DESTINY OF THE DEMONS
The destiny of the demons is the lake of fire. The words of Jesus are plain: “Then He will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels’” (Matt. 25:41).
According to Jude 6 there is no indication that the demons will be the recipients of grace: “The angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, He has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day”; whoever these angels are and whatever it is that they did, the point is that the verdict of their judgment on “the great day” has been determined. There is no hope for them.
The destiny of the demons is the destiny of the devil: “And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Rev. 20:10).
Demons know of their fixed doom. In the land of the Gadarenes, the demons asked Jesus: “Have You come here to torment us before the time?” (Matt. 8:29); their question reveals their knowledge that they will be judged at an appointed time and that the judgment will result in torment for them. James pointed out that “even the demons believe—and shudder” (Jas. 2:19), a shudder that is motivated by the God who exists and who created them, or a shudder motivated by the fear they have of the day when they will be judged by Him. And at the end time when Satan is exhibiting great wrath, part of the wrath is prompted by the fact that “he knows that his time is short” (Rev. 12:12).
It appears that demons harbor an irrefutable belief that a judgment day is ahead, that there is a Judge, that they will be judged, and that their punishment will be torment. These facts arise out of their knowledge of God coupled with their knowledge of their rebellion against God. They understand accountability and consequences.
Thus, the demons adhere to more orthodox belief than do many liberated churchmen who question the concepts of judgment, damnation, and suffering, especially eternal suffering. Such skepticism resides in their interpretation of the meaning of God’s love, a love which they deem is inconsistent with God inflicting torment on any part of His creation, particularly an indefinite torment. God simply would not and could not do such. But the demons are convinced otherwise. They know that the Christ can destroy them (Mk. 1:24).
In addition, the liberated churchmen also disavow eternal damnation in light of determinism (see: Theistic Determinism); that is, they assert that man must be free if God is to be just when He judges. If man does not possess free will to come to Christ, then it is immoral for God to judge him. In response to such non-Biblical reasoning, it is fitting to be reminded that in regard to the unseen spirit world of evil there is total determinism—no reference is made to options they have after their original sin; they are bound awaiting their destiny.
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