Revelation 20:10, commentary and pictures

The devil is cast into the lake of fire at the close of the thousand years after Christ's second coming, after the wicked are raised and gathered against the Holy City and before the new heaven and new earth appear. The lake of fire is devouring fire from God out of heaven that rains upon Satan and the wicked multitude and melts and consumes all that remains of sin. To be tormented day and night is to suffer consciously while being burned up as long as any part remains unconsumed, with punishment measured according to deeds so that some perish quickly while Satan and his angels suffer long. The punishment ends in complete consumption, when Satan with all the wicked as root and branches is burned up, ceases to exist and is no more. That final destruction forever removes evil from the universe, purifies the earth to become the saints' inheritance, and settles that Satan's kingdom ends and he will never again trouble Christ and the redeemed.

Time and Surrounding Events

The casting of the devil who deceived them into the lake of fire is fulfilled at the close of the thousand years after Christ's second advent. It follows the resurrection of the wicked and takes place before the new heaven and new earth appear. In order, the beast and the false prophet are taken and cast into the lake of fire, and the dragon who is the devil, the instigator of the great rebellion against heaven, is bound and cast into the bottomless pit for a thousand years. Then comes the resurrection of the wicked, followed by the casting of the devil into the lake of fire for the final destruction of Satan with all the wicked, opening the final triumph and reign of Christ on this earth.

Before that casting, Satan with his evil angels is confined to this desolate, broken earth during the thousand years. Cities and villages lie in heaps, mountains are moved, caverns are left, rocks are scattered, seas are thrown up, and great trees are rooted up and strewn over the land like a wilderness. Shut up to the earth alone, he wanders up and down seeing the effects of his rebellion against God's law and enjoying the effects of the curse he caused, with no privilege of going to other planets to tempt and annoy those who have not fallen. Deprived of his power, with his evil traits no longer in constant exercise, he suffers extremely and is left to reflect upon the part he has acted since his fall. He looks forward with trembling and terror to the dreadful future punishment when he must suffer for all the evil he has done and be punished for all the sins he has caused to be committed.

After the thousand years he deceives the resurrected wicked, the host of Gog and Magog, into believing they can take the Holy City and leads them in a march against it. The saints are secure in the city with Jesus and the gates are shut, while the curse is pronounced upon the wicked outside. The King pronounces their sentence upon that host, the sentence meted out through the thousand years by the saints in unison with Jesus, and the execution of that judgment follows. Then the wicked see the redeemed and Christ's glory and recognize what they have lost and that sin leads to death. The voice of the Son of man resounds through all the nations of the dead, and every saint who sleeps in Jesus awakes and leaves his prison house, while whoever has disowned Christ and betrayed Him in the person of His saints sees the result of their work.

Meaning of Fire and Torment

The lake of fire is devouring, consuming fire from God out of heaven, breathed from God and sent from the throne and rained upon Satan and the wicked multitude to destroy great and mighty and noble and poor together. That same fire melts the mountains with fervent heat and consumes the atmosphere and all stubble. To be tormented day and night is to suffer consciously with full sense of suffering while being burned up as long as any portion remains unconsumed.

The undying worm and unquenched fire mean the fire does not go out as long as there is the least particle for it to prey upon. The suffering is measured according to the deeds done in the body, so some are quickly destroyed while others suffer longer, some many days consuming. Satan and his angels suffer long in that fire.

The punishment ends in complete consumption, when Satan and all the wicked host are burned up as root and branches and cease to exist and are no more. That final burning satisfies the justice of God, answered by Amen from all the angelic host and all the redeemed saints.

Satan's Burden and Greater Punishment

The devil cast into the lake of fire is the dragon who instigated the great rebellion against heaven. He is the originator of sin and of dissension and strife, who by seeking to carry out his own will instead of the will of God aroused rebellion in heaven and was finally cast out. With those who fell with him he lost all the purity and glory of heaven forever, and though repentance and weeping and pleading to be taken back into favor even to any assigned place followed, reinstatement was impossible. Heaven must not be placed in jeopardy, for all heaven might be marred should he be taken back, because sin originated with him and the seeds of rebellion were within him, and his sin and hate and envy and jealousy had grown so great that it could not be blotted out. After the beast and the false prophet are taken and cast into the lake of fire, the dragon is bound and cast into the bottomless pit for a thousand years, then comes the resurrection of the wicked, followed by his final destruction with all the wicked, opening the final triumph and reign of Christ on this earth.

His suffering in that fire embraces his own rebellion and sins, together with the sins of all the redeemed host placed upon him as the originator of sin, together with the sins he caused God's people to commit and the ruin of the souls he caused to be lost. Those who are redeemed by the blood of Christ and overcome have their sins at last rolled back upon him, while those who do not accept salvation through Jesus bear the penalty of their own sins. This was settled by the death of Christ, which Satan had hoped would break up the plan of salvation, but the plan was laid too deep to be broken, so that it is certain he must finally die and his kingdom be taken away and given to Jesus. After the cross he still works with increased cunning and power against the followers of Jesus to prevent all he can from receiving the purchased salvation, still working against the government of God and seeking his own interest by keeping from Jesus all he can.

As the scapegoat bore the sins placed upon it and was sent away from Israel, so Satan will bear the final penalty for sin and be forever banished from God and His people. At the close of the work of redemption and the purification of the universe, sin is removed from the heavenly sanctuary and placed upon him, and the removal of the scapegoat from the congregation represents this final separation of sin and sinners. He receives this final punishment because he originated sin and instigated the sins that caused the death of Christ. His end is the final destruction and blotting from existence of sin and sinners.

His punishment is far greater and lasts much longer than the punishment of those he deceived, for after they have perished he continues to live and suffer. During the thousand years, deprived of his power and left on the desolate earth, he already suffers intensely as he reflects on his rebellion and its results, and afterward he must suffer for the evil he has done and the sins he caused others to commit. After he leads the wicked in one last rebellion and attack upon God, when they see they cannot prevail and their cause is hopeless, they turn against him and the agents who deceived them before the fire from God brings judgment. He suffers for his own rebellion and for the sins he caused God's people to commit, so his punishment exceeds theirs, yet it ends in his ultimate destruction in the cleansing fire.

End of Evil and New Earth

The casting into the lake of fire is the destruction of Satan and all his followers at the conclusion of the great controversy, when evil is completely and forever removed from the universe. As the scapegoat bore the sins placed upon it and was sent away from Israel, Satan bears sin's final penalty and is forever banished from God and His people, blotted from existence. When he ceases to exist, with the agents he used to trouble and grieve God's people, sin and the evils that have afflicted the earth will be no more.

The same fire from God that consumes the wicked purifies the whole earth, so that after the thousand years the execution of judgment both destroys the rebels and prepares the saints' glorious inheritance, the earth made new. When the saints are secure in the city with Jesus and the gates are shut and the curse is pronounced upon the wicked outside, fire breathed from God falls upon them and consumes them, giving each the punishment meted out through the thousand years by the saints in unison with Jesus. Satan is the root and his followers are the branches, and the fire burns them up and then purifies the earth, melting the mountains with fervent heat and the atmosphere and consuming all stubble, so the inheritance of the whole earth made new is opened before the saints glorious and beautiful, which the wicked never defile.

Heaven and the city of God require perfect harmony and peace with the will of the Lord and have no room for those who have no regard for it, so Satan, who by seeking his own will instead of God's will aroused rebellion and was cast out as the originator of dissension and strife, must be utterly destroyed together with all who have united with him in his work. After being shut out of heaven Satan and those who fell with him lost all the purity and glory of heaven forever, and though they repented and wept and implored to be taken back into the favor of God, even to any place assigned them, they could not be reinstated. Heaven must not be placed in jeopardy, for all heaven might be marred should he be taken back, because sin originated with him and the seeds of rebellion were within him, and their sin, hate, envy and jealousy had been so great that God could not blot it out. Though after the second resurrection Satan the root and those who followed him the branches perish together and the outcome of rebellion is acknowledged as just, that acknowledgment does not give another probation because their cases are forever settled.

The future life will have no tempter, no opportunity for temptation, and no possibility of wrongdoing, because everyone there will have endured the testing of evil and will no longer be vulnerable to its power. Satan himself will be destroyed ere long and heaven will stand free, and the saved will rest from every temptation because he cannot reach them there. Not one enters that heavenly city who is not an overcomer in this world, and the overcomers receive an eternal weight of glory and that life which measures with the life of God, that life which is immortal, to see the King in His beauty with no more going out, no more sickness, no more sorrow, and no more pain.

Christ's Victory and Solemn Warning

Christ’s death to redeem humanity settled that Satan must finally die by death and that his kingdom will be taken away and given to Jesus. Christ’s triumph over death and resurrection assure that Satan’s power is limited and continues only for a season, that his kingdom will end, and that his hope of breaking up the plan of salvation and making redemption fail is lost, for the plan was laid too deep to be overthrown. After the cross Satan works with increased cunning and power against Christ’s followers to keep from Jesus all he can and prevent them from receiving the salvation purchased, still opposing the government of God and seeking his own interest, yet he will be destroyed and will never again trouble Jesus or the saints in glory. As the originator of sin he will bear the punishment for the sins of those redeemed by the blood of Christ who overcome, rolled back upon him at last, while those who do not accept salvation through Jesus will bear the penalty of their own sins, and Satan himself feared that his kingdom was lost and that he must finally be destroyed.

In his final defeat Satan sees that his kingdom and all his efforts to oppose Christ have ended in failure and ruin, and he recognizes that the city of God is not an easy prey and that God’s power and majesty cannot be overcome. His overthrow will be complete, and everyone who chooses apostasy and joins him rather than remaining loyal to God will perish with him. When Jesus comes, Satan’s power to lead people astray and the reign of sin will end, and God’s people will enjoy sanctification forever.