JW's: Since you guys don't believe in a place or state of everlasting suffering,?

Separating fire from Hades, or hell, the Scriptures say: “Death and Hades were hurled into the lake of fire.” “The lake” mentioned here is symbolic, since death and hell (Hades) that are thrown into it cannot literally be burned. “This [lake of fire] means the second death”—death from which there is no hope of coming back to life.—Revelation 20:14.

The lake of fire has a meaning similar to that of “the fiery Gehenna [hell fire, King James Version]” that Jesus spoke of. (Matthew 5:22; Mark 9:47, 48) Gehenna occurs 12 times in the Christian Greek Scriptures, and it refers to the valley of Hinnom, outside the walls of Jerusalem. When Jesus was on earth, this valley was used as a garbage dump, “where the dead bodies of criminals, and the carcasses of animals, and every other kind of filth was cast.” (Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible) The fires were kept burning by adding sulfur to burn up the refuse. Jesus used that valley as a proper symbol of everlasting destruction.

As does Gehenna, the lake of fire symbolizes eternal destruction. Death and Hades are “hurled into” it in that they will be done away with when mankind is freed from sin and the condemnation of death. Willful, unrepentant sinners will also have their “portion” in that lake. (Revelation 21:8) They too will be annihilated forever. On the other hand, those in God’s memory who are in hell—the common grave of mankind—have a marvelous future.

Hi: I am not JW nor have I ever been, nor have I ever studied with them...I did (as with other denominations) check out the Net to see their basic beliefs and though I do not agree with many of their doctrine actually almost none...But this one I have to agree with them....

1. Eternal or everlasting fire means = Fire caused by or from God....(who we know is the Only thing/one who is Eternal..No beginning and no end.)

2. Eternal / Punishment means once the punishment starts it will never end....(what is that punishment?)

Let's first look at what The Christians Reward is:

1. ETERNAL "LIFE" (meaning will never die) how do we get that eternal life AND WHEN? not when we die in this life....but the Bible plainly teaches "JESUS will bring it with him and we receive it when he calls at the FIRST resurrection.

What is the Punishment for sin? DEATH (not death in this life because we ALL die in this life unless Jesus comes first)

So What death? The DEATH AND DESTRUCTION at the SECOND resurrection....When the non-righteous will be resurrected 1,000 YEARS AFTER we get our eternal life.

1. In order for a person to burn and suffer forever they must first have eternal life....The unrighteous never ever receives ETERNAL LIFE.....therefore the will be cast INTO THE LAKE OF FIRE/ETERNAL FIRE whatever you want to call it (The Bible says actually the fire FALLS FROM HEAVEN.....and the Earth and everything in it will be burnt up and destroyed....so imagine it will be a lake of fire right here on Earth as the wicked are destroyed.

Now before you go and say I have no idea what I am talking about....

1. I was raised and studied with and was first licensed to preach with the Southern Baptist and they are about as HELL FIRE as you can get.

2. I won't go into where else or who else I have studied with and preached and been ordained with just to Say I do understand VERY WELL this subject.

Sorry that I answered when you asked for JW's but their are others of us besides JW's that don't believe in an eternal everlasting punishment other than Destruction.

Fire represents complete destruction from which there is no resurrection.

When speaking of the destruction due the wicked here on earth he said at 2 Peter 3:5-7 "For, according to their wish, this fact escapes their notice, that there were heavens from of old and an earth standing compactly out of water and in the midst of water by the word of God;  and by those [means] the world of that time suffered destruction when it was deluged with water.  But by the same word the heavens and the earth that are now are stored up for fire and are being reserved to the day of judgment and of destruction of the ungodly men.

This fact is consistent with all the above cited verses.

Ecclesiastes 9:5 and 10 state that the dead are conscious of nothing. Opposite of life.

Jesus indicated this in the account of Lazarus, John 11:11  He said these things, and after this he said to them: “Lazarus our friend has gone to rest, but I am journeying there to awaken him from sleep. . .

The Apostle Paul put it very simply what happens to sinners at Romans 6:23 "For the wages sin pays is death"....

No eternal suffering.

What Jesus was referring to at Matthew 18:8 was this. If anything causes a person to leave off serving God and they are unable to control it then it would be better for them to completely eliminate it from their life than to die without hope of resurrection.

If Hell means ceasing to exist then isn't that exactly what most whom commit suicide hope for? An end to their suffering? Ceasing to exist would then not be punishment but a way of escape from the just judgement of God.

I'm no jw but I do have the official Catholic encyclopedia lipedia which states that hell and the purgatory are uncertain of their existence and nobody knows for sure what it is and they are utilized to scare people. And yes... I have been preached to by jws and indeed they do believe in place of suffering...the lake of fire and sulfur in which Satan will be destroyed along with his demons and those who denied God.

that guy above me that states that JW's believe in suffering is incorrect..just being out of the family of God For billions of years is suffering enough, even tho they won't know it..imagine what they'll miss. and it will be THEIR choice to make.

Not to mention many more.