Before we look at the scriptures to answer your good question, it is vital to see that judgment has indeed been committed to the Lord Jesus by God the Father. I will quote 3 passages to prove this:

*John 5:22 & 27: “For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son….and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man” (NKJV).

*Acts 17:31: “Because He (God the Father) has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”

*2nd Timothy 4:1: “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and Christ Jesus, who is to judge the LIVING and the DEAD, and by His appearing and His kingdom” (NASB).

It is crystal-clear from these passages that the Lord Jesus Christ, as a Man, will be the Judge over mankind. The last reference tells us WHEN He will judge the world. It will take place at two different times (His appearing and His kingdom) and with two different classes of people (the living and the dead). Let’s take a closer look at these TWO JUDGMENTS.

1) His APPEARING refers to His Second Coming to this earth to sit on His throne of glory and to establish His kingdom. Here are some scriptures that speak of this and the JUDGMENT OF THE LIVING:

*Matthew 24:29-30: “Immediately after the tribulation of those days…the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all tribes of earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”

*Matthew 25:31-33, 41: “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all His holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. ALL THE NATIONS WILL BE GATHERED BEFORE HIM, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides His sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world’…Then He will also say to those on His left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”

*See also 2nd Thessalonians 1:7-10 and Revelation 1:7; 19:11-21.

2) His KINGDOM refers to what we call the “Millennium” for it will last 1,000 years. I would encourage you to read Revelation 20:1-6 where His 1,000 reign is mentioned SIX times. Jesus will reign as a Judge throughout the Millennium but as the Kingdom closes (see verses 7-10) that the JUDGMENT OF THE DEAD takes place. Here is the passage that speaks of this solemn judgment:

*Revelation 20:11-15: “Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away…And I saw THE DEAD, small and great, standing before God, and the books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And THE DEAD were judged according to their works, by the things where were written in the books. The sea gave up THE DEAD who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up THE DEAD who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.”  (359.5)  (DO)