Answering Premillennial Questions

 How can Satan be bound today?

Premillennial Argument: Satan’s binding implies his total inactivity during the 1000 years. New Testament clearly witnesses to his continuing activity (1 Peter 5:8; 2 Cor 4:4) during this age. Therefore, they say, the millennium cannot be now.

Response:

Revelation 20:1-3: “And I saw an angel descending from the heaven, having the key of the abyss, and a great chain in his hand. ² And he laid hold of the dragon, the ancient serpent who is the devil and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, ³ and cast him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should not any more deceive the nations until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be loosed for a little time.”

Premillennialists have read more into this figure than the Scriptures will allow. They conclude that the metaphors of vv 1-3 refer to a complete cessation of the devil’s influence on earth.

Let us focus on some passages :

Mark 3:27; Matthew 12:28-29

Matthew 12:26-29: “²⁶ And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?..... ²⁸ But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. ²⁹ Or how can someone enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.”

Here, the binding of the strong man is associated with the coming of Christ’s kingdom at His first advent.

In Matt 12:28,29 – Lord says that his miracles prove two things: 1) The kingdom of God had arrived, and 2) He had bound the strong man of the house. Otherwise, our Lord asked the critical Pharisees, how could these miracles be performed on Satan’s own territory unless Satan had indeed been bound and could therefore not prevent the working of miracles? In this case our Lord himself said that he bound Satan. Yet we know that Satan was not literally bound to the extent that he became immobile. Therefore the context tells us that Jesus spoke of a figurative binding. Therefore, context, and not the metaphor by itself, must determine what degree of restriction is intended. The metaphor of “binding” highlights the fact that Jesus is sovereign over him and his demonic forces.

The context of Revelation 20:2 also tells us of a figurative binding. For a spiritual being cannot be bound with a literal chain or locked with a literal key. Also to note is that the word used for chain in Rev 20:1 (halusis) is used ten times in the New Testament. In all nine occasion (except Rev 20:1 which is under our consideration) it denotes literal chain. John in the vision also saw an angel holding literal chain. But everyone, including the premillennialist agrees that Satan is a spiritual being and he cannot be bound by literal chains.

John 12:31, 32

John 12:31, 32: “Now is the judgment of this world; now shall the prince of this world be cast out: ³² and I, if I be lifted up out of the earth, will draw all to me.”

John explicitly associate the time of the “casting out” of Satan with Christ’s being lifted on the cross. The same root word is used in Revelation 20:3 to refer to the “casting” of Satan into the pit.

 Purpose of binding Satan in Revelation 20

Two statements in Revelation 20 tell us the purpose of Satan’s binding. First, in verse 3, John says that Satan was bound “so that he should not deceive the nations any longer”. Then secondly, in verse 8, John tells us that upon his release from the abyss Satan will come out “to deceive the nations…to gather them together for the war”. The whole purpose of this particular deceiving is to gather them for ‘the war’ (the war we saw in Revelation 16 and 19). Note well what John does and does not say. He does not say that Satan was bound so that he should no longer persecute Christians, or so that he should no longer prowl about “like a roaring lion” (1 Peter 5:8). John does not say anything that would be in contradiction with what other New Testament writers had written about the present activity of Satan (2 Cor 2:11, 2 Cor 11:14, Eph 6:16, 1 Thess 2:18).

The intent of the devil is to incite a premature eschatological conflict, to provoke Armageddon before God’s time. But the exalted Christ, through the agency of an angelic being, has temporarily stripped Satan of his ability to orchestrate the nations of the earth for the final battle. The restriction on this particular aspect of Satan’s ministry is absolute and invincible (He is bound, shut and sealed).

Conclusion:

If we adopt the kind of extreme literalism the Premillennialists hold in relation to the binding of Satan in Revelation 20, we will be forced to object to other clear assertions of the New Testament about Satan.

Hebrews 2:14: “Seeing, then, the children have partaken of flesh and blood, he himself also in like manner did take part of the same, that through death he might destroy him having the power of death -- that is, the devil”

Colossians 2:15: “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”

John 12:31, 32: “Now is the judgment of this world; now shall the prince of this world be cast out: ³² and I, if I be lifted up out of the earth, will draw all to me.”

Will the premillennialists object that, if these passages were true, it would contradict the plain indications of the New Testament that Satan and his hosts continue to exercise great power during the present age? We hope not. Premillennialists friends should realize that they are missing the forest for the trees.

What Bible tells about “abyss”?

Premillennial argument: Premillennialists argue that from the seven uses of abyss (“abussos”) in New Testament (outside Revelation 20), abyss is an abode of demons where they are separate from men until God allows them to emerge. The use of ‘abussos’ in Luke 8 and Revelation 9, they says, demonstrates that confinement to this spirit prison entails the complete removal of demonic/satanic activity and influence upon the earth. The spirit prison in Luke 8:31, must refer to an actual location. They conclude that as long as he is confined in the abyss, the devil is not able to depart from his prison and therefore his activity on earth is completely non-existent.

Response:

There are limitations in word studies. For example, the word used for chain in Rev 20:1 (halusis) is used ten times in the New Testament. In all nine occasion (except Rev 20:1 which is under our consideration) it denotes literal chain. John in the vision also saw an angel holding literal chain. But everyone, including the premillennialist agrees that Satan is a spiritual being and he cannot be bound by literal chains. In Revelation, it is used amidst an apocalyptic genre. Keep this lesson in mind while we study “abussos”.

Let us focus on the meaning of “abussos”:

In the Old Testament ‘Abyssos’ (Heb.  <t@howm>) is the description of watery depths.

<t@howm>  is used to denote sea (Ge 1:2;  Ex: 15:5,8 ;  Jb: 38: 16, 30;  Jb 41:32;  Ps 71:20 ; Isa 51:9,10;  Isa 63:12,13;  Eze 26:19,20 ; Eze 31:4, 15; Jon 2: 5,6;  Hab 3:10 ) .

<t@howm>   is also used in the context of <sh@'owl> (‘hades’) (Eze 31:15, 16; Jon 2:5,6).

<t@howm>  is also used as realm of sufferings (Ps 71:20).

In Job <t@howm> is the abode of the sea dragon (Jb 41:1, 32). This abode (sea) became symbolic for the forces of evil (Ps 74:12-14, Ps 77:16; Ps 89:9,10;  Isa 27:1,2;  Eze 29:3;  Eze 32:2,3).

Psalms 89:10: “Thou hast crushed Rahab [Egypt; see Psalms 87:4] as one that is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with the arm of thy strength.”

Ezekiel 29:3: “….Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great monster that lieth in the midst of his rivers, which saith, My river is mine own, and I made it for myself.”

Ezekiel 32:2,3: “Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, Thou wast like a young lion among the nations, and thou wast as a monster in the seas; and thou didst break forth in thy rivers, and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and fouledst their rivers. ³ Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: I will also spread out my net over thee with an assemblage of many peoples; and they shall bring thee up in my net.”

Further, the evil nature of the four beasts is emphasized when Daniel saw they came up out of the sea. (Dan 7:2,3  - yam (Aramaic)).

Daniel 7:3: “And four great beasts came up from the sea, different one from another.”

It only means that the four kingdoms depicted by the four beasts are evil in nature. The question like “Can the beast be in sea and on earth at the same time?” does injustice to the genre of Daniel 7 which is apocalyptic. That question has no meaning in some contexts.

In summary, in the Old Testament <abyssos> is used for watery depths (= deep) as water bodies itself, realm of suffering, abode of sea dragon and in the context of hades (Sheol).  Sea dragon and its abode (sea, watery depths) became symbolic for the forces of evil.

In Revelation abyss is used in Rev 9:1,2, 11;  Rev 11:7;  Rev 17:8;  Rev 20: 1,3.

In Rev 11:7 and 17:8, the beast is said to come out of the “abyss”. Here “abyss” is   most probably related to sea (Rev 13:1). This is supported by all the above mentioned Old Testament verses describing the sea, depth as the abode of sea dragon which in turn is symbolic of evil forces that oppress God’s people. Also, in Revelation we can observe plenty of  OT images.

Revelation 20:1-10 teaches us that the exalted Christ, through the agency of an angelic being, has temporarily stripped Satan of his ability to orchestrate the nations of the earth for the final battle. He has bound Satan in his own realm. This revelation is a comfort for the first century Christians to know that their Lord is sovereign over the realm of their oppressors.

Therefore, the premillennial conclusion regarding “abyss” is unwarranted considering the genre of the Book of Revelation.

Is 1000 years literal?

Revelation 20:1-10 plainly says that Satan was bound for 1000 years. Each passage of Scripture must be interpreted in a way appropriate to its literary genre. Genre analysis must be practiced. Revelation 20 was written in the apocalyptic genre. This is a highly symbolic and figurative kind of literature. The language connected with Satan’s imprisonment is clearly symbolic in other respects. The prison chain, the prison key, and the prison itself (the abyss) are all symbolic. If the prison itself and everything associated with it is symbolic, by what rationale can the prison sentence (the 1000 years) be dogmatically asserted to be literal? The presumption at least must be that it is figurative. Symbolism is not a denial of historicity, but is a matter of literary genre.

The Scriptures clearly attests a symbolic meaning to “thousand” when it relates to time.

Exodus 20:5, 6: “……… I, Jehovah thy God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons to the third and to the fourth generation of them that hate me, ⁶ and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.”

Here, thousand [generation] does not mean thousand literal generations. If literal thousand generations are meant, then we have to also believe that the old world will continue to exist 40x1000 years (if we take 40 years as one generation). But, “thousand” is used to point that the mercies of God is everlasting.

In Revelation 20, the “thousand” cannot be taken as eternal since it is clearly stated that the thousand years will end. Nevertheless, an age-long period may be in mind. Therefore, the 1000 years can be taken as a symbol for an age-long, but definitely limited period of time.

If Revelation was written in AD 90, how could 1000 year reign begin before that?

This question arises from the belief that what John saw in Revelation 4-22 is exclusively future to the time when John sees the Revelation.

Revelation 4:1 (which says “Come up here, and I will show thee the things which must take place after these things”) is often quoted for its support.

But a similar wording is found in Daniel 2:29, 45. But the whole vision is not of exclusively future events though a huge part is yet to take place after the king saw the vision (Dan 2:37-39).

Daniel 2:28, 29: “but there is a God in the heavens, who revealeth secrets, and maketh known to king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be at the end of days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed are these: ²⁹ —as for thee, O king, thy thoughts arose upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter; and he that revealeth secrets hath made known to thee what shall come to pass.”

Daniel 2:36-39: “This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation of it before the king. ³⁷ Thou, O king, art a king of kings, unto whom the God of the heavens hath given the kingdom, the power, and the strength, and the glory; ³⁸ and wheresoever the children of men, the beasts of the field, and the fowl of the heavens dwell, he hath given them into thy hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all: thou art this head of gold.³⁹ And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee; then another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.”

Even though, what Daniel saw is said to be concerning what shall come to pass at the end of days, what Daniel actually saw was interpreted as concerning the past, present and future events with respect to Daniel. In interpretation of the vision, there is mention of God giving Nebuchadnezzar the kingdom, the fact that Nebuchadnezzar is the present king of Babylon and that three more kingdoms will arise in the future.

Another example is Daniel 7.

Daniel 7:17: “These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, that shall arise out of the earth.”

Daniel saw four beasts. It is said that they shall arise out of the earth. But, it was not an exclusively future event at the time of the vision, since Daniel saw the vision towards the end of the first beast’s dominion (Daniel 7:1).

Therefore, the phrase in “things which must take place after these things” things which must take place after these things” in Revelation 4:1 does not make us think that all the events that is portrayed after chapter 4 is exclusively future events. Even though majority of the events still lies future to the time of the vision, some events have already been started to be fulfilled at the time of Jesus’ first advent.

Some examples:

1.   In Revelation 12:1-5, we see the birth and ascension of Jesus Christ. Is it still future? Of course not. I think the same could be said of 1000 year reign. It has just begun in John’s generation and continues to the future.

2.   Revelation 17:10: “And there are seven kings: five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes he must remain [only] a little while.” This passage speaks of five kings which were of the past when John was seeing the vision.

Therefore, the premillennial argument that Revelation 4-22 is concerning exclusively future events is unwarranted and hermeneutically misguided.

(The writings are not original to the author of this blog. It is taken from other sources and has been edited, sometimes paraphrased)

References:

1. Beale, G. K. The Book of Revelation. (The New International Greek Testament Commentary, NIGTC). Eerdmans.

2. Storms, C. Samuel. Kingdom Come: The Amillennial Alternative.

3. Waldron, Samuel E. The End Times Made Simple.