A New Beginning for the World!

One of the most fascinating of all Bible subjects is “1,000-Year World Blackout Predicted,” or the millennium. The word “millennium” is simply Latin for 1,000 years. There are many different ideas taught concerning the future of our world. Some Christians believe that the second coming of Christ will initiate a Golden Age for humankind on earth—a time during which everyone will be converted and peace will prevail. Others believe that the 1,000-year period will be a time of distress and hardship, of conflict and chaos.

A third view is that the millennium immediately follows the return of Christ. A time when all the righteous are in heaven, Satan and his angels are left on earth, and the wicked are dead. At the end of this 1,000 years God creates a new heaven and new earth.

With this subject, as with all others, we will discover what the Bible really teaches. In this lesson we will discover the answers to the following questions:
1. What events occur at the return of Jesus?
2. What events occur during the 1,000 years?
3. What events occur at the end of the 1,000 years?

01. When Jesus returns, what happens to all the righteous (both the righteous dead and the righteous living)?
1 Thessalonians 4:16–17
16. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
17. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

02. What happens to the wicked or the unsaved?
2 Thessalonians 1:7–10
07. and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels,
08. in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
09. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,
10. when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed.
2 Thessalonians 2:8
And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.

03. Where will the wicked remain directly after the second coming of Jesus?
Jeremiah 25:30–33
30. “Therefore prophesy against them all these words, and say to them: ‘The LORD will roar from on high, And utter His voice from His holy habitation; He will roar mightily against His fold. He will give a shout, as those who tread the grapes, Against all the inhabitants of the earth.
31. A noise will come to the ends of the earth— For the LORD has a controversy with the nations; He will plead His case with all flesh. He will give those who are wicked to the sword,’ says the LORD.”
32. Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, disaster shall go forth From nation to nation, And a great whirlwind shall be raised up From the farthest parts of the earth.
33. “And at that day the slain of the LORD shall be from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth. They shall not be lamented, or gathered, or buried; they shall become refuse on the ground.
Note
The Old Testament prophets often described conditions that would occur as the result of Israel’s rebellion against God. As the result of disobedience God would allow heathen armies to destroy thousands of Israelites. Jeremiah’s prophecy goes far beyond ancient Israel. It reaches into the future. It describes a universal destruction from one end of the earth to the other of those who rebel against God.

04. How does the bible describe the devastation of the earth at the second coming of Christ?
Revelation 16:17–20
17. Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, “It is done!”
18. And there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth.
19. Now the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. And great Babylon was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath.
20. Then every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
Jeremiah 4:23–27
23. I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form, and void; And the heavens, they had no light.
24. I beheld the mountains, and indeed they trembled, And all the hills moved back and forth.
25. I beheld, and indeed there was no man, And all the birds of the heavens had fled.
26. I beheld, and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness, And all its cities were broken down At the presence of the LORD, By His fierce anger.
27. For thus says the LORD: “The whole land shall be desolate; Yet I will not make a full end.
Note
Jeremiah’s prediction fitly describes Israel’s destruction at the hand of the Babylonians. As the language of the passage clearly portrays, it also describes the complete devastation of earth at the second coming of Christ.

05. Will there be any human being alive on earth during this time?
Revelation 19:17–18
17. Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, “Come and gather together for the supper of the great God,
18. that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great.”
Jeremiah 4:25
25. I beheld, and indeed there was no man, And all the birds of the heavens had fled.

06. Where will Satan be during this time (the 1,000 years)?
Revelation 20:1–3
01. Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
02. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years;
03. and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while.
Note
The term “bottomless pit” has an identical meaning to the description “without form, and void” of Jeremiah 4:23. They also parallel the description of the world at Creation - a place of desolation and darkness. These parallels clearly show that Satan is bound to the earth, unable to tempt anyone. The Bible uses the term chains not as literal chains but chains of darkness. (See 2 Peter 2:4)​.

07. Where did Jesus promise to take His followers at His return?
John 14:1–3
01. “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.
02. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
03. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

08. How does Revelation 20:4 describe the righteous? What are they doing during this 1,000 years?
Revelation 20:1–5
01. Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
02. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years;
03. and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while.
04. And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, 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.
05. But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
1 Corinthians 6:1–3 (NKJV)
01. Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints?
02. Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
03. Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?
Note
During the millennium the righteous have an opportunity to observe firsthand the justice and love of God in dealing with the sin problem. In a new way, more forcefully than ever before, they grasp His powerful attempts to save all people. They realize anew that all who are lost are lost because of their own personal rejection of the merciful appeals of Christ.

09. How many general resurrections does the Bible describe?
John 5:28–29
28. Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice
29. and come forth - those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.

10. Are the wicked resurrected at the same time as the righteous? When do they receive their final reward?
Revelation 20:5
But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Note
Some people are confused by the last part of this text “this is the first resurrection” (verse 5). According to the Bible “the dead in Christ rise first” (1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17). Revelation 20 is discussing the fate of the saved who have been resurrected in the first resurrection. “They live and reign with Christ for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:4). This would lead logically to the question: what about the rest of the dead (the unsaved)? In one brief sentence John answers that question: “But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years are finished” (Revelation 20:5). The apostle then continues with the main theme of his discussion—the first resurrection, the resurrection of the righteous—by declaring, “Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection” (Revelation 20:6).

11. What happens to Satan as the thousand years come to an end?
Revelation 20:7
Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison
Note
Now that the wicked dead are resurrected, Satan deceives them into believing that they can overthrow the Holy City.

Concluding Question
Would you like to choose today to allow God to rule on the throne of your heart, and look forward to worshipping Him in His Holy city for all eternity?

FOR FURTHER STUDY
Read the Following Bible passages:

• Isaiah 43:19

• Isaiah 65:17

• Jeremiah 31:31

• Colossians 1:5

• Hebrews 11:16

• 2 Peter 3:10

• 2 Peter 3:13

• Revelation 2:17

• Revelation 5:9

• Revelation 21:1

• Revelation 21:5