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Introduction
Before beginning, I would like to
share with you a little background as to my Christian
life-experience. In my early Christian life, I was a strong
dispensational, pretribulational premillennialist. I held to that
view for quite a few years. It was exciting to think about the
future things called "eschatology." Many Christians tend
to be fascinated with such doctrines as the Rapture, the Antichrist,
the Second Coming of Christ, the events that surround us, etc. In my
opinion and experience, I think many immature (and even some mature)
Christians tend to be too preoccupied with these things and fail to
rightly apply them to their walk with God. Also, most present
conservative churches are dispensationists and they always learned
what their church taught without studying for themselves to see
whether these things were so. We may tend to learn only what the
church taught and made up with our mind without learning some other
views. When we learned something that may have the truth and share
with the members or pastor, they may tell us it is heresy or do not
continue to study those views. I understand their concern but what
if they were wrong?
When I knew Jesus as my Lord and Savior,
but I have no idea about the biblical doctrines and I just go along
what the church taught. I used to admire John MacArthur's teachings
and his writings. I thought he was one of the best. As the years
went by, I began to notice some Scriptures that contradicted
dispensationalism. But still I believed it was the best possible
view as I was not yet aware that there were other views that
Christians believe in like Amillennialism, Postmillennialism and
Historic Premillennialism. So for a time, I kept my questions tucked
away in my mind. A few years ago, through the providence of God, I
discovered a book by R. C. Sproul called Chosen by God. Before that
time, I had not been acquainted with the Reformed teachings in
regard to the Sovereignty of God, Predestination, Election, the Five
Points of Calvinism, etc. I was more of Arminianism thinking without
aware of it. I remembered I was somewhat insecurity with my
relationship to Christ. But that book, like fuel on a fire, caused
my heart to flame. Eventually, I became a Supralapsarian. After I
had read it, I decided to put eschatological teachings on hold (I
was not at peace with dispensationalism because I was finding it
confusing) and I began a study on the doctrine of salvation (soteriology).
I learned a lot more when I went to The
Master's College. There I was convinced about the sovereign grace
view; and it helped me to better understand the Scriptures as they
were transforming my life. I decided to set up systematic theology
to check every area in regard to my strengths and weaknesses.
Systematic theology helped me to see the overview of the whole
message of the Bible.
I have noticed that many Christians are
weak in theology and do not understand how to apply it to their
lives. I've also noticed that the two things in theology that create
the most controversy within churches and denominations are
soteriology and eschatology. Some people can be very emotional,
sometimes because they are dogmatic or ignorant of others' views, or
because they are prideful.
In time, I went back into eschatology
even though I was afraid that it might turn out to be an endless
search for the right doctrine. I decided to eliminate the
dispensational view because of its many weaknesses and holes, and
because it was not compatible with Reformed teaching.
Dispensationalists are fine Christians and I love them dearly but in
my opinion, they tend to use poor exegesis; they twist many passages
or explain them away. Dispensationalists are always changing in
their dispensational interpretations of the Scriptures, as they have
historically since the doctrine was developed in the 1830's. But I
shouldn't go into that now.
I switched to Historic Premillennialism
for a time because I thought I could go between dispensationalism
and the Reformed view. Then I switched to Amillennialism because it
was the most popular in the Reformed camp, and I thought it was the
last choice. I saw that Postmillennialism is very similar to
Amillennialism, but I disagreed with the view that Christ will
return after all the nations of the world become Christian nations.
I did notice though that Amillennialism also has its weaknesses; it
splits some passages, making some verses fulfilled and others in the
same immediate context unfulfilled. I was discontented but still
searching.
At last, a friend of mine and I went to
Dallas, Texas for a Ligonier Ministries Conference to hear some
well-known Reformed speakers. While there I met another deaf person,
who believed that all the Scriptures are fulfilled. I learned that
the belief is called Full Preterism. Since this doctrine was new to
me, I was caught off guard and did not believe it at first. However,
I was open minded and curious, so I asked him what book he could
recommend; he gave me "Last Days Madness" by Gary DeMar.
After I had read the book, it seemed to make sense to me, but I was
skeptical because I was afraid of going too far and being led away
from the truth. Later, I read and re-read some Scriptures and some
other preterist books. In time, I realized that it was true that all
the Scriptures were fulfilled, and I felt more at peace with
preterism than I ever had with any other eschatological position.
Someone has written, "Bible
prophecy can be understood, but Futurist views have fallen far short
for many reasons: their extreme physical/literalizing approach,
their seeming inability to distinguish between figurative and
literal language, and their failure to properly take into account
the historical-grammatical-cultural context of the prophecies
(specifically what they meant to their original audience). Even the
most difficult prophetic passages come alive when approached
properly. It is time to look at some alternatives, and the Preterist
view is a great place to start."
However, even though I am at peace with
preterism, I am still learning more and always reforming. After you
read this article, I challenge you to believe what the Bible says in
the passages we will examine. I pray that you may be open-minded and
search the Scriptures as the Bereans did (Acts 17:10-11) with
prayer. I would suggest you have the Bible, a Greek interlinear
translation and the works of Josephus. You can check the list of
books in the bibliography for whatever you need. I do not expect
that you will agree with everything overnight. It may take some time
to read and understand what Scripture says. Please be sensitive with
your conviction and seek the Holy Spirit as your Guide. Keep
searching for what you need to know until the Lord gives you peace
in accordance with the truth of His Word. We must all continue to
learn of the wonderful things of God, for His thoughts are higher
than our thoughts and His ways than our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9) and the
secret things belong to Him, but things revealed belong to us, that
we may observe all the words of His law (Deuteronomy 29:29).
We are going to deal with Matthew 24 and
why I am convinced that chapter were all fulfilled in A.D. 70. I'm
not going into details with each verse but to give you a general
idea.
Matthew Chapter 24
Matthew 24 is the foundational passage
of eschatology; whatever view one holds stands or falls by this
chapter. Let's look at verse 34. The key word in this verse is
"generation." In Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New
Testament, we see that the Greek word is genea : "the whole
multitude of men living at the same time." Also in William F.
Arndt and Wilber Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New
Testament and Other Early Christian Literature: "basically, the
sum total of those born at the same time, expanded to include all
those living at a given time. Contemporaries."
I have noticed that many Bible
commentators dance around this verse. Some say that Jesus was
speaking to a generation that was not going to exist until thousands
of years in His future. Others claim that the whole Jewish race was
in view. Those are not sound Biblical interpretations. The Greek
word genos rather than genea is best translated "race," as
in Acts 7:19; 17:28; Galatians 1:14; Philippians 3:5; 1 Peter 2:9.
And take a look at the following passages which contain the word
"generation": Matthew 11:16; 12:38-45; 16:4; 17:17;
23:35-36; Mark 8:38; 9:19; 13:30; Luke 7:31; 9:41; 11:16, 24-36, 50,
51; 17:25; 21:32; Acts 2:40. I challenge you to determine which of
these verses refers to a time in our future. Also check these verses
in Acts 13:36 and Hebrews 3:10. It is very clear that David served
his kingdom for 40 years as well with the people of Israel in the
wilderness. I wrote an article in regard with the word
"generation" in http://www.angelfire.com/ca/DeafPreterist/genea.html.
We must honestly and humbly accept the
clear, straight-forward interpretation of Matthew 24:34: The
generation to whom Jesus was speaking that day was not going to pass
away until all the things of Matthew 24 came to pass. We must
picture ourselves as if we were in that time. Remember that the
whole New Testament was written before A.D. 70, to those who lived
in that generation. "This generation" was a reference to
the period within the 40 years between A.D. 30 to A.D. 70.
Look at the passages that lead into the
Olivet Discourse. Read some of Jesus' parables that apply to that
generation to whom He was speaking. See Matthew 21:33-46 (Mark 12;
Luke 20:9-19); Matthew 22:1-14; and Luke 19:11-27, 41-44. We should
not miss the straightforward manner in which Jesus spoke of the
destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in A.D. 70. I believe these
are very helpful to understand what Jesus was saying before we come
into the Olivet Discourse.
And immediately preceding the Olivet
discourse, the disciples heard Jesus pronounce His "woes"
on the Jewish leaders. Jesus ended His indictment of Israel's
1st-century religious leaders with this shocking surprise:
"Behold, your house (temple) is being left to you
desolate!" (Matthew 23:38). With this groundwork laid, we will
be ready to go into Matthew 24.
Matthew 24:1-3 As Jesus' disciples had just heard His
prediction of "desolation" for the temple and city, they
no doubt felt bewildered and wondered, "Lord, you cannot mean
this temple!" They must have been astonished when Jesus told
them that the temple was going to be destroyed, with not one stone
left upon another (v. 2 and see Josephus in Wars VII:I:1.). So they
were naturally curious about how and when those things were going to
take place.
The disciples' question involved three
interrelated events: (1) the time of the temple's destruction; (2)
the signs that would signal Jesus' Coming; and (3) the sign that
would bring about the end of the age. Compare parallel passages in
Mark 13:4 and Luke 21:7. The disciples' questions were related to
the destruction of the temple and the end of the Jewish economy and
to nothing else. There is no basis for a 2000-year "gap
theory."
Most Bible interpreters think that the
disciples wanted to know about the end of the planet. But the
disciples did not ask about the end of the "world" (Gk.
kosmos). Rather, with the temple and city as their main focus, they
asked about the end of the "age" (Gk. aion). In Strong's
exhaustive concordance, it says of the word aion, "spec.
(Jewish) a Messianic period (present or future)." See also
Matthew 12:32; Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30; Ephesians 1:21.
One writer has written, "In these
passages we have two worlds or ages in contrast: 'This world' and
the 'world to come'.... The expression 'world or age to come'
implies that 'this world or age' must end. Will the 'world or age to
come' also have an end? If not, then the expression 'last days' must
apply to the closing period of 'this world or age.' Thus, in the end
of 'this world' (whatever time is meant) is when God's
eschatological program will be completed or consummated."
Another writer wrote, "They were
asking when time would run out for the temple, the city of Jerusalem
and the Covenant promises that were related to the Mosaic system, of
animal sacrifices, ceremonial washings and priesthood."
And another writer wrote, "Time was
divided by the Jews into two great periods, the age of the law and
the age of the Messiah. The conclusion of the one was the beginning
of the other, the opening of that kingdom which the Jews believed
the Messiah was to establish, which was to put an end to their
suffering, and to render them the greatest people upon the earth.
The apostles, full of this hope, said to our Lord, immediately
before his ascension, 'Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore the
kingdom to Israel?' [Acts 1:6]. Our Lord alluded to His Coming to
indicate His taking vengeance upon the Jews by destroying their city
and sanctuary." This "end of the age" was the end of
the Old Covenant. You can check another article I wrote about
"age" in http://www.angelfire.com/ca/DeafPreterist/aion.html
We will examine more about "the end."
Matthew 24:4-12 Jesus responded by giving His disciples
not one, but seven signs of the end. Let us examine them and note
how each one came to pass. The list begins with certain events that
would occur merely as "the beginning of birth pangs" (v.
8).
1. False Christs (v. 4-5) Simon Magus the sorcerer,
mentioned by Luke in Acts 8:9-11. There are some more: Acts 5:36-37;
13:6-10. We will look more into this in Matthew 24:22-26.
2. Wars (v. 6-7a) We can turn to non-Christian sources,
such as the Roman historian Tacitus, to determine this. He states
concerning those years, "there were three civil wars; there
were more [than three wars] with foreign enemies; there were often
wars that had both characteristics at once." I could give you
much more from the historians but I won't at this time.
3. Natural disasters (v. 7b-8) Famines - During the reign
of Claudius Caesar, there was a great famine which Luke mentioned in
Acts 11:27-29. The Scripture says the famine was all over the world
(Gr. oikoumene - the whole inhabited world, the Roman Empire). See
in Josephus, Antiquities XX:II:5.
Earthquakes - We know that earthquakes
happen all the time, all over the world. However, according to
historical accounts, earthquakes were far from being rare
occurrences for that generation. One writer wrote, "And as to
earthquakes, many are mentioned by writers during a period just
previous to 70 A.D. There were earthquakes in Crete, Smyrna, Miletus,
Chinos, Samos, Laodicea, Hierapolis, Colossae, Campania, Rome, and
Judea. It is interesting to note that the city of Pompeii was much
damaged by an earthquake occurring on February 5, 63 A.D."
Josephus also mentioned that there was a great earthquake in Judea
(Antiquities XV:V:2).
4. Persecution (v. 9-10) We have seen many times
throughout the New Testament that Christians were persecuted. The
unbelieving Jews were the main persecutors of Christians from the
time of Christ's death until A.D. 70 (7:54-60; 13:45, 50; 14:2, 5,
19; 17:5, 13; 18:6, 12-18; 19:8-9; 21:27-32, 36; 22:22-23; 23:12-22;
I Thess. 2:14-16), and the heathen powers of Rome, especially Nero
Caesar, persecuted them for a season beyond that. Most of the
Apostles were killed during that time before the destruction of
Jerusalem. You might want to read "The Neronian
Persecution" in Philip Schaff's The History of the Christian
Church, vol. 1, p. 376-390.
5. False Prophets (v. 11) Again, there are many warnings
about the false prophets throughout the New Testament epistles: 2
Corinthians 11:13; 2 Timothy 3:13; 2 Peter 2:1; 1 John 4:1.
6. Apostasy (v. 12) Most Christians are looking for a
future "falling away," but there is no doubt that the
first-century church suffered through the ordeal of many falling
away and betraying the believers. During that time, many of those
calling themselves Christians lost faith under the pressure of the
tribulations. Many returned to their corrupted Jewish system and its
man-made traditions; they ignored the warnings of Christ and
perished in the wars, as in 2 Timothy 3:1-5. That passage is a good
example of the fact that "the last days" was the period
roughly between A.D. 30 and A.D. 70.
7. Worldwide Evangelization (v. 13-14) When we see the
phrase "the end" in those verses, we should ask ourselves,
"The end of what?" Many Christians today are looking for a
future "end" of all things or consummation of this planet.
Is that a Biblical expectation? No, it is not. Jesus was answering
questions about the destruction of the temple and the "end of
the age," i.e., the end of the Jewish dispensation, the Old
Covenant order. I Corinthians 10:11 firmly substantiates that view.
Remember Jesus is 3the End of the Law˛ in Romans 10:4. In I Peter
4:7, Peter wrote that 3the end of all things is at hand.˛ If words
mean anything, the prophetic 3End˛ was "soon" to take
place in the early first century. Many commentators and preachers
believe that we must preach the gospel to every individual on the
whole planet so that Jesus' "second coming" can happen. I
believe it is good to be evangelistic and to send out missionaries
to every country. However, we must remember that Jesus was speaking
to His "generation." We must let Scripture interpret
Scripture.
Let's take a look at Matthew 10:22-23:
Jesus said to the disciples, "And you will be hated by all on
account of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who
will be saved. But whenever they persecute you in this city, flee to
the next; for truly I say to you, you shall not finish going through
the cities of Israel, until the Son of Man comes." This passage
restricts the time of the fulfillment of Matthew 24:13, 14 to the
first century.
The preaching of the gospel to the world
found its fulfillment in a number of ways. First, at the day of
Pentecost there were people in Jerusalem from "every nation
under heaven" (Acts 2:5-11). Those people took the gospel with
them as they left Jerusalem after the feast, and became witnesses to
the world of their Lord and Savior. cf. Colossians 1:6, 23; Romans
1:8; 16:26; 1 Thessalonians 1:8; 2 Timothy 4:17. And the word
translated "world" in many translations is the Greek word
oikoumene, "The inhabited earth." The gospel truly was be
preached throughout the Roman empire before Jesus came in judgment
upon the temple and city of Jerusalem. The same Greek word was used
in Luke 2:1; 21:26; Acts 11:28; 19:27; 24:5; Romans 10:18;
Revelation 3:10; 16:14.
Matthew 24:15 We come now to the well-known passage
concerning "the abomination of desolation." It is the most
popular passage in the dispensational camp. Dispensationalists
believe that "the abomination of desolation" is going to
take place in our future because of the 2000-year gap which they
place in Daniel's Seventy Weeks in Daniel 9:24-27 (cf. 11:31;
12:11). It is important to know if the Bible, especially the New
Testament, predicts that the temple will be rebuilt in our future?
It doesn't; Jesus' body is the Temple (John 2:19, 21). Do you think
God would want the Jews once again to build a temple and begin to
offer sacrifices? This would imply that the atoning blood of Christ
is not sufficient or that it is a failure. The Book of Hebrews was
written to show without question that the entire Old Covenant system
with its priests, sacrifices, ceremonies, and temple was being done
away with in Christ (Hebrews 8:13; 9:8-10; 10:12-14; 12:22-28;
13:20). If Jesus comes back and reigns on earth, He can no longer be
our High Priest at the right hand of God in the heavenly Sanctuary
(See Hebrews 8:1-4). A careful reading of Scripture will show that
the abomination of desolation mentioned by Jesus was an event that
was to be fulfilled during the lifetime of His disciples. We can
refer to Luke 21:20, 21.
Matthew 24:16-20 These verses still focus on Jerusalem and
Judea. Jesus commanded His disciples that when they saw these
events, they were to flee to the mountains before the judgment came
upon Israel. The followers of Christ were expecting the temple's
destruction. See Luke 19:43,44; 21:23, 24; 23:27-31. Was Jerusalem
ever surrounded by the armies prior to A.D. 70? Yes. Did the
Christians flee the city? Yes. We can read the historical records
which recorded the events. See Josephus' Antiquities X:XI:7.
Eusebius in his book, III, V says, "The whole body, however, of
the church at Jerusalem, having been commanded by a divine
revelation, given to men of approved piety there before the war,
removed from the city, and dwelt at a certain town beyond the
Jordan, called Pella. Here, those that believed in Christ removed
from Jerusalem, as if holy men had entirely abandoned the royal city
itself, and the whole land of Judea." See Philip Schaff's
History of the Christian Church, vol. 1, p. 391-404.
Notice that Jesus used the second person
in the three gospels: "When you see" (Matthew 24:15; Mark
13:14; Luke 21:20). If Jesus had a far future generation in mind,
would He not have said, "When they see...?" The plain
interpretation of Jesus' words is that He was speaking to His
disciples about things which were going to come upon their own
generation.
Notice also the description of the era
of the time of the end: flat-roof houses, Sabbath observance, field
work, and primitive travel. Those things were certainly not applying
to a present period of time. Without doubt, the destruction of the
city and the temple was fulfilled by the Roman invasion in A.D.
66-70.
Matthew 24:21 Many Christians believe that the "great
tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the
world until now, nor ever shall" is still in the future. Some
say that though in the first century there were terrible events,
there will be a much worse tribulation in our future. Again,
speaking of his own generation, especially of the war-events between
A.D. 66-70, the historian Josephus writes, "It is, therefore,
impossible to go distinctly over every instance of these men's
iniquity. I shall, therefore, speak my mind here at once briefly,
that neither did any other city ever suffer such miseries, nor did
any age ever breed a generation more fruitful in wickedness than
this was, from the beginning of the world" (Wars V:X:5, c.f.
VI:IX:4). This coincides very well with Jesus' statement in Matt.
24:21. Cf. Daniel 12:1.
We can agree, can we not, that no other
crime was as monstrous as killing the "Lord of glory" (1
Corinthians 2:8, also Luke 21:20; Acts 3:12-26; 1 Thessalonians
2:15). We should consider that no other generation will ever
experience a time of divine punishment as severe as that which fell
upon the unbelieving Jews in Christ's generation, because no other
crime could ever be as great as the one which they committed.
Because they rejected and killed their own living God in the flesh,
God's wrath was poured out upon them (Matthew 12:31, 32; 23:31-38;
27:24-26; Luke 11:50-54; 21:23; 1 Thessalonians 2:14-16; 5:1-4, 9; 2
Thessalonians 1:4-10).
Matthew 24:22-26 These verses give no evidence that Jesus'
discourse jumped to a period of time in the distant future.
"Those days" apply to the tribulation period which led up
to the destruction of Jerusalem. Jesus promised that those days were
to be cut short for the sake of the elect. The elect were the Jewish
Christians who escaped the city. If they had not, the Romans would
have killed them all. God controls all things by His power.
We have seen the previous passages in
Matthew 24:4,5, 9-12 about the false Christs and the false prophets.
Jesus warned His disciples in advance. The Apostle John in his
epistles warned that many antichrists had gone out and that it was
"the last hour" (1 John 2:18-19; 4:3; 2 John 7). Do we
have any historical evidence that Jews used "signs and
wonders" to deceive the many? Plenty. See in Josephus, The
Antiquities of the Jews: XX:VIII:6; Wars of the Jews: VI:V:2, 3. I
am sure that God used Josephus to witness these events and record
them for us to read.
Matthew 24:27-28 Jesus was to come "as the lightning
comes from the east," that is, quickly and without warning. In
the Bible, lightning often means the presence of the Lord or His
coming in judgment (Exodus 19:16; 20:18; Job 36:30, 31; Ezekiel
21:15, 28, 29; Zechariah 9:14). We know that God was not physically
present during any of these Old Testament comings.
Before we go further, let's keep in mind
that thus far, all of the signs listed in Matthew 24 have reference
to the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. While there are without
question many Christians looking at world events and assuming that
the rapture must be near, this view is impossible based on what we
have learned so far. There is no place in this context which talks
about a "rapture" such as is taught in the dispensational
camp. We will look more at this when we get into verse 31.
The Jewish nation is represented here as
a "corpse" and the Roman armies as the "eagles"
who have gathered together to destroy the unbelieving Jewish nation.
It is interesting that Jesus spoke in much the same way as the
prophet Jeremiah spoke before the destruction of Jerusalem in his
day (See Jeremiah 7:1-34; 19:7). As He did in Jeremiah's generation,
God was about to judge those who rejected His covenant in Christ's
generation.
Before we come to the next verse, we
need to go to Luke 21:22-24 which speaks of events which fall
between Matthew 24:28 and 29. Notice Luke 21:22 says, "These
are days of vengeance, in order that all things which are written
may be fulfilled." This is a very important passage because it
plainly teaches that all things written in Scripture were fulfilled
by A.D. 70. The seventy weeks (Dan. 9:24-27) were completed at that
time. See Daniel 12:7 and Revelation 10:5-7.
Luke 21:23 is fulfilled. The historian
Josephus recorded many of the atrocities which were committed during
those days, in The Wars of the Jews: II:XIV:8, 9; II:XVIII:1-5;
III:VII:36; III:XI:2-4; III:X:9; IV:VI:3; V:IX:4; V:XI:1-2;
V:XII:3-4 and VI:IX:3-4. Those passages will help you get some idea
what it was like in that perverse generation.
Also, notice "great distress upon
the land, and wrath to this people." Which land and people was
Jesus talking about in this context? It was the land of Israel and
the Jewish people.
Lastly, in Luke 21:24, "They will
fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the
nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles
until the time of the Gentiles be fulfilled." The "time of
Gentiles" clearly refers to the four kingdoms described in
Daniel 2 and 7. Rome was clearly the final kingdom to oppress
Israel. With the destruction of the earthly temple and city of
Jerusalem, and the granting of the eternal Kingdom to the Church,
the "times of the Gentiles" was completed.
Matthew 24:29 It is important to notice that this verse
begins with, "But immediately after the tribulation of those
days." Whatever this verse means, it follows "immediately
after" the tribulation described in verses 15-28. There is no
time gap of 2,000 years or more.
Now about the sun, moon and stars: The
question is, should we expect the sun literally to be darkened and
the moon to stop reflecting the light from the sun? Will literal
stars fall from heaven? The earth would be an ice-ball without the
sun, and would be destroyed if literal stars that are larger than
the sun fell upon it. Jesus was not describing the end of the
physical world. We should check how the Old Testament uses and
applies this language, rather than allow our imaginations to run
away with us. We must let Scripture interpret Scripture. We find in
the Old Testament again and again such apocalyptic imagery being
used to describe the downfall of political authorities and spiritual
darkness. Consider these passages with the judgment of God:
Israel in 722 BC - Isaiah 5:30; Amos 8:9
Edom in 703 - Isaiah 34:4-5
Egypt in 572 B.C. - Ezekiel 32:7-11
Babylon in 539 B.C. - Isaiah 13:6-17
It must be stressed that none of those
cosmic cataclysms literally took place. The disciples were very
familiar with the Old Testament's figurative language. Joel 2:28-32
was quoted by Peter in Acts 2:16-21 on the Day of Pentecost. The
cosmic events of that passage were being fulfilled on the very day
of Pentecost. (It is important to see at this point Peter's precise
statement that "the Last Days" had arrived. See in 2 Peter
3:2-13 and Hebrews 1:1-2. Therefore, Peter exhorted his people,
"Be saved from this perverse generation!" (Acts 2:40).)
The Day of the Lord came in A.D. 70 (See Revelation 6:12-17 and how
it is parallel to Luke 23:27-30).
Concerning the shaking of "the
powers of the heavens" in Matt. 24:29: In A.D. 70, God removed
the things that could be shaken, and in their place gave His people
a Kingdom which can never be moved (Hebrews 12:18-28). The moveable
things were the physical, tangible, hand-made elements of the old
covenant (the tabernacle, priesthood, sacrifices, etc.) (See Hebrews
9:8-11, 23-28). Those things were removed when the saints, the
Israel of God, came to the heavenly Mt. Zion. All has come to pass
that was ever typified by the Law or prophesied by the prophets. In
Christ is the fullness; there will never be any covenant better than
Christ among us today.
Matthew 24:30 This is a well-known verse by which many are
convinced that the coming of Christ is still in the future. They
believe that everyone in the world will see Christ's second coming
up in the sky with all of His angels or with the saints for the
judgment.
First, this passage says that it was the
"sign" of the Son of Man. Second, though "all the
tribes of the earth" is most often taught as referring to every
group on the planet, it is not, because this context describes the
events in Judea. In this context, it should be the "land"
(of Israel) instead of "earth." (The Greek word ge here
can mean either "earth" or "land.") Let's look
at a word-for-word translation from a Greek and English interlinear:
"And then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven, and
then will bewail all the tribes of the land and they will see the
Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and glory
much." See these passages: Psalm 97:2; 104:3; Jeremiah 10:13;
51:16; Ezekiel 30:3; Joel 2:1-11; Nahum 1:3; Isaiah 19:1. The
imagery of Christ riding on swift clouds describes His Divinity and
sovereignty over the nations as their Judge.
Earlier in Matthew, Jesus told His
disciples that some of them would live long enough to "see the
Son of Man coming in His kingdom" (Matthew 16:27-28; Mark
8:39-9:1; Luke 9:26-27). Many have twisted this verse. Jesus also
told His accusers in Matthew 26:64, "Henceforth you shall see
the Son of Man SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, AND COMING ON THE
CLOUDS OF HEAVEN." If we deny that Christ came in His Kingdom
in His generation, then we are affirming that Jesus was is in error.
But Jesus came as He said He would and
established the eternal kingdom after the destruction of the earthly
Jerusalem. His kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36); in other
words, His kingdom is not physical, material or visual but is
spiritual, a heavenly realm (Lk. 17:20,21; II Cor. 4:18). My
understanding is that the beginning of this kingdom was at Pentecost
(Acts 2:33-36), in fulfillment of Mark 1:14-15; but the coming of
Christ in that kingdom with power, glory and victory over the enemy
was not until the very end of the Jewish age in 70. This was when
the saints possessed the kingdom. See these passages about the
saints receiving the kingdom: Matthew 25:34; Luke 19:12-27, 41-44;
21:28-32; Acts 3:19-21; Hebrews 12:28; 2 Peter 1:11; Revelation
11:15-18.
His kingdom is without end (Isaiah
9:6-7; Luke 1:33; Hebrews 1:8). Premillennialists believe there will
be a 1,000-year kingdom of Christ on earth; a problem with that idea
however is that 1,000 years is not eternity. Christ's kingdom is
spiritual and is perpetually victorious. Remember, Jesus said that
He was going to build His church and the gates of Hades would not
overpower it (Matthew 16:18-19). His church is God blessed
throughout all generations forever and ever (Ephesians 3:21).
Matthew 24:31 Most interpreters would say that
this is a "rapture" passage, specifically, the
post-tribulation rapture. I do believe that this verse is related to
1 Cor. 15:51-52 and 1 Thess. 4:16-17. However, I do not think there
will be some saints that will be caught up in the air literally. I
believe this verse is as symbolic as the verses which immediately
preceded it (Matt. 24:27-30).
A look into the book of Revelation can
help us to understand this better, keeping in mind that its symbols
speak of the time which led up to the destruction of Jerusalem in
A.D. 70. In Revelation 11:15-19, after the destruction of Jerusalem,
the seventh and last trumpet sounded; and as we know, the
"rapture" was to take place at the "last
trumpet." To me, this indicates that the
"rapture/gathering" took place in A.D. 70.
I found some very interesting
information recorded by two historians, Josephus and Tacitus during
that event. In Josephus' Wars of the Jews VI:V:3, "a certain
prodigious and incredible phenomenon appeared; I suppose the account
of it would be seem to be a fable, were it not related by those that
saw it, and were not the events that followed it of so considerable
a nature as to deserve such signals; for, before sun-setting,
chariots and troops of soldiers in their armor were seen running
about among the clouds and surrounding the cities...." This
event is also reported by the Roman historian Tacitus, "In the
sky appeared a vision of armies in conflict, of glittering armor. A
sudden lightning flashing from the clouds lit up the Temple. The
doors of the holy place abruptly opened, a superhuman voice was
heard to declare that the gods were leaving it, and the same instant
came the rushing tumult of their departure" (Tacitus, The
Histories , p. 279). You decide for yourself what you think about
this.
Matthew 24:32-33 Some interpreters have taken
these verses to be speaking of Israel's becoming a nation again. But
there is a problem when you look at the parallel passage in Luke
21:29 which shows that Jesus referred not only to the fig tree but
to "all the trees." Jesus' parable of this fig tree was
used as an analogy. He was speaking to His disciples who were going
to see all these signs, so that they would then know that the coming
of the Son of Man was near, "right at the door."
Jesus made it clear to the Jewish
leaders of His day that the kingdom of God was going to be taken
away from them and was to be "given to a nation producing the
fruit of it" (Matthew 21:43, c.f. 1 Peter 2:7-10). In whose
lifetime was this going to happen? Matthew 21:45 answers that
question. The chief priests and the Pharisees experienced the
Kingdom-transfer, and the "curse" upon the land of Israel
which was spoken of in the last two verses of the last book of the
Old Testament (Malachi 4:4-5). You can check the article I wrote:
"Who Is Elijah the Prophet?" in http://www.angelfire.com/ca/DeafPreterist/elijah.html.
Matthew 24:34 Jesus made it clear that all the
events outlined in the preceding verses were going to be fulfilled
before the passing away of the early first-century generation. This
is the key to Matthew 24, and then to all of the Bible's prophecies.
One person wrote, "So, Jesus'
predictions were fulfilled. He did not fail, nor do we need to
engage in theological gymnastics to try to explain-away the seeming
delay or postponement of His return. It happened right on schedule.
Many knew the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. was important in
God's scheme of redemption, but never understood its full
significance. It has to do with the consummation of the plan of
redemption. The final events of the redemptive drama came to pass in
the first century within the apostles' generation (before A.D. 70).
We live in the Garden of Eden now (if we are in Christ), just as
sure as we can know we have 'eternal life.' These are present and
abiding benefits, not pie-in-the-sky bye-and-bye. Christ has
conquered all His enemies and has given us the Kingdom."
Matthew 24:35-25:46 Most interpreters have taken
these verses to be speaking of the end of this world and a future
final judgment of the human race. We must keep in mind that there is
nothing in the context that indicates a break or gap of 2,000 years
or more.
"Heaven and earth" are symbols
of Israel and the Old Covenant (See Isa. 1:2-4; 24:1-5; 34:1-8). In
Matt. 5:17-18, Jesus told His own people that His purpose in coming
was not to destroy or overthrow the old Law by complete change. He
said, "I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill...." He
was the Messiah that was prophesied and promised in the Scriptures
of the Old Testament (which contained and defined the Law of Moses),
and Who came to fulfill the prophets, that is, the things that they
prophesied. But if the prophecies have not been fulfilled, and if
heaven and earth have not consequently passed away, then according
to the plain teaching of Jesus in Matthew 5:18, every jot and tittle
of the Old Testament is still in effect! However, we know that the
old Law was, in fact, fulfilled and did pass away (Romans 10:4;
Ephesians 2:14-16; Hebrews 8:13).
The "new heaven and earth" in
Isaiah 65:17; 66:22; 2 Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1-3 is the
church - believers with God dwelling among them. Do these verses
relate to the present or to a time still to come? The two verses in
Isaiah, carefully studied in context, show that the prophet was
looking to the end of the Jewish age, with a vision of the Messianic
blessings that were to be granted to spiritual Israel. We can see
that the new Jerusalem of Isaiah 65:18 corresponds to the new
Jerusalem of Galatians 4:26 and to that of Hebrews 12:22.
2 Peter 3:10-12 Some of you may say, "But,
what about in 2 Peter 3:10-12?" Verse 10 states that "the
day of the Lord will come as a thief." This simile was used by
Jesus in Matthew 24:43-51 where He was still speaking of His Own
generation. And the Apostle Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:2-6
unequivocally referred the quote to the destruction of Jerusalem.
(See Revelation 3:3 and 16:15.)
Let's take a look at what the elements
were that were going to melt away or be burned up. Does this word
refer to the scientific idea of the elements of matter, all the
"atoms" of the universe? The Greek word for elements used
here is stoicheion, and it appears in the New Testament only seven
times. The literal meaning of the word is "elements, rudiments,
row or rank." We can look into the New Testament and compare
these passages: Galatians 4:3, 9; Colossians 2:8, 20; Hebrews 4:17.
These all have the same meaning regarding "elements." It
was the old Law of Moses that Christians had left behind when they
became new creatures in Christ. This means Christ ended its
religious authority by fulfilling it at the cross, and God destroyed
the earthly manifestations of it at His fiery Coming in A.D. 70.
In the last part of verse 10 of 2 Peter
3, "The earth and its works will be burned up." The Jewish
nation with its culture, religion, and political system was
"burned up" in the war with Rome in A.D. 70. The Day of
the Lord had come. The Bible does not speak of the physical
destruction of this planet here or anywhere in the Scriptures. In
fact, it speaks of the earth's permanence (Genesis 8:21; Psalm
104:5; Ecclesiastes 1:4). Could God reverse His promise? He cannot
lie. I wrote an article "Part Four - Stoicheia (Elements)"
in Elements, By Don Hochner.
Revelation Finally, I would like to mention
briefly a few things about the book of Revelation:
We have strong evidence that the book
was written by John before A.D. 70. Kenneth Gentry presented some
great information in his book, Before Jerusalem Fell. In the Book of
Revelation, John was writing to his contemporary Christian brothers
about the things that were about to come to pass. The time was at
hand (1:1, 3; 22:6, 7, 10, 12 & 20).
Notice that Jesus was speaking to the
seven churches in Asia Minor and they were expecting Him to come
soon (chapter 2 and 3). If Jesus did not come, what happened to His
promise to those 1st-century churches? Those churches are not still
in existence today. Remember the Apostle John in John 21:21-23? Is
he still alive today or did Jesus not keep His promise? Jesus came
in A.D. 70.
The Greek word "mello" is very
important in this study, and it does not always appear in the
English translations. I was surprised to find out about this. It
means "about to be, almost, about to come." The word
appears in Acts 17:30-31; 2 Timothy 4:1, Matthew 16:27-28; 24:6;
Luke 21:7, 36; Acts 23:3; 24:15; Romans 8:18-20; Hebrews 1:14;
10:27; 1 Peter 5:1; and in Revelation 1:9; 2:10; 3:10. Please read
those verses with any literal translation. You can also check the
artilce I wrote "about to" in http://www.angelfire.com/ca/DeafPreterist/mello.html.
Here is a brief comparison of some of
the relevant passages which you may find helpful:
- Revelation 6:15-17 -- Luke 23:27-30 -- "Fall on
us..."
- Revelation 11:8; 14:8; 16:6, 19; 17:5-6,18; 18:2, 10, 16,
18-21, 24 - Great city; Babylon the harlot - Jerusalem (See in
Josephus: Wars VII:VIII:7)
- Revelation 13:1-10, 18; 17:8-17 - Beast = Nero and the Roman
Empire
- Revelation 19:1-9 - Matthew 22:1-14; 25:1-13 - The Wedding
Feast
- Revelation 20 - Matthew 13:37-43, 47-50; 25:14-46 - The
Judgment
- Revelation 21-22 - 2 Peter 3:13 - New Heaven and New Earth
In the last chapter of Daniel, Daniel
received a vision of the same events that John saw in his visions.
For Daniel, the events he saw in prophetic symbols were to be
fulfilled in a distant future (Dan. 12:4,9,13). If those same events
that the Apostle John saw were to remained unfulfilled for centuries
in even his future, the angel would have indicated to John the same
thing that was indicated to Daniel. But that did not happen! In
fact, just the opposite happened: Compare Revelation 22:10 and
Daniel 12:9. The angel told the Apostle John, "Do not seal up
the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near."
But to Daniel He said, "these words are concealed and sealed up
until the end time." The fulfillment was far away for Daniel
but near "at hand" for John. What must this imply?
Remember God's warning in Revelation 22:18-19!
Where Are We Now? You may say, "If all
prophecy was fulfilled in the past, how does that apply to us?"
We must apply to our life all of God's
commands and precepts. As we face trials, persecutions, or whatever
circumstances surround us, we can look through the Old and New
Testaments as examples of godliness. For instance, this was why God
gave us Hebrews 11. Also we can rejoice always whether we live or
die, we will always be with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 5:16-24). We
do not need to bemoan or excuse ourselves to have Jesus come quickly
and get rid of this world. That "escapist" doctrine is not
God's purpose (John 17:15-17). His grace is sufficient for us (2
Corinthians 12:9-10). And we have the privilege of spreading the
Good News that Jesus Christ is our King and Savior. If we believe in
Him, we have everlasting life; but if not, we go to eternal
condemnation.
I find it frightening that many
Christians actually think that if they do not make disciples as much
as they should, and let the world get worse and worse, it may speed
up Christ's second coming. Some of these "Christian" are
indifferent about their Christian life. I think our society has been
spiritually deteriorating because many such Christians have not been
fruitful; they have not made a commitment to Christ's Kingdom to
show the Light to the world.
Some Christians have been preoccupied
over "last days madness" with time charts, wild
speculations, and counting down to zoom up to heaven. They may not
have been studying the Word of God as carefully as they should have.
Many cults also have come up with different kinds of futurologies. I
think that some who claim they are Christians, have a faith that
might be superficial or artificial, expecting the
"rapture" to take place in their lifetime. That way, in
case they are left behind, they know that they will have a second
chance afterward and can believe in Jesus for real. Who knows. If
many realized there is no second coming in the future as the
preterist doctrine maintains, maybe their faith would be proven to
be false and they might be caused to examine themselves (2
Corinthians 13:5 and 2 Peter 1:10). I have seen one of my friends
who claimed himself a Christian (who knows?) and he told me that he
does not mind if he misses the rapture because he would
like to see the Great Tribulation.
I know that perhaps some of you are new
to the Preterist view and find it shocking. You may disagree with
view and hold to your traditional view. All I ask is that we all be
open-minded and let the Scriptures say what they say. Though
preterism may not be popular, it is not new. I believe, if God is
willing, it will be growing again as it grew in the early Church.
"Then the sovereignty, the
dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole
heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One;
His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the dominions
will serve and obey Him." (Daniel 7:27)
Jesus says, "If I told you earthly
things and you do not believe, how shall you believe if I tell you
heavenly things?" (John 3:12)
