Revelation 20: 1 – 15
Yes, You Can Judge A Book By Its Cover
1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 3 and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while. 4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark in their foreheads or in their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years. 7 Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. 9 They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. 10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. 11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
Do you like the title? What are you thinking in relation to these words? Yes, we are going to see some significant books listed in this chapter that our Holy Master keeps. There are books of works [ more than 1]and the Book of Life. You want to be in this last book that I mentioned. Yes, you need to understand and judge the cover of this book. It is important for your eternity.
Revelation chapter 20 is one of the most controversial chapters in the Bible, not because it contains anything essentially complex, but because it touches on a subject where believers have argued over for thousands of years.
I have come across a lot of people who are into prophecy who ask, "How do you interpret the book of Revelation?" what they mean is, "How do you interpret Revelation 20?" They want to know whether an approach is "pre-millennial," "a-millennial" or "post millennial."
The three terms come from the word millennium, meaning a period of a thousand years understood as a kind of utopia. Pre- and post millennialism divide over the question of whether the second coming of Christ will take place before or after the thousand years mentioned in this chapter. Because there is a coming of sorts described in the previous chapter (when the rider on the white horse comes with his armies and destroys the forces of evil) and there is no discernible coming of Christ in chapters 20 or 21, it seems fairly clear on first reading that the coming is "pre-millennial" as far as John is concerned. The conqueror comes first (chap. 19), and the thousand years follow (chap. 20). But post millennialism argues that what comes in chapter 19 is not Jesus personally, but simply the triumph of "the testimony of Jesus" in the world, so that the millennium of chapter 20 is the result of the church's efforts in proclaiming the Christian gospel. This leaves us with no actual "second coming" of Jesus anywhere in the book--this in spite of repeated promises that "I am coming soon." Instead, we move from the triumph of the gospel to the destruction of evil and "the new heavens and new earth" without Jesus ever coming at all.
The third position, "a millennialism," should mean there is no such thing as a "millennium." But this makes no sense of the text as it stands because John claims, not once but six times, that he saw (or became aware of) a thousand-year period. Therefore most a millennial does not deny the notion of a millennium. They argue instead that John's "millennium" is just another name for the age in which we now live, in which Jesus reigns as Lord by virtue of his resurrection and ascension. According to this scenario Christ will return after, or at the end of, the present age. Consequently, this "a millennial" view is a variation of post millennialism.
Where does all this leave us? Above all, it demands that we distinguish carefully between what John experienced long ago in his vision on Patmos and what the world will experience someday in the near or distant future. Within John's vision, there is little doubt that his perspective was pre-millennial. It is only when his visions are viewed as a scenario for the actual future of the world that differing interpretations come into play, often because a literal pre-millennial reading is judged (rightly or wrongly) to conflict with conclusions derived from other parts of the Bible. Because of this, it is wise to deal with the text first of all simply as John's vision before attempting to explore its possible bearing on how our world is actually going to end. Such an approach is "pre-millennial" because this is the framework in which John saw the vision. The second stage of interpretation--the text's implication for our own future--can be addressed only afterward, and much more briefly, because less can be said about it with certainty.
20.1-3 ‘And I saw an angel coming down out of Heaven having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand, and he laid hold on the monster, the old Serpent who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more until the thousand years were finished. And after this he must be loosed for a little time.’
Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven introduces a new vision report. This is the third report of an angel descending from heaven (Rev 10:1 and 18:1). This "angel" is not Jesus Himself but is a ministering spirit that our Lord Jesus has given authority to. This angel comes from heaven (near the throne). We can assume from this that our Lord Jesus has turned the key to the bottomless pit over to this specific angel and has given him power and authority for this job. This "great chain" in this angel's hand, shows the power God has given him over the devil for this task, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. The key shows authority, and the chain depicts imprisonment and binding. Before the millennial kingdom begins, Satan is bound in the Abyss.
When he bound the devil for the 1000 years, the angel put him in the abyss, not in the burning hell. This burning hell was reserved for his final punishment. Here we see the devil spoken of as the dragon which we read about in a previous lesson. We also see him recognized as the serpent. You see, he was the one who deceived Eve in the garden. The devil will not be here on the earth to harass the Christians until the millennial 1000 year reign of our Great King and Master, our Lord Jesus is over.
Now is the time when Satan will be taken, bound and put into the bottomless pit (abyss) where his influence will not have any effect on the Tribulation Saints who have lived through the Tribulation. Can you imagine a life where Satan isn't around to temp anyone? Do you think that the 1000 year millennium will be a time of paradise? That nothing bad will happen?
What is the Millennium? It represents Christ's 1000 year reign upon David's throne. It is the fulfillment of God's promises to Abraham, Isaac, Israel and to David, but its more than that. It is the final proof of the incorrigible nature of man's sinful heart. Christ is present in Jerusalem, ruling the world, and the saints of all ages in resurrected bodies administer the kingdom righteously under His direction. All evil is prohibited and punished immediately. Even Satan is locked away so that he cannot in any way influence mankind.
No one will enter into the 1000 year millennium unless they are a believer. Most will live for the entire one thousand years and will procreate and have children. Yes even the curse on the animals is lifted and the wolf will lie down with the lamb and will live in peace with each other.
But human nature is what it is. The children of those Saints will still have to be taught about Jesus, even though He will be with them constantly. Many will not accept Him. Remember, the heart is very wicked and unfortunately, that is the nature of man. Many of those children will be rebels and with a tremendous population explosion during those one thousand years, there will be probably billions of people at the end much like it is now. However the unbelievers at that point will be as "the number of whom [is] as the sand of the sea", verse 8.
After the thousand-year reign of Jesus on earth, Satan will be allowed to come up out of the bottomless pit. He once again will deceive the nations. We might wonder why? The answer is to test all the billions who were born during the millennium. In each of the prior dispensations, man was tested and those living either were saved “by faith” or they died in unbelief. In all dispensations of time, man must be saved “by faith” in the Savior God alone. In this last dispensation, man will be living under ideal conditions on earth and even death will be conquered but when Satan is released, much of mankind will be deceived in much the same conditions as when Adam and Eve were deceived. This last deception will separate those that are living “by faith” from those living in disbelief.
20.4 ‘And I saw thrones, and they sat on them and judgment was given to them, and I saw the persons of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and such as did not worship the beast or his image, and did not receive the mark in their forehead and in their hand, and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. The rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection, over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him a thousand years.’
John's vision of the dragon's fate is interrupted by another vision "I saw, thrones, and those seated on them" John sees thrones first, then actions (literally "they sat" and "a judgment was given for them"). Only then does he recognize the people involved (the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God). The scene recalls the vision in chapter 4, where an action came first, a throne being set up with an indefinite "someone" sitting on it (4:2), and a brief description followed of the one seated there (4:3). Even more strikingly, it resembles the opening of the fifth seal in chapter 6, where John had seen "under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained" (6:9). These "souls" had cried out, "How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" (6:10).
The present passage is God's answer to their prayers. The point of verse 4 is not that they were now "given authority to judge" or that at some previous time they had been given authority to judge , but (literally) that "a judgment was given for them," that is, a divine verdict was handed down in their favor. Their prayer was, "How long . . . until you judge," and now, finally, God has stepped in to pass judgment on their behalf. Nothing in the text suggests that they are given the right to judge others. These martyrs are priests of God and of Christ (v. 6). In a sense they are kings for a thousand years, but not judges. That prerogative is reserved for God and the Lamb.
The martyrs in chapter 6 were said to be "slain" or "slaughtered." Here they have been beheaded. They are actual martyrs because in John's visions all faithful Christians have been killed. They are not an elite group that is more "spiritual" than other believers. The further description of them as those who had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark in their foreheads or their hands (v. 4) places the accent not on their martyrdom as such but on the faithfulness that made martyrdom inevitable.
John continues his brief description of these "souls" by explaining what brought them to these thrones of honor. Once dead, they came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years (v. 4). The rest of the dead, John adds parenthetically, did not come to life until the thousand years were ended (v. 5). How he knows this is uncertain. It is as if he anticipates what will come later in his vision (vv. 11-15).
Nothing is said of the location of the martyrs' reign. Some commentators assume it is in heaven, since in Revelation heaven is the appropriate place for thrones, whether God's throne or those of the twenty-four elders (4:2, 4). Yet the "souls" in 6:9-11 were "under" the heavenly altar, therefore presumably on earth. Moreover, the promise held out in chapter 5 to the redeemed "from every tribe and language and people and nation" was a promise of becoming "a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth". In the present context, when John refers to "the camp of God's people, the city he loves" (v. 9), it is fair to assume that this is the place on earth where the martyred saints have reigned a thousand years on their thrones. Presumably "the city he loves" is Jerusalem, only partially destroyed in the "severe earthquake" of 11:13 and spared in the bloodbath of judgment "outside the city" in 14:20.
John now interprets and summarizes what he has just seen: This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years (vv. 5-6). The contrast between first resurrection and second death is striking. First resurrection seems to imply a "second": the rest of the dead will come to life (v. 5). Yet when they do (vv. 12-13), it is not called "the second resurrection," only "the second death," or "lake of fire" (vv. 14-15). The first resurrection is the only true resurrection John knows, and the second death is the only death that matters.
20.7-9 ‘And when the thousand years are over Satan will be loosed from his prison and will come forth to deceive the nations who are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to the war, the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up over the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people (the saints) and the beloved city, and fire came down from Heaven and devoured them.’
Having seen the vindication of the martyrs, John now picks up where he left off in verse 3. At the end of the thousand years, Satan (no longer disguised as a dragon) is released from his prison to do what he did before: deceive the nations of the world (v. 8). This time he has no beasts or evil Babylon to help him. The nations he deceives are given little-known foreign names out of the biblical past; Gog and Magog (see Ezekiel 38-39). In Ezekiel's visions, "Gog, of the land of Magog" was an evil prince, "chief prince of Meshech and Tubal," while Magog was the land from which he came (Ezekiel 38:2).
Satan and his demons will be imprisoned in the abyss for 1000 years while Christ rules with unopposed sovereignty. They are not permitted to interfere in the affairs of the kingdom in any way.
All those who initially went into the kingdom were without doubt redeemed sinners who had turned to Christ in faith. The bad news is that they still will possess a sinful human nature. That sin nature is passed on to their children, grandchildren, etc. Thus each generation born in the millennium will have need for salvation. Many will come to salvation but amazingly despite the most moral society the world will ever know, a great number will love their sin and reject Him.
When Satan is loosed, he provides the leadership needed to bring the latent sin and rebellion to the surface of those unrepentant sinners. This act of rebellion will start immediately when he is released.
The brief outbreak of evil at the end of the thousand years is John's way of saying that Satan's activity is not limited to the immediate threat to Christians from the Roman Empire in his own time. It can happen at any time and under a variety of circumstances. But the outcome is always the same. Satan is always defeated, whether thrown down from heaven (12:9), bound in the abyss (20:1-3) or thrown into the lake of fire (v. 10). Although the battle (v. 9) is not Armageddon, it is similar to it in one important respect. Like Armageddon, it is no real battle at all. When the armies marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God's people, the city he loves, the outcome was that fire came down from heaven and devoured them (v. 9). The city he loves (evidently Jerusalem) is protected again, and presumably the reign of the martyred saints continues (see 22:5, "and they will reign forever and ever").
Please take another look at the statement, ‘The number of whom is as the sand of the sea.’ It was on the sand of the sea that Satan first stood when the beast first came out of the sea (13.1). His standing on it signified his dominion over it, just as later the strong angel would stand on the sea and the earth to indicate God’s taking control (10.5). Now he makes use of those whom he dominates.
‘And fire came down from Heaven and devoured them.’ When Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to call on their God (who was god of storm and lightning) to light the fires of sacrifice directly (through his lightning) they failed in their endeavors, but for Elijah the fire came down from Heaven and devoured the sacrifice (1 Kings 18.24, 38). This same fire came down on Elijah’s enemies from God (2 Kings 1.10, 12). So will God’s fire finally fall on Satan’s hosts.
20.10 ‘And the Devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet also are, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.’
After the armies of the nations are destroyed, Satan himself is thrown into the lake of fire, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown (v. 10; see 19:20). Again John makes it clear that he is not just retelling the story of the defeat of the beast and false prophet at the battle of Armageddon. The beast and the false prophet are already in the lake of fire. The powers of evil were introduced one by one: first the dragon (chap. 12), then the two beasts (chap. 13), then Babylon the prostitute (chaps. 14-16). Now they have disappeared one by one in reverse order: first Babylon (17:1--19:10), then the two beasts (19:11-21), finally the dragon, or Satan (20:1-10). The battles are over. The stage is now set for the creation of a new world.
20.11 ‘And I saw a great white throne, and he who sat on it from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them.’
This is judgment day. Now John describes the terrifying scene set before him. He sees the Judge who is seated on His throne of Judgment and all of the accused standing before Him. The verdicts handed down from this throne will be equitable, righteous and just.
We also remember Ecclesiastes 12 verse 14, which promises, "God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it is good, or whether it is evil" as well as Romans 2 verses 5 and 6, where Paul speaks of the day of God's wrath "when his righteous judgment will be revealed. God will give to each person according to what he has done". It is a fearful thing even to imagine standing before God "from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away", and have nothing but your own wicked works to show for the time on earth the Almighty had given you. On that day the words of Paul the apostle will come true: "Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God". (Rom 3 verse 19) The final word, of course, will be God's.
The use for the earth is over. The earth, heaven, and everything in them are under control of God, and if He tells them go they will have to. This is an amazing, incredible statement that is describing the un-creation of the universe. The earth was reshaped by the tribulation judgments, restored during the millennial kingdom, now God will create a new heaven and a new earth as it states in the book of 2 Peter 3, verse 13. "Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness"
19.12 ‘And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and the books were opened, and another book was opened which is the book of life. And the dead were judged out of the things that were written in the books, according to their works.’
All who die must give account, as indeed must those who are alive at His coming. But it is the dead that are in mind here for the lesson is that death is not the end. After death comes the judgment (Hebrews 9.27). John has especially in mind the dead described throughout the book. Reference to ‘the dead’ in Revelation is twofold. There are the dead who die in the Lord and for them death is the gateway to wondrous things (Revelation 1.5; 14.13), but there are also the dead who die in their sins and for them there is only hopelessness (Revelation 11.18). Here both are in mind for all come under God’s scrutiny.
‘The books were opened.’ The point is not that there are books in Heaven but that in one way or another all men’s doings to the last detail are known to God. ‘All things are naked and opened to the eyes of him with whom we have to do’ (Hebrews 4.13). There is nowhere to hide. God can call up the whole of the past in an instant.
But it signifies more than that for it signifies the righteousness of the judgment. The judgment is based on facts, pure and unadulterated facts. No one will demur or deny their guilt, for the facts will be there before them. The stress is on the fact that God can produce a complete record (although He does not actually need to consult books. It is men who need to do that) and complete proof of guilt presented to them in a way that they cannot dispute. Every charge will be genuine and will stick.
There is also the book of life - and how important that is. It records the names of those who are written in Heaven (Luke 10.20; Hebrews 12.23), those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life before the foundation of the world (Revelation 13.8; 17.8). This will be the final proof of acceptance or rejection, based on whether men have responded to the call of God’s grace and found cleansing and justification in His name through believing in Jesus Christ. When those who are His are called forward they advance without fear, for their sins have been laid on another, the slain Lamb Who is now the Judge, and they know that they are free from sin and clothed in His righteousness because of what He has done on their behalf,.
John goes on to describe a universal judgment on the dead, great and small (v. 12). These dead must be "the rest of the dead" (v. 5) who did not come alive to reign with Christ in "the first resurrection." Consequently they are not "blessed and holy" nor immune to "the second death" (v. 6). The scope of the scene is chilling. The great mass of these unbelievers before God's throne includes everyone from presidents and kings, to paupers. There is no partiality with God as all will now face judgment.
“God has kept perfect, comprehensive and accurate records of every person's life (deeds), and those will be measured against God's perfect and holy standard. After books are opened, and above all the book of life, the dead are judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books (v. 12). As to the distinction between the plural books, or "scrolls," not mentioned before in the Revelation (see Dan 7:10) and the singular "book of life. The listing of more than one book is because they contain the record of deeds, whether good or bad, which form the ground for judgment; the Book of Life contains the list of those destined for life.
These statements immediately call our attention back to the words of the Lord Jesus: "What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs" (Luke 12 v.3). And "There is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open" (Luke 8 v.17)
The striking thing about this judgment according to deeds, or works, is that John does not mention any among the dead whose works were found acceptable to God. He tells us only that if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire (v. 15).
Those who didn't accept Jesus will have to stand or fall on their deeds. Of course, they will all fall if they didn't accept Him, because scripture clearly tells us that "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God."
The Book of Life is the Lamb's Book of Life where the names of all believers are written who have accepted, believed and followed Christ. The Christian's sins have been done away by the blood of Jesus. Those Christians all have their names written in the Lamb's book of life and will not taste of the second death.
20.13 ‘And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them, and they were judged every man according to his works.’
The picture is all inclusive. None have died in such a way that they cannot be reached. All are raised for judgment. To be lost at sea was considered by Israel to be a tragedy. Many considered that it prevented their resurrection, something denied here. The passage is significant in that it demonstrates that Hades is not seen as a place for all the spirits of the dead, but as a place for those buried on land, who have been laid in the earth. It is the shadowy world of the grave. Others are in the shadowy world of the depths of the sea. There is no real life there. We must look elsewhere for how men live in the after-life before the resurrection. For those who are not the true people of God that outlook is looked on as bleak. The judgment is based on how they have responded to God, how they have responded to the words of Jesus and the prophets, both old and new, how they have responded to the word of God and His law, for ‘works’ include all three. No one will have any complaint. Justice will be done.
20:14-15 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death." "And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
Those who die in their sins in this world will die a second death in eternity. They will be sentenced to the lake of fire forever at the great White Throne Judgment.
The reality it represents will be even more horrifying and painful. The bible also defines hell as a place of total darkness, which not only separates the unbelievers from the light, but from each other as well.
What is written in these last two verses should drive each of us to continue to spread the gospel as long as there is breath in your body. I cannot bear to think of anyone I know going to this terrible place of torment.
In a ball of celestial flame, the rebellion is over. There will be no repeat of the plagues of the Tribulation, nor of the judgments of the Great Tribulation. Once and for all, human rebellion will have been wiped out of existence. And once and for all, it will be crystal clear to a watching universe that the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is absolutely essential for making the unrighteous human heart into a receptacle of God's holiness. The Millennium will prove that even the best of conditions, a thousand years of peace, prosperity, safety, long life, health, abundance, cannot change the wickedness of the unredeemed human heart. Only the Lord Jesus Christ can do that!
Awesome is the Word - It probably is not humanly possible to meditate on these awesome truths for extended periods of time. Who can long ponder the lake of fire, an eternal place of torment, possibly billions of unredeemed souls, a divine Person "from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away," or fear some books of judgment that seal the fate of the unsaved?
And yet our Lord tells us of these awesome events. Why? To give us every opportunity to escape the terrible judgment that is to come. Remember, no believer in Christ will stand before God at the great white throne. That terrible spot is reserved only for those who have rejected Christ as Savior, who have decided to crown themselves king, and who have refused to accept Jesus Christ as their true Lord.
Do not make that terrible mistake! Instead, place your faith in the Lord Jesus and ask Him to forgive your sins; then you will be ready "to stand before the Son of Man" at the judgment seat of Christ. One thing is certain: You will stand in one place or the other. Hell or heaven. Make sure it’s the latter. And don't think that you can choose not to believe there is such a thing as heaven or hell. It makes no difference. Everyone will be judged and assigned to one place or the other. As on earth, it is the same there, ignorance is no excuse of the law!
It is so easy to get your name written in the Lamb's book of life. In chapter 10 of Romans verses 9 and 10 tell you how.
• 10:9 "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."
• 10:10: "For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."
You see, Jesus must be our Lord as well as our Savior. If you truly believe, you will repent and be baptized. If your name is not written in the book of life, do not delay, do it today
In the end you will be listed in one or the other books. I pray that your name is written in the Lambs Book of Life.
