In this message we shall cover a further aspect of the kingdom of God. Before we go on to see the new heaven and the new earth, we shall consider God’s governmental judgment upon His rebellious creatures. Then in the next message we shall begin to consider the new heaven and the new earth.
The millennial kingdom and the new heaven and new earth are two positive aspects of the kingdom. As an insertion between these aspects, we need to consider a negative aspect—God’s governmental judgment upon His rebellious creatures.
God’s government is universal; that is, it covers the whole universe. The means by which God carries out His government is His judgment. God governs by judging. Hence, His judgment is governmental. Eventually, after God’s governmental judgment has been completed, there will be a new heaven and new earth wherein righteousness dwells (2 Pet. 3:13).
God’s governmental judgments will consummate in the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the “trash can” for the entire universe, into which all negative things will be cast. Eventually, all negative things, that is, all the things that have been judged by God, will be swept into the lake of fire.
In the old heaven and old earth there was the sea of water to contain the result of God’s judgment, whereas in the new heaven and new earth there will be the lake of fire to replace it. All negative and filthy things, after being judged by God, will be in the lake of fire for eternity. According to Revelation 22:15, the lake of fire will be outside the New Jerusalem, just as Tophet, where the filthy things were (Jer. 19:11-13), was outside the old Jerusalem (2 Kings 23:10; Isa. 30:33).
At the time of His coming back, Christ and the overcoming saints, the faithful ones, will fight against Antichrist and his false prophet and defeat them, executing God’s judgment upon them. Revelation 19:20 says, “The beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who in his presence had done the signs, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worship his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone.” Antichrist and the false prophet will be the first cast into the lake of fire (cf. 20:10, 15). They will be cast alive into the lake of fire without passing through death like all the others who perish.
Another aspect of God’s governmental judgment is His judgment upon the condemned nations. This judgment will be carried out by Christ at His throne of glory (Matt. 25:31-46). After He defeats Antichrist and his army, many of the Gentiles will still be living on earth. The Lord will gather them to Himself and judge them. Matthew 25:31 and 32 say, “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He shall sit on His throne of glory; and all the nations shall be gathered before Him, and He shall separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.” “All the nations” are all the Gentiles who will be left at Christ’s coming back to earth after He destroys those Gentiles who follow Antichrist at Armageddon (Rev. 16:14, 16; 19:11-15, 19-21). Those that are regarded as sheep will be transferred into the millennium to be the people under the kingly ruling of Christ and the overcoming believers (Rev. 2:26-27; 12:5; 20:4-6) and under the priestly ministry of the saved Jews (Zech. 8:20-23). Those that are regarded as goats will go with their leader, Antichrist, “into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels” (Matt. 25:41). The “fire” here is the fire in the lake of fire (Rev. 20:14-15). The “goats,” the condemned nations, will perish in the lake of fire after Antichrist and the false prophet and before the Devil and the resurrected sinners (Rev. 20:10, 15).
The lake of fire was prepared for the Devil and his angels, not for man. However, if any man follows the Devil to oppose the Lord, he will share the lake of fire with the Devil and the fallen angels.
At the end of the millennium, Satan will be “loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to war, whose number is as the sand of the sea” (Rev. 20:7-8). However, fire will come down out of heaven and devour them (v. 9). Then Satan will be cast into the lake of fire. Speaking of this as an accomplished fact, Revelation 20:10 says, “The Devil who deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where also the beast and the false prophet were; and they shall be tormented day and night forever and ever.” Although the lake of fire has been prepared for the Devil and his angels, the beast and the false prophet will be cast into it a thousand years earlier than Satan. After the thousand years, Satan will be thrown into it.