By Dr. Stephen Phinney   

SATAN IS BOUND

"Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time. Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years" (Rev 20:1-6).

This is what we will see in this chapter:

1. The binding and tossing of Satan. He will be sent to the prison of the abyss (pit of Hell) for a thousand years.
2. The reign of Christ and the saints for one thousand wonderful years.
3. Satan loosed for a small period to test those who will be born-again during the Millennium. He attempts to control the world one more time.
4. The dead sinners (unbelievers) will be judged. 

It is now time for Satan to be bound by the chains of Heaven. These aren't chains as you and I are used to seeing or hearing about - these chains will have the power of God in them. This means that no matter how powerful the devil thinks he is, he will not be able to break loose of this hold. Either Satan is stupid or he is missing a few gears in his gear box. Even after Christ's coming and destroying of his system/empire by burning it to the ground; tossing his Beast and False Prophet into the lake of fire by one spoken Word; and wiping out his entire army in less than an hour - how does this being think he can resist the hand of God? The depravity of Satan is far more deceptive than my human mind can behold. An old friend said to me once that 'sin makes us stupid.' If Satan is SIN, he really must be stupid - this chapter proves that. In any case, the story unfolds.

Now this angel comes from Heaven with the key to Hell and chains made by the hand of God, handing them to Christ (assumption). Christ gets hold of the dragon (Satan), binds him up, and tosses him into the pit. The age old curiosity has always been...Read More Here