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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadBob Utley You Can Understand the Bible - Matthew 25:41 - 25:46
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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Mat_25:41-46
41"Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; 42for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; 43I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.'44Then they themselves also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?'45Then He will answer them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.'46These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
Mat_25:41 "Then He will also say to those on His left, 'Depart from Me'" Hell's worst aspect is the separation from fellowship with God (cf. Mat_7:23; Luk_13:27). God does not send humans to hell; they send themselves by their lifestyle choices.
▣ "accursed ones" This is a perfect passive participle. This grammatical construction was used several times in this context. It speaks of that which happened in the past and the results of which have continued into the present. The action is done by an outside agent. These people's rejection of God and His Christ in the past has been consummated into permanent blindness and rejection! This rejection revealed itself in lack of love for other human beings (Mat_25:42-43).
▣ "into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels" Hell was not made for humans, but for angelic beings in rebellion. Satan has angels that serve him, possibly alluded to in Dan_8:10 and Rev_12:4. Matthew 25 mixes the metaphors of its darkness in Mat_25:30, and fire in Mat_25:41. The horrors and torments of hell are so far beyond human vocabulary and finite conceptions that the Bible used the most vivid imagery possible. Most of the metaphors come from the garbage dump outside Jerusalem in the valley of the sons of Hinnom called "Gehenna." Jesus often spoke about it (cf. Isa_33:14; Isa_66:24; Mat_3:10; Mat_3:12; Mat_5:22; Mat_7:19; Mat_13:40; Mat_13:42; Mat_13:50; Mat_18:8-9; Jud_1:7; Rev_14:10; Rev_19:20; Rev_20:10; Rev_20:14-15; Rev_21:8). See hyperlink at Mat_18:8.
Mat_25:45 "Truly I say to you" Literally "amen," this was a Hebrew term meaning "to be firm." It was used by biblical authors to affirm the reality and truthfulness of words, concepts and teachings. Jesus uniquely used it to begin sentences. Often He would double it for even more emphasis. See Special Topic: at Mat_5:1.
Mat_25:46 "These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life" The same term [aiônos] that describes heaven as everlasting is applied to hell as everlasting (cf. Mat_18:8; Mat_19:16; Mar_3:29; Mar_9:48; Mar_10:17; Luk_18:18; Jud_1:7; Rev_20:10; also with "eternal judgment in 2Th_1:9 and Heb_6:2). Dan_12:2; Joh_5:29; and Act_24:15 describe a resurrection of both the righteous and wicked. Josephus states that the Pharisees believed in the immortality of all "souls" (cf. Antiq. 18.1,3), but only the resurrection of the righteous into a new body, while the wicked have eternal punishment (cf. Jewish Wars 2.8,14). The eternality and finality is the impetus of the urgency of gospel preaching, teaching, and witnessing!
An eternal hell is not only a tragedy for rebellious mankind, but also for God! God created humans as the apex of His creative event. We were made in His image and likeness for fellowship with Him (cf. Gen_1:26-27). God's choice to allow mankind a choice resulted in a significant percentage of God's creation being separated from Himself! Hell is an open, bleeding sore in the heart of God that will never be healed.