Two Fates Explained
Encouragement from Psalm 1
The Way of Righteous vs. The Way of the Wicked
Some years ago, I was interacting with an annihilationist who cited Psalm 1:6 as proof that the wicked will be annihilated and not sent to experience everlasting punishment in Hell. I pointed out to him that the text does not say that the wicked will perish; it says that the way of the wicked will perish. David writes —
Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.
David is contrasting two ways of living. The first way of living is that of the wicked; the second way is that of the righteous. The wicked give, receive, and act in accordance with counsel that is against the Lord and his commandments in order to prosper in this life. The righteous are the polar opposite of the wicked, and seek to receive, act in accordance with, and give counsel that is in accordance with God’s commandments. While the wicked stand proudly, boasting in what they have accomplished by means of breaking God’s commandments, they will be leveled by God’s judgment.
Their superficial prosperity runs parallel to, and in the opposite direction of, the spiritual prosperity of the righteous. Whereas the righteous are represented by a fruitful, stable, healthy tree, the wicked are represented by chaff that is blown away by the wind.
A Biblical Pattern
The wicked, in other words, are devoid of life, barren, fruitless, and will be driven away by the judgment of God. Note the language here used — driven away. Where do we first find this language? In Genesis 3:22-24, where we are told that the Adam and Eve were driven from the garden of Eden, away from the tree of life, after they had broken God’s commandment. We read —
Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.
Adam and Eve were not dependent upon the tree of life for their life, keep in mind, for death had not yet entered the creation. Death, according to Paul, came into creation through sin.1 Death was not present in the creation and being kept at bay by means of a fruit. Rather, it had no place in the universe until man’s sin brought it into creation. Adam and Eve were driven away from the blessing of partaking in the fruit of the garden, the life of the garden, the fatherly presence of God, and the peace and fruitfulness that comes along with being in perfect relationship with God.
When David speaks of the wicked being driven away, then, this is what is being alluded to — the wicked being cast out of the beneficent presence of God to experience existence under his judgment, away from the perfect garden and into a world of pain, suffering, futility, and fruitlessness. Adam’s sin brought about a drastic change in the world, the human body (male and female alike), and man’s location. This first judgment foreshadows what will happen when Christ returns. Jesus makes this clear in his teaching on the sheep and the goats. Matthew 25:31-34, 41 & 46 —
“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’
[…]
Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels…
[…]
And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
At the final judgment, the righteous enter into eternal life, whereas the wicked enter into everlasting punishment, which are states of existence corresponding to the environments mentioned by Christ, viz. the kingdom of God, on the one hand, and the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels, on the other hand. Just as judgment comes to Adam and Eve, alters their bodies, their environments, and removes them from their current location to a place of pain, suffering, futility, sorrow, and death, so too will the wicked upon Christ’s return be bodily altered, cast out of God’s beneficent presence, and cast into a place of pain, suffering, futility, sorrow, and death.2
The wicked will be driven away. Their temporal power, wealth, praise, and glory will dissolve in an instant, as will the poverty, scorn, and dishonor of the righteous. The wicked will be raised from the dead and clothed with shame and everlasting contempt,3 while the righteous will be raised from the dead and further clothed4 with honor and glory.5
The Present Moment
As I read Psalm 1 again recently, I was reminded of my conversation with that annihilationist. My reflection on the psalm’s meaning, however, turned my thinking toward the world’s current state. The wicked are on every side; they are even hiding among the so-called conservatives. The wicked are boldfaced in their sin, adding punishment upon punishment for their thoughts and deeds as they sear their own consciences as with a hot iron. In such a context, it is easy to lose sight of the truth that their way will perish. It is also easy to forget that the Lord knows the way of the righteous. Christians do not labor in vain. The wicked, however, succeed in this life only to enter into eternal futility, pain, suffering, and death.
As David explains in Psalm 37:1-11 —
Do not fret because of evildoers,
Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.
For they shall soon be cut down like the grass,
And wither as the green herb.
Trust in the Lord, and do good;
Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
Delight yourself also in the Lord,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him,
And He shall bring it to pass.
He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light,
And your justice as the noonday.
Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
Cease from anger, and forsake wrath;
Do not fret—it only causes harm.
For evildoers shall be cut off;
But those who wait on the Lord,
They shall inherit the earth.
For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more;
Indeed, you will look carefully for his place,
But it shall be no more.
But the meek shall inherit the earth,
And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
The pomp and glory of the wicked is temporary. Their occupation of the world created for God’s children is temporary. They will be cast out eternally. They will cut off from God’s presence and blessing, sent into eternal misery. They will find no place among the redeemed who now, for a short time, endure sorrow, pain, suffering, and death. The wicked will find no place in the new heavens and earth. The righteous, however, are the promised inheritors, with Christ, of the new heavens and earth. The wicked, God says, will never know peace6 or rest.7 The righteous, however, shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
The present moment is bad, but it is a momentary and passing affliction in comparison to an eternity of peace and rest with God and his people. We, then, ought to rejoice in God’s mercy and grace if we are Christians. We ought to also warn those who are not Christians that their momentary lives are but a vapor, and they are like chaff which God’s breath will drive away into eternal punishment in an instant. It may be that our warnings will not fall upon deaf ears, and those who are being drawn by God will come to repent of their sins and trust in Christ as their one and only way to peace with God.
—h.
cf. Rom 5:12
I hope to write about this more at another time. It is sufficient here, however, to point the reader to 1st Corinthians 15 for reflection on how it is not only the righteous who will be physically changed, but the wicked as well.
cf. Daniel 12:2.
cf. 2nd Cor 5:1-5.
Psalm 132:13-18 —
…the Lord has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for His dwelling place:
“This is My resting place forever;
Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
I will abundantly bless her provision;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
I will also clothe her priests with salvation,
And her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
There I will make the horn of David grow;
I will prepare a lamp for My Anointed.
His enemies I will clothe with shame,
But upon Himself His crown shall flourish.”
(Emphasis added)
Isa 48:22 & 57:21 —
“There is no peace,” says the LORD, “for the wicked.”
Rev 14:11 —
“…the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”