An Eschatology of Confusion
An examination of the teachings of Jesus on eschatological issues. Also, a look at the dating and interpretation of the Book of Revelation.
by W.A. Young, Jr. Th.D. Covenant Theological Seminary www.trinityreformed.com
Nothing is more interesting than the study of what is referred to as the end-times. Nothing sells books, tapes, or videos like future prophecy. Preoccupation with the future is what sells horoscopes, palm readings, and the like. We all face the fears and hopes of what the future may bring. People want to know what will happen in the end.
The purpose of this paper is to review the nature of eschatology. There has been a major shift in eschatological perspective that has swept through much of evangelicalism today. This has occurred in the last one hundred to one hundred and fifty years. It has both violated and permeated much of the church’s teachings concerning the end of this age.
My own journey, especially during the early formative years, was one of vacillation. In the early days, I subscribed to the majority report among evangelicals, the dispensational view. This view is characterized by Hal Lindsey and others. Dispensationalism came about in the 1830′s and is built on the futurist system and supported by the Scofield Bible. It dominates evangelical preaching, education, publishing, and broadcasting today. I suspect the reason is that Scofield presents such a systematic approach that an individual can easily subscribe because it is so easily laid out in his footnotes. As I have grown in my understanding of scriptures I have come to see that the moderate Preterist perspective best presents the biblical perspective. This view is what is under consideration in this paper.
What is Preterism? Preterism is the view that Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 are describing an approaching time when God will judge His people. The book of Revelation, as well, is written primarily to the first century Christians to encourage those who were about to witness the judgment of God upon His covenant breaking people. This view sees the book of Revelation representing the persecution of believers under Nero and the Jewish rebellion. The seven kings of Revelation 17:10 are the emperors Augustus through Galba. The number of the beast–666–is the total numerical value of Nero Caesar spelled in Hebrew letters–and so forth. [I follow Jordan's identification of this number with a "first century corrupt Solomon. MB] While Revelation has benefit for us today, it is written primarily to comfort the true believers of that time as they witnessed God bringing judgment to a nation that had crucified His Son and rejected His covenant. When the disciples were commissioned to deliver Christ’s message in the form of the New Testament, God sent the Edomites and the Roman armies to destroy the last remaining symbols of the Old Covenant: the Temple and the Holy city. Revelation is the finale to the drama of redemption.
One of the best known Preterists is Eusebius (A.D. 260-340), the “father of church history.” He details in his classic work Ecclesiastical History, the woes that await Jerusalem in A.D. 70. The focal point of Revelation, he says, is the destruction of Jerusalem.
Other historical figures who were Preterist in their thoughts were: Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons; Clement of Alexandria; Josephus, Jewish historian; Andreas of Cappadocia; and John Lightfoot (1601-1675). These are but a few of the more well known names in church history.
In more modern times we consider the writings of Milton Terry (1840-1914) as well. Philip Schaff (1819-1893) has taken a strong Preterist view in his classic work. The first five chapters of Revelation, Schaff writes, are a remainder of the impending judgment. The bulk of the prophecy (chapters 6-19) is a revelation of the judgment that is about to befall Israel, including symbolic descriptions of the Beast (Nero), the great harlot (Israel), and Babylon the Great (Jerusalem). In chapter 19, we see the victorious Christ going to war against His enemies (Ps. 110). In chapter 20, John describes the millennial reign of Christ, which began in the first century and will end with the final judgment. Chapters 21 and 22 describe visions of the new heaven and earth and the New Jerusalem, realities that have already been inaugurated but not yet fully consummated.
For our considerations, we should look at some “key” issues. An understanding of the unity of the Bible in addressing the “end-time” will help us to properly understand the day in which we live.
First, is the dating of the book of Revelation. A basic rule of hermeneutics is that a writing’s date of origin must be ascertained as exactly as possible. Louis Berkhof has noted in his hermeneutics manual: “The word of God originated in a historical way, and therefore, can be understood only in the light of history.” There are two views pertaining to the dating of the book of Revelation: the early date that is pre-A.D. 70 and the late date which is around 95 A.D. If the book was written before the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D. then what Revelation is referring to is not future but present, that is, for those who were reading the document. Revelation contains time indicators that point repeatedly to a first century fulfillment (Rev. 1:1,3; 3:10-11;22:6-7, 10, 12, 20). If it was written after 70 A.D. then the majority of the book is to be interpreted in the future sense. That 30 some years difference will make all the difference in the world. What do the scholars say? Church traditions rather than scholars have formed the belief that the dating was near the end of the first century. (Strange that all the remaining books of the New Testament were written before 70 A.D. Why would Revelation be the only book written after the Jewish rebellion?) External and internal evidence, contextual proofs, and the writings of the early church fathers point to a pre-70 A.D. writing. This is crucial to a proper understanding of our subject. I would suggest reading, “Before Jerusalem Fell, Dating the Book of Revelation” by Kenneth Gentry, Jr. for a concise presentation of this matter.
Second, is the need to consider what Jesus said in the Olivet discourse. This teaching, which is treated in detail by all three synoptic gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, and Luke speaks of three distinct future events. These events include (1) the destruction of the temple (2) the destruction of Jerusalem, and (3) His own “coming” in glory. Here Jesus clearly and accurately predicts three future events. These events were unthinkable to those who heard Him say this. There is no doubt that the temple and Jerusalem were destroyed in one of the most well documented events of history in the 70 A.D. destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman general, Titus. However, the prophetic passage is seen by critics as only two thirds fulfilled. If that be the case, two out of three predictions would qualify Jesus as a false prophet. The problem is found in His words, “This generation shall not pass away until all these things come to pass.” Some have said that this time frame did not begin until Israel regained its homeland in 1948, but this is wrong. It means the generation of Jews to whom Jesus was then speaking would see these things come to pass. Jesus was talking to a people who would see all three aspects of this prophecy come to pass in their lifetime. We have engaged ourselves with all kinds of exegetical gymnastics to escape this problem. He did come to that generation, in the righteous glory of His judgment. And that generation did see all the signs that He forewarned them that would happen. This “coming” is not to be confused with His second coming. His coming in glory or in the clouds is an Old Testament reference to judgment. He brought the New Covenant and the New Creation. As in Genesis 1, when God brought order out of disorder and creation out of chaos so Christ brings in a new creation.
Our third consideration is the term “great tribulation”. This comes from Luke 21 that is describing a time unparalleled in Israel’s history. In 70 A.D. that tribulation came. And the “old system” was destroyed once and for all. Jesus speaks of the “coming of the Son of Man”. He declares in Matthew 24 that “the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken”. Surely these things have not been fulfilled. But they have! The language that He is using is commonly found in the Old Testament. Such passages as Exodus 11:6; Ezekiel 5:9; Daniel 9:12; 12: 1; and Joel 2: 2 are but a few. The cosmic problem introduced in Matthew 23 is answered in the Old Testament imagery in passages like Isaiah 13:10; 34: 4-5; Ezekiel 32:7; and Amos 8:9. In Daniel’s prophecy (Daniel 7: 13-14), he speaks of the Son of Man coming up in clouds of heaven to the Ancient of Days. In Daniel’s vision, the ascension of the Son of Man is connected with a judgment upon the nations during the time of the Roman Empire (Daniel 7: 9-12, 18, 22, 26-27). When we take into consideration the language, there is no doubt that Jesus was talking to a generation that by 70 A.D. would see in Jerusalem’s destruction, the fulfillment to His words.
Who was or is the man of sin? We find him alluded to in 2 Thessalonians 2 as the man who would precede the Day of the Lord. A great deal of difficulty surrounds the common assumption that it is referring to events that take place just before the second coming of Christ. But this, too, is wrong. In verse 6, Paul tells us that the man of sin is restrained at the time he is writing his letter. In verse 7, he tells us that “the mystery of lawlessness is already at work” and that the restrainer “now restrains” the man of sin. If the man of sin was being restrained at the time Paul wrote this letter (51 to 52 A.D.), then Paul was not speaking of some person who would arise thousands of years later. The man of sin, who was alive at the time Paul wrote, was probably none other than Nero. The language Paul uses to describe him, as one “who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God”, is identical language used by several Old Testament prophets to condemn certain political rulers (Isaiah 14: 4-21; Ezekiel 28: 2-19; Daniel 11:36). Only one man fits Paul’s description of the first century’s man of sin; Nero, who died in 68 A.D. during the Jewish War.
Eschatological expectation intensified as the war between Jerusalem and Rome came to a head. Many believed that the Messiah would return to deliver them. False prophets took advantage of this expectation and deceived many as foretold by Matthew. Signs and wonders occurred as Halley’s comet appeared in 66 A.D. Not long after that Nero committed suicide. Historians have linked the appearance of Halley’s comet not only with the death of Nero, but with the destruction of Jerusalem four years later. Josephus recounts that “there was a star resembling a sword, which stood over the city, and a comet, that continued a whole year.”
Josephus supports the biblical record when he reports, “And now these impostors and deceivers persuaded the multitude to follow them into the wilderness, and pretended that they would exhibit manifest wonders and signs, that should be performed by the providence of God.”
The temple was gone. The Old Covenant people, Israel, was now replaced with a nation of Jews and Gentiles (Matthew 21:43). The Messiah came in the person of Jesus Christ. He is the Israel of God; the seed of Abraham. He is “the temple” (John 2:21); “the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29); and He is the High Priest (Hebrews. 6:20). Jerusalem which is the city of the Old Covenant has now been replaced with the Jerusalem from above, the city of the living God (Hebrews. 12:22). Most of the predications in the Old Testament were fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. After all, what was the subject matter in the Old Testament? What did Jesus say about Himself in Luke 24: 27?
We love sensationalism and sensationalism sells! We have found that out in our present media frenzy with our unsatisfied appetite for juicy news. There is no exception within the Christian community especially dealing with spiritual matters and, in particular, issues dealing with the end-time. A large amount of prophetic speculation could be avoided if we would begin to take the time-texts of Scripture seriously. There are texts that indicate first century fulfillment, and there are texts that indicate fulfillment at the end of the present age. The task of responsible interpretation is to discern the difference. Do these things really matter? Does truth matter, we should probably ask? But most importantly, why should we look for something in the future when, in fact, it has already happened? Our eschatology should not be one of confusion but of clarity. A great deal of our end-time predications have been false. Will someone please have the courage to challenge them! The beginning of this millennium saw the same problem. We need clarity of properly understanding Scripture to fulfill the purposes of God in our generation.
Here is a list of well written theological books and articles relating to this topic:
Dr. R.C.Sproul, “The Last Days According to Jesus”
Dr. Kenneth Gentry, “The Day Jerusalem Fell, Dating of the Book of Revelation”
J. Stuart Russell, “The Parousia”
David Chilton, “Days of Vengeance”
David E. Holwerda, “Jesus & Israel; One Covenant or Two?”
