The Bottomless Pit (Abussos), A study on the original Greek word.

[truth seeker]

THE BINDING OF SATAN INTO THE BOTTOMLESS PIT

Quote:

Revelation 20:1-3

1. 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 bottom-less 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 ful-filled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

This verse tells of an angel, coming down from heaven, to bind Satan, cast him into the bottomless pit and lock him there for a 1000 years.

My first question was, what is this bottomless pit?

I was taught in church that this "bottomless pit" was a description of the condition of the earth, after the seven plagues, that precede Christ's second coming, and that Satan was to be bound, on the earth for a 1000 years.

So than I wondered why this verse didn't just plainly say.... An angel came down from heaven and bound Satan for a 1000 years on earth.

After a careful Bible study, using the Bible and my Strong's concordance, I found out what God's word really said, and it wasn't what I had been taught in church!

There is a bottomless pit and its not the surface of the earth, A large number of demons begged Jesus not to be sent "into the deep" (Luke 8:30,31).

The word "deep" translates to the Greek word "abussos" (Strongs #G12), which is the same word as "bottomless pit" in Rev.20, no where in this definition of "abussos" is the surface of the earth mentioned! Jesus had also sent other fallen angels there, to be bound until the judgement of the great day. (Jude 6; 2nd Peter 2:4). At the 5th angel sounding in Rev.9:1-11, this bottomless pit is opened and something evil is released.

Abussos: In classical Greek the word is always an adjective, and is used (1) literally, "very deep," "bottomless"; (2) figuratively, "unfathomable," "boundless." "Abyss" does not occur in the King James Version, but the Revised Version so transliterates abussos in each case.

The King James Version renders the Greek by "the deep" in two passages (Luke 8:31; Rom.10:7).

In Revelation the King James Version renders by "the bottomless pit" (Rev. 9:1,2,11; 11:7; 17:8; 20:1,3).

In the Septuagint abussos is the rendering of the Hebrew word tehowm (Strongs #H8415).

According to primitive Semitic cosmogony, the earth was supposed to rest on a vast body of water which was the source of all springs of waters and rivers (Gen. 1:2; Deut. 8:7; Psa. 24:2; 136:6) This subterranean ocean is sometimes descibed as "the water under the earth" (Exodus 20:4; Deut 5:8).

According to Job 41:32 tehowm is the home of the leviathan, in which he plows his hoary path of foam.

The Septuagint never uses abussos as a rendering of Sheol (Sheol = Hades) and probably tehowm never meant the "abode of the dead" which was the ordinary meaning of Sheol.

In Psalms 71:20 tehowm is used figuratively, and denotes "many and sore troubles" through which the psalmist has passed (compare Jonah 2:5).

But in the New Testament the word abussos means the "abode of demons"

In Luke 8:31 the King James Version renders "into the deep" (Weymouth and The Twentieth Century New Testament = "into the bottomless pit"). The demons do not wish to be sent to their place of punishment before their destined time. Mark simply says "out of the country" (5:10).

In Romans 10:7 the word is equivalent to Hades, the abode of the dead.

In Revelation (where the King James Version renders invariably "the bottomless pit") abussos denotes the abode of evil spirits, but not the place of final punishment; it is therefore to be distinguished from the "lake of fire and brimstone" where the beast and the false prophet are, and into which the devil is to be finally cast (Rev. 19:20; 20:10).

In conclusion, according to the Bible, after Christ's second coming, Satan will be bound in the bottomless pit for 1000 years and Christ's Kingdom will be set up on earth.(See my study on the Millenial Kingdom)and what a GLORIOUS Kingdom that will be!

May God bless and keep you.

John.

[True-believer]

John, this is an awesome Bible study that you have prepared.

Keep up the great work bro.

[truth seeker]

True believer

Thanks for your compliment on my study.

I have to give all glory to my Heavenly Father.

Praise The LORD!

But I do appreciate your compliment.

Take care and God Bless

John

[Haldog]

Excellent questions and study, Seeker.

Another question this subject raises for me is, what are demons? Are they simply fallen angels are something else?

Though I have not been able to nail it down completely, I'm leaning toward them being the spirits of the nephilim, the result of angels who left their abode (Jude 6, Gen 6:4) and mated with daughters of men. Where did their eternal spirit go when they died? I think they could be the source of "demons".

[True-believer]

Another question this subject raises for me is, what are demons? Are they simply fallen angels are something else?

Though I have not been able to nail it down completely, I'm leaning toward them being the spirits of the nephilim, the result of angels who left their abode (Jude 6, Gen 6:4) and mated with daughters of men. Where did their eternal spirit go when they died? I think they could be the source of "demons".

I always thought demons were just fallen angels along with Satan, and they all got kicked out of heaven, and now since the Cross, they are permantly on Earth.

Demons can go anywhere, but Satan can only be in one place at any given time, which I believe he is currently inside a person who could be the End Times Anti-Christ within the seven years tribulation period between the Rapture and Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

What are your thoughts?