Dogs Outside the Gates of the New Jerusalem?

Why Are There Still Dogs Outside the Gates of the New Jerusalem?

Eternal torment theology paints a final scene of binary separation. The righteous are safely inside the New Jerusalem, singing for eternity. The wicked are either burning forever in fire, or annihilated and gone. Clean split. Game over.

But Scripture doesn’t say that.

Revelation 22:15 disrupts the entire system.

“Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.”

This is not a parable. This is not a warning. This is the final vision of the eternal city. After the Lake of Fire. After the final judgment. After the creation of the new heaven and new earth.

And there are still people outside.

Present Tense, Present Rebellion

The verbs in the original Greek are all present active participles. That matters. These people are not dead. They are not metaphors. They are actively living in rebellion.

They are practicing sorcery.
They are loving and doing falsehood.
They are outside the gates.

This is not about the past. It is not a warning to the reader. It is a statement of reality after all judgment has been executed.

If Annihilationism were true, these people wouldn’t exist.

If Eternal Torment were true, they wouldn’t be outside the gates. They would be buried forever in the Lake of Fire.

The Gates Are Still Open

Revelation 21:25 says:

“Its gates will never be shut by day, and there will be no night there.”

There is no clearer refutation of the idea that salvation ends at death.

The gates of the New Jerusalem do not close. Not for time. Not for security. Not for sin.

They stay open because someone is still being invited in.

The Spirit and the Bride Still Say “Come”

Even at the very end, Revelation 22:17 says:

“The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ Let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.”

This is not a last call for earthly readers. This is the final voice of heaven still reaching the ones who are thirsty, even if they’re still in rebellion. The call has no expiration date. The water of life is still free. The Spirit has not changed. The Bride has not changed. And God’s heart has not changed.

The only thing that has changed is that the lies are gone and the judgment is complete. What remains are the rebels who still won’t surrender, yet the gates remain open to them.

Annihilationism’s Collapse

If everyone who rebelled against God was destroyed in the Lake of Fire at the end of Revelation 20, how are there still active sinners outside in Revelation 22?

The only way annihilationism can answer is to lie:

Some say Revelation 22:15 is just a moral metaphor. But it’s not.
Others say it’s just a closing exhortation. But it’s in the same present-tense visionary flow as verses 14 and 17.

Revelation 22:15 describes the actual state of things at the end of time. Living rebels outside, the gates open, the Spirit still calling.

Annihilationism cannot answer that. It has to pretend the verse is talking about something else.

Eternal Torment’s Brutality

Eternal Conscious Torment theology has a worse problem.

If the wicked are burning forever in a literal or metaphorical hell, then they cannot be outside the gates. They are not near the city. They are in perpetual exile and pain.

Yet Revelation says they are outside. Present. Alive. Sinning. Still choosing falsehood. Still hearing the call to come.

So ECT teachers spiritualize it, flatten it, twist it, or just ignore it.

Because their system cannot allow for ongoing rebellion after judgment—especially if the gates are still open.

What Makes Sense

Only Universal Reconciliation resolves the tension without twisting the text.

The Lake of Fire is not eternal torment. It is purifying fire that burns away falsehood and pride.
The second death is not the end of life. It is the death of the old self, the false identity, the delusion of sin.
The New Jerusalem is not an exclusive fortress. It is an open, healing city.
The tree of life is not for decoration. It is for the healing of the nations.

The dogs outside are not hopeless. They are not eternally damned. They are still in process. Still resisting. Still thirsty. Still being judged. But not cut off from the offer of life.

The gates are open. The Spirit is calling. And the Lamb is still redeeming.

This Is the Final Vision

Let this sink in:

The wicked were judged.
The fire burned.
The books were opened.
The second death came.
And still, the gates remain open.
And still, people are outside.
And still, the invitation is going forth.

This is not weakness. This is the power of a God who never stops redeeming until all things are reconciled.

“Let the one who is thirsty come.” (Revelation 22:17)

“Outside are the dogs…” (Revelation 22:15)

Those two verses are not at war. They are part of the same eternal process.

One exposes the truth. The other offers the cure.

Final Reflection

If you believe God is love, then you must let that love remain on the final page.

Revelation 22 leaves us with a vision of ongoing rebellion, ongoing invitation, and ongoing hope. The only thing finished is the lie.

The gates are open. The call is active. The fire has done its job.

Now the Lamb waits at the door.

Let the one who is thirsty come.