Revelation 20:1-3

John saw an angel come down from heaven with the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on Satan and bound him for a thousand years and cast him into the bottomless pit and shut him up. Nothing is said as to the time intervening between the events of the 19th and 20th Chapter s. How long it is from the capture of the beast and false prophet to the binding of Satan we have no means of knowing, but it does not look as if Satan is bound yet.

We get the word 'millennium' from this word 'thousand' in its Latin form. The word 'millennium' is often on our lips; and popularly it means a period of righteousness and blessedness on earth when Satan's power shall be withdrawn.

Not much is said here about a millennium. It is passed over with but scanty mention. We are rather surprised with the paucity of details. Some have even thought that, from such meager mention, there may be no such thing as a millennium. But it is more than likely that the faith and expectation of the church is right. There are some other passages chiefly in the Old Testament that predict a glorious outcome to God's kingdom on earth, although it is not called a millennium nor any limits of time assigned. Moreover, nearly all John's imagery is based on Old Testament prophecy, and it may well be so in regard to the millennium. Isaiah, in his second chapter, describes the blessing that shall come to the world from Judea and Jerusalem. "They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation neither shall they learn war any more." "In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver and gold to the moles and the bats."

And Micah in his fourth chapter says substantially the same thing in about the same words, beating swords into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks. Isaiah, in his eleventh chapter, describes a world of peace that grows out of that "stem of Jesse." "The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid they shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain," and now if you please observe the reason, "for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." This expresses the means, as well as the reason of universal peace.

We therefore conclude that there will be a millennium and that it will result from the preaching and teaching of the gospel, when "the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord" and as it is further said: "and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked."

John says little about conditions on the earth during this millennium, he rather leaves that to be inferred from the fact that Satan is bound, and from the rejoicing of the saints. It is said that Satan is bound and shut up, "that he should deceive the nations no more." When Satan's deceptions are withdrawn the consequent effect upon the world may be inferred. Again the judgment given to the saints, their reigning and rejoicing, though it be a scene in heaven, reflects conditions on the earth. The heavenly picture is indicative of the earthly situation. But here it is well to remember that there is inherent evil in human hearts and there may be some tares among the wheat even in the millennium. Whether the thousand years are to be taken literally and strictly or as expressing an indefinitely long period, need not concern us much. We may remark, however, that since evil has prevailed long in the world, it is quite appropriate that righteousness should be dominant much longer, since this is God's world and the principle of his kingdom is expressed in the words: "Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound."