What does Scripture say about heaven and hell?

⁹ But as it is written, “Things which an eye didn’t see, and an ear didn’t hear, which didn’t enter into the heart of man, these God has prepared for those who love him.”

¹ “Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me. ² In my Father’s house are many homes. If it weren’t so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. ³ If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will receive you to myself; that where I am, you may be there also.

¹ I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more. ² I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. ³ I heard a loud voice out of heaven saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people; and he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. ⁴ He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more. The first things have passed away.”

¹ He showed me a river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb, ² in the middle of its street. On this side of the river and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruits, yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. ³ There will be no curse any more. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will serve him. ⁴ They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. ⁵ There will be no night, and they need no lamp light or sun light; for the Lord God will illuminate them. They will reign forever and ever.

² Beloved, now we are children of God. It is not yet revealed what we will be; but we know that when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him just as he is.

⁴¹ Then he will say also to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels; ⁴² for I was hungry, and you didn’t give me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink; ⁴³ I was a stranger, and you didn’t take me in; naked, and you didn’t clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’ ⁴⁴ “Then they will also answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn’t help you?’ ⁴⁵ “Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Most certainly I tell you, because you didn’t do it to one of the least of these, you didn’t do it to me.’ ⁴⁶ These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

⁴³ If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having your two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire, ⁴⁴ ‘where their worm doesn’t die, and the fire is not quenched.’ ⁴⁵ If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life lame, rather than having your two feet to be cast into Gehenna, into the fire that will never be quenched— ⁴⁶ ‘where their worm doesn’t die, and the fire is not quenched.’ ⁴⁷ If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out. It is better for you to enter into God’s Kingdom with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into the Gehenna of fire, ⁴⁸ ‘where their worm doesn’t die, and the fire is not quenched.’

²⁸ Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. Rather, fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.

¹⁹ “Now there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen, living in luxury every day. ²⁰ A certain beggar, named Lazarus, was taken to his gate, full of sores, ²¹ and desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Yes, even the dogs came and licked his sores. ²² The beggar died, and he was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. ²³ In Hades, he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far off, and Lazarus at his bosom. ²⁴ He cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue! For I am in anguish in this flame.’ ²⁵ “But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that you, in your lifetime, received your good things, and Lazarus, in the same way, bad things. But here he is now comforted and you are in anguish. ²⁶ Besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, that those who want to pass from here to you are not able, and that no one may cross over from there to us.’ ²⁷ “He said, ‘I ask you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house— ²⁸ for I have five brothers—that he may testify to them, so they won’t also come into this place of torment.’ ²⁹ “But Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’ ³⁰ “He said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ ³¹ “He said to him, ‘If they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if one rises from the dead.’”

⁷ and to give relief to you who are afflicted with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, ⁸ punishing those who don’t know God, and to those who don’t obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus, ⁹ who will pay the penalty: eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might,

²⁸ Therefore, receiving a Kingdom that can’t be shaken, let’s have grace, through which we serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe, ²⁹ for our God is a consuming fire.

²⁴ For the Lord thy God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

⁹ “I watched until thrones were placed, and one who was Ancient of Days sat. His clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool. His throne was fiery flames, and its wheels burning fire. ¹⁰ A fiery stream issued and came out from before him. Thousands of thousands ministered to him. Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The judgment was set. The books were opened.

¹³ each man’s work will be revealed. For the Day will declare it, because it is revealed in fire; and the fire itself will test what sort of work each man’s work is. ¹⁴ If any man’s work remains which he built on it, he will receive a reward. ¹⁵ If any man’s work is burned, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, but as through fire.

¹⁴ The sinners in Sion have departed; trembling shall seize the ungodly. Who will tell you that a fire is kindled? Who will tell you of the eternal place? ¹⁵ He that walks in righteousness, speaking rightly, hating transgression and iniquity, and shaking his hands from gifts, stopping his ears that he should not hear the judgment of blood, shutting his eyes that he should not see injustice;

⁴² He said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” ⁴³ Jesus said to him, “Assuredly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

²¹ For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. ²² But if I live on in the flesh, this will bring fruit from my work; yet I don’t know what I will choose. ²³ But I am hard pressed between the two, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.

⁶ Therefore we are always confident and know that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord; ⁷ for we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸ We are courageous, I say, and are willing rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.

⁹ When he opened the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been killed for the Word of God, and for the testimony of the Lamb which they had. ¹⁰ They cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, Master, the holy and true, until you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” ¹¹ A long white robe was given to each of them. They were told that they should rest yet for a while, until their fellow servants and their brothers, who would also be killed even as they were, should complete their course.

²² For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. ²³ But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then those who are Christ’s at his coming. ²⁴ Then the end comes, when he will deliver up the Kingdom to God the Father, when he will have abolished all rule and all authority and power. ²⁵ For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. ²⁶ The last enemy that will be abolished is death. ²⁷ For, “He put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when he says, “All things are put in subjection”, it is evident that he is excepted who subjected all things to him. ²⁸ When all things have been subjected to him, then the Son will also himself be subjected to him who subjected all things to him, that God may be all in all.

⁹ Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name, ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

¹⁹ For all the fullness was pleased to dwell in him, ²⁰ and through him to reconcile all things to himself by him, whether things on the earth or things in the heavens, having made peace through the blood of his cross.

⁴ who desires all people to be saved and come to full knowledge of the truth.