Revelation 20:7 kjv
And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Revelation 20:7 nkjv
Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison
Revelation 20:7 niv
When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison
Revelation 20:7 esv
And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison
Revelation 20:7 nlt
When the thousand years come to an end, Satan will be let out of his prison.
Revelation 20 7 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Rev 20:1-3 | "Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven... He seized the dragon...and bound him for a thousand years..." | Satan bound to prevent deceiving nations during the millennium. |
| Rev 20:8 | "and will come out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth..." | Purpose of Satan's release: to deceive nations. |
| Rev 20:9-10 | "fire came down from heaven and devoured them... The devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur..." | Satan's final defeat and eternal judgment. |
| 1 Pet 5:8 | "Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." | Satan's continued, though temporarily restrained, malevolence. |
| Eph 6:11-12 | "Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes." | Spiritual warfare against evil forces. |
| Jas 4:7 | "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." | Believers' call to resist Satan. |
| Gen 3:15 | "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." | Prophecy of Satan's ultimate defeat by Christ. |
| Isa 27:1 | "In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea." | Prophetic judgment on the spiritual enemy. |
| Matt 12:29 | "Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man?" | Jesus' superior power over Satan. |
| Col 2:15 | "And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross." | Christ's victory over evil spiritual forces. |
| Heb 2:14 | "Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—" | Christ destroying the devil's power through His death. |
| 1 Jn 3:8 | "The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work." | Christ's mission to undo the devil's work. |
| Job 1:12 | "The LORD said to Satan, 'Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.'" | God's sovereign control over Satan's actions and limits. |
| Zech 3:1-2 | "Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. The LORD said to Satan, 'The LORD rebuke you, Satan!'" | Satan as the accuser, limited by divine rebuke. |
| Ps 76:10 | "Surely your wrath against mankind will redound to your praise; you will gird yourself with the remnant of your wrath." | God's ability to use evil for His glory and purposes. |
| Rom 9:22 | "What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction?" | God's sovereign timing and purpose for judgment. |
| Rom 7:18 | "For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out." | The human heart's intrinsic capacity for sin even apart from overt demonic deception. |
| Jer 17:9 | "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" | Humanity's inherent depravity, even after a righteous rule. |
| Isa 46:10 | "I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’" | God's ultimate sovereignty and control over all events. |
| Acts 1:7 | "He said to them: 'It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.'" | God's exclusive knowledge and control of end-time events. |
| Jud 1:6 | "And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day." | Angels (demons) held in eternal bonds, similar concept of divine restraint. |
Revelation 20 verses
Revelation 20 7 Meaning
Revelation 20:7 proclaims that following the completion of a thousand-year period, Satan will be released from the confinement he has endured. This verse signifies a pivotal moment in God's redemptive plan, marking the end of the millennial reign and the unleashing of the adversary for a final, decisive conflict before his ultimate and eternal judgment.
Revelation 20 7 Context
Revelation 20:7 sits within the larger eschatological narrative of Revelation chapters 19 and 20. Chapter 19 describes the glorious return of Christ and the defeat of the Beast and False Prophet. Revelation 20 then focuses on a significant period of Christ's reign on earth. Verses 1-3 describe an angel binding Satan and casting him into the Abyss for "a thousand years," explicitly stating that this is to prevent him from deceiving the nations during this period. Verses 4-6 then describe the resurrection of martyrs and their reigning with Christ for these thousand years, referring to this as "the first resurrection" and "blessed and holy." Therefore, Revelation 20:7 signals the conclusion of this unprecedented millennial period of peace and righteous rule. It sets the stage for the brief final unleashing of evil (v. 8) before its decisive and eternal vanquishing (v. 9-10) and the final judgment (v. 11-15). The original audience, accustomed to prophecies of divine judgment and the eventual triumph of God's people, would have understood this progression as part of God's ultimate victory. The concept of an evil power being restrained and then temporarily released for a final test aligns with patterns of divine allowance seen elsewhere in scripture.
Revelation 20 7 Word analysis
- And (Καὶ - Kai): A common conjunction. Here, it signals the direct continuation and sequential nature of events following the prior statements about the millennial reign. It shows a precise timeline within God's decreed plan.
- when (ὅταν - hotan): A temporal conjunction meaning "when" or "whenever." It emphasizes a specific point in time and confirms that the subsequent event (Satan's loosing) is precisely tied to the conclusion of the preceding event (the thousand years). It underscores divine scheduling.
- the thousand years (χίλια ἔτη - chilia eti): Literally "a thousand years." The repetition of this phrase six times in Revelation 20 emphasizes its significance. Interpreted by some as a literal 1000-year period, while others see it as symbolic for a complete, indefinite, but lengthy duration of Christ's spiritual or heavenly reign between His first and second comings. The literal interpretation points to a future earthly kingdom, while the symbolic view sees it representing the present church age.
- are expired (τελεσθῇ - telesthē): From the verb τελέω (teleō), meaning "to finish, complete, bring to an end, accomplish, fulfill." Used in John 19:30 ("It is finished"). The passive voice indicates that the thousand years are completed by an external agent, specifically God. This confirms that the millennial period ends precisely as God purposed it to, rather than by some external force or mere passage of time outside His control.
- Satan (Σατανᾶς - Satanas): From the Hebrew שָׂטָן (satan), meaning "adversary" or "accuser." This is the ultimate spiritual enemy of God and humanity. His identity as "Satan" emphasizes his continued character as an opponent, even after prolonged confinement. His inherent evil nature is unchanged by his imprisonment.
- shall be loosed (λυθῆναι - lythēnai): From the verb λύω (lyō), meaning "to loose, untie, release, unbind." The passive voice again highlights divine agency: Satan is loosed by someone else, namely God's permissive will (Revelation 20:1-3 shows God's control over his binding). He does not escape, nor does he break free. His release is purposeful and controlled.
- out of his prison (ἐκ τῆς φυλακῆς αὐτοῦ - ek tēs phylakēs autou):
- prison (φυλακῆς - phylakēs): Can mean "a guard," "a watch," "custody," "imprisonment," or "a place of detention." Here, it refers to the Abyss (Rev 20:3), which functions as a secure place of divine detention. This is not merely a cell but a place of enforced restraint.
- his (αὐτοῦ - autou): Possessive pronoun, specifying his particular, divinely ordained prison.
- The phrase emphasizes that Satan was truly confined and had no means to escape on his own. His release is a sovereign act of God.
Words-group by words-group analysis:
- "And when the thousand years are expired": This phrase underlines the precision and intentionality of God's prophetic timetable. The end of the millennium is a divinely appointed moment, not an unpredictable occurrence. It serves as a clear demarcation point, emphasizing the distinct phases of God's redemptive history leading to final judgment.
- "Satan shall be loosed out of his prison": This declares the dramatic, yet controlled, release of the adversary. It reveals that Satan's power, though great, is entirely subject to God's will. His "prison" was not a result of human power, but divine decree, and his "loosing" similarly occurs by divine permission, not escape. The reason for this temporary release (as shown in subsequent verses) is to gather and deceive the unredeemed for the final, conclusive battle and their judgment.
Revelation 20 7 Bonus section
The temporary release of Satan underscores the enduring theological principle of divine permission. Even the malevolent actions of the Adversary are woven into God's overarching plan for the universe, ultimately serving to highlight God's justice, power, and final triumph. This event reveals the incorrigibility of Satan, as a millennium of enforced inaction does not change his enmity towards God. It also provides a stark contrast: a world under Christ's rule (the millennium) leads to unprecedented peace, but it cannot purify the rebellious heart, showing the need for eternal spiritual transformation, not just earthly conditions. The subsequent final battle orchestrated by Satan after his release confirms that the problem of sin is not merely external temptation but originates within human depravity, thus necessitating the Great White Throne Judgment (Rev 20:11-15).
Revelation 20 7 Commentary
Revelation 20:7 signifies a crucial turning point in the eschatological timeline. After a millennium during which Christ reigns and Satan is restrained from deceiving the nations, God permits Satan's temporary release. This is not an oversight or a weakness on God's part, but a sovereign, purposeful act. The primary reason for this loosing, elucidated in the subsequent verses, is to allow humanity's inherent spiritual condition, even after a long period of righteous rule and an absence of overt satanic influence, to be fully manifested. It demonstrates that sin is deeply rooted in the human heart (Jer 17:9; Rom 7:18), and that without the transformative power of God's Spirit, rebellion can re-emerge even under ideal circumstances. Furthermore, it allows for the final and conclusive separation of the redeemed from those whose hearts remain opposed to God, culminating in Satan's ultimate and eternal defeat. This event reaffirms God's absolute sovereignty over evil; Satan cannot act outside God's permissive will, neither in his binding nor his brief release.