The Bottomless Pit is the same reality as the Abyss — the deep, prison-like shaft in which certain demonic beings are confined and from which they are released only under God’s sovereign control.
The expression appears repeatedly in Revelation as the source of the smoke, the locusts of the fifth trumpet, the beast, and the temporary prison of Satan.
It is locked and unlocked by a key held by divine authority, never by the powers of evil themselves.
The Bottomless Pit is an intermediate place of confinement, distinct from the final lake of fire, and serves the purposes of God’s judgment until the end of the age.
In the book of Revelation the bottomless pit (literally “the shaft of the abyss”) is a place of confinement and a portal of limited judgment under the strict control of heaven. A star fallen from heaven is given the key to the shaft and opens it; smoke rises like the smoke of a great furnace and darkens the sun and air. From the smoke come locust-like creatures that torment those without the seal of God, under the kingship of the angel of the pit, Abaddon/Apollyon. Later the beast that makes war on the two witnesses rises from the bottomless pit. Finally an angel comes down from heaven with the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain, seizes the dragon, binds him, throws him into the pit, shuts it, and seals it for a thousand years so that he cannot deceive the nations. After the thousand years Satan is released for a little while before his final destruction in the lake of fire. Throughout these visions the bottomless pit remains under the absolute authority of God; its key is never in the hands of the enemy.
- The bottomless pit is identical with the Abyss — a place of demonic confinement and controlled release.
- It is opened and closed only by the key given under divine authority.
- From it emerge limited agents of judgment (locusts, the beast) who operate under strict boundaries.
- Satan himself is bound and sealed within it for a thousand years.
- Demons fear being sent into the Abyss and recognize Christ’s authority over it.
- The pit is temporary and intermediate; the final destination of evil is the lake of fire.
- Every movement into or out of the bottomless pit displays the sovereignty of God over the powers of darkness.
- Prison of Evil Powers – A place of confinement for demonic beings and, for a time, for Satan.
- Divine Key – Opened and locked only by authority from heaven; never controlled by the enemy.
- Source of Limited Judgment – The origin of the fifth-trumpet locusts and the beast that rises to make war.
- Satan’s Temporary Binding – The dragon is sealed inside for a thousand years so that he cannot deceive the nations.
- Intermediate, Not Final – Distinct from the lake of fire, which is the second death and eternal punishment.
- Fear of Demons – Evil spirits beg Jesus not to send them into the Abyss.
- Display of Sovereignty – Every release and every sealing serves the purposes of God’s judgment and plan.
- Revelation 9:1-2 – “And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft.”
- Revelation 9:11 – “They have as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he is called Apollyon.”
- Revelation 11:7 – “And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them.”
- Revelation 17:8 – “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction.”
- Revelation 20:1-3 – “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.”
- Revelation 20:7-10 – After the thousand years Satan is released from his prison and is finally thrown into the lake of fire.
- Luke 8:31 – “And they begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss.”
- Romans 10:7 – “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).”
- Revelation 1:18 – Christ holds “the keys of Death and Hades.”
- Jude 6 – Angels who did not stay within their own position of authority are kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day.
- 2 Peter 2:4 – God cast angels who sinned into Tartarus and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment.
- Genesis 1:2 – Darkness was over the face of the deep (tehom), the Old Testament background of the deep/abyss.
- Abyss
- Abaddon / Apollyon
- Binding of Satan
- Lake of Fire
- Tartarus
- Fifth Trumpet
- Beast from the Abyss
- Keys of Death and Hades
- Demons
- Judgment
- Divine Sovereignty
- Thousand Years / Millennium
The bottomless pit is a prison under lock and key — and the key is never in the hand of the enemy. Smoke, locusts, and the beast itself rise from it only when heaven permits. Even Satan is seized, bound, thrown in, and sealed by a single angel acting under God’s authority. The pit is real, the powers confined there are real, and the judgments that issue from it are real. Yet every detail proclaims the same truth: the Lord reigns. The bottomless pit is not the final word; the lake of fire is. And for those who belong to the Lamb, there is no fear of the pit. The One who holds the keys of Death and Hades holds authority over every shaft of darkness. His people are safe, His victory is secure, and every prison of evil will finally be emptied into the judgment that ends all rebellion forever.
Entry compiled for the JESUSaves.com Bible Glossary. Optimized for wiki.js Visual Editor.