REVELATION SIMPLIFIED

CHAPTER 20.7

Gleanings from the Book of Revelation:

A Weekly Verse-by-Verse Bible Study Series

The

REVELATION TO JOHN

Chapter Twenty

The Millennium

Preamble

John the Revelator documents the rapidly approaching ultimate finality of human history. Not everyone dies after the Tribulation Period has ceased. Even a remnant remains after judgment. However, apart from resurrected believers having glorified bodies, everyone else who enters the Kingdom Age alive is a believer.

In God’s predetermined plan, the Millennium will serve as a time of testing man under ideal conditions. In a theocratic system of government, Christ and His saints will rule with a rod of iron (cf. Revelation 2:27; 19:15). No other details are given regarding Christ’s reign on earth except it is a period of great blessings.

Some main characteristics of Kingdom life include:

1.  A time of universal truth

2.  A time of health and prosperity

3.  A time of peace and tranquility

4.  A time of joy and happiness

5.  A time of perfect government

6.  A time of plenty

7.  A time of sinless perfection

Conditions will exist as were in the days of Adam and Eve before the curse. Even the animal kingdom will co-exist peacefully.

1. The Removal of Satan (Vv. 1-3)

2. The Reign of Christ and the Saints (v. 4)

3. The Resurrection of the Saints to Life (Vv. 5-6)

4. The Return of Satan (Vv. 7-10)

(Verse 7)

And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison.

The Second Coming of Satan

As was predicted in Verse 3, when the 1,000 years expire (brought to the goal, finished or fulfilled), Satan shall be set free from the Bottomless Pit (the Abyss) At this point, the devil will begin where he left off, i.e., re-establish his kingdom and assemble the nations for a final attack against God and His saints.

5. The Revolt: The Battle of Gog and Magog

(Verse 8)

And [Satan] shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.

The Last Rebellion against God

The Deception of the Nations

God will permit Satan to deceive the nations from the four regions of the globe. Even at the end of a perfect society, people will be deceived and not place their faith in Jesus Christ as Satan plunges into a campaign to deceive the entire earth.

Question: How is this possible?

Answer: Believers who sit on thrones have glorified bodies and are not able to bear children. On the other hand, as survivors of Tribulation having natural bodies enter the Kingdom, they will procreate the earth as in the days of Eden after the fall. Even though their parents living in a theocratic state are believers in Jesus Christ, the children born to them, grow and live long lives but still have a fallen sinful nature.

However, God will not compel anyone in their natural bodies to pledge allegiance to His Son. Millennials will exercise their free will as did Adam and Eve and must make a personal decision to accept or reject Christ for their salvation.

Yet after a thousand years and living in a pristine society, the heart of man is incurably evil and depraved informs the Bible:

Jeremiah 17:9 - The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?

John 3:19 - And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

So by man’s nature in a fallen state, he will be easily deceived by the works of the devil.

Satan’s Prior Deceptions

Satan has been using deception throughout Bible history; even before the world was created. Listed are several such cases:

Tactics in the Old Testament

A. Satan as Lucifer deceived one-third of God’s angels to rebel and follow him (cf. Revelation 12:4)

B. Satan deceived the first man and woman to rebel against God (cf. Genesis 3:14-24)

C.  Satan deceived the antediluvian world causing God to judge the earth by water (cf. Genesis 6:5-7; 7:17-28)

D. Satan deceived men into building a tower to heaven. As a result, God confused their language (cf. Genesis 11:1-9)

E.  Satan deceived the twelve tribes of Israel into idolizing false gods which led them into seventy years of captivity (cf. Jeremiah 25:11; Daniel 9:1-2)

Tactics in the New Testament

F.  Satan induced Israel’s spiritual blindness to reject their promised Messiah leading Him to the Cross (cf. John 1:11)

G. Satan deceives the Church by transforming his ministers into ministers of righteousness (cf. 2 Corinthians 11:13-15)

H. Satan deceives those by signs and wonders into pleasuring in unrighteousness (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12)

I.   Satan deceives many with seducing spirits causing them to leave their faith ( cf. 1 Timothy 4:1-3)

J.   Satan deceives people to lust after false doctrines and depart from biblical truth (cf. 2 Timothy 4:2-8)

Likewise, Satan shall deceive many in the Kingdom to follow him into eternal damnation.

Gog and Magog

Along with Gog and Magog, all other nations will assemble to wage war against God. Their number is uncountable which forces John to use the idiomatic expression, “Their number…is as the sand of the sea.”

Gog and Magog are not the Gog and Magog of Ezekiel 38. Even though they were both enemies against God and of Israel, they are two different battles, and the names are used figuratively to represent the first war at Armageddon. Given is a simple comparison:

A. War Number One: Ezekiel’s battle describes the enemies of God’s armies coming down from the north towards Armageddon and involves only a few nations of the earth. A literal battle is fought (cf. Revelation 16; 19). Also, a great earthquake occurs and mountains are moved along with a plague of hailstones.

B. War Number Two: Revelation’s battle describes the enemies of God’s armies coming toward Jerusalem involving all nations from the four corners of the earth. No literal battle is fought. God supernaturally destroys His enemies with fire from heaven (cf. Revelation 20:9).  

Origins of Gog and Magog

Gog, in the book of Ezekiel, is labeled a prophetic prince of the northern empire: Rosh, Meshech, Tubal, and Magog, countries to the north. In Revelation, Gog is considered the leader or king of the Magog power. Many believe Magog was the grandson of Noah (the second son of Japheth) and progenitor of several tribes northward from Israel (cf. Genesis 10:2). They settled in ancient Scythia (modern-day Russia) north of the Caspian and Black Seas. 

[Satan] shall go out… to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea

At the end of the Millennium, Israel and its capital city of Jerusalem without walls or gates will be the wealthiest nation on the earth (cf. Ezekiel 38:10-13). Ezekiel records that under the leadership of Gog (the last Czar of Russia) along with the great northern army, allied with all other nations; i.e., Persia, Ethiopia, etc., will gather together for war and be like a cloud to cover the land (cf. Ezekiel 38:8-9, 16). However, the advancement of these global armies descending in a last-ditch all-out effort to plunder and destroy Israel will be in vain.

(Verse 9)

And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of Heaven, and devoured them.

The Destruction of Satan’s Armies

After marching the broad expanse of the earth, the hostile hordes of men from the vast army of the world numbering as the sand of the sea surrounded the camp of the saints. The Greek word camp parembolē designates barracks, fortress, or a defensive military encampment in the line of battle outside Jerusalem, the beloved city of God (cf. Psalm 78:68; 87:2).

Even though John notates a battle, no battle ensues. God supernaturally causes fire from heaven to rain down and consume everyone who rebels against Him. The result is victorious and God's enemy is destroyed. 

(Verse 10)

And the devil that deceived them was cast into the Lake of Fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

The Fate of the Devil

At the end of Christ’s victory and as Jesus predicted, Satan and all he deceived were cast into the eternal Lake of Fire and Brimstone which was originally prepared for Satan and his angels since the beginning (cf. Matthew 25:41; 2 Peter 2:4, 9: Jude 1:6).

Fire and Brimstone

The torment of unquenchable fire Jesus, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and others speak of is inextinguishable, continuous, perpetual, and everlasting. The other, brimstone: A mineral when burned always emits an extremely suffocating stench of sulfur dioxide blue-colored gas and liquefies into a hot red sticky substance. Combined, they are metaphorically associated with God’s punishment.  

Understand, torment is not annihilation but punishment and eternally being separated from God; for they are spirit beings.

Old Testament Examples

Sending fire down from Heaven to devour men is a familiar tactic God uses for judgment:

Leviticus 10:1-2 – And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which He commanded them not. And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.

2 Kings 1:10 - And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from Heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from Heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.

Fire along with brimstone was the judgment God chose to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah:

 
 Genesis 19:24-25 – Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of Heaven. And He overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.

So as it was in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah, so will it be at the end of the Millennium.

The Eternal Lake of Fire

Included are seven major characteristics of everlasting torment, both mental and physical, in the Lake of Fire:

1.  It is a place of destruction (cf. 2 Thessalonians 1:19)

2.  It is a place of wailing (cf. Matthew 8:12)

3.  It is a place of gnashing of teeth (cf. Matthew 13:42)

4.  It is a place where the worm never dies (cf. Mark 9:48)

5.  It is a place of unquenchable fire (cf. Mark 9:44)

6.  It is a place of suffocating brimstone (cf. Revelation 21:8)

7.  It is a place of outer darkness (cf. Matthew 8:12)

Where the beast and the false prophet are and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever

Besides, Satan and his followers will be joined with the beast (Antichrist) and the false prophet who had already been salted in torment since the beginning of the Millennium (cf. Revelation 19:20). As their final punishment, they shall be (third-person plural verb) tormented continuously day and night forever and ever; literally, to the ages of ages –An absolute expression for endlessness.

The topic of the Great White Throne Judgment will be delineated during the next study.

QUESTIONS:

1.   What are some characteristics of the Kingdom Age?

2.   Who will populate the Kingdom?

3.   Why is Satan loosed after 1000 years?

4.   Who are Gog and Magog?

5.   How does the final battle end?

6.   What are some characteristics of the Lake of Fire?

7.   Who joins Satan in his final demise?

If this study was a blessing to you, make it a blessing to others.

SAVE AND FORWARD THIS LINK

http://breadoflifeministriesassoc.blogspot.com/

REVELATION SIMPLIFIED

 

CHAPTER 20.5

Gleanings from the Book of Revelation:

A Weekly Verse-by-Verse Bible Study Series

 

The

REVELATION TO JOHN

 

Chapter Twenty

The Millennium

(Two Resurrections)

 

 

Introduction

In adumbrating the Millennium in Revelation 20, John does not mention or reveal life in the Millennium. Instead, he relies on the reader’s knowledge of Scripture which prophecies in specific detail (e.g., Isaiah 11; 64).

 

The Saints and The Aints

In the late '70s, one of the earliest messages I remember hearing was presented by the late Dr. J. Vernon McGee on Thru the Bible Radio Broadcast who stated clearly. “There are only two types of people in the world: the Saints and the Aints. You either is a saint or an aint.”

A. The Saints are those who have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour

B. The Aints are those who have rejected Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour

 

The above blurb is a fitting segue into a topic that leaves many in a state of confusion – Resurrection. The next verse introduces the premise for the Resurrection:

 

 

3. The Resurrection of Saints to Life

(Verse 5)

 

But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

 

Two Births

There are two births and two deaths in the eyes of God. Since The Fall, the wages of sin is death (cf. Romans 6:23). If a person is born once, he will die twice. But, if a person is born twice (born again), he will die once. If birth is the beginning of physical life, then rebirth is the beginning of a new spiritual life. One is of the flesh, the latter supernatural.

 

Jesus explained to Nicodemus, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God.” Puzzled, Nicodemus queried, “How can a man be born when he is old?” Jesus responded, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.” (cf. John 3:3b-5)

 

Explanation: Under the baptism of John the Baptist, a person entered into Judaism by repentance and a water baptism ceremony. Spirit baptism (initiated at Pentecost) on the other hand, was also through repentance but included an acknowledgment of faith in Jesus Christ and a gift from the Holy Spirit.

 

So, the rest of the dead encompass all who have not been born again, i.e., received the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

 

Two Deaths

If there are two births then naturally there are two deaths:

A. The First Death

The first death is considered physical death (cf. James 2:26a). Bodies of believers who have died remain in graves and their souls attend Paradise in an intermediate state awaiting resurrection (cf. Luke 23:43).

 

Martyred Tribulation souls in this class are seen under God’s altar anticipating resurrection and transformation to glorified bodies (cf. Rev 6:9).

 

B.  The Second Death

Spiritual death is known as the second death [a Jewish phrase for the punishment of the wicked after death (cf. Ephesians 2:1, 12: Revelation 20:14)]. This category consists of those who have not been made spiritually alive through faith in Jesus Christ.

 

Souls of unbelievers await judgment in the realm of the dead (Hades). At the end of one thousand years, they will be judged at the Great White Throne and cast into the eternal burning Lake of Fire (cf. Revelation 20:14-15). 

 

Note: The Second Death has no power over those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ.

 

Resurrection

As a continuation of verse 4, the reign of Christ and the saints, John explains and expands the topic of resurrection, the focal point of verse 5. Used over forty times in the New Testament, the word resurrection (anastasis) means restoration or rising back from death back to life - A bodily resurrection (Literally, dead bodies standing up).

 

The rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished

Another Greek word is utilized here. The word ezēsan (Strong’s G2198) is an aorist indicative active, third person plural verb. Hence, the phrase lived not again translates: Come back to life.

 

Two Resurrections

There is no general resurrection, but two resurrections, one for the righteous, and another for the unrighteous. Each resurrection is separated by a thousand years. The following outline may simplify its understanding: 

A. The First Resurrection 

Resurrection unto life is meted out in three stages:

1. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ as the first fruits

1 Corinthians 15:22-23 - For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at His coming.

a.  Several saints are raised following the Resurrection of Jesus Christ

Matthew 27:52-3 - And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; And came out of the graves after His Resurrection, and went into the Holy City, and appeared unto many.

 

2. The Resurrection of the Church at the Rapture

This resurrection includes three groups of believers:

a.  The Old Testament and dead saints

(1). Antediluvian saints

(2). Postdiluvian saints

1 Thessalonians 4:16 - For the Lord Himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first.

 

b.  The translation of living Church saints

1 Thessalonians 4:17 – Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

 

c.  The resurrection of the two witnesses occurs during Tribulation

Revelation 11:11-12 - And after three days and a half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. And they heard a great voice from Heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.

 

3.  The resurrection of martyred Tribulation souls

Revelation 20:4b-5b - …and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the Word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years…This is the first resurrection.

 

Summarization Verse:

John 25:27 - Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.

 

Note: All righteous dead will be raised to immortal glorified bodies.

 

B. The Second Resurrection

All unsaved people from every age (the rest of the dead) will be resurrected after the Millennium, before the Great White Throne Judgment, and stand before the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. John 5:22, 26-29). In other words, those who experienced physical death (the first death) without being made spiritually alive through faith in Jesus Christ will participate in the resurrection of unbelievers.

 

Old Testament Israel will also be included:

Isaiah 26:19 - Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.

 

Ezekiel 37:12 – Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O My people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.

 

Note: All the lost, unsaved, or unregenerated who die without Jesus Christ are raised after the Kingdom Age, judged at the Great White Throne Judgment, thrown into the burning lake of Fire, and eternally separated from the presence of God.

 

Special Resurrections in the Bible

1. Elijah raised the widow Zarephath’s son (cf. 1 Kings 17:17-24)

2. Elisha raised the Shunammite woman’s son (2 Kings 4:18-27)

3. God’s Spirit raised an Israelite man thrown into Elisha’s grave. He stood up on his feet as soon as his body touched Elisha’s bones (cf. 2 Kings 13:20-21)

4. Jesus raised the widow of Nain’s son (cf. Luke 11-17)

5. Jesus raised the daughter of Jairus (cf. Luke 8:49-56)

6. Jesus raised Lazarus of Bethany (cf. John 11:1-44)

7. The Spirit of God raised Jesus from the dead (cf. Romans 8:11; Matthew 28:1-20; see also Mark 16; Luke 24; John 20)

8. God raised a group of saints from their graves after the Temple veil and rocks were torn and an earthquake occurred (cf. Matthew 27:50-53)

9. Peter raised Tabitha (Greek, Dorcas) from the grave following much prayer (cf. Acts 9:36-43)

10. Paul raised young Eutychus from the dead after falling from a third-story house (cf. Acts 20:7-12)

 

Note: Except for Jesus, all that was raised and lived again died again. However, they will be still included in the first resurrection.

 

Summary

Old Testament

Daniel 12:2 - And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt.

 

New Testament

John 25:28-29 - Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.

 

Comparisons of the Two Resurrections

A. Before the Millennium the righteous hear His voice

B. After the Millennium the unrighteous hear His voice

 

A. The first resurrection leads to blessings of the saved

B. The second resurrection leads to the judgment of the lost

 

A. The first resurrection is for the just

B. The second resurrection is for the unjust

 

A. The first resurrection is to eternal life

B. The second resurrection is of eternal damnation

 

A. The first lived and reigned with Christ for one thousand years

B. The second remained dead for one-thousand years

 

A. The first have glorified bodies, rejoice, and live forever

B. The second is raised and cast into the Lake of Fire

 

A. The first will die once, i.e., physically

B. The second will die twice, i.e., physically and spiritually

 

 

(Verse 6)

 

Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.

 

 Beatitude

Pronounced is the sixth of seven beatitudes or blessings in Revelation. The first resurrected believers will share with Christ three glorious benefits:

1. They will be blessed (happy) and holy (set apart, sanctified)

2. The second death will have no power over them

3. They shall be priests of God and Christ and live and reign with Him for a thousand years

 

Called to be Priests

Initially, being priests of God was His original intent for Old Testament Israel:

Exodus 19:6 - And ye shall be unto Me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

 

Deuteronomy 7:6 - For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto Himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.

 

Isaiah 61:6 - But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

 

Being priests of God in the New Testament economy is confirmed by Peter’s exhortation:

1 Peter 2:5 - Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

 

1 Peter 2:9 - But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of Him Who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous light.

 

Reigning in the Millennium

Priests of Christ and God are those who have offered themselves a living sacrifice unto God (cf. Romans 12:1) and overcome the world. It is a permanent standing (cf. Revelation 1:6; 5:10).

 

All the following will rule with Christ for a thousand years in their glorified form:

A. Old Testament saints will reign (cf. Daniel 7:27)

B. Apostles and Christ’s disciples will reign (cf. Matt. 19:28-29)

C. New Testament saints will reign (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:2-3)

D. Tribulation saints will reign (cf. Revelation 20:4)

 

Duties of Millennial Saints

1. To bring people to the truth of God’s Word

2. To bring people to salvation through Jesus Christ

3. To bring people into His glorious presence

 

 

Verse 7 of the following study will explicate the return of Satan and the revolt of its inhabitants after the consummation of the Kingdom Age.

 

 

QUESTIONS:

1.   What are the two kinds of people living in the world?

2.   What is meant by the term born again?

3.   What is meant by the first and second death?

4.   Define resurrection.

5.   What groups of people rise in the first resurrection?

6.   Who is called to the second resurrection?

7.   How does one become a part of the first resurrection?

 

 

If this study was a blessing to you, make it a blessing to others.

SAVE AND FORWARD THIS LINK

http://breadoflifeministriesassoc.blogspot.com/