Revelation 20:1-4
And the King Reigns
I started our study of End Time saying there were five major future
events:
1. The rapture (Jesus comes to get His bride)
2. The Tribulation
3. The Advent (return of Jesus to the earth)
4. The Millennial Reign of Jesus (1000 years)
5. Eternity
We have been moving into the last two. Somewhat slowly, but we are
moving. There is a list of things that will be happening after the
Advent of Jesus to this earth and either before, as, or after the
Millennial Reign starts. I have mentioned eight:
1. There will be some additional battles fought.
2. There will be some judgments given.
3. There will be Jews to bring home.
4. There will be some dead raised.
5. There will be a Jewish temple either purged or built. (Eze 47)
6. The land of Israel will be renovated.
7. The nation will be redivided.
8. The priesthood will be restored.
From \\#Da 12:11\\, we also noted some days (30 days that appear to
be added to the last half of the Tribulation and 45 more) that seem
to count down to something big. We do not know what, but PERHAPS
they are counting down to some of these events.
Personally, I think the Lord MIGHT rather start His reign on a
positive note than on a negative not, on giving life instead of
taking it. On nothing more than that, I suggest the first three
events may be done before the Millennial Reign starts. The fourth may
be done AS the Millennial Reign starts; and the last four, may take a
little longer.
I. The Millennial Reign will begin when Satan is cast into the
bottomless pit.
Rev 20:1 And I saw an angel come down from
heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and
a great chain in his hand.
2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old
serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound
him a thousand years,
3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut
him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should
deceive the nations no more, till the thousand
years should be fulfilled: and after that he must
be loosed a little season.
A. What a great day!
1. Strange but to my knowledge, this is the only Bible verse
that describes this event.
2. The Bible describes other demons or devils being bound in
the Bottomless Pit.
a. \\#Rev 9:1-11\\
b. \\#Rev 11:7\\
c. \\#Rev 17:8\\
d. \\#2Peter 2:4\\
e. \\#Jude 6\\
f. Perhaps \\#Luke 8:31\\
3. But I know of no other Scripture that tells us that Satan
will be cast in there.
B. \\Rev 20:3\\ Satan will be bound for 1,000 years, and it is
that 1,000 years from which we get the name the Millennial
Reign.
II. \\#Rev 20:4\\ At that time, more dead will be resurrected.
Rev 20:4 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.
A. \\#1Cor 15:20\\ Paul called Jesus the "Firstfruits of them
that slept."
1. If there is a "first," there must at least be a second or
a last.
2. If Jesus were the ‘"only" One to be raised, He would not
have been called the FIRSTfruits but the ONLY Fruit.
B. Those of us who are raised at the rapture are the second
fruits.
1. At the rapture, as far as we know, only those saved during
the church age—both the Jews and the Gentiles—will be
raised.
2. I believe the Church Age is a space in time all to itself.
3. God will pull the church, both the living and the dead,
off earth to continue with His plan for Israel.
C. So we are reading here of the third harvest.
1. Jesus first. The church age second. Third, those saved
and martyred for Christ during the Tribulation.
2. The text does not say that ALL the Tribulation Saints will
be resurrected, but they probably will.
a. It will have been seven years of time.
b. I suppose some Tribulational Saints could have died
from some other means that martyrdom, but IF they
did, there is nothing here that says they will be
raised in this resurrection.
c. I suppose they will, but I don’t know.
3. Neither does the text say the Old Testament saints will be
resurrected, but they probably will.
a. I think they will be raised for they have been
promised a literal kingdom on earth with the Messiah
ruling and reigning.
b. While this text does not say all the Old Testament
saints will be raised, I believe others hint that
they will.
D. This text DOES tells us that those who are raised at that time
will rule with Jesus for 1,000 years.
Rev 20:4 …and they lived and reigned WITH
Christ a thousand years.
1. This text does not tell us that the glorified Christians
will reign with Christ, but I believe others do.
a. Jesus told the Apostles that they would reign with
Him.
Matthew 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily
I say unto you, That ye which have followed me,
in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit
in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit
upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes
of Israel.
b. Daniel seems to promise a kingdom for all of God’s to
God’s saints—I suppose that means the Old and New
Testament saints—although it is difficult to know
whether God means they will rule with Christ or be
the beneficiaries of His rule.
Daniel 7:18 But the saints of the most High
shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom
for ever, even for ever and ever.
Daniel 7:27 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.
c. Paul told the church at Corinth that the saints would
rule the world.
1Co 6:2 Do ye not know that the saints shall
judge the world? and if the world shall be
judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the
smallest matters?
2. While Revelation 20 does not make it clear ALL who will be
reigning with Christ at that time, it there is evidence
that the saved of all ages—Old Testament, Church Age,
and Tribulation—will have all been raised to rule with
Christ during this time period.
III. And Jesus will rule over entire the world.
A. This is clear!
Rev 20:4 …and they lived and reigned WITH
Christ a thousand years.
Re 2:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of
iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be
broken to shivers: even as I received of my
Father.
Re 12:5 And she (Israel) brought forth a man
child (Jesus), who was to rule all nations with
a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto
God, and to his throne.
Re 19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp
sword, that with it he should smite the nations:
and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and
he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and
wrath of Almighty God.
Isa 2:4 And he shall judge among the nations, and
shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat
their swords into plowshares, and their spears
into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword
against nation, neither shall they learn war any
more.
B. Other Verses:
\\#1Sam 2:10, Psalm 82:8, 96:13, Is 9:6, 11:3-4, Dan 2:44, 7:13-14\\
\\#Luke 22:30, Acts 17:31\\ and many others.
IV. David, in glorified form, will rule over Israel.
Eze 34:24 And I the LORD will be their God, and
my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD
have spoken it.
A. This is another indication that Old Testament saints will be
raised at the millennial resurrection.
1. David was an Old Testament saint, and he WILL rule as a
prince under his King.
2. A prince is not the King, but the King’s child who serves
the King.
3. I believe that David, the best king Israel ever had, will
literally be raised to rule over that nation for 1,000
years.
B. For years, I wondered if I was reading this correctly; but the
truth is revealed several times.
Jer 30:9 But they shall serve the LORD their
God, and David their king, whom I will raise up
unto them.
Ho 3:5 Afterward shall the children of Israel
return, and seek the LORD their God, and David
their king; and shall fear the LORD and his
goodness in the latter days.
Eze 34:23 And I will set up one shepherd over
them (Israel), and he shall feed them, even my
servant David; he shall feed them, and he
shall be their shepherd.
Eze 37:24 And David my servant shall be (future
tense) king over them; and they all shall have
one shepherd: they shall also walk in my
judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them.
25 And they shall dwell in the land that I have
given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers
have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even
they, and their children, and their children’s
children for ever: and my servant David shall be
their prince for ever.
V. And peace and long life will abide on this planet.
A. The promise of peace:
Psalm 46:9 He maketh wars to cease unto the end
of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth
the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in
the fire.
Isa 11:4 But with righteousness shall he judge
the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of
the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the
rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips
shall he slay the wicked.
5 And righteousness shall be the girdle of his
loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.
6 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and
the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the
calf and the young lion and the fatling together;
and a little child shall lead them.
7 And the cow and the bear shall feed; their
young ones shall lie down together: and the lion
shall eat straw like the ox.
8 And the sucking child shall play on the hole
of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his
hand on the cockatrice’ den.
9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy
mountain: for the earth shall be full of the
knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the
sea.
\\#Is 9:4-7, 35:1-10, 60:18, 65:21-23, Mic 4:1-5, 5:7-15\\
\\#Ps 76:1-6 Ho 2:18, Zech 9:10-11\\
B. The promise of life:
Is 65:20 There shall be no more thence an infant
of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his
days: for the child shall die an hundred years
old; but the sinner being an hundred years old
shall be accursed.
1. This verse is difficult to understand.
2. It sounds like the youngest a child might die would be
100 years old, and anyone dying that young would be
considered cursed.
VI. And if it has not already been done, it will be at that time that
God renovates—if not the whole earth—at least the land of Israel.
\\#Eze 47:1-12\\
What is there to say? These verses are not clouded in symbolism or at
all difficult to understand. If one believes the Bible to be true,
all of these things must come to pass and a unique kingdom of our
Lord—not the Church Age—must be established for that to happen.
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