This is how God would have us to understand the "thousand years" = BIBLICALLY.

[Alan Dale Gross]

If the Lord Blesses one to see "a thousand years" in the light of Bible Revelation from the Old Testament, where God is said to be Faithful "unto a thousand generations,"

then we may be onto something entirely different than what we might have expected that the Lord has for us, regarding how we can see "a thousand years".

In Deuteronomy 7:9, we read, "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."

Since, a thousand literal generations is going to be a thousand multiplied by the number of years in a generation, which we will use 40 years for what a generation may be, then that would be 40,000 years that the Bible says that God will be Faithful TO SUCCESSIVE GENERATIONS. That is going to put Jesus' Return WAAAAY ON OUT THERE, FATHER THAN ANYONE HAS EVER DREAMED.

That's right so far, isn't it?

So, if we view those 'thousand generations' as expressing 'a very great number of generations', that seems like they are never-ending, then we will be able to see in Bible language where "a thousand years" can be expressing a very great number of years, that seems forever, as if they are never-ending, BUT THE POINT IS THAT THIS PERIOD OF TIME IS FINITE.

All the other numbers in the book of Revelation are symbolic representations, so it is not too far fetched to view "a thousand years" as being symbolic, if only for the sake of experimenting with it as a model theory for a brief moment, etc.

The first verse of Revelation says, (in the King James, anyway),
"The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto Him,
to Shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass;
and He Sent and Signified it by His Angel unto His servant John:"

Signified = Jesus Christ signified, i.e. made known by symbol and figure,
the things which must come to pass.

"Signify" (σημαίνειν) is characteristic of St. John,
to whom wonders are "signs" (σημεῖα) of Divine truths.

"This he said, signifying" [by means of an allegory]
"by what manner of death He should Die" (John 12:33; comp. 18:32; 21:19).

G4591 σημαίνω sēmaínō, say-mah'-ee-no;
from σῆμα sēma (a mark; of uncertain derivation); to indicate:—signify,
equivalent to to make known: absolutely Revelation 1:1.

1. to give a sign, to signify, indicate
2. to make known

So, we have Bible right there for how God wants us to be aware that Revelation wasn't meant to always be interpreted by literal-wooden-letterism, in this Apocalyptic Genre in which it is written, because that wasn't His intent He tells us from the start.

Just as those "thousand generations" seem like they'll never end, they do end, and although the number of years in Jesus' Present Reign from Heaven, for "a thousand years", seems like it's been Forever since He ASCENDED TO HIS THRONE, HOWEVER, THIS PERIOD OF TIME WE ARE PRESENTLY IN, WILL EVENTUALLY COME TO AN END, AT HIS RETURN.

That is how God would have us to understand the "thousand years" = BIBLICALLY.

I believe.

There's no reason for this to be taken spiritually. We follow a different set of hermeneutics.

I just wanted to point out that "a thousand generations" is a Biblical usage of the number one thousand, where it has been used there to indicate an enormous amount, but that it isn't meant to be saying "a thousand" literal "generations".

At least, I don't think we're going to want to stick with that.

If not, then Revelation 20:1-6 isn't the first time in the Bible
that the number of "a thousand" is clearly used symbolically.

Just some food for thought, as a take-away from the overall End Times discussion.

Nothing we say or believe can change what the Lord has already determined.

True that. Wisdom, my friend.