As a growing number of Christians believe that Jesus has already returned, ancient documents reveal the relevance of Matthew 24 to this age
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The Appeal of Preterism Today
I have a son who told me that he disagreed with my beliefs about the end of the age. He indicated that he listens to many pastors on YouTube or podcasts who believe that the events of Revelation already occurred and that the kingdom of God is already on the earth.
This line of belief is called preterism, and it sounds appealing to many youths today. It is an empowering message that the kingdom of God (the New Jerusalem) is already on the earth, and it is up to us believers to manifest the kingdom, defeat evil and allow Jesus to come into the world. Though inspirational, this belief is inconsistent with God’s grand plan as He revealed it through His prophets. His is a plan where the saints will overcome, but Jesus and His armies will come at a time of the Father’s choosing, defeat evil, and judge the wicked.
Matthew 24 is one of the key chapters that both preterists and futurists use to prove their point. But only by understanding Matthew 24 in the context of ancient documents such as the Dead Sea Scrolls can we truly understand the revelations of this remarkable prophecy.
The Matthew 24 Question
Matthew 24 and the corresponding scriptures in Mark 13 and Luke 21 (the Olivet Discourse) provide some of the most specific prophecies about the end of the age. The passage begins with a question from four of Jesus’ disciples who asked, “tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” The disciples asked three questions in one:
- When will these things [the tearing down of the temple] happen?
- What will be the sign of your coming? and
- [What will be the sign] of the end of the age?
Jesus responded to their questions and further stated that all these signs will occur before this generation passes away.
So the first question we must ask is what did Jesus mean by this generation?
What Generation was Jesus Referencing?
By lumping all three of these events into one question, the disciples showed that they believed that all of “these things” would happen simultaneously.
Jesus’ response seems to support this as well, as He stated, “you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door. Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.”
This reference to the term this generation is heavily debated today. To which generation was Jesus referring? Jesus referred to this generation five other times in Matthew, including Matthew 23:36, which is part of the same sequence of events as Matthew 24. In every other case, He was referring to the current generation, primarily the Pharisees and scribes who persecute the saints. So the reference to this generation appears to be consistent in 23:36 and 24:34 as a reference to the then-current generation.
This argument is at the core of preterism. Preterists believe that end-times prophecy, including Jesus’ return, was fulfilled around the time the Romans destroyed the temple (70 AD), i.e., during this generation.
If you explore the preterist’s argument, they provide reasonable evidence that the signs Jesus stated were fulfilled.
However, the problem with preterism is that it ignores the larger prophetic picture. Today, western culture views prophecy very one-dimensionally based on a Greek model of prediction and fulfillment. But the Hebrew model of prophecy includes themes, patterns, and paradigms. Such themes may repeat over time with multiple fulfillments.
The End of Which Age?
As I wrote in my last post, four ages span 7,000 years of man’s time on earth. 2,000 years were set apart for each of the Chaos Age, the Torah Age, and the Church/Messianic Age. The last 1,000 years cover the Millennial Kingdom. Preterism and amillennialism ignore this fundamental concept.
But extra-Biblical sources including the Talmud, apocryphal texts such as Enoch, and writings of the early church fathers including Barnabas, Hippolytus, Commodianus, and many others confirm the foundational belief in the Millennial Kingdom. Through these writings, we know that early Jewish and Chrisitan scholars expected Messiah would be on the throne for the final 1,000-year age of man on the earth.
In fulfillment of prophecy, Jesus’ ministry occurred within the last jubilee (50 years) of the Torah Age. According to the Qumran Calendar, this age concluded in 75 AD as calculated by Dr. Ken Johnson through a study of the Dead Sea Scrolls. This date is only five years after the destruction of the Jerusalem temple and two years after the destruction of the Jewish temple in Alexandria.
So when the disciples asked Jesus about the end of the age, they were referring to the then-current age. That being the end of the Torah Age. This interpretation aligns with Jesus’ consistent reference to this generation.
But this generation did not see the fulfillment of all prophecies. As transcribed in Dr. Ken Johnson’s book, Ancient Testimonies of the Patriarchs: Autobiographies from the Dead Sea Scrolls, early patriarchs such as Aaron, Reuben, Levi, and Benjamin wrote about how the Levitical priesthood/sacrifices would end with the Messiah, who would be killed, even crucified. Yet these same patriarchs saw beyond His death. They saw that Messiah would create a new priesthood for the gentiles and form an eternal ministry.
This time equates to the church/Messianic Age that we are in today. The Book of Enoch, portions of which have also been found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, further substantiates this belief. Enoch shows that patriarchs knew of God’s redemption plan from the earliest of times.
Enoch’s Prophecy and the Fulfillment of Daniel 9
Enoch’s prophecy of weeks (700 year periods) is an incredible summary of the entire 7,000-year history of man. In the sixth week (3501-4200 AM, 425 BC – 275 AD), Jesus came, the Romans destroyed the temple, and the Jews were scattered. Of this week, Enoch prophesied the following. “…all who live in it shall be blinded, And the hearts of all of them shall godlessly forsake wisdom. And in it a man shall ascend; And at its close, the house of dominion shall be burnt with fire, And the whole race of the chosen root shall be dispersed.“
Preterists argue that all or most prophecies were fulfilled at this point. But Enoch shows us that this was not God’s plan.
We currently live in the ninth week (5601-6300 AM, 1676-2375 AD). For this week, Enoch wrote the following. “…the righteous judgment shall be revealed to the whole world, And all the works of the godless shall vanish from all the earth, And the world shall be written down for destruction.”
This prophecy clearly describes a time of judgment in our age and includes the events through Revelation 20:6.
Of the tenth week, which would go through the end of the 7,000th year of man, Enoch wrote the following. “And the first heaven shall depart and pass away, And a new heaven shall appear, And all the powers of the heavens shall give sevenfold light. And after that, there will be many weeks without number for ever, And all shall be in goodness and righteousness, And sin shall no more be mentioned for ever.“
Enoch’s description of the tenth week matches Revelation 20:7-22. Clearly, the events of Revelation were expected to be fulfilled during the Millennial Kingdom, not after the destruction of Jerusalem.
The Events of Matthew 24 and the First Six Seals
One of the strongest arguments against preterism is the date that John wrote the book of Revelation. The earliest Christian fathers held to the belief that John wrote Revelation around 96 AD. If this is correct, it single-handedly demolishes the preterist argument. Preterists argue that the date was much earlier, but this argument is based on weak anecdotal arguments.
But this fact does not invalidate the preterist belief that the signs of Matthew 24 were fulfilled. The preterist’s claim that these signs manifested nearly 2,000 years ago is largely supported by historical events recorded by historians such as Josephus. However, this fulfillment only strengthens the case for the validity of the literal interpretation of much of Revelation.
Revelation shows us that these exact signs will manifest as we approach the end of this age as Jesus opens the six seals. But the rest of the chronological events of Revelation cannot be ascribed to the period of the temple’s destruction.
To maintain their position, preterists tend to twist the remaining events of Revelation into nothing more than an allegory. However, this treatment is inconsistent with the preterist viewpoint of Matthew 24. It is inconsistent to argue that the signs of Matthew 24 were literally fulfilled, but the same signs in Revelation are simply allegorical.
Just as the signs in Mattew 24 were judgments against Jerusalem, the trumpet and bowl judgments are the final judgments of the world.
This type of repetition in prophecy is not unusual.
For example, Antiochus Epiphanes clearly fulfilled Daniel’s prophecy concerning the abomination of desolation, yet Jesus communicated in Matthew 24 that another fulfillment would come. Like the antichrist template of Antiochus Epiphanes, Matthew 24 provides us with a template for the next age.
Jesus’ response was not solely intended for the then-current age but to establish a pattern for the signs of His coming in the next age.
Learning from Fulfilled Events
To understand Biblical prophecy, we need to understand the whole picture. False beliefs arise when we interpret all other prophecies through the lens of a single prophecy.
Preterists read Matthew 24 and provide evidence that these signs occurred in the past. They see the same signs in Revelation, so they conclude that the events of Revelation must also be in the past. They try to get around the fact that Revelation was written after the destruction of Jerusalem with anecdotal evidence that the book must have been written earlier.
On the other hand, futurists start with the assumption that the events of Revelation occur in the future. They notice the same signs in Matthew 24 and conclude that these signs must also be in the future.
I assert that both groups’ conclusions are flawed.
By examining the evidence and understanding the big picture of the ages, we can conclude the following:
- In Matthew 24, Jesus was referring to signs that would occur around the fall of Jerusalem with a foreshadowing of the next age.
- These events were fulfilled in that age as Jesus prophesied.
- The Book of Revelation was written after this time.
- The events of Revelation occur in the Messianic/Church Age.
- These six signs manifested at the end of the last age when Israel/Jerusalem was judged and will manifest again at the end of this age when the world is judged.
- The trumpet in bowl judgments, the Millennium Kingdom, and the new heaven and new earth are yet to come.
Based on these conclusions, we can better understand the signs of the six seals occurring in our own generation by studying the fulfillment of these similar signs in the prior age.
Related Posts:
Dead Sea Scrolls Research Frames Timing of Jesus’ Return
Apostasy Rising: Past Ages Reveal What Comes Next in this End of Age Paradigm
Antichrist Spirit Rising: The Paradigm at the End of the Ages
Six Seals Revealed in the Olivet Discourse
Only VERY RARELY, and even then not satisfactorily, have I heard a preterist put The Bride into his timeline. And a goodly share of futureists handle this topic poorly as well.
If Jesus returned for his Spotless Bride within that generation, where’s the preterist’s proof? If He returns to a calamitous Days-of-Noah pre-trib world, how is she “spotless”? And if He returns mid- or post-trib, then what kind of sick-o would let his bride suffer—especially when there are so many “hiding” and ‘under my wing” promises in scripture? Moreover, how could Jesus give the disciples a date that only the Father (who had not told him) would know?
I have come to two conclusions: First, partially based on Ecclesiastes’ nothing-new-under-the-sun, history is filled with repeating patterns launching from the same blueprint. What preterists call fulfillment is one of those patterns, not the final Biggie. Secondly, it is looking more like the Bride is only a faithful and prepared subset of all saved persons, and like the foolish virgins—who were real virgins—got sleepy, were unprepared, and become candidates for martyrdom. I’m not solid on this idea, but it does offer an explanation as to how there could be a spotless Bride within a broader, often messy-looking Church.
Great comment. These are the questions we all wrestle with in trying to understand the times to come. Since you’ve read my posts, you know that I completely agree with your first conclusion. I can see you are still working through your second conclusion. The parable of the 10 virgins is a treasure and I think shows the state of the “messy-looking” church when Jesus returns to bring us to the place He has prepared. This is the state of today’s church. In writing my last post about the first horseman, I found that while 61% of Americans considered themselves Christian, only 24% consider themselves born again. As you pointed out, even after the rapture (Rev. 7:9-17), there are saints who were not prepared and must live through the ordeals of the Beast’s dominion. For these, salvation will be evidenced by martyrdom (see post What Will Happen to Those Left Behind?). However, I believe these martyred saints who missed the rapture will still be part of the wedding. Even though Jesus comes to collect His bride, the wedding supper is not held until after the Beast’s dominion has ended and Jesus comes as King to destroy his forces. Revelation 19 provides us with this sequence of events. So all of the saints who are to be martyred are in heaven at the time of the wedding feast (though not in resurrected bodies yet). In traditional Jewish weddings, the feast is held soon after the consummation of the marriage, so because the feast begins after the martyrs have been killed, I believe they are included in the consummation of the marriage.
I think you are right about the true church within a greater false church idea, for not all who say to Him, “Lord, Lord,” ‘will enter the kingdom of heaven.’ As for the mid- and post- tribbers, they could be supernaturally fed and protected during the great tribulation. Noah and the other seven were in a smelly ship. This is very different from having a marriage reception bash in heaven. The ark was above the waters due to hundreds of years of obedience in the building of it, not whispering a sinner’s prayer of fire (flood) insurance. The Creator of all things is able to feed His own, even though they are forbidden to buy and sell. Persecution must be what produces the bride without spot nor wrinkle, for the flesh of believers is always in league with Satan. In the early church, Confessors were made leaders. These were those slated for martyrdom but who has somehow managed to escape death. Make those who proved they were willing to die for Messiah your leaders. They lead and teach others in the same way by example so that the flesh is well-crucified.