23 minutes in hell Read Online Free PDF

LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away” (Ps. 37:20, KJV). “The smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever” (Rev. 14:11). “The sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke of the pit” (Rev. 9:2).
    26. “…out of the pit wherein there is no water” (Zech. 9:11, KJV).
    27. “…for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave” (Eccles. 9:10). “Let them be silent in the grave” (Ps. 31:17). “But the wicked shall be silent in darkness” (1 Sam. 2:9). “Shall the dead arise and praise You?… Shall Your wonders be known in the dark?… in the land of forgetfulness?” (Ps. 88:10–12). (What a description of the grave, and hell is even worse!) “The dead do not praise the LORD, nor any who go down into silence” (Ps. 115:17).
    28. Donnelly, “Heaven and Hell,” 35–37.
    29. “For in death there is no remembrance of You [God]; in the grave who will give You thanks?” (Ps. 6:5). “The dead do not praise the LORD, nor any who go down into silence” (Ps. 115:17).
    30. “Consider this, you who forget God, lest I tear you in pieces” (Ps. 50:22). “…and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers” (Luke 12:46). “…and will cut him in two” (Matt. 24:51).
    31. Franklin Graham, “The Name” (Nashville, TN: Nelson Books, 2002), 20.
    Chapter 2
    The Pit
    Momentary relief hit my soul as I realized I had been snatched from the grip of those hideous creatures. However, now I found myself next to an enormous pit with raging flames of fire leaping high into an open cavern. As I looked up into that dark, eerie, tomb-like atmosphere, it seemed to be like a mouth that had swallowed her dead. The flames of her ravenous appetite were never satisfied with the pitiful screams of untold multitudes.
    The heat was far beyond unbearable, and I desperately wanted to escape before I too would be thrown into that inferno. As I look back on this experience now, I am reminded of the devastation of the twin towers of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, when some people, rather than facing the 2,000-degree heat, chose to plummet to their death by leaping out a window. A fall, especially from such great heights, must have been horrendous. It was reported that a person subjected to that temperature would be completely incinerated in about fifteen seconds. Those people chose to make that leap rather than face the intensity of those flames for even fifteen seconds. Some scientists have reported that the core temperature at the center of the earth is approximately twelve thousand degrees. To endure that for an eternity is unfathomable. •1
    I could see the outlines of people through the flames. The screams from the condemned souls were deafening and relentless. There was no safe place, no safe moment, no temporary relief of any kind.[1] In the media we have heard of the merciless acts of terrorists. In some cases their victims knew death would come by brutal decapitation. Try to imagine the terror these victims must have felt as they awaited their fate. In hell, this state of fear never ceases for even one second. It lasts for an eternity.
    “There is no reason the torments of Hell could not include physical fire.”[2]
    —Erwin Lutzer
    There were people in hell who were contained in a massive pit. Horrible creatures surrounded the perimeter. There was no way of escape. Any attempt to do so was futile. Human strength was no match for the demons. I felt such anguish for these hopeless people, but at the same time I realized that I could be next.
    I remember, as a child, stepping into several fights to protect kids who were weaker and who were being bullied. I was beaten up several times, but I couldn’t just stand there and not help. The television actors who enforced justice and guarded the weak were my role models. To look out for others is a godly characteristic. Since we all come from God, it is in most