End Times and Proper Hermeneutics
By: Pastor Deb
6-23-07
Matthew 24-
One of the BIGGEST mistakes today the Church (body of Christ) has made concerning the Bible is how it should be interpreted. Hermeneutics are the principles that are used for interpreting Scriptures. If proper hermeneutics are not followed, it will result in a multitude of doctrinal errors. Needless to say, some in the Church have far removed themselves from proper hermeneutics in their interpretation of Scripture. One hermeneutic principle is "always interpret a passage in agreement with its context." The context of any given passage is the chapters and verses that surround it. Supporting any particular view by using verses that have been ripped from their original context is known as proof-texting.
This evil misleading method (proof-texting) has been used by many to justify their preconceived ideas that they claim to be doctrine and has caused one of the most serious segregation's in the body of Christ. For example, Matt. 24:13, which states, "But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved," has been used to support the false idea that once a person has accepted Christ as their Savior, they must endure in order to remain saved. But if we look closely at the CONTEXT of this passage, it becomes evident that verse 13 is referring to the Tribulation period.
The Greeks used interconnected words such as "but," "for," or "and" to make paragraphs or to express ONE main thought. As you can see, the whole passage uses these connecting words showing this to be one continuous thought. In other words, the context begins well before Matthew chapter 24, but, for our purposes, let's start at Matt. 23:37-38 which says, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. Behold your house (the nation and the temple) is being left to you desolate!"
Jesus condemns the nation (Israel) and pronounces its destruction for rejecting and persecuting the witnesses He sent to them. In spite of Israel's present rejection, Jesus inserts a glimmer of hope in verse 39. "For I say unto you, from now on you shall not see Me UNTIL you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!'"
Jesus was showing them that even though they were being rejected now, it wouldn't be forever. There will be a time when they will once again see Him. This time they will "look on Him whom they have pierced and mourn..." That time is the Second Coming, which was predicted by Zech. 12:8-14.
When Jesus left the temple to return to Bethany, the disciples came up and began to point out the temple buildings to Him as if to impress Him. The disciples must have been wondering, "How could such majestic buildings, especially the temple of God, be destroyed?" After having pointed out the buildings to Him, Jesus responded, "Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here shall be left upon another, which will not be torn down." (Matt. 24:2) This horrific shock led them to ask a series of three complex questions, "when will these things be? and what will be the sign of Your coming? and of the end of the age?" (Matt. 24:3).
We must realize that the disciples had only a limited understanding of prophecy and, as a result, were terribly confused. They thought that the destruction of the Nation and the temple worship system would usher in the "END OF THE AGE," or more commonly understood as the time just preceding the setting up of the Theocratic Kingdom on earth. The Lord, however, separates the two ideas and gives them a warning against being deceived by the destruction of the city of Jerusalem, the temple and other catastrophes. To further reveal their confusion, the disciples asked Jesus just before He ascended into heaven, "Is it at this time that you are restoring the Kingdom to Israel?" (Acts 1:6). The fact that they asked, "WHEN WILL THE KINGDOM BE RESTORED" clearly indicates that there would be a future Kingdom to National Israel. Jesus answered them in verse 7, but He NEVER told them that they would not have the Kingdom in the future. He simply said that they were not to know the exact time and date of its establishment.
It must be understood that many of the Lord's teachings are mentioned sometimes by more than one gospel writer. Some things are left out by more than one gospel writer. Some things are left out by one and inserted by another. For instance, Matthew chapters 24-25 (known as the "Olivet Discourse") answer ONLY the last two questions asked by His disciples: "what will be the sign of Your coming? and the end of the age?" These two questions deal with the Tribulation and the Lord's return in glory to establish His earthly Kingdom. The Gospel of Luke specifically answers the first question asked by the disciples in Matt. 24:3, "when will these things be?" Just before answering the disciples' question, Luke gives the predictions of the general birth pangs that would usher in Christ's return (Luke 21:8-11). He said, "BUT BEFORE all these things..." that is, before these birth pangs could begin, there would be a devastating destruction upon the Nation of Israel, and the holy temple, which would end in the dispersion of the Jews (Luke 21:12a). Luke continues to give a chronological sequence of the destruction of the Nation of Israel and its temple in verses 12b-24 in answer to the disciples' question, "when will these things be?"
This prediction was fulfilled in 70 A.D. by Titus and the tenth legion of Rome, who came in and utterly destroyed Jerusalem and the holy temple, and literally did not leave one stone upon another. The Jews, as a result of their rejection, were in the fifth cycle of DISCIPLINE (I say discipline because it is only temporary) and were scattered to the four corners of the globe, which was originally predicted by the prophet Moses a few thousand years before it happened! (Lev. 26:36-39; Deut. 28:63-68).
In His prediction of Jerusalem's destruction in 70 A.D., Jesus says, "They will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles UNTIL the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." The word, "UNTIL," in Luke 21:24 is the Greek word "achri" and is used here in the temporal conjunctive sense. It means the termination point of existing conditions, resulting in a change to "NEW CONDITIONS." In other words, the "TIMES OF THE GENTILES" was in existence when Jesus made His prediction. It had begun in 586 B.C. when the Babylonians took the city of Jerusalem and the nation into captivity and will continue through the Tribulation, according to Daniel chapters 2, 7, and 11.
Daniel chapter 2 gives an outline of the rule of Gentile world powers.
During this time, the anti-christ, who is a literal person, (see Dan. 8:24; 9:26-27; 11:39; Rev. 13:1-7) will rise to world power and make a protective peace treaty with Israel through the Jewish FALSE messiah for seven years, which will cause a terrible persecution. In the middle of the seven years, he (the anti-christ) will break the agreement, bringing about one of the most horrific wars this world has ever seen and an even greater persecution upon the believers living at that time. The anti-christ will also establish his own worship system in the Jewish temple, which the Bible refers to as "the abomination of desolation" (Matt. 24:15).
With the help of his satanic partner (the Jewish FALSE messiah) the anti-christ will cause the small and great, rich and poor, young and old to worship him (Rev. 13:11-18). This will result in an untold number of deaths among the believing Jews. It will also cause many Gentile believers during this time to be martyred because of their efforts to protect the believing Jews (Matt. 25:31-40). (This is much like Rahab the harlot who believed in Jehovah and protected the Jewish spies by hiding them). Many, primarily Jews, will flee to the Petra Mountains, where they will be protected by God from this world dictator (Matt.24:16; Rev. 12:14).
Jesus then gives a word of encouragement in verse 13. Matthew 24:13 says, "but the one who endures until the END, he shall be SAVED." The word, "saved," in the New Testament, has different meanings. According to the context, it could mean "salvation" or it could mean "physical deliverance." The term "salvation" in the Old Testament almost always referred to a physical deliverance (Exodus 14:13). Matthew 24:13 refers to a physical deliverance. The word "end" in verse 13 refers to the end of THAT time period, meaning the end of the seven year Tribulation. Remember, the question the disciples asked was, "what will be the sign of Your COMING and the END OF THE AGE?" Let me remind you again that the rule of proper hermeneutics is, "always interpret a passage in agreement with its context." In other words, the promise that is given in verse 13 is that those during the Tribulation who HAVE put their trust in Christ and endure the awful holocaust right up until the end of the Tribulation period, will be delivered (saved) physically.
Why is God speaking of the physical salvation of believers? Well, God promised Abraham in Genesis 13:16 and 15:5 that He would make Abraham's descendants as numerous as the dust of the earth and the stars in the heavens. If God does not keep His promise to Abraham then He would be a liar, and we know that it is impossible for God to lie (Hebrews 6:13-[18*]). Believers that physically survive the Tribulation will enter the Millennial Kingdom in their physical bodies (Matt. 25:34). They will have the blessing of repopulating the earth (Zech. 8:5-8). The stress of both chapters 24 and 25 is on the physical preservation of God's chosen people.
One evidence (within our context) that verse 13 is in reference to physical salvation is found in Matt. 24:22 which says, "And unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect (i.e. the Jews) those days shall be cut short." The phrase in Matt.24:22, "NO LIFE would have been saved," obviously refers to physical deliverance and not eternal salvation.
Matthew 24:13 is not a message for us (the Church). It is rather a message for believers during the Tribulation. Verse 14 speaks of "the gospel of the KINGDOM." The "gospel of the kingdom" is only preached when the earthly kingdom of Christ is available to be set up. John the Baptist preached the "gospel of the kingdom" for he said, "Repent for the
kingdom of God is at hand" (Matt. 3:1-2). The first of the four Gentile powers started in 586 B.C. under Nebuchadnezzar and carried through until the late 5th century A.D. Jerusalem will fall under Gentile rule again in the Tribulation ruled by "the Gentile anti-christ." The completion of Gentile world power will come to its fulfillment by the return of Christ to earth to restore Jerusalem and set up His earthly Kingdom.
At that time, the earthly kingdom of God was being offered to the Jews. But the Jews rejected Christ, and so they also rejected the kingdom which has now been postponed UNTIL the times of the Gentiles is fulfilled (Luke 21:24). The 144,000 Jews spoken of in Rev. 7:4-8 will also preach the "gospel of the kingdom" during the Tribulation because, at that time, the kingdom will once again be ripe for its establishment and will not and cannot be rejected (Zech. 13:1-[8-9*]) 12:10).
Today, we DO NOT preach the "gospel of the kingdom," but rather, we preach Jesus Christ and Him crucified (1Cor. 1:23; 1 Cor. 2:2). Because the kingdom of God has been postponed until the Second Coming of Christ, there would be no need for us to preach that the kingdom is at hand. This is just one more proof that Matthew chapter 24 is not referring to our time period.Now that we have that clear, let us return to Matthew chapter 24 and the last two questions the disciples asked in Matt. 24:3: "what will be the sign of your coming? and the end of the age?" Jesus starts by giving a description of catastrophic events that would lead up to His second advent. This time is known as the Tribulation or the seventieth week of Daniel (see Dan. 9:27; Rev. 4:2-20:6; Isa. 13; Jer. 30:4-9). What is the Tribulation? To make a long story short, the Jews had incurred 490 years of discipline for violating God's law to let the land rest for one year out of seven (Lev. 25). The Jews were disciplined for the first 483 years (Dan. 9:25-26), but the final seven years of their discipline was temporarily put on hold because of their rejection of the Messiah. As a result, God has inserted, if you will , a parenthetical clause known as "the Church Age." But that will soon end (via the Rapture), and then the Lord will complete His discipline upon the Nation of Israel (see Dan. 9:27; Rev. 6:1-19:21).
The Tribulation is the final seven years of discipline that the Jews will undergo for violating God's law to let the land rest for one year out of seven (Lev. 26:14-35). Because this is a continuation of God's final dealings with the Jews, He will deal with them as under the Mosaic Law (i.e. under the old covenant). Remember, as far as the Jews are concerned, there has been no change; they do not believe that Christ is their Savior, so the Lord deals with them as under the Mosaic Law (Matt. 28:11-15).
Those that falsely interpret Matt. 24:13 to be referring to the loss of one's eternal salvation rather than a physical deliverance also misunderstand verses 40 and 41 to be referring to the Rapture rather than the Second Coming of Christ. (The Rapture is the catching away of the Church believers [which began at Pentecost and will end when Christ calls us to meet Him in the air]. It includes believers that have died and those who are still alive at the time of this imminent event. The Second Coming refers to a literal return of Christ where believers will remain on earth [1 Cor. 15:50-54; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; John. 14:1-3]).
Remember the questions that were asked by the disciples: "what will be the sign of Your coming? and the end of the age?" The Rapture is not mentioned anywhere in the ENTIRE context. This is strictly dealing with the Second Coming of Christ and the "END" of that time (i.e. the Tribulation period). By "proof-texting" verses 40 and 41 to mean that those who have not endured will not be taken in the Rapture but left behind is a very serious error.
Matthew 24:37-41 says, "For the coming of the Son of Man will be JUST LIKE the days of Noah. (38) For as in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, they were marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, (39) and they did not understand until the flood came and took them (the unbelievers) all away; so shall the coming of the Son of Man be. (40) Then there shall be two men in the field; one (the unbeliever) will be taken, and one (the believer) will be left. (41) Two women will be grinding at the mill; one (the unbeliever) will be taken, and one (the believer) will be left." The context very clearly states the analogy in verse 37 "For the coming (His visible return to earth) of the Son of Man will be JUST LIKE the days of Noah." The individuals who were taken by Noah's flood were unbelievers. At Christ's second advent, it will also be the unbelievers who are taken away. Jesus said in verse 39, "and they (the unbelievers during the flood) did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; SO SHALL THE COMING OF THE SON OF MAN BE." Jesus further brings out His point in verse 40, "THEN there will be two men in the field..." When will there be two in the field? At the Second Coming of Christ!
In other words, Jesus made a comparison between the flood and His coming, NOT the Rapture! "The two in the field" that are mentioned by Jesus in verses 40-41 are the believers and the unbelievers that survive the Tribulation. They are represented as the sheep and the goats in Matt. 25:31-46. "When the Son of Man comes in all His glory, and all His angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from ONE ANOTHER, as a shepherd separates the sheep (believers) from the goats (unbelievers)..." The goats (unbelievers) will be taken away and cast into hell (Matt. 25-41) and the sheep (believers) will be left, and will enter into the earthly kingdom set up by Christ Himself (Matt. 25:34). We can see unquestionably that Matt. 24:13 has been clearly violated by improper exegesis, and if understood properly, "THE END" conclusively refers to the Tribulation, NOT the Rapture!
I said all of that to make this one point, in order to interpret a passage correctly, we must ALWAYS interpret a passage in agreement with its context. Another hermeneutic principle to remember, which I have taken the liberty to use in this article, is ALWAYS interpret a passage in light of all other Scripture. When studying the Word of God, it would be wise to take along with us our six friends: Who, What, Where, When, Why, How, and So What? This will help us to keep a correct focus on what the original writers were conveying to the original hearers. It is very important to remember NOT to isolate any Scripture from its context, thus insuring us a proper interpretation.
