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Premillennialism, in
Christian eschatology Christian eschatology is a minor branch of study within Christian theology which deals with the doctrine of the "last things", especially the Second Coming of Christ, or Parousia. The word eschatology derives from two Greek roots meaning "last ...
, is the belief that
Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
will physically return to the Earth (the
Second Coming The Second Coming (sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia) is the Christianity, Christian and Islam, Islamic belief that Jesus, Jesus Christ will return to Earth after his Ascension of Jesus, ascension to Heaven (Christianity), Heav ...
) before the
Millennium A millennium () is a period of one thousand years, one hundred decades, or ten centuries, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting ...
, heralding a literal thousand-year
messianic age In Abrahamic religions, the Messianic Age () is the future eternal period of time on Earth in which the messiah will reign and bring universal peace and brotherhood, without any evil (through mankind's own terms). Many believe that there will be s ...
of peace. Premillennialism is based upon a literal interpretation of Revelation 20 () in the
New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
, which describes Jesus's reign in a period of a thousand years. Premillennialism is in contrast to amillennialism and postmillennialism beliefs. Amillennialism interprets as pertaining to the present time, and holds that Christ currently reigns in
Heaven Heaven, or the Heavens, is a common Religious cosmology, religious cosmological or supernatural place where beings such as deity, deities, angels, souls, saints, or Veneration of the dead, venerated ancestors are said to originate, be throne, ...
with the departed saints. This interpretation views the symbolism of Revelation as referring to a spiritual conflict between Heaven and Hell rather than a physical conflict on Earth. Amillennialists do not view the thousand years mentioned in Revelation as a literal thousand years, but see the number "thousand" as symbolic and numerological and see the kingdom of Christ as already present in the church beginning with the
Pentecost Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christianity, Christian holiday which takes place on the 49th day (50th day when inclusive counting is used) after Easter Day, Easter. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spiri ...
in the book of Acts. Denominations such as Oriental Orthodoxy,
Eastern Orthodoxy Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...
,
Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
,
Anglicanism Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
,
Presbyterianism Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...
and
Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
are generally amillennial. Postmillennialism views the millennial rule as a Golden Age in which Christian ethics prosper through preaching and redemptive work, but occurring before the second coming. Premillennialism is often used to refer specifically to those who adhere to the beliefs in an earthly millennial reign of Christ as well as a
rapture The Rapture is an Christian eschatology, eschatological position held by some Christians, particularly those of American evangelicalism, consisting of an end-time event when all dead Christian believers will be resurrected and, joined with Chr ...
of the faithful coming before (dispensational) or after (historic) the Great Tribulation preceding the Millennium. In the 20th century, the belief became common in
Evangelicalism Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...
according to surveys on this topic.


Terminology

The current religious term ''premillennialism'' did not come into use until the mid-19th century. The word's coinage was "almost entirely the work of British and American
Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
and was prompted by their belief that the French and
American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
s (the French, especially) realized prophecies made in the books of Daniel and
Revelation Revelation, or divine revelation, is the disclosing of some form of Religious views on truth, truth or Knowledge#Religion, knowledge through communication with a deity (god) or other supernatural entity or entities in the view of religion and t ...
."


Other views

The proponents of amillennialism interpret the millennium as being a symbolic period of time, which is consistent with the highly symbolic nature of the literary and apocalyptic genre of the Book of Revelation, sometimes indicating that the thousand years represent God's rule over his creation or the Church. Postmillennialists hold to the view that the Second Coming will happen after the millennium.


History


Justin Martyr and Irenaeus

Justin Martyr in the 2nd century was one of the first Christian writers to clearly describe himself as continuing in the "Jewish" belief of a temporary messianic kingdom prior to the eternal state, although the notion of Millennium in his '' Dialogue with Trypho'' seem to differ from that of the Apology. According to Johannes Quasten, "In his eschatological ideas Justin shares the views of the Chiliasts concerning the millennium." He maintains a premillennial distinction, namely that there would be two resurrections, one of believers before Jesus's reign and then a general resurrection afterwards. Justin wrote in chapter 80 of his work ''Dialogue with Trypho'', "I and others who are right-minded Christians on all points are assured that there will be a resurrection of the dead, and a thousand years in Jerusalem, which will then be built... For Isaiah spoke in that manner concerning this period of a thousand years." Though he conceded earlier in the same chapter that his view was not universal by saying that he "and many who belong to the pure and pious faith, and are true Christians, think otherwise."
Irenaeus Irenaeus ( or ; ; ) was a Greeks, Greek bishop noted for his role in guiding and expanding Christianity, Christian communities in the southern regions of present-day France and, more widely, for the development of Christian theology by oppos ...
, the late 2nd century bishop of Lyon, was an outspoken premillennialist. He is best known for his voluminous tome written against the 2nd century Gnostic threat, commonly called '' Against Heresies''. In the fifth book of ''Against Heresies'', Irenaeus concentrates primarily on eschatology. In one passage he defends premillennialism by arguing that a future earthly kingdom is necessary because of God's promise to Abraham, he wrote "The promise remains steadfast... God promised him the inheritance of the land. Yet, Abraham did not receive it during all the time of his journey there. Accordingly, it must be that Abraham, together with his seed (that is, those who fear God and believe in Him), will receive it at the resurrection of the just." In another place Irenaeus also explained that the blessing to
Jacob Jacob, later known as Israel, is a Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions. He first appears in the Torah, where he is described in the Book of Genesis as a son of Isaac and Rebecca. Accordingly, alongside his older fraternal twin brother E ...
"belongs unquestionably to the times of the kingdom when the righteous will bear rule, after their rising from the dead. It is also the time when the creation will bear fruit with an abundance of all kinds of food, having been renovated and set free... And all of the animals will feed on the vegetation of the earth... and they will be in perfect submission to man. And these things are borne witness to in the fourth book of the writings of Papias, the hearer of John, and a companion of Polycarp." (5.33.3) Apparently Irenaeus also held to the sexta-/septamillennial scheme writing that the end of human history will occur after the 6,000th year. (5.28.3).


Other ante-Nicene premillennialists

Irenaeus and Justin represent two of the most outspoken premillennialists of the pre-Nicean church. Other early premillennialists included Pseudo-Barnabas, Papias, Methodius, Lactantius, Commodianus
Theophilus Theophilus is a male given name with a range of alternative spellings. Its origin is the Greek word Θεόφιλος from θεός (''theós'', "God") and φιλία (''philía'', "love or affection") can be translated as "Love of God" or "Friend ...
,
Tertullian Tertullian (; ; 155 – 220 AD) was a prolific Early Christianity, early Christian author from Roman Carthage, Carthage in the Africa (Roman province), Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive co ...
, Melito,
Hippolytus of Rome Hippolytus of Rome ( , ; Romanized: , – ) was a Bishop of Rome and one of the most important second–third centuries Christian theologians, whose provenance, identity and corpus remain elusive to scholars and historians. Suggested communitie ...
, Victorinus of Pettau and various Gnostics groups and the Montanists. Many of these theologians and others in the early church expressed their belief in premillennialism through their acceptance of the sexta-septamillennial tradition. This belief claims that human history will continue for 6,000 years and then will enjoy Sabbath for 1,000 years (the millennial kingdom), thus all of human history will have a total of 7,000 years prior to the new creation.


Ante-Nicene opposition

The first clear opponent of premillennialism associated with Christianity was the gnostic Marcion. Marcion opposed the use of the Old Testament and most books of the New Testament that were not written by the
apostle Paul Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Apostles in the New Testament, Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the Ministry of Jesus, teachings of Jesus in the Christianity in the 1st century, first ...
. Regarding Marcion and premillennialism, Harvard scholar H. Brown noted, :The first great heretic broke drastically with the faith of the early church in abandoning the doctrine of the imminent, personal return of Christ...Marcion did not believe in a real
incarnation Incarnation literally means ''embodied in flesh'' or ''taking on flesh''. It is the Conception (biology), conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic form of a god. It is used t ...
, and consequently there was no logical place in his system for a real Second Coming...Marcion expected the majority of mankind to be lost...he denied the validity of the Old Testament and its Law...As the first great heretic, Marcion developed and perfected his heterodox system before orthodoxy had fully defined itself...Marcion represents a movement that so radically transformed the Christian doctrine of God and Christ that it can hardly be said to be Christian. Throughout the Patristic period—particularly in the 3rd century—there had been rising opposition to premillennialism.
Origen Origen of Alexandria (), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, Asceticism#Christianity, ascetic, and Christian theology, theologian who was born and spent the first half of his career in Early cent ...
was the first to challenge the doctrine openly. Through allegorical interpretation, he had been a proponent of amillennialism (of course, the sexta-septamillennial tradition was itself based upon similar means of allegorical interpretation). Although Origen was not always wholly "orthodox" in his theology, he had at one point completely spiritualized Christ's second coming prophesied in the New Testament. Origen did this in his ''Commentary on Matthew'' when he taught that "Christ's return signifies His disclosure of Himself and His deity to all humanity in such a way that all might partake of His glory to the degree that each individual's actions warrant (''Commentary on Matthew'' 12.30)." Even Origen's milder forms of this teaching left no room for a literal millennium and it was so extreme that few actually followed it. But his influence did gain wider acceptance especially in the period following Constantine. Dionysius of Alexandria stood against premillennialism when the
chiliastic Millennialism () or chiliasm (from the Greek equivalent) is a belief which is held by some religious denominations. According to this belief, a Messianic Age will be established on Earth prior to the Last Judgment and the future permanent s ...
work, ''The Refutation of the Allegorizers'' written by Nepos, a
bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...
in
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
became popular in
Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
. Dionysius argued against Nepos's influence and convinced the churches of the region of amillennialism. The church historian, Eusebius, reports this in his ''
Ecclesiastical History Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual side of the ...
''. Eusebius also had low regard for the chiliast, Papias, and he let it be known that in his opinion Papias was "a man of small mental capacity" because he had taken the Apocalypse literally.


Middle Ages and the Reformation


Augustinian eschatological foundation

Oxford theologian Alister McGrath has noted that "all
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...
theology is 'Augustinian' to a greater or lesser extent." Augustine's (354-430) influence shaped not only the Western
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
, but it also influenced the Protestant reformers, who constantly referred to his teaching in their own debates. His teaching is "still one of the most potent elements in Western religious thought." Therefore, to analyze what happened to premillennialism in the Middle Ages and the Reformation, it is necessary to observe the Augustinian foundation. In his early period, Augustine held to the sexta-/septamillennial view common in early Christianity (see above section on Patristic Age). In accordance with this view, Augustine divided history into two separate dispensations, first the church age (the current age of 6,000 years), and then the millennial kingdom (''Sermon 259.2''). Nevertheless, early in his career Augustine converted from premillennialism to amillennialism. Anderson locates three reasons that may account for Augustine's theological shift: # A reaction to Donatist excess – Augustine displayed a revulsion to the Donatists' bacchanal feasts which seemingly used excessive amounts of food and drink (''City of God'', 20.7). The Donatists were premillennial and thus Augustine formed a connection between their sensual behavior and their earthly eschatological expectation. # A reaction to eschatological
sensationalism In journalism and mass media, sensationalism is a type of editorial tactic. Events and topics in news stories are selected and worded to excite the greatest number of readers and viewers. This style of news reporting encourages biased or emoti ...
– The millennial fervor of premillennialists as the year AD 500 was nearing caused them to have overly jovial celebrations (some septa-/sextamillennial interpreters calculated Jesus's birth to have happened 5,500 years after creation). These feasts appeared to Augustine to take more pleasure in the physical world than the spiritual. Such earthly revelry was repulsive to Augustine since he placed little value on the material world. # A preference for allegorical interpretation – Finally, Augustine was influenced by the popular allegorical interpretation of Scripture, particularly of The Book of Revelation. Tyconius (d. ''c''. 400), a Donatist lay theologian, "whose reinterpretation of his culture's separatist and millenarian traditions provided the point of departure for what is more brilliant and idiosyncratic in Augustine's own theology. And it is Tyconius, most precisely, whose own reading of John's Apocalypse determined the Western church's exegesis for the next eight hundred years." After moving away from premillennialism to amillennialism, Augustine viewed Sabbath rest in the sexta-/septamillennial scheme as "symbolically representative of Eternity." Moreover, the millennium of Revelation 20 became for him "symbolically representative of Christ’s present reign with the saints." Richard Landes observed the 4th century as a time of major shift for Christian eschatology by noting that it "marked a crucial moment in the history of millenarianism, since during this period Augustine repudiated even the allegorizing variety he himself had previously accepted. From this point on he dedicated much of his energy to ridding the church of this
belief A belief is a subjective Attitude (psychology), attitude that something is truth, true or a State of affairs (philosophy), state of affairs is the case. A subjective attitude is a mental state of having some Life stance, stance, take, or opinion ...
."


Medieval and Reformation amillennialism

Augustine's later amillennial view laid the eschatological foundation for the Middle Ages, which practically abandoned premillennialism. The theological term "kingdom" maintained its eschatological function, though it was not necessarily futuristic. Instead it consistently referred to the present age so that the church was currently experiencing the eschaton. Julian of Toledo (642–690) summarizes the medieval doctrine of the millennium by referring to it as "the church of God which, by the diffusion of its faith and works, is spread out as a kingdom of faith from the time of the incarnation until the time of the coming judgment". A notable exception to normative medieval eschatology is found in Joachim of Fiore (c. 1135–1202), a
Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...
monk, who to an extent, stressed premillennial themes. Joachim divided earth's history into three periods. He assigned each age to a particular person of the Trinity as the guiding principle of that era. The first era was the Old Testament history and was accordingly the age of the
Father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. A biological fat ...
; the current age of the church was the age of the Son; and still in Joachim's future was the age of the Spirit. For Joachim, 1260 was to mark the end of the second and the beginning of the third and final golden age of earth's history. During the Reformation period, amillennialism continued to be the popular view of the Reformers. The Lutherans formally rejected chiliasm (millennialism) in The Augsburg Confession. "Art. XVII., condemns the Anabaptists and others 'who now scatter Jewish opinions that, before the resurrection of the dead, the godly shall occupy the kingdom of the world, the wicked being everywhere suppressed.'"Philip Schaff, ''History of the Christian Church'', Vol. 2 (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, n.d.) 381. Likewise, the Swiss Reformer Heinrich Bullinger wrote up the Second Helvetic Confession, which reads "We also reject the Jewish dream of a millennium, or golden age on earth, before the last judgment." Furthermore,
John Calvin John Calvin (; ; ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French Christian theology, theologian, pastor and Protestant Reformers, reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of C ...
wrote in ''Institutes'' that millennialism is a "fiction" that is "too childish either to need or to be worth a refutation". The Anglican Church originally formalized a statement against millenarianism in the Anglican Articles. This is observed in the 41st of the Anglican Articles, drawn up by
Thomas Cranmer Thomas Cranmer (2 July 1489 – 21 March 1556) was a theologian, leader of the English Reformation and Archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and, for a short time, Mary I. He is honoured as a Oxford Martyrs, martyr ...
(1553), describing the millennium as a 'fable of Jewish dotage', but it was omitted at a later time in the revision under Elizabeth (1563). Contrarily, certain Anabaptists,
Huguenots The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...
, and Bohemian Brethren were premillennial. Michael Servetus taught a chiliastic view, though he was denounced by the Reformers as a heretic and executed in
Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
under Calvin's authority. A few in the mainstream accepted it, such as
Joseph Mede Joseph Mede (1586 in Berden – 1639) was an English scholar with a wide range of interests. He was educated at Christ's College, Cambridge, where he became a Fellow in 1613. He is now remembered as a biblical scholar. He was also a naturalist ...
(1586–1638) and possibly Hugh Latimer (died 1555), but it was never a conventional belief throughout the period.


Modern era


17th and 18th centuries

Premillennialism experienced a revival among 17th century Puritans like Thomas Brightman, Joseph Mede, and others. Although they were not premillennial, the English
theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...
Daniel Whitby (1688–1726), the German Johann Albrecht Bengel (1687–1752), and the American Jonathan Edwards (1703–58) "fueled millennial ideas with new influence in the nineteenth century." It was authors such as these who concluded that the decline of the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
would make way for the conversion and restoration of the nation of
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
. Edwards taught that a type of Millennium would occur "1260 years after A.D. 606 when Rome was recognized as having universal authority." His Puritan contemporaries, Increase Mather and Cotton Mather, openly proclaimed a belief in a literal millennium. Increase Mather wrote "That which presseth me so, as that I cannot gainsay the Chiliastical opinion, is that I take these things for Principles, and no way doubt but that they are demonstrable. 1. That the thousand apocalyptical years are not passed but future. 2. That the coming of Christ to raise the dead and to judge the earth will be within much less than this thousand years. 3. That the conversion of the
Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
s will not be till this present state of the world is near unto its end. 4. That, after the Jews' conversion there will be a glorious day for the elect upon earth, and that this day shall be a very long continuance."


19th century to present

Between 1790 and the mid-19th century, premillennialism was a popular view among English Evangelicals, even within the Anglican church. Thomas Macaulay observed this and wrote "Many Christians believe that the Messiah will shortly establish a kingdom on the earth, and visibly reign over all its inhabitants." Throughout the 19th century, premillennialism continued to gain wider acceptance in both the US and in Britain, particularly among the Irvingites, Plymouth Brethren, Christadelphians, Church of God, Christian Israelite Church. Premillennialism continues to be popular among Evangelical, Fundamentalist Christian, and Living Church of God communities in the 20th and 21st centuries,Robert K. Whalen, “Dispensationalism” in ''The Encyclopedia of Millennialism and Millennial Movements,'' Ed. Richard A. Landes (New York:
Routledge Routledge ( ) is a British multinational corporation, multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, academic journals, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanit ...
, 2000), 128.
expanding further into the churches of
Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...
,
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
and
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
. Many traditional denominations continue to oppose the concept of a literal millennial kingdom. The
Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
explicitly states, "When Christ returns, 'new heavens and a new earth' will be created ( 2 Pet. 3:10-13)." The
catechism of the Catholic Church The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' (; commonly called the ''Catechism'' or the ''CCC'') is a reference work that summarizes the Catholic Church's doctrine. It was Promulgation (Catholic canon law), promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1992 ...
teaches in paragraph 676 that the millennium is to be understood as "beyond history": Whalen has noted that modern premillennialism is "criticized roundly for naïve scholarship which confuses the poetic and inspirational
prose Prose is language that follows the natural flow or rhythm of speech, ordinary grammatical structures, or, in writing, typical conventions and formatting. Thus, prose ranges from informal speaking to formal academic writing. Prose differs most n ...
of prophecy with fortune telling", though "Premillennialists retort that they merely follow the Word of God, regardless of ridicule." He then notes that, nevertheless, "the virtual theology which surrounds premillennialism is today stronger and more widely spread than at any time in history."


Historic vs. dispensational schools

Contemporary premillennialism is divided into two schools of thought.


Historic school

Historic, or classic, premillennialism is distinctively non-dispensational. This means that it sees no radical theological distinction between
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
and the Church. It is often posttribulational, meaning that the rapture of the church will occur after a period of
tribulation In Christian eschatology, the Great Tribulation () is a period mentioned by Jesus in the Olivet Discourse as a sign that would occur in the time of the end. At , "the Great Tribulation" () is used to indicate the period spoken of by Jesus. u ...
. Historic premillennialism maintains chiliasm because of its view that the church will be caught up to meet Christ in the air and then escort him to the earth in order to share in his literal thousand year rule. Proponents of the view include John Gill, Mike Placko, Charles Spurgeon, James Montgomery Boice, George Eldon Ladd, John Piper, Albert Mohler, Francis Schaeffer, Carl F. H. Henry, Harold Lindsell, D. A. Carson, Bryan Chapell, and Gordon Clark.


Dispensational school

Dispensational premillennialism generally holds that Israel and the Church are distinct entities. It also widely holds to the pretribulational return of
Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...
, which believes that Jesus will return to take up Christians into heaven by means of a rapture immediately before a seven-year worldwide tribulation. This will be followed by an additional return of Christ with his saints (though there are posttribulation dispensationalists, such as Robert Gundry). Dispensationalism traces its roots to the 1830s and John Nelson Darby (1800–1882), an Anglican churchman and an early leader of the Plymouth Brethren. In the US, the dispensational form of premillennialism was propagated on the popular level largely through the Scofield Reference Bible and on the academic level with Lewis Sperry Chafer's eight-volume ''Systematic Theology''. More recently dispensational eschatology has been popularized through Hal Lindsey's 1970s bestseller, '' The Late, Great Planet Earth'' and through the '' Left Behind'' Series by
Tim Lahaye Timothy Francis LaHaye (April 27, 1926 – July 25, 2016) was an American Baptist evangelical Christian Minister of religion, minister who wrote more than 85 books, both non-fiction and fiction, including the ''Left Behind (series), Left Behind ...
and Jerry Jenkins. Popular proponents of dispensational premillennialism have been John F. MacArthur, Phil Johnson, Ray Comfort,
Jerry Falwell Jerry Laymon Falwell Sr. (August 11, 1933 – May 15, 2007) was an American Baptist pastor, televangelist, and conservatism in the United States, conservative activist. He was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church, a megachurch ...
, Todd Friel, Dwight Pentecost, John Walvoord,
Tim Lahaye Timothy Francis LaHaye (April 27, 1926 – July 25, 2016) was an American Baptist evangelical Christian Minister of religion, minister who wrote more than 85 books, both non-fiction and fiction, including the ''Left Behind (series), Left Behind ...
, Charles Caldwell Ryrie, Norman Geisler, Erwin Lutzer, and Charles L. Feinberg. Craig Blaising and Darrell Bock have developed a form of dispensationalism that is growing in popularity known as progressive dispensationalism. This view understands that an aspect of the eschatological kingdom presently exists, but must wait for the millennium to be realized fully.Craig A. Blaising and Darrell L. Bock ''Progressive Dispensationalism'' (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1993), 282.


See also

*
Biblical hermeneutics Biblical hermeneutics is the study of the principles of interpretation concerning the books of the Bible. It is part of the broader field of hermeneutics, which involves the study of principles of interpretation, both theory and methodology, fo ...
* Futurism (Christianity) *
Historicism (Christianity) In Christian eschatology, historicism is a method of interpretation of Biblical prophecy, biblical prophecies which associates symbols with historical persons, nations or events. The main primary texts of interest to Christian historicists include ...
* Idealism (Christian eschatology) * Millennial Day Theory * Preterism


References


Further reading


Works from an amillennial or postmillennial perspective

* Bahnsen, Greg L. 1999. ''Victory in Jesus: The Bright Hope of Postmillennialism''. . Texarkana, AR: Covenant Media Press. * Beale, G. K. ''The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text.'' New International Commentary on the Greek Testament. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998. . A well written 1245 page commentary on the Greek text of Revelation from an amillennial perspective. Beale has an excursus on the concept of the temporary messianic kingdom and how it fits into amillennial understanding. * Bloesch, Donald G. ''The Last Things: Resurrection, Judgment, Glory (Christian Foundations, 7) ''. Westmont, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 2004. . A recent eschatology text from an amillennial Reformed perspective. * Boettner, Loraine. ''The Millennium''. P&R Publishing, 1990. . This is a revised edition of the classic 1957 postmillennial work. * Davis, John Jefferson. 1996. ''The Victory of Christ's Kingdom: An Introduction to Postmillennialism''. Moscow, ID: Canon Press. * DeMar, Gary. 1999. ''Last Days Madness: Obsession of the Modern Church'' () Power Springs, GA: American Vision. * Gentry, Kenneth L. 1992. ''He Shall Have Dominion: A Postmillennial Eschatology''. Tyler, Tx: Institute For Christian Economics. * Gentry, Kenneth L. 2003. ''Thine is the Kingdom: A Study of the Postmillennial Hope''. Vallecito, CA: Chalcedon Foundation. * Hill, Charles E. ''Regnum Caelorum: Patterns of Millennial Thought in Early Christianity'', Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company 2001
review
* Hoekema, Anthony A. ''The
Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...
and the Future''. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1994. * Hughes, James A. “Revelation 20:4-6 and the Question of the Millennium,” '' Westminster Theological Journal'' 35 (Spring 73):281-302. * Mathison, Keith A. 1999. ''Postmillennialism. An Eschatology of Hope''. Philipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing. . One-volume overview of postmillennialism. Written by a proponent. * Murray, Iain. 1971. ''The Puritan Hope: A Study in Revival and the Interpretation of Prophecy''. London, UK: Banner of Truth Trust. * Riddlebarger, Kim. ''A Case for Amillennialism: Understanding the End Times''. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2003. An up to date defense of amillennialism. * Sproul, R. C. 1998. ''The Last Days According to Jesus''. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books. * Storms, Sam 2012. ''Kingdom Come: The Amillennial Alternative''. Fearn (UK): Mentor/Christian Focus.


Works from a premillennial perspective

* R. H. Charles ''The Revelation of St. John''. International Critical Commentary. 2 Vols. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1920. See volume 2, pages 182-86 in particular. * Deere, Jack S. “Premillennialism in Revelation 20:4-6,” ''Bibliotheca Sacra'' 135. (January 1978): 58-74. This journal article is still considered by many premillennialists to be one of the stronger defenses of premillennialism in print. * Ladd, George Eldon. ''A Commentary on the Revelation of John''. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1972. . A commentary on Revelation from a historical premillennial perspective. * Ladd, George Eldon. ''The Last Things''. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988. . * Osborne, Grant R. ''Revelation''. Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002. . A commentary on Revelation from a general premillennial perspective, though no particular view of the rapture is defended. * Peters, G.N.H. ''The Theocratic Kingdom''. 3 Vols. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1952. . This is the largest defense of premillennialism in any language. It was written in the 19th century by an American
Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...
. The viewpoint is historical premillennial, meaning that it is post tribulational. * Ryrie, Charles C. ''The Basis of the Premillennial Faith''. Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers, 1953. . This is a small introduction and defense of premillennialism from a dispensational perspective. * Underwood, Grant. (1999) 993
The Millenarian World of Early Mormonism
'' Urbana: University of Illinois Press. * Walvoord, John. ''The Millennial Kingdom''. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1959. . A defense from a classical dispensational perspective.


Works from multiple perspectives or no apparent perspective

* Aune, David A. ''Revelation'' Word Biblical Commentary. 3 vols. Waco, TX: Word Books, 1997. A scholarly commentary on Revelation. * Bailey, J. W. “The Temporary Messianic Reign in the Literature of Early Judaism,” ''
Journal of Biblical Literature The ''Journal of Biblical Literature'' (''JBL'') is one of three academic journal An academic journal (or scholarly journal or scientific journal) is a periodical publication in which Scholarly method, scholarship relating to a particular academ ...
.'' (1934), 170. * ''The Meaning of the Millennium: Four Views''. Edited by Clouse, Robert G. Westmont, IL: Inter-Varsity, 1977. . A balanced presentation of four millennial views. George Eldon Ladd defends historical premillennialism; Herman A. Hoyt presents dispensational premillennialism; Loraine Boettner defend explains postmillennialism; and Anthony A. Hoekema writes on amillennialism. * ''Revelation: Four Views: A Parallel Commentary.'' Edited by Steve Greg. Waco, TX: Word Books, 1997. .


Works on the history of eschatology

* Daley, Brian E. ''The Hope of the Early Church: A Handbook of Patristic Eschatology,'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. . * Froom, Le Roy Edwin
''Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers. The Historical Development of Prophetic Interpretation''
4 Vols. Review and Herald, 1946–54. ASIN B0006AR2YQ. An enormously comprehensive history of eschatological thought. Froom is an Adventist but this is not overly apparent in the work. It is currently out of print. * Hill, Charles F. ''Regnum Caelorum: Patterns of Millennial Thought in Early Christianity''. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2001. . Hill questions the legitimacy of early premillennial thought by analyzing an apparent paradox in the early chiliast theology, particularly the intermediate state. * Marsden, George. ''Fundamentalism and American Culture'', Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022 (3rd Ed.) . The history of late 19th C.-present premillenialism in the United States and its impact on the general culture. * Mühling, Markus, "Grundwissen Eschatologie. Systematische Theologie aus der Perspektive der Hoffnung", Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2005. , 209–214.


External links


A helpful historical overview from a Catholic perspective

A Survey of Early Premillennialism
(pdf)

{{Doomsday Premillennialism Marcionism