Origen and Rejecting Pre-Millennialism

Origen (A.D. 250) was the first to reject the doctrine of the millennium. He was however "a poor divine and a sorry philosopher," and, as Martin Luther wrote, his interpretations are to be avoided. According to his system, the sacred writings may be made to say everything, anything, or nothing, according to the fancy, peculiar creed, or caprice of the interpreter. He taught many false doctrines, as that magic is true and lawful science; that human souls existed previous to conception, and are condemned to animate mortal bodies in order to expiate evils committed in a pre- existent state; the universal restoration of the lost after a limited punishment, etc. and, above all, that the Scriptures are of little use if we understand them as they are written, and that the words in many parts of the Bible convey no meaning at all.

This man was the first opponent of pre-millennial doctrine, and Augustine, Jerome, and a multitude of the subsequent Fathers followed his teachings.

--H. Grattan Guiness (Light for the Last Days, chapter 19).