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| Earl Gillespie |
A Study of The Book of Revelation
THE REIGN OF CHRIST
THE MILLENNIUM
Revelation 20:4-6:
4. And I saw thrones, and they
sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them
that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which
had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark
upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ
a thousand years.
5. But the rest of the dead lived
not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first
resurrection.
6. 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.
Who are they who will reign with
Christ in heavenly glory here on earth for one thousand years? There is much
speculation and much disagreement as to who these are. Some say they are
saints; some say they are angels. We will come back to this subject a little
later. The sovereignty of Christ as MAN (Psalm 8) and as KING (Psalm 2) is a Bible truth. A royal reign to be displayed for one thousand years here on this
earth is unquestionable according to Scripture. The prophets of old saw it in a
vision. Judah sang about it. The prophecy from Isaiah to Malachi speaks of its
glory, blessing and splendor. The earth is to be delivered from the curse under
which it has so long groaned and travailed.
God created Adam and gave the
earth to him. Adam subleased it to the devil, and when the lease runs out the
sub-lease is no good. One day Adam’s day will be over and the day of the Lord
God Almighty will come in. He will literally banish Satan from the earth: and
the earth will be delivered from the curse. “The kingdoms of this world are
become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever
and ever” (Revelation 11:15).
In Revelation 11:15 the reign was
announced. In chapter 20 it has actually come to pass. Verses 4 through 6 are
extremely important and unique, for here, alone, is revealed a summary of those
who will share with Christ in the Millennium, in the reign of righteousness and
glory here on earth. “I saw thrones” - Daniel in exile and John the Beloved in
exile saw thrones in a vision . . . the same thrones. When Daniel saw them they
were unoccupied; John saw them occupied: “They sat upon them.”
In Daniel 7:9 we read, “Till the
thrones were cast down.” We might paraphrase it thusly: “Till the thrones were
placed.” Daniel beheld until the thrones were established. He does not lead us
into the Millennium, but simply to the beginning of it. He breaks off his
prophecy at the beginning of the Millennium where one “like unto the Son of
man” receives from the Ancient of Days the universal and everlasting kingdom
(Daniel 7:13,14). The thrones seen here are not to
be confused with the twenty-four thrones of Revelation 4:4. The thrones Daniel
saw (Daniel 7:9) and the thrones John sees in Revelation 20:4 both point to the
Millennial government here on earth.
In verse 4 we read, “. . . and
they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them.” The question now arises,
“To whom do the pronouns they and them refer?” The Scriptures do not teach that
angels or heavenly creatures will reign here on earth: “For unto the angels
hath He NOT put into subjection the world to come, whereof we speak” (Hebrews
2:5). The government of earth during the Millennium is to be administered by
Christ and His heavenly saints (I Corinthians 6:2,3). “THEY” refers to the
Church, the Bride of Christ - “kings and priests unto God” - and possibly to
the Old Testament saints. To this, some agree and some do not. Some declare
that only the Church will reign with Him. Others suggest that the Old Testament
saints may be included.
“Judgment was given to them.” This
is the fulfillment of “Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?”
(I Corinthians 6:2). These words are easily understood. No one need be confused
here. The saints will sit with Jesus when He judges the world, and will judge
with Him. “ . . . And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the
witness of Jesus and for the Word of God.” John sees, in the Spirit, souls -
not persons, but souls of the martyrs.
In Revelation 6:9-11 we read of
the souls of the martyrs under the altar, crying out, asking how long God will
permit the reign of the Antichrist . . . how long before their blood will be
avenged. They are given white robes and palms, and instructed to wait a little
season until their fellowservants should be killed. The souls John saw under
the altar are the same souls he sees here, plus those who will be butchered
during the reign of the Antichrist. Notice the description the Spirit
gives concerning these souls: “Them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus
. . . for the Word of God . . . which had not worshipped the Beast, neither his
image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands.”
These all lived and reigned with Christ one thousand years.
All of these were beheaded after
the Rapture of the Church so we know that at least two groups will reign with
Christ during the Millennium: The Bride and the martyrs described here. No
doubt the majority of these will be butchered during the last three-and-a-half
years of the Great Tribulation. Note carefully that John first
sees the souls, and in the same verse, “they lived.” The resurrection takes
place immediately after the marriage supper of the Lamb, and just before the
beginning of the Millennium.
Verse 5: “But the rest of the
dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first
resurrection.” The “resurrection of the just” is mentioned in Luke 14:13-14,
and the “resurrection of life” is definitely distinguished from the
“resurrection unto damnation” in John 5:29. Here in Revelation 20:5 we learn
for the first time the interval that separates the two resurrections: One
thousand years. When Jesus comes in the Rapture, only the righteous will be
raised (I Thessalonians 4:13-18). When
He comes in the end of the ages, only the wicked will be raised and will appear
before the great white Throne to be judged. The doctrine of a general
resurrection - a time when the good and bad, just and unjust are raised - is
certainly disproved by, this text.
In John 5:28-29 we read, “Marvel
not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves
shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection
of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.” The
“hour” referred to in this verse embraces one thousand years! Before the
Millennium, the righteous will hear His voice. At the close of the Millennium
the wicked will hear His voice. Jesus is the resurrection and the
life. In John chapter 11 He called Lazarus by name. Had He simply said, “Dead,
come forth,” every dead person would have come forth; but He called one man,
and one man came out of the grave. When Jesus calls the righteous to meet Him
in the air, only the righteous will be raised. Then one thousand years later
the wicked will be raised.
I know some will disagree, but I
ask you to honestly see this Bible fact. In John 5:25-27 we read, “Verily,
verily, I say unto you, THE HOUR IS COMING, AND NOW IS, when the dead shall
hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. For as the
Father hath life in Himself; so hath He given to the Son to have life in
Himself; and hath given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is
the Son of man.”
In verse 25, note “the hour is coming,
and now is.” Please be reasonable and face the fact that the hour referred to
in this verse is the day of Grace, and has already lasted more than 2000 years.
The wording is, “the hour is coming, and now is.” The dead referred to here are
spiritually dead, not physically dead. All sinners are dead (Ephesians 2:1;
John 5:24). When a dead sinner hears the voice of the Spirit and believes the Word,
that dead sinner is raised to life, born of the Spirit, a new creation.
There is a resurrection of the
just which is the first resurrection and consists of at least three distinct
companies as concerning the time of their resurrection. This began with Christ,
the first fruits (I Corinthians 15:23). “Afterward, they that are Christ’s at
His coming” (the Rapture). (Read I Thessalonians 4:6). Then on the eve of the introduction of the
Millennial Kingdom we have the resurrection of the martyred saints of the
Tribulation. But with the wicked dead it
is far different. All the wicked from Cain to the last person to live and die
the death of a sinner will remain in their graves until after the Millennium,
and then they will be raised. The resurrection of the wicked will be the last
closing scene of the resurrection of the dead.
They will be judged, cast into
the lake of fire and brimstone, then the eternal ages will begin with not one
trace of wickedness on earth, in Heaven, or in any of God’s new creations. All wickedness
will be in the lake of fire.
In verse 6 we read, “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.”
Only holy people will have part in the first
resurrection. Only people who cannot be affected by the second death, only
those who shall be priests of God and Christ will be raised in the first
resurrection; and if there is no second resurrection, why would the Holy Spirit
refer to “the first resurrection?” Why did not the Spirit simply say “the
resurrection in general?” The answer is clear. The Spirit leaves no untied
ends. All is finished so that we may perfectly understand what the Word of God teaches. In I Corinthians 15:51-54 we read
of the resurrection of the body. This mortal will put on immortality, and the
living will be changed - in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. The dead will
be raised in glory, the bodies of the saints (whether alive or in the grave)
will be changed and fashioned like unto His glorious body (Philippians 3:21; I
John 3:1-3). Paul desired to have part in the first resurrection (Philippians
3:11), and the resurrection of the dead is taught in both the Old and New
Testaments.
To be continued
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