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Where Did Amillennialism Come From?
Introduction
Amillennialism is an exegetical gimmick used by interpreters who have an ulterior motive for believing God is incapable of doing things in the future the way He said He would do them. An excellent example is scholars who refuse to believe that the kingdom predicted in Revelation 20:1-7 will last one thousand years even though that figure is used six times in rapid succession. Another excellent example is scholars who believe that the Church has permanently replaced Israel even though the prophets predict that Israel will be restored, and will exist in perpetuity as God’s chosen people (2 Sam. 7:10-17; Isa. 2:1-4; 9:6-7; 11:1-9; 60:1-22; 61:1-9; Jer. 31:31-37; Amos 9:11-15; Micah 4:1-8; Zech. 8:1-8; 12:1-13:1; 14:1-21; Luke 1:26-38; 67-75). Moreover, the Apostle Paul wrote a lengthy, three-chapter discourse (Romans 9:1-11:36) attempting to persuade his Gentile readers that God had not permanently given up on Israel, that God's setting aside Israel from the place of His blessing was temporary, and that His favor on the Church was designed to make Israel be jealous and to repent. Paul pictured a time when "all Israel " would be saved (Romans 11:26-27). Does the Bible teach Amillennialism? It does not appear to do so. So, who was it who started Amillennialism? From what source did it spring into existence? And when did it do so? The Biblical Evidence
Were the writers of the Psalms Amillennial? Psalm 2:1-12
Psalm 48:1-14 Psalm 68:1-35 Psalm 72:1-20 Psalm 76:1-12 Psalm 87:1-7 Psalm 96:1-13 Psalm 98:1-9 Psalm 99:1-2 Psalm 102:15-16, 21-22 Psalm 110:1-7 Psalm 132:13-18 Psalm 145:11-13 Was the Prophet Isaiah Amillennial? Isaiah
2:1-4
Isaiah 4:2-6 Isaiah 9:6-7 Isaiah 11:1-16 Isaiah 12:1-6 Isaiah 18:7 Isaiah 19:16-25 Isaiah 24:14-16a, 23 Isaiah 25:6-12. Ultimately this refers to the Eternal State. But I believe there will be a partial fulfillment in the Millennial Kingdom. Isaiah 26:1-4, 19 Isaiah 28:5-6 Isaiah 29:17-24 Isaiah 30:18-26 Isaiah 32:1-8, 15-20 Isaiah 33:13-24 Isaiah 35:1-10 Isaiah 41:8-16 Isaiah 44:1-5, 21-23 Isaiah 45:8, 14-17, 20-25 Isaiah 49:5-7, 8-13, 22-23 Isaiah 51:4-8, 9-11 Isaiah 52:7-10 Isaiah 54:8-17 Isaiah 56:1-7 Isaiah 59:9-21 Isaiah 60:1-22 Isaiah 61:1-11 Isaiah 62:1-12 Isaiah 65:8-10, 17-25 Isaiah 66:10-14, 18-24 Was the Prophet Jeremiah Amillennial? Jeremiah
31:1-14, 16-22, 23-26, 27-30, 31-40
Jeremiah 33:1-9, 14-26 Was the Prophet Ezekiel Amillennial? Ezekiel
11:14-20
Ezekiel 16:60-63 Ezekiel 17:22-24 Ezekiel 20:33-44 Ezekiel 28:25-26 Ezekiel 34:11-16, 23-24, 25-31 Ezekiel 36:8-15, 22-38 Ezekiel 37:1-14, 15-23, 24-28 Ezekiel 39:25-29 Ezekiel 40-46 gives detailed plans for a majestic Temple in Israel that has never been built. God authorized the son of David, Solomon, to build the first great Temple. It was majestic. I believe God has authorized the Greater Son of David to build an even more majestic Temple and Temple precincts in the land of Israel. Who might this Greater Son of David be, and when might He build this Temple? Following are some details: 1.
The Gates of the Temple. Ezekiel 40:1-37
2. The Various Facilities of the Temple. Ezekiel 40:38 - 42:20. (Selected Details....) a.
Facilities for rinsing and slaughtering sacrificial animals. Ezek.
40:38-43
b. Chambers for singers and priests. Ezek. 40:44-47 c. The Porch and Pillars of the Temple Proper. Ezek. 40:48-49 d. The Temple Nave. (Main Hall). Ezek. 41:1-3 e. The Most Holy Place. Ezek. 41:4 f. The West Building and Temple Proper. Ezek. 41:12-14 g. The Priests' Changing and Eating Chambers. Ezek. 42:1-14 h. The Outside Measurements of the Temple Complex. Ezek. 42:15-20 3. The Functions of the Temple. Ezek. 43:1-44:8 a.
Yahweh's Relationship to the Temple. Ezek. 43:1-12
b. The Altar of the Temple. Ezek. 43:13-27 c. The Usage of the Temple. Ezek. 44:1-8 4. The Workers in the Temple. Ezek. 44:9-31 a.
Past Idolatry Prohibits Levites from Serving as Priests, but not from
Ministering in Yahweh's House. Ezek. 44:9-14
b. The Requirements and Responsibilities of Faithful Levitical Priests, sons of Zadok, in Ministering to Yahweh. Ezek. 44:15-31 5. The Offerings at the Temple. Ezek. 45:1-46:24 a.
The Prince's Responsibility for Offerings. Ezek. 45:1-17
b. The Regulations for Offerings. Ezek. 45:18-46:24 (1)
Feasts at which public offerings are made. Ezek. 45:18-25
(2) Entry and exit procedures for people and prince in sabbath and new moon offerings. Ezek. 46:1-12 (3) Requirements for daily burnt offerings and grain offerings. Ezek. 46:13-15 (4) Regulations for the prince in regard to acquisition and bequeathal of real estate. Ezek. 46:16-18 (5) The kitchens in which priests are to boil and bake sacrifices. Ezek. 46:19-24 Ezekiel 47:1-48:35 gives details concerning the Land of Israel and the Division of the Land among the Twelve Tribes. These details and dimensions are nowhere in place anywhere else in the Old Testament or in the New Testament. The best conclusion is that these details will apply in Christ's Coming Kingdom, the Millennium. 1.
The Life-Giving River. Ezek. 47:1-12
a.
Water flowing from underneath the Temple. Ezek. 47:1-2
b. The ever-deepening river at intervals of 1000 cubits. Ezek. 47:3-6 c. The miraculous effects of the river. Ezek. 47:7-12 (1)
Providing fruit trees. Ezek. 47:7, 12
(2) Supporting fish. Ezek. 47:9 (3) Rejuvenating the Dead Sea! Ezek. 47:8, 10-11 2. The Boundaries of the Land. Ezek. 47:13-23 3. The Division of the Land. Ezek. 48:1-35 a.
Horizontal portions for the tribes from Dan to Judah. Ezek. 48:1-7
b. The priests' portion, including the Temple. Ezek. 48:8-12 c. The Levites' portion. Ezek. 48:13-14 d. The common use for the city. Ezek. 48:15-20 e. The Prince's portion (East and West sides of the holy allotment). Ezek. 48:21-22 f. The division for the remaining tribes of Benjamin to Gad. Ezek. 48:23-29 g. The gates and name of the city. Ezek. 48:30-35 Daniel
2:24-30, 31-35, 36-43, 44-45
Daniel 7:9-12, 13-14, 15-22, 23-27 Was the Prophet Hosea Amillennial? Hos. 1:10-11
Hos. 2:14-23 Hos. 3:4-5 Hos. 5:14-15 Hos. 14:4-7 Was the Prophet Joel Amillennial? Joel 2:18-27
Joel 2:28-29 Joel 3:1-3 Joel 3:16-17 Joel 3:18-21 Was the Prophet Amos Amillennial? Amos 9:11-15
Was the Prophet Obadiah Amillennial? Obadiah 1:15-21
Was the Prophet Micah Amillennial? Micah 4:1-5
Micah 4:6-8 Micah 4:12-13 Micah 5:2-5 Micah 5:8-9 Micah 7:14-20 Was the Prophet Zephaniah Amillennial? Zeph. 3:9-20
Was the Prophet Haggai Amillennial? Haggai 2:1-9
Haggai 2:20-23 Was the Prophet Zechariah Amillennial? Zech. 2:1-13
Zech. 3:1-10 Zech. 6:9-15 Zech. 8:1-8 Zech. 8:20-23 Zech. 9:10 - 10:5 Zech. 12:1 - 14:21 Was the Prophet Malachi Amillennial? Mal. 4:1-3
Mal. 4:5-6 Was Jesus Amillennial? Matthew
19:27-30
Matthew 25:31-46 Luke 19:11-27 Was the Apostle Matthew Amillennial? Matthew
2:1-6
Matthew 3:1-3, 11-13 Matthew 4:17, 23 Matthew 5:1-10, 20 Matthew 6:9-13, 33 Matthew 7:21 Matthew 8:5-13 Matthew 9:35 Matthew 10:1-7 Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43, 47-50 Matthew 16:28-17:8 Matthew 18:1-6 Matthew 19:13-15, 27-30 Matthew 20:20-23 Matthew 21:1-9 Matthew 22:1-14, 41-46 Matthew 23:37-39 Matthew 24:26-31, 36-41. May I suggest that in the days of Noah, the wicked drowned in judgment and were taken away from the earth, while the righteous were left alive to inhabit the post-flood earth. Similarly, at the Second Coming of Christ, the wicked will be taken away in judgment, while the righteous will be left alive to inhabit the Post-Tribulation earth and participate in the 1000-year reign of Christ on earth. Matthew 25:31-46. The Sheep and Goats of the Nations judgment. The Goats (the wicked) will be destroyed and taken away in judgment, while the the Sheep (the righteous) will be left alive to inhabit the earth during Christ's Millennial Kingdom Was the NT Writer Luke Amillennial? Luke 1:26-33
Luke 1:46-55 Luke 1:67-75 Luke 19:11-27 Acts 15:13-18 Was the Apostle John Amillennial? John
14:1-6
John 17:1-5 Revelation 1:7, 19 Revelation 2:26, 27 Revelation 3:4-5 Revelation 3:10-12 Revelation 3:19-21 Revelation 20:1-6 Revelation 22:6, 7, 12-16 The Answer
The answer is that none of the writers of the OT or the NT were Amillennial.
Almost without exception, they believed in the coming reign of the
Anointed King of Israel upon earth. The Anointed King would sit on the
throne of David in Jerusalem on earth. Jesus' present session at the
right hand of the Father up in heaven does not count. It is not what
they had in mind. David never reigned up in heaven, but upon earth.
Right now Jesus has great power and authority in heaven, but He is not
sitting on the throne of David in Jerusalem Israel on earth. We are not
now living in a pseudo Millennium. Jesus' coming reign has a specific
time frame -- 1000 years. To John alone that time frame was revealed.
The question arises, "When did Amillennialism arise, and who is responsible? The answer is that there are two culprits. Origen (185-254 A.D.) was a pioneer in the practice of non-literal interpretation. But it was Augustine, who lived from 354 to 430 A.D. who began to promulgate a non-literal hermeneutic extensively. His non-literal exegesis is best understood from his extensive writing about The City of God. "...Augustine believed that the church age is actually the millennium" (GotQuestions, City of God). Though Augustine had a great many good things to say, his non-literal hermeneutic has been a curse upon the church for centuries. Roman Catholicism bought into it, and so did the early reformers. It was the Anabaptists who returned to a literal hermeneutic, and they reaped the wrath of both Roman Catholics and the early Reformers like Luther and Calvin and Zwingli. A literal hermeneutic has been the hallmark of some major bulwarks of Christianity such as Dallas Theological Seminary, Grace Theological Seminary, Moody Bible Institute, and many Baptist pastors and teachers around the world. The distinct beliefs of a literal hermeneutic include a Pre-Tribulational, Premillennial interpretation of Biblical Prophecy. They also include a clear distinction between Israel and the Church. Even some Amillennialists have admitted, "If you take the Scriptures literally, you will come to a Pre-Tribulational, Premillennial understanding of Biblical Prophecy. Unashamedly, they do not take prophetic Scriptures literally. And the results, in my estimation, end up in an exegesis of prophetic Scriptures that is contorted and lacks inner consistency. (Scripture quotation taken from the NASB.) Updated May 3, 2025
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