Violent End of the Wicked

Satan's character remains unchanged. Rebellion like a mighty torrent again bursts forth. He determines not to yield the last desperate struggle against the King of heaven. But of all the countless millions whom he has allured into rebellion, none now acknowledge his supremacy. The wicked are filled with the same hatred of God that inspires Satan, but they see that their case is hopeless. GrH_c 53.3

Fire comes down from God out of heaven. The earth is broken up. Devouring flames burst from every yawning chasm. The very rocks are on fire. The elements melt with fervent heat, the earth also, and the works that are therein are burned up. 2 Peter 3:10. The earth's surface seems one molten mass—a vast, seething lake of fire. It is “the day of the Lord's vengeance, and the year of recompenses for the controversy of Zion.” Isaiah 34:8.GrH_c 53.4

The wicked are punished “according to their deeds.” Satan is made to suffer not only for his own rebellion, but for all the sins which he has caused God's people to commit. In the flames the wicked are at last destroyed, root and branch—Satan the root, his followers the branches. The full penalty of the law has been visited; the demands of justice have been met. Satan's work of ruin is forever ended. Now God's creatures are forever delivered from his temptations.GrH_c 53.5

While the earth is wrapped in fire, the righteous abide safely in the Holy City. While God is to the wicked a consuming fire, He is to His people a shield. See Revelation 20:6; Psalm 84:11.GrH_c 53.6