Death or No Death in the Millennium?

Death or No Death in the Millennium?

Introduction: The Apparent Contradiction and Interpretive Approaches

This article will closely examine Isaiah 65:17-25 and Revelation 21-22 in what appears to be a contradiction about whether or not there is death in the Millennium, and how symbolic or literal these passages should be interpreted.

Revelation 22 says that there will no longer be death in the new heavens and new earth. Meanwhile, Isaiah 65 describes there being death. Amillennials apply Isaiah 65 to either the eternal state or to our present day, while Premillennials apply it to a future thousand-year reign of Christ which happens before the eternal state.

There are two general ways to interpret Isaiah 65.

The Amillennial position interprets Isaiah 65 figuratively and symbolically, like poetic literature. In this way, the new earth is not a literal new land mass, while the age-time verses are hyperbolic or idiomatic expressions.

The Premillennial position interprets Isaiah 65 literally or near literally. The earth is going to be a new land or at least there is going to be physical land and it will be new in some way. It will still be earthly, but the government, civilization, topography, and other elements will be very different.

I hold to the Premillennial view, though I have a very symbolic understanding of the book of Revelation, and will demonstrate that in this commentary as I work my way from section to section. Some of my critique will be against the Amillennial and full-preterist view. Though, since there are many views out there on this book, I do not claim to speak for all Premillennials, and neither do I claim to accurately present what all Amillennials believe either, so just know that before we dive in. My main aim is to understand the truth of the Bible, wherever it leads. Here, we will go over Isaiah 65 and Revelation 22 thought by thought. I will present my observations about the text to show what interpretation seems likely and what interpretation is not possible, and then refute those views, whether they be Amillennial or something else, as there seems to be never-ending interpretations for this book. However, my aim is to understand Revelation through the eyes of the Old Testament and literary flow. Many of questions regarding the Millennium will be addressed in this article.

The Nature of the New Heavens and New Earth

From my Premillennial perspective, I think the earth is still going to be the same sphere, but it’s going to be cleansed and renewed into something that looks a lot different from what we know now. It’s similar to the concept where Paul says that we are new creatures in Christ, that “the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (2 Cor 5:17). We can be called new because there has been a real transformation though we are still of the same physical substance of flesh and bone. In Revelation 21:1 it uses similar language, saying that “the first heaven and the first earth passed away.” Perhaps this correlation is here to indicate to us that just as we have been born again, so also in a similar pattern, the earth needs to be born again.

Going back to the present time in the vision, Jesus said to John, “Behold, I am making all things new” (21:5). The Greek tense is present active indicative, meaning that this is an ongoing thing that God is doing. Jesus is in the process of restoring the earth to make it new. And then the “all things” means without limitation. Jesus is in the process of renewing everything — and that’s what heaven and earth represent. Therefore, this certainly cannot exclude a physical earth, since that would be a contradiction of “everything,” and an exclusion of one of the two main things that were specifically mentioned — earth. So here, we have the cosmic restoration of all divisions: The God of the universe declares that He is presently and actively engaged in the work of renewing the entire created order, transforming all things in a qualitatively new way.

As a side note: “everything” does not mean Universal Reconciliation where all people end up saved in the end. God renews what can be molded — what submits to His will. Creation obeys Him, but many people will resist His refining and resist to be molded (Ezek 24:13; Ro 9:22). As Daniel 12:10 says, the wicked will continue to act wickedly. God pursues and refines, but not all will respond.

Literal Heaven and Earth in Isaiah 66

Another reason that this new earth will be physical is given to us if we just press on a few verses further to the next chapter. The Lord says,

Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool.
Where then is a house you could build for Me?
And where is a place that I may rest?
For My hand made all these things,
Thus all these things came into being
(Isaiah 66:1-2)

Heaven is defined as the place where God dwells in the vast expanse of whatever is out there that we can’t see or touch. It is the realm of His divine authority. The earth is defined as God’s footstool, the place that God rules over—and since He is so bigger than everything, it’s as though He is using earth as a footstool for His feet. For this reason, there is not a house big enough that we can build for God—He is above it all. Then He says that He “made” heaven and earth, and they “came into being” through Him. This refers back to a literal creation in Genesis 1.

The sitting and footstool imagery are not literal but symbolic to represent God’s sovereign domain and where our place is as creatures—under His authority in the realm of human earthly life. However, the metaphors do not replace the literal referents here of heaven and earth. In fact, the metaphors demand the literal referent in order for them to work. The throne being above and the footstool being below is a spatial relationship rooted in literal cosmology.

So then, if heaven and earth here are literal realities, it would also seem rational to assume that the heaven and earth spoken of in the previous chapter are also literal realities. When God says, “I create” (Isa 65:18), He means that this is what He is presently doing and what He will bring to completion. It’s a process of His intervention and refining of this earth to renew all things up to its completion where it culminates in the eschaton. That doesn’t necessarily have to mean that He is changing the topography right now, since that is something that comes later.

Think of it like a builder constructing a building. You don’t put the siding, the roof, and the paint on first. No, you need to build the foundation first, then the frame, the walls, and everything else. Then after all that is done, you put on the finishing touches. So it is with the earth: the topography and all the beautiful things come last, including the endless rejoicing of God’s people. But towards the beginning of this creation project, God needs to first create a people ready for such a beautiful place, because a house without anyone to live in it is purposeless. This is what God was indicating when He said, “For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing and her people for gladness” (Isa 65:18).

Jerusalem as People, Place, and God’s Purpose

It is not possible for a city to rejoice if it is just architecture and no people. In this way, we do not understand the definition of “Jersualem” in its most literal sense. However, we certainly don’t strip away all literal meaning either. Jerusalem is certainly a place, but it is also more than that. It is a civilization that belongs to God’s people and those people belong to God.

At the time Isaiah 65 was written, Israel and Judah had already returned from their Babylonian exile. Jerusalem had been destroyed, and although the people were now back in the land, they were living in the painful aftermath of that destruction — poverty, disappointment, and ongoing affliction. Through Isaiah, God speaks to this wounded, post‑exilic community: “I did not create you for suffering, mourning, and death. I created you — Jerusalem, My people — for everlasting joy, gladness, and rejoicing.” In Isaiah 65:18, God gives them a vision of the end, of what He intends for His people to ultimately experience.

They may not have fully grasped why God had allowed Jerusalem to fall, but Scripture makes clear that the exile was both judgment for their idolatry and a furnace of affliction meant to purify them. Through discipline, God was calling His people to repent, to turn from idols, and to return to Him — the only source of life. Only through this turning could they be restored and ultimately inherit the new creation that God was preparing for them.

Christ Preparing the New Creation with His Cleansing Work so that we can Dwell with Him

Then much later Jesus came to earth and spoke of His resurrection into heaven saying,

“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. 3 If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also” (Jn 14:1-3).

Through the incarnation, life, death, and resurrection of Christ, He was creating a new heaven for us. He was in the process of preparing it and preparing us to dwell with Him. The book of Hebrews talks more about that but I don’t want to get too deep into that right now.

The overall point is, God is in the active process of making a new heaven and a new earth and to prepare a people to live in them. When the time is right and the appointed time comes, He will do away with the old order of things as we know them now, and we will see a transformed heaven and earth.

The Passing Away of the Former Things

After He says, “I create a new heavens and a new earth,” He says, “the former things will not be remembered or come to mind.” In Revelation 21:1 it says, “the first heaven and the first earth passed away.” As I said, the old order will pass away and a new order of creation and life will begin. It will be so different and so much better in that blissful state that the memory of this current world will be like a faded memory or a dream that you know you had but can’t quite remember. And it will be like you’re a kid again having so much fun doing something you really enjoy that you can’t hear your mom calling your name. In this case, the voice calling your name would be those old memories of your previous life. Perhaps you can remember them or perhaps you can’t. The point is, they will no longer concern you because of all the rejoicing you will be doing in that day.

In verse 19, the verb tense changes. Instead of “I create” (i.e. I am doing), it changes to “I will,” as God is speaking of a future time and place in which He will rejoice over Jersualem as death will be no more. When the new heaven and new earth are fully realized, God will be there with us rejoicing with us and for us. After all, He sent His Son to die for us so that we could be with Him. It is the consummated state of all His work. Verse 19 says, “I will also rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people; and there will no longer be heard in her the voice of weeping and the sound of crying.” Revelation 21:4 says, “and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” When He says, “the first things,” He is contrasting the things that will be past and the things that will be future and here to stay.

The New Jerusalem and the Marriage Consummation

When God says, “I will also rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people,” (Isa 65:19), it parallels with what John says, “And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband” (Rev 21:2). In both instances, Jerusalem is correlated with being God’s people and its civilization.

Then verse 3 says, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them.” From all these verses combined, I take it to mean that the New Jersualem in heaven that comes down, has the glory of God’s presence in it (v. 11). In this way, both God’s people and His presence come down to the earth. This is symbolically the wedding consummation—when heaven and earth are joined as one—and where God’s felt glory and presence will forever stay with His people without any hindrances or other barriers.

The end of Isaiah 66:2 communicates a similar idea to the tabernacle of God dwelling among men, as it contrasts the fact that God does not dwell in a physical temple, yet He regards the one and dwells with those who are humble and contrite in spirit, and who tremble at His Word (cf. Ps 34:18). Revelation 21:22 says that there is no temple in the New Jerusalem, “for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.”

Why the New Jerusalem is Not the New Covenant

This Old Testament idea of God’s glory being with His people is not something revelatory when we come to the church age. David had the Holy Spirit with him, even after he greatly sinned against God, he prayed “do not take Your Holy Spirit from me” (Ps 51:11). But the Spirit stayed with him even through this mess. Otherwise, he would not have prayed for the Spirit to not be taken away. So I do find it a little puzzling that Amillennialism thinks that the New Jerusalem coming down from heaven is about heaven entering our souls through the Holy Spirit… I fail to understand how that is a marriage consummation. Also, as previously discussed, the definition of Jerusalem is incompatible with that view.

The Apostles never spoke like that about the Spirit in our present age in reference to this symbolic marriage. They just referred to the Spirit’s work as the new covenant of the Spirit (2 Cor 3:6), and the Spirit as a seal, which is the pledge of our redemption (2 Cor 1:22; Eph 1:13; 4:30). However, we do have Matthew 25, which is the parable of the Ten Virgins and of the bride and bridegroom. This comes right after all the things Jesus prophesied would happen in the last days in Matthew 24, and the indication is that the coming of the bridegroom, Christ, is an event that will happen much further into the future than the time surrounding when this gospel account was written, which did not happen at Pentecost. Thus, the New Jerusalem coming down from heaven is not the New Covenant of the Spirit.

If we took that view, we would have to spiritualize the words about there no longer being any more death, crying, or pain, as something much less weighty than what those words are promising. It renders meaningless the idea that all these things will pass away and be no more. And though the final judgment had just happened in the vision, and death was thrown into the lake of fire to be completely burned up, there later appears to be a discontinuity from that reality as not all things are summed up in Christ as they are promised to be (Eph 1:10), since death continues, and there is no finality to it.

But Revelation 20:14 clarifies for us what the symbolic image of the lake of fire really is in its literal interpretation, it is the second death. Meaning, like the first one, except a second time. When things are thrown into the fire, they burn up to be no more—and that should be the natural understanding if we don’t import Platonic philosophy into our theology to think of death as some never-ending thing. However, my main point is that the “death” in Revelation 21:4 should be interpreted as a literal reality that will be removed. The context of chapter 21 takes place after final judgment and after the thousand years. This truth is reinforced by the fact that death is said to be destroyed at the final judgement (20:14), then the new heaven and earth come in which this idea is reiterated in 21:1 that the old things “pass away,” and then again in verse 4, “there will no longer be any death,” and “the first things have passed away.” I don’t know about you, but that is certainly not the description of what I experience on this earth, which means that heaven has not yet come down to earth. The marriage consummation hasn’t happened yet. The New Jerusalem is not heaven invading our souls, and neither is it us going up into heaven, since, Revelation describes it as coming down, after all, not as us going up to it.

The Problem of Death in Isaiah 65:20

However, this is where things get interesting, because Isaiah 65:20 describes a reality where death is still present, saying, “No longer will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not live out his days; for the youth will die at the age of one hundred and the one who does not reach the age of one hundred will be thought accursed.”

To do away with this difficulty, the Amillennialist interpretation says that this is idiomatic speech similar to what you might find in a poem — that it is symbolic prophecy describing the blessedness, security, and fullness of life in the new creation.

However, if that is the case, why mention death being present there at all if it is supposed to be done away with? Why give specific numbers of lifespans? Now, if we were to strip that all away but keep the tree imagery and understand this as hyperbole, I might be able to get on board with that. However, because of the specifics here where death is reiterated multiple times, I just can’t take this to that degree of non-literalness.

Here is how literally and non-literally I interpret Isaiah 65:20. I see this as the Millennial age before the eternal state where both death and child-bearing is still going to happen but life in the age to come will be so different compared to what it is now. There will be a future time-period where there will no longer be still-births, or infants who only live for a few days. This is a generality and description of dying extremely young and having untimely deaths of a child. In this future time of renewal to come, there will also no longer be an old man who does not live out his days. In the Hebrew, to ‘live out his days’ means to live his days out to completion—to fulfill his time. Therefore, it is saying that the future world is not going to be like today where an old man dies before reaching a ripe old age. But rather, “the youth will die at the age of one-hundred.” Meaning, the number of one-hundred as we measure it in our world today is not going to be considered old in the day to come. Instead, if you’re one-hundred, you’re just a young lad—a young boy or young man. It’s a reversal of the curse and reversal of our devolving creation. The clock of the world will start ticking backwards to the Genesis account where people lived a really long time. In Genesis 5, we see that Adam became a father at the age of one-hundred and thirty years (Gen 5). Then Adam lived up to nine-hundred and thirty years before he died. Adam’s son, Seth, became a father at the age of one-hundred and five, and then died at the age of nine-hundred and twelve. Others lived really long lifespans in comparison to today that we could say they lived as long as trees, which is the idea that Isaiah 65:22 communicates, “For as the lifetime of a tree, so will be the days of My people, and My chosen ones will wear out the work of their hands.” They’ll have so much time to do so many things that they will have done it all. They’ll build their own houses, make their own farms, then after all that they’ll probably travel the whole world and see every place there is to see. But what do you do after you’ve done all that? It’s not saying that you will literally run out of things to do but rather, whatever you had planned and set out to do from the very beginning will have been completed in a very short time relative to how long your life is going to be.

However, “the one who does not reach the age of one hundred will be thought accursed” (v. 20). The word “thought” is not in the original text, so it may mean that these people will literally have a curse on them since they died so young. The LXX translates it as, “For a young man shall be a hundred years old, but a sinner who dies at a hundred years old shall be cursed” (OSB). That is, an unbeliever who dies young during this time will be considered to have a curse upon him as the reason for which he died young. Zechariah also speaks of this time where if people refuse to go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, there will be a plague of no rain on them (Zech 14:17). That’s a curse. So then, curses and plagues are still possible in the Millennial kingdom, and unbelievers will also be living on earth during that time.

Curses in the Millennium vs No Curse in the Eternal State

But wait a second! Doesn’t the Bible say that there will no longer be any curse!? So then, how is this guy cursed? Well, in the same context, Zechariah 14:11 says, “People will live in it, and there will no longer be a curse, for Jerusalem will dwell in security.” This means that the specific place where the people are living, “Jerusalem,” will not have a curse. But this does not exclude other parts of the world or other people from being under a curse, so there is no contradiction here. As for Revelation 22:3 which says there will no longer any curse, I believe that is speaking of the eternal state once all things are renewed, or it may just be speaking of Zechariah 14 where there is no curse in Jerusalem anymore. However, we’ll cover more on that later. For now, let’s return to Revelation 21.

After all these new realities of the new heaven and new earth are described, God says, “it is done” (21:6). Meaning, this is the culminated fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan and His purpose to renew all things. It’s when all things are made complete, and this future reality is sure to happen.

A word of encouragement and warning is then given to the present audience on inheriting or forfeiting these things (v. 6-8).

The Reason for Revelation 21:9

Next, verse 9 is very important here, and we must pay attention to it. It’s too easy to just skim over the details as irrelevant. Verse 9 says, “Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, ‘come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’”

Stop and ask yourself why this particular angel shows up here. This is no accident or happenstance. The angel who poured out the bowl of wrath isn’t here because no other angel was available so all they had left was this guy. No, this is not coincidence. It is purposeful. The vision is changing the direction of the narrative, flashing back to that time right before the Millennium begins and onward, because the vision wants us to see the bride who will become the wife of the Lamb in the eternal state. Therefore, the verses that follow describe the New Jerusalem (the people of God with God’s glory), in the process of coming down out of heaven.

Understanding the Literary Flow of the Rest of Revelation to Place it in the Millennium

There is much symbolism involved here, but I don’t have the time right now to study all of those things. Essentially though, these are all descriptions of Israel and the Gentiles as well who are included into Israel.

Verse 27 says about this city that “nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” This could be a personal exhortation to the audience that if they want to inherit eternal life and the blessedness of God’s kingdom, then they need God’s salvation. If they don’t have the salvation of God, they will never have the opportunity to enter in, since their judgement will be the lake of fire.

Alternatively, verse 27 could be speaking of unbelieving sinners during the Millennial era, that they won’t be able to enter into that blessedness the way they are (see also 22:15 to compare). This could possibly mean that there is opportunity for repentance in the Millennial era. However, this possibility could only apply to those who have not previously died. Whether or not unbelievers will live as long as trees or will live shorter lives, I do not know. But as for those who have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb, they will live as long as trees, which may possibly be the entire length of the Millennium.

Revelation 22 speaks of a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb. The tree of life is on both sides on the bank of the river, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. I think this is still speaking of the Millennium, where God will heal all there is to be healed through His people proclaiming His name and power throughout the nations. Progressively, this healing culminates in the complete reversal of the curse (v. 3), as all that can be healed has been healed.

Alternatively, verse 3 saying that there will no longer be any curse could just be applying to the holy city of God’s people, the New Jerusalem, while it is still possible for sinners to be under a curse in the Millennium. However, I favor the “restore all things” interpretation, though I think both will be true realities.

As you can see, the confusion about whether there will be death or no death in the new heaven and new earth and/or Millennium is resolved once we understand that Revelation uses a flashback in 21:9 to show us the Millennial kingdom, and then gives us a feel for the progression of the beginning of that time to its fulfillment. Thus, death is possible in the Millennium, but its culminated state will have no death.

There are no contradictions between Revelation and Isaiah 65.

Isaiah’s new heavens and new earth are not on the identical timeline as John’s new heaven and new earth.

A few extra thoughts:

The end of Isaiah 65 also indicates that during the Millennium, there will be no violence of one animal against another in the territory God has reclaimed for His people, “they will do no harm in all My holy Mountain,” says the Lord (v. 25).

Revelation 21:1 says that there will no longer be a sea in the new earth. I interpret this as meaning that the salt-water oceans will become fresh-water according to Ezekiel 47:8-9. Because of all the other subject connections in that chapter, it seems most reasonable to conclude that this is the primary chapter John had in his mind and saw in his vision. This connection to Ezekiel 47 further supports the idea that the new heaven and new earth will be literal realities that our eyes can see and our hands can touch.

Another reason to not symbolically interpret the last chapters of Revelation too far, is that Peter describes the coming of the new heavens and earth through literal fire consuming the elements. For how else can “elements” be burned up? “Intense heat” is another physical descriptor of God’s judgment.

“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. 11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.” (2 Peter 3:10-13).

I believe what Peter is describing is the seven last bowls of wrath being poured out on the earth. It is going to have a cataclysmic/worldwide effect. Remember also how in the Old Testament when God was done with judging Israel, He went out to judge the nations, since God shows partiality to no one. In the same way, the pattern repeats itself. Jerusalem will have her destruction and time of great distress, but the other nations will be judged too. What I am saying here is that for Preterists to see Revelation as only a localized judgement against Jerusalem in 70 AD, is wholly inadequate for the scope of what Revelation is all about.

If you want to read more about the Gog and Magog war at the end of the Millennium and the events preceding it, see Ezekiel 36-39.

For further study on the subject of renewal, restoration, and liberation, see:
Matthew 19:28; Acts 3:21; Romans 8:19-23; Ephesians 1:10; Colossians 1:20

Conclusion

Isaiah 65 and Revelation 21–22 are not competing visions of the future but complementary revelations that describe two distinct phases in God’s redemptive plan. Isaiah portrays a renewed world in which death, long lifespans, childbearing, and even the possibility of curse still exist — a world transformed, but not yet consummated. Revelation, by contrast, unveils the final state after the last judgment, when death itself is destroyed, the former things have passed away, and God dwells with His people in unbroken, everlasting communion.

The tension between “death” in Isaiah and “no death” in Revelation dissolves once we recognize the literary structure of John’s vision. Revelation 21:9 intentionally returns to the beginning of the Millennium, using the same angel from chapter 17 to signal a narrative flashback. John is shown the descent of the New Jerusalem — not merely its final arrival — and the text traces the progression from the Millennial kingdom to the eternal state. In this way, both Isaiah and Revelation speak truthfully within their respective horizons: Isaiah describes the Millennial age, and Revelation describes the eternal age that follows.

Far from contradicting one another, these passages together reveal the full sweep of God’s work to renew creation. The Millennium is the era in which Christ reigns, righteousness flourishes, longevity returns, nations are healed, and the curse is progressively undone. The eternal state is the climactic fulfillment of that work, when the last enemy is abolished, the New Jerusalem is fully established, and God’s presence becomes the everlasting temple of His people.

When read through the lens of the Old Testament and the literary flow of Revelation, the storyline is coherent, beautiful, and theologically rich. God is making all things new — first through a restored world under Christ’s reign, and finally through a perfected creation where death, sorrow, and curse are no more. In this unified vision, Isaiah and John stand together, bearing witness to the same hope: a renewed earth, a redeemed humanity, and a future in which God rejoices over His people forever.