What is historic premillennialism?

After the purifying judgments which attend the personal return of Christ to the earth, He will reign over restored Israel and over the earth for one thousand years. This is the period commonly called the millennium. The seat of His power will be Jerusalem, and the saints, including the saved of the dispensation of grace, namely the church, will be associated with Him in His glory. (See Isa. 2:1-4; Isa. 11; Acts 15:14-17; Rev. 19:11-21; Rev. 20:1-6. But when Satan is "loosed a little season," he finds the natural heart as prone to evil as ever, and easily gathers the nations to battle against the Lord and His saints, and this last dispensation closes, like all the others, in judgment. The great white throne is set, the wicked dead are raised and finally judged, and then come the "new heaven and a new earth." Eternity is begun. (See Rev. 20:3,7-15; Rev. 21 and 22.)

This word signifies a thousand years, and usually refers to that period spoken of in Rev. 20. The first resurrection will have taken place before these years commence, the saints who have part in this resurrection will be priests of God and of Christ, and reign with Christ the thousand years. During that period Satan will be confined in the abyss, or bottomless pit. Rev. 20:1-6. These two facts prove that the millennium will not be brought about by any present or similar agency in connection with the gospel. Satan must be confined, and the first resurrection must have taken place. See RESURRECTION. Other important events will also have occurred previously, namely, the judgements that must fall upon Judah and Israel before they can under God occupy the first place of earthly blessing in their own land, the nations being blessed through them. Jer. 30:4-9; Matt. 24:21-22. Blessing will follow the judgements. They will not speak then of having been brought out of Egypt, but from all countries whither God has driven them. Jer. 23:5-8. The reconciliation of Israel will be "life from the dead." Rom. 11:15.

This covers the personal reign for one thousand years of the Lord Jesus as the long promised Messiah over Israel, and as Son of man over the whole earth. He will, indeed, be the Lord Emperor—King of kings and Lord of lords. This dispensation will fulfil the prophecy of 1 Peter 1:11—“the glory that should follow.” It will involve the return of the Jews to their land, and the breakup of Gentile power to make way for the reign of Christ. This will be taken up in detail later on.

No, indeed. Scripture is full of promises and prophecies which show that the world is to be the scene of wonderful blessing under the rule of Christ for a thousand years. Men shall beat their swords into ploughshares and live in harmony. Restored Israel shall be the centre from which blessing will radiate to the uttermost parts of the earth (Isa. 2:3). Even the animal creation will share the joy of that age—the lion shall lie down with the lamb. Satan shall be bound, and righteousness shall reign. All this takes place after the Lord comes, so the end of the world will be at least a thousand years subsequent. The Lord's coming is the preliminary to a long course of events. He is about to take possession of the kingdoms of earth, and reign with His saints and assume His rights in the place where He has been rejected. But before He comes forth for that purpose, He comes to take possession of that which is already His—His own peculiar treasure, His pearl of great price—His blood-bought Church.

With it the Lord will return as the rightful Heir to subdue the earth and reign in peace and justice, so that there will be a long period of time between His coming and the end of the world.

Subsequent to the Lord's coming to catch up His people from the earth and from the tomb He will come again in power and glory to establish His throne in Zion, and to reign in righteousness for a thousand years. This, His public advent, is the theme of many a glowing prophecy in both the Old and the New Testaments. In chap. 14:5 we read: "The Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with Thee." His coming thus will be preceded by what Scripture speaks of as "the day of the Lord" (ver. 1).

But you will permit me to assume in this letter that the return of the Lord is pre-millennial. We have so often gone into this matter in years past, that I cannot bring myself to believe that it is necessary to re-state the scriptural grounds of this elementary belief. Both the Old and the New Testaments teem with proofs of it, showing that when the Lord comes with His saints He will destroy Antichrist and his armies, and judge the living nations, before He commences that glorious reign wherein "He shall have dominion from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth," and wherein "the whole earth shall be filled with His glory." (See Isa. 24 - 27, 52 and 60; Jer. 33; Zeph. 3; Zech. 12 - 14; 2 Thess. 2; Rev. 19 - 21:1-8, etc.) I give these scriptures in case any of you have wavered from your former views on this point; and having done so, I shall proceed to consider whether the Lord will return for His people before the unequalled tribulation of which we read in Matt. 24 and in the prophets (as, for example, Dan. 12:1; Jer. 30:7 etc.); in other words, whether the church will be in the tribulation; i.e., in fact, whether we may at any time expect the Lord's return.

"He shall send Jesus Christ … whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution (i.e., restoring of all things which God hath spoken of by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." (Acts 3:20-21) Jesus is still in heaven, and that blissful period is not yet commenced: His mission and those times upon earth are to run on together Romans 8:19-23 teaches that creation must groan till the sons of God are manifested. But their manifestation depends on that of Christ. (Col. 3; Col. 4; 1 John 3:3.) Therefore, the predicted blessing of creation — which is one main feature of the millennium — is to be when Christ and the Church appear in glory; not before. Nay, "ourselves also which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption; to wit, the remedy of our body." And, confessedly, the redemption of the body, or resurrection, awaits His doming. That is, there is no relief to a groaning creation, or to a groaning Church, till Christ comes; in other words, there can be no millennium till then. Again, Israel is now blinded in part, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. "And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob." (Rom. 11:25-26) Here again we learn that the coming of the Saviour is to accomplish the salvation of all Israel, which is another characteristic of the millennium. With Jeremiah 30:7, and Daniel 12:1, we may compare Zechariah 12; Zechariah 13; Zechariah 14; they will be found to afford fresh proofs. Zechariah 14:2, 8 announces that the Lord is to come for the deliverance of the Jews when they are in the deepest trouble; that His feet shall stand upon the same spot He had touched before His ascension — upon the mount of Olives, which is to be cloven in twain; that all the saints shall come with the Lord, and that, after this, living waters shall go out of Jerusalem, and the Lord shall be King over all the earth. Is not this the millennium? It is preceded by the Lord's coming. Another witness is to be found in such scriptures as 2 Thessalonians 2; 2 Peter 2; 2 Peter 3; Jude; 1 John 2; where evil is shown to have been introduced within the bosom of Christian profession from the days of the apostles, and that it is to spread, ripen, and be terminated only by the judgment which the Lord shall execute when He returns. Not the Church, but Christ is to destroy the Antichrist, and this by His personal appearing. His presence gathers the Church above; its Shining forth or epiphany destroys the Lawless One here below. (2 Thess. 2:1-8) Compare with this Isaiah 11:4, to which the allusion is evident. The reign of blessedness on earth ensues: "When thy judgments are in the earth the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness." Matthew 13 is to the same effect: the Son of man, by His angels, clears the field. 1 Corinthians 15:23-28, and 2 Tim. 4:1, are very distinct in connecting Christ's appearing with His kingdom, not with the end, and the end (not with His appearing to reign, but) with the surrender of the kingdom to God the Father. In this kingdom the risen saints reign with Him; they rise to meet Him at His coming, preparatory to His reign. (2 Tim. 2:12; Rom. 8:17) Revelation 19; Revelation 20 distinctly prove that Christ and His saints come from heaven to destroy the beast and the false prophet, with their adherents, and then to establish His kingdom on the earth for a thousand years, previously to the judgment of the great white throne, and the new heavens and earth.

Numerous other passages in the New Testament allude to Christ's appearing to take His dominion, adding, however, two features, about which the old prophets are silent. These passages, already quoted, declare that "when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye" — believers — "also appear with Him in glory" (Col. 3:4); that it is this "manifestation of the sons of God" — Christ and His fellow-heirs — for which "the earnest expectation of the creature waits," and by which it is to be "delivered from the bondage of corruption" (Rom. 8:19-22); that when this manifestation takes place, "the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God" (2 Thess. 1:7-8); that in this appearance He will be followed by the armies of heaven, believers previously caught up to be with Him; and that with them, He will execute judgment on the beast and false prophet, after which Satan will be bound, and the reign of Christ and His saints established for a thousand years (Rev. 19-20.) That this reign will be earthly, moreover, though extending to heaven too, is part of the "good pleasure which God has purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fulness of times, He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth, even in Him, in whom also we have obtained an inheritance" (Eph. 1:9-11). And that this sway is wielded by power is also clear, "for He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet," giving up the dominion when the last enemy, death, has been destroyed (1 Cor. 15:25-26). The saints, who are His fellow heirs, reign with Him, and thus it is that "the saints shall judge the world," and even more, "shall judge angels" (1 Cor. 6:2-3) All these and other passages before referred to, show that Christ returns to liberate creation from its bondage, to deliver Israel from her ruin, and to reign over the earth in righteousness; adding, however, to the Old Testament teaching, the two weighty facts, that in this reign the heavenly saints will be His fellow-heirs, and that at its commencement, the earliest promise will receive at least a partial fulfilment in the binding and imprisonment of Satan.

Following His resurrection, the New Testament writers confirmed the prospect of His coming in power, followed by the judgment of His enemies and the setting up of the literal future kingdom (e.g. Acts 3:21; 17:31; Rom. 8:19–22; Col. 3:4; 2 Thess. 1:7–8; Heb. 1:13; 10:13; etc.). The book of Revelation confirms that the 1,000-year reign is still future (‘after these things’ — Rev. 1:19; 4:1) and is preceded by the appearing of Christ, the judgment of the enemies of God, the binding of Satan, and the first resurrection (19:11–20:5).

Afterwards no doubt a new heaven and a new earth are seen; but who contends that this is the sphere to which the Lord comes? He will come as He went (Acts 1:11). "His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east." To this earth He is coming, not to the new earth in the eternal state. To the same world in which He suffered He will, according to the scriptures, come back, and for seasons of refreshing from His presence. Then will be, not the day of the destruction of the universe, but times for restoring all things, whereof God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets since time began. These glorious times have never yet been accomplished, and therefore must be before eternity. They are reserved for Christ's presence and reign, as He waits for the joint-heirs before He enters on it. But for the eternal judgment heaven and earth fled away; when it is over, we see the new and eternal universe. Hence He must have come back previously to both. With this agrees His coming out of heaven in judgment of the earth, described in Revelation 19. He came to the world, and avenged His people on the Beast and the False Prophet with the kings and their armies; after which the risen saints reign with Him over the earth a thousand years. This it is, not on but over the earth. He with the glorified saints will have their home on high; none the less shall they reign over this world for the allotted time. Compare John 17:22-23.