Revelation 20:1

The Thousand Year Reign

20:1 Then ¹  I saw an angel descending from heaven, holding ²  in his hand the key to the abyss and a huge chain.

Revelation 3:7

To the Church in Philadelphia

3:7 “To ³  the angel of the church in Philadelphia write the following: ⁴ 

“This is the solemn pronouncement of ⁵  the Holy One, the True One, who holds the key of David, who opens doors ⁶  no one can shut, and shuts doors ⁷  no one can open:

[20:1]  ¹ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[20:1]  ² tn The word “holding” is implied. The two clauses “having the key of the abyss” and “a huge chain in his hand” can be construed in two ways: (1) both are controlled by the participle ἔχοντα (econta) and both are modified by the phrase “in his hand” – “having in his hand the key to the abyss and a huge chain.” (2) The participle ἔχοντα refers only to the key, and the phrase “in his hand” refers only to the chain – “having the key of the abyss and holding a huge chain in his hand.” Because of the stylistic tendency in Rev to use the verb ἔχω (ecw) to mean “hold (something)” and the phrase “in his hand” forming a “bracket” along with the verb ἔχω around both the phrases in question, the first option is preferred.

[3:7]  ³ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated due to differences between Greek and English style.

[3:7]  ⁴ tn The phrase “the following” after “write” is supplied to clarify that what follows is the content of what is to be written.

[3:7]  ⁵ tn Grk “These things says [the One]…” See the note on the phrase “this is the solemn pronouncement of” in 2:1.

[3:7]  ⁶ tn The word “door” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied in the translation. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context. Since the following verse does contain the word “door” (θύραν, quran), that word has been supplied as the direct object here.

[3:7]  ⁷ tn See the note on the word “door” earlier in this verse.