An Interpretation of Matthew 24 - 25 <title> </HEAD> <BODY><center> <script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="//ad.broadcaststation.net/ads/show_ad.php?width=728&height=90"></script> </center>  <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-4KX380T5BD"></script> <script> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);} gtag('js', new Date()); gtag('config', 'G-4KX380T5BD'); </script>  <geoads></geoads> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 width=100% bgcolor=#C0C0C0 text=#000000> <tr bgcolor=#C0C0C0 text=#000000><td> <BR> <div> <TABLE bgColor=#006666 border=0 cellPadding=2 cellSpacing=0 width="100%"> <TBODY> <TR> <TD noWrap> <DIV align=center><FONT color=white face=verdana,arial,helvetica><B><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=6></FONT></B></FONT> </DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT color=white face=verdana,arial,helvetica><B><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=6>An Interpretation of Matthew 24 - 25 </FONT></B></FONT></DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT color=white face=verdana,arial,helvetica size=2><B><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT></B></FONT> </DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT color=white face=verdana,arial,helvetica><B><FONT face=arial,helvetica><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=5>By Dr. Thomas Ice </FONT></FONT></B></FONT></DIV> <DIV align=center> </DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT size=4><STRONG>PART 1</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>The Olivet Discourse, delivered shortly before Jesus' crucifixion, is the most important single passage of prophecy in all the Bible. It is significant because it came from Jesus Himself immediately after He was rejected by His own people and because it provides the master outline of end-time events. -- Dr. Tim LaHaye <BR><BR>The Olivet Discourse is an important passage for the development of anyone's view of Bible prophecy. The Olivet Discourse is made up of our Lord's teaching on Bible prophecy that is found in Matthew 24-25, Mark 13 and Luke 21. Since one's interpretation of the Olivet Discourse greatly impacts whether they are a premillennialist or anti-millennialist, futurist or preterist, or pretribulationists or posttribulationist, I will be attempting an extensive interpretation of Matthew 24-25. <BR><BR>The Contextual Setting for Christ's Discourse <BR><BR>The setting for the Olivet Discourse, at least for Matthew's account, is found in preceding events leading up to Matthew 24. Christ had presented Himself to the nation as their Messiah, but they rejected Him. No only did the people reject Him, but their rulers did as well. Thus, Jesus rebukes and exposes their hypocrisy and unbelief in Matthew 22 and 23. Jesus notes that this present generation of Jewish leaders is like those from previous generations who killed the prophets (23:29-36). Christ then tells the Jewish leaders, "Truly I say to you, all these things shall come upon this generation" (23:36). What things? It will be the curse of judgment, which will come upon the Jewish people through the Roman army in a.d. 70. "All hope for a turning of Israel to God in repentance has gone," notes Dr. Stanley Toussaint. "The King therefore has no alternative but to reject that nation for the time being with regard to its kingdom program. The clear announcement of this decision is seen in these verses of Matthew's Gospel." <BR><BR>In spite of the fact that the Jewish people deserved the approaching judgment, like a caring parent about to administer a just punishment, Christ cries out, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling" (23:37). Jesus wants to gather His people (as He will in 24:31), instead, He will scatter them via the a.d. 70 judgment (Luke 21:24). <BR><BR>Jesus then declares in verse 38, "Behold, your house is being left to you desolate!" To what does the house refer? In the context of this passage it must be a reference to the Jewish Temple. Matthew 24:1-2 brings up a discussion by Jesus with His disciples about the Temple. It is at that time that Jesus startles them by telling them "'Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here shall be left upon another, which will not be torn down'" (24:2). What Jesus says will be desolate, the Temple, in 23:38, is more precisely described in 24:2: both referring to the same thing-the Temple. <BR><BR>Next, Christ says, "For I say to you, from now on you shall not see Me until you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!'" (24:39). Not only does this verse hold out the certainty of soon judgment, but also the eventual promise of yet to come hope and blessing upon the Jewish nation. Alfred Edersheim, a son of the present remnant of Israel, said of this passage: <BR><BR>Looking around on those Temple-buildings-that House, it shall be left to them desolate! And He quitted its courts with these words, that they of Israel should not see Him again till, the night of their unbelief past, they would welcome His return with a better Hosanna than that which had greeted His Royal Entry three days before. And this was the 'Farewell' and the parting of Israel's Messiah from Israel and its Temple. Yet a Farewell which promised a coming again; and a parting which implied a welcome in the future from a believing people to a gracious, pardoning King. <BR><BR>So this verse not only speaks of the judgment that surely came in a.d. 70, but looked to a future time of redemption for Israel because the passage contains the forward looking word "until." Luke 21:24 records another use of "until" by our Lords when He says, "and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." Hebrew Christian Bible teacher, Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum, says Israel must call for the Lord to rescue them as a condition for the second coming, based upon Matthew 23:39. Dr. Fruchtenbaum explains: <BR><BR>But then He declares that they will not see Him again until they say, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord. This is a messianic greeting. It will mean their acceptance of the Messiahship of Jesus. <BR><BR>` So Jesus will not come back to the earth until the Jews and the Jewish leaders ask Him to come back. For just as the Jewish leaders lead the nation to the rejection of the Messiahship of Jesus, they must some day lead the nation to the acceptance of the Messiahship of Jesus. <BR><BR>Dr. David Cooper echoes Dr. Fruchtenbaum's understanding when he says, "Since Jesus came in the name of the Lord, and since He will not return until Israel says, 'Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord,' it is clear that the people of Israel will see and recognize that Jesus was and is their true Messiah." The last few verses of Matthew 23 means that judgment was coming in the near future, but, beyond judgment, deliverance and redemption awaits the Jewish nation. Judgment did come in a.d. 70 and Matthew 24 speaks of the still future redemption of Israel. <BR><BR>The Historical Setting for Christ's Discourse <BR><BR>Matthew 24:1-3 provides us with the setting for which Christ delivers His prophetic sermon. We see that Jesus is making His way from the Temple (24:1) to the Mount of Olives (24:3), which would mean that He most likely would travel down the Kidron Valley and on up to Olivet. As He was going from the Temple "His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him" (24:1). This statement leads us to believe that they were talking to Jesus about how beautiful the Temple complex was that Herod was still in the process of remodeling and refurbishing. Such an emphasis is borne out in the parallel references in Mark 13:1-2 and Luke 21:5-6 as the disciples speak of the beauty of the Temple buildings. The Lord must have startled His disciples by His response to their gloating over the beauty of the Temple complex when He said, "Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here shall be left upon another, which will not be torn down" (24:2). <BR><BR>As 24:2 is completed, with Christ's statement, there is a break in the narrative. The narrative picks back up in 24:3 when it says, "the disciples came to Him privately." Mark 13:3 tells us that the disciples who came to Him privately were Peter, James, John and Andrew, and that they were sitting on the Mount of Olives looking at the Temple. This would be the same vista that many have seen today when a visitor goes to the viewing point in modern Jerusalem on the Mount of Olives that overlooks the Temple Mount with the Dome of the Rock perched upon it. <BR><BR>That the disciples came to Jesus privately fits the pattern that Jesus practices and Matthew records of teaching only His believing disciples once the nation rejected Him as their prophesied Messiah in Matthew 12. From Matthew 13 on, Jesus speaks publicly to the rejecting nation only in parables (Matt. 13:10-17). "Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand" (Matt. 13:13). However, many times He would later explain a public parable privately to His disciples (for example, Matt. 13:10-23). In the Olivet Discourse, we see Christ following this pattern. This private explanation, which is the Olivet Discourse, means that Christ will provide His explanation of future history for the benefit of believers. <BR><BR>The Disciples Questions <BR><BR>While sitting on the Mount of Olives these four disciples ask Jesus the following questions: "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age" (24:3)? Immediately debate rises over whether these are two questions or three. If one takes the first option, then there is no doubt that the second question contains two parts to it. I believe that there are two basic questions because of the grammar of the passage as explained by Dr. Craig Blomberg as follows: <BR><BR>"The sign of your coming and of the end of the age" in Greek reads, more literally, the sign of your coming and end of the age. By not repeating the definite article ("the") before "end of the age," Matthew's rendering of Jesus' words is most likely linking the coming of Christ and the end of the age together as one event (Granville Sharp's rule). <BR><BR>This means that the two phrases are closely related to one another in the mind of the disciples, who formulated the question. They believed that they were linked closely together. <BR><BR>Clearly the first question relates to the destruction of the Temple, which was fulfilled in the Roman invasion and destruction of a.d. 70. It is equally clear that the two aspects of the second question have yet to occur in history, even though some want to see in this passage Christ's second coming (more on the errors of preterism as I progress through the passage). <BR><BR>It appears likely to me that the disciples believed that all three aspects of their two questions would occur around the same event-the coming of Messiah. Why would they have thought this way? Dr. Toussaint is correct to note that the disciples were influenced by the prophet Zechariah. <BR><BR>In their minds they had developed a chronology of events in the following sequence: (1) the departure of the King, (2) after a period of time the destruction of Jerusalem, and (3) immediately after Jerusalem's devastation the presence of the Messiah. They had good scriptural ground for this since Zechariah 14:1-2 describes the razing of Jerusalem. The same passage goes on to describe the coming of the Lord to destroy the nations which warred against Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:3-8). Following this the millennial kingdom is established (Zechariah 14:9-11). <BR><BR>In other words, the disciples thought that all three events were related to a single event-the return of the Messiah as taught in Zechariah 14:4. As we shall see, they were right to think of Zechariah 12-14 and his teaching about Messiah's coming. However, they were wrong to relate the impending judgment of Jerusalem and the Temple with the return of Messiah, as I hope to show in future installments in their series. Maranatha! <BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica><BR><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 2</STRONG></FONT></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT></FONT> </DIV> <DIV align=left><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>The disciples question in Matthew 24:3 is divided into two parts. The first question relates to the destruction of the Temple, which took place in a.d. 70. The second question, composed of two parts but related to one another, refers to events that are still yet to come. The disciples apparently thought that all three items, destruction of the Temple, the sign of Christ's coming, and the end of the age would occur at the same time. Yet this is not the case. <BR><BR>The Disciples Misunderstanding <BR><BR>It was a common thing for Jesus to correct the misunderstandings of the disciples that usually represent popular belief of their day.[1] Dr. J. Dwight Pentecost tells us the following: <BR><BR>The questions showed that they had arrived at certain conclusions. . . . To these men Christ's words concerning the destruction of Jerusalem was the destruction predicted by Zechariah that would precede the advent of the Messiah. In Jewish eschatology two ages were recognized: the first was this present age, the age in which Israel was waiting for the coming of the Messiah; the second was the age to come, the age in which all of Israel's covenants would be fulfilled and Israel would enter into her promised blessings as a result of Messiah's coming.[2] <BR><BR>Dr. Stanley Toussaint echoes this notion. <BR><BR>This sequence is so clearly in view that Luke records the question concerning the destruction of Jerusalem only (Luke 21:7). That is, the disciples took the destruction of Jerusalem to be completely eschatological. Therefore, Luke records this question only, as though Jerusalem's destruction would mark the coming of the King to reign. Bruce is correct when he asserts, "The questioners took for granted that all three things went together: destruction of temple, advent of Son of Man, end of the current age."[3] [4] <BR><BR>Even though the disciples merged these events, Christ did not merge these events into a single time period. In fact, Matthew and Mark do not deal with the destruction of Jerusalem in their accounts of the Olivet Discourse. Their focus is upon the future days of tribulation leading up to Christ's return. Only in Luke's account does Christ deal with the issue (21:20-24). But Luke also deals with future days of tribulation and Christ's return as well (21:25-36). For whatever reason, Matthew and Mark's entire focus is upon the last question that speaks of "the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age." <BR><BR>The First Question <BR><BR>The first question by the disciples is "Tell us, when will these things be" (Matt. 24:3)? Since Christ had been speaking about the Temple and a time when "not one stone here shall be left upon another, which will not be torn down" (Matt. 24:2), it is clear that Jesus prophesied the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in a.d. 70. Jesus had predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple earlier in His ministry. <BR><BR>Jesus had just earlier spoken of Israel's "house [Temple] is being left to you desolate" (Matt. 23:38). Luke records another prediction of judgment upon Israel, as in Matthew 23:37-39, preceded by Christ weeping over the city of Jerusalem (Luke 19:41). This prophecy occurred at the time of Christ's triumphal entry on Palm Sunday, based upon Israel rejection of Jesus as their Messiah (Luke 19:42). Jesus prophesied in Luke 19:43-44 as follows: <BR><BR>"For the days shall come upon you when your enemies will throw up a bank before you, and surround you, and hem you in on every side, and will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation." <BR><BR>We learn a number of things from this prophecy. First, "your enemies" undoubtedly refers to the Romans who destroyed the city in a.d. 70. Second, "will throw up a bank before you, and surround you, and hem you in on every side," is a clear description of the Roman siege used to defeat Jerusalem. Third, the Roman siege resulted in a total destruction of the city and of life within the city. Usually in a war time situation, if anyone is spared it will be the children, but even most of them were killed. Fourth, the very words of Christ from Matthew 24:2 were used by Him earlier in this passage when He said, "they will not leave in you one stone upon another." Fifth, the reason for the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans will be because "you did not recognize the time of your visitation." <BR><BR>Fulfillment of the First Question <BR><BR>Since I will not be dealing specifically with Luke's version of the Olivet Discourse throughout my exposition, I will now look at Luke 21:20-24, since it records the prophecy about the first question of the disciples. The passage reads as follows: <BR><BR>"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is at hand. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are in the midst of the city depart, and let not those who are in the country enter the city; because these are days of vengeance, in order that all things which are written may be fulfilled. Woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse babes in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land, and wrath to this people, and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." (Luke 21:20-24) <BR><BR>Preterist and futurists do not agree on much when it comes to the Olivet Discourse. However, when it comes to the interpretation of Luke 21:20-24, we both agree that it is a literal prophecy of the a.d. 70 judgment. Preterist Dr. Kenneth Gentry says, "The context of Luke demands a literal Jerusalem (Luke 21:20) besieged by literal armies (Luke 21:20) in literal Judea (Luke 21:21)-which as a matter of indisputable historical record occurred in the events leading up to a.d. 70."[5] However, when expounding on Luke 21:25-28, preterists resort to massive doses of symbolic interpretation in their attempt to give these verses a first-century fulfillment. The futurist does not need to make such adjustments and continues a plain or literal reading of the text. I believe that Luke 21:25-28 is a brief prophecy that parallels Matthew 24 and Mark 13, as I will expound upon in the future. <BR><BR>Luke 21:20-24 demonstrates that preterists take prophecy literal when it is alleged to support their view, but if a passage would lead to a non-preterist view, if interpreted literally, they allegorize. On the other hand, futurists are able to take all parts of Christ's Olivet Discourse, and all prophecy literally. <BR><BR>It is clear that Luke 21:20-24 is spoke of the first-century Roman invasion of Jerusalem. Note that I have placed in italics the key phrases from Luke 21:20-24 above, that supports the a.d. 70 fulfillment. The entire passage speaks over and over again of judgment and wrath upon the Jewish people and their city, just as Christ prophesied in Matthew 24:2 and the other passages noted above. Yet, when one searches prophecies of Matthew 24 and Mark 13 this language is missing. Instead of "great distress upon the land, and wrath to this people," Matthew 24 speaks of rescuing the Jewish people who are under great distress (Matt. 24:29-31). <BR><BR>Contrasts Between a.d. 70 and a Future Temple <BR><BR>Preterists like to misuse Luke 21:20-24 and say that all of Matthew 24 was a prophecy of the Roman conquest in a.d. 70. Dr. Randall Price has noted six major differences between the a.d. 70 Temple and the Temple of the future tribulation period spoken of in Matthew 24. <BR><BR>During this time Jesus speaks of a signal event connected with the Temple-its desecration by an abomination which was prophesied by the Prophet Daniel (Matthew 24:15; Mark 13:14). What Temple is being spoken of here by Jesus? Was the Temple that was to be desecrated the same Temple as the one predicted to be destroyed? There are a number of contrasts within this text that indicate that Jesus was talking about two different Temples: <BR><BR>(1) The Temple described in Matthew 24:15 is not said to be destroyed, only desecrated (see Revelation 11:2). By contrast, the Temple in Jesus' day (or Matthew 24:2) was to be completely leveled: "not one stone would be left standing on another" (Matthew 24:2; Mark 13:2; Luke 19:44). <BR><BR>(2) The Temple's desecration would be a signal for Jews to escape destruction (Matthew 24:16-18), "be saved" (Matthew 24:22) and experience the promised "redemption" (Luke 21:28). By contrast the destruction of the Temple in Matthew 24:2 was a judgment "because you did not recognize the time of your visitation [Messiah's first advent]" (Luke 19:44b) and resulted in the Temple being level[ed] to the ground and your children [the Jews] within you" (Luke 19:44a). <BR><BR>(3) The generation of Jews that are alive at the time that the Temple is desecrated will expect Messiah's coming "immediately after" (Matthew 24:29), and are predicted to not pass away until they have experienced it (Matthew 24:34). By contrast, the generation of Jews who saw the Temple destroyed would pass away and 2,000 years (to date) would pass without redemption. <BR><BR>(4) The text Jesus cited concerning the Temple's desecration, Daniel 9:27, predicts that the one who desecrates this Temple will himself be destroyed. By contrast, those who destroyed the Temple in a.d. 70 (in fulfillment of Jesus' prediction)-the Roman emperor Vespasian and his son Titus-were not destroyed but returned to Rome in triumph carrying vessels from the destroyed Temple. <BR><BR>(5) The time "immediately after" (Matthew 24:29) the time of the Temple's desecration would see Israel's repentance (Matthew 24:30), followed by, as Matthew 23:29 implies, a restoration of the Temple. By contrast, the time following the destruction of the Temple only saw a "hardening" happen "to Israel," which is to last "until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in" (Romans 11:25)-still 2,000 years and counting. <BR><BR>(6) For the Temple that is desecrated, the scope is of a worldwide tribulation "coming upon the world" (Luke 21:26; compare Matthew 24:21-22; Mark 13:19-20), a global regathering of the Jewish people "from one end of the sky to the other" (Matthew 24:31; Mark 13:27), and a universal revelation of the Messiah at Israel's rescue (Matthew 24:30-31; Mark 13:26; Luke 21:26-27). This scope accords with the prophesied end-time battle for Jerusalem recorded in Zechariah 12-14, where "all nations of the earth will be gathered against it" (Zechariah 12:3). By contrast the a.d. 70 assault on Jerusalem predicted in Luke 21:20 is by the armies of one empire (Rome). Therefore, if there are two different attacks on Jerusalem, separated by more than 2,000 years, then two distinct Temples are considered in Matthew 24:1-2 and Matthew 24:15.[6] <BR><BR>The above points demonstrate preterist problems that have no resolution in their attempt to cram still future prophecy into a past mold. Details of Matthew 24 cannot be made to fit into a first century fulfillment. Maranatha! <BR><BR><BR><FONT size=4> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 3</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>As I continue to deal with the questions of the disciples in the Olivet Discourse (Matt. 24-25; Mark 13; Luke 21), I want to look more closely at the first question. After observing the Temple, Christ said to the disciples, "Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here shall be left upon another, which will not be torn down" (Matt. 24:2). The disciples ask Jesus, "Tell us, when will these things be, . . ." (Matt. 24:3). Thus, the first question relates to the destruction of the Temple in a.d. 70. <BR><BR>Preterist Literalism <BR><BR>Preterist Dr. Kenneth Gentry says, "The context of Luke demands a literal Jerusalem (Luke 21:20) besieged by literal armies (Luke 21:20) in literal Judea (Luke 21:21)-which as a matter of indisputable historical record occurred in the events leading up to a.d. 70." This demonstrates that preterists take Scripture literally, unless it contradicts their presupposed system of theology, at which time they usually come up with a more pliable, deeply spiritual meaning of the text. But since both preterist and futurists, like myself, believe that Luke 21:20-24 literally refers to Jerusalem in a.d. 70, then this can be used as a template as to how Scripture speaks of the destruction of Jerusalem in the first century. <BR><BR>Christ's Prophecy of a.d. 70 <BR><BR>Before we look at Luke 21:20-24, I will examine the prophecies that Jesus gave specifically referring to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple that were indeed fulfilled in the first century. Note the following prophecies by Christ: <BR><BR>"Truly I say to you, all these things shall come upon this generation. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. Behold, your house is being left to you desolate!" (Matt. 23:36-38; see Luke 13:34-35 for parallel passage). <BR><BR>And when He approached, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. For the days shall come upon you when your enemies will throw up a bank before you, and surround you, and hem you in on every side, and will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation" (Luke 19:41-44). <BR><BR>Christ speaks clearly about the coming Roman destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in this prediction. Jesus clearly describes a siege in verses 43 and 44 because the nation of Israel "did not recognize the time of your visitation." They rejected Jesus as their Messiah. Notice that not once does Jesus describe this as a "judgment coming" as do preterists. In fact, coming is not used in any of these prophecies relating to a.d. 70, as it is used of Christ's future return. <BR><BR>Luke 21:20-24 and a.d. 70 <BR><BR>When we look at the words of Jesus' prophecy about the destruction of Jerusalem and the second temple, He uses words and phrases that clearly denote what the Romans did in a.d. 70. <BR><BR>"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is at hand. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are in the midst of the city depart, and let not those who are in the country enter the city; because these are days of vengeance, in order that all things which are written may be fulfilled. Woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse babes in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land, and wrath to this people, and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled" (Luke 21:20-24). <BR><BR>Note how the following words and phrases support the notion of judgment upon Israel in the first century: <BR><BR>1) Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is at hand <BR><BR>2) flee to the mountains (The admonition to flee would indicate that Jerusalem will be destroyed. If the Jews were to defeat the Romans, then the safe place to be would be inside the walled city.) <BR><BR>3) these are days of vengeance <BR><BR>4) there will be great distress upon the land <BR><BR>5) wrath to this people (Israel) <BR><BR>6) they (Israel) will fall by the edge of the sword <BR><BR>7) (Israel) will be led captive into all the nations <BR><BR>8) Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles <BR><BR>There is not a single phrase in the above passage that suggests a future understanding because the a.d. 70 destruction of Jerusalem was clearly a judgment upon the Jewish people for their national rejection of Jesus as their Messiah (Luke 19:44; Matt. 23:38). This passage is our Lord's undisputed answer to the disciples' first question about when there will not be one stone of the Temple left upon another. Yet when compared with other sections of the Olivet Discourse, this kind of language referenced above is totally missing (see Matt. 24:4-31; Mark 13:5-27; Luke 21:25-28). Instead, in general, the language of the Olivet Discourse, except for Luke 21:20-24, does not speak of Israel under God's judgment, but of Israel under threat from the Gentile nations and God's intervention that rescues the Jewish people. This overall thrust of the passage is even clearly when one looks at the parallel passage of Zechariah 12-14. <BR><BR>Until <BR><BR>Luke 21:24 ends by saying that Jerusalem will be under Gentile domination "until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." The little word "until" clearly denotes that there will be a time when the current domination of Jerusalem by the Gentiles will come to an end. The current "times of the Gentiles" in which we currently live will indeed come to an end in the future. Thus, the end of verse 24 serves as a transitional period between the prophecy that refers to the past a.d. 70 event (Luke 21:20-24) and the prophecy that looks to a future fulfillment at Christ second coming (Luke 21:25-28). We now live in the "times of the Gentiles." <BR><BR>A clear connection is established between Luke 21:24 which speaks of the current era of "the times of the Gentiles" being fulfilled and coming to an end and Romans 11:25 which speaks of "the fullness of the Gentiles" having "come in." Both passages speak of Israel's redemption (Luke 21:28; Romans 11:26-27). When we consider that the Old Testament pattern which says that Israel will pass through the tribulation, repent toward the end when they recognize Jesus as the Messiah, experience conversion, and then the second coming will occur to rescue them from their enemies, it follows that "all Israel will be saved" (Romans 11:26) in connection with the tribulation. This is exactly the pattern of Luke 21:25-28. Preterist Ken Gentry believes Romans teaches a future conversion of Israel, yet he does not associate it with the tribulation as Scripture repeatedly does. Dr. Gentry declares, "The future conversion of the Jews will conclude the fulfillment (Rom. 11:12-25)." Yet only a futurist interpretation does justice to a harmonization of these passages that are clearly connected. <BR><BR>Luke 21:25-28 and the Future <BR><BR>"And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near" (Luke 21:25-28). <BR><BR>J. C. Ryle says of this passage the following: <BR><BR>The subject of this portion of our Lord's great prophecy is His own second coming to judge the world. The strong expressions of the passage appear inapplicable to any event less important than this. To confine the words before us, to the taking of Jerusalem by the Romans, is an unnatural straining of Scripture language. <BR><BR>The focus of Luke 21:25-28 reveals a distinct shift from the first century description of 21:20-24. The differences include the local focus of Jerusalem in the first century judgment verses the global perspective of the future tribulation. The tribulation will involve heavenly and global events that did not literally occur in a.d. 70. If preterists like Dr. Gentry would interpret verses 25-28 in the same way they did verses 20-24 then the events of 25-28 would be understood to be clearly global and if global then they did not occur in the first century. Since they did not occur in the first century then they must take place in the future. These are future tribulation events that are prophesied by our Lord in this section of the passage. <BR><BR>The basic thrust of Luke 21:25-28 is the opposite of God's judgment upon Israel as stated in Luke 21:20-24. Instead verse 28 tells Israel that, "your redemption is drawing near." This is all the difference of night (judgment) in verses 20-24 and day (salvation and deliverance) in verses 25-28. William Kelly describes some aspects of the differences in the following: <BR><BR>Hence, to, the reader may notice that, in spite of a considerable measure of analogy (for there will be a future siege, and even a twofold attack, one of which will be partially successful, the other to the ruin of their enemies, as we learn from Isaiah xxviii, xxix, and Zechariah xiv.), there are the strangest contrasts in the issue; for the future siege will be closed by Jehovah's deliverance and reign, as the past was in capture and destruction of the people dispersed ever since till the times of the Gentiles are full. Accordingly we hear nothing in this Gospel of the abomination of desolation, nor of the time of tribulation beyond all that was or shall be; we hear of both in Matthew and Mark, where the Spirit contemplates the last days. <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>When one examines the entire Olivet Discourse as recorded in Matthew 24 and Mark 13, there is no reference to wrath or judgment upon the nation of Israel. Instead, Israel is delivered from its invader as noted in Matthew 24:31, "And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other" (see also Mark 13:27). The question arises, "When was Israel rescued in a.d. 70?" They were not! The events of Matthew 24 and Mark 13 (also Luke 21:25-28) will all be fulfilled in the tribulation, which will take place in the future. <BR><BR>So the first question of the disciples to Christ in the Olivet Discourse relates to the destruction of Jerusalem in a.d. 70. The record of its fulfillment is recorded only in Luke 21. Matthew 24-25 and Mark 13 deal only with the last question, which are a prophecy of events that are still future to our day. Maranatha! <BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> </DIV><BR></FONT><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 4</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>Since I have shown in previous installments that Matthew 24 is a future, end-time prophecy, the next issue to tackle is when will verses 4 through 14 come to pass? <BR><BR>There are two major views that futurists, like myself, tend to hold. First, some believe that verses 4-14 refer to the inter-advent age-that is the time between Christ's first coming and the beginning of the tribulation. Second, some hold that verses 4-14, especially verses 4-8, refer to the first part of the tribulation and correspond with the first four seal judgments of Revelation 6:1-8. I think that the second view is correct. <BR><BR>Inter-Advent Age View <BR><BR>Many futurist interpreters of the Olivet Discourse believe that verses 4-14 describe the general signs of the inter-advent age. Dr. John F. Walvoord, an advocate of this view says that verses 4-14 are: <BR><BR>describing the general characteristics of the age leading up to the end, while at the same time recognizing that the prediction of difficulties, which will characterized the entire period between the first and second coming of Christ, are fulfilled in an intensified form as the age moves on to its conclusion." <BR><BR>Dr. Walvoord believes that verses 15-26 are specific signs that describe the tribulation, while verses 27-31 relate to the second coming. <BR><BR>Within the inter-advent age view is a variation of this perspective. Some think that verses verses 4-8 are general signs of the inter-advent age leading up to the tribulation. While verses 9-14 reference the first half of the tribulation. "The events concerning the first half of the tribulation are recorded in Matthew 24:9-14," says Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum. This "passage begins with the word then, pointing out that what Christ is describing now will come after the event of nation rising against nation and kingdom against kingdom." <BR><BR>If the inter-advent age view is the correct interpretation, then it would mean that wars, earthquakes, famines, and the appearance of false Christs would be constantly on the increase as we approach the tribulation period. However, if these items are references to the first half of the tribulation, then wars, earthquakes, famines, and false Christs during any part of the church age would not constitute prophetic signs. This explains why some futurists believe that increasing wars, earthquakes, famines, etc. are prophetically significant, while others, like myself, do not think that they are prophetically significant, since these verses refer to global events during the seven-year tribulation. <BR><BR>Tribulation View <BR><BR>I believe that Matthew 24:4-41 refers to the seven-year period (Dan. 9:24-27) that many commonly call the tribulation. The tribulation is divided in half by the abomination of desolation, mentioned by Jesus in verse 15. Thus, verses 4-14 refer to the first half of the tribulation and are parallel to the first five seal judgments found in Revelation 6. <BR><BR>"If out interpretation is the right one there must be perfect harmony between these three: Old Testament Prophecy: Matthew xxiv:4-44, and Revelation vi-xix." insists Arno Gaebelein. I believe just such a harmony exists, especially between the Olivet Discourse and Revelation. This is what convinces me that verses 4-14 refer to the first half of the tribulation. Gaebelein continues: <BR><BR>If this is the correct interpretation, if Matthew xxiv:4-14 refers to the beginning of that coming end of the age and if Revelation vi refers to the same beginning of the end and that which follows the sixth chapter leads us on into the great tribulation, then there must be a perfect harmony between that part of the Olivet discourse contained in Matthew xxiv and the part of Revelation beginning with the sixth chapter. And such is indeed the case. <BR><BR>"The acceptance of this view, in part," observes John McLean, "is dependent on how much weight is given to the parallels between the synoptics and Revelation." Since all futurists see the Olivet Discourse as parallel to Revelation to some degree, it makes sense that these two portions of Scripture would be focused on the same basic time period-the tribulation. <BR><BR>Birth Pangs <BR><BR>Matthew 24:8 characterizes the events of verses 4-7 as "the beginning of birth-pangs." The Greek word ?dinon means "the pain of childbirth, travail-pain, birth-pang." It is said to be "intolerable anguish, in reference to the dire calamities which the Jews supposed would precede the advent of the Messiah." Another authority agrees and says, "of the 'Messianic woes', the terrors and torments that precede the coming of the Messianic Age." <BR><BR>Most likely our Lord had in mind the Old Testament reference to birth pangs in Jeremiah 30:6-7, which says, "'Ask now, and see, if a male can give birth. Why do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in childbirth? And why have all faces turned pale? 'Alas! for that day is great, there is none like it; and it is the time of Jacob's distress, but he will be saved from it." Dr. Randall Price explains the birth pangs of Messiah as follows: <BR><BR>The birth pangs are significant in the timing of the Tribulation, as revealed by Jesus in the Olivet discourse (Matt. 24:8). Jesus' statement of the "birth pangs" is specifically that the events of the first half of the Tribulation (vv. 4-7) are merely the "beginning," with the expectation of greater birth pangs in the second half (the "Great Tribulation"). Based on this analogy, the entire period of the seventieth week is like birth pangs. As a woman must endure the entire period of labor before giving birth, so Israel must endure the entire seven-year Tribulation. The time divisions of Tribulation are also illustrated by the figure, for just as the natural process intensifies toward delivery after labor ends, so here the Tribulation moves progressively toward the second advent (vv. 30-31), which takes place "immediately after" the Tribulation ends (v. 29). As there are two phases of the birth pangs (beginning labor and full labor), so the seven years of Tribulation are divided between the less severe and more severe experiences of terrestrial and cosmic wrath, as revealed progressively in the Olivet discourse and the judgment section of Revelation 6-19. <BR><BR>Paul also uses the motif of birth pangs in 1 Thessalonians 5:3 where he says, "While they are saying, "Peace and safety!" then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape." The context of this passage relates to the tribulation period, which fits the other uses of birth pangs. <BR><BR>Raphael Patai in his helpful book (The Messiah Texts) has dozens of references to extra-biblical commentary from Jewish writings in a chapter entitled "The Pangs of Times." Patai tells us that "the pangs of the Messianic times are imagined as having heavenly as well as earthly sources and expressions. . . . Things will come to such a head that people will despair of Redemption. This will last seven years. And then, unexpectedly, the Messiah will come." This widespread Jewish idea fits exactly into the framework that Jesus expresses in the Olivet Discourse. The birth pangs of Messiah, also known as "the footprints of the Messiah," support the notion that Matthew 24:4-14 relate to the tribulation period leading up to the second advent of the Messiah since it is known as a time of great tribulation that results in Messiah's earthly arrival. <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>I have often been ask on radio talk shows if I believe that events like earthquakes, famines, wars, etc. meant that the end is near. Of course I always say no. This usually surprises the host, since they so often hear from other prophecy teachers that these things have current prophetic significance. As you can see, if they don't refer to the church age, then they must have reference to the tribulation. While it is likely that we stand on the verge of tribulation events, we are not yet in that time period. Since Matthew 24:4-14 cannot happen until after the rapture and the start of the tribulation, it is wrong to say that such events are prophetically significant in our own day. The birth pangs do not start until Israel faces her time of trouble. Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 5</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>As I demonstrated in my previous installment, Matthew 24:4-14 deals with events of the first half of the seven-year tribulation period known as "the beginning of birth pangs" (Matt. 24:8). These events are parallel to the seal and trumpet judgments of Revelation 6, 8-9. I take it that in Christ's discourse "The disciples were the representatives of godly Jews, and were warned of what should befall their nation." Thus, this passage, which is before us will take place in the future, after the rapture of the church, at the time of the beginning of the tribulation. <BR><BR>Do Not Be Deceived <BR><BR>Since the tribulation begins with the arrival of the antichrist on the scene, it is not surprising that this section also begins with a warning to believers about his arrival. Jesus begins answering the disciple's question with a warning about false messiahs. "And Jesus answered and said to them, 'See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many'" (Matt. 24:4-5). <BR><BR>I think William Kelly is correct to note that this passage is not referencing Christians during the current church age. <BR><BR>In the epistles of Paul it is never exactly such a thought as warning persons against false Christs. For there the Holy Ghost addresses us as Christians; and a Christian could not be deceived by a man's pretensions to be Christ. It is most appropriate here, because the disciples are viewed in this chapter, as representatives, not of us Christians now, but of future godly Jews. <BR><BR>The first thing Jesus tells them is to make sure that no one misleads you. Spiritual deception will be the primary purpose of the Antichrist during the tribulation and thus a primary item to be avoided. "This warning was prompted by their eagerness for a sign. The danger of being misled was increased if one was too enthusiastic or anticipated some symbolic indication of the event." Dr. Stanley Toussaint tells us: <BR><BR>The key to understanding the discourse is found in this first sentence. The disciples thought that the destruction of Jerusalem with its great temple would usher in the end of the age. The Lord separates the two ideas and warns the disciples against being deceived by the destruction of Jerusalem and other such catastrophes. The razing of the temple and the presence of wars and rumors of wars do not necessarily signify the nearness of the end. <BR><BR>Many False Christs <BR><BR>Why are they to be on guard against deception? Vigilance will be needed since there will be during the tribulation a host of those claiming to be the Messiah and many will believe them. But the Jewish believers during the tribulation are not to fall for that line. <BR><BR>The emphasis in verse 5 is upon "many." Not just a single person will come claiming to be the Messiah, but a whole host of individuals will make such claims. Multiple claims to Messiahship is one of the reasons why this passage is not referring to events leading up to the a.d. 70 destruction of Jerusalem. A. H. M'Neile says, "No such definite claim to Messiahship is known till that of Barkokba in the reign of Hadrian." The Barkokba revolt was put down by the Romans in a.d. 135 when Hadrian lead the Roman legions to once again destroy Jerusalem, and the surrounding area, which resulted in the death of half a million Jews. Robert Gundry notes the following: <BR><BR>The lack of evidence that anyone claimed messiahship between Jesus and Bar-Kokhba a hundred years later militates against our seeing the discourse as a vaticinium ex eventu [a prophecy of an event] concerning the first Jewish revolt (a.d. 66-73). False prophets figured in that revolt (Josephus J.W. 6.5.2 ??285-87; 7.11.1 ??437-39; Ant. 20.5.1 ?97); but one did not have to claim messiahship to be a false prophet. Cf. Acts 5:36; 8:9; 21:38. <BR><BR>James R. Gray tells us, "strict claims to the Messianic office in the strictest sense are almost nonexistent in history." However, in the future, this passage tells us it will be rampant. <BR><BR>The First Seal Judgment <BR><BR>As noted in my previous article, the judgments of Matthew 24:4-11 parallel in order the first five seal judgments of Revelation 6:1-11. "The first seal depicts a false Messiah," as observed in Revelation 6:1-2. <BR><BR>And I saw when the Lamb broke one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, "Come." And I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him; and he went out conquering, and to conquer. (Rev. 6:1-2) <BR><BR>Arno Gaebelein, that great Bible teacher from a former generation says the following about this similarity: <BR><BR>The rider upon the white horse under the first seal is a counterfeit. He is a false Christ, who goes forth to conquer. His conquest is a bloodless one, as he has only a bow. He will bring about a false peace among the nations, which for a time may have been alarmed by the supernatural removal of the church. The second rider "takes peace from the earth," from which we would conclude that the first rider upon the white horse (white emblem of peace) has established peace. <BR><BR>And as we turn to Matthew xxiv we find that the first thing our Lord saith, is about the deceivers who will come with the beginning of the age ending saying: "I am Christ," and succeeding to lead away many. <BR><BR>What is the nationality of the Antichrist? <BR><BR>A widely held belief throughout the history of the church has been the notion that Antichrist will be of Jewish origin. This view is still widely held in our own day. However, upon closer examination we find no real Scriptural basis for such a view. <BR><BR>Arguments for a Jewish Origin <BR><BR>Three reasons are often given in support of the argument that Antichrist will be Jewish. First, it is argued that he will be a Jew since the Jews are responsible for the world's problems. Thus, it follows that the greatest problem of history-Antichrist-will also be Jewish. This is the Anti-Semitic reason. It should be clear that since Anti-Semitism is unbiblical, and so is any logic that reasons upon such a premise. <BR><BR>Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum offers a refutation of the second reason, which he calls "The Logical Reason." He writes: <BR><BR>Stated in a syllogism, this argument goes as follows: <BR><BR>Minor Premise: The Jews will never accept a Gentile as the Messiah. <BR><BR>Conclusion: The Antichrist will be a Jew. <BR><BR>The difficulties of this argument are many, not the least of which are the two premises. Neither premise can be supported from the Bible. Just because the Jews make a covenant with the Antichrist (Dan. 9:27; Isa. 28:15), it does not follow either textually or logically that they accept him as Messiah (or Antichrist). Second, since they are not accepting him as Messiah, the fact that he is a Gentile peacemaker is irrelevant. Thus, the conclusion does not follow. <BR><BR>An attempt at a Scriptural argument reasons that Antichrist will spring forth from the tribe of Dan. This has been a view that has been widely held throughout church history, from the earliest times to our modern day. Support for this view is inappropriately derived from Genesis 49:17; Deuteronomy 33:22; Jeremiah 8:16; Daniel 11:37; Revelation 7:4-8. Even though many passages are cited in support of this argument, none of them actually support the notion since they are all taken out of context. In reality, only Daniel 11:37 refers to the Antichrist. Even though some believe that the phrase in Daniel 11:37 "the God of his fathers" (KJV), implies a Jewish apostasy, the phrase is more accurately translated "the gods of his fathers" (NASB). Since Antichrist will be a Gentile, as will be shown, the argument is unfounded. Since the original Hebrew supports the NASB translation and not the KJV, Antichrist's apostasy will be Christian and not Jewish. <BR><BR>Arguments for a Gentile Origin <BR><BR>We have seen that the Bible does not teach that Antichrist will be Jewish; however, Scripture does teach that he will be of Gentile descent. This can first be seen from biblical typology. Most commentators agree that Daniel 11 speaks of Antiochus Epiphanes, a Gentile, who typifies the future Antichrist. Since Antiochus is a Gentile, then so will be Antichrist. <BR><BR>Secondly, biblical imagery supports a Gentile origin of Antichrist. Scripture pictures Antichrist as rising up out of the sea (Rev. 13:1; 17:15). In prophetic literature the sea is an image of the Gentile nations. Thus, Antichrist is seen as a Gentile progeny. <BR><BR>Thirdly, the nature of the "Times of the Gentiles" (Luke 21:24) supports a Gentile Antichrist. Fruchtenbaum notes: <BR><BR>It is agreed by all premillennialists that the period known as the Times of the Gentiles does not end until the second coming of Christ. It is further agreed that the Antichrist is the final ruler of the Times of the Gentiles. . . . <BR><BR>If this is so, how then can a Jew be the last ruler at a time when only Gentiles can have the preeminence? To say the Antichrist is to be a Jew would contradict the very nature of the Time of the Gentiles. <BR><BR>Finally, the Bible not only teaches that Antichrist will be Gentile, but it also implies that he will be of Roman descent. This is understood from Daniel 9:27, where the one cutting a covenant with Israel is said to represent the revived Roman Empire, since it was the Romans who destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in a.d. 70. The revived Roman empire comes from a second phase of the Roman Empire, i.e., "feet partly of iron and partly of clay" (Dan 2:33, 40-45). <BR><BR>The implications of the non-Jewishness of the antichrist has significant implications as noted by Gray: <BR><BR>Because the true Anti-Christ is not a Jew (cp Daniel 7, 11, Revelation 13:1), therefore he will not claim to be a false Messiah. These false claimants will be contemporaneous with Antichrist and will likely oppose him. During this time Israel will have many options and opportunities to follow false Messiahs, yet, the Antichrist will not be one of them. He comes as a benefactor of Israel, a great world diplomat turned persecutor, but not a Messianic deliverer. He will be worshipped, not as Messiah, but as God. <BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>Part 6</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>After Christ's primary warning about religious apostasy (Matt. 24:4-5), He now turns His focus upon geopolitical events. Jesus says, "And you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs" (Matt. 24:6-8). Since we have previously seen that verses 4-14 refer to the first half of the tribulation, it follows that these events will occur during that time, and will correspond with the seal judgments of Revelation 6. <BR><BR>False Messiah's <BR><BR>Before we deal with the next section I want to revisit the issue of false messiahs from verse 5. Preterists like to say "False messiahs made regular appearances in Israel." Kenneth Gentry is more careful in his statement, but nevertheless says, "There are many examples of great pretenders who almost certainly make Messianic claims." Gentry and DeMar are speaking of the first century. Gentry lists the following individuals as those whom he says made messianic claims: Theudas in Acts 5:36, Simon Magus in Acts 8:9-10, and "the Egyptian false prophet." DeMar adds to the list with the following: "Josephus tells of 'a certain impostor named Theudas . . .' Dositheus, a Samaritan, 'pretended that he was the lawgiver prophesied of by Moses.'" DeMar contends that these all made claims to be the Messiah. However, none of these actually claimed to be Messiah when examined closely. <BR><BR>Some of these could be described as false prophets, but not false Messiahs. These preterists are playing fast and loose with the data because they have such a large investment in their view that all this took place in the first century. H. A. W. Meyer clarifies the issue when he notes, <BR><BR>We possess no historical record of any false Messiahs having appeared previous to the destruction of Jerusalem (Barcochba did not make his appearance till the time of Hadrian); for Simon Magus (Acts viii. 9), Theudas (Acts v. 36), the Egyptian (Acts xxi. 38), Menander, Dositheus, who have been referred to as cases in point (Theophylact, Euthymius Zigabenus, Grotius, Calovinus, Bengel), did not pretend to be the Messiah. Comp. Joseph Antt. Xx. 5. 1; 8. 6; Bell. Ii. 13. 5. <BR><BR>Another says, "The first and second centuries saw quite a few famous false prophets who made eschatological claims," as I have noted above. However, they further say, "That any of them (before Bar Kochba) said, in so many words, 'I am Messiah', is undemonstrated by the sources." Finally, Leon Morris tells us, "in this place the meaning is rather that they will claim for themselves the name Messiah, Jesus' own title." Morris explains: <BR><BR>This will surely be a reference to the last days, for there is little evidence that any of the turbulent men so active preceding the fall of Jerusalem ever claimed to be the Messiah. Some claimed to be prophets, but that is not the same thing. <BR><BR>"The statement that such persons will come, 'in my name," means either that they will come using the name of Jesus or that they will come assuming the messianic of Jesus, as is spelled out in the explicit claim that follows," says Donald Hagner. "The claim to be the Christ means here the claim to be the eschatological Messiah." <BR><BR>Even if some first century individuals did claim to be the Messiah-they did not-it would not fulfill this passage. This is one of the many reasons that it looks to the future tribulation and the coming of the beast of Revelation, popularly known down through Christendom as the antichrist. <BR><BR>Wars and Rumors of Wars <BR><BR>Verse 6 begins with an interesting Greek word-mell?-which is usually not translated into English, but it carries the idea of "about to." Since it is in the future tense, this opening phrase has the sense of "You are going to be about to hear . . ." This indeed is the case! <BR><BR>The Greek word polemos is a general word for war and connotes the "whole course of hostilities" rather than just the individual battles that comprise the larger war campaign. This is a reference to actual wars that will be taking place in reference to the future Jewish people. Meyer says that this phrase is a "reference to wars near at hand, the din and tumult of which are actually heard, and to wars at a distance, of which nothing is know except from the reports that are brought home." <BR><BR>Here we have the future parallel to Revelation 6:4 and the red horse judgment, which is said "to take peace from the earth, and that men should slay one another; and a great sword was given to him." The first seal judgment of Revelation 6:2 is the rider on a white horse, who is a counterfeit Christ, which correspond to verses 4-5 of Matthew 24. This means that antichrist begins the tribulation with a false peace that soon turns into multiple wars breaking out throughout the globe. There will be war that those in Jerusalem will see themselves and those further away that they will only hear about. <BR><BR>To whom is the Lord addressing His comments in this discourse? I believe that it is not to the church, but "to the Jewish disciples as they then were, and as they will be." William Kelly expounds upon this aspect: <BR><BR>the Lord is predicting about the Jewish remnant, . . . And this, because many things must yet be accomplished before the Jews can come into their blessing. But for Christians, all things are ours in Christ even now; the blessing is never put off, though we await the crown at His coming. Again, many parts of scripture speak of scenes of anguish before the Lord's coming; others make Christians to be expecting Christ at any time. These scriptures cannot be broken, nor can they contradict one another; and yet they must do so, if they be applied to the same people. <BR><BR>These wars of the tribulation are described in verse 7 as, nation against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. This description depicts multiple struggles taking place on various levels; international conflict will be raging all around. Nations fighting nations, such as if the national entities of France and Germany fought one another. Kingdom against kingdom, such as if NATO were to fight the former Warsaw pact nations. This is the kind of geopolitical conflicts depicted in Daniel and Revelation, which are within the context of a future tribulation. This is not what took place in a.d. 70. Rome was an empire that fought against Israel-a single nation. Such a first century situation does not resemble nation against nation and kingdom against kingdom. M'Neile notes, "The horrors described are not local disturbances, but are spread over the known world; nations and kingdoms are in hostility with one another." <BR><BR>Do Not Be Frightened <BR><BR>Jesus tells His disciples that they should not be frightened. The Greek word for frightened is only used here, in the parallel passage of Mark 8:15, and by Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:2. A. T. Robertson says is "means to cry aloud, to scream, and in the passive to be terrified by an outcry." He renders this passage as follows: "Look out for the wars and rumours of wars, but do not be sacred out of your wits by them." <BR><BR>All three uses of this word are found within the context of the tribulation. Apparently this is going to be a very scary time for those who do not understand that God is in control of these things. Paul makes a similar statement in 2 Thessalonians when he says, "that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come" (2:2). The Thessalonian believers thought that they were in the day of the Lord or the tribulation. Paul tells them not to be disturbed, because they were not in the day of the Lord. <BR><BR>Twice, once by our Lord and once by Paul, they describe a natural human reaction to thinking that one is in the tribulation as the temptation to cry out in pain. We can understand why one would think this way as we come to realize from the seal judgments of Revelation 6, that describe this specific time as a time in which over a quarter of the earth's population will be killed (Rev. 6:8). <BR><BR>What is the antidote to this frightening knowledge? Simply to know that, "those thing must take place" (verse 6). Meyer says, "The reflection that it is a matter of necessity in pursuance of the divine purpose (xxvi. 54), is referred to as calculated to inspire a calm and reassured frame of mind." Believers are comforted to know that "if God says that something shall be, then it must be." Morris explains: "They have one thing going for them that the general public has not: they know that God is over all and that his purpose will in the end be worked out. This is the significance of it is necessary." This phrase lets us know that God is in control of what is seemingly out of control-His judgment. <BR><BR>Judgment is a necessary part of God's plan because there is evil in the world. Before the Lord can usher in His kingdom-since it will be a righteous kingdom-He must purge out evil through judgment. This can be a scary thing if one does not know God and His plan. Knowing the predetermined plan of God is one of the comforting aspects that prophecy provides for the people of God during a time of global upheaval. Judgment must happen because God is a righteous God who has limits to His patience. <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>James R. Gray has the following excellent summary of this passage: <BR><BR>Matthew 24:6 and Revelation 6:3-4 are parallel. The red horse symbolizes war. The purpose of the rider is "to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another" (Rev. 6:3). Many perceive the first half of the Tribulation as a time of great peace. That is not so. The Antichrist will be perceived as a man of peace because of his great deceptive ability. The fact is he comes to power and stays in power because of war (Dan. 7:8, 24). The tribulation will bring war and more wars. The book of Revelation prophesies of many wars, not only in chapter 6, but also in 16:12-15, 17:14, 19:1 ff, and 20:8. These will not only be in invasions of Palestine (Daniel 9:26-27, 11:40-45, Zechariah 12:2-11, Revelation 12:9-17). <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 7</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>Matthew 24:6 says, "And you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end." Previously I dealt with the first half of this verse, but the second half makes an important statement. <BR><BR>That Is Not Yet The End <BR><BR>Since wars and rumors of wars must take place, there would be a tendency to think that the end is upon them, but such is not the case. In fact, this warning has been ignored down through church history. Too often many have thought that because of military conflicts that the end of the age has come. With the current war against terrorism in which the United States and Israel are currently engaged, some might be tempted to think that this is a sign of the end. While I do think that we could be near the end of the church age, it would not be for that reason. To what does "that is not yet the end" refer? <BR><BR>I have previously shown that verses 4-31 cover the time period known as the seventieth week of Daniel or more popularly called the tribulation period. Thus, Christ is telling His disciples that when one sees the beginning of the birth pangs-the first few seal judgments of Revelation 6-then that is not the end of the seven-year tribulation period, but just the beginning. Many more events must unfold before one can "straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near" (Luke 21:28). <BR><BR>It could be possible that America's impending attack on Iraq could set off a series of events that could culminate in the beginning of the tribulation. Let me make it clear: I am not saying that these current events will do that, only that they could! We do not know this; we are still living in the church age, which will end when the rapture takes place prior to the beginning of the tribulation. So no matter what happens in the next few months, they will not be specific events that are prophesied in the Bible; Scripture does not prophesy church age geo-political events. <BR><BR>Nations and Kingdoms on the Rise <BR><BR>The first half of Matthew 24:7 says, "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom." Immediately we notice a difference between our Lord's use of "nation" and "kingdom." This is an important distinction, as we will shortly see. <BR><BR>First, I want to examine the usage of the conjunction "for." Does the Greek word gar refer to the preceding or following context? Dana and Mantey tell us in their grammar that gar "may express: (a) a ground or reason, (b) an explanation, (c) a confirmation or assurance." All nuances of the use of gar are what we might call resultant in scope. This would mean that verse 7 is "introducing a reason" or is "explanatory" of the preceding statement from verse 6. M'Neile asserts that gar "links the verse with the preceding." This means that Christ is not introducing something totally new in verse 7. It means that the "wars and rumors of wars" of verse 6 are happening because of verse 7. So what is happening in verse 7? <BR><BR>The Greek word for "nation" is ethnos. It simply means "people" or if used of a national group of people it means "nation." Our English word "ethnic" is derived from this Greek word. Since ethnos is set against ethnos in this context, it must mean a "nation," like Canada or Mexico. On the other hand, the Greek word for "kingdom" is basileia. This word simply means "the territory ruled over by a king." James Morison says, "Literally, upon nation. One nation shall rise in its anger to come down upon another." But what is the relationship between nation and kingdom? <BR><BR>At the very least nation and kingdom are synonyms for national entities. However, it appears to me from the context that there is a progression from nation (ethnos) to a confederation of nations that form a kingdom (basileia). Morison says that the notion of kingdom could include "greater communities, or empire, embracing within one political sphere various distinct nationalities." If this is the case, then the passage is saying that nations will be fighting against nations and groups of nations will also be fighting against each other. This would be similar to the alliance during the Cold War where NATO was aliened against the Warsaw Pact. M'Neile says, "The horrors described are not local disturbances, but are spread over the known world; nations and kingdoms are in hostility with one another (not divided against itself, as in xii. 25, Is. xix. 2)." <BR><BR>Preterist Distraction <BR><BR>Preterist Gary DeMar, of course, believes that this was fulfilled in the first century. He says the following: <BR><BR>The Annals of Tacitus, covering the period from a.d. 14 to the death of Nero in a.d. 68, describes the tumult of the period with phrases such as "disturbances in Germany," "commotions in Africa," "commotions in Thrace," "insurrections in Gaul," "intrigues among the Parthians," "the war in Britain," and "the war in Armenia." Wars were fought from one end of the empire to the other. With this description we can see further fulfillment: "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom" (Matt. 24:7). <BR><BR>As usual, when one examines the preterist view on a specific matter closely it does not correspond to what the passage is actually saying. Tacitus is describing internal conflict within the Roman Empire, not "nation against nation, and kingdom against kingdom." Craig Evans notes that this passage speaks of "the expectation of global warfare and chaos . . . However, there were no major wars prior to the Jewish revolt." Meyer declares: "As for the Parthian wars and the risings that took place some ten years after in Gaul and Spain, they had no connection whatever with Jerusalem or Judea." Commentator, M. F. Sadler is on the mark when he notes the following about the parallel passage in Mark: <BR><BR>If this verse is the sequence of the previous one, then it can hardly refer to the time before the destruction of Jerusalem; for then the Roman power kept the peace of the world. It is consequently explained by many commentators as fulfilled in various local tumults between the Jews who were scattered everywhere, and the various Gentile nations amongst whom they dwelt. But this by no means answers to such expressions as, "nation against nation," and "kingdom against kingdom." They seem rather to refer to such a time as the present, when the civilized world is divided into many separate nationalities. <BR><BR>If this was the case one hundred twenty-five years ago, concerning the state of nationalism, how much more are we in that condition in our own day? Sadler adds the following comment at the parallel passage in his commentary on Luke: <BR><BR>I have noticed that these international conflicts seem to look rather to these latter times, when Europe and the adjacent part of Asia and Africa are divided into so many independent sovereignties, than to a time when there was but one great empire, which, as it were kept the peace amongst the smaller nationalities. <BR><BR>Future Fulfillment <BR><BR>Taking into account verses six and seven, this passage is describing future events that will take place during the first part of the tribulation. Since Matthew 24:6-7 is parallel to the second seal judgment in Revelation 6:3-4, it is further fixed within Scripture as part of the future time of tribulation. Revelation 6:4 says, "And another, a red horse, went out; and to him who sat on it, it was granted to take peace from the earth, and that men should slay one another; and a great sword was given to him." Thus, early in the tribulation the antichrist is involved in warfare against nations and kingdoms (see also Dan. 7:8, 23-24; 9:36-45). <BR><BR>Interestingly senior British diplomat Robert Cooper, who has helped to shape British Prime Minister Tony Blair's view of the world, has written an article that provides insight as to why Blair has been one of U. S. president George W. Bush's strongest supporters for preemptive military action in Iraq. Cooper's view of history holds that for the past few centuries the world has seen the rise of nationalism, which has led to international instability. He believes that we are now in the process of moving toward a time of postmodern internationalism, with global coalitions such as the European Union as the transitional stage. Cooper believes that military force is warranted by the international community when there are renegade states like Iraq that refuse to enter into cooperation with this postmodern arrangement. Cooper explains: <BR><BR>What is the origin of this basic change in the state system? The fundamental point is that "the world's grown honest". A large number of the most powerful states no longer want to fight or conquer. It is this that gives rise to both the pre-modern and postmodern worlds. Imperialism in the traditional sense is dead, at least among the Western powers. <BR><BR>He goes on to say, "The EU is the most developed example of a postmodern system." <BR><BR>Since we are in a transition from a pre-modern to a postmodern world, then "The challenge to the postmodern world is to get used to the idea of double standards." What does he mean? Since there are nations like Iraq who will not come willingly into this wonderful new international community, then they have to be dealt with in the old-fashioned way-militarily. Thus, unlike old liberalism, which tends to be pacifistic, the new liberalism is selectively militant. Cooper calls for "a new kind of imperialism" that is built upon economic unity, while dealing militarily with dissent. This is why Cooper concludes his essay with a call for a "cooperative empire, like Rome." <BR><BR>It is not surprising to me that as we see the world currently being set for post-rapture events that a European intellectual would call for a revival of the Roman Empire, but with a new postmodern twist. How interesting that the Bible envisions a similar setup during the tribulation under the antichrist. We can see from a proper interpretation of biblical passages that Scripture calls for a future time as described in Matthew 24:6-7. We should not be surprised that the same God who wrote that Scripture is moving to bring its fulfillment to pass, likely in the near future. Maranatha! <BR><BR></DIV></FONT><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 8</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>Now that I have looked into the first half of Matthew 24:7, I will consider the second half of the verse. The passage says, "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs" (Matt. 24:7-8). So what about famines and earthquakes? <BR><BR>Famines and Earthquakes <BR><BR>First, I have previously noted and defended that Matthew 24:4-14 covers the first half of the seven-year tribulation period. Since we know that the "abomination of desolation" (Matt. 24:15) occurs in the middle of the seven-year period (Dan. 9:24-27), thus, events prior to verse 15 will take place in the first half of the tribulation. This is further confirmed by the correlation of the major events of Matthew 24:4-8 with the first four seal judgments of Revelation 6:1-8. This would mean that the famines and earthquakes of Matthew 24:7 speak of a future time, which Revelation 6:5-8 expounds upon, not of any events that have occurred during the last 2,000 years nor of anything in our present day. <BR><BR>There have been, no doubt, earthquakes and famines in the first century and during every generation since. "It is hardly necessary to add to this that not only false Christs and false prophets, wars and rumors of war, earthquakes and famines occur in every age throughout the history of the church," declares William Hendriksen, "but so do also persecutions and defections, to which Jesus refers in verses 9, 10, 12, and 13." The context of this passage is that of a time of future tribulation in which these events will occur as part of God's direct wrath and judgment. The earthquakes and famines of today and during the first century did not fulfill this prophecy since the context of this passage is of a still future time period. Now let us look together at the passage. <BR><BR>Famines <BR><BR>The Greek word for famine is limos and simply means "hunger," and, thus, when used of "dying of hunger," connotes "famine."[2] This word is also used in Revelation 6:8. <BR><BR>If Christ is referencing a time during the first half of the tribulation, to what is He referring? I believe that Revelation 6:5-6 is a parallel passage. "And when He broke the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, 'Come.' And I looked, and behold, a black horse; and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard as it were a voice in the center of the four living creatures saying, 'A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.'" Even though the word "famine" is not used, the passage is an apt description of such and it is one of the earliest judgments of tribulation period. Arno C. Gaebelein says, "And the third seal reveals a rider upon a black horse and he has a balance in his hand and what he saith indicates clearly that he brings famines (Rev. vi:5-6)." <BR><BR>Both famines and earthquakes are governed by the phrase "in various places." Lenski says, "The distributive kata means, "from place to place." Leon Morris also explains: "In many places means that the disasters in question will be widespread." This global perspective fits a future understanding of the passage and cannot be limited to the first century and the area of Israel alone. <BR><BR>Robert Gundry says, "The putting of famines before earthquakes may indicate that famines result from the ravages of the warfare just mentioned (cf. Rev. 6:3-6)." If we follow the order from Revelation, then it is clear that famine is the result of war, as is usually the case. <BR><BR>Predictably, preterists believe that Christ's prophecy of famine was somehow fulfilled in a.d. 70 when the Romans destroyed the Temple and Jerusalem. Speaking of famines, Kenneth Gentry declares, "We may easily apply this also to the first century scene." Fellow preterist, Gary DeMar cites the following as evidence for a first century fulfillment of famines: <BR><BR>Beginning with the book of Acts, we see that famines were prevalent in the period prior to Jerusalem's destruction in a.d. 70: . . . The famine was dramatic evidence that Jesus' prophecy was coming to pass in their generation just like He said it would. . . . <BR><BR>Contemporary secular historians such as Tacitus, Suetonius, and Josephus mention other famines during the period prior to a.d. 70. <BR><BR>Are preterist claims true? Since famines occur in every generation, one can find some examples of famines. Just as those who believe that this is a prophecy for our own day cite numerous contemporary examples. Craig Evans says, "Again, events in the decades immediately preceding the Jewish revolt only roughly parallel this part of Jesus' prophecy." With famines always occurring, it seems to blur somewhat the precision of such events as a distinct fulfillment of past prophecy. Meyer rebuts the preterist notion as follows: <BR><BR>Nor, again, is this feature in the prediction to be restricted to some such special famine as that which occurred during the reign of Claudius (Acts xi.28), too early a date for our passage, and to one or two particular cases of earthquake which happened in remote countries, and with which history has made us familiar (such as that in the neighborhood of Colossae, Oros. Hist. Vii. 7, Tacit. Ann. Xiv. 27 and that at Pompeii). <BR><BR>Like the details of the other items that we have examined in this context, the famines of Matthew 24 have yet to occur. They will take place during the first half of the tribulation. These famines will take place at various places all over the world, likely as a result of the preceding warfare. <BR><BR>Earthquakes <BR><BR>Earthquake in the original Greek is seismos. The basic sense of the word is "shaking." It can refer to the shaking of a storm on a sea. However, it mostly occurs in the New Testament when speaking of an earthquake. Our English word seismograph is derived from this Greek root. <BR><BR>For the same reasons noted earlier, I do not think that these earthquakes that will take place at various places all around the world have already taken place in the past, nor are they occurring today. Just like the famines that have preceded them, the earthquakes in this passage are parallel to the ones described as the fourth seal judgment in Revelation 6:7-8. "And when He broke the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, 'Come.' And I looked, and behold, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him. And authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth." Gaebelein further explains when he says, "The fourth rider of the fourth seal is upon a pale horse. His name is 'Death.' He takes the fourth part of the earth away. This corresponds to the Lord's announcement that there will be 'pestilences and earthquakes in divers places.'" <BR><BR>Luke 21:11, a parallel passage to Matthew 24:7 says, "there will be great earthquakes." So these are not ordinary earthquakes that our Lord forecasts, but great or huge ones. So great, that they cause a great number of deaths worldwide. <BR><BR>Preterists Gentry and DeMar also believe that this sign was fulfilled in the first century. DeMar said, "The historical record of earthquakes that occurred before Jerusalem was destroyed in the first century fulfills Jesus' prophecy to the letter. . . . Three earthquakes are mentioned [in Acts] prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in a.d. 70." Gentry adds: <BR><BR>A particularly dreadful quake shakes Jerusalem in a.d. 67. . . . <BR><BR>Tacitus mentions earthquakes in Crete, Rome, Apamea, Phrygia, Campania, Laodicea (of Revelation fame) and Pompeii during the time just before Jerusalem's destruction." <BR><BR>Once again, since there are these kinds of earthquakes mentioned by preterists that occur in the lifetime of every generation, it is only with great difficulty that one could cite this as a past fulfillment. As I have been going through these early parts of the Olivet Discourse, we have found that there is little basis for many of the claims made by preterists. When taken together with the other signs of Matthew 24- earthquakes-as cited by the preterists, prove nothing. Morison notes the following: <BR><BR>Scholars have busied themselves, and with wonderful success, in hunting up historical notices of the earthquakes that occurred before the destruction of Jerusalem, just as they have laboured to find out records of famines and wars. . . . But there is no special significance in such records, or in the occurrences recorded. The role of wars and famines and earthquakes is not yet finished. <BR><BR>The Beginning of Birth Pangs <BR><BR>I have already dealt with this passage in a previous installment. Based upon the Old Testament use of birth pangs in Jeremiah 30:6-7, it appears that Jesus picks up on that theme in Matthew 24, as does Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:3. Birth pangs were a clear expression in rabbinic Judaism for the tribulation. Thus, the time of birth pangs commences with the beginning of tribulation period and culminates with the second coming of Christ. Therefore, the events of Matthew 24:4-7 are described as events that will take place during the first part of the tribulation and do not signal the end, which is the second coming of Jesus (Matt. 24:27-31). <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>Two important characteristics of the first part of the tribulation will be the occurrence of famines and earthquakes, which will likely follow a time of global wars between nations and kingdoms. These cannot be references to past or present events. As Gaebelein notes: <BR><BR>Fearful have been the famines, pestilences and earthquakes of the last twenty-five years. But these are insignificant in comparison with those to which our Lord refers here, the mighty events which tell all the earth that the day of wrath is rapidly approaching. <BR><BR>John MacArthur echoes Gaebelein's sentiment when he said, "The world has witnessed many earthquakes, famines, plagues, and even some heavenly signs, but those will be nothing compared to the calamities of the end times. They will occur in various places and apparently simultaneously." <BR><BR>Even though there have been famines and earthquakes in the past, they are just a warm-up for what God will bring about during the future time of tribulation. When these miraculous events occur, there will be no doubt about the fulfillment of the details of Matthew 24. We are building toward that day when God will judge and remove evil so that He can establish His righteous rule for a thousand years. May that day come soon! Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 9</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations on account of My name." -Matthew 24:9 <BR><BR>After painting a global scenario, Jesus now turns to personal consequences that will take place during the seventieth-week of Daniel, known as the tribulation. In fact Christ uses the word "tribulation" for the first time in His discourse. There are a number of issues that arise from this passage as it relates to the different interpretative approaches to our Lord's discourse. <BR><BR>Jewish Orientation <BR><BR>Verse 9 provides further reason why the tribulation is directed toward the Jewish remnant. "The temporal adverb tote links the persecution, killing and hatred with the famines, earthquakes and wars." James R. Gray explains the significance of the word "then" and its impact upon the immediate passage as follows: <BR><BR>Matthew uses the word "then" throughout the discourse (24:9,10,14,16,21,23,30,40). The Greek word is toute. Matthew uses this word 90 times in his gospel, more than the rest of the New Testament writers combined. The word is "a demonstrative adverb of time, denoting at that time." The word then in verse 9 means simultaneously as the events that occur in verses 4-8. Matthew places this persecution with the beginning of sorrows. This presents a problem for those who believe that the church age separates Matthew 24:8 and 9. They look upon Matthew 24:4-8 as historical, and verse 9 as future. However, the word "then" makes it difficult to hold such a view. The word does not mean after the beginning of sorrows, but at the same time or simultaneously with the beginning of sorrows. Thus, verse 9, cannot be projected into the second half of the Tribulation. There is no sequence here, for this persecution will take place during or at the same time, as the beginning of sorrows. And as we have seen, the beginning of sorrows refers to the early tribulation period, and corresponds to the events of Revelation 6. <BR><BR>Since the focus of the Olivet Discourse is Jerusalem centered, most likely Jesus has in view Jewish persecution. However, there is no doubt that Christians of all stripes will receive similar harsh treatment during this time of tribulation. "The persons addressed in this division, are, as I suppose, Jewish believers in Jesus: holding in spiritual things, the place which 'the twelve' of that day held." declares Robert Govett. This sentence only appears in Matthew's account of the Olivet Discourse, perhaps because of his Jewish orientation. <BR><BR>The "they" must refer to those described in verse 10, which reads as follows: "And at that time many will fall away and will deliver up one another and hate one another." "They" are the traitors who betray their brethren and deliver them up to death. "They" will be judged for their actions at the "sheep and goat" judgment as recorded in Matthew 25:31-46. <BR><BR>Preterists believe that because the second person plural "you" is used here that these events must have happened in the first century. Gary DeMar says, "notice how many times Jesus uses the plural you in Matthew 24 and in the parallel passages in Mark 13 and Luke 21." The plural you, in this context, is a cooperate expression, for the Jewish people as a whole, which includes multiple generations. James Morison explains, "When the Saviour says you He is not confining His attention specifically to Peter, James, John and the other apostles, as individuals. He is speaking to them generically, as representatives of the entire body of His disciples. If this fact be overlooked, nothing will be understood." Morison's point can be well applied to the preterists, who misjudge the timing of Christ's discourse, with the result that from their perspective "nothing will be understood." <BR><BR>Preterist, Gary DeMar says, "'Tacitus says that Nero, for the conflagration of Rome, persecuted the Christians,' . . . But between a.d. 30 and 70, the tribulation of the church experienced was a fulfillment of the specific prophecy outlined in Matthew 24:9." However, such could not be the case as noted by H. A. W. Meyer who said, "It is a mistake to suppose that we have here a reference to Nero's persecution (proceeding upon an erroneous interpretation of the well-known 'odio humani generis' in Tacit. Ann. xv. 44, see Orelli on the passage)." M. F. Sadler also speaks against DeMar's notion when he said, "Do not such words look to a far more world-wide hatred from without, and a far more generally diffused declension within the Church, than was possible before the year 72?" Further, William Hendriksen notes the following: "The very expression 'all nations' clearly shows that Jesus is not thinking solely of what happens during the life-time of the apostles." <BR><BR>The Old Testament teaches that the tribulation will be a time of great persecution toward the Jewish people specifically (Jer. 30:7, 11, 23-24; Ezek. 20:33-44; 22:17-22; Dan. 7:25; 12:1-3; Hosea 5:15; Zeph. 1:7-2:3). The New Testament echoes this teaching as well (Matt. 10:17-22; 24:9, 15-24; Mark 13:9-20; Luke 21:12-19; Rev. 13:7a; 18:24). The entire chapter of Revelation 12 is devoted to depicting the future persecution of the Jewish remnant during the second half of the seven-year tribulation period by Satan himself and his partner in crime-the antichrist known as the beast. <BR><BR>Tribulation <BR><BR>The timing of this passage is the first half of the seven-year tribulation. Gray explains the timing of these events as follows: <BR><BR>Matthew writes in precise chronological language so that we may know the time of the events spoken of. . . . First, in the progression of terms used to show movement of thought. This progression is seen in the term tribulation. Notice that Matthew moves from "tribulation" (v. 9, KJV "to be afflicted"), to "great tribulation" (v. 21), to "after the tribulation" (v. 29). This progression of thought falls naturally into the periods of Daniels' Seventieth Week. Daniel saw the week as divided into two halves. The dividing factor is when the Antichrist breaks the covenant with Israel in the middle of the week. The terminology of the discourse suggests that Jesus was using Daniels' prophecy as a point of reference for this discourse. Both Daniel and Jesus divide the week with the same event: the abomination of desolation (v. 15). Matthew refers to the first half of the week referred to by the term "tribulation" (vv. 9-14), the last half of the week referred to by the term "great tribulation" (vv. 15-28); and then the events after the events after the week by the phrase "after the tribulation" (vv. 29-31). <BR><BR>Pre-wrath rapturist Marvin Rosenthal declares, "Of the four times the Lord spoke of tribulation in a prophetic context, He was speaking of the Great Tribulation which begins in the middle of Daniel's seventieth week-precisely three and one-half years into it." The four passages he mentions are Matthew 24:21, 29, and Mark 13:19, 24. Rosenthal conveniently excludes Matthew 24:9. Certainly Matthew 24:9 is in a prophetic context. Davies and Allison classify it as such. It seems obvious that since Matthew 24:9 occurs in the first half of the tribulation, that Rosenthal had to exclude verse 9 in order to make his statement fit the erroneous theory he advocates. Clearly the word "tribulation," in Matthew 24:9, appears in a context that references the first half of the tribulation. <BR><BR>Martyrdom <BR><BR>The persecution, which Matthew notes here, is a future one that will take place in the first half of the tribulation. The verb, "deliver" is the same one used of Judas' betrayal of Jesus (Matt. 26:15) and supports the notion that this future deliverance unto death will be a similar betrayal of the Lord's people. John MacArthur says, "Paradid?mi (will deliver) has the basic meaning of giving over and was often used in a technical sense for arrest by the police or military (see Matt. 4:12)." <BR><BR>The martyrdom described in this passage, which occurs in the first half of the tribulation, is to be seen as a parallel passage to the fifth seal in Revelation 6:9-11. Revelation 6:9 says, "And when He broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained." Arno Gaebelein explains the parallel as follows: <BR><BR>And now under the fifth seal we do not behold another rider, but instead of it we hear the souls underneath the altar, that had been slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony which they gave, crying out with a loud voice, saying, How long? (Rev. vi:9-11.) Who are these? Not the saints of the church. . . . They are such of the remnant of the Jews who began to give their witness for the Word of God after the church had departed and they suffered martyrdom in consequence of their faithful testimony. It is exactly that of which our Lord speaks next in His discourse. "Then shall they deliver you up to tribulation and shall kill you; ye will be hated of all the nations for my names sake." <BR><BR>This parallel continues to sustain the notion that verses 4-14 of Matthew 24 are parallel to the seal judgments of Revelation 6. Such a parallel supports my contention that verses 4-14 describe the first half of the tribulation, which is also known as the seventieth week of Daniel. Thus, wars, earthquakes, famines, and persecution of believers in our own day are not signs that relate to the end-times. These prophetically significant events will take place during the first half of the coming tribulation. <BR><BR>The motive for the martyrdom of Christ's disciples during the tribulation will be "on account of My name." Just as we see in Revelation 12 that the dragon (Satan himself) will pour out his wrath on the Jewish remnant in the second half of the tribulation because of His hatred of God, so will these disciples of the Lord be killed "on account of My name." Since these unbelievers will not be able to get at the Lord Himself, they will go after the Lord's disciples. <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>We see from an examination of Matthew 24:9 that more reasons are provided for the futurist understanding of the Olivet Discourse, as against the preterist. We also see that our understanding of this verse also provides further reasons to understand that the birth pangs of Matthew 24:4-14 refer to the first half of the seven-year tribulation. Further coordination between the events of Matthew 24:4-14 are seen in the parallel of verse 9 with the fifth seal judgment of Revelation 6:9-11. Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 10</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"And at that time many will fall away and will deliver up one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many. And because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved." -Matthew 24:10-13 <BR><BR>Jesus is progressing through His description of the first half of the tribulation, building toward the middle of the seven-year period of verse 15. In this section our Lord describes the spiritual state of the Jews within the land of Israel (Matt. 24:10-13). Their spirituality is not good, from God's perspective. <BR><BR>The Hatred of Jewish Believers <BR><BR>In verse 9 Jesus predicts that all the nations of the world will hate the Jewish believers living in Israel during the tribulation. Why? Because they hate Jesus, the Messiah! This section of Christ's discourse (verse 9-13) is parallel to Revelation 6:9-11 and the fifth seal judgment. Thus, many who professed faith in Jesus as the Messiah in easier times, will deny Him and cooperate in exposing those who are true believers in Jesus. Such an understanding of this passage coordinates well with the sheep and goats judgment of Matthew 25:31-46. "Brothers" in Matthew 25 are the persecuted Jewish believers during the tribulation that are being spoken of here in Matthew 24. Only genuine Gentile believers will be willing to risk their lives in order to help the Jewish remnant. While this speaks of persecution of believers, especially Jewish believers, during the first half of the tribulation, the entire seven-year tribulation will be a time of great persecution. <BR><BR>The external hatred from the world (verse 9) puts all who profess the name of Christ under pressure. This in turn produces internal hatred among the professing Christian community during the tribulation. "And at that time" locates the events of verses 10-13 to be the time of tribulation mentioned in verse 9. It is clear that all these things will take place during the same time period. When the pressure comes, those who are not genuine believers will do three things at this time: 1) fall away, 2) deliver up one another, and 3) hate one another. <BR><BR>Fall Away <BR><BR>The verb "fall away" carries the idea of "to cause to sin," and in the passive use, as we have in this instance, it means to "let oneself be led into sin," thus "fall away" from the truth.[1] This word is the verbal form of the noun "stumbling block" that is used often in Matthew (5:29f; 6:3; 11:6; 13:21, 57; 15:12; 17:27; 18:6, 8f; 26:13,33), although that is not the nuance here. Thomas Figart says that this word "refers to a stick-trap used to catch animals. Such entrapped persons could hardly be classed as true believers; rather, they arte exactly like the seed which fell on stony ground in 13:21: . . . This leads to betrayal of one another, which is engendered by hatred." Matthew 10:16-23 is a parallel passage, which also speaks of the persecution described in this passage in greater detail. All of these things will take place during the tribulation. <BR><BR>Deliver Up One Another <BR><BR>Look at Matthew 10:21-22: "And brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents, and cause them to be put to death. 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." This is exactly the same thing that is going on here in Matthew 24. Because of the global reach of the antichrist and his regime during the tribulation, the pressure will be so great that even fellow family members will turn against one another rather than face the consequences of not following the instructions of the global leader. "The greatest expression of apostasy was betraying others who intended to remain faithful," notes Craig Keener. <BR><BR>Hate One Another <BR><BR>The hatred by all the nations (verse 9) against believers, especially Jewish believers (the remnant) in this context, will create such external pressure that it will result in hatred within the believing community among themselves. That is, false professors will turn against and hate the true believers. "The repeated reciprocal 'one another,' thus refers to betrayal ('they will betray'; cf. v 9) and hostility ('they will hate'; cf. v 9) within the ranks of the followers of Jesus." There will be virtually nowhere to turn for the remnant of Jewish believers. The only place where they will be able to turn for any kind of help will be Gentile believers. This explains the rationale of Matthew 25:31-46 and why there will be the judgment of the Gentiles at the second coming for how they treated the Jewish believers during the tribulation. <BR><BR>Past or Future? <BR><BR>Although weaker on this verse than others, it is not surprising to find that preterists believe that verse 10 has already occurred in the past."The pagan Roman historian Tacitus speaks of Christians in the era of Nero as universally 'hated for their crimes,'" declares Kenneth Gentry. He continues, "In verses 10 and 12 we discover a consequence of the persecution." Yet, Tacitus describes what is going on in Rome, not Jerusalem, as does Matthew 24. How does this quote in any way relate to Matthew 24:10? In fact, Tacitus says in the same section that "there arose a feeling of compassion,"for the persecuted Christians in Rome. This hardly fits the context of Matthew 24:10. <BR><BR>Further, it has been noted above that verse 9 is linked to verse 10. Verse 9 says, "Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations on account of My name." Those whom Jesus calls "you" in verse 9, are referred to as the "many" and "one another" (2x) in verse 10. Since our Lord speaks of the same group of people (the saved remnant) in both verses, whatever happens to them in verse 10 must be the same people referenced by the plural you in verse 9. If, as preterists believe, that verses 9 and 10 happened to the disciples to whom Jesus was specifically addressing in the passage, instead of a still future group of Jewish believers in Jerusalem, then those events did not happen in the first century. When did many of the apostles fall away? When did many of the apostles betray one another? When did many of the apostles hate one another? Instead, they loved one another. <BR><BR>This verse, like all of them in Matthew 24:4-14, does not reference a past event. Instead, they look forward to a future time and a global event that will take place in literal Jerusalem. <BR><BR>Many False Prophets <BR><BR>In conjunction with the events of the preceding verses, "many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many." This did not occur in the first century, to the extent that fulfilled the language of this passage, as taught by preterists like Gentry and DeMar. False prophets are not the same as false teachers, as some suppose. The use of the term "false prophets" reinforces our understanding of the Jewish orientation of this passage. Bruce Ware notes the following: <BR><BR>Here [2 Pet. 2:1] false prophets are distinguished from pseudodidaskalos, "false teachers." The implication is clear: False prophets were Israel's trouble; false teachers are the church's problem. Jesus' use of pesudoprophetes, then, in the Olivet Discourse calls for a Jewish understanding of the term unless some contrary internal contextual evidence can be advanced to show that the word has taken on some different and rare meaning. Since there is no such evidence contextually, it is best to understand the word to refer to false prophets in Judaism. Again this "Jewish element" in the discourse remains Jewish and does not relate to the church. <BR><BR>Arno Gaebelein echoes Ware's understanding of this passage when he tells us: <BR><BR>The Jewish age has false prophets; the Christian age has false teachers. "But there were false prophets also among the people, as there shall be also among you false teachers, who shall bring in by the bye destructive heresies, etc." (2 Pet. ii:1). These false prophets who come in the end of the Jewish age will be possessed by evil spirits. Such was the case during the great apostasy of Israel under the reign of Ahab. The Lord permitted then a lying spirit to take possession of the false prophets as revealed by the prophet Messiah (2 Chronicles xviii:18-22). <BR><BR>The tribulation will be a time in which prophecy will be restored to Israel during the seventieth week of Daniel. Thus, Jesus provides instruction warning the nation of Israel to exercise discernment concerning this matter. Ware further explains: <BR><BR>Whom then could Jesus be warning? Obviously the warning is to Israel through the Apostles (who represent their nation Israel-this nation that anxiously looks for her Messiah). Jesus warned Jews in the tribulation not to be deceived by false Christs no matter what signs and wonders they perform. Israel is in danger of following false Christs because she has not yet recognized the true Christ. Unquestionably this is another example of exclusively Jewish element in the context of the Olivet Discourse which proves, along with the other contextual items not handled by Gundry, that Jesus addressed the nation Israel and its future in accordance with the intent of His Apostles' questions. <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>This passage lays out a future time of great persecution and hatred. Robert Gundy says, "Throughout , we see a logical progression: persecution by outsiders causes many in the church to avoid persecution by betraying fellows disciples to the persecutors; and through failure to condemn this woeful loss of brotherly love, easygoing false prophets exacerbate the problem of treachery in the brotherhood."The events described by our Lord will occur during the future tribulation period. This time period will require great perseverance on the part of the Jewish remnant. Maranatha! <BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2><BR> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 11</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>And because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved." -Matthew 24:12-13 <BR><BR>In Matthew 24:9-14, Jesus is talking about the spiritual condition of those during the first half of the seven-year tribulation period. It is not a pretty sight. Since believers will be persecuted and put to death, extreme pressure will be on believers, especially Jewish believers to flake out and fall away from serving Jesus the Messiah. <BR><BR>Increased Lawlessness <BR><BR>The Greek word anomia is usually translated as "lawless" or "iniquity." It carries with it the idea of deliberately disobeying a specific standard. In the context of this passage-God's standard. Often the word "lawless" is used in apposition to "righteousness" or "good deeds" (Matt. 23:28; Rom. 6:19; 2 Cor. 6:14; Titus 2:14; Heb. 1:9). Arno Gaebelein explains: <BR><BR>"Lawlessness shall prevail;" that is, complete anarchy will hold sway. This too is clearly seen in the breaking of the sixth seal (Rev. vi:12-17). The earthquake, the darkened sun, the blood-red moon, the falling stars, the rolled up heavens and the removal of mountains and island are all great symbols of starling political events, which will take place in the first three and one-half years. . . . the reign of terror and anarchy, worse than that of the French revolution and the Russian revolution of today, all classes of men, the kings, the wealthy, the rich and the poor, the bondman and the free, will be seized with terror. . . . This is the sixth seal, and it is precisely what the Lord saith: "Lawlessness shall prevail!" <BR><BR>This time of lawlessness is surely an unusual time in all human history. Leon Morris says that it is "a way of life that refuses to recognize any divine law, which is identical for Matthew with a way of life in which one's neighbor no longer has any legal claim." Our Lord has been expounding upon the qualitative nature of the spiritual condition of unbelievers that will characterize the tribulation period, specially the first half. This description of lawlessness strikes a parallel to Paul's description of the "man of lawless" in 2 Thessalonians 2:3. This passage (Matt. 24) is building toward the abomination of desolation (24:15), which will be committed by the antichrist in the middle of the tribulation. Paul, in 2 Thessalonians 2, combines the man of lawlessness with the abomination of desolation when he says, "the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God" (2 Thess. 2:3b-4). Robert Govett tells us: "It is this abounding of lawlessness which gives to Antichrist his power both against the Jew and the temple." <BR><BR>What does the phrase "is increased" mean in this context. Commentators are in agreement that it means unusually rapid or exponential increase. Morris notes that "the thought is that in the days of which Jesus is speaking lawlessness will not simply increase a little: it will be multiplied." James Morison observes that "all other passages where the verb (pl?thuno) occurs, it is translated multiply." This clearly fits the idea of future tribulation period where lawlessness will reach the highest levels in all of human history. We think it is bad today, cheer up it will be even worse during this unique seven-year period of history. <BR><BR>Love Will Grow Cold <BR><BR>The result of lawless increasing will be that "most people's love will grow cold." There is a cause effect relationship in this passage. The phrase "most people" is literally "the many." Morris tells us that in this context, "'the many,' indicates the majority; . . . 'most of you.'" This is one of the reasons I think it is speaking of the unbelieving world, as opposed to believers. The rest of Scripture does not support the notion that most believers will be characterized by apostasy during the tribulation, instead, this is the state in which the world in general is characterized. "This seems more related to the general condition of the world," says Ed Glasscock, "than to the followers of Jesus." <BR><BR>What does Jesus mean when he says, "love will grow cold." The expression itself is clear: loss of love. The main significance is to see the cause/effect relationship between lawlessness and loss of love. Morris explains it well: <BR><BR>But real love is impossible for the lawless person. By definition the lawless person is motivated by personal, selfish concerns, not by any regard for others or for the rules that govern our intercourse with one another. So with the upsurge of lawlessness there is a cooling off of love. The one necessarily involves the other. <BR><BR>It is in just such an environment that will facilitate the man of lawlessness of 2 Thessalonians 2 to set up his image in God's rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem. And, it is to just such an act that Jesus' current discourse is moving (24:15). <BR><BR>End-Time Endurance <BR><BR>The exact meaning and implications of "the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved," is a hotly debated passage. Some use this passage to teach a Christian doctrine known as the perseverance of the saints." While others believe that it refers to a physical deliverance. I hold to the latter position, primarily because it is the only view that makes sense in this specific context. <BR><BR>The first issue that must be dealt with in this matter is the meaning of the term "saved." Because the word "saved" is used in the New Testament to refer to the time when one becomes a Christian (the moment of justification as in), many just plug that meaning into this passage. The leading Greek lexicon of our days says that the basic meaning of this word is "save, keep from harm, preserve, rescue." This word can be used in relation to the doctrine of salvation (Matt. 1:21; Acts 16:31; 1 Cor. 1:18; Eph. 2:8-9; Phil. 1:19; Titus 3:5, etc.), or it can simply refer to physical deliverance or rescue (Matt. 8:25; 14:30; 27:49; Acts 27:31; Heb. 5:7; Jude 5, etc.). The exact nuance is determined by its context. "The problem begins with the superficial hermeneutic of giving 'saved' the same meaning in every context, which is not true of any word," declares Glasscock. "Words have no specific meaning apart from context. Here, 'saved' (sozo) means basically to 'deliver' or to 'rescue'-from what and in what manner is dependent upon the context." <BR><BR>Many commentaries on this passage fail to consider the contextual factors before they start sermonizing on endurance in the Christian life. They make this into a passage that teaches the Christian doctrine of endurance, even though it is not supported by the specific factors in the text. Truly, there is a Christian doctrine of endurance taught in the Epistles (Rom. 12:12; 1 Cor. 13:7; 2 Tim. 2:10, 12; Heb. 12:3, 7; James 1:12; 5:11; 1 Pet. 2:20). This doctrine teaches that one of the many character qualities that believer is to have is endurance. Why is this so? It is true because endurance under suffering produces character (Rom. 5:3-4). Yet, none of those references to the Christian doctrine of endurance speak of "enduring to the end." Instead, passages that speak of enduring to the end all occur within the same context-the tribulation (Matt. 10:22; 24:13; Mark 13:13; Luke 21:19; Rev. 13:10; 14:12). John Walvoord explains: <BR><BR>The age in general, climaxing with the second coming of Christ, has the promise that those that endure to the end (Mt 24:13), that is, survive the tribulation and are still alive, will be saved, or delivered, by Christ at His second coming. This is not a reference to salvation from sin, but rather the deliverance of survivors at the end of the age as stated, for instance, in Romans 11:26, where the Deliverer will save the nation Israel from its persecutors. <BR><BR>Specifically this section is referring to the Jewish remnant, who, if they endure to the end, will be physically rescued by Christ at His second advent and they will go into the millennial kingdom in their mortal bodies (Matt. 25:21, 34). William Kelly explains: "It is evident that the language is only applicable in its full force to Jews-believing ones, no doubt, but still Jews in the midst of a nation judicially chastised for their apostacy from God and rejection of their own Messiah. . . . Thus there is a certain, defined period of endurance-an end to come, as truly as there was a beginning of sorrows." <BR><BR>Parallel Passages <BR><BR>There are a number of parallel passages to Matthew 24:13 that support my understanding of this text. First, Daniel 12:1 says, "Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued." Michael tells Daniel that this will be the time of tribulation in which the elect Jews will be rescued, which is the Hebrew word for saved. <BR><BR>Second, Mark 13:13, a direct parallel passage to Matthew 24:13 and says, "And you will be hated by all on account of My name, but the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved." The first half of Mark 13:13 is a summary statement of Matthew 24:9-12, which is followed by the endurance statement in both passages. Luke 21:18-19, also parallel says, "Yet not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives." This is the clearest of all when it reads: "you will gain your lives." "Lives" is the normal word for physical life. <BR><BR>Third, Matthew 10:22, also within the context of the future tribulation says, "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." Once again we see an emphasis upon the physical deliverance of Jews during the tribulation after a time of persecution. <BR><BR>Finally, the two passages in Revelation (13:10 and 14:12) which speak of the "perseverance of the saints," also are references to physical deliverance. Both references are clearly within a tribulational context and speak of physical deliverance when one endures to the end. <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>We have come to an end of a section in Christ's discourse. Speaking specifically to Jewish believers during the tribulation (the remnant), He alerts them to the many dangers that will confront them during this unique period of history. Having told them of the great trials of this time, Christ promises that the ones who physically make it to the time of His second coming will be delivered into the Millennial kingdom which will come at the end of the tribulation period. Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT></DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 12</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come."-Matthew 24:14 <BR><BR>As our Lord's discourse approaches the mid-point of the seven-year tribulation, verse 14 raises a number of interpretive issues. What exactly is meant by "the gospel of the kingdom?" Is this proclamation still a future event? What does "a witness to all nations" mean? What is meant by "then the end shall come?" <BR><BR>The Gospel of the Kingdom <BR><BR>Simply put, some believe that "gospel of the kingdom" is the gospel or the message about forgiveness of sins through faith in Christ, as preached in the New Testament epistles. Others, like myself, believe that it is more of a technical term that describes the coming of Christ's kingdom, which we know as the millennium. <BR><BR>The Greek word "gospel" is a compound word made up of "good" and "message." "It meant originally the reward given to the messenger, but came to be used for the good news he brought." The word by itself simply means "good news." Good news about what? Well that depends upon what is being talked about. Here the phrase would mean good news about the kingdom. Dr. J. Dwight Pentecost explains: <BR><BR>During the time that the politico-religious system of the beast is in absolute control, the gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world (Matt. 24:14). The gospel of the kingdom was preached by both Jesus and John (Matt. 3:2; 4:17). This was the announcement of the good news that the kingdom was near. This message had both a soteriological and an eschatological emphasis. . . . The gospel of the kingdom as preached in Tribulation will have two emphases. On the one hand it will announce the good news that Messiah's advent is near, at which time He will introduce the messianic age of blessing. On the other hand it will also offer men salvation by grace through faith based upon the blood of Christ. <BR><BR>The word "kingdom" is used 51 times in Matthew. It is a major theme in Matthew's Jewish gospel. Dr. Stan Toussaint has done an exhaustive study of how "kingdom" is used in Matthew and has concluded as follows: "Every time the term kingdom is used theologically in Matthew it refers to the same thing, the kingdom yet to come on this earth inaugurated and governed by the Messiah." Specifically Dr. Toussaint has the following comments on Matthew 24:14: <BR><BR>What is this "gospel of the kingdom?" It must be the same good news as was described in 3:2; 4:17, 23; and 9:35. Entrance into the coming kingdom was based on repentance; that was and is the gospel of the kingdom. In the context, however, it would also portray the nearness of the kingdom during the Tribulation period. <BR><BR>Fulfillment Timing <BR><BR>There are three basic views of when this passage will be fulfilled. They are past, present and future. Of course, preterist believe that it was fulfilled by a.d. 70. Historicists believe that this passage relates to the fulfillment of the Great Commission during our current church age. Futurists believe that it will be fulfilled during the seven-years of the tribulation. <BR><BR>Preterist <BR><BR>"Matthew 24:14 clearly shows that the gospel would be preached throughout the Roman Empire before Jesus returned in judgment upon Jerusalem," insists preterist Gary DeMar. He further claims: <BR><BR>The word translated "world" in 24:14 is the Greek word oikoumene . . . It is best translated as "inhabited earth," "known world," or the "Roman Empire" (Acts 11:28; 17:6). . . . This translation helps us understand that Jesus was saying the gospel would be preached throughout the Roman Empire before He would return in judgment upon Jerusalem. In fact, this is exactly what happened, and that is what the Bible says happened. <BR><BR>This passage has not been fulfilled in the past, as I shall show later. This is primarily true because the context of Matthew 24 is futuristic, as I have been demonstrating throughout the exposition of Matthew 24. <BR><BR>Historicist <BR><BR>The historicist takes Matthew 24:14 as fulfillment of the Great Commission during our present church age. A. Lukyn Williams says, "So in the present age we are not to expect more than that Christian missions shall reach the uttermost parts of the earth, and that all nations shall have the offer of salvation, before the final appearance of Christ. The success of these efforts at universal evangelization is a mournful problem." This verse is often used at missions conferences as a motivation for becoming a missionary. The Great Commission is sufficient, because this passage relates to evangelism during the tribulation, not for our current church age. <BR><BR>Futurist <BR><BR>I believe that this passage will be fulfilled in the future, not during the current church age, but during the tribulation. Basically, this is true because the context supports a future fulfillment, since Christ's discourse has not yet been fulfilled. <BR><BR>The Meaning of World <BR><BR>While it is true that "world" oikoumen� is used in the New Testament to refer to "the Roman Empire of the first century," its basic meaning is that of "the inhabited earth." This compound word contains the prefix from oikos that means "house," thus the "inhabited" or "lived-in" part of the world. The inhabited world could refer to the Roman Empire if supported by the context (for example Luke 2:1) since Roman arrogance thought that nothing of significance existed outside of their realm. However, this word was earlier "used of the Greek cultural world." <BR><BR>Since the core meaning of oikoumen� is "inhabited world," then the scope of its meaning has multiple possibilities depending upon the referent. If the contextual referent is Roman, then it will mean the Roman Empire as in Luke 2:1. However, if its referent is global, then it must include the entire world as in Acts 17:31, which says, "He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness." Surely this speaks of the whole globe since not a single individual will escape God's judgment. Clearly oikoumen� can be used globally, even though it may have a more restricted use. The deciding factor is the context. Thus, if Matthew 24:24 was fulfilled in a.d. 70 then it would have a localized meaning as noted by DeMar. However, if it will be fulfilled in the future, then it has the meaning of the entire inhabited world at some future date, which would clearly include much more than the old Roman Empire. <BR><BR>Angelic Evangelism <BR><BR>I believe that Revelation 14:6-7 is a parallel passage to Matthew 24:14. Both speak of global evangelization during the seven-year tribulation, leading up to the second coming of Christ to planet earth. John MacArthur says, <BR><BR>Just before the bowl judgments are poured out and the final great holocaust begins, and just before the increasingly rapid birth pains issue in the kingdom, God will supernaturally present the gospel to every person on earth. He will send an angel with "an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people," saying, "Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters" (Rev. 14:6-7). <BR><BR>Interestingly both passages are mentioned around the middle of the tribulation. This will likely occur at that time because it is at the mid-point of the seven years that the beast will require the number-six hundred, sixty-six-on either the right hand or forehead of every human being in order to buy or sell (Rev. 13:16-18). Thus, it is important to know that the witness of the gospel is given to every individual in which they are given the opportunity to trust Christ before they take the number. In addition to that, the third angel announces to each individual in the world that there are consequences to taking the number of the beast. "If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or upon his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone . . . forever and ever" (Rev. 14:9-11). <BR><BR>It appears that the tribulation period will be the greatest time of evangelization the world will ever see. There will be normal evangelism, like that which we have today. Then there will be the evangelism of the 144,000 Jewish witnesses (Rev. 7:3-10; 14:1-5), the two witnesses (Rev. 11:3-13), and the angelic evangelism already mentioned. David Cooper explains: "The purpose of preaching the gospel during the Great Tribulation is twofold: first, to give all honest-hearted truth-seekers an opportunity of accepting the Lord Jesus Christ and salvation through Him; secondly, to prepare for judgment those who will not receive a love of the truth in order that God might be just in bringing upon them the terrific plagues foretold in Revelation." <BR><BR>Then The End Shall Come <BR><BR>Earlier Jesus said, "for these things must take place, but that is not yet the end" (Matt. 24:6). Now He says, that after the successful preaching of the gospel of the kingdom to the entire planet, "then the end shall come." "In the background is the OT motif of the nations' end-time conversion to Yahweh (Cf. Isa. 2:2-4; 45:20-22; 49:6; 55:5; 56:6-8; Mic. 4:1-3). Here that conversion heralds the end." The end spoken of here is not the end of the end. It means the end of the age of the tribulation through the second coming of Christ (Matt. 24:27-31). The final end will occur one thousand years later as the millennial kingdom of Christ comes to its end. <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>Since Matthew 24:14 is a future event, then the gospel will be preached across the globe as described in Revelation 14:6-7. Both passages are set in contexts that tell us that this global evangelization will take place just before the middle of the seven-year tribulation. Craig Kenner says, "Jesus' claim in 24:14 does not imply that all peoples will be converted, but that the kingdom will not come in its fullness until all peoples have had the opportunity to embrace or reject the King who will be their judge (25:31-32)." This passage was no more fulfilled during the nativity of the church than was the Great Commission. The prophecy of Matthew 24:14, like all of those in that context, awaits a future fulfilment, specifically during the future tribulation. Maranatha! <BR><BR></DIV></FONT><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 13</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand)," <BR><BR>-Matthew 24:15 <BR><BR>We have now reached the midpoint of the tribulation in the chronological progress of this passage. Christ mentions the key event upon which the entire passage turns when He speaks of the abomination of desolation. What is He speaking about? <BR><BR>The Abomination of Desolation <BR><BR>The key passages in Daniel that mention the term "abomination of desolation" are Daniel 9:27, 11:31 and 12:11. This is a technical term, which means that it has a precise and consistent meaning in all three passages. The phrase refers to an act of abomination that renders, in this case, the Temple, something unclean. Daniel 11:31 speaks of an act that was fulfilled in history before the first coming of Christ. Dr. John Walvoord explains: <BR><BR>In Daniel 11:31, a prophecy was written by Daniel in the sixth century b. c. about a future Syrian ruler by name of Antiochus Epiphanes who reigned over Syria 175-164 b. c., about 400 years after Daniel. History, of course, has recorded the reign of this man. In verse 31, Daniel prophesied about his activity: ". . . they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate." This would be very difficult to understand if it were not for the fact that it has already been fulfilled. Anyone can go back to the history of Antiochus Epiphanes and discover what he did as recorded in the apocryphal books of 1 and 2 Maccabees. He was a great persecutor of the children of Israel and did his best to stamp out the Jewish religion and wanted to place in its stead a worship of Greek pagan gods. . . . <BR><BR>One of the things he did was to stop animal sacrifices in the temple. He offered a sow, an unclean animal, on the altar in a deliberate attempt to desecrate and render it unholy for Jewish worship (cf. 1 Macc. 1:48). First Maccabees 1:54 specifically records that the abomination of desolation was set up, fulfilling Daniel 11:31. In the holy of holies Antiochus set up a statue of a Greek god. . . . In keeping with the prophecy the daily sacrifices were stopped, the sanctuary was polluted, desolated and made an abomination. <BR><BR>Dr. Randall Price agrees: "In my own study of the phrase in the context of Temple desecration I discovered the phrase served as a technical reference to the introduction of an idolatrous image or an act of pagan sacrilege within the Sanctuary that produces the highest level a of ceremonial impurity, Temple profanation." <BR><BR>This passage sets the pattern and provides details about what the abomination of desolation consists of. The Daniel 9:27 passage says that this abomination is to take place in the middle of a seven year period. The passage says, "in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate." "In other words, the future prince will do at that time exactly what Antiochus did in the second century b.c." But Daniel goes on to say that the one who commits this act will be destroyed three and a half years later. Daniel 12:11 provides "the precise chronology." The text says, "And from the time that the regular sacrifice is abolished, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days." <BR><BR>In addition to the three passages in Daniel, the two references by our Lord in Matthew and Luke, 2 Thessalonians 2:4 and Revelation 13:14-15 also have this event in view. Therefore, the abomination of desolation, which the reader is to understand, includes the following elements: <BR><BR>1. It occurs in the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem (Daniel 11:31; 2 Thessalonians 2:4). <BR><BR>2. It involves a person setting up a statue in place of the regular sacrifice in the holy of holies (Daniel 11:31; 12:11; Revelation 13:14-14). <BR><BR>3. This results in the cessation of the regular sacrifice (Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11). <BR><BR>4. There will be a time of about three-and-a-half years between this event and another event and the end of the time period (Daniel 9:27; 12:11). <BR><BR>5. It involves an individual setting up a statue or image of himself so that he may be worshipped in place of God (Daniel 11:31; 2 Thessalonians 2:4; Revelation 13:14-15). <BR><BR>6. The image is made to come to life (Revelation 13:14). <BR><BR>7. A worship system of this false god is thus inaugurated (2 Thessalonians 2:4; Revelation 13:14-15). <BR><BR>8. At the end of this time period the individual who commits the act will himself be cut off (Daniel 9:27). <BR><BR>Preterist Misinterpretation <BR><BR>Predictably, Dr. Kenneth Gentry believes that the famous "abomination of desolation" in Matthew 24:15 (cf. Mark 13:14) was fulfilled in the first century destruction of Jerusalem. Even though there are similarities between the past destruction of Jerusalem and a future siege, there are enough differences to distinguish the two events. <BR><BR>Despite this specific information about the abomination of desolation, Dr. Gentry identifies it as simply the Roman invasion and destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in a.d. 70. Rather than going to Daniel for an understanding of what our Lord wanted the reader to understand, Gentry goes to Luke 21:20-22, with a little help from Josephus, to conclude that Christ is warning of Jerusalem's devastation by military assault, not just the temple's desecration by profane acts". Let's see if this interpretation measures up to the Biblical explanation concerning the abomination of desolation. <BR><BR>An Answer To Preterism <BR><BR>Luke 21:20-24 does refer to the a. d. 70 destruction of Jerusalem. Therefore, when verse 20 says, "when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is at hand," it is describing in clear language the destruction of Jerusalem. This is vindicated by the language of the rest of the passage, especially verse 24: "and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot." In context, the desolation is the destruction of Jerusalem; it is not a technical term relating to the Temple, as Dr. Gentry suggests. <BR><BR>In contrast, the Matthew 24:15 passage has a context of its own which differs from the Luke account. Matthew says, "when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet (not Luke), standing in the holy place." Comparison of the description in Matthew and Daniel with the passage in Luke yields differences, which prove that they are two separate events. <BR><BR>In the a.d. 70 destruction of Jerusalem there was . . . <BR><BR>� no image set up in the holy place. <BR><BR>� no worship of the image was required. <BR><BR>� no three-and-a-half year period of time between that event and the coming of Christ. This is especially true since the destruction of Jerusalem occurred at the end of the siege by Rome. It was over in a matter of days. D. A. Carson notes, "By the time the Romans had actually desecrated the temple in a.d. 70, it was too late for anyone in the city to flee." <BR><BR>� no image came to life and beckoned men to worship it. <BR><BR>Josephus tells us that Titus did not want the Temple burned. However, the Roman solders were so upset with the Jews that they disobeyed his orders and burned the temple anyway. All Titus was able to do was to go in and tour the holy place shortly before it burned. This does not comport with the biblical picture of the image to be set up on the altar in the middle of Daniel's seventieth week, resulting in cessation of the regular sacrifice and a rival worship system set up in its place for three-and-a-half years. Dr. Stanley Toussaint says, <BR><BR>Because Christ specifically related the prophecy of the abomination of desolation to Daniel's prophecy, it seems best to see some correspondence between the abomination of desolation committed by Antiochus Epiphanes and that predicted by Christ. If this is so it would entail not only defilement on the altar by sacrifices offered with impure hearts, but also an actual worship of another god using the Temple as a means for such a dastardly act. Those preterists who agree with this take it to be the worship of the Roman standards in the Temple precincts. However, if this interpretation is taken, Matthew 24:16-20 is difficult if not impossible to explain. By then it would be too late for the followers of the Lord Jesus to escape; the Romans had already taken the city by this time. <BR><BR>If the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel 9:27 and 12:11 is foreshadowed by Antiochus Epiphanes (11:31), it would be best to say it is a desecration carried out by a person who sacrilegiously uses the Temple to promote the worship of a god other than Jehovah. This is what is anticipated in 2 Thessalonians 2. <BR><BR>Another major dissimilarity between Gentry's preterism and Matthew 24 is that according to Matthew "neither the city nor the temple are destroyed, and thus the two situations stand in sharp contrast." The Luke 21:20-24 reference does record the "days of vengeance" which befell Jerusalem. Let us look at some other details related to the fact that the future fulfillment of Matthew 24 is one in which Christ delivers the Jews, rather than destroying them, as in a.d. 70. <BR><BR>First, as Luke shifts from the a.d. 70 destruction of Jerusalem in 21:20-24, to the second coming of Christ in 21:25-28, he tells them in verse 28 to "straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." This is the language of deliverance from the threat of the nations, not destruction. This language of deliverance is reflected in Zechariah 12-14. These three chapters include three important factors: 1) Jerusalem surrounded by the nations who are seeking to destroy it (12:2-9; 14:2-7); 2) the Lord will fight for Israel and Jerusalem and defeat the nations who have come up to lay siege against the city (14:1-8); 3) at this same time the Lord will also save Israel from her sins and she will be converted to Messiah-Jesus (12:9-14). <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 14</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains; let him who is on the housetop not go down to get the things out that are in his house; and let him who is in the field not turn back to get his cloak. But woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse babes in those days! But pray that your flight may not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath;" -Matthew 24:16-20 <BR><BR>Previously, we saw that verse 15 describes an event that fixes the chronological mid-point of the seven-year tribulation. Verses 16-20 describe the recommended response of the faithful who see the abomination of desolation in Jerusalem. They are to get out of Dodge as fast as they can. Why? It is because the second-half of the tribulation will be a time of persecution and great tribulation for the Jewish remnant. <BR><BR>The Command to Flee <BR><BR>This passage is saying that the moment the Jewish Remnant (the elect in verses 22, 24 and 31) sees the watershed event of the abomination of desolation then they are to flee to the Judean hills. Why are they to flee instantly? It is because with the instantaneous event of the Beast (antichrist) setting up the abomination of desolation in the rebuilt Jewish Temple, he goes from protecting Israel to persecuting her. Therefore, the sooner that the Remnant can get out of town, then the less likely it will be that antichrist will be able to persecute the Jews. Another reason why they will be able to flee instantly is because they will be miraculously provided for and protected as they make their way to Petra for three and a half years of safekeeping. <BR><BR>Matthew 24:16-20 provides a set of instructions for the Remnant. Christ tells them where to go: the Judean mountains. Jesus says to flee instantly. Don't even take a few minutes to collect a few personal belongings like your cloak in the field or a few items from your house for the journey. He warns that it will be difficult to navigate the mountainous terrain if pregnant or nursing a newborn. Jesus does not say that it will be impossible, but it will be difficult. Difficulty will be compounded if this event occurs in winter or on a Sabbath, because of the added restrictions that these times pose. The winter in Israel is the rainy season which increases the hazards of travel in the Judean hills because the creeks and rivers provide an obstacle not there during other seasons. The Sabbath imposes a travel restriction that is not in force on the other six days of the week that poses a real problem to the observant Jew. So why are the Jewish Remnant supposed to be aware of a special event which triggers their escape into the Judea wilderness, yet they are not told to make any preparations for that day? <BR><BR>Miraculous Provision <BR><BR>While Matthew 24:16-20 focuses upon the divinely suggested response to the abomination of desolation by the Jewish Remnant, other passages provide a more complete picture of this three and a half year wilderness sojourn. The parallel passage of Revelation 12 provides further details of this mid-tribulational escape. Revelation 12:6 says, "And the woman [Israel] fled into the wilderness where she had a place prepared by God, so that there she might be nourished for one thousand two hundred and sixty days." The key word in this verse is "nourished." This explains why the Jewish Remnant is told to flee without consideration for any provisions, because God has prepared a place where Israel will be nourished and taken care of for three and a half years (the second-half of the tribulation). <BR><BR>Notice some of the Old Testament passages that describe God's provision for His people during this three and a half year period: <BR><BR>The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst; I, the Lord, will answer them Myself, as the God of Israel I will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the bare heights, and springs in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land fountains of water. I will put the cedar in the wilderness, the acacia, and the myrtle, and the olive tree; I will place the juniper in the desert, together with the box tree and the cypress, that they may see and recognize, and consider and gain insight as well, that the hand of the Lord has done this, and the Holy One of Israel has created it. -Isaiah 41:17-20 <BR><BR>"I will surely assemble all of you, Jacob, I will surely gather the remnant of Israel. I will put them together like sheep in the fold [Hebrew word is basrah]; like a flock in the midst of its pasture they will be noisy with men." -Micah 2:12 <BR><BR>The drama is further explained in Revelation 12:12-13, which reads as follows: <BR><BR>For this reason, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has only a short time. And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child. <BR><BR>Satan's wrath is directed toward the Jewish Remnant at the middle of the tribulation. This requires Divine protection. There is cause and effect relationship between the heavenly (the casting of Satan from heaven to earth) and earthly (the abomination of desolation) events. At the mid-point of the tribulation, Satan now indwells the human antichrist and commences his campaign of anti-Semitism against the Jews with all haste. Thus, the need for a hasty retreat by Israel as advocated by Jesus. <BR><BR>Next, Revelation 12:14 says, "And the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, in order that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she was nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent." The "two wings of the great eagle," do not refer to the Israeli or American Air Forces. Instead, it is a figure of speech denoting Divine assistance, like that which was given to Israel during the Exodus and for her forty-year wonderings. That very same language was used in Exodus 19:4 of God's miraculous provision for the nation: "You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you to Myself." Deuteronomy 32:10-12 speaks of a similar miraculous provision at the Exodus in relationship to eagles' wings. <BR><BR>Putting the pieces of the puzzle together, it appears that the Jewish Remnant can flee Jerusalem without concern for provisions, since God will nurture and care for them as He did the Exodus generation through miraculous means. Very likely the Lord will provide food (perhaps manna), water, and clothing for His Remnant that will be on the run and in hiding so as to escape the persecution of the dragon during the final half of the tribulation. <BR><BR>Preterist Objections <BR><BR>Regular readers of this commentary will not be surprised to learn that preterists do not agree with this interpretation. Predictably, they believe Matthew 24:16-20 was fulfilled in the first century. Gary DeMar says, "Matthew 24:16-20 clearly presents first-century-Israel living conditions." This presents no problem at all for a future fulfillment. In fact, I have been to Jerusalem a number of times over the years. In the old city, many of the houses are very old and have retained many of the features of "first-century-Israel," including the fact that the top of one's roof is still part of modern living in Jerusalem. In fact, one of the best ways to navigate across the old city is to walk on the roofs. I have done it many times. DeMar needs a good tour of "modern" Jerusalem. The points he makes in his attempt to argue that this passage requires a first-century setting have no traction and does not at all render a modern fulfillment unlikely. <BR><BR>Dr. Kenneth Gentry speaks of "Christ's dire warning to flee without turning back (Matt. 24:16-18). Once Titus begins encircling the city, it will not take him long to seal it off from the outer world (Matt. 24:16-20)." There are a number of problems with trying to make Dr. Gentry's position fit the a.d. 70 event. Dr. Randall Price provides the following objections to Dr. Gentry's misguided assertion: <BR><BR>According to the fourth-century Church historian Eusebius, Christians fled to Pella in a.d. 61-62, many years before the beginning of the Jewish Revolt in a.d. 66, and many more years before the "abomination of desolation" (according to the preterist's interpretation) occurred with the Roman army surrounding Jerusalem or entering the Temple precincts in a.d. 70. To this problem should be added the fact that the Romans controlled the Judean countryside (to which Jerusalem belongs) as well as its immediate environs for some time prior to their siege of the city, which would have made it practically impossible for either Jerusalemites or those in fields outside the city, to make an escape. Neither Jesus could have meant that a flight should take place once the siege began, for any escaping at this time would have run into the hands of the enemy! Moreover, as many commentators have observed, the biblical command to "flee to the mountains" (Matt. 24:16; Mk. 13:14; cf. Lk. 21:21) hardly agrees with the geographical setting of Pella in the low-lying foothills of the Transjordan valley on the other side of the River Jordan. Since Jerusalem is called "the Holy Mountain" (Psa. 48:1; cf. 87:1-2), "Mount Zion" (Psa. 74:2; 78:68-69), and is situated and surrounded by "mountains" (Psa. 125:1-2; cf. 48:2) "fleeing to the mountains" could not be interpreted as descending to a lower elevation and it is far more reasonable that "the mountains" of Jesus' reference would be those that immediately surrounded the city (i.e., the Judean hills, cf. Ezek. 7:15-16), since Jesus' command was not to flee from Judea but within it. <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>It is clear that the Jewish Remnant will be fleeing to the Judean wilderness where Old Testament passages teach (along with Revelation 12) that she will be miraculously protected for the later half of the tribulation. The place of her protection is said in the Old Testament to be Bozrah. "'For I have sworn by Myself,' declares the Lord, 'that Bozrah will become an object of horror, a reproach, a ruin and a curse; and all its cities will become perpetual ruins. I have heard a message from the Lord, and an envoy is sent among the nations, saying, 'Gather yourselves together and come against her, and rise up for battle!'" (Jeremiah 49:13-14) Bozrah is a region in southwest Jordan, where the ancient fortress city of Petra is located. Isaiah 63:1-3 asks, "Who is this who comes from Edom, with garments of glowing colors from Bozrah, this One who is majestic in His apparel, marching in the greatness of His strength? It is I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save. Why is Your apparel red, and Your garments like the one who treads in the wine press? I have trodden the wine trough alone, and from the peoples there was no man with Me. I also trod them in My anger, and trampled them in My wrath; and their lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments, and I stained all My raiment." Bozrah (Petra) is the place where up to a couple million Jews have been hidden away since the middle of the tribulation when they fled from Judea. The Lord has nourished them for those three and a half years and now He defends this Jewish Remnant that by the time of the second coming has converted in mass to Jesus as their Messiah. Christ has blood on His garments from defending the Jews against the army of the antichrist, who have gathered themselves to attack the Jews at Armageddon. Such a force arrayed against the Lord's people requires His personal intervention. This He does first at Petra. Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 15</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"for then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall." <BR><BR>-Matthew 24:21 <BR><BR>Our Lord's prophetic discourse continues dealing with mid-tribulational events. He says that the second three and a half year period will not only be "tribulation," as noted of the first half (Matt. 24:9), but a time of "great tribulation." In fact, it will be the greatest time of tribulation since the beginning of creation (cf. Mark 13:19), or will ever be. The focus of this time of tribulation will revolve around the Jewish people and their land of Israel. <BR><BR>The Tribulation <BR><BR>This verse starts with a reference back to the preceding section. Ed Glasscock explains: "Verse 21 offers an explanation (gar) for the illustrations of urgency just presented and uses the temporal adverb tote ("then") to connect the previous statements with the prediction of the worst tribulation every." This tells the Jewish remnant in Jerusalem and Judea why they need to immediately head for the hills when they learn of the abomination of desolation event (Matt. 24:15) has taken place. "Evidently, this will be the last possible moment for escape," notes James Gray. "If they do not escape, they will be caught in this great and terrible trouble. It will come so suddenly that they do not have time to get their things together to get out." <BR><BR>Previously, we have seen that the word "tribulation" was used to refer to the first half of Daniel's seventieth week (Matt. 24:9). Dr. J. Dwight Pentecost provides an excellent statement of the usage of "tribulation": <BR><BR>the term tribulation is used in several different ways in Scripture. It is used in a non-technical, non-eschatological sense in reference to any time of suffering or testing into which one goes. It is so used in Matthew 13:21; Mark 4:17; John 16:33; Romans 5:3; 12:12; 2 Corinthians 1:4; 2 Thessalonians 1:4; Revelation 1:9. It is used in its technical or eschatological sense in reference to the whole period of the seven years of tribulation, as in Revelation 2:22 or Matthew 24:29. It is also used in reference to the last half of this seven year period, as in Matthew 24:21. <BR><BR>The tribulation period is not exclusively a New Testament doctrine. The tribulation period is a topic that has a rich Old Testament background and the events of this time are directed toward and involve the nation of Israel. The Old Testament speaks of a time of tribulation that Israel is destined to endure (in the latter days), but when this period is past it will result in national repentance and the nation in a right relationship with the Lord. Note some of the following key passages: <BR><BR>� "When you are in distress [i.e., tribulation] and all these things have come upon you, in the latter days, you will return to the Lord your God and listen to His voice." (Deut. 4:30) <BR><BR>� "Alas! for that day is great, there is none like it; and it is the time of Jacob's distress [i.e., tribulation], but he will be saved from it." (Jer. 30:7) <BR><BR>� "Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress [i.e., tribulation] such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued." (Dan. 12:1) <BR><BR>In addition to these specific tribulation passages noted above, there is the general theme dominate in the Old Testament of individuals and the nation crying out to the Lord when in a time of distress and tribulation. For example this is a major theme in Psalm 107. Verse 6 says, "Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble [i.e., tribulation]; He delivered them out of their distresses." Note the following passages that have a similar pattern: Gen. 35:3; 1 Sam. 10:19; 26:24; 2 Sam. 4:9; 1 Ki. 1:29; 2 Chron. 15:4; Psa. 20:1; 25:22; 34:17; 46:1; 50:15; 81:7; 86:7; 107:6, 13, 19, 28; 116:3; 120:1; Isa. 33:2; Jer. 14:8; 16:19; Jonah 2:2; Nahum 1:7. <BR><BR>In fact, Paul writes about Israel's deliverance from tribulation in Romans 9-11. Romans 10:11-15 tells us that one day Israel will call upon the name of the Lord and be saved. This redemption will occur one day to national Israel, but it will come during the tribulation period-the great tribulation. <BR><BR>Great Tribulation <BR><BR>Matthew 24:21 speaks about the great tribulation. What is the great tribulation? The great tribulation is the last three and a half year period of the tribulation, which will culminate in the second advent of Christ. Dr. John Walvoord says: <BR><BR>The great tribulation, accordingly, is a specific period of time beginning with the abomination of desolation and closing with the second coming of Christ, in the light of Daniel's prophecies and confirmed by reference to forty-two months. In Revelation 11:2 and 13:5, the great tribulation is a specific three-and-a-half-year period leading up to the second coming . . . <BR><BR>That the period would be a time of unprecedented trouble is brought out clearly in Revelation 6-19. . . . Putting all these Scriptures together, it indicates that the great tribulation will mark the death of hundreds of millions of people in a comparatively short period of time. <BR><BR>The New Testament uses the term "great tribulation" in three other places, in addition to Matthew 24:21. While Acts 7:11 does not refer to the last half of a future seven-year period, the other two do as follows: <BR><BR>� "Behold, I will cast her upon a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of her deeds." (Rev. 2:22) <BR><BR>� "And I said to him, 'My lord, you know.' And he said to me, 'These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.'" (Rev. 7:14) <BR><BR>The "great tribulation" is said by Jesus in Matthew to be the greatest since the world began, or ever will be for the Jewish people. Mark 13:19 is even clearer where our Lord says, "For those days will be a time of tribulation such as has not occurred since the beginning of the creation which God created, until now, and never shall." "Since the beginning of the creation" makes it very clear that this time period will be the greatest time of tribulation for the Jewish people in all history. John MacArthur says <BR><BR>No time or event in the history of Israel fits the description of the holocaust Jesus is here speaking of. The horrifying time is further described in some detail in Revelation 6-16, where the seal, trumpet, and bowl judgments exhibit the escalating intensity of God's wrath upon sinful, rebellious mankind. Both the books of Revelation and of Daniel make clear that the Antichrist will tyrannize the world for "a time, times, and half a time" (Dan. 7:25; 12:7; Rev. 12:14), that is, a year, two years, and a half year, or three and one half years (Rev. 11:2; 13:5). Clearly, the events described by our Lord, by Daniel, and by John must refer to the same great holocaust at the end time, just before the millennial kingdom is established on earth. <BR><BR>Christ is clearly using the language of Daniel 12:1, which says, "And there will be a time of distress [i.e., tribulation] such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people." Joel 2:2 also employs similar language when it says, "A day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness. As the dawn is spread over the mountains, so there is a great and mighty people; there has never been anything like it, nor will there be again after it to the years of many generations." <BR><BR>It is significant that in both of these passages, the time of tribulation results in the redemption of the Jewish remnant. Just such a redemption is described in Matthew 24:29-31 where it says, "But immediately after the tribulation of those days . . . And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other." <BR><BR>Purging The Rebels <BR><BR>As I have been saying, the purpose of the tribulation, especially the great tribulation, in relation to the nation of Israel is to prepare her for final redemption. This is taught in the passages cited above about her deliverance from tribulation. We also find in passages, like Ezekiel 20 and 22, the Lord providing an overview of Israel's entire history. Often the prophet recounts the nation's past history of disobedience and then predicts that there will come a time in the future when the nation will finally become obedient to the Lord. Usually this will come after the nation has gone through a time of great trial and tribulation as we see in Ezekiel 20:33-38. But the significant thing is that at the end of this process the nation is brought into "the bond of the covenant." <BR><BR>� "As I live," declares the Lord God, "surely with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out, I shall be king over you. And I shall bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out; and I shall bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I shall enter into judgment with you face to face. As I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you," declares the Lord God. "And I shall make you pass under the rod, and I shall bring you into the bond of the covenant; and I shall purge from you the rebels and those who transgress against Me; I shall bring them out of the land where they sojourn, but they will not enter the land of Israel. Thus you will know that I am the Lord." (Ezek. 20:33-38) <BR><BR>Zechariah 13-14 records a similar scenario as we have seen in many of the Old Testament passages noted above. This passage speaks of all the nations of the world sending armies to surround Jerusalem, yet through this time of tribulation, the Israel is converted and rescued through the personal return of Christ. The following passage from Zechariah 13 speaks of God purging out two-thirds of Israel, but saving the remaining third. <BR><BR>� "And it will come about in all the land," declares the Lord, "that two parts in it will be cut off and perish; but the third will be left in it. And I will bring the third part through the fire, refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them; I will say, 'They are My people,' and they will say, 'the Lord is my God.'" (Zech. 13:8-9) <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>Matthew 24 is similar to these Old Testament passages in that Christ predicts the nation will pass through the time of great tribulation (verse 21), but when these events have transpired, Jesus will return and rescue the elect remnant (verses 29-31). Christ's prophetic sermon as recorded in Matthew follows the well-established pattern found in the Old Testament. Since Matthew 24 speaks of tribulation followed by immediately by rescue (verse 29), then His prophecy has to be future to our time since the Jewish people have never gone through anything like that in past history. Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 16</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"for then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall." <BR><BR>-Matthew 24:21 <BR><BR>In the previous installment I surveyed some of the biblical teaching on the great tribulation. It will not come as a surprise to most of you that many do not see the tribulation as a yet future time. Historicists and preterists believe that much, if not all of the tribulation has already occurred. Therefore, if one denies the futurity of the tribulation then it produces a great distortion of biblical prophecy. <BR><BR>Historicism <BR><BR>Historicism teaches that the events of the tribulation, as noted in the book of Revelation, have been occurring throughout the entire 2,000 years of the current church age. Historicist, Steve Wohlberg, says, "Historicism is the belief that the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation find fulfillment throughout the history of Christianity." They usually teach that the six seal, six trumpet and seven bowl judgments are cyclical of seven major judgments throughout the history of the church. Generally, they believe that we are awaiting the breaking of the seventh seal, which will complete the judgments of revelation (i.e., the tribulation), lead to the events of Armageddon and then the second coming. Thus, according to historicism, the time of the tribulation is equated with what has been thus far about 2,000 years of church history, with only Armageddon and the second coming still in the future. <BR><BR>The historicist scheme will not work if the prophetic events of the tribulation are taken literally. Historicists have to allegorize many details of biblical prophecy in order to make their system appear to explain Scripture. For example, they turn 1260 days (Rev. 11:3; 12:6) into 1260-years, the antichrist is not a person but the papal system of Roman Catholicism and entities like angels (the three angelic witnesses of Revelation 14) turn out to be humans what have lived in the past during the current church age. Historicists generally regard the belief that the tribulation and most Bible prophecy still awaits a future fulfillment as a Roman Catholic plot implemented by the Jesuits in the sixteenth century. Historicism says that we are in the tribulation now, even though most of it has already passed. Such a view is not supported by Christ's explanation of the great tribulation in Matthew 24. <BR><BR>Preterism <BR><BR>Modern preterists go even further than historicists and say that the entire time of the tribulation is totally past and that it was entirely completed by a.d. 70. Preterist, Dr. Kenneth Gentry says, "I hold that the Tribulation occurs in our distant past in the first century; . . . I hold that the Tribulation closes out the Jewish-based, old covenant order, and establishes the new covenant (Christian) order as the conclusive redemptive-historical reality." "This statement of Christ is indisputably clear-and absolutely demanding of a first-century fulfillment of the events in the preceding verses, including the Great Tribulation (v. 21)," declares Dr. Gentry. So how does Dr. Gentry take Matthew 24:21? He says, "This is prophetic hyperbole." He further explains: "Clearly, the unique-event language is common parlance in prophetic literature. We must not interpret it in a woodenly literal manner." <BR><BR>What does he mean by "prophetic hyperbole"? Dr. Gentry cites Exodus 11:6, Ezekiel 5:9; 7:5-6, and Daniel 9:12 as examples of other passages using similar language. Further, Dr. Gentry argues that the Flood of Noah was a worse judgment than described in Matthew 24 since it "destroys the entire world except one family." I believe there are a number of errors in Dr. Gentry and preterist thinking at this point. First, they generalize many of the specifics of a given text that limit the scope of these absolute descriptions. These passages that preterists cite are all limited in scope, not simply the greatest disaster of any time, place, or thing. A few years ago I wrote Hebrew Christian scholar, Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum and presented these same arguments made by Dr. Gentry's fellow preterist Gary DeMar a few years ago. Here is Dr. Fruchtenbaum's able response: <BR><BR>As for Exodus 11:6, the focus here is specifically on one country, which is the nation of Egypt. Furthermore, the verse is not saying that what happened with the ten plagues was the worst judgment that Egypt will ever experience and, therefore, the correlation between 14 million and 55 million is irrelevant. The text is saying that there was not such a great cry in all the land of Egypt in the past, nor will there be such a great cry in the land of Egypt in the future. The emphasis is not on the judgment itself but on the Egyptian response to the judgment. The first-born son of every Egyptian family died, but the remainder of the family was spared, so every single family was affected. In the tribulation, there is no need to assume that every family will be affected and, furthermore, rather than merely one or two members of the family, whole families might be destroyed; and if whole families are destroyed, there will be no one to mourn for that particular family. Another point is the Bible says that one quarter of the world's population will be destroyed, but mentions the world population in general and does not apply that exactly twenty-five percent of the Egyptian population will be destroyed. In other words, whether we speak of twenty-five percent or seventy-five percent of the earth's population destroyed, most of it is among the nations outside of the Middle East and, therefore, will not effect Egypt to the same degree as it would affect, let's say North America or Europe. Therefore, there might be a lot less death in Egypt than there would be elsewhere, and it still might be less than those who died in the tenth plague. In other words, Exodus 11:6 simply does not present such a great problem. <BR><BR>Finally, concerning Ezekiel 5:9-10, . . . There are two implications. The first implication is that what happened in a.d. 70 was far more severe than what happened in 586 b.c. That point is true. But the point of Ezekiel 5:9 is that God, in this case, is going to perform a judgment of the type that He has not done before and will not do again, and the type of judgment was that one third will die by plague and famine, one third will die by the sword, and one third will be scattered to the four winds. It did not happen that way in a.d. 70, and it will not happen that way in the tribulation. What Ezekiel is describing is something that happened uniquely in the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem when the inhabitants were equally divided into thirds with two thirds dying in two different ways, and one third surviving but under divine judgment were scattered. No such three-fold division equally happened in a.d. 70. Even the tribulation where it does mention in Zechariah 13:8-9 that two thirds will die and one third will survive, it does not say that the two thirds will die in an equal two halves by sword and by famine. Furthermore, the remaining surviving third is not under divine judgment and remaining surviving third is not under divine judgment and scattered, but rather, they are saved and regathered. So, Ezekiel's words can be taken as literally true; what he said did happen to Jerusalem and was unique to the Babylonian destruction. <BR><BR>The second implication is his statement under point 4: "The flood was obviously a greater tribulation." This is true as far as tribulation in general. However, here we are dealing specifically with the Jewish people and Jerusalem. The focus of the flood was not on the Jewish people, since Jewish history had not begun as yet. Nor was the focus on Jerusalem since that city had not existed yet. The Noahic flood destroyed the world in general and was the worst flood that ever was or will be. But Ezekiel's prophecy focuses specifically on the Jewish people and Jerusalem which was not or will not be destroyed by flood. And while God will once again destroy the mass of humanity, according to Isaiah 24, it will no be by means of water but by means of fire. <BR><BR>So, none of these "problems" that Gary DeMar is presenting are in any sense a great problem. They are all solvable if we remain with their own context and we move carefully through the actual words and to what they are referring. <BR><BR>These issues are not a problem if one follows the context that governs the words of these passages. It is quite clear that if the plain meaning of the text is allowed to stand then a first century interpretation is precluded. Preterists must revert to sophistry in order to say why the text does not mean what it says so they can suggest a meaning in support of their view. Interestingly, they tend to only take this approach with given passages that do not appear to support their thesis, but take verses plainly that appear to support their views, even when figures of speech are embedded in the text. No, the great tribulation has not yet happened, but the world is now being prepared for this future time (2 Thess. 2:6-7). <BR><BR>The Book of Daniel <BR><BR>In Matthew 24:21 Christ speaks of a yet future time that will be the worst time in the history of the world for the Jewish people. Nevertheless, He will deliver those who come to faith in Him as their Messiah from this terrible time (Matt. 24:31). These things must take place in order that God's plan for history to work out issues of good and evil. How do we know this? Matthew 24:21 is a quote by Jesus from Daniel 12:1. <BR><BR>The entire context of Daniel 12 provides further information about what Christ has said in Matthew 24:21. Daniel's response is not surprising to the revelation of the tribulation as we see in Daniel 12:8: "As for me, I heard but could not understand; so I said, 'My lord, what will be the outcome of these events?'" This is often a question that comes into our mind when we read of the events of the tribulation. God's answer through the angel is as follows: "And he said, 'Go your way, Daniel, for these words are concealed and sealed up until the end time. Many will be purged, purified and refined; but the wicked will act wickedly, and none of the wicked will understand, but those who have insight will understand.'" (Dan. 12:9-10) <BR><BR>God's purpose of the tribulation, especially the great tribulation (last three and a half years), is to purge out those unbelieving Jews through the events of this time and to bring to faith the elect Jewish remnant. We know that the events described in both Matthew and Daniel have not yet in the past lead to the mass conversion of the Jews as these passages indicate. That the conversion of the Jews is yet to occur, no Christian would doubt. Since the tribulation precedes and gives rise to their conversion, there is no doubt that it too lies in a time future to our own day. Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 17</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"And unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days shall be cut short." <BR><BR>-Matthew 24:22 <BR><BR>In our journey through the Olivet Discourse, the passage at hand has a number of interesting issues with which I will deal. They include: the cutting short of days, no life would be saved, and who are the elect? I shall proceed to deal with them. <BR><BR>The Cutting Short of Days <BR><BR>Three-quarters rapture advocate, Marvin Rosenthal, says "The Lord is teaching that the Great Tribulation will be cut short." He continues: "The shortening of the Great Tribulation to less than three and one-half years is one of the most important truths to be grasped if the chronology of end-time events is to be understood." Does this text teach that the Lord will cut short the number of days prophesied elsewhere from 1260 days (Rev. 11:3; 12:6)? Will the Great Tribulation be less than 1260 days? Simply put, no! What does it teach? <BR><BR>First of all, only Mark (13:20) has a parallel passage to Matthew, while Luke does not. Luke's omission of this verse is perhaps due to the fact that his focus is upon a.d. 70, thus this statement relating to the future tribulation would not be appropriate. Mark tells us specially that it is "the Lord" who had cut short those days. Otherwise, there is no significant difference in the two passages. <BR><BR>The Greek word for "cut short" has the core meaning "to cut off," or, when applied to time "to cut short." Dr. Randolph Yeager notes that the verb used both in Matthew and Mark means "'lopped off', 'mutilated.' To shorten. Always in the New Testament in a chronological sense-Mt. 24:22, 22 Mk. 13:20, 20." It is significant to note that both verbs (in Matthew and Mark) "are all in the aorist tense and indicative mood with the augment," declares Dr. Renald Showers. "Aorist tense verbs have no time significance except when they are in the indicative mood with the augment. That form is used to express past time." What does this mean? <BR><BR>Dr. Showers tells us that "a number of scholars have concluded that since the two verbs in Mark 13:20 are in that form, they are expressing action in the past and therefore have significant bearing on the meaning of Jesus' statement." What is that bearing? It is that the "aorist tenses are prophetic pasts: God has already decided about the future," as one scholar explains. Another says, "The future tense interprets the preceding 'had been shortened' as having a future reference (like the Hebrew 'prophetic perfect')." This means that the cutting short, spoken of by our Lord in both Matthew and Mark, is some thing that has already taken place in the past when God's plan for history was put forth before the creation of the world. "The aor. Tenses put this action in the past," concludes Ezra Gould. "The language is proleptic, stating the event as it already existed in the Divine decree." <BR><BR>Marvin Rosenthal's conjecture that these passages support his mistaken view that the Great Tribulation will be cut short of its Divinely decreed 1260 days does not hold up under scrutiny of the biblical text. Dr. Showers explains as follows: <BR><BR>Jesus was teaching that God in the past had already shortened the Great Tribulation. He did so in the sense that in the past He determined to cut it off at a specific time rather than let it continue indefinitely. In His omniscience, God knew that if the Great Tribulation were to continue indefinitely, all flesh would perish from the earth. To prevent that from happening, in the past God sovereignly set a specific time for the Great Tribulation to end. <BR><BR>Said another way, God, in His omniscience, knew that if He let the Great Tribulation go 1320 days (an arbitrary number for the sake of illustration), then all flesh would be wiped out. Therefore, in eternity past when God was planning this time of history, He cut it short to 1260 days, so that the elect would in fact be saved. <BR><BR>No Life Would Have Been Saved <BR><BR>We have already seen previously that for Satan and the Antichrist their goal for these events is to destroy the Jewish people. Why does the Devil want to do that? He believes that if he can destroy the Jews, then He will be able to prevent the second coming, since Christ's return is a response to the converted Jewish remnant's request for physical deliverance. Satan believes that if he can prevent a key event in God's predestined plan for history from occurring then he will have defamed God and proven his slander that God is not worthy of His exalted position. He cannot succeed because God is faithful to fulfill His word. <BR><BR>So what does the phrase "no life would have been saved" (lit. "all flesh would not be saved") mean in light of Christ's prophetic sermon? There are two views that I think are worthy of consideration and they revolved around the meaning of the term "no life." Does it refer to the Jewish remnant, which is destined for salvation during this time, or does Christ have in mind all humanity? First, I agree with the general consensus among commentators that salvation in this context refers to physical deliverance and not salvation from one's sins (i.e., justification), because the danger in this context is physical, not spiritual. <BR><BR>Before studying and writing this current commentary, I held the view that "no life," or "no flesh" was a reference to Israel. I have changed my mind and now think that this phrase refers to all humanity. Why have I changed? I have changed my mind primarily because of the lexical data (i.e., how a word or phrase is used in other instances). Dr. Stanley Toussaint explains: <BR><BR>BAG take pasa sarx to mean every person, everyone. With the negative they take it to mean no person, nobody and list Matthew 24:22 and Mark 13:20 as instances of this meaning. The expression pasa sarx comes from the Septuagint which in turn looks at the Hebraism kol basar "all flesh." Gesenius says this Hebrew construction means "all living creatures . . . especially all men, the whole human race . . . " Therefore, to interpret "all flesh" in Matthew 24:22 and Mark 13:20 as referring to Jews living in Judea in a. d. 70 is too limiting. "All flesh" describes all humanity. <BR><BR>Dr. Craig Evans concurs: <BR><BR>reflects Semitic idiom (e.g., Gen 9:11: "never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood", Isa 40:5: "all flesh shall see it together"). . . . the warning that the period of tribulation will be so severe that unless shortened it will extinguish human life argues that the prophecy portends more than the Jewish war. . . . but the fate of the whole of humanity did not hang in the balance. <BR><BR>It appears that Satan's effort to destroy the Jews would result in the total annihilation of all humanity, were not for Christ's intervention at the second advent. This fact provides us with further insight into the purposes of Christ's return. <BR><BR>Who Are The Elect? <BR><BR>The term "the elect" is uttered three times by Jesus in the Olivet discourse (Matt. 14:22, 24, 31; also in Mark 13:20, 22, 27). I believe that all three uses must refer to the same entity in each instance. They clearly refer, in context, to some group of believers during the tribulation. Since the church has been raptured, it cannot refer to her. Thus, does "the elect" reference saved Jews and Gentiles, or only the Jewish remnant? I believe that this term refers to the Jewish remnant, primarily because of contextual factors. <BR><BR>While it is true that the term "the elect" is used in the New Testament Epistles of church age believers (i.e., both Jews and Gentiles) (see Rom. 8:33; Col. 3:12; 2 Tim. 2:10; Titus 1:1), it is also true that this term is used in a variety of other ways. Note multiple uses as follows: Rufus, a choice man (Rom. 16:13); elect angels (1 Tim. 5:21); of Jewish believers (1 Pet. 1:1; 2:9); Christ a choice building stone (1 Pet. 2:4, 6); a chosen lady (2 John 1); a chosen sister (2 John 13). In the Old Testament the term "elect" is used in the following references to Israel: Isaiah 42:1; 43:20; 45:4; 65:9; 65:15; 65:22; Psalm 89:3; 105:6, 43; 106:5; 1 Chronicles 16:13. The verbal form of "to choose" is used dozens of times in relation to Israel in the Old Testament (i.e., Deut. 7:6). Even though a majority of the biblical occurrences refer to Israel, usage must always be determined by how it is used in a specific context. "In this context, it is most likely used regarding the nation," concludes Dr. Ed Glasscock. "Daniel identifies this time as 'decreed for your people and your holy city,' indicating that Israel, not the church or mankind in general, will be the center of the Tribulation suffering." <BR><BR>We have seen that the term elect has a fairly wide range of usage. "Out of every dispensation there will be some gathered of God's mere mercy and sovereignty. These are 'the elect' of that dispensation," explains Robert Govett. "Therefore the term has as many special meanings as there are dispensations." But since the focus of this passage is upon Israel it is not mystery that Christ has them in mind. William Kelly says, "the evidence unmistakably points to a converted body of Jews in the latter day, not standing in church light and privilege, but having Jewish hopes, and while awaiting the Messiah." The term "the elect" is most likely used because Christ looks forward to those belonging to the Jewish remnant, though not yet saved, they are chosen to such a destiny-the elect. Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 18</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"Then if anyone says to you, 'behold, here is the Christ,' or 'there He is,' do not believe him. For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect, I have told you in advance." <BR><BR>-Matthew 24:23-25 <BR><BR>In the midst of the greatest time of upheaval and chaos in the history of the world, Jesus reminds his disciples that even then the most important thing in life is one's relationship with Christ. As this passage moves into the events of the second half of the tribulation, the number one priority is to avoid deception. <BR><BR>It is important to avoid deception during the latter half of the tribulation because this is the time in which the antichrist (also known as the beast in Revelation) begins his global rule and requires all to take the mark of the beast in order to by or sell (Rev. 13:17). This is such an important time in history that God sends angelic messengers to specifically preach the gospel to the entire world and warn them of the consequences of accepting the mark of the beast (Rev. 14:6-13). This is an important time because individuals alive at this time will determine their eternal destiny on the basis of their response to the gospel and antichrist appeal to take his mark. <BR><BR>Matthew 24 and Mark 13 are generally parallel to one another on this passage, while Luke 21 totally omits this text. Matthew and Mark speak of a future tribulation, while Luke's focus is primarily on first century events. What is Jesus saying? <BR><BR>Jesus is saying in verses 23-25 two major points about false Messiahs. First, the false Messiah will not be visible and out in the open. Second, the false Messiah will do miracles in order to mislead and deceive many. <BR><BR>Looking For Messiah In All The Wrong Places <BR><BR>Verse 23 reports on hearsay about the impending appearance of the Messiah. Here, our Lord is setting up a contrast between the false and the true. The false program of antichrist will be laden with rumor and innuendo, but the genuine coming of Messiah will be clear to all (see verse 27). Why does Jesus come back to a warning about deception in this passage after having already addressed the issue in verses 4, 5, and 11? I think that the answer is in the wording of His warning. Dr. Thomas Figart explains as follows: <BR><BR>Following the evacuation of Judea, the false messengers of Satan will find it necessary to attempt to infiltrate those who have fled to the mountains. First, they will claim that Christ has already appeared, saying "Lo, here is Christ, or there" (24:23). In order to bolster such claims, they "shall show great signs (semeia) and wonders" (terata), two words that are used of Christ's miracles in Acts 2:22; so that their counterfeit ministry "if possible" might deceive the very elect. Obviously this will fail, yet the attempt will be made. <BR><BR>"The central point in verses 23-28 is that believers are not to be deceived by false prophets who claim to have special information about the whereabouts of the Christ," notes Robert Mounce. <BR><BR>Such an understanding fits into the flow of the passage. In verse 15 Jesus tells his disciples to head for the hills when they see the abomination of desolation take place in Jerusalem's rebuilt Temple. It is shortly after this that antichrist requires the mark of the beast during the second half of the tribulation. As events unfold during the second half of the tribulation, the antichrist (i.e., the Beast in Revelation) attempts to entice the elect, Jewish remnant out of their wilderness hiding by saying that the Messiah is clandestinely in Jerusalem, thus, they should come and see Him. However, Jesus has warned his disciples in advance not listen to such propaganda. <BR><BR>This passage is parallel to Paul's writings in 2 Thessalonians 2 and John's words in Revelation 13. Both passages speak of Antichrist's deceptions. While Matthew 24:26 says that the elect will not be deceived, 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 says that the non-elect will be deceived. "The one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. And for this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness" (2 Thess. 2:9-12). "Not alone will the apostate part of the Jewish people be deceived by theses lying wonders," explains Arno Gaebelein. "But also the apostate part of Christendom, left behind after the rapture of the church has taken place, will be deceived and swept away in the great judgments of that coming day." Interestingly Jesus says concerning these false announcements: "Do not believe!" This demonstrates that a Believer should not just believe anything that comes down the pike, but it does matter what you believe. <BR><BR>False Christs and False Prophets <BR><BR>Just as there are true prophets who prepare the way for the true Messiah, so also, Satan will have false prophets to prepare the way for his false Messiah often known as the antichrist. In fact, it is often said that the term "antichrist" only appears in 1 John (2:18; 4:3). This is true. However, the use of "false Christs" in verse 24 is similar to the language for antichrist in 1 John. Robert Govett says, "From the word 'false Christ' being equivalent to 'Antichrist' (1 John ii.18; iv.3), we see the meaning of the preposition anti. By 'Antichrist' is not meant 'one in opposition to Christ,' but 'a false Messiah resembling the true.'" This is expounded upon in Revelation 13, where the first part of the chapter (1-10) describes the first beast or the antichrist, while the second part (11- 18) explains the role of the false prophet. Here we see the traditional marriage of religion being used to support the political. It is the false prophet who uses his religious office to advocate loyalty to the beast and to take his mark of allegiance on the right hand or forehead. This is why Jesus warns of false signs and wonders in Matthew 24. <BR><BR>The "false Christs" clearly is a reference to the antichrist, who is also known as the beast (Dan. and Rev), the man of sin and the man of lawlessness (2 Thess. 2). The reference to "false prophets" would certainly include the false prophet of Revelation 13:11-18. Revelation 19:20 summarizes the career and destiny of the false prophet as follows: "And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone." <BR><BR>Preterists like Gary DeMar say that these verses were fulfilled through events leading up to, and including, the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by the Romans in a.d. 70. They can cite a few examples of false prophets, since there have been false prophets since the writing of the New Testament (2 Pet. 2:1). However, there is consensus that there were not false Messiahs or Christs until till around a.d. 130. In fact, preterists do not even attempt to cite examples of false Christs. Apparently there were none in the first century to reference. H. A. W. Meyer explains: <BR><BR>We possess no historical record of any false Messiahs having appeared previous to the destruction of Jerusalem (Barcochba did not make his appearance till the time of Hadrian); for Simon Magus (Acts viii. 9), Theudas (Acts v. 36), the Egyptian (Acts xxi. 38), Menander, Dositheus, who have been referred to as cases in point (Theophylact, Euthymius Zigabenus, Grotius, Calovinus, Bengel), did not pretend to be the Messiah. Comp. Joseph Antt. Xx. 5. 1; 8. 6; Bell. Ii. 13. 5. <BR><BR>Jesus is looking toward a time that has not yet taken place in history. He is looking forward to the time of the tribulation where the Jewish remnant will have fled to the hills at the site of the abomination of desolation. The false prophets and Messiahs attempt to draw them out of their hiding, but true believers (the elect) will not fall for it, because Jesus is warning them ahead of time about this tactic. <BR><BR>False Signs and Wonders <BR><BR>Here we have the same words (great signs and wonders) that are used to describe the miracles of Christ and His apostles, however, these works are preformed by false prophets and false Messiahs. Does this mean that Satan is merely deceptive, in that, "he makes men think that they see a genuine miracle?" Or, should this be understood as "happenings that cannot be understood on the basis of merely human powers?" I prefer the second view; that these are genuine miracles. I favor that view because every time there are statements about these false miracles the language used is that they actually do these things, as we have in this passage "will show great signs and wonders." I don't know of an instance where the language of appearance is used to describe these miracles. In other words, if they were just tricking people into thinking that they were doing miracles with smoke and mirrors, it would seem to me that scripture would have used language that indicates this. Instead it uses words and phrases that say that they are actually doing these things. <BR><BR>For example, look at some of the satanic miracles performed by the false prophet in Revelation 13. "And he performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men" (verse 13). "And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life" (verse 14). "And there was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast might even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed" (verse 15). These are the words of actual events, not slight of hand. <BR><BR>If appears that God grants temporary power to these false prophets and Messiahs so that they will be used of God to attract all unbelievers to themselves in unbelief. This is what is meant in 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 when it says, "the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved" (verses 9-10). Paul tells us the reason is that "God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness." However, His elect will not be deceived, because Jesus has warned them in advance to watch out for these false miracles. Maranatha! <BR><BR></DIV></FONT> <DIV align=center><FONT size=4><STRONG>PART 19</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>If therefore they say to you, 'Behold, He is in the wilderness,' do not go forth, or, 'Behold, He is in the inner rooms,' do not believe them. For just as the lightning comes from the east, and flashes even to the west, so shall the coming of the Son of Man be." <BR><BR>-Matthew 24:26-27 <BR><BR>Previously, Jesus has been warning the Jewish remnant during the second half of the seven-year tribulation to watch out for spiritual deception. Jesus referenced "the elect" (verse 24) for the second of three times in which that term is used in this passage, which refers to the Jewish remnant who will come to Christ during the tribulation. Jesus continues His instruction and warnings to "the elect" in verses 26-28. <BR><BR>Watch Where You Look <BR><BR>This passage (verses 26-28) from Christ's Olivet Discourse is pretty much only found in Matthew's account. Jesus is continuing His warning to the elect about how to not be misled. In essence He is saying that if someone comes to you during the tribulation and says that the Messiah is hide away privately somewhere then do not believe anyone's account of this. Why? The reason for scepticism is because when the Messiah does return it will be of such a public nature that there will not be any doubt that He has arrived. It will be the false Christs and false prophets who will attempt clandestine, backroom appearances for the purpose of deceiving. Nevertheless, if the passage says anything, it shouts that the return to which Jesus speaks will be a bodily, physical and public advent. <BR><BR>It is interesting that the preterist view of how Christ comes in this passage is closer to the kind to which Jesus warns the elect to beware. If you want to see an example of obfuscation and sophistry at work note these two examples. Preterist, Dr. Kenneth Gentry, says the following about this passage: <BR><BR>Quite emphatically the Lord warns his disciples he will not come in a visible, bodily manner in those days. He twice states that any report of his physical presence would be erroneous: . . . Clearly these statements discourage their expecting any visible return in that day; he expressly declares that any command to look for Him in some limited particular location would be a mistake. <BR><BR>Yet there will be a "coming" of Christ in that day: . . . This, however, is a spiritual judgment-coming, rather than a bodily coming. <BR><BR>Fellow preterist, Gary DeMar, also adopts an anti-bodily coming view of Jesus' predicted coming in this passage when he says the following: <BR><BR>Jesus would come "just as the lightning comes from the east," that is, quickly and without warning. . . . What the people saw was the manifestation of the Lord's coming even though they did not actually see Him. . . . Was God physically present? He was not. Did He come? Most certainly! . . . <BR><BR>Matthew 24:27 reveals that Jesus is somehow participating in Jerusalem's destruction. This is exactly the point. . . . <BR><BR>Jesus came "like lightning" to set Jerusalem "aflame all around." If you recall, it was Titus, as God's representative agent, who set the temple on fire and leveled the edifice. . . . <BR><BR>In a.d. 70 Rome was sent by God to fulfill a similar task. "Our Lord forewarns His disciples that His coming to that judgment-scene would be conspicuous and sudden as the lightning-flash which reveals itself and seems to be everywhere at the same moment." <BR><BR>The statements of these two preterists are examples of the kind of propaganda that Jesus is warning the elect to avoid during the tribulation. Matthew 24:2731 clearly is a reference to a still future second advent. I will now look at reasons why verse 27 does indeed reference Christ second coming. <BR><BR>A Future Event <BR><BR>Both Gentry and DeMar attempt to spin this passage as if it were not teaching a bodily, physical return of Christ. This preterist view is one that only about 1% of interpreters (if that many) have taken on this passage down through church history. That Jesus speaks here of his bodily return is supported by the context. In contrast to Christ's coming in verse 27 are the false Christs and false prophets of verses 23-24, who are clearly individuals that can be physically seen. Christ's return is juxtaposed to them. Christ will not return and hide out in some back room in which an undercover agent will lead people to meet. No Christ's return will be public and obvious to all. This cannot fit some "judgment-coming" through the Roman army. Regardless of what other biblical passages may teach in other contexts, the context of Matthew 24 only supports a bodily coming by Jesus, which has to be the future second coming. <BR><BR>Jesus specifically compares His coming in verse 27 to a lightning strike. I agree with DeMar that included in Christ's imagery is the idea of suddeness. However, because the force of the context (verse 26) is whether He will appear privately (i.e. "inner rooms") or publicly (i.e. like a "lightning" flash) it clearly argues for an emphasis upon appearance. Further, the Greek word for "flashes" has the core meaning of "to appear, to make visible, or to reveal." Thus, when speaking of lightening that appears, it would be translated idiomatically as "flashes." When referring to people it is always rendered "appear." This is how it is used in verse 30: "then the sign of the Son of Man will appear." In fact, "Wycliffe renders it appeareth" in verse 27. When this detail is combined with the fact that in both verse 27 and 30 the one appearing is called "the Son of Man," which always emphasizes the human aspect of Christ, the clear conclusion is that Jesus is communicating His bodily return. Even preterists agree that He did not return bodily in a.d. 70. If the text intended to speak of an invisible return through the Roman army then Christ's Deity would have been emphasized, not His humanity. Meyer says the following: <BR><BR>The advent of the Messiah will not be of such a nature that you will require to be directed to look here or look there in order to see him; but it will be as the lightning, which as soon as it appears, suddenly announces its presence everywhere; . . . what is meant is, that when it takes place, it will all of a sudden openly display itself in a glorious fashion over the whole world. Ebrard (comp. Schott) is wrong in supposing that the point of comparison lies only in the circumstance that the event comes suddenly and without any premonition. For certainly this would not tend to show, as Jesus means to do, that the assertion: he is in the wilderness, etc. is an unwarrantable pretence. <BR><BR>In all his effort to say why "the coming of the Son of Man" in Matthew 24:27 was not a literal coming of Christ, Gentry fails to tell his readers that the Greek word parousia is used in this verse. Three of the four times that parousia is used in Matthew 24, Gentry admits that it refers to the yet future second coming. The Greek Lexicon, BAG says that parousia means "presence;" "coming, advent," and "of Christ, and nearly always of his Messianic Advent in glory to judge the world at the end of this age." BAG cites all four uses of parousia in Matthew 24 as a reference to Christ second advent. In fact, BAG does not even recognize Gentry or DeMar's stated meaning as a possible category. It appears that the preterist mother is the necessity of invention in this instance. The mother of all Greek word study tools, Kittle's Dictionary, in concert with BAG, tells us that the core idea of the word means "to be present," "denotes esp. active presence," "appearing." Kittle's describes parousia as a technical term "for the 'coming' of Christ in Messianic glory." Thus, parousia carries the idea of a "presence coming," contra the preterist notion of a "non-presence coming," an invisible coming. Our Lord's use of parousia demands His physical, bodily presence. <BR><BR>Toussaint provides further reasoning for the futurist understanding of parousia in this passage: <BR><BR>. . . "What will be the sign of your coming?" (Matt. 24:3). What does "coming" (parousia) mean? That term is filled with significance. This noun occurs four times in the Olivet discourse (the only times Matthew uses parousia and the only occurrence in the Gospels). The first occurrence is in the question asked by the disciples. Very interestingly, the remaining three are in identical clauses, "thus, shall be the coming of the Son of Man" . . . (Matthew 24:27, 37, 39). <BR><BR>. . . The problem with this interpretation is the meaning of parousia before verse 36 and after. If the coming of the Son of Man in Matthew 24:37, 39 is the Second Advent, one would expect the identical clause in 24:27 to refer to the same event. The word would also have the same meaning in 24:3. It must be the Second Advent in each case. <BR><BR>Furthermore, the word parousia as found in the New Testament is always used of an actual presence. It may be employed of the presence of persons as in 1 Corinthians 16:17; 2 Corinthians 7:6-7; 10:10; Philippians 1:26; 2:12 and 2 Thessalonians 2:9. In each of these above cases the person is bodily present. In all the other cases parousia is used of the Lord's presence at His second coming, cf. 1 Corinthians 15:23; 1 Thessalonians 2:19; 3:13; 4:15; 5:23; 2 Thessalonians 2:1, 8; James 5:7, 9; 2 Peter 1:16; 3:4, 12; 1 John 2:28. The only occurrences in the Gospel of parousia are in Matthew 24. It would seem that they, too, refer to a yet future coming of Christ. <BR><BR>Gentry attempts to say that the "lightning" description in Matthew 24:27 "reflects the Roman armies marching toward Jerusalem from an easterly direction." It is hard to imagine that the time consuming march of the Roman armies is the true interpretation of this passage. Once again, I follow Toussaint's explanation of the text. <BR><BR>What then is Matthew 24:27 saying? It is simply saying people should not be misled by false teachers or counterfeit messiahs who make their deceptive claims in some wilderness or inner sanctum (24:26). They may even fortify their pretensions by fantastic miracles (24:24). The reason the Lord's followers should not be drawn aside is because the coming of the Lord Jesus will be so spectacular no one will miss seeing it. It will be like a bolt of lightning that streaks from one horizon to the other. This is why the Lord used the correlatives hosper. . . . houtos; He is simply using an analogy or comparison. His Second Advent will be as obvious as a brilliant sky-spanning bolt of lightning. So will be the unmistakable and actual presence of the Lord Jesus Christ in His second coming to earth. <BR><BR>Maranatha! <BR><BR></DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT size=4><STRONG>PART 20</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>"Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken." -Matthew 24:28-29 <BR><BR>After speaking of the suddeness and public visibility of His return in verses 26-27, our Lord now adds a parabolic idiom in verse 28. He says, "Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather." This phrase is also found in a similar context in Luke 17:24. What does this mean and to whom does it refer? However, before that question is answered I want to make a final point concerning verse 27. <BR><BR>Global, Not Local <BR><BR>We have seen in verse 27, which says, "For just as the lightning comes from the east, and flashes even to the west, so shall the coming of the Son of Man be," that it emphasizes a global coming. This verse is set in contrast to the false teachers of verse 26 who say that the Messiah has appeared locally; in a back room somewhere. We have seen that preterists like Gary DeMar and Kenneth Gentry taught that Jesus came locally, through the Roman army in a.d. 70. That view contracts verse 27 which teaches that the Messiah's return will be global in nature. Randolph Yeager says of verse 27, <BR><BR>Thus we have Jesus' reason for telling us not to believe the false teachers who will seek to localize Messiah's coming. It will be universally observed. No one will find it necessary to go anywhere in order to see Him, any more than it is necessary to move to a better vantage point in order to see the flash of lightning is conspicuous-something impossible to overlook. Satan, the shinning one fell from heave, with the speed of the lightning-(Lk. 10:18). Christ will come to earth with the universality of the lightning. <BR><BR>We see that the teaching of this passage means that second coming of Christ will be something that no human being-not even the anti-Christ-will be able to fake it. It will be of such a nature that only God will be able to pull it off. It will be a global and miraculous event that does not in any way parallel the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in a.d. 70. This will be an event that will not need to be reported in the news media, since God will accomplish this event in such a way that everyone will know what has happened. Thus, it must be a future event to our own day since nothing like this has yet to occur in history. <BR><BR>The Meaning of the Parable <BR><BR>There are two main interpretations of this passage. One holds that it speaks of judgment of the unsaved. The other view sees a continuation of the theme of the context denoting suddeness and universality. I believe that both ideas are intended in verse 28. <BR><BR>Our Lord speaks of a "corpse," coupled with the expression of "eagles" or more preciously in this context "vultures." This provides a picture of judgment. Thomas Figart notes: <BR><BR>Taken literally, it means that wherever dead bodies are, there the aetoi (either eagles or vultures) will descend upon them. From a physical point of view, the vast carnage will result in this very thing. Symbolically, it can be related to the parallel passage in Luke 17:37 when the disciples asked "Where, Lord" in regard to the separation of the believers from the unbelievers at that time. He answered, "Wherever the body is, there will the eagles (aetoi) be gathered together." This means that these two similar statements refer to the judgment to come upon the unbelievers who are not prepared to meet Him. <BR><BR>In addition to a judgment warning in conjunction with the return of Jesus to earth, the grammar appears to require an emphasis upon the global suddeness of the event. Heinrich Meyer points this out as follows: <BR><BR>Confirmation of the truth that the advent will announce its presence everywhere, and that from the point of view of the retributive punishment which the coming One will be called upon everywhere to execute. The emphasis of this figurative adage is on hopou ean � and eke": "Wherever the carcase may happen to be, there will the eagles be gathered together,"-on no spot where there is a carcase will this fathering fail, so that, when the Messiah shall have come, He will reveal Himself everywhere in this aspect also (namely, as an avenger). <BR><BR>That this proverb includes a global and suddeness aspect is supported by the preceding context, which I have noted before emphasizes Christ's sudden and public return. <BR><BR>Not a Reference to a.d. 70 <BR><BR>Preterists, not surprisingly, try to twist and turn this verse into a proverb that supports their first century fulfillment assumption. Dr. Kenneth Gentry declares: <BR><BR>This seems to speak of the dreadful devastation Rome wreaks upon Israel. The furious soldiers who cruelly ravage the people will destroy national, political Israel. Josephus often mentions the rage of the Roman troops: . . . The imagery is familiar enough to an agrarian people: the ugly, rotting corpse of an animal blanketed by bickering birds of prey. <BR><BR>Fellow preterist Gary DeMar echoes Dr. Gentry's view and says, <BR><BR>The Jerusalem of Jesus' day, because of its dead rituals, was a carcass, food for the scavenging birds, the Roman armies. This is an appropriate description of Jerusalem's acts of abomination. In addition, we know that tens of thousands (Josephus says over a million) were killed during the Roman siege. Even the temple area was not spared. The Idumean and Zealot revolt left thousands slaughtered in and around the temple. . . . There was no life in Jerusalem since the Lord had departed. As our High Priest, Jesus could no longer remain in the city because of its defilement. It had to be burned with fire for purification. <BR><BR>Just as there is little life left once the vultures have gathered, so with the destruction of the temple and the desolation of the city, the shadow of heavenly things is no more. <BR><BR>I have already shown from the context that this passage in general refers to a future return of Christ. If the surrounding context teaches a future return of Christ, which it does, then this passage cannot reference a past event. Meyer rightly notes: <BR><BR>Others (Lightfoot, Hammond, Clericus, Wolf, Wetstein) have erroneously supposed that the carcase alludes to Jerusalem or the Jews, and that the eagles are intended to denote the Roman legions with their standards (Xen. Anab. I. 10. 12; Plut. Mar. 23). But it is the advent that is in question; while according to vv. 23-27, on hopou ean � cannot be taken as referring to any one particular locality. <BR><BR>Alan M'Neile echoes Meyer's point and declares, "It does not describe . . . the eagles on the Roman standards in the attack on Jerusalem; the last is not the subject dealt with either in Mat. or Lk." William Kelly summarizes the correct view of the passage when he states the following: <BR><BR>Applied to Israel, all is simple. The carcase represents the apostate part of that nation; the eagles, or vultures, are the figure of the judgments that fall upon it. It is not only, then, that there will be the lightning-like display of Christ in judgment; but the agents of His wrath shall know where, and how, to deal with that which is abominable in God's sight. <BR><BR>After The Tribulation of Those Days <BR><BR>Having mentioned the second coming of Christ in verses 27-28 in reference to how He will appear (i.e., privately or publicly), in this next section (verses 29-31), Jesus describes His return. The first thing Christ says is that His return will take place "immediately after the tribulation of those days." This means that the events described in the rest of verses 29-31 will occur immediately after the events of the tribulation. This seems obvious enough. However, not all seem to understand that. <BR><BR>Preterist Gary DeMar says that Christ's coming was a "coming in judgment upon Jerusalem in a.d. 70." If the judgment events upon Jerusalem took place in verses 4-28 and occurred before verse 29, as DeMar teaches, then that would mean that he believes that verses 29-31 describe a second coming, different from the one spoken of in verse 27. This is exactly what preterists must do in order to maintain their twisted view of Christ's prophetic discourse. DeMar admits, "Jesus' 'coming' in judgment upon Jerusalem (Matt. 24:27) and His coming 'up to the Ancient of Days' (Dan. 7:13) were two events that occurred within the time span of the first generation of Christians. There is no future fulfillment of those events." Since DeMar is himself teaching multiple comings of Christ, it seems inconsistent that he could be so vocal against others, like pretribulationists, who also see several comings of our Lord. Yet DeMar heaps great disdain on what he calls "a two-stage coming." <BR><BR>Kelly rightly observes the following points about this bizarre preterist perspective: <BR><BR>One can hardly be asked to notice the old effort to apply these verses to the Roman triumph over Jerusalem. On the fact of it, could this be said to be "immediately after the tribulation"? or was it not rather the crowning of Jewish sorrow, not the glorious reversal of their sufferings by a divine deliverance? Whatever prodigies Josephus reports were rather during the tribulation he records; whereas the signs spoken of here, literal or figurative, are to follow "the tribulation of those day" (i.e., the future crisis of Jerusalem). <BR><BR>If the preterist view should be maintained, it would mean the disciples' question about "what will be the sign of your coming?" (verse 3) would have to have multiple answers. Yet we find no such thing in Christ's discourse. Should not the disciples' question read: "what will be the signs of your comings?" It appears that since neither preterist return is a bodily, physical return, but instead are spiritual or non-physical comings, that one can have Christ coming and going all over the place. One could have Christ coming every day in some spiritual way, if coming does not refer to an actual physical event. These are the kinds of things that a preterist must do in their attempts to make their system appear to work to their little circle of followers. James Morison notes the following insights: <BR><BR>This word immediately has been a perfect rack of torture to such expositors as have lost their way in the interpretation of the chapter. . . . The whole difficulty arises from assuming that the tribulation of those days has reference to the tribulation that was to be experienced in connection with the destruction of Jerusalem. (See vers. 16-21.) There is not however the slightest necessity for making such an assumption. There is every reason indeed for rejecting it, . . . This great mistake is founded on an unwarrantably narrow view of the Saviour's aim in His discourse in general, and on an inappropriately microscopic way of peering toward telescopic objects. <BR><BR>Maranatha! <BR><BR></DIV> <DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 21</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken." -Matthew 24:28-29 <BR><BR>Upon stating the fact of His sudden, bodily, and glorious return, Christ parenthetically comments upon the judgment aspect of this advent. Then, verses 29-31 provide a more extended description of His future return to planet earth. The statement of His return in verse 27 concludes a discussion in which Jesus contrasts the coming of false messiahs with His genuine return. When He returns, there will be no doubt. One will not have to have a subscription from a special news source that reports information the mainstream media leaves out. No media will be needed at Christ's coming since His return will include a grand and glorious publicity feature. <BR><BR>Corpses and Vultures <BR><BR>The phrase in verse 28 is also found in Luke 17:37, but not in Mark 13 or Luke 21. No doubt this is a judgment slogan of some kind. Interestingly in Revelation 19:17-19, we have a similar, though not verbatim, statement in conjunction with Christ's return. <BR><BR>And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds which fly in midheaven, "Come, assemble for the great supper of God; in order that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them and the flesh of all men, both free men and slaves, and small and great." And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies, assembled to make war against Him who sat upon the horse, and against His army. . . . And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat upon the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh." (Rev. 19:17-19, 21) <BR><BR>Revelation 19 clearly paints the picture of the birds coming to feast upon the corpuses of those who are about to be slaughtered by Christ at His return. This is a clear judgment use of this terminology. Since the contexts are similar in Matthew 24 and in Luke 17, I think that consistency of context demands a judgment interpretation. Robert Gundry explains: <BR><BR>The preceding context determines that the saying be taken as a figure of judgment on the wicked when the Son of man has his day. The body stands for the wicked, the vultures for judgment, and the saying means that wherever the wicked are, the judgment will strike. They cannot escape; only the righteous will. <BR><BR>Taken in context, verse 28 completes the section (verses 23-28) by noting that when Jesus suddenly appears at His return, it will result in not just judgment upon the false prophets and messiahs, but doom for all in opposition to His will. However, we should not be surprised to learn that preterists think differently. <BR><BR>The Romans in a.d. 70? <BR><BR>Preterists, like Gary DeMar and Kenneth Gentry, believe that this passage was fulfilled in a.d. 70. DeMar says, "The Jerusalem of Jesus' day, because of its dead rituals, was a carcass, food for the scavenging birds, the Roman armies." Gentry agrees and declares, "This seems to speak of the dreadful devastation Rome wreaks upon Israel. The furious soldiers who cruelly ravage the people will destroy national, political Israel." <BR><BR>This view is untenable because the context supports a still future event that did not occur in the a.d. 70 destruction of Jerusalem-namely the bodily return of Christ. Alan M'Neile tells us that this passages "does not describe the Messiah descending from heaven upon the nation dead in sins, nor the false Messiahs and prophets making the people their prey, nor the eagles on the Roman standards in the attack on Jerusalem; the last is not the subject dealt with either in Mt. or Lk." Gundry further explains as follows: <BR><BR>Some have thought that [the vultures] refers to the eagles of the Roman legions swooping down on Jerusalem during the first Jewish revolt (a.d. 66-73); but the context in Luke has nothing about the destruction of Jerusalem, and Matthew focuses attention on the Son of man's coming rather than on the destruction of the city. <BR><BR>Matthew 24:28 is surrounded, before and after, with a context of a future return of Christ, not an invisible coming through the Romans in a.d. 70. Thomas Figart aptly notes that, "This means that these two similar statements refer to the judgment to come upon the unbelievers who are not prepared to meet Him. They will be judged as swiftly and as surely as vultures pounce upon dead bodies." <BR><BR>Immediately after the Tribulation <BR><BR>As Christ's narrative transitions into a new emphasis, we move from events relating to the tribulation to an event that will follow the tribulation. Even though Jesus has already commented on the manner of His second coming in verse 27, He now focuses upon it in relation to the tribulation. He has been speaking previously about tribulation events (see verses 9, 21 and Mark 13:19), but now shifts to something that will take place "immediately" after the tribulation of those days. That event is the future, bodily return of Christ to planet earth, which is know as the second coming (verse 30). What Christ describes in a few verses (verses 29-31), John explains in greater detail (Rev. 19:11-21). So we see that the second-advent immediately follows the events of the tribulation. <BR><BR>Eutheos is a Greek adverb usually translated "immediately," as in the New American Standard Bible which I always use, or "straightway, at once, directly." Moulton and Milligan, in examples from the Greek papyri, emphasize that the use of this word means "at once." Since "an adverb usually modifies the verb closest to it," immediately relates directly to the verb "to darken." Thus, the events of verse 29 will follow the tribulation immediately, at once, without any other events intervening, or without a time delay. <BR><BR>This would mean within the expanded chronology of the events of the tribulation found in Revelation 4-19, that Matthew 24:29-31 will follow immediately the final bowl judgment found in Revelation 16:17-21. This explains the parenthetical warning in the next-to-the-last bowl judgment which reads as follows: "Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his garments, lest he walk about naked and men see his shame" (Rev. 16:15). It won't be long from the time in which the sixth bowl judgment takes place, until Christ returns. Revelation 17-18 is an overview of the judgment upon Babylon, which surveys items that will take place throughout the tribulation and second coming. Thus, from a chronological aspect in Revelation, chapter 16 is followed in time by chapter 19. <BR><BR>Of further interest, is the fact that the word "immediately" is used in Luke 21:9 to say that during the events of the tribulation, "the end does not follow immediately." It is only later, in Luke 21:27-28, when "they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory," that they are "straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." This passage speaks of the physical deliverance that will occur for Jewish believers at the second coming. Physical deliverance will occur at Christ's return for all believers, but the context is speaking specifically to Jewish believers who are under great peril during the tribulation. <BR><BR>Of the parallel passages on the Olivet discourse, none have the word "immediately." Luke 21 really does not have a parallel statement like verse 29 in Matthew. However, Mark 13 does have a parallel statement which reads as follows: "But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory" (13:24-26). Mark drops out the pressing term "immediately," for the less urgent phrase "in those days," but then provides a similar statement to Matthew's in the things that follow. This demonstrates that both speak of a similar event and that event is the future second coming of Christ. <BR><BR>Preterist Protest <BR><BR>Preterists DeMar and Gentry do not explain how "immediately" in verse 29 relates to their first century fulfillment view. Gentry does not even deal with the term "immediately" in verse 29. DeMar spends over a page talking about "immediately" and then concludes that all the events of Matthew 24 had to take place in a.d. 70. The reason this is important to the preterist interpretation is that preterists teach that Christ's coming in a.d. 70 was a "judgment-coming" that occurred through the Roman army as they assaulted and eventually destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. Gentry calls it "a spiritual judgment-coming, rather than a bodily coming." Gentry specifically links verse 30 with the overall judgment of the passage when he says the following: "Christ specifically applies that verse to the first century. . . . Christ comes in judgment upon Jerusalem in the a.d. 67-70 events." So Gentry describes Christ coming, as specifically mentioned in verse 30, with the events of a.d. 67-70, which is their understanding of "the tribulation." <BR><BR>Such a view creates a big contradiction with the text of Matthew 24 spoken by Christ Himself. When one reads the preterist interpretation of Matthew 24 it is discovered that they an blend event that is said by Jesus to take place immediately after the tribulation with those that were said to occur during the tribulation. If Christ's coming in Matthew 24:30 is a judgment-coming, as taught by preterists, then the judgment events would have had to have occurred during what Jesus called the tribulation part of Matthew 24 (verses 4-29). Yet, verse 30 is said by Christ to occur immediately after "the tribulation of those days." Randolph Yeager explains: <BR><BR>The attempt to show that Jesus' prophecy had its fulfillment between a.d. 33 and a.d. 70, disregards vss. 29-31. None of these events took place ("immediately after") the troublous times connected with Titus' invasion and sack of Jerusalem in a.d. 70. . . . These drastic disturbances in the heavens will highlight the second coming of Christ. . . . How frantic the efforts of many commentators in dealing with this passage because they are prejudiced against a futurist view. <BR><BR>In spite of the exercise of near genius imaginations by preterists and others, we have seen and will continue to see, as we progress through this passage, that Christ speaks here of yet future events. We will not have anyone rob the Church of our wonderful hope in the glorious return of Jesus Christ to this earth, as this passage so beautifully teaches. Maranatha! <BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 22</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken." -Matthew 24:29 <BR><BR>One of the original questions that the disciples ask Jesus at the beginning of this discourse was "what will be the sign of your coming?" He has been answering the question since verse 23. Having spoken of His coming in verse 27, Jesus now builds upon His previous point that He will not arrive clandestinely, but His return will be a clear, public event that will take place suddenly. Just such a glorious appearing is exactly what is described in verses 29 and 30. <BR><BR>The Sun, Moon, and Stars <BR><BR>Matthew 24:29 is not a new revelation by our Lord. Old Testament passages like Isaiah 13:9-10 and Joel 2:31; 3:15 also reference this "black out" and light show that will occur "immediately after the tribulation," in preparation for Christ's second coming as noted in Matthew 24:30. These Old Testament passages refer to the same future events that Christ describes in verse 29. In conjunction with the return of Jesus, Israel will be rescued from her tribulation by the Lord Himself (verse 31). We see the theme of rescue associated with the Lord's return reinforced from the contexts of these Old Testament passages, especially Joel 2 and 3, especially 2:31 and 3:1-2. <BR><BR>It is clear that our Lord has quoted part of His declaration about the sun and moon in Matthew 24:29, "But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, . . ." from Joel 2:31. Both are speaking of the same time and events-the time immediately following the tribulation and in conjunction with Christ's return. Thus, it is interesting to take note of Joel 3:1-2, which provides a "time text" saying that the "black out" (Joel 2:31) will occur "in those day and at that time" (Joel 3:1). In conjunction with this is described a time when the Lord will "restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem" (Joel 3:1). Not judgment, but deliverance, as in Matthew 24. This event is said to be a time when the Lord "will gather all the nations" (Joel 3:1) in the valley of Jehoshaphat just north of Jerusalem. Further, it will be a time in which Israel will have been regathered from among the nations (Joel 3:2). This will be the time in which the sun and moon will be darkened. <BR><BR>Preterist Folly <BR><BR>Of course, preterists believe that these events are connected to the first century. "Here we encounter remarkable cosmic disturbances that seem too catastrophic for applying to a.d. 70," says Gentry. He believes that "this portrays historical divine judgment under the dramatic imagery of a universal catastrophe." How does he arrive at such a conclusion? "To understand it properly we must interpret it covenantally, which is to say biblically, rather than according to a presupposed simple literalism." It goes without saying that any passage in the Bible must be interpreted biblically. So, why does Gentry feel compelled to make such a statement? He does this because he is getting ready to put forth an un-biblical interpretation. He already admitted that it does not seem that these events happened in the first century. Since he apparently cannot provide a textual interpretation, he has to bring in his preconceive theology as the real basis for his understanding of the text. He is not interpreting the passage biblically, but theologically. Dr. Gentry uses his preconceived preterist notion as the true basis for his "interpretation" at this point. This is obvious to any attempting to handle the text from the proper perspective of the literal, grammatical, and contextual approach. Only those who are already committed to preterism, no matter what the text says, will fall for Gentry's equation of covenantal interpretation with a proper biblical approach. <BR><BR>Dr. Gentry believes that verse 29 "draws upon the imagery from Old Testament judgment passages that sound as if they are world-ending events." I have already noted such a relationship. This point is not a matter for debate, however, Gentry is typical of how preterists mishandle the recognized Old Testament relationship. <BR><BR>Since Gentry admits that this passage sounds like it did not occur in the first century. This is why, by his own admission, he must introduce his theology (if covenant were a true synonym for biblical, why must he tell us?) as a factor for interpreting this text. While those following the normal canons of sound hermeneutics-the historical, grammatical, contextual approach-cannot find Dr. Gentry's view taught from the passage. Dr. Gentry must employ a historical, grammatical, and theological hermeneutic to (mis)explain the passage. Since the preterist erroneous believes that these events had to occur in the first century they are forced to views that are not supported by the words, phrases, and context of the passage. If anyone is allowed to subjectively introduce their theology as part of the hermeneutical process, then it should not be surprising to find that the text supposedly teaches what is presupposed. But that is not true exegesis, but it is a widely practiced form of eisegesis. Dr. Robert Thomas' recent comment about Dr. Gentry's interpretative approach is on the mark when he says, "Gentry's use of symbolism is inconsistent and self-contradictory. A factoring of preunderstanding into the interpretive process inevitably leads to unimaginable extremes in hermeneutical abuse." The same could be said for all preterist approaches to Matthew 24 and much of Scripture. <BR><BR>Handling Figures of Speech <BR><BR>When I study the Old Testament figures that preterist say speak of the passing of a great political power, I wonder how they know what the original figures mean? I do not see a textual basis for their understanding either in the Old Testament or in Matthew 24. There are no biblical passages that establish the preterist use of these figures. In 1857 Rev. D. D. Buck made the following hermeneutical points about interpreting Matthew 24:29, which are still valid in our own day: <BR><BR>(1.) The use of metaphoric language implies a knowledge or idea of what would be understood if such language were applied literally. No one ever uses figures without having in view the literal things from which the figures are derived. . . . If we say Christianity is the sun of the world, it implies that we have a previous understanding of the nature and fact of the sun. <BR><BR>(2.) Now, whence did this ancient figurative use of the darkening of the luminaries arise? How did it happen that it was so common for the prophets to speak of ordinary, limited judgments, in language which all admit would, if used literally, apply to the general judgment? How became it so common to speak metaphorically of the darkening of the sun, moon, and stars, and the passing away of the heavens? Figures are the shadow of the literal. Where is the substance that originates the shadow? Metaphors are borrowed from literal speech. Where is the literal speech, and the revelation of the literal idea, of the blotting out of the bright heavens, and the downfall of the world? <BR><BR>(3.) This question is to be settled by those who seize upon every reference to these great events, and pronounce them figurative. Will they please to tell us where there is a spot in all the Bible where the literalist may plant his feet, and stand up in defense of orthodoxy, and give a philosophical explanation of the commonness of such language as appears to refer to the day of Judgment? <BR><BR>Comparing Scripture With Scripture <BR><BR>Luke 21:24 says, "and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." This text provides an outline of the history of Jerusalem from the time of the destruction of Jerusalem until Israel's redemption at the second coming (Luke 21:25-29). The time in which the sun and moon will be darkened will follow the end of "the times of the Gentiles," according to Luke 21:25. The fact that the blackout of Matthew 24:29 is to come at the end of the times of the Gentiles, "immediately after the tribulation of those days," makes it clear that it could not have happened in the first century since, according to Luke 21:24, the Roman destruction of the Holy City would commence that time which has gone on now for almost 2,000 years. This event must be future and in conjunction with a time in which the Lord will deliver His people, not judge them (as in a.d. 70). <BR><BR>If the preterist interpretation of this passage is left to stand then it creates tremendous contradictions between the text and the historical records of the Roman siege. Rev. Richard Shimeall explains the preterist problem as follows: <BR><BR>Historically, therefore, the state of the case amounts to this: <BR><BR>(1.) The high-priest of the Jewish nation and many of his associates had been murdered, and the whole body of the priesthood overthrown; and, if there were any religious services, they were conducted by such wretches as the robbers saw fit to appoint. <BR><BR>(2.) Their temple was changed into a citadel and stronghold of an army of the vilest and most abominable robbers and murderers that ever disgraced the human race. <BR><BR>(3.) Their "holy houses" (synagogues) throughout the land had been pillaged and destroyed by the ruthless and bloody Sicarii. <BR><BR>(4.) Their judiciary and temple officers had either fled for their lives to the Romans, or had been murdered by the robber-gangs of the city, while their nobles and men of-wealth perished by myriads. And finally, <BR><BR>(5.) Whether within the capital or throughout the borders of Judea, east, west, north, and south, the ecclesiastical and civil institutions of the nation were exterminated, and the country conquered and laid waste by the Romans, or ravaged by organized banditti. <BR><BR>And thus, reader, it continued to the end. These, we repeat, are the historical facts of the case. And yet, our commentators have trusted the interpretation of some of the most important parts of the Bible to the theory, the principal argument to sustain which lies in the assumption that the Jewish ecclesiastical and civil governments were destroyed "after" the destruction of Jerusalem! <BR><BR>What shall the writer say more? He claims to have settled the question by undeniable historic facts. If anything, let it be in the form of the following appeal to logic: <BR><BR>l. If by the heavenly luminaries be meant the ecclesiastical and civil States and rulers of the Jews, and the darkening of them refers to their destruction; and if this was effected by the Roman legions, it follows that it must have occurred either before or during the tribulation that resulted in their ruin. <BR><BR>2. But, inasmuch as the object of the war was to reduce the nation to obedience, or to bring it to ruin, it could not have preceded it. <BR><BR>3. It must therefore have occurred during the war. Recollect we are now speaking of the darkening of the sun, moon, and stars, as denoting the so-called Jewish tribulation at the hands of the Romans. We repeat, then, it must have occurred during the war. Now, it is undeniable, that that war did not cease until its object was effected. It is also undeniable, that the nation was in ruins before the war was ended. And it is a fact, also, that the predicted tribulation continued undiminished, if indeed it did not increase in severity, to the last. <BR><BR>It is, therefore, we submit, settled-historically and logically settled-that it was during, and not after, that time of trouble, that the so-called Jewish luminaries were darkened. And, what is decisive of this point, are those notable words of Christ, "Immediately after tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened," etc.; which shows conclusively that our Lord was not speaking of that event in the 29th verse of this chapter. <BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 23</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken." -Matthew 24:29 <BR><BR>As I continue with an exposition of verse 29, it is important to note that we have already seen the great impossibility that this passage could have been fulfilled about 2,000 years ago in the Roman destruction of Jerusalem. So to what does the darkening of the sun and moon and other astronomical events refer? Is Christ's description that of a real, physical event, or is He merely using symbolic language in which He describes something else? <BR><BR>We must take note of the fact that Christ's statement in this passage contains four descriptive phrases. First, the darkening of the sun; second, the moon not reflecting its light; third, stars falling from the sky; fourth, a shaking of heaven powers. <BR><BR>Darkening of the Sun <BR><BR>We saw earlier that preterists like Dr. Kenneth Gentry believe that the reference to the sun in this passage is not to the literal, physical sun, but merely a symbol for something that occurred in the first century. He believes that "this portrays historical divine judgment under the dramatic imagery of a universal catastrophe." To what does he contend that this imagery is? "I will argue that this passage speaks of the a.d. 70 collapse of geo-political Israel. . . . of national catastrophe in terms of cosmic destruction." Of course, I contend that sun, in this context has to refer to the physical sphere that shines in the sky. If that is the case, then clearly the events being described in verse 29 have not yet happened in history and must refer to a future time. <BR><BR>Before we go any further, lets examine how many of the 164 times that the word "sun" is used in the Bible as a symbol or figure of speech and not a reference to the physical sun. There are five possible uses of "sun" as a symbol in the Bible (Gen. 37:9; Psalm 84:11; Jer. 15:9; Mal. 4:2; Rev. 12:1). In Genesis 37:9 and Revelation 12:1 the sun is a symbol for Jacob, the father of Israel. Psalm 84:11 says, "the Lord God is a sun and shield," comparing an attribute of God to the sun. Jeremiah refers to the death of a mother with seven sons by an invading army as, "Her sun has set while it was yet day" (15:9). Malachi describes the coming Messiah as One Who is "the sun of righteousness," Who "will rise with healing in its wings" (4:2). As anyone can see, about 97% of the time "sun" refers to the physical sphere that shines faithfully in the sky. In five instances of symbolic use, none refer to "a universal catastrophe," as suggested by Dr. Gentry. Dr. Gentry and preterists like him must transform Matthew 24:29, Isaiah 13:10 and Joel 2 and 3 into non-physical symbols since clearly such catastrophic events did not occur in God's creation during the a.d. 70 event. There are no textual factors in Matthew 24 that support understanding the sun, moon, and stars as mere symbols of some other natural event. Instead, context supports the role of the sun, moon, and stars as physical phenomena accompanying our Lord's return. <BR><BR>It makes sense that the heavens and earth are physically affected by man's sin at the end of history, just as nature underwent physical change when man fell at the beginning of history. With the literal view, Genesis and Revelation recount the beginning and ending of history. Revelation notes the magnitude of the shaking of the heavens and the earth in judgment. Noah's flood had physical effects, and so too will the judgment of the tribulation prior to Christ's return. Franz Delitzsch aptly puts it this way: "Even nature clothes itself in the colour of wrath, which is the very opposite to light." <BR><BR>I believe that Dr. Gentry understands a number of similar, yet smaller in scale, incidents of biblical history to be literal. These other events do not put his preterism at risk. The question must be raised: Did the sun literally not shine over the land of Egypt while at the same time shine in the land of Goshen during the ninth plague (Exodus 10:21-29)? Of course it did! Did the sun literally stand still for half a day in Joshua 10? You bet it did! Did the Lord cause the sun to go backward 10 degrees in the days of King Hezekiah (2 Kings 20)? It most surely did! Similarly, during the crucifixion of our Lord, did darkness really fall over the whole land of Israel about the sixth hour until the ninth hour (Luke 23:44-45)? Sure it did! It was a pattern of the final darkness that will accompany the final judgment at the end of the world. "When He died, the sun refused to shine (Lk. 23:45). When He comes again it will not shine (Mt. 24:29)." Why shouldn't grandiose, supernatural phenomenon accompany the glorious return of our Lord? Only a naturalist mentality would say that a literal occurrence of Matthew 24:29 is impossible. After all, God said in Genesis 1:14 that one of His purposes for the sun, moon, and stars is to serve as "signs" in the heavens. It would be absurd to think that these references to the sun, moon, and stars are to be taken merely as symbols with no physical referent. Why should not the One who created the heaven and earth have the heavens reflect His global judgment upon a sinful world? Our Lord Jesus Christ demonstrates His actual rule over all His creation upon His return to planet earth, including over the sun, moon, and stars. Delitzsch says, "when god is angry, the principle of anger is set in motion even in the natural world, and primarily in the stars that were created 'for signs' (compare Gen. i. 14 with Jer. x. 2)." There may be objections in the minds of men to such heavenly displays, but no such problem exists in Scripture. <BR><BR>Isaiah 13:10 <BR><BR>Since necessity is the mother of invention, Gentry and other preterists must manufacture new meanings to words and phrases that cannot be sustained by any of the contexts. Dr. Gentry declares: "Isaiah 13 speaks of remarkably similar events accompanying Babylon's collapse in the Old Testament era." He is correct that Matthew 24:29 refers to Isaiah 13:10, something recognized by all commentators. He is also correct that Isaiah's prophecy speaks of Babylon's collapse. However, as is typically the case with preterists, he is wrong about when this prophesied event will occur in history. He believes it occurred during Old Testament times, while I, and most futurists, believe it will unfold within the context of future tribulation events. <BR><BR>Twice, in the immediate context, Isaiah warns that "the day of the Lord is near" (13:6) and that "the day of the Lord is coming" (13:9). The timing of the events in verse 10 relate to when the day of the Lord occurs in history. I believe Scripture indicates that the day of the Lord will occur in conjunction with the 70th-week of Daniel, also known as the seven-year tribulation. One's overall understanding of the day of the Lord will impact their understanding of the timing of the fulfillment of this and many other passages. Jesus refers to Isaiah 13:10 in Matthew 24:29 (also in Mark 13:24) and thus places it in very close proximity to the tribulation ("immediately after"). However, Dr. Gentry places the events of Isaiah 13:2-16, "in the Old Testament era," hundreds of years before the first coming of Christ. This creates a major conflict between when Dr. Gentry's believes that Isaiah 13:2-16 was fulfilled and when our Lord said it would be fulfilled. I think I will side with Jesus on this one. <BR><BR>There are further problems with Dr. Gentry's understanding of Isaiah 13. Isaiah 13:10-11 says, "For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not flash forth their light; the sun will be dark when it rises, and the moon will not shed its light. Thus I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will also put an end to the arrogance of the proud, and abase the haughtiness of the ruthless." The phrase "the sun will be dark when it rises," in verse 10 demands a literal, instead of a symbolic understanding in this context. If this text is supposed to be symbolic about the fall of nation, then why would the prophet speak of the sun rising, although darkened. No, this is the language of real, solar movement and events. <BR><BR>The global events described in verse 10 make sense because verse 11 says that the Lord is punishing "the world for its evil." The Hebrew word for "world" is tebel and "conveys the cosmic or global sense . . . i.e., the whole earth or world considered as a single entity." "Instead of 'eretz we have here tebel," notes Delitzsch, "which is always used like a proper name (never with the article), to denote the earth in its entire circumference." This passage (verses 2-16) is clearly global in scope, which would rule out Dr. Gentry's local, symbolic, and past interpretation and, thereby, demands a future fulfillment. "At this point this oracle of judgment on a great coming world-power begins to expand to cover the whole world," surmises G. W. Grogan while commenting on verses 9-13. "Matthew 24 shows Jesus, in similar fashion, relating a local judgment that was to fall on Jerusalem to the great events that would usher in his second advent and the end of the age." <BR><BR>Verse 13 is a clear denotative statement supporting a non-symbolic intent for verse 10. "Therefore I shall make the heavens tremble, and the earth will be shaken from its place at the fury of the Lord of hosts in the day of His burning anger." "I shall make the heavens tremble" looks back to our Lord's acts described in verse 10, which are in turn referred to by Jesus in Matthew 24:29. Grogan explains it as follows: <BR><BR>Verse 13 seems to go even beyond v. 10 in depicting the effects of divine judgment on the natural universe. There is to be a general convulsion of the whole created order (cf. 34:4). In this way the instability of the order of things since the Fall will be disclosed (as it is seen in so many of the signs of Christ's coming in Mark 13), thus revealing the need for the eternally stable order of the kingdom of God that Christ's coming will establish. <BR><BR>Conclusion <BR><BR>As we have examined the first of four statements in Matthew 24:29 concerning the Lord's return, we see that the overwhelming evidence comes down on the side of the futurist view of the passage. Frankly, preterists like Dr. Gentry do not have a leg to stand on. Not only does Matthew 24 not mean what they say it does, neither does Isaiah 13 to which they appeal. Dr. Gentry and others like him must fabricate from Isaiah 13 an alleged Old Testament genre, which is supported by nothing in the actual text. It is clear that if both Matthew 24 and Isaiah 13 are taken the way the author intended then futurism, and not preterism, is the teaching of the text. Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 24</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken." -Matthew 24:29 <BR><BR>I have noted that this passage contains four descriptive phrases. First, the darkening of the sun; second, the moon not reflecting its light; third, stars falling from the sky; fourth, a shaking of heaven powers. Previously we dealt with the darkening of the sun and saw that both Jesus and Isaiah (Isa. 13:10) intended their readers to understand that these were physical events, not symbolism denoting a non-physical event. <BR><BR>Hebrew Poetry <BR><BR>All too often opponents of literal interpretation will equate a biblical use of poetic structure with non-literal interpretation. This is an improper belief. <BR><BR>I recall that during my college days, I took a class in the Minor Prophets. When we got to the book of Jonah my liberal professor said because the style of chapter two was poetic it meant that the events depicted there should not be taken literally. Jonah 2 records the episode of Jonah and the great fish. Such nonsense is clearly wrong when compared with Scripture itself. There are many historical events, both past and future, that are recorded in the Bible using some kind of Hebrew poetic form. Many historical events are contained in the Psalms. Yet, every Psalm is written using Hebrew poetry. Even within American history some of our greatest literature uses poetic expression to communicate historical events. One need only think of literature such as The Midnight Rides of Paul Revere, or Captain, My Captain. The Hebrew poetic genre can often be more expressive or colorful than prose narrative, but this does not mean that it cannot be historical. Did not the Song of Deborah (Ex. 19) mention historical events that had just taken place in the Exodus, even though it is in a poetic form? Just because Isaiah 13 and many prophetic passages on the Day of the Lord are put found to be within a poetic form, does not mean that they do not speak of literal historical events. <BR><BR>No Moonlight <BR><BR>Christ says in His discourse, that in conjunction with the sun not shinning, "the moon will not give its light." This makes good physical sense that if the sun has been darkened, that the moon will not shine, since the moon does not generate its own light, as does the sun, but it simply reflects the light of the sun. Since the sun has been darkened, then this would mean in a physical cause and effect that the moon would also be darkened. This fact argues for a literal intent by Jesus in Matthew 24:29. Robert Govett is on the mark when he says, "no proof is needed on the part of those who take them literally: reason must first be shown why we are to take them symbolically, before we need give any proof of the contrary." Another suggests that the description should be taken literally because, "Elsewhere in chapter 24 the dramatic events-wars, famines, earthquakes-are intended literally." <BR><BR>The basic approach and arguments that were used to demonstrate that Christ's previous reference to the sun is of a physical nature are also applied to His use of moon in this context. Since sun and moon are linked together, as are all four of these descriptive phrases, if the sun is literal then so must be the moon. Leon Morris tells us: <BR><BR>There is to be no source of light here on earth in that day. It accords with what will happen to sun, moon, and stars that the powers of the heavens will be shaken. . . . Whatever functions they may be exercising at the time will be affected by the great fact that the Son of man is coming back to this earth to bring an end to the current system and to inaugurate the reign of God over all the earth. <BR><BR>Star Power <BR><BR>The third of four descriptions that will take place "immediately after the tribulation of those days" will be "the stars will fall from the sky." These events are all in preparation for the second coming that is described in verse 30. A heavenly blackout that will provide a perfect background for the brilliant arrival of Jesus Christ back to planet earth to set up His thousand year rule. <BR><BR>Preterists, such as Gary DeMar, do not think that this passage describes the backdrop for Christ's bodily return to Jerusalem. "When the tribulation of 'those days' is completed, the end of the temple and city is near," claims DeMar. "As the time for Jerusalem's judgment draws ever closer, certain other signs would appear. These later signs are descriptive of the fall of the nations and kingdoms." Concerning the stars in this passage, DeMar believes that they "represent people and nations. The people of Israel were represented as stars (Gen. 22:17; 26:4; Deut. 1:10)." Once again, does Christ intend a literal or figurative event. Even if it a figure of speech, which I do not think it is, it would not necessarily follow that DeMar's understanding would be correct. Theoretically, stars could be used figuratively and still relate to the second advent. Why should this descriptive phrase also be taken literally, as have the sun and moon? <BR><BR>Stars Falling to The Earth <BR><BR>The text says, "the stars will fall from the sky." It does not say in this passage that stars will fall to the earth. Yet, that is how DeMar attempts to finesse the passage by trying to connect it with Revelation 6:13, which says, "and the stars of the sky fell to the earth." "How can stars fall to the Earth and the Earth survive," asks DeMar? <BR><BR>First, aster, the Greek word for star, can refer to physical stars in the sky (Mat. 2:2, 7, 9-10) or it can be used figuratively as a symbol, referring to people and angels (Jude 13, Rev. 8:10-11; 9:1). Second, stars literally do fall from heaven upon the earth. They are called "falling stars," "shooting stars," "comets," or "meteors." The Greek word for star can be used in this way. "The word 'star' (Greek aster) refers to any luminous body in the sky other than sun and moon." Stars that fall to the earth often disintegrate and burn up as they enter the earth's atmosphere. Robert Gundry has said, "The falling of the stars refers to a shower of meteorites." <BR><BR>A number of commentators see the falling stars as meteorites. Greek scholar, Kenneth Wuest translates Revelation 6:13 as follows: "the meteors of the heaven fell to the earth." Grant Osborne says, "The background is a huge meteor shower." In reference to the meaning of star, Robert Thomas says, "Its meaning is broad enough to include smaller objects that hurtle through space from time to time. . . . a very large meteor shower that invades the terrestrial atmosphere." Kendell Easley declares, "we speak of 'falling stars' or 'shooting star' emanating from a meteor shower." "The most likely identification of these particular falling stars is that of a great swarm of asteroids that pummel the earth," says Henry Morris. <BR><BR>Further, the description of the falling stars to the earth in Revelation 6:13 is not a complete emptying of the heavens of all of their stellar components. It is a partial event as supported by the part of verse 13 that says, "as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind." Robert Govett explains as follows: <BR><BR>Not all of them are cast down; as the comparison appears to prove. For their fall is like that of the untimely figs of a fig-tree, much shaken by a gale. The fruit intended is the winter-fig, that comes out too late in the summer to ripen, and loses its hold of the tree during the inclement skies of the end of the year; so as to be easily shaken off by any wind, which agitates to any considerable extent the branches of the tree. <BR><BR>Falling stars are what cause the people of the earth to hide in caves in Revelation 6:12-17. <BR><BR>The six seal judgment, which is being described this passage, is not a parallel passage to Matthew 24:29, even though there are some similar phrases in both passages. The context is totally different. The six seal judgment describes a partial judgment, which does not include the second coming. Matthew 24:29 describes a complete blackout of the sun, moon, and stars, followed by the second coming. Even though DeMar tries to equate these passages, there are too many differences to justify such an understanding. Revelation 6:13 is the only passage which teaches that stars will fall upon the earth. The other passages referencing literal stars, which includes Matthew 24:29 and Mark 13:24, simply say that the stars will fall from the sky, not to the earth. Thus, it is in this way that the sixth seal judgment will be fulfilled literally. <BR><BR>Revelation 12 <BR><BR>DeMar also indicates that Revelation 12:4 is a passage that we believe refers to literal stars. It says of the great red dragon (Satan), "And his tail swept away a third of the stars of heaven." "Again, 'a third of the meteorites of heaven' would have a devastating effect on our planet. Earth would cease to exist," DeMar declares. "Scientists have speculated that a single meteorite threw up enough debris upon impact with Earth that it 'ended the reign of the dinosaurs.'" <BR><BR>It is not surprising that DeMar uses an evolutionary hypothesis to defend his naturalistic interpretation. Nevertheless, we literalists do not believe that physical stars are in view in verse 4. I have already noted above that the word star can be used to refer to the physical stars in the sky or as a symbol referring to a personality. DeMar hides from his readers what is said a few verses later: "And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him" (Rev. 12:9). Revelation 12:4 uses "stars" as a symbol for angels (as in Job 38:7), in this case fallen angels, because verse 9 repeats what is said in verse 4 using the non-symbolic term "angels." Robert Thomas notes: <BR><BR>The stars must refer to angels who fell with Satan in history past. The similarity of this verse to Dan. 8:10, where "the host of heaven" is an apparent reference to angels, shows this. Already in Revelation a star has pictured an angel (9:1). That factor along with the reference to Satan's angels in 12:8-9 adds credence to this explanation. <BR><BR>Apparently DeMar must obfuscate and misrepresent the views of others in order to make his own appear to have some merit. Maranatha! <BR><BR> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 25</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken." -Matthew 24:29 <BR><BR>The final phrase of verse 29 says, "the powers of the heavens will be shaken." Is this phrase to be taken literally, like the three previous phrases, or should one apply speculative exegesis to say that it means something other than what it says? Do powers of the heavens refer to angelic entities or to the physical universe? <BR><BR>Powers of The Heavens <BR><BR>The same basic phrase is used in all three accounts of the Olivet Discourse (Matt. 244:29; Mark 13:25; Luke 21:26). The phrase "powers of the heavens" most likely has the idea of "the sun, moon, and stars, spoken of in summary fashion," as they have been specifically mentioned earlier in the verse. Leon Morris says, "The word for heaven is singular in the reference to the stars, but plural where the powers are spoken of." "Thus the Lord describes the astronomical bodies being shaken as the earth is in an earthquake." The specific phrase "powers of the heavens" is never used of angelic beings in the Bible, nor does the context support such an understanding. Since the first three phrases relate to the entities that fill the sky, this final expression is a summary of the collective. "Jesus is saying that, whatever the powers of the heavens may be, they are subject to God, and that at this time, that of the return of the Son of man to this earth, their power will be disturbed." These "powers of the heavens" also appear to include God's decree of stability by which these celestial objects currently function with regularity. John MacArthur explains: <BR><BR>All the forces of energy, here called powers of the heavens, which hold everything in space constant, will be in dysfunction. The heavenly bodies will careen helter-skelter through space, and all navigation, whether stellar, solar, magnetic, gyroscopic, will be futile because all stable reference points and uniform natural forces will have ceased to exist or else become unreliable. <BR><BR>A Heavenly Shaking <BR><BR>The verb "shaken" is used about 15 times in the Greek New Testament. The verb is sometimes used as a metaphor, as in 2 Thessalonians 2:2: "that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure." However, most of the time it refers to a physical shaking, as in Acts 16:26: "suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken." A physical shaking of the heavens is what our Lord intends in this context. <BR><BR>Preterists, like Ken Gentry, however, believe that this phrase does not reference a physical shaking. Gentry says the following: <BR><BR>Consequently, we may legitimately apply Matthew 24:29 to the destruction of Jerusalem in a.d. 70. Christ draws upon this imagery from Old Testament judgment passages that sound as if they are world-ending events. And in a sense it is "the end of the world" for those nations God judges. So it is with Israel in a.d. 70. <BR><BR>Most commentators recognize that the shaking of the heavens in this passage is an allusion from Haggai 2:6 which says, "For thus says the Lord of hosts, 'Once more in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land.'" What does this passage mean? We have a divine New Testament commentary that we can look to in Hebrews 12 that tells us what it means. <BR><BR>And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, "Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven." And this expression, "Yet once more," denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, in order that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe (Heb. 12:26-28). <BR><BR>In this fifth warning passage, the writer of Hebrews contrasts the first shaking of the earth, a physical one, at the Exodus with a future shaking, which will include the heavens as well. He too has in mind Haggai 2:6. The future shaking will be much greater than the past shaking since it will include the heavens as well. Since the first shaking at the Exodus was physical then it follows that the second shaking will also be a physical one, just as Christ describes in His prophetic sermon of Matthew 24. "The discourse is entirely plan," notes amillennial interpreter R. C. H. Lenski, who understands this as a future physical event. "The whole sidereal world shall collapse. . . . This is made plain by the last 'the powers of the heavens shall be shaken' or dislocated. All that hold the heavenly bodies in their orbits and enables sun and moon to light the earth will give way." "This convulsion in the heavens, previous to the Messiah's descent therefrom, is not as yet to be regarded as the end of the world, but only as a prelude to it," notes H. A. W. Meyer. "The earth is not destroyed as yet by the celestial commotion." <BR><BR>Signs in The Heavens <BR><BR>Matthew and Mark do not record Christ's statements about the human response to these great events, but Luke does. William Kelly says, "It is Luke only who mentions the moral signs of men's anguish spite of the deceits and pretensions of that day." In what is clearly the same context that we find in Matthew and Mark, Jesus says: <BR><BR>"And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken" (Luke 21:25-26). <BR><BR>Luke is the only one to call the activity in the sky involving the sun, moon and stars a sign. Robert Stein says, "the signs associated with the Son of Man's coming are cosmic, whereas those associated with Jerusalem's fall are terrestrial, so that Luke kept these two events distinct." <BR><BR>One of the purposes to which God gave in His creation of the sun, moon, and stars would be for "them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years" (Gen. 1:14b). Who would these signs be for? They will be signs to those upon the earth. When one ponders great events down through history, in no other event would signs in the heavens be so appropriate than for the second coming of Christ from heaven to earth. <BR><BR>Luke's Account <BR><BR>Clearly, Luke 21:20-24 refers to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in a.d. 70. The second half of verse 24 says, "and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." Equally clear is that the last half of verse 24 is descriptive of a period of time that commenced after the Roman vanquishing of Jerusalem in the first century. That phrase has a beginning point, which began after a.d. 70. It has a time interval described by the expression, "Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles." That verse also provides an ending point when it says, "until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." There is no way that this event has already been fulfilled and it looks to a time when events that took place in a.d. 70 will be reversed. <BR><BR>Verse 24b provides a textual transition from a.d. 70 to events just before the second coming of Christ. Even a renowned preterist such as F. W. Farrar recognizes the shift from a.d. 70 in verses 20-24 to the second advent, or what he calls "the Last Coming" in verses 25-28. E. H. Plumptre tells us the following: <BR><BR>From this point onwards the prophecy takes a wider range, and passes beyond the narrow limits of the destruction of Jerusalem to the final coming of the Son of Man, and the one is represented in St. Matthew as following "immediately" on the other, by St. Mark as "in those days." No other meaning could have been found in the words when they were first heard or read. <BR><BR>At this point in Luke 21 we have an example of what Tim LaHaye and I call "The Mountain Peaks of Prophecy" in our book Charting The End Times. Plumptre has provided an excellent explanation of this in the following statement: <BR><BR>As men gazing from a distance see the glittering heights of two snow-crowned mountains apparently in close proximity, and take no account of the vast tract, it may be of very many miles, which lies between them; so it was that those whose thoughts must have been mainly moulded on this prediction, the Apostles and their immediate disciples, though they were too conscious of their ignorance of "the times and the seasons" to fix the day or year, lived and died in the expectation that it was not far off, and that they might, by prayer and acts, hasten its coming (2 Pet. iii. 12). <BR><BR>Clearly, in Luke 21, Christ sees two different events. One in the first century (21:20-24) and the other, still future to our time (21:25-28). However, neither Matthew 24 nor Mark 13 relate in any way at all with the a.d. 70 event, since neither the destruction of the Temple or Jerusalem is mentioned in them. Instead, the Matthew and Mark account of the Olivet discourse clearly speak of the rescue of the Jewish people, rather than their judgment as happened in a.d. 70. Most preterists do not even deal with this issue, let alone provide a satisfactory answer to that problem. <BR><BR>In summary, we have seen that great supernatural events will accompany Christ's return to planet earth. Is that so hard to imagine or believe? Apparently for some it is. Nevertheless, Scripture (both in the Old and New Testaments) speaks of Israel being regathered in her land, in unbelief (her current status today), as a national entity. She will go through a time called the tribulation that will lead to the conversion of the remnant to faith in the Messiahship of Jesus. This will then precipitate the second coming of Christ for the purpose of rescuing a now converted nation, who calls for His protection against the armies of all the nations that have gathered in Israel to wipe her out. Instead, Christ destroys Israel's enemies and commences His reign in Jerusalem for a thousand years. That is what the Bible says. Since it teaches this, all Bible-believing Christians should say "amen." Maranatha! <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 26</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory." -Matthew 24:30 <BR><BR>The second coming of Christ will be an event that has multiple aspects and phases to it. Jesus will not just appear in the sky and that is it, but there will be a multitude of specific events that will take place in the process of this advent. Christ, in Matthew 24:30 continues to note some of the sequencing that will take place at this time in history. One of the important events that will transpire will be "the sign of the Son of Man" that will appear in the sky. <BR><BR>Sign of The Son of Man <BR><BR>Earlier in Matthew 24:3 the disciples of Jesus ask Him, "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" This passage answers the question about the sign of Christ's coming. So what is that sign? <BR><BR>First it should be noted that the sign and His coming are separate events. Based upon what has preceded this verse, we know that the stage for his dramatic return begins in verse 29 with a shaking of the sun, moon and stars. This produces a blackout of the sky preparing the was for the appearance of the sign of the Son of Man, followed by the response of human mourning and fear, resulting in the second coming of Christ. <BR><BR>Second, this sequence of events will unfold in Jerusalem Israel. This is the location on planet earth in which these things are scripted to unfold, even though they will have a global impact. <BR><BR>Third, I believe that the sign of the Son of Man will be some form of the manifestation of the Shechinah Glory. Arnold Fruchtenbaum explains as follows: <BR><BR>As this sign is coupled with God's glory, it is obviously the Shechinah Glory light that will signal the Second Coming of the Messiah. The answer to the second question, "What will be the sign of the Second Coming?" is the Shechinah Glory. But immediately after the tribulation of those days, there will be a total blackout with no light penetrating at all, followed by a sudden, glorious, tremendous light that will disperse the blackness. This Shechinah light will be the sign of the Second Coming of the Messiah. The light will be followed by the return of the Messiah Himself. <BR><BR>The Shechinah Glory <BR><BR>What is the Shechinah Glory? Why do I think this is what Christ has in mind here? The Shechinah Glory is the visible manifestation of the presence of God, often showing up in the form of a cloud, light, fire, or combinations of these. The Hebrew word Shechinah does not appear the biblical text. The Jewish rabbis coined this extra-biblical expression called the "Shechinah Glory," in order to distinguish those biblical passages where they believe that a physical glory cloud or light was present when the Hebrew word for "glory" was used. Shechinah is a form of a Hebrew word that literally means "he caused to dwell," signifying that when God's glory appeared in this way it was a Divine visitation of the presence or dwelling of God in the glory cloud. Fruchtenbaum tells us that "the Shechinah Glory is the visible manifestation of the presence of God. In the Old Testament, most of these visible manifestations took the form of light, fire, or cloud, or a combination of these. A new form appears in the New Testament: the Incarnate Word." In order to see the significance of the Shechinah Glory for future Bible prophecy, a survey of past appearances are necessary. <BR><BR>The following events are believed to be manifestations of the Shechinah Glory in history: <BR><BR>�The Garden of Eden-the Lord's presence in the Garden and the flaming sword (Gen. 3:8, 23-24). <BR><BR>�The Abrahamic Covenant-the flaming torch that passed between the sacrificial pieces (Gen. 15:12-18). <BR><BR>�The Burning Bush-the burning that did not consume the bush (Ex. 3:1-5; 13:21-22; 14:19-20, 24; 16:6-12). <BR><BR>�The Exodus-the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night (Exodus). <BR><BR>�Mount Sinai-the Ten Commandments written by the finger of God; thunders, lightnings, and a thick cloud (Ex. 19:16-20; 24:15-18 Deut. 5:22-27). <BR><BR>�The Special Meeting with Moses-the afterglow of Moses' face as a result of his meeting with the Lord (Ex. 33:17-23; 34:5-9, 29-35; 29:42-46; 40:34-38).). <BR><BR>�The Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant-the glory-cloud presence often associated with these items (Exodus). <BR><BR>�The Book of Leviticus-the authentication of the Law and residence in the holy of holies (Lev. 9). <BR><BR>�The Book of Numbers-the Shechinah Glory rendered judgment for sin and disobedience (Num. 13:30-14:45; 16:1-50; 20:5-13). <BR><BR>�The Period of Joshua and Judges-the continued dwelling of the Shechinah Glory in the tabernacle (1 Sam. 4:21-22). <BR><BR>�The Solomonic Temple-the transfer of the Shechinah Glory from the tabernacle to the Temple (2 Chron. 5:2-7:3). <BR><BR>�The Departure in Ezekiel-Ezekiel watches the Shechinah Glory depart the Temple in preparation for judgment upon the nation (Ezek. 1:28; 3:12, 23; 8:3-4; 9:3; 10:4, 18-19; 11:22-23). <BR><BR>�The Second Temple-the Shechinah Glory was not present, but a promise was given that it will be greater in the future than in the past (Hag. 2:3, 9). <BR><BR>�The Appearance to the Shepherds-the glory of the Lord shone round about them (Luke 2:8-9). <BR><BR>�The Star of Bethlehem-the star or glory-cloud that guided the Magi to Jesus (Matt. 2:1-12). <BR><BR>�Jesus: The Glory of the Lord-the incarnation was a manifestation of the Shechinah Glory (John 1:1-14). <BR><BR>�The Transfiguration-the Shechinah Glory appears to the three disciples (Matt. 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-8; Luke 9:28-36, Heb. 1:1-3; 2 Peter 1:16-18; Rev. 1:12-16). <BR><BR>�The Book of Acts-the cloven tongues of fire on Pentecost and the blinding light shown upon Paul at his conversion (Acts 2:1-3; 9:3-8; 22:6-11; 26:13-18). <BR><BR>�The Revelation-Jesus Christ is dressed in the Shechinah Glory in Revelation 1 (Rev. 1:12-16). <BR><BR>The following is an overview of future events relating to the Shechinah Glory: <BR><BR>�The Tribulation-the Shechinah Glory is connected with the Bowl judgments (Rev. 15:8). <BR><BR>�The Second Coming of Christ-the Shechinah Glory is the sign of the Son of Man and the cloud upon which He returns (Matt. 16:27; 24:30; Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27). <BR><BR>�The Millennium-the Shechinah Glory will be present in its greatest manifestation in history because of Christ's physical presence on earth (Ezek. 43:1-7; 44:1-2; Isa. 4:5-6; 11:10; 35:1-2; 40:5; 58:8-9; 60:1-3; Zech. 2:4-5; 11:10) <BR><BR>�The Eternal State-the Shechinah Glory will provide light for the new creation where sin will be totally removed and God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit will dwell in fullness with man (Rev. 21:1-3, 10-11, 23-24). <BR><BR>The Sign <BR><BR>The word order of the Greek in verse 30 is as follows: "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in the heaven." The Greek supports the probability that the intent of the passage is that the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the heaven or sky. To take it as a humanly visible sign in the sky, as I would, preterist Kenneth Gentry says, "requires a restructuring of the text." It does not require a restructuring, even though many who take a futurist view do put forward translations that do not retain the original word order. When rendering a passage from Greek to English (or into any language), maintaining the original word order is not as important as providing an accurate translation. Gentry inserts a red herring at this point in his attempt to change the true intent and sense of this passage. The difference amounts to whether "in heaven" refers to an invisible sign that takes place in the throne room of God in heaven or does it occur as a sign in the sky that is seen by humanity. Grammarian Nigel Turner says, "Mt 24:30 ambiguous, either the sign which is the S.M. (appos.), or the sign which the S.M. will give (possess.)." <BR><BR>I believe the context argues in favor of the futurist interpretation that the sign is visible to the human eye in heaven, which is the sky. First, the Greek word can mean either "throne room," or the visible heaven or sky that can be seen by the human eye, as understood by futurists. The majority of New Testament uses fall into this latter use. The major Greek Lexicon of our day classifies it as the latter and says "then the sign of the Son of Man (who is) in heaven will appear; acc. to the context, the sign consists in this, that he appears visibly in heavenly glory Mt. 24:30." <BR><BR>Second, surrounding verses focus upon heavenly meteorological disturbances (cf. verse 27, 29, 30b, 31) that are visible to humanity. The appearance of a sign in the sky would certainly fit the contextual theme of a heavenly focus. <BR><BR>Third, "It must, in the nature of the case, be luminous. This is indicated by the original word for appear. But it must be luminous from this single consideration: it will appear, or shine, at a time of total darkness," declares Rev. Buck. "The sun will be previously turned to darkness, and the moon and the stars will have withdrawn their shining. All the great sources of light being thus totally obscured, whatever shall appear must be luminous in its nature." <BR><BR>Fourth, the time relationships of the passage support a visible, and thus, a future understanding. Matthew 24:30 begins "and then" referring back to the meteorological events of verse 29 which will occur "immediately after the tribulation of those days." Thus, verse 30 tells us that "the sign . . . will appear;" "and then" there will be human mourning in response to the sign; followed by Christ's glorious return. Amazingly, Gentry says that the sign of verse 30 means that the Jews "must flee the area if they are to preserve their lives." How can this happen if the sign is the Roman conquest of Jerusalem. It will be too late. Such folly does not fit an a.d. 70 sequence of events as noted by Rev. Shimeall: <BR><BR>Yes, reader. This is the theory of our Lord's second coming, . . . Briefly, then, as it respects the first branch of this theory, its inconsistency, we submit, will become apparent, from the following arguments and facts: <BR><BR>(1.) If the coming of the Lord at the time here specified was merely "the coming of the Roman army to destroy Jerusalem and the unbelieving Jews," then it will follow, of necessity, that it occurred at the same time, since, in fact, it is affirmed to be the same event. <BR><BR>(2.) Again. The destruction of the Jewish Church and State, and city, and people, resulted from the coming of the Romans, and must, of course, have been after that coming, because results must be subsequent to the causes which produce them. Accordingly, as our blessed Lord delivered the whole of this remarkable prophecy with special regard to the chronological order of the events, <BR><BR>(3.) He describes the appearance of the "sign" of His coming, of the mourning of all the tribes of the earth, and of His actual coming in the clouds of heaven, as being "after the tribulation of those days," and subsequent, in the order of time, to the darkening of the sun, moon, and stars. <BR><BR>Reader, which shall we believe-the comments and opinions of men, or the teachings of Christ? <BR><BR></FONT></DIV> <DIV align=center><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=4><STRONG>PART 27</STRONG></FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica size=2>"and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory." -Matthew 24:30 <BR><BR>In the previous installment I was providing reasons why the context argues in favor of the futurist interpretation that the sign is visible to the human eye in heaven, which is the sky. The following is the final reason for taking this view. <BR><BR>Fifth, I believe that "the sign" will likely be some form of the Shechinah Glory that has been manifested throughout history. After all, it was the sign of Christ's first coming-the Shechinah Glory-that flashed upon a darkened sky announcing His birth to the shepherds. It was the Shechinah Glory star that led the Wise Men from the East. So it is that His sign, the sign of the Son of Man will once again be His trademark, the Shechinah Glory Cloud. <BR><BR>A Signless Sign? <BR><BR>Preterist Kenneth Gentry argues that "they will see. . ." Christ's ". . . coming on the clouds" is once again not visible sight (the eyes of faith) nor a physical coming. He goes so far as to evidence "exegetical vertigo" when he says that Christ's "coming on the clouds" "actually speaks of his ascension." At this point, preterists confuse coming with going. Gentry further explains that <BR><BR>the sign" of verse 30 is "when the Romans lay waste the temple (vv. 6 and 15 anticipate this) and pick apart Jerusalem (v. 28). That is, when the government of Israel utterly collapses (v. 29), then it will be evident that the one who prophesies her destruction is "in heaven." The "sign" is not a visible token in the sky. Rather, the sign is that the "Son of Man" rejected by the first century Jews is in heaven. The destruction of Israel vindicates Christ. <BR><BR>It is hard to believe that Gentry could put forth this view with a straight face, since, unlike many preterists, he understands Acts 1:11 as a second coming passage. <BR><BR>And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was departing, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them; and they also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven." (Acts 1:9-11) <BR><BR>The language in Acts 1 is clear that Christ is ascending upward to heaven in verse 9. It is equally clear that verse 11 speaks of His return as a coming down from heaven on a cloud. Further, the Greek word for "coming" in both Matthew 24:30 and Acts 1:11 is erchomai. Thus, once Christ has ascended into heaven, His next act of coming could not be up, but only down-down from heaven to earth. This is clearly the picture our Lord paints, not only in the specific passage (verse 30), but throughout the overall context (verses 27-31). Dallas Seminary professor, Stanley Toussaint adds the following: <BR><BR>It will be conceded by all that the first part of Matthew 24:30 looks back to Zechariah 12:10. However, it is important to notice that in Zechariah the mourning of 12:10 is explained by the verses that follow. It is a repentant lamentation by Israel because it results in the purification of the nation (Zech. 13:1). The context of Zechariah 12:10 is most significant. Rather than prophesying the destruction of Jerusalem, it is predicting the opposite. "And it will come about in that day that I will set about to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem" (Zech. 12:9). This is the tenor of Zechariah 12:1-8. It looks ahead to God's future deliverance of Israel when Jerusalem will again be surrounded by enemies. "In that day" is prophetic of a time of deliverance of Israel, not judgment. (Note the constant repetition of "in that day" [12:3, 4, 6, 8 (2x), 9, 11; 13:1, 2, 4]). It is clear that the context of Zechariah is a mourning that results in cleansing and deliverance for Israel. Whatever the sign of the Son of Man is, it results in the national repentance of Israel. This parallels perfectly what Paul says in Romans 11:25-27. This explanation of Matthew 24:30a sets the stage for the understanding of the last half of the verse. <BR><BR>It is true that in the vision of Daniel 7:13 as it is translated in the nasb the Son of Man came up to the Ancient of Days to receive the dominion to rule. However, the Hebrew verb has no idea of direction; it simply means to arrive or to reach. This specific verb is only used in Daniel where it may refer to something reaching up as Nebuchadnezzar's greatness did in 4:22, or it may describe something going down as in 6:24 where the detractors of Daniel were thrown into the lion's den. It has no intrinsic sense of direction. Nor does the following preposition indicate direction in itself. The construction simply means the Son of Man approached the Ancient of Days. But even if it describes the Son of Man coming up to the Ancient of Days, it only looks at the bestowment of authority. The question is where is the authority expressed? Keil says it well when he writes: <BR><BR>In this very chapter before use there is no expression or any intimation whatever that the judgment is held in heaven. No place is named. It is only said that judgment was held over the power of the fourth beast, which came to a head in the horn speaking blasphemies, and that the beast was slain and his body burned. If he who appears as the son of man with the clouds of heaven comes before the Ancient of days executing the judgment on the earth, it is manifest that he could only come from heaven to earth. If the reverse is to be understood, then it ought to have been so expressed, since the coming with clouds of heave in opposition to the rising up of the beast out of the sea very distinctly indicates a coming down from heaven. The clouds are the veil or the "chariot" on which God comes from heaven to execute judgment against His enemies; cf. Ps. xvii;10f., xcvii 2-4, civ. 3, Isa. xix 1, Nah. i. 3. This passage forms the foundation for the declaration of Christ regarding His future coming, which is described after Dan. vii. 13 as a coming of the Son of man with, in, on the clouds of heaven; Matt. xxiv. 20, xxvi. 64; Mark xiii. 26; Rev. 1.7, xiv. 14. <BR><BR>In summary, Matthew 24:30 describes a visible appearance of the sign of the Son of Man, the repentance of Israel and the triumphant return of Christ to reign on planet earth. <BR><BR>The above information show us why the next time Jesus comes, it will not be some "signless sign" that did not actually exist in the form of the Roman army, but instead the visible, bodily, physical return of Christ that mirrors His ascension. Matthew 24 is not concerned with the destruction of Jerusalem, but with the coming of the Lord. No one in a.d. 70 recorded a second coming of Christ, not even Josephus. The New Testament predicts the destruction of Jerusalem, which was fulfilled in a.d. 70, not a second coming. <BR><BR>All The Tribes of The Earth Will Mourn <BR><BR>We have seen up to this point that God is preparing the cosmic stage to showcase the most spectacular event in all human history-the glorious return of Jesus Christ to planet earth to reign for a thousand years. First, this will occur after the events of the tribulation (24:29). Second, it will interrupt the campaign of Armageddon. Third, God will darken the sky by causing the sun, moon and stars to cease shinning. Fourth, in the midst of this blackened background, the sign of the Son of Man with burst forth in brilliant light and glory. Finally, then, and only then, will the stage be set for Jesus to return to planet earth-to the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. It is within this scenario of events that Jesus says, "then all the tribes of the earth will mourn." <BR><BR>The next part of verse 30 says, "then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory." Why will they mourn, because they will see the undeniable sign of the returning Christ. Dr. Gentry says, that this merely refers to the Jewish tribes of Israel in a.d. 70. NO! This is a universal term used of global unbelievers. Every time this plural phrase is used in the parallel Book of Revelation it clearly refers to Gentiles. For example in Revelation 13:7 it speaks of "every tribe and people and tongue and nation." Every use in the Old Testament of "all the tribes of the earth" has a universal meaning in the Septuagint. The Old Testament uses the term "all the tribes of Israel" (about 25 times) when it wants to refer to the Jewish tribes. <BR><BR>Most importantly, the verse goes on to say, "they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory." It says, "they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky." The text says, "they will see the Son of Man." This has to be a reference to the visible, bodily, physical return of Jesus Christ to planet earth! This did not happen in a.d. 70? Josephus does not record it. This cannot refer to a symbolic, naturalistic interpretation that somehow Jesus returned in conjunction with the Roman army in the first century. Jesus said, "they will see the Son of Man." <BR><BR>Christ's Return Still Future <BR><BR>If Jesus returned in a.d. 70, as preterists say, then, on what day did He return? Since this is a past event, we should be able to know the exact day our Lord supposedly returned and fulfilled this passage. I have never read in any preterist material, any of them who can tell me the day and exact manner or event that supposedly was Christ's return in a.d. 70. In fact, this was such a non-event in terms of church history, that it was not until the seventeenth century that we have an extant record of anyone suggesting anything like a preterist view that refers Matthew 24:27 and 30 to a.d. 70. <BR><BR>Had Christ returned as described in that passage, surely Josephus would have observed it. But even the verbose Josephus does not record such an event, because it did not occur. When the second coming of Christ-as described prophetically in Matthew 24:27-31-occurs, we will all be able to note the day and the hour. The description of Christ's return in this passage is of a nature that it will be such a public event that will be observed by multitudes of people. The exact day and hour of this event will not be lost in human history. 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