Hey everybody! Thank you for joining me in daily Bible reading as we seek to glorify Jesus, know Him more, and interpret the truth of His Word.
If this is your first time going through the Bible, I am incredibly excited to have you here. If this is your 5000th time, I am humbled that you are here and hope you grow in your relationship with Jesus along with me. May we all seek to know Him more and apply what we learn to further our mission of spreading the gospel. If you missed a day and want to catch up, visit the archives page HERE! But there is no shame if you start today! Day 282, Matthew 24:21 — The End Times: Perilous Times Matthew 24:21 (NASB1995) “For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will.” Context Matthew 24 contains Jesus’ detailed discourse about the end times and His second coming, answering the disciples’ questions about when the end will come and what sign to look for. Many confuse the events mentioned in vs. 3-13, thinking these are signs of the end. In reality, these events are not signs but merely birthing pangs (v. 8). However, the end has now come with the sign of the abomination of desolation. Review Yesterday, we continued Jesus’ end times discourse and read His warning to His disciples to pray their flight from the abomination of desolation is not on a Sabbath day. Jewish Sabbath law prohibited a person from traveling over two thousand cubits on foot and also prohibited using other means of transportation. One might initially assume that Jesus means to keep the Sabbath law here. However, these were man-made restrictions God never intended. Jesus is not implying His disciples should pray for their flight to not be on a Sabbath because of travel restrictions, but because of tradition. Some traditions hindering one’s flight were how those fleeing would find towns inaccessible as most closed their gates on the Sabbath. Even if some remained open, most businesses would be closed, anyway. Thus, those fleeing would have no way to purchase food or supplies along with remaining barred out of various towns. Because of these traditional practices, provisions would remain unobtainable and make one’s flight extremely difficult. Jesus means for His disciples to pray for their flight to not be on the Sabbath because—since Christians will need to run for their lives—they need nothing to hinder their flight. Discussion Today, we continue Jesus’ end times discourse and read about the Great Tribulation. In verses 16-20, Jesus warned the twelve of their need to flee at the sign of the abomination of desolation and the horrific calamities that come with it. Now He mentions how truly terrible this time will be, saying, “21 For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will.” In this statement, Jesus mentions a future period when the worst horrors imaginable will come upon humanity. Many believe this period happened at the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. and continued with the unfathomable slaughter and torture of millions of Christians as Rome laid waste to Jewish lands. We have discussed some of these atrocities over the last few days. However, this horrific time of tribulation only affected Judea and did not occur on a global scale. Jesus’ words here also seem to imply that the apocalyptic tribulation period will indeed happen on a global scale. To better support this, we need to look at the surrounding verses (23-28) that show history extending beyond this period of tribulation with future false Christs and false prophets working wonders to deceive many.[1] As we will discuss, these verses are understood as apocalyptic, leading up to Jesus’ glorious return described in vs. 29-31. These upcoming verses that speak of an apocalyptic apostasy align with Paul’s warning that the end cannot come until the revealing of the antichrist and a great apostasy (2 Thess. 2:3). Thus, it seems evident that we should understand Jesus’ words here about this great tribulation as an apocalyptic period that has not yet come. However, Bible scholar Knox Chamblin claims otherwise. He says the tribulation mentioned here was not the last in human history but was the worst for Israel.[2] He states this to support his view that this tribulation happened in 70 A.D. and is simply a foreshadowing of the apocalyptic great tribulation before Jesus’ second coming.[3] While much of Jesus’ discourse can be understood as types and shadows of future and past events, the rest of His discourse, along with Paul and John’s writings in Thessalonians and Revelation, support a future fulfillment. Furthermore, the term ‘great tribulation’, or thlipsis megalē, occurs nowhere else in Scripture outside of Revelation 7:14.[4] It says, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation [thlipsis megalē], and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” This passage is speaking about the saints who endured the great tribulation. Jesus’ words also seem to emphatically point to this future period as He mentions the world has never seen nor will ever see such a terrible tribulation.[5] Thus, His words must signal to an ultimate apocalyptic period of tribulation at the end of the age.[6] Notably, there are multiple Old Testament prophecies that mention this apocalyptic tribulation period. Daniel 12:1b says, “And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time.” Jeremiah 30:7 calls it a different name, saying, “Alas! for that day is great, There is none like it; And it is the time of Jacob’s distress, But he will be saved from it.” ‘Jacob’s distress’, or ‘Jacob’s trouble’ as some translations say, prophesies a future end of days period of testing and calamity upon the earth. Some claim this time of distress is for the nation of Israel alone. This view—also called replacement theology—is strongly supported by those who have a pre-tribulation view of the end times rapture. However, Scripture vehemently rebukes this notion, as this apocalyptic period of tribulation will come upon every nation, tribe, people, and tongue (Rev. 7:9). Additionally, Israel and the church have been grafted together as one in Christ (Romans 11). Thus, some argue this idea of replacement theology is heretical as it teaches that the church replaces Israel as God’s people. Notably, a proper understanding that there is no difference between Jew and Gentile in Christ and that this great tribulation will come upon all people erases any unbiblical confusion. We will soon arrive at Jesus’ second coming (vs. 29-31) and discuss this further. Additional support that this tribulation is apocalyptic is also found in Daniel’s prophecy, as it anticipates salvation for the elect and judgment for the wicked (Dan. 12:1c-2).[7] It says, “1c and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued. 2 Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.” This passage seems to heavily support an apocalyptic tribulation at the end of the age instead of a much earlier partial fulfillment in 70 A.D. Despite all the horrors of that first-century calamity, the events in 70 A.D. cannot justify Jesus’ description here.[8] However, what happened in 70 A.D. was truly Israel’s darkest hour—a time of tribulation unsurpassed in Israel’s history.[9] This is something we cannot understate. In conclusion, Jesus’ words seem to fit with some of the horrors that happened from 66 to 70 A.D. However, it is evident that His words are still future as the surrounding verses in this discourse support events that have not yet happened and lead to His glorious second coming. Jesus’ language speaks strongly about a future fulfillment that will come upon the entire world, not just Israel.[10] Also, Daniel’s prophecy further supports this as he writes with an eschatological understanding. We will continue Jesus’ end times discourse tomorrow and discuss the great tribulation further. Application This time of the great tribulation will be most horrific. Some of the things we have read from past tribulations and events seem so barbaric but even those do not come close to the atrocities the world will see when the antichrist rules during this time. There are thousands of books and articles that have been written about this period and I could go on for pages and pages with additional research. However, we will make do with what we have as I do not want to complicate an already complex biblical concept. In reality, it seems like the great tribulation could come upon us at any time with all the turmoil in the Middle East. Peace talks between Israel and its enemies happen often and we have evidence of plans to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. Certainly, the world becomes further depraved by the day as well, revealing how close we are to the end. It almost feels like the world cannot become darker at times, especially with sin being praised and Jesus being shut out of most worldly things. Along with wickedness spreading like wildfire, the church is being purged as many false teachers and prophets are being exposed. Sadly, some are glistening as they lead millions astray from the biblical truth of Christ. There are many things happening in the world that make it feel like the end is coming soon—and it may indeed. However, Jesus has given us the sign to look for (v. 15) and various warnings about how to prepare for such a time. In the meantime, we should continue boldly declaring our faith and making disciples. We must remain faithful to Christ and heed His words. As the world grows darker, may we be the light that leads others to Christ, especially when the time of tribulation arrives. Regardless of when that time does come, may we remain vigilant and look toward salvation and Jesus’ glorious coming to save us from this dying world and destroy wickedness for good. May we praise, worship, honor, and glorify Jesus every day in all that we do while continually pursuing righteousness, holiness, and forgiveness as He forgave us. Looking Ahead Thank you for joining today’s daily Bible reading! Next, we read Matthew 24:22a. I hope you join me! I have made commenting available, so please feel free to discuss the reading and ask questions. If you do not want to discuss publicly, you can reach out to me privately. We are on this journey together. References [1] Myron Augsburger, “Preacher's Commentary Series.” [2] Knox Chamblin, “Mentor Commentary.” [3] Ibid. [4] Ibid. [5] Philip Comfort and David R. Veerman, “Life Application Bible Commentary New Testament.” [6] Ibid. [7] Doug O’Donnell, “New International Greek Testament Commentary.” [8] Ibid. [9] John Nolland, “Preaching the Word Commentary.” [10] O’Donnell, “New International Greek Testament Commentary.”
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