Interpreting Rev. 20’s 1000 Year Reign with Christ

by Brad Baker

April 21/2021

1 The 1000 Year Reign of ChristThe “thousand” in Rev. 20:4 is not literal. 2 A word study on “thousand” throughout the OT will show that is literal when counting something, ie. coins, people, etc. But, in prophesy it is symbolic for fullness / completeness of time. 3 And, in Rev. 20:4 it means that the martyrs would reign with Christ for a number of years that God would determine as full or complete. 4 The 1000 years can not be proven as literal when John and others like Daniel wrote prophecies that were signified or given by a dream. 5 The 1000 years was most likely signified because John saw it that way when it was sent to him.

Revelation 1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John, 2 who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw.

 6 We can see in scripture where 1000 years may have some similarities.

7 Here is an example where God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. Now does that mean God does not own all the rest of the cattle on the Earth ?

Psalm 50:10For every beast of the forest is Mine, And the cattle on a thousand hills.

8 In the life time of Adam of 930 years which I believe to have been moon cycles was close enough so Adam’s life time ended close to a 1000 years so we can see a time from Adam had lived to compare to the first century after Christ ascended into Heaven to the end of the Age when the Temple was destroyed in AD70.

9 The Catholic Church was the Super Power of the world for close to a 1000 years. Most Preterist believe that the 1000 years were from the transition age between Pentecost to the end of the Age in AD70

The 1000 Years with the Tabernacle of David

10 There was a 1000 years between King David to Jesus Christ and Jesus was an offspring from King David. 11 It is of my opinion the the 1000 years that John had in mind was to reflecting back to the amount of years there were between King David to the end of the Age in which they were living in the last days of the end but started with Christ and ended in AD70. 

12 The reason is because I don’t think John had the almost 1000 years that Adam lived or the 1000 cattle God owns on the hill but because the Prophets wrote of the restoration of the Tabernacle of David and few have thought that David would be resurrected and be their Messiah. 13 I don’t nor does anyone I know believe that David would be the Messiah because it is clear that Jesus was and He was an offspring from David. However I do believe King David was part of the first resurrection of the dead mentioned in:

 Matthew 27: 50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

51 Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, 52 and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53 and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.

 14 So David would have been there for the so-called 1000 years which was more like the 40 years that the Church reigned with Christ during the transitional period from Pentecost AD33 to AD70 the end of the Age when the Temple and city were destroyed. 

15 So to sum that up it would look like this: 

What makes sense is that the first resurrection took place in Matthew 27: 50-53 when the thousands years John spoke of in Revelation 20 was really pointing to the Tabernacle of David being restored for the first century Church so that the fullness of the Gentiles could come in up to the end of the Age. 16 Then the Great White Thrown Judgment occurred right after the Temple no longer stood and the dead raised and their reigning with Christ for that period of time became transformed into the new Age with the Manifested Sons of God starting off the New Heaven and Earth all which did take place in AD70.

17 I won’t get into the Tabernacle of David in this article anymore but you can read up on that in the articles related to The Tabernacle of David.

Satan Bound 1,000 Years

20:1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; 3 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. 

18 This video here does a great job of connecting the dots to one of the most greatest mysteries in the Bible, the 1000 year millennium.

19 Believers were casting out demons and binding Satan before the end of the Age.

Luke 10:17-19

The Seventy Return with Joy

17 Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.”

18 And He said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Luke 9:49 Now John answered and said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us.”

50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side.”

19 The first resurrection were the saints who were seated in Heavenly places in Christ after they were baptized in water. 20 Noticed where it also says in the ages to come, in other words they were seated in Heavenly places in Christ in the age they were in. 21 Their death was not a physical death which took them into Heaven but it was in the Spiritual realm.

Ephesians 2:5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

22 Their death was not a physical death nor did their being raised from the dead take them into Heaven but it meant that they should walk in newness of life here on Earth. 23 This was the first resurrection and it occurred every time someone became a Christian and was Baptized in water and filled with the Holy Spirit.

Romans 6:2Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

24 The unjust dead and those physically alive who were unjust could not be resurrected while the Temple stood because that was the Day of Judgment was when the Temple was destroyed. 25 After the Temple was destroyed God’s presence was before everyone and that was also when the second death had power over the unjust but had no power over those who were believers in Christ. 26 The second death was the new death when all things were made new for the New Age and the Heaven and Earth post AD70.

4b :And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

6 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.

27 Here is the most clearest definition of when the 1000 years as to end and that was with the destruction of the city and the Temple or sanctuary which did happen in AD70.

Revelation 20:7 Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. 9 They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. 

Daniel 9:

26 

“And after the sixty-two weeks

Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself;

And the people of the prince who is to come

Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.

The end of it shall be with a flood,

And till the end of the war desolations are determined.

28 There was a forty year period which was one generation when the children of Israel were in the wilderness before they could enter into the promised land. 29 This is also associated with the 1000 year reign of Christ before the city and Temple were destroyed before the end of the Age and entering into the New Heaven and Earth which was the antitype of being in the wilderness for 40 years.

30 The wilderness speaks of a dry place where demons dwelt and Jesus was sent into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil. 31 The promised land was a land of milk and honey that  was a type for the New Heaven and Earth. 32 When the children of Israel were in the wildness for 40 years they only eat manna. 33 Once they crossed over the Jordan River God stopped providing manna to eat. 34 In a similar way once the 1000 years or time between 33AD to 70AD ended all the things mentioned concerning the 1000 years ended as well because all things were made new including water baptism and being born again etc which were things that fulfilled the Outer Court ministry. 35 The Outer Courts were not to be measured according to Revelation 11:2 for the New Heaven and Earth. 

Matthew 4:1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 

36 When the anti-type of the Fall Feasts were fulfilled after 40 years from the time the Spring Feast were fulfilled in 33AD the 1000 years spoken of had to have happened. 37 The 1000 years speaks of Satan being bound at the end of it is very much speaking of when the Old Covenant system was cast into the Lake of Fire. 38 The similarities are so overwhelming that this must be when the 1000 years took place and not after AD70 like some may believe. 

39 Either way the past should not concern us with all the details. I am convinced by the majority of the scriptures that hold me to the position that I see that should concern us and that is what does the New Heaven and Earth mean for us today and what are the things that were made new when the old Age passed away. 

40 Aside from all of this, this one fact remains and that is Christ had ascended into Heaven 40 days after He rose from the dead where He did reign in Heaven. 41 So how can it be that he had not and was waiting to after AD70…? 42  If you say well yeah Christ ascended into Heaven but He did not reign there until the 1000 years then what was He doing there and why was He not reigning there during the 40 years between His ascension and AD70…?

John 20: Jesus said to her, “Mary!”

She turned and said to Him, “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Teacher). 17  Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and  My God and your God.’ ”

Ephesians 4:8 Therefore He says: “When He on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.”

Acts 1:3 tells us after Jesus rose from the dead He made appearances to many people during 40 days’ time — the Gospels and the book of Acts recount several of these events and Paul also testifies to Jesus’ numerous resurrection appearances in 1 Corinthians.

43 Then, 40 days after His resurrection, Jesus ascended into heaven. There we go with the number 40 again it appears throughout the scriptures with events of either 40 days or 40 years. Forty years represented a generation which was considered a short period of time. 

Acts 1: to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.

Jesus Ascends to Heaven

Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of there. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.” 

44 The 1000 years it the one single topic that I usually try to avoid because of the 1000 years is not a literal 1000 years but just for the sake of debate with a consideration that just maybe not all things were fulfilled in AD70 I would like to throw at you some other things for thought on this subject.

2 Peter 3: 8 But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. 

45 A lot of people believe that the universe will burn up and be destroyed and then a New physical literal Heaven and Earth would be created. 46 Some one told me that the new Preterist term I coined as New Heaven & Earth eschatology is not eschatology because eschatology has an end to it whereas the New Heaven & Earth has no end. 47 Well now does it really not have an end. 48 Most science say that in billions of years from now the Galaxy of the Milky Way will collide with another galaxy and the two will become a super black hole which will dissolve everything in the two galaxies with the Milky Way being in the one which we live in. 49 If that will happen well then yes New Heaven & Earth eschatology would have an end to it but I’m not the one who says that though I would say it is very well possible for that to happen and if it does life will go on in another galaxy in our Universe that will have no end.

50 Here is another thought to play with if all things were not fulfilled in AD70 in:

 Hosea 6: 1 Come, and let us return to the Lord;

For He has torn, but He will heal us;

He has stricken, but He will bind us up.

2 

After two days He will revive us;

On the third day He will raise us up,

That we may live in His sight.

3 

Let us know,

Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord.

His going forth is established as the morning;

He will come to us like the rain,

Like the latter and former rain to the earth.

51 This is one that I played with a long time ago before I became a Full Preterist and this is what were my thoughts at the time. 52 In verse 2 the two days are the two thousand years since the first century so then for two thousand years we have been torn and stricken as God’s people here on Earth now shortly in the future we would be revived and raised up to live as we should ruling over the nations etc. 53 Then in the last verse where it says He will come to us like the rain, Like the latter and former rain to the earth. 

54 I associated that with Joel’s Army in Joel 2 which I heard preached for years while involved in the Later Rain Movement throughout my earlier years in life to rise up as the Manifested Sons of God not realizing that Joel 2 was fulfilled in Ad70. 55 Joel chapter 2 was one of the main centre points of the Manifestation of the Sons of God doctrine that had so much importance to the movement that we heard it all the time. 56 As you can see messing around with the 1000 years can lead you down into the wrong path if you can not fit it into the timeframe as to when Jesus said all things would be fulfilled which all pointed to AD70.