Bingo ---
The earliest most credible witness for the 96 AD date is Irenaeus whose source, among others, would have been Polycarp, bishop of the church at Smyrna that received one of the seven letters that John wrote in 96 AD.
The Preterists are so far out on a limb on this one that they fall into the category of Agnostics, historical and biblical.
Amen.
None of the events in Matthew 24 have happened yet.
The Roman destruction of Jerusalam is foretold in Lk 21:20-24.
“The earliest most credible witness for the 96 AD date is Irenaeus whose source, among others, would have been Polycarp, bishop of the church at Smyrna that received one of the seven letters that John wrote in 96 AD.” ~ Uncle Chip
See below:
No Deposit, No Return?
Essays on Eschatology
James Patrick Holding
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/eschatology.html
Eons ago I recall getting from a “turn or burn” relative one of those neat brochures that outlined an interpretation of the book of Revelation with pictures of people being “raptured” and trucks and cars and planes crashing as souls flew out of the driver’s/pilot’s places. I have of course read my Hal Lindsey, but since taking a more scholarly bent to my studies, haven’t thought much about it. I have said to others, if the parousia comes in my lifetime, it shall find me either asleep or in a library somewhere. The subject was of that little concern to me.
But it has become clear that certain questions dealing with eschatology, in particular the questions, “Did Jesus predict a soon return? Did the Apostles expect a soon return?”, have become grist for the skeptical and critical mill. Of course we know well that skeptics of the caliber of say, Farrell Till, are about as likely to understand what they are reading as they are to understand quantum physics. But I have corresponded with at least one person who has said that they were “losing their faith” over this very question, and I am sure others exist as well.
The Big Picture — what preterism is all about, basically
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/pretsum.html
Issue #1: OT Background Data:
“The Day of the Lord”: An OT Judgmental Precursor
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/dayofl.html
The Book of Daniel and the Son of Man Precursor
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/danman.html
The Evidence of Other OT Prophets
Zechariah 14 and the Coming of Christ [Off Site]
http://www.preteristarchive.com/PartialPreterism/demar-gary_pp_01.html
Issue #2: Does the NT teach a “soon” return of Jesus?:
Preterism and Ancient Present-Orientation — a backdoor defense of preterism based on a social orientation of the ancients
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/timepret.html
The Evidence of the Gospels — The Olivet Discourse http://www.tektonics.org/esch/olivet01.html and Miscellaneous Synoptic Passages — see also here [Off Site]
The Evidence of the Pauline literature
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/paulend.html
The Evidence of the Catholic epistles and Hebrews
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/hcesh.html
The Evidence of Revelation
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/revdate.html
The Kingdom of God in Preterist Eschatology
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/kingpret.html
On the location of Christ’s reign [Warren]
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/ddwplace.html
Raising Cain and Abel — against views on resurrection, by [Warren]
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/raisecain.html
Responses to Preterism:
From the In Depth Bible Studies site
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/eschback01.html
A debate between ...Warren and a dispensationalist
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/tolpret.html
From a very, er, peculiar website
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/dovtail.html
From (HA HA, HEE HEE HEE) Skeptic X (please control yourself)
http://www.tektonics.org/tsr/tillpfft.html
From Evangelical scholar Thomas Ice (ah — now that’s better!)
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/pretice.html
From Ice and Tim LaHaye in The End Times Controversy (wish this were better, but it isn’t). http://www.tektonics.org/esch/pretice2.html Analysis by Gary DeMar as well, here.
Responses to “Full Preterism”(Hyper Preterism):
On the error of Hymenaenism”
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/hythere.html
Stephen Smith on “Spiritual Israel”
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/smithst01.html
Dale Allison on the Use of Metaphor
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/eschall.html
Eschatology.org on resurrection
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/rezwreck.html
“Dualistic Eschatology” by Tracy VanWyngaarden
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/wyngaar01.html
“Grave” Error: Hyper-preterism and the Response of the Church by ... Warren
http://www.tektonics.org/esch/grave.html