The theory of an immortal soul, suffering forever in an ever-burning hell, contradicts the biblical teaching that in the new heaven and the new earth there will be “no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying” (Rev. 21:4, NKJV). If the theory of an eternal burning hell were true, then the “second death” would not eradicate sin and sinners from the universe but only confine them in an everlasting hell of sorrow and crying. And more: in this case the universe would never be fully restored to its original perfection. But praise the Lord that the Bible paints a completely different picture!

 Read Isaiah 25:8, Revelation 7:17, and Revelation 21:4. What comfort and hope can these passages bring us amid the trials and suffering of this present world?

 Life can be very hard, unfair, cruel. Some people, so dear to us, are brutally taken away by the cold embrace of death. Or some people come subtly into our lives, steal our feelings, and then walk away as if nothing ever happened. How terrible it is to be betrayed by someone whom we loved and trusted.

 There are moments when, with a broken heart, we may even wonder if life is worth living. Regardless of our sorrows, however, God is always eager to wipe away from our cheeks as many tears as possible. But some of our heaviest tears will continue streaming down until that glorious day when death, sorrow, and crying will cease to exist (Rev. 21:1-5).

 We can trust that in the final judgment God will treat every single human being with fairness and love. All our loved ones who died in Christ will be raised from the dead to be with us throughout eternity. Those unworthy of eternal life will finally cease to exist, without having to live in an “unpleasant” heaven or in an ever-burning hell. Our greatest comfort derives from the fair way God treats everyone. When death definitively ceases to exist, the redeemed will shout joyfully, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Cor. 15:54, 55, NRSV).

 The Lord promised that in the new heaven and the new earth He would create, “the former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind” (Isa. 65:17, NIV). This does not mean that heaven will be a place of amnesia, but rather that the past will not undermine the enduring joy of heaven.