1999 issue 5 - when is the great tribulation? - counsel of chalcedon

8/12/2019 1999 Issue 5 - When is the Great Tribulation? - Counsel of Chalcedon

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n this study I will analyze a

portion of Scripture which has

generated much debate in

Church history and causec;l much

confusion in:evangelicalism

today:Matthew24:1-34. Tms

long standing debate is unfortu

nate;

for

I believe this passage is

not

so difficult when We ap

proach it properly; listening to the

voice

of God in both testaments.

Modem evangelicals are So New

Testament oriented that we

sometimes overlook the Old

Testament backdrop to New

Testament passages such as this

one.

My task is to consider the

portion

of

the Olivet

Dis-

course that prophecies "the

Great Tribulation." Undoubt

edly, in our modem evangeli

cal context of popular

apocalypticism and interest in

all things eschatological, this

passage comes to people's

mind'

as they ask: "Are we living in the

days?

Is

our time the time of the

fulfillment of these prophecies?"

This especially is a lively topic

today

in

that the ~ w s returned

to the land

of

Palestine in 1948

and since we are about to

tum

the calendar to the year 2000.

Consequently, this passage is

fainiliar to most. Who has not

heard the dreadful prophecy of

"wars and rumors

of

wars"? Or

of "earthquakes

in

various

places"? Or the alarming

p r o s ~

pect

of

the "abomination

of

desolation"? Who has not feared

the sound

of

"the Great Tribula-

, tion" reverberating from the lips

of

our Lord Jesus Christ?, n f o r ~

tunately, though Matthew 24 is

familiar to most, it is understand

by few. Let us look tuto Mat

thew 24 to see if we can discern

some clues from the text indicat

ing what Jesus intended to teach.

Most Christians in our gen

eration,and especially within

modem evangelicalism, believe

that we have just recently

entered into the lastdays."

, They often point to Matthew 24

as a signal

to

the beginning of

the last days. For instance,

Dr.

J,

Dwight Pentecost has written:

"The entire passage in Matthew

24 and

25 was written to answer

the question concerning the signs

of Messiah's con:ling which

would terminate the age." By

that he means

the.

expectation

that we are

now

living in the

termination

of

the age. These

signs are about to explode on the

scene, punctuating the end of the

Church Age.

Bookstores today across

Aip.erica are filled with end time

, scenarios that warn people that

Matthew 24 is about to burst out

on the scene of human history.

, They urge Christians to expect

the imminent rapture

of

the

Lord's people so that the Great

Tribulation might break forth.

Books such as Hal Lindsey.

Countdown

to

Armageddon;

David A. Lewis, Prophecy

2 : Rushing to Armageddon;

Steve Terrill,

The 90 s: Decade

of the Apocalypse; Don

McIIIvany, Earth s Final Days;

Texe Marrs,

Storming Toward

A r m a g e d d o n ~

Essays in the

Apocalypse; Robert Leardith,

Final Approach: The Opportu-

nity and Adventure of End

, Times Living; and David Webber

and Noah Hutchins, Is This the

Final Century? These are ouly

6 TH COUNSEL ofChalcedon August/September,1999

a few of the titles crowding the

shelves of Christian bookstOres

and alalming Christians regard- '

ing the prospect that these

prophecies an(i others like them

deal with our time. TheSe books

all make ,use of Matthew 24 and, .

of

course, related passages in

the book of Revelation.

This is the passage in con

temporary discussion o r u n d e r ~

standing eschatology ill our

modem setting. How are we to

understand this crucial dis

course? What is "the Great

Tribulation" of which Christ

speaks? In,verse:21 Jesus

deClares: "Then, there Will be a

great tribulation such

a,s

has

not occurred since the begin

ning of the world, until n?w,

, ever shall be." I w ~ l l be

presenting a,remarkable

claim: The Great Tribulation is

past.

In(ieed

it occurred long

ago, in the firs century and was

concetnedwith the destruction

oithe temple in A:D.

70.

To

declare this proposition and

prove

it

Iwould like

to

present

three points in'its defense. '

1. The

Great Tribnlationis '

Tied to the First

Century,

This is the key observatiOn

for my position. This is the text

, we need tOfpcos upon; it wiII'be

, our guiding star shedding light on

our pathway through

ImS

Pils-,

sage. Letl S note that: '

1.

Christ specifically

luil

forthrightly declaresthatthe :

Great Tribulation is iri thefirst

'century. HecIearly d e f i ~ e s

the

time frame in which he declares

it will come to pass: "Truly I say

to you, this generation will not "

pass away until all these things

take place"

(v:

34) .

We find important clues In the

historical and contextual setting


2/6

of Matthew 24 by looking at

Matthew 23. There Jesus calls

down seven "woes" upon the

scribes and Pharisees of his

generation.

As he

concludes

these woes he solemnly prophe" .

cies

in

Matthew 23:32: "Fill up,

then, the measure

of

the guilt

of

your fathers."

n

other words,

they are guilty; now they must

fill up their final

gUilt

An impor

tant reason motivates this

horrible prophecy. The Jews

would be filling up the measure

of their fathers by attacking

Christians. Notice 23:34-36:

treading on dangerous ground if

we try to pick and choose

certain references in 1his text

and say: "This belongs back

then, but this does not." Jesus

has said "all 111ese things" shall

occur in "1his generation." That

includes verse

21

which speaks

of the Great Tribulatioh.

2 Matthew 24 is directly

relevant to the first century

temple before which Jesus is

standing.

We

must ask what

prompted Jesus to proclaim the

Olivet Discourse? In Matthew

23:37,38, we read

of

a broken

hearted Savior lamenting:

0

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills

the prophets and stones those

who are sent to her, how often I

ciples "came up to point

out

the

temple buildings to him" (Matt.

24:1b) - - as ifhe did not realize

its majesty Then we read: "Do

you not see all these things?

Truly I say unto you, not one

stone here shall be left upon

another that shall not be

11lfOwn

down. And as be was sitting on

the Mount of Olives, the dis

ciples came to him privately

saying, 'Tell us when shall these

things be, and what will be the

sign

of

your coming, and

of the

end of the age? ' As a matter of

historical and archaeological

fact, that temple to which Jesus

refers is destroyed

in A.D. 70.

There has been no temple

in

Jerusalem since that time.

3

The way Jesus

"Behold, I am sending you

prophets, and wise men, and

scribes, some

of

them you will

kill and crucify, some

of

them

you will scourge in your

synagogues, and persecute

from city to city, that upon

you may fall the guilt of all

the righteous blood shed on

the earth. Truly I say to

frames 1his prophecy is

The Great Tribulation

is

past. Indeed, it directly relevant to the

occurred long ago in the first century and Jews of that day. n

was concerned with the destruction of he chapter 23 he denounces

the scribes and Pharisees

temple in A.D. 70."

you, all these things will

L\;;;; ;;;;;;; .1 who frequently sat

in

come upon this genera

tion." The very setting in which

Christ is delivering the Olivet

Discourse is one of impending

judgment upon first Jerusalem.

The scribes and Pharisees

lived

in

a very important genera

tion. Theirs was the time in

which the Messiah came.

Tragically, "he came unto his

own, and his own received him

not." They lived in the fullness

of time, but they missed its

opportunity. In Matthew 24:34,

Jesus warns: "Truly I say to you,

1his generation will not pass

away until all these things take

place." The ones to whom he

is

speaking, the ones over whom

the scribes and Pharisees exer

cised authority in the realm of

Israel will experience the judg

ments. This is a very clear and

dogmatic statement. We are

wanted to gather her children

together, the way a hen gathers

her chicks under her wings, and

you were unwilling. Behold, your

house is being left to you deso

late." That Jerusalem sprawling

before him. . . ; that land where

the prophets were killed in open

defiance to God. . . ; that people

who had rejected his loving

overtures . . . these are in Jesus'

mind and upon his heart as he

prophesies this dreadful proph

ecy.

Notice the disciples' response

to Jesus' denunciation of the

temple in this context. In Mat

thew 24:1 we read: "Jesus came

out from the temple." That was

the very temple he had just

declared in process

of

being

desolated (Matt. 23:38). Then as

he "was going away" his dis-

judgment against him. And

he calls down a series of seven

woes upon those very scribes

and Pharisees. He says that th y

will institute the persecution

of

his followers (Matt. 23:34ff.). In

Matthew 23:37, he warns:

I

wanted to gather you together,

but you were unwilling, therefore

your house is being left to you

desolate." Then

in Matthew

24:2, as they point out the

temple, Jesus refers to that same

temple and notes 111at it will be

completely destroyed. This is all

extremely relevant to the first

century Jews.

Then in verse 16, as

he

discusses the "abomination of

desolation" and prepares his

disciples for "the Great Tribula

tion," he says: Let those who

are in Judea flee to the moun

tains." This is not a worldwide

August/September, 1999 -THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon -17


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phenomenon. This has direct

relevance to Jerusalem and .'

Judea

- -' because that is where

the temple is located.

So, in all of this we see that

the

focus

of

the prophecy and

the

locus ef the judgments is on

first century Israel. He locates

the time as a first century event .

Consequently, I believe that

ll

this one argument we can secure

the

propositlonthat

"the Great

Tribulation is past." But there is

more

2. The First Century Facts

Fit

the Prophecy' .

.

How are we to understand

the various elements

of

the

prophecy that Jesus declareS.to

his followers. on the Mount of

Olives? I will quickly survey a

few

of

these. I think I can show

the

first century historical

fulfillment of each of these

various elements

in

Matthew 24.

First,

in

verses 5 and 11 Jesus

refers to . he false christs and

prophets. Here he

is

warning

about the danger

of

false reIi

gious leaders who will bring

confusion into the realm. He is

warning his disciples

not

to

follow their teaching.

False

teligious leaders were

an abundant problem in that day

(cf. Acts 5:36; 8:9, 10; 20:29-

30).

The

hiStorical records of

Josephus likewise shew that

fraudulent religious leaders

caused foments leading

to

the

Jewish war

and culminating

in

the destruction of the temple:

"Deceivers and impostors under

the

pretense

of

divine inspiration

were fostering revolutionary

changes Wars

2:13:4). Scrip

ture and contemporary historical

r e c o r d ~ testify that there was Ii

real danger

offalse

religio,Us

.....

teachers leading the Je.,,:,sastray.

Second,

in

verses 6 and

7

we

read of wars and rumors

of

.

wars. This is something we hear

about every time PreSident

Clinton bOIIlbs another city in

order t6' distract Americans from

J;1is foibles. There have always'

been wars. To 'which wars

is

Jesus referring? How is this

significant?

.Is

this not somewhat

nebulous?

When the Lord gives this sigu

his audienceis experiencing the

Pax

Romana

("the peace

ef

Rome"). The EmperorAugnstus .

Caesar establishes. this time of

remarkable peace before Christ ..

was .born The third century

church father Origen speaks

of

the "abundance of peace that

began at the birth of Christ"

Against Cetsus2:30 . New

Testamenthistorian, Bo Reicke,

notes that

in

the Roman

Empire'

proper, the period of peace .

remains comparably undisturbed

until the time

of

Nero" The

New

Testament

Era, 110).

Now

we

must ask: Who is the

emperor that breaches the

Pax

Romana by

engitgmgthe JeWish

War and sending his Legions to

destroy the Jewish temple? The'

answer is: Nero Caesar. The

Lord's prophecy warns Chris" ;

tians that though they are li; ing

under the Pax Romanti, they will

begin hearing

of

"wars and

rumors ofwars when "nation

would rise up against

~ t i o n .

During the A.D. 60s, the

Jewjsh War erupted

on

the

tranquj scene of history. Rome

victoriously marches across

Israel, ultimate y destroying

Jerusalem and her holy Temple.

This war begins in the Spring of

A.D. 67 - - wheiINero formally

commissions '1espasian to .

squelch the revolt. n that war

18" THE COUNSEL of Chalcedon

August/September,

1999

Syria, Arabia, and other nations.

aligned themselves against

Israel.

Not only do

we

find Roine

mobilizing its IIlighty warnia-'

chine to

put

do\Vi1 the revolt

in

Judea (emploYing varioUs client

nations in that pogrom), but also

the Roman Empire itselffalls'

into civil war during the same

time. In A.D

.

68.Nero commits

suicide

as

Rome collapses into .

civil strife

.

Britain,.Germany,and

Gaul revolt. Rome is fearful that

the Parthians will

o b i l i ~ e

because of the

dislll1 ay

of

.the,

Empire during this tim,e.l1omeis

spinning apru;tas "nation arises "

against nati()n." These

~ w a r s

and rumors

of.

wars" are truly

signs for that first century

generation.;

Third, in verse 7 we discover .,

other signs that are .easy to

document in tha t time period. In

Acts :28 we read

of

Agabus'

prophecy

of

a "greatJamine"

that occurs during the reign

Of

Claudius (A.D., 50s). We find

famines mentioned in the fifties

and sixties in the writings of the ;

ROIIlan

historians

Tacitus,P\..

Cassius, and Sueionius. Plagues

commonly break out in such

trying times. . .

Later during the actual siegt;

of Jerusalem

in

the late 60s,

her.

inhabitants

languisJ;1ed

for lack of

food supplies.

In

fact, the most

inglorious aspect of the Jewish .

War is this famine that waStes

.

the people

Thejrhunger be

comes

so

fierce they begin "

fighting among themselv"s, "veil

setting their own

com

supplies

on fire. Josephlls tells us that.

neighbors

kill

each other, cutting. "

open their bellies to remove any

food recently

s w a l l o w e d ~

Par-

..

"

ents eat their children. The .

famine is terp.ble beyond words. ,'.


4/6

In A.D. 68,

in

the midst

of

the

Jewish War Josephus and other

contemporary historians speak

of

earthquakes that occur in the

Mediterranean world with

regularity.

Fourth, in verses

9

and 10

Jesus speaks

of

persecution and

apostasy. Almost every chapter

of Acts details the persecutions

the Church endures in those .

early years (e.g., Acts 8:1ff.; 1

Thess. 2:16,17). In the midst

of

this persecution the biblical

record speaks

of

apostasy (e. g.,

2 Tim. 1:15). At the end of

Paul 's ministry he finds

explain tllis statement? This

seems to be a formidable objec

tion against a first century

fulfillment.

In the first place, the meaning

of the word world

oikuemene) does not necessar

ily mean the entire planet.

We

may glean many examples

of

tllis

restricted meaning from various

SCriptures.

For

instance, in Acts

24:5 Paul causes dissension

among the Jews throughout the

whole world . Surely this means

th ir world, tlle world of their

immediately before them (cp.

Matt. 23:38 - - 24:2). (2) His

audience could imagine

no other

locality, for Jerusalem is the

holy city. (3) Christ is respond

ing to questions pertaining to that

very temple

(cf. 24:1,2).

Christ

points to the temple as

he

answers.

That

holy place

will be

dismantled by

the

Roman s()l

diers.

The abomination of desola

tion is the destruction of

Jerusalem and the temple by

pagan Roman armies.

Luke's

many of his early converts

turning away from him.

In the Olivet Discourse, then, Jesus Simply

states

that

the gospel will be preached

in

the

entire known world of

hat

day before these

parallel account makes this

clear. He takes this He-

braic language and inter

prets

it

for a Gentile

audience: But

when you

see Jerusalem surrounded

events reach their climax.

The Epistle to the Hebrews

mentions Jewish apostasy

explicitly. Many are turning

. . . . I

by armies,

then

recognize

from Christiamty

back

to

Judaism in order to avoid perse

cution (Heb. 10:32-36).

We see, then, that many

of

the prophecies in Matthew 24

expressly came to pass

in

the

first century. This fits perfectly

with the time-frame

of

Matthew

24:34. But here difficulties arise

for some interpreters.

3. h ~ Difficult Prophecies

Must be

Interpreted Contex

tually

Jesus expressly states that all

these things shall occur

in

this

generation (Matt. 24:34).

Regardless

of

how difficult a

first century fulfillment may

seem for some of Jesus' state

ments, his clear time frame

statement must determine our

tlle interpretation of the passage.

Let

us consider a series of

questions that arise in the re

maining prophecies.

First, was the gospel

preached in all the world

as

a

witness?

v.

14). How can

we

experience.

Also, the New Testament

informs us that the gospel is

preached throughout the entire

known world of that day: Ro

mans 1:8. Paul can say that the

faith

of

the Roman church

can

be spoken of throughout the

whole world. In Colossians 1:6,

23 we find a similar use of

world.

In

the Olivet Discourse, then,

Jesus simply states that he

gospel will be preached in the

entire known world of that day

before these events reach their

climax.

Second, when was the

abomination

of

desolation?

v.

15) This is often associated with

a world ruling antichrist

in

the

future.

This must also occur in the

first century, however, for the

following reasons: (1) This

abomination stands in the holy

place, the temple standing

that

her

desolation is

at

hand (Luke 21 :20).

He

tells us

what the abomination is; Jerusa

lem being surrounded by Roman

armies for the purpose of deci

mating

her

temple.

The Romans encircle Jerusa

lem

on

at least

two

occasions:

under Vespasian ear ly in the

siege and later

under

Titus

before the Temple's final de

struction. After

the

first sur

rounding, the Christians are to

flee from Judea.

In God's

providence, Vespasian withdraws

from the siege

when

Nero dies;

the Christians

now

have the

opportunity to escape.

When the

Roman soldiers finally obtain the

upper hand in the temple,

Josephus records how they raise

tlleir ensigns in the temple, bow

to their to pagan deity, and offer

incense to Caesar.

Third, was A.D.

70 the

worst

catastrophe ever?

v.

21)

What

about WWI

or

WWII? Surely

they are much worse than the

August/September, 1999 THE COUNSEL of Cbalcedon 19


5/6

Jewish

War. When we consider

this

in

its biblical context, how

ever, ample infonnation supports

my conclusion that A. D.

70

is

in

view.

(1)

Verse

34

states that all

these

things shall occur in this

generation - - and verse 21 is

one

of

these things. (2) Is not

Noah's

Flood even worse than

the supposed future Great

Tribulation?

n

Noah's Flood the

entire human population perishes,

but

for

one family.

(3) To understand Jesus

properly we must grasp the use

of

hyperbole in Old Testament

apocalyptic language. Very often

we

find

thatjudgmentlanguage

in apocalyptic discourse

is

formulaic language - _ a stock

in-trade language that is

in

the

dictionaries of all the apocalyptic

writers

of

the day.

For

instance,

in Exodus

11:6

we

read these

words. regarding the tenth.plague .

on

Egypt: Then there shall be a

great

cry

throughout all the. land

of

Egypt, such as was not like it

before,

nor

shall be like

it

again? Which is it? Is the Great

Tribulation the worst judgment,

or

is

the tenth plague upon Egypt

the worst?

n Ezekiel 5:9 we read of the

Old Testament destruction of the

temple

by

the Babylonians:

I

will do among you what I have

never

done, and the like of which

I will

never

do again, because of

all

your

abominations? But

in

Matthew 24 i t happens again.

This

is

apocalyptic, poetic,

dramatic imagery. This is even

used outside

of such

dramati

callyf ramed Circumstances (cp.

2 Kings 18:5 with 2 Kings

23:25).

Jesus'

declaration

in

verse 21

is

dramatic speech

emphasizing the remarkable

nature of this event.

Fourth, did Christ come like

lightning

in

A.D. 70?

(v.

27) This

looks very similar to what

we

are expecting at the Second

Coming of Christ, when he

comes to conclude world history

with judgment upon the wicked.

How

can

this sort

of

language

apply to A.D. 70?

Again, we must understand

apocalyptic language.

His'

coming

hereis

not a bodily

coming. This is a metaphorical ,

expression. t

is.

as if Jesus

physically comes

down.

It

parallels God's coming against

Egypt in the Old Testament:

The oracle concerning Egypt.

Behold, the Lord is riding on a

swift cloud, and is about to come

to Egypt; the idols ofEgypt will

tremble at His presence, and the

heart of the Egyptians will melt

within them (Isa. 19:1). Did the

Egyptians physically see God's

coming against them? t

reminds us of the language

describing Satan's fall from

heaven: The seventy returned .

with joy, saying, 'Lord, even the

demons are subject to us in Your

name.' And He said to them, 'I

was watching Satan fall from

heaven like lightning' (Luke

10:17-18).

Was

Satan's fall

visible like a lightning flash?

Consider Christ's words to

the high priest

in

Matthew 26: 64.

There

Jesus says that the high

priest and the Sanhedrin will

see

the Son

of

Man coming in

judgment: Jesus said to him,

'You have said it yourself;

nevertheless I tell you, hereafter

you shall see the Son

of

Man

sitting at the right hand of

Power, and coming on the clouds

of heaven.'''

This coming of Christ in

Matthew 24 is a

met phoric l

20 THE.COUNSEL of Chalcedon August/September,

1999

coming down injudgment and

through providential circum-

.stances. This lightuing flash is

metaphorical language

to

speak

of Christ's judgment in the

historical events of the Jewish

War.

Why does he mention

lightuing then, a very visible

Sign? Because lightning is a

terrifying symbol of destructive

power throughout Scripture.

Fifth, did the universe col

lapse in A.D. 70? Matthew 24:29

reads:

But

immediately 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 the

sky, and the powers

of

the

heavens will be shaken.

This also

is

apocalyptic,

hyperbOlic language. Consider

Isaiah 13:10 13 as instructive on

this point: For the stars of

heaven and their consteI1ations

will not flash forth their light; the

sun will be dark when

it

rises,

and the moon will

not

shed its

. ight. Thus I will punish the

world for its evil, and the wicked

for their iniquity; I will also put

an end to the arrogance of the

proud, and abase the haughtiness

of the ruthless. I will make

mortal man scarcer than pure

gold, and mankind than the gold

of Ophir. Therefore I shall make

the heavens tremble, and the

earth will be shaken from its

place at the fury of the Lord of

hosts in the day

of

His burning

anger.;

This is not referring to the

end of history.

If

you

re.ad

the

context Isaiah clearly identifies

Babylon as the referent of this

prophecy (13:1).

n

verse 17 he

also mentions the Medes. This

prophecy refers to Babylon's

overihrow, to the Median inva-


6/6

sion

of

Babylon securing this

overthrow. The God of the

universe is acting through his

providential superintendence, and

there is metaphorically a darken

ing

of

the light

of

heaven on this

mighty nation. God puts their

light out, as

it

were.

Sixth, did Christ come on the

clouds in A.D. 701 Then shall

appear the sign of the Son of

man in heaven: and then shall all

the tribes of the earth mourn,

and they shall see the Son

of

man coming in the clouds

of

heaven with power and great

glory (Matt. 24:30, KJV).

This is certainly the type of

language

we

can apply to the

Second Advent. A.D. 70, how

ever, is a distant reflection

of

that future coming event; there

fore the same dramatic language

can apply to it, as well. Accord

ing to Jesus' prophecy there will

be a sign of the Son of Man in

heaven. This sign is (appar

ently) the smoke of the temple

being destroyed. This will be the

sign

to

the Jews

l11at

the Son

of

Man is not in the tomb but at the

right hand

of

God moving against

them in judgment. Jesus is

speaking

of

some sort

of

sign

that he is at the right hand

of

God __ that he is high and

exalted, the One causing their

judgment and anguish.

Seventh, did the rapture occur

in A.D. 701

And

He will send

forth His angels with a great

trumpet and they will gather

together His elect from the four

winds, from one end ofthe sky .

to tile other

(Matt

24:31).

Whatever this verse means,

Jesus affirnls only three verses

later that

all

these things will

take place in this generation

(Matt. 24:34). Also, the word

angel can be and often is

translated messenger in

Scripture.

We

find this usage in

Matthew 11:10; Mark 1:10; Luke

7:24 and 27. Here then, Jesus is

sending forth his messengers

with a great trumpet. These

messengers are trumpeting the

gospel of salvation.

The

fall of

the old covenant economy is the

sign that the gospel of Jesus

Christ is the only way to salva

tion. God is finished with sacri

fices and human priests. In

the

destruction of the temple we

have the final separation of

Christianity from Judaism. The

final breach of infant Christianity

from its Mother Judaism occurs

at this point.

When the messengers go

forth and declare the gospel,

they call people and gather them

into a new body, the Church of

Christ. In fact, this gathering

language appears

in

a very

significant passage in Hebrews

10:25, where the Jews are

commanded to gather together

as Christians, and

not

to fall

back into Judaism: Not forsak

ing

our

own assembling together,

as is the habit of some; but

encouraging one another; and all

the more, as you see the day

drawing near.

Conclusion

I am confident that a strong,

powerful case can be presented

to defend the position that the

Great Tribulation is already past,

that A.D. 70 is the Great Tribu

lation. I fear that the prophetic

movement today, by warning

people that great judgments may

happen in our day, is distracting

Christians from a proper inter

pretation of Scripture and

causing unnecessary fear and

retreatism.

Furthernlore, in the process,

Christians are overlooking the

significance of the transition

from

the

old covenant worship of

God in the temple to the new

covenant worship of God in the

Spirit. I believe

that

this is what

happened

in

A.D.

70

God

made a dramatic transition from

the old covenant to the new in a

final and conclusive way.

For

more infornlation and an

infornlative debate on this topic,

see: Thomas D. Ice and Kenneth

L

Gentry, Jr., he Great Tribu-

lation: Past or Future?

(Grand

Rapids: Kregel, 1999). My

exposition of this passage is

patterned after

that

of

the great

Puritan commentator John Gill

( Matthew in

Gil/ s Expositor),

the Presbyterian churchman J.

Marcellus Kik

(The Eschatol-

ogy o Victory), of internation- ,

ally reputed New Testament

scholar, R T France

(Matthew

in the Tyndale New Testament

Commentary), and many others.

(Transcribed by Christopher

Strevel from a

taped

message

at

1999 Ligonier National Confer

ence)

August/September,

1999

THE COUNSEL

of Chalcedon

21

1999 issue 5 - when is the great tribulation? - counsel of chalcedon

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