Millennial Malfeasance
We have been assured, by verse after verse, the nation of Israel, from the beginning of the millennium, will be brought to a place of abundant joy and wondrous prosperity. It will also be a time when the Spirit of God will be available to everyone.
Isa 10:22 For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return: the consumption decreed shall overflow with righteousness.
Jer 23:6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Isa 29:18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and out of darkness.
Isa 29:19 The meek also shall increase their joy in the LORD, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
Isa 41:18 I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.
Isa 41:19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together:
Isa 41:20 That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.
Isa 44:1 Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant; and Israel, whom I have chosen:
Isa 44:2 Thus saith the LORD that made thee, and formed thee from the womb, which will help thee; Fear not, O Jacob, my servant; and thou, Jesurun, whom I have chosen.
Isa 44:3 For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:
Isa 44:4 And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses.
These awesome words of blessings belong to Israel but where can one find similar words pertaining to other nations. I have not been able to find them. The following shows the nations will be able to see the salvation of Israel and understand that it is from God all mighty.
Isa 52:8 Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion.
Isa 52:9 Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the LORD hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem.
Isa 52:10 The LORD hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
Yet we are shown that there will be those who, during the millennium, will oppose the laws and way of God.
Rev 21:10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
Rev 21:24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.
Rev 21:27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in Lamb's book of life.
Rev 22:14 `Happy are those doing His commands that the authority shall be theirs unto the tree of the life, and by the gates they may enter into the city;
Rev 22:15 and without are the dogs, and the sorcerers, and the whoremongers, and the murderers, and the idolaters, and every one who is loving and is doing a lie.
The walls of the city, the bride, will be built on the foundation of the apostles (verses Rev 21:12 & 14). That "Holy" city may only be entered through a repentant, baptized, and Spirit led person who is written in the book of life. (see THE BRIDE OF CHRIST - Her Abode and Her Destiny)
Rev 21:12 having also a wall great and high, having twelve gates, and at the gates twelve messengers, and names written thereon, which are those of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel,
Rev 21:13 at the east three gates, at the north three gates, at the south three gates, at the west three gates;
Rev 21:14 and the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
We have to pause here because there is a question as to when holy (spiritual) Jerusalem will descend from heaven. There are those that think that the city will descend near the last or be the last thing the Bible speaks of. --- At that time there would be no need of a wall. All opposition to God would have been cast into the lake of fire. The following is further evidence that the city will descend at the beginning of the millennium.
Rev 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. (not be the bride)
Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with menG444, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
Eze 40:2 In the visions of God brought he me (Ezekiel) into the land of Israel, and set me upon a very high mountain, by which was as the frame of a city on the south.
Eze 48:35 It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there. (Verse 48:35 is the last verse of the Book of Ezekiel)
Rev 21:6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
Rev 21:7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
Notice in verse 21:3 that the tabernacle of God is with menG444.
G444 anth'-ro-pos From G435 and ὤψ ōps (the countenance; from G3700); manfaced, that is, a human being: - certain, man. Total KJV occurrences: 560
Also notice that in verses 21:3,6&7 the bolded words are all in the future tense. In other words all those promises will occur from the beginning of the millennium.
We have seen, even though the nations have seen the unmistakable works of God, there will be the malcontents. I believe the following will show how that can be.
2Pe 2:10 But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.
2Pe 2:12 But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyedG5356, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perishG2704 in their own corruption;
G5356 fthor-ah' From G5351; decay, that is, ruin (spontaneous or inflicted, literally or figuratively): - corruption, destroy, perish.
G2704 kat-af-thi'-ro From G2596 and G5351; to spoil entirely, that is, (literally) to destroy; or (figuratively) to deprave: - corrupt, utterly perish.
Psa 36:1 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David the servant of the LORD. The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart, that there is no fear of God before his eyes.
Psa 36:4 He deviseth mischief upon his bed; he setteth himself in a way that is not good; he abhorreth not evil. Psa 36:12 There are the workers of iniquity fallen: they are cast down, and shall not be able to rise.
I have come to believe the following verses.
Rom 9:21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honourG5092, and another unto dishonourG819?
Rom 9:22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destructionG684:
Rom 9:23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,
Rom 9:24 Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
G684 ap-o'-li-a From a presumed derivative of G622; ruin or loss (physical, spiritual or eternal): - damnable (-nation), destruction, die, perdition, X perish, pernicious ways, waste.
Psa 58:3 The wickedH7563 are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies.
It is hard to understand how people, by the end of the millennium, will turn on God. They have seen a world under righteous law bring forth a wonder of prosperity. But there will be those that reject God and His ways. And again, Satan will deceive those people and get them to fight against the people of God who are united with God and His ways.
Rev 20:7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Rev 20:8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Rev 20:9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.