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The Lost Kingdom

THE MILLENNIUM LOST

Chapter Three

A "Grain Of Wheat" Ministries publication

Written by David W. Dyer

INDEX

Chapter 1: THE MILLENNIUM LOST

Chapter 2: ARE WE IN THE MILLENNIUM TODAY?

Chapter 3: MORE SIGNS (Current Chapter)

Chapter 4: SOME SPURIOUS ARGUMENTS

Chapter 6: WHY IS THE KINGDOM IMPORTANT?

Chapter 9: SOME REALLY BAD THEOLOGY

Chapter 10: REAL TRANSFORMATION

Chapter 3: MORE SIGNS

ABRAHAM, ISAAC, AND JACOB

During the millennial kingdom there will be a feast. The saints of the Old Testament will be involved. We read: “And I say to you that many will come from the east and the west and will recline at the feast with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom which comes from the heavens…” (Mt 8:11). So here we learn that there is a feast during the millennium.

This will be something visible to all. It will not be something secret somewhere in “heaven.” We also are told in Luke 13:28,29 that: “At that time you will see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets participating in the kingdom of God. …But they, the faithful, will come from the east and west and from the north and south and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God.”

Jesus taught these truths about the kingdom, not eternity. You can't have it both ways. Either we are in the kingdom now, as the amillennialists (those who believe that we are now in the millennium) teach, or not. If we are, then these signs of the kingdom must be evident! They must be visible and verifiable. If these signs are really about “eternity,” then why does Jesus say that they refer to the kingdom? And if we are really in the kingdom, where are these signs?

The claim that the amillennialists make, that these things are allegorical and are merely a description of what will go on in heaven, is completely illogical. It is inherently contradictory.

Our theology must be consistent. If you insist that we are in the earthly kingdom of God now and Jesus is somehow from somewhere reigning over the earth, the scriptural signs concerning that kingdom must be in evidence!

THE WOLF AND THE LAMB

Here we read a very well-known scripture: “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 cobra's den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Is 11:6-9 NIV).

Here we are presented with several signs which will show us when we are in the millennial kingdom. One of these is that the animals which today are carnivorous will no longer be so. They will become “vegan.” They will eat vegetation. Another is that snakes which today are poisonous will no longer be so. Still another is that these animals, which today are feared, will “neither harm nor destroy.”

The phrase “in all my holy mountain” means “in all my holy kingdom” since in biblical language, the word mountain often refers to a kingdom.

Not only does the behavior of animal life change, but the plants too will change. We read: “Instead of the thorn bush will grow the juniper, and instead of briers the myrtle will grow. This will be for the LORD's renown, for an everlasting sign, that will endure forever” (Is 55:13 NVI).

It is interesting that the Septuagint translation of the Old Testament suggests a possible translation of the word “forever” could be “for the age” singular, thus pointing to the kingdom age or millennium. In fact, Young in his literal translation renders it this way: “Instead of the thorn doth come up fir, Instead of the brier doth come up myrtle, and it hath been to Jehovah for a name, for a sign age-during – it is not cut off!”

These important signs of the true reign of Jesus Christ are possible because there has been a change in the rulership of this earth. The evil behavior of nature today is a result of the earth being ruled by evil principalities and powers. These spiritual rulers will be replaced during the millennium by believers who have overcome them during their lifetime.

When the faithful, overcoming believers are put in positions of authority on this earth in place of the evil principalities, even the course of nature will change. In fact, we are taught that this present creation is groaning with “birth pangs” right now waiting for this very change of rulership!

CREATION IS GROANING

Romans 8:20-22 teaches us: “Now the creation was subjected to degradation, not voluntarily but because of him who subjected it in the hope that even the creation itself will also be delivered from the slavery of decay into the liberty of the children of God when they are glorified. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers birthing pains until today.”

I remember many years ago when my son wanted to raise animals, we bought twenty-five lambs for him. This was a great experience for all of us. That summer was very cold and wet. One day I noticed that the snout of one of the sheep – the only place without wool – was covered with mosquitos sucking its blood and, no doubt, producing itching. These poor animals were suffering from the results of the fall of Adam and Eve.

If you have ever observed wild animals, you will notice that they are always alert. They live in constant fear for their lives from predators. They are continually watching and/or sniffing the air, afraid that something might attack them and eat them.

This shows us that creation itself is still suffering from the fall of man. Furthermore, they are groaning to be free from this suffering. This is compared to a woman groaning in pain just before childbirth. What then are they “groaning” for? It is for the “sons of God” to finally be glorified and take the place of the present evil rulers who are governing this earth.

The signs of Jesus' kingdom, which will change this situation, are not present. The rulership of the world has not yet “…become that of our Lord and his Anointed One and he will reign forever and ever” (Rev 11:15).

Although some might insist that the phrase “forever and ever” points to eternity and not the kingdom, it is very clear that even after the millennium, Jesus' reign will not end but will continue on forever. He will then reign from the NEW Jerusalem. Of course, once Jesus begins to reign, He will never stop.

So, this does not point to eternity but instead reveals to us information about the coming kingdom. When the millennium really comes, there will be some holy people of God ruling over this earth, taking the place of the present evil spiritual rulers. This will change the course of nature, including the habits and diet of the animals and the nature of plants.

LONGEVITY

Another sign of the millennial kingdom is that people will live for a much longer time, just as they did in the days before the flood. Although death will not be eliminated at that time, the death process will take much longer. We read: “… for the days of my people will be like the days of a tree, and my chosen will long enjoy the work of their hands” (Is 65:22 WEB).

So how long does a tree live? A tree can live 800 or 900 years or even longer. This means that along with the effects of the curse upon Adam and Eve (thorns and thistles from Genesis 3:18) being somewhat lessened during the kingdom reign, death and aging will also take place at a much slower pace.

However, please notice that death and aging are still present. Nothing here indicates that they have been eliminated. Therefore, such things must refer to an earthly, physical kingdom on the present earth. So, if we are in this millennial kingdom, we should be seeing this sign.

We are also taught: “Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his years; the one who dies at a hundred will be thought a mere child; the one who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed” (Is 65:20 NIV).

This verse cannot be describing anything about “eternity” since it is obvious that death will still exist at that time. Therefore, this truth must be describing in further detail the longevity which will exist during the coming millennium. This is a sign which must be seen right now if we are indeed living in the millennial kingdom. But clearly it doesn't and so we aren't.

The amillennialists' claim that these things are merely figurative and allegorical is really unfounded. Their explanations seem to insinuate that the Old Testament people were sort of simple-minded, perhaps not far removed from being cavemen, and so could not understand plain speech telling them that something was eternal.

Some of them claim that the prophets spoke to those people in terms to which they could relate. So, “failing to reach one hundred years of age” doesn't really mean that, but is instead a simplistic way of telling the “yokels” that there would be no more death.

This kind of theology is weaselly. It is a slippery, dishonest, twisting of the scriptures to take away important meaning. In my mind, these are doctrines of demons. The source of such teaching is something about which we will speak more later.

SATAN BOUND

Another sign that we will see when we are in the millennium is that Satan will be bound. In Revelation 20: 1-3 we read: “Then I saw an angel coming down out of the heavens having the key to the abyss and a large chain in his hand. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent which is the devil and Satan who has deceived the entire world, and bound him for one thousand years. So he threw him into the abyss, locked it, and sealed it over him so that he could not be deceiving the nations any more until the thousand years are fulfilled. After this, he must be released for a little while.”

So the question at hand is: “Is Satan really bound”? Some of the “kingdom now” folks point to Jesus' parable about binding the strong man and plundering his house (Mk 3:27) as evidence that Satan is today bound.

It is true that some men and women are meeting Jesus and are escaping (to a greater or lesser degree) the influence of the devil.

Therefore, we can conclude that to some extent, his power has been weakened since Jesus' crucifixion. It is true that, to some degree, his house is being plundered by men and women coming to Christ.

However, in order for the Revelation passage to be completely fulfilled, the nations have to be freed from his influence entirely. He cannot be “deceiving the nations” at all.

As we look at today's society, including the nations all around the world, are they completely free from Satan's influence? Are all the new trends righteous instead of evil? Are the vast majority “waking up” to realize that they should obey God and forsake sin? Have the nations really stopped being deceived in any way? If so, then we can be sure that we are in the millennial kingdom today.

BRINGING BACK ALL THE JEWS

Another sign of the kingdom of God on earth during one thousand years is the regathering of each and every Jew to the land of Israel. The Bible teaches us that when Jesus returns, He will send people to seek out every natural Israelite, no matter where they are on the earth, and bring them back to their land.

Jeremiah 16:15,16 reads: “'Behold, I will send for many fishermen,' says the LORD, 'and they shall fish them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.' Therefore behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, that it shall no more be said, 'The Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,' but, 'The Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north and from all the lands where He had driven them.' For I will bring them back into their land which I gave to their fathers.'” (NKJV).

Isaiah 66:20 says: “'Then they shall bring all your brethren for an offering to the LORD out of all nations, on horses and in chariots and in litters, on mules and on camels, to My holy moutain Jerusalem,' says the LORD, 'as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD. And I will also take some of them for priests and Levites, says the Lord.'” (NKJV). See also Ezekiel 36:22-38.

This kind of intensive, widespread regathering of Jews to the nation of Israel has never happened. Those who returned after the Babylonian captivity were the minority, not the majority.

Today, there are still many Jews scattered around the world. This prophecy is one which speaks about the coming millennial kingdom. It has not yet been fulfilled. So this too shows us that we are not today in this kingdom.

REDISTRIBUTING THE LAND OF ISRAEL

When these Jews are returned to the land of Israel, first they will be judged by Jesus. Then, those who are considered worthy will be settled in the land of Israel. The land will be subdivided among the twelve tribes in horizontal strips. Each tribe will be allotted a strip of land. This will be completely different from the way the land was divided in Joshua's time. A kind of representation of this is included on the next page.

This division of the land is detailed in Ezekiel chapter 48. This is also something that has never happened in history. As with the other prophecies, it obviously cannot apply to “eternity,” since at that time there will be a new heaven and a new earth. The new earth will not be identical to the present one. Furthermore, there will be no such division of land among the twelve tribes in eternity.

THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES

Another proof that we are in the millennial kingdom is when we see all the nations of the earth going to Jerusalem every year to celebrate the feast of Tabernacles. I'm not sure why, but during the kingdom age, this feast will be the most prominent one. Every nation will be required to participate in it.

We read: “And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, on them there will be no rain. If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain; they shall receive the plague with which the LORD strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles” (Zech 14:16-18).

Now I have not noticed in the news that during this “millennial kingdom” which people say is happening right now, anyone is going to the feast of Tabernacles. Have you? Do we see delegations from every nation faithfully going every year to Jerusalem? I don't even know if the Jews in Israel today celebrate it. But during the genuine kingdom age, it will be an essential part of life.

Do we see nations today, who refuse to go to this feast, experiencing drought? Are they receiving the “plague” which God promises to those who don't come? If we are now in the millennium, these things must be occurri

This, then, is a reliable sign that we are not there yet. Although Jesus' spiritual kingdom is being spread in men's hearts, His physical and earthly kingdom has not yet come.

This demand for people to come to the feast of Tabernacles cannot logically be something which will happen in eternity. Would God withhold rain in eternity? Will He “plague” the nations at that time? The efforts of those who believe we are now in the millennium to make everything into an allegory for what will happen in eternity is patently ridiculous.

THE ELIMINATION OF MOST OF THE INHABITANTS OF THE EARTH

Another sign that we are in the millennial kingdom is that, after what most people call “the great tribulation” where God's judgments are poured out, there is a huge reduction in the population of the earth. At one point, the horseman called “death” along with “hades” appears to kill 25 percent of the population (Rev 6:8).

On another occasion 30 percent of the earth is slain (Rev 9:15). Then there is the battle at Armageddon in which millions, maybe hundreds of millions, of soldiers are killed with huge hailstones. This is just to list a few obvious examples.

Consequently, we are told that at the beginning of the real millennium, the population of the earth will be extremely reduced. We read in Isaiah 13:11,12: “I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity. I will halt the arrogance of the proud, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. I will make a mortal more rare than fine gold, a man more than the golden wedge of Ophir” (KJV).

Here we see that humans will be so scarce at the beginning of the coming kingdom, that it is compared to finding gold. A male human will be even more scarce, like the especially good gold from a place called “Ophir.” Probably males will be more scarce than females because most of the soldiers who are killed in the various battles (including the final one) will be male.

In Isaiah 17:6 we are taught: “'Yet 'gleaning [of] grapes' will be left in it. [It will be] like the shaking of an olive tree, two or three olives at the top of the uppermost bough, four or five in its most fruitful branches,” Says the LORD God of Israel” (NKJV).

Olives and olive oil were an important part of the diet of people of that era. They harvested them by beating the tree or shaking the branches. In this case, too, they didn't leave behind any on purpose. But there are always a few which escape, perhaps being too unripe to fall off or hidden in some way.

After grapevines are harvested, there are always a few small clusters that are missed, hidden behind a leaf or other obstruction. But the harvesters don't leave any behind on purpose. These grapes represent their livelihood and their beverage. So, the remaining ones will be very few.

These verses are given to us in the context of “in that day,” verse 4, which is often a kind of “code” for the “day of the Lord” or the onethousand-year day which is the millennium.

I am guessing that only about 2 or 3 percent of the population of the earth will survive all the plagues, judgments, and wars of the “end times.” Today, the earth's population stands at 8 billion. So that may leave a few hundred million people, if my calculations are correct, scattered around the world who survive and therefore will be alive at the beginning of the millennium. It is these survivors over which Jesus and the overcoming believers will reign.

Of course, without wars and other problems, along with the increased longevity occurring during the millennium which we have investigated, the population of the earth will increase rapidly and dramatically.

Until today, such a drastic reduction in the number of inhabitants of the earth has not happened. Since the death of Christ, such a thing has not occurred. Therefore, this is another sign that we are NOT now in the millennial kingdom.

NATIONS SURROUNDING AND ATTACKING JESUS

The amillennialists (those who think we are in the millennium), along with those called “preterists,” believe that most, if not all, the prophecies about the end times, the antichrist, the tribulation, etc. were all fulfilled in 70 AD when the soldiers under Titus the Roman general destroyed Jerusalem and the temple.

Obviously, many of these prophecies were fulfilled, especially the one about “not one stone being left upon another” which is what Jesus predicted concerning the temple (Mt 24:2).

If I understand correctly, these folks make the General Titus the antichrist and the attack on Jerusalem by his armies the fulfillment of the prophecies found in Revelation 19:19. But please notice, the scriptures do not say here the antichrist and his armies are fighting against Israel or Jerusalem. Instead, they say that they will fight against “...the One who sat on the horse.” Who, then, is this?

Well, His name is “the Word of God.” This seems pretty clear. No one but Jesus could have this name. And who are His armies? They are the “armies of heaven” (Rev 19:13,14).

Such an attack could only fulfill the prophecy of Revelation 19 if Jesus were to be physically on the earth. We, in all honesty, cannot “spiritualize” this fact away. In order for the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus to be the fulfillment of this prophecy, Jesus would have to have physically returned to earth in order to be present. Also, Titus and his armies would have to have fought against the “armies of heaven” who descended with Jesus from heaven to earth and not the Jews.

Furthermore, according to the prophecy, it is Jesus who would have to win this battle, not the supposed antichrist. Therefore, this too is a part of the scriptures which has yet to be fulfilled.

WHEN DID JOHN WRITE DOWN THE REVELATION?

According to the amillennialists, all the prophecies about the future have been fulfilled (at least the ones about the millennium). But what about the prophecies in the Book of Revelation? According to Irenaeus who was a disciple of Polycarp, who in turn was a disciple of John himself, John wrote down this revelation sometime around 95 AD.

The evidence for this assertion is vast and compelling. The evidence against it is sparse and unconvincing. Only those who want to be convinced, or want to defend their position could be persuaded.

For a detailed investigation of this, please go to: www.evidenceunseen.com/bible-difficulties-2/nt-difficulties/jude/date-of-revelation/

This one fact entirely undermines the position of the amillennialists. Their theory does not hold water. Surely John could not have been writing history! Instead, Jesus clearly states that these things are occurring at that time of his writing or will take place in the future (Rev 1:19). The events predicted in John's writing could not have been fulfilled in 70 AD if he saw the vision and wrote it down 25 years later!

Therefore, the position that the things predicted in the book of Revelation, including the saints reigning on the earth, have already happened or are now happening, is not sustainable. If, as it seems is true, John wrote the book of Revelation after the events of 70 AD, the amillennialist's position is completely untenable.

End of Chapter 3

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