The great divide between the earth and its inhabitants and hell and its inhabitants has always remained a mystery. Upper Sheol in the First Testament was the abode of the righteous dead, and Lower Sheol and Hell fire was the abode of the wicked dead. Even between these two separate locations, there was an impossible gap. Abraham plainly told the rich man in hell that none could pass between the two abodes. “And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence”. (Luke 16:26) Jesus told this great story to teach the truth of man’s eternal destiny. The gulf between the two abodes was very narrow compared to the gulf between earth and hell. In fact, man is forbidden to ever consider communication with the dead across that gulf.

Scripture teaches us clearly that the abode of the wicked is in the heart of the earth. Upper Sheol no longer exists because Jesus Christ led the captives out of their captivity, and they ascended with Him to dwell in His presence. They are awaiting the resurrection of their body. The righteous dead in the Old Testament could not escape death and its bondage until Jesus Christ was crucified and arose from the dead. Now, the gulf is only between Lower Sheol and the earth. No one should attempt any contact with hell or the people that are damned to eternal fire. Those in hell are awaiting the White Throne Judgment, where they will appear and give account to the rejected Creator of this universe, whom they have rejected.

Hell is not just a place of wicked men and women but also a place where fallen angels are already being judged. Jude spoke of this when warning the church about wicked men. “And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire”. (Jude 1:6-7) The apostle Peter also reminded us of the judgments of angels that had already begun.“For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment”. (II Peter 2:4) Where the Son of God met demon-possessed individuals, the demons would beg not to be dismissed into the deep, clearly referring to Hell or the bottomless pit.

Humans can become so wicked that they take on the same characteristics of fallen angels or demons. Jude gave references to humans that had become beasts. “Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities. But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core”. (Jude 1: 8, 10, 11) Calling humans “brute beasts” certainly suggests a dark state of character. Hell is inhabited with the darkest of all fallen angels and the godless and wicked throughout more than six thousand years of human history. They have festered in their vileness and grow increasingly wicked by the day. Our Father and the Lamb are going to unleash a multitude of this wicked crowd right on the earth.

The darkest place in God’s universe is about to open onto the earth.Remember that Jesus Christ, the Lamb, opened the seventh seal, and out from that seal appeared seven angels with seven trumpets. This is the fifth of those angels sounding their trumpets. Another angel, one of the seven Cherubim assigned to His churches, descended quickly from heaven. Remember, an individual angel or cherubim was assigned to each church during the Church Dispensation. The seven stars were the angels of the seven churches, which are now established in heaven since the Rapture. They are the defenders of righteousness in the earth and that includes redemption and judgment. No one, demon or human, which has ever been assigned to that pit has ever been released. The gate has never been unlocked on the ex-it side of this dark chasm. Everything and everyone inside the bottomless pit is as wicked as they could possibly be. They are corrupt with corrupting personalities and have longed for an opportunity to vent their fury. If this crowd had not been held in captivity, this earth would have descended into an even darker and deeper vileness. Their captivity has been part of God’s restrictive plan until the fated hour should arrive.