When I first became a “Prophecy Watcher” about 20 years ago, we were all of us looking for signs of the Rapture. Little did we know that here in 2026, we would be seeing so many signs of the coming Tribulation! Now, with the evil players of Ezekiel 38 and 39 allied together and ready to play their part, and with the events occurring in Gaza and in Iran, we find ourselves all listening for the Great Shofar to blow, calling us to “Come up here” to begin the Marriage Week with our heavenly Bridegroom, Jesus Christ!
Yet far too many believers understand the Rapture to be our entrance to an eternity spent in heaven … it is NOT! If the Rapture takes place in the next 3 years, then we are just 10 years away from a glorious time named 6 times in Revelation 20 as the “Millennial Reign of Christ!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M3VXDXP?ref=yb_qv_ov_kndl_dp_rw
The link above will take you to a book written by myself and a friend of mine named Seth nearly a decade ago. Our book was born out of a longing to offer Bible students like myself a simple presentation of the biblical truths of the marvelous Millennium. The subject of the Millennium is not a minor topic in the Holy Scriptures. There are a total of 133 Millennial prophecies quoted in my book (including the additional passages listed in the appendix), and author Denny Bolen (see bibliography) claims to have found a total of 400!
In his book, Things To Come (pg. 47), the well-respected author, Dwight J. Pentecost, makes this amazing statement about the doctrine of the Millennial Kingdom:
“A larger body of prophetic Scripture is devoted to the Millennium, developing its character and conditions, than any other one subject.”
Altogether, they paint a glorious picture! The Millennial Age will be the most peaceful, prosperous, productive time in the recorded history of the world! This thousand-year reign of the Messiah-King, Yeshua (Jesus), is so compelling to read and to speak about that even many unbelievers are glad to hear of its utopian themes! Yet, strangely, the average American Christian or Jewish person almost never hears anything about it, and a quick internet search will show that the teachers and writers of our Christian faith have produced very few resources to help them! Brothers and sisters, “this ought not to be so!”
I believe there are two main reasons why believers in Christ are not better acquainted with the thrilling teachings of God’s glorious kingdom on Earth. The first is simply the sad fact that so many of us have ignored the reading of the Old Testament in favor of the familiarity of the New Testament. We are uncertain whether we can understand the books of the prophets or, possibly, we are unconvinced of their present-day relevance in light of the revelations of the New Covenant. To these concerns, I would simply quote the words of scripture in 1 Timothy 3:16:
“ALL scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”
This reminder is even more convicting when we recall that the New Testament books had not yet been officially compiled in 60 A.D. When Paul exhorted Timothy to use “all scripture” for his faith and ministry, Paul was referring to the OLD Testament!
The second reason for our lack of Millennial awareness is the fact that so many teachers have decided to interpret the Old Testament prophecies symbolically instead of literally. This has produced the spread of much unbiblical teaching on this subject. There are “Post-Millennialists” who believe that the second coming of Christ will only occur after (post) the earthly millennium, and “Amillennialists” who do not believe that a Millennial Age has or ever will take place on the earth! I cannot wait to see the ecstatic looks on the faces of these currently confused brethren when, one day, they find themselves standing in a Millennial garden on land that was once called “Antarctica”!
With all of this confusion, and in an effort not to be divisive, pastors have often avoided teaching this subject. I have personally spent 15 years in Pentecostal congregations and now another 35 in non-Pentecostal churches of various denominations, and I have dearly loved and been benefited by them all, but I am still waiting to hear my very first message on the Millennium in a half-century of time!!
The view of biblical prophecy presented directly from scripture in my book is called “Pre-Millennialism,” and it is a direct result of understanding biblical prophecy in a literal fashion. Pre-Millennialism is the view that the Lord’s second coming to this earth will occur just before (pre) the Millennial Age begins. Indeed, without Messiah’s restoring power, enforcing authority, and physical presence, no Millennial Kingdom could ever begin or be sustained by men alone! (Apologies to the followers of “Dominion Theology.”)
But what about the underlying problem mentioned before…the decision to interpret prophecy figuratively instead of literally? Could such interpretation be correct? The best response I have ever read to this question is simply this: During the first coming of Christ to the earth, a total of 109 separate and distinct prophecies were fulfilled by Christ in literal, not symbolic, fashion. What better reason could we possibly have for expecting that the prophecies of his second coming will also be fulfilled literally!?
Dr. David Reagan is one of the most well-respected and beloved teachers of prophecy today. I owe many of my biblical perspectives to him. He exhorts us:
“I urge you to accept the plain sense meaning of Scripture. Don’t play games with God’s Word by spiritualizing it. When you do so, you can make it mean whatever you want it to mean, but in the process, you will lose the true meaning that God intended. Remember, the First Coming prophecies meant what they said. That should be our guide for interpreting the prophecies of the Second Coming.” (http://www.lamblion.com/articles/articles_millennium1.php)
I am hoping to publish a series of 8 articles here on RR over the next few months, taken from our book, The Amazing Millennium from A to Z. It is not meant to be a sumptuous buffet of information. Neither Seth nor I has the training or education to produce such a work. We are merely students of the Bible who have attempted to compose a tasty tray of appetizers from God’s word with the encouragement to believe these promises literally. We have asked the Lord to use this small offering to awaken your spiritual taste buds to the long-neglected delights of Millennial prophecy.
Our prayer is that this humble presentation will help to bring the scriptural promises of the Millennial Age back into the daily faith, conversation, and evangelical witness of many believers. Come soon, Lord Jesus, but until you do, teach us to proclaim what we pray,
“Thy kingdom come…on earth, even as it is in heaven!”
A is for Abundant!
Amos 9:13
“The time will come, says the Lord, when the grain and grapes will grow faster than they can be harvested. Then the terraced vineyards on the hills of Israel will drip with sweet wine!”
Isaiah 30:23-25a
“Then the Lord will bless you with rain at planting time. There will be wonderful harvests and plenty of pastureland for your livestock. The oxen and donkeys that till the ground will eat good grain, its chaff blown away by the wind. In that day, when your enemies are slaughtered and the towers fall, there will be streams of water flowing down every mountain and hill.”
Asher:
Yeshua said, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10b, KJV). The abundance of the Millennial time will not just be experienced physically, but also spiritually and emotionally. Nearly every believer I have met in over 40 years tells me that their life with God gets richer and better with every passing year! I can say the same. How about you!? Just think how abundant life with God can be after 400 years—or 1000!
Seth:
Under Christ’s rule, everyone will have happiness and health. Nobody who serves God will have to worry about famines or depression in the land. People will again live for hundreds of years as they did in Biblical times. The earth, in its restored state, will be such a healthier environment. With so much less sin and destruction, God will heal the nations, and the land will be full of fruit and living water. There will always be more than enough for everyone. Imagine one thousand years of plentiful harvests and healthy people!
Bright and Beautiful
Isaiah 54:11-13
“O storm-battered city, troubled and desolate! I will rebuild you with precious jewels and make your foundations from lapis lazuli. I will make your towers of sparkling rubies, your gates of shining gems, and your walls of precious stones. I will teach all your children, and they will enjoy great peace.”
Isaiah 30:26
“The moon will be as bright as the sun, and the sun will be seven times brighter – like the light of seven days in one! So it will be when the Lord begins to heal his people and cure the wounds he gave them.”
Asher:
In Isaiah 9:1b-3, we read a prophecy of the coming Messiah-King…
“…there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory. The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. You will enlarge the nation of Israel, and its people will rejoice.”
In John 8:12 (KJV), Yeshua said, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”
How bright will our world be when the light of life returns to Earth!? Almost everyone will follow His light, and almost no one anywhere will walk in darkness!
Seth:
In this current age, light affects everything from the prosperity of crops to our mental health. The medical community is convinced there is a strong link between mood and exposure to light. Growing up in northern Ohio, we experience long, dark winters. We all yearn for the bright uplifting sun of summer…how much more glorious will it be when winter never comes again! With heavenly weather conditions and non-stop growing seasons, it is no wonder the nations will be blessed with so much prosperity. The Kingdom of Jesus will be free from darkness!
I hope to publish the entries for “C – F” soon. I do hope you will enjoy this series and begin to anticipate the “Millennial Reign of Christ” almost as much as you look forward to the Rapture of the Church!
In service to the Messiah,
Robert “Asher” Mandel