The foregoing explanation so nearly covers this ground that little remains to be said.  The symbol is that of vast slaughter on a battle-field, which gathers all the birds of heaven and the beasts of the forest to the prey.  The enemies gathered for this battle were “the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies,” together with the false prophet.  This is the grand confederacy of wickedness formed under the mission of the three unclean spirits that went forth, not only unto the kings of the earth, but also into the whole world.  This is not a literal collecting of armies, hence not a literal slaughter upon a battlefield, nor a literal assembling of carrion birds; but it is a symbolic representation of the final and eternal destruction of the allied powers of sin.  As will be further described in the following chapter, they were gathered together for the purpose of overthrowing the church of God and anticipated a complete victory in the battle of Armageddon; but the sudden appearance of Jesus Christ to rescue his bride results in their complete overthrow.  The special theme of this series of prophecy has been the history of apostate Christendom; hence the beast and the false prophet are represented as being taken and thrown into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.  “The remnant” that were slain refers to the other powers of wickedness not embraced in Catholicism and Protestantism This series being now traced to its close, the narrative returns to take up another important theme of prophetic truth.

CHAPTER XX.

    And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the
    bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.

    2.  And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is
    the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years.

3.  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.

It is commonly supposed that the events here described are to occur at the second advent; but by considering carefully the different things enumerated in this chapter—­the binding of the dragon; then a thousand years; after that the Armageddon battle; and last of all the judgment scene, in which all the dead, both small and great, are rewarded, and all the powers of wickedness cast into the lake of fire—­it will be seen at once that this is not a continuation of the series of prophecy immediately preceding, but an entirely new theme, running partly parallel with that series, and both ending at the same point—­the second coming of Christ and the general judgment, in which the lake of fire is the final doom of the combined powers of wickedness.  In that series the beast and the false prophet—­Romanism and Protestantism—­were the chief powers of evil under consideration; in this series the dragon feature predominates.  If this be not true, then there will be two judgment scenes and the wicked cast into the lake of fire twice.  Positive proof of the position here taken will be given as we proceed.