“Millennial Teaching’s” – Introduction
The purpose of this lesson is to introduce a series on the Millennial Kingdom
Zechariah 14:1-5 (New English Translation)
The Sovereignty of the Lord
1 A day of the Lord[a] is about to come when your possessions[b] will be divided as plunder in your midst. 2 For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to wage war; the city will be taken, its houses plundered, and the women raped. Then half of the city will go into exile, but the remainder of the people will not be taken away.[c]
3 Then the Lord will go to battle[d] and fight against those nations, just as he fought battles in ancient days.[e] 4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives that lies to the east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in half from east to west, leaving a great valley. Half the mountain will move northward and the other half southward.[f] 5 Then you will escape[g] through my mountain valley, for the valley of the mountains will extend to Azal.[h] Indeed, you will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of King Uzziah[i] of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come with all his holy ones with him.
Jeremiah 30: 1-24 (New English Translation)
Introduction to the Book of Consolation
1 The Lord spoke to Jeremiah.[a] 2 “The Lord God of Israel says,[b] ‘Write everything that I am about to tell you in a scroll.[c] 3 For I, the Lord, affirm[d] that the time will come when I will reverse the plight[e] of my people, Israel and Judah,’ says the Lord. ‘I will bring them back to the land I gave their ancestors[f] and they will take possession of it once again.’”[g]
Israel and Judah Will Be Delivered after a Time of Deep Distress
4 So here is what the Lord has to say about Israel and Judah.[h]
5 Yes,[i] here is what he says:
“You hear cries of panic and of terror;
there is no peace in sight.[j]
6 Ask yourselves this and consider it carefully:[k]
Have you ever seen a man give birth to a baby?
Why then do I see all these strong men
grabbing their stomachs in pain like[l] a woman giving birth?
And why do their faces
turn so deathly pale?
7 Alas, what a terrible time of trouble it is![m]
There has never been any like it.
It is a time of trouble for the descendants of Jacob,
but some of them will be rescued out of it.[n]
8 When the time for them to be rescued comes,”[o]
says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,[p]
“I will rescue you from foreign subjugation.[q]
I will deliver you from captivity.[r]
Foreigners will then no longer subjugate them.
9 But they will be subject to[s] the Lord their God
and to the Davidic ruler whom I will raise up as king over them.[t]
10 So I, the Lord, tell you not to be afraid,
you descendants of Jacob, my servants.[u]
Do not be terrified, people of Israel.
For I will rescue you and your descendants
from a faraway land where you are captives.[v]
The descendants of Jacob will return to their land and enjoy peace.
They will be secure and no one will terrify them.[w]
11 For I, the Lord, affirm[x] that
I will be with you and will rescue you.
I will completely destroy all the nations where I scattered you.
But I will not completely destroy you.
I will indeed discipline you, but only in due measure.
I will not allow you to go entirely unpunished.”[y]
The Lord Will Heal the Wounds of Judah
12 Moreover,[z] the Lord says to the people of Zion:[aa]
“Your injuries are incurable;
your wounds are severe.[ab]
13 There is no one to plead your cause.
There are no remedies for your wounds.[ac]
There is no healing for you.
14 All your allies have abandoned you.[ad]
They no longer have any concern for you.
For I have attacked you like an enemy would.
I have chastened you cruelly.
For your wickedness is so great
and your sin is so much.[ae]
15 Why do you complain about your injuries,
that your pain is incurable?
I have done all this to you
because your wickedness is so great
and your sin is so much.
16 But[af] all who destroyed you will be destroyed.
All your enemies will go into exile.
Those who plundered you will be plundered.
I will cause those who pillaged you to be pillaged.[ag]
17 Yes,[ah] I will restore you to health.
I will heal your wounds.
I, the Lord, affirm it![ai]
For you have been called an outcast,
Zion, whom no one cares for.”
The Lord Will Restore Israel and Judah
18 The Lord says:
“I will restore the ruined houses of the descendants of Jacob.
I will show compassion on their ruined homes.[aj]
Every city will be rebuilt on its former ruins.[ak]
Every fortified dwelling will occupy its traditional site.[al]
19 Out of those places you will hear songs of thanksgiving[am]
and the sounds of laughter and merriment.
I will increase their number and they will not dwindle away.[an]
I will bring them honor and they will no longer be despised.
20 The descendants of Jacob will enjoy their former privileges.
Their community will be reestablished in my favor,[ao]
and I will punish all who try to oppress them.
21 One of their own people will be their leader.
Their ruler will come from their own number.[ap]
I will invite him to approach me, and he will do so.[aq]
For no one would dare approach me on his own.[ar]
I, the Lord, affirm it![as]
22 Then you will again be my people,
and I will be your God.”[at]
23 Just watch! The wrath of the Lord
will come like a storm.
Like a raging storm it will rage down
on the heads of those who are wicked.
24 The anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he has fully carried out his intended purposes.
In future days you will come to understand this
I appreciate Bruce Hurt for his help in this lesson
THE TIME OF JACOB’S TROUBLE
The time of Jacob’s trouble or Jacob’s trouble (distress) refers to the phrase found in Jeremiah 30:7. Jeremiah 30-33 is a unique section of Jeremiah’s book because these chapters are filled with prophecies that speak of a “future and a hope” for the exiled nation of Israel. Thus, these chapters are often referred to as The Book of Consolation. In the previous 29 chapters Jeremiah has proclaimed primarily a negative message, but this chapter is like a breath of fresh air with Jeremiah 30:3 (see below) serving as a “summary” of this message of consolation. “A new day is about to dawn, and these chapters are filled with hope.”
FROM THE CONTEXT:
- God refers to Himself as “the God of Israel” which is a phrase found 49 times in Jeremiah out of 199 uses in the OT (25% of OT uses are by Jeremiah). Although they have sinned for centuries, and the preceding 29 chapters are filled with descriptions of their just retribution, God still associates Himself with them as the God of Israel demonstrating His special relation to and interest in Israel. The first use is in Exodus 5:1 = “And afterward Moses and Aaron came and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Let My people go that they may celebrate a feast to Me in the wilderness.’” They are still “His people” even after millennia of rejecting Him and rebelling against Him! This is supernatural everlasting love (Jer 31:3)! Jehovah was and will always be the God of Israel, a truth which soundly trumps the tragic teaching of replacement theology or supersessionism! Jehovah Sabaoth said it and that settles it whether non-literalists believe it or not!
- Jehovah’s mention of both the Northern division (Israel) and the Southern division (Judah) indicates that this prophecy is directed not just to Judah but to the entire nation. The specific mention of just the name of Jacob in Jer 30:7 is an allusion to the change of name God bestowed on Jacob in Genesis:
And he said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.” (Genesis 32:28)
- This prophecy is spoken after the Northern 10 tribes had been taken into exile in Assyria (722BC) and at a time when the Southern 2 tribes were soon to be taken into exile in Babylon (586BC). In sum, the “fortunes” of the divided nation were “bankrupt” so to speak.
- In this context of national bankruptcy, God gives a promise to restore the fortunes of Israel and Judah. Note carefully that this prophecy must speak of a yet future prophecy because at no time did God restore the fortunes of the 10 northern tribes, so that the “Lost Tribes” are still “lost!” Guzik explains that the promise to restore the fortunes is “stated many times before and after in Jeremiah (See restore the fortunes).
If you have the electronic version of my notes, you can go directly to “restore the fortunes” and study this. It’s large, otherwise I would have included it in my notes.
But let me say this from the before Declaration to now God is making good on his promise, note that there can be no Millennium without Israel!
So can you see where we are going…