Millennium Superworld
Chapter 3: The Millennium—Where?
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“The meek shall inherit the earth; “The righteous shall inherit the land, “For such as be blessed of him shall |
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—Psalm 37:11, 29, 22. |
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“And the Lord shall be king over |
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—Zechariah 14:9. |
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“And the kingdom and dominion and the |
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—Daniel 7:27. |
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“And they sung a new song, saying |
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—Revelation 5:9-10. |
Of all that is foretold in the Bible of the wonder and glory of the Golden Age, perhaps no single fact is more arresting than its physical reality. The Kingdom of Christ will be a real government of real territory (the earth) under the rulership of a real king (Jesus Christ) and His chosen associates (the saints). This is the plan outlined in Scripture. There is nothing nebulous about it, nothing visionary. The Kingdom of Christ is to be a tangible entity.
But those who believe in a coming millennium have differing ideas as to where it will be. Some say it will be in heaven, others say it will be on earth; others say we are not told.
What does the Bible say about the place that will see this Golden Age?
In a song which the Revelator heard, the redeemed were singing of reigning on the earth. We read, “And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood [life] out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth” (Rev. 5:9-10).
John the Revelator also saw in vision Christ standing with one hundred forty-four thousand faithful ones, and they were not standing somewhere in heaven or halfway between heaven and earth but on Mount Zion. We read: “And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads” (Rev. 14:1).
The prophet Daniel foretold that the Kingdom would be “under the whole heaven” (Dan. 7:27), not in the heavens. “And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.”
The prophet Isaiah also indicated that the Kingdom of Christ would be on the earth. He wrote of the establishing of the “Lord’s house” in “the top of the mountains”; and then he became even more specific: “out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem”—not from heaven but from Jerusalem (Isa. 2:2-4). The Prophet wrote again, “the Lord of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously”—an earthly setting, without question (Isa. 24:23).
Seven times in Psalm 37 (vs. 3, 9, 11, 22, 27, 29, 34), the Psalmist says that the righteous shall inherit the earth, or that the meek will dwell in the land. no suggestion is made of their dwelling anywhere else. The Psalmist speaks again of the Kingdom as extending “from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth” (Ps. 72:8). He speaks, again prophetically, of the Lord setting His king “upon [his] holy hill of Zion” (Ps. 2:6).
The prophet Zechariah (chapter 14) pictures the time of Christ’s arrival in these words: “And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east”—the place is definitely on the earth, even the Mount of Olives (another name for Mount Zion). “And the Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee” (vs. 4-5). Again the Prophet writes, “And the Lord shall be king over all the earth” (v. 9). The earth is to be the place of His domain.
Some who believe the Millennium will be spent in heaven cite Revelation 7:9, where the Revelator saw in vision the saints standing before the throne. they comment: “This Scripture shows plainly that the righteous are all taken to heaven immediately after the first Resurrection.” The writer of this comment apparently concludes that because the saints stand “before the throne” they must be before the throne of God in heaven.
According to the Bible, God’s throne is in heaven. “The heaven is my throne,” says the Lord (Isa. 66:1). “The Lord’s throne is in heaven” (Ps. 11:4). But this does not say that the throne of Christ is in heaven. “The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s: but the earth hath he given to the children of men” (Ps. 115:16).
Jesus is among the seed of Abraham, of the lineage of David, made like His brethren (Heb. 2:16–17). And when He is King, will He not have a throne on earth? We read the words of the prophet Jeremiah: “At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem” (3:17). Jerusalem is a city on earth, and the nations of earth will “be gathered unto it”—surely the nations of earth will not be taken to heaven! The angel Gabriel prophesied of Christ before His birth that “the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever” (Luke 1:31-33). This passage pictures an earthly setting for the Kingdom of Christ, for David did not rule from heaven. David’s throne was on earth; Christ’s throne will likewise be on earth.
Psalm 110:1 is sometimes quoted by those who believe Jesus and the saints will reign in heaven during the thousand years while the earth is being cleansed of all evil. The text reads: “The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.” However, the very next verse shows that when the time comes for Jesus to take control He will be on the earth. “The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion [a city on earth]: rule thou” from heaven until thy enemies are perished? No, “rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.” (What enemies could Jesus have in heaven?) The chapter continues to tell of Christ’s reign on earth after He returns: “He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies” (v. 6)—this surely could not happen in heaven.
The Bible contains text upon text indicating that the earth will be the domain of Christ and His saints. Revelation 20:4 speaks of their reign: “And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” Is there any question about the location of this reign? Revelation 20 opens with an angel coming down from heaven and laying hold on the “dragon,” the “old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan,” and binding him a thousand years. No one supposes that this event takes place in heaven. the “serpent” is bound so that he can “deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled,” and the term “nations” depicts an earthly group of people, not a heavenly.
The prophet Daniel tells about the setting up of the new government. A small stone (representing the kingdom of Christ) smote the great image (representing the kingdoms of men) on the feet. Such was the dream of Nebuchadnezzar the king, which Daniel interpreted by the power of God. The little stone smote the image and immediately began to grow; and it grew and grew until it “became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth”—not heaven (Dan. 2:35).
Proverbs 10:30 declares forthrightly that “the righteous shall never be removed.” If the Millennium were to take place anywhere other than on the earth, a removal of the righteous would be necessary.
The Psalmist, inspired by God, describes the extent of the new government as “from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth” (Ps. 72:8). And the details that follow show this will be true when Christ takes office, while there are still mortal people on earth in need of education and help. We read that “kings” shall “fall down before him” and “all nations shall serve him”; that He shall “deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also”; that He shall “redeem their soul from deceit and violence” (vs. 11-14)—all these prophetic statements must meet fulfillment prior to the time when all who live on earth are immortal, hence must be fulfilled during the Millennial Age.
All of the above prophecies of Scripture point to the throne of Christ being established on earth. The words of Zechariah confirm again: Christ comes to dwell among the people of earth. We read, “Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the Lord.…And the Lord shall inherit Judah his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again” (Zech. 2:10-12).
If the thousand-year reign of Christ and the saints is to be anywhere other than on the earth, surely many passages of Scripture need adjusting!