On May 14, 2025

NOTES ON THE PROTO-MILLENNIUM AND BEYOND: WHAT WE ARE FIGHTING FOR! – (WITH VIDEO)

THEOLOGY

SCRIPTURE. “And there shall come forth A SHOOT out of the stock of Jesse [David’s father], and A BRANCH out of his roots shall grow and bear fruit. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the reverential and obedient fear of the Lord—And shall make Him of quick understanding, and His delight shall be in the reverential and obedient fear of the Lord.

And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, neither decide by the hearing of His ears; But with righteousness and justice shall He judge the poor and decide with fairness for the meek, the poor, and the downtrodden of the earth; and He shall smite the earth and the oppressor with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of His waist and faithfulness the girdle of His loins.” – ISAIAH 11:1-5, AMPC

KEY TERM: “JUDGE.” ‘Shaphat’ [יִשְׁפּ֔וֹט]: “A primitive root, ‘To pronounce sentence (for or against); to vindicate or punish; i.e., To Govern.’” NOTE: “The Hebrew verb ‘shaphat’ … encompasses a range of judicial and leadership activities, including making legal decisions, administering justice, and ruling over people. The term is often used in the context of leaders or judges who are responsible for maintaining Order and Justice within a community or nation. ‘It can also imply the act of Vindicating the Righteous and/or Punishing the Wicked.’”

QUOTATION. “‘According to the Scriptures, the World [as we know it] will End in an Act of Glorious New Order where Heaven comes to Earth.’ This Transformed World will radiate the Glory of its Creator, and the Peace of God will reign in all its fullness. At this Mother-of-all-Endings, ‘Christ Returns to establish His Kingdom and consummate the New Creation.’” ― MICHAEL F. BIRD, Evangelical Theology: A Biblical and Systematic Introduction, 2013; edited

COMMENTARY. “Isaiah 11 begins with the claim that New Life will spring forth from an Injured Stump: “A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.”

It is difficult to say what historical event, if any, lies behind the image of the ‘Stump.’ Is this a reference to the Exile, in which the Davidic Monarchy certainly was cut down, the downfall of the proud Assyrian Empire (Isaiah 10:33-34) or is it perhaps a reference to the young Josiah, whose father Amon was assassinated (2 Kings 21:19-26)?

What seems likely is that this Image would have been relevant at numerous points in Israel’s history. Whatever the case may be, the Text imagines a New Beginning for Judah’s Monarchy. In this hopeful future Yhwh’s Spirit will alight upon the Ruler, resulting in Justice for the poor and lowly of the Land (verse 4) and a fundamental Reordering of Creation’s priorities (verses 6-9). ‘Life emerges from Death. This is the way of Israel’s God.’

The concrete expression of this New Future is a Ruler on Whom the Spirit will rest (verse 2). Promise comes to Israel in the form of a Person — a ‘Human’ King who embodies the best of Israel’s traditions: He is Wise and Understanding (verse 2), Powerful and effective in war (verses 2, 4), able to Judge for the benefit of the poor (verse 3-4), and Obedient to God (verse 2, 5). ‘This King rules the World in such a way that the poor are treated righteously, the meek are given a fair hearing, and the wicked are killed.’ So Glorious is this Reign that He is literally clothed in Righteousness and Faithfulness (verse 5).” – DR. MICHAEL CHAN, Working Preacher, Dec. 4, 2016; edited

II. TEACHING

Today I have the distinct honor and pleasure of introducing us to a slice at least: ‘What is Coming in the Days Ahead: The Royal Kingdom of Jesus Christ on the Earth.’ It shall be Consummated in stages, The First Stage of which is called:

THE MILLENNIUM. “The term ‘Millennium’ refers to the prophesied Thousand-Year Reign of Jesus Christ on Earth, as described in the Book of Revelation. This period is characterized by: Peace, Righteousness, and the fulfillment of God’s Promises to His people. The concept of the Millennium is primarily derived from Revelation 20:1-6, where the Apostle John describes a Vision of Satan being bound for a thousand years, during which Christ reigns with His Saints.” – WRIGHT, HUNTER & WRIGHT, Richards Topical Encyclopedia, 1933; edited

To further explore this frankly astounding topic for the first time, I turn to an excellent, systematic review by NATE HOLDRIDGE, senior pastor at Calvary Monterrey (CA), and prolific author of several theologically grounded books.

NOTE: Though Calvary Chapel and the voice of Greg Laurie are essentially bedded down with Donald Trump’s Christian Nationalism Heresy, I vetted Mr. Holdridge and could find nothing in writing that would indicate he is in agreement with his overseers on that important matter. Further Note that this will only be an Introduction, and not a definitive study addressing all the issues.

The title of his Overview is, “The Millennial Reign of Christ (Revelation 20),” published in his Blog on March 29, 2021 (edited). What follows are his SIX MAJOR POINTS we are to pay special attention to for a grasp of this very, very Big Idea.

PRELUDE. “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 … 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, NKJV

CHRIST VISIBLY REIGNS. “‘The First Element of the Millennium is that Jesus Christ will visibly, [personally] Reign.’ Many people will survive The Tribulation — it is the Armies of the Nations and the Beast that are killed or judged — and Jesus will Rule over remaining Humanity. From Jerusalem, often called Zion in the Bible, Jesus will lead. And people will love His leadership! … Isaiah’s description [2:3-4] is of an ‘Age of Total Peace,’ one where Christ is Judging the Nations. On That Day, Zechariah says, ‘The LORD will be King over all the earth’ (Zechariah 14:9). David was promised a Descendant to sit on the Throne forever, and Jesus is that Descendant (Jeremiah 23:5). So the First Element of the Millennium is that Christ will visibly Reign.”

CHURCH CO-REIGNS. “‘The Second Element of the Millennium is that the Church will Reign with Jesus.’ Believers today will be with Christ tomorrow, leading and living in Glorified Bodies during the Golden Millennial Age … This Idea is pictured in Revelation 20, which we read earlier. Not only does Christ reign, but John also “Saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed” (Revelation 20:4). ‘They will reign with Him for a thousand years’ (Revelation 20:6… And I believe many of these [future positions] might be Positions of Responsibility in His Kingdom.”

SPIRITUAL LIFE RESTORED TO ISRAEL. “‘The Third Element of the Millennium is that Spiritual Life will arise in Israel.’ Jeremiah spoke of a day when The Law would be written on Israelite hearts (Jeremiah 31:33). Ezekiel saw a day when the dry bones of Israel are raised to life and given the Breath of God’s Spirit (Ezekiel 37:1-4). Zechariah described a Future Day when Israel would have a spirit of grace and prayer for mercy, mourning over Jesus [“Then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn”] (Zechariah 12:10)…With this Renewal and Vigor for God, Israel will [again] Rise to Prominence, partly because Jesus will Reign from Jerusalem. As Paul said, “A partial hardening has come upon Israel’ during our current Church Age (Romans 11:25). One day, however, ‘God will Revive Israel!’This Revival seems to Start in The Tribulation and come to full Completion during Christ’s Millennial Reign.”

SPIRITUAL LIFE RESTORED TO NATIONS. “But Israel won’t be alone in its Renewed Spiritual Life. ‘The Fourth Element of the Millennium is that Spiritual Life will come to the Nations.’ The Prophets made it clear that the Earth will experience a Population Explosion during the Millennium. With The Curse suspended or at least greatly decreased, Isaiah and Jeremiah said infants would no longer die, everyone will ‘fill out their days,’ so that death at age one hundred will be considered young (Isaiah 65:20; Jeremiah 30:20). And the New Human Population will [‘mostly, not all’] grow to love and adore Christ [according] to the Prophet Micah [4:1-4] … All this will lead to Joy, Happiness, and Biblical Justice throughout the World. It will be a time when ‘The earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea’ (Isaiah 11:9).”

SATAN IS BOUND. “‘The Fifth Element I want to mention about the Millennium happens before many of the others — Satan is bound!’ We already read this in Revelation 20 — he is bound for the thousand years [‘Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 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”] (Revelation 20:1-3). At the End of these thousand years, The Books will be opened, and those who belong to Death and Hades, along with Satan, are thrown out of God’s Presence into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:10, 13-15).”

NATURE IS RESTORED. “‘The Sixth Element of the Millennium is that Nature will be Reborn.’ The Earth’s topography will also be rearranged as the wilderness and dry land become lush and fertile (Isaiah 35:1). Thorns and briers will be replaced by huge trees, providing clean air and shelter (Isaiah 55:13). Crops will grow with ease. Food will be plentiful (Joel 2:24-26) … The Animal Kingdom will no longer have a predatorial nature — the wolves and lambs, leopard and baby goats, lions and calves, bears and cows will intermix (Isaiah 11:6, 65:25). Children will be able to lead even the strongest predators because they will all become herbivores (Isaiah 11:7). And we will no longer have an adversarial relationship with the Animal Kingdom as even wild beasts and poisonous snakes become docile and safe under King Jesus’ leadership (Ezekiel 34:25, Isaiah 11:8-9).”

DK NOTE. So, to further Contextualize these great matters dealing with ‘What lies ahead,’ I now turn to a Broad Overview to address ‘The Rest of the Story.’ God help me!

III. WHAT’S NEXT?

It has taken me over half of my lifetime to assemble a reasonable CHRONOLOGY OF LAST THINGS I believe God planned from before Time even existed. So shall I dare to present that Chronology to you as we close our conversation of the very Largest Ideas with which Mankind can grapple.

This Final Summary is taken from my book, The Sixth Seal II: A Pre-Wrath Commentary Redux on the Rise of Donald Trump and the Decline of the American Order, 2017-2021(2024). The Section from which it is derived is: “Ten Stages to the End of the Age” (pp. 190-196; edited).

SCRIPTURE. “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” – 2 THESSALONIANS 2:1-4, NKJV

ONE: THE BIRTH PANGS. As I have argued increasingly for nearly ten years, I do not believe that Jesus’ description of the “Birith Pangs” constitute any part of the Great Tribulation Period proclaimed by the Prophet Daniel. Rather, they are exactly what the Messiah described them as: ‘Birth Pains ‘leading up to’ the Tribulation Era, but not the Tribulation Era – yet.’ Thus again, they are found in the First Five Seals of Revelation Chapter 6, and the early verses of Matthew 24, Luke 21, and Mark 13, Christ’s parallel accounts of His Olivet Discourse.

TWO: THE APOSTASY. Clearly, inarguably in my view, the Great Falling Away precedes everything else in this passage. The remarkable thing about this is that it is already happening all around us, beloved, in a torrent of ‘Betrayal of Christ and Canon’ everywhere on the American Church. Poll after poll after poll since 2016 consistently demonstrates over 80% of the White American Church supports Donald Trump and his policies. [DK NOTE]: “For his reason I fully expect him to rise to the White House one last time in the historic 60^thQuadrennial Presidential Election of November 5, 2024. This despite the failure of a probable Republican sweep of both the House and the Senate in the Midterms of November 2022 (this entry was made early on Election Day, November 8; accompanied by, interestingly, a Blood Moon)” (pp. 191-192; edited).

THREE. THE RISE OF ANTICHRIST. Here we find a much clearer interpretation that cuts though much of the confusion about when ‘Antichrist is to be revealed.’ I propose that it will be in Two Stages: First, The Apostasy operationally separates the Wheat from the Chaff (Matt. 3:12), and the Lord reveals the Antichrist to His true, faithful and discerning followers. Second, however, the Chaff, or Nominal (or Apostatized) followers have no idea of his identity, and actually become servile to this False Christ who they believe to be, ‘The One.’ I frankly see this happening everywhere as the vast majority of American Christians scramble into the Trump Nationalist Camp.

FOUR: THE RESCUE. When this Grand Threshing is complete, every true member of Christ’s Remnant, ‘the Wheat,’ is soon thereafter ‘swept into His Barn’ while tragically, ‘the Chaff’ is “burnt up with unquenchable fire” (Matt. 3:12). His thunderous Appearance shatters the historic Timeline, and the World catches its first direct glimpse of the Face of the Lion of Judah about to Judge all the nations. Indeed, as I have already written, the World is quite literally rocked to its Foundations by this stupendous, catastrophic Mega Event. Taking place at the very end of the Sixth Chapter of the Book of Revelation with the ripping open of ‘The Sixth Seal’ by the Messiah, it also serves as The Trigger for the Seven Year Tribulation, or Daniel’s 70^th Week. – cf. Dan. 9:27; Matt. 13:30; Rev. 6:16

FIVE: THE TRIBULATION. As I have also argued and continue to do so, the actual Tribulation Era cannot commence until the Church, the Bride of Christ, is ‘Removed’ (i.e., ‘Raptured’): “And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only HE who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way” (2 THESSALONIANS 2:6-7, NKJV). ‘The Scriptures are indelibly clear on this important doctrinal point. We are not, beloved, again – we are NOT appointed to God’s Wrath’ (cf. Rom. 5:9; 1 Thess. 5:9). Thus ‘The Tribulation’ begins with, and is marked by, the Onset of God’s unprecedented, nearly unmitigated ‘Fury!’ I propose, along with a number of reputable theologians, that the Opening of the Sixth Seal in Revelation 6 (vv. 12-17) constitutes the Start of the Seven Year Time of Jacob’s Troubles. I further argue that that the First 3.5 Years are likely marked by the Seven Trumpet Judgments, as God’s ‘Divine Wrath’ begins to spill forth, in increasingly violent sequence, shattering the Laws of Physics in demonstration of His great and powerful Anger.

SIX: THE ‘GREAT’ TRIBULATION. Based upon all that I have studied for the past four decades, I believe I see much more clearly a Grand Design in the Last Times I had not discovered before. I now believe that the Last 3.5 Years is triggered by Antichrist’s Abomination of Desolation (Dan. 9:27; Matt. 24:15) and characterized by a Divine Outrage so fierce, it is difficult to to describe it, when everything that can be shaken on the whole Earth shall be shaken, nearly destroying everything! The only Judgments that can qualify for these Catastrophic Shakings are the Seven Bowl Judgments, that if not abbreviated, no one would survive (Matt. 24:22). There will be a ‘Faithful Remnant of Tribulation Saints’ (as distinct from the Church Age, Raptured Saints), most of whom shall have been beheaded as Martyrs (cf. Rev. 7:17; 20:4).

SEVEN: THE RETURN. At the End of the Seven Year Tribulation Period, a Triumphant Christ thunderously Returns with the Armies of Heaven on horseback (Angels and Church Age Saints) to ‘Rescue’ (not Rapture) the remaining Jews and Tribulation Saints. Then to utterly annihilate the Armies of Antichrist and all earthy forces that opposed Jesus Christ. Here we see coming to full circle both Jews and Christians being‘Reunited and Restored’ to fellowship in the Messiah forever and ever. Or what I like to call ‘The Grand Reconciliation’ (cf. Matt. 24:29-31; Mark 13:24-27; Rom. 11:26; Rev. 19:19-21). NOTE: Though difficult to prove by Scripture, many Bible scholars propose that Church Age Saints, Tribulation Saints and Redeemed Jews shall all have a somewhat different Eternal Mission.

EIGHT: THE MILLENNIUM. Following the Last Great War at Armageddon, the Lord prepares all things for that One Thousand Year Reign from the Throne of David in Jerusalem. This after dispatching Satan in Divine Chains to the Bottomless Pit, having already thrown the Antichrist, his False Prophet and all their followers into the Eternal Lake of Fire at the End of the Tribulation (cf. Rev. 19:20; 20:3). ‘Thus commences the nearly perfect Millennial Earth completely absent of any demonic influence.’ This Millennial Era will be characterized by unparalleled Peace and Prosperity, a burgeoning human population filled with almost unlimited new freedom to invent and flourish in all their endeavors. Jesus and His Resurrected Church Age Saints will ‘Co-Reign’ in some now mysterious fashion (cf. Dan. 2:44; 7:27; Isa. 65:25; Zech. 14:15). The Tribulation Saints are by contrast brought back to life to “remain before the Throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple” (Rev. 7:13-15).

NINE: THE LAST REBELLION. Mysteriously, nearly incomprehensibly, Jesus releases Satan from the Bottomless Pit for a short time at the End of the Millennial Era: “Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth” (Rev. 20:7). But the Scriptures tell us that when Satan’s Armies surround the camp of the Millennial Saints and the Beloved City (Jerusalem), “Fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them all” (v. 9). Then Satan is finally pitched into the Lake of Fire (distinguished from the Bottomless Pit, akin to a prison or holding place), where all who shall dwell there for Eternity shall be burned and tormented forever (cf. Rev. 20:10; Jer. 17:9, 29:29).

TEN: TO INFINITY AND BEYOND! Now here once again I completely fail in my ability to adequately express what comes next: That which shall last Forever and forever and forever, no longer bound by Time. Paul’s Letter to Timothy prophesies: “If we ENDURE, we shall also reign with Him. If we DENY Him, He will also deny and disown and reject us” (2 TIM. 2:12, AMPC). The Great Apostle also taught that in our now Glorified Bodies, we shall have been raised so high that we shall even Judge the Angels of God! (1 Cor. 6:3). DK NOTE: And through the First Word I ever heard from God’s Spirit in 1980 as a new disciple, I heard Him say: “And someday you shall see the stars!” (that I so admired as a child reading World Book Encyclopedia about “The Solar System”).

LAST THOUGHTS

JUST THIS: “But, on the contrary, as the Scripture says, ‘What eye has not seen and ear has not heard and has not entered into the heart of man, [ALL that] God has prepared (made and keeps ready) for those who love Him [who hold Him in affectionate reverence, PROMPTLY OBEYING HIM and gratefully recognizing the benefits He has bestowed].” – 1 CORINTHIANS 2:9, AMPC

Just all of that, beloved. Just every single bit of all that.

Class dismissed. Selah!

MEDIA

YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/JDEJT21GQ2o