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The Certainty of the Lord's
Return
The Biblical Evidence
Dr.
David R. Reagan
Most people tend to think that Revelation
20 is the only passage in the Bible that speaks of a future reign
of the Lord. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The purpose
of this article is to provide an outline summary of the key passages
in both the Old and New Testaments that speak of the Lords future
reign.
A. Jesus is returning to reign
on earth because the Old Testament prophets say so.
1) The Psalms
a) Psalm 2:6-9 David says the
Messiah will reign over "the very ends of the earth" from Mount
Zion in Jerusalem.
b) Psalm 22:27-31 David again
affirms that the Messiah will be given dominion over "the ends
of the earth" at the time when He "rules over the nations."
c) Psalm 47 The sons of Korah
rejoice over the day when the Lord will be "a great King over
all the earth," and they state that this will take place when
the Lord subdues the "nations under our feet."
d) Psalm 67 An unidentified
psalmist speaks prophetically of the time when the nations of
the world will "be glad and sing for joy." This will be when
the Lord comes to "judge the peoples with uprightness." At that
time the Lord will "guide the nations on the earth" so that
"all the ends of the earth may fear Him."
e) Psalm 89:19-29 The psalmist,
Ethan, speaks of the Davidic Covenant and proclaims that it
will be fulfilled when God makes His "first-born the highest
of the kings of the earth."
f) Psalm 110 David says a time
will come when God will make the enemies of the Messiah a footstool
under His feet. This will occur when the Messiah stretches forth
His "strong scepter from Zion." At that time He will "rule in
the midst of His enemies," for . . . "He will shatter kings
in the day of His wrath, He will judge among the nations."
g) Psalm 132:13-18 An unnamed
psalmist speaks of Gods fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant.
He says this will occur at a time when "the horn of David" springs
forth to reign from Zion. He says "His crown will shine," and
He will make Zion His "resting place forever" for He will dwell
there.
2) Isaiah
a) Isaiah 2:1-4 Isaiah says
that "in the last days" the Messiah will reign from Mount Zion
in Jerusalem and the entire world will experience peace.
b) Isaiah 9:6-7 The Messiah
will rule from the throne of David, giving the world a government
of peace, justice, and righteousness. (Note: The throne of David
is not in Heaven. It is located in Jerusalem see Psalm 122.
Jesus is not now on the throne of David. He sits at the right
hand of His Father on His Fathers throne see Revelation 3:21.)
c) Isaiah 11:3b-9 The Messiah
will bring "righteousness and fairness" to the earth when He
returns to "slay the wicked." At that time, the curse will be
lifted and the plant and animal kingdoms will be restored to
their original perfection.
d) Isaiah 24:21-23 When the
Messiah returns, He will punish Satan and his demonic hordes
in the heavens and then will punish "the kings of the earth,
on earth." He will then "reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem"
for the purpose of manifesting His glory.
3) Jeremiah
a) Jeremiah 23:5 "Behold, the
days are coming, declares the Lord, when I shall raise up for
David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely
and do justice and righteousness in the land." (Note: The term,
"Branch," is a Messianic title.)
b) Jeremiah 33:6-18 A day will
come when the Lord will regather the dispersed of both Judah
and Israel and will save a great remnant. At that time the Lord
"will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; and
He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth."
4) Ezekiel
a) Ezekiel 20:33-44 The Lord
says a day will come when He will regather the Jews to their land
and will "enter into judgment" with them. He says that at that
time "I shall be king over you." He then adds that "the whole
house of Israel, all of them, will serve Me in the land."
b) Ezekiel 37:24-28 The Lord
says that He will dwell in the midst of Israel after a remnant
of the Jews is regathered to the land and saved, and He promises
that "David My servant shall be their prince forever."
c) Ezekiel 39:21-29 The Lord
says that following the battle of Armageddon (verses 17-20),
"I will set My glory among the nations; and all the nations
will see My judgment which I have executed, and My hand which
I have laid on them."
d) Ezekiel 43:7 While being
given a tour of the future Millennial Temple, Ezekiel is told
by the Lord: "Son of man, this is the place of My throne and
the place of the soles of My feet; where I will dwell among
the sons of Israel forever."
5) Daniel
Daniel 7:13-14,18,27
Daniel says he was given a vision in which he saw the Messiah
("Son of Man") given dominion over all the earth by God the Father
("the Ancient of Days"). And then he adds in verses 18 and 27
that the kingdom is shared "with the saints of the Highest One,"
and they are allowed to exercise sovereignty with Him over "all
the kingdoms under the whole heaven."
6) Hosea
Hosea 3:4-5 The Jews
will be set aside "for many days," but a time will come "in the
last days" when they "will return and seek the Lord their God
and David their king."
7) Joel
Joel 3:14-17,21 Joel
says that following the battle of Armageddon (verses 14-16), the
Lord will dwell "in Zion, My holy mountain." He repeats this in
verse 21. And in verse 17 He identifies Zion as the city of Jerusalem.
8) Micah
Micah 4:1-7 Micah repeats
in greater detail the prophecy contained in Isaiah 2. Like Isaiah,
he says the Lord will make Jerusalem the capital of the world.
The world will be flooded with peace and prosperity. All believing
Jews will be regathered to Israel, and "the Lord will reign over
them in Mount Zion."
9) Zephaniah
Zephaniah 3:14-20 This
entire book is devoted to a description of the day the Lord will
return to the earth in vengeance. The prophet says that at the
end of that day, when the Lords enemies have been destroyed,
the Jewish remnant will shout in triumphant joy because "the King
of Israel, the Lord," will be in their midst.
10) Haggai
Haggai 2:20-23 The Lord
says that a day will come when He will "overthrow the thrones
of kingdoms and destroy the power of the kingdoms of the nations."
Then, using Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, as a type of the Messiah,
the prophet adds: "On that day, declares the Lord of hosts,
I will take you, Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, my servant, declares
the Lord, and I will make you like a signet ring, for I have
chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts." The reference to the
signet ring means the Father will grant His Son ruling authority.
11) Zechariah
a) Zechariah 2:10-13 The Lord
says that when He comes, He will "dwell in the midst" of the Jews,
possessing Judah as "His portion in the holy land" and again choosing
Jerusalem.
b) Zechariah 6:12-13 When the
Messiah ("the Branch") returns, He will build a temple and "rule
on His throne," and the offices of priest and king will be combined
in Him. Thus, "He will be a priest on His throne."
c) Zechariah 8:2-3 The Lord
promises that when He returns to Zion, He will "dwell in the
midst of Jerusalem," and Jerusalem will be called "the city
of Truth."
d) Zechariah 9:10 The Messiah
will bring peace to the nations and "His dominion will be from
sea to sea."
e) Zechariah 14:1-9 The Messiah
will return to the Mount of Olives. The Mount will split in half
when His foot touches it, and the Jewish remnant left alive in
Jerusalem will flee the city and hide in the cleavage of the Mount.
Verse 9 says that on that day, "the Lord will become king over
all the earth."
B. Jesus is returning to reign over
the earth because the New Testament prophets say so.
1) Peter
Acts 3:21 In his sermon on the
portico of Solomon, Peter says Jesus must remain in Heaven "until
the period of the restoration of all things about which God spoke
by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time." The period
of restoration spoken of here will occur during the Millennium
when the curse is partially lifted and nature is restored (Romans
8:18-23).
2) Paul
a) 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10 Paul
says that when Jesus returns "dealing out retribution to those
who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel,"
He will also come for the purpose of being glorified before His
saints. The return of Jesus to be glorified before His saints
and all the nations of the world is one of the persistent themes
of Old Testament prophecy (Isaiah 24:23, Isaiah 52:10,13, Isaiah
61:3, and Psalm 46:10).
b) 2 Timothy 2:12 Paul says "if
we endure, we shall also reign with Him."
3) John
a) Revelation 12:5 John sees
a vision in which a sun clothed woman (Israel) gives birth to
a male child (Jesus) "who is to rule all the nations with a rod
of iron."
b) Revelation 19:15-16 In his
description of Jesus returning to earth, John says He bears
the title, "King of kings and Lord of lords," and John says
He will "rule the nations with a rod of iron."
c) Revelation 20:4,6 John says
that after the return of Jesus to the earth, He will reign with
His saints ("those to whom judgment has been given") for a thousand
years.
C. Jesus is returning to earth to
reign because the Heavenly Host say so.
1) Gabriel
Luke 1:26-38 When the archangel
Gabriel appeared to Mary, he told her that she would bear a son
named Jesus who would be called "the Son of the Most High." He
then added three promises that are yet to be fulfilled: "the Lord
God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will
reign over the house of Jacob forever; and His kingdom will have
no end."
2) The Four Living Creatures and
the 24 Elders
Revelation 5:9-10 When John
is raptured to Heaven and finds himself standing before the throne
of God (Revelation 4), he hears "the four living creatures" (special
angelic creatures called seraphim in Isaiah 6) and "the twenty-four
elders" (probably representative of the redeemed) singing a song
of praise to Jesus. In this song they say that Jesus is a Worthy
Lamb who has made His redeemed a kingdom, "and they will reign
upon the earth."
3) The Angels of God
Revelation 11:15 Voices from
Heaven make a proleptic proclamation in the midst of the Tribulation:
"The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord,
and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever." (Note:
A proleptic statement is one that speaks of a future event as
if it has already occurred. This is a common form of expression
in prophecy because all future events are settled in the mind
of God as if they had already happened in history.)
4) The Tribulation Martyrs
Revelation 15:3-4 At the end
of the Tribulation, right before the final pouring out of Gods
wrath in the form of the bowl judgments, all the Tribulation martyrs
who are in Heaven join together in singing "the song of Moses
. . . and the song of the Lamb." In that song, they declare the
Lamb (Jesus) to be the "King of the nations," and they proclaim
that "all the nations will come and worship before Thee."
D. Jesus is returning to reign on
the earth because Jesus said so.
1) Matthew 19:28 Jesus said
that during "the regeneration" (the same time as "the period of
restoration" referred to by Peter in Acts 3:21), He will "sit
on His glorious throne," and the Apostles will join Him in judging
the twelve tribes of Israel.
2) Matthew 25:31 Jesus said
that when He returns in glory, "the Son of Man . . . will sit
on His glorious throne. And all the nations will be gathered
before Him" for judgment. The throne of Jesus is the throne
of David which has always been located in only one place in
Jerusalem (see Isaiah 9:6-7 and Psalm 122).
3) Acts 1:3-6 Luke says that
Jesus spent 40 days teaching His disciples about the kingdom
of God. Then, as He was ready to ascend into Heaven, one of
the disciples asked, "Lord is it at this time You are restoring
the kingdom to Israel?" The question indicates that Jesus taught
a time would come when the kingdom would be restored to Israel.
Jesus response to the question indicated the same thing. He
did not rebuke the question. Rather, He simply said it was not
for them to know the times and seasons when the kingdom would
be restored to Israel.
4) Revelation 2:26-27 Jesus
says that He has a special reward for any "overcomer" who keeps
His deeds until the end: "To him I will give authority over
the nations; and he shall rule them with a rod of iron."
5) Revelation 3:21 Jesus makes
it clear that the overcomers will reign jointly with Him: "He
who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne,
as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne."
Again, the throne of Jesus is the throne of David (Luke 1:32 and
Revelation 3:7). The throne of David is in Jerusalem, not in Heaven
(Psalm 122). Jesus currently shares His Fathers throne. He is
not sitting on His own throne and will not do so until He returns
to this earth. Then He will allow the redeemed to share His throne
with Him. |
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