The Consummation of The Age

  Of all the phrases in Scripture used to describe a prophetic period, few are more compelling than “the consummation of the age.”  What this term means and how it used in Scripture are essential to an understanding of end-time prophecy.  Also, what practical bearings it has upon Christian faith and practice should be carefully considered whenever we study God’s word. In this short article, I hope to bring out the importance of this term, and what it should mean to ourselves.

  We’ll recall that one of the last discourses delivered by Christ to His disciples was given on the Mount of Olives.  The discourse was begun when Christ predicted that the Jewish temple would be destroyed.  His disciples, naturally wondering about their Lord’s prophecy, asked Him privately: “When shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the age?” (Matt. 24: 3).  In answer to their three questions, Christ then proceeded to sketch a basic outline of those events which would transpire from His ascension in the clouds of heaven, to His ultimate second coming in glory.

  What was meant by the phrase “end of the world?”  The original Greek reads “sunteleias tou aionos.” The word sunteleia signifies the “meeting together” of all that marks the consummation of the age.  The “age” in question is the same one which Christ defined as “this life” in His parable of the sower (Matt. 13: 22; cf. Luke 8: 14).  It is the “present evil age,” which began after the flood and will continue until Christ’s coming brings in a new and better age, called the “regeneration” (Matt. 19: 28) or the “thousand years” (Revelation 20: 2-6)

   The crisis in which the sunteleia culminates is the telos or actual end.  When Christ described the signs which would precede the “abomination of desolation,” He gave us a rundown of the sunteleia, and not of the telos.  The telos begins in the midst of the 70th week, and runs until the “time of the end,” when the kingdoms of the world shall become the kingdoms of Christ (Rev. 11: 15). 

  E.W. Bullinger, noted Bible scholar and author of the Critical Lexicon and Concordance To The English and Greek New Testament, writes:

“The whole period covered by “the day of the Lord” is called the final meeting of the ages, or the sunteleia; but, the crisis in which it culminates is called the telos, the end of the age.

Both are rendered “end” in the New Testament, but the use of these two words must be carefully distinguished.

Sunteleia denotes a finishing or ending together, or in conjunction with other things. Consummation is perhaps the best English rendering.*  It implies that several things meet together, and reach their end during the same period; whereas telos is the point of time at the end of that period.  For example, in Matt. xxiv. 3 the disciples ask, “What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the sunteleia of the age.”

In His answer to this question the Lord speaks of the whole period, and covers the whole of the sunteleia. But three times He mentions the telos (1) to say that “the telos is not yet” (verse 6); (2) to give a promise to him “that shall endure unto the telos” (verse 13); (3) to mark the crisis in verse 14, which comes immediately after the close of the preaching of “the gospel of the kingdom.” “Then shall the telos come.” The sign of the telos is the setting up of “the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet.” (Commentary on Revelation, pg. 88-89).

 

  In the Olivet Discourse, Christ gives but the briefest description of the sunteleia, informing us that the period will be characterized by “false Christs” and “wars and rumors of wars,” and “rising of nation against nation.”  He also apprises His disciples that persecution will come, and that many shall be betrayed and delivered up to death.  These are the beginning of sorrows–that is, they are the prophetic indications that the “telos” is drawing near.  Other marks of the sunteleia include an increase of iniquity among men, and a proclamation of the “Gospel of the Kingdom” for a witness unto all nations.  See Matthew 24: 4-14 for a complete synopsis of this period.

  The Apocalypse bears witness to Christ’s prophecies.  The sunteleia or “final meeting” of the ages, is expanded and elaborated by John in Revelation 6.    Under the first seal, we see a false Messiah (Rev. 6: 1-2; Matt. 24: 4-5).  Under the second, wars (Rev. 6: 3-5; Matt. 24: 6-7).  The third is characterized by famines (Rev. 6: 5-6; Matt. 24: 7).  The fourth by pestilences (Rev. 6: 7-8; Matt. 24: 7); and the fifth by martyrdoms (Rev. 6: 9-11; Matt. 9-10).  The fifth and sixth seals extend unto the time of the end, covering also the entire period of the telos.  Therefore, we have in the first four seals particularly, a perfect delineation of the sunteleia. 

  But when, we ask, does this period of the sunteleia begin?  Unfortunately, the Scripture gives us no definite time-frame. Instead we have the Lord’s injunction to pay heed to the “signs of the times” and to “be watchful.”  Those who are awake and on watch, with their loins girded and their lamps burning (Luke 12: 35), will not be caught unaware when the sunteleia sets in.  In fact, they will clearly identify that time when it arrives, and warn others that the “Day of the Lord” is at hand.  The question that many Christians are now asking is: has the sunteleia begun? 

  We can only get an answer by diligently studying the Scriptures.  We’ll discover in the Discourse which our Lord has left us a compendium of those signs by which we may know that the time has arrived.  Have we seen the rise of false Christs and Messiahs who deceive many?  If so, then we are in the sunteleia.  Have we heard of wars and rumors of wars?  If the answer is yes, then that period has arrived.  Let us not bicker with the inspired Word, but study carefully the discourse which the Lord has given us, that we may know and understand when the age is reaching its appointed end.

  My own opinion is that we are now in the period denominated as the “sunteleia.”  Does this mean that the Dispensation of Grace has ended?  Heaven forbid!  The present Dispensation will not close until the 70th week of Daniel begins.  This will mark the official commencement of the Dispensation of Judgment.  It should be noted, however, that the Dispensations of grace and of Judgment do overlap for a time.  And it is this overlapping of the two dispensations that makes the sunteleia a meeting-point of ages.  As all the indications suggest, that is the epoch we are now in. 

  Of course, many predictions relevant to this period remain to be fulfilled.  We have yet to see the reconstitution of the apostolic churches as addressed in the epistles of Revelation 2 & 3.  Also, the consolidation of various national governments into a conglolmerate beast, is something that is yet in its infant stages.  The rebuilding of the Jewish temple, too, must occur before the actual 70th week begins.  Therefore, we have a “little way to go” before the Dispensation of Grace merges into the Dispensation of Judgment.

   What, then, is our duty at the present hour?  It is to faithfully bear witness of Christ and to preach His Gospel.  That means that the time has now come to re-publish the “Gospel of the Kingdom.”  We mustn’t wait for Christ’s chosen apostles to step on the scene and do it for us.  Let us at once begin the re-proclamation of this “good news” to the Jewish people.  For their reception of this Gospel has never been more needed than now. 

   Above all, let us stop our ears to lying deceits of those who cry “peace, peace,” when there is no peace.  Let the children of this age build their walls and daub them with untempered mortar (Ezekiel 13: 10).  Their walls will surely fall when Tribulation comes.  But those who recognize the signs of the times and continue to walk in the Spirit, will receive blessings from above, as the Lord comforts us in the midst of all affliction, giving us joy in adversary, and continued assurance while the whole world lies in wickedness.  Thanks be to God for His unspeakable gifts.

Rev. E.W. Bullinger, D.D.– On The Errors of Preterism

(from “No Millennium Without Christ,” 1887)

  Those who think that in St. Matt. and Mark the Saviour refers to the destruction of Jerusalem, are compelled to “interpret” Matt. xxiv. 30, of Titus and his armies:— “They shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” They call this “prophetic language,” as though “prophetic language” were a totally different language from all other language. And so it must be if the coming of Titus was indeed the “lightning” of Matt. xxiv. 27, which “cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west“! But surely this very interpretation condemns itself, and the whole system which is built upon it! For if verse 30 “then shall they see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory,” means the coming of Titus with his armies, then in Matt. xxvi. 64, Jesus must have meant the same when He said to His judges, “Hereafter shall ye see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.” And He must have “spoken blasphemy” and been “guilty of death,” because He made Himself equal to Titus!

   Such treatment of Scripture stands self-condemned; for it leaves no room at all for any future advent of Christ, in a prophecy which was an express answer to the Question, “What shall be the sign of THY coming?”

   Again, Jesus said (Luke xxi. 28) “Lift up your heads for your redemption draweth nigh.” But in what way was the coming of Titus a ground for such a lifting up the head, or for such a looking for redemption!

   And, note further, that this lifting up of their heads is caused by no spread of gospel light and peace amongst the nations. On the contrary, there is the greatest “distress of nations with perplexity,” “and then” — the very next thing is (verse 27) “THEN shall they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.”

   Even when Jesus does speak about the preaching the Gospel, He particularly informs us that it is only “for a witness to all nations” (Matt. xxiv. 14, and Mark xiii. 10), and not for the conversion of all nations.

   And when He speaks of the setting up of “the Abomination of Desolation” (Matt. xxiv. 15, and Mark xiii. 14), He refers to the Prophet Daniel. But it is clear from Daniel xii. that this must be still future, for speaking of that same time of trouble the interpreting Angel says to Daniel (xii. 1) “At that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: AND AT THAT TIME THY PEOPLE SHALL BE DELIVERED.” Well, at the time when Titus came, Daniel’s people were destroyed! and if that can be interpreted to mean “delivered” then language may mean anything and nothing, and there is an end of the whole matter!

Rev. E.W. Bullinger, D.D.- On Christ’s Two Eschatological Discourses

(from No Millennium Without Christ, 1887)  

    Now the first three or four verses of both discourses, and of all the three records are almost identical:— Matt. xxiv. 4-8, Mark xiii. 5-7, Luke xxi. 8-11. But here a remarkable change occurs which gives us the key to the right understanding of these prophecies. In Matt. and Mark the Lord goes on to speak of the sorrows of which those verses were “the beginning” and continues, and develops what He had begun to describe. But in St. Luke he stops short here; He does not go forward, but goes back to tell us what shall be before all these things,” and for thirteen verses (Luke xxi. 12-24) He speaks of what shall be “BEFORE” “the beginning of sorrows,” and to speak of the then impending destruction of Jerusalem, concluding at verse 24 with the words “and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.” It is the concluding days of these “times of the Gentiles,” which in Matt. and Mark the Lord enlarges on, and describes the events which lead up to His appearing (Matt. xxiv. 8-28, and Mark xiii. 9-23): and then all three records again coincide, and culminate in the grand and final “sign” about which the disciples had enquired.

   To attempt to harmonize these prophecies without noticing the great diverging point of Luke xxi. 12, is to attempt the impossible; and the best proof that it is so is the fact that no commentator who treats all three records as referring to one and the same subject, succeeds in satisfying his own mind, still less the minds of his readers.

   But observing these notes of time, and this key to the change of subject in Luke xxi. 12, we learn that in Matt. xxiv. and Mark xiii., Jesus does not refer to the destruction of Jerusalem at all, but begins long after that event, and gives an epitome of the closing in of the last days of the “times of the Gentiles,” the days immediately preceding His coming in glory with all His saints: while in St. Luke xxi. He devotes only four verses to those events, (8-11) and at verse 12 goes back to tell us what shall be “before all these things.”

   In fact, these two discourses, taken together, are occupied with three great subjects, 1. The Destruction of Jerusalem: 2. The Coming of Christ in Glory: and 3. The events immediately preceding that coming. In Matt. and Mark, Jesus enlarges on the events that shall immediately lead up to His coming in glory. He foretells the four great characteristics of the beginning of these last events:— “Wars” (the Red horse of the second seal, Rev. vi. 4), “Pestilences” (the Black horse of the third seal, Rev. vi. 5, 6), “Famines” (the Pale horse of the fourth seal, Rev. vi. 7, 8), and “Earthquakes” (the sixth seal, Rev. vi. 12). He speaks of the witnessing gospel (Rev. vi. 2), and refers to a great event foretold by Daniel as a sure sign of the approaching end. The tribulation then rapidly deepens until it reaches its culminating point, and then (Matt. xxiv. 29, 30) “IMMEDIATELY after the tribulation of those days… they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven.”

   Now in St. Luke, as I have said, there is little or nothing about these awful and final events. In Luke xxi. 8, 9, the Lord refers to them, but pointedly says “the end is not by and by” (R.V. “the end is not immediately.”) Then in verse 10 and 11, He bears us rapidly forward to the end, and almost anticipates verse 25. Thus, having thrust the whole of those closing events into these fours verses, the Lord suddenly turns back, saying (verse 12) “But, BEFORE all these things,” and enlarges on the nearer, and then impending woe of the city of Jerusalem. And when He says in verse 24 “Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled,” the events which shall be the fulfilling of these very times form the chief subject of the discourse in Matt. xxiv. and Mark xiii., which refers to that future siege.*

* The word “immediately” marks off the prophecy in Matt. from that recorded in Luke, where we have instead long “times of the Gentiles” following on the siege of Jerusalem.

   Thus of these two prophecies, part has been already literally fulfilled (Luke xxi. 12-24); and part remains to be also as literally fulfilled.

   The great fact, however, which stands out most prominently in these prophecies, the evidence of which is absolutely overwhelming, is this:— that our Lord leaves no room for any Millenium of happiness and peace before He comes.

Matthew 24: The Foundation of Preterist Interpretation

  We’ve sometimes dealt with those who place the fulfillment of Christ’s Olivet Discourse in the time frame of the Jewish war (A.D. 67-70).  These folks, most of whom stand in the Reformed/non-evangelical lists, teach that there was a ‘coming of Christ’ at the time of Jerusalem’s destruction by Titus.  This makes a sharp distinction between two schools of theology, respectively known as Preterism and Futurism.

  An in-depth study of the Olivet Discourse, however, really makes us wonder how this “past fulfillment” theory can be held by serious students of Scripture.  It is no surprise that Preterism is mainly a product of Reformation theology.   As most of us have learned, the Reformers were excellent in the field of soteriology, but very poor students of prophecy.  It was reserved for later generations to clear the board of historicist errors and continue where early church fathers like Irenaeus, Hippolytus, and Lactantius left off.

  As my studies progress, I find that the main reason Protestant commentators sometimes placed the greater part of Matthew 24 and Mark 13 in the past was because of their failure to properly interpret the visions of Daniel.  Because of their historicist leanings, they were unable to see that the visions of Revelation are tied to those of the Old Testament, and that Christ, in speaking of “things to come,” often alluded to O.T. prophecies whose sense John later revealed in the Apocalypse.

   Here’s a case in point.  When Christ mentions the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place (Matt. 24: 15), He is pointing His finger to a series of inter-related prophecies in the Book of Daniel, which correspond to key passages in the Apocalypse.  Any correct interpretation of Christ’s discourse must take these prophecies into account.

  What is the problem with Preterism?  It blithely ignores the correlation of the prophetic texts, and so loses the true meaning of Christ’s words.  John Lightfoot (1602-1675), for instance, in his Talmudic commentary on Matthew, sees in the “abomination of desolation” nothing more than Roman armies.   

   Lightfoot writes:

Matt. 24: 15: ‘The abomination of desolation.’  These words relate to that passage of Daniel (chap. ix. 27), which I would render thus; ‘In the middle of that week,’ namely, the last of the seventy, ‘he shall cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease, even until the wing or army of abomination shall make desolate,’ &c.; or, even by the wing of abominations making desolate.”

‘Let him that readeth understand.’  This is not spoken so much for the obscurity, as for the certainty of the prophecy: as if he should say, ‘He that reads these words in Daniel, let him mind well that when the army of the prince which is to come, that army of abominations, shall compass Jerusalem with a siege, then most certain destruction hangs over it; for saith Daniel, ‘the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city, and the sanctuary,’ &c. ver. 26.  And the army of abominations shall make desolate even until the consummation, and that which is determined shall be poured out upon the desolate.’  Flatter not yourselves, therefore, with vain hopes, either of future victory, or of the retreating of that army, but provide for yourselves; and he that is in Judea, let him fly to the hills and places of most difficult access, not into the city.”

  Such is an early sample of Preterist interpretation, which seeks, in a half-hearted way, to explain the meaning of Christ’s words.  But it is not typical of the Preterism espoused today.  In his book, The Parousia, J. Stuart Russell (1816-1895) gives us a more common example of how Preterists deal with Matt. 24: 15. 

   Russell writes:

   “Most expositors find an allusion to the standards of the Roman legions in the expression, ‘the abomination of desolation,’ and the explanation is highly probable.  The eagles were the objects of religious worship to the soldiers; and the parallel passage in St. Luke is all but conclusive evidence that this is the true meaning.  We know from Josephus that the attempt of a Roman general (Vitellius), in the reign of Tiberius, to march his troops through Judea was resisted by the Jewish authorities, on the ground that the idolatrous images on their esigns would be a profanation of the law.  How much greater the profanation when those idolatrous emblems were displayed in full view of the temple and the Holy City!  This was the last token which portended that the hour of doom for Jerusalem had come.  Its appearance was to be the signal to all in Judea to escape beyond the mountains, for then would ensue a period of misery and horror without a parallel in the annals of time.”  (pg. 73).

  Notice how Russell fails to reference a single passage in the Bible; but after making a vague remark about what “most expositors” think, he claims the evidence is “all but conclusive” that the Roman ensigns were the true fulfillment of the “abomination of desolation.”  And then he cites Josephus! 

   Such interpreters obviously have their minds made up, and would see the Jewish War in every eschatological passage in the Bible.  Unlike Russell, Lightfoot went so far as to provide his own translation of a difficult passage. But both of them completely disregard and pass over the following Scriptures:

    (Daniel 11: 31) “And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.”

   (Daniel 12: 11) “And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.”

  As Christ warned of the very “abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet,” these Scriptures provide a vital clue to the correct meaning of Matthew 24: 15, and stand parallel with Daniel 9: 27: “And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abomination he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined, shall be poured upon the desolate.”  

  A prophetical week equals seven years.  Thus, whatever your interpretation of the “70 weeks,” it is clear that the “midst of the week” will leave exactly three-and-a-half years until the consummation.  This remaining period is found elsewhere in the Book of Daniel, being referred to as a “time, and times, and the dividing of time” (Dan. 7: 25) and a “time, times, and a half” (Dan. 12: 7).  

    The context of these Scriptures speaks of a persecution of the saints by Antichrist.  Read also the connected passage of Daniel 8: 9-14, which speaks of the time when the “daily sacrifice” is taken away, and the “place of His sanctuary cast down.” The oppressor is a “little horn” who magnifies himself even to the Prince of the host, casting the truth to the ground.  During his tyranny, the sanctuary and the host is trodden under foot.  Compare with the above, and then read Revelation 11: 2, which speaks of the same 42 months–the remaining half of Daniel’s 70th week.

   It is this final 42 month period to which our Lord is referring.  “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand): Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains: let him which is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house: neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.  And woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!  But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matt. 24: 15: 21).

  According to Christ, the tribulation begins when the abomination of desolation is seen standing in the holy place.  This has nothing to do with Roman emblems “being displayed in full view of the temple and holy city.” The abomination of desolation in the midst of the week sets off the Great Tribulation of which Christ speaks in His Olivet Discourse.

   This same tribulation is spoken of in Daniel 12: 1, where the prophet writes: “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time.” 

  At what time? Obviously, the time mentioned in the preceding part of the prophetic discourse (Daniel 11: 31-45).  The period begins when Antichrist takes away the daily sacrifice and places the abomination that maketh desolate (11: 31), ending when he “plants the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain” (11: 45; cf. 2 Thess. 2: 4). The time of trouble occupies the remainder of Daniel’s 70th week, when Antichrist, the “beast” of Revelation 13, shall afflict the people of God.  Notice that John again mentions the period of 42 months (Rev. 13: 5).

  By making the Roman siege of Jerusalem the fulfillment of the “Great Tribulation” mentioned by Christ and the prophet Daniel, Preterists have little choice but to make Titus the Antichrist.  But Titus was not declared emperor until Vespasian’s death in 79 A.D.  Nor does he fit the descriptions of Daniel’s Antichrist, whether it be the “little horn,” the “prince that shall come” or the “vile person” who deals treacherously against the holy covenant. 

  Preterists try to sidestep this discrepancy by claiming that the Antichrist was actually Nero.  But Nero committed suicide in June of A.D. 68, two years before the temple fell!  Therefore, neither does Nero match the description of Daniel’s Antichrist, who would begin his tyranny in the “midst of the week” and function for 42 months until the “time of the end.”  Who, then, can this 1st century Antichrist have been?

   Without identifying this individual, and placing him amidst the events of the Roman occupation, one cannot prove that there was any “abomination of desolation” set up or “daily sacrifice” taken away; and consequently, no evidence that the Great Tribulation occurred during the siege of Jerusalem!

  Also, placing the “time of the end” in A.D. 70 would make the “midst of the week” fall out in A.D. 67, an impossibility according to any Preterist scheme, as modern Preterists (unlike Lightfoot) hold that “the midst of the week” occurred in A.D. 30, when Christ was crucified!

   What Preterists are dealing with is a complex riddle that can only be solved by conceding that the main events spoken of in Christ’s Olivet Discourse are yet future.  If this position be taken, the 70th week of Daniel must be relegated to the future, as well as the whole of the Apocalypse.  This is a large leap for Preterists to make.  However, all the Scriptural evidence insists on a fulfillment of the above visions of Daniel 7, 8, 9, 11, & 12 during the period known as “the time of trouble” or “Great Tribulation.”  Unless Preterists can prove that these visions were fulfilled during the Roman siege, they are erroneous in affirming that there was any “coming of Christ” in A.D. 70.  And that’s the milk in the cocoanut.

*******

   Note: To see how the predictions of Daniel correspond and synchronize so that they cannot be broken up, please consult the following charts prepared by noted Bible scholar and theologian E.W. Bullinger:

http://www.therain.org/appendixes/app89.html

http://www.therain.org/appendixes/app90.html

A Prospect From Mount Olivet

  One of the most important eschatological passages in the Bible is Jesus Christ’s great prophecy concerning “the end of the age.”  This prophecy was issued on two distinct occasions.  The first (recorded in Luke 21) was when Jesus Christ taught the people in the temple (Luke 20: 1), whereas the second (recorded in Matthew 24 & Mark 13) was spoken privately to Peter, James, John, and Andrew as they sat upon the Mount of Olives (Mark 13: 3). 

  In order to understand Christ’s prophecy, one must harmonize the two discourses.  We are prepared to show that the prophecy spoken in the temple concerns the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 and the dispersion of the Jews until the end of the present age; while the great bulk of Christ’s Olivet Discourse speaks of the “Great Tribulation” which will fall out after the Jews have been gathered into their own land.  

  So far as the two discourses start out, Luke 21: 8-9 is parallel with Matthew 24: 4-6 and Mark 13: 5-7.  Christ predicts the rise of false Messiahs and deceivers, and wars and rumors of wars which must come to pass. Then He describes nations rising against nations, earthquakes famines and pestilences in diverse places (Luke 21: 10-11; Matt. 24: 7-8; Mark 13: 8).  In the Olivet Discourse Christ affirms that “these are the beginning of sorrows” (Matt. 24: 8; Mark 13: 8).  In other words, these signs are the beginning of the Great Tribulation.

   In the temple discourse, however, Christ makes a transition.  After predicting the earthquakes, famines, pestilences, and fearful sights and great signs from heaven (Luke 21: 11), our Lord does not say “these are the beginning of sorrows,” but stops short and goes back to introduce a parenthesis describing events which would take place “before all these” beginnings of sorrows. 

   This parenthesis occupies verses 12-24 of Luke’s discourse, and carries us from the destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish dispersion until the close of the Great Tribulation and Christ’s coming in the clouds of heaven; whereas the Olivet Discourse deals with events which would transpire during and immediately following the Great Tribulation (Matt. 24: 9-30; Mark 13: 9-26).  The two discourses synchronize once more with the description of Christ’s parousia (Luke 21: 25-27; Matt. 24: 29-30; Mark 13: 24-26).

  The dispersion passages in Luke 21 are of the highest import, for Preterists (and even some Futurists) affirm that verses 20-24were fulfilled during the long period of devastation that occurred from A.D. 69 to A.D. 135, when the city was finally broken up and all the Jews driven out, thus fulfilling the curses of Deuteronomy 28. 

   However, a mistake arises from not seeing that this whole period of the Jewish dispersion was to last until the “times of the Gentiles” were fulfilled (Luke 21: 24).  Then the Jews would be regathered to their own land for remedial purposes, and after the rise of Antichrist, the Great Tribulation would commence.  This is the event prophesied in Christ’s Olivet Discourse, and not the period of the Jewish dispersion.

  A few Scriptures will be needed to bring this out.  Firstly, Moses predicted in Deuteronomy 28: 59 that the plagues of Israel would be “of long continuance.”  Then, in Deuteronomy 30: 1-10 he held out God’s continued promise to restore blessings to Israel on the condition of national repentance.  This promise would hold good during the entire duration of their dispersion in the lands of the heathen (30: 1).  The “long continuance” of the dispersion must therefore occupy the period known as “the times of the Gentiles.”

  Secondly, when in His Olivet Discourse Christ predicted the “abomination of desolation” (Matt. 24: 15; Mark 13: 14), He was pointing His very finger to the time of Antichrist’s persecution.  For the passage Christ refers to is Daniel 11: 31, where Antichrist is described as taking away the daily sacrifice and placing the abomination that maketh desolate. 

   This prediction coincides with those of Daniel 8: 13, 9: 27, and 12: 11.  All of these verses speak of the period of Antichrist’s power, which will last until the “time of the end” when the sanctuary shall be cleansed (Dan. 8: 14).  The 2,300 days mentioned by Daniel in 8: 14 begin exactly 220 days after the commencement of the 70th week of Daniel, ending at the close of the week; while the “midst of the week” is that point when the daily sacrifice will be taken away and the “abomination that maketh desolate” set up.  The remaining 42 months given to Antichrist to afflict the saints brings the prophecy up to the time of the end (Daniel 7: 25; 9: 27; 12: 7; Revelation 13: 5).  This 42 month period fills up the “Great Tribulation” mentioned in Christ’s Olivet Discourse.

  A careful study of Daniel 12 only confirms this.  For the chapter opens with the phrase “at that time” (Dan. 12: 1), thus marking the predictions that follow to be a continuation of those given in Daniel 11.  Daniel records that at that time there shall be a period of “trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time” (Dan. 12: 1).  Compare closely with Matthew 24: 21, where Christ, after warning the Jews to flee when they see the “abomination of desolation stand in the holy place” (24: 15) says: “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matt. 24: 21).

  Christ is speaking of the same period denoted by Daniel as at that time, when Antichrist shall have “planted the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain” (Dan. 11: 45).  This evidence presents an insuperable barrier to Preterists, who must place fulfillment of the predictions of Daniel 11: 21-45 in the seven years preceding the destruction of the Jewish temple by Titus.

   So far, we are not aware of any Preterists who have attempted this Herculean feat.  However, knowing their methods of blandly vaporizing the Scriptures, such text-jockeying would hardly surprise us.  Only keep in mind, however, that almost all commentators see the “vile person” of Daniel 11: 21-35 as Antiochus Epiphanes (an aknowledged “type” of Antichrist), while verses 36-45 of the same chapter are generally regarded as yet unfulfilled.

  As a third and final proof that the Olivet Discourse describes the events following the regathering of Israel, we appeal to Ezekiel 22: 15-22, in which the prophet predicts a regathering of the Jewish people into Jerusalem for remedial purposes.  The whole context of the prophecy places this after the dispersion (v. 15-16 ff.).  Thus, the dispersion and the regathering are two unique events, separated by a long period of time in which the Gentiles are gathered into the church.

  Of course, we could give much more evidence in support of our view that events of the Olivet Discourse are yet future.  We could allude to verses such as Zechariah 14: 2-4, in which Messiah’s return is described as co-ordinate with the destruction of those enemies which fight against Jerusalem.  Or, referring to the same prophet, we might show from Zech. 12: 9-10 that the same events are accompanied by a Jewish national conversion, thus fulfilling Christ’s own promise that, “ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye say, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord” (Matt. 23: 39).

  Suffice it to say that any interpretation of Christ’s end-time prophecy which fails to harmonize the two discourses with the plain testimony of the Old Testament prophets, can only result in a blindness and confusion as great as that which hindered the Scribes and Pharisees from perceiving the truth. Although this is a brief and cursory study, I am hoping that it will help lead others into the right paths of prophetic interpretation.

Antichrist & The Great Tribulation

 

   In his messages to the seven churches, John the Apostle warned his hearers of an “hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth” (Rev. 3: 10). This same event is also mentioned in Rev. 2: 22 and Rev. 7: 14. It describes a period of worldwide “travail” which shall ensue immediately before the “birth” of Israel; that is, of the First Resurrection.  It marks the last period of the “sixth day” which will end in the worldwide Kingdom of Christ, when all secular world power shall be put away and the kingdoms of this world be given to God (Dan. 2: 44; cf. Rev. 11: 15; Zech. 14: 9; Haggai 2: 21-22).

  While some students consider this tribulation as having been fulfilled in the events of the Jewish War (A.D. 67-70) a better acquaintance with the Old Testament prophets shows this to be impossible.  As I wrote in my last article, it is abundantly witnessed in the prophetic writings of both the Old and New Testaments, that the time of tribulation occurs when a personal Antichrist is governing the earth.  This Antichrist is mentioned in the Old Testament books, sometimes under the guise of Antiochus Epiphanes (Dan. 8: 23-25; 11: 21-45), but more often as Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon (Isaiah 10, 13, 14; Jeremiah 50, 51; Daniel 4).  It is he who shall oppress Israel during the last three-and-a-half years of the present age. 

  The period of his tyrannical reign is described as “great tribulation” and “a time of trouble” (Dan. 12: 1).  If we go back to Matthew 24, and hear our Lord’s own words, we’ll find out when this tribulation begins.  Christ says: “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand): then let them which be in the Judea flee into the mountains […] For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matt. 24: 15-16, 21).

  In mentioning the “abomination of desolation,” the Lord is making reference to Daniel 11: 31, which describes the infamies of Antiochus: “And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.”  A close comparison of Daniel 11 & 12 would inform us that the antitypical event marks the beginning of the “time, times, and a half,” or three-and-a-half years, during which “many shall be purified, and made white, and tried” (Dan. 12: 10).  This period of the tribulation will end in the coming of Christ and the First Resurrection, when “many of them [not “all”] that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Dan. 12: 2).

  Also, the coming of Christ takes place at a time when Antichrist is sitting in the temple, boasting himself that he is God (2 Thess. 2: 3-8).  Paul must have viewed this as a fulfillment of the inspired predictions of Isaiah, who foresaw the “king of Babylon” saying, “I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will also sit upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High” (Isaiah 14: 13-14).  Compare also with Daniel 11: 45: “And he [Antichrist] shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.”  Thus, when Christ comes, there shall be a personal Antichrist occupying the Jewish temple.

  But before the Lord returns there shall be a period of “great tribulation.”  Antichrist will ally himself with apostate Jews to persecute those who keep the holy covenant (Daniel 11: 30, 32).  It is probably this apostate element that represents the “false prophet” of Revelation 13: 11. The false prophet will command an image of Antichrist to be placed in the temple, and will cause all to bow down to worship him (Rev. 13: 15).  The “beast” is Antichrist, the revival of Antiochus Epiphanes, whose deadly wound is healed.  After gaining prominence through flatteries and deceitful tactics (Dan. 11: 21-24), he shall oppress and persecute the people of God during forty-two months (Rev. 13: 5)–exactly three-and-a-half years, or a “time, times, and a half.”  This is the time of great tribulation.

  In His Olivet Discourse, Christ prophesies unto the Jews (“this generation”) that at what time they see the abomination of desolation they are to flee.  “For,” He says, “For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled” (Luke 21: 22).   The predictions of Matthew 24 and Luke 21 are tied together by Daniel 11, which places the abomination of desolation in the midst of great national upheaval, when “they that understand and instruct many” shall “fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days” (Daniel 11: 33).  During this time Jerusalem will be surrounded with armies (Luke 21: 20) and “this people” (the Jews) “shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem will be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the time of the Gentiles be fulfilled” (Luke 21: 24).

  Zechariah tells is that when all nations are gathered against Jerusalem to battle, “the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city” (Zech. 14: 2). He also writes: “And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein.  And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God” (Zech. 13: 8-9; cf. Dan. 11: 35, 12: 10; Amos 9: 9-10).

  These verses are very important, as they predict the conversion and salvation of the Jewish people.  Remember that Christ told the Jews: “Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord” (Matt. 23: 39).  Hence the Jewish nation must repent before Christ returns.  It is the Great Tribulation that will issue in this repentance & conversion.  The timing is when all nations are gathered against Jerusalem.  When the Jews repent, Christ will come, and the heathen will be destroyed (Zech. 12: 9 ff., 14: 3).  Then the horns of the Gentiles will be cast out (Zech. 1: 20-21), and the kingdom restored to Israel (Micah 4: 8; Matt. 19: 28).

   The Jewish salvation is also mentioned by Isaiah: “A voice of noise from city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the Lord which rendereth recompense to His enemies.  Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.  Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things?  Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once?  for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children” (Isaiah 66: 6-8).  Now take a look at Revelation 12: 1-5, and you’ll find this same vision being fulfilled.  The first-fruits of the Jewish conversion occur immediately before the three-and-a-half year Tribulation.  These first-fruits are represented by the 144,000 sealed Jews (Rev. 7: 4-8; 14: 4).  The sealing takes place before the Tribulation commences. 

  These are the faithful witnesses who, like the Maccabees, shall “be strong, and do exploits” (Dan. 11: 32) during the tribulation period.  These have God’s name in their forehead (Rev. 14: 1).  They are distinct from the wicked apostate Jews who carry the mark of the beast, and help forward the persecution of the saints.  They are also distinct from the “great multitude which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues” who likewise go through great tribulation (Rev. 7: 9-17). 

   This imagery helps fix the true nature of the tribulation.  It focal point is the city of Jerusalem.  However, due to Antichrist’s supremacy over the Gentile world-governments, it shall also extend throughout the world.  “This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth: and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all nations” (Isaiah 14: 26).  World peace will come only after Antichrist is destroyed and Israel redeemed to God (Isaiah 14: 1-7).  When once the beast and false prophet are “taken and cast alive into the lake of fire” (Rev. 19: 20) and Jesus Christ sits upon the throne of David, the Millennial blessings will commence.  This is the “blessed hope” to which all Christians daily look forward.  Maranatha!

Nebuchadnezzar & The Typology of Antichrist

  Much of the confusion arising among Bible-students in regard to New Testament prophecy comes from a lack of grounding in Old Testament prophetic texts.  In order to understand eschatology aright, we must be conversant in the Old Testament prophets, for many of the New Testament predictions contain direct references to prophecies concerning Israel.

  In my own studies, I’ve come across several “keys” which help unlock difficult passages in the New Testament.  One great truth I’ve found is that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was a type of Antichrist.  In fact, many of the references to himself throughout the Old Testament will have a perfect fulfillment in the person of “the man of sin” foretold by Paul in 2 Thessalonians, and by John in the Apocalypse. 

  The Old Testament prophets sometimes used Babylon as a figure to denote the “fourth kingdom,” which will have dominion over the earth when Christ comes to establish His divine rule among men (Dan. 7: 23).  Viewed in chronological sequence, the fourth kingdom of Daniel is not Rome, as some mistakenly assume, but the Syro-Grecian empire of Antiochus Epiphanes, who was also a type of Antichrist. 

  Search the prophet Daniel carefully, and you’ll discover that the most important “tribulation passages” are founded on the persecution that Antiochus waged against the Jews.  There are clear references to Antiochus in Daniel 8: 9-12, as well as in Daniel 11: 21-45.  Notice that it was Antiochus who set up the “abomination of desolation” (Dan. 11: 31; cf. Dan. 12: 11) to which Christ referred as a future event.  From this we may conclude that Antiochus was a type of the Antichrist who is yet to come.

  Despite, however, many parallels between Antiochus Epiphanes and Paul’s “man of sin,” Nebuchadnezar is, I think, the truest type of Antichrist.  In his time, the kingdom of Babylon held sway over the entire earth.  Jeremiah was told that all nations would serve the king of Babylon, and come under his rule (Jer. 27: 4-7).  In John’s Apocalypse we find that power is given Antichrist over all “kindreds and tongues and nations” (Rev. 13:7).  See also Daniel 4: 10-12, 20-22.

   Then, too, there is the image which Antichrist would set up in the temple of God.  An allusion to this may be found in Daniel 3: 4-6, where Nebuchadnezzar ordered all who refused to worship his image to be cast alive into the fiery furnace.  Compare with Revelation 13: 15. 

   It appears that “mystery Bablylon,” the feet of the image which Daniel saw (Dan. 2: 39 ff), is the true antitype of the kingdom of Babylon represented by the golden head of the image.  The image itself calls to mind the antichristian powers which would hold dominion over the earth.  The identity of the fourth kingdom is not the Syro-Grecian empire, which would be the case were we to view the kingdoms in mere chronological order, but the antitypical kingdom of Babylon.

  It is this kingdom which shall bear rule during the last three-and-a-half years before the second advent of Jesus Christ.  This three-and-a-half year period does not refer to the Jewish war of A.D. 67-70, but to a future period of time after the Jews are gathered back to their own land.  The closing verses of Daniel 11, while containing much that is enigmatic, hint at the political complications of this period, during which Antichrist will “plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain” (Dan. 11: 45).

  This verse is parallel to Isaiah 14: 13-14, in which the “King of Bablyon” is described as “sitting upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north.”  That is, he will be seated in Jerusalem in the temple of God, demanding divine honors when the Lord returns with His saints to execute judgment and justice in the earth.  This will be the fulfillment of 2 Thessalonians 2: 3-8.

  But notice that Daniel 12 is a continuation of the discourse of Daniel 11.  The angel tells Daniel that “at that time” (when Antichrist seats himself in the temple, boasting himself that he is God), there shall be “a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time” (Dan. 12: 1).  This is the event which our Lord calls a “great tribulation” (Matthew 24: 21).  It represents the 1260 day persecution of Antichrist; the “time, times, and a half” of the prophet (Dan. 12: 7).

  This tribulation is spoken of by Jeremiah as “Jacob’s trouble” (Jer. 30: 6-9).  It will issue in the salvation of Israel & the coming of Jesus Christ to reign over the earth.  In fact, the destruction of Babylon is referred to by Jeremiah as the period when Israel’s atonement will be completed (Jer. 50: 18-20).  The downfall of Babylon is also identified as the “time of harvest” (Jer. 51: 33).  Compare this inspired prediction with Revelation 14, in which the harvest of the earth takes place with the downfall of Babylon (Rev. 14: 8).  While the prophets said many things regarding Nebuchadnezzar, the great bulk of their predictions refer to Antichrist and his kingdom.

  So, when Antichrist causes the sacrifice and oblation to cease, and demands divine honors, that is the sign and signal by which the Jews who are left in Jerusalem are bidden to flee (Matt. 24: 14-18).  For then the last half of Daniel’s week will commence, the “time of trouble” being “such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” 

   No serious student of prophecy would maintain that this was fulfilled in the Jewish War of A.D. 67-70.  For there was no personal “antichrist” from which to flee, nor were the Jews ever converted and re-established in their own land.  Nor was there any resurrection of the dead (Dan. 12: 2).  Nor was there any cessation of the persecutions wrought upon the church by Rome, which would have occurred had Christ come at that time (Dan. 7: 27).

  The mistake comes from a faulty interpetation of Matthew 24: 34.  The phrase “this generation” does not mean ‘the people now living on the earth,’ but “The Jews.”  See Deuteronomy 32: 5, 20; Jeremiah 2: 31, 7: 29; Acts 2: 40.  It is an undeniable fact, that whenever Christ used the phrase “this generation,” it always carried a distinctly Jewish reference.  When He alludes to “this generation” not passing away, He is referring to Jeremiah 31: 35-36, in which the Jewish nation is declared co-extensive with the “heavens and earth” (cf. Matt. 24: 35).

  Ezekiel also makes mention of the times of Antichrist in his prophecies regarding Tyre and Zidon (Ezekiel 28). Note that after the persecuting power is destroyed, Israel shall be sanctified in the sight of the heathen and regathered into their own land.  “And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses, and plant vineyards; yea, they shall dwell with confidence, when I have executed judgments upon all those that despise them round about them; and they shall know that I am the Lord their God” (Ezek. 28: 26).

  What else, then, does the downfall of Daniel’s “fourth kingdom” imply but the cessation of all persecuting power and the establishment of the worldwide kingdom of God?  I think if we study these matters in greater depth, we’ll agree that there must come a time when things get worse before they become better.  But they will get better; and it is that which makes Christ’s second coming our “blessed hope” (Titus 2: 13).  Paying heed to the signs of the times is needful in all events.  And there is nothing better that can help us in this department than a closer study of the Old Testament prophets. 

The Abomination of Desolation

  In Matthew 24, our Lord speaks of a time when the Jews would have to flee from the midst of Jerusalem.  This was predicted to occur when the “abomination of desolation” was revealed (Matt. 24: 15-18).  Despite the opinion of many, it seems to me that Christ is not speaking of the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, but of a future series of events which will occur after the Jews have been gathered back to their own land.

  What is this “abomination of desolation?”  After diligent study in the Old Testament prophets, I strongly believe that Christ is referring to none other than Antichrist, who was typified by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.  Keep in mind that a true exposition of Christ’s Olivet Discourse must take into account the context of the Old Testament prophets.  And there are plenty of evidences that confirm the view that Antichrist is the “abomination” from which all Jews who reside in the city of Jerusalem will be forced to flee.

  A few Scriptures will be needed to bring this out more clearly.  First of all, the perpetuity of the Jewish nation is clearly implied in Jeremiah 31: 35-36.  Thus all Old Testament prophecies ultimately look forward to Israel’s redemption (Jer. 33: 25-26).  This redemption will not be completed until Babylon and its “king” are destroyed (Jer. 50: 18-20). 

  Who is this king?  Certainly none other than Antichrist.  See Isaiah 13, and especially Isaiah 14: 3-7, which unmistakedly references Antichrist as “king of Babylon.” Antichrist is also mentioned in Daniel 9 as “the prince that shall come” (Dan. 9: 26).  This prince shall destroy the city and the sanctuary, after making a seven-year compact with the Jews (Dan. 9: 27).  In the midst of the week (that is, after the first three-and-a-half years are ended) he shall cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease (Daniel 12: 11) and will probably have an image of himself placed in the temple (cf. Rev. 13: 14-15).

  Once again, see Isaiah 14: 13-14, where the prophet predicts Antichrist as seating himself in the temple of God at Jerusalem.  Then compare with 2 Thessalonians 2: 4, and you’ll have a perfect picture of what shall transpire during the last half-week before Jesus Christ’s return from heaven.

  More confirmation may be found in Jeremiah 30: 6-9, where the prophet speaks of the “time of trouble” (=Great Tribulation) as issuing in the Messianic reign of Jesus Christ.  Prior to the Lord’s coming, however, the temple will be overrun with enemies (Jer. 51: 51-53).  It is then that the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall have to flee (Jer. 50: 28; 51: 45).  For the “threshing” will commence, in which Babylon will be brought to the dust (Jer. 51: 33-35). 

  I think this identifies Babylon as the final state of Jerusalem under Antichrist.  See Zechariah 11: 15-17, which contains a valuable key to the understanding of these prophecies.  The “idle shepherd” is that same “king” into whose hands the Jews shall be delivered (Zech. 11: 6).  But before the Lord comes to destroy Antichrist with the brightness of His coming (2 Thess. 2: 8), an “assembly of great nations from the north country” will be gathered against Jerusalem to battle (Jer. 50: 9; Zech 14: 2 ff.; Rev. 17: 16). 

   It is because of these great affliction that Jesus Christ told the Jews to flee when the abomination of desolation is revealed (Jeremiah 50: 8; cf. Rev. 18: 4).  All of these Scriptures tie in perfectly with the coming of Jesus Christ to rule and reign over the entire world.  See how this last great battle (=Armageddon) falls out.  Jesus Christ returns to the Mount of Olives from whence He ascended (Zech. 14: 4; Acts 1: 11), the enemies of God are destroyed (Zech. 12: 8-9), and the kingdom is restored to Israel (Jer. 31: 35-40). 

   For obvious reasons, few if any, of these Scriptures can be understood as having an A.D. 70 fulfillment.  Wherefore we must be very cautious in adopting any “preteristic” interpretations based on allegorical and metaphorical readings of the Sacred texts. 

  To sum it up, I think it is obvious that, while the events of A.D. 70 may have had some typical significance, they are not the true fulfillment of Christ’s inspired predictions.  Just like the Antichrist prophecies which Jeremiah spoke of Nebuchadnezzar, nearer events were used to point to ones more distant.  Recognizing this prophetic principle will allow us to understand more clearly the nature and timing of eschatological fulfillment.