Revelation 20 – Millennial Reign, Satan Bound, and the White Throne Judgment

by Dr. Gary Linton | Updated September 19th, 2024

Summary of Chapter Twenty

In this chapter an angel binds Satan with a great chain and cast him into the bottomless pit for a thousand years. After this John sees the souls of all who refused the mark of the beast and worshiped not his image. Thrones were given them and they reigned with Christ a thousand years. It’s debated whether or not these are just those martyred during the tribulation period or saints from throughout the ages. The later is most probably the case. This is the first resurrection! Some believe this to be only the martyred and the rest will not be resurrected until the thousand years are completed.

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When the thousands years are finished Satan is loosed for a season to tempt the world one last time. After which he’s cast into the lake of fire forevermore. There he will be tormented day and night forever and ever and will deceive the nations no longer. Then comes the Great White Throne Judgment. This is when death and hell or Hades give up the dead that’s in it. At this time all who rejected Christ will be judged. The books are opened and they are judged according to the the things written in the books. And whoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.

A millennium is a thousand year period of time. Six millenniums have elapsed since God’s creation and there is another millennium yet to take place. The last thousand years is the period we are now seeing in this chapter. It is the predicted kingdom age the prophets told of and the “dispensation of the fullness of times” (Ephesians 1:10). It’s not what some have called an obscure passage in Revelation. It is taught throughout Scripture. And we see here the binding of Satan, the arch enemy of God and man, as the first notable event of Jesus’ reign of righteousness. The one who has caused so much trouble in the world is finally arrested and imprisoned, Jesus will reign over the earth and righteousness will reign from shore to shore.

Satan Bound a Thousand Years

Revelation 20:1-3 – “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.”

The various names for Satan; dragon, serpent, that is the one who came to Eve in the garden in the form of a serpent, and Devil. The word “Devil” means slanderer or accuser, and “Satan” means the adversary. When Adam and Eve sinned they turned over the title deed of the earth to Satan which Jesus purchased back on Calvary. At this time He takes back possession of it. Presently, Satan is called “god of this world” in 2 Corinthians 4:4, “prince of this world” in John 14:30 and “prince of the power of the air” in Ephesians 2:2. In 1 John 5:19, the Apostle John said, “We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the grip of the evil one.” The one that has caused so much havoc, trouble, and destruction in the world has finally been stopped. Isaiah wrote of this day that we would look upon him in his defeated state and wonder, how could this one have caused so much trouble and bondage?

Isaiah 14:15-17 – “Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners?”

Satan is not put into the lake of fire or Gehenna at this time, but he is put into the bottomless pit or the Abussos for a thousand years. Later he will be placed into Gehenna or the lake of fire, but at this point he is chained and put into the Abussos. Apparently there’s a shaft leading to the center of the earth where the bottomless pit is. This is where there are all sorts of demonic spirits of varying types which are held captive. At the blowing of the fifth trumpet judgment, Satan is given the key to this pit where he releases and unleashes these horrific demonic spirits upon the earth to torment men for five months who had not the seal of God. This is where, at the return of Christ, Satan is bound and cast there for a thousand years.

Revelation 9:1-6 – “And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man. And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.”

The Saints Live and Reign With Christ a Thousand Years

Revelation 20:4-6 – “And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the Word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.”

Isaiah and Jeremiah looked through the telescope of time and saw this day,

Isaiah 11:6 – “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.”

Isaiah 65:25 – “The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent’s meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, saith the Lord.”

Jeremiah 23:5-6 – “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is His name whereby He shall be called, The Lord Our Righteousness.”

There are some differences of opinion as to who all will reign with Jesus in the millennial kingdom here on earth. (In this study of Revelation we have attempted, when there are differences of opinions that are not of a fundamental essence, to give you all the different views.) There’s some evidence that those who were not defeated and destroyed at the Battle of Armageddon and survived the tribulation period will live in Christ’s thousand year reign over which Jesus and the saints will rule. Some of which will be part of Satan’s rebellion in our next passage. Either that or those who rebel with Satan are those born during the millennial kingdom or perhaps both.

Who will reign with Christ?

All saints. Many and perhaps most feel that all believers from ages past, throughout the church age, those martyred in the tribulation period, and those believers who might have survived the tribulation will be among those who will rule and reign with Jesus. So, this is the millennial reign of Christ in which we will reign with Him upon the earth for a thousand years. “Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints” (Jude 14). Paul said, “When Christ Who is our life shall appear then shall we also appear with Him in glory” (Colossians 3:4). Jesus comes with His saints to establish His kingdom upon the earth. We will rule and reign with Jesus for a thousands years.

Only the martyred and those who worshiped not the beast nor his image. Those who are to enjoy this privilege belong to two classes: First, there are those who have been martyred for their loyalty to Christ. The word used for the way in which they were killed means to behead with an ax (perhaps a guillotine), and denotes the most cruel death. Second, there are those who have not worshiped the beast and have not received his mark in their hand or on their forehead. H. B. Swete identifies these, as those who, although they were not actually martyred, willingly bore suffering, reproach, imprisonment, loss of goods, disruption of their homes and personal relationships for the sake of Christ. “The rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.”
If this is the case and the rest of the saints remain in heaven it could be that having their glorified bodies they may have access to both the heavenly and earthly realm. The Bible says, “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:2). If this is so, we’ll likely be able to travel from one place to another in a moment’s time. Remember, after Jesus had risen He appeared to the disciples who were behind locked doors (John 20:19-23). He also ascended into heaven while they watched Him (Acts 1:9). If we are made like Him we will no doubt be able to do the same. This is no doubt speculative but food for thought.

Privileges of Christ Followers:

Judgment is given to them. “And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them.” They sit on thrones and are given the right and responsibility of judgment. Those who’ve been faithful to Christ are to receive the privilege and responsibility
of judgment. This idea occurs more than once in the New Testament. Jesus said that, when He returns to sit on the throne of His glory, His twelve apostles will sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28). Paul reminds the litigious Corinthians that the destiny of the saints is to judge the world (1 Corinthians 6:2). The idea symbolized here is that the world to come will redress the balance of this present world. In this world Christians are the ones under the judgment of men; in the world to come the parts will be reversed and those who were the judges will be the judged.
Death is utterly vanquished. The second death has no power over them. Physical death for them is not a thing to be feared, for it is the gateway to life everlasting. Praise the Lord! Death will be no more. “Then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:54-57).
They are priests of God and of Christ. The Latin for priest is pontifex, which means a bridge-builder. The priest is the builder of a bridge between God and man; and he is the one man with the right of direct access into the presence of God. Those who have been loyal to Jesus Christ have the right of free entry into the presence of God; and they have the privilege of introducing others to Jesus Christ. “And hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen” (Revelation 1:6).
1 Peter 2:9 – “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of Him Who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
They shall reign with Christ. In Christ even the most ordinary man becomes a king. Dominion will finally be restored that was lost through the fall. We will have dominion over this earth and all that is therein. In Genesis we have paradise lost. In Revelation paradise is restored. All that God meant and desires for man finally comes to fruition. We will now be the masters over the world as Adam was prior to the fall. We will reign victoriously! Jesus paid the penalty on Calvary’s cross for all this and it’s now coming to pass. Glory and dominion is restored!
Revelation 5:8 – “And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.”
Hebrews 2:5-10 – “For unto the angels hath He not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak. But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? or the son of man that Thou visitest him? Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; Thou crownedst him with glory and honor, and didst set him over the works of Thy hands: Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him. But we see Jesus, Who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor; that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it became Him, for Whom are all things, and by Whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.”

Satan Loosed and the Final Battle

Revelation 20:7-10 – “And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog, and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”

When the thousand years are over, Satan will be loosed out of his prison, He shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth (or the north, south, east, and west), Gog and Magog. These names are synonymous with rebellion against God. (We find these names used in Ezekiel to identify Russia as part of the rebellion against Jesus and God’s people in the last days.) Here Satan gathers them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. It’s mind boggling that after a thousand years of Jesus reigning on the earth that people living in the reign of Christ will be deceived and turn with Satan to try to destroy Jesus Christ again. There are multitudes of them, as many as the sand of the sea, an innumerable host. How could this be? Satan deceives them and they’re blinded spiritually. The deception over them is staggering.

Again, there’s some indication that those who were not defeated at the Battle of Armageddon and survived the tribulation period will live in Christ’s thousand year reign over which Jesus and the saints will rule. Some of which will be part of Satan’s rebellion in this passage. Either that or these are those who are born during the millennial kingdom or perhaps both scenarios are possibly true. God knows! One thing we do know is there will be one last rebellion but never again. This is to sift out all whose hearts are not fully devoted to Christ.

The hostile armies under Satan’s leadership come up against the camp of God’s people and against the beloved city, that is, Jerusalem, and they are consumed with fire from out of heaven. This won’t be much of a battle at all. God simply sends fire down out of heaven and consumes them. It staggers the imagination how they can again think they can overthrow Christ. The utter deception and delusion that comes over them. One would think the Devil should know better but his desire from the beginning of his fall was to overthrow God.

Isaiah 14:12-14 – “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.”

So his passion was always to take the place of God and be worshiped in His stead. However, he is now defeated and cast into the lake of fire and brimstone sharing the fate of the beast and of the false prophet. Instead of taking the place of God and being worshiped, “yet thou shalt be brought down to hell” (Isaiah 14:15). He will never be able to deceive and cause havoc again. Praise the Lord! The triumph of God over the Devil and evil is complete. This is not the Abyss, Abussos, or bottomless pit where he was bound for a thousand years. This is the lake of fire or the Greek Gehenna. He will have his lot there with the beast and the false prophet where he’ll be tormented day and night forever and ever. Christ’s and our victory is finally complete. Glory be to God!!! I can’t wait!

The White Throne Judgment

Revelation 20:11-15 – “And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from Whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 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.”

Now comes the final judgment. God, the Judge, is on His great white throne which symbolizes His glory and unapproachable purity. It may be that some will find a problem with this. The picture of the New Testament is that Jesus Christ will be the judge. In John 5:22 Jesus said, “The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son.” In the Parable of the Sheep and Goats it is the glorified Christ Who is the judge (Matthew 25:31-46). In Paul’s speech at Athens it’s said God has appointed a day in which He will judge the world by Jesus (Acts 17:31). In 2 Timothy 4:1 Jesus is the one Who is about to judge the living and the dead.

There are two answers to this apparent difficulty: First, the unity of the Father and the Son is such that there is no difficulty in ascribing the action of the one to the other. Second, it may be that the real reason why God is the judge in John’s Revelation is that the whole background of the book is Jewish; to a Jew, even when he became a Christian, God the Father stood unique; and it would seem natural to them that God the Father should be judge. The first is likely the case. Thomas Carlyle says, this “is that of a last judgment! A righting of all the wrongs of the ages.”

Judgment begins with the passing away of the heavens and this present world; earth and sky flee from His presence. This picture is very familiar in the Old Testament as well as in the New Testament. “Of old hast Thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of Thy hands. They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt Thou change them, and they shall be changed: But Thou art the same, and Thy years shall have no end” (Psalms 102:25-27). “The heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment” (Isaiah 51:6). “Heaven and earth shall pass away” (Mark 13:31). “The heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up” (2 Peter 3:10). Many have thought this to be the work of a worldwide nuclear holocaust but from our passage we see it all passing away as result of the presence of a holy God. And we’ll see in the following chapters He creates a new heaven and earth. The new man in Jesus must have a new world in Christ.

Two kinds of books are mentioned here. The first contains the records of the deeds of men. “Ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened” (Daniel 7:10). The idea is simply that a record of all men’s deeds is kept by God. All throughout life we are writing our own destiny; it is not so much that God judges a man as that a man writes his own judgment and God judges them accordingly. The second book is the Book of Life. Moses prayed, “Yet now, if Thou wilt forgive their sin; and if not, blot me, I pray Thee, out of Thy book which Thou hast written” (Exodus 32:32). It was the prayer of the Psalmist, “Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous” (Psalms 69:28). Isaiah speaks of, “every one that is written among the living” (Isaiah 4:3). Paul speaks of his “fellow laborers, whose names are in the Book of Life” (Philippians 4:3). “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the Book of Life” (Revelation 3:5). All who are written in the Book of Life, because of their faith in Christ, will not stand before this judgment. Everyone who is not written in the Book of Life will face the White Throne Judgment.

“And death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 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.” So, hell or Hades is not eternal. It is not the place of eternal punishment. It will come to an end as it disgorges its inhabitants that they might stand before the Great White Throne Judgment. Then when the sentence is pronounced upon them, they are cast into the lake of fire or Gehenna which is the second death and this is permanent. This will be a horror filled day for all who rejected Jesus as their Lord and Savior. I can’t even imagine what this would be like. The agony and dreadfulness of being sentenced to an eternity in the lake of fire where you’ll be tormented day and night forever and knowing you could have accepted Jesus and been spared this. You’ll be reminded of this throughout eternity. You don’t want to stand before this judgment. At this time it will be too late for you. The time to accept Christ as your Lord and Savior is NOW.

2 Corinthians 6:2 – “For He saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured (helped) thee: behold, NOW is the accepted time; behold, NOW is the day of salvation.”

Pray this prayer with me NOW. If you wait until this day it will be too late. Saying the words alone won’t do anything but if you believe them in your heart it will change your life and you’ll be saved, your name written in the Book of Life and spared the judgment of God.

Sinner’s Prayer: Father, I come to You in the name of Jesus. I know I have sinned and fallen short of Your glory. I believe Jesus died for my sins and rose from the dead. I accept Him as my Lord and Savior and confess Him to be Lord. I ask You to cleanse me with His precious blood and forgive me of my sins. Come into my heart Jesus! Help me to live for You from this day forth and forever. In Jesus name. Amen!