| D-Eric-Williams.com |
| Home About Articles Books Contact Resources Sermons Sitemap Speaking Invitations Statement of Faith |
|
The Sky Is Falling In Acts 2:19-20, we read of Peter on the day of Pentecost (still quoting the prophet Joel), saying that the "last days" that he was speaking of were characterized by "wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath: Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord." Then in 2 Thessalonians 1:6-8 Paul wrote: "Since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." In his second epistle Peter writes: But the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:10-13). In the book of Revelation we read of John describing what he saw by saying that he "looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place" (Rev. 6:12-14). In Revelation 8:12 we read: "Then the fourth angel sounded: and a third of the sun was struck and a third of the moon and a third of the stars, so that a third of them were darkened. A third of the day did not shine, and likewise the night." Now, other than the passage from 2 Thessalonians, each of the selections above is part of a "near end" passage that we examined in the previous chapter. Thus, if the "near at hand last days" New Testament Scriptures that we looked at earlier have to do with the closure of the old covenant age - an event that took place in the first century - it would follow that the cosmic phenomena described as being part of that same event would have taken place in the first century as well. Yet, is this possible? Where do we hear of this sort of cataclysmic collapse in the ancient histories? Surely the events described above could not have passed un-noticed by the earth's inhabitants. If in fact this "cosmic phenomena" language is meant to be taken literally, then it is incorrect to believe that the "near at hand last days" language in the New Testament refers to the end of the old covenant age. Once again the key to understanding these verses is to allow the Bible to interpret itself: for this sort of cosmic phenomena language has been used in a very similar fashion elsewhere in the Bible. Isaiah spoke of "the burden against Babylon" that God gave him concerning the overthrow of Babylon by the Medes and Persians. In describing that event Isaiah said that "the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and He will destroy sinners from it." In describing the downfall of Babylon he said, "the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be darkened in its going forth, the moon will not cause its light to shine ...Therefore I will shake the heavens and the earth will move out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts and in the day of His fierce anger." (Isaiah 13:1, 9-10, 13). Jeremiah described the Babylonian overthrow of Judah and Jerusalem with the language of de-creation: "I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form and void; and the heavens, they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and indeed they trembled, and the hills moved back and forth." He went on to say: "I beheld and indeed, there was no man, and all the birds of the heaven had fled. I beheld and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness, and all its cities were broken down at the presence of the Lord, by His fierce anger. For thus says the Lord, 'the whole land shall be desolate, yet I will not make a full end. For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black, because I have spoken. I have purposed, and I will not relent, nor will I turn back from it'" (Jer. 4:3, 23-28). In Ezekiel 32:2, 7-8 we read of the prophet's prediction of the overthrow of Egypt by the Babylonians: "Son of man take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him, '...when I extinguish you ("when I put out your light," NKJV), I will cover the heavens and darken their stars; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not give its light" (NASB). He continues with: "'All the shining lights in the heavens I will darken over you and I will set darkness over your land' declares the Lord God" (NASB). In Amos 8:1-2, 7-9 we read about the prophet's prediction of an Assyrian overthrow of the northern kingdom of Israel. He said: "Thus the Lord showed me: Behold, a basket of summer fruit. And He said, 'Amos, what do you see?' So I said, 'A basket of summer fruit.' Then the Lord said to me, 'The end has come upon My people Israel. I will not pass by them anymore.' ...The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob, 'Surely I will never forget any of their works. Shall the land (of Israel) not tremble for this, and everyone mourn who dwells in it? All of it shall swell like the River, heave and subside like the River of Egypt. And it shall come to pass that in that day,' says the Lord God, 'that I will make the sun go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in broad daylight'" (parenthesis added). Zephaniah foretold the overthrow of Jerusalem by the Babylonians when he said that; "Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord's wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy. For he will make a speedy riddance of all those who dwell in the land (of promise)" (Zeph. 1:18, parenthesis added). There is another type of "cosmic phenomena" language used in the Scripture that we need to look at as well. It is the language used to describe the presence of God as Lawgiver and Judge.1 These passages we may call "glory cloud" references. Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. ...Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. and when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice (thunder, NASB) (Exodus 19:16, 18-19). Job 38:1 says: "Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind (storm, NIV), and said, 'Who is this who darkens My counsel by words without knowledge?'" In Isaiah 19:1, 4, we read of Isaiah's prediction of God's coming in judgement of Egypt through the Assyrian conquest of Egypt (Is. 20:1-6). He said: "The burden against Egypt. Behold, the Lord rides on a swift cloud, and will come into Egypt. '...And the Egyptians I will give into the hand of a cruel master, and a fierce king will rule over them' says the Lord, the Lord of hosts." Isaiah also foretold the presence of God in judgement against Judah and Jerusalem through the Assyrian invasion (or possibly the Babylonian invasion) when he said: "Woe to Ariel, to Areil, the city where David dwelt! ...You will be punished by the Lord of hosts with thunder and earthquake and great noise, with storm and tempest and the flame of devouring fire." He cries out again, saying: "Woe to the rebellious children, '...the Lord will cause His glorious voice to be heard, and show the descent of His arm with the indignation of His anger and the flame of a devouring fire, with scattering tempest and hailstones" (Is. 29:1a, 6, 30:1a, 30). Another description of the glory cloud is provided by the prophet Ezekiel: Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river Chebar, that the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. ...Then I looked and behold, a whirlwind (windstorm, NIV), was coming out of the north, a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. Also from within it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man. ...When they went I heard the noise of their wings, like the sound of many waters, like the voice of the Almighty, a tumult like the noise of an army: and when they stood still they let down their wings (Ezekiel 1:1, 4-5, 24). In Nahum 1:3-5 we read of God coming in judgement against the Assyrians (Nineveh) through the Babylonian armies. The prophet says: "The Lord is slow to anger and great in power and will not acquit the wicked. The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry, and drys up all the rivers. Bashan and Carmel wither, and the flower of Lebanon wilts. The mountains quake before Him. The hills melt and the earth heaves at His presence, yes the world and all who dwell in it." In the passages quoted above (both the cosmic phenomena and the glory cloud type), we see God portrayed as Lawgiver, Judge and Avenger. In the cosmic phenomena passages the wrath of God or more accurately, the actual manifestation of that wrath, is metaphorically described in terms that portray the upheaval of the created order. However, as we have already seen, what reads like the dissolution of the heaven and earth is really the overthrow of an existing socio-political and religious order. As we know, God uses human agents to bring about His judgements (Rom. 12:19, 13:4); and the first group of verses listed above describes in metaphorical terms the devastation wrought by conquering armies who are agents of God's wrath. Yes the message of judgement is to be understood literally: God sent the Babylonians to literally destroy Jerusalem, for instance. Nevertheless it is equally true that the prophets used non-literal or symbolic language as they warned of the literal, soon to happen (for the original audience) judgements. This same sort of language was used by Joseph when he described his dream that foretold his eventual rule over his father, mother and brothers. He said that he saw the "sun, moon and the eleven stars" bow down to him. His father understood the implications of the dream and rebuked him, yet at the same time "kept the matter in mind" (Gen. 37:10-11). This same approach is apparent in the examples we have listed. Sun, moon, stars and "lights" refer to leaders and leadership and national identity. Fire, storm, earthquake and the like refer specifically to the judgement on those leaders and nations. Again, Isaiah said that the stars, sun and moon would go dark when Babylon was overthrown by the Medes and Persians (Is. 13:1, 10, 17-19). The Lord's burning anger would make the land of Israel "desolate" by the hand of a conquering foe. In other words, God "put out the lights" of the nation and its ruling class so that they would no longer be a bright light in the constellation of nations. This is what is meant by the references to the heavenly bodies. Jeremiah said that when Judah was overthrown by the Babylonians, their light would be extinguished and they would become a void in the book of nations. This has nothing to do with literal light and everything to do with literal human rulers who are disposed by invading enemies. The hills quake - the leaders are terrified and are removed - and there is "desolation" (Jer. 4:3, 23-28). Ezekiel said that God would blot out the light of the nation of Egypt through the Babylonian overthrow. In other words, they would cease to be among the leading nations of the world (Ezk. 32:18). Again, cosmic phenomena language is used to refer to events that have nothing to do with the dissolution of the created order. Amos said that the socio-political and religions system in place in Israel and Samaria would be destroyed by the Assyrians: but he said that by saying the land would be tossed about, and dark in broad daylight (Amos 8:8-9). Zephaniah foretold the razing of Jerusalem by the Babylonians by saying that it would be a day of darkness and gloom and that all of the land of Israel would be consumed by the fire of God's jealousy (Zeph. 1:15,18). The land was not literally consumed by the fire of God's jealousy: it was overthrown by invading armies. In short the Bible uses cosmic metaphor to describe the collapse of nations in the upheaval of war. The bright lights of leadership are cast down and the lights of national glory are extinguished. Moreover, God "burns up" and "desolates" the land as He wipes out the systems and structures of government and religion. Thus, when the prophets say that the sun will go dark, the stars will fall or the sky will be rolled up like a scroll, they are telling us that the leadership and the nation itself will be cast down in judgement. When they say that the land will heave, be desolated and so on, they are simply saying that the familiar systems, the "infrastructures" of government and religion will not survive the judgement either. The "glory cloud" passages are closely related to the "cosmic phenomena" passages. The glory cloud is a very real and literal phenomena, yet descriptions of, or references to the glory cloud also symbolize the presence of God in judgement. Again, Isaiah warns Egypt that God is "riding on a swift cloud" about to bring judgement through the Assyrian army (Is. 29:1, 6, 30:30). Ezekiel - a messenger of God's wrath - sees the glory cloud of God in all its terrible splendor (Ezk. 1:4, 24). Nahum says that the Lord is avenging and wrathful and "His fury is poured out like fire." He said that God would come in judgement on Nineveh (through the Babylonians), "in the whirlwind and storm" and that "the clouds are the dust beneath His feet" (Nah. 1:2-3, 6). Again, glory cloud language is used metaphorically to tell us that God is present to judge and avenge. When we consider all of the above examples together we see these things: First, God "comes" in judgement many times throughout history. Two, His judgement is often brought to bear by second agents. Three, this temporal judgement is described using cosmic metaphor: sun, moon and stars extinguished, consuming fire and desolation, earthquake and so on. And four, His coming in temporal judgement through second agents is described in terms of the presence of the glory cloud: riding on a swift cloud, loud sounds, consuming fire and so on. Now then, having examined the use of cosmic metaphor in the Old Testament, let us take a second look at the "cosmic phenomena" passages we listed earlier from the New Testament. Play It Again Sam It is important to remember that the early Christians were quite "Jewish" in their thinking. "(T)he early Christian use of the Old Testament was thoroughly Jewish and had much in common with other Jewish groups."2 In part, this meant that they thought in terms of biblical imagery to a much greater degree than we do today. They had a biblical world view; or more accurately, a biblical view of the world.3 In other words, they understood how the "furniture" of creation was used by God to metaphorically describe historical events. The original readers of the new Testament did not think in terms of stock market crashes, nuclear bombs or world wide telecommunication systems. They thought in terms of "Old Testament" language and symbolism.4 We must strive to do the same thing. To do so does not mean that we are somehow bound to the culture of the older testament. It simply means that we must understand what the text meant to the original readers in order to make application to our day. When we read the New Testament passages that describe cosmic upheaval in light of the Old Testament pattern, it is clear that the New Testament writers were speaking of impending judgement. They were not referring to the literal dissolution of the created realm, nor were they speaking of nuclear explosions or other modern disasters. For instance, in Acts 2:16-20, Peter declared that he and his contemporaries were in the last days of the old covenant age. He went on to tell his audience that the end of the old covenant age would be characterized by judgement upon those who had rejected the Messiah. In other words, it would be "lights out" for apostate Israel. The tongues were not only a fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel that Peter actually quoted, but they were also a fulfillment of Isaiah 28:11-12: "For with stammering lips and another tongue He will speak to this people, to whom He said, 'This is the rest with which you may cause the weary to rest,' and 'This is the refreshing'; yet they would not hear" (emphasis added). In other words the (old) nation of Israel was offered the rest and refreshing of Jesus Christ and yet rejected it. A sign of their impending doom for that rejection was the sign of tongues on the day of Pentecost (cf. 1 Cor. 14:20-22). When that sign was given, they had to know that the kingdom was about to be taken from them and given to a nation producing the fruit of it (Matt.21:43). According to the prophetic language that Peter used (he was quoting the prophet Joel remember), the Jews who apostatized (rejected Jesus as Messiah), could expect the presence of God in judgement (blood, fire and vapor of smoke). They could expect that their national and religious rulers and the system of Jewish religion would be cast down and ruined (the sun turned into darkness and the moon into blood). The fulfillment of this prophecy was seen in the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple and the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of (apostate) Jews. In 2 Thessalonians 1:6-8 Paul said that Christ would give relief to Paul's contemporaries - believers who were afflicted by persecution. Using typical glory cloud type language (the presence of God in judgement), he said that Christ would be "revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire." The Greek word means "preceding from" and this passage is best understood to mean that the revelation, or the revealing of the Lord Jesus would precede from heaven. In other words, the truth that Christ was King in heaven would be revealed, made known through a "message" sent from there. That message? The vengeance taken upon the enemies of Christ who would not accept Him as King (Matt. 20:40-46, 22:7, Luke 19:12). Once again, we see that like the Old Testament prophets, Paul uses metaphorical language to describe a very real action of God. Like the prophets, Paul describes the judgement of God through second agents in terms of His coming in flaming fire. The passages that we listed earlier from the book of Revelation are typical cosmic metaphor. In Revelation 6:12-14 and 8:12 we read of a darkened sun, blood red moon, falling stars and a sky that is rolled up. Again, as we saw from the Old Testament examples, this sort of language refers to the political and religious upheaval brought about by God's hand of judgement through conquering armies. There is no need to try and find a reference to nuclear winter in these passages from Revelation. John was writing about something that was to take place in the lives of his original audience (1:1, 3, 7, 3:11, 22:6-7, 12, 20). That "something" was the closure of the old covenant age; the end of special favor for the nation of (old) Israel. Time was running out for the generation of Jews that rejected Jesus. Either they would accept Jesus as the Messiah or they would suffer a terrible judgement. Because they rejected Jesus as King (John 19:15), God brought upheaval and destruction with the invading Roman armies. In 2 Peter 3:7-12 we see the most extended or concentrated use of cosmic metaphor in the New Testament outside of the book of Revelation. And, as with any epistle, it is clear that the Apostle wrote of things that had relevance to his contemporaries (it is important to recognize that the epistles were "occasional letters", letters "arising out of and intended for a specific occasion" 5 and were not written with the intention of addressing situations that had no immediate relevance to the original readers). Peter said that during the last days - the days in which they were then living (1 Peter 1:20, 4:7), judgement would fall on those who scoffed at the claims of Jesus (2 Peter 3:3). Peter then goes on to drive home his point concerning the coming end of the age by drawing upon the language of the prophets (whom he refers to in verse 2); language that the first century Christians would have been very familiar with and would have recognized as metaphorical. Peter said that "the heavens and the earth which are now... are being reserved for fire." He also said that "the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise and the elements will melt with fervent heat" (vss. 7 and 10). To begin with, the heavens and the earth that Peter wrote about were the "heavens and earth" of the existing covenant order. Although the old covenant order was in the process of passing away (Heb. 8:13), it was to remain until the last of elect old Israel had been brought into new Israel (the Church, Rom. 11:1-7, 25). When that number was complete, the old covenant order, the old heaven and earth would pass away. In referring to the covenant system in this fashion, Peter is simply drawing from the language of the older testament (as we might expect). In Isaiah 51:15-16 we read: "...I am the Lord Your God, who divided the sea whose waves roared - the Lord of hosts is His name. And I have put My words in your mouth; I have covered you with the shadow of My hand, that I may plant the heavens, lay the foundations of the earth, and say to Zion, 'You are My people.'" In other words, God gave words of comfort to the remnant in Israel by reminding them that He brought the children of Israel across the Red Sea. He said that He gave them the law and took care of them. Why? So that He could establish them as a kingdom of priests, a holy nation, a special treasure to Himself above all people (Ex. 19:5-6). In short, God created a new people, a new order: and he used the spectacular language of creation ("plant the heavens and lay the foundations of the earth"), to say that He formed them as a nation.6 He "made the new world, that is brought forth order, and government, and beauty, from the confusion wherein they were. This is the planting of the heavens, and the laying of the foundations of the earth."7 This same device is used in reverse in Isaiah chapter 13. God said that He was going to bring judgement upon Babylon through the armies of the Medes and Persians (Is. 13:1, 17). In describing the overthrow of the Babylonian "order" (socio-political and religious system), God said that He "will shake the heavens, and the earth will move out of her place" (vs. 13). As we have already seen, this meant that God was about to strip the king of Babylon of authority and destroy the system of government - a destruction of the existing order. The "heavens and earth which are now preserved" (2 Peter 3:7), indicates the old covenant order that was awaiting closure. That old system was brought to an end as those who refused to let it go and accept the Messiah fell under the fire of God's judgement. Peter described this judgement in the same fashion that the prophets of the Old Testament described the judgement of God. The only difference is that Peter gains his effect by repeating similar words or ideas several times (fire, fervent heat, burn up, melt, dissolve) rather than utilize a broad range of cosmic metaphor (scrolls rolling up, mountains shaking, bloody moon, darkened sun or heaving ground). Thus, when Peter said in verse 7 that the heaven and earth then in existence were reserved for fire, he simply meant that the old order was coming to an end and that those who refused to accept the new order would be judged. The old system was about to be swept away in the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple and those who clung to that system would be swept away with it. In verse 8 and 9 Peter reminds his readers that the Lord delays His judgement because He is "not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." In other words, the old age overlapped with the beginning of the new age in Jesus Christ in order to give the remnant of old Israel time to repent and turn to Jesus Christ. God was not willing that any of the remnant should perish, but that all of them would be saved. In verse 10 Peter said that the "day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night." Jesus said that no one would know that the end was near until the preliminary signs had already overtaken them (Matt. 24:36). Peter says the same thing here before returning to the language of prophecy, saying that the "heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with a fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up." This "great noise" reminds us of the glory cloud (Ex. 19:19) and the presence of God in judgement. It is also interesting to note that there actually was a continual loud noise that accompanied the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. Josephus tells us that the shouts of the Romans, the roar of the flames and the cries of the Jews combined for a continual tempest of sound. "Nor can one imagine anything either greater or more terrible than this noise."8 Truly a sound of a tumult, like the sound of an army was in evidence (Ezk,. 1:24). The Son of Man had come in His glory cloud of fire and smoke to bring judgement on apostate Israel (Matt. 24:30, 26:64). Also in verse 10 we see that Peter writes of "elements" and the "land" (translated as "earth" in the NKJV). This refers to the cultus and ritual of the old covenant order and to the land of Israel itself. The word translated as elements is stoikiea (stoikiea), and is used in the New Testament to refer to the ritual observances of the old covenant (Gal. 4:3, 9, Col. 2:8, 20-22), or to the basic "elementary" teachings of the new covenant order (Heb. 5:12). Peter uses stoikiea in the first sense. When the old order came to an end, the ritual (elements), connected to that system died with it. With the temple gone, there was no more sacrifice. There was no more need for sacrifice because the final sacrifice had been made in Jesus. Peter emphasized that point by saying that it was not only the ritual that would be 'burned up" - destroyed in judgement - but that the land of Israel itself would be devastated in judgement, proof that the land of promise was no longer Palestine, but "residence" in Christ Himself. The NKJV translates the Greek term ge (gh), as earth. However, the word can refer to a specific country or territory "when it is plain from the context what land is meant, as that of the Jews."9 Clearly this is what Peter had in mind. He was referring to the land of Israel and the old covenant works and the traditions of Judaism. This destruction literally happened when the temple was razed and burned with fire.10 The elements of the Jewish system did come to a fiery end. John Owen summed up his thoughts on this passage by saying: It is evident then that in the prophetical idiom and manner of speech, by 'heavens' and 'earth,' the civil and religious state and combination of men in the world, and the men of them are understood. ...the heavens and earth here intended in this prophecy of Peter, the coming of the Lord, the day of judgement and perdition of ungodly men, mentioned in the destruction of that heaven and earth, do all of them relate, not to the last and final judgement of the world, but to the utter desolation and destruction that was to be made of the Judaical church and state.11 Moreover, the new heavens and new earth of 2 Peter 3:13 represent the new covenant order. As we saw from our look at Isaiah 51, heaven and earth, in the language of the prophets, points to a covenant order or system. Jesus Himself said that the (ceremonial) law and ritual of the old covenant would stand until that old covenant order had passed away: "For assuredly I say to you till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled" (Matt. 5:18). Yet, many "jots" and "tittles" passed from the law as they were fulfilled in Jesus. This is what the writer of the book of Hebrews points out when he says that: "For the priesthood being changed of necessity there is also a change of the law" (Heb. 7:12). The moral law will stand forever, but the old ceremonial law and ritual, for instance, are no longer in force under the high priesthood of Jesus. Thus, "there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness" (Heb. 7:18). The heavens and earth (old covenant order), were shaken (Heb. 12:26, cf. Hag. 2:6) and in their place was set up a kingdom that could not be shaken - a new heaven and new earth - a new covenant order that would stand until the end of time (Heb. 12:27-28). God foretold this great transition, this creation of a new order, when He said through Isaiah: "For behold, I create, new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind" (Is. 65:17). Certainly "heaven and earth are employed as figures to indicate a complete renovation or revolution in the existing course of affairs."12 This is what Peter had in mind in verse 13 chapter 3 of his second epistle when he reminded his original audience that they should expect to see the new heavens and new earth in its fullness. In other words, Peter and his contemporaries knew that they were living in the last days of the old covenant age and that they would see the new covenant age in its fullness once Jesus returned in judgement against apostate Israel. Conclusion Thus far we have seen that the promises of the old covenant order find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ. We have seen that the writers of the new Testament believed that they were living in the last days - and that the last days they lived in were the last days of the old covenant age. We have also seen that the "cosmic phenomena" language is metaphorical language used to describe the dissolution of an existing order or system of religion and government. We should also recognize that if these things are difficult to accept, it is because we have failed to allow our thinking to be directed by the Bible and instead have brought our modern experiences and preferences to bear on the Scripture. In the next chapter those modern presuppositions will be further challenged as we examine the prophetic language of the "law court" of God. ____________________ 1. Edward J. Young, The Book Of Isaiah, 3 vols., (1972; Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1997), 2:14 2. Ellis, 101. 3. James Jordan, Through New Eyes: Developing a Biblical View of the World, (Brentwood TN: Wolgemuth & Hyatt Publishers, Inc., 1988). 4. Ellis, 77, 107. See also, David Chilton, The Great Tribulation, (Tyler TX: Dominion Press, 1987), 17-18; Merrill C. Tenney, New Testament Survey, 3rd ed., (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmanns Publishing Company, 1985), 357. 5. Fee and Stuart, 48. 6.In the original giving of the law at Sinai, God said that the Israelites should rest on the seventh day because "in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day..." (Ex. 20:11). In the second giving of the Law, God (through Moses), told Israel to rest on the seventh day because "you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm: therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath" (Deut. 5:15). Hence, the creation of the world becomes a type of the creation of God's people, and is used to illustrate the more profound truth of spiritual and covenantal creation. 7. Owen, Works, 9:134. See also, Alexander, Isaiah, 2:13 8. Josephus, Wars, VI:V:1 9. Joseph Henry Thayer, The New Thayer's Greek - English Lexicon Of The New Testament, (Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, reprint 1979, 1981). 10. Josephus, Wars, VI:IV:1-8, V:1, VII:I:1 and etc. 11. Owen, Works, 9:134 12. Young, Isaiah, 3:514. The End Was Near The Purpose Of This Study The Seed Of Abraham, Israel, The Land And All That The End Is Near The Sky Is Falling Prophetic Licence Survey of Matthew Chapter 24 |