The First Resurrection, On The Last Day Explained?

[truth7t7]

There is one time of resurrection for all, this takes place on the (Last Day) at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ

There are (Two) resurrections on this (Last Day) the righteous are blessed to be in the (First Resurrection) to eternal life, on such the (Second) death resurrection has no power.

1.) (First) Resurrection To Life
2.) (Second) Resurrection To Damnation, The Second Death

(Revelation) 20:6KJV
Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

The (Last Day) Resurrection Of All Below

(John) 5:28-29KJV
28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
29 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.

(John) 6:39-40KJV
39 And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.
40 And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

(1 Corinthians) 15:21-24KJV
21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.
24 Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.

The (Last Day) Judgement

(John) 12:48KJV
48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.

Edited January 15, 2022 by truth7t7

[AdHoc]

Here is my appreciation of the matter.

I will start by defining the word "FIRST". The Greek can mean "first in time", or it can mean "first in importance or rank". The context will tell.

If we study the various resurrections in the Bible the meaning of "first" in Revelation 20 quickly becomes evident. A boy was raised from the dead under the hand of Elijah. Another boy under the hand of Elisha. A man from touching the bones of Elisha. Our Lord Jesus raised a boy, a girl and Lazarus. Then only Himself. The resurrection of our Lord Jesus was not the first in time. But since our Lord accomplished four things in resurrection, which have to do with rank, His resurrection is the most important.

1. He was raised as proof that all sin and sins were atoned for
2. He was raised to show the power of death was defeated by Him
3. He was the "firstfruits of them that slept"
4. Since He possessed divinity, His resurrection made Him the "firstborn from the dead" and gave Him "preeminence in all things"

The "FIRST resurrection in Revelation 20 is thus FIRST in IMPORTANCE.

Next, 1st Corinthians 15 gives the most comprehensive description of resurrection and in verse 22 it tells us that all men will be resurrected. From verse 23 to 26 it gives us the sequence. Christ first, then those who are His "at His Coming" and then a period of time that He must rule, followed by the end when death is finally defeated. This period of rule is defined in Revelation 20 as 1,000 years and then, after a slaughter of Magog's army, the "rest of the dead" are raised. Thus, resurrection is completed over three days of 1,000 years.

But 1st Corinthians 15 also tells us that each man will have his special glory in resurrection. And this glory is set by what is planted. If a Christian is planted in death, he will carry "heavenly" or "celestial" glory. The Jew and Gentile, having not the new birth "from above2 and not of the "heavenly calling" will have "terrestrial" glory. Thus, if among the Christians we have one man who was "planted" in good standing with the Lord, he will rise with a greater glory than the Christian who was an habitual sinner and who had lost his "first love". The Greek word which we render "glory" literally means "made apparent". Resurrection will "make apparent" what we were in our lifetimes.

This immediately changes the scene for the Christian. John and 1st Corinthians clearly state that ALL men will be resurrected. But Paul, just three years short of his death, alludes to a SPECIAL RESURRECTION. In Philippians 3:5–14 Paul speaks of his life and how it will end in resurrection and rapture. In verse 5-6 he speaks of his high position as a Israelite, chosen nation and connected to Jehovah. Then in verse 7-9 he counts that as "dung" and desires the righteousness that comes from Christ and not the Law. But from verse 10 on, he alludes to another state of being right with God. Thus righteousness is to be ATTAINED by loss and suffering. We read;

10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; 11 If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. 12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

The question that immediately presents itself is, in verse 11, if all men are guaranteed resurrection, why must he ATTAIN to the resurrection? An inspection of the Greek word rendered "resurrection" is used only this once in the Bible and means literally "the resurrection out of the resurrection". It could be correctly rendered "the EXCEPTIONAL resurrection". This resurrection is NOT GUARANTEED. It must be PAID FOR. It needs EFFORT to ATTAIN to it.

Moving to Revelation 20, where we have the FIRST resurrection, but which is 2,000 years after Christ's resurrection, we note that it was ATTAINED to by MARTYRDOM. I propose that the FIRST resurrection is the resurrection set aside by Christ for those Christians who will reign with Him in the 1,000 years. It is the FIRST in importance because it decides who will be rewarded and who will suffer loss. I propose that the Christians will, based on their walk with Christ in their lifetimes, either be in the FIRST resurrection, or in the normal resurrection. It is a special goal that God, in His wisdom, has set before us Christians, to motivate us to "suffer the loss of all things precious to us" and "gain Christ".

Summary:

All men will be resurrected, Christ first, then the Church "when He comes". But the resurrection of Christians reflects, or "makes apparent" how they walked with Christ. Some Christians will be rewarded by a special resurrection of REWARD, and the bulk of Christians will not be found having ATTAINED to the First resurrection in IMPORTANCE. Then, after 1,000 years the "rest of the dead" are raised. Many are called but few are chosen!

By the way. This is not a new thought. It applies to Israel too. See Daniel 12:2.

[transmogrified]

I will start by defining the word "FIRST". The Greek can mean "first in time", or it can mean "first in importance or rank". The context will tell.

This is a very good observation. The word 'first' is 'protos' in Greek and was also translated 'best' in Luke 15:22 when the father said to give his son the 'best' robe. In this context, his best robe had nothing to do with being 'first in time' but was his first in importance or rank.

There is another Greek word #2909 'kreitton' that has the same meaning when it says in Hebrews 11:36 that some were tortured that they might obtain a 'better' resurrection. The meaning of this Greek word is 1)more useful 2) more serviceable, 3) more advantageous, 4) more excellent. Again it has nothing to do with being 'first in time' in this context.

There is an aspect of the first resurrection that does pertain to the 'first in time' definition. As you mentioned, Jesus was the first that was resurrected as stated here in Acts 26:23 "That Christ should and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead..."

This resurrection is unique in that he was the first that was resurrected and also glorified, as all the other resurrections before him they were brought back to life but were not given glorified bodies and eventually died again and are now sleeping in the dust of the earth awaiting the resurrection of all the dead when they will be glorified and given bodies as Jesus has now as stated here:

Phil. 3:21 "Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body..."

There is also another aspect of the meaning of the first resurrection in that Jesus is called 'the first fruits of those that slept.' In this sense he was the offered up to God figuratively as a sheaf to the high priest in the Old Testament, but in this sense it was foreshadowing the larger harvest that was yet to come. Hence we have Paul saying, Christ the first fruits, afterward those who are Christ's at his coming. At the Second Coming all the saints who are now sleeping in the dust of the earth will be resurrected and this is what is called 'the harvest' also known as 'the end of this world.' The word 'world' is use in the KJV but it is better translated 'age' as it signifies the end of this present age, then we enter into the 'age which is to come,' or the millennial kingdom for a 1000 years.

So the confusion is that this resurrection of the just must somehow happen before the wicked are resurrected, which requires people to reject the obvious meaning of what takes place at the Second Coming, that both the wicked and the righteous are resurrected and judged at the same time on the last day. It is a misunderstanding that the 'first' part of the first resurrection already happened 2000 years ago when Christ was resurrected and seeing that we are in him, we are considered to be in the first resurrection.

We can look at many examples in scripture to see both the righteous and the wicked are dealt with at the end of this age at the Second Coming. The other wrench that gets thrown into these gears, is not understanding who the rest of the dead are in Rev. 20 who were not resurrected until the end of the 1000 years. Between these two misunderstandings we end up having to artificially insert gaps of time between the resurrection of the righteous and the resurrection of the wicked in scriptures that plainly show they were both resurrected at the Second Coming, proving the wicked dead who are resurrected at the Second Coming are not the 'rest of the dead' in Rev. 20 who are not resurrected until the end of the 1000 years.

So basically we can not have scriptures showing both the righteous and the wicked dead being resurrected and judged at the Second Coming and the simultaneously assert the wicked dead are not resurrected until 1000 years after the Second Coming.

1 Wheat and tares

      Both wheat and tares are judged and rewarded at the same time:

      Matt. 13:30 "Let them both grow together until the harvest; and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn." So the disciples asked Jesus to explain to them the parable and Jesus himself interprets it so we don't have to. He said:

  1) He that sowed the seed is the Son of man

  2) The field is the world

  3) The good seed are the children of the kingdom

  4) The tares are the children of the wicked one

  5) The enemy that sowed them is the devil

   6) The harvest is the end of the world (age)

   7) The reapers are the angels

   So now that he laid out the definitions lets look at what happens:

   Matthew 13:40 "As therefore the tares (the wicked) are gathered (resurrected) and burned in the fire (everlasting punishment) so shall it be AT THE END OF THIS AGE."

   So read that again. When did he say the tares would be gathered and burned? Did he say "As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be at the end of the 1000 years? No he did not. He specifically stated they would be gathered and burned at the end of THIS AGE. It cannot be confused with the end of the NEXT AGE, which would be the end of the 1000 years. So what does this mean? It means the 'rest of the dead' in Rev. 20 who are not resurrected until the end of the 1000 years ARE NOT THESE PEOPLE.

  There are many more scriptures on this subject but we can go into them later...Bless you all- Gary

[AdHoc]

5 minutes ago, transmogrified said:

I will start by defining the word "FIRST". The Greek can mean "first in time", or it can mean "first in importance or rank". The context will tell.

This is a very good observation. The word 'first' is 'protos' in Greek and was also translated 'best' in Luke 15:22 when the father said to give his son the 'best' robe. In this context, his best robe had nothing to do with being 'first in time' but was his first in importance or rank.

There is another Greek word #2909 'kreitton' that has the same meaning when it says in Hebrews 11:36 that some were tortured that they might obtain a 'better' resurrection. The meaning of this Greek word is 1)more useful 2) more serviceable, 3) more advantageous, 4) more excellent. Again it has nothing to do with being 'first in time' in this context.

There is an aspect of the first resurrection that does pertain to the 'first in time' definition. As you mentioned, Jesus was the first that was resurrected as stated here in Acts 26:23 "That Christ should and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead..."

This resurrection is unique in that he was the first that was resurrected and also glorified, as all the other resurrections before him they were brought back to life but were not given glorified bodies and eventually died again and are now sleeping in the dust of the earth awaiting the resurrection of all the dead when they will be glorified and given bodies as Jesus has now as stated here:

Phil. 3:21 "Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body..."

There is also another aspect of the meaning of the first resurrection in that Jesus is called 'the first fruits of those that slept.' In this sense he was the offered up to God figuratively as a sheaf to the high priest in the Old Testament, but in this sense it was foreshadowing the larger harvest that was yet to come. Hence we have Paul saying, Christ the first fruits, afterward those who are Christ's at his coming. At the Second Coming all the saints who are now sleeping in the dust of the earth will be resurrected and this is what is called 'the harvest' also known as 'the end of this world.' The word 'world' is use in the KJV but it is better translated 'age' as it signifies the end of this present age, then we enter into the 'age which is to come,' or the millennial kingdom for a 1000 years.

So the confusion is that this resurrection of the just must somehow happen before the wicked are resurrected, which requires people to reject the obvious meaning of what takes place at the Second Coming, that both the wicked and the righteous are resurrected and judged at the same time on the last day. It is a misunderstanding that the 'first' part of the first resurrection already happened 2000 years ago when Christ was resurrected and seeing that we are in him, we are considered to be in the first resurrection.

We can look at many examples in scripture to see both the righteous and the wicked are dealt with at the end of this age at the Second Coming. The other wrench that gets thrown into these gears, is not understanding who the rest of the dead are in Rev. 20 who were not resurrected until the end of the 1000 years. Between these two misunderstandings we end up having to artificially insert gaps of time between the resurrection of the righteous and the resurrection of the wicked in scriptures that plainly show they were both resurrected at the Second Coming, proving the wicked dead who are resurrected at the Second Coming are not the 'rest of the dead' in Rev. 20 who are not resurrected until the end of the 1000 years.

So basically we can not have scriptures showing both the righteous and the wicked dead being resurrected and judged at the Second Coming and the simultaneously assert the wicked dead are not resurrected until 1000 years after the Second Coming.

1 Wheat and tares

      Both wheat and tares are judged and rewarded at the same time:

      Matt. 13:30 "Let them both grow together until the harvest; and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn." So the disciples asked Jesus to explain to them the parable and Jesus himself interprets it so we don't have to. He said:

  1) He that sowed the seed is the Son of man

  2) The field is the world

  3) The good seed are the children of the kingdom

  4) The tares are the children of the wicked one

  5) The enemy that sowed them is the devil

   6) The harvest is the end of the world (age)

   7) The reapers are the angels

   So now that he laid out the definitions lets look at what happens:

   Matthew 13:40 "As therefore the tares (the wicked) are gathered (resurrected) and burned in the fire (everlasting punishment) so shall it be AT THE END OF THIS AGE."

   So read that again. When did he say the tares would be gathered and burned? Did he say "As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be at the end of the 1000 years? No he did not. He specifically stated they would be gathered and burned at the end of THIS AGE. It cannot be confused with the end of the NEXT AGE, which would be the end of the 1000 years. So what does this mean? It means the 'rest of the dead' in Rev. 20 who are not resurrected until the end of the 1000 years ARE NOT THESE PEOPLE.

  There are many more scriptures on this subject but we can go into them later...Bless you all- Gary

I must commend you. You have built a case from the evidence -a somewhat rare thing these days.

I'm glad you brought the case of the Tares up. It teaches us much. The seven Parables of Matthew 13 show Christ's Kingdom IN MYSTERY (Matt.13:11). The word "mystery" in the Greek means, "a thing hidden to others but revealed to you". The grand mystery of Christ's Kingdom is "how can the Kingdom of Christ be present and not exercise authority over the Gentiles". The answer is that the assembling and training of the future kings will take time, especially since the kingdom is taken away from Israel and a New People must be found (Matt.21:43, Act.15:14-17). The parables are titled, "the Kingdom of Heaven IS LIKE ... ". That is, to those faced with the mystery it LOOKS LIKE the Kingdom, but the disciples know the real truth of the LOOKS.

The Tares present the aspect of Christ's Kingdom being COUNTERFEITED. Of course, the counterfeiting is done by Gentiles, but it is a specific attack by Satan who would build a Kingdom that LOOKS LIKE Christ's Kingdom, but does not have the nature and substance of it. It is the Roman Catholic Church - not all Gentiles (1.3 billion of the 8.5 billion inhabitants of earth). In 313 AD Constantine, Roman Emperor, seeing that the Christians thrived under persecution, reversed Satan's tactic and declared Christianity as a State religion. The soldiers donned priest's clothes, the pagan feast were kept but Christian names were given to them, the Roman Empire became "The Holy Roman Empire" and the Caesar kept his designation as Pontifex Maximus. Any unschooled person who looked at Rome would say; "behold - Christ's Kingdom on earth today"!

The two crops (wheat and tares) mature in parallel and the harvest comes. This harvest is the end of the AGE as you so rightly put. But at once a problem arises. According to the grammar, the Tares are harvested FIRST. Can this be seeing that "judgment must begin in the house of the Lord" (1st Pet.4:17). The solution is that this is not the judgment of Gentiles. What has happened is that the Beast has arrived at the end of the age and when he commands universal and unique worship, he must do away with ALL OTHER RELIGION on earth. As long as men are loyal to the Pontifex Maximus, or Buddha, or the Christmas Tree (see Jeremiah 10), the Beast is robbed of universal worship. The end of the WHORE and her daughters is in Revelation 17 before Armageddon. World religions are destroyed, not by God, but by the ten kings.

The end of the Tares is a judgment by God. But it is a judgment in the sense of just deserts. It is not an assize. It is not the Gentiles being judged by a presiding judge. It is the day of calamity by her own. And she only represents a part of the Gentiles. But the parables does not end there. Notice the grammar. The Tares have been harvested and burned. Their fate is complete. But the parable goes on to show another judgment - this time, an assize. It is an exclusive judgment of things that offend IN THE KINGDOM! The Tares were not in the kingdom. They just counterfeited it. The real Kingdom people must be born again to be in the kingdom (Jn.3:3-5). Now a court case takes place exclusively for the Kingdom and its inhabitants. And those that "offend" are separated from "the righteous". These ALL are Christians! One cannot ENTER the Kingdom without rebirth and baptism.

And so again, we have supporting scripture for a group of Christians who will be favored at judgment, and a crowd of Christians who will, though they have believed and been born again, EXCLUDED from the Kingdom when it goes from MYSTERY to MANIFESTATION.

[transmogrified]

The two crops (wheat and tares) mature in parallel and the harvest comes. This harvest is the end of the AGE as you so rightly put. But at once a problem arises. According to the grammar, the Tares are harvested FIRST.

You are right that he said this: "...And in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn." 

We must consider that this was a phrase included in the original parable that he put forth when he said in verse 24:

"Another parable put he forth unto them, saying..."

The disciples then came later and asked him for the interpretation of the parable. Jesus did not give any explicit information on what was meant by the tares being gathered first, but what he did explain is very straightforward, and correlates with many other scriptures.

Here is this part of the parable, and whatever he meant by the tares being gathered first must be included in his interpretation. 

"The harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this age. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire; there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." 

So up front we see the tares are both gathered and burned in the end of this age, as he said "As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this age."

He does not say the tares are gathered and burned at any time before the end of this age, but rather that they will be both gathered and burned at this same point in time called the end of this age.  The end of this age is also called the Last Day...it does not mean that there are no other days afterward, but rather he means it is the last day of this age. This is the day that separates 'this present age' from the 'age to come.'

Seeing he links the gathering and the burning to occur at the same point in time, i.e. the end of this age, or the last day, we can find other scriptures showing when the tares are cast into the fire and we can be sure that they were also resurrected, or gathered at that same time. 

The reason we can be sure of this is also in John 5:28-29, when it says "The hour cometh when all that are in the graves shall hear his voice and come forth...some to life and some to condemnation.' It does not say "The hour comes when the wicked dead will hear his voice and then come forth, and then later the righteous will hear another voice and come forth." No. Both groups hear the same voice and come forth at the same time.

So looking at the sheep and goat judgment in Matthew 25:31 we can see that when Jesus COMES, (meaning he is now here on the earth, not in heaven) THEN shall be gathered all nations, or all people, before him. The sheep are on his right hand and the goats are on his left, so there is no time gap between when these two groups are resurrected and judged. See what he is saying here: The goats are the wicked dead who have been resurrected and the sheep are the righteous dead who have been resurrected and they are BOTH before the Lord at the Second Coming.

Think: If the wicked dead are resurrected and are before Jesus at the Second coming, along with the sheep, then the 'rest of the dead in Rev. 20 who are NOT resurrected until the end of the 1000 years are NOT THESE PEOPLE, proving the thinking that there are no wicked dead judged until the end of the 1000 years is wrong. 

Are they any other scriptures showing this? Yes, there are. Truth7t7 has stated in many times in John 12:48: 

"He that rejects me, and receives not my words, (The wicked, or the unbelievers) hath one that judges him; the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day."

This is of course the same 'Last Day' in which the righteous are judged as clearly shown in the Sheep and Goat judgment. Both groups are there, before the same Judgment Seat of Christ, at the same  time, on the same Last Day.

The judgment of the sheep: "Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world..."

The judgment of the goats: "Depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels..."

At this point the sheep enter into the kingdom prepared for them which is then the beginning of the 1000 year reign of Christ with his saints on the earth, and the wicked dead are cast into everlasting fire.

This must be remembered that the sheep and goat judgment is the resurrection and the judgment of the DEAD, both good and bad, and  it is not dealing with the judgment of those who are still alive on the earth at his coming. Remember, Timothy says he judge both the quick (living) and the dead. The sheep and goat judgement is just pertaining to the wicked and the righteous who have been resurrected from the dead.

So lets consider another scripture concerning the wicked dead being resurrected at the Second Coming. This was the reply Jesus gave to Caiphas the high priest at his trial:

Matthew 26:64 "Thou hast said; nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven."

Caiphas died a wicked man, yet Jesus is telling him that he will see him when he comes in the clouds of heaven, which means the Second Coming. So how will Caiphas see Jesus if he is not resurrected until 1000 years later? And if he was resurrected 1000 years later he would not see Jesus coming in the clouds, for that event took place 1000 years before he was resurrected.

Rev. 1:8 "Behold, he comes with clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him; and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him."

These two scriptures not only show Caiphas will see him, but also that those that pierced him will see, then goes on to say that EVERY EYE shall see him. Every eye cannot see him if only the righteous are resurrected.

Notice the grammar. The Tares have been harvested and burned. Their fate is complete. But the parable goes on to show another judgment - this time, an assize. It is an exclusive judgment of things that offend IN THE KINGDOM! The Tares were not in the kingdom

There is not one judgment for those who offend in the kingdom and another judgment for the tares...There are only two groups- one is  called the Wheat and the other group is called the Tares. The only seed that was sown in the field was the Tares...there was not another seed called 'those that offend in the kingdom.' The Tares are defined to mean 'those that offend in the kingdom and those who do iniquity, as it says here:   

"The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast THEM (both groups)  into a furnace of fire; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

So there is a distinction between 'those that offend in his kingdom,' and 'those who do iniquity,' but not two different judgments as both groups are cast into the furnace of fire, as it says "As therefor the Tares are gathered and burned in the fire...' 

Understanding the resurrection of the dead will correct many fallacies between the pre-trib errors and the a-millennial errors. Some would like to embrace the resurrection of all on the last day, but they think the only way it can work is if they deny the 1000 year reign on earth, but this is not the case.

Good to talk with you- Gary

[AdHoc]

On 12/27/2021 at 1:26 AM, transmogrified said:

The two crops (wheat and tares) mature in parallel and the harvest comes. This harvest is the end of the AGE as you so rightly put. But at once a problem arises. According to the grammar, the Tares are harvested FIRST.

You are right that he said this: "...And in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn." 

We must consider that this was a phrase included in the original parable that he put forth when he said in verse 24:

"Another parable put he forth unto them, saying..."

The disciples then came later and asked him for the interpretation of the parable. Jesus did not give any explicit information on what was meant by the tares being gathered first, but what he did explain is very straightforward, and correlates with many other scriptures.

Here is this part of the parable, and whatever he meant by the tares being gathered first must be included in his interpretation. 

"The harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this age. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire; there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." 

So up front we see the tares are both gathered and burned in the end of this age, as he said "As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this age."

He does not say the tares are gathered and burned at any time before the end of this age, but rather that they will be both gathered and burned at this same point in time called the end of this age.  The end of this age is also called the Last Day...it does not mean that there are no other days afterward, but rather he means it is the last day of this age. This is the day that separates 'this present age' from the 'age to come.'

Seeing he links the gathering and the burning to occur at the same point in time, i.e. the end of this age, or the last day, we can find other scriptures showing when the tares are cast into the fire and we can be sure that they were also resurrected, or gathered at that same time. 

The reason we can be sure of this is also in John 5:28-29, when it says "The hour cometh when all that are in the graves shall hear his voice and come forth...some to life and some to condemnation.' It does not say "The hour comes when the wicked dead will hear his voice and then come forth, and then later the righteous will hear another voice and come forth." No. Both groups hear the same voice and come forth at the same time.

So looking at the sheep and goat judgment in Matthew 25:31 we can see that when Jesus COMES, (meaning he is now here on the earth, not in heaven) THEN shall be gathered all nations, or all people, before him. The sheep are on his right hand and the goats are on his left, so there is no time gap between when these two groups are resurrected and judged. See what he is saying here: The goats are the wicked dead who have been resurrected and the sheep are the righteous dead who have been resurrected and they are BOTH before the Lord at the Second Coming.

Think: If the wicked dead are resurrected and are before Jesus at the Second coming, along with the sheep, then the 'rest of the dead in Rev. 20 who are NOT resurrected until the end of the 1000 years are NOT THESE PEOPLE, proving the thinking that there are no wicked dead judged until the end of the 1000 years is wrong. 

Are they any other scriptures showing this? Yes, there are. Truth7t7 has stated in many times in John 12:48: 

"He that rejects me, and receives not my words, (The wicked, or the unbelievers) hath one that judges him; the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day."

This is of course the same 'Last Day' in which the righteous are judged as clearly shown in the Sheep and Goat judgment. Both groups are there, before the same Judgment Seat of Christ, at the same  time, on the same Last Day.

The judgment of the sheep: "Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world..."

The judgment of the goats: "Depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels..."

At this point the sheep enter into the kingdom prepared for them which is then the beginning of the 1000 year reign of Christ with his saints on the earth, and the wicked dead are cast into everlasting fire.

This must be remembered that the sheep and goat judgment is the resurrection and the judgment of the DEAD, both good and bad, and  it is not dealing with the judgment of those who are still alive on the earth at his coming. Remember, Timothy says he judge both the quick (living) and the dead. The sheep and goat judgement is just pertaining to the wicked and the righteous who have been resurrected from the dead.

So lets consider another scripture concerning the wicked dead being resurrected at the Second Coming. This was the reply Jesus gave to Caiphas the high priest at his trial:

Matthew 26:64 "Thou hast said; nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven."

Caiphas died a wicked man, yet Jesus is telling him that he will see him when he comes in the clouds of heaven, which means the Second Coming. So how will Caiphas see Jesus if he is not resurrected until 1000 years later? And if he was resurrected 1000 years later he would not see Jesus coming in the clouds, for that event took place 1000 years before he was resurrected.

Rev. 1:8 "Behold, he comes with clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him; and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him."

These two scriptures not only show Caiphas will see him, but also that those that pierced him will see, then goes on to say that EVERY EYE shall see him. Every eye cannot see him if only the righteous are resurrected.

Notice the grammar. The Tares have been harvested and burned. Their fate is complete. But the parable goes on to show another judgment - this time, an assize. It is an exclusive judgment of things that offend IN THE KINGDOM! The Tares were not in the kingdom

There is not one judgment for those who offend in the kingdom and another judgment for the tares...There are only two groups- one is  called the Wheat and the other group is called the Tares. The only seed that was sown in the field was the Tares...there was not another seed called 'those that offend in the kingdom.' The Tares are defined to mean 'those that offend in the kingdom and those who do iniquity, as it says here:   

"The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast THEM (both groups)  into a furnace of fire; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

So there is a distinction between 'those that offend in his kingdom,' and 'those who do iniquity,' but not two different judgments as both groups are cast into the furnace of fire, as it says "As therefor the Tares are gathered and burned in the fire...' 

Understanding the resurrection of the dead will correct many fallacies between the pre-trib errors and the a-millennial errors. Some would like to embrace the resurrection of all on the last day, but they think the only way it can work is if they deny the 1000 year reign on earth, but this is not the case.

Good to talk with you- Gary

I am sorry for the delay in answering you. If you don't quote me, it does not appear in my notifications, and I am busy on so many fronts that I do not go back often to check my postings.

I appreciate your view, but my reasons in my first posting still stand. Or at least, I feel that they have not been shown to be wrong. Maybe you could quote the sentence or thought that you disagree with and show the error. I am aware that not many expositors address why the Tares are reaped first, but I repeat, the tares are not all Gentiles. they are a contingent who counterfeit the Lord's Kingdom. Thus, the assize in Matthew 25:31-46 does not apply. that is the judgement of "ALL Nations". And since all men are first resurrected and then judged, those of Matthew 25 must be the survivors of the Great Tribulation. There is no talk of resurrection like the White Throne 1,000 years later. Note;

1. Our Lord Jesus is first resurrected then God seats Him at His right hand
2. The Christians are first resurrected and then raptured to the Bema (a traveling throne - Rom.14:10, 2nd Cor.5:10)
3. The Jews are first resurrected and then judged (Dan.12:2)
4. The living of the Nations are judged in Matthew 25:31-46
5. The "rest of the dead" STAND in Revelation 20. And Hades gives up her dead before the White Throne Judgment

In Matthew 13 there is no talk of the resurrection of the Tares. It is the removal of the Tares who are alive at that time. The others who were Tares during the age belong to the "the rest of the dead".

[truth7t7]

3 hours ago, AdHoc said:

I am sorry for the delay in answering you. If you don't quote me, it does not appear in my notifications, and I am busy on so many fronts that I do not go back often to check my postings.

I appreciate your view, but my reasons in my first posting still stand. Or at least, I feel that they have not been shown to be wrong. Maybe you could quote the sentence or thought that you disagree with and show the error. I am aware that not many expositors address why the Tares are reaped first, but I repeat, the tares are not all Gentiles. they are a contingent who counterfeit the Lord's Kingdom. Thus, the assize in Matthew 25:31-46 does not apply. that is the judgement of "ALL Nations". And since all men are first resurrected and then judged, those of Matthew 25 must be the survivors of the Great Tribulation. There is no talk of resurrection like the White Throne 1,000 years later. Note;

1. Our Lord Jesus is first resurrected then God seats Him at His right hand
2. The Christians are first resurrected and then raptured to the Bema (a traveling throne - Rom.14:10, 2nd Cor.5:10)
3. The Jews are first resurrected and then judged (Dan.12:2)
4. The living of the Nations are judged in Matthew 25:31-46
5. The "rest of the dead" STAND in Revelation 20. And Hades gives up her dead before the White Throne Judgment

In Matthew 13 there is no talk of the resurrection of the Tares. It is the removal of the Tares who are alive at that time. The others who were Tares during the age belong to the "the rest of the dead".

Matthew 25:31-46 in the sheep/ goat judgement, is nothing more than a "Parable" of the final great white throne judgement in Revelation 20:11-15, the Kingdom seen is the eternal kingdom in the new heaven and earth, your claim this represents a Millennial Kingdom on this earth is "Error"

As scripture clearly shows below the righteous obtain "Eternal Life" in the "Eternal Kingdom" prepared before the foundations of the world

Matthew 25:34 & 46KJV

34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

Edited December 31, 2021 by truth7t7

[AdHoc]

Content cleared as it was a double posting.

Edited December 31, 2021 by AdHoc
Double posting

[AdHoc]

10 hours ago, truth7t7 said:

Matthew 25:31-46 in the sheep/ goat judgement, is nothing more than a "Parable" of the final great white throne judgement in Revelation 20:11-15, the Kingdom seen is the eternal kingdom in the new heaven and earth, your claim this represents a Millennial Kingdom on this earth is "Error"

As scripture clearly shows below the righteous obtain "Eternal Life" in the "Eternal Kingdom" prepared before the foundations of the world

Matthew 25:34 & 46KJV

34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

But you teach eternal life by WORKS my brother. Do you really support the doctrine that men have eternal life by giving a Christian a glass of water? Please explain, for John 3:15-16 says;

15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

[truth7t7]

8 hours ago, AdHoc said:

But you teach eternal life by WORKS my brother. Do you really support the doctrine that men have eternal life by giving a Christian a glass of water? Please explain, for John 3:15-16 says;

15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

You falsely claim I suggest eternal life by works, as you "divert attention" from my factual response to these claims

You made the claim that Matthew 25:31-46 in the sheep/goat judgement ends in a "Millennial Kingdom" on this earth

Matthew 25:31-46 in the sheep/ goat judgement, is nothing more than a "Parable" of the final great white throne judgement in Revelation 20:11-15, the Kingdom seen is the eternal kingdom in the new heaven and earth, your claim this represents a Millennial Kingdom on this earth is "Error"

As scripture clearly shows below the righteous obtain "Eternal Life" in the "Eternal Kingdom" prepared before the foundations of the world

Matthew 25:34 & 46KJV

34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

Edited December 31, 2021 by truth7t7