When does the binding of Satan in Revelation 20 occur?

Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.

Revelation 20:1–3, ESV

When does the binding of Satan in Revelation 20 occur? Well, let’s look at how the binding is described for us.

John sees an angel coming down from heaven holding a key to a bottomless pit. In that angel’s hand is a great chain.

The angel seizes the dragon. He binds the dragon with the chain. He throws the dragon into a pit and he shuts and seals it over him for a thousand years.

In light of these facts, two questions need to be addressed.

Do angels have bodies?

The first question is: do angels have bodies?

The answer is no.

Angels are incorporeal beings. They are spirits. They do not have bodies.

In Luke 24:39 when Jesus shows himself to the apostles after his resurrection he says —

See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.

So, Jesus says that a spirit does not have flesh and bones. To demonstrate that he wasn’t a spirit he said touch, feel – I have a body.

So that means then that neither the good angel who comes down from heaven in our text — nor the evil angel who is the dragon in our text — has a body.

Is Revelation 20:1-3 literal?

That actually answers our second question – which is: is the text to be understood literally or figuratively / symbolically?

It is not to be understood literally but rather figuratively and symbolically.

The key, the chain, the physical binding of somebody, the throwing, the shutting the pit — none of it’s literal. It’s all figurative language.

Look at Revelation 20:3 —

and [the angel] threw [Satan] into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended.

Now if we’re to be consistent in our understanding and interpretation in a book full of symbols – how are we to understand the thousand years?

Likewise as symbolic – as non-literal.

The pre-millennial and post-millennial understanding of the Millennium in Revelation 20

There are those in the pre-millennial and the post-millennial camps who believe that the thousand years is a literal / physical thousand years.

You have pre-millennialists who believe that when Christ returns he’s going to set up a literal thousand-year kingdom.

You have post-millennialists who believe that Christ is going to set up a (literal or figurative) thousand-year golden age of Christianity prior to his return.

But what we see from Revelation 20 is that those positions aren’t warranted.

Actually, the thousand years is describing for us a real period of time… but figuratively.

What does the 1,000 years represent & when does the binding of Satan occur?

And so the question then for us is: what does that thousand years represent?

Here we’ll begin to consider when the binding of Satan occurs.

If we can understand when Satan is bound we’ll understand when the thousand years is. Because he’s bound during those thousand years mentioned in Revelation 20.

So now, we’re going to look at just a handful of texts together that indicate for us when Satan’s binding occurs.

Listen closely with me to these few texts.

The binding of Satan in John 12:31

First in John 12:31 Jesus says – leading up to his death on the cross –

Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world [Satan] be cast out.

With the coming of Christ Satan is now cast out.

The binding of Satan in Colossians 2:15

In Colossians 2:15 –

[God] disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in [Christ].

So, with Christ’s coming God cast out Satan. He disarmed Satan.

The binding of Satan in Matthew 12:29

In Matthew 12, Jesus is casting out demons. As a result he’s being accused of casting them out by the power of the devil.

Now, what’s interesting is Jesus’s response in Matthew 12:29 –

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.

Satan’s the strong man in this text.

So, Jesus is saying “How can I be freeing these people from the power of the devil – from these demonic hosts that are inside of them – unless Satan is first bound?”

The binding of Satan in Luke 10:17-18

Think about Luke 10:17-18 when the seventy-two return after going forth and preaching the gospel.

We’re told that they rejoice because they have authority and power over the demons. They said “Even the demons listen to us!”

What does Jesus say immediately after that? He says “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven!”

So, this is why the apostles and the disciples had power and authority over the demons – because Christ at his first coming diminished the power and the authority of the devil.

The binding of Satan in Revelation 12:1-6

Remember likewise how Revelation 12:1-6 described how the ancient serpent – the devil – tried to devour the man-child. But he failed — and Christ accomplished his work.

So, in Revelation 12:8 we’re told that Satan was thrown out of heaven.

The binding of Satan in summary

These texts speak of Satan being thrown down.

He’s bound.

He’s cast out.

He’s fallen.

That very word “bind” in Matthew 12:29 is the same word used here in Revelation 20:2.

Satan is bound right now

What period of time is Satan being cast out? What period of time has Satan fallen like lightning? At what period of time was the strong man bound?

It’s the time starting with the arrival of Christ in his earthly ministry.

And Satan will be bound until the end prior to the return of Christ.

So he’s bound during the church age – the gospel age.

Should we read Revelation chronologically?

Now, one reason pre-millennialists don’t agree with our interpretation here is because they read the book of Revelation chronologically.

But it makes no sense if you read it chronologically. Here’s what I mean.

Look at Revelation 19:17-21 –

Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, “Come, gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great.” And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

This is an Achilles heel for the pre-millennial position – for a chronological reading of Revelation.

There is no reason to bind Satan after Revelation 19 – if you’re reading this chronologically. Nobody else exists!

All of the unbelievers have been killed – both small and great – every kind of person – the whole army – everyone who received the mark of the Beast – all were slain. There are no more unbelievers on the Earth. It’s an earth of the redeemed.

So, who is it that Satan is going to gather in Revelation 20:7 for his army?

And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea.

Whom is Satan going to gather? No unbelievers exist at the time. They’ve all been wiped away. They’ve all been destroyed by God.

But on the contrary, this makes perfect sense if Revelation 20 begins a new series of visions which describes the first coming of Christ. These visions depict the return of Christ.

Revelation 20 begins a new set of visions where Christ returns, and he binds Satan until close to the end.

Revelation 20:7 then describes the end of the gospel age – after all of the redeemed are saved . Christ at that point will allow Satan to go forth and gather his army to make war – where Christ then defeats him and casts them all into the eternal flames of fire.

The only difference between what was depicted for us in Revelation 19 and in Revelation 20 is that Revelation 19 depicts the events as they occurred to the Beast and the false prophet – and Revelation 20 picks up the exact same events – but it focuses the attention not on the Beast and false prophet but on Satan.

The Millennium in Revelation 20 is figurative of the church age

And so, this thousand years or this Millennium is a figurative number that symbolizes the fullness of time or the total or complete time for which Satan is bound – which is the church age – or the gospel age.