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.
And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison. (Rev. 20:1-7)
What I'm suggesting is that God is speaking in generalities here. That is, the thousand years do not begin exactly at this point but approximately at this point. And that Jesus' reign on the earth does not begin exactly at this point but approximately at this point. What could make us modify our understanding of the thousand years? How can we best understand the Millennium?
- By taking into consideration other prophetic scriptures, and relating them to God's prophetic week. There are many things spoken of that must happen on the seventh day that must take place before His return.
- By seeing that Christ's reign on this earth begins in a spiritual sense before His actual return.
- By seeing that the thousand years reign means the Kingdom of God coming to the earth. Before The King of Glory comes physically.
To see this you have to understand the first principles. Hebrews Chapter 5 makes reference to "the first principles of the oracles of God" which say, in effect, that to be skillful in understanding the Word you must know these first principles. The writer of Hebrews does not directly state these principles. He does indicate two levels of understanding. The unskillful is compared to a babe taking milk, the skillful, to one of full age who partakes of strong meat. This is to contrast the immature with the mature and the natural with the spiritual. The deep things of God are spiritual, and must be discerned by the spirit. That is the word is to be understood in its spiritual meaning. Therefore there is potentially a spiritual meaning to the most ordinary things. Another key principle is found is 1 Corinthians: "Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come." (1 Cor.10:11). Briefly, this tells us that there is an 'end-time' application to be found throughout scripture. Specifically, it tells us that what we consider ordinary things might be best understood in the context of the end times. Many Bible teachers stress what they call "The Law of Literal Interpretation". I believe that scripture is actually telling us that there is a law of spiritual interpretation. We are to seek the Holy Spirit for a spiritual interpretation of whatever we read in His Holy Word. And in these end times, when The Spirit opens our understanding of His Word, the interpretation will have end time application.
God's Prophetic Week
Now what is God's week, and what does it have to do with the end times? Simply stated, God's week is the notion that God's timeline, since the creation of Adam, is divided into seven one thousand-year periods. (See Ps. 90:4; 2 Pet. 3:8) Each of these one thousand-year periods can correspond to a day in a week. Thus from Adam to Abraham are two "days", from Abraham to Jesus are two "days", from Jesus till now are two "days", and the coming Millennium will be the last "day." It will be the seventh or Sabbath day of God's week.
What is the purpose of the prophetic week and why should we accept it as a valid tool.
The idea is that God has used the idea of the prophetic week to give seemingly ordinary passages in His Word a double meaning. In some cases multiple meaning. So that in speaking of the seventh day there is first a literal historic meaning in the context. And then there is an allegorical, prophetic meaning taking it out of context.
Look at this verse from Exodus.
The simplest, most obvious connection to make is to identify the seventh prophetic day as the thousand-year reign of Christ we read about in Revelation 20.
The catch is that while there many prophecies that speak of things which must happen on the seventh day, most of these things take place before The Second Coming.
What I'm suggesting is the thousand years do not begin exactly at this point but approximately at this point. And that Jesus' reign on the earth does not begin exactly at this point but slightly before. [We can find this illustrated in scripture.]
If the seventh day of the prophetic week is indeed the thousand-year period referred to in Revelation 20, we will see that this chapter [Rev 20] does speak in generalities. And there is more to be learned by considering it together with other scriptures.
Synonymous Terms
We will find many synonymous terms for the seventh day in the Bible. Here are some:
- The Seventh Day, [in the seventh day, on the seventh day, after six days etc.]
- The Sabbath [in some contexts], The Last day
- The Third Day, [in the third day, on the third day, in three days, after two days, etc.]
- The Day of Rest, The Day of Judgment
- The Lord's Day, The Day of the Lord
- That Day, [in that day, on that day, etc.]
- The Day of Redemption, The Day the Lord has made [the Lord's Day]
- The Day of Thy Power, The Kingdom of God
- A Day in which he will judge the world.
So how can the phrase 'the third day' and the phrase 'the seventh day' mean the same thing? The term "last days" or "latter days" is sometimes taken to mean the time period from the day of Pentecost till today; that is the so-called "Church Age." Sometimes it can mean the interval just before the Second Coming of the Lord. Looking at the first definition, you can see that the last days would then mean the last three days of God's week. And that the third day would be the last day. In other words, the third day is the last of the last days, making it equal to the seventh day if you looked at the whole week. That is to say, when we are speaking in context of the last days, the 'third day' is the millennium! Thus the 'third day' is the 'seventh day'. To confirm this you can find several references in scripture that link the "third day" with the "seventh day." For example: "He shall purify himself with it on the third day, and on the seventh day he shall be clean: but if he purify not himself the third day, then the seventh day he shall not be clean." (Num 19:12 KJV) (See also Num. 19:19; 31:19) Our conclusion then is that references to the third day in scripture will very often have a prophetic meaning that speaks of the seventh or last day. And this point is important to note since there are quite a few examples that use the third day metaphor.
Third Day Examples
Here are some examples:
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
And the evening and the morning were the third day. (Gen 1: 9-13)
In second Kings we read:
And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. (Isaiah 2:2-3)
This verse from Luke mentions the third day as a day of perfection.
The Sabbath, or Day of Rest
The idea of the day of rest is first found in Genesis 2.
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. (Exodus 20:11)
Psalm 132:8 is a prayer for the Lord to come. That is, for Him to come to His place of rest. And the place of rest is shown to be the temple, or the Church in verses 13 and 14.
8 Arise, O LORD, into thy rest; thou, and the ark of thy strength.
13 For the LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation.
14 This is my rest for ever: here will I dwell; for I have desired it.
In Salem also is his tabernacle, and his dwelling place in Zion. (Psalm 76:2)
And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious. (Isaiah 11:10)
The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing. (Zephaniah 3:17)
Kingdom Examples
Let's state something that should be obvious. The Kingdom of God is wherever God is King. If Jesus is on the throne of your heart, and you are truly obedient to your King in all things, then the Kingdom of God is within you. When Jesus is truly enthroned in His church, and she is truly obedient in all things, then the Kingdom of God has come to this earth. This is what God has intended. And He has given us some illustrations in his Word to show us the pattern.
So to help us understand how it is that the millennial kingdom begins just before Jesus returns, lets look at examples of the Kingdom in scripture.
- One parallel to the millennium in scripture is the reign of King Solomon. His kingdom was established during a time of Civil War in Israel. Peace came later. Adonijah proclaimed himself king and led certain elements of Israel into rebellion. He seems to be a figure for antichrist. At the same time, prior to his death, David anointed his son as King. Solomon took the throne and spent several years purging his kingdom of offenders. Likewise Jesus' Kingdom is going to be established during a time of Civil War in the Church, and peace will come after his return.
- In 2 Kings, Chapter 11, read the story of queen Athaliah, a clear type of Satan. She ruled the land for six years, and in the seventh year she was overthrown. The seventh year speaks of the Millennium. In this particular case, the true king of Israel was crowned in the temple, and those in the temple rejoiced greatly. All the while, the usurper, Queen Athaliah, still ruled in the city outside.
The Day of Thy Power
1. The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
2. The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.
3. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.
4. The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
5. The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath.
6. He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the heads over many countries.
7. He shall drink of the brook in the way: therefore shall he lift up the head.
- Verse one depicts Jesus seated at the right hand of the father till his enemies are dealt with.
- Verse two mentions "the rod of thy strength." This is naturally the Scepter of the King. Since it is sent forth out of Zion [the Church], it means the Kingdom is at this point established in the Church. In other words, this is the beginning of the Kingdom of God. And at this time He, Jesus, rules in the Church, in the midst of the enemies that are still in the world.
- Verse three says that the people shall be willing. That is, they will be obedient to their King, Jesus, once the day of power comes. That is when the Kingdom of God comes to the Church.
- Verses five and six show events that happen on the day of wrath. This is the day of Jesus' actual return. So the Kingdom comes to the Church, and the day of power [the Millennium] begins before His actual return.
The Day of the Lord Examples
Early on in the Book of Revelation we read:
- Being in the Spirit can mean a trance like state in which the prophet gets his revelations, this being on the day of the week known as the Lord's Day.
- It can mean being led of the spirit as opposed to led by the flesh. In this case the prophet is a type of the church which will be led by the Spirit and dead to the flesh in the Day of the Lord
- It can mean being in a Spiritual state to receive visions, and while in that state to be on or living during the Day of the Lord. In this case you can say that everything depicted in the Book of Revelation takes place on the Day of the Lord. Most of this happens before the Second Coming which isn't till chapter 19!
1. The entire seventh millennium, or
2. The portion of that millennium
leading up to and including the Second Coming, or
3. The severe judgments during the
portion leading up to and including the Second Coming, or
4. The days of the final judgments
leading up to and including the Second Coming, or
5. The actual day(s) of the Second
Coming
In the Book of Revelation, the time covered fits definition 2.
Here in Acts 2 it seems to be definition 5.
Isaiah 2:12 For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up" and he shall be brought low"
Isaiah 13:6 ¶ Howl ye, for the day of the LORD is at hand! It shall come as a destruction from the Almighty.
Isaiah 34:8 For it is the day of the LORD's vengeance, and the year of recompenses for the controversy of Zion.
Isaiah 63:4 For the day of vengeance is in Mine heart, and the year of My redeemed is come.
Jeremiah 46:10 For this is the day of the Lord GOD of hosts, a day of vengeance, that He may avenge Him of His adversaries. And the sword shall devour, and it shall be sated and made drunk with their blood; for the Lord GOD of hosts hath a sacrifice in the north country by the River Euphrates.
Joel 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision; for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
Amos 8:9 And it shall come to pass in that day," saith the Lord GOD, "that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day.
Zephaniah 2:2 before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORD'S anger come upon you!
Malachi 4:5 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.
The beginnings of the kingdom
The preaching of repentance
A series of judgments on the church
and the world
Beginning of persecution of the church
as part of the judgments
Redemption of the church while judgments
increase on the world
Full establishment of the Kingdom
of God in His Church
Great end time harvest while judgments
increase on the world
Final persecution of the church
Still further judgments on the world
leading to the Second Coming.
In my article, End Time Outline, I have broken these into 5 phases. These are considered from the viewpoint of what happens to the church. Kingdom, Judgment, Redemption, Harvest, and the Finale. All of this is part of the prophesied Millennium, The Day of the Lord.
This is the Day the Lord has made, we will be glad and rejoice in it!