1)    Introduction

a)    The Book of Life contains names of some who have been judged unto eternal life at the return of Jesus Christ such as Enoch, Moses, Abraham, David, and Elijah. Their eternal judgment was decided well before Jesus came in the flesh. In describing the modern ekklesia, Peter said that “the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God”[1] so judgments to eternal life have been on-going from the very beginning of mankind’s existence.

b)    There have also been judgments unto eternal death that have already been decided for the Beast, False Prophet, and those who worship them[2]; this is before they even exist. Bear in mind these judgments are prior to the Great White Throne Judgment. The fact that those judgments are carried out when He returns also infers that the Lake of Fire is brought into existence during the Day of the LORD. They are not raised during the Great White Throne Judgment with the “rest of the dead”[3] to a second life like the majority whose minds will be opened to the Truth for the first time:

i)       REVELATION 20:12 And I [John] saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.

2)    Judgment of the World

a)    Have you ever wondered what happens to the evil despots who murdered millions of innocents across the millennia? History is replete with stories of indescribably evil people such as the ruthless ancient rulers Sennacherib and Nebuchadnezzar II as well as modern genocidal tyrants like Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin. The list of incorrigibly wicked, Satanists, wiccans, bloodthirsty Islamists, etc., is endless. Are these people already judged to eternal death or will they be given an opportunity to repent in the Great White Throne Judgment?

b)    Did you know there are many scriptures where judgments to eternal death have been handed out over the past 6,000 years? If God has already judged some to eternal life, then it should not be a surprise that He has also handed out judgments to eternal death. They will not be raised to live again during the Great White Throne Judgment but will be cast directly into the Lake of Fire. The basis for their judgments is their Sins of Rebellion for which there is no forgiveness under either the Old or New Covenants:

i)       HEBREWS 10:28 Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.

ii)     HEBREWS 10:26-27 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.

c)     Those raised to live a second life during the Great White Throne Judgment died without ever knowing about the Gospel, God, or Jesus Christ. They escaped judgment because God passed over Sins of Ignorance:

i)       [KJV+] ROMANS 3:25 [Jesus Christ] Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation [atonement] through faith in his blood, to declare his [justice] [H1343 = dikaiosune] for the remission [passing over] of sins that are past, through the forbearance [tolerance] of God;

ii)     ACTS 17:30 “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked …

d)    And that was the case until Jesus Christ said:

i)       JOHN 12:31-32 “Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler [Satan] of this world will be cast out. 32 “And I [Jesus Christ], if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.”

e)    Jesus said of Satan, “now [present tense] the ruler … will be [future tense] cast out.” The point in time for now seems to be the moment He said it and will be likely refers to when Satan is imprisoned in the abyss at His return. Does this also mean that “the judgment of this world” began at that time? No, He was referring to the fact that His sacrifice made possible for God to begin judging the world. Up until His sacrifice, God had overlooked and tolerated sin because there was only one possible judgment—universal death. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ opened the door to a new judgment—eternal life. A better way of rendering this is:

i)       [Berean+] John 12:31 Now judgment is upon this world; …

f)      Now finish the thought in Acts 17:30:

i)       ACTS 17:30-31 “… but now [God] commands all men everywhere to repent, 31 “because He [God] has appointed a day on which He [God] will judge the world in [justice] [H1343 = dikaiosune] by the Man [Jesus Christ] whom He [God] has ordained. He [God] has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”

3)    Knowledge of the Gospel

a)    Before the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the only judgment that could be rendered was death. Instead of carrying out that judgment, God overlooked or tolerated sin until Jesus Christ became the Sin Offering. With that, there can now be judgments of eternal life. This is why God commands people to repent so they can take advantage of the judgment to eternal life. The majority who do not repent, however, will be raised in the Great White Throne Judgment. For them, their spiritual blindness will not be removed until the Great White Throne Judgment when “they shall all be taught by God.”[4] That is exactly what Jesus meant when He said:

i)       JOHN 12:47-48 “And if anyone hears My [Jesus Christ’s] words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world [His sacrifice allowed judgments to eternal life]. 48 “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him–the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day [Great White Throne Judgment].

b)    Still, some were being judged to eternal death for not obeying the Gospel:

i)       2 THESSALONIANS 1:6-10 since it is a [just] [G1342 = dikaios] thing with God to repay with tribulation [pressure] those who trouble [afflict] you, 7 and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, 8 in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not [personally] know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, 10 when He [Jesus Christ] comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed.

c)     Every translation says the same thing: “those who do not know God and … do not obey the Gospel … shall be punished with everlasting destruction.”  This is an example of judgments to eternal death that were decided before the Great White Throne Judgment, which is simply when those judgments will be carried out:

i)       [NET2.1+] 2 PETER 3:7 But by the same word the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire, by being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly [in the Lake of Fire].

d)    But why is judgment upon those who do not know God and do not obey the Gospel? For most of mankind, particularly those who are dead, their ignorance will only be taken away during the Great White Throne Judgment. To that point, those who are judged to eternal death before then must be extremely rebellious AND had some knowledge of God and the Gospel. They do not personally know God (the meaning in the Greek) and they do not obey the gospel, suggesting that they knew about God and the Gospel but rejected both God and His message. So, was the Gospel even around in ancient times? Yes, it turns out that the Gospel was preached long before Jesus Christ:

i)       [NET2.1] 1 PETER 4:4-6 So they are astonished when you do not rush with them into the same flood of wickedness, and they vilify you. 5 They will face a reckoning before Jesus Christ who stands ready to judge the living and the dead. 6 Now it was for this very purpose [that is, to judge] that the gospel was preached to those who are now dead, so that though they were judged in the flesh by human standards they may live spiritually by God’s standards.

e)    The Gospel was preached in times past for the purpose of judgments. Here is a sampling of scriptures where the Gospel was preached from the time of Enoch onward; at least to the degree people could not claim ignorance of God and the Gospel:

i)       JUDE 1:14-15 Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, 15 “to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him [God].”

ii)     COLOSSIANS 1:23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.

iii)    GALATIANS 3:8, 10 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify [G1344 = dikaioo] the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.”

iv)   PSALMS 34:11, 16 [Written by David] Come, you children, listen to me; I [the LORD] will teach you the fear of the LORD. … 16 The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

v)     ROMANS 9:17 For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I [God] have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.”

vi)   1 PETER 1:10, 12 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, … 12 To them [the prophets] it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven–things which angels desire to look into.

vii)  2 PETER 2:5 and [God] did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of [justice] [H1343 = dikaiosune], bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly;

f)      The Gospel was preached throughout the millennia. It will be proclaimed by the First Angel in Revelation[5] during the end-times and then taught by God in the Great White Throne Judgment. This contradicts the perception that preaching the Gospel essentially began when Jesus commissioned the apostles and ekklesia to proclaim it[6]:

i)       MARK 16:15 And He [Jesus Christ] said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

g)    The Gospel is more than a message of the Kingdom of God and eternal salvation; it is also a warning and testimony:

i)       MATTHEW 24:14 “And this gospel of the kingdom [shall] be preached in all the world as a witness [testimony] to all the nations, and then the end will come.

h)    A testimony is a formal statement given under oath by a witness as evidence or proof of something. Instead of starting with the apostles, the Gospel has been a testimony to the world throughout history. It was the very mission of the prophets—the message they proclaimed included a warning of judgment such as:

i)       MICAH 6:8 He [the LORD] has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice [H4941 = mishpat], to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?

4)    Judgment Now

a)    Prior to Jesus Christ coming in the flesh, the Gospel was proclaimed to the extent that God could judge some to eternal life or eternal death. That makes sense because some heard the Gospel and embraced it while others heard it and rejected it. The Parable of the Sower[7] is not specifically tied to these end times so it could apply to all of history. It describes how some receive the Gospel and others reject it. This next example has details that are hard to understand; however, it describes judgments to eternal death in the last days of this age[8]:

i)       JUDE 1:4 For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

b)    In the next verses Jude spells out the judgment of those “ungodly men”:

i)       JUDE 1:8, 10, 12-13, 17-23 Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries. … 10 But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves. … 12 These are spots [lit., dangerous hidden reefs] in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; 13 raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. … 17 But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ: 18 how they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. 19 These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit. 20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. 22 And on some have compassion, making a distinction; 23 but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh.

c)     The meaning of the Greek word spots is dangerous hidden reefs. The ungodly men who crept into the ekklesia were false teachers[9] and Jude says they are “twice dead … for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.” Jude is intermixing wicked spirit beings and ungodly men in his warning. Stars are usually spirit beings so how can they be twice dead unless they are flesh and blood? While that is unclear, this is still another example of judgments to eternal death decided in the “last time,” which is before the Great White Throne Judgment. Unlike the Parable of the Sower, the Parable of the Wheat & Tares describes judgments at the end of this age:

i)       MATTHEW 13:24-30, 37-42 Another parable He [Jesus Christ] put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25 “but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. 26 “But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27 “So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ 28 “He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ 29 “But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 ‘Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ” … 37 He answered and said to them: “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 “The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. 39 “The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. 40 “Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. 41 “The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, 42 “and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

d)    The tares are allowed to grow together with the wheat until the return of Jesus Christ as indicated by the angelic “reapers.” The tares lived among the ekklesia but were judged to eternal death. Scripture is clear that there will be wicked alive at the end times who will be destroyed at the 7th Trumpet when the angels gather the grape harvest into in the “great winepress of the wrath of God.”[10] So, there will be wicked in the end-times that are “gathered and burned in the fire” because they are judged to eternal death. None of these scriptures indicate these wicked people will be raised during the Great White Throne Judgment to live another life and having their minds opened to the Gospel. They had enough knowledge of God and the Gospel that they have already been judged to eternal death:

i)       ROMANS 1:18-21, 28-32 For the wrath of God is revealed [by Jesus Christ] from heaven against all ungodliness and [injustice] of men, who suppress the truth in [injustice], 19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. … 28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all [iniquity], sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the [justification] [G1345 = dikaioma] of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

e)    It is not surprising that those who practice wickedness are “deserving of death” but notice that they are “without excuse!” Why? The next chapter expands on this:

i)       ROMANS 2:5-8, 12, 14-16 But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the [just] judgment [G1341 = dikaiokrisia] of God, 6 who “will render to each one according to his deeds”: 7 eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 8 but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey [injustice] [G0093 = adikia]–indignation and wrath, 9 tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; … 12 For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law … 14 for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, 15 who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) 16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.

f)      Even the most secular of people are quite capable of discerning between good and evil; after all, mankind has Knowledge of Good & Evil. Evidence of evil is in their guilty consciences. Practicing evil, then, is a basis for a judgment to eternal death in this life:

i)       JOHN 3:19-20 “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 “For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.

g)    It is hard to imagine that people do not know their deeds are evil—otherwise, why are crimes usually committed in darkness; that is, secretly? Here is another example:

i)       2 PETER 2:9-10 then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust [for] punishment [at] the day of judgment, 10 and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries,

h)    The unjust who are alive at the return of Jesus Christ will be cast into the Lake of Fire but punishment is reserved until the Great White Throne Judgment for the wicked who are dead. Here is another example:

i)       2 THESSALONIANS 2:9-12 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all [deceitful iniquity] among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be [judged] who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in [iniquity].

i)       All judgment is based upon works. Eternal death is the result of evil works and eternal life is the result of Good Works, which are required for eternal life[11]. The letters to the ekklesia in Revelation 2 and 3 prove it among many others including:

i)       2 CORINTHIANS 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done [works], whether good or bad.

5)    Conclusion

a)    Judgments to eternal death been handed out since the beginning. The rebellious wicked who are alive when Jesus Christ returns will be cast into the Lake of Fire. Those who are dead will be resurrected during the Great White Throne Judgment and cast into the Lake of Fire. However, the vast majority of mankind is ignorant of God and the Gospel, which is why they will be raised in the Great White Throne Judgment to be taught that message of the Kingdom and eternal life for the first time by God Himself.

b)    There are two primary reasons for the Great White Throne Judgment: 1) to resurrect to a second life “the rest of the dead” who are not yet judged when they are taught by God and offered eternal life in the Kingdom and, 2) to destroy all who are dead but judged to eternal death before the return of Jesus Christ.

c)     There have been judgments to eternal life since the days of Adam and Eve. All these are waiting for the resurrection at the return of Jesus Christ. Their names were chosen by God before the foundation of the world:

i)       EPHESIANS 1:4 just as He [God] chose us in Him [Jesus Christ] before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,

d)    So, judgments have been ongoing from the beginning meaning that judgments to eternal life or eternal death have been determined BEFORE the return of Jesus Christ:

i)       [NET2.1+] REVELATION 13:8 and all those who live on the earth will worship the beast, everyone whose name has not been written since the foundation of the world in the book of life belonging to the Lamb who was killed.

ii)     REVELATION 17:8 “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition. And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

e)    As for the rest of mankind who die in ignorance, they await a resurrection to another physical life when they will be taught by God. Their eternal judgment is during the Great White Throne Judgment. And then comes the end:

i)       1 CORINTHIANS 15:24-28 Then comes the end, when He [Jesus Christ] delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He [Jesus Christ] puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. 25 For He [Jesus Christ] must reign till He [Jesus Christ] has put all enemies under His [God the Father] feet. 26 The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. 27 For “He [God the Father] has put all things under His [Jesus Christ] feet.” But when He says “all things are put under Him [Jesus Christ],” it is evident that He [God the Father] who put all things under Him [Jesus Christ] is excepted. 28 Now when all things are made subject to Him [Jesus Christ], then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him [God the Father] who put all things under Him [Jesus Christ], that God may be all in all.

6)    May God’s grace and peace be upon you!