The Millennium: The 1,000-Year Reign of Yeshua on the Earth

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Whatever diviners, astrologers, and other such sorcerers may say about the dawn of a New Age, the True and ultimate fulfillment of this new age will come when Yeshua is ruling on the earth with a rod of iron as the Bible states. This page focuses in on this millennial reign of Christ.

The term millennium does not appear in the Bible, it is just used to represent a period of 1,000 years. In Latin mille means “thousand,” which is where the term millennium comes from. I’m sure there are many different definitions as to when that time starts, but I will present my beliefs and why here from my understanding of scripture.

Biblical Ages

I heard a great explanation of the idea of the three Biblical ages that ties in with the millennium as well as, I think, another interesting insight. This video from Lion and Lamb Ministries of Monte Judah (5:48 - 8:35) is focused on the rapture timing questions and his thoughts on them, which I don’t agree with. However, I wanted to lay out the ages piece here because I think it’s applicable and interesting. There are 3 Biblical ages of around 2,000 years each totaling 6,000 years of history.

Creation - 2,000: Adam to Abraham

The emphasis in the first age was the fathers from the first Adam through to father Abraham and his sons that would become the nation of Israel.

2,000 - 4,000: Abraham to Yeshua

The emphasis of the second age was the growing children of Israel, the sons of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and their journey through history to the ultimate fulfillment of the Son of God at His first coming. There was a lot of foreshadowing with Abraham offering his son Isaac to God in the transition from the first to the second age as the ultimate fulfillment of that foreshadowing in the transition from the second to the third age.

4,000 - 6,000: Yeshua’s first coming to Day of the Lord (second coming)

The emphasis of the third age is the Spirit. God’s church was given the Holy Spirit and in this period of Christ’s physical absence as He goes to prepare a place for His bride, John 14:1-6 the Spirit of God is working in His people to grow and lead us in preparation for His return. Matthew 25:1-13

So over these first 6,000 years of history we see a trinity of two millennial periods leading to a final 1,000 year period. This also mirrors a millenial version of the Sabbath day of rest from creation that we are to mirror in rememberance of creation, because it’s a good thing and because it’s a foreshadow of the Day of the Lord in which the Earth will rest under God’s just rule and we enjoy the Sabbath with the Lord.

The 1,000 Years and the “Day of the Lord”

2 Peter 3:8
But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

I believe the passage above hints at the day of the Lord being the “millennium” and defines the scope of this period, but being “as a thousand years” and “as one day,” would seem to represent a general length of time and not necessarily 1,000 years to the day.

The beginning of this approximate 1,000 year period will start unexpectedly for those not watching. For those that have accepted Yeshua’s sacrifice and obey Him, this unexpected time coincides with the catching away of the bride of Christ, the blessed hope, and the escape from the wrath of God, a pre-wrath harpazo. For those left behind on Earth, it begins like the days of Noah (Matthew 24:36-41 | Luke 17:24-27) and the days of Lot (Luke 17:28-36), with a short approximately 3.5 year period where the wrath of God is poured out from the first trumpet to the last bowl and extends to the end of Yeshua’s reign over all the earth, a theocratic monarchy, whose rule will be righteous and just.

As we can see in 2 Peter 3:8, the end of the millennial reign of Christ on the earth will be followed by the destruction of this heaven and fallen earth to make way for a new heaven and new earth in eternity.

Isaiah 65:17
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.

Revelation 21:1
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

Christ’s Return in Glory

Christ’s reign is the time period immediately after the end of God’s wrath when Yeshua will return in glory from heaven with His bride and defeat the Antichrist and False Prophet upon His return. This would be around 3.5 years into the millennium, or the Day of the Lord.

Revelation 19:11-21
And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.

Here we see the return of Christ with His bride to rule with a rod of iron and casting the beast and false prophet, who have been given power to rule for the past 42 months, or 3.5 years (Revelation 13:5), into the lake of fire. The next verses, noting there were originally no chapter breaks, bring in the timeframe of this event being at the beginning of the 1,000 year reign of Christ marked with the emprisonment of the dragon for the duration of that time.

Revelation 20:1-6
And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: 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. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. 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.

I believe this time is also present in the prophecy below from Zechariah, which continues explaining some more details during the millennial reign of Christ. Toward the middle of the chapter it seems to jump back to describe how the Word of God affects the armies at Armageddon.

Zechariah 14:1-5; 12-15
Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.
And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour. And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance. And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague.

Restoration of Israel

The time just prior to Christ's return in glory saw Israel persecuted by the dragon in the unparalleled time of Jacob's trouble at the abomination of desolation. Jeremiah 30:4-7 Yet that is not the end of the natural branches of Israel.

Jeremiah 30:8-11
For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, [that] I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him: But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them. Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make [him] afraid. For I [am] with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.

And there are many scriptures regarding the return of Israel to the land, many specifically after the time of wrath of the day of the Lord. I would recommend checking out Chris White's podcast on A Day of the Lord Theme Study where the below correlated passages were taken.

Israel Gathered into the land:
Isaiah 11:11, Isaiah 43:5-7,  Isaiah 54:7
Jeremiah 23:3,7-8, Jeremiah 30:3,10, Jeremiah 31:7-8,10, Jeremiah 32:37
Ezekiel 11:17-18, Ezekiel 28:25, Ezekiel 34:11-13, Ezekiel 34:23-24, Ezekiel 36:24, Ezekiel 37:12,21, Ezekiel 38:8
Micah 2:12, Micah 4:6-7
Zephaniah 3:18,20
Zechariah 10:8-10

This Gathering Is Explicitly After the Day of the Lord:
Isaiah 10:16-20, Isaiah 10:22-23, Isaiah 11:1-5, Isaiah 11:10-16, Isaiah 35:10
Jeremiah 30:5-9, Jeremiah 31:1-2, Jeremiah 32:37,42
Ezekiel 20:33-38,41, Ezekiel 30:3-4, Ezekiel 34:11-12, Ezekiel 38:8
Micah 4:6-7, Micah 5:7-15
Zephaniah 3:8-11

Israel will Dwell Securely After the Day of the Lord:
Jeremiah 23:6, Jeremiah 30:10, Jeremiah 32:37, Jeremiah 33:27
Ezekiel 28:26, Ezekiel 34:25,27,28, Ezekiel 38:8,11,14, Ezekiel 39:6
Hosea 1:18
Micah 5:4
Zechariah 14:11

Israel Never Again Scattered Ashamed or Conquered After Gathering / Day of the Lord:
Isaiah 29:22, Isaiah 43:13, Isaiah 45:17, Isaiah 54:4, Isaiah 54:9-10, Isaiah 60:21, Isaiah 62:8-9, Isaiah 65:19-20
Jeremiah 3:16, Jeremiah 4:40
Ezekiel 34:29?, Ezekiel 36:15, Ezekiel 37:26-28, Ezekiel 43:9
Zephaniah 3:13, Zeph 3:15-17
Joel 2:19,26-27, Joel 3:17
Zechariah 14:11

Ruling with a Rod of Iron

During this 1,000 years, Christ will rule the Earth from Jerusalem and all the nations will make pilgrimages to Jerusalem to worship Him and keeping the Feast of Tabernacles. This gives some insight into what the millennial period will be like after the 70th week of Daniel is concluded.

Zechariah 14:6-11; 16-21
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark: But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light. And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be. And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one. All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin’s gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king’s winepresses. And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.
And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD’s house shall be like the bowls before the altar. Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.

I believe this “one day which shall be known to the LORD” is the millennium, or day of the LORD. (2 Peter 3:8-10 | Psalm 90:4) At this time, Christ is here to stay. It is the beginning of the millennium, Christ’s 1,000 year reign on the earth before it’s destroyed and the new heavens and new earth created. Revelation 20-21 gives this account.

What’s interesting is that the whole 1,000 years that Christ is here with us ruling from Jerusalem, there will be no nighttime because Yeshua’s glory will be the light of the world. His presence will literally light up the atmosphere. I can’t imagine how, but I believe that’s why His coming is associated with lightning from east to west. (Harpazo: Matthew 24:23-27; Luke 17:24-37 | return in glory: Matthew 24:30) We can also see that Yeshua will be residing in Jerusalem and it will be dwelled in safely. I think this is a key point in placing another prophecy, Gog and Magog, at the end of the millennium. Ezekiel 38:11-16 | Ezekiel 39:26

Whoever is left over of those who fought against Jerusalem will be required every year to worship Yeshua and keep the feast of tabernacles. If they don’t, they will not get rain and have plagues. This brings up another point regarding Christ’s rule. It seems clear that not everyone will appreciate Christ’s reign. The mentions in scripture of ruling with a rod of iron and breaking the potters vessels would seem to indicate there will be reason to judge. I’ve already mentioned Revelation 19:11-16 in relation to Christ’s concern, but there are a couple others.

Revelation 12:5
And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

This passage just identifies who will rule with a rod of iron. Metaphorically, Israel is the woman who gives birth to the Messiah, as laid out in the lineages from the Old and New Testaments. Yeshua is the Messiah who will rule with a rod of iron.

Psalm 2:7-12
I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

This is the first and only mention from the Old Testament and speaks to the inheritance of the Son of God of the heathens and the Earth. Note that He will break and dash them, indicating there will be no tolerance for the kinds of strife and war we deal with now as swords will be turned to plows and spears to pruning hooks.

Revelation 2:25-29
But that which ye have already hold fast till I come. And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

This passage to the church of Thyatira seems to speak to the shared inheritance Christ will give his church in doing His will to rule during the millennium. Indeed this would seem to be reinforced by those who are resurrected upon Christ’s return that went through the time of temptation.

Revelation 20:4
And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: 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.

David in the Millennium

There are several passages that were put together in the short article King David’s Role In The Millennium by Wayne D. Turner. I’ve added a little around them for context.

Hosea 3:4-5
For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim: Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.

It would seem to state here that David will be the king of Israel in the latter days.

Jeremiah 30:2-9
Thus speaketh the LORD God of Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book. For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it. And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah. For thus saith the LORD; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace. Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness? Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it. For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him: But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them.

This is clearly written to Israel and Judah and as we see many times the promise in the latter days is to bring them from all the nations into the land promised. This is placed in the last days by the reference to an unparalleled time of Jacob's trouble from which they're saved. Note that God will raise up David their king for them.

Ezekiel 34:11-14, 22-24
For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel.
Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it.

This passage is part of the prophecy of Ezekiel 33-39, which includes the Gog Magog attack. It speaks of the ingathering of Israel to the land when Christ will rule on the Earth. This is repeated a few chapters later.

Ezekiel 37:22-26
And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all: Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children's children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.

This again is placed in the millennium after Israel has repented and the 70th week of Daniel is completed and Israel will no longer have idols or defile themselves and they will be cleansed. This places the timeframe for this again in the millennium. 

Temple and Sacrifices

Ezekiel 40-48 is about the fourth temple during the millennium. As a transition to discussing this, there is one more passage about David being their king that seems to solidify that these passages of David ruling Israel in the millennium is indeed not speaking of Yeshua ruling as a descendent of David.

Ezekiel 44:1-3
Then he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which looketh toward the east; and it was shut. Then said the LORD unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; because the LORD, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut. It is for the prince; the prince, he shall sit in it to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by the way of the porch of that gate, and shall go out by the way of the same.

As Wayne Turner pointed out in his article, Yeshua will be known as “the mighty God” and “the everlasting Father.” Isaiah 9:6-7 However there's a distinct difference between the LORD and the prince who will eat bread before the LORD.

Ezekiel 45:7-8, 16-17
And a portion shall be for the prince on the one side and on the other side of the oblation of the holy portion, and of the possession of the city, before the oblation of the holy portion, and before the possession of the city, from the west side westward, and from the east side eastward: and the length shall be over against one of the portions, from the west border unto the east border. In the land shall be his possession in Israel: and my princes shall no more oppress my people; and the rest of the land shall they give to the house of Israel according to their tribes.
All the people of the land shall give this oblation for the prince in Israel. And it shall be the prince's part to give burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and drink offerings, in the feasts, and in the new moons, and in the sabbaths, in all solemnities of the house of Israel: he shall prepare the sin offering, and the meat offering, and the burnt offering, and the peace offerings, to make reconciliation for the house of Israel.

Dr. Michael Heiser also pointed this “prince” out in greater technical detail in Naked Bible 156: Ezekiel 40-48 Part 1 | Part 2. Here is the excerpt from his podcast, which I recommend checking out. He does not take a literal view of Ezekiel 40-48 and seems very opposed to it with a abstract/symbolic translation.

The “prince” (Hebrew: nasiʾ)

It seems that Michael misses the passages presented above that Yeshua will raise up David, the actual David, to be king over Israel during the millennium. This seems to me to resolve the issues brought up with taking Ezekiel 40-48 literally.

These chapters also have several places with sacrifices taking place. There are some, like Michael Heiser, that say because Christ died once for all that sacrifices are not consistent. At the same time it seems in several places that it's a part of the millennium. Even Michael mentions that in his podcasts on Leviticus that Old Testament sacrifices were not about atonement for sin, but about purifying objects and purifying sacred space, which would still be a part then of a millennial temple.

I could assume things, but I would likely miss the mark so my take is that it seems pretty clear there will be a physical temple and recognizing the feasts of Israel and David will be king of Israel as separate from the Lord.

Similarly, when it comes to the future third temple sacrifices some are offended and say the Bible doesn't mean it literally because the sacrifices were done away with. In this case the Bible is just telling what will take place similar to the passages about the millennium. In the case of the temple it is about unbelieving Jews following tradition, being blinded to the foreshadow that was fulfilled in Christ and not accepting Yeshua as their Messiah.

We will just have to wait and see what God's will is when we can ask Him face to face.

Review of Characteristics of the Millennium

• Yeshua rules with rod of iron, judging and rebuking (Revelation 19:11-16; 12:5; 2:25-29, Isaiah 2:2-4)
• Annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem for feast of Tabernacles (Zechariah 14:16-21, Isaiah 2:2-4)
• Anyone who refuses the pilgrimage will have no rain on their land and suffer plague (Zechariah 14:17-19)
• There won’t be day or night (Zechariah 14:6-7)
• Living waters will go out from Jerusalem year-round to the East and West (Zechariah 14:8)
• From Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem the land will be lifted up and be a plain. (Zechariah 14:10)
• Jerusalem will be inhabited safely. (Zechariah 14:11)
• Millennial Temple - Ezekiel 40-47 describes in extreme detail the exact measurements and descriptions of this temple.

Satan Loosed: Gog and Magog

The end of the millenium is marked by the releasing of Satan to deceive the nations one last time and come against God before the great white throne judgement and eternity.

Revelation 20: 7-10
And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And 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. 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. 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.

Given the scriptures that speak of the Messiah’s “rod of iron” rule during the millennium it’s not hard to believe that when the Dragon is loosed at the end of the 1,000 years he will be able to deceive and amass a large army of those who didn’t rebel before only because they had no power or influence to. Given this is the only other place in scripture that mentions Gog and Magog, aside from geneaologies, I also believe this time is related to Ezekiel 38 & 39.

Sabbath Millennium

(Earth History 6,000 years + 1,000 years of rest during Christ’s rule = 7,000 years)

Genesis 2:1-3
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

Exodus 20:8-11
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

Colossians 2:16,17
Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

2 Peter 3:1-10
This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance: That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour: Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

So here we see in the original creation, the introduction of the Sabbath day. Then in the 10 Commandments, we are told to keep this Sabbath day holy. Then in the New Testament, we see that these are shadows of things to come. We are now at almost 6,000 years of earth history according to the details by lineage in the Bible. Christ will rule the earth for 1,000 years with a rod of iron and it will be a just rule.

Can you see the Sabbath millennium there? With that understanding, we can see how being raised “at the last day” is a reference to the beginning of the day of the Lord. The day of the Lord marks the beginning of the 1,000 year period of time. The day of the Lord comes like a thief in the night with sudden destruction. Matthew 24:29 places that immediately after the tribulation of Matthew 24:15-28, and therefore in the middle of the 70^th week of Daniel. See this study as to why.

So to be raised “at the last day” would speak to being raised when the day of the Lord comes. The day of the Lord is God’s wrath to which we’re not appointed. 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 Therefore, I would expect that the just would be raised before that wrath comes since they are resurrected before we’re all caught up together to meet the Lord in the air. In keeping with the 1,000 years = 1 day to the Lord, I found this passage interesting.

Hosea 6:1-3
Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.