3 Views on the 1,000 Years in Revelation 20

Type of Doctrine: Tertiary

"1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. 2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while."

-Revelation 20:1-3 ESV

As a follow up to my previous articles titled, "Why I Subscribe to Amillennialism," and also, "3 Scriptures in Support of Amillennialism," I thought it would be helpful to write a brief blog covering the main passage concerning the millennium. That is, this blog will show the three main interpretations of the millennium in Revelation 20 (i.e., the 1,000 years).

There are three main interpretations: (1) the premillennial view; (2) the postmillennial view; and (3) the amillennial view. (Click here for a deeper look at the three views or click here for a deeper look at how to interpret the book of Revelation in general.)

The following will examine how each view interprets Revelation 20.

Revelation 20:1-3 | The Binding of Satan

• Premillennial View: The binding of Satan means that Satan will be completely removed from the earth after Jesus returns. This will be a time of peace with Jesus reigning on earth. (They argue that the phrases "shut it" and "sealed it over him" are too complete to be symbolic of our present age.)[1]

• Postmillennial View: This binding of Satan refers to a future golden age of Christianity on earth before Jesus returns.

• Amillennial View: The first coming of Jesus has already bound Satan (Matt. 12:29). Therefore, Satan is now bound in the church age for the spread of the gospel. However, he will be released and an outbreak of church persecution will happen right before the return of Christ (2 Thess. 2:3-8).[2]

Revelation 20:4-6 | The First Resurrection & Reigning with Christ

• Premillennial View: "Came to life" means that deceased Christians will receive a bodily resurrection at the beginning of the millennium. Believers will reign with Christ during the 1,000 year millennium after his return.[3]

• Postmillennial View: While some agree with the amillennial interpretation (shown below), other postmillennialists say that this refers to the future success of Christianity in the world. Reigning with Christ means that Christianity will advance successfully and experience triumph in the world.[4]

• Amillennial View: "Came to life" and "the first resurrection" means that their souls went to heaven after they died. Reigning with Christ means that deceased believers from Pentecost to the second coming of Jesus will reign with Christ in heaven.[5]

Revelation 20:7-10 | The Dragon & Its Armies

• Premillennial View: This is a different battle compared to the battles mentioned earlier in Revelation. It occurs later; this battle takes place at the end of 1,000 reign of Christ on earth.[6]

• Postmillennial View: This battle is viewed as the one at the end of the golden age of Christianity on earth right before Jesus comes back.

• Amillennial View: This is the same battle as the one described in 16:13-16 and 19:17-21. This battle occurs right before the second coming of Jesus.[7]

In sum, as you can see, each view interprets this passage according to its own view on the millennium.

• For premillennialism: Jesus returns -> literal 1,000 years on earth (Satan bound)

• For postmillennialism: symbolic, future golden age of Christianity (Satan bound) -> Jesus returns

• For amillennialism: symbolic for present church age (Pentecost to 2nd coming of Jesus; Satan bound) -> Jesus returns

End Notes:

[1] ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008), 2492.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid., 2492-2493.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Ibid., 2493.

[7] Ibid.