THE DEMISE OF THE DEVIL

"The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever." (Revelation 20:10, NKJV)

HOW WE NEED TO HEAR of the end of the devil – of his conclusion, his demise, and his cursing! In the very beginning, before the transgressing pair was expelled from the Garden, God told the devil of his end, or demise. We must never tire of hearing it. "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel" (Gen 3:15). To give us hope in the good fight of faith, we are told the bruise has already been delivered to the devil. It was administered in Christ's death, during which the "heel" of the Messiah was bruised. How glorious the words. "That through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil" (Heb 2:14). Now our adversary is powerless in the heavenly places where we have been raised and place (Eph 2:6). He will yet be powerless in every place. Though it sometimes appears as though he is gaining strength, he is really succumbing because of the bruise Jesus has delivered to his head. What appears to be an increase of strength in him is really death-throes. His time is running out, and he knows it: "Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because HE KNOWETH THAT HE HATH BUT A SHORT TIME." (Rev 12:12).

BY THE TIME DESCRIBED IBN THIS TEXT, two of Satan's wicked initiatives have already been absolutely thwarted. The "beast and the false prophet" have already been removed, and their dominancy brought to a grinding halt. Political tyranny against the saints, and religious corruption will both be absent when the "knowledge of the Lord covers the earth as the waters cover the sea." Unregenerate hearts will still exist, but they will not be able to form coalitions or launch an initiative against the saints. There is coming a time when Israel will again be received by the Lord. When this occurs it will be like the world being given an injection of new life. Thus it is written, "For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?" (Rom 11:15). And that is not the end of the matter! God has appointed a time when all tares will be rooted out, everything that offends Him will be gathered out, and a new heavens and a new earth will appear wherein only righteousness will dwell.

THIS PERSPECTIVE IS SEEN in the words, "The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are." There is no battle here, no resistence by the devil, and no retaliation by his forces. The devil is simply removed from the scene, and cast into the place "prepared for the devil and his angels" (Matt 25:41). The lake of fire, however, will also house all who have been "deceived" by the devil. Just as all those who have embraced Jesus will be with Him, so those who have espoused the cause of Satan will dwell with him, his angels, and his champions of evil.

THE "LAKE OF FIRE AND BRIMSTONE" does not denote annihilation but Divine cursing and removal from the arena of influence. It is also a place of unutterable suffering. The devil and his confederation "will be tormented day and night forever and ever." Earlier, the future of those who were deceived by the devil is described in similar terms. One additional perspective, however, is added. Such "shall be tormented with fire and brimstone IN THE PRESENCE of the holy angels, and IN THE PRESENCE of the Lamb" (14:10).

THE LAKE OF FIRE will afford those consigned to it the vision of the holy angels and the Lamb of God, Whom they rejected. The emphasis is on the condemned beholding the angels and Jesus, not on the angels and Jesus beholding them. It is not that the sight will provoke a desire to be with the Lord – that will be an impossible thing for the damned. The devil hated the sight of Jesus when He was upon the earth. He will hate it even more from the lake of fire. His torment will be accentuated by his inability to do anything about his foaming hatred. The same will be true of "the beast and the false prophet." Their utter frustration, as well as their surrounding, will contribute to unspeakable suffering and torment.

THOSE IMAGINING GOD is incapable of consigning people to such a state must consider the destiny of the devil. It is exactly the same destiny to be shared by everyone who made a place for the devil, embracing his delusion and ignoring the Lord's Christ. There is altogether too little said and thought about these matters in the contemporary church. It is true, this is not to be the emphasis of our preaching, or the primary motivation behind our exhortations. However, enough must be said about the devil's demise to make the slothful ill at ease with their manners. Jesus said that one of the ministries of the Holy Spirit was convincing men that "the prince of this world IS judged" (John 16:11). Truly, "it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Heb 10:31).

– Given O. Blakely