Matthew 12
39 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas:
40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Son of man - ben adam - idiom for human being, say Ezekiel or Daniel, or even when abbreviated it's ב"א, so could also hint at B.O. the pseudo savior.
Heart of the earth...
Matthew 6
19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Sounds like a dip into the US Treasury or Dirty Harry's retirement plan. A pile of mammon, a stockpile of material wealth, the baubles and bullion of Babylon, etc. A grave all right, but still not necessarily a literal place.
Besides, the text reminds me of another popular argument re the definition of generation. An evil and adulterous generation has existed thoughout history. Generation to generation.
Exodus 17
13 And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.
14 And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.
15 And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovahnissi:
16 For he said, Because the LORD hath sworn that the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.
I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.
Luke 11
29 And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet.
30 For as Jonas was a sign unto the Ninevites, so shall also the Son of man be to this generation.
31 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for she came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.
32 The men of Nineve shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.
At this point it's still looking good for Daniel 8:14 to read as,
And he said unto me, until the eve of a morning, 2003 from a sign, then the holy will be vindicated.
It's not just the Catholics you're with, but most of western Christianity. :-)
Reminds me of a song.
Here I am Lord with lyrics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcxOkht8w7c
There was only ONE sign given for Jesus to prove that he was the Messiah...And that sign was that he would spend 3 days and 3 nights in the belly of the earth...
If that was nothing but a metaphor, if it really didn't happen, Jesus was a fake...And the entire bible is a fake...
There aren't any metaphors there...