Defeat and Destiny of the Devil

The letter to the Romans addresses the purpose of the Law of Moses and shows that no one can be justified apart from faith in the Son of God. Judaizing teachers had troubled Paul’s missionary journeys and burdened Gentile Christians for many years. Paul ends the letter with this reassurance: “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.” (Romans 16:20).

All trouble will eventually come to an end. The God of peace—not the god of trouble—will reign victorious. God is the source of peace, and peace depends on Him. Those who sow dissension do not serve the God of peace. They, too, will be crushed with their master.

When would this great event take place? Paul says, “soon.” This did not point to the second coming of Christ. It was to be accomplished while those Christians lived. The destruction of Jerusalem would crush the arguments of the Judaizing teachers.

This leaves us with a question about the end of the all-time troublemaker: the devil. When will his end finally come?

Prophecy of the Devil’s Defeat

After Adam and Eve gave in to Satan’s temptation in the Garden of Eden, God gave the first Messianic prophecy: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:15).

The offspring of woman points forward to Jesus, born of the virgin Mary. When Satan used Judas, the Jewish leaders, and the Romans to put Jesus on the cross, he bruised Jesus’ heel. That wound was temporary. When Christ rose from the dead, He bruised Satan’s head and delivered a fatal blow.

Initial Punishment and Restraint of the Devil

After Satan and the angels who sinned rebelled against God, He cast them into judgment. Peter writes, “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment…” (2 Peter 2:4). Jude adds that the angels who did not stay within their proper position are “kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day.” (Jude 1:6).

If that is so, why do the devil and his demons still tempt and afflict mankind? Spiritual beings are not bound by three-dimensional space and location in the same way physical beings are. God keeps and guards them under His authority. He alone permits and restricts what they can and cannot do until the time of their final defeat. Their chains limit what they are able to do.

Resurrection, Ascension, and Satan’s Limited Power

The first Messianic prophecy in Genesis 3:15 finds its fulfillment in Christ’s victory. Revelation describes the defeat of Satan in vivid language:

“Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, ‘Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.’” (Revelation 12:7-11).

Christ accomplished this as the offspring of woman when He came from heaven, died on the cross, rose again, and ascended. Jesus prophesied this during His ministry: “Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” (John 12:31-32).

Revelation 20 explains the limits placed on Satan because of Christ’s resurrection and ascension. To understand any passage, we must read it in context. Revelation 19 describes the destiny of the sea beast and the false prophet: “And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.” (Revelation 19:20).

Revelation 20 does not simply continue the events of chapter 19 chronologically; it runs parallel to them. It tells us what will happen to the dragon, “that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan,” who was bound for a thousand years (Revelation 20:2). He is cast into the pit, which is different from the lake of fire where he will end up at the end of time (Revelation 20:10).

As with most numbers and details in Revelation, the thousand years is not an exact literal period of time. Instead, it represents a full or complete period in which Satan is held in chains. Satan’s binding means his power is limited. Christ has risen. He now has the keys of Death and Hades. Satan’s power has been diminished.

Hebrews explains: “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.” (Hebrews 2:14-15).

The thousand years does not describe a kingdom on earth. It represents the figurative duration of time souls spend in the Hadean realm. John saw the devil bound for a thousand years, but he also saw the faithful dead: “Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God… They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:4). John also saw what happened to the wicked dead during that period: “The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.” (Revelation 20:5). The righteous dead serve God and Christ: “they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:6).

Satan is chained in the pit, and his power to spread the great deception—“There is no resurrection”—is restricted. Jesus is the resurrection. The thousand years is not a period of time on earth but an unspecified period in which souls await the final resurrection.

The Final Destination of the Devil

Revelation 20 describes the final conflict: “And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them.” (Revelation 20:7-9).

This is not a literal battle in the plain of Megiddo in Palestine. It is the final conflict and the destruction of the wicked.

All the saints will leave Paradise and earth to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). The wicked dead will be raised, and the living wicked will face judgment. Satan will no longer be bound. The Bible then describes an extinction-level event for the world and even for the universe. We call it the second coming.

After the destruction of the universe, Hades, and Death, John saw the devil’s final end: “and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” (Revelation 20:10).

Jesus also spoke of the ultimate destiny of the devil and his angels: “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’” (Matthew 25:41).

Choosing the Winning Side

Satan’s doom is sealed, but he wants as many people as possible to share in it with him. No one has to share his doom. In Christ, and with His help, any man or woman can overcome the evil one.

Warren Wiersbe aptly explained, “The Christian life is a battleground, not a playground.” According to Revelation, God will win. Victory is assured. The only choice we have is which side we will choose and where we will stand.

The devil will not be the one who confines people to hell. We will be judged by what we choose to do. Paul writes, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” (2 Corinthians 5:10).

By Daniel R. Vess