“Do not become fearful of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; but rather be in fear of him [Jehovah] that can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” (Matthew 10:28) Commenting on this passage in his book Immortality of the Soul or Resurrection of the Dead? (French), Professor Oscar Cullmann writes: “psy·kheʹ [soul] here does not mean the Greek concept of soul but should rather be translated ‘life ‘. . . . W. G. Kümmel . . . also writes with good reason: Matt. 10:28 ‘does not seek to highlight the immortality of the soul, but underlines the fact that God alone can destroy not only earthly life but also heavenly life.’” Yes, Gehenna represents utter destruction from which no resurrection is possible. The New Bible Commentary (Second Edition, page 786) defines Gehenna as “a description of ‘the second death.’”​—Revelation 21:8.

 9. How does Matthew 10:28 indicate the finality of Jehovah’s judgments?

⁹ While Jehovah has shown himself to be wonderfully “patient” because he “desires all to attain to repentance,” he knows that not all humans will repent. That is why Jesus warned us to “be in fear of him that can destroy both soul [life] and body in Gehenna.” Commenting on this passage, the New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology states: “Matt. 10:28 teaches not the potential immortality of the soul but the irreversibility of divine judgment on the unrepentant.”