Articles, Bible Questions and Discipleship Guides

Fred asked: “Can you please explain why there will there be animal sacrifices in the Millennial Kingdom?”

Hi Fred. I’m glad you asked.

I need to give a little context first. At the conclusion of the Great Tribulation, God will establish a kingdom here on earth, where Jesus will rule for 1000 years. That kingdom will be inhabited by two groups of people, believers who were raptured prior to the tribulation and people who are saved during the tribulation and survive to the end. 

That second group of people will be mortals. They will marry, have children, and the kingdom population will grow. All of the children born during that time will need to be saved, just like you and I needed to be saved. They will not be born saved. They will have the same sin nature you were born with.

Now to your question, yes, the Bible does say that the Millennial Kingdom will have a temple, and that sacrifices will be performed there. Hebrews 10:18 informs us that Jesus' death on the cross is sufficient and is the final sacrifice for sin. That’s probably what you are thinking about in asking your question. Since Jesus is the final sacrifice for sin, why sacrifice animals?

I believe that a primary reason for the temple sacrifices is to benefit all of those who will be born during the Kingdom period. They need to understand that death is necessary for their salvation to be accomplished. They need to believe that Jesus died and rose again and that He alone is the path to forgiveness. The temple sacrifices are not for the sake of atonement. They will be performed as illustrations of atonement.

It’s somewhat similar to why we celebrate The Lord’s Supper today. We don't partake because Christ needs to be sacrificed all over again. We do it as a memorial and a way of remembering. The sacrifices of those unblemished animals in the Millennial Kingdom will be a wonderful illustration of what Jesus, the unblemished Lamb of God, did on the cross. 

Thanks for your question,

Stephen