I have not been able to develop this analysis to a sufficient level of completeness. However, I feel that there are points to be noted since this era has given me insight into how Rev 20:7-10 could be fulfilled.
Rev 20:7-10
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. And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Revelation 20:7-10 appears to be parenthetical to the events otherwise being described of the start of the kingdom of God.
The Context surrounding vv 7-10 follows:
The main description was of the reign of the early saints with Christ for a thousand years. (The meaning of thousand years seems to be about an non-specific long period.) They rose to reign with Christ, seeming to be those saints who were most affected by the early persecutions. These saints were those of Daniel 12:2-3 which said many of those who were asleep would rise. And the righteous would shine.
There was to be a judgment of the unrighteous of the first century (and maybe the time leading up to that era) at the end of the thousand years. I think then verses 11-15 may be a continuation from verse 6 which describes the end of the thousand years of reign. (This, perhaps, is the end marker of the reign of the saints with Christ or may just be the end of an era of their reign.) Or, verses 7 to 15 act as an excursus to fill answer curiosity for the first century saints as to the demise of Satan and the judgment of the persecutors.
Chapter 21 then would again describe the situation beginning in the first century, and continuing without interruption. I see this as first century because Paul showed that the followers of Christ (both from among Jews and Gentiles) were the Jerusalem from heaven (Gal 5:24-26).
(There is not quite a description of the saints' situation after the thousand years. )
Now the main focus of discussion is about Revelation 20:7-10.
Even if I have not properly set the context of Rev 20-21, the important discussion is for these four verses.
I suspect that we have been at the end of the thousand years. Satan has been released to deceive the nations. But we must ask “what is the nature of this deceit?” We get an indication of this, or the emphasis of the deceit, when Revelation 20:9 says that the armies of the nations surround the camp of the saints. The deception is primarily about the view of Christians or Christian doctrines. The deceit may involve blame of Christians for causing hardship or problems on other people. Whatever the problem, the great body of people (the non-Christians) want to take action against the Christians – or the national rulers seek to do so. All of this sort of antagonism toward Christians was also found in the first century.
It was nearly impossible to conceive of such extensive deception until I saw the broad world reaction to the Coronavirus. The people have been drawn into great fear largely based on what the media has stated and what rulers have done. Something like this could be done against the Christians or the Christian doctrines.
The roots of such deception have appeared in government operated schools (in America we call these public schools) where the mention of the Christian understanding of God has been prohibited and even denounced. In a different fashion, India has circled wagons around its traditional religions and rejected (and outlawed) the Christian gospel, as being tied with colonialism.
I don't think the deception against the saints has progressed to the stage described in Rev 20:7-10. However, the process for leading to this degree of deception seems rather plausible now.
Note that this end does not describe a destruction of the world ... but only a point of transition -- or at least the end of an era of deception and the end of the influence of Satan. (There are many insights into Satan that can be inferred here -- and the demise of the people promoting the deception. But this discussion is for another day.)
Rev 20:7-10
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. And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Revelation 20:7-10 appears to be parenthetical to the events otherwise being described of the start of the kingdom of God.
The Context surrounding vv 7-10 follows:
The main description was of the reign of the early saints with Christ for a thousand years. (The meaning of thousand years seems to be about an non-specific long period.) They rose to reign with Christ, seeming to be those saints who were most affected by the early persecutions. These saints were those of Daniel 12:2-3 which said many of those who were asleep would rise. And the righteous would shine.
There was to be a judgment of the unrighteous of the first century (and maybe the time leading up to that era) at the end of the thousand years. I think then verses 11-15 may be a continuation from verse 6 which describes the end of the thousand years of reign. (This, perhaps, is the end marker of the reign of the saints with Christ or may just be the end of an era of their reign.) Or, verses 7 to 15 act as an excursus to fill answer curiosity for the first century saints as to the demise of Satan and the judgment of the persecutors.
Chapter 21 then would again describe the situation beginning in the first century, and continuing without interruption. I see this as first century because Paul showed that the followers of Christ (both from among Jews and Gentiles) were the Jerusalem from heaven (Gal 5:24-26).
(There is not quite a description of the saints' situation after the thousand years. )
Now the main focus of discussion is about Revelation 20:7-10.
Even if I have not properly set the context of Rev 20-21, the important discussion is for these four verses.
I suspect that we have been at the end of the thousand years. Satan has been released to deceive the nations. But we must ask “what is the nature of this deceit?” We get an indication of this, or the emphasis of the deceit, when Revelation 20:9 says that the armies of the nations surround the camp of the saints. The deception is primarily about the view of Christians or Christian doctrines. The deceit may involve blame of Christians for causing hardship or problems on other people. Whatever the problem, the great body of people (the non-Christians) want to take action against the Christians – or the national rulers seek to do so. All of this sort of antagonism toward Christians was also found in the first century.
It was nearly impossible to conceive of such extensive deception until I saw the broad world reaction to the Coronavirus. The people have been drawn into great fear largely based on what the media has stated and what rulers have done. Something like this could be done against the Christians or the Christian doctrines.
The roots of such deception have appeared in government operated schools (in America we call these public schools) where the mention of the Christian understanding of God has been prohibited and even denounced. In a different fashion, India has circled wagons around its traditional religions and rejected (and outlawed) the Christian gospel, as being tied with colonialism.
I don't think the deception against the saints has progressed to the stage described in Rev 20:7-10. However, the process for leading to this degree of deception seems rather plausible now.
Note that this end does not describe a destruction of the world ... but only a point of transition -- or at least the end of an era of deception and the end of the influence of Satan. (There are many insights into Satan that can be inferred here -- and the demise of the people promoting the deception. But this discussion is for another day.)
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