Annihilationism vs Eternal Torment

Thank you for accepting my challenge. :) Scriptures taken from King James Version. Annihilationism is a Christian belief that the final punishment of sinful human beings results in their total destruction (annihilation) rather than their everlasting torment. Point 1. A soul does not burn in Hell, a body does. Jesus taught that "If thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell ..." Mark 9:43 That means hands, feet, eyes, and all the other members of the physical body. This is in contrast to the modern doctrine of an Eternal Hell where the SOULS of the wicked are burned. Point 2. The unsaved do not go to any place of punishment as soon as they die, but are reserved in the grave until the day of judgment to be punished. Christ said, "As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." Matthew 13:41, 42 2 Peter 2:9 "The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:" If we let the Bible mean what it says, there can be no doubt on this point. The wicked are "reserved" until when? Until the "day of judgment." To be what? "To be punished".Matthew 16:27 “For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. Do you give rewards before you make judgements or after? Think about it.”Daniel 12:2 “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." Point 3. None of the unsaved will be cast into hell-fire until after the second coming of Jesus at the end of the world. This is described as the Second Death. Revelation 21:8 “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” Do you realize what this proves about the wicked? It proves they will not be cast into the lake of fire until after the resurrection takes place. It does not take place at the time of the first death as so many have been led to believe. Revelation 20:9 “And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed ithe camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.”Did it say the fire preserved them? Absolutely not. Devoured is the complete opposite of preserve. It is the thing you and I do to a pizza. Point 4. The location of Hell is the surface of the Earth. The earth is the lake of fire. 2 Peter 3:7 “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.“Isaiah 34:8 “For it is the day of the Lord’s vengeance, And the year of recompenses for the controversy of Zion. And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch,And the dust thereof into brimstone, And the land thereof shall become burning pitch.”The prophet portrays the entire planet enveloped in the destroying fire. Even the streams and dust are transformed into an exploding combustion of pitch and brimstone. Point 5. Hell fire is not eternal. It ends when the wicked are burned up. There are several reasons for being so sure on this point. First of all, this earth is also declared to be the final home for the righteous. And as we have already seen the surface of the earth is Hell. Jesus said in Matthew 5:5 "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth."Secondly, the wicked are never promised eternal life. Ezekiel 18:20 "The soul that sinneth, it shall die." See also 1 John 3:15 "Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him."Matthew 10:28 "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."Psalm 37:20 “But the wicked shall perish, And the enemies of the Lord shall be as the fat of lambs: They shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away.” This one is irrefutable. Malachi 4:1 “For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.”The most powerful, definitive words in human language are used to describe the destruction in hell, but people still insist that the writers do not really mean what their words express. "Destroy," "consume," "burn up," "devour," "death"-do these words have some mysterious, opposite meaning in the Bible than they have in other books? Point 6. Annihilationists serve a just and loving God. Those who believe in a God who burns people in Hell forever for eternity for minor misdeeds serve a God of infinite cruelty. Suppose a man died 5,000 years ago with one cherished sin in his life. His soul would go instantly into the fire to be tormented for eternity. Then picture another death; that of Adolph Hitler, who supervised the deaths of millions of people. According to the popular doctrine, his soul also would immediately enter hell to suffer eternally. But the man who was lost because of only one sin, will burn 5,000 years longer than Hitler. How could that be just? Would God deal in such a manner? It would contradict the Bible statement that each one must be punished according to his works. Point 6. God plans for a universe free of pain and suffering, as it was in the beginning. An eternal Hell burning away into infinity just doesn't fit with that. Revelation 21:4 "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."Where are the wicked at this time? Malachi 4:3 "And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts."