Revelation 20: The Millennium and the Great White Throne Judgment.

 Revelation 20: The Millennium and the Great White Throne Judgment. 

v1-3: Satan Bounded For 1000 years

In previous chapter, John described how the anti-Christ and the false prophet were thrown into the lake of fire. Now John describe how Satan himself - the dragon or the ancient serpent (referring to the time of Eden) - were bound up with a great chain by an angel. The angel open the "bottomless pit" with a key, and threw him in and sealed the pit. He can no longer deceive the nations any longer, until a thousand years later, when he must be released for a while. (v1-3)

Note that Satan, whose name is arch-angel Lucifer, is a powerful angel. Not only the pit is deep, he had to be tied up with a great (thick and heavy) chain. The pit then had to be divinely sealed until one thousand years later. We will look into why he must be released at that time. 

Note that this brings up a fact of spirits life. All spirits appears to be immortal, including angels, demons, and human spirit. This was the design by God. Jesus said: "Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."  (Matt 10:28). Jesus did not say God will make the soul (including the spirit) disappear, but they are be "destroyed" in hell as they are separated from God. Spirits can still feel pain - such as the rich man was in agony in the fire of Hades. (Luke 16:24)

Even the Old Testament understand spirit is immortal, as King Solomon said: "then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it."  Those who do not believe in Christ thinks that when they die, they will be gone and won't feel anything. However, they are desperately wrong - they will wish they can die, but they cannot. It is urgent we convince them of the truth. 

v4-6: Saints Reign With Christ

John saw many thrones, and those who sit on them were those given the authority to judge. He also saw all the saints who were martyred for their testimony of Christ and the word of God, and those who did not worship the beast or its image, nor received the mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life, and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. (v4)

John said that these people received the "first resurrection."  Resurrection means to receive a new body, just like Jesus did when he resurrected. John said these people "came to life" = i.e. coming back to life with a new body, for they were only alive in their spirit. 

Note that John was only focusing on those who died during the tribulation. Those who were raptured would have already receive a body, when they meet Him in the air.  Read 1 Cor 15:50-53, that said "For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality."

I believed that, as far as John is concerned, all the raptured Christians partake of the first resurrection too. 

Then why is this called the "first" resurrection? Well, he was comparing to the "second" resurrection of those who did not believe or rebelled against God. This second group will only be "resurrected" at the end of the millennium. (v5)  They are still waiting in the Hades in their spirit, where the rich man in Luke 16 were, and where the anti-Christ and the false prophet were thrown in, which we read in Revelation 19. 

John also said that the "second death" has no power over those in first resurrection. (v6) Those who are in Hades had their first death; the second death will happen a thousand years later at the final judgement.  At that time the first resurrected saints will no longer be judged. Rather, they will be the priests of God and Christ (to worship Him and perhaps to teach the living humans), and will reign with him for the thousand years. 

Note that we will reign with Christ on this earth. The war-torn and polluted earth will be restored under Christ. It proves to mankind that the deterioration of the earth is due to their sin and the bad stewardship we had of earth.  

To "reign" with Him means that we will have a position of authority for certain territories on earth, such as a town/city, a state, a country, and a certain sections of earth. I always imagine that those who did well while living will be in charge of a big country, but those who didn't, like myself, will be in charge of a small village! Perhaps my little hut will in that village too!  

What Else Happen in the Millennium?

While John did not explain the details during the millennium, but they were covered by other Old Testament:

1. Firstly, it appears that David will be the one ruling Israel. According to Ezekiel 37:24-25,  “My servant David shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall walk in my rules and be careful to obey my statutes.... and David my servant shall be their prince forever."

2. Jesus himself will have a throne in Jerusalem. Isaiah 2:1-5 - "Many people shall come and say, "Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths." For out of Zion shall go forth the law, And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, And rebuke many people; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore."

3. Zechariah had prophesied what the nations must to do during the 1000 years: “Then all the survivors from the nations that came against Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD Almighty, and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles.” (Zec 14:16)  

Despite their initial hostility, those who once warred against Jerusalem will eventually gather in the holy city to honor the King—the LORD of Hosts—and participate in the joyous Feast of Tabernacles. The Feast of Tabernacles (also known as the Festival of Shelters) commemorates the Israelites’ journey through the wilderness, dwelling in temporary shelters (tabernacles or booths) as they followed God’s guidance. In the prophetic context, it represents a time of spiritual renewal, unity, and divine presence for the future mankind.

4. During the millennium, the animals and predators will be tamed: "The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,

and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den." (Isaiah 11:6-8)

5. There will be a temple (sanctuary) built during the millennium. In fact, Ezekiel chapters 40-47 painstakingly describe the measurement of a temple (Ch 40-43), the holy district around the temple (Ch 44-45), the feasts and sacrifices in the temple (Ch 46), the water flowing out from the temple that made everything grow wherever it flows (Ch 47).  These temple has no similarity with other temples, and the environment cannot be those of ancient times nor the current times. 

6. There is a river that flows out of the front of temple, which faced east. Ezekiel said that the river is "deep enough to swim in." There were many trees one each side of the river,  that grows all kinds of fruit each month, and they are for food and their leaves for healing. (Ezekiel 47:1-12)

Judges Appointed

Going back to v4, John spoke about people who were selected to be judges. How were they selected by God? Most likely by how they lived on earth, that they were faithful to God and know the truth of the Word. 

Who are they going to judge? According to Paul, he said "Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?" (1 Cor 6:2-3) 

The "world" here refers to the man-kind who lived during the millennium. It also says that we will be given the authority to judge angels - these could be participating in judging fallen angels, or assessing the faithful angels and their works. 

How are they going to judge? We know that the covenant of Grace will end at the second coming of the Lord. You don't need faith to be saved anymore, as they can literally see Christ ruling the earth from Jerusalem. According to Ezekiel, God will make a new covenant with mankind: "I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them in their land and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore." (Ezek 37:26)  They will receive a new covenant from God, and they must live by it.  

v7-10: The Defeat of Satan

John fast forward to the end of the 1000 years. He saw Satan being released from his prison and he came out to deceived the nations, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle. The huge army marched up to the camp of the saints and Jerusalem. Suddenly, fire came down from heaven and consumed them. (v7-9)

What or who is Gog and Magog? Gog is the leader of the nation(s) Magog. Ezekiel use the same reference in Ezekiel 38:2 - “Son of man, set your face toward Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him.” (Eze 38:2)

Magog was first mentioned in Genesis. He was the son of Japheth.  "The sons of Japheth were Gomer and Magog and Madai and Javan and Tubal and Meshech and Tiras." Genesis 10:2. Flavius Josephus reports the Scythians were descendants of Magog. The Scythians had a reputation for being anti-religion. Bill Copper provides evidence that the descendants of Magog also include the Russians, Ukrainians, Hungarians, Finns, Siberians, Yugoslavians, Croatians, Bosnians, Serbians, Slovenians, Slovakians, Bulgarians, Poles, Czechs. The descendants of Magog spread to modern day Turkey. 

Note that most scholars believe that the event of Ezekiel 38 and 39 appears to be describing the Armageddon at the beginning of the 1000 years, not the end. If so, Gog cannot be still alive at the end of the millennium. Perhaps John is using this as a symbolic reference to the major armies from the North.  

The questions many have are why would God allow Satan to be let loose, and why so many people are quickly drawn into rebellion against Christ, especially if He had wonderfully ruled the earth for the past 1000 years? God allow Satan to be released in order to prove that humans still carry on the disobedience spirit of Adam and Eve in their hearts. Though they enjoyed the wonderful gardens and relationship with God, they still sin when tempted. 

After many generations, these rebels have forgotten that Jesus had saved their ancestors. The pride and greed of wanting something more had been bottled in their hearts, and at the small temptation from Satan, everything burst out in anger and violence. God allows all this to happen to identify the unfaithful ones from the faithful ones. 

The devil, or Satan, was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, where the beast and false prophet were since a thousand years ago. Those who didn't want to follow God will follow Satan into hell and will be tormented day and night forever and ever. (v10)

v11-15: Great White Throne Judgement

Great White Throne Judgement

John saw God sitting on a great white throne. We do not know if this was a different throne when John saw God earlier. His presence was so powerful that "earth and sky" was said to "fled away." Then he saw those who were dead appeared in front of the throne, coming from the sea, and from Death and Hades.  (v11,13)

These are the second resurrection of unbelievers, as compared to the first resurrection of the believers in verse 6.  The use of Sea, Death and Hades basically sums up all the people who died as unbelievers were made to appear before God. 

Several books were opened, including the book of life. They were judged based on what was recorded of the things they did when they were living on earth. (v12) The book of life is used as final confirmation -  if their names are not there, they will be thrown into the lake of fire - the second death. (v14, 15)

Why are they judged based on their works? Because they refused to be judged based on their faith in Jesus' works of atonement on the cross.

As Paul forewarned them in Romans 2:12-16 (NIV): “All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law ... Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law."  

Paul went on to say that we cannot be justified by the law, but by faith only. “...knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.”  Gal 2:16

In other words, since you don't want to be justified by faith in Christ, then you will be judged by your works. Your works must be absolutely perfect in the eyes of the Holy God, in order for you to enter heaven. None of them did.

This is also the end of Death, and there's no need to have Hades anymore. Both Death and Hades were also thrown into the lake of fire.