
but we shall be exactly like he is (1 John 3:2). Our present human race has a
destiny that is awesome in potential and glorious in scope. We have not even
begun to see what God has in store for us.
“Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of
man, the things that God hath prepared for them that love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9)
The time is coming when “death” will be abolished for all who have ever lived
(1 Corinthians 15:26). The final conclusion of all things is that God will become
and in all” (1 Corinthians 15:28). There will then be no more Gehenna, no more abyss,
and no more Dead Sea (the Lake of Fire). All that will be left is LIFE, and the
beginning of a series of new creations in which all of us can participate for
the rest of eternity that lies ahead of us.
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