Awaiting the Millennial Kingdom is about the end of this age and the dawn of the Sabbath millennium. The Church Fathers and the sages of ancient Israel taught that the world would endure six millennial 'days' - that is, 6,000 years - from the day of the creation of Adam. Then, after these 6,000 years, the Sabbath millennium would come, when the Messiah would rule the earth from Jerusalem for a thousand years. Yet the Bible also calculates the ages of the world in forty-nine-year jubilee cycles. If we put together these two ancient means of calculating the timetable of the ages, we arrive, with startling precision, at a timetable of the ages that points directly to our own days. The last jubilee year of the sixth millennium will run from 10 Tishri, autumn 2024, and finish a year later on 29 Elul 2025. Then the world will enter the long-awaited Sabbath millennium.
There's some careful research involved in proposing this view. We trace the teaching on the millennial Sabbath from its origins in Genesis, through the Psalms and the prophets, the intertestamental texts, the New Testament and Nazarene texts, Rabbinic and Patristic literature. We deal with historic premillennialism, Roman and medieval amillennialism, postmillennialism and dispensational premillennialism, to gain a proper perspective on what we should be looking for in these last days. The conclusion is that everything is going according to plan. He is not late. (He is never late.)
This book continues David Mitchell's series on messianic prophecy. As The Message of the Psalter looks at the messianic kingdom, as Messiah ben Joseph looks at the Messiah's atonement, as Jesus: The Incarnation of the Word looks at how he came in flesh, so Awaiting the Millennial Kingdom examines his return in glory. If you enjoyed these books, you'll enjoy this one too.
David Mitchell is a biblical theologian and musicologist. He lives in Brussels, Belgium.
