And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on 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. till the thousand years were ended." However, this is not the end of Satan's role in human affairs, because "after that he must be let loose for a little while" ( Revelation 20:2-3 Revelation 20:2-3 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
Satan released for a short timeĪlso, the apostle John in Revelation describes his vision of the transition to Christ's reign in which he saw that an angel "seized the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the Devil, or Satan, and chained him up. At the beginning of His reign He begins to judge between the nations, teaching them to turn from evil to righteousness ( Isaiah 2:4 Isaiah 2:4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.Īmerican King James Version ×). How will this happen? Who will be involved in this judgment? Notice how Jesus Christ will perform the process of separating the wicked from the righteous. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. Then shall he answer them, saying, Truly I say to you, Inasmuch as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we you an hungered, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to you? I was a stranger, and you took me not in: naked, and you clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and you visited me not. For I was an hungered, and you gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink: "Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels'.These will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life" ( Matthew 25:41-46 Matthew 25:41-46 Then shall he say also to them on the left hand, Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: Then shall the King say to them on his right hand, Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:Īmerican King James Version ×). Notice the nature and result of this separation: "Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world'" ( Matthew 25:33-34 Matthew 25:33-34 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Why? So He can "separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats" ( Matthew 25:32 Matthew 25:32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats: Jesus spoke of a time when the people of all nations would gather before Him. But, even after this 1,000-year reign of peace and prosperity, much important work lies ahead. We have seen that Jesus Christ, assisted by His faithful servants, will transform the world after His return to earth.