Some thoughts on Rev 20
I was reading Revelation 20 this morning, and there were some things I saw that I had not noticed before.
As far as the binding of Satan is concerned, the amillennialist wil say that Satan is, indeed bound, but that he has been given a realm of influence upon the earth. They say that he is bound like a dog is tied to a stake, but has a chain, and he can go as far as his chain will let him. I can see why an amil would say this. I used to be one. If you look at the world about you, you would have to assume that Satan still does have a lot of influence. However, let's look instead at 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 decieve the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: after that he must be loosed a little season...(7)And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,..."
*The chain the amils speak of.
From this text we can see that yes, indeed, Satan is bound with a chain. But it is not the picture of a dog bound to a stake, roaming about freely upon the earth as far as his chain will let him. From this text we can see that Satan is not even on the earth. It is the picture of a man in a prison with a chain on his legs. Sure he may be able to stand up and walk a few feet in one direction or another, but he is in a prison. His realm of influence would ONLY be that of those in the prison cell with him. And Satan's "prison cell" is the bottomless pit. I have not done any real study on the bottomless pit Revelation speaks of, but we know that Satan was taken from the earth in order to be tossed in there, so we know that the bottomless pit is not the earth. So, theoretically, while Satan is in his prison, the bottomless pit, he cannot have any direct influence upon the earth. I do not deny however, that he may have demons who do his bidding upon the earth.
posted by Josh's Loving Wife, aka Angela Brisby @ 9:36 AM
2 Comments:
Not ready for an eschatological label just yet, but I do question why we Christians act so weak when we should be living victoriously in Christ. Did He defeat sin, satan and death or not? For me, my world is empowered by the Holy Spirit and encompassed by the Heavenly Host. satan has not the permission to touch me. My own flesh does me more harm than does he. Lori
Sister Lori,
I couldn't agree more. Our three enemies are the world, the flesh, and the devil, but the temptations of the devil and the world would not look appealing if it weren't for that relentless enemy: our own flesh. It is the flesh which is the most powerful of our enemies. May Christ grant us strength to kill the flesh!
--Josh
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