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IS THE MILLENNIAL KINGDOM SYMBOLIC OR WILL IT BE A PHYSICAL KINGDOM HERE ON EARTH?
God created the Garden of Eden for man to tend to it and be well fed and nourished without worrying about food to put on the table. This was a paradise on earth where every tree was pleasant to the sight and good for food. Adam named and walked amongst the creatures created by God. The 'wild' animals that we know of today, were then vegans and so was man. There was no fear between man and animals, and animals amongst themselves. God was even present with Adam (Gen 3:8). Tragically, paradise was shattered when Adam disobeyed God and sin separated man from God, and entered the world with fury. Man turned on each other. Adam's son became the first murderer when he killed his brother Abel out of jealousy (Gen 4:8). Ever since, we live in a fallen, spiritually corrupted world.
God is not done with this world. We fast forward some 6,000 years to a time when God has ordained a return to a similar state as the Garden. This wiill take place when He sends Jesus for a second time to bring a new order that the Bible calls the Millennial Kingdom reign of Christ on earth.
The Millennial Kingdom will be a physical, literal kingdom. There are several verses that offer us a preview of this Kingdom. Let us consider Isaiah 11:6-9
- "6 The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, The calf and the young lion and the fatling together; ... 7 The cow and the bear shall graze; Their young ones shall lie down together; And the lion shall eat straw like the ox ... 9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain," (Isa 11:6-7,9) - this is a picture of the Millennial Kingdom where no longer will there be fierce, blood thirsty carnivores instinctively devouring defenseless and docile creatures. Vegans should be delighted with God's plan. There will be no more steak and Big Macs.
- "6 and a little child shall lead them." (Isa 11:6) - here we have a little child, think of your little ones, pulling at the tail of a lion and the now friendly big kitty purring gently and yawning, trying to get some sleep.
- '8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den." (Isa 11:8) - no longer every mother's nightmare, mommys will only be concerned about their little babies putting their dusty hands in their mouths. What an amazing sight the Millennial Kingdom will be.
- "9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord As the waters cover the sea." Isa 11:9 - the Millennial Kingdom presents the new life for a thousand years, where hurt and destruction is abolished by the Lord's order. Jesus is King and His love, grace and peace shall prevail throughout the earth, and man and creature will all know and acknowledge His presence and blessings.
This is a prophecy of a coming time. It is not a historical record of Adam and his children given that Adam's children were born outside of the garden after the Fall. When Sin entered the world, the once docile animals that Adam interacted with, became ferocious and carnivorous. The little children that Isa 11:6,8 speaks of were not Adam's little Cain and Abel. They were not the ones that led the wolf and the leopard, and played near the cobras.
Therefore, Isaiah 11:6,8 does not refer to that moment when all animals did not harm one another or a human being. Isaiah prophesies a literal, physical condition here on earth that will happen in a coming future.
Similarly, another passage also from Isaiah did not happen at any other time to date but it will happen in a coming time called the Millennial Kingdom. Isaiah 65:19-25 writes:
- "25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, The lion shall eat straw like the ox, And dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain," Says the Lord." (Isa 65:25) - once again, the beauty of nature as God originally intended and the creatures that inhabit the landscape will be amazing to behold.
- "19 I will rejoice in Jerusalem, And joy in My people; The voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her, Nor the voice of crying. 20 No more shall an infant from there live but a few days, Nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days; For the child shall die one hundred years old, But the sinner being one hundred years old shall be accursed ... 23 They shall not labor in vain, Nor bring forth children for trouble; For they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the Lord, And their offspring with them." (Isa 65:19-20,23) - presently, less than 0.001% of the world's population live to be a hundred. In the Millennial Kingdom, this will no longer be the case. There will be no more weeping and crying because of infant mortality or deaths before their time. Is this not the vision of a better tomorrow where illness and disease is no longer a scourge.
- "21 They shall build houses and inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 22 They shall not build and another inhabit; They shall not plant and another eat; For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, And My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. 24 It shall come to pass That before they call, I will answer; And while they are still speaking, I will hear." (Isa 65:21-22,24) - there will be no more theft, jealousy or envy. Everyone will prosper in their God-given abundance. Is this not the dream of billions of people today and the goal of eradicating poverty?
Methusaleh lived for 969 years and was the oldest person in the Bible. Many old men lived out their years early on in the early history of man. Today, a man living until a 100 years is considered a rarity and media novelty such as Jeanne Calment from France, the oldest man at 122 years and 164 days old. Sadly today, there are infants who live but a few days.
However, Isaiah 65:20 describes a time when a person "who dies at a hundred" is considered a mere child and in the strongest language, such a person who does not reach 100 years will be considered accursed.
Isaiah's prophecy clearly establishes that there is a time coming that will be especially unique, unprecedented and which will be a one-time period in mankind's existence on earth.
The Millennial Kingdom is one of the pillars that supports the case for Premillennialism which holds to the Rapture of the Church before the wrath of God in the Great Tribulation. Unless, a person rejects the literalness of Isaiah's prophecy, reasonable consideration should be given to the validity of Premillennialism.
