Will Christ Reign on Earth for a Thousand Years?

by Samuel Matthews

Loved ones, the doctrine of Premillennialism teaches that, when Christ returns, there will be a resurrection of the righteous. Then there will be a seven-year rapture (the righteous taken to heaven) while there are seven years of tribulation on earth (during which the antichrist reigns).

At the end of the seven years, there will be a judgment of the saints, the battle of Armageddon, the kingdom will be established, the temple will be rebuilt, and the Jews will return to Palestine. Christ will return to sit on His literal throne for a thousand years. At the end of the thousand years, the wicked will be raised, and then the judgment (Read Revelation 20:2-7).

Basic elements of the doctrine…

1. The kingdom is yet to be established.
2. The kingdom will be a literal, material kingdom.
3. Christ will come back and reign on a literal throne in Jerusalem.
4. There will be a thousand-year reign of Christ on earth.
5. The Jews will return to Palestine.

Let's consider several reasons why it is false to teach that Christ will reign on earth for a thousand years.

The Teaching Is Not in the Bible.

Quite often, those who believe in error will ask us to disprove their doctrine (which can be done). However, the burden of proof rests upon the one who believes a doctrine to prove it by the Scriptures.

We must believe and teach only what is found in the Bible. Paul made an appeal to believe and speak according as it is written (II Corinthians 4:13). Peter urged us to speak as the oracles of God (I Peter 4:11).

We must always check what we are taught against the Bible. Never accept what anyone teaches without checking it against the Bible. The Bereans were commended because they searched the Scriptures to see if what they were taught was so (Acts 17:11).

John wrote, "Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world" (I John 4:1). How that is done is revealed five verses later: “We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error” (I John 4:6). If the doctrine agrees with the apostles' teachings, it is truth; if not, it is error.

The doctrine that teaches that Christ will return and reign on earth for a thousand years is just not found in the Bible. Without biblical evidence, we cannot accept it as true.

The Kingdom Has Been Established

Premillennialists teach that the kingdom is to be established in the future. If we can show that the kingdom has already been established, then the doctrine is false.

Daniel prophesied that the kingdom would be established during the Roman Empire (Daniel 2:44). Daniel interpreted a dream that the Babylonian king had. Daniel told the king what his dream was:

“Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king” (Daniel 2:31-36).

Then he explained the dream:

"Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory. And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold. And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise” (Daniel 2:37-40).

Four world empires were represented in the dream. They were: the Babylonian Empire (gold), the Medo-Persian Empire (silver), the Greek Empire (Bronze), and the Roman Empire (iron and clay). The prophet then said, "And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever" (Daniel 2:44). Thus, God’s kingdom would be established in the days of the Roman Empire. Therefore, it has already been established.

Some in the time of Christ would live to see the kingdom (Matthew 16:28; Mark 9:1). If the kingdom had come in the time of those then living, it would have already been established. If it has not come, there are some mighty old disciples still walking around on the earth.

Some in Paul's day were already in the kingdom (Colossians 1:13). These were translated from darkness into the kingdom of Christ. If they were in the kingdom, it has been established.

Jesus promised to build His church/kingdom (Matthew 16:18-19). The church and the kingdom have the same head. Christ is the head of the church (Colossians 1:18) and the king of the kingdom (Colossians 1:13). They have the same subjects and territory. People from all nations come into the church (Romans 1:5) and into the kingdom (Acts 2:39). The terms of entrance are the same. By the directions of the Holy Spirit, one is baptized into the church (I Corinthians 12:13) and born of the water and the Spirit to enter the kingdom (John 3:3, 5). The gospel is the law of the church (Romans 1:15-16) and the law of the kingdom (Matthew 4:23). The Lord's Supper is a memorial for the church (1 Corinthians 11:23-26) and in the kingdom (Luke 22:29-30).

Jesus used the terms "church" and "kingdom" interchangeably. "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Matthew 16:18-19). If I said, "l will build my house, and I will give you the keys to my dwelling," you understand that "house" and "dwelling" are the same. Why would Jesus build one thing and give the keys (terms of entrance) to something else?

Christ Is on David's Throne in Heaven

The throne on which Christ sits is in heaven. Daniel foretold that the Son of Man received a kingdom when He ascended to the Ancient of Days (Daniel 7:13-14). Furthermore, Christ would be a king and a priest on his throne (Zechariah 6:12-13). If He were on earth, He could not be a priest (Hebrews 8:4). Thus, if He were on earth, He could not be a king! The Psalmist said David's throne is established forever in heaven (Psalms 89:35-37, KJV).

Christ is on His throne now. Remember, He is a king and priest on His throne (Zechariah 6:12-13). Thus, He is a king and a priest at the same time. He is a priest now (Hebrews 4:14-15; 9:11). Thus, He is a king now. Peter's sermon declared that He is now sitting at the right hand of God (Acts 2:30-36).
If Christ is on His throne in heaven, then His kingdom is not in the future and here on earth.

The Second Coming Ends Christ's Reign

No one knows the day or the hour Christ will return (Matthew 24:36; Mark 13:32). He will come as a thief in the night (I Thessalonians 5:2; II Peter 3:9-10). When he does come, that will bring an end to His reign.

When Christ returns, His reign on His throne will end as He delivers the kingdom to the Father. Paul said, "But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death" (I Corinthians 15:23-26). The second coming ends His reign rather than begins His reign.

The earth and all things will be burned up at the second coming. Peter said, "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up" (II Peter 3:9-10).

There Is No Promise That the Jews Will Return to Palestine

The land of Palestine was promised to Abraham and his seed (Genesis 13:15; 15:18; 17:7-8). The premillennialists teach that the promise is yet to be fulfilled. The promise has been fulfilled. Joshua tells us that all the land was given as promised.

“And the Lord gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. And the Lord gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers: and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them; the Lord delivered all their enemies into their hand. There failed not ought of any good thing which the Lord had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass” (Joshua 21:43-45).

“And, behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth: and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof. Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all good things are come upon you, which the Lord your God promised you; so shall the Lord bring upon you all evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the Lord your God hath given you. When ye have transgressed the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed yourselves to them; then shall the anger of the Lord be kindled against you, and ye shall perish quickly from off the good land which he hath given unto you” (Joshua 23:14-16).

The territory over which Solomon reigned shows that the land promise had been fulfilled (I Kings 4:21; II Chronicles 9:26). There is no promise in the Bible that the Jews will return to Palestine or that the land is theirs.

Revelation 20 Does Not Teach It

Those who believe that Christ will return to earth and reign in His kingdom for a thousand years appeal to Revelation 20:4 which says, "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.”

This is signified (symbolic) language. The book begins with a note that it is written in figurative language (Revelation 1:1). Therefore, everything in the book should not be taken literally.

There are several aspects of Revelation 20 that are not to be taken literally. There is a bottomless pit and a great chain (Revelation 20:1), a dragon and a serpent (Revelation 20:2). If these are not literal, why should the thousand years be literal?

Things not found in Revelation 20: There are several things that would be part of the premillennial concept that are not found in this context. They include: the Second Coming, a bodily resurrection, the reign of Christ on earth, the Jews returning to Palestine, Christ's return to set foot on earth, Jerusalem, and a literal throne of David.

This doctrine cannot be established from Revelation 20:4.

Consequences

Every doctrine has consequences that the believer must accept or else give up the doctrine. Those who accept premillennialism face the following consequences.

• Christ is not a priest now (Zechariah 6:12-13). If He is not king now, He cannot be priest now.
• One cannot observe the Lord's Supper since it is for those in the kingdom (Luke 22:29-30).
• One cannot be born again now (John 3:3, 5). If the kingdom does not exist yet, then one cannot be born again.
• All are in darkness now (Colossians 1:13). Since one who is delivered from darkness is in the kingdom, and the kingdom is yet future, then all are in darkness now.
• None are being converted now (Matthew 18:3). When one is converted, he enters the kingdom. However, if there is no kingdom yet, then none are being converted.

Through the free gift of God’s grace by Jesus’ blood (Ephesians 2:8; Revelation 1:5) and your obedient faith (Romans 1:5; 10:17; 16:26), salvation is offered.

If you have any questions or would like to comment, please don't hesitate to do so. Lord willing, a Bible answer will be provided for every Bible question. The God of Heaven and Earth is good, and His love reaches all. We love you with the love of the Lord (John 13:34-35).