Revelation 20:9

B.—EARTH-PICTURE OF THE LAST JUDGMENT

Rev_20:9-10

9And they went up on [om. on—ins. upon] the breadth of the earth, and compassed [encompassed] the camp [army or fortification (παρεμβολή)] of the saints about [om. about],and the beloved city: and fire came down from God [or om. from God]12 out of10 [ins. the] heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived [seduceth or misleadeth] them was cast into the lake of [ins. the] fire and [or ins. the]13 brimstone, where [ins. also are] the beast and the false prophet are [om. are], and [ins. they] shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever [into the ages of the ages].

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

SYNOPTICAL VIEW

By the prophetic preterite, as well as by the brevity of the description, the Seer expresses the vanity of this last rebellion, which is aimed directly against God in His people, and which, notwithstanding its terrifically mighty development, is instantaneously annihilated. These enemies, with their creaturely forces, stand opposed, as they think, merely to a city of the children of peace, whilst in reality they are drawn up against all the cosmical powers of Heaven. And they went up upon the breadth of the earth. The idea is that they come from the low-lands of the corners of the earth—to destroy the City of God upon the more central, elevated plain of the earth. But that the words are intended to convey the precise idea of a going up against Jerusalem, is difficult to suppose, because for the Seer the true Jerusalem, according to chap. 21, comes down from Heaven, and here only the beloved city is spoken of, which, as well as the camp of the saints—who are drawn up before the city, in order to its protection—the enemies encompass. It cannot be without reason that the Seer has here avoided the name of Jerusalem (although for an Israelitish heart it might be paraphrased by the expression, the beloved city), whilst in chap. 21. he uses the name in the same sense in which it is employed by the Apostle Paul, Gal_4:26. At this moment, when the last and, apparently, the most fearful crisis of the world’s history is close at hand—a crisis which is all the more fearful, or, we might say, the more demonically unnatural, if we conceive of the glorified Christ as shut in, together with the saints, by the hostile host—there falls from Heaven a fire which consumes the foe. An exegetical reading, with the confident feeling that this direct war against God must likewise be put down by God, has added the words, from God; viewed in another aspect, however, the brief term from Heaven is more effective; Heaven itself, the whole Cosmos, against which they finally rage, must now, for God’s sake, react against them, in destroying might, with its fire. And now Satan himself, who seduceth the nations, is cast into the pool of the fire and brimstone, whither the Beast and the False Prophet have preceded him. This view, like the discourse of Christ (Matthew 25.), is at variance with the mediæval idea that Satan, as a fire-demon and prince of hell, torments souls in hell. They shall, it is declared, be tormented day and night into the æons of the æons To the essence and spiritual condition of the prince of darkness and his consorts, their sphere and external mode of existence shall correspond. There are in their character no motives for a change; except that through the consummate stagnation of their condition, their consummate irritation must be more and more neutralized.

EXPLANATIONS IN DETAIL

Rev_20:9. And they went up.—Hab_1:6. “The term ἀναβαίνειν, usual where military marches are spoken of (1Ki_22:4; Ju. 1:1), because the position of the attacked is naturally conceived of as on a height (Hengstenberg), is the more fitting here, since the march of the heathen is really directed upward against Jerusalem.” Duesterdieck. The primary statement is rather, however, that they go up upon the breadth of the earth, the symbolic elevated plain of the earth, which, as such, forms the specific antithesis to the symbolic four corners of the earth; it is the highland of the spirit. The object of the attack is then, certainly, defined in accordance with an Old Testament conception (see Zec_12:7-8; comp. Köhler, Sacharja, p. 185). The saints have encamped about the beloved city to protect it. All the forces of the Kingdom of Heaven form the defence for all its possessions. If we glance once more at the passage cited [Zec_12:7-8], Zec_14:1-2 might seem to afford an explanation as to wherefore the Seer did not call the beloved city Jerusalem. Grotius apprehended the Seven Churches by the camp of the saints, and Constantinople by the beloved city. Others (Augustine, Vitringa, Hengstenberg) have regarded the city as the Church; Bengel and most moderns, as Jerusalem.

And fire came down.—Eze_39:6; Eze_38:22; Gen_19:24; Lev_10:2; Num_16:35; Luk_9:54. See Syn. View. The fire catastrophe shows that the universal judgment of the world is at hand—the fiery metamorphosis of the earth. And consumed them.—To be understood of the destruction of their life in this present world.

Rev_20:10. And the devil that seduceth (or misleadeth) them.—Πλανῶν, as the present participle, denotes the continuance of sin under punishment. And they shall be tormented.—Namely, the Devil, the Beast, and the False Prophet. A preliminary general presentment, see in Rev_14:11; the final presentment, Rev_20:14-15; Rev_21:8.

SPECIAL DOCTRINO-ETHICAL AND HOMILETICAL NOTES (ADDENDUM)

Section Ninteenth

Third or General End-Judgment. b. Earth-picture of the Last Judgment. (Rev_20:9-10.)

General and Special.—Brief history of the greatest war. 1. The war: (a) they went up; (b) they surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. 2. The defeat: (a) fire from Heaven devoured them; (b) Satan is cast into the lake of fire.—Great Heaven as an ally of this little earth.—The Kingdom of the Lord must always be victorious.—The greater the danger which menaces the people of God, the more wondrous their preservation.—The last victory, in its magnitude: Most wonderful (apparently without a weapon of defense), most mysterious (from Heaven), most glorious (destruction of Satan forever).

Starke: Those who regard this vision as, in part, fulfilled, apprehend it as relating to Turks, Tartars, Scythians and Mohammedans, etc. Those who take it, in company with the thousand years, as still future, etc. (Confused mingling of the most diverse periods!)—Dimpel: O wretched hellish trinity ! The Beast, the False Prophet and Satan, are tormented in the fiery lake to all eternity.

H. Böhmer (p. 293): The fact here presented, to wit, that Satan, after having been bound, shall at last be loosed again for a short time, seems to us to constitute a deep and weighty truth; not because sin can be traced only to a seduction through Satan, but because we must naturally suppose that God will, at some future day, permit all who set Him at defiance to unite themselves for the last possible battle against Him and thus prosecute their abuse of liberty to the climax of self-inflicted judgment. We hold this final emergence of Satan to be necessary, because without it there would be no real finale to that conflict which was begun in apostasy from God, and, consequently, no full victory.

[From M. Henry: God will, in an extraordinary and more immediate manner, fight this last and decisive battle of His people, that the victory may be complete, and the glory redound to Himself.—From Vaughan: Upon this gathering, this confederation of infidelity, of ungodliness, and of atheism, will burst the light of Christ’s coming, and the devouring fire of God.]

Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

20:9 Again, no battle occurs (see 16:16-21; 19:19-21), because fire from heaven came down . . . and consumed them as it did Sodom (Gen 19:24; see also 2 Kgs 1:10-12; Ezek 38:22-23; 39:6). The enemies of God cannot stand against him.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Rev 20:9. Τὴν πόλιν τὴν ἠγαπημένην) Jerusalem is called πόλις ἠγαπημένη, Sir 24:11. But here it comes under the name both of camp and city, ἓν διὰ δυοῖν. Μεμισημένος, ch. Rev 18:2, and ἠγαπημένος, are opposed to one another: and yet in this place there seems to be pointed out a security on the part of the city, which is not altogether harmless, as Deu 32:15. In the Greek it is ἀπελάκτισεν ὁ ἠγαπημένος.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The wrath of God, consuming the adversaries, and overthrowing all their enterprises, Heb. 10:27. And this is the second member mentioned, verse 7, the overthrow of Satan.

As if he said insomuch that the whole face of the earth, how great soever it is was filled.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

on the breadth of the earth--so as completely to overspread it. Perhaps we ought to translate, ". . . of the [holy] land."

the camp of the saints and the beloved city--the camp of the saints encircling the beloved city, Jerusalem (Ecclesiasticus 24:11). Contrast "hateful" in Babylon (Rev 18:2; Deu 32:15, Septuagint). Ezekiel's prophecy of Gog and Magog (Eze. 38:1-39:29) refers to the attack made by Antichrist on Israel before the millennium: but this attack is made after the millennium, so that "Gog and Magog" are mystical names representing the final adversaries led by Satan in person. Ezekiel's Gog and Magog come from the north, but those here come "from the four corners of the earth." Gog is by some connected with a Hebrew root, "covered."

from God--so B, Vulgate, Syriac, Coptic, and ANDREAS. But A omits the words. Even during the millennium there is a separation between heaven and earth, transfigured humanity and humanity in the flesh. Hence it is possible that an apostasy should take place at its close. In the judgment on this apostasy the world of nature is destroyed and renewed, as the world of history was before the millennial kingdom; it is only then that the new heaven and new earth are realized in final perfection. The millennial new heaven and earth are but a foretaste of this everlasting state when the upper and lower congregations shall be no longer separate, though connected as in the millennium, and when new Jerusalem shall descend from God out of heaven. The inherited sinfulness of our nature shall be the only influence during the millennium to prevent the power of the transfigured Church saving all souls. When this time of grace shall end, no other shall succeed. For what can move him in whom the visible glory of the Church, while the influence of evil is restrained, evokes no longing for communion with the Church's King? As the history of the world of nations ended with the manifestation of the Church in visible glory, so that of mankind in general shall end with the great separation of the just from the wicked (Rev 20:12) [AUBERLEN].

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 9. The beloved city] Primarily, Jerusalem, typically, the Christian Church.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(9) And they went up on the breadth of the earth.—The hostile multitudes spread like swarms over the earth, and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. Jerusalem is the beloved city—in it was the Mount Zion which God loved (Psa_78:68). It is the figure of the true spiritual Zion and Jerusalem which has been faithful to her king. The beloved city has its camp; it is ready for war. It has waged its spiritual warfare against all forms of evil, Its citizens, like the returned exiles (Neh_4:17-18), could never lay down the sword (comp. Eph_6:10; Joh_2:14; Joh_5:4); but the hostile demonstration is arrested by divine intervention. There came down fire out of the heaven (the words “from God” are of doubtful authority) and devoured them. The Shechinah light tabernacled over the holy city. Its light was also a flame ready to break forth upon the wicked. (Comp. Rev_1:14; Rev_7:15, Note; Heb_12:29; 2Th_1:6-10.) There may be allusion to the overthrow of the cities of the plains (Gen_19:24), but other incidents may have been in the prophet’s mind: the fire which fell from heaven upon the enemies of an earlier prophet, Elijah (2Ki_1:9-14), and the fire which broke forth from the tabernacle in the wilderness upon those who defied the laws of the God of Israel (Num_16:16-17; Num_16:35; Lev_10:1-2). It must be remembered that, in the passage before us, the prophet is using the incidents and actions of the past as imagery, and that the present vision is figurative, though of course not mere empty figure: for Christ will thoroughly purge His floor (Mat_3:12).

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

9. And they went up &c.] The Seer does not pass easily over the immense space of time during which the world is too happy to have a history. He sees the establishment of the earthly kingdom of Christ, and foretells its end: it is only gradually that he comes to see the end also brought before his view as present.

the breadth of the earth] Perhaps rather, of the land; they overspread the whole land of Israel, against which, as we see from the next clause, their attack is directed.

the camp of the saints] God’s people assemble in military array, and stand on their defence against His enemies. They are probably prepared to fight, but as in Rev_19:21, they have no need.

the beloved city] i.e. Jerusalem, which, it appears from this place only, will be the seat and capital of the millennial kingdom. It appears that in the popular millennial anticipations, which discredited the literal interpretation of this prophecy, this localisation of the kingdom was much insisted on, and it was even thought that the Jewish law and the sacrificial worship would be revived. This of course is utterly incredible to most Christians: but there is no difficulty in supposing that the Kingdom of God may literally have an earthly centre in the Holy City and the Holy Land. Even if the literal view be not taken, the prophecy can hardly imply less than a future purity of the Church far exceeding the present; and it may be that this purified Church will recognise a better Papacy at Jerusalem, one not too proud to learn either from the excellences or from the faults of the Roman.

and fire came down &c.] Cf. 2Ki_1:10, and ch. Rev_11:5, and even Rev_13:13. This does not agree with the description of Gog’s overthrow in Ezekiel 39, where the army lie slain till they are buried, and their weapons are broken up for firewood.

from God] Should probably be omitted.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And they went up on the breadth of the earth,.... Either the whole earth, in the several parts of which they will be raised; or the land of Israel, where Christ and his people will be; and so the wicked being raised, will come up from the several parts of the world, and spread themselves over the holy land; just as Gog and Magog are said to cover the land of Israel, as a cloud, Eze 38:16 and it may be observed, that the very phrase of , "the breadth of thy land", is used of Immanuel's land, or the land of Israel, in Isa 8:8

and compassed the camp of the saints about; these are the blessed and Holy Ones, who have part in the first resurrection, even all the saints; not only the martyrs under the Heathen persecutions, and the confessors of Christ under the Papacy, but all the saints from the beginning of the world; these will be all encamped together, with the tabernacle of God in the midst of them, Rev 21:3 and Christ their King at the head of them, Mic 2:13 the allusion is to the encampment of the children of Israel in the wilderness, about the tabernacle, which was in the midst of them, Num 2:2 &c. afterwards the city of Jerusalem itself was called a camp, and answered in all respects to the camp in the wilderness (f), to which the reference is in Heb 13:11 and which serves to illustrate the passage here, since it follows:

and the beloved city: not Constantinople, as some have thought, but the holy city, the new Jerusalem, Rev 21:2 the general assembly and church of the firstborn, beloved by God and Christ, and by the holy angels, and by one another; and these very probably will be with Christ upon the same spot of ground where the Old Jerusalem stood, a city so highly favoured, and so much distinguished by God; so that where Christ suffered so much reproach and shame, and such an accursed death, he will now be glorified, and live in triumph with his saints:

and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them; not material fire; with this the earth, and the bodies of the wicked then upon it, will be burnt at the beginning of the thousand years; but now their bodies will be raised immortal, and not capable of being consumed with such fire; but the fiery indignation of God, or his wrath, which will be poured out like fire, is here meant, which will destroy both body and soul; this is no other than the lake of fire, or second death, into which they will be cast; and which will not be until the judgment is over, though it is here related to show what will be the event and issue of their attack upon the saints: the allusion is to the fire sent upon Gog and Magog, and to the burning of their weapons, in Eze 38:22 and so the Jews (g) say of their Gog and Magog, that

"they shall be killed with the burning of the soul, with a flame of fire, which shall come from under the throne of glory.''

(f) T. Bab Zebachim, fol. 116. 2. Maimon. Hilch. Beth Habbechirah, c. 7. sect. 11. (g) Targum Jon. in Numb. xi. 26.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.

Ver. 9. And they went up] As a flood, Eze 8:9; Eze 8:16.

And compassed] As resolved that none should escape them, Psa 118:11-12; 2Ki 6:14-15; 2Ki 25:1.

The camp of the saints] The Church militant.

And the beloved city] The New Jerusalem, Rev 21:2; "The dearly beloved of God’s soul," Jer 12:7; or, "God’s dearly beloved soul," την ψυχην την ηγαπημενην, as the Septuagint render it. (Spec. Europ.) For present the Turk is the bridle that holds in the pope with all his followers from any universal proceeding against the Protestants; who herein are greatly advantaged above them, in that their opposites lie between them and the Turk; or in that their countries, coasting so much as they do toward the north (as Denmark, Switzerland, &c.), are out of his way, and no part of his present aim. Italy is the mark he shoots at. And when once he shall rise against the true Church, fire from heaven shall devour him.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And they went up on the breadth of the earth - They spread over the earth in extended columns. The image is that of an invading army that seems, in its march, to spread all over a land. The reference here is to the hosts assembled from the regions of Gog and Magog; that is, to the formidable enemies of the gospel that would be roused up at the close of the period properly called the “millennial” period - the period of the thousand years. It is not necessary to suppose that there would be “literally” armies of enemies of God summoned from lands that would be called lands of “Gog and Magog”; but all that is necessarily implied is, that there will be a state of hostility to the church of Christ which would be well illustrated by such a comparison with an invading host of barbarians. The expression “the breadth of the land” occurs in Hab 1:6, in a description. of the invasion of the Chaldeans, and means there “the whole extent of it”; that is, they would spread over the whole country.

And compassed the camp of the saints about - Besieged the camp of the saints considered as engaged in war, or as attacked by an enemy. The “camp of the saints” here seems to be supposed to be without the walls of the city; that is, the army was drawn out for defense. The fact that the foes were able to “compass this camp about,” and to encircle the city at the same time, shows the greatness of the numbers of the invaders.

And the beloved city - Jerusalem - a city represented as beloved by God and by his people. The whole imagery here is derived from a supposed invasion of the land of Palestine - imagery than which nothing could be more natural to John in describing the hostility that would be aroused against the church in the latter day. But no just principle of interpretation requires us to understand this “literally.” Compare Heb 12:22. Indeed, it would be absolutely “impossible” to give this chapter throughout a “literal” interpretation. What would be the “literal” interpretation of the very first verses? “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 and bound” him.” Can anyone believe that there is to be a literal “key,” and a “chain,” and an act of seizing a “serpent,” and “binding” him? As little is it demanded that the passage before us should be taken “literally”; for if it is maintained that this should be, we may insist that the same principle of interpretation should be applied to every part of the chapter, and every part of the book.

And fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them - Consumed them - fire being represented as devouring or eating. See the notes on Rev 17:16. The meaning is, that they would be destroyed as if fire should come down from heaven, as on Sodom and Gomorrah. But it is not necessary to understand this literally, anymore than it is the portions of the chapter just referred to. What is obviously meant is, that their destruction would be sudden, certain, and entire, and that thus the last enemy of God and the church would be swept away. Nothing can be determined from this about the “means” by which this destruction will be effected; and that must be left for time to disclose. It is sufficient to know that the destruction of these last foes of God and the church will be certain and entire. This “language,” as denoting the final destruction of the enemies of God, is often employed in the Scriptures. See Psa 11:6; Isa 29:6; Eze 38:22; Eze 39:6.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

And they went up on the breadth of the earth; that is, in all parts of it where the church of Christ was.

And compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city; the church of God (typified by old Jerusalem, which was God’s beloved city) they encompassed in a military order and manner, designing to destroy it, or make it subject to their lusts.

And fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them: thus Ezekiel prophesied of the issue of the Gog and Magog by him mentioned, Eze 38:18-22; Eze 38:22, And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. The meaning is, that God would destroy them with a quick and terrible destruction, such as is that destruction of persons and places which is by fire.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

9. Went up—These hosts from all parts of the earth are concentrating upon Jerusalem.

Breadth of the earth—The earth visible to the seer is a vast surface, with four corners, or compass points, and over the plain the armies from every point are making themselves visible.

Camp—The heroic body of champions and defenders of the faith.

The beloved city—Not the “New Jerusalem,” for that is yet to come down “out of heaven,”

Rev_21:2; nor the old Hebrew capital; but the mystic Jerusalem, the true Church, the antithesis of the mystic Babylon. She is at this period the earth’s centre, and upon her are gathering from all the horizon the hosts of Satan.

Fire… devoured them—As it once did Sodom. And now is fulfilled St. Paul’s wonderful prediction of the Man of Sin. See our notes on 2Th_2:6-9. This is the final parousia of Satan preceding the second advent. As before the millennium antichrist was consumed “by the breath of his mouth,” so here he is destroyed by “the brightness of his coming”—blazing forth in devouring fire. Even Romanistic interpreters admit this future antichrist. Just before the great white throne appears antichrist is consigned to gehenna. There was no need of trial and sentence for him.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And they went up on the breadth cf the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city; over the breadth. "They went up" as an army to attack the enemy. (cf. Jud_1:1) Either we must render the camp... even the beloved city, or else we must understand the camp as a defensive outpost placed around or near the city. In Act_21:34 the same word is rendered "castle." "The beloved city" is evidently Jerusalem, (cf. Psa_78:68) that is, the Church of God, of which it is always a type in the Apocalypse. (cf. Rev_3:12 Rev_21:2, Rev_21:10) The description plainly portrays the Church militant here on earth. And fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. "From God" is omitted in A, a few cursives, and Primasius, but appears in a, B, P, l, 7, and most cursives and versions; but these authorities vary in the position of the added clause. So in Revelation 11 fire devours the enemies of the two witnesses. This sentence is introduced in connection with the description of Gog and Magog, following the account of Ezekiel, where the same punishment is foretold. (see Eze_38:22 Eze_39:6) It is probable, therefore, that nothing more definite is intended than to convey the general idea that God aids and protects his Church even while on earth. He, as it were, gives the enemies of his people a foretaste, while here on earth, of their future punishment of the lake of fire (see also on the seal visions).

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And they went up on the breadth of the earth, or the land - Filling the whole breadth of it. And surrounded the camp of the saints - Perhaps the gentile church, dwelling round about Jerusalem. And the beloved city - So termed, likewise, Ecclesiasticus xxiv. 11.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

9. And they went up over the breadth of the earth. They spread over it. Compassed the camp of the saints and the beloved city. Assailed the true Church and sought to destroy it. How the Church shall be assailed cannot now be told, but there will be a determined attempt to extirpate it. The beloved city, the spiritual Jerusalem, the Church, shall be surrounded, but in the day of her extremity the Lord will hear her cry for help. Fire from heaven will descend on her enemies. Christ shall come. “As the lightning flashes from the east unto the west, so shall the coming of the Son of man be.” Then shall the Lord consume the wicked “with the spirit of his mouth and the brightness of his coming.” “The day of the Lord shall come, when the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, and all its works shall be burned up.” Fire came down from God and consumed them. For a comment on this read 2 Thess. 1:7–10. They shall come in flaming fire to destroy his enemies. The time will have come for the arm of the Lord to be revealed in might.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

They went

"Satan's army went"

the beloved city

This refers to Jerusalem.

fire came down from heaven and devoured them

Here John speaks of fire as if it were alive. AT: "God sent fire from heaven to burn them up" (See: Personification)

The devil, who deceived them, was thrown into

This can be stated in active form. AT: "God threw the devil, who had deceived them, into" or "God's angel threw the devil, who had deceived them, into" (See: Active or Passive)

lake of burning sulfur

"the lake of fire that burns with sulfur" or "place full of fire that burns with sulfur." See how you translated this in Revelation 19:20.

where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown

This can be stated in active form. AT: "where he had also thrown the beast and the false prophet" (See: Active or Passive)

They will be tormented

This can be stated in active form. AT: "God will torment them" (See: Active or Passive)

translationWords

believe

beloved

fire

heaven

devour

Satan

deceive

hell

sulfur

beast

false prophet

eternity

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

παρεμβολή , either camp (as in O.T., e.g. , Deu 23:14 ) or army (Heb 11:34 ), the saints being supposed to lie in a circle or leaguer round the headquarters of the messiah in Jerusalem, which by an association common in the ancient world ( e.g. , Nineveh, “the beloved city” of her god Ishtar) istermed his beloved city. The phrase is an implicit answer ( cf. on Rev 3:9 ) to the claim of contemporary Judaism which held to the title of “God’s beloved” as its monopoly (Apoc. Bar. Rev 20:1 , xxi. 21, cf. Sir. xxiv. 11). In the Hebrew Elias apocalypse of the 3rd century ( cf. Buttenwieser, E. J. i. 681 2), where Gog and Magog also appear after the millennium to besiege Jerusalem, their annihilation is followed by the judgment and the descent of Jerusalem from heaven. This tradition of Rev 20:4-10 therefore belongs to the cycle from which Rev 11:1-13 (Rev 14:14-20 ) was drawn; Jerusalem, freed from her foes and purified within, forms the headquarters of messiah’s temporary reign, tenanted not simply by devout worshippers but by martyrs ( cf. Rev 14:1-5 , on mount Zion). Yet only a new and heavenly Jerusalem is finally adequate (21. f.); it descends after the last punishment and judgment (Rev 11:15 f. = Rev 20:10 f.). Wetstein cites from the Targ. Jonath. a passage which has suggested elements in this and in the preceding (Rev 11:17-19 ) vision: a king rises in the last days from the land of Magog, et omnes populi obedient illi; after their rout by fire their corpses lie a prey to wild beasts and birds. Then “all the dead of Israel shall live … and receive the reward of their works”. In the highest spirit of the O.T., however, John rejects the horrible companion thought (En. lxxxix. 58, xciv. 10, xcvii. 2) that God gloats over the doom of the damned. An onset of foreign nations upon Jerusalem naturally formed a stereotyped feature in all Jewish expectations of latter-day horrors; here, however, as the city is ipso facto tenanted by holy citizens, the siege is ineffective (contrast Rev 11:1 f.). Neither here nor in Rev 19:21 are the rebellious victims consigned at death to eternal punishment, as are the beast, the false prophet, and Satan. The human tools of the latter die, but they are raised (Rev 20:11 f.) for judgment (Rev 20:15 ), though the result of their trial is a foregone conclusion (Rev 13:8 , Rev 14:9-10 ). In En. vi., from which this passage borrows, Gog and Magog are represented by the Medes and the Parthians from whom (between 100 and 46 B.C.) a hostile league against Palestine might have been expected by contemporaries. But the destruction of the troops is there caused by civil dissensions. In our Apocalypse the means of destruction is supernatural fire, as in 2Th 1:8 ; 2Th 2:8 ; 2Th 2:4 Esd. 12:33, 13:38 39, Ap. Bar. xxvii. 10, Asc. Isa. iv. 18 (where fire issues from the Beloved to consume all the godless); the Parthians also appear some time before the end, in the penultimate stage when the Roman empire and its Nero-antichrist make their last attack. But the prophet is still left with the orthodox eschatological tradition of Gog and Magog, an episode (consecrated by the Ezekiel-prophecy and later belief) which he feels obliged to work in somehow. Hence his arrangement of Satan’s final recrudescence in juxtaposition with the Gog and Magog outburst ( cf. on Rev 16:16 , and Klausner’s messian. Vorstellungen d. jüd. Volkes im Zeit. d. Tannaiten , pp. 61 f.). The latter, an honoured but by this time awkward survival of archaic eschatology, presented a similar difficulty to the Talmudic theology which variously put it before, or after, the messianic reign (Volz, pp. 175 f.). In his combination of messianic beliefs, John follows the tradition, accepted in Sib. Or. iii. 663 f., which postponed the irruption till after messiah s temporary period of power.

Rev 20:11 to Rev 22:5 . The connexion of thought depends upon the traditional Jewish scheme outlined, e.g. , in Apoc. Bar. xxix. xxx. ( cf. 4 Esd. 7:29, 30) where the messiah returns in glory to heaven after his reign on earth; the general resurrection follows, accompanied by the judgment. Developing his oracles along these current lines, the prophet now proceeds to depict his culminating vision of the End in three scenes: (1.) the world and its judgment (Rev 20:11-15 ), (2.) the new heaven and earth (Rev 21:1-8 ), centring round (3.) the new Jerusalem as the final seat of bliss (Rev 21:9 to Rev 22:5 ). The last-named phase was associated in eschatology (Sib. Or. ver. 246 f., 414 f.) with the return of Nero redivivus and the downfall of Babylon which preceded the sacred city’s rise. The destruction of hostile forces, followed by the renovation of the universe, is essentially a Persian dogma (Stave, 180 f.), and is paralleled in the Babylonian mythology, where after the defeat and subjugation of Tiâmat in the primeval age creation commences. From this point until Rev 21:9 f., Jesus is ignored entirely.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

9. πῦρ … εἰς τὴν λίμνην. א* omits.

ἀπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ. So Text. Rec[762] Treg[763] W. H[764] marg. with אcP vg[765] syr[766]; Lach[767] Tisch[768] W. H[769] Weiss ἀπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ with A and Primas[770] transcript of Aug., who seems to have read ἀπο τοῦ θεοῦ after ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ with B2 cop[771] arm[772][762] Rec. Textus Receptus as printed by Scrivener.

[763] Tregelles.

[764] H. Westcott aud Hort.

[765] Vulgate.

[766] Syriac.

[767] Lachmann’s larger edition.

[768] Tischendorf: eighth edition; where the text aud notes differ the latter are cited.

[769] H. Westcott aud Hort.

[770] Primasius, edited by Haussleiter.

[771] Coptic.

[772] Armenian.

9. καὶ ἀνέβησαν. The Seer does not pass easily over the immense space of time during which the world is too happy to have a history. He sees the establishment of the earthly kingdom of Christ, and foretells its end: it is only gradually that he comes to see the end also brought before his view as present.

ἐπὶ τὸ πλάτος τῆς γῆς. The breadth of the land. They overspread the whole land of Israel, against which, as we see from the next clause, their attack is directed.

τὴν παρεμβολὴν τῶν ἁγίων. Possibly “the army,” as in Heb 11:34; here all English translators have “the camp” with A. V[784]

[784] Authorised Version.

τὴν πόλιν τὴν ἠγαπημένην, i.e. Jerusalem, which, it appears from this place only, will be the seat and capital of the millennial kingdom. It appears that in the popular millennial anticipations, which discredited the literal interpretation of this prophecy, this localisation of the kingdom was much insisted on, and it was even thought that the Jewish law and the sacrificial worship would be revived. This of course is utterly incredible to an orthodox Christian: but there is no difficulty in supposing that the Kingdom of God may literally have an earthly centre in the Holy City and the Holy Land. Even if the literal view be not taken, the prophecy can hardly imply less than a future purity of the Church far exceeding the present; and it may be that this purified Church will recognise a better Papacy at Jerusalem, one not too proud to learn either from the excellences or from the faults of the Roman.

καὶ κατέβη πῦρ. Cf. 2Ki 1:10, and ch. Rev 11:5, and even Rev 13:13. This does not agree with the description of Gog’s overthrow in Ezekiel 39, where the army lie slain till they are buried, and their weapons are broken up for firewood.

Remarkable as it is that St Irenaeus appears to say nothing of the loosing of Satan, it is still more remarkable that St Hippolytus is known (Hermathena Vol. VI. p. 404) to have laid down in his work against Caius that the destruction of Gog and Magog was to precede that of Antichrist.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

On the breadth [επι το πλατος] . Lit., over [επι] . As distinguished from the "four corners" of ver. 8. They overspread the earth.

The camp [την παρεμβολην] . See on castle, Act 21:34. Encompassing and defending the city. Compare Psa 78:7.

The beloved city. Compare Psa 78:68.

From God. Omit.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.