In Theology, a millenarian is a believer in an earthly paradise at the second coming of Jesus. This paradisiacal term will last 1000 years, hence, the name “Millennium.” The Millennium is the penultimate state of redemption as portrayed in the Prophets. Christians who believe this today are named Premillennialists (“Pre” references the timing of Jesus as ‘before’ establishing the Kingdom). Post-Millennialists believe this present era between Christ’s parousias is a quasi-millennium and the human eternal state arrives at the return of Christ. Amillennialists, as their name implies, have no belief in a millennium; instead, their conception has the eternal state following the Second Coming with the 1000 years (Rev. 20.3) referencing merely “a long time.” Premillennialists believe in a righteous physical rule on earth for 1000 years just before the new heavens and earth.

The Disciples of Jesus were Premillennial, according to good historiographic evidence, and also, it seems, according to the interplay in Acts 1.6-8, that the last earthly words of Jesus affirmed their beliefs: So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (ESV)

The disciples knew Daniel’s prophecies. Jesus Himself told us to study and understand Daniel as pertains to the challenges awaiting earth’s inhabitants during the Last Times: So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand) (Matt. 24.15 ESV). The last time Israel had a divine-ordained kingdom was in 586 B.C.E. and God had conveyed through Daniel, who was of the royal seed of David (Dan. 1.3), what would happen in the future to his nation Israel and the dual parousias of the Messiah. The first parousia is Christ’s sacrificial death in 9.26: And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed (ESV). Christ’s triumphant return is the second parousia which is prominent and climatic in at least two places in Daniel: 2.34-35, 44 and 7.13-14.

Jesus’ disciples knew the Messianic Age was not restored in their time and asked if now was the time for Jesus to rule and restore the kingdom to Israel. Essentially, Jesus said it was a mystery hidden by God as to its timing and His Return. He didn’t correct them as to what the bible predicted in the Prophets, such as a river flowing east and west from Jerusalem and the area from Geba to Rimmon becoming a plain: On that day living waters shall flow out from Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern sea and half of them to the western sea. It shall continue in summer as in winter. And the LORD will be king over all the earth. On that day the LORD will be one and his name one. The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem shall remain aloft on its site from the Gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s winepresses (Zech. 14.8-10 ESV). Perhaps some may object that this account refers to the eternal state, but that cannot be since, in vss. 16-19, Zechariah has peoples punished when they do not observe the Feast of Booths. Therefore, it is not referencing the eternal state.

The writer of Hebrews contrasts the differences of Christ’s two appearances in 9.28: so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him (NIV). Therefore, He will come at the Day of the Lord and save His people from their enemies. However, before that, Jesus will send The Spirit to enable salvation to spread to all ends of the earth. This intervening time between His Appearances will give time for the Good News to spread to all the Gentiles who will listen: I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd (Jn. 10.16 NIV). In fact, Jesus says He has a definite number of Gentiles to reach: Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in (Rom. 11.25 ESV).

The Apostles’ Premillennialism

The source we have for the Apostles’ Premillennialism is Papias, bishop of Hierapolis, a careful researcher who had a patron commission the writing of an Exposition of the Logia of the Lord, much like Luke had his patron Theophilus, to and for whom he wrote his works. These 5 books of Papias are lost to history. We do have about 20 fragments quoted by later authors whose works remain.

The area of Asia Minor (modern Turkey) is where Paul spent most of his time ministering and also to whom Peter wrote his epistles. John also took up residence in Ephesus after Jerusalem’s destruction in 70 C.E. If John was born in 10 C.E., then he would have been only 60 years old when relocating. His last years was probably used to teach and write the Johannine Corpus. In the gospel accounts, John is mentioned after his brother James, so probably younger, and thus could extend his ministry (although James was martyred). Jesus even hinted that he would minister a long time when he said: “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” (Jn. 21.22 ESV).

Papias of Hierapolis was in a good position to interview eyewitnesses to what the Apostles (elders) had spoken. Situated as he was in the Lycus Valley, along with Colossae and Laodicea, two major trade routes traversed this region. One was the Asia bisecting route from Attalia on the south coast of present-day Turkey to Ancient Smyrna on the Aegean Coast. The other route ran from Antioch in Syria to Ephesus and passed through the Lycus Valley. This section made up the extremity of the so-called Silk Road. Also, Philip the Deacon (Acts 21. 8-9), with two of his daughters, settled in Hierapolis in later life. Papias, undoubtedly, would have interviewed them on their common faith and probably used the material in constructing his Logia, which seemed to be an ordered account of Christ and His Good News of redemption.

Papias was pastor at about the same time as Ignatius of Antioch and Polycarp were active, late 1st and early 2nd century. Richard Bauckman, in his Jesus and the Eyewitnesses, cogently argues that, though Papias writes between 110-130 C.E., he gathered his material when the Apostles were still alive, and only later constructed his Logia from his notations. Also, Polycarp, a disciple of John (the Apostle), pastored to the north in Smyrna, while Papias was probably a native of the Hierapolis region and served as bishop, directing the disciples and mentoring the next generation. Eusebius mentions the association of Polycarp and Papias in his writings. Polycarp was known as an ardent follower of Christ, being a disciple of John and pastoring in Smyrna. Perhaps we can see Polycarp’s effectiveness by Jesus encouraging and comforting the church in Rev.2.9-11.

Most of the Papias quotes are found in Irenaeus and Eusebius. Eusebius of Caesarea, the early church historian, thought it odd that Papias believed in the material kingdom of Christ. Perhaps Eusebius was the odd one out since Papias sought out what the elders (apostles) were saying:

I shall not hesitate also to put into ordered form for you, along with the interpretations, everything I learned carefully in the past from the elders and noted down carefully, for the truth of which I vouch. For unlike most people I took no pleasure in those who told many different stories, but only in those who taught the truth. Nor did I take pleasure in those who reported their memory of someone else’s commandments, but only in those who reported their memory of the commandments given by the Lord to the faith and proceeding from the Truth itself. And if by chance anyone who had been in attendance on the elders arrived, I made enquiries about the words of the elders—what Andrew or Peter had said, or Philip or Thomas or James or John or Matthew or any other of the Lord’s disciples, and whatever Aristion and John the Elder, the Lord’s disciples, were saying. For I did not think that information from the books would profit me as much as information from a living and surviving voice.

(Eusb. Hist. 3.39)

In the above quote, Eusebius fails to appreciate that Papias’ careful historiography would have informed his millenarian views which he criticized in another place. Had Eusebius considered that Papias’ research concluded that the Apostles held to premillennialism, then he might have paused before he criticized him.