Posted on 03/22/2015 5:47:53 PM PDT by grumpa
WHEN IS (WAS) THE GREAT TRIBULATION?
by Charles S. Meek
“And they will deliver YOU up to tribulation. . . .” (Matthew 24:9)
“For these are the days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written.” (Luke 21:22)
“For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole EARTH.” (Luke 21:35)
The Olivet Discourse contains the greatest body of prophecy in the New Testament outside of Revelation. It is found in the parallel passages of Matthew 24/25, Mark 13, and Luke 21. The above passages in the Olivet Discourse are referring to the Great Tribulation at Jesus’ Parousia (his effectual divine presence in judgment). Was Jesus speaking of the entire globe as we know it today, or was He speaking of the world in which He and his contemporaries lived, that is, Judea?
The word translated as “earth” in Luke 21 is the Greek word ge. The online Blue Letter Bible interlinear gives several meanings for this word, including: (a) the inhabited earth, (b) country, land enclosed within fixed boundaries, a tract of land, territory, or region. As always, context and audience relevance determine how to interpret the Bible. Let’s take a look at another time we find this word in the immediate context of the Olivet Discourse:
Matthew 23:35—“That upon YOU may come all the righteous blood shed upon the EARTH [ge], from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias.” This is a clear reference to the Jewish people, and not to all the people on the globe.
In addition to Luke 21:35, Luke’s version of the Olivet Discourse contains the same word “ge” in another verse—verse 21: “There shall be great distress in the LAND [ge].” Jesus is obviously speaking about Jerusalem, which is confirmed by the further context:
In Luke 21:20-21 Jesus tells his followers that they will know when the Tribulation is upon them by the appearance of armies around Jerusalem, and that they can escape the Tribulation by fleeing to the mountains. These instructions limit the extent of the Tribulation to the immediate region—not the whole globe as we think of it today. It matches perfectly with the events surrounding the invasion of Judea by the Roman army in AD 66-70, at which time over a million Jews were killed and the temple demolished.
In the Olivet Discourse, we find several clear time restrictions: (1) At least seven times Jesus restricts the events to those to whom He is speaking, by such phrases as “When YOU see. . . .” Consider: Matthew 24:6, 9, 15, 33, 34, 44; Luke 21:20. (2) For further emphasis, Jesus said, “For THIS IS THE TIME of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written.” Luke 21:22 (3) Just in case they were too dense to get it, He emphasized, “Truly I tell you, THIS GENERATION will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.” Luke 21:32 (4) And, if it there was any lingering doubt about when it would happen, He said, “Pray that you may be able to escape all that is ABOUT TO happen.” (Luke 21:36, see the NIV or literal translations such as the YLT)
But wait. Jesus said it would be the worst tribulation ever (Matthew 24:21). Wasn’t the holocaust worse? Jesus’ frequent use of hyperbole aside, in terms of Jewish history AND covenant, the events surrounding AD 70 were indeed, without exaggeration, the most horrific days ever to befall God’s people.
What about Revelation? Well, John said he was in the tribulation WHEN HE WAS WRITING Revelation! See Revelation 1:9 and 2:9-10. Dozens of scholars are persuaded that Revelation was written in the 60’s AD. So John’s “tribulation” could have been referring to either the Christian persecution under Nero during AD 64-68 or to the devastating events of the Jewish-Roman War in AD 66-70. In either case, this is consistent with Jesus’ numerous “this generation” statements.
Conclusion: The events surrounding the destruction of Jerusalem as predicted by Jesus in the Olivet Discourse were restricted by Him to the region and the people of Judea in the first century. This was the Great Tribulation. There is NO indication in God’s Word that it will ever happen again. To read a future “great tribulation” into the text does violence to the promises of Jesus.
For more information, see my websites:
https://prophecyquestions.wordpress.com
http://www.faithfacts.org/world-religions-and-theology/the-biblical-last-days
https://www.facebook.com/EvangelicalPreterism
Where is even the slightest indication in Matthew 24 that the verses following verse 4 are going to be off into the future thousands of years? I see no such indication. His time frame is very specifically given in verse 34, when he said it would happen in “this generation.” The writings of Jewish historian Flavius Josephus confirm that he was right.
The resurrection is very shortly before Judgement Day.
Revelations is symbols, like a painting.
Shows patterns, using metaphors to explain them.
And Preterism once again raises it’s ugly head! Christ has already returned and “generation” means the people who were alive at the time right? If the Preterist view were correct those preaching it missed the boat and are destined for hell.
When was Satan chained for 1000 years? When did Christ defeat his armies? When did Christ appear to everyone on earth?
Setting dates are we?
Preterism doesn't fit with ANY view.
Do your friends call you Harold?
That simply isn't true. Read Isaac Newton's interpretation of the Prophets for a very good example.
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There is no indication that anything but the comment WRT the coming destruction of the temple is anything but distant future, with the exception that persecution is a constant part of the lives of every spirit filled believer.
The “this generation” Yeshua spoke of was the future generation that would see the beginning of the events of the closing days of the governments of men. That was of course clearly not during the iron-fisted Roman empire, that would continue under the false church of Constantine far into the future.
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Just as all of your friends call you Nero, I guess. :o)
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Even rabbinical Judaism has abandoned that 3rd century time index.
They have declared the year that began at sunset yesterday to be 6015, so you need to get up to speed!
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Sorry no cigar on all points!
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The first resurrection is 1000 years before “judgement day,” just as Revelation 20 states.
There are few symbols in the Revelation. It is the interpretation of John to the very real events that he was allowed to witness. Military hardware of our day was not easily describable, so John did the best he could.
There is one pattern to the final 18 chapters: The unfolding of the increasing tyranny and malfeasance of the governments of men.
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>> “ Read Isaac Newton’s interpretation of the Prophets for a very good example.” <<
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In addition to the dialog in the gospels WRT their assurance that Lazarus, who lay dead for 3 days, would surely be raised at that final day.
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Please inform me how the Feasts have been fulfilled - To my knowledge only the Spring Holy Days have been fulfilled... What of the Fall Feasts?
Please Show me the fulfillment of the blessings given by Jacob to his sons (particularly predicted to be fulfilled in the latter days), and all of the blessings that came thereafter as given to the individual tribes...
Please show me particularly the fulfillment of all the prophecies specifically about Joseph/Ephraim (Hosea and Isaiah would be a good place to start).
Please show me the finality of Zachariah.
That’s what was taught in Christendom, up till relatively recently.
Not true. There have always been dissenters that did not embrace the company line of the Roman church, or the subsequent Protestant churches that inherited her errors... Replacement Theology horribly blinded the church for centuries. The only way that Replacement Theology can be true is to flatly ignore OT prophecy entirely, and thereby be free to interpret the NT prophecies however one wants.
Many thanks for the info!
I am orthodox Presbyterian; my pastor is who characterized revelation as a painting, with metaphors and symbols.
He said the events described therein show patterns, as the picture would show.
We are studying Revelations in our adult Sunday school.
I have a book by John A.T. Robinson called “Re-dating the New Testament” and in it the author dates all the books of the n.t. to before 70 a.d.
He goes into great detail, citing contemporary events, writings of early church fathers, even giving original Greek words to illustrate.
See posts. #58 and #60 by biblical Calvinist and grumpa
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Post #58 is nothing but advertising for a nonsensical book that denies the testimony of John’s chief disciple, Polycarp.
The scriptures totally demolish hyper-preterism.
Had any of the key events happened, such as Yeshua’s coming in the clouds, or his total defeat of the armies of men, or the turning to blood of the oceans, the north-south split of Jerusalem, allowing the Mediterranean to flood the great rift, or you name it!
This is fairy tale garbage.
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Names like Gary DeMar, R.J. Rushdoony, Gary North, Greg Bahnsen, David Chilton, and Andrew Sandlin are all proponants of that theology. There's some really weird beliefs amongst that group. They are the "Islam" group of Christians.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/3270869/posts?page=78#78
Biblical Calvinist, see post 78 by editor-surveyor.
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