Why did God create Hell?
The Bible presents hell as a real place of eternal torment and punishment. Jesus described hell as real, eternal, painful, terrifying and a place of eternal separation from God and devoid of anything good.
Jesus would give people a very vivid and terrifying description of hell with the intention of warning people regarding the existence and finality of hell. Jesus wanted people to know that the decisions we make on earth have a final and everlasting impact on where we go when we die. Therefore Jesus wanted people to understand and imagine the terror of eternal punishment, so they repent and make a decision in favor of seeking Christ and eternal life with God.
Jesus said hell is a place where the fire never goes out (Mark 9:43) and a place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:42).
Christ also described hell as a place of terrifying darkness (Matthew 8:12) and where one will experience eternal punishment (Matthew 25:46).
So why did God create hell? Why did he create such a terrifying place of eternal torment and punishment?
Hell was created as a place of eternal separation from God. Eternal separation from God means that there is no second chance after one’s physical death. If people do not repent before they die, they will experience both a physical death and a second death.
This second death is the experience of the eternal absence of God’s love; the absence of God’s grace and the absence of God’s forgiveness. Nothing good nor of God exists in hell. Only evil exists in hell.
Hell is a place where God’s wrath against sin and those who rejected Him eternally exists. Hell is a place where God expresses His wrath.
Revelation 21:8 says: But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars — their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.
When people choose to live a life that is separate from God whilst living on this Earth, it makes sense that those same people will be sent to a place that is separated from the goodness and presence of God when they die.
However, as long as we have life on this planet, we have an opportunity to repent and become followers of Jesus Christ. God wants us to hear the Gospel and believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. God is actively seeking a relationship with us before it’s too late, because He genuinely doesn’t want anyone to perish.
2 Peter 3:9 says: The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
Hell was also created for the devil and his demons. Hell was originally created as a place for punishment for Satan and the fallen angels who rebelled against God. Matthew 25:41 says: “Then He will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from Me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”
God created hell because hell is also an expression of God’s justice. God is perfectly holy and just. Sin and rebellion against Him must be judged. God cannot allow sin to remain unpunished. Therefore people who choose to reject God’s free gift of salvation and reject the sacrifice for sin that Jesus made on the cross on our behalf, all unbelievers will experience God’s justice instead of God’s grace.
The Bible is clear that we are all sinners (Romans 3:23) and we cannot earn salvation through our own effort or merit. If we tried to earn God’s forgiveness and salvation by our own merit, we would always fail because we fall short of meeting God’s perfect standard of righteousness.
Instead we need God’s mercy and grace. It is because of God’s grace or undeserved kindness that we receive salvation and eternal life.
Ephesians 2:8-9 says: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
Titus 2:11 says: For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.
Titus 3:4-5 says: But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.
So we learn from Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 2:11 and Titus 3:4-5 the mercy and grace of God are integral to our salvation. So when we choose to reject God, we are choosing to reject God’s grace and mercy to freely save us from eternal punishment. If we reject God’s grace and free gift, then we will get God’s justice and hell is an expression of God’s justice and wrath against sin.
If we reject Christ’s sacrifice for sin, but yet believe that our own works and effort are sufficient to earn salvation, then we will experience eternal punishment because our own personal merit and effort will fail to meet God’s holy and perfect standard.
Jesus Christ alone qualifies as the perfect sacrifice for sin. He alone lived a perfect human and sinless life and became our Substitute by living the life we should have lived and paying the ransom and price for sin that would satisfy the wrath of God against sin. Therefore rejecting Christ is rejecting God and choosing God’s justice system of hell.
Hell reflects the seriousness of sin and the holiness of God. This eternal place of separation from God reflects that God cannot tolerate sin in His presence (Habakkuk 1:13).
God calls us to repent and turn to God to avoid hell (Acts 3:19). Salvation is a free gift, received by grace through placing our faith or trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior. Romans 6:23 says: For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
