The Bible says that the wages of sin is death, and God contrasts perishing with eternal life.
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. – Romans 6:23 KJV
John 3:14-16 KJV – 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 10:27-28 KJV – 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
God compares man with the beasts that perish and turn to the dust again.
Ecclesiastes 9:4-5 KJV – 4 For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead lion. 5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish. – Psalm 49:20 KJV
Ecclesiastes 3:18-20 KJV – 18 I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts. 19 For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity. 20 All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.
Genesis 3:17-19 KJV – 17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; 18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; 19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, – Romans 8:20 KJV
Psalm 146:3-4 KJV – 3 Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. 4 His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.
For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: – 1 Peter 1:24 KJV
Many churches and congregations teach that hell is a place of eternal torment and often refer their members to these verses in Luke for proof:
“And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.” – Luke 16:22-24 (KJV)
However, they often overlook the fact that the Bible is a puzzle of spiritual truths. As Jesus explained in Mark:
“But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.” – Mark 4:34 (KJV)
The Bible itself teaches that Jesus is the Word of God:
“And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.” – Revelation 19:13 (KJV)
And Jesus also said:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” – John 14:6 (KJV)
Once we understand that Jesus is the Word and that the entire Bible is parabolic, we can discern that these events were not literal occurrences bound to a specific time or place. For example, consider the phrase:
“…the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.”
If the rich man was buried, how could he lift up his eyes? And how could he see Abraham, who had already died and was in heaven? Would those in hell, being tormented, truly have the ability to look into heaven, where God and His elect abide forevermore?
“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.” – Revelation 21:1 (KJV)
In this context, the sea in the Bible often represents hell. This is why Jesus said:
“And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.” – Mark 1:17 (KJV)
Here, the sea symbolizes hell, and the act of fishing represents bringing souls out of spiritual death and into the kingdom of God. Similarly:
“Falling into a place where two seas met, they ran the ship aground; and the forepart stuck fast, and remained unmoveable, but the hinder part was broken with the violence of the waves.” – Acts 27:41 (KJV)
This signifies the time when God ceased using the churches and congregations, which are symbolized by a ship in the Bible:
“Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck.” – 1 Timothy 1:19 (KJV)