Men’s Bible Study: The Rapture - Postmillennialism

Last time we examined the pre-tribulation rapture — the view that Christ will secretly remove the church before a seven-year tribulation, then return visibly to establish a thousand-year reign. It is the dominant eschatology in American evangelicalism today and, as we saw, one with a relatively short history. This week we examine a view that is older, less dramatic, and in some ways more demanding: postmillennialism. Its claim is not that the church escapes history before things get bad, but that the church is the instrument through which God transforms history — and that Christ returns only after that work is substantially complete.

The Major Views on the End Times

Amillennialism holds that the millennium of Revelation 20 is a symbolic description of the current age — Christ reigning now from heaven. No literal tribulation period, no distinct rapture event. Christ returns once, for judgment and the renewal of creation. The dominant view of Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and much of the Reformed tradition.

Dispensational Premillennialism (pre-tribulation rapture) holds that the church is secretly removed before a seven-year tribulation, after which Christ returns visibly to establish a literal thousand-year reign on earth. As examined in our previous study, this view emerged in its current form in the 1830s.

Historic Premillennialism holds that Christ returns before a literal millennium, but believers go through the tribulation — there is no prior rapture. The resurrection and Christ’s return are the same event. The majority view of the early church fathers.

Postmillennialism holds that Christ returns after the millennium — a long period in which the gospel progressively transforms the world. The millennium is not necessarily exactly one thousand years but represents an extended age of gospel advance, the widespread conversion of nations, and the expansion of Christ’s kingdom on earth. Christ does not come to establish His reign; He comes at the completion of it. The resurrection of believers and Christ’s return coincide, as in amillennialism — there is no separate rapture event preceding His coming. What is distinctive is the optimism: the world will be substantially Christianized before Christ returns.

Postmillennialism was the dominant eschatology of the Puritans, the early Reformed tradition, and many of the theologians who shaped Western Christianity from the 17th through the 19th centuries, including Jonathan Edwards, Charles Spurgeon, and B.B. Warfield. Two World Wars and the rapid secularization of the West in the 20th century shook confidence in it, but it has experienced a significant resurgence in Reformed and theonomic circles in recent decades.

Background

The postmillennial case is built less on a single key passage than on a cumulative reading of Scripture’s trajectory — the direction things are heading according to the prophets, the Psalms, the Great Commission, and Paul’s letters. Its proponents argue that the Bible’s dominant eschatological vision is one of expansion and victory, not retreat and rescue. The burden of their argument is to show that the arc of redemptive history bends toward comprehensive kingdom advance before Christ’s return — and that passages which describe suffering, tribulation, or apostasy describe the path to that victory, not its absence.

The Proof Texts

Matthew 28:18-20

18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” - Matthew 28:18-20 NIV

How it is used: Postmillennialists argue that the Great Commission is not a commission to try and fail but to succeed. Jesus commands the discipling of “all nations” (panta ta ethnē) — not just individuals from every nation but the nations themselves, taught to obey “everything” He commanded. He grounds this in His possession of “all authority in heaven and on earth” — not partial authority, not future authority. He already has it. And He promises to be present “to the very end of the age,” implying the mission is sustained until its completion. If the church is raptured or marginalized before the nations are discipled, the commission is unfulfilled.

Arguments against: The Great Commission describes the task, not the outcome. “All nations” refers to the scope of the mission — every people group is to be reached — not to a comprehensive conversion of the world’s population. Jesus’ authority and presence are guaranteed for those who go, but the commission does not promise universal or near-universal success before His return. Other passages describe the church as a remnant, a minority, and a persecuted body (John 15:18-20, Luke 18:8) — not a triumphant majority transforming culture before Christ’s return.

Matthew 13:31-33

31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” 33 He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.” - Matthew 13:31-33 NIV

How it is used: Both parables describe the kingdom starting small and growing until it fills or permeates its environment entirely. The mustard seed becomes the largest plant. The yeast works through all the dough — not part of it. Postmillennialists read this as Christ’s own description of kingdom expansion: it begins with a small, seemingly insignificant movement and spreads until it has transformed the whole. This is the trajectory of history according to Jesus. The endpoint of the parable is comprehensive influence, not remnant survival.

Arguments against: The parables describe the nature of kingdom growth — organic, hidden, gradual — not its earthly comprehensiveness before Christ’s return. “Largest of garden plants” may simply mean robust growth, not world domination. The leaven working through all the dough could describe quality and depth of influence rather than the conversion of the entire world. Notably, in Matthew 13 the parable of the weeds (vv. 24-30) presents a different picture: weeds and wheat grow together until the harvest — when the Son of Man separates them. The end is not a purified field but a mixed one that is sorted at His coming.

Psalm 110:1 and 1 Corinthians 15:24-26

The LORD says to my lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” - Psalm 110:1 NIV

24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. - 1 Corinthians 15:24-26 NIV

How it is used: These are among the most frequently quoted Old Testament passages in the New Testament. Postmillennialists argue they describe a present and ongoing reign of Christ that progressively subdues His enemies through the gospel before the final consummation. “He must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet” — the reign is happening now, the subjugation is ongoing, and the end comes only after that work is complete. Death is the last enemy to fall, meaning the comprehensive victory of the kingdom precedes even the resurrection. Christ does not return to begin His reign; He returns at its completion.

Arguments against: The subjugation of enemies could be describing the moment of Christ’s return — a decisive final act of conquest rather than a gradual historical process. “He must reign until…” sets the duration of His reign, not the means. Revelation 19 describes Christ’s enemies being defeated at His visible return, not before it. Furthermore, Paul’s statement that “the last enemy to be destroyed is death” (v. 26) is tied to the resurrection — which all views agree happens at Christ’s coming, not before. The passage may describe what happens at the Second Coming, not before it.

Romans 11:25-26

25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, 26 and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written: “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.” - Romans 11:25-26 NIV

How it is used: Paul describes a future large-scale turning of Israel to Christ — “all Israel will be saved.” Before this happens, “the full number of the Gentiles” must come in. Postmillennialists argue this points to a future period of massive gospel advance: first among the Gentile nations, then a corresponding widespread turning of the Jewish people. This two-stage conversion — encompassing both Gentiles and Israel — constitutes the millennium. The world is not getting worse before Christ returns; it is being gathered in.

Arguments against: “All Israel” is one of the most debated phrases in Pauline scholarship. It may refer to the full number of elect Jews throughout all of history rather than a future generation. “Israel” may even refer to the church as the true or expanded Israel (cf. Galatians 6:16, Romans 9:6-8). Furthermore, nothing in the passage identifies this event as occurring before Christ’s return — Paul says the Deliverer “will come from Zion,” which many commentators read as a reference to Christ’s Second Coming itself. The passage may describe the conversion of Israel as an event accompanying the return rather than preceding it.

Isaiah 11:9 and Habakkuk 2:14

They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. - Isaiah 11:9 NIV

For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. - Habakkuk 2:14 NIV

How it is used: These prophetic promises envision a comprehensive filling of the earth with the knowledge of God — not a remnant, not a minority, but a saturation analogous to water covering the sea. Postmillennialists argue that such language requires a historical fulfillment before the new creation — a period in which the gospel has so permeated the world that its effects are culturally, socially, and politically visible. These are not promises that will only be true in the new heavens and new earth; they point to something God intends to accomplish through His people in this age.

Arguments against: Both passages may describe the new creation that follows Christ’s return rather than a stage of history preceding it. Isaiah 11 is set in the context of the shoot from the stump of Jesse (the Messiah), the peaceful kingdom where wolf lies down with lamb — imagery most naturally read as describing the new heavens and new earth of Isaiah 65-66 rather than any era of history within the present age. If these are fulfilled in the eternal state, they do not require a millennial earthly transformation before Christ returns. Amillennialists would agree the earth will be filled with the knowledge of God — at and after the resurrection, not before it.

Revelation 20:1-6

1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. 3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time. 4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and Christ and will reign with Christ for a thousand years. - Revelation 20:1-6 NIV

How it is used: Postmillennialists read Satan’s binding as a description of what Christ accomplished at His first coming — the strong man is bound (cf. Matthew 12:29), his power to deceive the nations is restrained, and the gospel spreads as a result. The “thousand years” is a symbolic number for a long, extended age of gospel advance — the age we are in now. The “first resurrection” is the spiritual regeneration of believers, not a future bodily resurrection. Christ reigns now through His church, and this reign will be consummated when He returns at the end of the millennium, not its beginning.

Arguments against: The natural reading of Revelation 20 — coming after the visible return of Christ in chapter 19 — places the millennium after the Second Coming, not before it or coinciding with the present age. If Satan is currently bound and unable to “deceive the nations,” it is difficult to account for the scale of deception and evil evident in the world. The passage describes those who “came to life and reigned with Christ” — language that in Revelation consistently refers to bodily resurrection and physical reality, not spiritual regeneration. Premillennialists of both varieties argue that the sequence of Revelation 19-20 (return, then millennium) is the most straightforward reading of the text.

For Discussion:

  • What is your first reaction to the postmillennial position? Does its optimism about the gospel’s advance strike you as biblical faith or wishful thinking?
  • The Great Commission commands the discipling of “all nations.” Does that language imply comprehensive success, or does it describe the scope of the mission without guaranteeing the outcome? What difference does it make?
  • How do you read the mustard seed and leaven parables alongside the parable of the weeds — which describes wheat and weeds growing together until the harvest? Do these pictures point in the same direction or different directions?
  • Psalm 110:1 and 1 Corinthians 15:25 describe Christ reigning “until” His enemies are under His feet. Is that a description of a gradual historical process, or a decisive final act at His return? What in the text itself points you one way or the other?
  • Romans 11:25-26 anticipates a future large-scale turning of Israel. Does that future event make you more or less optimistic about where history is heading? How does it shape your sense of the church’s mission?
  • Postmillennialism was the dominant eschatology of Puritan and Reformed Christianity for centuries — before the World Wars shook confidence in progress. To what degree should current events inform how we read eschatological texts?
  • If the postmillennial view is correct, what does that demand of the church today? What does it demand of you as a man?
  • If the pre-tribulation view from our last study is correct, how should a man live differently than if the postmillennial view is correct? Does the answer to that question matter?
  • Both views agree that Christ is Lord now, that the gospel is advancing, and that His kingdom will be complete. Is there a way to hold the uncertainty about timing while living with the urgency the mission deserves?
  • How does this topic point to Jesus — the one who is already seated at the right hand of the Father, with all authority in heaven and on earth, waiting until His enemies are made His footstool?