after six thousand years…　

prophetic times During the last decades we have seen that in the Middle East, the prophetic stage is being prepared. We see a restoration of many countries and peoples, as they existed in the days of Israel’s prophets. They’re back: Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Persia (Iran), but most of all the tiny Jewish state of Israel with Jerusalem as its capital. And not to forget in the Gaza Strip, Israel’s old nemesis, the Philistines (in our language: the Palestinians). Already for decades, this region, like no other, defines world news. the biblical time period expires That these developments are daily in the news is no surprise for one who knows the Scriptures, because the Biblically announced time period for this eon is soon to expire. The apostle Peter wrote in his latest letter, with respect to the “Lord’s day” (which will come before long):

Now of this one thing you are not to be oblivious, beloved, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. 2 Peter 3:8

It is noteworthy that Peter repeats his statement, “one day as a thousand years.” Twice he speaks of “one day” and twice about a “thousand years”. This is not without significance, because in this way he reminds his readers of the prophecy in Hosea 6, which speaks of the Lord, Who “after two days” and on “third day”, will return to His people. For ‘two days’, the nation will be as dead, but on the ‘third day’ it will be brought to life. the seventh day But there is something else: “the Lord’s day” refers, to Peter’s Jewish readers, also to the Sabbath which is the seventh day. Well, for the Lord, the seventh day is the seventh millennium. “The Lord’s Day” refers to the one thousand years in which creation will come to rest and all the prophecies of salvation for Israel and the nations will be fulfilled. That seventh day will last one thousand years, but it will also start after six thousand years of human history. Without being able to accurately go into all the details in this blog, it may be assumed that it is understood that we are not far removed from the end of that six thousand years. Roughly calculated: from Adam to Abraham was two thousand years. From Abraham to Christ another two thousand years. And from Christ’s ascension until now, is almost two thousand years. Three times two thousand years equals a total of six thousand years. Sensationalism? What I put forward, here, is absolutely not a novel idea of GoedBericht.nl. Although little is heard about this, it is true, nonetheless, that it has been known for thousands of years. Not only in Scriptures, but also in the Jewish tradition and with the ancient church fathers. Even Martin Luther wrote about it. The quotes below show this very clearly. In the Encyclopedia Britannica (11th edition), we can read the following about the Talmud:

The vision that is most frequently put forward… is that the Messianic kingdom will last one thousand years (some say two thousand years)… The world will for six thousand years labor and toil; then will the millennial Sabbath rest arrive for the people of God in the kingdom of the Messiah.

In The Jewish Encyclopedia, (V, pg. 211) we read:

The verse “one thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday” (Ps.90:4), suggests the idea that the present world of work will be followed by a Sabbath-millennium, “the next world.” These six millennia are divided into three periods: the first two thousand years without the law, the next two thousand years under the rule of law and the last two thousand years in preparation for the reign of the Messiah in the midst of war and catastrophes.

Irenaeus, a disciple of Polycarp, who in turn has known the Apostle John, wrote in his book, “Against Heresies” (Book 1, Chapter 28):

In as many days as the world was made, in so many thousand years will it be completed …. For the day of the Lord is as a thousand years, and in six days was creation finished, so it is clear that she will be completed after six thousand years.

In the letter of Barnabas (about 200 AD), he wrote:

Attention children, what He meant by “in six days He finished.” He meant this: that the Lord in six thousand years will bring all things to an end.

In 1540, Luther wrote a small work called ‘calculations of the years of the world’. That year it was exactly (according to his calculations) the year 5500. With approval, he quotes, in his preface, Paul of Burgos, who wrote:

The world will exist six thousand years. Two thousand years in idleness, two thousand years under the law and two thousand years before the Messiah.

are we awake? And so there are many more we could mention. However, the above quotes make one thing very clear: both Jewish scholars in the Talmud, and church fathers in the first centuries of our era and, more recently, Martin Luther, referred in their days already to the generation (the time) in which we now live! And the people now…? Usually they ‘sleep’ and have no sense of the times in which we live. But what a privilege for those who are awake and look forward to the greatest prophetic events that are imminent! ——————————— translation: Peter Feddema

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