Now we’re ready for the 2nd coming of Christ. This is the beginning of the Millennium, the thousand-year reign of Christ on the earth, sometimes called the period of Divine Government. Now, finally, God is going to deal with the enemies of Israel once and for all time (at Armageddon, a few lessons from now). As these lessons progress, we’ll look at the Millennium in detail. I think I mentioned before that John’s revelation has little information on this time period, so most of our study will be from the Old Testament.
Let me begin by stating the purpose of the Millennium. Perhaps, before that, it would be helpful to look at the big picture first. Remember, this is a history of the ages – all that God has determined to take place in time and eternity, and why He determined it. In God’s original creation, everything that existed was in harmony and subject to Him, until Lucifer conceived the idea that he should be equal with God. Lucifer’s subsequent rebellion destroyed the earth and the race of people on the earth. Then God judged him for his sin and Lucifer became Satan (it means “adversary”). Satan appealed God’s judgment, and then God restored the earth, created a new race of men with Adam, and determined that anyone who did the same thing Satan did (rebel against God) would receive the same judgment.
We then traced our way through the Old Testament and into the New Testament as God progressively revealed Himself, His plan and purpose to men. Then, as we came to what is commonly called the end-times, we see God actively moving to restore His creation back to its original, harmonious condition. The tribulation period deals with the enemies of Israel and prepares Israel to take its place as the spiritual leaders of the earth. We’re about to see the end of that time. Then the Millennium comes and Christ rules the earth with a “rod of iron” (I’ll define that later). The purpose of the Millennium is two-fold: to discipline the nations of the earth, so they can get used to the idea that God is here and in charge; and to begin the second restoration of the earth to prepare it for the eternal state, when God’s kingdom becomes a reality on the earth and both the Father and the Son dwell with men.
John describes Christ’s 2nd coming in Revelation 19:11-16. “And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse appeared! The One riding it is called Faithful and True, and He passes judgment and wages war in righteousness. His eyes shine like a flame of fire, and on His head are many crowns; and there’s a name written on Him that only He can understand. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood and His name is The Word of God. And the troops of heaven clothed in fine linen, dazzling and clean, followed Him on white horses. And from His mouth there goes a sharp sword with which He can smite the nations; and He will control them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fierceness of the indignation of Almighty God. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.”
The 2nd coming of Christ is one of the most predicted events in Scripture. Starting with Jacob in Genesis 49:10, it continues with Moses, Job, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Micah, Zephaniah, Malachi, Jesus Himself, Peter, James, Paul and John in references too numerous to list here. It is also described in many different ways: like lightning, with great destruction, in brightness and fire, with vengeance and indignation, with power and great glory, with saints and angels, with clouds, as Judge and King and like a thief, again in too many references to list.
OK, the first thing John sees is a white horse. That there are horses in heaven is clear. If you read the article on the website “The Shape of God”, I explain that not only were we created in the image of God, the earth was created in the image of heaven. And the Scriptures reveal many similarities. One of these, obviously, is the existence of horses. There must be a great number of them in (or, more accurately, on) heaven, because John tells us the troops of heaven are all riding white horses (verse 14). And the troops include: all redeemed saints (Jude 14-15) and all the angels from heaven (Matthew 24:29-31).
Horses from heaven are specifically described in the Old Testament: Elijah is taken up to heaven in a chariot drawn by horses (II Kings 2:11-12), and then Elisha was protected by a host of heavenly chariots drawn by horses (II Kings 6:17). Zechariah describes horses from heaven on which angelic scouts were riding, patrolling the earth and reporting back to the Angel of the Lord (Christ) as to its condition (Zechariah 1:8-11, 6:1-8).
Christ is called “Faithful” (pistos, trustworthy or reliable) and “True” (alethinos, real or genuine). He judges and makes war in “righteousness” (dikaiosune, the quality of being right or just, in this context, what is consistent with what God has determined in dealing with sin). His eyes “shine like a flame of fire”, probably symbolic of judgment. And on His head are “many crowns”, the symbol of kingly authority, here in the plural to emphasize the symbolism. His robe is “dipped in blood”; again, symbolic of the judgment He is about to carry out (read Isaiah 63:1-6). He has three names listed in this passage: one that only He understands, The Word of God (John 1:1, 14) and King of Kings and Lord of Lords, to emphasize His divine authority.
Then there are three things listed in verse 15 that I think we need to look at. “And from His mouth there goes a sharp sword with which He can smite the nations.” Later in the account of Armageddon John mentions this sword again (in 19:21). This is more symbolism (also in Revelation 1:16; 2:12, 16). We know, too, that the word of God (literally, the word that God speaks) is called a sword (Ephesians 6:17, Hebrews 4:12), probably because of its ability to penetrate the conscience. It is obvious that the “sword” in verses 15 and 21 represent the things Christ says in judgment of those gathered to fight against Him at Armageddon.
But let’s take this a step further. When we read Genesis 1 and the account of the restoration of the earth, the basic process was, “And God said…” then it was so. In other words, when God speaks, His words have the power (ability) to accomplish what is spoken. This is precisely what is seen in 19:21 when it says, “And the rest of them were killed by the sword that came from the mouth of Him Who sat upon the horse”. Armageddon is not a traditional battle in any sense of the word. First Christ punishes them with torrents of rain, huge hailstones and fierce lightning strikes (Ezekiel 38:22; Revelation 16:16, 18, 21). Then He finishes them off with His spoken word.
Next we see, “and He will control them with a rod of iron”. This is a reference to the government that Christ will establish in the Millennium. I’ll talk about this in more detail when we look at this 1,000-year period later. But for now let me just say that this will be a true theocracy. God will be in control. Everything, the political system, the justice system, the economic system, the way people relate to God (I can’t call it a religious system), will be carried out according to what Christ decrees and will be based on His perfect character (Who He is) and nature (what He does). All nations of the earth will be required to declare their loyalty to Christ and to His government or suffer the consequences.
There will be no political parties vying for power and the various forms of government we see today will be abolished. There will be a worldwide economy that insures opportunity for all. Quick and perfect justice will be meted out to those who break the law. Dishonesty and greed will be outlawed, and so will the social programs that take away from those who are willing to work to give to those who will not. And religion in its many forms will be put to an end. It will no longer be acceptable for people to choose what they believe or practice. All will worship Christ.
Then finally, “He will tread the winepress of the fierceness of the indignation of Almighty God”. Back in Lesson 44 in the discussion of Revelation 14:14-20 I explained the meaning of the symbolism of the winepress, that it represents the execution of God’s Divine judgment by Christ against the enemies of Israel at Armageddon. Earlier in this lesson I mentioned Isaiah 63:1-6. I hope you read it, because it is another description of Armageddon.
In the next lesson we’ll look at some of the things not necessarily mentioned in Revelation that are directly connected to the 2nd coming.