Scholars and theologians have wrestled with the meaning of the millennium for centuries. Is there a neglected key to its significance in the book of Revelation itself? The present paper proposes that Jesus’ message to the seven churches provides a controlling hermeneutic for the rest of the book. Each letter links the hearer thematically with the controlling Son of Man vision in chapter 1 and also prepares the hearer to anticipate the fulfillment of Jesus’ promises in the end of the book. Specifically, Jesus’ message to the church of Smyrna (Rev 2:8-11) is framed as the words of the first and the last, the one who died and came to life. The body of this letter introduces the imagery of Satan’s threat of prison, a time of testing for ten days, and the promise of not being hurt by the second death. Each of these elements reappears in the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise in chapter 20. Satan who threatened the church with prison is now himself bound. The ten day time of testing is resolved by the 10x10x10 (1,000) years of reigning with Christ. The second death cannot harm those who are fully committed to Jesus and share in his resurrection and eternal life. Most discussions of the meaning of the millennium neglect the interpretive guide provided by the book itself in Jesus’ word of encouragement to the church of Smyrna. Just as all seven churches hear Jesus’ word to the others, all faithful followers of Jesus share in the promises realized in the final chapters, including the millennium.