Revelation Chapter 20

Seventh Divine Punishment

Revelation 20:1-15. The Messianic Age – The Golden Era.

1. Satan Bound for 1,000 years – verses 1 to 3.
2. The Saints Reign with Messiah for 1,000 years – verses 4 to 6.
3. Satanic Rebellion Crushed at the end – verses 7 to 10.
4. The Great White Throne Judgment – verses 11 to 15.

Satan’s Lost Throne – The Great Seal of Imprisonment

Since this fallen Cherub’s rebellion our adversary Satan has been allowed by God to work on this earth although God has truly reigned and ruled over the affairs of men throughout history and into the future. In verses 1 to 3 we see that Satan has to exchange his temporary throne as Prince of the air for the Bottomless Pit for 1,000 years and then his final destiny is the Lake of Fire where he joins the Anti-Christ and the False Prophet for all eternity! Their torment will be great as rebellion will always bring punishment from God. An Angel is given the key to the Bottomless Pit and has a great chain with which to bind Satan, finally putting a seal from God on the dragon, that old serpent the Devil so that he cannot deceive the nations until the thousand years are fulfilled. Satan is held in solitary confinement until the time of the end.

Messiah’s Reign and Rule and the Great Resurrection

We have the figure of a 1,000 years mentioned 5 times in the first 6 verses. For anyone to teach that this is purely a symbolic number is quite simply Scripture twisting to accommodate the other two forms of Kingdom Theology regarding the Reign and Rule of our Lord Jesus.

The teaching of A millennialism is first and foremost a subtle form of anti-Semitism as it is denying that Israel will have its Golden Era under their King and ours. It then ignores many verses that teach there will be a time of peace and prosperity under Messiah’s Kingdom Rule on this Earth contained in the Old and New Testaments. Even though the time period of a 1,000 years is not mentioned elsewhere the Jews themselves as we can read in the Talmud have worked out that there would be a time of their Messiah ruling on the earth. Even Job mentions that he will be resurrected and stand on the earth and see his God face to face.
Sadly the same ones that want to make the 1,000 years symbolic or mean one day (Psalm 90) and (2 Peter 3:8) are for the better part the same that speak of the 6 Days of Creation as being a thousand years each, or time periods in between each day (called the Gap Theory) that has robbed God of what He said and He meant what He said as those who add in will find out one day! Theistic evolution is sadly the result because others in the past gave in to evolutionary theory instead of defending what is written! Theory is not Theology! Argument does not do away with scriptural Apologetics. Error does not replace good Exegesis. If Satan is bound now then he has a lot of freedom as his chains must be quite long!

Next, the teaching of Post Millennialism is also a subtle form of anti-Semitism as it once again denies that Israel will have a Golden Age under Messiah. This theory teaches that through the preaching of the Gospel the world will embrace Christianity and become the universal religion so that Christ may return and receive this gift from His Bride and then rule for a 1,000 years. We can reject this because the Scriptures teach that things will get increasingly worse as man rebels against God’s laws and commandments. The prophets and our Lord teach that a time of darkness is coming under Satanic inspired rebellion resulting in the Anti-Christ ruling for a season and all will have to bow the knee to him or perish!

Verse 4 clearly teaches that those who were beheaded in the Great Tribulation will reign with the Lord Jesus for a 1,000 years along with all those who have died in Messiah be they Jew or Gentile because they are resurrected in their glorified bodies as verse 6 teaches and they are to reign with their Lord on the earth for a 1,000 years. It’s plain English when we read it without getting into spiritual gymnastics and adding in or taking away from what is written!

Satanic Rebellion Crushed – The Great Revolt

Verses 7 to 10 teach us that Satan is to be released to deceive the nations that have increased during the 1,000 years. We now have the second Gog and Magog war but this time fire sent by God the Father from Heaven destroys those who come up against the Lamb and Jerusalem being His holy city and capital of the Earth. The prophet Zechariah speaks of those nations during the reign of Messiah who do not send up representatives at Tabernacles to give thanks for the rain and the harvest will receive no rain the following year! Once again rebellion will bring punishment! The human heart is deceitful and desperately wicked and so this is why we are told that Yeshua/Jesus will reign with a Rod of Iron. It is simply inherit in man to rebel, to want to be his own master and god, even when conditions on the earth are so ideal – peace, provision, protection and prosperity will be available to all. But all will not be satisfied even with this and so the Lord allows man to make a decision Heaven or the Lake of Fire and so Satan will seduce many once again!

The White Throne – The Great Judgment

The last five verses of chapter 19 show us the Lord on His Throne judging the dead, small and great – high and low will be as one before Him. There is no place to hide from Him who sits on the Throne.

We as saints received our judgment and rewards at the Bema Seat in Heaven having been exempt from God’s wrath and judgment through the Great Tribulation years.

Now the Book of Life is opened and the dead are judged by their works written in the books plural that is mentioned in verse 12.

a) The Book of Conscience – Romans 2:15.
b) The Book of Words – Matthew 12:36-37.
c) The Book of Secret Words – Ecclesiastes 12:14.
d) The Book of Public Works – 2 Corinthians 11:15.
e) The Book of Life – Psalm 69:28. Daniel 12:1. Philippians 4:3. Revelation 3;5; 13:8; 17:8.

So there is nothing hidden from Him who sees and knows all things. Every unsaved person will stand before the Lord Jesus who will judge them from these books which record their words, thoughts, deeds and actions within this life. Again the Lord has the right to make the rules and people have no right to break them. Their rebellion against His offer of life will now have eternal consequences. The Lord Yeshua (Jesus) meant what He said and said what He meant! “I AM the Way, the Truth and the Life, no one cometh unto the Father but by Me.” John 14:6.

Death and Hades are now thrown in to the Lake of Fire and anyone whose name was not found in the Book of Life. All other false gods and religions are now shown for what they are – false and fleeting. Only the Lord God Almighty is the Creator and Saviour of those who turn to Him through His Son, the Messiah, the Anointed One. Those who rejected Him will hear those awesome words, “Depart from Me.” See Matthew 7:23 and Matthew 25:41.

As it is written so shall it be. Amen.

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