The title of this article is a bit of a misnomer as God's description of the Millennium is found primarily in the Old Testament with only a few passages in the New Testament, most notably Revelation 20:1-10+. This page will summarize characteristics of the millennium, or as I prefer to call it "The Messianic Kingdom," with emphasis on God's description of this blessed time for planet earth.
There is a misconception among many that the only passages supporting a literal millennium are found in the 6 uses of "1000" in Revelation 20+ (Rev 20:2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7+). As an aside "thousand" appears 23 times in 15 verses in the Revelation, so if you allegorize or spiritualize the 6 uses in Revelation 20+, you would have to interpret the other 17 uses similarly and many passages would make no sense, but be nonsense. The truth is that there are literally hundreds of prophetic promises of the coming Messianic Kingdom scattered throughout the Old Testament. When these passages are studied objectively and literally without a systematic bias (laying aside one's preconceived notions of the different views of the millennium - pre-, post- and a- millennial) and let God's Word speak for itself, the picture emerges describing a time and place which has not yet come to pass in world history and which is distinct from the eternal state, the new heaven and the new earth in Revelation 21-22. The challenge is to come to these passages like a little child seeking the guidance of the Spirit of truth and coming with a sincere desire to know the whole truth and nothing but the truth with the help of God!
While one's stand on the millennium does not affect one's salvation, the truth is that one's "system" of belief concerning the millennium will radically impact how one interprets many of the Old Testament passages which if read literally are clearly yet to be fulfilled in the future. The non-literal reader will be forced to used his or her "sanctified imagination" invoking a variety of allegorical or spiritualized interpretations (see the Rise of Allegorical Interpretation).
Note that there is some overlap and repetition in the following categorization of the Millennium. There are also assorted explanatory notes and links to select cross references. Note that a "+" after a reference links to a related commentary onsite. One other point is that the list below is not meant to be exhaustive and I would encourage you, as you are reading the Old Testament, to be on the "lookout" for passages that clearly speak of a time or an event which has not yet been fulfilled and you will likely discern that the Spirit is making reference to the Millennium.
Why would there even need to be a Millennial Kingdom? First and foremost there needs to be a Millennium because God says it and that settles it, whether we believe it or not. Secondly, hundreds of prophecies especially regarding the nation of Israel would and could not be literally fulfilled if there were no Messianic Kingdom in which there existed a literal nation of Israel. The easy solution for the non-literalistic interpreter of the Word of Truth is to allegorize or spiritualize those prophecies that are specifically promised to Israel, which is exactly the tact of the aberrational teaching of so-called "replacement theology."
Pastor Roy Gingrich wrote that "Postmillennial eschatology is an unrealistic-hope eschatology, and Premillennial eschatology is a real-hope eschatology. Premillennial eschatology not only offers a real hope for the future through its teachings of the visible return of Christ and the personal reign of Jesus Christ over this earth for 1000 years but it also makes provision for the literal fulfillment of God’s Old Testament promises to Israel, which promises are given only a spiritual fulfillment in Amillennial and Postmillennial eschatology, a fulfillment that weakens our faith in the promises of the Bible.....Around one third of the Bible was prophecy at the time its books were written. Around two thirds of this prophecy has already been fulfilled, leaving the other third yet to be fulfilled. This one third is mostly eschatological prophecy dealing with the conditions that will prevail in Jerusalem, Palestine, and the remainder of the earth during the Millennium."
Recall that after His resurrection Luke records that Jesus "presented Himself alive (TO HIS DISCIPLES) after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. (Acts 1:4+) And after this extensive teaching on the kingdom, Luke adds that "when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring (apokathistemi) the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6+) And how did Jesus respond? Did He chastise them for being such dullards? After all He had just given the the greatest "kingdom seminar" in the history of the world. No, Jesus did not accuse them of being slow learners, nor did He discount their question about the Kingdom. Clearly, the disciples were anticipating the inauguration of the Messianic Kingdom immediately. Jesus shifts their attention to the focus of evangelizing a lost, hell headed world (Acts 1:8+).
RELATED RESOURCE ON THE MILLENNIUM:
THE THEOCRATIC KINGDOM - Published 1884 - George N H. Peters (November 30, 1825-October 7, 1909) "was an American Lutheran minister and author of The Theocratic Kingdom. His premillennial views were in conflict with the majority of Lutherans who held amillennial beliefs.[1][2] This massive 2189 page work, was all written before the typewriter was invented! This is the quintessential epitome of a person's "life work!"
- Volume 1 - Propositions 1 - 106
- Volume 2 - Propositions 107 - 164
- Volume 3 - Propositions 165 - 206
- Index of Scriptures & Subjects
- See also Millennium Part 3
Global Environment- The heavens and earth will be renewed to restore the creation to Eden-like conditions and repair the damage from man’s long reign of abuse and the devastating global judgments that occur during the seven year Tribulation period.
Isa. 65:17;22 Mt 19:28 (“regeneration” [paliggenesia] of the earth), Acts 3:19+ (described as the “times of refreshing [anapsuxis]”) and Acts 3:21+ ("the period of restoration [apokatastasis] of all things.")
The Curse - Many aspects of the curse (Ge 3:15-19) will be reversed. In other words the curse will be “curtailed” although sin will still be present and so the last enemy death will continue to exist until Rev 20:13-14. People will live to a great age, but death will still occur. As before the flood, animals will revert to vegetarianism and will no longer fear man. Living waters will flow from beneath the sanctuary of the Millennial Temple bringing life to the regions they water. - Isa. 11:6-9; 65:20, 25; Eze. 47:8-12; Zec. 8:4; 14:8; (cf. Rev. 21:1-2)
Mount Zion - The region of Mount Zion will be lifted up to form the Mountain of the Lord’s House. See Millennial Temple - Isa. 2:2; 56:7; Eze. 20:40; 40:2; Zec. 14:4, 10-11; Mic. 4:1
1. Topography and geography of the earth changed
Zechariah 14:4+ In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south.
Isaiah 2:2 Isaiah 41:18, Ezek 47:1-12; Ezekiel 48:8-20; Zec 14:4, 8, 10
2. Wild animals tamed & no longer fear man – a return to an Eden-like state when animals were herbivores (cf Isa 11:7).
Poisonous animals will cease to be poisonous, and meat-eating animals will become herbivorous. All members of the animal kingdom will live together in perfect peace with each other and with Mankind
Isaiah 65:25 “The wolf and the lamb will graze together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox; and dust will be the serpent’s food. They will do no evil or harm in all My holy mountain,” says the LORD.
Isaiah 11:6-9; Isaiah 35:9; Ezekiel 34:25
P. T. Barnum, the famous circus showman, loved to show visiting preachers his exhibit called "The Happy Family," in which lions, tigers and panthers squatted around a lamb without any aggression. When Barnum was asked by the visiting preachers if the group ever had any trouble, he would say, "Apart from replenishing the lamb now and then, they get along very well together." (Mark Hitchcock)
3. Crops abundant
Amos 9:13-14+ “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “When the plowman will overtake the reaper And the treader of grapes him who sows seed; When the mountains will drip sweet wine And all the hills will be dissolved."
Isaiah 30:23 (Isa 30:18-26 IS MILLENNIAL) Then He will give you rain for the seed which you will sow in the ground, and bread from the yield of the ground, and it will be rich and plenteous; on that day your livestock will graze in a roomy pasture.
Joel 3:18+ And in that day The mountains will drip with sweet wine, And the hills will flow with milk, And all the brooks of Judah will flow with water; And a spring will go out from the house of the LORD To water the valley of Shittim.
Isaiah 27:6; 35:1, 2, 6, 7; Ezekiel 34:26-29, Zechariah 14:8 Ps. 67:6-7; 72:16; Isa. 55:13; 65:22; Joel 2:24-26; 3:18
4. Human longevity increased
Isaiah 65:20-23 “as the lifetime of a tree, so will be the days of My people”
5. Land of Israel no longer a place of desolation
Isaiah 62:3-5 You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD, And a royal diadem in the hand of your God. 4 It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,” Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”; But you will be called, “My delight is in her,” And your land, “Married”; For the LORD delights in you, And to Him your land will be married. 5 For as a young man marries a virgin, So your sons will marry you; And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So your God will rejoice over you.
6. Desert areas will become pools of water
Isaiah 35:6-7 "And streams in the Arabah. 7 The scorched land will become a pool And the thirsty ground springs of water; "
7. Dead Sea becomes "alive"
Ezekiel 47:8-9 Then he said to me, “These waters go out toward the eastern region and go down into the Arabah; then they go toward the sea, being made to flow into the sea, and the waters of the sea become fresh. 9 “It will come about that every living creature which swarms in every place where the river goes, will live. And there will be very many fish, for these waters go there and the others become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes.
8. Creation will be set free
Romans 8:18-22 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. (Compare the "regeneration" in Mt 19:28).
John Walvoord says that "Spiritual life in the millennium will be characterized by holiness and righteousness, joy and peace, the fulness of the Spirit, and the worship of the glorious Christ."
1. Satan confined in the abyss (abussos)
Revelation 20:1-3 - note the 5 verbs in v2-3 which describe how complete and certain is his binding. In light of John's description, to say that Satan is bound today is highly questionable and is clearly refuted by passages such as 1 Peter 5:8+ and Acts 5:3+.
Revelation 18:2+ And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! And she has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison (phulake - the same word used in Rev 20:7 describing Satan's release from prison) of every unclean spirit, and a prison (phulake) of every unclean and hateful bird.
COMMENT - From this passage, while we cannot be dogmatic, it would appear that the demons are confined to prison and it would be reasonable to deduce that they are confined for the same length of time as their Leader Satan.
2. Millennial temple built
Ezekiel's Temple and Millennial Worship - 38 page discussion by Merrill F Unger in Great Neglected Bible Prophecies (can be borrowed)
Ezekiel 40:5-43:27 - See Schematic Diagram of this Temple which will be much larger than even the Temple complex constructed by Herod.
Isaiah 2:2-3 - "The mountain of the house of the LORD Will be established as the chief of the mountains"
Isa 56:6-8 - "7 My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples"
Isa 60:7b, Isa 60:13 - "To beautify the place of My sanctuary"
3. Animal sacrifices offered as memorials to Christ’s death not for salvific purposes.
John Mitchell's 2 part article on The Question of Millennial Sacrifices Part 1 The Question of Millennial Sacrifices Part 2 - not free but very inexpensive if you select the Monthly Journal Subscription (not recurring) for $5. In 30 days you can also read all the other articles (thousands) if you are a fast reader!
18 page article on The Millennial Sacrifices in Ezekiel 40-48 by Matt Waymeyer.
Nathaniel West has quite a statement regarding the sacrifices - They cannot be literalized into the times of the Restoration under Zerubbabel, nor spiritualized into the times of the New Testament Church, nor celestialized into the heavenly state, nor allegorized into the final New Heaven and Earth, nor idealized into an oriental phantasmagorial abstraction. (from his online book "The Thousand Years in Both Testaments")
John Walvoord comments - The details such as are offered for these sacrifices make it clear that it is a distinct system from the Mosaic, but that it involves animal sacrifices as well as other forms of worship similar to that provided in the Mosaic law. The suggestion that there would be literal sacrifices in the millennium is a focal point of opposition from amillenarians and is not necessarily embraced by all premillenarians.
Horatius Bonar supports literal sacrifices in the Millennium writing “The temple, the worship, the rites, the sacrifices, have all their centre in the Lamb that was slain. To Him they point, and of Him they speak. Why should they not be allowed to do so in the millennial age, if such be the purpose of the Father? They are commemorative not typical. They are retrospective then, not prospective, as of old. And how needful will retrospection be then, especially to Israel? How needful, when dwelling in the blaze of a triumphant Messiah’s glory, to have ever before them some memorial of the cross, some palpable record of the humbled Jesus, some visible exposition of his sin-bearing work, in virtue of which they have been forgiven, and saved, and loved,—to which they owe all their blessedness and honour,—and by means of which, God is teaching them the way in which the exceeding riches of His grace can flow down to them in righteousness. And if God should have yet a wider circle of truth to open up to us out of His word concerning his Son, why should he not construct a new apparatus for the illustration of that truth?” (H. Bonar, Coming and Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, 1849, pp. 222-23).
Isaiah 56:7; Isa 66:20- 23; Jer. 33:17,18; Ezek 43:18- 27; 45:13-46:24; Zec. 14:16-21; Malachi 3:3, 4
4. Feasts of the New Year, Passover, and Tabernacles reinstituted
Ezek 45:18-24, 25; Zech 14:16-21
5. Nations will worship Jehovah in Jerusalem
Isaiah 2:2-4; Mic 4:2; Micah 7:12; Zechariah 8:20- 23; Zechariah 14:16- 21
6. Worldwide knowledge of Jehovah
An answer to Solomon's prayer - Psalm 72:19 "And blessed be His glorious name forever; And may the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen, and Amen."
Isaiah 11:9 "the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea"
Habakkuk 2:14 “For the earth will be filled With the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, As the waters cover the sea."
Je 31:34; Mic 4:5; Isa 66:18, compare Ps 22:27, 67:1,2, 86:9, 98:1-3 Zec 14:8,9 Rev 11:15; Rev 15:4
7. Unparalleled filling of and empowerment by the Holy Spirit on Israel
Joel 2:28-29+ “It will come about after this That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and daughters will prophesy, Your old men will dream dreams, Your young men will see visions. 29“ Even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
Isaiah 32:15; 44:3; Ezekiel 36:24-29; 39:29;
8. New Covenant with Israel fulfilled
See study of the New Covenant in the Old Testament.
Deuteronomy 30:3-6 then the LORD your God will restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will gather you again from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you. 4 “If your outcasts are at the ends of the earth, from there the LORD your God will gather you, and from there He will bring you back. 5 “The LORD your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it; and He will prosper you and multiply you more than your fathers. 6 “Moreover the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may live.
Jeremiah 31:31-34; “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah (NOTICE CAREFULLY NOT JUST WITH ISRAEL BUT WITH JUDAH - THIS ARGUES AGAINST THE FALSE TEACHING THAT ISRAEL IS THE CHURCH), 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. 33 “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 “They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”
Ezekiel 11:19-20; “And I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, 20 that they may walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and do them. Then they will be My people, and I shall be their God.
Ezekiel 36:25 “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.
Jeremiah 24:7 'And I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the LORD; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart.
9. Righteousness and justice will prevail
Jeremiah 23:5-6 “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch (MESSIAH); And He will reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land." 6 “In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, ‘The LORD our righteousness.’ (Jehovah Tsidkenu)
Isaiah 9:7 There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.
Isaiah 11:4 But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.
Isaiah 42:1-4 “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations. 2 “He will not cry out or raise His voice, Nor make His voice heard in the street. 3 “A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice. 4 “He will not be disheartened or crushed Until He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands will wait expectantly for His law.”
Isa 45:8 “Drip down, O heavens, from above, And let the clouds pour down righteousness; Let the earth open up and salvation bear fruit, And righteousness spring up with it. I, the LORD, have created it. (Ryrie - In the Millennium the earth will be showered with righteousness.)
Jeremiah 31:23 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Once again they will speak this word in the land of Judah and in its cities when I restore their fortunes, ‘The LORD bless you, O abode of righteousness, O holy hill!’
Daniel 9:24 "to bring in everlasting righteousness" - When? at the end of the 70 weeks of Daniel which leads into the Millennial kingdom
10. Christ will rule with a rod of iron (because there will be sinners born to those who enter the millennium)
Isaiah 11:4 And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,
Rev 12:5 a Male Child, Who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron;
Rev 19:15 He may strike down the nations (Second Coming defeats Antichrist and armies), and He will rule them with a rod of iron (rules when He sets up the Messianic Kingdom and sinners are born during that time)
11. Holiness will characterize the Messianic Kingdom
Zechariah 14:20-21 In that day there will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, “HOLY TO THE LORD.” And the cooking pots in the LORD’S house will be like the bowls before the altar. 21 Every cooking pot in Jerusalem and in Judah will be holy to the LORD of hosts;
Zechariah 8:3 (THE MOUNTAIN OF THE LORD WILL BE HOLY) “Thus says the LORD, ‘I will return to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of the LORD of hosts will be called the Holy Mountain.’
Isaiah 4:2-4 - 3 It will come about that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be called holy–everyone who is recorded for life in Jerusalem
Isaiah 29:19 (THE ULTIMATE HOLINESS IS THE PRESENCE OF THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL!) The afflicted also will increase their gladness in the LORD, And the needy of mankind will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
Isaiah 35:8+ And a highway will be there, a roadway, And it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean will not travel on it, But it will be for him who walks that way, And fools will not wander on it.
Isaiah 35:1-10+ is one of the greatest descriptions of the Millennial in the Bible (and follows the judgment chapter Isaiah 34):
The wilderness and the desert will be glad, And the Arabah will rejoice and blossom; Like the crocus 2It will blossom profusely And rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, The majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the LORD, The majesty of our God. 3 Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the feeble. 4 Say to those with anxious heart, “Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you.” 5 Then the eyes of the blind will be opened And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. 6 Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the Arabah. 7 The scorched land will become a pool And the thirsty ground springs of water; In the haunt of jackals, its resting place, Grass becomes reeds and rushes. 8 A highway will be there, a roadway, And it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean will not travel on it, But it will be for him who walks that way, And fools will not wander on it. 9 No lion will be there, Nor will any vicious beast go up on it; These will not be found there. But the redeemed will walk there, 10 And the ransomed of the LORD will return And come with joyful shouting to Zion, With everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Isaiah 52:1 Awake, awake, Clothe yourself in your strength, O Zion; Clothe yourself in your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city; For the uncircumcised and the unclean Will no longer come into you.
12. Joy, gladness, rejoicing and praise will prevail when Messiah reigns
Jeremiah 30:18-19 “Thus says the LORD, ‘Behold, I will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob And have compassion on his dwelling places; And the city will be rebuilt on its ruin, And the palace will stand on its rightful place. 19 ‘From them will proceed thanksgiving And the voice of those who celebrate; And I will multiply them and they will not be diminished; I will also honor them and they will not be insignificant.
Jeremiah 31:13+ “Then the virgin will rejoice in the dance, And the young men and the old, together, For I will turn their mourning into joy And will comfort them and give them joy for their sorrow.
Jeremiah 33:11 "the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride"
Isaiah 26:1 In that day (THE REDEEMED WILL SING) this song will be sung in the land of Judah: "We have a strong city; He sets up walls and ramparts for security.
Isaiah 35:10 And the ransomed of the LORD will return And come with joyful shouting to Zion, With everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away.
Isaiah 55:12 For you will go out with joy And be led forth with peace; The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, And all the trees of the field will clap their hands (WHEN DO YOU THINK THIS WILL OCCUR?). "Instead of the thorn bush the cypress will come up; And instead of the nettle the myrtle will come up; And it will be a memorial to the LORD, For an everlasting sign which will not be cut off." (Sing The Trees of the Field - Another Version)
Isaiah 9:3-4 You shall multiply the nation, You shall increase their gladness; They will be glad in Your presence As with the gladness of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil. 4 For You shall break the yoke of their burden and the staff on their shoulders, The rod of their oppressor, as at the battle of Midian.
Isaiah 12:3-6 Therefore you will joyously draw water From the springs of salvation. 4 And in that day you will say, “Give thanks to the LORD, call on His name. Make known His deeds among the peoples; Make them remember that His name is exalted.” 5 Praise the LORD in song, for He has done excellent things; Let this be known throughout the earth. 6 Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, (WHY?) For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
Isaiah 14:7-8 “The whole earth is at rest and is quiet; They break forth into shouts of joy. 8 “Even the cypress trees rejoice over you, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, ‘Since you were laid low, no tree cutter comes up against us.’
Isaiah 25:9 And it will be said in that day, “Behold, this is our God for whom we have waited that He might save us. This is the LORD for whom we have waited; Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.”
Isaiah 30:29 You will have songs as in the night when you keep the festival, And gladness of heart as when one marches to the sound of the flute, To go to the mountain of the LORD, to the Rock of Israel.
Zephaniah 3:14-17 Shout for joy, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! 15 The LORD has taken away His judgments against you, He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; You will fear disaster no more. 16 In that day it will be said to Jerusalem: “Do not be afraid, O Zion; Do not let your hands fall limp. 17“The LORD your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.
Zechariah 8:18-19 Then the word of the LORD of hosts came to me, saying, 19 “Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘The fast of the fourth, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh and the fast of the tenth months will become joy, gladness, and cheerful feasts for the house of Judah; so love truth and peace.’
Zechariah 10:6-7 “I will strengthen the house of Judah, And I will save the house of Joseph, And I will bring them back, Because I have had compassion on them; And they will be as though I had not rejected them, For I am the LORD their God and I will answer them. 7 “Ephraim will be like a mighty man, And their heart will be glad as if from wine; Indeed, their children will see it and be glad, Their heart will rejoice in the LORD.
Joy to the World is a famous hymn by Isaac Watts which we sing at Christmas, the First Coming of Christ, but it was probably not intended to be a Christmas hymn but a hymn celebrating the Second Coming of Christ. Isaac Watts was actually post-millennial, thinking the world was going to get better and better until the Second Coming of Christ, so with that caveat you might reread his words and see if they might also apply to a premillennial view of the Millennium.
Joy to the world, the Lord is come
Let Earth receive her King
Let every heart prepare Him room
And Heaven and nature sing
And Heaven and nature sing
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature singJoy to the Earth, the Savior reigns
Let all their songs employ
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat, repeat the sounding joyNo more let sins and sorrows grow,
nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
far as the curse is found,
far as the curse is found,
far as, far as the curse is found.He rules the world with truth and grace
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness
And wonders of His love (and wonders of His love)
And wonders of His love (and wonders of His love)
And wonders, wonders of His love
13. Shekinah glory cloud of God will hover over Jerusalem
Isaiah 4:5 then the LORD will create over the whole area of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud (same word anan used for Shekinah cloud in Ex 33:9-10, et al) by day, even smoke, and the brightness of a flaming fire by night (cf Ex 13:22); for over all the glory will be a canopy
Isaiah 40:5 Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
Ezekiel 43:1-5 (THE RETURN OF THE GLORIOUS ONE) Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing toward the east; 2 and behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the way of the east. And His voice was like the sound of many waters; and the earth shone with His glory. 3 And it was like the appearance of the vision which I saw, like the vision which I saw when He came to destroy the city. And the visions were like the vision which I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell on my face. 4 And the glory of the LORD came into the house by the way of the gate facing toward the east. 5 And the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house.
Matthew 24:30 (THE RETURN OF THE GLORIOUS ONE) “And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory.
14. Israel cured of idolatry
Ezekiel 37:23 “They will no longer defile themselves with their idols, or with their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. And they will be My people, and I will be their God.
15. A Messianic Feast
Isaiah 25:6 The LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain (ZION CENTER OF MILLENNIAL GOVERNMENT); A banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, And refined, aged wine.
Comment - Some writers feel this could refer to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Rev 19:9+) but others (Archer) feel it another Messianic banquet. Clearly Isaiah is describing a great feast on earth, not in heaven.
16. Gentiles will join in the feasting in the Millennium
Matthew 8:11 “I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven;
17. Israel will behold their Teacher
Isa 30:20 Although the Lord has given you bread of privation and water of oppression, He, your Teacher will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will behold your Teacher. (COMPARE Isa 2:3)
THEOCRATIC RULE (theos = God + krateo -take hold, possess power) - God will rule in the person of Jesus Christ on the throne of David. King David reigns as a prince under Christ.
2Sa 7:16; Ps. 89:20-37; Isa. 24:23; Jer. 30:9; 33:15-17; Eze. 34:23-24; 37:24-25; 45:22; Da 7:13-14; Hos. 3:5; Luke 1:30-33.
Representative Rule - The twelve apostles will represent Christ ruling over the twelve tribes. Church-age and Tribulation saints will represent Christ ruling over the Gentiles.
Isa. 32:1; Da 7:17-18, 21-22, 27; Mt. 19:28; Luke 22:30; Rev. 3:21; 5:10.
Universal Rule - Christ’s rule will extend both spiritually and literally over the entire earth.
Ps. 2:6-9; 72:8; Da 2:44; 4:34; 7:14, 27; Mic. 4:1-2; Zec. 9:10
Seat of Government The earthly Jerusalem will be restored, blessed, and greatly expanded to serve as the seat of government and worship. See Jerusalem Married to God.
Isa. 62; Isa. 65:18-19; Eze. 48:15-19; Luke 21:24; Rev. 11:2.
Hos 14:4-8 speaks of the future blessing of Israel in the Millennium.
Populace Resurrected and glorified saints will rule in the midst of Christ’s “brothers” (the faithful Jewish remnant – see Ezek 20:33-38), and the “sheep” (faithful Gentiles – Mt 25:31-46) who survive the Tribulation and enter the kingdom to form its initial population (initially all born again). Children will be born to those who enter the kingdom in their natural bodies and many will never accept Christ as Savior (see Rev 20:7-10 = “the number of them is like the sand of the seashore”).
Dan. 12:2; Isa. 26:19; 65:20, 23; Mat. 25:31; Rev. 20:4
Israel - The nation of Israel will finally inhabit the Promised Land permanently. She will serve as the focal point of the nations because Jesus will reign from Jerusalem.Gen. 13:15; 17:8; 1Chr. 17:9; Ps. 105:8-11; Isa. 60:21; Jer. 3:18; 7:7; 30:3; 31:8-9; Eze. 37:25; 39:25-29; Amos 9:11-15
A. R. Fausset “The whole Bible, even the New Testament, is written by Jews. If revelation is to recommence in the millennial kingdom, converted Israel must stand at the head of humanity. In a religious point of view, Jews and Gentiles stand on an equal footing as both alike needing mercy; but as regards God’s instrumentalities for bringing about His kingdom on earth, Israel is His chosen people for executing His plans.”
1. Israel will continue to exist as a literal nation and will be reunited as one nation
Jeremiah 31:36+ “If this fixed order departs From before Me,” declares the LORD, “Then the offspring of Israel also will cease From being a nation before Me forever.” 37 Thus says the LORD, “If the heavens above can be measured And the foundations of the earth searched out below, Then I will also cast off all the offspring of Israel For all that they have done,” declares the LORD.
Jeremiah 3:18; Ezekiel 37:15-23 (v22 - "and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king will be king for all of them; and they will no longer be two nations and no longer be divided into two kingdoms.")
2. Israel at peace in the land
Dt. 30:1-10; Isaiah 32:18; Hosea 14:5, 7; Am 9:15; Micah 5:4-5; Zec 3:10; Zech 14:11
Jehovah protects Israel - Isaiah 54:11-17
Isaiah 60:10-14 (cp Isa 60:15-22) Foreigners will build up your walls, And their kings will minister to you; For in My wrath I struck you, And in My favor I have had compassion on you. 11 “Your gates will be open continually; They will not be closed day or night, So that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations, With their kings led in procession. 12 “For the nation and the kingdom which will not serve you will perish, And the nations will be utterly ruined. 13 “The glory of Lebanon will come to you, The juniper, the box tree and the cypress together, To beautify the place of My sanctuary; And I shall make the place of My feet glorious. 14 “The sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you, And all those who despised you will bow themselves at the soles of your feet; And they will call you the city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
Isaiah 66:10-14 is a description of the millennial age.
3. Israel will possess the Promised Land forever - Abrahamic Covenant fulfilled
Israel will finally inhabit the Promised Land permanently. She will serve as the focal point of the nations because Jesus will reign from Jerusalem. Ps. 105:8-11; Jer. 31:8-9; Ezek 47:13-48:8, 23-27
Genesis 12:7 The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the LORD who had appeared to him.
Genesis 15:18-21 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land, From the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates: 19 the Kenite and the Kenizzite and the Kadmonite 20 and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Rephaim 21 and the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Girgashite and the Jebusite.”
Genesis 17:8 “I will give to you and to your descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
1 Chronicles 17:9 “I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and not be moved again; and the wicked will not waste them anymore as formerly,
Psalms 105:8-11 He has remembered His covenant forever, The word which He commanded to a thousand generations, 9The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His oath to Isaac. 10 Then He confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, To Israel as an everlasting covenant, 11 Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan As the portion of your inheritance,”
Isaiah 60:21 “Then all your people will be righteous; They will possess the land forever, The branch of My planting, The work of My hands, That I may be glorified.
Isaiah 49:8-12 Thus says the LORD, “In a favorable time I have answered You, And in a day of salvation I have helped You; And I will keep You and give You for a covenant of the people, To restore the land, to make them inherit the desolate heritages; 9 Saying to those who are bound, ‘Go forth,’ To those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’ Along the roads they will feed, And their pasture will be on all bare heights. 10 “They will not hunger or thirst, Nor will the scorching heat or sun strike them down; For He who has compassion on them will lead them And will guide them to springs of water. 11 “I will make all My mountains a road, And My highways will be raised up. 12 “Behold, these will come from afar; And lo, these will come from the north and from the west, And these from the land of Sinim.”
Jeremiah 3:18 “In those days the house of Judah will walk with the house of Israel, and they will come together from the land of the north to the land that I gave your fathers as an inheritance.
Jeremiah 7:7 then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers forever and ever.
Jeremiah 24:6 'For I will set My eyes on them for good, and I will bring them again to this land; and I will build them up and not overthrow them, and I will plant them and not pluck them up.
Jeremiah 30:3 ‘For behold, days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel and Judah.’ The LORD says, ‘I will also bring them back to the land that I gave to their forefathers and they shall possess it.’”
Jeremiah 32:41 “I will rejoice over them to do them good and will faithfully plant them in this land with all My heart and with all My soul.
Ezekiel 34:28 "And they will no longer be a prey to the nations, and the beasts of the earth will not devour them; but they will live securely, and no one will make them afraid.
Ezekiel 37:25 "And they shall live on the land that I gave to Jacob My servant, in which your fathers lived; and they will live on it, they, and their sons, and their sons' sons, forever; and David My servant shall be their prince forever.
Ezekiel 39:25-29 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, “Now I will restore the fortunes of Jacob and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for My holy name. 26 “They will forget their disgrace and all their treachery which they perpetrated against Me, when they live securely on their own land with no one to make them afraid. 27 “When I bring them back from the peoples and gather them from the lands of their enemies, then I shall be sanctified through them in the sight of the many nations. 28 “Then they will know that I am the LORD their God because I made them go into exile among the nations, and then gathered them again to their own land; and I will leave none of them there any longer. 29 “I will not hide My face from them any longer, for I will have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,” (NEW COVENANT - cf Ezek 36:26-27) declares the Lord GOD.
Amos 9:15 “I will also plant them on their land, And they will not again be rooted out from their land Which I have given them,” Says the LORD your God.
Joel 3:20 But Judah will be inhabited forever, And Jerusalem for all generations.
Micah 4:4 Each of them will sit under his vine And under his fig tree, With no one to make them afraid, For the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken.
4. Christ in Jerusalem reign in Jerusalem and rule over Israel (and over the entire world - Zech 14:9)
Isa 24:23 Then the moon will be abashed and the sun ashamed, For the LORD of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, And His glory will be before His elders.
Isaiah 40:11; Micah 4:7; Micah 5:2b
5. Davidic Covenant fulfilled with Christ on the throne of David and David will reign under as king (thus Messiah's title "King of kings")
2 Sa 7:11-16; Isaiah 9:6, 7; Jer 33:17-26; Am 9:11,12, Lk 1:32, 33
Jeremiah 30:9 ‘But they shall serve the LORD their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them. (see also Ezek 34:23-24, Ezek 37:24 - note "My servant David" is never used of Messiah)
6. Christ rules over and judges the nations
saiah 11:3-5; Zec 14:9; Revelation 19:15
Micah 4:2-3 Many nations will come and say, “Come and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD And to the house of the God of Jacob, That He may teach us about His ways And that we may walk in His paths.” For from Zion will go forth the law, Even the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. 3 And He will judge between many peoples And render decisions for mighty, distant nations. Then they will hammer their swords into plowshares And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation will not lift up sword against nation, And never again will they train for war.
7. Resurrected saints reign with Christ - 12 Apostles Rule over 12 Tribes
Mt 19:28 And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration (paliggenesia) when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne (cf His Second Coming in Mt 25:31), you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Compare Isaiah 32:1
2 Timothy 2:12 If we endure, we will also reign with Him; If we deny Him, He also will deny us;
Revelation 5:10 “You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”
Revelation 20:4 Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
8. Universal peace prevails - nations will no longer go to war - disagreements will be settled by Christ
Isaiah 2:4-5; Isaiah 9:7, Isa 60:18; Ho 2:18 ("I will abolish the bow, the sword and war from the land"); Mic 4:2, 3, 4; Micah 5:4; Ps. 72:3-7;
Isaiah 32:17-18 And the work of righteousness will be peace, And the service of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever. 18 Then my people will live in a peaceful habitation, And in secure dwellings and in undisturbed resting places;
Zechariah 9:10 I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim And the horse from Jerusalem; And the bow of war will be cut off. And He will speak peace to the nations; And His dominion will be from sea to sea, And from the River to the ends of the earth. (Contrast with His First Coming - Zech 9:9)
Ezekiel 37:26 “I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever.
9. Jerusalem becomes the capital of the world
Jeremiah 3:17-18 At that time they will call Jerusalem ‘The Throne of the LORD,’ and all the nations will be gathered to it, to Jerusalem, for the name of the LORD; nor will they walk anymore after the stubbornness of their evil heart. 18 “In those days the house of Judah will walk with the house of Israel, and they will come together from the land of the north to the land that I gave your fathers as an inheritance.
Zechariah 8:2-3 “Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘I am exceedingly jealous for Zion, yes, with great wrath I am jealous for her.’ 3 “Thus says the LORD, ‘I will return to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem (MESSIAH THE HOLY ONE WILL REIGN IN THE HOLY CITY). Then Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of the LORD of hosts will be called the Holy Mountain.’
Ezekiel 48:30-35; Joel 3:16-17; Mic 4:1, 6, 7, 8;
10. Israel will be exalted above the Gentile nations
Isaiah 14:1-2; Isa 49:22-23; Isa 60:14-17; Isaiah 61:4-11, Isa 60:1-62:7
Zech 2:11 “Many nations will join themselves to the LORD in that day and will become My people. Then I will dwell in your midst, and you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent Me to you.
Zech 8:23 Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘In those days ten men from all the nations will grasp the garment of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’
11. The world will be blessed through Israel
Micah 5:7 Then the remnant of Jacob Will be among many peoples Like dew from the LORD, Like showers on vegetation Which do not wait for man Or delay for the sons of men.
12. Every person will have his own home and vineyard
Isaiah 65:21-22 They will build houses and inhabit them; They will also plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 22 “They will not build and another inhabit, They will not plant and another eat; For as the lifetime of a tree, so will be the days of My people, And My chosen ones will wear out the work of their hands.
Zech 3:10 ‘In that day,’ declares the LORD of hosts, ‘every one of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and under his fig tree.’” (Ryrie - " there will be peace and security cf. Mic. 4:4).
13. All Labor will be redeemed - in the sense that it will be productive, and it will not be confiscated by others.
Isaiah 65:23 “They will not labor in vain, Or bear children for calamity; For they are the offspring of those blessed by the LORD, And their descendants with them.
14, Disease will be curtailed and persons born with physical handicaps will be healed:
Politicians are constantly working on plans to provide better healthcare, but in the Lord's health plan will be the best!
Isaiah 33:24 And no resident will say, “I am sick”; The people who dwell there will be forgiven their iniquity.
Isaiah 35:5-6+ Then the eyes of the blind will be opened And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. 6 Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the Arabah.
Isaiah 29:17-24 (on that day the deaf shall hear words of a book, And out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see)
Ezekiel 34:16 “I will seek the lost, bring back the scattered, bind up the broken and strengthen the sick; but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with judgment.
15. The Messianic Kingdom will endure forever
Obadiah 1:21+ The deliverers will ascend Mount Zion To judge the mountain of Esau, And the kingdom will be the LORD’S.
Daniel 2:44+ “In the days of those kings (WHEN STONE OR MESSIAH RETURNS) the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever.
Dr Anthony Garland writes - One of the criticisms that has been leveled against the premillennial understanding of the Millennial Kingdom is that it only lasts 1,000 years, whereas Scripture is replete with passages indicating Christ’s kingdom will be eternal.
The amillennialist sees a conflict here and insists that the eternality of Christ’s kingdom does not permit any place for a thousand year reign on earth. Calvin’s reason for rejecting the premillennial view was his concept that the thousand year reign nullified the eternal reign of Christ. Did the premillennialist limit the reign of Christ to a thousand years, his contention that “their fiction is too puerile to require or deserve refutation” would be true. However such is not the case. An important Scripture bearing on the discussion is 1 Corinthians 15:24-28.31
The solution to this problem is found in recognizing the transition which Paul records in 1 Corinthians 15:24-28. Christ rules in the millennium until the Great White Throne Judgment, when death itself is finally vanquished (Rev. 20:14+ cf. Rev. 21:4+). Then, He places His kingdom under the Father. Yet His rule continues into the eternal state, where there is a new heavens and a new earth (Rev. 21:1+) and where the saints will continue to co-rule with Him for eternity (Rev. 22:5+).
[1Cor. 15:24, 28] does not mean the end of our Lord’s regal activity, but rather that from here onward in the unity of the Godhead He reigns with the Father as the eternal Son. There are no longer two thrones: one His Messianic throne and the other the Father’s throne, as our Lord indicated in Revelation 3:21+. In the final Kingdom there is but one throne, and it is “the throne of God and of the Lamb” (Rev. 22:3+).32
Revelation 11:15+ also supports that Christ's kingdom and reign will be eternal. John writes "Then the seventh angel sounded; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever.”
16. Jerusalem dwells in security
Ezekiel 34:25-28,
Ezekiel 38:8 “After many days you will be summoned; in the latter years you will come into the land that is restored from the sword, whose inhabitants have been gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel which had been a continual waste; but its people were brought out from the nations, and they are living securely, all of them.
Ezekiel 28:26 “They will live in it securely; and they will build houses, plant vineyards and live securely when I execute judgments upon all who scorn them round about them. Then they will know that I am the LORD their God.”’
Jeremiah 33:16 ‘In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell in safety; and this is the name by which she will be called: the LORD is our righteousness.’
Hosea 2:18 “In that day I will also make a covenant for them With the beasts of the field, The birds of the sky And the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword and war from the land, And will make them lie down in safety.
17. Egypt will be punished for treatment of Israel during the first 40 years of Messianic Kingdom - He will heal them when they repent
Ezekiel 29:9-16, cp Zech 14:18-19
Isaiah 19:22-24 The LORD will strike Egypt, striking but healing; so they will return to the LORD, and He will respond to them and will heal them. 23 In that day (MILLENNIUM) there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrians will come into Egypt and the Egyptians into Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians. 24 In that day Israel will be the third party with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth,
18. Eastern Gate closed until Messiah returns
The gate was closed in the 1500’s and remains closed to this day.
Ezekiel 44:1-3 Then He brought me back by the way of the outer gate of the sanctuary, which faces the east; and it was shut. 2 The LORD said to me, “This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the LORD God of Israel has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut. 3“ As for the prince, he shall sit in it as prince to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by way of the porch of the gate and shall go out by the same way.”
19. All earth will have one language
The curse of Babel (Ge 11:7), the introduction of varied languages, will be reversed. All the earth will have one language.
Zephaniah 3:9+ “For then I will give to the peoples purified lips, That all of them may call on the name of the LORD, To serve Him shoulder to shoulder.
Merrill Unger comments - Here not only giving the millennial nations ‘cleansed’ or ‘purified’ lips, as regenerated peoples, but apparently also in the sense that ‘lip’ signifies ‘language’ (Gen. 11:1, 6-7, 9), and possibly indicating that the Hebrew language will be the one universal language of the Kingdom age (Zec. 14:9). That would be not all that surprising, since Israel will be the chief nation in that economy (Deu. 28:13) and Jerusalem in that day will be the religious and governmental capital of the millennial earth (Isa. 2:2-3; Zec. 8:20-23). Moreover, it is all the more probable since the judgment of the nations at the second advent will eventuate in the destruction of the satanic world system . . . That system had its beginning in ancient Babylon with its pride, idolatry, and rebellion (Gen. 10:8-10; 11:1-6). The gift of a pure speech will remove the curse of Babel, and it will anticipate the great millennial outpouring of the Spirit (Joel 2:28-32), of which Pentecost (Acts 2:1-11) was an illustration.”—Merrill F. Unger BORROW "Commentary on the Old Testament"
(Source: The following is from Dr David Reagan)
Hosea talks about how God will use the Millennium to fulfill all the promises He has made to the Jewish people (Hosea 1:10-11, 2:14-20, and 14:4-7).
He confirms that God will establish peace in the animal kingdom and peace between the nations (Hosea 2:18). And he makes it clear that God’s blessings will also be poured out on the Gentiles (Hosea 2:23).
Hosea’s most fascinating prophecy has to do with the timing of the Lord’s return. He indicates that it will be “two days” after His ascension into Heaven (Hosea 5:15 – 6:2). The context of the passage indicates that the two days represent 2,000 years. Hosea says that after the two days, the Messiah “will raise us up” (the resurrection) that “we may live before Him” for “the third day” (the 1,000 years of the Millennium).
Joel’s end time prophecies focus mainly on “the day of the Lord” which, in his context, is the day of the Messiah’s Second Coming (Joel 1:15, 2:1,13 and 3:14). But he does give us a glimpse of the Millennium when he states that when the Messiah returns, He will dwell “in Zion, My holy mountain” and that Jerusalem will be characterized by holiness (Joel 3:17,21). He also confirms that the land will be revitalized for great agricultural production: “The mountains will drip with sweet wine, and the hills will flow with milk, and all the brooks of Judah will flow with water” (Joel 3:18). He also affirms that Egypt will be a desolation (Joel 3:19).
Amos presents a picture of the Messiah returning as a roaring lion (Amos 1:2). The only thing he has to say about the Millennium is that it will be characterized by agricultural abundance (Amos 9:14) — so much so that “the plowman will overtake the reaper” (Amos 9:13).
Obadiah’s only significant comment about the Millennium is his statement that it will be characterized by holiness (Obadiah 17).
“But on Mount Zion there will be those who escape, And it will be holy. And the house of Jacob will possess their possessions.
Jonah has nothing to say about the Millennium.
Micah begins his prophecy with a vision of the Second Coming (Micah 1:3-4). Regarding the Millennium, Micah presents a glorious vision of it and does so in words that are almost identical with Isaiah’s (Micah 4:1-7 and Isaiah 2:2-4). He emphasizes the peace and prosperity that will characterize the Millennium (Micah 4:3-4). He also underlines the promise of God that He will make the Jewish people the primary nation of the world during the Millennium (Micah 4:6-7).
Nahum echoes Joel by focusing his prophecies on “the day of the Lord” (Nahum 1:1-8). The only thing he has to say with regard to the Millennium is that the Jewish people will enjoy perfect peace (Nahum 1:15) and the splendor of their nation will be restored (Nahum 2:2).
Habakkuk begins his book by assuring the reader that God will be faithful to send the Messiah back “at the appointed time” (Habakkuk 2:3). He follows that by presenting a very dramatic vision of the Second Coming (Habakkuk 3:3-13). He does not have anything to say about the Millennium.
Zephaniah begins his book by presenting a powerful and frightening vision about the Second Coming (Zephaniah 1:14-18). He concludes his book with a brief prophecy about the Millennium (Zephaniah 3:14-20). He reveals that the Lord will regather all believing Jews back to the land of Israel and that He will live in their midst (Zephaniah 3:17-20). And he promises that God will make the Jewish nation the prime nation of the world (Zephaniah 3:20).
Haggai asserts that at the time of the Second Coming, God will shake the heavens and earth (Haggai 2:6-7), overthrowing all Gentile kingdoms (Haggai 2:22). The wealth of the nations will be transferred to Jerusalem, and the Temple will be rebuilt in glory (Haggai 2:7). And then, using Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah, as a prophetic type of the Messiah, Haggai says that God will give him His “signet ring” — meaning that he will become the King of kings and Lord of lords (Haggai 2:23).
Zechariah says that the Lord “will return to Jerusalem” and will rebuild the Temple (Zechariah 1:16). He calls upon the Jewish people to “sing for joy and be glad” because the Lord has told him that “I am coming and I will dwell in your midst” (Zechariah 2:10).
Concerning the nature of the Lord’s reign, Zechariah says He will be “a priest on His throne,” confirming that the government will be a theocracy (Zechariah 6:12-13). The city of Jerusalem will be called “The City of Truth” and “The Holy Mountain” (Zechariah 8:3). Believing Jews will be regathered from all over the world (Zechariah 9:14-17), and the population of Jerusalem will live in peace and prosperity (Zechariah 8:8,12). The Jewish people will be so greatly blessed that when a Jew walks by, ten Gentiles will grab his robe and say, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you” (Zechariah 8:23).
Zechariah further states that during the Millennium, all the nations of the world will be required to send delegations to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles (Zechariah 14:16). Those nations that fail to do so will receive no rain (Zechariah 14:17-18).
Zechariah concludes his book by emphasizing the holiness that will abound during the Millennium. He says that the bells on the horses’ bridles will be engraved with the words, “Holy to the Lord” (Zechariah 14:20-21).
Malachi contains several passages about the Second Coming, but the only thing it says about the Millennium is that the name of the Lord “will be great among the nations” (Malachi 1:11).
There are scattered references among the history books of the Old Testament concerning both the Second Coming and the Millennium, and the Psalms are full of them, but I do not have the space to list them in detail. You can find such a listing in my book, The Christ in Prophecy Study Guide. Suffice it to say that I believe I have presented more than enough evidence to prove that the Old Testament is full of prophecies about the end times and the Millennium.....
We are told in the book of Acts that after His resurrection Jesus spent 40 days with His disciples “speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3). At the end of those 40 days, when He gathered His disciples on the Mount of Olives for His ascension into Heaven, they asked Him, “Lord, is it at this time you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6). He did not respond by telling them there would be no kingdom. Rather, He told them that it was not for them to know the time (Acts 1:7).
1. Satan released from the abyss - Rev 20:7
2. Satan deceives the nations - Rev 20:8
3. Global armies besiege Jerusalem - Rev 20:9a
4. Global armies destroyed by fire - Rev 20:9b
5. Satan cast into the lake of fire - Rev 20:10
6. Evil angels judged by saints 1 Co 6:3
7. The wicked dead resurrected - Da 12:2b; Jn 5:29b, Rev 20:12 "standing"
8. The wicked judged at the Great White Throne - Rev 20:11-14
9. The wicked cast into the lake of fire - Rev 20:14, 15; Rev 21:8
10. The New Heaven and the New Earth - Rev 21-22
What Is the Millennium? A little boy once asked his father, "What is the Millennium?" His father replied, "Don't you know what a millennium is? It's just like a centennial, only it's got more legs." The word millennium is made up of two Latin words: mille (one thousand) and annum (years). Thus it means one thousand years. (BORROW 101 Answers to the Most Asked Questions About the End Times - Mark Hitchcock)
Mark Hitchcock As I once heard it described, the Millennium is the front porch of eternity.