The Biblical Vocabulary of Judgment
30 min read
Most English readers have never heard of Tartarus. The word appears only once in the New Testament, in 2 Peter 2:4, where Peter says that God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them into hell (tartaroo) and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment. Tartarus was a term from Greek mythology for the lowest prison of the underworld, reserved for the worst offenders. Peter borrows the word to describe the special holding place of fallen angels.
Tartarus is not the final destination of human beings. It is a place of temporary confinement for certain demonic beings who rebelled in a particularly egregious way. Peter uses it to show that God judges even the highest spiritual beings when they rebel. If God did not spare angels, He will not spare unrepentant humans either.
The lake of fire is the final place of punishment introduced in Revelation 19:20, 20:10, 20:14–15, and 21:8. It is the second death, the permanent end of every rebellion against God. The beast and the false prophet are thrown into it first. Then Satan is thrown in. Then Death and Hades are thrown in. Finally, everyone whose name is not written in the book of life is thrown in.
The lake of fire is the culmination of biblical judgment. It is called the second death because it is the final, eternal separation from the life of God. It is conscious, because the wicked are said to be tormented forever and ever Revelation 20:10. It is eternal, because the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever Revelation 14:11.
One of the striking features of Revelation's imagery is that the lake of fire receives both personal beings and abstract realities. The devil, demons, and unrepentant humans go there. Death and Hades are also cast into it. The image teaches that every form of opposition to God will finally be eliminated or contained. The new creation will not be haunted by rebels. It will be free from death, sin, and Satan.
The existence of a final, irreversible punishment raises the question: Why would a loving God create such a place? The biblical answer is that the lake of fire is not created for human beings. It is prepared for the devil and his angels Matthew 25:41. Humans enter it only by aligning themselves with the rebellion of Satan and refusing the mercy of Christ. God does not force anyone into the lake of fire. He warns everyone away from it.
Common student mistake: Assuming that Tartarus is the same as the lake of fire and that both are the ordinary destiny of all unbelievers.
Practice assignment: Read 2 Peter 2:4 and Revelation 20:7-15. Write a paragraph explaining who is in Tartarus and who is cast into the lake of fire.
Worksheet idea: "Judgment Chart" — compare Tartarus, Hades, Gehenna, and the lake of fire by inhabitants, duration, and key Scriptures.
Completion requirement: Student can distinguish Tartarus from the lake of fire and explain the lake of fire as the final destiny of the wicked.
ANSWER: In 2 Peter 2:4, referring to the place where certain fallen angels are held in chains until the judgment.
ANSWER: The devil and his angels.
ANSWER: It is the final, eternal separation from the life of God for all who refuse salvation in Christ.