Administration of God’s Plan of Salvation During the Millennium

NOTE: All comments in brackets [ ] or in parentheses ( ) as well as highlighted text (bolded and/or in blue) are from the author of this study.
Bible quotations are in maroon.

In this study we will explore how God’s master plan of salvation for mankind will be administered and what role if any, Israel will play in it during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.  Will God wave a magic wand of some kind and human nature suddenly and irreversibly be changed to one of faithful obedience to God in all things and if not, then how will salvation come to those living during the Millennium and the Last Great Day? In order to get part of the answer we will examine what will be the status and role of Israel as a nation in the world during the Millennium and by extension during the Last Great Day and we will have to determine the distinction that has to be maintained between that part of Israel that will constitute God’s Church and that part which will still be Israel but not God’s Church. There are some in Israel that will remain unconverted and this is how it has been since the foundation of God’s Church and since the time God has  been calling people out of the world; not all called out ones follow their calling and not all those following their calling remain converted. Israel and the Millennium will be no different.

We have been taught that the Millennium would be a time when with the pouring out of God’s Holy  Spirit upon all flesh there would be a need to conduct a massive re-education program to teach people the true values by which they should all along have been living. God’s first resurrection saints as glorified spirit beings were to be the teachers that would teach the nations that in time would massively convert but for a few exceptional individuals. The result would be a new world, the world tomorrow where the earth would have been restored by God to a Garden of Eden-like state and where peace and prosperity would reign with spears being turned into pruning hooks and swords into ploughshares.

Let’s examine together, patiently and with an open mind, whether the Scriptures confirm or not this vision of the time of the Millennium.

A first point that needs to be made and understood before we get into the meat of this study is what it means for Christians to build on the foundation laid by Christ at His First Coming and whether it is something that is optional. In other words does God only require of Christians that they acquire a certain amount of knowledge and then spend the rest of their lives reviewing that same knowledge over and over and over again. Would that be what God means when He tells us in multiple Scriptures that Christians have to grow in knowledge and understanding and in the grace of Christ?

It is easy to demonstrate, and it should be evident to long time Church members to who this study is principally addressed, that a Christian’s life is to be one of growth in knowledge AND understanding and in the grace of Christ i.e., we should be trying to apply the truth that we have as much as we possibly can to every aspect of our lives. Long term members should be easily able to prove this out for themselves as this is not a new teaching by any means. If as a long term member you still are unable to prove things out with your Bible then you have a big problem; hopefully, that includes none of you reading this study.

Building on the Foundation

Mr. Armstrong was indeed the Elijah to come promised  by Christ and he was to restore all things to the church. What were the “all things” that were to be restored? The church because of the 1260 years of persecution by the great false church of the book of Revelation had been worn down and much of the original truth given it by Jesus-Christ at the time of His First Coming was lost. What remained was the knowledge of the Sabbath and a few other truths which Mr. Armstrong found being practiced by the exhausted remnant of the Sardis Era when he came among them for a short while. They rejected the truth given the end-time Elijah, they refused to hear him and closed their minds to anything he had to say and to this day are at the same point in their understanding of God’s truth as when the end-time Elijah visited them.

This is a state of mind which is unfortunately very common among God’s people and which is contrary to what God says and that is that we are to be able to prove all things from the pages of our Bible because we know the foundational truth of the Bible so well that is it impossible for us to be taken by the latest false doctrines coming from the mouths of men seeking to deceive anybody and everybody they can to get a following for themselves and make merchandise — a means for them to make a living — out of those that they succeed in drawing after them.

In Ephesians 4:14 God clearly tells all true Christians that they must grow in knowledge and understanding to the point where they are no longer children in knowledge and understanding of the truth; they have matured from being babes-in-Christ when they were first converted to being children-in-Christ on their way through constant study of the Bible (God speaks to us) and prayer (we speak to God and thus are maintaining an ongoing lifelong conversation with God) to becoming mature adult Christians.

Eph 4:14  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 

A related point of importance here is that Paul makes clear that it is given by God for some men to be apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers for “the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry and for the edifying of the body of Christ.” Apostles and prophets receive truth from God and evangelists assist apostles when there are apostles, and pastors and teachers teach the Church the truth God placed in it through the prophets and the apostles who constitute the foundation of the New Testament Church. Church members are to grow in the knowledge God gives His Church and no more be children in understanding who can be swayed by cunning and crafty deceivers both arising from within the Church and infiltrating the Church from the world.

The end-time Elijah would be used by God to lay the foundation of truth of His Philadelphia Era Church. It is a Church to which the original truth given the disciples by Christ at His First Coming would be restored. This truth would be given to those God would call to become members of His Philadelphia Era Church. They would be called straight out of the world as most of us were and they would support by their prayers, tithes and offering God’s apostle in the fulfillment of his commission to preach the Gospel to the world as a witness prior to the coming of the Great Tribulation.

Mr. Armstrong learned the truth gradually and as he progressed in knowledge and understanding, he has had at times to change some of the things he had been preaching. Most notable was the changing of the celebration of Pentecost from Saturday to Sunday. The Church had been teaching that Saturday was the right day.

Mr. Armstrong explained to the congregations of the Philadelphia Era Church that it was unavoidable as growth in knowledge and understanding occurred that it would sometimes be necessary to revise some of the teachings of the Church. Mr. Armstrong did not get all of the truth at the same time; it was through several years of study and prayer and this sometimes made it necessary for earlier teachings to be revised or changed.

Mr. Armstrong said it was a sign of the true Church that it would change when it was proven with the Scriptures that one of its comprehension had been in error. The world’s churches teachings are frozen in time and the Scriptures are made to fit their beliefs rather than the Scriptures being the means used to be continually putting their beliefs to the test and changing them when it becomes evident that a given understanding had been wrong.

The process of growth in knowledge and understanding is one that continues to this day. The holy Bible contains all the truth of God but not all of it is either known or understood. What was given the first century Church by Christ was the foundation; NOT everything.

The disciples who became apostles on the Day of Pentecost were given truth by Christ which Paul, who was not one of the original apostle but who is an apostle nonetheless, calls “the foundation.”

1Co 3:10  According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.
[Paul taught the congregations of his days, the truth which Christ had given him and the other apostles; the foundational truths of God’s Church. Those of God’s Church, everyman, are to be careful how they build on the foundation of truth Christ gave them through Paul and us today, through Mr. Armstrong who restored the foundational truths to God’s Philadelphia Era Church.]

1Co 3:11  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
[The truth given by Christ to God’s Church is the one and only possible foundation; no other teachings from whomever it may be can be part of the foundation; it is the one and only sure base on which Christians are to build.]

1Co 3:12  Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
[The men of which Paul is talking about here are truly converted members of God’s Church; the Bible does not speak to the world and Paul here was addressing the Corinthian congregations of God’s Church. Paul gives out a warning to those who are to build on the foundation; different individuals will do so in ways that are compared to different quality material as a way of illustrating the spiritual quality of the things built on the foundation. What would be built on the foundation of original truth given God’s Church? Why, other truth that fit on the foundation i.e., that does not undo the truths of the foundation itself. This is truth that are there for individual Christians to discover as they speak to God in prayer and God speaks to them as they study their Bible. God has commanded Christians to grow in knowledge and understanding of the truth and this from the time of their conversion until their death. Having growth in knowledge and understanding is the lifeblood of the spiritual embryos that are true Christians and which feeds and keeps them alive and growing so as to be ready for their birth as glorified spirit beings in the resurrection.]

1Co 3:13  Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
[The quality of the material used or the quality of the studies undertaken will be made evident by the ability of what was built on the foundation to withstand the fire of God’s truth which in the resurrection we will all know in its fullness.  Truth which is stubble, hay, wood in spiritual quality will be consumed; other truth which is precious stones, silver and gold will survive more or less intact.

1Co 3:14  If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
[IF a Christian has had quality growth (precious stones, silver, gold) in knowledge and understanding in this life, he will be rewarded in God’s Kingdom for the time and energy he devoted to quality and in-depth study of the Scriptures to come to a greater knowledge and understanding of God’s truth in obedience to God’s command to do so.]

1Co 3:15  If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
[But, if any man’s work is consumed by the fire of God’s truth because it was stubble, hay or wood in spiritual quality i.e., it did not really fit on the foundation then this Christian will suffer loss i.e., of those things which he thought were truth but were in fact not truth. However, and this is very important for us all to notice, this Christian will be saved just the same but he will be like a man who escaped from a burning house; he made it out with his life but he got burnt here and there and loss the possessions he had in his house.]

Notice that in all cases, the expectation is that Christians build on the foundation and God reassures us all that if we make mistakes we will not lose our eternal lives as a result. All are encouraged to build which is to say, to study and to have growth; none are encouraged to simply memorize the foundational truth and then spend the rest of their lives reviewing them over and over again.  God commands growth and growth requires effort and self-discipline in doing good quality Bible studies where we use the truth given us as the tools to discover more truth which are not part of the foundational truth given the Church. Christians primary and most important relationship is not with the ministry or certain men in positions of authority in the Church which we highly regard; our relationship is to be with God the Father and Jesus-Christ. It is an individual and personal relationship we maintain all our lives through prayer and study; the ministry are the helpers of our faith but the source of our beliefs is the Bible and our understanding of the truth is through God’s in-dwelling Holy Spirit.

How can we tell if something we have found is indeed truth that is building on the foundation.  Well, Christ says there can be no other foundation than the one He has laid; therefore, any truth we discover must not undo any of the truth of the foundation. There are cases where we may think what we have discovered doesn’t undo a foundational truth when in fact it does but as explained this will not result in loss of salvation. The key point here is that we do not realize that what we have uncovered is undoing one or more truth of the foundation; we are not knowingly trying to destroy one or more of the Church’s foundational truth. If we are not being sincere then we are knowingly changing one or more foundational truth which God clearly states no man should knowingly do then we are placing ourselves in the position of losing our salvation.

Mr. Armstrong restored all things i.e., the foundational truth of God’s Church given by Christ to the apostles but Mr. Armstrong is but a man and it was possible for him to have made errors in what he taught and he said so himself. He very often used to tell the whole congregation “Don’t believe me, believe your Bible and if anything I teach is proven wrong by the Bible, follow the Bible; do not follow men.” All throughout his long ministry, Mr. Armstrong has had to make changes to what he taught as he grew through constant in-depth study in knowledge and understanding of the truth. He corrected errors he had made until the time of his death and had he lived longer, he probably would have made more corrections as he grew in his knowledge and understanding of the Bible. Were he to be alive to day, he would say as much himself.

Mr. Armstrong always said that we are to have an open mind and to carefully examine new truth that comes our way against the Bible to ascertain whether or not it is supported by the Scriptures.  Christians need to keep an open mind so as not to shut out Christ who may be knocking at their door wanting to give them more knowledge and understanding. Mr. Armstrong went to Sardis who completely rejected all he had to say no matter how fully proven from the pages of the Bible and to this day they are stagnating with no growth in knowledge.

Jesus-Christ as a young man of thirty could come to any of the several churches of God out there today teaching them truth fully supported by the Scriptures and He would be thrown out just like He was when He came to the religious leaders of Israel who were so sure they knew the Scripture so well. They would not allow a stranger, someone who was not a part of their little group to have a voice; they worked at shutting Him down mercilessly and eventually decided that it was expedient that He should die as He was causing too much trouble; they would not listen and lost out big time as we would say today.

As long term Christians we should have a solid grasp of the foundational truth of God’s Church; the Bible should be a known quantity to us; we should not still be struggling to understand what is its message, to whom it is talking, etc. We should have the foundation solidly in place; the Bible should not be a strange and mysterious book that we are still trying to understand; we should not be such wobbly Christians that we fear that the least exposure to something not written by Mr. Armstrong will cause us to fall away and lose our salvation. Mr. Armstrong should not be our criterion of truth as he told us all so many times; the Bible is the criterion of truth and we are to be able to use it to prove out whatever may come our way before simply rejecting it like the Pharisees and the congregation of the Sardis Era Church that Mr. Armstrong visited.

God tells us what we should do and as usual the choice is left entirely up to us. We can close our minds and spend our lives memorizing and rehearsing the truth given the Church by God through Mr. Armstrong and have no growth or we can build on the foundation as God commands us to do which means that we have to step out of our comfort zone and do the harder work of proving things out for ourselves as we should have been doing all along since the time of our calling and getting involved in regular, quality, attentive and in-depth study of the Bible itself, not of books written by men about what the Bible says, but the Bible itself.

Rewarded According to our Works

When someone is called, God the Father opens his mind to  understand some of the truth of the Bible as much as is needed for the person to be brought to the point where he realizes that God exists and that he must make up his mind to either submit to God’s rule in his life or go back into the world. This information is freely given to those God is calling to make it possible for them, for the first time, to realize the existence of God. If the person follows their calling and enters God’s Church, he is then taught the foundational truth of the Church which was given to it by Christ and restored to the Church by God’s end-time Elijah, Mr.Armstrong.  So far most of the work has been done by others and the new convert is benefiting from their labor. But, after becoming a mature Christian who has been weaned from the milk of the Word (Isa 28:9) and who has become skillful in the use of the Scriptures (Heb 5:13), progress in knowledge and understanding of God’s truth will be as a result of the work done by the now spiritually mature convert.

We are rewarded according to our works and not the works of others. Initially, we are given the foundational truth of God’s Church but we then become responsible for building on the foundation as Paul tells us (1Cor 3:10); it is not something others do for us, it is something we must do for ourselves.

Christ said that He would manifest Himself to the disciples and their spiritual descendants (John 14:21-22); He would do so by the Comforter which the Father would send in His name after Christ’s ascension back to His Father. The Comforter would bring all things back to the disciples’ remembrance (the foundational truths Christ had given them) and it would teach them (and their spiritual descendants: Christians through the centuries) all things (John 14:26). 

True Christians are to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus-Christ (2nd Pet 3:18) and this they do by studying their Bible (2nd Tim. 2:15). A lot of the book of Proverbs is about getting knowledge and understanding of God’s truth (Prov 9:10) as are the Psalms. Getting knowledge and understanding as a mature Christian requires work; mature Christians are drawn from the breasts and have to eat on their own; if they are unable to do so, it is simply because they are still not weaned and have a milk level understanding of the Scriptures and are therefore unskillful (Heb 5:13) in using the Scriptures to grow in knowledge and understanding.

Being rewarded according to our works explains quite well the problem facing those who do have growth in knowledge and understanding as a result of their works i.e., their continuing attentive study of the Scriptures. They are rewarded by more knowledge and understanding but which unfortunately and very often, cannot be shared with other Christians who have not been studying their Bible. The fruits of knowledge and understanding they have gotten from their works are rejected by those who are not doing much studying or who have no works. The knowledge and understanding received from building on the foundation are strong meat which cannot be taken in or digested by those who are still not drawn from the breasts and can only absorb milk; they are still babes-in-Christ.

It is a bit like trying to explain God’s truth to an unbeliever; to someone whom God has not called; he doesn’t have the mind to understand it and right away rejects it. In the same way, the true Christian which has yet to master the foundational truth of God’s Church is unable to absorb truth that builds on the foundation and it is largely futile to try to give it to them. They are like babies still unable to eat solid food and if you try giving it to them they choke on it.

And so it is that truth that builds on the foundation is not something which can be shared with spiritually immature Christians any more than God’s truth can be shared with the world. Having a greater understanding of the truth of God is the reward of those who have been knocking, seeking, hungering and thirsting for truth and it cannot be shared with those who do not have the same appetite or interest even if they are true Christians. They have decided to hide their talent from fear of losing it; they will not engage in spiritual fellowship nor are they ready to prove things out with their Bible. They are Matt 25: 24-30 Christians.  Increased knowledge and understanding of God’s truth is God’s special reward to those who are studying and praying  and who continue to have a keen interest in deepening their understanding of the Scriptures. Hopefully, you are part of that group and if not, that you will decide to get going on a program of regular and in-depth Bible study. And, if you are still struggling with the fundamentals of God’s Church, that you will resolutely decide to master them.

Christ said He would manifest Himself to true Christians through the Comforter that the Father would send i.e., the Holy Spirit and that it, the Holy Spirit would teach them all things. In other words, Christ would manifest Himself to true Christians not by appearing to them in a non-scary way and having a coffee with them as they discuss the meaning of Scriptures; rather, He would given them more understanding of the Scriptures by the Holy Spirit dwelling in them because of their continued attitude of obedience to God in all things (Acts 5:32).

Is Christ manifesting Himself to you?

Have you grown past the milk of the Word and have you become able to dine on the meat of the Word or are you still at the breasts and every time meat is offered you, you choke on it?

Before we get into the main focus of this study, I would like to review some of the common ways of thinking people use which lead to major mistakes in understanding when they read the Bible. One of them, and it is one of which we have all used at one time or another, is to generalize and assume things based on our current knowledge and understanding and interpret what we read to fit our assumptions but the Bible is written with great precision which means that we need to be very careful and precise — if you don’t know the precise meaning of a word, you need to look it up every time — in our analysis of the words used in the Bible.

We will look at those common errors because they have led to significant misunderstandings of the Millennium and of the Last Great Day and hopefully, it will help you to understand why what we have been taught by the ministry in many respects is simply not consistent with how God is proceeding to work out His great master plan of salvation for mankind. In fact, there is no real difference during the Millennium and the Last Great Day with the method that has been in use since the foundation of God’s New Testament Church but that God will pour out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh which is to say all will be called. However, it does not follow, and here is where the train jumps the track,  that all those called will be chosen become converted and ardent followers of God’s truth until the end of their natural lives.

This is the way it has been from the beginning.

Yes, God will pour out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh but it does not necessarily follow that though the world will then be called that everybody will follow their calling. As Christ clearly and plainly tells us “many are called but few are chosen” (Matt 22:14) but what seems to be the general understanding in the Church of the meaning of this verse is that if you’re called then you are God’s Church and part of the saved. One needs to be called, chosen and faithful to be saved and to be part of God’s Church. This misconception of the significance of what it means to be called is one of the major shortcomings in understanding that has lead to a massive misunderstanding of how the Millennium and the Last Great Day will unfold.

Bible Reading Pitfalls

The big impediments to correctly understanding the Bible had been to not know and understand the big picture of what the Bible is all about which thankfully Mr. Armstrong did give us and, not to know and understand a few great principles that are constant from Genesis to Revelation which Christ plainly gives us but which were somehow not applied by the ministry. This has lead to all sorts of unintentional misinterpretations of the Scriptures especially with respect to the Millennium and by extension, of the Last Great Day.

As we know, words usually have more than one meaning and in everyday conversation, certain meanings become dominant and in people’s minds, this dominant meaning becomes the only meaning.  The Bible is written with great precision and words are not as loosely used as when we are talking to each other.

For example, the word repentance has different possible meanings depending on the context in which it is used. To the world’s religions and for most of God’s Church “repentance” has always meant and only ever means, to stop sinning. But this is not always the case, we can repent of an activity which is not sin; we have simply decided not to engage in it anymore like for example sleeping late in the morning. Sleeping late in the morning is not a sin; stopping my habit of doing so is repentance and I can say, that I  repented from sleeping late in the morning and here my repentance has nothing to do with ceasing to sin.

The Bible says that it repented God that he had created humanity (Gen 6:6); had God somehow sinned? The subject of the different meanings of repentance has been extensively covered in a study on this site which you can read at the following hyperlink: What was Job’s Self-Righteousness?

Words can and often do have more than one possible meaning and meanings can vary with the context which can and often does change the connotation of the word. God “repented” but God’s repentance was not of sin and the context makes it clear that God’s repentance has the connotation that He was sorry that He had created mankind seeing how their thoughts were evil continually.

Gen 6:5  And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 

Gen 6:6  And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 

The Hebrew word translated “repentance” in Gen 6:6 is: nâcham (naw-kham’) which is defined in the following way: 

“A primitive root; properly to sigh, that is, breathe strongly; by implication to be sorry, that is, (in a favorable sense) to pity, console or (reflexively) rue; or (unfavorably) to avenge (oneself): – comfort (self), ease [one’s self], repent (-er, -ing, self).” (Strong’s Hebrew and  Greek Dictionaries)

The meaning of the word “rue” is 1.to feel sorrow over; regret bitterly and 2. to wish that (something) had never been done, taken place, etc. (www.Dictionary.com)

Putting all this information together gives us the correct understanding of what was God’s repentance in that particular verse and it was not that He had sinned and had decided from that point on to no longer sin. 

As we should all be able to readily see, it is vitally important that we take the time to examine words in their context and to look up the different possible meanings of words to make sure we are getting the correct meaning given the context so that we can be sure we are correctly understanding what is being said. We must refrain from generalizing based on our often limited understanding of the meaning of words. All of us, we have to spend more time looking up words in our dictionary and looking up the meaning of Hebrew and Greek words as necessary. Having the correct understanding of words is important but we also need to fully realize and not forget that the understanding of the spiritual truth of the Bible comes from having God’s Holy Spirit; it is not something that can be discovered by using dictionaries, lexicons, etc. If it were possible to understand the spiritual truth of God using dictionaries and lexicons then mankind would have done so a long time ago.

Another source of error about what will occur during the Millennium is to assume that any time anything good happens during the Millennium is because of conversion i.e.,  that the reason for there being peace, security and prosperity is because of either individuals or nations having become converted. The Bible states the nations will not be eager to engage in war during the Millennium (Isa 2:4; Mic 4:3) but will it be because of their having become converted? As we go through this study, you will hopefully come to understand that there are other reasons why the nations will not be quick to go to war against each other or Israel and that it has nothing to do with conversion. For a detailed study of the conversion process see the following study at this hyperlink: Mass Conversion of the Nations during the Millennium?

Another way in which people assume things is to take those verses in which God says Israel will be redeemed and its sins forgiven and then proceed to think that all members of the nations of Israel during the Millennium will be converted and living lives of eager obedience to God. They also think that with God pouring out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh (Joel 2:28) that there will be a mass conversion of the nations which is what will make the Millennium like heaven on earth on a  planet which God will have restored to Garden of Eden-like beauty and everybody will live happily ever after except for a few incorrigibly wicked that will suffer the second death. This vision then becomes the theme, framework and general background against which Scriptures about the Millennium are read and it leads to very significant errors in understanding.

One final point I would like to mention and which is something that many seem to have forgotten and that is the role of Israel during the Millennium and the Last Great Day. It can be proven from the pages of your Bible that the remnant of the modern-day nations constituting Israel will return from captivity among the gentile nations and will be resettled in the Promised Land which is called Palestine in our days. There, they will undergo a 3 1/2 year period of teaching by Christ who is to confirm with them the covenant (Dan 9:27). This will be the time of Israel’s calling (Rom 11: 25-27).  At the end of this 3 1/2 year period of having God’s truth taught them, those of the remnant of the end-time nations constituting Israel that returned from captivity who choose to follow their calling (not all of them will) will make the New Covenant with Christ and will become God’s Church that God will use to teach those individuals from the nations that convert (not all of them will) when He pours out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh.

God’s pouring out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh (Joel 2:28)  will be the time of the calling of individuals from all nations but not all of those called out are chosen because many will make the decision to remain in the world and God will respect their decision. As for those who commit themselves to a life of obedience to God (they are the chosen) not all will remain converted (Matt 7:13) as has been the case since the foundation of God’s New Testament Spirit-begotten Church. Being called, chosen and getting on the road to conversion is no guaranty of salvation. Those that are saved are those that are called, chosen and faithful unto the end of their lives (Rev 17:14).

It’s all there for you to read in the study mentioned a few paragraphs above, so I will not pursue the matter any further in this study; if you have not already gone through that study, I would encourage you to do so.

Let’s now get going with this study by examining a Scripture that will be familiar to most of you and which was often used during the Feast of Tabernacles.

The Times of Restitution of All Things

At the time of Christ’s First Coming He came to Israel, among other things, to teach those that would constitute the foundation of God’s New Testament Spirit-begotten Church which would be the instrument that God would use in teaching those individuals that would be called and chosen from the Day of Pentecost until the time of the 3rd resurrection.

When Christ’s 2nd Coming occurs, all those who converted (and who stayed converted until the time of their death) from Adam and Eve to the time of Christ’s 2nd Coming, whether dead or alive, become part of God’s Bride by a resurrection to glorified spirit life. They are no longer physical, flesh-and-blood human beings living on the earth but are glorified spirit beings whose existence has been elevated to the God plane; they are God as God is God and they are with Christ in heaven (no longer on the earth) as Christ’s Bride.

After the first resurrection, there will then be no human beings left on the earth with a comprehensive and detailed knowledge of God’s truth. There will be people (men and women) here and there all over the world that were called out before and during the Great Tribulation and who survived through it. They were not converted i.e., God’s Holy Spirit was not in them; it was only with them, and they consequently were not part of the first resurrection; they had yet to commit themselves to obeying God; they were still in the process of deciding whether to follow their calling or go back into the world when Christ’s 2nd Coming happened. The depth and breadth of their knowledge of the truth is that of newcomers to the faith which is to say, it is still very much incomplete.

As a result, the knowledge of God’s truth to a large extent will have been lost as those of God’s Church who had it became glorified spirit beings and are with Christ in the third heaven. After Christ’s 2nd Coming it will be necessary and the Scriptures state that this is what will occur, (Dan 9:27) for the truth to be restored to those who will constitute God’s church during the Millennium and the Last Great Day in the same way it was given by Christ at His First Coming to those who became the foundation of God’s New Testament church.

A similar process of restoration of God’s Church foundational truth occurred in our days when after 1260 years of persecution by the Great Whore of Revelation 17 wore out the saints of the most High (Dan 7: 25) it was necessary that one come in the power and spirit of Elijah the prophet (Math 17:11; Mal 4:5) to restore to God’s Church the truth that it had been given by Christ and which for the greatest part had been lost through the long years of persecution when the woman (the true Church) had to flee (Rev 12:6) into the wilderness to save herself from being fully destroyed by the great false church (Dan 7:8; Dan.7:25) that arose after the Ascension of Christ to heaven. The promised end-time Elijah did come and restore all things to God’s Church i.e., the foundational truth given by Christ at His First Coming to the apostles but there is another period of tribulation to come upon the Church and the world, the great tribulation of Matt 24:21. It will be a “time of trouble such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.”

The level of loss of life and destruction of property (cities laid waste (Ez 6:6; 12:20)) will be so extensive that it will be greater than what has occurred in the world up to that time or that ever will be again. The last World War resulted in the death of over 60 million persons; the Great Tribulation will be an even greater time of loss of life and physical destruction. And, there will be a great martyrdom of true and false Christians all over the world (5th seal of book of Revelation) and a corresponding huge loss of the foundational truth of God’s Church restored by God’s end-time Elijah to God’s Church as had occurred during the 1260 years of persecution of God’s Church by the great false church of Revelation 17.

This is why we read in the book of Acts that when Christ comes back it will be the times of restitution of all things. Because of this end-time great tribulation of which the 1260 years of persecution by the great false church of God’s saints is a type, the Church will again have lost much of the truth restored to it by God’s promised end time Elijah, Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong. There will again be a need for Christ to come and teach the truth to those who will constitute the continuation of God’s Church during the Millennium and the Last Great Day. This is one of the main reasons why God the Father sends Christ back to the earth and Acts 3:20-21 is a prophecy of Christ’s 2nd Coming and of the work He will do of restoring the truth given to the First Century Church to those who will constitute God’s Church that will exist during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.

Act 3:20  And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: 

Act 3:21  Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. 

The Scriptures say that Christ will spend 3 1/2 years confirming the covenant with Israel (Dan 9:27). His first ministry with Israel was cut off after 3 1/2 years and there remains another 3 1/2 years to complete His ministry with Israel; only this time, it will be with an end-time physical Israel returned from captivity. Christ will teach them for 3 1/2 years restoring the truth that had been lost because of the destruction and havoc of the Great Tribulation and the events of the Day of the Lord and because of the glorification of God’s saints at Christ’s 2nd Coming (they will no longer be on the earth but in the third heaven with Christ as His Bride).

A small but important  point that needs to be mentioned here which will show just how critical it is to have clear in our minds the terminology used in the Bible so as not to misunderstand what is being said is knowing the precise meaning of the word “saint.”

God’s saints are flesh-and-blood human beings called and chosen for a special purpose preparatory to the establishment of the kingdom of God. God’s saints are NOT glorified spirit beings who have become God as God is God and who have become the Bride of Christ though that will be their reward for their faithfulness. After the first resurrection, there will be a 7th day Work which in God’s plan of salvation is to last 1,000 years and those called out and chosen during that period of time will be the flesh-and-blood human beings that become the saints of God which God will use in performing tasks related to bringing salvation to mankind that will then exist and during the Last Great Day in the same way as He has been doing since the Day of Pentecost. From the beginning God has used men to teach other men. There is no example or Scriptures indicating that spirit beings would ever be used to teach men during the Millennium or the Last Great Day. For a lot  more detailed information on this topic I would refer you to the following study: How Does God Now Rule Over Mankind?

Please note that as I keep saying in my different studies that in order to follow along with what is being explained here and to avoid shocked disbelief, it is best to have read in sequence the studies on this site and to have understood them; if not, I would have in each new study to repeat everything that has been said in all the preceding studies for the reader to understand what is being said in the latest study. It would take too long and require too many pages to keep on repeating things which you would know were you to simply read the existing studies in their order of presentation on the site. If not, you will find yourself having questions, doubts and outright rejecting the contents of either this study or others because you don’t have the full picture of all that has been explained so far. If that describes you, it is incumbent upon you to stop and go back to the beginning and read yourself in back to this latest study making sure to read the studies in the order presented as they build on one another.

Now pursuing with this study.

God’s Church during the Millennium

One of the first things that Christ does after His 2nd Coming is to gather the remnant of the physical nations constituting end-time Israel; bring it back to the Promised Land and confirm the covenant with them. The truth given the first century apostles will be restituted or restored to those members of the nation of Israel during Christ’s 3 1/2 year ministry to them. Those who at the end of Christ’s ministry commit themselves to obeying God, (not all of them will) and who become converted will become God’s New Covenant Church that He will use as His human instrument in teaching those individuals of the nations that convert (not all of them will) following God calling them by pouring out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh.

Christ said: “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Mat16:18) In other words, God’s Church would always exist as long as mankind would exist. Mankind will exist until the time of the 3rd resurrection and therefore so will God’s Church. It should then not be all that surprising that God’s Church will exist during the Millennium and the Last Great Day and be responsible for fulfilling the same responsibilities it has had since its foundation i.e., being the helpers of the faith (2nd Cor’ns 1:24) of newcomers to the truth as God opens up their minds through His Holy Spirit to make it possible for them to understand His spiritual truth.

All of humanity will be called after Christ’s 2nd Coming but, as has been the case since the foundation of God’s Church, not all those that are called are chosen and not all that convert remain converted. It will be the very same thing for Israel whose calling will occur during the making of the New Covenant (3 1/2 year duration). They will all be called but they will not all be chosen as they will not all decide to commit themselves to obey God to the best of their abilities until the end of their lives. Therefore, in the physical nation of Israel there will continue to be unconverted individuals. And of those who are chosen, the Bible, and Church history (including what recently happened after the death of Mr. Armstrong), very clearly show that not all of them will remain faithful until the end of their natural lives. There is no doubt that Israel will not be a nation where everybody is converted and this throughout the Millennium and the Last Great Day.

There will be an unconverted nation of Israel which will be the larger part (many called, few chosen Matt 22:14) of the population in which will also live members of God’s Church (the few chosen Matt 22:14) which will be initially made up of only those individuals from the remnant of physical Israel come back from captivity who will have converted during Christ’s 3 1/2 year ministry. In time, other individuals from the Gentile nations who convert will become part of God’s Church as it is a spiritual organization and one becomes part of it by becoming converted not by being born into it or by being in the same physical location. The members of  God’s Church during the Millennium will be found all over the world in small groups and in individuals who are not part of any group,  just as it exists today. With respect to the unconverted part of Israel, of course, those born to the citizens of Israel become part of Israel but not of God’s Church which is spiritual Israel unless they become converted.

There will be God’s physical nation of Israel and God’s Spirit-begotten nation or Church on the territory of the Promised Land living side-by-side as was the case after the foundation of the first century church on the Day of Pentecost at Christ’s First Coming. It will also be as in the days of ancient Israel where the Aaronic priesthood lived in the midst of the congregation of Israel the majority of which were was not part of the priesthood. In the days of ancient Israel, the law was taught and administered by the priests. The priesthood constituted a religious and a civil government which ruled over the people with the power of life and death over them but it will not be so during the Millennium and the Last Great Day as it has not been so since the foundation of God’s Spirit-begotten Church on the day of Pentecost. God’s Church is not to be a part of the world and its forms of government.

Church nor Christ to Rule Over the Nations

In Old Testament times, in the days of Moses, Israel was a physical nation ruled by the priesthood and the men appointed by Moses to help him in administering the law over the people. Church and State were one; there was  not a separate civil government which ruled over the people.

God’s Church since the day of Pentecost is a Spirit-begotten nation whose members are from all nations and who after having come to the knowledge of the truth are self-willingly submitting to it. It has no civic responsibilities over the unconverted nations among which it lives mostly unknown and invisible.

During the Millennium and the Last Great Day, the unconverted part of the nation of Israel will be very visible and known to the world but those Israelites who entered into the New Covenant will constitute a spiritual organism (God’s Church) with members to eventually be found all over the world. The Church will have no civil governing authority nor will it have teaching responsibilities over the unconverted either as individuals or as nations because of the reality of Rom 8:7.

Rom 8:7  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: . 

Unconverted individuals cannot be subject to God’s law; it is impossible for them to do so as this verse clearly says: “the carnal mind is enmity against God:for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” It would be and it is impossible for God’s church to have authority over the unconverted.

The unconverted are unteachable; they do not have the mind to know and understand or obey God’s law. It is  impossible for them to do so in the same way that it has been impossible for the unconverted from the days of Adam and Eve to this time as it will be during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.  Remember that not everyone will become converted during the Millennium and the Last Great Day and even, that it is the majority of the population that though all will have been called, that will remain unconverted.  Again I would refer you to the following study where this is explained in detail:  Mass Conversion of the Nations during the Millennium?  

Yes, God’s Spirit will be poured out upon all flesh but in no way does this mean that all will follow their calling.  Men can only be taught if they choose to be taught; no one and nothing can force them to believe something against their will. Christ says that of the many called, few are chosen or, in other words, it is the many that remain unconverted and unteachable and this makes it impossible to carry out vast educational campaigns to teach God’s truth to the masses. It also renders it unnecessary to have a great number of teachers to teach the nations of the world which for the most part will remain unconverted despite all having been called.

God will only rule over those who have freely chosen to submit to Him; He will not force anyone to do so. This is because men, to become part of God’s Kingdom, have to be beings of character i.e., they must freely and willingly choose to obey God when God reveals Himself to them. It is this free, willing and abiding attitude of obedience recorded in their human spirit that will become unchangeable in the resurrection that will ensure there will never be any rebellion in God’s Kingdom. This unchanging attitude of obedience in the resurrected saints is also what will make it possible for God to be one i.e., a family, nation, kingdom  made up of many different parts that will function as one being. Therefore, neither the Church nor Christ will rule over the nations of the world during the Millennium or during the Last Great Day which, for the most part despite being all called, will have chosen to remain in the world and be unconverted.

The People go to Jerusalem

During the Millennium and the Last Great Day which are all part of this period of time often referred to in the Scriptures as the “last days,” Israel, following its return from captivity and as a flesh-and-blood physical nation, will become the most powerful and the most respected nation in the world; it will greatly prosper and the nations will serve it. Israel will greatly increase in population and be filled with material riches; it will be more glorious than in the days of Solomon. When and Why will God Again Choose Israel?

The ministry taught that the nations will be eager to go to Israel and Jerusalem to learn God’s ways and be converted. The following Scriptures were then usually quoted in support of this teaching.

Isa 2:3  And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

Mic 4:2  And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

It would indeed seem that the nations will be going to Jerusalem to be taught of God but will Jerusalem become the center of true religion in the world and if it does, is it something that will last all throughout the Millennium?

The “mountain of the Lord” is the place where God lives and the house of the God of Jacob is another way of saying the same thing. The nations will be called during the Millennium as God pours out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh and figuratively speaking, they will head toward the mountain or house of the God of Jacob.

The house of the God of Jacob and the mountain of the Lord, the dwelling place of God are those who have been called, chosen and are remaining faithful. They are the temple or house or location where the Lord lives. God or the Lord does not live in any brick and mortar house made by the hand of man, no matter how luxurious and ornate it might be, located in a specific country, nation, town or city.

This is  made clear by Paul in the book of Romans.

Rom 10:6  But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:) 

A Christian has the righteousness of Christ in him not because he can or has to ascend into heaven and bring Christ down from above i.e., the righteousness that he has comes not from going to or being in a certain place where Christ is located and then, when finding Him, bring Him down with him so as to have His righteousness.

Rom 10:7  Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.) 

In the same way, it is not necessary for men to go down into the deep and bring Christ up again from the dead for them to have Christ’s righteousness.  It is not by going to a certain location or place to find Christ or the Lord that men get Christ’s or the Lord’s righteousness.

Rom 10:8  But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 

The means of having Christ or the Lord’s righteousness is hearing and believing (it is then in your heart or mind) the word of faith or truth of God, which is preached unto them by the apostles and those they appoint to the ministry to assist them in doing so.  And today, we have in God’s Holy Bible access to the very same word of faith taught the apostles by Christ Himself. The Bible is the means  used by God to speak to New Testament Christians (Heb 1:1-2). It is the Christ, the Word in writing to us.

Rom 10:9  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 

Salvation comes from believing the word of faith and that Christ was God’s son who God raised from the dead after having become the perfect sacrifice for the sins of mankind.

Salvation or the righteousness of God or of the Lord does not come from going to a specific building in a specific town. The righteousness of God is by faith i.e., believing the truth or word of God when called.

We are all saved by grace (Christ’s righteousness imputed to us) through faith i.e., because we believe the word of God and seek to apply it in our lives.

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Faith is a gift from God which we cannot earn for ourselves by our works of obedience to God. Faith, righteousness and salvation are by believing the word of God, the Holy Bible which is Christ, the Word of God and God’s Spokesman, in writing. It is not by going to a specific building in a specific city in a specific nation.

The truth of God is not in any geographical location or building nor does it go out to the world from a specific geographical location or building. It goes directly from God’s Holy Spirit to the mind of those God calls. There is no need to go anywhere to get it.

Let’s consider the following truths which are as constant in the Bible:

• The world will be called during the Millennium but God’s calling is individual and personal; it is not a group much less a national process.
• God does not call nations but individuals from within nations. All of us were individually called in a highly personalized way given we all have very different life experiences and levels of knowledge and understanding of the world which required a different approach for each and everyone of us.
• Knowledge of God’s truth is only possible by God’s Holy Spirit and conversion is a decision made by those called out to obey God to the best of their ability in all things.
• The truth of God doesn’t come from a specific geographical area or city; it comes from the Holy Bible.
• God’s nation or people do not dwell in a particular city. They are spread out across the earth either as individuals by themselves or in small groups.
• God’s Church is not a building or a group of persons located in Jerusalem or anywhere else on the earth that one has to go to to get salvation. God’s Church is all those called, chosen and faithful wherever they may be on the earth.
• Salvation does not require going to a certain city in a certain country; it is not a physical place on the earth.
• The ministry of God’s Church has no commission nor the ability to convert individuals or nations whether they go to them or they come to God’s Church if there were such as thing as a particular physical place where there is a central, worldwide Church.
• God’s truth does not go out of local congregations of God’s Church to the world; God’s truth enters those being called and the truly converted through God’s Holy Spirit as they study the Word of God, God’s Holy Bible.
• The mission of the ministry who are but men when there is one in existence is only to be the helpers of the faith of the truly converted. They are not the authors (originators) or finishers (the ones bringing to completion) of the faith of Christians. This is what God does through Christ.
• Salvation is not a physical place in which is located an organization of men who have the authority to dictate to the truly converted what they are to believe.

Isa 2:3 and Micah 4:2 are describing what the nations will do when God pours out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh.  And as just explained, the phrases “mountain of the Lord” and the “house of the God of Jacob” are different ways of saying that the nations will be drawn to God by God when He calls them during the Millennium. That is why the nations will go to God to learn more of God’s truth when first called as we all did when we were called. However, many after having counted the cost do not follow their calling and choose to remain in the world. The nations will be called but it will not be the nations as a whole but rather each and every individual within the nations. God’s calling is individual and personal and occurs in the mind of the one being called; it is not a group process.

God’s Church is not a place, a building or a group of people in a specific location where all who come to conversion must go. God does not dwell in a specific location on the earth.

God’s Church is first and foremost a spiritual organism to which all true Christians belong regardless of where they live and whether or not they associate with a smaller or larger group of truly converted Christians. God is to be worshiped in spirit and in truth (John 4:24); not by belonging to a specific group, going to a particular building or living in a certain city called Jerusalem. Congregations may form here and there all over the world during the Millennium  but there will be no need for them to travel to any Headquarters Church to be part of God’s Church anymore than it was necessary for us to do so.

There were local congregations in the days of the apostles but there was no central headquarter church which directed and oversaw congregations around the world. Paul went to Jerusalem but not to have them give him advice or correction regarding what he taught. He didn’t accept that they had any authority to change anything he preached. He was simply happy to realize they were all teaching the same things. The source of truth for Paul and the apostles was Christ and today, we have God’s Holy Bible which is Christ in writing, and it, the Bible is the one sure source of truth that Christians have today and will have during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.

The Roman Catholics have Rome, the Muslims have Mecca and Medina and the Jews have Jerusalem but God’s true church has no such holy city so-to-speak. It is only after God makes everything new and that the new Jerusalem comes down from heaven that Jerusalem will be a holy city as by God’s presence in it, it will be holy. There will then be no flesh-and-blood human beings alive on the earth. God’s plan of salvation for mankind will be complete.

God’s Church is not a hierarchical organization of men with a supreme ruler sitting in a central headquarters building from which the activities and teachings of local congregations are prescribed and supervised. This organizational model is the same as the one used by the Roman Empire (the Beast) and adopted by the Roman Catholic Church who made an image of the beast i.e., it adopted the Roman Empire form of government. The administration of God’s Church should not be patterned on the same model.

Why?

Because men, even truly converted ones are unreliable and can stray from the truth. It happened in the First Century Church; it happened in our days during the time of Mr. Armstrong and after his death and it will continue happening until there are no human beings left alive on the earth. It is the responsibility of individual Church members to become proficient in the use of their Bible to prove out things for themselves. They are not to rely on men to do so for them.

During the Millennium and the Last Great Day, the fundamental nature of man will not suddenly change. Man will continue to have absolute free moral agency and God’s Holy Spirit will continue to only lead (Rom  8:14); it will not force anyone to obey. Man will continue to have to freely and self-willingly choose God’s ways when given to know the truth and to freely and self-willingly choose to resist his own lust (James 1:14-15) to the best of his abilities until the end of his life so as to be a being of character. Character is submitting to God’s law and resisting the lust of our flesh and of our mind when no one is forcing us to do so; we simply do it because we have chosen to do so after having been given to know the truth. It is this character that will become permanent at the time of the glorification of God’s saints. Saints are flesh-and-blood human beings set apart by God to perform tasks preparatory to the establishment of His kingdom; they are not glorified spirit beings though this is what they will become in the resurrection. Our character i.e., our attitude of  unforced obedience to God in all things to the best of our ability is recorded in the human spirit which returns to God at death. The human spirit is a spirit essence in man which acts as a clay mold that records all we have been until the time of our death and into which God will pour eternal life in our resurrection as eternal spirit being in His Kingdom. Only beings of character will be part of God’s Kingdom.

I know that all this is different than what we have all heard from the ministry but the Scriptures fully bear this out as you will see as you read through this study.

God will restore Israel as a physical nation to even greater glory than in its former days and those of Israel who become converted become part of God’s Church which will be the human level instrumentality that God will use to teach those individuals among the nations that convert following their calling when He pours out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh. Israel will become physically the greatest nation there ever was in the history of mankind and those of Israel who convert (not all of them will) will be God’s holy nation and kingdom of priests or God’s Church during the Millennium and the Last Great Day which He will use to teach those individuals from the Gentile nations who following their calling choose to submit to God and become part of God’s Church. God’s calling is an individual not a group process and not all those called will convert.

If you would like to have a greater understanding of why there will be no massive conversion of the nations during the Millennium or of individuals during the Last Great Day, I would refer you to the following study: The Human Mind in God’s Plan of Salvation for Mankind

As previously mentioned, there will be both a physical nation of Israel consisting of unconverted individuals who are physical descendants of ancient Israel as well as of those from the nations constituting end-time Israel (Ephraim and Manasseh) prior to its downfall and there will be a visible group of true believers who will constitute God’s Church living among them or spiritual Israel.

As has been the case since the foundation of God’s New Testament Church many have been called but few chosen. Yes, God will pour out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh but the decision to be taught has to be taken by the individual. No one can be taught against his will. Many will be called but few will follow their calling (Matt 22:14) which means that the “many” of those called will remain unteachable and will not become part of God’s Church. They will constitute the majority of individuals making up the nations of the world (Christ says it is the few that are chosen then this means it is the many that remains unconverted) and the world to a very great extent during the Millennium will not be converted.

I know this is very different from what the ministry taught but all we need to do is look at what happened in God’s Church when the ministry announced to the members that they were not policeman; that they could do whatever they wanted and they would not be corrected. All those attending the services of God’s Church in the days of Mr. Armstrong were considered to be converted but do we remember how the very next Sabbath after the announcement was made that the ministry were not policemen how women of all ages came to service wearing make-up, short skirts and other revealing clothing; how happily unmarried cohabiting couples joyfully made themselves known and everyone was so relieved to no longer have to live a double life and especially for no longer being under the law which became the church’s main teaching. Remember? (The Human Mind in God’s Plan of Salvation for Mankind)

At this point I think it would be useful for us to examine another of the Church’s teaching regarding who are going to be the teachers during the Millennium and who they will teach.

Glorified Spirit Beings Teaching the World

The Church taught that glorified spirit beings, God’s first resurrection saints would be responsible for teaching the nations of the world after Christ’s 2nd Coming and the pouring out of God’s Holy Spirit upon all flesh. The ministry turned to the following verses of Isaiah in support of that teaching.

Let’s examine them.

Isa 30:19  For the people [end-time Israel returned from captivity] shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: he [God] will be very gracious unto thee [end-time Israel in captivity] at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee. 

Isa 30:20  And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, [by allowing them to go into captivity during the Great Tribulation] yet shall not thy teachers [the teachers of OT Israel was the priesthood and those in God’s Millennial spiritual Israel (that part of Israel that is converted) will be the ministers in God’s Church in those days] be removed into a corner any more, [they will not be set apart and ignored] but thine eyes shall see thy teachers: [they will be among them]

God is contrasting what occurred in ancient Israel with how conditions will be like during the Millennium with end-time Israel returned from captivity.

Israel after the death of Moses progressively lost sight of the truth and eventually lost its national identity, its language and ceased to be an identifiable nation in the world; it disappeared from history. It also lost sight of its teachers, the administrators and teachers of God’s law. Upon its restoration to the Promised Land following its captivity among the Gentile nations, Israel – those of Israel that become converted –  will again see its teachers and this time (those of Israel that are converted; none were in ancient Israel) it will have respect for them, they will no longer be set apart and ignored as they eventually were in OT Israel where even the priests failed to do their duty (Mal 2:1-2).

Isa 30:21  And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.
[This is spoken to that part of Israel that will be converted; they will encourage each other to remain on the strait and narrow path that leads to life. This will occur in God’s Holy nation and kingdom of priests i.e., in His Church that will exist during the Millennium and the Last Great Day. The unconverted are “enmity against God; for it is [they are] not subject to God’s law, neither indeed can be. (Rom 8:7)]

Isa 30:22  Ye [those of Israel who have become converted] shall defile also the covering of thy graven images of silver, and the ornament of thy molten images of gold: thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth; thou shalt say unto it, Get thee hence.[those who become converted will abandon their former idols (molten images of gold)]

Let’s consider the following points that clearly disprove the belief that God’s first resurrection saints as glorified spirit beings will teach the nations of the world.

A saint is a flesh-and-blood, living human being which has been especially called by God to carry out tasks in support of the accomplishment of His master plan of salvation for mankind; they are not glorified spirit beings; they are flesh-and-blood members of God’s Church.

1Co 1:2  Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

Psa 116:15  Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.

Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

Php 4:22  All the saints salute you, chiefly they that are of Caesar’s household.

Rev 14:12  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

God has never used glorified spirit beings or spirit beings such as angels to teach men. The Bible message is that God is working out His plan of salvation for mankind using men to teach other men. There are no examples in the Bible of angels or spirit beings being used by God as teachers of men.

This is why God founded His Church at Christ’s First Coming using flesh-and-blood men to teach those which He would call by His Holy Spirit.

Eph 4:11  And he [Christ] gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 

Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 

And it is also why God will have His Church during the Millennium. It will be the physical descendants of ancient Israel after their return from their 2nd captivity in the end time and following its conversion that will be the flesh-and-blood human beings constituting His Church that God will use in teaching newcomers to the faith during the Millennium and the Last Great Day. Israel will in the end time fulfill the mission it had been given but which it never could accomplish because the first covenant did not provide for them to be given God’s Holy Spirit.

Exo 19:6  And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

God’s First Resurrection saints will have become Christ’s Bride and be in the 3rd heaven with Him and God the Father; they will no longer be on the earth.

God since the beginning has taught called-out men through His Church and so He will do during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.

God’s pouring out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh will not result in all of a sudden everybody becoming teachable (Matt 22:14; Rom 8:7). And, as often explained to the Church, salvation is an individual process; it is between God and the called out one and the process is different for everyone. None of us were called in the same way; God worked with us on an individual and personalized basis to progressively bring us to a knowledge of the truth sufficient for us to know that we have to choose to obey Him or return into the world. We are all different in terms of personality, intelligence, background, experience, etc. and what would make us curious and cause us to keep on following our curiosity is infinitely variable. God deals with us on an individual basis.

The nations during the Millennium to a very great extent will remain unconverted through all will be called. God calls individuals and not nations; He works with individuals within nations. The mostly unconverted nations like those of today’s world will be unteachable (Rom 8:7) and it will be impossible to conduct worldwide re-education programs as an interim step to bringing them to conversion.

Basic Principles Constant Throughout the Bible

• Mankind was given absolute free moral agency (Deu 30:19) by God i.e., men cannot be made to believe anything against their will which means that the unconverted are not teachable; they are carnal-minded, “not subject to God’s law and neither indeed can be” (Rom 8:7);
  
• God’s Holy Spirit only ever leads (Rom 8:14); being given access to God’s Holy Spirit as will occur during the Millennium and the Last Great Day does not mean that conversion will unavoidably follow; men are free to follow its lead or not (Matth 22:14);  God pouring out His Holy Spirit upon all flesh is not a guaranty that conversion will occur
  
• Only the truly converted can understand the truth of God and be subject to it; the unconverted were unteachable in the past, are unteachable now,  and will be unteachable during the Millennium and the Last Great Day; most as has been the case since the day of Pentecost, will not follow their calling (Matt 22:14)
  
• God will not force anyone, converted or unconverted to obey Him (Rom 8:14); only spiritual Israelites (converted individuals)  obey God and they do so only because they freely and willingly choose to do so
• The unconverted (including those that were once converted and have gone back into the world) do not know nor obey God. God leaves them completely free to do whatever they please as He did anciently, as He does now and, as He will during the Millennium and the Last Great Day. God will not rule by force over the unconverted nations during the Millennium and the Last Great Day; He rules only by the wilful assent of those who freely choose to submit to Him i.e., His Church
  
• Those making up God’s kingdom have to be individuals of character; this is the reason why God created man with mind power and the absolute freedom to choose i.e., there is no power on earth or in the spirit world that can force man to believe something against his will. Those that will be part of God’s Kingdom must freely and self-willingly choose to obey God after coming to the knowledge of the truth and spend the rest of their lives resisting to the best of their abilities their own lust in order to be in conformity with God’s law. (James 1:14-15). That is what it means to be a being of character; accepting God’s law and resolving to restrain ourselves as much as possible to follow it against the pull of our own lust. For more on this subject see: The Human Mind in God’s Plan of Salvation for Mankind

The only way the nations of the world would be teachable would be if the nations as a whole would follow their calling at the time when God pours out His Holy Spirit upon all flesh. As desirable as that outcome is, the Scriptures are clear that it is the many that do not follow their calling (Matth 22:14). The many are NOT chosen because they decide to remain in the world after having been given enough knowledge and understanding of the truth to be able to make an informed decision. God the Father does the calling and if the person follows their calling, God’s Church becomes the helper of their faith upon their committing themselves to obey God in all thing until the end of their lives. Men become teachable only after becoming converted i.e., after having made the decision to submit to God’s rule in their lives. There is no need nor is it possible to effectively conduct extensive mass information programs to reeducate the nations as a first step to bringing them to conversion. Knowledge of God’s spiritual truth is possible by revelation only.

The nations are not teachable and this is the reason why God’s church when there is a visible organized corporate body does not proselytize because no one can be made to believe anything against his will whether it be before or after conversion. Only God through a great miracle can open the minds of men and make them receptive to the truth and this work is only done on a personal or individual basis. It should be evident that being called out as will occur when God pours out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh is not synonymous with being chosen or with becoming converted. God has been calling men since the  foundation of His Spirit-begotten Church on the day of Pentecost but as Christ very plainly tells us, it is the few that choose to follow their calling with the majority preferring to remain in the world (Matt 22:14).

One last point on this subject, in order to be called it is not necessary to have an extensive knowledge of the truth. If we will recall the time of our calling, we had very little truth and that it is only after having made the unforced decision to obey God that we begin to acquire more truth because we then become teachable. It is not necessary to have a wide ranging knowledge of God’s truth in order to become converted rather we must first become converted so as to become teachable to be able to acquire an extensive knowledge of God’s truth. Conversion comes before teachability; God’s truth cannot be taught to the unconverted; and developing an extensive knowledge of God’s truth is what converted people do. Having a detailed knowledge of God’s truth is not a requirement for conversion nor can it be as it is something that can only be done by converted people through years and years of careful, attentive study of the Scriptures. There therefore will be no need for a large number of teachers to teach the masses that supposedly would become  teachable upon God calling them by pouring out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh and if there were such a need, the teachers not be God’s First Resurrection saints who have become spirit beings, the Bride of Christ and who will be in the 3rd heaven with Christ.

Kingdom Given to the Saints of the Most High

Another Scripture that was used to demonstrate that God’s first resurrection saints would rule over the nations during the Millennium and the Last Great Day is Dan 7:27. However, we need to start at Dan 7:23 and work our way up to Dan. 7:27 to get the full understanding of what Dan 7:27 is talking about. We need to understand who is to inherit rulership over the universe and when that is to occur. Let’s read on; these Scriptures and their meaning for the greatest part should be familiar to most if not all of you; if not, go back and refresh your memory.

Dan 7:23  Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. 

Dan 7:24  And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. 

Dan 7:25  And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

Dan 7:26  But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

Dan 7:27  And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him. 

These verses are talking about the major steps in human history leading up to finally all of men’s governments being  brought to an end and rulership being given to God’s saints. The time when men no longer will be governing themselves is the time when there will no longer be any unconverted men alive on the earth. The time when that will occur is the 3rd resurrection when all those who once knew the truth and turned away from it will die the 2nd death. Until the end of the time period of the 2nd resurrection which is to last 100 years (Isa 65:20) there will be men on the earth and of all those men, there will be many that will not be converted and therefore unteachable and not subject to God’s law (Rom 8:7); in other words, men will continue to govern themselves as they have since the days of Adam and Eve. The Millennium nor the Last Great Day are the time when “….;the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High…..” (Dan. 7:27).

God nor His saints are to rule over either unconverted individuals or unconverted nations as previously explained so when will God’s saints be given the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven? 

When we come to the end of God’s plan of salvation, all of God’s saints will have become God as God is God and will be given rulership over the universe i.e., the new heaven and the new earth that will be created after the 3rd resurrection occurs. “The kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven” will then be given to the saints of the most High who have become glorified spirit beings in the resurrection. This is part of the the promises made to Abraham which were passed from one generation to another until Jesus inherited them through the line of Mary who was of the House of David. The faithful or God’s saints who have become God as God is God, after the 3rd resurrection, are to inherit along with God’s first resurrection saints the world or universe as stated in Rom. 4:13. Their inheritance is not to bear rule over the unconverted nations of the world.

Rom 4:13  For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.

And this is also clearly stated in Hebrews 2:5-8.

Heb 2:5  For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak. 

Please note that the “world to come” is not the time of the Millennium or of the Last Great Day. It is the world that comes after the completion of God’s plan of salvation when the faithful receive eternal life.

Mar 10:30  But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.

Luk 18:30  Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.

Now, let’s continue with the verses of Hebrews 2.

Heb 2:6  But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him? 

Heb 2:7  Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands: 

Heb 2:8  Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him. 

The saints will not rule over the unconverted whether as individuals or as nations (Rom 8:7; 8:14). God will only rule over those who willingly subject or place themselves under His rulership; God will not force anyone as those making up His Kingdom have to be individuals of character. Individuals of character are those who freely and self-willingly; without being forced to do so, choose to restrain themselves all throughout their lives to live as much as possible in accordance with God’s law after having come to the knowledge of the truth.

Israel during the Millennium will be both a religious organization made up of truly converted individuals and of flesh-and-blood Israelites who did not follow their calling. God’s Church will not rule over the unconverted of the world or the over unconverted part of Israel i.e., over those Israelites that do not enter into the New Covenant. The unconverted cannot submit to God’s law (Rom 8:7).

At first look, Dan 7:27 appears to be saying that God’s saints will rule over the nations of the earth. However, as we have just seen, neither God nor His saints will rule by force over the unconverted because it is not possible for them to understand God’s law which is spiritual i.e., it requires the in-dwelling presence of God’s Spirit for someone to be able to understand God’s law and truth in their spiritual dimension. God’s saints after having become God as God is God will rule over the new heaven and the new earth and like it is stated in Dan. 7:27, “ all dominions shall serve and obey him [God] which is to say, those ruling the new heaven and the new earth or the new universe that is to be created after the 3rd resurrection are themselves to be ruled by God the Father who is the Most High in the Kingdom of God.

It is impossible for God’s saints either now or in the resurrection to rule over the unconverted of the world during the Millennium or during the Last Great Day. The reward of God’s saints is not to inherit governorship over the unconverted nations of the world but as glorified spirit beings, it is to inherit rulership over the new heaven and the new earth under the direction of Christ and the supreme leadership of God the Father.

Israel’s Prosperity During the Millennium

Israel during the Millennium will greatly prosper because of God blessing it saying He forgets theirs past sins and makes them the head of the nations as this is part of the fulfillment of prophecy regarding Israel which God binds Himself to bring to pass that the Scriptures may be fulfilled and that He may be glorified for His ability to do so. End time events are prophesied to occur in a certain way and God is the one that will ensure that they do happen exactly as written in such Scriptures as Isa 60, EZ 36, Jer. 31; Jer. 33 and many others.

As we will see as we go through them, Ez 36 and Isa 60  are clear prophecies of what God will do in the end-time for Israel and the main point to be noticed is that God during the Millennium and the Last Great Day is not blessing Israel because they are all obedient to Him— recall that there will be a part of Israel that will not be converted — but rather it is in order that the  prophecies of Ez 36 and Isa 60 as well as others made about Israel may be fulfilled. 

God says there is none like him knowing the end from the beginning and speaking of things to come as though they were already; he has the power to prophesy and make  prophecy come out exactly as written which is one of the proofs of the authority of the Bible.

Isa 46:9  Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, 

Isa 46:10  Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure: 

The main point I wish to make, and which is of the utmost importance for us to understand, is that Israel is restored and blessed during the Millennium because God has prophesied it by the mouth of His holy prophets NOT because all of Israel during the Millennium is a fully converted nation filled with zeal and enthusiasm to obey Him to the best of their ability. Most of Israel will remain unconverted and will be blessed in the same way God blessed the end-time nations constituting Israel even though they didn’t obey Him. He blessed them (Ephraim and Manasseh in the end time i.e, the British Empire and the United States) because of the promises made to Abraham and during the Millennium He will bless Israel in fulfillment of prophecies made regarding the status of Israel during the Millennium. Great Britain and the United States have not followed God’s law and were nonetheless greatly blessed that the promises made to Abraham may be fulfilled. It will be the same way during the Millennium as concerns Israel returned from its end-time captivity.

There is no prophecy that Israel during the Millennium would be a fully converted nation.  In fact, when it comes to conversion the Scriptures in the words of Christ Himself make it very clear that many are called but few are chosen (and therefore it is the many that choose to remain in the world and be unconverted) and of those chosen and who are entering God’s Church, it is the many that will take the broad way that leads to perdition (and is it therefore the many that do not stay converted). Don’t believe me or anyone else for that matter, believe your Bible (Mat 22:14; Mat 7:12-14) even if its clear, unambiguous words requiring no interpretation go squarely against what you have always believed.

All that has been explained so far are wonderful truths only available to those who have been called, chosen and who are remaining faithful and who have mastered the foundational truth of God’s Church. You can read the following study Are You Spiritually Mature? which goes into great detail about what it means to have mastered the foundational truth of God’s Church. If you haven’t already done so, I would greatly encourage you to do so before you go any further in reading this study.

The Day after
the end of the Great Tribulation

We have all read several times through the passages of the Bible where is described the widespread and important material destruction, loss of life and greatest disruption there ever was to that time of life as we know it on this planet; the time of the Great Tribulation and of the Day of the Lord.

We have often read through all these passages without really fully realizing the real world consequences of the enormous amount of physical destruction and loss of life that will occur. It is a bit like when we go to the movies and see bombs exploding and bloody, decapitated and limbless bodies being thrown up in the air and dead people strewn all over the landscape and we remain basically unmoved as we keep chewing on our popcorn and sipping our colas. It is not real to our minds and consequently, there is no accompanying emotional reaction such as terror and an all-consuming urge to flee and not become part of the carnage.

We have all read of the destruction of the nations constituting modern-day Israel, of its cities being laid waste, of 1/3 of the life in the world’s oceans dying, 1/3 of the earth’s vegetation (forests) being destroyed, of the famine and pestilence, of whole countries being devastated and their surviving inhabitants becoming the captives of an invading military power, etc. and we remain emotionally unresponsive as these events are seen as being far off into the future and we are sure we will not be there when they occur. We fail to realize the very great psychological impact on those who will have lived through those troubled times and how having survived the time of greatest trouble to come upon the earth will greatly affect how they see and react to events once the destruction finally stops.

Those who will actually be living through the Great Tribulation and the events of the Day of the Lord will be directly impacted by the destruction of their properties, the death of loved ones, the devastation of their country, the disease epidemics, the total breakdown of law and order and, the lack of food and clean water, shelter and safety. They will be in fear of losing their lives and will be desperately trying to find ways of evading the invading armies that are rounding up the survivors to bring them into captivity and make slaves out of them.

These events will leave a lasting impression on the survivors who will be in captivity as servants of their captors and on the nations of the whole world who will all have been affected by war, drought, famine and pestilence and where individuals will have suffered the loss of loved ones and properties and who will have experienced major disruptions to their lives, cities and nations.

When the destruction and devastation finally cease, the survivors of the nations of the world who have all been greatly affected as well as Israel in captivity will be greatly chastened. There will be no taste whatsoever left for continuing hostilities, the survivors will want to begin rebuilding their cities and return to their previous life style as soon as possible. War, killing and conquest will not be uppermost in their mind; they will have had more than enough of it as almost all will have lost family members, friends and personal properties. They will want peace and will not be seeking to make war with anyone.

This will be the mindset of the nations at the end of the Great Tribulation and of the events of the Day of the Lord and it will be world in which Christ will gather Israel from the nations where they had been dispersed and bring them back to the Promised Land.

The mood of the nations of the world following the Great Tribulation will be one of not wanting to get involved in any more warring at least for the immediate future. The attitude of the nations are an important factor to keep in mind when reading about what conditions will be like during the Millennium. Those things do not happen in a vacuum; real people who will have greatly suffered, who will have lost family members and who will have been scared out of their minds desperately trying to avoid losing their own lives will be greatly sobered and chastened. They will not be eager to again do anything that would lead to any more wars anywhere.

The nations constituting Israel in the end-time and more specifically, Manasseh is a world superpower. At the time of its fall it is the greatest and most powerful single nation that has ever existed to that time. At the  peak of its power, it is to be militarily conquered and the survivors scattered in captivity among the Gentile nations. All of this is explained in detail in Mr. Armstrong’s book “The United States and  Britain in Prophecy”  which you can obtain at the following web site http://www.herbert-armstrong.org/indexUSBIP.html  Long time members of God’s Church should know the applicable Scriptures where Israel’s captivity is prophesied and those which speak of its return from captivity. One of the main ones is Eze. 5 but there are many others.

I will not go over all of it again as all the reader has to do is read Mr. Armstrong’s book and review the study.

Knowledge builds upon knowledge and there is an order that needs to be followed for growth to occur. The foundation must first be laid then other bricks of knowledge can be laid on it but until you fully know and understand the foundational truth of the Church, you will continue to not be able to understand those truths which build on the foundation and which Paul calls “strong meat.”

As is always the case, God leaves you completely free to choose what you will do.

We are now ready to go into the Scriptures and see if they do support what has been said so far.

So let’s get to it.

The Restoration of Israel

God in the end time will restore Israel to the Promised Land and will make the New Covenant with those who after Christ’s 3 1/2 year ministry will commit themselves to obeying God until the end of their natural lives. In the following verses of Jeremiah we read prophecies of Israel’s restoration.

Jer. 33:7  And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first. [Israel is to return to its former glory and as we shall see, it will be given even more; remember that in the days of Solomon Israel was so rich that other countries (the queen of Sheba among others) would come to Israel to see just how rich it was. Israel is to be restored as “at the first“, as in the days when it was the richest nation in the world.]

8  And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against me. [Israel returned from captivity will go through a conversion process where their sins will be forgiven by applying Christ’s sacrifice to them but only after their re-education and commitment to obey God. In other words, Israel will be called upon its return from captivity (during the 3 1/2 year period of confirmation of the New Covenant (Dan 9:27)) and those that choose to submit themselves to God will become part of God’s church and will constitute God’s holy nation and kingdom of priests or God’s Church during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.]

This is also what Paul was talking about in Rom 11:26-27

26  And so all [those that choose to convert; they are the only ones who are saved unless they do not endure in the faith] Israel [all those that convert ARE spiritual Israel] shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, [Christ; during the 3 1/2 year confirmation of the covenant] and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: [to whom God had given the name “Israel.”]

27  For this is my covenant [that He would turn away ungodliness from Jacob or Israel; it would be through the making of the New Covenant] unto them, when I shall take away their sins. [at the making of the New Covenant with those of Israel returned from captivity that convert; their sins are then forgiven.]

Now, going back to Jer. 33:9 we read that:

9  And it [Israel during the Millennium and the Last Great Day] shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and an honour before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them: and they [all the nations] shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity that I procure unto it. [End-time Israel returned from captivity will be greatly blessed by God in a material way; it will become a rich and powerful country and the nations will stand in awe of Israel; they will all see it and marvel.]

God during the Millennium and the Last Great Day will be Israel’s protector and provider.

Is 62:1  For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof [of the converted part of Israel or spiritual Israel which will have God’s righteousness in the converted]  go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.

There will come a time when God’s righteousness which is in the members of Israel who have become converted will be made available to the nations by God pouring out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.  Although a part of  Israel will be converted and become God’s nation, it will be by God’s Holy Spirit that God’s righteousness will go forth to the nations. God’s Church does not proselytize i.e., it is not making itself public and promoting itself to the unconverted world as being God’s one, true Church to which all must belong to be saved. It does not send missionaries into the world to teach God’s truth to it.  It is God the Father who draws men to Him (John 6:37;44) and gives them sufficient spiritual truth to bring them to the crossroads where they have to make the decision to forsake their old ways and submit to God or to go back into the world.

Joh 6:37  All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. 

Joh 6:44  No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. 

God’s Church is being built by God through a process that does not involve men doing the work. The work of building God’s Church is done by God’s Holy Spirit.

Zec 4:6  Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts. 

1Co 3:9  For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building. [It is God doing the building; not men.]

Eph_2:10  For we are his [God’s] workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

God’s Church is a spiritual organism not a brick and mortar building that during the Millennium will become highly visible to the world. God’s Church is not a place, a location or a building the truly converted go to to become converted. People are called by God’s Holy Spirit and not by means of a large, luxurious, internationally known building or city which the world during the Millennium would somehow come to consider as being God’s Church.

God’s Church is not a city (Jerusalem) or a nation (Israel). It is not a visible, physical things that can be found in a given geographic region.

Now let’s get back to God’s description of Israel following its return from its end-time captivity when God resettles them in the originally Promised Land. In these verses God is talking about that part of Israel that will have entered the New Covenant; not all of Israel will.

2  And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings [of the Gentile nations] thy [Israel’s] glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, [Hephzibah, (see Isa 62:4)] which the mouth of the LORD shall name.

3  Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. [the converted part of Israel will be God’s holy nation of kings and priests which here God calls a crown of glory and a royal diadem.]

4  Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, [My delight is in her] and thy land Beulah [have dominion over, be husband, marry]: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married. [At this point in time, Christ is married to God’s first resurrection saints who in God’s plan are the Bride of Christ; and Christ here is saying that He will love, protect and provide for the land of Israel as a husband does for a wife; the land will be married NOT the inhabitants of Israel; Christ is already married.]

5  For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee. [God will be highly pleased with Israel as His holy nation of kings and priests as a bridegroom rejoices over His bride.]

6  I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: [God is the watchman set over Israel that never sleeps; He ensures their protection] ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence, [do not be afraid of the nations who will not in most cases like to hear about the LORD; they will not like Israel saying it owes its prosperity to God; the carnal mind is enmity against God and all throughout the Millennium there will be many that will not be converted; all will be called but not all will follow their calling.]

7  And give him [ye that make mention of the Lord] no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth. [this will and can only occur in the New Jerusalem which comes down from heaven to the new earth.]

8  The LORD hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured: [Israel will not again go into captivity or be conquered by other nations.]

9  But they that have gathered it shall eat it, [the corn] and praise the LORD; and they that have brought it together [the wine] shall drink it in the courts of my holiness.[Israel during the Millennium, the part of which is God’s Church, will be a holy nation; there will also be a part of Israel that will not be converted and it shall also greatly prosper as a result of God fulfilling prophecy which He binds Himself to do.]

10  Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people.

11  Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, [NT end-time Israel to be offered conversion for the first time.] Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. [Christ will confirm the covenant with Israel for 3 1/2 years.]

12  And they [the world] shall call them, The holy people, [Israel during the Millennium, those of physical Israel that convert will be God’s Holy people; a converted nation having God’s Holy  Spirit.] The redeemed of the LORD: [From their end-time captivity; God again becomes their protector and provider no longer being wrathful against Israel (be sure to look up Rev 5:9 where end-time Israel’s redemption is mentioned)] and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken. [Many nations shall flow to it; the nations will be greatly impressed by its wealth and great prosperity (See Mic 4:2 hereunder.]

The nations will want to know how Israel got to be so powerful and rich again after having been conquered, scattered and their numbers decimated.

What will Israel’s answer be to the inquiring nations?

God had told ancient Israel that the statutes and judgments that He had given them is their wisdom and understanding in the sight of the nations. God’s holy nation and kingdom of priests will be observing them during the Millennium and the Last Great Day; Israel as a whole will greatly prosper not because of their own strength but because of God blessing them and this will be their answer to the nations.

Deu 4:4  But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your God are alive every one of you this day.

5  Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.

6  Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. [Will see the great material prosperity and orderly society that is Israel and they will want to know their secret for attaining such results.]

7  For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for? [In other words, the nations will ask what is it that Israel is doing that God is so near to them and that He provides for them in all things for which they call  upon Him. What is their secret, how do they do it, that we might do the same thing and get the same results for ourselves too?]

8  And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?

The nations will want to prosper as Israel is prospering and they will want to know what they are doing to achieve such results.  They will come to Jerusalem wanting to be taught Israel’s ways. They will say” “Teach us your ways and your laws” (Isa. 2:3; Micah 4:2).  [The nations will be seeking material prosperity and be eager to learn how to achieve the same material success as Israel but they will learn that their prosperity is due to Israel’s obedience to God and following His laws which are very different from their own which they would have to abandon in addition to submitting to God (becoming converted) which then will become their provider and protector as He is for Israel. But, not all will be eager to forsake their old ways as is made plain by what historically has happened to those who became part of God’s Church. In other words, the nations would have to become converted to enjoy the same prosperity and protection for that is the source of Israel’s power and riches but for many that will be too high a price.]

There is a detailed study on this site of what people do when they are given to know the truth of God which I highly recommend you read if you have not already done so. It will give you important comprehension of what will occur during the Millennium and the Last Great Day as mankind’s mind is open to understand God’s spiritual truth. The study is available at the following hyperlink: Mass Conversion of the Nations during the Millennium?

Now let’s continue with Micah.

Micah 4:1   But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain [nation] of the house of the LORD [ end-time Israel returned from captivity after its conversion] shall be established in the top of the mountains, [it will rule all other nations] and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. [It will be a nation of flesh-and-blood, physical human beings; end time Israel returned from captivity; people will come to Israel in great numbers because they want to learn why it is doing so well.]

2  And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, [end-time Israel returned from its end time captivity] and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. [through His kingdom of priests.]

The nations will be eager to be taught by Israel how it became so successful; at that point they are unconverted and are only interested in attaining the same or a similar level of wealth; they do not have any knowledge or understanding of God’s spiritual truth knowable only by having God’s Holy Spirit. Because of Israel’s great prosperity which the nations will see, they will be attracted to Jerusalem. They will not converge on Jerusalem out of a great desire to be taught the truth nor because they can’t wait to become converted. What will make Israel exceptional in the world and what will be visible to the world after the Millennium begins is its great prosperity which it will have achieved after having been reduced to a tenth of its original size while in captivity (only 10% of end-time Israel will survive and be resettled in the original promised land.) It will not be because of any spiritual truth it may have as spiritual truth is invisible to the world and there is very little of it to be found in those who are being called.

Isa 6:8  Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. 
Isa 6:9  And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. 
Isa 6:10  Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed. 
Isa 6:11  Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate, 
Isa 6:12  And the LORD have removed men far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land. 
Isa 6:13  But yet in it shall be a tenth, and it shall return, and shall be eaten: as a teil tree, and as an oak, whose substance is in them, when they cast their leaves: [like trees in the fall that lose their leaves and appear to be dead but in which their life continues to be in them] so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof. 

Israel and Jerusalem will initially be a center of true religion in the world as it was in the days of the apostles and of the First Century Church but if what happened in the early Church is an indication of what will happen in the long term, Jerusalem will not remain a center of true religion. But the nations did not travel to Jerusalem to become converted in the days of the apostles as conversion is not a matter of going to a certain location on the earth.

People in the first century until our days did not become converted because of the existence of a specific organization located in a specific city of the world.  Conversion occurs on an individual basis by God’s Holy Spirit wherever a person may be located on the planet and their one and only sure source of spiritual information is God’s holy Bible; not an organization of men located in a specific city in a specific nation even if these men are truly converted Christians. Conversion occurs in the mind of the one called out by the action of God’s Holy Spirit not as a result of traveling to a specific location to a specific building in a specific nation.  God speaks to His called out ones by His Son; not as a spirit being appearing to mankind but through the Holy Bible which is Christ in writing. Christ is the Word and God’s spokesman to mankind.

Heb 1:1  God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 
Heb 1:2  Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; 

There is no reason to believe that during the Millennium and the Last Great Day God will proceed differently in administering His plan of salvation as God does not change (Heb 13:8).

The nations will be attracted to Israel and Jerusalem initially because of its great prosperity.  They will see the pearl of great price (Matt 13:46); the hidden treasure in the field (Matt 13:44) which in this case is the great prosperity of Israel and they will want it for themselves too. They will then be told how Israel has been given its great prosperity and, initially there will be great interest in learning God’s ways but as time goes by, the many will lose interest and return to their former lives in the world. They are not willing to change their ways.

The nations in learning God’s way will find themselves being rebuked as their ways are not compatible with God’s ways.

3  And he [the LORD, God] shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

How will God judge among many people and rebuke strong nations afar off? God expects representatives of the unconverted nations to attend the feast of Tabernacles. in doing so, they will walk through the valley of Hamongog which will be a yearly reminder to them of the fate of nations that come up against Jerusalem. They are miraculously and completely destroyed. This is how God rebukes the nations during the Millennium. And this is why, the nations will lose interest in war and turn their attention to peaceful pursuits. The constant fear of sudden and utter destruction is the reason why there will be peace during the Millennium though most of the people in the nations will continue to be unconverted.

Israel will be such a powerful nation that it will dominate the world. After the miraculous destruction of the hordes of Gog and Magog at the beginning of the Millennium, the nations will greatly fear Israel and will no longer be planning war against each other or Israel for fear of being suddenly destroyed like Gog and Magog. They know it is useless to think of going to war against Israel or any other nation; they think they would surely be destroyed like Gog and Magog. This is why after the destruction of physical Gog and Magog some time early on after the beginning of the Millennium there will be peace during the whole Millennium. The peace that will be known throughout the Millennium will not be because of the massive conversion of the Gentile nations and their eager desire to obey God.

Do we have any indication that for the greatest part, the nations of the world will not become or stay converted?

We read in Rev 20:7-9 that shortly after the Millennium ends, Israel will be attacked by spiritual Gog and Magog.

Rev 20:7  And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 
Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 
Rev 20:9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. 

The state of the nation of Israel during the Millennium will be as described in Eze 38: 11-12.

38:11  And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, 
Eze 38:12  To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land. 

Israel is without any visible means of defense; it is dwelling without walls, bars or gates. They are a people gathered out or from among the nations (Christ gathered them) and they are prospering with cattle and goods as in the days of Solomon.

Jer 33:7  And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first.

Shortly after the ending of the Millennium, Israel will be a rich and undefended country and a Gog and Magog will rise up from the four quarters of the world and whose number will be as the sand of the sea; a very great, uncountable multitude.

If during the Millennium all but a few stubborn individuals were converted, where does this great multitude of unconverted individuals come from who are on the march to destroy Israel and Jerusalem. If they were converted individuals they would not be seeking to destroy Israel and Jerusalem and God would not destroy them.

Where do they come from?

They are from all over the world (the four corners of the world) and are unconverted as they are deceived by Satan; the truly converted cannot be deceived (Mark 13:22). This is a glaring proof that during the Millennium there will be no mass conversion of the nations. It cannot be that at the end of the Millennium just about everyone is converted and shortly after the end of the Millennium there is a great mutlitude as the sand of the sea of unconverted from all over the world converging on Israel and Jerusalem to destroy it.

Now, let’s continue with our review of Micah 4.

4  But they [in Israel] shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it.

5  For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, [not all will become converted; they will walk in the name of their god not Israel’s God] and we [those of Israel that become part of spiritual Israel through conversion] will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever.

[Very clearly stated here is the fact that the nations will not convert as a group, all people will walk in the name of his god but Israel (those of Israel that are converted) will walk in the name of the Lord.]

6  In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; [this is the gathering of Israel from the nations where they had been scattered]

7  And I will make her that halted a remnant, [God said He would not make a full end of Israel and that a remnant would be kept] and her that was cast far off [end-time Israel; the daughter of Zion] a strong nation: [NT Israel after its return from captivity and conversion will become a strong nation] and the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever. [ those of Israel who entered the New Covennat will then constitute a Spirit-begotten nation and of those that remain Spirit-begotten will God rule over forever i.e., as human beings and as glorified spirit beings upon their resurrection.]

8  And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, [end time Israel is the daughter of Zion] unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion; [OT Israel for a time dominated the nations; it will again dominate over the nations and it will become very rich as it was before] the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem. [End-time Israel following its return from captivity becomes the independent, stand-alone nation that it was in OT times; the kingdom will have been restored to Israel i.e., it is once again an independent, self-governing nation. This is the answer to the question posed by the apostle to Christ as to when He would restore the kingdom to Israel; see Act 1:6 below. ]

Act 1:6  When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?

Continuing with Micah 4.

9  Now why dost thou cry out aloud? is there no king in thee? is thy counsellor perished? for pangs have taken thee as a woman in travail.

10  Be in pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, [NT end-time Israel in their captivity] like a woman in travail: for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and thou shalt dwell in the field, and thou shalt go even to Babylon; [will go in captivity a 2^nd time in the end time.] there shalt thou be delivered; there the LORD shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies.

11  Now also many nations are gathered against thee, that say, Let her be defiled, and let our eye look upon Zion.

12  But they know not the thoughts of the LORD, neither understand they his counsel: for he shall gather them [the nations] as the sheaves into the floor. [the sheaves are to be threshed; they are broken by beating them to separate the wheat from the chaff]

13  Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion:[end-time Israel] for I will make thine horn [Kingdom] iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt [through me as your protector] beat in pieces [thresh] many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the LORD, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth. [The spoils from these nations will go to Israel, God’s Holy nation during the Millennium and this occurs at the beginning of the Millennium at the time when Israel is brought back to the Promised Land and the nations who held them captive are spoiled.]

Redeemed Israel to become a wealthy nation

During the Great Tribulation, the end-time nations constituting Israel will have been militarily conquered and scattered into slavery among the Gentile nations. The remnant that is to return from captivity will be but a tenth of the population of Israel at the time of its defeat.

Isa 6:8  Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. 

Isa 6:9  And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not.

Isa 6:10  Make the heart of this people [Israel] fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed. 

Isa 6:11  Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate, 

Isa 6:12  And the LORD have removed men far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land.

Isa 6:13  But yet in it shall be a tenth, and it shall return, and shall be eaten: as a teil tree, and as an oak, whose substance is in them, when they cast their leaves: [like the trees in the Fall who lose their leaves and appear to be dead when in fact all of its substance remains in it] so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof. 

But though reduced to a tenth of its former self, Israel is to become the greatest nation on earth during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.

Eze 36:8  But ye, O mountains [here talking about the land not the people] of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel; for they are at hand to come. [they are about to arrive]

Eze 36:9  For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye [the mountains, land of Israel] shall be tilled and sown: 

Eze 36:10  And I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it: and the cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded: [in the Promised Land to which end-time Israel returns from its captivity]

Eze 36:11  And I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bring fruit: and I will settle you after your old estates, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: [Israel to be even more prosperous and wealthy than in the days of Solomon] and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 

Eze 36:12  Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance, and thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of men. 

In the following verses of Ezekiel 36 we find a good summary of the astounding fall of modern day Israel which is the greatest single nation the world has ever known to that time; its reduction to a shadow of itself (10% return from captivity); and its restoration as the world’s superpower with even more wealth than Israel under king Solomon.

Ez 36:1  Also, thou son of man, prophesy unto the mountains [this is spoken to end-time nations (mountains) constituting Israel] of Israel, and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD: [Ancient Israel had gone into captivity and ceased to be a separate and distinct nation when this was spoken by God through Ezekiel who was among the captives by the river Chebar. The words of this prophecy are therefore about a nation of Israel that will exist at a time much in the future from the time Ezekiel wrote the prophecy.]

2  Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because the enemy hath said against you, Aha, even the ancient high places [places of religious worship] are ours in possession: [your God is not so strong that He could prevent us from taking over your places of worship]

3  Therefore prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they have made you desolate, and swallowed you up on every side, that ye might be a possession unto the residue of the heathen, and ye are taken up in the lips of talkers, and are an infamy of the people: [the fall of the end time nations constituting Israel will be the talk of the world.]

4  Therefore, ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes, and to the cities that are forsaken, which became a prey and derision to the residue of the heathen that are round about;

“Residue of the heathen” is an expression used throughout this chapter. Verse 36 hereunder says: “Then the heathen that are left round about you…. “ The residue of the heathen is therefore talking about the Gentile nations that will be left (after the massive and widespread destruction that occurred during the Day of the Lord)  after Christ’s 2^nd Coming when Christ will bring the end-time nations constituting Israel back from its captivity among the Gentile nations.

5  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken against the residue of the heathen, and against all Idumea, which have appointed my land into their possession with the joy of all their heart, with despiteful minds, to cast it out for a prey.

6  Prophesy therefore concerning the land of Israel, and say unto the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I have spoken [punished you] in my jealousy [I did not want you to be committing adultery with the heathen]and in my fury, [great anger for your adultery] because ye have borne the shame of the heathen: [Had taken their ways and were living like them.]

7  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I have lifted up mine hand, Surely the heathen that are about you, they shall bear their shame. [They will be punished for their doings i.e., for having taken end-time Israel captive and made its cities desolate; laying them waste.

8  But ye, O mountains [talking about the land itself not its people]of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel; for they are at hand to come. [The land of Palestine to become fertile and filled with edible fruits and grains before the arrival of Israel returning from its end-time captivity.]

9  For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye [the land, the fields] shall be tilled and sown:

10  And I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it: and the cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded: [After having been destroyed by the heathen armies or Gentile nations; this is talking about the Promised Land in Palestine that is to be rebuilt after the destruction that came upon it during the events of the Day of the Lord; it is not talking about the land occupied by Ephraim and Manasseh in the end time before their captivity i.e., the USA, Canada, Australia, etc.]

11  And I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bring fruit: and I will settle you after your old estates, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: [Israel returned from captivity and resettled in the Promise Land will be more greatly blessed than ancient Israel in the days of the height of its power and wealth under Solomon] and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

Israel returned from its end-time captivity will be more prosperous than ancient Israel which in the days of Solomon was a very rich nation if not the richest that had ever existed up to that time.

12  Yea, I will cause [God will do it] men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess thee, [the land of Israel  will be theirs and no other nations will have it] and thou shalt  [the mountains or lands of Israel which God will have made very fertile] be their inheritance, and thou [Gentile nations that came up against end-time Israel and decimated the population] shalt no more henceforth bereave them [Israel] of men.

Israel will be the most powerful nation and the nations will fear it; they will not dare go to war against it.

13  Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they [the Gentiles who had taken them captive] say unto you, Thou land devourest up men, and hast bereaved [(to deprive ruthlessly or by force); end-time Israel was bereft of men by the Gentiles when it was conquered] thy nations;

14  Therefore thou [Israel] shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the Lord GOD.

The land of Israel shall no longer be a prey to the Gentile nations who attacked them and slaughtered them in large numbers; this is the way the land of Israel devoured men. God says Israel will no longer be attacked by the Gentiles and suffer huge loss of lives and material destruction.

15  Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the heathen any more, [will no longer have anyone involved in heathen practices in Israel] neither shalt thou [Israel] bear the reproach [punishment] of the people any more, neither shalt thou [Israel] use thy nations to fall any more, saith the Lord GOD.

16  Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

17  Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their own way [were not following God’s way] and by their doings: their way was before me as the uncleanness of a removed woman. [a divorced  women could not attend the religious ceremonies of ancient Israel; she was said to be “unclean”  i.e., could not attend worship ceremonies.]

18  Wherefore I poured my fury upon them [ancient Israel] for the blood that they had shed upon the land, and for their idols wherewith they had polluted it:

19  And I scattered them among the heathen, [happened anciently and also occurs in the end time] and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way and according to their doings I judged them. [punished them]

20  And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land. [they kept on with their pagan practices while calling themselves God’s people; that is how they profaned God’s holy name.]

21  But I had pity [God felt sorry  for Israel and decided to help them] for mine holy name, [because of the promises He had made to Israel and which had to be fulfilled] which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went.

22  Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name’s sake, [that the prophecies made about you should be accomplished] which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.

An important point to note here is that God will greatly bless Israel on its return from its end time captivity not because it has finally seen the error of its ways where all are filled with zeal to obey Him. God will prosper Israel, protect it and elevate it over the nations because of His Holy name’s sake; as proof of His power to fulfill the prophecies written about the restoration of Israel. Ephraim and Manasseh became world dominating powers because of the promises made to Abraham, not because of their obedience to God as we who are living in the days of Manasseh’s superpower status should know. The land is full of the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Physical Israel, the non-converted part of Israel, will be greatly blessed because it was prophesied that it would be not because it is a converted nation. Spiritual Israel or the converted part of Israel will exist at the same time and will occupy the same land and will be blessed because of prophecy and because of its commitment to obey God or its conversion.

23  And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified in you [by Israel rejecting their former pagan rituals and going back to worshiping the true God and the prophecies about Israel being fulfilled proving the power of Israel’s God] before their eyes.

24  For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. [Israel was scattered among the heathen after its military conquest by the Beast power; it will be brought back to the Promised Land]

25  Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. [End-time Israel to be brought back from captivity and go through a conversion process; NOT all will convert; how many will convert (See Mass Conversion of the Nations during the Millennium?.]

26  A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. [To those who following their calling choose to submit to God’s rule.]

27  And I will put my spirit within you, and cause [to make apt, meet, fit to do something; enable someone to do something NOT force them to do something] you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

28  And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; [will be resettled in the Promised Land known as Palestine in our days] and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God. [to all those that choose to obey God]

29  I will also save you from all your uncleannesses:  and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. [I will not punish you with famine because of your former uncleanness (had adopted the ways of the heathen) when you profaned my name among the Gentiles in the days of your dispersal among the nations]

30  And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen.

31  Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall lothe [be disgusted with themselves]yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations.

32  Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord GOD, be it known unto you: be ashamed [for your past uncleannesses] and confounded [at seeing My not acting to punish you as you should be punished but rather in blessing you]
[to confound is to cause surprise or confusion in (someone), especially by acting against their expectations ] for your own ways, O house of Israel.

Again, God makes it clear that Israel is restored to the Promise Land not because of anything Israel has done that would merit God doing so; God does it that the prophecies about Israel may be fulfilled.

33  Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day [at the time when I cleanse you; not a  24 hour time period here; will be a 3 ½ year process] that I shall have cleansed you [a conversion process to occur but not all will convert] from all your iniquities I will also cause you [who convert and are therefore clean] to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded. [Israel during the Millennium is God’s Church which God will use to teach those individuals of the nations that converts; NOT all individuals in every nation will convert.(Mass Conversion of the Nations during the Millennium?)]

God will bless all of Israel returned from captivity in accomplishment of the prophecies of the Bible about Israel but not all of Israel will become converted at the making of the New Covenant. Physical Israel (unconverted) will live on the same territory as spiritual Israel (the converted part of Israel) like the priesthood of Aaron lived among the tribes of Israel.

Israel will be back in the Promised Land; the cities and the wastes that will be rebuilt are those of the Promised Land; war also affects Jerusalem where half of the city is taken and there is much destruction according to Zechariah 14. The wastes that are to be rebuilt will not be the US, Canada, etc. the lands occupied by Ephraim and Manasseh’s descendants; they will be those of the Promised Land. The Promised Land and Jerusalem will suffer destruction and desolation and it is that destruction and desolation that will be restored. Of course, the nations will also rebuild their smashed cities and be eager to restore life as they once knew it before the catastrophes that came upon them.

34  And the desolate land shall be tilled,[after Israel is returned to the Promised Land] whereas [before] it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by.

35  And they [those that pass by who once saw the land desolate] shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited. [A new Israel comes into being which this time is both a physical and a spiritual nation.  A spiritual nation made up of all those who convert regardless of their nationality and a physical nation whose members will be from the nations constituting end-time Israel as well as from the physical descendants of Israel.]

36  Then the heathen that are left round about you [the residue of the heathen] shall know that I the LORD build the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it.

37  Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock. [The remnant of end-time Israel resettled in the Promised Land is to become a large nation.]

38  As the holy flock, [or God’s Holy nation as Israel was to become] as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts; so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men: and they shall know [The only persons that can know who is the Lord are those who have God’s Holy Spirit dwelling in them; those that are converted] that I am the LORD. [Will have become converted following 3 ½ year ministry of Christ with them.]

The story of what happens when Israel returns from its end-time captivity and is resettled in the Promise Land can also be found in Isaiah 60 which I quote below in its entirety. This chapter of Isaiah gives us more detailed information of the state of Israel following its return from captivity which if of great importance for us to know so as to have a more complete understanding of the Millennium and of the Last Great Day and of how God’s master plan of salvation will be worked out during those days. I would also urge you to read through Jeremiah 31 where more detail is given about the restoration of Israel to the Promised Land and how it will become rich and prosper. For the sake of brevity I am not quoting it in this study which is already long enough.

Is 60:1  Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

2  For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.

3  And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. [The return of Israel to the Promised Land and its miraculous growth in power and prosperity will draw the Gentile nations to Israel to find out how Israel from such a humble beginning as a small group of captives returning to their land became so rich and so powerful so quickly.]

4  Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. [Israel is told to lift up its eyes and see its sons and daughters coming back to the Promised Land from afar off in the countries of the Gentiles where they had been living in captivity.]

5  Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.

This verse and others that follow are vitally important to our understanding just how rich and prosperous Israel returned from its end-time captivity is to become as a nation once resettled in the  Promised Land. These verses are proof positive and make it very clear that Israel is to become very rich; in fact, so rich that the Gentile nations will be intensely curious to find out how this seemingly impossible thing could have happened and they will flock in great numbers to Israel to be taught what is their secret for having become so rich and being so prosperous.

Israel will be an economic giant and powerhouse in the world; it will be the world’s superpower during the Millennium.

6  The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD.

7  All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory.

8  Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?

9  Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far,[Israel to be brought back from captivity] their silver and their gold with them, [and with riches which they get from spoiling their former captors like Israel did when it left Egyptian slavery] unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.

10  And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee. [Israel will rule over the nations of the world; their kings will minister unto Israel]

11  Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, [the goods, wealth, merchandise of the Gentiles] and that their kings may be brought.

12  For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

Here we have plainly stated in a verse that needs no interpretation that Israel during the Millennium will be a superpower that will rule over the nations of the world and the nations will submit to it because of the miraculous destruction of Gog and Magog at the beginning of the Millennium. The nations will greatly fear Israel and will not dare do anything that would bring swift and complete destruction on themselves as occurred with Gog and Magog.

13  The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of my feet glorious.

14  The sons also of them that afflicted thee [of those who had taken Israel captive and used them as slaves] shall come bending [submitting themselves to Israel] unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

End-time Israel returned from captivity after its conversion will will rule over the nations of the world and this verse makes this very clear.

15  Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.

Israel will become a nation that the nations will flow to because of its excellency, physical beauty and orderly society which will be a model to other nations and it will always be that way; Israel will no longer go into captivity.

16  Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. [Israel  will draw its sustenance from the Gentile nations; and it will be the best of what the Gentiles have (will suck the breasts of kings).]

17  For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness.

Israel to become very rich through the exchanges that they make with the nations; in all their commercial exchanges they will come out ahead as for brass they will get gold; for iron they will get silver and for wood, brass.

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. [There shall no more be war, violence or destruction within the border of Israel; they will live in  peace and no nation shall threaten them or make war with them lest they be destroyed by God who will then be their protector; Israel during the Millennium will not have any armies protecting them.]

19  The 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. [Israel’s God will be their God and not the moon and the sun as in their pagan days.]

20  Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the LORD shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. [God will be their sun and moon and will always be there and Israel will no longer be in mourning as in the days of its captivity among the Gentiles.]

21  Thy people also shall be all righteous: [all those making up spiritual Israel (that part of Israel which is converted) will have God’s holiness imputed to it] they shall inherit the land for ever, [the new Israel in which dwells God’s holy nation and kingdom of priests will never lose the Promised Land] the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified. [God brings to pass the prophecies made about Israel that He may be glorified not because Israel had done anything to merit its restoration as a world superpower and as His Church.]

22  A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the LORD will hasten it in his time. [Israel is the nation where a little one, a child will become a thousand persons and where a small nation will become a strong nation. Israel from its small beginnings on its return from captivity will become a nation with a big population; will become very rich and will dominate the nations of the world.]

It is clear that Israel, the part that undergoes conversion, once restored to the Promised Land will be God’s church which God will use to teach those individuals among the nations that convert during the Millennium and the Last Great Day. What was not as clear was the physical/material functioning of Israel among the nations of the world. It used to be that the Levitical priesthood, the sons of Aaron lived off of the offerings of the people; they had no  part in the land, their part was God’s part which were the offerings the people brought to the tent of meeting or of the congregation.  They did not farm the land or raise animals so they could dedicate themselves to teaching and administering the law over the people.

What about end-time Israel returned from its captivity following its restoration to the Promised Land and its conversion; how will they live as they will be God’s Holy nation (they will have undergone a 3 ½ year process of conversion with Christ completing His ministry with Israel) and their main function will be to be priests or teachers.  They are to teach converts from the nations; NOT preach the Gospel to the nations but teach those individuals from the nations who follow their calling and get on the road to conversion and then administer the law over them as God’s representatives on the earth. All will be called during the Millennium but not all will choose to become converted. Even if it is the few as Christ says, of the millions of people that will be on the earth, it will still be a large number and spiritual Israel would not be able to both teach and work for their sustenance as was the case in ancient Israel if the OT pattern holds true in NT times.

Isaiah 60 is a clear indication that Israel during the Millennium as God’s Church will prosper with the Gentiles supplying them with goods and services as stated in Isaiah 60: 15-16-17. Israel is to become the world’s superpower nation as per Isa 60:22.

Isaiah 61 makes it even clearer that Israel will not work the land or raise animals but that this will be done by those of other nations.

Israel will be a kingdom of priests first and foremost though it will also be a physical nation made up of individuals who did not convert at the making of the New Covenant.

Isa 61:1  The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 

Isa 61:2  To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 

Isa 61:3  To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. 

Isa 61:4  And they shall build the old wastes, [in the Promised Land] they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. 

Isa 61:5  And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. 

Isa 61:6  But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.  [Israel is to prosper from their use of the riches of the Gentiles; the Gentile nations will serve Israel.]

Isa 61:7  For your shame [because of the shame you endured at the hands of the Gentiles while in captivity] ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land [land of Israel] they shall possess the double: everlasting [as God’s elect on the earth and in God’s Kingdom]  joy shall be unto them. 

Isa 61:8  For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant [the New Covenant] with them. 

Isa 61:9  And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the LORD hath blessed. [The world will know that Israel is prospering because of God blessing them.]

Isa 61:10  I [Israelites who will be greatly blessed by God] will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels. 

Isa 61:11  For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth [from Israel] before all the nations. 

Comments on Isaiah 61

Israel will return from its end-time captivity as a relatively small group and resettle the Promised Land. God will prosper them and they will become very rich but without any military defenses or army; God will be their protector. The nations will see Israel’s wealth and that it has no armies and the nations of Gog and Magog which will be the strongest military nation at that time, will decide to go up against Israel and to spoil it. Gog and Magog will be supernaturally destroyed in the sight of the nations.  After their destruction the nations of the world will be chastened and will not be eager to again mount an attack against Israel; Israel will become the new superpower in the world and this is why along with the destruction of Gog and Magog there will be peace during the Millennium. The supernatural destruction of physical Gog and Magog will be the reason why Israel will be respected among the nation and that none will dare attack it for fear of being destroyed as Gog and Magog were destroyed.

We have to be able to understand the impact on the nations of the world of seeing the armies of Gog and Magog being destroyed by Israel which is a country without defenses or army. They will not know how Gog and Magog could have been destroyed and they will greatly fear Israel which to their mind has great power unknown to them.

The Russian and Chinese armies massed against Israel were suddenly and mysteriously destroyed by some great unknown power at the time of Christ’s 2nd Coming (the battle of Armageddon) then early on in the Millennium after Israel has become established and rich, the armies of Gog and Magog are also suddenly destroyed by some unknown great force. The nations will very surely take notice; there is something about Israel which gives them such great power that no army no matter how large can overcome it and which can in an instant destroy it.

No nation will dare mount an attack against Israel and no nation will dare engage in warfare from fear of attracting sudden and complete destruction from Israel from that mysterious great force or power which it commands.

The nations will prefer survival to risking destruction from engaging in war against their neighboring nations.

This is why there will be  peace in the world during the Millennium. In our modern times, there has been a  prolonged period of peace and prosperity since the coming to superpower status of the United States which by its great economic and military power has assured peace in the world.  Israel during the Millennium will play the same role.

The Destruction of Gog Early on at the Beginning of the Millennium

Eze 39:1  Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: 

Eze 39:2  And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts, and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel: 

Eze 39:3  And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand. 

Eze 39:4  Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured. 

Eze 39:5  Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD. 

Eze 39:6  And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD. 

Eze 39:7  So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel. 

Eze 39:8  Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken. 

Eze 39:9  And they that dwell in the cities of Israel shall go forth, and shall set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and the arrows, and the handstaves, and the spears, and they shall burn them with fire seven years: 

Eze 39:10  So that they shall take no wood out of the field, neither cut down any out of the forests; for they shall burn the weapons with fire: and they shall spoil those that spoiled them, and rob those that robbed them, saith the Lord GOD. 

Eze 39:11  And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude: and they shall call it The valley of Hamongog. 

Eze 39:12  And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land. 

Eze 39:13  Yea, all the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord GOD. 

Eze 39:14  And they shall sever out men of continual employment, passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search. 

Eze 39:15  And the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man’s bone, then shall he set up a sign by it, till the buriers have buried it in the valley of Hamongog. 

Eze 39:16  And also the name of the city shall be Hamonah. Thus shall they cleanse the land. 

The nations each year will have to come to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles and their representatives will see the valley of Hammongog which are the bones of Gog which attacked Israel.

Zec 14:18  And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.

This is the reason why God will force attendance by the nations to the feast of tabernacles; it will not be to convert anyone but it will rather be as a reminder to the nations of what will happen to them should they come up against Israel. They will go through the valley of Hammongog and be reminded of how they were supernaturally destroyed. Conversion is by God’s Holy Spirit; not by force; people go to the Feast because they are converted; not to become converted.

God’s Promise to Restore Israel

God has been angry with Israel because of its disobedience and they were punished by being taken captive by other nations and ultimately ceasing to be a nation. But for Judah, made up of 3 of the tribes of Israel, Israel has become invisible in the world since its dispersion among the nations.

However God says He will not remain angry with Israel and that He will restore it to the Promised Land from which it was taken and scattered among the nations because of the promises made to Jacob.

Gen 28:12  And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.

13  And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;

14  And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

The descendants of Jacob or Israel were to spread abroad (would be dispersed among the nations in their first captivity) and there presence among the nations would be a blessing.

15  And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.

God clearly says here that Israel would not remain in the promised land (I will bring thee again in this land) and the reason why He does it is because of His promise to Abraham.

16   And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.

Israel is to become rich and powerful and rule over the nations of the world in fulfillment of God’s Promise to Abraham.

Is 54: 1  Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.

2  Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

3  For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, (their wealth) and make the desolate cities [of Israel] to be inhabited.

End-time Israel returned from captivity after its conversion will rule over the Gentile nations.

4  Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, [ancient Israel] and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more. [ancient Israel became widowed when Christ died on the stake.]

5  For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

6  For the LORD hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God.

7  For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.

8  In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.

9  For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee. [God will keep His promise to Abraham and though He was for a while angry with Israel, He now says this will never again occur in the same way that He would never again destroy humanity with a great flood.]

10  For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee.

11   O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.

12  And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones.

13  And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children.

14  In righteousness shalt thou be established: [God here is talking about spiritual Israel] thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.

15  Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake. [God says the nations will surely gather against Israel restored to the Promised Land but it will not be God’s doing as He did in the past to punish them. And God says, whoever gathers against Israel will not prevail.]

16  Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.

17  No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.

This last verse of Isaiah 54 makes it clear that God will be Israel’s protector and that this protection is because of the servants of the LORD i.e., those who are converted and because of their righteousness which is of God i.e., it is Christ’s righteousness imputed to the truly converted who have committed themselves to obeying God in all things. They are God’s spiritual nation during the Millennium i.e., His Holy nation and kingdom of priests or His Church. They are God’s saints which God will use to teach those individuals from among the nations who follow their calling during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.

Conclusion

The purpose of this study is an attempt to bring some clarity regarding what Israel will do during the Millennium; its stature among the nations of the world; the distinction that needs to be understood between physical Israel and spiritual Israel that will dwell together in the Promised Land; to explain why God restores Israel to the Promised Land; to clarify why there will be no wars during the Millennium except the assault of Gog and Magog on Israel at the beginning of the Millennium; the great level of prosperity to be found in Israel and spiritual Israel’s role in the salvation process during the Millennium and the Last Great Day.

God’s plan of salvation for mankind will not be all that different during the Millennium and the Last Great Day than it is today and the results will pretty well be the same as they have been since the foundation of God’s New Testament Spirit-begotten Church.

What results will be achieved? Will all but the few be saved? Will there be a  massive conversion of the nations? Will the Millennium and the Last Great Day be a time of heaven on earth with a planet restored to Garden of Eden like beauty?

All these questions have been answered in this studies and others put on this site. All that you have to do is take the time to read them attentively and with an open mind so as to understand them. And, of course, you first have to have mastered the foundational truth of God’s Church. Until you do, you will be limited to the “milk” of the Word of God and you will never be able to understand the “meat” of the Word of God

It will take time and effort and only you can make that decision.

We are rewarded according to our works; it’s all up to you as it has always been.