A millennium is a period of a thousand years. By Divine decree, the . The 7th millennium commences with the second coming of Jesus Christ, when the resurrected Lord returns to earth in glory.
Exactly what is God’s purpose for this thousand year period? And how is the last millennium related to eternal marriage?
First consider what Christ taught about marriage: “For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven” (Matt. 22: 30). Based upon this particular passage of scripture, some incorrectly conclude that marriage is not a union that continues in heaven; but as we read Luke’s account of this same teaching, a key phrase helps clarify what the Savior really meant about marriage:
“And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage: But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage” (Luke 20: 34, 35).
When all scriptural passages pertaining to this truth are accounted for, we can see that Christ was essentially saying that marriage ceremonies do not happen in heaven. Being “given in marriage” is only for “the children of this world.” The ceremony of marriage, then, is an earthly ordinance.
Now consider what happens when “the children of this world” are married by the priesthood power that Jesus bestowed upon His apostle Peter:
“And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matt. 16: 19).
When “the children of this world” are married by proper priesthood authority, their marriage is indeed “bound in heaven”–in force throughout eternity. But this is not a conclusion derived by logic alone, it is a doctrine explicitly declared by Christ through a latter-day prophet:
“And again, verily I say unto you, if a man marry a wife by my word, which is my law, and by the new and everlasting covenant, and it is sealed unto them by the Holy Spirit of promise, by him who is anointed, unto whom I have appointed this power and the keys of this priesthood; . . . it shall be done unto them in all things whatsoever my servant hath put upon them, in time, and through all eternity; and shall be of full force when they are out of the world” (D&C 132: 19).
One of the central purposes of the 7th millennium, when Christ personally reigns upon the earth, is to perform the ordinances of eternal life and exaltation for those who did not have the chance to receive them during their mortal life.
Baptism is the first ordinance that opens the way to eternal life (Mark 16: 16). If people do not get the chance to hear and accept the gospel of Jesus Christ in this life, they will get the chance to receive it in the spirit world; and the ordinance of baptism can be performed vicariously in their behalf. This is what Paul was referring to when he said:
“Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?” (1 Cor. 15: 29).
Reinforcing the reality and necessity of performing vicarious baptisms “for the dead” is this truth taught by the apostle Peter:
“By which also [Christ] went and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water” (1 Peter 3: 18-20). “For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit” (1 Peter 4: 6).
So what does eternal marriage have to do with the 7th and last millennium?
In another latter-day revelation, Christ declared that marriage is an ordinance necessary to attaining exaltation in the highest heaven (D&C 131: 1-3). And like baptism for the dead, the vicarious ordinance of eternal marriage can only be performed in the house of the Lord.
Considering the billions of people born from the time of Adam until today and projecting the enormous numbers of people who did not have the chance to be blessed by the ordinances of eternal marriage and baptism, it is easy to see that there are many millions of ordinances that will need to be performed on behalf of the dead, during the last millennium.
The work of redeeming the dead is already taking place in hundreds of “Mormon” Temples throughout the world; a work that will be completed during the 7th millennium. Doing genealogy and performing vicarious ordinances for our kindred dead is one facet of the three-fold mission of Christ’s Church.
Because members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint (the “Mormons”) represent only 0.23% of the 6.6 billion people who populate this planet, the logistics of getting this enormous amount of work done will require many centuries of time to complete. Some argue, if the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were really Christ’s Church, then more people would be members of it. But recall the Savior’s teaching that only “few” would be able to find His strait and narrow way (Matt 7: 14).
Because God is no respecter of persons and provides an equal chance for all to partake of His richest blessings, He has decreed the last millennium to be a time when all injustices become just. The final millennium is a time for those who remain on the earth to perform the exalting ordinance of eternal marriage in behalf of their kindred dead–couples who did not have the opportunity of receiving this blessing during mortal life.
Thank you for writing and posting this, sorry I’m late to this comment section but I couldn’t sleep and happened across it in my search for more information about those in the church like me who have reached a certain age and must accept the fact that no priesthood holding man with a desire to create an eternal family with someone like me is going to happen in this life. The brethren keep insisting those like me will have “every opportunity in the next life” but I’m confused. If this means the millennium the starting date of which nobody knows must I still be alive in order to participate in such blessings? I’ve already been baptized and endowed, my patriarchal blessing says the millennium will be an opportunity for me. Unfortunately God as to what that opportunity will be. Further down in my blessing is the section about dating, meeting a “young man” (who obviously has a thing for middle aged women?) Who will supposedly take me to the temple and that I will come forth in the first resurrection. If I die before the second coming, having knowledge of the restored gospel yet temple marriage is a ceremony and ordinance for those alive NOW, as Jesus taught marriage is not for the dead but the living.
Thoughts?
Michelle, there are many strong members of the Church who are suffering similar disappointments and seek for answers. Specific answers are hard to come by and can take years of patience and prayer to receive. Here are some truths that can help put some things into perspective, though they may or may not provide comfort right now.
In the afterlife, marriages are not performed in heaven, right? But they are performed by proxy on earth by worthy temple goers. In the afterlife, if two people wish to join in a celestial marriage, that can be performed by proxy in the temple. During the Millennium, the earth will be a terrestrial paradise, where celestial beings and terrestrial beings can freely visit and participate in administering the gospel. The “dead” will not perform proxy temple work, but they certainly will be able to guide it. And we will all be young men and women in the resurrection. Understanding these things, we can see that we don’t have to live through mortality into the millennium to receive blessings during the millennium. I’d be happy to discuss this more thoroughly.
So, are the celestial beings the ones that get resurrected first to do the work for the others so they can become celestial? Because I thought the Bible said all the people that died before Christ are getting resurrected first and then the resurrection of the just. Are the celestial beings going to be somewhere else doing the work for the telestial beings on Earth before the final judgment? The Bible and DandC says there will be none given in marriage during or after the resurrection which doesn’t make any sense. The millennium is after the resurrection. Are celestial and telestial beings hanging out on earth together? It says the living will do it for the dead but everyone will be alive. Or is everyone going to die and then the people in the celestial class get resurrected first, go back to the newly made earth, and do the work for the telestial and terrestrial beings and if those being accept the work then they get to be resurrected and go back to Earth? It’s all super confusing.
Hi Sharon, Those are all good questions! Honestly some of these things have not been revealed in any official capacity. But the Lord answers us when we ask Him questions. And some of the greatest, most monumental revelations ever received have been as a result of sincere prayer. (Think Joseph in the Grove)
I’ve also asked some of these questions, and here is what I have understood. The world will go on, with people being born and getting married after the millennium starts. The biggest difference is that we will age to the ‘age of a tree’ and be changed in the twinkling of an eye from mortal to immortal. That’s where you hear people get the phrase “twinkled” they mean transitioning without tasting death. SO those born in the millennium will be blessed not to have to die the traditional way. We know at the end of the millennium that everyone will have a body because the great war will then be waged. So it also makes sense to me that they are married if they want to be, and they have lived to a ripe old age and been changed into an immortal form. I think that what the bible and D&C are talking about is that after the resurrection is complete there won’t be any marriages because everyone will already be married.
Your have several questions, so I will answer them to my best ability one at a time. About celestial beings doing the work of others- after the resurrection we will each be assigned a kingdom of glory where we will be very happy. Each kingdom has a limit for how much you can grow, however. And once you are in the Terrestial kingdom you will never progress to the celestial kingdom. Those in the Telestial will never progress to the Terrestial kingdom. But those in the Celestial kingdom will have no end to their growth and learning. That’s why we want to get there. Any other place will be wonderful, but will have a limit. And I personally would not want any limits to my own growing potential. Those living in the Celestial kingdom will live with God and Jesus, but those in the lower kingdoms will only receive visits from Jesus and any other celestial beings who choose to visit. We will all receive eternal life (never dying again) in the resurrection, but exaltation means living with God, and only those in the Celestial kingdom will be exalted and grow without end.
When the Savior was resurrected he opened the doors for resurrection, and when he rose so did many others who lived righteously and had earned the resurrection of the just (or the first resurrection). From what I understand that is already happening on a regular basis. Many early saints reported visits from resurrected beings who helped them from time to time. I don’t know when the resurrection of the Just (or the Morning of the First Resurrection) will end. But I do know it has already begun. And the final resurrection will happen near the end of the millennium, just before the great war where Satan will be finally defeated.
As for the celestial beings doing the work somewhere else, no that’s incorrect. There are certain ordinances that have to be performed here on this earth, by mortal beings. That is why we have temples. When a person is baptized for someone else in the temple, the person on the other side then has the chance to accept that baptism. That is why we will have living mortals on earth until every person who has passed on gets a chance to have their temple work done. It’s a huge job!
The millennium will not be after the resurrection. That is reversed. The resurrection has begun, and the millennium hasn’t. But during the millennium resurrected beings will walk the earth and bring the books down from heaven to help in the temple work. That may be what you read about the living and celestial beings both being on the earth at the same time.
After the final battle where Satan is finally silenced and sent far away, the Earth will receive it’s celestial glory. After that time nobody who is not celestial will be living here because the glory would be too great, and frankly they would be very uncomfortable. They will live elsewhere that will be prepared for them. But it will be marvelous and glorious. Joseph Smith once said that if we could see how amazing even the lowest level of heaven is that men would be killing themselves to get there. That is why there is a veil of forgetting on our memories of heaven. God knew we would be just too depressed to function if we knew how far from heaven this earth is right now. Personally I find nature so beautiful that it boggles my mind to imagine it more beautiful.
Have I helped? Did I miss anything? I love that you are looking for answers. Keep it up! And remember that if what I have said doesn’t “taste” right, then spit it out. The Lord wants us to each seek Him for answers. And these are the answers as I understand them. But I’m still growing too. Hope you have a good day!
I love your answers, Patty! I came to this blog in search of whether there would be marriages for resurrected beings during the millennium (for those righteous who were not married in this life or who were divorced or such).
But before I begin, something I’ve recently learned in taking a BYU religion class is that the term “eternal life” is, indeed, exaltation, and SO many of us, ME included, have used that term a little loosely. “Eternal life” is “God’s life,” which I have always known, but forgotten that when used that way means an exalted life in the celestial kingdom. A more appropriate word would be “immortal” or “everlasting life.” Salvation is also a good word to use when describing life in any kingdom below the celestial kingdom. (I recently read (for my studies) Teaching The Doctrine Of The Family, by Sister Julie B. Beck, Seminaries and Institutes of Religion Satellite Broadcast, August 4, 2009, and she quoted Moses 1:39 and added: “We know that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ our immortality has been taken care of, but to receive eternal life we have some responsibilities. There are certain things that we have to do” (para 10). This confirmed and strengthened what I had just read in a Book of Mormon commentary by Bruce R McConkie which talked about the premature death of little children who receive the highest degree of the celestial kingdom.)
With that out of the way, let me add that I have buried four infants who lived only a few days. At the funeral of one of those, our dear priesthood leader gave a talk where he helped me to visualize righteous parents who, during the resurrection, will be able to greet their children at and assist them from their graves. They will then be able to raise those children to adulthood during the millennium. I had never heard that before and a new hope was instilled into my soul! I did research and what he said can be verified:
President Joseph F. Smith, the sixth President of the Church, reported: “Joseph Smith taught the doctrine that the infant child that was laid away in death would come up in the resurrection as a child; and, pointing to the mother of a lifeless child, he said to her: ‘You will have the joy, the pleasure and satisfaction of nurturing this child, after its resurrection, until it reaches the full stature of its spirit.’ …
“In 1854, I met with my aunt [Agnes Smith], the wife of my uncle Don Carlos Smith, who was the mother of that little girl [Sophronia] that Joseph Smith, the Prophet, was speaking about, when he told the mother that she should have the joy, the pleasure, and the satisfaction of rearing that child, after the resurrection, until it reached the full stature of its spirit; and that it would be a far greater joy than she could possibly have in mortality, because she would be free from the sorrow and fear and disabilities of mortal life. I met that widow, the mother of that child, and she told me this circumstance and bore testimony to me that this was what the Prophet Joseph Smith said when he was speaking at the funeral of her little daughter” (Improvement Era, May 1918 on page 571; see also History of the Church, volume 4, page 556, as well as Mormon Doctrine by Bruce R. McConkie).
With this in mind, and knowing that there will be mortal and resurrected beings during the millennium, is it too improbable to assume that these children, once raised to adulthood, could meet and desire to marry a companion for eternity? I could definitely see that there would be mortals there to vicariously perform those ordinances while they, those resurrected beings, attend their own ordinance! Of course, because there will still be mortals who haven’t been “twinkled” yet, as you put it, they, too will be able to marry and have children, if there are still spirits of our realm (or our earth) waiting for bodies. A millennium, of course, is 1000 years, so I can certainly see that happening.
If vicarious marriage is possible for those resurrected children raised to “the fullness of their stature,” then it only seems possible that adults who left this earth without being sealed to a righteous spouse would be able to find their righteous, eternal companion and have their work done by mortals, again, vicariously, while they attend and watch!
What glorious events to imagine, which are not far-fetched!
The last question this all leads me to is, what about those righteous women who could never conceive (or didn’t have the opportunity to conceive) and bear children while yet in mortality? If I am right about finding a righteous companion during the millennium, would it be possible for them to conceive and bear children as resurrected, celestial beings during the millennium? Hmm, that is a difficult question. I would think they should have the opportunity to experience this mortal event, but at the same time, their offspring would not be mortal, but pre-mortal, would they not? This is something a little more difficult for me to get a full picture of, but have no doubts that this will all be one of the most glorious times that we can ever imagine before we continue on to create our own worlds without number!
“We know that many worthy and wonderful Latter-day Saints currently lack the ideal opportunities and essential requirements for their progress. Singleness, childlessness, death, and divorce frustrate ideals and postpone the fulfillment of promised blessings. … But these frustrations are only temporary. The Lord has promised that in the eternities no blessing will be denied his sons and daughters who keep the commandments, are true to their covenants, and desire what is right.
“Many of the most important deprivations of mortality will be set right in the Millennium, which is the time for fulfilling all that is incomplete in the great plan of happiness for all of our Father’s worthy children. We know that will be true of temple ordinances. I believe it will also be true of family relationships and experiences” (“The Great Plan of Happiness,”
Dallin H. Oaks, Conference Report, Oct. 1993, 101; or Ensign, Nov. 1993, 75).
Wow! I am so proud of you! You have truly searched out the truth both in your mind and heart. I once had an institute teacher teach us that true revelation from the Lord is received that way, and even hidden treasures of knowledge.
So here is what I have figured out, and I hope this helps in your search. First, I had also heard about the mothers getting to raise babies who died in the millennium. I am so grateful that priesthood leader gave you that information. It was a loving thing to do. I suffered 3 miscarriages and never even got to meet those babies. And I am looking forward to being able to raise them in the millennium. As I have thought about life and this scenario we are promised, I realize it is because the Lord in His love wants to let us get used to using and understanding these human bodies. They feel different at different ages, and as our human minds develop so do our souls. It is a marvelous promise!
The second thing you mentioned was being able to see the children we raise in the millennium get married. I am sure the Lord will not hold back any righteous desire from His children. And if they desire to be married they will be able to be married. I don’t think there will need to be vicarious marriage since they will be living here on earth. But this is really getting into the deep doctrine we are often warned about not getting too deep into.
The doctrines of salvation are so beautiful, and crucial for us to understand to get home to God. And these other deep doctrines are sometimes confusing and since we really can’t know for sure, that is where personal revelation is vital. I am sure if you ask the Lord He will let you know the answer. I personally think it makes sense that they can get married.
In my own personal understanding, the rules for resurrected beings hasn’t been revealed. I don’t think resurrected beings will be having children until they have reached the point where they will be creating their own families, or organizing their own intelligences. One of the deepest and most profound papers I have ever read is “Was the Atonement necessary” by Cleon Skousen. He explained the intelligences so well. Here is a link to the talk if you would like to read it. https://www.ldsfreedomforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=8252
You have many deep and sincere questions. And it’s beautiful seeing how you have sought the Lord and gotten so many answers. I hope you keep going to Him. I know my understanding is limited but His is not. You will get to raise the babies you lost. You will get to rejoice at their weddings and you will get to be a grandmother one day. But it will all be in the future, either in the millennium or beyond. And you will get to raise those children in a sinless world. It will be so wonderful not worrying about learning disabilities, or disease, or war. Your sweet family will be safe as none of us are right now. Keep trusting the Lord and keep asking Him your questions. Some of His answers will be too personal to share. But know that if you aren’t given every answer right now that they will come some day. And that He hasn’t forgotten your questions. Our future is glorious.
There is something that just came to mind that could help you, so I will share it. I struggled with infertility and wrote about how the Lord needed my service before He could give me a child. That child ended up having special needs and I haven’t been able to serve in the same capacity since his birth. It is possible that the Lord needs your service too. I don’t know your circumstances. But if He does, give yourself fully to service and your joy will have no bounds. My heart breaks for the children you have to wait to raise. But there are so many children (both old and young) here who are lost or neglected who would profoundly benefit from your service. If you want to know more about my story I wrote about it here on LDS Blogs. https://ldsblogs.com/22586/infertility-and-gods-miracle-for-me
https://ldsblogs.com/24197/infertility-gods-plan https://ldsblogs.com/26627/national-infant-loss-month-angel I included the last two articles because I thought you may be able to relate.
I hope I have helped.
Recently someone I know posed the following question:
I am widowed and sealed to my late husband…if I were to remarry and the millennial were to occur… and my late came back as a resurrected being would he would serve as my husband? Where would my husband to whom I am civilly married stand?
That’s one of those questions we will have to figure out when that day comes. In the mean time, if you are feeling like getting remarried, do it. It will all be sorted out in the end.