Day 17 of the 24 Day Prophecy Study
Notes compiled by Steve McAtee and Marty Zide There are three final judgments that must take place prior to the establishment of the eternal kingdom:
1. the judgment of Satan and his demons
2. the destruction by fire of the present heavens and earth
3. the Great White Throne judgment.
A. Satan must be released from the Bottomless Pit
Rev. 20:7-10 - When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Even though the Lord Jesus has ruled and reigned in person for 1000 years and the environment has been transformed, we’re told in Revelation 20 that at the end of that period of time, there’s still enough sin and rebellion against God in the human flesh, to raise a rebellion against Him.
Those who will rebel at this time will be those who are born in the millennium. They are born to those who entered the kingdom with their physical bodies. These rebels never repented of their sins, even though they had the privilege of seeing in person the Lord Jesus reigning as King. They will be given ample time to repent, but refuse to do so. Isa. 65:20 - No longer will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, Or an old man who does not live out his days; For the youth will die at the age of one hundred And the one who does not reach the age of one hundred Will be thought accursed. One thing the millennium is going to prove beyond any shadow of a doubt is the sinfulness of the human heart. This is one of the best examples of original sin and the total depravity of all humans. For these individuals to rebel after all of their advantages, clearly shows the depths of sin in their hearts. Gen. 6:5 - Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Ps. 14:2-3 - The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men To see if there are any who understand, Who seek after God. 3 They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one. Rom. 3:23 - for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Rom. 8:6-8 - For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
B. The Purpose for Satan’s Release
The text clearly states why Satan is released from the bottomless pit. Once released, he will go forth to deceive the nations in order to head up one final revolt against the rule of God. Those born in the millennium will be in need of redemption like all other humans. As we can clearly see, being in the bottomless pit for 1000 years has done nothing to change Satan’s original goal of trying to exalt himself above God. These rebels are named after the invasion that took place during the last half of the tribulation period as found in the book of Ezekiel. Ezek. 38:2-3 - Son of man, set your face toward Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him and say, Thus says the Lord God, Behold, I am against you, O Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal. They probably bear the same name because the purpose of both invasions are identical, to destroy the rule of God and the subjects of His kingdom. The fact that they have the same name does not make it necessary that they are referring to the same event C. The Large Number of Rebels Gathered Rev. 20:8 - ...the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. That is almost inconceivable to think about when you consider all the privileges that will be present during the millennium. The devil has been removed from the picture and the environment has been tremendously improved. It simply proves the corruption of the human heart (the flesh) and the need for redemption. D. The Battle That’s Really No Battle At All Rev. 20:9 - ... fire came down from heaven and devoured them. There’s not a lot to comment about the swift destruction of the rebels. It’s plain and clear, God wins. Man with his fallen mind thinks that he has a chance at doing battle with God.
Psa. 2:1-4 - Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us! He who sits in the heavens laughs, the Lord scoffs at them. Although Psalm 2 is referring to the time during the tribulation period, the hope of overthrowing God has not changed with the rebels. E. The Final and Complete End of Satan Rev. 20:10 - And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Satan will be the first spirit being who is cast into the Lake of Fire. Antichrist and the false prophet (who are humans are already there. They have been there for 1000 years.
Rev. 19:20 - And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. One interesting side note to consider is that they have been in the lake of fire for 1000 years, which goes against the false doctrine of annihilation. Annihilationism teaches that there is no such thing as eternal punishment because those who reject the Lord Jesus do not spend eternity in punishment. The Lake of Fire is not eternal, but an event of annihilation. That goes against the clear teaching in the Word of God about the eternal nature of the Lake of Fire.
Dan. 12:2 - Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt. If there is no such thing as everlasting contempt for the unrepentant, there is no such thing as everlasting life for the saved. “Everlasting” is the same Greek word for everlasting in both instances. F. The Last Enemy Is Done Away With
I Cor. 15:24-28 - then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be abolished is death. For He has put all things in subject-ion under His feet... When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all. Finally, death, the last enemy is completely done away with. It is now that the ultimate purpose of the theocratic kingdom can once again become a reality, “that God may be all in all.” The last time this was true, was when Adam and Eve were in the garden of Eden prior to the fall.
Just prior to the eternal state, there will be the Great White Throne Judgment.
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