The Bible occasionally speaks of the wicked being ultimately "destroyed" (apollumi) in hell (Mt. 10:28; Lk. 13:3, 5; 2 Thes. 2:10). Some, therefore, have assumed that after an appropriate period of punishment, the spirits of wicked men will be extinguished.
But the idea embodied in
apollumi is "ruin, loss of well-being," not annihilation (W.E. Vine).
A sheep was "lost" (
apollumi - Lk. 15:4, 6) and a wineskin "perished" (
apollumi -- Lk. 5:37), but neither was "out of existence."
Nor will the spirits of evil people be extinguished. See
ANNIHILATION.
