THE MILLENNIUM: BIBLE VERSUS THE GREAT CONTROVERSY

Comparing EGW’s Version of the Millennium

to God’s Word

by Russell Earl Kelly, PHD

January 7, 2015.

 

The literal biblical sequence of events in Revelation 19-21 is:

 

1. Christ will return in glory to rule the nations with a rod of iron (19:1-15).

 

2. The “beast,” the “kings of the earth” and “their armies will oppose Christ (19:19).

 

3. The beast and false prophet will be alive into the lake of fire (19:20).

 

4. The “remnant” will be slain – the kings of the earth and their armies from 19:19 (19:21).

 

5. A First Resurrection of the righteous will occur. This is from Matthew 24:30-31 and implied in 20:5-6.

 

6. Satan will be cast into the bottomless pit for 1000 years (20:1-2).

 

7. The earth will still be populated with the lost Hebrews and Gentiles who were not part of the armies of the kings (from 19:21). This is the literal Messianic reign of Christ on earth with a rod of iron which is prophesied by Old Testament prophets.

 

8. At the end of the 1000 year Messianic reign of Christ ruling with a rod of iron on earth, Satan will be loosed (20:7).

 

9. Satan will gather his army from living unbelievers (20:8).

 

10. Satan’s armies will surround the “beloved city” which had been the Messianic headquarters on earth for 1000 years (20:9a).

 

11. Fire from heaven will destroy Satan’s armies (20:9b).

 

12. Satan, the devil, will be cast into the lake of fire for eternal punishing (20:10).

 

13. A great white judgment throne will appear in outer space (20:11).

 

14. The original heavens and earth will be gone, fled away, and there will be “no place found for them” (20:11).

 

15. The resurrected wicked dead will stand before God and will be judged according to their works because their names will not be found in the book of life (20:5, 12-15).

 

16. Death and hell (Hades) will be cast into the lake of fire which is the second death (20:14).

 

17. The New Jerusalem, the holy city, will descend from heaven to the New Earth (21:1-2)

………………………………………………………………………

 

Ellen G Whites Sequence of Revelation 19-21

 

1. The second coming of Christ will only save the Sabbath-keeping remnant. Since Christ is no longer mediating in the sanctuary, they must be able to stand before God without a mediator (GC640-642).

 

2. Jesus and the resurrected saints will enter the City of God (GC646).

 

3. The saints will gather around the Great White Throne inside the City of God (GC647).

 

4. God will wipe away all tears from the saints in heaven (GC651).

 

5. All of the living wicked will be killed (GC657).

 

6. Satan, as scapegoat, will inhabit earth (the bottomless pit) 1000 years (GC658).

 

7.  The judgment of the dead unraised wicked will last 1000 years (GC660-661).

 

8. The wicked dead will be resurrected at the end of the 1000 years after they have been judged (GC661)

 

9. Jesus will stand upon the Mount of Olives; it will split and become a plain (GC662-663).

 

10. The New Jerusalem will descendd to the plain onto the desolate earth (GC662-663).

 

11. Satan will gathere the wicked resurrected dead to attack the New Jerusalem (GC663).

 

12. The Great White Throne Judgment of the wicked dead will occur (GC666).

 

13. The wicked dead will be judged from the books (GC666).

 

14. The wicked will turn against Satan (GC671-672).

 

15. The wicked will be destroyed by the same fire, the lake of fire, which will purify earth (672-673).

 

16. New Jerusalem will descend to the newly purified earth a second time. No eternally burning hell (GC674).

 

CONCLUSION:

 

The EGW/SDA explanation of the millennium is far out of sequence and context. It is no wonder that no other denomination or theologian has ever reached the same conclusions as do SDAs.

 

1.  EARTH: Earth will not be depopulated at the second coming of Christ in glory. In Revelation 19:19-21 only the beast, the false prophet, the kings who followed them and the armies of the kings are slain. There would remain on earth the families of those kings and armies plus those who had not decided to serve Christ or the beast. GC657

 

2. MILLENNIAL EARTH: The millennial earth is not the “bottomless pit” where Satan wanders as the scapegoat.  First, Satan is not the scapegoat. Second, the scapegoat was to die in the wilderness, never to bring sins back –Satan did not die. Third, earth is not desolate; many prophets foretold of a fruitful beautiful earth during Messiah’s rule with a rod of iron. GC658

 

3. REVELATION 20:4: There is no justification for teaching that the righteous will judge the un-resurrected wicked dead for 1000 years prior to the great white throne judgment of Revelation 20:11-14. During the 1000 years the glorified righteous will rule and reign with Christ while living in heaven (John 14:1-3). The Apostles will judge and rule over Israel (Mt 19:28) and other saints will rule the world with Christ. A “rod of iron” would unnecessary in snless heaven (Rev 2:27; 12:5; 19:15 (GC660-661).

 

4. GOG AND MAGOG: Those gathered by Satan in 20:8 are not the resurrected wicked dead; they are unbelievers living on earth at the end of the 1000 years. The wicked dead are not resurrected until 20:11-14 after the living wicked are killed in 20:9. GC661

 

5. MOUNT OF OLIVES: Christ does not descend upon the Mount of Olives at the end of the 1000 years. This event will occur at the end of the Great Tribulation per Zechariah 14 to redeem literal Israel before the millennium. GC662-663

 

6. NEW JERUSALEM: The New Jerusalem does not descend to a desolated earth at the end of the millennium before the Great White Throne judgment (see Rev 21:1-2). The “beloved city” in 20:9 is the millennial city. GC662-663

 

7. BOOKS OF HEAVEN: The books of heaven are not opened and the judgement of the wicked does not take place before the destruction of the earthly Jerusalem in 20:9. The sequence is wrong. The judgment occurs in 20:11-14. GC666

 

8. SATAN: Satan is not still around after the wicked dead have been judged. He was cast into the lake of fire in 20:10 before the judgment in 20:11-14. GC669

 

9. GC671-672: The judged wicked do not turn on Satan after they have been judged. Satan was removed in 20:10 before the judgment.

 

10. OLD EARTH: Fire does not destroy the old earth after the judgment of 20:11-14. EGW places 20:12-14 in front of 20:10. She also ignores the fact that the old heavens and old earth disappeared in 20:11 before the judgment of 20:12-14. GC672-673

 

11. NEW EARTH: The New Heaven and New Earth are not the purified Old Heaven and Old Earth because “they had passed away” (21:1) and “there was no place found for them” (20:11). GC674

 

12. ETERNALLY BURNING HELL: There is an “eternally burning hell” as attested by the SDA’s own “Third Angel’s Message”: Rev 14:10 “The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.” GC674

 

Compiled and submitted by Russell Earl Kelly, PHD.