Are ended: as in verse 3, “were ended.”

Satan will be loosed from his prison: if the passive verb must be changed to the active form, either “God” or “an angel” will be the subject. Since it was an angel who imprisoned Satan, it is probably an angel that will release him from prison. So one may translate “An angel will release….” The phrase from his prison may be rendered as “from where he is tied up (or, chained).”

Will come out to deceive: Satan will continue his activity as the deceiver (see 12.9). Here come represents the right perspective: Satan will “come” and not “go” from the abyss to earth’s surface, as Good News Translation translates.

The nations which are at the four corners of the earth: this does not mean only the nations located at the four corners of the earth (see 7.1), but all nations on earth (Good News Translation).

That is, Gog and Magog: these two names are from Ezekiel 38-39, where Gog is the chief ruler in the land of Magog. Here they are symbolic names for the nations themselves. It is possible that they are meant to be Satanic beings, but it seems more likely they are names of the nations. The translation can say “these nations are known as Gog and Magog” or “they call these nations (or, groups of people) Gog and Magog.”

To gather them for battle: in 16.14 this is done by the three foul spirits that came out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. Here it is Satan himself who brings them together for battle.

Their number is like the sand of the sea: this is a way of saying that they are too many to be counted, an expression frequently used in the Bible (see Gen 32.12; Jer 15.8; Rom 9.27; Heb 11.12). It should be clear that the antecedent of their is not the nations as such, but the people who will fight against God’s people. If the figure like the sand of the sea makes no sense, it can be abandoned and the literal meaning “too many to be counted” or something similar can be said.

An alternative translation model for this verse is:

• When the thousand years come to an end, the angel will release (or, set free) Satan from where he is tied up, and he will come out to deceive the nations (or, groups of people) who are scattered all over the world. These nations are called Gog and Magog. Satan will bring them all together to the place where they will fight. There will be so many of them that one cannot count them.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Revelation to John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .