1 Corinthians 15 also has a great verses about the Resurrection.

Thank you DeighAnn for your great post! This is an interesting topic, I will post what I have written in my Bible Commentary concerning this verse in Revelation 20:4. Please forgive me if it alarms you. 

 

                                                      The Millennial Kingdom of Jesus Christ

 

The Saints are Assigned

 

Revelation 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. After the captivity of Satan, the setup of the Millennial Kingdom will begin. The Lord will first set His immortal Bride up with their assigned kingdoms to rule over and teach the inhabitants about the things of God and of the past, which will need to be remembered. If you will remember from Revelation 1:6, upon the return of Jesus, He will set up His kingdom and rule the entire Earth from his throne in Jerusalem. The Bride of Christ (Christians) will be immortals, because of the rapture (1 Cor. 15:52-54). The Apostle Paul had given the church an insight on what the immortal Bride will be doing during this one thousand-year earthly reign. ^“Do you not know that the saints shall judge the world? And if the world shall be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters?” (1 Cor. 6:2)

Because Christ will be King of the entire Earth, His bride will be kings, or lords of their assigned kingdoms, which they will be ruling over. We, the Bride of Christ, will be kings and priests under (unto) Christ and His Father. John saw thrones is his vision, and them that sat upon them; he declared that judgment was to be given unto them. This is within the timeline of after the Second Coming of Christ, and leading into the one thousand-year Millennial Kingdom of Christ. In realization of this, it brings to me new meaning to the expression of Jesus being “King of kings, and Lord of lords” (Rev. 19:16). We will be priests, because for the one thousand years, the new mortals (having been born and raised) will need to be taught the history of the world and the word of God. Therefore the thrones, which John had seen, were the kingdoms assigned to each member of the Bride of Christ (And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them). The judgment of each kingdom on Earth will be given unto each member of the Bride of Christ.

The second citing of John was that of all of those Tribulation Saints, who will have been beheaded in the name of Jesus, while not taking the mark of the beast, nor worshipped him, nor his image. John implied that they too, will reign (rule) with Jesus for the one thousand years, as well. This citing seems to be an awards ceremony, which will be because they had missed the Bema Judgment ceremony right after the rapture of the church, which will be in heaven before the seven-year Seventieth Week of Daniel; please notice that John saw the twenty-four elders (the church) having crowns already on their heads (Rev. 4:10). Because they will reign along with the raptured church, they will have to become immortals as well; their resurrection unto immortality will have to be upon their recognition within this ceremony here in 20:4.

 

The Kingdom is Prepared

 

It is disclosed by the Lord that the preparation of the Millennial Kingdom will take thirty Earth days. “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that makes desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.” (Dan. 12:11) The time between the abomination that makes desolate and the Second Coming of Christ will be 1,260 days (Feast of Atonement on Tishri 10). According to Daniel 12:11, the time between the abomination that makes desolate and the finished preparation of the Millennial Kingdom of Christ will be 1,290 days; therefore the preparation of the kingdom will be 30 days. The preparation will be amazing!

 

⁵ And the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night, because upon all the glory shall be a defense.

⁶ And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a cover from storm and from rain. (Is. 4:5-6)

 

From what Isaiah 4:6 implies, there will be a gigantic canopy over Jerusalem to shield the billions of people, from the weather conditions. If you will recall in Zechariah 14:16, every person on Earth will be required to travel to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles every Tishri 15-21. Israel had been told that these seven days of dwelling under a canopy were to be in remembrance of their journey for forty years in the wilderness; however, they had not believed that this was the imagery of the Messianic Kingdom. This enormous canopy will be a cover over the entire city of Jerusalem, and it will take only thirty days to build.  

 

 ³⁹ Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the fruit of the land, you shall keep a feast unto the Lord seven days: on the first day shall be a Sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a Sabbath.

⁴⁰ And you shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days.

⁴¹ And you shall keep it a feast unto the Lord seven days in the year. It shall be a statute forever in your generations: you shall celebrate it in the seventh month. (Lev. 23:39-41)

 

As one can see, the Lord established an annual feast day, for Israel to remember that He had sustained them in the wilderness for forty years during the Exodus. This seven-day annual feast is known as the Feast of Tabernacles. The same annual celebration will be required of the inhabitants of the entire Earth, during the one thousand-year Millennial Kingdom of Christ. The inhabitants of the Earth will come to Jerusalem to celebrate their King, Lord, and God for seven days. They will be blessed throughout the year, while the Lord will sustain them. ^“And it shall come to pass, that everyone that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.” (Zech. 14:16)

 

And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the Earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. (Zech. 14:17) 

 

Zechariah 14:17 remarks on what the rebellious people of the Earth will experience, if they fail to comply with the requirement of coming to Jerusalem once a year to worship Jesus and celebrate the seven-day Feast of Tabernacles. Because the Earth will still be filled with mortals, they will have sinful flesh that will cause them to sin against the Lord. This is pretty amazing how even without any outside influences from the demonic realm, the people will sin against God. Lucifer will be chained in The Bottomless Pit for one thousand years (Rev. 20:1-3). It is not known when the final judgment of the familiar spirits (demons) is to be consummated. We can only assume that it will occur at the Second Coming of Christ, since their leader (Satan) will be in chains, while the Antichrist and false prophet will have already been cast into The Lake of Fire (Rev. 19:20). Even the non-canonized Book of Enoch has left out clarity of when this final judgment is to occur. These spirits will lack leadership for the first time, if they are still loose upon the Earth, during the Millennial Kingdom. With God on His throne in Jerusalem, they will have no power to influence anyone without His permission. I choose to think that Jesus the Messiah will consummate judgment against the familiar spirits (demons) immediately, and there will be no influences against the flesh of the mortals to sin. With no influences, mortals will be pulled down by their fallen flesh and sin against the Lord. Therefore those, who choose to not come to Jerusalem to worship the Lord and celebrate the seven-day Feast of Tabernacles, will face drought in their land on the Earth (even upon them shall be no rain).

 

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. (Zech. 14:18)

 

It seems that the previous verse in Zechariah 14:17 is elaborated upon with this verse. It will be the Egyptians of the Millennial Kingdom, who will rebel against the Lord. The Lord will smite the Egyptians with drought and famine in punishment against them, for not coming to Jerusalem to worship Him. Isaiah brought forth a little bit more information concerning this.

 

²¹ And the Lord shall be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation; yea, they shall vow a vow unto the Lord, and perform it.

²² And the Lord shall smite Egypt: He shall smite and heal it: and they shall return even to the Lord, and He shall be entreated of them, and shall heal them.

²³ In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians. (Is. 19:21-23)

 

After the Lord has to once again plague the Egyptian people with a drought, they will finally repent and come to Him as their Lord. It seems very ironic that these Egyptians will have to experience the same type of judgments against them, as they had during the Exodus, just to bring them to repentance. Unlike the Egyptians during the Exodus, they will understand that the one God of heaven and Earth is the Lord, will be sitting on His throne in Jerusalem.

 

This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. (Zech. 14:19)

 

To sum up what was prophesied in Zechariah 14:17 and 14:18, the Lord will smite the nations with drought, which will cause potentially other occurrences. It would make sense that the Lord will treat the heathen, who will not come to Jerusalem, with the plague similar to what He had put upon Israel, when they had failed to worship and honor Him. ^“The Lord shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon you, until you be destroyed.” (Deut. 28:24) The lack of rain can cause other potential plagues to fall upon a nation, such as hunger, disease, and death to livestock. In Deuteronomy 28, the Lord presented Israel with the threat of drought, which did cause other circumstances to fall upon them (Deut. 28:16-21).

Egypt, as well as the other nations guilty of not coming to Jerusalem for The Feast of Tabernacles, will be faced with overwhelming circumstances; this will cause them to see that they have no choice, but to honor and worship the one true living God. They will have formerly worshiped false gods, in order to bring them rain and good health, but will need to be demonstrated that it is the God who sits on His throne in Jerusalem who controls all things. Once they have come to realize this very simple truth, they will no longer fail to honor the Lord; they will understand and will never fail again to come to Jerusalem to worship the Lord and celebrate His Feast of Tabernacles.

 

In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, Holiness unto The Lord; and the pots in the Lord's house shall be like the bowls before the altar. (Zech. 14:20)

 

Zechariah 14:20 continues to describe what will happen during the Millennial Kingdom when it declares “in that day.” It will be even the most simple, but secular, things of the world, which will be glorified unto the Lord. Zechariah demonstrates this with this verse, stating that even the bells jingling on the horses will be inscribed with the engraved words: “Holiness unto the Lord.” As the Apostle Paul had made clear to the church, all things are to be done to the glory of God. “Whether therefore you eat, or drink, or whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).

 

And the pots, and the shovels, and the basons: and all these vessels, which Hiram made to King Solomon for the house of the Lord, were of bright copper. (1 Kgs. 7:45)

 

In the Temple, it will not be just the bowls used for the sprinkling of the sacrificial blood that will be considered holy, but all bowls and pots in the Temple (and the pots in the Lord's house shall be like the bowls before the altar). All things in the Temple will be considered holiness unto the Lord.

 

Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts. (Zech. 14:21)

 

 Zechariah goes a step further from the previous verse and wrote that all pots in Judah and Jerusalem, in every home, will be holiness unto the Lord. Everyone who sacrifices will be able to grab any vessel in Judah and Jerusalem and use it for sacrifice in the Temple and seethe (boil, cook, or roast) in them. This verse is inclusive of all pots or vessels in Judah and Jerusalem.

The final sentence in the Book of Zechariah declares a very significant point to ponder. Canaanites were the pagans, who worshiped many gods and influenced the children of Israel to fall away from their dedication to the Lord. The Canaanites were very polytheistic. The priests, scribes, and Pharisees became like these Canaanites in the last few centuries, before the Babylonian Captivity. The Temple of the Lord was filled with their corruption and caused the Lord to become very angry against the nation of Israel.

 

 And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord's house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east. (Ezek. 8:16)

 

Within this last sentence of Zechariah 14:21, Zechariah prophesied of the Millennial Kingdom, when there will never be a polytheistic person within the house of the Lord; they will all be God’s people. With the Son of God sitting on His throne in Jerusalem, the Levitical priests will make celebratory sacrifices unto the Lord and will be His children (and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts). Amen!

 

And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be. (Zechariah 14:8)

 

Living waters is opposite to the dead waters of the Dead Sea. Fresh living water will flow in two directions from Jerusalem, which will bring fresh water and revive the two seas ability to provide marine life. Because of the dividing of Mt. Olives (Zech. 14:4), the landscape will be changed significantly, when fresh water will flow from the Jordan River and divide in Jerusalem to flow to the east and to the west. The east branch of the fresh water river will flow towards the former sea, or eastern sea, which is actually the current Dead Sea. This water flow will be the result of the valley caused by the cleave going east and west. (cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west). The western flowing branch of water will flow west to the hinder sea, or Mediterranean Sea. They will flow day and night, month after month, in both summer and winter. The flow will not be hindered by drought, because the Lord will be there (in summer and in winter shall it be).[1]

 

All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king's winepresses. (Zech. 14:10)

 

The mountains are round about Jerusalem (Ps. 125:2), but when the landscape changes because of the great earthquake from Zechariah 14:4, the Lord will manipulate the land around Jerusalem to be flat as a plain; this will range from Geba to Rimmon to the north. Geba to Rimmon on the map are north of Jerusalem; to take this into context, we should look east to west using where Geba to Rimmon on the map; then looking to the south of Jerusalem from the locations of Geba and Rimmon, we can visualize a span from north of Jerusalem to the south of Jerusalem, as far east and north as Rimmon, and as far west as Geba; this then is a narrow ovular section on a map going just south of Jerusalem. This ovular strip of land will be formerly a mountain that will become flat as a plain; this will either occur, because of the great earthquake when the Lord touches down at His Second Coming, or during the thirty-day preparation of Jerusalem (All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem). 

The second statement of Zechariah 14:10 needs to be understood separately from the first. When we read the pronoun “it” in this clause, we should understand “it” to be the land ranging within the parameters that follow. The land will be “lifted up” higher than the surrounding land of Jerusalem. In this clause, simply replace the pronoun “it” with the words “the land” (and the land shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place). In this case, the pronoun “it” is understood to be the land described in the clause that follows the pronoun. The parameters range east to west from Benjamin’s gate (sheep gate) in the east, to the first gate (old gate) stretching to the corner gate to the west. The area north to south ranges from the tower of Hananeel in the north, to the king's winepresses in the south. There you have a rectangular land section that will be raised up higher in elevation than the rest of the flat land. This area is located on the bigger land section named in the first clause concerning Geba and Rimmon, which will be flat as a plain. The Temple will be on this second land area mentioned, which will be raised up high. This is where Jesus will be sitting on His throne for one thousand years (Millennial Kingdom). This raised up land is to be within the flat land described in the previous clause. The rendering below is just an illustration as an example and should be excused for its imperfections.[2]

 

Oh Zion, that brings good tidings, get up into the high mountain; Oh Jerusalem, that brings good tidings, lift up your voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! (Is. 40:9)

 

Notice in Isaiah 40:9, God’s Kingdom (Zion) is being called to get herself up into the mountains; the cities of Judah are to “behold their God,” who will be sitting up high on His throne, on this plateau.

 

¹² Blessed is he that waits, and comes to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days. (Dan. 12:12)

 

Daniel 12:12 has been a controversial verse, because many will use this for date setting for the rapture, as well as the Second Coming of Christ. Preterits, A-Millennialists, and Post Millennialists will twist this to be the time period that the cleansing of the Temple had occurred, after Antiochus IV Epiphanes desecrated it. Little do they understand that this prophecy is for the Millennial Kingdom of Christ, as had been implied in Daniel 12:11. It is obvious that Daniel 8:13 is concerning the Millennial Kingdom Temple, because it refers to the Gentiles having trodden underfoot the city and the sanctuary as Revelation 13:5-6 (second half of seven years) has demonstrated. If this was to have already occurred, as a result of the Antiochus Epiphanes IV desecration, then the Maccabees had already cleansed and rededicated the Temple; this had already taken place, before Jesus had spoken of the same event (Abomination of Desolation) again in Revelation 13:5-6, as well as Matthew 24:15.

I have found myself very troubled with the Old Testament manuscripts that have imputed a plural “Aleph” (1,000) in Daniel 8:14; I believe that in order for the prophecy of Daniel 12:11-12 to be true, the “Aleph” (1,000) in Daniel 8:14 has to be a singular 1,000 (Aleph). Researching, I can find no older Hebrew manuscripts dating before 1,000 A.D. for Daniel chapter eight. Even the Dead Sea Scrolls do not consist of Daniel 8:14. Therefore, the manuscript has remained miscopied through to our age.

 

¹³ Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spoke, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?

¹⁴ And He said unto me: “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” (Da. 8:13-14)

 

 I believe that the Aleph (thousand) in Daniel 8:14 was not a plural Aleph in the original manuscript written by Daniel. Somehow through the scribes, who had been recopying the Daniel manuscripts for centuries, mistakenly changed the text to a dual Aleph. The purpose of the counting of days is for the cleansing of the Temple, after it is to be desecrated by the Antichrist of the Seventieth Week of Daniel 9:27. It doesn’t take 1,040 days (2,300 – 1,260 = 1,040 days) to cleanse the Temple (Num. 19:1-10, Ezek. 43:18-24). It should only take 8 days, according to the scriptures, to cleanse the Temple (1,300 – 1,260 = 40 days). Can you imagine the Lord having to wait three years (1,040 days), until He can finally expect to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles? 

Daniel 8:14 is clearly a time counted, beginning with the day of the Abomination of Desolation and counting out 1,300 days from that point. With Christ arriving on the 1,260th day after the Abomination of Desolation, 40 days later the Temple will be cleansed. The thirty-days of Daniel 12:11, will be for repairing the Temple, which will give the priests the 8-10 days to cleanse it. If one looks at the Daniel 12:11-12 prophecy, 75 days after Christs arrives, the Temple will be rededicated on Kislev 25; this is the first day of Feast of Dedication. They cannot rededicate the Temple before the cleansing…it has to be cleansed first…just as they did during the Maccabean cleansing and re-dedication of the first Feast of Dedication.

The Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah) was not to be a Feast of the Lord to be celebrated annually, according to the Laws of Moses. But, because John has acknowledged it within his Gospel (John 10:22), it must be assumed to be significant. This eight-day festival beginning on the 25th of Kislev (November-December) commemorates the re-dedication of the Temple in 164 B.C. by Judas Maccabeus and the Feast of Dedication The (Hanukkah) does have prophetic significance concerning the Temple of the Millennial Kingdom.

 

Blessed is he that wait, and come to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days. (Dan. 12:12)

 

The Feast of Atonement will be the start of the Seventieth Week of Daniel, as well as the day of Jesus Christ’s return 2,520 days later (360 days x 7 years). This will be 1,260 days after the Abomination of Desolation (Dan. 9:27, Matt. 24:15-16). The Feast of Atonement is celebrated every year on Tishri 10. Exactly 75 days after the Feast of Atonement is the first day of Hanukkah (Feast of Dedication), which is Kislev 25 (1,260 days + 75 days = 1,335 days). It will be the official re-dedication of the Millennial Kingdom Temple on Kislev 25.

Knowing that the re-dedication of the Temple is 75 days after Christ’s return, one should realize that the Temple must be cleansed first. The cleansing of the Temple (Num. 19:1-10, Ezek. 43:18-24) will be completed 1,300 days from the halfway point of the seven years (Dan. 8:13-14). Jesus Christ will return 1,260 days after the Abomination of Desolation and will set up his Millennial Kingdom within thirty days, as of Daniel 12:11. The Temple, however will require 8-10 days to complete its cleansing. 1,300 – 1,260 days = 40 days after Christ arrives, the Temple’s cleansing ritual will be complete; exactly 35 days later, the Temple will be re-dedicated on the first day of the Feast of Dedication.[3] 

Revelation 20:5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Revelation 20:4-5 has been debated and misinterpreted by many Bible scholars, believers, and non-believers as well.  One can plainly see that those who were killed during the seven-year tribulation (Rev. 20:4) are to be resurrected, then will live and reign with Christ for the entire Millennial Kingdom. Verse 20:5 has been put in reverse order. While the once dead, then resurrected Saints become immortal, the rest of the dead (not resurrected) will remain in hell and lived not again until the thousand years were finished.” They will be resurrected after the Millennial Kingdom for the White Throne Judgment. I think that seems pretty clear.  The next sentence gets many confused and making assumptions. “This is the first Resurrection.” If you recall the words of Jesus: ^“And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the Resurrection of Life; and they that have done evil, unto the Resurrection of Damnation” (Jn. 5:29), you will see that there are two resurrections.  There is the Resurrection of Life and the Resurrection of Damnation.  The first resurrection is the Resurrection of Life and it has three phases; the Firstfruits of the Resurrection of Life occurred on the day of Christ’s resurrection, along with the Old Testament Saints (Is. 26:19; Matt. 27:52-53), then the rapture of the church (1 Cor. 15:51-54) will be the second phase, then the resurrection of the Tribulation Saints (Rev. 20:4) will be the third and final phase of the Resurrection of Life.  Upon completion of the first resurrection, after the third and final phase, John then declared: “This is the first resurrection.”[4]

This is as far as I have gotten because UNTIL we can ESTABLISH by what is actually written that 'The gentile church' is a 'bride of Christ' to begin with, to speak about it as if it were a fact would be BUILDING upon MANS conclusions, and not GODS TRUTH.  The path IS NARROW.  Every word of GOD has been purified, none of mans.  So going from there...


WHICH one of these STATES that the 'church' is the bride of Christ?  Or did I miss a 'bride' verse somewhere?  What do you do with all the things GOD has said in the OLD TESTAMENT?  


THIS can't be the 'gentile' church bride of Christ because their claim is they ARE NOT OF ISRAEL, not to mention none of them say anything about PEOPLE BEING a bride, just they will be bound to him, LIKE a bride is bound to her husband

Isaiah 49:18
Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the LORD, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a bride doeth.


Isaiah 61:10
I 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.


Isaiah 62
1For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.

2And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name.

3Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God.

4Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married.

5For 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.

6I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence,

 

Jeremiah 2:32
Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without number.

Jeremiah 7:34
Then will I cause to cease from the cities of Judah, and from the streets of Jerusalem, the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride: for the land shall be desolate.

Jeremiah 16:9
For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will cause to cease out of this place in your eyes, and in your days, the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride.

Jeremiah 25:10
Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle.

Jeremiah 33:11
The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD.

Joel 2:16
Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.

John 3:29
He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.

Revelation 18:23
And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.

Revelation 21:2
And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Revelation 21
9And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.

10And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,

Revelation 22:17
And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.


As you can see, the Spirit and the bride SAY COME, and those who come ARE US.  So we can't be the BRIDE and be those that are called at the same time.   Something has to give. 


If there are 'reasons' for why you believe this, but you can provide nothing that is written that states what you believe, please don't.  The never ending circle of the pre trib doctrine I don't believe NOT because I don't understand what everyone tries to put forth but because none of it is written.  I will be kept from the hour by the Gospel Armor and the power given over all my enemies so no need for the army to leave the battlefield.   And Gods wrath falls upon them, not those with the lamps still lit.  That is what I believe.  

From what I have seen, the Bride of Christ is just another story to add to the pre trib doctrine like MORE might make it real, when it is just more conclusions based on the assumptions of WHAT is written.  If it isn't written is GODS words, then it is a tradition of man.  

If you can give me what I need on this front I will move onto the lack of anything being written on the rest.  The simple truth is Pre Trib GOES against everything in the words of God.  At least from everything I have read.  







 

16 hours ago, Charles R. Sabo said:

We, the Bride of Christ, will be kings and priests under (unto) Christ and His Father.

Please see above

Great question DeighAnn! I will attempt to answer that. First, the Bride of Jesus Christ are those who have believed in the gospel of Christ from the point of Him giving up His Spirit on the cross, to the time of the rapture (harpazo) of the church; these are both Jews and Gentiles. Gentiles have been grafted into this Bride, because of Israel's rejection of Christ (Rom. 11:6-25). 

The timeline of the seven years is to be near to the end, when chapter 19 brings to us the call to the Bride to come forth to her ceremony; it is to follow an amazing worship service in heaven. The Bride was first caught up (harpazo/rapturo) into heaven during their resurrection, as we should understand occurred according Revelation 4:1. That brought the end of the church age, and the opening of the seven seals of the seven rolls, which will have started the seven-year Seventieth Week of Daniel.  The final event in the timeline of the seven years is declared here in chapter 19. The Marriage of the Lamb, will be the joining in matrimony with Christ’s Bride, the resurrected church body (members).

Once the ceremony is complete, then the next event to come, will be the Second Coming of Jesus Christ; He will descend down to the Earth with His Bride, as well as His army of angels. This day will be on day 2,520 of the seven years, and the supernatural will be transpiring in an amazing conclusion of events.

 

Revelation 19:1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying: “Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honor, and power, unto the Lord our God:” John said: “After these things,” which was after the destruction of Mystery Babylon the Great. After the great city (Vatican City) had been destroyed, John heard a “great voice.” The Greek text reveals the Greek adjective “megas,” which is in a singular neuter form. The Greek adjective “megas,” is translated as “a great.” It will be a single great voice of a multitude of people in heaven. It is not disclosed who these people will be, so one can only speculate; it could be all people consisting of the raptured church, the Tribulation Saints, and the Old Testament Saints; or, it could just be many people in heaven.  

John indicated that they will be saying, and not singing; they will say in perfect unison (one voice): Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honor, and power, unto the Lord our God. The multitude continues in verse 19:2 as a continuation of the words spoken in unison. The Greek and Hebrew form of alleluia is defined to mean: “praise you Jah!”

Revelation 19:2 Because true and righteous are His judgments: because He has judged the great whore, which did corrupt the Earth with her fornication, and has avenged the blood of His servants at her hand.  This is a continuation from the multitude speaking in unison so clear that it sounded as one voice. The word “for” is interchangeable with the word “because.” The reason God is being praised and given glory, honor and power is stated.

Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honor, and power, unto the Lord our God, because true and righteous are His judgments. Then we must consider that true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great whore, which did corrupt the Earth with her fornication, and has avenged the blood of His servants at her hand.

The people will be praising God because His judgments are true and righteous, when He will have avenged the blood of His servants and destroyed the great whore, who had been corrupting the Earth with her spiritual fornication (idolatry).

Revelation 19:3 And again they said: “Alleluia And her smoke rose up forever and ever.” Here the same multitude of people end their praise of God in unison with an “Alleluia.” John then described something that must be taken literally. The new Earth, which will be created in Revelation 21:1, will still have the remains from the location of Rome, and the smoldering of smoke will be rising up from the ruins forever and ever. This cannot be allegory of any sort. If the people are literally going to recite this praise in 19:1-3, then the literal context of “her” must follow as well to be real and not allegorically. The context of “her” is that false church in Rome.

Revelation 19:4 And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying: “Amen; Alleluia.” Here, as explained in Revelation chapters 4 and 5, the twenty-four elders are an allegorical representation of the church (Bride). In addition, the four beasts (possibly seraphim) could be an allegorical representation of the entire population of seraphim angels, who are always before the throne of God. After the multitude had spoken in unison within verses 19:1-3, the entire Bride of Christ and the entire population of seraphim will fall down onto their knees and faces and worship God the Father, while saying: “Amen, Alleluia!” (so it is, so be it, may it be fulfilled, praise You Jah)

Revelation 19:5 And a voice came out of the throne, saying: “Praise our GOD, all you HIS servants, and you that fear HIM, both small and great.” It is curious to realize who it was that spoke from out of the throne. It could have been one of the potential seraphim, or was it someone who is determined to bring glory to GOD the Father? I believe that God the Son will speak to the multitude of the church, cherubim, seraphim, Tribulation Saints, and Old Testament Saints; He will encourage all to praise our GOD (the Father). Truly, all (both small and great) of the church are GOD the Father’s servants and all (both small and great) fear HIM, who is LORD over our Lord Jesus.

The modern-day church has failed greatly in glorifying GOD the Father. Praying to Jesus was never explained for us to do, nor commanded of us. It was Jesus who explained that the church should pray to His Father in His name (Jesus’), if we were to ever pray (Jn. 14:12-14; 16:23). We should pray to our Father, WHO is in heaven….hollowed be HIS name…! Even in heaven, Jesus will be pointing us to His Father, who deserves infinite praise and glory.  

Revelation 19:6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying: “Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigns.” In response to the call to praise GOD the Father, the church (a great multitude), and the voice of God the Son (many waters), and GOD the Father (mighty thunderings) all saying “Alleluia,” because the Lord God omnipotent reigns.” Like the voice in 19:1, the church will respond in worship, in unison with Jesus and His Father; they will praise the Triune Godhead as the Lord God omnipotent. We should be able to confirm who the voice of many waters is from Revelation 1:15, when John heard the same voice from Jesus, while God the Father is the voice of seven thunders of Revelation 10:3-4. Yes, God the Son and GOD the Father will join us in this amazing worship service; they will both be humble and be praising the Triune Godhead, which they will feel compelled to join their children in praise.

To this point, we can decipher that a great worship service will follow after the judgments have come to pass, just before the Second Coming of our Christ. But, there is one more event to come, after this amazing worship service, and before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to the Earth.

Revelation 19:7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to HIM, because the Marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. The worship service will continue right into the introduction of the Bride of the most important marriage ceremony to ever come to pass. The multitude of the church, cherubim, seraphim, Tribulation and Old Testament Saints will recite verses 19:7 and 19:8, along with the Groom, and the Father of both the Bride and the Groom. Everyone in heaven will be heard saying: “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to HIM, because the Marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” As all of heaven is glad and rejoicing, they will honor the Father (HIM), because the Marriage of the Lamb (Jesus the Son of God), and His wife, who had made herself ready to be joined with their Lord, God, and Savior. The Apostle Paul said: “Because I am jealous over you with godly jealousy, because I have espoused you to one Husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.” (2 Cor. 11:2) John the Baptist said concerning the Messiah: "He who has the bride is the Bridegroom; but the friend of the Bridegroom, who stands and hears Him, rejoices greatly because of the Bridegroom's voice; so this joy of mine has been made full.” (Jn. 3:29) Jesus had told the Jews listening to Him, a concern for them to be watchful, because the remnant in the future were going to be waiting for Him to come (see Rev. 12). ^“And you yourselves like unto men that wait for their Lord; when He will return from the wedding, that when He comes and knocks, they may open unto Him immediately.” (Luke 12:36)

Revelation 19:8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. The brides of men of the current age, will still dress themselves in white dresses, in order to proclaim their purity, when they have already given up their virginity to someone beforehand; this is a false proclamation of their purity. The significance of white raiment, shows the purity of the Bride, and is important in the context of theology. The sins of the Bride have been washed away clean like snow, when it was at one time, scarlet from their sins.

 

Come now, and let us reason together,” says the Lord. “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Is. 1:18)                   

 

As Jesus had been introduced by John in Revelation 1:5, John had said that the Lord had “washed us from our sins in His own blood.”  Isaiah foretold of the salvation to come within Isaiah 1:18 (Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow). The Apostle Paul wrote: “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” (Eph. 1:7) The Tribulation Saints will be in heaven, because they held fast to their salvation, because they will “have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” of God (Rev. 7:14). These expressions are allegory representing the sins of each person, after they had stained their garments scarlet red; the stain represents their offenses committed against God; when a person trusts in the sacrificial blood atonement performed by God upon His Son Jesus, the sins accumulated are washed away clean, white as snow.

Knowing that the Tribulation Saints will have been in heaven (not being of the Bride), immediately after they will have been killed, we can also conclude that they will have also washed their garments clean white with the blood of the Lamb.

Revelation 19:9 And he said unto me: “Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. And he said unto me, These are the true sayings of God. This is a verse, which we cannot link to anyone speaking previously to link the pronoun “he.” If we go to the following verse, we will find that this person that spoke to John was one of the brethren of the church. This member of the Bride of Christ said, “Write, Blessed are they, which are called unto the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.” He also said: “These are the true saying of God.” The cherubim angels were involved in advising John of what He was seeing in the visions, while John had been writing things down. He was obeying what Jesus had commanded from Revelation 1:19, but now the member of the church stepped in to make sure that John wrote this very important proclamation down. The Marriage Supper of the Lamb is not the same event as the Marriage of the Lamb from verse 19:7. In heaven will be the Marriage of the Lamb, which will be right before the Second Coming of Christ.

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb will be an event, which will be held on Earth, after the Second Coming and Armageddon. During His first advent, Jesus had told a parable, concerning the wedding and its guests. In the parable, there were welcome guests, as well as unwelcome guests. The parable is key to be understood as the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, where a remnant of Israel will be invited to that wedding feast, while others will not be invited. In reality, the uninvited will already be dead from the seven years of wrath, while the protected remnant will all be invited. “So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.” (Matt. 22:10) The point of the parable was to Israel, when Jesus had implied that there would be a certain guest, who would be an imposter; He will order the imposter guest to be cast out “into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matt. 22:13) This hit home with the Pharisees of that time, because they knew that He was referring to them as well. The importance of the proclamation of Jesus here in 19:9 is simply a call to those on Earth, who will be there when He arrives. The invited guests will be the remnant of Israel, whom He will have been protecting for 3 ½ years, until He will have arrived. The marriage celebration will be a glorious venue with the Old Testaments Saints (immortals), the Tribulation Saints (immortals) the cherubim angels, the protected remnant of Israel (mortals), the gathered “elect” from Earth (mortals), and the Bride of the Lamb (immortals), who will all be there with the Groom (Jesus). All will be truly blessed! “These are the true saying of God.”

17 hours ago, Charles R. Sabo said:

Great question DeighAnn! I will attempt to answer that. First, the Bride of Jesus Christ are those who have believed in the gospel of Christ from the point of Him giving up His Spirit on the cross, to the time of the rapture (harpazo) of the church; these are both Jews and Gentiles. Gentiles have been grafted into this Bride, because of Israel's rejection of Christ (Rom. 11:6-25). 

I would love to say GREAT response Charles, but I asked a very specifice question and you did not give me an answer but went about your explanation, WHICH I HAVEN'T READ,  because UNLESS you LAY a FOUNDATION based on the words of GOD, I KNOW THAT everything you build will be BURNT UP.  

  I hear and see YOUR words that say it, but that does me NO GOOD because I am not asking what you HAVE CONCLUDED, I am asking WHAT IS WRITTEN.  I have ALREADY had MY OWN, (and what I thought was a really good religion too) but had to start all over from the beginning because WHAT I BELIEVED, I couldn't find written EITHER.  When I started again, FROM THE BEGINNING, I knew that WHAT I believed would be WHAT WAS WRITTEN.  

Sorry for all the capitol letters but I don't want to WASTE MY TIME nor yours LEARNING YOUR RELIGION, I want to learn the TRUTH IN GODS WORDS. 


HERE is where you said GODS WORDS would show me the BRIDE OF CHRIST.  THEY DON'T.  
 

6And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.

7What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded

8(According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day.

9And David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompence unto them:

10Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back alway.

11I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.

12Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness?

13For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:

14If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them.

15For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?

16For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.

17And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;

18Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.

19Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be graffed in.

20Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:

21For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.

22Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.

23And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in again.

24For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be graffed into their own olive tree?

25For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.

26And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

This is about Israel and the gentiles being grafted in and All Israel being saved.  SO, THIS can NOT be the FOUNDATION for anything OTHER THAT WHAT IT IS.  

So, UNTIL I CAN READ BRIDE OF CHRIST IN GODS WORDS, I will not be reading YOUR RELIGION because that is just what it is, 

your personal religion, which isn't based upon GODS WORDS so far, but just your conclusion. 
LIKE I said before, been there, done that, so now I SPOT IT CLEAR AS DAY.  

SO, if you can't do that, we truly have nothing to discuss and I would appreciate you not trying. 

I am sorry to be so blunt but have wasted many hours reading the words of men that SOUND so wonderful and make up such a nice story and ALMOST come across as Holy, but ISN'T Gods Word.  

GOD SAID of every tree....SATAN QUESTIONED that truth with a twisted question that IF you weren't looking for it WOULDN'T EVEN SEEM to have given any change at all.  BUT WE LEARN that every word we twist or change or question takes us off the narrow path.  

SO PLEASE, UNTIL YOU CAN SHOW ME THE BRIDE OF CHRIST BEING THE 'CHURCH', don't show me anything else.  


AGAIN, APOLOGIES FOR BEING SO FORWARD BUT THIS IS JUST TAKING UP PRECIOUS TIME THAT I DO NOT HAVE.  

18 hours ago, Charles R. Sabo said:

Revelation 4:1.

You do realize

first off, you have RENAMED THE CHURCH not GOD

then you have the PRE TRIB RAPTURED CHURCH (now called the elders) IN HEAVEN before CHRIST has EVEN BEEN SLAIN and found worthy as the Lamb of God

MEANING WE WOULD HAVE BEEN IN HEAVEN FOR THE PAST 2OOO years or so and SO WE COULDN'T BE HERE NOW typing away on our computers.  


No matter how you slice it, that is what the THEORY DEMANDS.   

 

6And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind.

7And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.

8And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

9And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever,

10The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

11Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

1And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.

2And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?

3And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.

4And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.

5And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

6And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.

7And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.

8And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.

I understand that not EVEN THIS will matter, but HOPEFULLY it will help you to recognize just how FAR APART WE ARE in how we RECEIVE the words of God.  We could go on and on, but all I would do is make you mad, as that is just one of the never ending problems I have with the doctrine you follow.  

This is the last thing I am going to address here.  If you would like to start a post somewhere else I am sure I would jump in but would prefer not to have this POST about the FIRST RESURRECTION turn into YET ANOTHER PRE TRIB DEBATE.  

Again, apologies for my bluntness...