God’s penalty for the sins unbelievers commit in this life is permanent separation from him in the hereafter.
God essentially tells them, “You chose to live independently of me during your earthly life, despite all the times that I prompted you to reconsider, so I will honor this choice in your eternal life.”
The Bible says every good thing in existence comes from God. It also states that nothing good exists apart from him.
So permanent separation from God means not only the loss of access to him but also the absence of all goodness.
Heaven, the eternal residence of reborn believers, is a place where everything is good and nothing is bad because God is there and his will prevails.
Every facet of life in heaven will be delightful.
Hell, the eternal residence of unbelievers, is a place where nothing is good and everything is terrible because God is absent and evil rules.
Life there will be horrible on every level.
We can envision how wonderful heaven will be by imagining better versions of the good things we currently experience on earth.
We find it hard to comprehend how dreadful hell will be because a world without any semblance of goodness is beyond our imagination.
The Bible describes hell as a place of unrelenting torment.
We begin to understand this description when we think about living forever in putrid isolation, amid absolute darkness, with intense pain, sorrow, despair, rage, regret, and monotony.
