Bible Study - The Millennium

December 4 – 10, 2022

Key Text

“I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form, and void; and the heavens, they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and indeed they trembled, and all the hills moved back and forth. I beheld, and indeed there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens had fled. I beheld, and indeed, the fruitful land was a wilderness, and all its cities were broken down at the presence of the Lord, by His fierce anger.” Jeremiah 4:23–26

Study Help: The Great Controversy, 653–661

Introduction

“The saints will rest in the Holy City and reign as kings and priests one thousand years.” Early Writings, 51

Sunday

1 A TRAGIC FEAST

1.a. After the seven last plagues are poured out, what will happen to the bodies of the wicked? Isaiah 66:15–17; Jeremiah 25:30–33

Note: “The wicked had been destroyed, and their dead bodies were lying upon its [the earth’s] surface.” Early Writings, 289

1.b. How will the earth appear at this time? Revelation 19:17–21

Note: “At the coming of Christ the wicked are blotted from the face of the whole earth—consumed with the spirit of His mouth and destroyed by the brightness of His glory. Christ takes His people to the City of God, and the earth is emptied of its inhabitants. …

“The whole earth appears like a desolate wilderness. The ruins of cities and villages destroyed by the earthquake, uprooted trees, ragged rocks thrown out by the sea or torn out of the earth itself, are scattered over its surface, while vast caverns mark the spot where the mountains have been rent from their foundations.” The Great Controversy, 657

Monday

2 SATAN IMPRISONED

2.a. What will happen to Satan at the beginning of the one thousand years of Revelation 20? Revelation 20:1, 2

Note: “Here is to be the home of Satan with his evil angels for a thousand years. Here he will be confined, to wander up and down over the broken surface of the earth and see the effects of his rebellion against God’s law. For a thousand years he can enjoy the fruit of the curse which he has caused.” Early Writings, 290

“Limited to the earth, he will not have access to other worlds to tempt and annoy those who have never fallen. It is in this sense that he is bound: there are none remaining, upon whom he can exercise his power. He is wholly cut off from the work of deception and ruin which for so many centuries has been his sole delight.” The Great Controversy, 659

2.b. Where will Satan be imprisoned during the one thousand years? Revelation 20:3

Note: “That the expression ‘bottomless pit’ represents the earth in a state of confusion and darkness is evident from other scriptures. Concerning the condition of the earth ‘in the beginning,’ the Bible record says that it ‘was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.’ Genesis 1:2. Prophecy teaches that it will be brought back, partially at least, to this condition.” Maranatha, 307

“The revelator foretells the banishment of Satan and the condition of chaos and desolation to which the earth is to be reduced, and he declares that this condition will exist for a thousand years.” The Great Controversy, 658

“For a thousand years, Satan will wander to and fro in the desolate earth to behold the results of his rebellion against the law of God. During this time his sufferings are intense. Since his fall his life of unceasing activity has banished reflection; but he is now deprived of his power and left to contemplate the part which he has acted since first he rebelled against the government of heaven, and to look forward with trembling and terror to the dreadful future when he must suffer for all the evil that he has done and be punished for the sins that he has caused to be committed.” The Great Controversy, 660

Tuesday

3 A WORK GOING ON IN HEAVEN

3.a. What scene was shown the apostle John and what power was given those who had obtained victory over the beast, his image, and his mark? Revelation 20:4, 6, 12, 13

Note: “After the saints are changed to immortality and caught up together with Jesus, after they receive their harps, their robes, and their crowns, and enter the city, Jesus and the saints sit in judgment. The books are opened—the book of life and the book of death. The book of life contains the good deeds of the saints; and the book of death contains the evil deeds of the wicked. These books are compared with the statute book, the Bible, and according to that men are judged. The saints, in unison with Jesus, pass their judgment upon the wicked dead.” Early Writings, 52

3.b. What will be the main occupation of the saints during the millennium? Daniel 7:22; 1 Corinthians 6:2, 3

Note: “During the thousand years between the first and the second resurrection the judgment of the wicked takes place. The apostle Paul points to this judgment as an event that follows the second advent. ‘Judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts.’ 1 Corinthians 4:5. Daniel declares that when the Ancient of Days came, ‘judgment was given to the saints of the Most High.’ Daniel 7:22. At this time the righteous reign as kings and priests unto God. John in the Revelation says: ‘I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them.’ ‘They shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.’ Revelation 20:4, 6. It is at this time that, as foretold by Paul, ‘the saints shall judge the world.’ 1 Corinthians 6:2. In union with Christ they judge the wicked, comparing their acts with the statute book, the Bible, and deciding every case according to the deeds done in the body. Then the portion which the wicked must suffer is meted out, according to their works; and it is recorded against their names in the book of death.” The Great Controversy, 660, 661

Wednesday

4 AT THE END OF THE MILLENNIUM

4.a. When the judgment of the wicked is completed in heaven, what event will take place? Isaiah 24:22; Revelation 20:5, 13

Note: “At the close of the thousand years, Christ again returns to the earth. He is accompanied by the host of the redeemed and attended by a retinue of angels. As He descends in terrific majesty He bids the wicked dead arise to receive their doom. They come forth, a mighty host, numberless as the sands of the sea. What a contrast to those who were raised at the first resurrection! The righteous were clothed with immortal youth and beauty. The wicked bear the traces of disease and death.” The Great Controversy, 662

“[At the second resurrection, the wicked] … appear before God for the execution of ‘the judgment written.’ ” Ibid., 661

4.b. What will be the fate of those whose names were not written in the book of life? Revelation 20:15. How is this a warning to all? Ezekiel 33:13–16

Note: “What a spectacle! What a scene! At the first resurrection all came forth in immortal bloom; but at the second the marks of the curse are visible on all.” Early Writings, 292

“Few will be saved, and that the greater number of those, even, who are called will prove themselves unworthy of everlasting life. They will have no part in heaven, but will have their portion with Satan, and experience the second death.

“Men and women may escape this doom if they will. It is true that Satan is the great originator of sin; yet this does not excuse any man for sinning; for he cannot force men to do evil. He tempts them to it, and makes sin look enticing and pleasant; but he has to leave it to their own wills whether they will do it or not.” Testimonies, Vol. 2, 294

“If the professed believer becomes self-confident, if in word or spirit he breaks the least precept of God’s holy law, he misrepresents Jesus, and in the Judgment the awful words will be spoken, ‘Blot out his name from the book of life; he is a worker of iniquity.’ But the Father pities the self-distrustful, God-fearing soul.” The Signs of the Times, August 6, 1885

Thursday

5 THE SECOND DEATH

5.a. After Satan is released from his prison, how will he try to deceive all the wicked that have just been resurrected? Revelation 20:7–9

Note: “The wicked are filled with the same hatred of God that inspires Satan; but they see that their case is hopeless, that they cannot prevail against Jehovah. Their rage is kindled against Satan and those who have been his agents in deception, and with the fury of demons they turn upon them. …

“Fire comes down from God out of heaven. The earth is broken up. The weapons concealed in its depths are drawn forth. Devouring flames burst from every yawning chasm. The very rocks are on fire. The day has come that shall burn as an oven. The elements melt with fervent heat, the earth also, and the works that are therein are burned up.” The Great Controversy, 672

5.b. What will be the fate of Satan, his angels, evil men, and sin? Revelation 20:10, 14; 21:8. Malachi 4:1. Will there be any hope of resurrection from the second death? Psalm 37:10; Obadiah 1:16, last part

Note: “Those who have not, through repentance and faith, secured pardon, must receive the penalty of transgression—‘the wages of sin.’ They suffer punishment varying in duration and intensity, ‘according to their works,’ but finally ending in the second death. Since it is impossible for God, consistently with His justice and mercy, to save the sinner in his sins, He deprives him of the existence which his transgressions have forfeited and of which he has proved himself unworthy.” The Great Controversy, 544, 545

Friday

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

1 What is soon to happen to the earth?

2 In what sense will Satan be “bound” for 1,000 years?

3 When is 1 Corinthians 6:3 to be fulfilled?

4 What do we know about the book of life?

5 What is the second death?