According to G. K. Beale, the 2nd century BC text Jubilees supports a figurative interpretation of the then-future millennial age (giving support to amillennialism, not pre-millennialism):
Jubilees understands that the ideal life of the
probationary period (“day”) in Eden should have been one thousand years (so
also Midr. Rab. Gen. 19.8; Midr. Rab. Num. 5.4; Midr. Ps. 25.8 on the basis of Psalm
90). The Jubilees text concludes that
the future messianic reign must achieve what Adam did not because Adam did not
live one thousand years, because Isa. 65:22 prophesied that the messianic age
will last as long as the ideal meant for the first paradise (likewise Test. Levi 18:8–13), and because of Ps.
90:4 (the Jubilees tradition of the
ideal millennial span of the first paradise is reflected in Irenaeus, Adversus Haereses 5.23:2). At least in
part, Jub. 23:27–30 was influenced to
conceive of this millennium figuratively by the Psalm 90 formula, whereas early
church fathers like Justin Martyr (Dialogue
81) used the same reasoning to formulate a literal premillennial perspective
(cf. likewise Hippolytus, Commentary on
Daniel 2.4–6, and possibly Methodius, Banquets
of the Ten Virgins 9.1; Extracts from
the Work on Things Created 9, though they may reflect a similar line of
interpretation as in Barnabas 15 or
perhaps Irenaeus). (G. K. Beale, The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the
Greek Text [New International Greek Testament Commentary; Grand Rapids,
Mich.: Eerdmans, 1999], 1019)
In response, Matt Waymeyer notes that Beale
fails to provide evidence for the symbolic
view of the millennium’s duration. A closer look at this passage, in fact,
demonstrates that the “thousand years” in Jubilees 23:27 was actually intended literally.
The angelic address in Jubilees 23 beings with an explanation of why Abraham
lived to be only 175 years of age while his ancestors had lived far longer (vv.
1-10). According to the angel, the increase of wickedness leads to a steady
decrease in life spans (vv. 11-25). In the midst of this, God’s people will
lament the reality that the lives of Abraham’s forefathers extended as long as
a “thousand years” but their life spans were limited to only 70 or 80 years (v.
15). But the turning point will eventually come when the children begin to seek
the commandments of God and return to the path of righteousness (v. 26). As a
result of this repentance, “The days will begin to become numerous and increase,
and mankind as well—generation by generation and day by day until their
lifetimes approach one thousand years and to more years than the number
of days [had been]” (v. 27; emphasis added). In other words, the actions of the
children will reverse this downward spiral of lie spans so dramatically that
human ages will once again, as in the days before Abraham, approach the length
of a thousand years. During this time, God’s covenant promises will be fulfilled
and His chosen people will live in peace and joy as the Lord shows them mercy
(vv. 28-31). In the greater context of the original prophecy, then, the “thousand
years” of Jubilees 23:27 must be literal, because the overall picture is that
of human life spans being restored to those of Abraham’s forefathers. The “thousand
years” of Jubilees 23:27 is just as literal as the “thousand years” of Jubilees
23:15, and the amillennial view of the “thousand years” in Revelation 20 gains
no support from this appeal. (Matt Waymeyer, Amillennialism and the Age to
Come: A Premillennial Critique of the Two-Age Model [The Woodlands, Tex.:
Kress Biblical Resources, 2016], 254-55)
Appendix:
Jubilees chapter 23
The following is the translation of Jubilees 23 in O.S.
Wintermute, "Jubilees (Second Century B.C.): A New Translation and
Introduction," in The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, ed. James H.
Charlesworth, 2 vols. (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1985), 2:99-102:
The death and burial of Abraham
23 1* And he placed the two fingers of Jacob on his
eyes and he blessed the God of gods. And he covered his face, and stretched out
his feet and slept the eternal sleep, and he was gathered to his fathers. 2* During
all of this (time) Jacob was lying on his bosom and did not know that Abraham,
his grandfather, was dead. 3 And Jacob awoke from his sleep
and, behold, Abraham was cold as ice, and he said, “O father, father!” And none
spoke. And he knew that he was dead.
4 And he rose up from his bosom and
ran and told Rebecca, his mother. And Rebecca went to Isaac in the night and
told him. And they went together and Jacob was also with them, and a lamp was
in his hand. And when they went, they found Abraham lying dead. 5 And
Isaac fell upon his father’s face and wept and kissed him. 6 And
the sound was heard in Abraham’s house and Ishmael, his son, arose and went to
Abraham, his father. And he wept for Abraham, his father, he and all of Abraham’s
house, and they wept greatly. 7 And his sons, Isaac and
Ishmael, buried him in the cave of Machpelah near Sarah, his wife. And all of
the men of his house and Isaac and Ishmael and all of their sons and all of the
sons of Keturah wept for him forty days in their places. And the days of
Abraham’s weeping were completed.
A discussion of the general decline in longevity
8* And he lived three jubilees and four weeks of
years, one hundred and seventy-five years. And he completed the days of his
life, being old and full of days. 9 For the days of the lives
of the ancients were nineteen jubilees. And after the Flood they began to be
less than nineteen jubilees and to grow old quickly and to shorten the days of
their lives due to much suffering and through the evil of their ways—except
Abraham. 10 For Abraham was perfect in all of his actions with
the Lord and was pleasing through
righteousness all of the days of his life. And behold, he did not complete four
jubilees in his life until he grew old in the presence of evil (and) his days
were full.
11* And all of the generations
which will arise henceforth and until the day of the great judgment will grow
old quickly before they complete two jubilees, and their knowledge will forsake
them because of their old age. And all of their knowledge will be removed. 12 And
in those days if a man will live a jubilee and a half, they will say about him,
“He prolonged his life, but the majority of his days were suffering and anxiety
and affliction. And there was no peace, 13* because plague
(came) upon plague, and wound upon wound, and affliction upon affliction, and
evil report upon evil report, and sickness upon sickness, and every evil
judgment of this sort one with another: sickness, and downfall, and sleet, and
hail, and frost, and fever, and chills, and stupor, and famine, and death, and
sword, and captivity, and all plagues, and suffering.”
14 And all of this will
come in the evil generation which sins in the land. Pollution and fornication
and contamination and abomination are their deeds. 15* Then
they will say, “The days of the ancients were as many as one thousand years and
good. But behold, (as for) the days of our lives, if a man should extend his
life seventy years or if he is strong (for) eighty years, then these are evil.
And there is not any peace in the days of this evil generation.”
The description of the future evil generation
16* And in this generation
children will reproach their parents and their elders on account of sin, and on
account of injustice, and on account of the words of their mouth, and on
account of great evil which they will do, and on account of their forsaking the
covenant which the Lord made
between them and himself so that they might be careful and observe all of his
commandments and his ordinances and all of his law without turning aside to the
right or left. 17* For they all did evil and every mouth speaks
of sin and all of their deeds (are) polluted and abominable. And all of their
ways (are) contamination and pollution and corruption.
18* Behold, the land will be
corrupted on account of all their deeds, and there will be no seed of the vine,
and there will be no oil because their works are entirely faithless. And all of
them will be destroyed together: beast, cattle, birds, and all of the fish of
the sea on account of the sons of man. 19 Some of these will
strive with others, youths with old men and old men with youths, the poor with
the rich, the lowly with the great, and the beggar with the judge concerning
the Law and the Covenant because they have forgotten the commandments and
covenant and festivals and months and sabbaths and jubilees and all of the
judgments. 20 And they will stand up with bow and swords and
war in order to return them to “the way,” but they will not be returned until
much blood is shed upon the earth by each (group). 21 And those
who escape will not be turned back from their evils to the way of righteousness
because they will lift themselves up for deceit and wealth so that one shall
take everything of his neighbor; and they will pronounce the great name but not
in truth or righteousness. And they will pollute the holy of holies with their
pollution and with the corruption of their contamination.
Punishment on that generation followed by repentance
and God’s blessings
22 And there will be a
great plague upon the deeds of that generation from the Lord and he will give them to the sword and to judgment and
to captivity and pillage and destruction. 23* And he will rouse
up against them the sinners of the nations who have no mercy or grace for them
and who have no regard for any persons old or young or anyone. For (they will
be) cruel and powerful so that they will act more evilly than any of the sons
of men.
*And they will cause turmoil in Israel and sin against Jacob;
and much blood will be shed upon the earth;
and there will be no one who will gather and no one who will bury.
24* In those days, they will
cry out and call and pray
to be saved from the hand of the sinners, the gentiles,
but there will be none who will be saved,
25 and the heads of
children will be white with gray hairs,
and an infant three weeks old will look aged
like one whose years (are) one hundred,
and their stature will be destroyed by affliction and torment.
26 And in those days,
children will begin to search the law,
and to search the commandments
and to return to the way of righteousness.
27 And the days will
begin to increase and grow longer
among those sons of men, generation by generation,
and year by year, until
their days approach a thousand years,
and to a greater number of years than days.
28* And there (will be) no old
men and none who is full of days.
Because all of them will be infants and children.
29* And all of their days they
will be complete
and live in peace and rejoicing
and there will be no Satan and no evil (one) who will destroy,
because all of their days will be days of blessing and healing.
30 And then the Lord will heal his servants,
and they will rise up and see great peace.
And they will drive out their enemies,
and the righteous ones will see and give praise,
and rejoice forever and ever with joy;
and they will see all of their judgments and all of their curses among
their enemies.
31* And their bones will rest
in the earth,
and their spirits will increase joy,
and they will know that the Lord
is an executor of judgment;
but he will show mercy to hundreds and thousands,
to all who love him.
32 And you, Moses, write
these words because thus it is written and set upon the heavenly tablets as a
testimony for eternal generations.
