MILLENNIAL DAYS
This talk is not an entry-level discussion, it's for those who have read the bible and understand the basics. We're all at various levels of understanding and we all have issues with our thinking. Make sure you know the essentials, that Jesus was a sacrifice for our sins, that he died so we would not have eternal punishment, but eternal life. He will return as judge and make all things new.
“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man comes.”
Matthew 25:13
“for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.”
1 Thessalonians 5:2
We have seen so many failures to predict the end times. Some people have made careers about being wrong. It's enough to make you give up following what I'm saying right now, but don't because at the very least I have an interesting story to tell. Let's look together speculating on a theory that goes back thousands of years. It's an elegant belief that emphasizes God’s beauty, and power, but that alone doesn't make it true.
To follow the theory you will need two things.
- Accept God created the world in 6 days, or at the very least believe Adam is a recent historical figure, going back thousands rather than millions of years.
- And to entertain the belief that human history may revolve around a week. Where each day lasts a thousand years.
So where to begin, how about this quote-
9 “remember the former things of old;
for I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me,
10a declaring the end from the beginning
and from ancient times things not yet done,”
Isaiah 46:9-10a
As the distinguished atheist cosmologist Fred Hoyle once said it was as if:
"a super-intellect has monkeyed with physics"
Fred Hoyle
Regarding the miraculous world, we find ourselves in, it goes beyond that. This superintelligence is personal and works to a plan that existed before the universe came into being. How fitting it is that this plan might follow an outline that was formed from the first chapters of Genesis.
In the opening account of Genesis we see God creating the world in 6 days resting on the 7th day and calling that day the Sabbath.
| DAY 1 | DAY 2 | DAY 3 | DAY 4 | DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 |
| Day & Night | waters above & below | Land & Sea, Plants, seed | Sun, Moon & Stars | Sea Creatures & Winged Creatures | Land Animals & Man | God Rested |
This is the outline we have for the creation, it's also the outline for the working week, but we can let Moses explain-
8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
Exodus 20:8-11
Moses perfectly explains how our working week outline follows the same pattern as the creation week. This was no accident, Moses got this information straight from God on Mount Sinai just before giving the commandments to the Israelites.
Jumping back to Genesis we get our first clue-
17"But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."
Genesis 2:17
We all know how it goes from here: Adam and Eve sin eating the fruit, causing the fall of mankind. One thing doesn't happen though: Adam doesn't die the same day, he lives a very respectable 930 years.
This has caused people to speculate that he died a spiritual death that day, separating himself from God through his sin.
While sin does drive a wedge between God and man. The judgment on Adam in chapter 3 is clear, he will face a physical death and it mentions the dust he will return to.
19 By the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”
Genesis 3:19
Others speculate the day he sinned was the day Adam started dying, and it will be a slow death from here on in. While that is kind of true too, it's a much slower death than any bad habit we can have today, he lived almost a thousand years! Neither of these explanations seems to fit neatly.
Ahh ha says the old earther reading the chapter title. There has been an argument over the length of the days in Genesis ever since the enlightenment of the 18th century. The crux of the matter is people want these creation days to be long to fit in with the secular explanation of the Big Bang and Evolution. That is a fascinating discussion, and one to be had with the Intelligent Design communities, Answers in Genesis, and Creation.com. I was thinking about something else: how the bible talks about time.
Now we know there are days, weeks, months, and years set out by God to help us keep track of the seasons. In the law, we read about how the Israelites are to observe time.
| 7 DAYS | 50 DAYS | 7 MONTHS | 7 YEARS | 50 YEARS |
| Week | First Fruits to Pentecost | Harvest Time | Sabbath Year | Jubilee |
| Six days of labor followed by a Sabbath of rest. | Seven weeks or forty-nine days between Passover and the Feast of Pentecost, concluding with a Sabbath day of rest. | The seven months contain the seven feasts of Israel, beginning with Passover in the Spring and concluding with the Feast of Tabernacles in the Fall, which is a celebration of rest from the agricultural labors of the year. | Six years followed by a Sabbath year, when the land is allowed to rest from cultivation. | Forty-nine years leading up to the celebration in the 50th year of the Jubilee, and that year is to be a year of rest. The great reset. |
| Exodus 20:8 | Leviticus 23:15 | Leviticus 23 | Leviticus 25:1-7 | Leviticus 25:8-12 |
To simplify this a bit let's just focus on the three main ones,
- The Week. For 6 days they were to work followed by 1 day's rest.
- The Week of Years. For 6 years they worked the land and in the final seventh year, they rested it.
- The Jubilee. 49 years then a celebration on the 50th year. 7 weeks of years followed by rest 7 and multiples of 7 make up the timing system, pointing back to the creation week.
Now getting on to an important point, sometimes and only occasionally, a day is alluded to as a thousand years.
1Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.
2Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3You turn people back to dust, saying, “Return to dust, you mortals.”
4A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.
5Yet you sweep people away in the sleep of death— they are like the new grass of the morning:
6In the morning it springs up new, but by evening it is dry and withered.
Psalm 90:1-6 - A prayer of Moses the man of God.
In the New Testament also mentions time passing for God-
3Knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. 4They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” 5For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, 6and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. 7But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.
8But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
2 Peter 3:8
He mentions the day of the Lord in verse 3. Talks about destruction and creation in verses 5-6. Linking creation, the last days, destruction, and a thousand years as one day, in one short section.
These are the only time days are compared to a 1,000 years in the bible, and they are the largest time spans mentioned. (obviously, I'm not including the word eternal)
Apart from one other chapter, the Day of the Lord is associated with a 1,000-year reign in the book of Revelation.
6Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.
Revelation 20:6
Side quest - Just for the real bible pros, Solomon mentions a 2000-year period in the hypothetical -
6Even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?
Ecclesiastes 6:6
Before we wrap up this section, we should look at the book of Daniel, which contains prophecies where weeks seem to mean years. Also, Ezekiel talks about a day as a year.
12“After you have finished this, lie down again, this time on your right side, and bear the sin of the people of Judah. I have assigned you 40 days, a day for each year…
Ezekiel 4:2
This parallels the wilderness punishment before the Israelites entered the land.
34According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, a year for each day, you shall bear your iniquity forty years, and you shall know my displeasure.’
Numbers 14:34
Here we are explicitly told that the days are to equal years.
24“Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place.
Daniel 9:24
The seventy-sevens here are widely interpreted to mean 70, seven-year periods. Which is an unusual way of counting. weeks of years is outlined in the Law along with a Jubilee equaling 50 years. We will play the number game soon enough, but let's look back to look forward.
What first caught me off guard was how far back I could trace the idea. It was adopted by early Christian writers and widely acknowledged in Jewish circles. I find the earliest quote pre-Christian in The Book of Jubilee found amongst the Dead Sea scrolls dating back 100 BC+.
30And he lacked seventy years of one thousand years; for one thousand years are as one day in the testimony of the heavens and therefore was it written concerning the tree of knowledge: 'On the day that ye eat thereof ye shall die.' For this reason he did not complete the years of this day; for he died during it.A
The Book Of Jubilee 4:30
Notice the author believes Adam did not live a full day, as he died before 1000. Now for the first Christian reference.
3Of the Sabbath He speaketh in the beginning of the creation; And God made the works of His hands in six days, and He ended on the seventh day, and rested on it, and He hallowed it.
4Give heed, children, what this meaneth; He ended in six days. He meaneth this, that in six thousand years the Lord shall bring all things to an end; for the day with Him signifyeth a thousand years; and this He himself beareth me witness, saying;
Behold, the day of the Lord shall be as a thousand years. Therefore, children, in six days, that is in six thousand years, everything shall come to an end.
5And He rested on the seventh day. This He meaneth; when His Son shall come, and shall abolish the time of the Lawless One, and shall judge the ungodly, and shall change the sun and the moon and the stars, then shall he truly rest on the seventh day.
Epistle of Barnabas (70-132 AD). 15:3-5
It states there are to be 6 days of creation, followed by a sabbath rest, and each day is to last a thousand years.
Now onto the church fathers quotes -
I and others, who are rightminded Christians on all points, are assured that there will be a resurrection of the dead and a thousand years in Jerusalem, which will then be built, adorned, and enlarged, as the prophets Ezekiel and Isaiah and others declare. … We have perceived, moreover, that the expression, ‘The day of the Lord is as a thousand years,’ is connected with this subject. Further, there was a certain man with us, whose name was John, one of the Apostles of Christ, who prophesied by revelation that was made to him that those who believed in our Christ would dwell a thousand years in Jerusalem, and that thereafter the general and, in short, the eternal resurrection and judgment of all men would likewise take place.
JUSTIN MARTYR (100-165 AD) DIALOGUE WITH TRYPHO, CHAPTERS 80, 81
In as many days as this world was made, in so many thousand years shall it be concluded. For this reason, the Scripture says, ‘Thus the heavens and the earth were finished and all their adornment, and God brought to a conclusion upon the sixth day the works that He had made. God rested upon the seventh day from all His works.’ This is an account of the things formerly created, as also it is a prophecy of what is to come, for the day of the Lord is as a thousand years, and in six days the created things were completed. It is evident, therefore, that they will come to an end at the six thousandth year.
IRENAEUS (AD 130-202), AGAINST HERESIES, BOOK 5, CHAPTER 28, SECTION 3
The Reason [Christ], who made the universe out of diverse elements … has also disposed time into order, … which we inhabit from the beginning of the world and flows down by a temporal course to a close. The portion which succeeds and to which we look forward continues forever. Therefore, when the boundary and limit–that millennial interspace–has been passed, when even the outward fashion of the world itself … passes away, then the whole human race shall be raised again to have its dues met out according as it has merited in the period of good or evil, and thereafter to have these paid out through the immeasurable ages of eternity.
TERTULLIAN (AD 155-220), APOLOGY, CHAPTER 48
And 6,000 years must needs be accomplished, in order that the Sabbath may come, the rest, the holy day on which God rested from all His works. For the Sabbath is the type and emblem of the future kingdom of the saints, when they shall reign with Christ, when He comes from heaven, as John says in his Apocalypse: for a day with the Lord is as a thousand years. Since, then, in six days God made all things, it follows that 6, 000 years must be fulfilled. And they are not yet fulfilled, as John says: five are fallen; one is, that is, the sixth; the other is not yet come.
Hippolytus of Rome (70-235 A.D). The following is from Fragment 2 of his commentary on Daniel, paragraph 4.
The Sabbath, therefore, is a type of the rest, signifying the seventh thousand years.
DIDASCALIA APOSTOLORUM (230 AD) CHAPTER 26
At the end of the six thousandth year, all evil shall be abolished from the earth, and justice shall reign for a thousand years, and there shall be tranquility and rest from the labors which the world is now enduring for so long. When He shall have destroyed injustice and made the great judgment and restored to life those who were just from the beginning, He will stay among men for a thousand years and will rule them with a just dominion. Then, those who will be living in bodies will not die, but will generate an infinite multitude during those same thousand years. Those who will be raised from the dead will be in charge of the living as judges. At the same time, also, the prince of demons, who is the contriver of all evils, will be found in chains, and he will be in custody for the thousand years.
LACTANTIUS (AD 250-325), DIVINE INSTITUTES, BOOK 7, CHAPTER 24
For since in six days God made the heaven and the earth, and finished the whole world, and rested on the seventh day from all His works which He had made, and blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, so by a figure in the seventh month, when the fruits of the earth have been gathered in, we are commanded to keep the feast to the Lord, which signifies that, when this world shall be terminated at the seventh thousand years…in the seventh month, the great resurrection-day, it is commanded that the Feast of our Tabernacles shall be celebrated to the Lord, of which the things said in Leviticus are symbols and figures..
Methodius The Banquet of the Ten Virgins (300AD)
Not everyone was a fan of this belief though, as it links the Millennial Day theory with End time views. Specifically a literal interpolations of the 1,000 years in Revelation.-
The saints will in no wise have an earthly kingdom, but only a celestial one. Thus must cease the fable of one thousand years.
JEROME (347-420 AD), COMMENTARY ON DANIEL 7:17-18
Moving on from the Church fathers, we can see some Jewish communities have firmly adopted the idea.
In the 600th year of the sixth thousand [i.e., 5600, or 1839–1840 CE], the gates of wisdom on high and the wellsprings of lower wisdom will be opened. This will prepare the world to enter the seventh thousand, just as man prepares himself toward sunset on Friday for the Sabbath.
The Zohar (1240 – 1305 AD)
“The world is decreed to last for six thousand years, as the days of the week, the seventh day of the week is Shabbat; so too in the seventh millennium, there will there be tranquility in the world.”
Rashi (1040 – 1105 AD)
The texts above simply show this idea has been present both pre-Christian and in the early Church, and in Jewish circles. Despite this evidence, the view has widely disappeared from the current church culture.
Although we do have more modern proponents of this view-
Those who claim to be students of the prophet Elijah contend:
The world will stand for six thousand years
Two thousand empty
Two thousand of the Law
Two thousand of the Messiah
These are the six days of the Week with God.
The seventh day is the eternal Sabbath.
Martin Luther - Calculation of the Years of the World (1541)
From Adam to Abraham there were two thousand years. From Abraham to the Divine incarnation there was another two thousand years. May there not be another two thousands years then between the first and the second advents?
The Redeemer's Return: Chapter “The Limitations of Earth's Great Week” — Arthur W. Pink (1918)
This concept brings a new meaning to these passages.
| MATTHEW 12:8 | MARK 2:28 | LUKE 6:5 |
| For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.” | So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” | And he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.” |
There is conflict in Christianity about whether the last day is eternal or a thousand years, like the previous.
In a pre-millennial understanding with a millennium week framework, you would understand Christ's return at 6000 years and reign over the Earth for a thousand years, in a 1000-year Sabbath day’s rest.
That helps loop in all the healing Jesus does on the Sabbath, it will be a fantastic time where the second Adam Will lead us and show us the way life was meant to be.
So here we are with an idea that by modern standards seems unbelievable, but how biblical is it? Can we find evidence in the pages of the Bible to support the belief? After all the Apostle Paul writes-
But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
1 Corinthians 1:27
If you’re sceptical, that's probably the right approach. I don't remember reading a master plan of human history in the pages of the bible either. Let's start by returning to Genesis, in the days of the flood.
Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.”
Genesis 6:3
After the judgment of the flood on mankind, God seems to limit the human lifespan, and over several generations, it decreases to what we would consider a normal age range.
The oldest person by modern standards is recorded as Jeanne Louise Calment who made it to 122 years old, which broadly matches what God said in Genesis.
Again, we have that delayed judgment just like Adam. Genesis 2, Noah lived 950 years, 11 generations later, Abraham lived 175 years. Today in the West, we can expect to live to our mid-eighties.
he odds of living to 120 are billions to one, even with state-of-the-art medical care, so it’s possible we shouldn't take this at face value.
Another possible meaning is its 120 years till mankind is wiped out in the flood. We are not told the time between the warning and the flood date.
This again could well be true, 120 years and then the world is destroyed through judgment.
They read the 6000 years the 6 days of man before Jesus comes back and reigns for 1,000 years. 6 days then the 7th is a rest day.
They see each day reflecting the creation week, here's a guide-
| DAY 1 | DAY 2 | DAY 3 | DAY 4 | DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 |
| Day & Night | waters above & below | Land & Sea, Plants, seed | Sun, Moon & Stars | Sea Creatures & Winged Creatures | Land Animals & Man | God Rested |
| Creation and Fall of Man. Adam died on this day. Good and Evil | The Flood | The promised land. The Law is given, Abrahams seed | End of the day when Jesus arrives. Sun of Righteousness. Light of the World | Church Age, fishes of men. Spirit of God like a Dove | Church Age, Age of man multiplying through the Earth. Subduing creation. | Judgment and 1000-year reign. Entering God’s rest. The great Sabbath!!! |
| Adam to Abraham | Abraham, Moses to Jesus | The Church Age (last days) | Sabbath Rest | |||
Roughly 2 thousand years separate Adam and Abraham. The next 2 days or 2 thousand years are Abraham to Moses, with Jesus arriving at the end of day 4, the final days are the Church age. Remember the concept of days means events can happen anywhere in the 1000-year or day period, it doesn't have to be at the start or end of the day.
Men are described as Fishes of Men
“But now I will send for many fishermen,” declares the Lord, “and they will catch them. After that I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them down on every mountain and hill and from the crevices of the rocks.
Jeremiah 16:16
You have made people like the fish in the sea, like the sea creatures that have no ruler.
Habakkuk 1:14
“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.,”
Mark 1:17
47“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48O When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away.
He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
John 21:6
Every Gospel describes the Spirit as a Dove. Not symbolic language, it took form.
As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.
Matthew 3:16
Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.
Mark 1:10
and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
Luke 3:22
Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him.
John 1:32
With this belief, the concept of the last days takes a whole new meaning.
And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams;
Acts 2:17
But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.
2 Timothy 3:1
but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.
Hebrews 1:2
Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.
James 5:3
knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires.
2 Peter 3:3
I have always read these “last days” as an indication of how quickly we should act, and how close we are to the end. Now we have another interpretation, a clear passage of time before the end.
If we look at the old Testament in the book of Malachi we read-
1For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. 3And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts.
Malachi 4:1-3
The sun of righteousness is a Messianic phrase, and here it says Sun which reminds us about creation day 4, or the day in human history that Jesus arrived. This is another argument used.
Moses is next up. We read Moses was very much a senior citizen when he was commissioned to lead the Israelites. 80 years old and died at the age of 120 years.
Remember the Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years. Moses died and Joshua (same in the Greek as Jesus) led them to the promised land.
If we convert Moses' ages at the fleeing to Midian, Passover, and the entering to the promised land to Jubilees years we get-
| Moses Kills & Flees to Midian | First Passover | Crossing to the promised land (died just before) |
| Acts 7:23-8:1 “When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his own people, the Israelites. He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he went to his defense and avenged him by killing the Egyptian… |
Exodus 7:7 Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh. |
Deuteronomy 34:7 Moses was 120 years old when he died. His eye was undimmed, and his vigor unabated. |
| 40 years x 50 years = 2000 years | 80 years x 50 years = 4000 years | 120 years x 50 years = 6000 years |
We see these ages as Jubilees could reflect the arrival dates for the first and second coming of Christ. The Israelites wander in the desert for 40 years, which translates to 2000 years in Jubilees.
One of the dangers of this approach is what numbers should we put significance on. Why should we believe some dates are Jubilee years and others should be taken at face value?
We also begin to look at other numbers, like people searching for a code in the text.
Moses' life also includes a 120 day period from Pentecost to the day of atonement. On Pentecost its believed he ascends mount Sinai and receives the Commandments. Returning 40 days later. On descent he sees the Israelites committing idolatry and drops the ten commandments. Another 40 days pass where he pleads with God to forgive their actions. Finally he ascends mount Sinai and receives the law for the second time, again this is for 40 days.
| Moses Ascends Mount Sinai to receive the Law | Moses intercedes for the sins of the people | Moses returns to get the law one last time. |
| 40 DAYS | 40 DAYS | 40 DAYS |
Calendar reflects the 120 days like the years of his life. The jubilee is also found in the calendar. Pentecost is also called the feast of weeks; it occurs on the 50th day after first fruits. Which means we have 50 days then the 120 days of man. We could say it like this: the feast of weeks is followed by the days of man, which multiplied together equal the years of man. 50 x 120 = 6000. Representing the argument once again that there are 6000 years of man's history.
To push this idea again, the first three kings of Israel, the only ones who governed the whole of the country, each reigned for 40 years. After which the kingdom split as judgement on Solomon.
| King Saul | King David | King Solomon |
| 40 year reign (possible contradiction Acts and 2 Sam) | 40 year reign | 40 year reign |
| Hebrew= asked for/Borrowed | Hebrew= Beloved | Hebrew= Peace |
| Saul was a king who did not follow orders well, he ended up having his leadership revoked. He was the king the people deserved. | David truely loved God and despite his sins brought peace to the land and many wars. Captured Jerusalem. | Solomon had God given wisdom and built the Temple. He did however have an issue with money and women. He strayed as he aged. |
As the Hebrew names suggest after 6000 years of man we will get Christ's kingdom, and at last there will be a prince of peace to govern justly and a willing remnant to follow him with new hearts.
20After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet. 21Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years
Acts 13:20-21
4David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years. 5In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years.
2 Samuel 5:4-5
And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.
1 Kings 11:42
The 120 Jubilees of Man, are a lining up the Millenial week with Jubilee years. Periods of 50 years.
| DAY 1 | DAY 2 | DAY 3 | DAY 4 | DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 |
| Creation and Fall of Man. Good and Evil. | The Flood. | Promised land, The Law, Abraham’s Seed. | Sun of Righteousness. Light of The World. | Church Age. Fishes of Men, Spirit like a Dove. | Church Age. Man has multiplied, subdued Earth. | Lord of the Sabbath. Jesus returns for 1000 years. |
| 40 JUBILEES | 40 JUBILEES | 40 JUBILEES | = 120 | |||
| Adam to Abraham | Abraham, Moses to Jesus | The Church Age(last days) | Sabbath Rest | |||
It's interesting to see Joshua (the same name as Jesus in Greek) take charge of Israel three days before leading his people into the promised land.
10And Joshua commanded the officers of the people, 11“Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, ‘Prepare your provisions, for within three days you are to pass over this Jordan to go in to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.’”
Joshua 1:10-11
3and commanded the people, “As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it. 4 Yet there shall be a distance between you and it, 4Yet there shall be a distance between you and it, about 2,000 cubits in length. Do not come near it, in order that you may know the way you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.”
Joshua 3:3-4
Should we take this distance between the Ark and the people as a unit of time instead of 2,000 cubits we read 2,000 years. I struggle with this line of thinking, but again, why do the Israelites need to keep such a distance?
We also see a three day pattern for the Lord arrival in Exodus 19, when God descends on the mountain to give the law.
9And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.”When Moses told the words of the people to the Lord, 10the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments 11and be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.
Exodus 19:9-11
We are told the people have 2 days to get ready for the coming of the Lord, and during that time they must prepare, living holy lives.
Another interesting idea hinges around the Tabernacle.
“Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen.
Acts 7:44
What was that pattern? Well here is the outer court dimensions.
18The length of the court shall be a hundred cubits, the breadth fifty, and the height five cubits, with hangings of fine twined linen and bases of bronze. 19All the utensils of the tabernacle for every use, and all its pegs and all the pegs of the court, shall be of bronze.
Exodus 27:18-19
The Tabernacle size is explained in Exodus chapter 26.
15“You shall make upright frames for the tabernacle of acacia wood. 16Ten cubits shall be the length of a frame, and a cubit and a half the breadth of each frame. 17There shall be two tenons in each frame, for fitting together. So shall you do for all the frames of the tabernacle. 18You shall make the frames for the tabernacle: twenty frames for the south side……
Exodus 26:15-25
Inside the court was the Holy place measuring 20 cubits long, 10 cubits wide, and 10 cubits high. The Tabernacle Holy of Holies measured 10 cubits cubed or 10x10x10. Only once a year a priest could enter on the day of atonement.
| The Outer Court Walls | The Holy Place | The Holy of Holies |
| (100L x 2)+(50W x 2) x 5H = 1500 cubits(area) | 20Lx10Wx10H = 2000 cubits (volume) | 10Lx10Wx10H = 1000 cubits (volume) |
| 1500 years of the Law (from Moses to Christ) |
2000 years of the church age | 1000 year reign of Christ |
This is a chart I have seen used. The Tabernacle was made up of 3 areas, and they measured the area or volume to come up with possible year numbers from the time of Moses when the Tabernacle was first built.
What reasons do we have to believe these are anything other than to be taken at face value?
They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.”
Hebrews 8:5
Here we’re told of its reflection of heaven. We also read in a vision of Ezekial that a man is measuring the temple.
2In visions of God he brought me to the land of Israel, and set me down on a very high mountain, on which was a structure like a city to the south. 3When he brought me there, behold, there was a man whose appearance was like bronze, with a linen cord and a measuring reed in his hand. And he was standing in the gateway.
Ezekiel 40:2-3
And behold, there was a wall all around the outside of the temple area, and the length of the measuring reed in the man's hand was six long cubits, each being a cubit and a handbreadth in length. So he measured the thickness of the wall, one reed; and the height, one reed
Ezekiel 40:5
This vision shows us there is something significant about measuring the temple, but in this case, the measurements seem different. Again inconclusive, but interesting, as the values of the tabernacle presented seem to match the theory well.
When we look at the values in Ezekiel’s vision the man also measured the whole plot of the temple complex.
Now when he had finished measuring the interior of the temple area, he led me out by the gate that faced east, and measured the temple area all around.
Ezekiel 42:15
These measurements again are interesting.
He measured it on the four sides. It had a wall around it, 500 cubits long and 500 cubits broad, to make a separation between the holy and the common.
Ezekiel 42:20
Being 500 cubits square the total length of the wall = 500 + 500 + 500 + 500. Which adds up to 2000 cubits, or 2000 years just like the outer court in the first Tabernacle.
We know from Revelation that we need to pay attention to the size of the temple grounds and building.
1Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, ,“Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, 2but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.
Revelation 11:1-2
The fall of Jerusalem began on Passover 70 AD and were interested in the events leading up to the attack. Before we begin I should point out that the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans is not recorded in the bible, but the date and event are not disputed.
The date of Jesus’s crucifixion is up for grabs, anywhere from 28 AD to 35 AD. Currently, people like 33 AD as a date, but 30 AD has been a popular date among scholars. For the sake of this argument let's be biased and pick 30 AD.
That gives us exactly 40 years from Passover to passover between Jesus’s death on the cross to the Romans arriving to destroy Jerusalem. Echoing the time in the desert of the wicked Israelite generation which was not allowed to enter the promised land in Moses's time.
Jesus says these telling words-
The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
Matthew 12:41
An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed.
Matthew 16:4
Here we see the Jews compared with Nineveh as evil people, but they repented after Jonah was told to preach to them for 40 days. If they did not repent the city would be destroyed. In Israel, the Jews largely did not accept Jesus, and their city Jerusalem was destroyed forty years later.
“After you have finished this, lie down again, this time on your right side, and bear the sin of the people of Judah. I have assigned you 40 days, a day for each year…
Ezekiel 4:2
Even the Jews knew they were in trouble for they recorded 40 years of miracles leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem. Called the 4 Yom Kippur miracles. Yom Kippur translates as the Day of Atonement. A day when the Israelites seek to be right with God for the sins they committed throughout the year.
- The temple door opens each night.
- The main candle on the lampstand goes out every night.
- Each year on the day of atonement the lot fell on the left goat.
- The crimson thread stays red and never goes white like normal.
I should have mentioned the day of atonement includes two goats, One is sacrificed, and the other is sent into the desert.
9 And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the LORD and use it as a sin offering, 10but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the LORD to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.
Leviticus 16
These miracles are recorded in the Jewish records-
According to the Babylonian Talmud, ‘Our Rabbis taught: During the last forty years before the destruction of the Temple the lot [‘for the Lord’] did not come up in the right hand; nor did the crimson-colored strap become white; nor did the western-most light shine; and the doors of the Hekal (Temple) would open by themselves’
The Soncino Talmud, tractate ‘Yoma,’ 39b
“Said Rabban Yohanan Ben Zakkai to the Temple, ‘O Temple, why do you frighten us? We know that you will end up destroyed. For it has been said, ‘Open your doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars’ ” (Zechariah 11:1)’
Sota 6:3
The doors of the heikhal (the Holy Place of the Temple) opened of their own accord, until Rabbi Yochanon ben Zakkai rebuked them. He said to it [the Temple]: ‘O heikhal, heikhal, why do you alarm yourself? I know full well that you are destined to be destroyed, for Zechariah ben Iddo has already prophesied concerning you ‘Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour the cedars’ (Zech. 11:1).’
Talmud Bavli, Yoma 39b
“At the same festival (Passover)… the Eastern gate of the inner court of the Temple, which was of brass, and vastly heavy, and had been with difficulty shut by twenty men,and rested upon a base armered with iron, and had bolts fastened very deep into the firm floor, which was there made of one entire stone, was seen to be opened of it’s own accord about the sixth hour of the night.”
Josephus; The Wars of the Jews 6.5.3
These are extra-biblical sources. They back the Jewish nation was punished for rejecting Jesus, which reminds us of these passages.
33“Hear another parable. There was a master of a house who planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a winepress in it and built a tower and leased it to tenants, and went into another country. 34“When the season for fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to get his fruit. 35“And the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. 36“Again he sent other servants, more than the first. And they did the same to them. 37“Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38“But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and have his inheritance.’ 39“And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. 40“When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” 41“They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death and let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their seasons.”
Matthew 21:33-41 The Parable of the Tenants
Now for the argument from the prediction guys.
If we take the 40 years from the Crucifixion and make them Jubilee years.
40 years x 50 jubilee years = 2000 years.
You get 2000 years from 30AD arriving around 2030. They drop the mic and walk away... well not so fast.
Even if you accept the idea of 6000 years of creation before Christ returns, we technically don't know the year this will happen, let alone the day or hour.
Moreover, no one knows when their hour will come:
As fish are caught in a cruel net,
or birds are taken in a snare,
so people are trapped by evil times
that fall unexpectedly upon them.
Ecclesiastes 9:12
I love how this verse agrees that we ultimately never know when the hour will come while adding fuel to the fire. It talks about fish and birds which is day five on the creation week, and people day 6 on the creation week. Could it be another subtle hint that we are talking about a 7 millennium-day cycle?
Where do we lie on the timeline? We can write off the 7th day as we would have noticed the return of Christ. We also have a pretty good date for many historical events going back a few thousand years. Here is a non-exhaustive list.
| EVENT | DATE |
| Jerusalem destroyed by the Romans | 70AD |
| Christ’s Crucifixion | 28-33AD |
| Second Temple Begins construction | 537BC |
| Babylonian Captivity of Judah | 597 - 586BC |
| Destruction of the first Temple | 586BC |
| Assyrian Destruction of Israel | 740 - 722BC |
| Monarchy Divides | 1047 - 930BC |
| David | 1090 - 970BC |
| Moses and the Exodus | 1491-1225BC |
| Joseph | 2000 - 1570BC |
| Abraham | 2100 - 1900BC |
| Tower of Babel | 2348 - 2242BC |
| The Flood | 2304 - 2348BC |
| Creation origin according to Usher. | 4004BC |
So current time could easily be beyond 6th day, or just before the turning. It's not clear from the math, as there are a few points where our knowledge is sketchy. No one seems to date it earlier. So adding up the dates is inconclusive.
The current argument is heavily based on the fact the Messiah needed to come (1st time) before the end of the 4th day. Which was 1500 years after Moses. Thus it leaves 2 days for the church age and a third for the 1000 years talked about in Revelations 20.
We also should touch on Amillennialism. It's the belief that the Millennium started with the resurrection of Christ and is symbolic of the whole church age. If you believe this view, well done for making it this far, as you probably pushed back hard on the idea of a literal 1000 years. It's worth bearing in mind that you wouldn’t need a literal millennial to make a 7-day millennium week work.
When God made the world he said morning and evening after each day of creation, but on the seventh day, this is missed.
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Genesis 2:1-3
This indicates he’s still resting from the work he has done. It also offers up another possibility that the rest from making the Universe is continuing. With that in mind, it's possible the 6 day ends and the 7th continues forever and allows a different interpretation. Although then again God is going to make all things new.. So maybe not a perfect fit either.
If you do buy into millennium days and follow the logic that there are two days after Jesus’s appearance you have another dilemma. Where do you count the 2 days from? His birth? His death? His resurrection? Start of his ministry Or maybe his Ascension? If it's his birth you're out of time, that ship has sailed. His death, resurrection, and ascension all happened in the same year. Which would leave you somewhere between 2028 to 2035 for his return.
We also have to realize that Jesus could return anytime until the end of the 6th day. It doesn't have to be an exact 2000 years, although we have some evidence it might. Either way, the 6th day could be over already, or setting very soon.
Before we conclude we should outline some more evidence used by the advocates of the theory.
The third day comes up a fair bit in the bible, here are some verses where it could be linked to either the resurrection or a 3 millennium return.
| REFERENCE | SOURCE |
Hosea 6:2 |
2After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him. |
Exodus 19:10-11 |
10 And the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow. Have them wash their clothes 11 and be ready by the third day, because on that day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. |
Jonah 3:3 |
3So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days' journey in breadth. |
Joshua 1:10-11 |
10 And Joshua commanded the officers of the people, 11 “Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, ‘Prepare your provisions, for within three days you are to pass over this Jordan to go in to take possession of the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess.’” |
John 11:5-7 |
5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 “ So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. 7 Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” |
John 4:39-42 |
39 Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, “He told me all that I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. 41 And many more believed because of his word. 42 They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.” |
John 4:43-46 |
Jesus Heals an Official's Son |
Luke 10:35-37 |
35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.” |
John 2:1-5 |
1 On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. 3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” |
Numbers 19:12 |
12 He shall cleanse himself with the water on the third day and on the seventh day, and so be clean. But if he does not cleanse himself on the third day and on the seventh day, he will not become clean. |
Esther 4:16 |
16 “Go, gather all the Jews to be found in Susa, and hold a fast on my behalf, and do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my young women will also fast as you do. Then I will go to the king, though it is against the law, and if I perish, I perish.” |
Esther 5:1-2 |
1 On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king's palace, in front of the king's quarters, while the king was sitting on his royal throne inside the throne room opposite the entrance to the palace. 2 And when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she won favor in his sight, and he held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther approached and touched the tip of the scepter. |
Matthew 13:33 |
33 He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened. ” |
Mark 14:34-42 |
34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” 37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.” |
We also find weekly cycles which might link to a Millenium of weeks.
| REFERENCE | SOURCE |
Genesis 7:6 |
6 Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters came on the earth.” |
Job 5:19 |
19 He will deliver you from six troubles; in seven no evil shall touch you. |
Joshua 6:1-5 |
1Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. None went out, and none came in. 2 And the Lord said to Joshua, “See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty men of valor. 3 You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. 4 Seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark. On the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 And when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up, everyone straight before him.” |
Exodus 23:10 s |
14 It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, 15 to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” |
Exodus 23:10 |
10“For six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield, |
Mark 1:29-31 |
29 And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30 Now Simon's mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. 31 And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them. |
Mark 3:1-6 |
1 Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. 2 And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him….. |
John 9:1-15 |
13 ….They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. 14 Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man’s eyes was a Sabbath. 15 Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. “He put mud on my eyes,” the man replied, “and I washed, and now I see.” |
Luke 13:10-17 |
10 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11 And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years…. |
Luke 14:1-6 |
1 One Sabbath, when he went to dine at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees, they were watching him carefully. 2 And behold, there was a man before him who had dropsy. |
Mark 1:21-28 |
21 And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. 22 And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. 23 And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit…. |
John 5:1-18 |
9b …..Now that day was the Sabbath. 10 So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.” 11 But he answered them, “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.’”..... |
Rev 20:1-7 |
1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. 2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while. 4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years. 7 And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison |
Units of 40 are described in the bible, 40 days, weeks and years, often linked with Judgement and/or great displays of God’s power.
| REFERENCE | SOURCE |
Esther 3:7 |
7In the first month, which is the month of Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast Pur (that is, they cast lots) before Haman day after day; and they cast it month after month till the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar. |
Matthew 24:8 |
8All these are but the beginning of the birth pains. |
Acts 1:3 |
3to 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. |
Mark 1:13 |
13where he was tempted by Satan for forty days. He was out among the wild animals, and angels took care of him. |
Genesis 7:12 |
12The rain continued to fall for forty days and forty nights. |
Genesis 25:20 |
20When Isaac was forty years old, he married Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan-aram and the sister of Laban the Aramean. |
Exodus 16:35 |
35So the people of Israel ate manna for forty years until they arrived at the land where they would settle. They ate manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan. |
Exodus 24:18 |
18Then Moses disappeared into the cloud as he climbed higher up the mountain. He remained on the mountain forty days and forty nights. |
Numbers 14:33 |
33And your children will be like shepherds, wandering in the wilderness for forty years. In this way, they will pay for your faithlessness, until the last of you lies dead in the wilderness. |
1 Samuel 17:16 |
16 For forty days, every morning and evening, the Philistine champion strutted in front of the Israelite army. |
1 Kings 19:8-13 |
8 So he got up and ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to travel forty days and forty nights to Mount Sinai, the mountain of God. 9 There he came to a cave, where he spent the night. But the Lord said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 Elijah replied, “I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.” 11 “Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. |
Jonah 3:4 |
8 On the day Jonah entered the city, he shouted to the crowds: “Forty days from now Nineveh will be destroyed!” |
Ezekiel 4:6-84 |
6 After that, turn over and lie on your right side for 40 days—one day for each year of Judah’s sin. 7 “Meanwhile, keep staring at the siege of Jerusalem. Lie there with your arm bared and prophesy her destruction. 8 I will tie you up with ropes so you won’t be able to turn from side to side until the days of your siege have been completed. |
Act 7:23-25 |
23 “When he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brothers, the children of Israel. 24 And seeing one of them being wronged, he defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking down the Egyptian. 25 He supposed that his brothers would understand that God was giving them salvation by his hand, but they did not understand. |
Act 7:30-32 |
30 “Forty years later, in the desert near Mount Sinai, an angel appeared to Moses in the flame of a burning bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight. As he went to take a closer look, the voice of the Lord called out to him, 32 ‘I am the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.’ Moses shook with terror and did not dare to look. |
We are near the end of our journey. When I first read the bible I started at the beginning, with Genesis, the verse about Adam dying on the same day was puzzling. When I first heard of Millenium Week theory it came from Jewish sources. Shocked to find that many of the church fathers also had this belief. Surprised to see the theory originated before the New Testament. In The Book of Jubilee, we read Adam did die the same day.
Now when I look at the bible I struggle to make the claim there is a 7 thousand year timeline. It's subjective to what extra meaning you give the important verses. Twice the bible says a day is like a thousand years. It talks about a 1,000-year reign with Jesus in Revelation. These are the things that make me wonder. Along with the New Testament phrase “the last days”. Those last days have spanned for nearly 2,000 years.
The world's recorded history goes back 4,000 or 5,000 years. Before that, I believe the flood wiped out civilization. Which would put us past or very close to the end of the 6th day or 6,000th year.
We should also look back to great events of the past. The 40-year punishment of wandering in the wilderness seems to match the 40 years of judgment before the destruction of Jerusalem. The punishment started at Passover just like the Exodus. Both Temples were destroyed on the same day Av 9th. These are not coincidences, they are patterns.
Jesus is the second Adam, and this second Adam did not sin. He died because we sinned as an offering for his people. He rose to life on the third day and ascended to heaven 40 days later. The fall of man in the beginning will be fully corrected by the second coming. While we have no idea when that last day will come, it would be very beautiful to see the Son of God return on the third (7th millennial) day. To see the days of man come to an end, and his people to enter lasting rest on the Sabbath.
As we walk in the wilderness waiting for him to return to lead us into rest, how apt that it could be 40 jubilee years till he returns.
8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. 9 So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, 10 for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. 11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.
Hebrews 4:8-11
Before Jesus is taken to trial and excuted he rests in the evening. Sleeping in the garden of Gethsemane on the mount of Olives. Here he prays and asks them to watch. But they fail to follow instructions twice, then on the third time he tells them to rise and he is arrested.
- Jesus tells them to remain and watch, he goes on further and prays.
- Returning to find them asleep, he tells them off and to watch out again, went away and prayed.
- Returning again he finds them asleep, and tells them to rise and face his accuer judith iscariot.
34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” 37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
Mark 14:34-42
This could possibly parallel Christ's return. We are told to watch twice, and then to rise on the third watch as the bretrayer approaches.
If this event has any symbolism then its possible that 2 watches in the night eqauls 2 thousand years, and then we rise to meet Christ in the air. This is highly speculative, Psalm 90 needs to be leaned on heavily to make that arguement work.
1Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.
2Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3You turn people back to dust, saying, “Return to dust, you mortals.”
4A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.
5Yet you sweep people away in the sleep of death— they are like the new grass of the morning:
6In the morning it springs up new, but by evening it is dry and withered.
Psalm 90:1-6 - A prayer of Moses the man of God.
- Jesus goes away to heaven to intermidiate for the saints. 1st thousand years
- 2nd watch Jesus's is still in heaven, intermidiate for the saints. 2nd thousand years
- Jesus returns and we rise from the dead to meet him in the air, and the betrayer coming could be the coming man of lawlessness.
Even as I write this it feels a stretch, but if it does happen this way, we will look back on this passage and see it as another clue hidden in plain sight.
When all is said and done we are told that the day and hour is hidden.
No One Knows That Day and Hour
36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son,but the Father only."
Matthew 24:36
We should however be aware of an old Jewish Idiom. Which sounds very similar.
"no one knows the day or the hour" is a Jewish saying, particularly associated with the Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah).
The Feast of Trumpets is also sometimes known as the “Hidden Day”. The reason their is mystery around this day is because of the new Moon.
The day of Trumpets is the only Feastival that starts when the new moon is sighted. If the moon is not sighted they wait till the next day.
The day of Trumpets is the official new year celebration, the time of the year the Jewish people believe the world was created.
The Trumpets are sounded, leading up to the day of Awe the Judgment day (day of Atonement), Yom Kippur. Which sounds very much like what happens in Revelation with the Trumpet sounding and the judgement of Man.
I leave this in as a possible explanation for why we should keep watch and wait patiently.
A peace offering is common in the OT, its offered to God but also eaten by the priest and those who offered it. These offerings help explain why Jesus talked about his sacrifice as eating his body.
https://www.gotquestions.org/peace-offering.html
Sounds like a communion service. Where we eat the bread and body of Christ. He is our high priest and intercedes for us, he also provides the sacrifice. Which loops back round to Abraham and Isaac, where the Ram is provided.
18 If any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offering is eaten on the third day, he who offers it shall not be accepted, neither shall it be credited to him. It is tainted, and he who eats of it shall bear his iniquity.
Leviticus 7:18
If the days are symbolic of a thousand years, and the peace offering is symbolic of his sacrifice then thats it no more salvation through Christ after 2 days (2,000 years). Its tentative, not a solid conclusion, but worth baring in mind.