Revelation 20:3

Revelation 20:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• English Standard Version (ESV)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.
• New King James Version (NKJV)and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while.
• New Living Translation (NLT)The angel threw him into the bottomless pit, which he then shut and locked so Satan could not deceive the nations anymore until the thousand years were finished. Afterward he must be released for a little while.

Context of Revelation 20:3

1And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time. 4I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.

Revelation 20:3 word by word

καὶ ἔβαλεν αὐτὸν εἰς τὴν ἄβυσσον καὶ ἔκλεισεν καὶ ἐσφράγισεν ἐπάνω αὐτοῦ, ἵνα μὴ πλανήσῃ ἔτι τὰ ἔθνη ἄχρι τελεσθῇ τὰ χίλια ἔτη. μετὰ ταῦτα δεῖ λυθῆναι αὐτὸν μικρὸν χρόνον.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• castβάλλωballō · to throw: throwG906
• himαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• intoεἰςeis · towardG1519
• the bottomless pitἄβυσσοςabussos · abyssG12
• shutκλείωkleiō · to shutG2808
• set a sealσφραγίζωsphragizō · to sealG4972
• uponἐπάνωepanō · aboveG1883
• thatἵναhina · in order that/toG2443
• he should deceiveπλανάωplanaō · to lead astrayG4105
• the nationsἔθνοςethnos · GentilesG1484
• noμήmē · notG3361
• moreἔτιeti · stillG2089
• tillἄχριachri achris · untilG891
• the thousandχίλιοιchilioi · thousandG5507
• yearsἔτοςetos · yearG2094
• should be fulfilledτελέωteleō · to finishG5055
• afterμετάmeta · with/afterG3326
• thatοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• must beδεῖdei · be necessaryG1163
• loosedλύωluō · to looseG3089
• a littleμικρόςmikros mikroteros · smallG3398
• seasonχρόνοςchronos · timeG5550

Cross-references for Revelation 20:3

• Revelation 20:1And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain.
• Revelation 17:8The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come.
• Daniel 6:17A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel’s situation might not be changed.
• Matthew 27:66So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.
• Revelation 20:8and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—and to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore.
• Revelation 12:9The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
• Revelation 13:14Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived.
• Revelation 16:14They are demonic spirits that perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty.
• Revelation 17:2With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.”
• Matthew 24:24For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
• 2 Corinthians 11:3But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
• 2 Thessalonians 2:9The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie,
• Psalms 90:4A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.
• 2 Peter 3:8But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.
• Revelation 20:7When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison

Commentaries on Revelation 20:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3He should deceive the nations no more - Be unable to blind men with superstition and idolatry as he had formerly done.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3And cast him into the bottomless pit - See the notes on Revelation 9:1. A state of peace and prosperity would exist as if Satan, the great disturber, were confined in the nether world as a prisoner. And shut him up - Closed the massive doors of the dark prison-house upon him. Compare the notes on Job 10:21-22. And set a seal upon him - Or, rather, “upon it” - ̓́ ̓͂ epanō autouThe seal was placed upon the “door” or “gate” of the prison, not because this…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3This imprisonment, described as a bottomless pit (Abyss), represents an initial defeat for Satan and the forces of evil. Various New Testament passages explain how Christ's work impacts Satan (Luke 10:17–20; Acts 10:38; 26:18; Romans 16:20; Ephesians 6:11; James 4:7; see Matthew 12:24; 16:19; 18:18; John 12:31; 1 John 3:8). Christ's presence with his followers restrains evil powers (see 2 Thessalonians 2:7), reminding persecuted Christians that they have…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. shut him--A, B, Vulgate, Syriac, and Andreas omit "him." set a seal upon him--Greek, "over him," that is, sealed up the door of the abyss over his head. A surer seal to keep him from getting out than his seal over Jesus in the tomb of Joseph, which was burst on the resurrection morn. Satan's binding at' this juncture is not arbitrary, but is the necessary consequence of the events (Re 19:20); just as Satan's being cast out of heaven, where he had…Read the comment

Topics related to Revelation 20:3

• Millennium
• Pit
• Satan
• Vision
• Year

In the dictionaries

• Bottomless, Pit
• Millennium
• Pit
• Seal
• Abyss
• Eschatology of the New Testament
• Parousia
• Print; Printing; Printed
• Revelation of John
• Satan

Commentaries on Revelation 20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings