Revelation 20:2-12

2 And he laid hold of the ¹dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and ²bound him for a thousand years;

3 and he threw him into the ³abyss, and shut it and ⁴sealed it over him, so that he would ⁵not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.

4 Then I saw ⁶thrones, and ⁷they sat on them, and ⁸judgment was given to them. And I saw ⁹the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their ¹⁰testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not ¹¹worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the ¹²mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they ¹³came to life and ¹⁴reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. ¹⁵This is the first resurrection.

6 ¹⁶Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the ¹⁷second death has no power, but they will be ¹⁸priests of God and of Christ and will ¹⁹reign with Him for a thousand years.

Satan Freed, Doomed

7 When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be ²⁰released from his prison,

8 and will come out to ²¹deceive the nations which are in the ²²four corners of the earth, ²³Gog and Magog, to ²⁴gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the ²⁵sand of the seashore.

9 And they ²⁶came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the ²⁷camp of the saints and the ²⁸beloved city, and ²⁹fire came down from heaven and devoured them.

10 And ³⁰the devil who ³¹deceived them was thrown into the ³²lake of fire and brimstone, where the ³³beast and the ³⁴false prophet are also; and they will be ³⁵tormented day and night forever and ever.

Judgment at the Throne of God

11 Then I saw a great white ³⁶throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence ³⁷earth and heaven fled away, and ³⁸no place was found for them.

12 And I saw the dead, the ³⁹great and the small, standing before the throne, and ⁴⁰books were opened; and another book was opened, which is ⁴¹the book of life; and the dead ⁴²were judged from the things which were written in the books, ⁴³according to their deeds.

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Revelation 20:2-12 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO REVELATION 20

This chapter contains the binding of Satan, the saints' thousand years' reign with Christ, the loosing of Satan again, the destruction of him, and the Gog and Magog army, and the last judgment: the angel that is to bind Satan is described by his descent from heaven; by his having the key of the bottomless pit, and a great chain in his hand; and by the use he made of them, laying hold on Satan, binding him, casting him into the bottomless pit, and then shutting it up, and setting a seal on him; by all which he will be prevented from deceiving the nations for the space of a thousand years, Re 20:1-3. After this thrones are seen, with persons on them, to whom judgment is given; who are said to be such as had been martyrs for Jesus, and had not worshipped the beast, or professed his religion; whose happiness is represented by living and reigning with Christ a thousand years, when others will not; the second death will have no power on them; they will be the priests of God, and Christ, and reign with him during the said term, having a part in the first resurrection, Re 20:4-6. At the expiration of which term Satan will be loosed, and go out of prison, deceive the nations, and gather Gog and Magog to battle; who, being exceeding numerous, will cover the breadth of the earth, encompass the camp and city of the saints, when fire will come down from heaven and destroy them, and Satan will be cast into the lake of fire, where the beast and false prophet are, and be tormented for ever and ever, Re 20:7-10. And next an account is given of the general Judgment; and the judge is described by the throne he sat on, a white cloud, and by his majesty, which is such, that the heavens and the earth flee from before him, Re 20:11. And next the persons judged are described by their common state, the dead; by their age or condition, great and small, and by their position, standing before God; and then an account of the procedure, or rule of judgment; the books are opened, and the execution of judgment according to what is found in the books, Re 20:12 in order to which the sea, death, and the grave, give up the dead in them, and the two last are cast into the lake, and with them those who are not in the book of life, Re 20:13,14.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 43

1. Genesis 3:1; Revelation 12:9
2. Isaiah 24:22; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6
3. Revelation 20:1
4. Daniel 6:17; Matthew 27:66
5. Revelation 12:9; Revelation 20:8, 10
6. Daniel 7:9
7. Matthew 19:28; Revelation 3:21
8. Daniel 7:22; 1 Corinthians 6:2
9. Revelation 6:9
10. Revelation 1:9
11. Revelation 13:12, 15
12. Revelation 13:16
13. John 14:19
14. Revelation 3:21; Revelation 5:10; Revelation 20:6; Revelation 22:5
15. Luke 14:14; Philippians 3:11; 1 Thessalonians 4:16
16. Revelation 14:13
17. Revelation 2:11; Revelation 20:14
18. Revelation 1:6
19. Revelation 3:21; Revelation 5:10; Revelation 20:4; Revelation 22:5
20. Revelation 20:2
21. Revelation 12:9; Revelation 20:3, 10
22. Ezekiel 7:2; Revelation 7:1
23. Ezekiel 38:2; Ezekiel 39:1, 6
24. Revelation 16:14
25. Hebrews 11:12
26. Ezekiel 38:9, 16
27. Deuteronomy 23:14
28. Psalms 87:2
29. Ezekiel 38:22; Ezekiel 39:6; Revelation 13:13
30. Revelation 20:2
31. Revelation 20:2
32. Revelation 19:20; Revelation 20:14, 15
33. Revelation 16:13
34. Revelation 16:13
35. Revelation 14:10
36. Revelation 4:2
37. Revelation 6:14; Revelation 21:1
38. Daniel 2:35; Revelation 12:8
39. Revelation 11:18
40. Daniel 7:10
41. Revelation 3:5; Revelation 20:15
42. Revelation 11:18
43. Matthew 16:27; Revelation 2:23; Revelation 20:13

Footnotes 9

[a]. Lit "the"
[b]. Lit "sea"
[c]. Lit "breadth of the earth"
[d]. Or "holy ones"
[e]. I.e. burning sulphur
[f]. Lit "face"
[g]. Or "scrolls"
[h]. Or "scroll"
[i]. Or "scrolls"