Millennium – it’s simply a word
derived from Latin that means “one thousand years.”
Yet this simple word with the simple meaning becomes
something much more in the context of the Millennial
Kingdom, or the Millennial Reign of Christ.
And from that point, different interpretations of the
thousand-year reign of Christ have resulted in more “-isms” than most of us care to
think about: premillennialism, postmillennialism,
amillennialism, and preterism. Let’s examine each of
these beliefs and let the scriptures support what they
may.
Biblically, the millennium refers
to a thousand-year reign of Christ on earth. While some
of the Old Testament prophets mention this era, it is
mentioned with most clarity in the twentieth chapter of
Revelation. Here, John says:
“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.”
–
Revelation 20:1-6
PREMILLENNIALISM:
The earliest interpretation of the
millennial reign of Christ is that of premillennialism.
This belief holds that after a period of tribulation,
Christ will return to physically establish His Kingdom
on Earth for a period of one thousand years. During
this time, Satan will be bound and unable to deceive
people. After the millennium, Satan will be set free
for a time, but his rebellion will be quickly
vanquished. The premillennialist believes that this
Kingdom is yet to come.
There are two subsets to
premillennialism. Historic Premillenialism
places the rapture of the church and the start of the
millennium together as part of the same event. This is
also known as a post-tribulation rapture, and contends
that believers must endure the seven-year tribulation
prior to the glorious reappearance of Jesus Christ.
Dispensational Premillennialism is the belief in a
pre-tribulation rapture of the church, followed by seven
years of tribulation, and finally, the glorious
reappearance of Christ and the start of His millennial
reign.
The premillennial view adheres to a
literal interpretation of the Bible. As previously
mentioned, this is the oldest known interpretation of
the millennial Kingdom. For the first two centuries,
premillennialism was the accepted view of the church.
Papias was a companion of Polycarp, who was discipled by
John, the author of revelation. Papias believed in the
literal earthly premillennial doctrine. Other second
and third century scholars who held to this belief
included Irenaus, Appolinarius, Victorinus, Tertullian,
and Lactantius.
AMILLENNIALISM:
The amillennialist does not accept
the literal interpretation of Revelation 20. The
thousand years is figurative, and shouldn’t be taken
literally. The millennium is a spiritual representation
of the church age, in which we are now living. This
view holds that Satan was bound at the first coming of
Christ. The good in the world comprises the kingdom of
Christ, and the evil in the world is part of Satan’s
kingdom. The kingdom of Christ is the church itself.
This view was first proposed by St. Augustine in the
fourth century, and has been the favored position of the
Roman Catholic church ever since. It is also a view
that is common among reform protestant denominations.
The amillennialist holds that Christ will reign through
his church until His second coming, which will mark –
not the millennial reign – but the beginning of eternity
for believers.
POSTMILLENNIALISM:
In this view, Christ’s reign begins
somewhere between the first and second coming, but it
arrives in degrees. Like amillennialism,
postmillennialism denies a literal interpretation of
Revelation 20. They believe the thousand-year reign of
Christ is figurative, and represents a time when He
reigns through the hearts of believers. The kingdom is
brought in gradually through evangelism.
Developed in the 16th
century, this view holds that conditions will gradually
improve over time, evolving into a world that has become
“Christianized”, and ready for the second coming of
Christ. Postmillennialism has become all but extinct as
the result of two world wars, the Great Depression, and
the unabated moral decay in the world. Conditions are
definitely not improving.
PRETERISM:
Preterism often goes hand in hand
with postmillennialism, and holds that the bulk of the
prophecies in Revelation were fulfilled with the fall of
Jerusalem in 70 A.D. The preterist does believe in a
final judgment following a metaphorical millennial
kingdom, but believes that all other prophecy has been
fulfilled. This is the “been there, done that”
view of Revelation.
Preterism has some sever flaws.
First, most biblical scholars believe that John wrote
Revelation around 95 A.D. How can he then prophecy
about something that took place in 70 A.D.? When was
the mark of the beast implemented (Revelation
13:16-17)? When did the Euphrates River dry up
(Revelation 16:12)? Why is there no record of 100-pound
hailstones falling from the sky (Revelation 16:21)? Why
was Israel dispersed for nearly two thousand years, and
reborn as an independent nation in 1948? These
questions cannot be answered with any intellectual
honesty while adhering to the preterist view.
On the basis of scripture, I
contend that the premillennialist view is the only one
mentioned that can pass the intellectual muster. The
following list explains this contention:
- Only the premillennialist view
takes a literal interpretation of Revelation 20.
While the Bible does speak allegorically at times, it
is pretty clear when it is doing so. If a passage
can be taken literally, it should be. One
thousand years is mentioned specifically in vs 1-7.
Other mentions of time in Revelation are specific (ten
days - Rev.2:10; forty-two months – Rev. 11:2, 13:5),
or otherwise vaguely noted (a little while – Rev.
6:11; a short time – Rev. 12:12).
- Postmillennialism and
amillennialism consider us to currently be in an
allegorical millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ.
Isaiah drew a mental picture for us when he described
what life would be like during the millennial
kingdom. In Isaiah 11:6-9 he says tells us, “The
wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie
down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the
yearling together; and a little child will lead them.
The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie
down together, and the lion will eat straw like the
ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra,
and the young child put his hand into the viper's
nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my
holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the
knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.”
This is a vision of an Eden-like utopia. How can
anyone look at the world in which we live and describe
it in these words? How can anyone think that Satan is
in chains, and not running amok in this evil world?
The world in which we live is not
the world as God created it. God created a world much
like Isaiah described above. But man chose sinful
rebellion and was cast out of that utopia. The
millennial kingdom will provide our Lord and Savior, the
Messiah Jesus Christ, with an opportunity to reign over
a world that will be as it was meant to be. Satan will
be bound and unable to exercise his influence over God’s
creation. The blood of the martyrs will have been
avenged, and the saints will be joined with our savior,
in a preview of Heaven to come. In Revelation 22:20,
Jesus said, “I am coming soon.” Let me close
with the words John used in response to that promise, “Amen.
Come, Lord Jesus.”
