THE BINDING OF SATAN
Revelation 20:1 ¶ And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, 3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. 4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. 7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
God did not create the Devil. He created a glorious angel who became the Devil when his heart was lifted up with pride. Sin originated within the heart of a mighty, glorious archangel. Here are some verses addressed to the prince of Tyrus, in which we can also see the condition of this mighty archangel who became Satan. (The word “Satan” in Hebrew is the word translated “an adversary” in Numbers 22:22.) Ezekiel 28:2 Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God:
Here are verses 12 through 19 of that same chapter in Ezekiel which give us additional insight into this origin of sin. Ezekiel 28:12 Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. 13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. 14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. 15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. 16 By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. 17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee. 18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. 19 All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.
In that verse fourteen the Lord called him “the anointed cherub that covereth.” That means he is depicted as the cherubim on the mercy seat of the ark of the covenant, with their wings extended towards one another, covering the law. And we read in Hebrews 1:13,14 “But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?” But this mighty, glorious angel wanted to rule over God’s creation, not to serve it! Therefore, instantly he was changed from his high glory to the depth of wickedness and depravity.
And he as a created being, not formed from the dust of the earth, but from the breath of God, thought himself too glorious to be a servant to mankind! We can hear his thoughts echoed in the voices of the citizens who refused the rule of their master. Luke 19:14 But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us. These would not serve the Lord Jesus Christ, born of a woman. And that woman was from a race formed of the dust of the earth.
And we can readily see that all men can be identified in one of these two categories. They are either like the true servants of God, as Moses, who wanted to be used to deliver the Lord’s people from bondage; or like Pharaoh, who wanted to enslave the Lord’s people to build monuments to his own glory! And as with this angel, it reveals what is truly in their hearts.
The Lord Jesus also gives us a distinct comparison of these two separate servants of God. John 10:10 The thief (Satan) cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
And we have a perfect picture of these two in dealing with a sinner in the day of the Prophet Zechariah’s writings. Christ, (seen as the angel of the LORD), stands with this sinner to redeem and cleanse. Satan stands as his accuser! For he is the “accuser of our brethren day and night.” (Revelation 12:10) One to cleanse and protect, the other to accuse and rebuke.
Zechariah 3:1 And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. 2 And the LORD said unto Satan, The LORD rebuke thee, O Satan; even the LORD that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? 3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. 4 And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment. 5 And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre (turban) upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD stood by. 6 And the angel of the LORD protested unto Joshua, saying, 7 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by.
Please take careful notice of that seventh verse! It is of great worth to you as a true believer. The Lord not only cleanses this sinner, but promises to give him “places to walk among these that stand by.” And you need only refer to verse one of this passage to see that both the Lord and Satan are “standing by.” Therefore our Lord not only rebukes Satan in his accusations against us as our advocate, cleanses us and clothes us with righteousness (Revelation 19:8), but also provides secure paths for us to walk among both the forces of Light and the forces of darkness on our Christian journey! Isaiah 30:20 And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers: 21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.
Is it any wonder that the Psalmist exclaimed, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? (Psalm 8:4) And no wonder that a multitude of the heavenly hosts exclaimed, upon first sight the Invisible God, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. (Luke 2:14)
But just when was Satan bound? Our Master has clearly set this forth. John 12:30 Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes. 31 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 from the earth, will draw all men unto me. 33 This he said, signifying what death he should die. He states that when he is lifted up upon the cross, Satan would be cast out! We can also see this set forth in Revelation chapter twelve, where Christ is seen as Michael, warring with Satan and his forces.
Revelation 12:7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
The Lord Jesus set forth the time of Satan’s being cast out with his two “now’s” in that John 12:31 verse. And here in this Revelation 12:10 verse we have yet another time-stamp by this “now.” For it states, “Now is come salvation!” And we know that our Lord accomplished salvation at the time of his sovereign cry, “It is finished” upon his death on the cross! (John 19:30) We also have this clearly confirmed for us in the Hebrew writings. Hebrews 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For it cannot be more clearly stated that it was “through death” that our Lord both destroyed the power of Satan and delivered us from the bondage of sin forever! Bless His Holy Name! Ephesians 4:7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. Galatians 6:14 But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.
How then can it be that Satan can still tempt mankind if he was bound? What is the only reason given for the binding of Satan? Revelation 20:3 …that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: And what does it state in Revelation 20:7,8 he shall continue to do once he is loosed? Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8 And shall go out to deceive the nations!
For Satan, being only bound so as not to deceive the nations can still “walk about!” And he can still seek to “sift” righteous souls! 1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Luke 22:31 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:
The Lord bound him so that the gospel could go forth to all nations in the thousand years of the church age, unhindered by Satan’s power over the nations! Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Truly Christ destroyed Satan’s “power of death” and “delivered” those subject to bondage, by becoming sin for us! And when the sin debt was forever paid, Satan was put under the absolute power and control of King Jesus! 1 Peter 3:22 Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him. Therefore the Lord shall still use this conquered servant to deceive the evangelized, but unregenerate masses, for their destruction! Revelation 20:8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. 10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
Hebrews 6:4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
2 Thessalonians 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
Pastor Gene Breed
November 18, 2022
