There is fire in Sheol. Deuteronomy 32:22a For a fire is kindled in My anger, and burns to the lowest part of Sheol…The rich man confirms this as fact in Luke 16:24 And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’
Sheol is not the Lake of Fire. They are different. Sheol/Hades is not permanent. It is a temporary holding place. Revelation 20:13-14 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
Hades follows Death closely. One dies, then they go to the Pit/Sheol/Hades. Revelation 6:8a I looked, and behold, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him…
We all have a set time and date with the grave. It does not matter what our bodies look like. One cannot diet, vitamin, or exercise their way from the Pit. It does not matter if you are rich or poor. One cannot buy their way out of Sheol.
Psalm 89:48 What man can live and not see death? Can he deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? Selah.
Psalm 49:14 As sheep they are appointed for Sheol; death shall be their shepherd; and the upright shall rule over them in the morning, and their form shall be for Sheol to consume so that they have no habitation.
Death always wants more and more. It is never satisfied. Proverbs 30:16 Sheol, and the barren womb, earth that is never satisfied with water, and fire that never says, “Enough.”
Proverbs 27:20 Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, nor are the eyes of man ever satisfied.
Habakkuk 2:5 Furthermore, wine betrays the haughty man, so that he does not stay at home. He enlarges his appetite like Sheol, and he is like death, never satisfied. He also gathers to himself all nations and collects to himself all peoples.
There are consciousness and awareness of the inhabitants and Sheol itself. There are examples of this in Scripture in the Old Testament and the New Testament. While in the grave, King Samuel was contacted by a medium from Endor on behalf of King Saul 1 Samuel 28:11-15. The rich man Lazarus is clearly in misery, agony, and torment in Luke 16:19-31. Sheol itself was stimulated with the arrival of the King of Babylon in Isaiah 14:9 Sheol from beneath is excited over you to meet you when you come; it arouses for you the spirits of the dead, all the leaders of the earth; it raises all the kings of the nations from their thrones.
Job 26:6 Naked is Sheol before Him, and Abaddon has no covering. The meaning of Abaddon is “destruction”. Sin is naked before God. In the final analysis, there is no covering of sin apart from the cross work of Christ. God has always made provision for the sin of humanity. Apart from God, sin will be exposed, bare, and raw. Its path leads to destruction. Proverbs 15:11 Sheol and Abaddon lie open before the LORD, How much more the hearts of men!
