The Binding of Satan

The Binding of Satan

"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." (Rev 20:1-3)

This verse is in the Bible! It’s the word of God. We have to realize that words mean something. They are not arbitrary or unknowable. Yet, we find so many words in scripture that nobody can seem to agree on. This is because we all have a presupposition, or a lense through which we view scripture. This is unavoidable, and anyone who says they read scripture “without bias,” or “I just believe what it says,” is deceiving themselves. When Jesus says “behold I stand at the door and knock, (Rev 3:20)” we are not to run to the front door of our house and let Jesus in! The Samaritan woman at the well does exactly this. When Jesus tells her of living water she responds, "sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. (Jhn 4:15)” 

We know Jesus wasn’t talking about the water in the woman's bucket. 

So when we get to a passage like Rev 20:1-3, we know it means something. If we believe that all of scripture is the very breath of God (2 Tim 3:16) then we cannot just avoid certain passages because we don’t like them or don’t understand them. Yet it may still require work and effort to understand what's really being said. It requires us to search out the scriptures to uncover what the Lord desires us to find.  

Another problem arises when we are dealing with theological frameworks. That is, the problem of pulling a doctrine out of the middle of a structure and asking for proof of it. For example, the text in Revelation clearly says Satan is bound “for a thousand years.” So when I say I believe Satan is bound today, then it must follow that I believe we are living in the “Thousand years.” For me to be able to fully explain how Satan is bound, I also need to explain how I believe we are in the “millenium” right now. Which means I need to explain where I believe the bible says the millenium began. Which means I need to explain what the millennium is. 

However, these things can all be addressed later, I will try to be succinct in providing the biblical reasoning behind the current status of Satan in the world. I will say at the outset so no misunderstanding occurs: 

• This is a fallen world, evil exists. 

• Man is totally depraved, the only good things that come from man, come from God. 

• Satan has an agenda and desires to be god himself.

• Satan has an army of demons who do his bidding and carry out his desires.

• Satan is not omnipresent or omniscient, hence the need for a demonic horde.

As Christians we understand the reality of the spirit world. We believe in God “who is a spirit” (John 4:24) and in the Third Person of the Trinity, the “Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). Even we ourselves are compounds of spirit and body (Gen. 2:7; James 2:26), so that when we die “the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it” (Eccl. 12:7, Matt. 10:28).

We also know of angels who are spirit-beings created by God to do his will: “Of the angels he saith, Who makes his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire” (Heb. 1:7). Some of these angels are holy, elect angels always serving God in righteousness (Luke 9:26; 1 Tim. 5:21). Others are fallen angels who resist God, determining to do evil against us (Luke 8:2; 1 Tim. 4:1). They have as their ruler, Satan the chief of the fallen angels (Matt. 25:41; Mark 2:22).

When considering spiritual warfare in the Christian life, we must not factor out the influence of Satan in the world. The Scriptures portray him as the epitome of evil who always opposes God.1 He seeks to destroy God’s work by influencing men throughout the world (Matt. 13:38-39; 2 Cor. 4:4) to do his evil will (John 8:44; 2 Tim. 2:26). He is a deceiver (Rev. 20:1) who “disguises himself as an angel of light” (2 Cor. 11:14) so that he “deceives the whole world” (Rev. 12:9). He desires to draw away those who hear the Word of God (Luke 8:12). In fact, he delights in working on those who not only hear the Word, but profess it (Acts 5:3; 1 Tim. 5:15).

He is so determined to do evil, that he even dares to tempt the Son of God: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil” (Matt. 4:1; Luke 4:2). In desperation he later entered into Judas, moving him to betray Christ (Luke 22:3; John 13:2).

As Luther so excessively declared in his hymn A Mighty Fortress is our God: “his craft and power are great.” Indeed, the Scripture itself urges us: “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). How can we expect to win against such a supernatural foe who “seeks to work us woe”? What gives us hope against such a mighty opponent?

 

Christ’s Victory

The answer to our fearful concern is the victory cry: “He is risen!” (Matt. 28:6). Unfortunately, this glorious declaration is largely muted by the confused prophets loudly misleading many today. Too many Christians believe “Satan is alive and well on planet earth.” Though he is alive, he is not well. Christ has won the victory over him. Let us see how this is so, then note how we have hope for personal victory over him.

In Revelation 20, a passage both confused and abused in popular Christian literature, we read of the Satan’s binding which ensures the victory of Christ’s kingdom: 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. . . .Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years." (Rev. 20:2-3, 6).

This dramatic imagery teaches that Satan has been “bound” so that he “should not deceive the nations any longer.” This allows all those who are spiritually resurrected believers to “reign with him” in his kingdom. Despite popular misunderstanding of this passage, this vision speaks of realities already established in Christ’s first coming, as we can tell from several reasons. 

Scripture’s Reasons

First, Christ informs us that He has already bound Satan: “If I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house” (Matt. 12:28-29). Whatever else we might think, Christ Himself declares He has bound this strong one during his earthly ministry so that He may spoil Satan’s kingdom while establishing His own. Here Satan’s binding and Christ’s kingdom are linked together by the Lord who was teaching John who later penned Revelation 20.

Second, Christ also teaches that salvation by grace through faith brings a spiritual resurrection to new life: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear shall live” (John 5:24-25; Eph. 2:5-6; Rom. 6:5-11; 1 John 3:14). This is the backdrop to the image of the “first resurrection” in Revelation 20. Christ teaches two resurrections, which John the author of Revelation records for us: the first resurrection is a spiritual one while we are in our present life (John 5:25), the second a physical one after we leave this world at the end of history (John 5:28-29; cp. John 6: 39, 44, 54; 11:24).

Third, in the introduction to Revelation John declares that we are already a kingdom of priests, which he presents in dramatic imagery in Revelation 20: “He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father; to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever” (Rev. 1:6). Note the past tense: “He has made us to be a kingdom, priests.” This historical reality, which already exists when he writes Revelation, explains the symbolic vision of chapter 20 which declares: “they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him” (Rev. 20:6).

Fourth, we must note that Satan’s binding does not totally incapacitate him. Rather his binding is for an expressly declared purpose: “that he should not deceive the nations any longer” (Rev. 20:3). This speaks of the “plundering of his house” (Matt. 12:29): Satan is bound by the first century coming of Christ’s kingdom so that he may not continue to deceive and dominate the nations any longer. In the Old Testament era only Israel knew God: “He declares His words to Jacob, His statutes and His ordinances to Israel. He has not dealt thus with any nation; And as for His ordinances, they have not known them. Praise the Lord!” (Psa. 147:19-20). “You only have I chosen among all the families of the earth” (Amos 3:2; Deut. 7:6-7). This is why Christ did not dispute Satan’s claim when he showed Him “all the kingdoms of the world” and said: “I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me” (Luke 4:5-6).

It is only in the past that “in the generations gone by He [God] permitted all the nations to go their own ways” (Acts 14:16). But now the whole world is open to release from Satan’s absolute dominion because of his having been bound by Christ. The Great Commission, therefore, confidently sends us out to “make disciples of all the nations” (Matt. 28:19) who previously were totally subject to Satan and “without hope” (Eph. 2:12). Jesus declares to Paul that he is sending him to open the Gentiles’ eyes “so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, in order that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me” (Acts 26:18).

Christ’s victory over Satan is spoken of frequently, and under various images in addition to “binding”:

• “And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven." (Luke 10:18).

• “Now judgment is upon this world; now the prince of this world shall be cast out” (John 12:31).

• “on judgment, because the prince of this world has been judged” (John 16:11).

• "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;" (Heb 2:14)

• “And the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet” (Rom. 16:20a).

• "And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it." (Col 2:15)

• “The Son of God appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8b).

Our Hope

Because of Christ’s triumph over Satan, the Scriptures promise us victory. As redeemed vessels of mercy, we must neither despair in our struggles nor blame Satan for our failures. Too many Christians pick up on deficient theology rampant in useless cliches such as “the devil made me do it.” (I’m not saying you do this personally, just that this is extremely common in fluffy Christianity today.)

We must remember that Christ has prayed for us: “I do not ask Thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one” (John 17:15). He has taught us to pray: “do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matt. 6:13).

The Bible teaches how that we may “put on the full armor of God, that we may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil” (Eph. 6:11). We are instructed to “not give the devil an opportunity” (Eph. 4:27). We can “submit therefore to God” so that if we “resist the devil . . . he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

Satan is a powerful foe, but he is a defeated foe. Otherwise such biblical directives regarding victory over Satan would be meaningless. Christ has bound him so that he may not dominate us. The victory is His, and by extension of being His Bride, ours if we seize it.

I fully recognize that you may not agree with my conclusions, but I hope that you can at least recognize that those conclusions are not “unbiblical” in the sense that it lacks scriptural support. You may accuse me of “twisting” scripture, but this is an unfruitful attack, as I can simply claim you are doing the same. I desire to discuss this with humility and love, and hope that we can at least come to an understanding and even admiration for the strengths our different positions bring to the table. 

I realize you look around at the evil in our culture and society and use this as a metric to determine that it “can’t possibly be” that Satan is in fact bound from deceiving nations. Yet, I look around and see the wonderful works of God, (whether judgment for wickedness or mercy on repentant sinners) and can say: how can Satan not be bound?

When Jesus came it changed everything. He himself said “It is finished.” He did not say “It will be finished,” or “It is mostly finished.” It changed everything for Satan too. He lost the battle with the seed of the woman. His head has been crushed, and the Bride of Christ is trampling him right now. It is in the victory of the cross and works of Christ that gives us dominion over Satan. The Holy Spirit empowers us to prevail and be overcomers. 

 (Please read Ken Gentry's article on the subject, from which I borrowed heavily)

“Soon after Christ had entered into the holy of holies with his own blood, then began a glorious success of what he had done and suffered. Having undermined the foundation of Satan’s kingdom, it began to fall. Swiftly did it hasten to ruin, which might well be compared to Satan’s falling like lightning from heaven. Satan before had exalted his throne very high in this world, even to the very stars of heaven, reigning with great glory in his heathen Roman empire; but never before had he such a downfall as he had soon after Christ’s ascension.” -- Jonathan Edwards, A History of Redemption

“The Word of God, the maker of all things, conquering him [Satan] by means of human nature, and showing him to be an apostate, has put him under the power of man. For He says, ‘Behold, I confer upon you the power of treading upon serpents and scorpions, and upon all the power of the enemy,’ (Luke 10:19) in order that, as he obtained power over man by apostasy, so again his apostasy might be deprived of power by means of man turning back again to God.” -- Irenaeus, Against Heresies

“The Devil was conquered by his own trophy of victory. The devil jumped for joy, when he seduced the first man and cast him down to death. By seducing the first man, he slew him; by slaying the last man, he lost the first from his snare. The victory of our Lord Jesus Christ came when He rose, and ascended into heaven; then was fulfilled what you have heard when the Apocalypse was being read, ‘The Lion of the tribe of Judah has won the day’ (Rev 5:5)...The devil jumped for joy when Christ died; and by the very death of Christ the devil was overcome; he took it, as it were, the bait in the trap. He rejoiced at the death, thinking himself death’s commander. But that which caused his joy dangled the bait before him. The Lord's cross was the devils trap: the bait which caught him was the death of the Lord.” -- Augustine