How Do Israel and the Gentiles fit into the Millennium, the New Earth and the New Heavens?
1. How do Israel and the Gentiles arrive into the Millennium?
There will be two ways to arrive into the Millennium. One is by faith, and the other is by works. The one that is by faith will always be accompanied by works that demonstrate that faith. The other that is by works will not be conjoined with faith at that time. The Jews can only arrive into the Millennium by faith and its accompanying works, whereas Gentiles can arrive by both means (one example being the Matthew 25:31 and following ‘Sheep/Goat’ judgment).
- The only Jews to arrive at the Millennium will be those in faith; all other Jews who have not obtained the faith of God will be excluded (by death). The Tribulation itself cannot and will not end until all Israel is saved (Romans 11:25-27); all Israel’s being saved necessitates the extraction of unbelieving Jews from Israel before the Tribulation ends. Thus, the only Jews left alive and in mortal bodies by the end of the Tribulation will be those in faith. The Jews who arrive in immortal bodies at the return of Messiah obviously also will be in faith. Thus, 100% of the Jews to come into the Millennium will have the faith of Yehovah and will maintain that faith for the entire millennium.Isaiah 60:18 Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. 19The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. 20Thy sun shall no more go down, neither shall thy moon withdraw itself. For Yehovah shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. 21Thy people also is all righteous. They shall inherit the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. 22A little one shall become a thousand and a small one a strong nation. I Yehovah will hasten it in his time.The resurrection takes place in two parts. The first part is the Rapture when all Saints who have lived and died to that point in time (years before the Tribulation) are taken to meet other Saints in the air, then to meet Messiah Yeshua in the air, then to be judged according to their works. The second part of this same resurrection is when they arrive back on earth having obtained their immortal bodies in the Rapture. They arrive with Messiah Yeshua Himself. The resurrection from the dead necessarily includes physically being back on earth.
1 Thessalonians 3:13 …to the end He may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.
- There are two groups of Gentiles who arrive at the Millennium. One group comes the same way as the Jews: through faith, and includes both those who previously died in faith and those who survive the Tribulation in faith. Those who have previously died will be judged at the Rapture (if they died or lived before the Rapture), the others who die between the Rapture and the return of Messiah being judged either after their deaths or in their lives. (The Tribulation is itself a judgment of the Saints who go through it, besides having its primary objective of judging the Jews.) Some Gentiles will become Saints, and will die during the Tribulation. Their judgments occur in the Tribulation itself; they only need their immortal bodies to be ready to return with Messiah.The second group of Gentiles who arrive at the Millennium will not arrive through faith, but only by works as demonstrated in the Matthew 25:311 (and following) texts on the ‘Sheep/Goat’ judgment. Those who are called righteous and blessed in this text have not yet obtained the faith of the Biblical God, but did works that show that they are friends of the Jews and Yehovah/Yeshua. They will be the guests at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. They will have done works that prove that they are worthy. They will later obtain the faith of Yehovah during the Millennium by the same means that all obtain Salvation: through the Grace of Yehovah, by faith.Had these good-works Gentiles already possessed the faith of Yehovah (of Yeshua), they would not have been judged in this ‘Sheep/Goat’ judgment, but would have been among the arresters2 who gather all who have not been gathered to this judgment. All Saints who survive the Tribulation will be gathered to one spot. Only then will they go out and arrest and bring back these ‘Sheep/Goat’ folks so that they can be judged.
2. How do Israel and the Gentiles arrive into the New Earth?
Only those in faith, having the Salvation of Yehovah, arrive into the New Earth. They arrive by being transferred (as described below).
3. How do Israel and the Gentiles arrive into the New Heavens?
The New Earth will be in the New Heavens. Thus, their arrival will be as described below.
4. Who inhabits the New Heavens?
The following inhabit the New Heavens:
- The New Earth and all heavenly bodies
- Yehovah/Yeshua
- The angels who did not rebel
- All the Saints
5. Who inhabits the New Earth?
- Yehovah/Yeshua
- The angels who did not rebel
- All the Saints
At the end of the Millennium, there must be a vestibule where folks wait while the change takes place. What events occur at the point of transfer?
Before any transfer takes place, the final judgment that includes all unbelievers will occur. Saints will preside over this judgment:
1 Corinthians 6:2 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?
Saints (perhaps specifically Israeli Saints) will also judge angels in this judgment:
1 Corinthians 6:3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels?
This judgment will not be quick; it will view both good and bad works that non-saints have done in order for them to receive differing depths of damnation.
Matthew 23:14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
Mark 12:40 Which devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.
Luke 20:47 Which devour widows’ houses, and for a shew make long prayers: the same shall receive greater damnation.
After this judgment has been completed and the damned have been relegated to their everlasting punishments in the Lake of Fire and Sulfur, the newly created New Earth in the newly created New Heavens will be the Saints’ next abode. I do not recall a description of the transfer, but it will be with blazing glory, since this earth and all the heavens will be burned up completely with a great fire.
6. What is the end result?
The end result is that only the abode for the damned in the everlasting Lake of Fire and Sulfur will continue along with the New Heavens and the New Earth. Every human being created will continue to exist, the vast majority in that Lake of Fire and burning sulfur, and a much smaller minority on the New Earth. Their numbers are described as being many, but that is not the absolute proportion.
Yeshua will not be rid of the damned, nor will He put them out of His sight; He will be present with them in their blind faces forever and ever, and the fires of that Lake will be directly from His wrath. For they were made in His image, and His image does not allow for annihilation.
Revelation 14:9 And the third angel followed them saying with a loud voice, “If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead or in his hand, 10the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God that 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. 11And the smoke of their torment ascends up forever and ever. And they who worship the beast and his image and whosoever receives the mark of his name have no rest day or night.
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1 Matthew 25:31 When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, He shall then sit upon the throne of His glory. 32And all races shall be gathered before Him. And He shall separate them one from another as a shepherd divides sheep from goats. 33And He shall set the sheep on His right hand and the goats on the left. 34The King shall then say unto them on His right hand, “Come, ye blessed of my Father! Inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world! 35For I was hungry, and ye gave me food! I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink! I was a stranger, and ye took me in, 36naked, and ye clothed me. I was sick, and ye visited me! I was in prison, and ye came unto me.” 37Then the righteous shall answer Him saying, “Sir, when did we see thee hungry, and fed thee, or thirsty, and gave thee drink? 38When did we see thee a stranger, and took thee in, or naked, and clothed thee? 39Or when did we see thee sick or in prison, and came unto thee?” 40And the King shall answer and say unto them, “Faith, I say unto you! Inasmuch as ye have done unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done unto me!” 41Then He shall also say unto them on the left hand, “Depart from me, ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels! 42For I was hungry, and ye gave me no food! I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink! 43I was a stranger, and ye took me not in, naked, and ye clothed me not, sick and in prison, and ye did not visit me!” 44Then they also shall answer Him saying, “Sir, when did we see thee hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?” 45Then He shall answer them saying, “Faith, I say unto you, inasmuch as ye didn’t do to one of the least of these, ye didn’t do to me!” 46And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, and the righteous into everlasting life.
2 Psalm 149, literally rendered: 1Praise-ye Yah! Sing-ye to Yehovah a new song! His Psalm is in the congregation of Graced-[ones]! 2Israel shall rejoice via his Maker! Children of Zion shall circle-dance via their King! 3They shall praise His Name via dance. They shall serenade to Him via tambourine and violin! 4For Yehovah desires via His people. He will adorn humble-[ones] via Salvation. 5Graced-[ones] shall exult via glory! They shall ululate upon their beds! 6Elevations of a Mighty-[one] are in their throat and a double-edged sword is in their hand 7to do vengeance in races, corrections in folks, 8to bind their kings via purgers and their heavies via fetters of iron 9to do written justice via them. He is an honour to all His graced-[ones]. Praise-ye Yah!