Allow me to thank you for the help Present Truth is to me. Will you kindly make more plain, with God's help, the following passage from Man's True Dominion?
"When Satan has full control of all except the little flock who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, the Lord will come, the wicked will be destroyed by the brightness of His coming. The righteous will be taken to be with Him, and the earth will be left desolate, without cities and without men, for a thousand years."
In Revelation 20:3-4 we read that Satan is to be bound a thousand years, and when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, etc.
You also stated, a few weeks ago, that this earth would be purified by fire. We read in Revelation 20:11, "I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them;" and in chapter 21, "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven," etc., and the description of the New Jerusalem, verse 4, and onward, shows a city for God's people, entirely new.
Thanking you in anticipation, if you have the time to explain what may not appear difficult to you, but is to me as I now read God's word, believe me, yours sincerely.
Your difficulty arises very naturally from the fact that in the articles you refer to, the events of the last days were only incidentally mentioned, and the Scripture authority for the statements made was not given, although it has often been presented at length in Present Truth. A presentation of some of the principal portions of Scripture treating upon the coming of the Lord and the circumstances attending it will, I think, make the subject clear to your mind, and will certainly be profitable to all.
Promise of Restoration
In the first place we must remember that the earth is much changed from what it was when it was created, and that a restoration to its original condition has been promised by the Lord through His prophets throughout all the ages; and further that this restoration is connected with the second coming of Christ. (See Acts 3:20-21)
If you read the 3rd chapter of 2 Peter, you will find the entire history of the world summarized in very small compass, and this will serve excellently as an outline. There we find that the earth is spoken of at three different stages of its existence, as though it were three different worlds. Notice this carefully, and you will have the solution of a large part of your difficulty.
First, we have the earth at creation, a watery mass. "By the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water." (2 Peter 3:5)
Then we are brought to the flood, which destroyed the earth that then was, "Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished;" (2 Peter 3:5) leaving "the heaven and the earth, which are now," (2 Peter 3:7) and which are reserved to be destroyed by fire by at the last day. "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens, and a new earth, wherein dwells righteousness." (2 Peter 3:10-13)
Now, just "as the heavens and the earth which are now" since the flood, are not "the world that then was," but greatly modified in appearance, so the new heavens and new earth are but this present heaven and earth restored to their original condition. "He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new." (Revelation 21:5)
The earth when first created was new, and so, when restored to its first condition, it will of course be new. Having the subject before us in outline, we may now fill in the details.
The Scriptures mention in different places, many things that take place at the second advent of our Lord. What often leads to confusion concerning the order of these events is the failure to keep in mind that the second advent of Christ, like the first, is not an affair of but a moment, but covers a period of time.
Resurrection and Translation of the Righteous
In the 16th chapter of Revelation we have a description of "the seven last plagues" which will immediately precede the second coming of Christ. The circumstances attending the appearance of Christ in the clouds of heaven, will be the most awful and terrible that the earth has ever experienced. (See Matthew 24:29-30; Revelation 1:7. Read also the 2nd chapter of Isaiah, and the 3rd chapter of Habakkuk)
To come more definitely to particulars, we may read what will happen to the righteous when Christ comes: "The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)
You might also read 1 Corinthians 15:51-54 in this connection.
The Wicked Destroyed
But what about the wicked? The 20th chapter of Revelation, to which you have referred, is sufficient authority for the statement that the wicked will not receive their final doom at the moment of Christ's appearance in the clouds of heaven, to gather His saints. That chapter indeed, together with the one following, gives a very complete summary of the events from the coming of Christ and the resurrection to the final destruction of the wicked and the restoration of the earth.
In reading that chapter, note that there is a period of a thousand years between the resurrection of the just, and that of the unjust. Now we may go back to trace the story of the wicked and of the sin-cursed earth up to the close of the thousand years, when the second resurrection, the resurrection of the wicked, takes place.
The Brightness of His Coming
Of "that Wicked ... whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of His mouth, and destroy by the brightness of His coming." (2 Thessalonians 2:8)
The coming of the Lord will be with such dazzling glory as the world has never known. (Compare Psalm 97:3-6; Luke 9:26; Habakkuk 3:3-4; Matthew 24:27) Therefore we can well understand that the wicked that are left after the plagues will be instantly destroyed by it. The righteous will be able to endure it, because of what is stated in: "We all, with open face, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." (2 Corinthians 3:18)
Having been accustomed to behold the glory of the Lord, the full revelation of it will but complete the change that has been taking place in them while they beheld, making their bodies immortal. Thus they are taken to be for ever with the Lord, and the earth will lie desolate, stripped of all its inhabitants for a thousand years, until the second resurrection.
The Binding of Satan
This desolation of the earth to which Satan will be confined, will constitute his binding. With none of the wicked left to work through, and none of the righteous to tempt or torture, his occupation will be gone. His hands will be bound. He will be left to his own meditations for a thousand years, to contemplate the ruin which he has wrought. Then the results of rebellion against God's government will be apparent.
The Bottomless Pit
But what about the condition of the earth during this time? It is described as "the bottomless pit," and it is interesting to know that the Greek word abussos, "abyss," corresponds to the Hebrew word rendered "deep" in Genesis 1:2, and is identical with the word in the Septuagint. This gives us an idea of the situation. The earth in the beginning was a liquid mass, "without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep." (Genesis 1:2)
Compare this with: "Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains as in a moment. How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of a trumpet? ... I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form and void; and the heavens, and they had no light. I behold the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly. I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down by the presence of the Lord, and by His fierce anger. For thus has the Lord said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end. For thus shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black: because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not repent, neither will I turn back from it." (Jeremiah 4:20-21,23-28)
Effects of Satan's Rule
Thus it will be made plain to the universe that Satan's rule of the earth is the complete undoing of God's work. Where God builds up, Satan pulls down and destroys.
With the foregoing description of the earth "without form, and void" and covered with darkness, as it was before the Spirit of God brooded over the face of the waters, compare the Scriptures that speak about the melting of the earth. For example, Psalm 97:5; 46:6; 2 Peter 3:10. This corroborates the statement that the earth will be reduced to a liquid state again, and will thus constitute the bottomless pit, or "the deep." Isaiah, chapters 34 and 35 may well be read in this connection.
These are but a few of the many Scripture references to the events of the last days; but they sufficiently serve our purpose, which is to give only a connected outline.
The Loosing of Satan
And now for the closing scene. It is given in Revelation 20 and 21. "When the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth." (Revelation 20:7)
The question in your mind is, "How will Satan be loosed from his prison, and how will he find any nations to deceive, if the earth has been stripped of all its inhabitants?"
The answer to this question is given in the preceding verses, and has perhaps already suggested itself to you. It will evidently be by the resurrection of the wicked, at the close of the thousand years.
That the New Jerusalem will come down from God out of heaven, and will rest upon the earth before it is renewed, is plainly indicated in Zechariah 14:1-9, and other scriptures. Isaiah 33:14-24; 54:11-17, combined with Revelation 20:9-10, show that the New Jerusalem, with the saints in it, will be on the earth when the fire melts it and consumes the wicked, and that it will ride in safety upon the lake of fire, even as the ark was safely borne by the waters of the flood that once destroyed the earth.
This is further indicated in: "Behold, the day comes, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that comes shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. ... And you shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I do this, says the Lord of hosts." (Malachi 4:1,3)
Plotting of the Wicked Against the Just
A moment's thought will enable us to see what the deception is by which Satan gathers the nations of earth to battle after the second resurrection. The holy city having descended to earth, he will make the nations believe that they can take it, and thus possess the land for ever.
This will be an easy task, because they have been accustomed to follow his lead, and many of them will have been in the act of slaughtering, or attempting to slaughter, the righteous, when death overtook them. They will begin the work of persecution where they left off a thousand years before.
A Strong City
But inside the New Jerusalem the saints of God will rest as securely as did Noah in the ark tossed by the billows. No weapon that is formed against their citadel will prosper. ( Isaiah 54:17) "In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah: We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks." (Isaiah 26:1)
Its walls will be Salvation, and its gates Praise. And here is the practical point of the whole story for us. It will be a terrible, awe-inspiring sight when the mighty host, "the number of whom is as the sand of the sea," (Revelation 20:8) consisting of all the wicked who have ever lived on earth, in well-drilled and armed battalions, with Satan at their head, march up "on the breadth of the earth," (Revelation 20:9) and surround the city. By all human calculation, the city, whose inhabitants they will out-number a hundred times, would fall an easy prey to Satan's army. But, "God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God shall help her, and that right early." (Psalm 46:5)
The power that has kept the saints hitherto,-the power that has made them saints, will keep them still. No one in his senses can have the faintest shadow of doubt as to the outcome. But know that every person who trusts God is just as safe from the power of Satan now as the saints in the holy city will be then. The salvation which is ours now in Christ will be all that we can have then to depend on; and it will be ample, because it is all-powerful now.
Therefore in anticipation of that day, we may each one apply to ourselves now the glorious exhortation: "Cry out and shout, you inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of you.--Present Truth, February 19, 1903.