The End Times

The Millennium

At His second coming, the Lord will separate two groups of people that are present on the earth at that time, the sheep (believers) and the goats (unbelievers). Matthew 25:31-34, 41 describes this event: "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.' Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.'"

This is the time when Jesus will establish His kingdom of one thousand years (Millennium) on this earth. This is the fulfillment of the promise of God for the people of Israel, as previously stated. The throne of Jesus, Lord and King, will be in Jerusalem, from where He will rule not only Israel, but the believers from all nations of the world. "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end" (Luke 1:32-33). Hosea 3:5 says, "Afterward the children of Israel shall return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They shall fear the Lord and His goodness in the latter days."

"And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, (those who received ability or authority to judge) and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years" (Revelation 20:4-6).

Who will enter the Millennium? There will be at least three groups of people who will inherit the kingdom. First group: those who believed in Christ (after the rapture) and kept His word during the Great Tribulation, and were alive at Jesus' coming (Mathew 25:31-34, Daniel 12:1). Second group: those who believed in Christ and kept His word during the Great Tribulation, and were dead, but resurrected at Jesus' coming (Revelation 6:9-11, 20:4). Third group: those who walked in faith in the time before Christ, who will be resurrected at Jesus' coming (Luke 13:28-29, Mathew 8:11, Daniel 7:22, 12:13).

Some passages that speak about the Millennium or promised land are Genesis 15:18, Exodus 23:31, Isaiah 11, 27:12-13, Jeremiah 23:5-8, Ezekiel 37:21-28, 39:22-29, and Zechariah 14.

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