In Revelation 20:10, we read that Satan will be cast into a lake of fire and sulfur, which will be the end of him.
…and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Aren’t you grateful for the God’s wrath? If there were no wrath, there would be no destruction of Satan and no end to the misery and wickedness that he causes.
But praise God, Satan will soon be executed by the triumphant Son of God. In Genesis 3:15, the Lord said to Satan:
I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.
Revelation 20:10 is the fulfillment of this promise. Jesus will crush the head of Satan underneath his triumphant foot. The wrath of God is a beautiful thing because it means that Satan himself will be destroyed.
3. God’s Wrath Was Poured Out on Jesus
Of course, all this talk about the wrath of God raises a frightening question: If the wrath of God is going to utterly destroy all wickedness, how can we escape?
The answer?
Always and only through Jesus Christ and his sacrifice on our behalf. The wrath of God is beautiful because it fell on Jesus and won’t fall on those who trust in him.
As 1 John 2:2 puts it, “[Jesus] is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”
A propitiation is a sacrifice that turns away wrath. When he hung upon the cross, pulling ragged breaths into his tortured lungs, Jesus was experiencing the wrath of God for our sins.
The full fury of God’s judgment was hitting Christ like a freight train, eventually causing him to scream out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Because Christ was swallowed by the wrath of God, there is no wrath left for any who hope in Christ. He is our propitiation, our wrath-bearing sacrifice, our rescuer and savior.
Without Christ, we are all lost. Doomed to be crushed by the wrath of God for our many sins against him. In Christ, there is sweet safety.
I’m reminded of the classic song “In Christ Alone,” which contains these sweet words:
And on the cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live
If you have never believed in Christ, you should indeed be terrified of God’s wrath. It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Run to Christ today. Hope in Christ alone for your salvation. Through him, you can escape the wrath to come.
If you do know Christ, you have every reason to savor God’s wrath. It truly is a beautiful thing.
This article on God’s wrath originally appeared here, and is used by permission.
