I. The Second Coming and Millennium
A. After the tribulation period...
1. Christ will come to earth,
2. Christ will overthrow the antichrist and false prophet, and bind Satan. (Daniel 7:17-27; Revelation 19:11-21; 20:1-7)
3. Christ will rule on the throne of David (Luke 1:31-33; Acts 1:10-11; 2:29-30)
4. Christ will establish His Messianic kingdom on the earth for a thousand years. (Revelation 20:1-7 esp.4)
B. During the Millennium
1. The resurrected saints will reign with Him over Israel and all the nations of the earth. (Ezekiel 37:21-28; Daniel 7:17-22; 1 Corinthians 6:2; Revelation 19:11-16; 20:104)
2. The time of our Lord’s millennial reign will be characterized by… (Isaiah 11:1-16; 65: 17-25; Ezekiel 36:33-38)
a) harmony,
b) justice,
c) peace,
d) righteousness, and
e) long life,
3. The millennium will end with the release of Satan. (Revelation 20:7-8)
II. Israel and the Millennium
A. The result of Israel’s disobedience was that they were temporarily set aside. (Matthew 21:43; Romans 11:1-26)
B. Israel will again be awakened to repentance and enter into the land of blessing. (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Ezekiel 36:22-32; Romans 11:25-29)
C. The millennial kingdom will be the fulfillment of God's promise to Israel (Isaiah 65:17-25; Ezekiel 37: 21-28; Zechariah 8:1-17 esp.7-8) to restore them to the land which they forfeited through their disobedience. (Deuteronomy 28:15-68)
III. The Last Judgment: After the release of Satan, which follows the thousand year reign of Christ, (Revelation 20:7,8-10)
A. Final Battle (Revelation 20:9)
1. Satan will deceive the nations of the earth and
2. Satan will gather them to battle against the saints and Jerusalem.
3. As the deceived nations surround Jerusalem will be devoured by fire from heaven.
B. Following this, Satan will be thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone. (Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:10)
C. The dead will be judged at the Great White Throne. (Rev. 20:11-15)
D. Those not found written in the book of life will be thrown into the lake of fire. (Rev. 20:11-15)
IV. Eternity
A. After the closing of the millennium,
1. The temporary release of Satan, and the Great White Throne Judgment, (2 Thessalonians 1:9; Revelation 20:7-15)
2. The heavens will pass away, and the elements of earth will melt away with fervent heat. (2 Peter 3:10-11; Isaiah 66:16)
3. They will be replaced with new heavens and a new earth where only righteousness dwells. (2 Peter 3:13; Isaiah 66:22; Revelation 21:1)
B. Following this, the heavenly city…
1. will come down out of heaven (Revelation 21:2-3)
2. will be the dwelling place of the saints,
3. where they will enjoy fellowship with God and one another forever. (John 17:3; Revelation 21 & 22)
C. Our Lord Jesus Christ, having fulfilled His redemptive mission, will then deliver up the kingdom to God the Father (1 Corinthians 15:24-28) so that the triune God may reign over all forever and ever. (1 Corinthians 15:28) -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Recommendations for general dispensational commentaries.
Rydelnik, Michael, and Michael G. Vanlaningham. The Moody Bible Commentary. Moody Publishers: Chicago, 2014. Print.
Walvoord, John F., and Roy B. Zuck. The Bible Knowledge Commentary. an Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL: Victor, 1983. Print. (O.T. and N.T. volumes)
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One thing that is helpful to remember is that these four views show that there is some difficulty in interpreting Revelation. (Be charitable in your discussions.) It is also helpful to understand that there is not neat agreement between interpreters in each of these four camps. There are even some who describe their views as different from all four of these views.
Four views on Revelation:
Futurist: This view is that with the exception of chapters 1to 3, all the visions in Revelation relate to a period immediately preceding and following the second advent of Christ at the end of the age. Variations of this vew were held by the earliest expositors, such as Justin Martyr (c. 165), Renaeus (d.c. 195), Hippolytus (d. 236), and Victorinus (d.c. 303). After a ten century eclipse, during which time the allegorical method prevailed, the futurist view was revived in the late sixteenth century…
Historist: As the word implies, this view centers on history and its continuity as seen in Revelation. …Luther, Calvin, and other Reformers came to adopt this view. That view does not enjoy much favor today is largely because of the lack of consensus as to the historical identification it entails.
Preterist: According to this view, Revelation is to be seen as related to what happened in the time of the author; as to the time of its writing, it is a contemporary and imminent historical document. So the main contents of chapters 4-22 are viewed as describing events wholly limited to John’s own time. As a system, it did not appear till 1614…
Idealist: This method of interpreting Revelation sees it as being basically poetical, symbolic, and spiritual in nature. … Thus Revelation does not predict any specific historical events at all; on the contrary, it sets forth timeless truths concerning the battle between good and evil that continues throughout the church age. As a system of interpretation, it is more recent than the three other schools and somewhat more difficult to distinguish from the earlier allegorizing approaches of the Alexandrians (Clement and Origen).
Johnson, Alan F. The Expositor's Bible Commentary: With the New International Version of the Holy Bible, Hebrews through Revelation. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Pub. House, 1981. Print. (pp. 408-401) -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Four views on the millennium explained and compared:
https://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/mill.cfm
