Some Thoughts on Meros (μέρος)

One of the key texts regarding hell is Revelation 21:8, which states:

But the fearful, and

unbelieving, and

the abominable, and

murderers, and

whoremongers, and

sorcerers, and

idolaters, and

all liars,

shall have their part (τὸ μέρος αὐτῶν) in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

Some folks commenting on this verse are quick to rush past "their part," and just act as though the various folks mentioned are just thrown into the fire, like one might through ingredients into a soup.

On the other hand, the word translated "part" has in mind something closer to a geographic area.  This is not like our English "take part in," meaning "have a role in."  It's more like having a portion or an allotment, or in the real estate sense, a lot.

In context, the portion of these wicked is in contrast to Revelation 20:6

Blessed and holy is he that hath part (μέρος) in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Recall that Christ went to prepare a place for us (John 14:2-3).

Likewise, Revelation 19:22 uses the word to describe a place in the tree of life (or book of life, if you follow the KJV reading there).  Revelation 16:19 uses the word to describe that Babylon is carved up into three parts.

Matthew, the gospel with the greatest focus on hell, uses the word in connection with hell:

Matthew 24:51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion (τὸ μέρος αὐτοῦ) with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Matthew similarly uses the term as a geographic designator in Matthew 2:22 ("parts of Galilee"), 15:21 ("coasts of Tyre and Sidon"), 16:13 ("coasts of Caesarea Philippi").  

Luke does the same in the parallel to Matthew 24:51:

Luke 12:46 The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion (τὸ μέρος αὐτοῦ) with the unbelievers.

Luke doesn't use the term geographically in Luke (though Mark does at Mark 8:10 "parts of Dalmanutha"), but Luke uses the term of divided portions in Luke 11:36 ("no part dark" of your body), 15:12 ("portion of goods" requested by the prodigal son), and 24:42 ("piece of a broiled fish" given to Jesus after his resurrection).  Luke uses the term geographically in Acts 2:10 ("parts of Libya about Cyrene"), 19:1 ("upper coasts" passed on the way to Ephesus), 20:2 ("those parts" he passed over on the way to Greece).  Luke also uses the term to describe parts of the crowd (part Sadducees and part Pharisees) in Acts 23:6 and 9. The idol-makers used the term to describe their profession in Acts 19:27.   Finally, Luke also uses it to describe the part of the sale of land that was kept back by Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:2).  

In John 13:8 Jesus tells Peter that he doesn't have a part with Jesus if Jesus doesn't wash his feet.  John also uses this word to describe the parts of Jesus garments that the soldiers took for themselves (John 19:23) and the right side of the ship (John 21:6) that Jesus told Peter and the others to fish on after the resurrection.  

Paul uses the term to refer to the grave ("the lower parts of the earth") in Ephesians 4:9.  Paul also uses the term in a variety of other ways, usually in the sense of something being partial rather than complete or according to some defined partitioning (Romans 11:25, 15:15&24, 1 Corinthians 11:18, 12:27, 13:9-10&12, 14:27, 2 Corinthians 1:14, 2:5, and Ephesians 4:16). In a few places, Paul uses the term to mean something like "in regard to," (2 Corinthians 3:10, 9:3, and Colossians 2:16) which we could equate to something like "about this part."  Peter uses the word that same way in 1 Peter 4:16.

The author of Hebrews uses the term to refer to the details of the temple (Hebrews 9:5).  

In short, the word can have a range of meanings, but the general sense is one of a part, portion, or the like.  The point is that the lake of fire is the destination of the wicked.  The righteous have a place in the tree (or book) of life, but the wicked have place in a lake of fire.  

Yes, the lake of fire is a metaphor for a place of pain and suffering.  The point, however, is that this is where the wicked are going.  

The Lake of Fire and the Abyss

In any discussion on Hell, I would be remiss to omit discussion of the Abyss, sometimes translated the "deep" or the "bottomless pit."

In most places in the Scripture, the abyss seems to be watery place (for example, the Spirit of God moves over the watery abyss in Genesis 1).  The main exceptions in the Old Testament are the Red Sea as dried (Psalm 106:9, Isaiah 51:10, and Isaiah 63:13 and possibly Isaiah 44:27).  

Amos 7:4 is the most interesting (for our discussion) exception to the typical usage in the Old Testament.  Amos 7:1-9 provides three pictures of judgment, of which the first is the locusts coming and eating the already-mown grass, and the second is of a fire that devours the Abyss and a part.  These judgments are deemed too severe for Jacob and so a final image of a wall with a plumber's line is provided.  Fascinatingly, the revelation given to John combines these two images with locusts coming forth from the smoking Abyss (Revelation 9:3).     

Paul seems to use the abyss as equivalent to Sheol (Romans 10:7), but for Luke and John it seems to be the place of the fallen angels and the beast (Luke 8:31, Rev. 9:11, 11:7, 17:8, and 20:3).  John may not explicitly mention fire in the Abyss, but it smokes like a furnace (Rev. 9:2).

Moreover, there may be a connection between the Abyss and the lake of fire.  After all, in Revelation 20:7 Satan is loosed from his prison (which is the Abyss per Rev. 20:1-3), wreaks a measure havoc, and is then sent to the lake of fire for eternal torment:

Revelation 20:10

And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. 

They were consigned to the lake of fire in Revelation 19:20.  That's the same place that the reprobate come, according to Jesus: 

Matthew 25:41

Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

Likewise the Abyss is the place from which the Beast ascends (Revelation 11:7 and Revelation 17:8).

So, it may be reasonable to connect the two, such that while the Abyss is not explicitly identified as being the Lake of Fire or a part thereof, it is still an image of the same place of eternal torment.