Chapter 20 of the Book of Revelation covers the first days of the Millennium, when Jesus Christ comes to earth to establish His kingdom. This chapter runs close to the prophecies of Ezekiel in the last eight (8) chapters of the book of Ezekiel. "Millennium" means "1,000 years". This period is basically a 1,000 years of teaching and learning.
Jesus Christ will be with us here on earth in His kingdom then. There will be teaching and discipline, and many people saved in this Millennium period. Most of the people saved today will not be reigning with Christ in the Millennium, because they will throw their inheritance away very soon, when they choose to go whoring after the Antichrist. Some of these people are the ones who believe in the rapture theory. They will chase after the first messiah that appears on earth and not be part of the wedding between Christ and His bride (the church) at the sounding of the seventh trump.
Those who fall into the trap of the rapture theory doctrine can repent and be saved in the Millennium age, when their sins of following the Antichrist are committed in ignorance. You can even look at the Millennium kingdom as the "time of salvation", for many will accept and follow Christ in the Millennium. However the period of grace is for this age of the flesh only, for in the Millennium age salvation will be by their works only as we will see in this chapter. Due to the great apostasy there will be more saved out of the Millennium, than during any other period of time.
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."
When Satan has completed his five month reign here on earth, the battles of Armageddon and Hamongog have already taken place. Jesus Christ is returning with His army to earth, and this army are those saints that are already with Him. Those saints that died and went to be with Him as recorded in Ecclesiastes 12:7. Though their bodies were laid in the ground, their souls returned instantly to the Father, and not though a rapture.
On that first day of the Millennium age, both the beast and the false prophet are destroyed. The beast is in two parts, the one world political system that gives way to Satan's one world religious system. These two systems of support will not be brought back to support Satan at the end of the millennium. [See Revelation 19:20 where both of these are destroyed.]
I believe this angel to be Michael, for it's Michael and his angels that control Satan. This chain that Michael will have is a locking, sealing and confining device. Satan will be locked away, and his influence will be totally absent during this time of teaching.
This is why every knee, even the Kenites, will bow to Christ. Satan, their father, will be in the pit and will not be able to influence their thinking.
"Revelation 20:2 "And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,"
"The dragon" was Satan's title in the world that was, just as his title of "the Antichrist", or "instead of Christ" is during the last five months of this earth age of the flesh. Dragon is the title he wears as he rules over the ten kings and seven regions or continents. [see Revelation 12 and 13]
The "serpent" was Satan's roll in the Garden of Eden when he "wholly seduced" Eve. Eve bore his offspring Cain, the father of the Kenites. The "Devil" was his title given in Matthew 13:39 as Jesus identified the enemy as the "Devil". Satan will have no influence in this time of teaching.
In Isaiah 14:12-16, Satan is given another name, "Lucifer", which means "morning star" or "bright star". It tells us that people will walk by the pit and see Satan bound and say, "Is this the man that deceived the world?" They will wonder how they could have been so deceived through this earth age into believing Satan to be the true Messiah.
That deception is rooted in Margaret MacDonald's "rapture theory", which gives false hope and teaches of a flying away. It will be because of the lack of knowledge of God's full plan that will lead them into believing this rapture lie; Satan deceiving the whole world that he is Jesus Christ come to rapture them away.
"Revelation 20:3 "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."
When this time of the great deception is on earth, it will be during the five month period of Revelation 9:5,10, and the Antichrist will then deceive all nations and all peoples of the earth except the elect. When the millennium is over, Satan will be released to try to deceive the people all over again, and many will follow him just as they did in this earth age.
Why would God turn Satan loose a short season? Because this will be a time of testing for those claiming to be Christians who were deceived by him in this earth age. After the thousand year testing and teaching, some will still seek after Satan, and they will be gathered by the angels as tares [see Matthew 13] to be burned with him.
Matthew 13:40 "As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world."
Matthew 13:41 "The Son of man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity:"
Matthew 13:42 "And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth."
God is a fair and just God, and when all have been taught and tested after their changing into that spiritual body, there will be no mental handicaps or sickness to distort the outcome. Every soul will have a sound mind, and an adequate thinking capacity for observing Jesus Christ in His reign, and Satan in the pit. Then with full understanding, every soul will choose for himself/herself whom they will follow. This not a matter of second chances, because for many in this earth age they did not stand a chance the first time. They have simply not been taught the truth of God's eternal plan.
Revelation 20:4 "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."
Judgment is coming for the millions of Christian brothers and sisters who have lost their lives for the witness of Jesus Christ over the past two thousand years. Also receiving rewards are those that have not bowed to the Antichrist in the five month period of deception (coming up shortly), nor did they take his mark through the deception, nor accepted his ways (image) in their minds. If you believe in the rapture theory, you will worship Satan in error. Mark 13 and Matthew 24 makes it clear that the Antichrist will come first. The "rapture theory" teaches that you will be lifted out by the first messiah, and that first (false) messiah is the Antichrist.
Ezekiel 3:8, 9 tells us "our forehead" is our mind. The seal that is in our forehead is what we believe to be true in our minds. The "mark of the beast" is the knowledge you will possess in your mind. What you believe as truth will either cause you to be deceive, or prevent you from being deceived by the first (false) Christ into thinking he is the true messiah.
Jewish people are Jewish people, GB, whether Hasidic, or Orthodox, or any other type, or if they consider themselves "not religious" or are unaffiliated with any of the different classifications of Judaism. Ethnic Jews, GB. Good Lord. Are you trying to catch me in some kind of inconsistency? Or are you just trying to be difficult and argumentative? Come on, man.
