Matthew 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Okay, there's really no difference, but my preferred versions are the English Standard Version (ESV), the New American Standard Bible (NASB), and the New International Version (NIV), in that order. Here's the ESV:
"Jesus said to them, 'Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."
Some apply 'in the regeneration' to the here and now while some apply it to the future, thus when Christ returns. Except it does not matter what this portion of the text is pertaining to---in the regeneration. If that's applicable to the here and now, or whether that is only applicable after Christ returns, does not change the fact that this portion---when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel--is not applicable until this is fulfilled first---When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory (Matthew 24:31)
Agreed.
I have not been as much a part of this particular part of the conversation as you and others have, but I guess you're saying amillennial believers would assert otherwise, right? Well... not all who would call themselves amillennialists, including... yours truly. :) Yeah I’m with ya here…
Now, I realize you said here that "it does not matter what this portion of the text is pertaining to---in the regeneration" (or, from the ESV above, "in the new world," which answers the question, really), I will say that Jesus is not referring to the here and now, either 2000 years ago or now in 2024... :)... but rather to after He, Christ, returns. Frankly, it's a bit astonishing to me that anyone would assert that it's "applicable to the here and now," but hey, as I've said ~ and this is true regarding pretty much anything, really ~ if something can be thought, there are probably some folks out there who actually think it. :) I'm kind of chuckling as I say that, but yeah... <
chuckles>
It is then a matter of, once Matthew 24:31 is fulfilled, which then leads to the fulfilling of this in Matthew 19:28---ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel---is that meaning before 1 Corinthians 15:24 and verse 28 are fulfilled? Or is that meaning even after 1 Corinthians 15:24 and verse 28 are fulfilled, they continue doing this---sitting upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel---thus for forever since there would be no period of time that has a beginning and an ending post that of the fulfilling of 1 Corinthians 15:24 and verse 28 preventing it from continuing in that manner for forever.
What I would say, here, David, is that Jesus is here (in Matthew 19) speaking to His twelve disciples (excluding Judas, who was replaced Matthias; Acts 1:26), who would later become the apostles. And what He's telling them is that
they will participate in the final establishment of the Kingdom of God on the earth. So, then, what we see in 1 Corinthians 15:24, 28 is surely not "prevented from continuing forever," but rather... well, then continues from that point forward into eternity... God's Kingdom will certainly have no end.
It seems to me then, it is far more reasonable to take this part---ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel--to only be meaning up until 1 Corinthians 15:24 and verse 28 are fulfilled. Which then begs the question, does it sound reasonable that the same day they begin doing this, that very same day they quit doing it altogether?
I think, David, some folks make this
"sitting upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel" of Matthew 19 to be something else other than it is. Again, I would say this is Jesus's way of saying that they ~ the apostles ~ will participate in the final establishment of God's Kingdom on earth. And this is
after Jesus has executed the final Judgment... I think/hope we would all agree that Jesus executes the final Judgment, depicted in various ways in various passages, like Matthew 7:21-23, Matthew 25:31-46, and Revelation 20:11-15... So, again,
after Jesus has executed the final Judgment. So,
after... pulling the text from 1 Corinthians 15:24,28 ...Jesus
"delivers the Kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power" and
"all things are subjected to" Jesus, and
"then the Son himself" is
"subjected to Him Who put all things in subjection under Him." This is the establishment of the New Heaven and New Earth of Revelation 21:1-8. And, of course, there is no end.
And then there is this as well.
Luke 22:30 That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom---that they only get to do this for 24 hours or less. That alone is laughable, no doubt. Clearly then, thus undeniably, eating and drinking at His table in His kingdom is paralleling when they sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And that it is not remotely reasonable that the same day they begin eating and drinking at His table in His kingdom, is the same day they quit doing that altogether.
Okay, so, the ESV again (including Luke 22:28-29 for context):
"You are those who have stayed with Me in My trials, and I assign to you, as My Father assigned to Me, a kingdom, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel."
This passage is very much parallel to the Matthew 19 passage above, and my explanation is the same. Actually, I would correlate both passages to what is alluded to in Revelation 19:6-8, the marriage supper of the Lamb.
Note: that will probably set some folks here off, because they're so all in on Revelation being from end to end absolutely chronological, but it's nooo-ooooooot... :)
So just to recap: I say, with regard to Matthew 19, it is unreasonable to think there is any significant length of time, much less a thousand years, between the time that the apostles sit upon the twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel and “quit doing it altogether” (as you put it); again, I say it's a misconstruing of what Jesus means by that... they will participate in the final establishment of God's Kingdom, and this final establishment is its ushering in, its initiation, and need only happen once, not lasting for any extended period. What that final establishment actually will look like we don't know, as we are not told. And again, in both the cases, this is
after Jesus executes the final Judgment, and initiated by the events described in Revelation 21:1-8. There is no literal 1,000-year period before (post mills) or after (Pre mills) Jesus's return.
So, yet again, I submit that the millennium of Revelation 20:1-6 is the period leading up to Christ's return ~ the fullness of God's time (symbolized by the thousand years) in bringing all His elect into Israel. This ~
now ~ is Christ's millennial reign, which is from heaven. But as He said at the end of Matthew 28, He is with us now, "always, to the end of the age"... in the Spirit, just as we are now, in the Spirit, with Him, seated in the heavenly realms, as Paul puts it in Ephesians 2. Anyway, then, in short order, will be His return, His final victory over Satan, His execution of the final Judgment, and the establishment of the New Heaven and New Earth (in which the apostles will participate).
Thoughts? Comments? I'm open to discussion, of course.
Grace and peace to you, David.