revelation 20 - the question of the millennium

8/6/2019 Revelation 20 - The Question of The Millennium

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Revelation 20 The Question of the MillenniumBishop Jos Ildo Swartele de Mello

Introduction

Let us examine an interpretation of Revelation 20 in accordance with the rules of

hermeneutics in light of the general Scriptural teaching on this theme.

First, we must take into account the literary style, because apocalyptic literature is filled

with images and language which serve as symbolic representations of that which it

desires to convey. It is not wise to ignore the nature of the book and go directly to aliteral interpretation. A literal interpretation of Revelation is what led the founder of the

Jehovahs Witnesses to the conclusion that only 144,000 persons would be saved and go

to Heaven.

The key question for interpreting Revelation is not, What is it? but rather, What does

it mean? For example, what do the dozens of numerical references mean such as 7,24, 666, 144,000 and 1,000? Not even the most literalist among premillennialists

interpret literally such things as the number of the Beast, the Beast of the Sea with seven

heads and ten horns (Rev. 13), the locusts of the abyss (Rev. 9) or the horses (Rev. 9).

Another rule of hermeneutics is that Scripture interprets Scripture. A clear text casts light

on a more obscure text. In the case in question, since it has to do with the Kingdom of

God, we have a vast array of biblical texts which inform us with respect to this matter. Infact, Jesus spoke more about the Kingdom of God than about another other subject. It is

also interesting to note that Jesus never made mention of a millennial kingdom on Earth

after His Second Coming. It is most plausible that the vision recorded in chapter 20 ofRevelation is a word picture representing the clear teaching of Christ recorded in all the

Gospels, and not something contradictory.

It is very important to take into consideration the context in which this book was written.

Everything indicates that the Book of Revelation was written about 95 A.D. a time in

which the Church suffered horrendous persecution under Emperor Domitian. The

number of martyrs multiplied daily. Revelation was written at a time of much pain andsuffering to comfort and encourage the hearts of believers. There are various mentions of

martyrs, who are seen at Christs side, being comforted by Him, singing a victory song,

receiving crowns, and reigning with Christ. They are not dead and defeated. In all

things they are more than conquerors! They live and reign with Christ!

We need to also note that the Book of Revelation is not a chronological narrative of facts.Rather, it is a series of visions, interlaced or juxtaposed, as word pictures of one and the

same story, looked at from different angles in order to enrich the one vision as a whole.

The book can be divided into seven parallel and progressive sections. Each section

covers the period from the first to the second coming of Christ. Each new section is


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clearer in its word picture of the end, until we come to the climax! First Section (1-3):

the seven lamp stands; Second Section (4-7): the seven seals; Third Section (8-11): the

seven trumpets; Fourth Section (12-14): the malignant threesome; Fifth Section (15-16):the seven bowls; Sixth Section (17-19): the defeat of the Dragons servants; and the

Seventh Section (20-22), which shows the Kingdom of Christ with the souls of the saints

in Heaven, not in a millennium on earth after the Second Coming.

Although chapter 19 describes the Second Coming of Christ, it ends with a live

description of final judgment. The events described in chapter 20 do not follow those ofchapter 19 in a chronological order, just as the description of Jesus birth found in chapter

12 does not in any way follow chronologically the events of final judgment recorded in

chapter 11. Thus, just as chapter 11 ends with a description of the Final Judgment, and

chapter 12 starts over, telling the story from the birth of Christ, so it is also with chapters19 and 20. Chapter 20 begins describing the events which marked Christs first coming,

seeing that it was at the time of Christs first coming that Satans imprisonment occurred

(Mt. 12:27-29, John 1:5, Mt. 16:18; 28:18) and he was cast into the abyss (Luke 10:18; 2

Peter 2:4 and Jude 1:6).

Jesus has begun His reign, though this is not visible to all, as is well expressed by theauthor of Hebrews, saying, you crowned him with glory and honor and put everything

under his feet. In putting everything under him, God left nothing that is not subject to

him. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him. (Hebrews 2:7-8, NIV)

These are paradoxical affirmations, for first it is categorically affirmed that all things areunder the dominion of Christ, and immediately following it is stated that it is not yet

possible to see this in concrete terms. But one thing does not negate the other, for the

reign of Christ is spiritual and is also in the process of expansion. Although the author ofHebrews could not yet see all things under the dominion of Christ, he does not deny the

fact of the reality of the Kingdom of God in the present age, as the Premillennialists do.

This has to do with the hybrid character of the Kingdom of God in the present age, whichis described by Jesus in terms of wheat mixed with weeds (Mt. 13). This also has to do

with the gradual and progressing character of the Kingdom as well described in the

Parable of the Mustard Seed (Mt. 13 and also in the revelation of Daniel 2:35).

The First Coming of Christ Bound Satan

So, we will begin analyzing the first three verses, which tell how the Dragon, Satan, wasbound in chains and thrown into the abyss that he might no more deceive the nations.

Jesus Himself had already said that the act of casting out demons by the Spirit of God

was a clear sign that the Kingdom of Heaven had arrived, for the strong man, a clearreference to Satan, had first been bound, in the sense that he could no longer keep his

house from being plundered (Mt. 12:22-29). It is interesting to note that the same word

used in Matthew 12 to describe the binding of the strong man is also used in Revelation20 to describe the binding of Satan: the Greek word dhshi. This binding of Satan should

be understood in terms of the restricting of his power, in the sense that he cannot continue

deceiving the nations in the same way he did until the first coming of Christ (Rev. 20:3).

Now, once bound, he cannot impede the advance of Christ and His Church (Mt. 16:18;


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24:14; 28:18f; Mk. 13:10; Acts 1:8). Jesus came into the World to undo the works of the

devil (1 John 3:8).

Jesus clearly showed that his messianic work included more than evangelization, for it

involved also the liberation of captives and the oppressed, with restoration of health and

justice: The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach goodnews to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of

sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.

(Lk. 4:18-19, NIV).

The Church, which is the Body of Christ, follows in the same mission, without being

definitively limited in power by the forces of hell, for we know that the gates of hell will

not prevail against it (Mt. 16:18b) and John says the light shines in the darkness, andthe darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:5). Jesus is King and, as such, has all power

in Heaven and on Earth. (Mt. 28:18).

There is another text similar to Matthew 12:28f, also in the context of the casting out ofdemons, being Luke 10:17-24, which describes the joy the disciples experienced in being

able to exercise authority over demons. It is interesting to note that here also Jesusmentions the defeat of Satan and his loss of power, but rather than say that Satan was

imprisoned or bound, He describes him as falling from Heaven, an evident sign that his

power had been greatly abated. And, to confirm this idea, in verse 22, Jesus declares that

all things have been committed to Him by His Father.

John 12:31-32 is another text which shows how the fall and imprisonment of Satan are

directly associated with the fact that not only Jews, but also Gentiles of all nations wouldbe drawn to Christ. The text states, Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the

prince of this world will be driven out. But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will

draw all men to myself. (NIV) Jesus did not say that this driving out of Satan wouldhappen after His Second Coming. To the contrary, He is emphatic in the use of the

adverb now at the occasion of His first coming.

The Bible states that Satan received a mortal wound at the first coming of Christ (Gen.

3:15, Col. 2:15). The Church fulfills its mission by the authority of Him who has power

in Heaven and on Earth (Mt. 16:18). It is for this reason that the gates of hell will not

prevail against her (Mt. 16:18). The Church will succeed in the fulfillment of its missionto witness the Gospel to all nations before the end (Mk 13), for in Heaven there will be an

uncountable multitude of the saved from all peoples, languages and nations (Rev. 6 & 7),

such that the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover thesea. (Is 11:9, NIV).

To reinforce more still this interpretation, we have texts such as 2 Peter 2:4, which speakof the demons as already having been cast into the abyss:

God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into

gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment. (NIV) And Judas 1:6 speaks of demons as

already being imprisoned and chained in darkness: And the angels who did not keep


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another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself

endure forever. (Dan. 2:44, NIV).

Observe also the description of the Rock: While you were watching, a rock was cut

out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed

them. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were broken to pieces atthe same time and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept

them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge

mountain and filled the whole earth. (Dan. 2:34-35, NIV). The appearance of the rockhas a miraculous origin, like the birth of Christ, and, in spite of modest beginnings, the

rock becomes a great mountain. Does this not remind us of the Church? On this rock I

will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. (Mt. 16:18, NIV).

And comparison with the Parable of the Mustard Seed is inevitable! (Mt. 13). Jesus saidthat the Kingdom had arrived (Mt. 12:28) and guaranteed that some of His immediate

disciples would not die before seeing the Kingdom of God come in power! (Mk. 9:1).

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of

the Son he loves. (Col. 1:13, NIV). It is for this reason that the Book of Revelationbegins declaring that Jesus Christ

has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father (Rev. 1:6, NIV).

The Church is the Body of Christ and reigns with Him, living in the service of the King.

It is necessary to recognize the nature of the Kingdom of Christ, for if on the one hand we

know that Jesus is now Lord, and that His reign has already begun, on the other hand, westill do not see all things under Christs feet, as we read in Hebrews 2:8: In putting

everything under him, God left nothing that is not subject to him. Yet at present we do

not see everything subject to him. (NIV). (See also Hebrews 10:13.) It is necessary toobserve that, in the Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds (Mt. 13), that it is one of the

parables on the Kingdom of God, and that parallel to the growth of the wheat, the weeds

also grew. So, biblical realism helps us avoid the perilous extremes of euphemism onone side, and on the other side, accommodation to those who posit the inauguration of the

Kingdom to be after the Second Coming of Christ.

Jesus spoke of His Kingdom in spiritual terms and in terms of action in the present age:

the kingdom of God does not come with visible appearance for the kingdom of God

is in your midst. (Lk. 17:20, 21).

The Souls of the Beheaded

Verses 4 to 6 speak of those who are seated on thrones, with authority to judge and reignwith Christ, highlighting the martyrs, since the Book of Revelation was written to

encourage believer enduring tremendous tribulation, which is today known as the Age of

the Martyrs. They lost parents, brothers and sisters in Christ and ran the risk of losingtheir own lives for the sake of the Gospel.

From an earthly perspective, the situation was anything but favorable, for thousands of

Christians were losing their lives. However, the Book of Revelation sees the martyrs


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from a heavenly perspective and there are not a few passages which speak of them as

conquerors, who are now serving the Lord day and night, and being comforted by Him,

and they are also singing the song of Moses and of the Lamb, and they are actually in aprivileged position, living and reigning with Christ. This is in agreement with what is

stated by the writer of Hebrews in the beginning of chapter 12, when the great cloud of

witnesses is mentioned, referring to the heroes of the faith, the majority of them martyrsof the Old Testament, having been mentioned at the end of chapter 11.

In Revelation 20, the term beheaded is used to describe all the martyrs. But if someoneinsists on interpreting this chapter literally, they would have to conclude that the martyrs

who were not decapitated are excluded, which would seem very strange, and would

generate a whole series of other questions.

The martyrs are the focus for the reason just given, but it may be that this group is more

inclusive, including all the children of God, even those who did not die as martyrs. For a

Christian, even if he or she does not die as a martyr, should live as a martyr. As it is

written: For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to beslaughtered. (Rom. 8:36, NIV). It is interesting to note also that the term witnesses in

the expression you will by my witnesses (Acts 1:8) is from the same root as the wordmartyr. You will be my martyrs would be a possible translation.

In addition to all this, we have other texts which affirm that believers still living in this

world are also reigning with Christ. Paul declares that believers in Christ, who live inthis world, have already been resurrected and seated with Christ in the heavenly places

the place of Gods throne: And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in

the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. (Eph. 2:6, NIV). Paul states this has alreadyhappened. It is not future. It is present reality. Paul teaches that believers in Christ have

been resurrected and are now reigning with Christ over every principality and power.

Such resurrection and reigning are presented in spiritual terms. Jesus affirmed that hisKingdom was not of this world (John 18:36). Jesus said things to His disciples which

show in what sense Christians would be reigning her on Earth: "I tell you the truth,

whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earthwill be loosed in heaven. (Mt. 18:18, NIV). I have given you authority to trample on

snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm

you. (Lk. 10:19, NIV). The Church acts as the salt of the earth and the light of the

world. (Mt. 5:13-16).

The mention of the souls of the beheaded in Revelation 20 is very similar to the vision of

the martyrs in glory described in chapter 6. They are parallel texts, so that one helps usbetter understand the other. When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the

souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had

maintained. They called out in a loud voice, How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true,until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood? Then each of them

was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their

fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed.

(Rev. 6:9-11, NIV). The similarity of the two descriptions is remarkable. Compare the


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souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had

maintained with the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony

for Jesus and because of the word of God. (Rev. 20:4, NIV).

The martyrs have knowledge of what happens here on earth in the time of the Great

Tribulation. They cry out for justice and receive white robes and are told to wait a littlelonger, for the Second Coming of Christ and consequent resurrection and Final Judgment

are yet to come! What is seen in Revelation 6 is seen also in Revelation 20, for the souls

of the beheaded await the resurrection of the body, which description is given at the endof chapter 20, more precisely, in verse 13.

So, the resurrection of the body and final judgment are described at the end of chapter 20,after the description of the thousand-year reign. That this resurrection is general

including both believers and unbelievers is deduced from the phrase which states, If

anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of

fire. (v. 15, NIV). This indicates the existence of two distinct groups: those whosenames are written in the Book of Life, and those which are not, and this agrees perfectly

with the description of final judgment performed by the Lord Jesus: When the Son ofMan comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly

glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one

from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on

his right and the goats on his left. Then they will go away to eternal punishment, butthe righteous to eternal life. (Mt. 25:31-33, 46, NIV). And this is exactly in agreement

with what was prophesied by Daniel: Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will

awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. (12:2, NIV).(See also 2 Cor. 5:10; Rom. 14:10-12.)

The Two Resurrections

Regarding the two resurrections of Revelation 20, the first (v. 5) is spiritual in nature,

being a reference to the new birth and the condition of the saved, with names written inthe Book of Life, as can be seen in the parallel text found at v. 15. Whoever is born again

does not suffer the second death nor condemnation to hell. Verse 14 states that the

Second Death is the Lake of Fire. There is now no condemnation for those who are in

Christ Jesus. (Rom. 8:1, NIV) I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believeshim who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from

death to life. (John 5:24, NIV).

Therefore, anyone whose name is written in the Book of Life, that is, who has taken part

in the First Resurrection, will not suffer the Second Death. Both the First Resurrection

and the Second Death are spiritual in nature. It would not be coherent to say that aphysical resurrection frees someone from a spiritual condemnation.

The New Testament uses with frequency the terms resurrection, raised, and

resurrected, to describe the condition of the believer in Christ: having been buried with


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him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised

him from the dead. (Col. 2:12, NIV). Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set

your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. (Col. 3:1,NIV). We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just

as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new

life. (Rom. 6:4, NIV). We know that we have passed from death to life, because welove our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death. (1 John 3:14, NIV). God

is not the God of the dead, but of the living so Christian martyrs are alive in God and

reign with Christ.

We see in the fifth chapter of Johns Gospel the use of the term resurrection in both the

spiritual and the physical sense within one and the same context (John 5:25-29). Thus, it

would not be strange for the same thing to happen in another of Johns writings.

The first resurrection mentioned in Revelation 20 is spiritual, presented mainly to

indicate the victory of the martyrs who live and reign with Christ, for the intermediate

state of believers between death and resurrection is a period of life (Lk. 20:38) andconsciousness (Rev. 6:9-11), which according to Paul is an incomparably better state than

that of believers before death (Phil. 1:23), which causes him even to prefer to leave thebody to be with the Lord (2 Cor. 5:8), for they enjoy the presence of the Lord in a

superior dimension, being found before the throne of God, serving God day and night in

His sanctuary, they have no more hunger, nor thirst, nor suffer any longer the

intemperments of life, for they are shepherded and consoled by Christ (Rev. 7:15-17).And here in Revelation 20, we see that they also take part in some way in the privilege of

reigning together with Christ. Now, the second resurrection is described in verses 11 to

13 as something distinct from the first, being a clear reference to the resurrection of thebody which will happen at the Second Coming of Christ.

The first coming of Christ brought us the first resurrection, which is the new birth, andthe Second Coming will bring us the second resurrection the resurrection of the body.

The second death is a reference to eternal punishment, which implies that the first

resurrection, mentioned by John, is not a physical resurrection. If believers now had here(Rev. 20:6) been physically raised, with glorified bodies, they would now be enjoying the

full joy of the coming life and it would not be necessary to say that the second death has

no power over them. This being the case, we have here the use of a literary devise

common to that era known as Chiasm, which arranges the four elements (first and secondresurrection, and first and second death) in such a way as to establish a diagonal contrast

in the shape of an X, as it were, as illustrated in the diagram below, where each a) is

set against a b); spiritual contrasted with spiritual and physical with physical. Note thatthis contrast, at least in its spiritual dimension, between the first resurrection and the

second death, can also be seen in verse 15, which says, If anyone's name was not found

written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. (NIV) The phrase foundwritten in the book of life indicates the condition of the saved one who has been born

again, who has now been spiritually raised with Christ and has now passed from death to

life. While, in verse 14, it is stated that the lake of fire is the second death.


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Thus, this text establishes the same contrast as that found in verse 6, which says, Blessed

and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no powerover them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a

thousand years. (NIV) The argument in defense of this interpretation of the first

resurrection as being spiritual in nature is strengthened not only by the contrastestablished, but also by the parallel which is seen between verses 6 and 15, where the

expression of v. 6, those who have part in the first resurrection has its parallel

expression in v. 15 in terms which leave no doubt as to its spiritual nature: found writtenin the book of life. In other words, those who have part in the first resurrection is the

same as saying, found written in the book of life. See the following diagram:

Demonstrative Diagram Revelation 20:6

First Resurrection spiritual

symbol of eternal life found written in the Book of

Life

(Compare v. 6 with v. 15.)

Second Resurrection (come to life v. 5)

General physical resurrection (v.13)

First Death (implied)

physical death

Second Death spiritual (v. 6)

symbol of eternal death

The lake of fire is the second

death. (v.14)

For those who insist that both uses of the term ezesan in Revelation 20 refer to physical

resurrections, there are still two more interpretations which are possible, plausible, and inperfect harmony with the Gospels and the Epistles. First, ezesan can mean the martyrs

transition from physical death to life with Christ in Heaven during the intermediate

period between death and resurrection. And also, we may affirm with propriety that thefirst resurrection was the resurrection of Jesus, the firstborn from among the dead (Col.

1:18)! Thus, those who are in Christ are, in fact, identified with His death and

resurrection, having now passed from death to life (John 5:24), just as the Apostle Paul

phrased it so well, having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him throughyour faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. (Col. 2:12, NIV). Since,

then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ isseated at the right hand of God. (Col. 3:1, NIV). Do not offer the parts of your body tosin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have

been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of

righteousness. (Rom. 6:13, NIV).

Even in the intermediate stage, between death and resurrection, the souls of believers are

very alive and active in Heaven (Rev. 6 & 7), which is different from what happens to the


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rest of the dead who believe not in God. For God is not the God of the dead, but rather is

God of the living (Mk. 12:27). The intermediate stage of the saved is not infinitely

superior to our earthly existence, which led Paul to exclaim, I desire to depart and bewith Christ, which is better by far (Phil. 1:23, NIV), and also, We are confident, I say,

and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. (2 Cor. 5:8,

NIV). This is so true that the writer of Hebrews, after describing a series of martyrs andheroes of faith, begins chapter 12 saying that we who are alive on earth are surrounded by

a great cloud of living witnesses in the heavens (Heb. 12:1). The souls of the beheaded

live and reign from the high heavens! (Rev. 20). Obviously, this text from Revelationcannot be interpreted literally, for otherwise, we would be forced to conclude that only

the souls of the beheaded rise to reign, which would exclude believers who died by other

means; something not even the strictest literalist would be capable of affirming. Thus, it

is obvious that the reference to the beheaded is much broader and more inclusive,involving all who are in Christ.

Paul taught that our position in Christ is very exalted. As those risen from the dead, we

are now seated with Christ on His throne, far above all principalities and powers and overevery kingdom and dominion which exist upon the earth (Eph. 2:6). Believers in Christ

exercise authority over demons (Lk. 10:16f), the evil one does not touch them (1 John5:18).

Second Coming, General Resurrection, and Final Judgment

There is only one general and physical resurrection of all, whether of believers or

unbelievers (Dan. 12:2, Acts 24:14, 15), and after this the Final Judgment and the eternal

state of each, For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each onemay receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

(2 Cor. 5:10, NIV). Those without there names written in the Book of Life will becondemned (Rev. 20:11-13). Jesus clearly taught that the resurrection will be general for everyone believers and unbelievers, some unto life and others unto condemnation:

Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear

his voice and come out--those who have done good will rise to live, and those who havedone evil will rise to be condemned. (John 5:28-29, NIV). And, in Matthew 25:31-46,

we read that, with the Second Coming of Christ there will be final judgment with the

separation of the goats from the sheep, the first going to eternal punishment and the latter

to eternal life. So, it is reasonable to conclude that Revelation 20 is not teaching anythingnew, such as two separate physical resurrections separated by a period of one thousand

years, but rather, speaking symbolically (which is characteristic of apocalyptic literature)

on the theme of resurrection in a manner which agrees with all the other texts of the Oldand New Testaments, which are unanimous in the teaching of just one general

resurrection, of both believers and unbelievers, followed by Final Judgment. We will

look now at a better way of understanding the nature of the Kingdom of God and its closerelation with the nature and mission of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

The events related in Revelation 19 and 20 are not in chronological order, as thepremillennialists claim. Chapter 19 does not end with a description of the Second


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Coming, but rather with a clear description of final judgment, culminating with the

destruction of all the enemies of God. If chapter 19 concludes with the death of all those

inhabitants of the Earth whose names are not written in the Book of Life, who remains ofthe nations for a millennial reign on Earth? In addition to this, the millennium described

in Revelation 20 does not describe Jesus reigning from Jerusalem, but from Heaven. It

also makes no sense to posit a general revolt against Jesus at the end of one thousandyears. The idea of armies marching across the earth with armaments to attack Jesus and

the glorified and indestructible saved is absurd.

At a minimum, it sounds strange to say that Jesus needs fire to fall from the sky to

destroy His enemies, when we know well that it is Jesus Himself who comes down from

Heaven (with blazing fire) to destroy His enemies. We have here an allusion to the

Second Coming of Christ to rescue His Church suffering persecution in the time of theGreat Tribulation. Paul taught that Jesus Christ would return in the midst of blazing fire

to judge humanity (2 Thess. 1:6-10) and Isaiah says the same See, the LORD is coming

with fire, and his chariots are like a whirlwind; he will bring down his anger with fury,

and his rebuke with flames of fire. For with fire and with his sword the LORD willexecute judgment upon all men, and many will be those slain by the LORD. (Is. 66:15-

16, NIV). Jesus is not assisted by flames of fire. He returns to Earth in flames of fire. Inthe Second Coming of Christ, sinners do not have the hope of a thousand-year reign, but

rather, the terrible expectation of Final Judgment: When the Son of Man comes in his

glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the

nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as ashepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ... Then he will say to those on his left,

Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his

angels. Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternallife. (Mt. 25:31-32, 41, 46, NIV).

Therefore, Revelation 20 is not teaching anything new or different from the teaching ofJesus and His Apostles that the first coming of Christ inaugurated the Kingdom of God in

which Jesus reigns from His celestial throne, subduing one by one His enemies beneath

His feet. His ultimate enemy death will be destroyed at the time of His SecondComing, which will be unique, personal, visible, powerful, in blazing fire, bringing a

general resurrection of all for final judgment, when the weeds will be separated from the

wheat and the goats from the midst of the sheep. The dead in Christ will rise and will

receive indestructible spiritual bodies capable of living in eternity, in the celestialJerusalem. We do not belong to the earthly Jerusalem our citizenship is heavenly. We

await new heavens and new earth, our celestial dwelling, which Jesus went to prepare.

Apendix A:

36 Questions for premillennialists


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Paul was not premillennialist, because he taught that the resurrection of the

body will happen at the end of the millennium and not at the beginning:

"For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last

enemy to be destroyed is death... When the perishable has been clothed withthe imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is

written will come true: Death has been swallowed up in victory. (1

Corinthians 15.25, 26, 54, NIV).

1. How can premillennialists say there will be death in a millennium after

the Second Coming of Christ as the Apostle Paul clearly teaches that the

Second Coming of Christ will destroy death? (1 Corinthians 15.25, 26, 54).

2. How can a premillennialist exclaim Death has been swallowed up in

victory at the Second Coming of Christ when he believes death will

continue to have victims in the millennium?

3. Who is correct: Paul, when he affirms that death shall be destroyed at

Christs Second Coming, or the premillennialists who teach that this will

occur only after the millennium?

4. Does not the term "until" in 1 Corinthians 15:25 indicate a gradual

development of the Kingdom in which the enemies are being gradually put

under the feet of Christ and not abruptly as taught by premillennialists?

5.How can the premillennial interpretation be harmonized with the Parables

of the Kingdom (Matthew 13) which teach that the kingdom of God is

established gradually, much as the development of a mustard plant, and is

also hybrid, because it includes the presence of weeds in among the wheat,

where we also have the presence of evil represented by the enemy who sows

the weeds and birds that steal the seed?

6. Since the Apostle Paul teaches that the reign of Christ takes place

gradually until the destruction of the last enemy, that is death, how can the


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pre-millennialists claim that millennium will begin after the Second

Coming?

7. If Paul teaches that the physical resurrection of the dead in Christ marks

the destruction of the last enemy (death), and if he also teaches that it isnecessary that Jesus reign until He has put all his enemies under His feet,

how can the premillennialists teach that the resurrection of the dead will

precede the millenial reign of Christ, since Paul points to the exact opposite

of this?

8. If the Second Coming of Christ destroys the last enemy, why would there

still be room for the emergence of new enemies that would promote

rebellion and war at the end of the millennium as claimed by thepremillennialists?

9. After His glorious Coming, why would Jesus still have to rule over his

enemies with a rod of iron and why he would still have to crush an absurd

rebellion in the end of the millennium?

10. Why would Jesus, after his his glorious Second Coming, need to

undergo another humiliation represented by a global rebellion against his

righteous rule of one thousand years?

11. How can it be explained that at the end of the millennium, Satan will be

released, and in a short period of time, be able to promote an unprecedented

rebellion against Jesus, gathering in a countless multitude of all nations?

12. What arguments would use Satan to deceive the nations at the end of a

millennium physically and personally chaired by the Almighty, just and

loving Christ?

13. Is it not absurd that a multitude of rebels would feel any sort of hope of

victory against the Almighty Christ and his saints with glorified and

immortal bodies?


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14. Who will be the people over which Christ and the redeemed will reign?

Dont tell me they would be exactly the people who, at the Second Coming

of Christ, were not found among the group of believers, in other words, that

they were followers of the Beast!

15. If this were the case, how could we justify that a crowd of followers of

the Antichrist, who have the mark of the beast would have the privilege to

enjoy the Millennial Reign of Christ instead of encountering the Last

Judgment?

16. How could the privilege of a millennium offered to the followers of the

Beast be reconciled with the cry for justice of the Christian martyrs killed

during the Great Tribulation as found in Rev. 6:10?

17. The angel's answer to the cry of the martyrs for justice indicates a

millennial period of waiting until the day of Judgment, or points directly to

the time when "the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and

sisters, were killed just as they had been" (Rev. 6:11). In other words, if the

Judgment has not come yet because the total number of martyrs is not

complete, would not a direct connection be thus established between the

present era and the Last Judgment? Otherwise, it would not just be a

question of awaiting the completion of the number of martyrs, but far

beyond this, it would be necessary for them to wait a thousand years while

their persecutors enjoyed the millennial reign.

18. How many ages are there?

Jesus taught the existence of two ages, the present age and the age to come,

and never even suggested something like a third intermediate age of a

thousand years. According to Christ, what is to come is the resurrection of

the dead to eternal life in a celestial Jerusalem. (Mark 10.29,30; Luke 18:30;

Luke 20.34,35).

19. Jesus taught more about the Kingdom of God than anything else, so why

is it He never mentioned anything about a millennial kingdom on earth after

His Second Coming?


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20. Why would the dead in Christ, who are already enjoying the heavenly

glory in the intermediate state, rise to return to a land where sin and death

still exist? Would not that be a setback or an anticlimax?

21. Does not the presence of resurrected, heavenly bodies indicate a life in

heaven where there is no more place for sin or death?

22. Why postpone the final judgment over all evil and also delay the

enjoyment of the celestial destiny of the saints?

23. How can the millennium be fit between the Second Coming of Christ

and the Last Judgment, when Jesus and his Apostles taught categorically thatthe Last Judgment will take place immediately after the Second Coming?

(Matthew 25.31.33; 1 Thessalonians 5.2,3; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10).

24. How can the premillennialists affirm that the Book of Revelation

describes the future events in chronological order if the birth of Jesus,

recorded in chapter 12, is described immediately after the narrative of the

Two Witnesses and the Final Judgement recorded in chapter 11?

25. How can we accept that the millennium described in Chapter 20 is an

event immediately following the Second Coming of Christ as described in

Chapter 19, when the same chapter 19 concludes with a description of the

judgment resulting in the destruction of all enemies of God? Who would

remain alive for the enjoyment of the millennium?

26 When will "the harvest of the earth" be ripe for "the great winepress of

the wrath of God" at the end of the millennium (pre-millennial) or at the

Second Coming of Christ? And is not the description of the Son of Man

sitting on a white cloud a clear picture of the Second Coming of Christ?

(Rev 14:7-20, see also: Mark 13:26, 14.62, Mat 24.30, 26.64, Luke 21:27, 1

Thessalonians 4:17, Rev. Dan 1.7 and 7.13);


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27. Why is it that teaching the existence of two bodily resurrections

separated by one thousand years is not found in the Scriptures of the Old

Testament, nor even in the Gospels and Epistles, on the contrary, what we

see in the Bible is the clear teaching that there will be a general resurrection

and, after that, the final judgment? (John 5:28-29, Daniel 12:2, Acts 24:15).

28. Why should disciples desire a millennium on earth when Jesus promised

a heavenly home? Did Jesus promise His disciples to return to take them

back to Himself, or to stay with them, forming a kingdom here on earth?

(John 14:3; Phil. 3:20).

29. Where is it that Peter said the promise of justice will be fulfilled in the

old land or in the new heaven and earth? (2 Peter 3:13)

30. Since Jesus said his kingdom was not of this world, why he would still

reign on the earth? (John 8: 23; 18:36);

31. What does the Bible say about the duration of Christ's kingdom? (Daniel

2:44, 4:3, 7:14, 7:27, Isaiah 9:6-7, Psalm 145:13, Psalm 45:6, Luke 1:32,33,

2 Peter 1:11)

32.Where is the throne of King Jesus on earth or in heaven? (Rev. 4:2, 3:21,

Rev. 7:17, Rev. 20:11, Rev. 5:13, Ps 103:19, Matt 23:22, Matt 5:34), Acts

7:49, Hebrews 10:12-13)

33. Why do not we find a physical description of Jesus reigning on a throne

in Jerusalem even in Revelation 20? And why does the text of Revelation

12:5 say that Jesus needed to be taken away from the earth to get to his

heavenly throne and rule the nations with a rod of iron?

34. How many times is Satan bound and loosed? How should the following

texts be interpreted, which speak of Satan as having been tied up and having

already lost power during the First Coming of Christ? (Matt. 12:28, 29, Luke

10:18-19, Matthew 28:18, Hebrews 2:8-9, 1 Corinthians 15:25 and Matthew

16:18).


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35. Why not recognize the claim of Christ, who said that the Kingdom of

God had come in his days, having as one of its signs the expulsion of

demons by the Spirit of God? (Matt. 12:28; 28:18; Heb. 2.8 -9, see also 1

Corinthians 15:25 and Matthew 16:18).

36.Could it be that, after the glorious Second Coming of Christ we would

return to the "weak and beggarly elements" of the Old Covenant, such as the

temple in Jerusalem, animal sacrifices, Jewish exaltation and other things of

this nature? (Galatians 4:9; Hebrews 9.8-12, 10.1-14)

Bispo Ildo Mello

escatologiacrista .blogspot .com
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revelation 20 - the question of the millennium

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