Worms that die not, and fire that is not quenched.

One reason I have been not posting much is because of the temptation when posting to pretend to know too much too certainly. In order to get someone to believe you, you need to act like you are quite certain.

My certainty about a few things is very high. My certainty about other things is less. If I were to write/talk about only the most certain things, I would not have much to say. I would say that Jesus is Savior of those who put their trust in Him. And a few other truths that are certain enough.

I am also quite certain there is no everlasting torture of anyone. But how to demonstrate that to others sometimes involves a bit of speculation with a bit of light on Scripture.

A case in point is the discussion of that worm which dieth not and that fire which is not quenched. Does one reader in a million actually think about the words of Scripture which are involved in that? Check out Isaiah 66:24 at www.blueletterbible.org

Isa 66:24
And they shall go forth 3318 , and look 7200 upon the carcases 6297 of the men 582 that have transgressed 6586 against me: for their worm 8438 shall not die 4191 , neither shall their fire 784 be quenched 3518 ; and they shall be an abhorring 1860 unto all flesh 1320.

Let us think a moment. If a fire is not quenched, does that mean that the fuel it is burning must continue to exist (and be in pain) forever? Hmmmm. My answer is: Nope, I never saw fuel which never was consumed. I have seen fires which were not quenched, but the fuel burnt down to zero.

Has there ever been a worm whose food just regenerated again and again so that the worm could feed on the same food forever?

So, taking Isaiah 66:24 as holy Scripture, we believe there is a fire and a worm, but we absolutely have no indication that there is someone who is tormented forever by this fire and this worm.

What is more, there are details of these Scriptures which imply that there may be something more subtle - as there always is - taking place beyond the surface.

Look again at Isaiah 66:24, you see the word "t-h-e-i-r" twice. It is "their" fire and "their" worm. The fire and the worm BELONG to the ones who are being looked upon. If I am being burnt, the fire does not belong to me. If a carcass is being eaten by a worm, the worm does not belong to the carcass. Think about it. So.....this fire is not an outside agent acting upon the person, but is the possession of that person. The fire would seem to be the spirit of that person which never dies. The fire is not quenched... means the spirit of the person does not perish.

Is the "worm" an outside agent or is it the spirit of the person who has gone to hell? I lean toward seeing "their worm" as being the spirit of the person which remains after the body and soul have been killed and destroyed. Remember man is a three-part being. Man is "spirit, soul, and body." The body can be killed, the soul can be destroyed, but the spirit of the man lives. The spirit is that living being (child) which came from God.

Genesis says God breathed (spirited) into man the breath (spirit) of life. That is how we are children of God. The incarnate spirit is the child of God. The spirit is the fire which is not quenched and it also may be described as a worm which does not die.

The Lord said, in Isaiah 53, "I am a worm and no man." That is what Jesus became when His body was dead and His soul was poured out. He descended into Sheol (the grave) and preached to the spirits in prison who formerly did not obey God in the days of Noah. He was a spirit and no longer and incarnate man ... until the resurrection. Thus a "worm" in Isaiah 66:24 is a spirit of a man after it is denuded of the body and soul.

Look it up in Strong's Concordance online. The word "worm" is not always used in the same way. It is not even always the same Hebrew word. So... we must THINK with the HOLY SPIRIT of the Lord saving us and leading us.

Check out Job 25:6.

Job 25:6
How much less man 582, [that is] a worm 7415? and the son 1121 of man 120, [which is] a worm 8438?

Ah hah! Here we have a reference to a worm being a man! This is the #8438 worm. In contrast, the #7415 "worm" is alternately translated as a maggot. So things may be more complicated that anyone of us would like to admit.

So... if a man's worm does not die in Sheol, does that mean the man is being eaten by a worm "foever"? Or, more sensibly, does it probably mean that the spirit of the man lives on?

Remedialist