Study Aids

EGW Personal Journey

A journey of a 1000 miles begins with one step

--Ancient Chinese proverb

NOTE: Phrases that appear linguistically linked are color coded together.

EGW Growth

Death and Destruction

1858
1888
1898

"Satan rushes into the midst, and tries to stir up the multitude to action. But fire from God out of Heaven is rained upon them, and the great men, and the mighty men, and the noble, and poor and miserable men, are all consumed together. I saw that some were quickly destroyed, while others suffered longer. They were punished according to the deeds done In the body. Some were many days consuming, and just as long as there was a portion of them unconsumed, all the sense of suffering was there. Said the angel, the worm of life shall not die; their fire shall not be quenched as long as there is the least particle for it to prey upon.

...

"But Satan and his angels suffered long. Satan not only bore the weight and punishment of his sins, but the sins of all the redeemed host had been placed upon him; and he must also suffer for the ruin of the souls which he had caused. Then I saw that Satan, and all the wicked host, were consumed, and the justice of God was satisfied; and all the angelic host, and all the redeemed saints, with a loud voice said, Amen"

"He (satan) rushes into the midst of his subjects and endeavors to inspire them with his own fury and arouse them to instant battle . . .

"Fire comes down from God out of heaven. The earth is broken up. The weapons concealed in its depths are drawn forth. Devouring flames burst from every yawning chasm . . .

The wicked receive their recompense in the earth. Proverbs 11:31. They 'shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts.' Malachi 4:1. Some are destroyed as in a moment, while others suffer many days. All are punished 'according to their deeds.' The sins of the righteous having been transferred to Satan, he is made to suffer not only for his own rebellion, but for all the sins which he has caused God's people to commit. His punishment is to be far greater than that of those whom he has deceived. After all have perished who fell by his deceptions, he is still to live and suffer on. In the cleansing flames the wicked are at last destroyed, root and branch--Satan the root, his followers the branches. The full penalty of the law has been visited; the demands of justice have been met; and heaven and earth, beholding, declare the righteousness of Jehovah.

"While God is to the wicked a consuming fire, He is to His people both a sun and a shield. Revelation 20:6; Psalm 84:11."

"Then the end will come. God will vindicate His law and deliver His people. Satan and all who have joined him in rebellion will be cut off. Sin and sinners will perish, root and branch (Malachi 4:1),--Satan the root, and his followers the branches. The word will be fulfilled to the prince of evil, 'Because thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God; . . . I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire . . . Thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.' Then 'the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be;' 'they shall be as though they had not been.' Ezekiel. 28:6-19; Psalm. 37:10; Obadiah 16.

"God is the fountain of life; and when one chooses the service of sin, he separates from God, and thus cuts himself off from life . . . By a life of rebellion, Satan and all who unite with him place themselves so out of harmony with God that His very presence is to them a consuming fire. The glory of Him who is love will destroy them."

". . . The the extermination of sin will vindicate God's love and establish His honor before a universe of beings who delight to do His will, and in whose heart is His law."

pgs. 217-218, Spiritual Gifts, Vol 1

pgs. 672-673, GC

pgs. 763-764, Desire of Ages

Questions to ask/Points to ponder

Notice that in the first passage, the gory description of what happens to the wicked: "the worm of life shall not die; their fire shall not be quenched as long as there is the least particle for it to prey upon." It is also important to note that while these words are attributed to an angel, there are no quote marks.
Notice that what brings this event to a close is that "the justice of God was satisfied." Contrast this to other two accounts.
Note the time element in this one: apparently it takes "many days" for the fire to consume up the wicked.
Finally, in this passage the destruction of the wicked appears to be a direct result of God vindictavely* carrying out retribution against those who "blew it."

*a vindicative model suggests a biased and empassioned God acting on His personal will to carry out what He wants. To a certain extent one might be tempted to say, "God is God and can do whatever He wants to!" But in that case He wouldn't be the God the Bible describes. More like some of the classic mythical Gods of the Norse, Roman, or Greek traditions.

Notice that the gory details are missing in this account. There is still the issue that all are punished "according to their deeds," but what is missing is as important as what was left in this passage.
Notice that what brings this event to a close is that "the demands of justice have been met." An important shift in accountability/punishment.
Note the time element in this one is still relatively long for an omnipotent God: apparently it still takes "many days" for the fire to consume up the wicked.
Note also that satan bears more of a scapegoat role reminicent of the OT sactuary cleansing.
Finally, in this passage the destruction of the wicked is a direct result of God upholding the sacredness of the law in a prescriptive* manner.

*a prescriptive manner suggests that laws prescribe what will happen if the law is broken. BUT, the power of enforcement of that law is external or NON-intrinsic in the law itself. For example, you chew gum in class and are fined $1.00. The teacher enforces that law and extracts the dollar from you. You don't magically have $1.00 disappear from your walet every time you chew gum in class!

As i routinely tell my students, what a passage DOES NOT say is as important as what it explicityly DOES say. Using that framework examine the details missing in this account. The issue about retribution is simply separation from God equals death.
Notice that what brings this event to a close is that "the word will be fulfilled." In other words, God keeps His promise! A big shift in emphasis.
Note the specific time element in this one is distinctly missing. Frankly it makes more sense for them to be instantly "vaporized" like the brightness of an Atomic bomb. After all, could His coming be any less than the brightness of the sun?
Finally, in this passage the destruction of the wicked is a natural result of God revealing Himself to the Universe as who He really is. Descriptive* mode.

*descriptive mode suggests that laws simply describe what happens by the power inherently in the law itself. For example, you fall off a cliff because inherent in the law of gravity is the equation of gravitational attraction of bodies of mass.

Other sources

Read Alden Thompsen's 4 part series in the Adventist Review, 1981, entitled "From Sinai to Golgotha." Very insightful.This is posted now as 6 part series.

There is more i could say. If you are really interested, i can fax you my paper. Just drop me a note via email!

last updated Sept 2014

1858	1888	1898
"Satan rushes into the midst, and tries to stir up the multitude to action. But fire from God out of Heaven is rained upon them, and the great men, and the mighty men, and the noble, and poor and miserable men, are all consumed together. I saw that some were quickly destroyed, while others suffered longer. They were punished according to the deeds done In the body. Some were many days consuming, and just as long as there was a portion of them unconsumed, all the sense of suffering was there. Said the angel, the worm of life shall not die; their fire shall not be quenched as long as there is the least particle for it to prey upon. ... "But Satan and his angels suffered long. Satan not only bore the weight and punishment of his sins, but the sins of all the redeemed host had been placed upon him; and he must also suffer for the ruin of the souls which he had caused. Then I saw that Satan, and all the wicked host, were consumed, and the justice of God was satisfied; and all the angelic host, and all the redeemed saints, with a loud voice said, Amen"	"He (satan) rushes into the midst of his subjects and endeavors to inspire them with his own fury and arouse them to instant battle . . . "Fire comes down from God out of heaven. The earth is broken up. The weapons concealed in its depths are drawn forth. Devouring flames burst from every yawning chasm . . . The wicked receive their recompense in the earth. Proverbs 11:31. They 'shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts.' Malachi 4:1. Some are destroyed as in a moment, while others suffer many days. All are punished 'according to their deeds.' The sins of the righteous having been transferred to Satan, he is made to suffer not only for his own rebellion, but for all the sins which he has caused God's people to commit. His punishment is to be far greater than that of those whom he has deceived. After all have perished who fell by his deceptions, he is still to live and suffer on. In the cleansing flames the wicked are at last destroyed, root and branch--Satan the root, his followers the branches. The full penalty of the law has been visited; the demands of justice have been met; and heaven and earth, beholding, declare the righteousness of Jehovah. "While God is to the wicked a consuming fire, He is to His people both a sun and a shield. Revelation 20:6; Psalm 84:11."	"Then the end will come. God will vindicate His law and deliver His people. Satan and all who have joined him in rebellion will be cut off. Sin and sinners will perish, root and branch (Malachi 4:1),--Satan the root, and his followers the branches. The word will be fulfilled to the prince of evil, 'Because thou hast set thine heart as the heart of God; . . . I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire . . . Thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.' Then 'the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be;' 'they shall be as though they had not been.' Ezekiel. 28:6-19; Psalm. 37:10; Obadiah 16. "God is the fountain of life; and when one chooses the service of sin, he separates from God, and thus cuts himself off from life . . . By a life of rebellion, Satan and all who unite with him place themselves so out of harmony with God that His very presence is to them a consuming fire. The glory of Him who is love will destroy them." ". . . The the extermination of sin will vindicate God's love and establish His honor before a universe of beings who delight to do His will, and in whose heart is His law."
pgs. 217-218, Spiritual Gifts, Vol 1	pgs. 672-673, GC	pgs. 763-764, Desire of Ages

Questions to ask/Points to ponder
Notice that in the first passage, the gory description of what happens to the wicked: "the worm of life shall not die; their fire shall not be quenched as long as there is the least particle for it to prey upon." It is also important to note that while these words are attributed to an angel, there are no quote marks. Notice that what brings this event to a close is that "the justice of God was satisfied." Contrast this to other two accounts. Note the time element in this one: apparently it takes "many days" for the fire to consume up the wicked. Finally, in this passage the destruction of the wicked appears to be a direct result of God vindictavely* carrying out retribution against those who "blew it." *a vindicative model suggests a biased and empassioned God acting on His personal will to carry out what He wants. To a certain extent one might be tempted to say, "God is God and can do whatever He wants to!" But in that case He wouldn't be the God the Bible describes. More like some of the classic mythical Gods of the Norse, Roman, or Greek traditions.	Notice that the gory details are missing in this account. There is still the issue that all are punished "according to their deeds," but what is missing is as important as what was left in this passage. Notice that what brings this event to a close is that "the demands of justice have been met." An important shift in accountability/punishment. Note the time element in this one is still relatively long for an omnipotent God: apparently it still takes "many days" for the fire to consume up the wicked. Note also that satan bears more of a scapegoat role reminicent of the OT sactuary cleansing. Finally, in this passage the destruction of the wicked is a direct result of God upholding the sacredness of the law in a prescriptive* manner. *a prescriptive manner suggests that laws prescribe what will happen if the law is broken. BUT, the power of enforcement of that law is external or NON-intrinsic in the law itself. For example, you chew gum in class and are fined $1.00. The teacher enforces that law and extracts the dollar from you. You don't magically have $1.00 disappear from your walet every time you chew gum in class!	As i routinely tell my students, what a passage DOES NOT say is as important as what it explicityly DOES say. Using that framework examine the details missing in this account. The issue about retribution is simply separation from God equals death. Notice that what brings this event to a close is that "the word will be fulfilled." In other words, God keeps His promise! A big shift in emphasis. Note the specific time element in this one is distinctly missing. Frankly it makes more sense for them to be instantly "vaporized" like the brightness of an Atomic bomb. After all, could His coming be any less than the brightness of the sun? Finally, in this passage the destruction of the wicked is a natural result of God revealing Himself to the Universe as who He really is. Descriptive* mode. *descriptive mode suggests that laws simply describe what happens by the power inherently in the law itself. For example, you fall off a cliff because inherent in the law of gravity is the equation of gravitational attraction of bodies of mass.