“And this one thing let not be unobserved by you, beloved, that one day with the Lord [is] as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day;” (2 Pet. 3:8, YLT)
This verse has been taken out of context and has been used to express the belief in a timing mechanism for God’s prophesies. It is misused as the basis for many guessing games for those who try to set a date for the end of time. It has been used to sell a lot of books on end-time prognostications.
But we should remember that God used several numbers for counting time. Seven days were a “week”. Seventh day (sabbath) was for man’s rest and refreshment. A “week” of years was seven years with the seventh as a sabbath year of rest for the land. A jubilee was the year after the seventh “seven” of years (49 years, Lev. 25:8-9). There were seven days of cleansing and purification (Lev. 14:51, 15:13-28; Num. 19:11-12, etc.) (Note 1)
God commanded seven weeks to the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost – Deu. 16:9). He commanded seven days for Feast of Unleavened Bread (Deu. 16:3-4), and seven days for the Feast of Tabernacles (Deu. 16:13). The seventy “weeks” of Daniel 9:24 were seventy “weeks” of years as determined by the context of Jeremiah’s prophesy of the Babylonian captivity. (Note 2)
God used the the number 40 for testing, maturing and probation. It rained 40 days and nights in the flood (Gen. 7:4ff). Moses was on Mt. Sinai 40 days and 40 nights (Ex. 24:18; 34:28) The Israelite wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, every year for a day that the men spied out the land of Canaan (Num. 14:34). David reigned for forty years (1 KIngs 2:11). Jonah warned Nineveh that God gave them 40 days to repent (Jonah 3:4). Jesus was tempted for forty days, and fasted forty days and nights (Matt. 4:2; Mark 1:13; Luke 4:2.) Forty years is considered a generation of man.
There are other numbers God used for the timing of feast days, and months. But, He mostly used “thousands” for counting: ie, shekels, talents, gold and silver, the number of men, horses and oxen, sheep, and chariots. It was used to measure lengths in reeds and cubits.
However, the number “a thousand” (1,000) was never used by itself for actual time. By itself, the number 1,000 is symbolic of completeness, and fullness, for perfection. It is a multiple of 10, a perfect number raised to the third power. (Note 3)
“10 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.” (Deu. 5:10, KJV)
“Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;” (Deu. 7:9, KJV)
“10 For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.” (Psa. 50:10, KJV)
“ For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.” (Psa. 84:10, kJV)
“Be ye mindful always of his covenant; the word which he commanded to a thousand generations;” (1 Chron. 16:15, KJV)
The comparison of a thousand years to a day was not a system of counting or measuring time. When we consider the context of this verse within Peter’s message, it simply meant that God was going to bring His judgment at the right time.
The people of the first century were asking the apostles, “when,”? They wanted to know when that “last day” was coming. Peter was answering the charge from vs. 4.
“ and saying, `Where is the promise of his presence? for since the fathers did fall asleep, all things so remain from the beginning of the creation;’” (2 Pet. 3:4, YLT)
People are naturally impatient. We want what we want now. Even as we grow older, and more mature, it is still very hard to learn to be patient and to wait on the Lord.
14 Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.” (Psa. 27:14, KJV)
Peter had reminded them in chapter 2 of some of the other “days of the Lord,” or times of judgment when God’s presence came upon the people “suddenly” in the days of Noah’s flood, and the time of Sodom and Gomorrah’s destruction. His presence or judgment of the wicked comes when He is ready – not on our time table. God waited until He knew there was no more hope for anyone else coming to Him.
“9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Pet. 3:9, KJV)
The very next verse explained the meaning of “a day is as a thousand years”. Peter said that God is not SLOW (slack) as men count time. He waits until the proper time, when He knows it is best for all those that love Him (Rom. 8:28). His time table takes into consideration all those that love Him, and all those that are about to repent and turn to Him.
The word “AS” indicates the metaphor. The metaphor indicated the quality of time. It did not mean that God does not count a thousand days as nothing. Days matter to God. He does not stop counting the days. God remembered every year that the Jews had not observed the sabbath year of rest (Lev. 25:1-7; 26:42-44; Jer. 25:5-11; 29:10) . (Notes 4, 5)
“20 And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia:
21 To fulfil the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years.” (2 Chr. 36:20-21)
Quality, not quantity of time is the issue in 2 Peter 3.
“4 For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.” (Psa. 90:4, KJV)
When we were children time seemed to pass very slowly because we were constantly waiting for something to happen, or waiting to be older so that we could do all the wonderful things our parents could do. As we get older, time seems to move faster. We never have enough of it to do everything we want to accomplish.
And as we grow very old, time moves so fast that our youth seems as yesterday.
“…and a thousand years as one day.”
We think that time moves slowly when we are in trouble, or enduring hardship. We ask “when”, “when will this end? When will this be over?” That is the question Peter was answering for those of the first century AD when this book was written – approx. 64-66 AD.
They were enduring great hardship, and much persecution under the tyranny from the Sanhedrin, and the Romans. They knew of the promise of Christ’s return to destroy the temple (Matt. ch. 24-25), and of His promised second appearance in that generation (Heb. 9:28). They were daily being accosted by scoffers (vs. 3) who were challenging what the apostles had told them, who were saying that all things continue the same (vs. 4).
It is very hard to keep on believing when people around you are constantly telling you that you are wrong. So, Peter was reassuring them that even though time in their perspective, as they measured it might seem to be moving slowly, that God was not slow to judge the wicked. His judgment was coming to them at the right time, the appointed time. (Note 6)
God’s judgments were always at God’s appointed times.
“5 And the Lord appointed a set time, saying, To morrow the Lord shall do this thing in the land.” (Ex. 9:5, KJV)
“15 So the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning even to the time appointed: and there died of the people from Dan even to Beersheba seventy thousand men.” (2 Sam. 24:15, KJV)
“19 And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end shall be.” (Dan. 8:19, KJV)
“27 And both of these kings’ hearts shall be to do mischief, and they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper: for yet the end shall be at the time appointed.“ (Dan. 11:27, KJV)
“3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.” (Hab. 2:3, KJV)
John the baptizer came to them at the right time, on the Father’s time schedule during the first century AD to tell the people to prepare.
“3 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, 2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” (Matt. 3:1-3, KJV)
Christ told the people in the first century AD that all the law and the prophets were until John (Matt. 11:13), meaning that the time for the fulfillment of the prophesies had come to that generation, the same generation when John appeared to them.
The words “a thousand” are a metaphor God used in His prophesy for His perfectly completed and appointed time.
“And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years [the appointed time], 3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years [the appointed time] should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. … and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years [the appointed time]. 5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years [the appointed time] were finished. This is the first resurrection. … but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years [the appointed time]. 7 And when the thousand years [the appointed time] are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, (Rev. 20:2-7, KJV)
The above prophetic time statements were not a literal “one thousand” years (Note 7)
In summary, Peter’s message spoke of God’s judgment coming at His discretion, on His timetable whenever He considers the moment to be perfect, whether that took one thousand years, one thousand days, or just one day.
Notes:
1) List of Sevens in the Bible – Sevens In The Bible
2) See the posts “Seventy Weeks of Daniel chap. 9” and “Daniel and The End Times” at the right margin.
3) The combination number of days in Dan 8:14 (2300 days), Dan. 12:11 (1290 days), Dan. 12:12 (1335 days), and Rev. 11:3; 12:6 (1260 days) are literal days.
4) See Ancient Hebrew Calendar at 5Loaves2fishes
5) See The Atonement Clock by Christian Gedge on youtube here
6) See the post “The Signs of Revelation – Part I: The Time of His Coming” at the right margin.
7) See the post “The Thousand Year Reign of Revelation 20…” for more on the prophesy of these “thousand” years.
Shredding The Veil 
Are there any other examples in Old Testament prophecy in which a thousand years actually represented a smaller amount of earthly time than a literal one thousand? I’ve listened to many partial-preterists that refuse to believe one thousand represents a literal time period smaller than one thousand. For full-preterists, this one thousand year period gets crunched down to a relatively small period of time in the first century. I’ve heard partial-preterists who claim that a thousand years represents a much larger period of literal earthly time than a mere one thousand. Their view is that one thousand years is meant to portray a massive number of years, not simply fullness or completion. This is one of those points where full-preterists and partial-preterist part ways. My question is can you find specific examples in scripture, outside of Revelation, in which one thousand years was crunched down to fit within a much smaller period of time? I heard one partial-preterist state that if you told him a thousand years represented ten thousand years, he could believe it. But he could not believe that one thousand years ever could fit into a small number of years as full-preterists attempt to do by cramming it into the first century. Personally, I am a full-preterist. The time statements are impossible to deny. But this thousand year reign issue does give me a headache trying to explain.
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It is apparently a reference to the book of Jubilees (from the 2nd century BC) which uses it to explain that Adam did in fact die “in the day” that he ate of the fruit:
“…And at the close of the nineteenth jubilee, in the seventh week in the sixth year thereof, Adam died, and all his sons buried him in the land of his creation, and he was the first to be buried in the earth. 30. And he lacked seventy years of one thousand years; for one thousand years are as one day in the testimony of the heavens and therefore was it written concerning the tree of knowledge: “On the day that ye eat thereof ye will die.” For this reason he did not complete the years of this day; for he died during it….”
The Patriarchs from Adam to Noah; Life of Enoch; Death of Adam and Gain (iv. 13-33).(https://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/jub/jub17.htm)
Book of Jubilees – Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Jubilees)
Peter is assuring the persecuted saints that the judgment that the LORD promised in Deuteronomy 32 was about to be unleashed. As Jesus said:
[Mat 23:33-39 NKJV] [33] “Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell? [34] “Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: [some] of them you will kill and crucify, and [some] of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, [35] “that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. [36] “Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. [37] “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under [her] wings, but you were not willing! [38] “See! Your house is left to you desolate; [39] “for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed [is] He who comes in the name of the LORD!’ “
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Well, but Ruminator, I agree with most scholars that neither the book of Jubilees nor the book of Enoch are scripture, and therefor not a part of the OT. You are correct that Peter’s usage is point on. All of the NT “woes” was telling those of that generation of their very near doom and desolation / destruction. So, again time limited to that generation, and the “thousand years” of Rev. 20 cannot extend beyond that generation (Matt. 24:34). Thank you1
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There is no other metaphorical usage in prophesy either in the OT or the NT for “the thousand years” than in Rev. 20.
Outside of the numbers and measures of things or people the only other metaphorical use of “thousand” is defined by context as innumerable, or forever.
Num 7:9, 1 Chron 16:15 – thousand generations Strong’s Heb 505 “eleph
Psa 68:17 myriads of thousands – literally thousands of repetition, innumerable hosts
Psa 90:4 – a thousand years in thine eyes (are) as yesterday – passing of time
Psa 105:8 – a thousand generations – remembering His covenant forever
Ecc. 6:6 – though he had live a thousand years twice over – extended life span
Dan 7:10 – a thousand thousands do serve him, and a myriad of myriads – innumerable
The word “thousand” has literal meaning in Daniel’s prophesies
Dan 8:14 – “two thousand three days – then is the holy place declared right.. “
This is actually, literally a number of days – most often attributed by commentators to the end of the persecution by Antiochus Epiphanes and the Maccabean revolt to restore the temple service.
Again in Daniel 12:11-12, literal number of days “one thousand two hundred and ninety” and “one thousand three hundred and thirty five”.
This prophesy relates to the time the angel gave the answer to Daniel of when the “end of these things” shall be in Dan. 12:6. The angel answers with when the power of the holy people (Daniel’s people, the Jews) shall have been shattered, Dan. 12:7 in “time, times, and half a time”, 1260 days, 42 months.
Daniel’s prophesy is the time limiting factor. The 490 years of Dan. 9:24, the history of Dan. 11 down to Herod and the birth of Jesus; the 3-1/2 years to the destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem is the shattering of the power of the Jews. This ties to Rev. 11:3, and 12:6 for the tribulation and the Roman-Jewish war against Jerusalem which ended in AD 70.
Now you have the end of those days – AD 70. That means the definition of the “thousand years” of Rev. 20 has to fit the context. There is no room for a normal, literal or even “lots of years” or “long time” meaning to pass beyond AD 70 for the prophesy of Revelation.
Staying with the context that Revelation was about the destruction of Jerusalem, the destruction of that animal sacrificial temple, and the end of the old Mosaic covenant, therefore the metaphorical use of “a thousand years” has to take over any construct of the numbering or measure of years. When God measured “a thousand” of anything it was specific and literal. The use of “a thousand” in the prophesy of Revelation is time limited by Daniel’s prophesy of the end of the 490 years, and the shattering of the power of Daniel’s people. They cannot stretch it beyond the shattering of Daniel’s people in AD 70.
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I believe you are 100% correct. Thousand years in Revelation must fit into the 1st century time frame, otherwise it all falls apart. That’s what frustrates me about partial-preterists. Many of them acknowledge that the four horses of the apocalypse, the seven headed sea beast, the beast of the land, the Olivet Discourse,etc…etc….all of that was 1st century and pointed to A.D. 70. But these same partial-preterists contradict themselves in their next breath and say Christ is yet to return to Earth. I think the 1,000 year reign has been a major sticking point for them. And I can understand the confusion that has come about from it, after reading it over and over again, myself.
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Yes, they are still struggling with the preconceived, taught ideology and cannot let go of it. Until they will let God’s word reign supreme they will not be able to see His word clearly.
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Gina,
Sorry, but it seems like you are “explaining away” scripture to suit your own previously established beliefs.
We have net yet seen Christ “coming in the clouds with great glory” as the angels predicted would happen at the time of His ascension into heaven. We have not yet “seen ALL things put under Him” though He is seated at the right hand of His Father. We have not seen the “elements melt with fervent heat”.
And, unfortunately, you seem to sound like those that Paul warned Timothy about:
2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
2 Timothy 2:16 But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.
2 Timothy 2:17 And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
2 Timothy 2:18 Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.
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All things were put under Christ when He defeated His enemies – the evil Sanhedrin who denied Him as the Messiah and who delivered Him up to the Romans who crucified Him. He was made our Priest, our King, and our Savior. He now rules at the right hand of the Father just as Stephen saw him in the vision before he was stoned in about 34 AD.
I am not imposing my view upon the scriptures. I am putting the scriptures in the context of the time period. All of the scriptures you have quoted were written approx. AD 63, before the destruction of Jerusalem. When 2 Timothy was written the ppl were concerned and worried that they had missed Christ’s return. Paul was assuring them that they had not, and in fact it was still out ahead of them and would happen as we know in AD 70. So , it was future to them at the time the book was written.
However, when we are reading these words almost 2,000 years later, we cannot remove them from the 1st century AD and put them into our future. You cannot read them as though they were written to us. First audience perspective must rule how we study the Bible. Their future is now our history. If you have begun your journey of this blog with this post you have missed the scriptural evidences of Christ’s return in that same generation that I have presented in the other posts. Pls read Parts 1 – X of It’s Not the End of the World, all 8 parts of The Signs of Revelation.
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Hi Gina. I think the “thousand years” might come in if we realize that the original promise of 70ad actually occurred way back in Deuteronomy!:
[Deu 32:34-35 NLT] (34) “The LORD says, ‘Am I not storing up these things, sealing them away in my treasury? (35) I will take revenge; I will pay them back. In due time their feet will slip. Their day of disaster will arrive, and their destiny will overtake them.’
Jesus said that the “stored up wrath” was finally going to come upon his own generation:
[Mat 23:34-38 NLT] (34) “Therefore, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers of religious law. But you will kill some by crucifixion, and you will flog others with whips in your synagogues, chasing them from city to city. (35) As a result, you will be held responsible for the murder of all godly people of all time–from the murder of righteous Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you killed in the Temple between the sanctuary and the altar. (36) **I tell you the truth, this judgment will fall on this very generation**. (37) “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me. (38) And now, look, your house is abandoned and desolate.
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God did store up vengeance for the wicked who would not turn to Him. But, the number of years were much more than a thousand. The exodus from Egypt is thought to have been in 1444 BC by many scholars. As all of the blood from Abel to Zacharias was going to fall on that 1st century generation that would represent maybe 3,500 to 4,000 years or so after Adam (AA). I don’t think we can find an even 1,000 years in that history.
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I wasn’t suggesting an even thousand (or ruling it out), just commenting that Peter’s audience who were waiting for rest from their enemies (the carnal leadership of Jerusalem) they didn’t have a long time to wait for the visitation to begin but in reference to the promise that Israel’s judgment coming quickly that he made way back here:
NIV Deut 32:25 It is mine to avenge; I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; **their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them**.”
It is from this date, thousands of years ago when God announced that “their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them” that Peter must defend by saying that from God’s perspective, since he does not feel the pressure of time, did in fact come quickly.
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Oh, understood. That is a valid point. I think that from God’s perspective – the 60,000 ft view – that when He decides the time is right His judgment is always quickly poured out. And, from the ground view of the wicked ones, it always seems to catch them by surprise.
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When you are suffering you want to know how much longer you have to wait:
[Rev 6:10 KJV] (10) And they cried with a loud voice, saying, **How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth [IE: “the Land”]?
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