Compare Mark 9:46 with Isaiah 66:24. What similarities do you find?

The Texts Side by Side

• Mark 9:46: “where ‘their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.’”

• Isaiah 66:24: “As they go forth, they will see the corpses of the men who rebelled against Me; for their worm will not die, and their fire will not be quenched, and they will be a horror to all mankind.”

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Shared Imagery

• Identical wording—“their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.”

• Two relentless agents of judgment: devouring worms and unquenchable fire.

• Graphic valley-refuse picture drawn from the Hinnom Valley (Gehenna), once Israel’s dumping ground and scene of idolatrous fires (2 Kings 23:10; Jeremiah 7:31–32).

• Corpse language in Isaiah, implied continued ruin in Mark—both stress irreversible loss.

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Shared Emphasis on Permanence

• “Does not die” and “is not quenched” point to ceaseless duration (Daniel 12:2; Revelation 14:11).

• Undiminished judgment reveals God’s settled opposition to sin (Hebrews 12:29).

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Shared Audience Warning

• Isaiah: rebels who defy the LORD.

• Mark: anyone causing “little ones” to stumble (Mark 9:42–45) and refusing radical repentance.

• Both texts function as sober deterrents, urging decisive turning from sin (Luke 13:3).

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Shared Theological Threads

• Continuity between Old and New Testaments—Jesus validates Isaiah’s prophecy by quoting it verbatim.

• Final separation of the righteous and the wicked (Matthew 25:46).

• Vindication of God’s holiness before “all mankind” (Isaiah 66:24; Philippians 2:10–11).

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Take-Home Reflections

• Sin’s endgame is dreadful and unending; grace’s call to repent is urgent.

• Jesus is not softening the Old Testament picture; He intensifies it for His listeners.

• Eternal realities anchor present discipleship—better to lose a hand or eye than be lost forever (Mark 9:43–48).