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Paul Washer has often said this. For example:

From heaven’s perspective, those who break God’s Law are vile and worthy of all loathing. They are a wretched lot, justly exposed to divine vengeance, and rightly devoted to eternal destruction. It is not an exaggeration to say that the last thing that the accursed sinner should and will hear when he takes his first step into hell is all of creation standing to its feet and applauding God because He has rid the earth of him. Such is the vileness of those who break God’s law, and such is the disdain of the holy towards the unholy. (Paul Washer, "The Cross of Christ," HeartCry Magazine)

Now, although this quote sounds logical, I can't find biblical support for it. The closest I can find is:

And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
Revelation 14:11

And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever. And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia. And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great. And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.
Revelation 19:1-6

Neither verse directly supports Washer's quote.

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    That sounds like the opposite of the gospel message. According to Luke 15:7, "there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance." I can't imagine ever applauding someone being sent to hell. Aug 14, 2012 at 2:41
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    @Bruce: I interpret Paul Washer's quote as being in the context of the final judgment -- which has to make sense, for why would the saints/angels grieve over a decision made by God?
    – user1694
    Aug 14, 2012 at 2:54
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    I expect God himself would grieve at such a decision. Aug 14, 2012 at 3:12
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    From the perspective of pre-destination, I don't see how that is possible, given that God picked who to save / who to not save.
    – user1694
    Aug 14, 2012 at 3:14

3 Answers 3

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Sometimes we may be quick to judge another brother, not knowing exactly what they mean, so I will not argue for or against this quote, but I will show a way that it is not true, and a way that it could be true.

In contrast, if it is implied that God, or the saints, rejoice in the destruction of sinners, that cannot be true.

Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign LORD. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?
Ezekiel 18:23 (NIV)

In support, if it is merely implied that creation is nature and has been put into bondage by the sin of Adam and groans to have sinners and sin to be taken out of it, this is a personification of nature that seems to be supported by the Bible and may be true.

For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.
Romans 8:20-22 (NIV)

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  • I actually believe in PW's statement, I just can't find proof for it. The reason for my Belief is that -- for heaven to be fully joyous, it requires either (1) God wipes human memory of those in hell or (2) people in heaven are happy over God's justice that those in hell are indeed in hell. To me (2) seems more likely, which would make PW's statement consistent with scripture. Unfortunately, I can only derive this through logic rather than a scripture verse.
    – user1694
    Aug 14, 2012 at 10:28
  • I do have to admit, now that I look at Ezekiel 18, I'm not sure how to resolve this.
    – user1694
    Aug 14, 2012 at 10:38
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    @Matthew7.7 - God delights on everything he does, as his will is perfect and delightful, including sending the Devil and sinners to hell (you could put it that way – delighting in justice) - but we can never say he ‘delights in their suffering’ on its own, that would be cruel and vengeful in an evil sense. It is contrary to his great love for which he sent his Son into the world. Possibly this would help you sort it out: christianity.stackexchange.com/questions/8830/…
    – Mike
    Aug 14, 2012 at 11:45
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    This was the rationale that prompted Origen to suppose that eventually all people would eventually be reconciled to God. How could God be at all "victorious" while evil still existed? I think it is quite compelling, personally. Aug 14, 2012 at 11:59
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OK. .. so it took a few months of studying and school (working on masters in biblical studies).... I admit I was wrong... I think Paul washer is referencing Rev 19:1-3 when Babylon in all her forms (political, spiritual, etc) is judged...

Rev. 19:1–3 ESV After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out, “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for his judgments are true and just; for he has judged the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality, and has avenged on her the blood of his servants.” Once more they cried out, “Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.

This multitude in heaven is rejoicing over the destruction of Babylon in all its forms. The time, therefore, must be just before the second coming of Christ. The multitude is the same group as in Revelation 7:9. Though the general reference may be to all people in heaven, the allusion seems to be to the martyred dead of the great tribulation. The word “hallelujah” appears only four times in the New Testament, all in this chapter (vv. 1, 3, 4, 6). It is a transliteration of the Greek term, which in turn is the equivalent of the Hebrew word. As MacArthur points out, “It is a word often associated both with the judgment of the ungodly and the salvation of God’s people.”1 Poellot appropriately calls 19:1–6 “the New Testament Hallelujah Chorus.”2

 

The saints here speak with a “loud voice” (cf. 7:10), expressing praise to God in three great words: “salvation,” “glory,” and “power.” The uniqueness of God’s possession of these attributes is emphasized by the definite article that occurs in Greek before each word: the salvation, the glory, and the power of God. God is praised for having judged the great prostitute and having avenged the blood of His servants shed by her hand. This includes both the punishment of the guilty and the vindication of the innocent.3 The ascription of praise is followed by a second hallelujah and the statement that the smoke of Babylon will continue to rise forever. This cannot refer to the city itself, but will be fulfilled by a perpetual judgment of the people who engaged in her wicked deeds. Thus is answered the appeal of the martyred saints in 6:10 for God’s righteous judgment on those who shed their blood.

Excerpt from John F. Walvoord commentaries on Revelation

Thank you guys for setting me strait and making me dig into the Word and research! God bless...

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  • Please edit this and use the quote formatting to clearly mark out which parts are quotes and which parts are your own words.
    – curiousdannii
    Jun 25, 2015 at 4:03
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This is a euphemism! When he said the "Last thing", it is a figure of speech meaning that it will never happen, as in, "I would never do that! That would be the last thing I would ever do!" Washer was not saying that people or God cheer when people go to hell. It is God's will that none should perish but all come to knowledge of the truth. Washer knows this. You just took his quote out of context because he used an American euphemism. Listen to this rest of the sermon and recognize the context in which the statement was made.

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  • This certainly sounds reasonable. What would make this answer better is if you edit in that context. Essentially, prove it. Because out of context, it looks pretty bad. +1 in advance.
    – fredsbend
    Apr 3, 2015 at 17:42
  • Welcome to the site, by the way. We're glad you're here. There's a tour and a help center to show you how things work and what the site is about. I hope to see you post again soon.
    – fredsbend
    Apr 3, 2015 at 17:43
  • That's definitely not what he had in mind. Context: "From heaven’s perspective, those who break God’s Law are vile and worthy of all loathing. They are a wretched lot, justly exposed to divine vengeance, and rightly devoted to eternal destruction. It is not an exaggeration to say that the last thing that the accursed sinner should and will hear when he takes his first step into hell is all of creation standing to its feet and applauding God because He has rid the earth of him. Such is the vileness of those who break God’s law, and such is the disdain of the holy towards the unholy." Apr 3, 2015 at 17:47
  • See The Cross of Christ, an article he wrote for HeartCry Magazine. Apr 3, 2015 at 17:48
  • Wow! upvote removed and downvote applied. Thank you @Mr.Bultitude
    – fredsbend
    Apr 3, 2015 at 18:13

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