Part 2 · The Millennium and the Earth Made New
Updated: 3 days ago
Part 2 of 3 · Is Hell Eternal?
Few subjects in Bible prophecy have been surrounded by more human speculation than the “thousand years”—or Millennium—of Revelation 20. Will the saints reign on earth during the thousand years, or in heaven with Christ? In what condition is the earth left during that period, how is Satan “bound,” and when does God create the New Earth? When we allow Scripture to interpret itself, every piece of the prophetic picture unites in breathtaking harmony.
I. The Beginning of the 1,000 Years: The Two Resurrections & The Binding of Satan
When Jesus returns in the clouds of heaven, where does He take His redeemed people?
Verse: “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16–17, KJV)
Explanation: At His Second Coming, Jesus does not establish an earthly millennium upon a sin-scarred planet. Instead, the righteous dead are raised incorruptible, the living saints are translated, and together they are caught up “to meet the Lord in the air” and escorted to the mansions He has prepared in the Father’s house in heaven (John 14:1–3).
How does Revelation 20 describe those who are raised at Christ’s coming, and how long is the interval before the rest of the dead are raised?
Verse: “But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:5–6, KJV)
Explanation: The Bible teaches two distinct resurrections (John 5:28–29) separated by exactly one thousand years. The “first resurrection”—the resurrection of life for the “blessed and holy”—marks the beginning of the thousand years, while “the rest of the dead” (the unrepentant wicked) do not rise until the thousand years are finished.
What happens to the wicked who are still alive on earth when Jesus appears in glory?
Verse: “And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:” (2 Thessalonians 2:8, KJV; see also Revelation 19:21)
Explanation: Those who have rejected God’s mercy and clung to sin are slain by the consuming brightness of Christ’s appearing. With the righteous taken to heaven and the living wicked slain, not a single living human being remains upon the earth during the thousand years.
How did the prophet Jeremiah describe the desolate condition of the earth during this period?
Verse: “I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly. I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and by his fierce anger.” (Jeremiah 4:23–26, KJV)
Explanation: Using the very Hebrew terms of Genesis 1:2 (“without form, and void”), Jeremiah foresaw the earth reduced to a broken, depopulated wilderness—“there was no man”—following the convulsions of the seven last plagues and the Second Coming of Christ.
In what way is Satan “bound” in the “bottomless pit” for the thousand years?
Verse: “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.” (Revelation 20:1–3, KJV)
Explanation: The Greek word translated “bottomless pit” is *abyssos* (the same word used in the Greek Septuagint of Genesis 1:2 for the dark, chaotic earth). Because the righteous are safely in heaven and the wicked are dead upon the ruined earth, Satan is bound by a prophetic chain of circumstances—confined to this desolate planet with no one left to tempt or deceive for one thousand years, forced to behold the terrible results of his rebellion against God’s law.
II. With Christ in Heaven: The Millennial Review Judgment
Where are the redeemed saints during the thousand years, and what sacred work is committed to them?
Verse: “And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:4, KJV)
Explanation: In fulfillment of Jesus’ promise (John 14:2–3), the redeemed live and reign with Christ in heaven during the thousand years, where “judgment was given unto them.”
Why does God invite the saints to participate in this millennial review judgment before final execution of sentence?
Verse: “Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?” (1 Corinthians 6:2–3, KJV)
Explanation: God does not need the saints to inform Him of the facts, for He knows all things. Rather, during the thousand years in heaven, the books of record are opened to the redeemed so that every question regarding lost loved ones, the wicked of the earth, and Satan and his fallen angels may be answered forever. Every saint will see with their own eyes the infinite patience, mercy, and spotless justice of God in every case.
III. The Close of the Millennium, The Eradication of Sin & The Earth Made New
How is Satan “loosed out of his prison” at the close of the thousand years?
Verse: “And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.” (Revelation 20:7–8, KJV)
Explanation: At the close of the thousand years, Christ, His saints, and the Holy City—the New Jerusalem—descend from heaven to the earth (Revelation 21:2; Zechariah 14:4). Then “the rest of the dead” (the wicked of all ages) are raised in the second resurrection (Revelation 20:5). Their resurrection releases Satan from his inactivity, and unrepentant to the last, he deceives these vast multitudes into marching against the New Jerusalem.
What happens when the wicked surround the beloved city, and what is the “lake of fire”?
Verse: “And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.” (Revelation 20:9, KJV; see also verses 14–15: “And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”)
Explanation: After the Great White Throne judgment displays God’s justice before the entire assembled universe (Revelation 20:11–13; Philippians 2:10–11), fire comes down from God out of heaven upon the surface of the earth. Far from being an underground chamber of endless conscious torture, the lake of fire is the purifying conflagration that utterly devours Satan, his angels, and the unrepentant wicked—resulting in the “second death,” from which there is no resurrection.
Does the purifying fire burn the wicked forever, or does it consume them completely to ashes?
Verse: “For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch... And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.” (Malachi 4:1, 3, KJV)
Explanation: Satan is the “root” and his followers are the “branches.” When the fires of the last day have completed their work, neither root nor branch remains—sin and sinners are reduced to ashes, and as the prophet Nahum declares, “affliction shall not rise up the second time” (Nahum 1:9).
Out of the purifying flames that cleanse the planet, what glorious eternal home does God create for His redeemed family?
Verse: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea... And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” (Revelation 21:1, 4, KJV)
Explanation: The very fire that destroys sin and sinners purifies the earth itself (2 Peter 3:10–13). From its ashes, the Creator calls forth the New Earth in Edenic beauty—free from every trace of the curse—where the meek inherit the earth (Matthew 5:5) and dwell in the visible presence of God and the Lamb forever and ever.
Conclusion & Personal Appeal
The great controversy is almost ended. Soon Jesus will descend to raise His sleeping saints and welcome His faithful people into the mansions of glory. Make your calling and election sure today, that you may have part in the first resurrection and dwell with Christ in the Earth Made New forever!
Related reading: The Two Resurrections · The Destiny of the Transgressor · The Manner & Certainty of Christ’s Second Coming: A Comprehensive Biblical Study
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