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<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nThat\u2019s a great hook, isn\u2019t it? Who wouldn\u2019t<\/em> want to know when Jesus is coming back and how to be prepared for Him? To know the secrets of holy scripture entices the soul.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hal Lindsey wrote The Late Great Planet Earth <\/em>in 1970 (interesting article on the book at neh.gov<\/a>)[1]<\/a>, and it became an enormous financial success\u2014an estimated 35 million copies sold by the end of the 20th<\/sup> century. He made dispensational premillennialism popular and mainstream among evangelical churches. How many today take for granted that Christians are (and should be) waiting for the Temple to be rebuilt in Jerusalem and for Christ to descend out of the clouds? How many see wars, famines, and calamities around the globe as flags, signs, precursors to a coming rapture, in which God will snatch up all His faithful ones and leave the rest for a seven-year tribulation period before Jesus finally returns to reign from Jerusalem for 1,000 years? You might think that is silly talk, but many believe it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why do they believe it? They have been sold a hermeneutic (a way of interpreting the Bible) which is, frankly, lousy. Hal Lindsey stood on the shoulders of such early dispensationalists as John Nelson Darby (1800\u20131882) and Cyrus Scofield (who published his Scofield Reference Bible<\/em> in 1909). He was contemporary with Charles Ryrie (who published his Ryrie Study Bible<\/em> in 1978). All these understood many prophecies of the Old and New Testaments to be pointing, amazingly, to a time close to their own generation. Why shouldn\u2019t God bring His great plans to pass during my<\/em> lifetime, after all, and make everything happen right now<\/em>?<\/p>\n\n\n We need to read the Bible more carefully. More fundamentally, we need to read the Bible! I am convinced that those who spend time in God\u2019s word will not be easily led astray by snake-oil salesmen peddling elaborate, sensational interpretations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Matthew 24 is one of the most abused scriptures in this regard, as Jesus foretells some great judgment and uses highly symbolic language. The Jews would have been comfortable in understanding the kind of descriptions He gave because they had heard them often in their Hebrew scriptures (which we call the Old Testament). What do you think they<\/em> heard when Jesus said the following?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cImmediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.\u201d<\/p>\nMatthew 24.29\u201331<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n I recently asked a group of men what they thought Jesus meant by this, and they immediately said, \u201cThe final judgment.\u201d I said, \u201cThat\u2019s what a lot of people think\u2014but let\u2019s keep this text in the context of the whole chapter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n First, understand that Jesus was using Old Testament language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Second, understand that Jesus gave plenty of time indicators in the text<\/em> to give us a good idea of the when<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Isaiah prophesied of a coming judgment upon Babylon<\/strong> using the following language:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Behold, the day of the LORD comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger, Isaiah was not talking about the end of time or the<\/em> judgment day; he was foretelling a<\/em> judgment upon a particular nation\u2014Babylon. He described it using what we now call apocalyptic language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When Ezekiel prophesied about a coming judgment against Egypt<\/strong>, he wrote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n When I blot you out, I will cover the heavens and make their stars dark; God gave Joel a word to speak to Israel<\/strong> about a judgment of locusts which He planned to send upon their land. He called this judgment \u201cthe day of the LORD\u201d (Joel 2.1), describing it as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n A day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness!<\/p>\nJoel 2.2<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. Then Joel prophesied what would be repeated by Peter on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.\u201d<\/p>\nJoel 2.30\u201332<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n What shall we say concerning the sign in heaven of the Son of Man (Matt. 24.30)? It says, \u201cthey will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This refers to language in Daniel\u2019s book:<\/p>\n\n\n\n And behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, The sign is that Jesus would begin to reign on His throne! He would be king over all nations and have everlasting dominion over all the kingdoms of the earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But WHEN would this happen? Would this happen several thousand years after Jesus said it? Are we still waiting for Jesus to come with the clouds of heaven and sit on His throne? Is He not yet king over all nations? When would this terrible judgment happen, and to whom?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Back in Matthew 24, let us start at the beginning. Jesus\u2019 disciples had been admiring the gorgeous temple, but Jesus had said, \u201cThere will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.\u201d This startled the disciples! After leaving the city and sitting across the valley on the Mount of Olives, they asked Jesus to tell them when these things would take place (Matt. 24.3). Isn\u2019t that what we are asking, as well? WHEN, Jesus, will these things happen?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSee that no one leads you astray,\u201d Jesus began, exactly the words we need to hear today.<\/p>\n\n\n He warned them of many signs and false-claims people would make about Him and about this judgment, saying, \u201cThey will lead many astray\u2026See that you are not alarmed\u2026the end is not yet\u201d (Matt. 24.5\u20136).<\/p>\n\n\n\n He said, \u201cThey will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for My name\u2019s sake\u2026and the gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come\u201d (Matt. 9, 14).<\/p>\n\n\n\n To whom was Jesus talking? Specifically, He was talking to His closest disciples\u2014Mark\u2019s gospel names Peter, James, John, and Andrew (Mark 13.3). To understand a conversation, it\u2019s important to understand who is speaking<\/em> and who is hearing<\/em>. Jesus was not addressing the crowds, nor was He addressing you and me today. He was talking to His disciples in the first century. Listen to His words from their perspective. They<\/em> would preach the gospel to the whole world. They<\/em> would be persecuted for His name\u2019s sake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then Jesus said, \u201cWhen you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel standing in the holy place, then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains\u2026\u201d (Matt. 24.15\u201316). When who<\/em> sees? When they<\/em>, the disciples see! They who were listening to Jesus at that time would see this happen. Jesus tells them to run and hide in the mountains, get out of Judea altogether, because \u201cthere will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be\u201d (Matt. 24.21). It was something that would happen there, in that time and place. Luke\u2019s gospel clearly explains what this \u201cabomination of desolation\u201d is: \u201cBut when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near\u201d (Luke 21.20).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then we have the language mentioned above about the sign of the Son of Man in the clouds, which, taken out of context, could be applied to the end of time and the last judgment, but<\/em> we have an important verse coming:<\/p>\n\n\n \u201cFrom the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also when you see all these things<\/strong>, you know that He is near, at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place<\/strong>. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.\u201d<\/p>\nMatt. 24.32\u201335<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Here Jesus gives us the best time references in the chapter. All those things He had been talking about would happen during the lifespan of some of those who were listening to Him at that time. They<\/em> would see the signs, and their generation<\/em> would see those events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Do you see how important it is to keep verses in their context? One key to accurate Bible study and interpretation is this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Know who is talking (the speaker) and who is hearing (the audience).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you understand this crucial information, you are in a much better position to rightly interpret the passage. If you don\u2019t understand this information, you will likely leave with invalid applications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fight against haphazard, slipshod Bible study and learn to study the context.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nathanbekah.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/book-1209805_640.jpg?resize=640%2C454&ssl=1\")
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Old Testament Language References<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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to make the land a desolation and to destroy its sinners from it.
For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light;
the sun will be dark at its rising, and the moon will not shed its light\u2026
Therefore I will make the heavens tremble, and the earth will be shaken out of its place,
at the wrath of the LORD of hosts in the day of His fierce anger.<\/p>\nIsaiah 13.9\u201310, 15<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nathanbekah.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/city-713775_640.jpg?resize=640%2C427&ssl=1\")
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I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give its light.
All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over you,
and put darkness on your land, declares the Lord GOD.<\/p>\nEzekiel 32.7\u20138<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n
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The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.<\/p>\nJoel 2.10<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n
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and He came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him.
And to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him;
His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away,
and His kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.<\/p>\nDaniel 7.13\u201314<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nTime Indicators in the Text<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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