Revelation Chapter 20 Verses 1-3

1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain. 2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years were ended. After that he must be loosed for a little while.

In verse 1 we see an angel from heaven who comes down with the key of the bottomless pit. We learn two important things from this description. First, Satan has now been defeated. He possessed this key in Chapter 9, but now he seems to have lost it. Second, this scene is being observed from earth. That is, John sees the angel come down from heaven. What that tells us is that the scene we are about to see is being viewed from an earthly vantage point.

How has Satan been defeated? Does this defeat refer to Satan’s defeat at the cross or to Satan’s defeat at the end of the world? I don’t think it refers to either. Once again, let’s remember the context and the time frame. The first 19 chapters of this book have focused on the conflict between Rome and the church. Satan’s plan to destroy the church through Rome has been completely stopped and totally defeated. That is the defeat pictured here. Think for a moment about the enormity of that defeat! Satan had the most powerful weapon imaginable (the mighty Roman empire) with which to attack the church in its infancy — and yet Satan failed! How would you expect such a tremendous defeat to be described?

Verse 2 pictures the defeat by showing Satan being bound for 1000 years. What does that picture mean? Remember that in apocalyptic language periods of time generally depict a state of affairs or a condition. Recall, for example, the period of 3½ (a broken 7) that we have seen many times in this book used to depict a state of temporary persecution. So what does 1000 years depict? We know that the number 10 represents completeness, and we know that numbers are sometimes raised to powers to emphasize their meanings. (Recall the symbol 144,000, which is 12 squared times 10 cubed, that was used to depict all the church.) If the number 10 represents completeness, then the number 1000 represents “complete completeness!”

This use of 1000 is a common symbol even outside of the apocalyptic books. Psalm 50:10 tells us that God owns cattle on 1000 hills, which means that his ownership is complete. Deuteronomy 7:9 tells us that God keeps his covenant to 1000 generations, which means that his faithfulness is complete. Satan is bound for 1000 years, which means his defeat is complete.

Being bound for 1000 years means that, with regard to Rome, Satan has been completely bound and completely defeated. There will be no parole with regard to Rome. Satan is not going to be released for good behavior with regard to Rome.

But after the 1000 years, Satan is loosed for a little while. What does this mean? The first thing it means is that the 1000 year binding could not be describing Satan’s defeat at the end of the world. Why? Because when that defeat happens Satan is not going to ever be released again.

So what then does the “little while” denote? Just as the 1000 years referred to a state of affairs rather than to a period of time, so does this “little while” refer to a state of affairs rather than to a period of time. But to what state of affairs does it refer? What is the context? Although Satan has been defeated with regard to Rome, the church must have wondered if Satan might not attack again later and perhaps be more successful next time. God assures them in this chapter that, although Satan will attack again, Satan will never be able to defeat the church. God will continue to protect the church in the future just as he protected it from Rome.

The “little while” refers to Satan’s inability to defeat the Church now or ever. Satan did the worst he could do through Rome, and he failed completely. Although Satan will gather his strength and try again, his future attacks will be insignificant compared to what he did and tried to do through Rome. Thus, they are depicted as lasting only a little while.

By saying Satan will return for only a little while, God is saying that Satan’s future attacks are nothing to worry about. Satan had at his disposal an evil, blood thirsty empire that ruled the world, and yet he was not able to defeat the church in its infancy with such a weapon. Why should the church fear future attacks?

And this is an important message for us! It is easy to become discouraged these days, but the book of Revelation should give us courage just as it did to its first century audience.

Is our modern age somewhere in this book of Revelation? Yes! We are living right there in the “little while.” That promise that Satan will not defeat the eternal kingdom of Christ is just as much a promise for us as it was for those first century Christians.

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