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The Revelation of Jesus Christ 5. Satan must be bound and cast into the bottomless pit. This event is recorded in the opening verses of chapter twenty, which is our lesson for today: "And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, 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" (20: 1~3). Later in this lesson we shall see why Satan "must be loosed a little season" after the thousand years' reign of Christ on earth. Just now we are occupied chiefly with the fact that, before the Lord Jesus reigns, Satan will be bound in the bottomless pit. This is not the lake of fire, or hell, into which the beast and the false prophet will be cast before the millennium, and into which Satan will be cast after the thou~ sand years of peace and righteous rule are ended. (Compare 19:20 with 20: 1~3. 10.) THE REIGN OP CHRIST ON EARTH With the earth rid of the Antichrist and all his followers, and with Satan bound, our Lord Jesus will rule "from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth." When He takes the reins of government in His own hands, He will sweep away every form of earthly dominion. He will come as KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. Yes, we shall have a Dictator then-One in whom all power is vested -and that Dictator will be the Son of God. Six times this chapter tells us that our Lord will reign a "thousand years." We call that period the "millennium," from two Latin words, "mille," meaning "thousand," and "annum," meaning "year." Therefore, "millennium" means simply "a thousand years." To learn the characteristics of His kingdom, it is necessary to turn to other passages of Scripture that describe the blessed conditions which shall prevail. Certainly we know that it will be an age of glory. 1. It Will Be Glorious for the Lord Jesus Christ, for He shall reign as KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
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