Matthew 24: A premier of prophecy part one
What Matthew 24 Tells Us About "the End" Part One
D.A. Carson, a New Testament scholar, begins his commentary on Matthew 24 with the following words: "Few chapters of the Bible have called forth more disagreement among interpreters than Matthew 24 and its parallels in Mark 13 and Luke 21. The history of the interpretation of this chapter is immensely complex" (The Expositor's Bible Commentary, volume 8, page 488).
Carson's statement underlines the difficulties people have encountered when trying to interpret Matthew 24. As we try to understand what Jesus was saying in this chapter, we would do well to approach it with caution and avoid simplistic views and dogmatism.
Seeing things in context
Studying Matthew 24 in the larger context of preceding chapters will help us avoid interpretation pitfalls. We may be surprised to learn that the background to Matthew 24 actually begins at least as far back as chapter 16:21. There, we are given the following summary statement: "From that time Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life."
By his comments, Jesus set the stage for what appeared to be to the disciples a showdown in Jerusalem between himself and the religious authorities. He continued telling his disciples about this imminent conflict as they made their way to Jerusalem (20:17-19).
During the time Jesus was explaining that he was to suffer at Jerusalem, he took Peter, James and John up a high mountain. There, they experienced the transfiguration (17:1-13). This of itself must have made the disciples wonder whether the establishment of the kingdom of God was close at hand (17:10-12).
Jesus also told the disciples they would sit on 12 thrones judging Israel "when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne" (19:28). No doubt, this sparked additional questions about the time and manner of the coming of the kingdom of God. Jesus' talking about the kingdom even prompted the mother of James and John to ask him to give special positions in the kingdom to her two sons (20:20-21).
Then came the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, in which Jesus rode into the city on a donkey (21:1-11). This, said Matthew, fulfilled what the prophet Zechariah had spoken, and which was thought to refer to the Messiah. The entire city was stirred, wondering what would happen as Jesus arrived. In Jerusalem, he overturned the moneylender's tables and took other actions to demonstrate his messianic authority (21:12-27). "Who is this?" people asked in response (21:10). Next, in 21:43 Jesus told the chief priests and elders of the people: "I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit." His audience knew he was talking about them. Jesus' statement could have been taken as an implication that he was ready to establish his messianic kingdom, but the religious leaders would not be a part of it.
Is the kingdom to be established?
The disciples who heard this must have wondered what was going to happen. Was Jesus ready to announce his messiahship? Was he ready to put down the Roman authority? Was he on the verge of bringing in the kingdom of God? Would there be a war, and what would happen to Jerusalem and the temple?We now come to Matthew 22 and verse 15. Here the scene begins with the Pharisees laying plans to trap Jesus by asking him a question regarding the paying of taxes. They hoped to use his answer as the basis for accusing Jesus of rebelling against the Roman authority. But Jesus answered rather cleverly, and their plan was foiled.
That same day the Sadducees also had an encounter with Jesus (22:23-32). Not believing in the resurrection, they asked him a trick question about seven brothers marrying one woman. Whose wife would she be in the resurrection?, they asked. Jesus answered them indirectly by telling them they didn't understand their own Scriptures. He confounded them by pointing out that there is no marriage in the kingdom.
Next, the Pharisees and Sadducees together tested Jesus on the meaning of the greatest commandment in the law (22:36). He answered wisely by quoting Leviticus 19:8 and Deuteronomy 6:5. Then Jesus asked them a trick question about whose son the Messiah was to be (22:42). They fell into his trap, and "no one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions" (22:46).
Chapter 23 shows Jesus criticizing the teachers of the law and the Pharisees. Toward the end of the chapter, Jesus talked about sending them prophets, wise men and teachers whom they would flog, pursue, kill and crucify. He placed the responsibility of all the slain prophets on their shoulders. The tension was obviously mounting, and the disciples must have been wondering about the meaning of these hostile encounters. Was Jesus about to take control as Messiah?
Then, in a prayer to Jerusalem, Jesus spoke of its house as becoming desolate. This is connected to his cryptic comment: "For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord'" (23:39). The disciples must have become increasingly puzzled, curious and anxious about the things Jesus was saying. Was he about to proclaim himself?
Temple to be destroyed
After these things, Jesus left the temple. As he was walking away, his breathless disciples pointed to its buildings. In Mark's words, they said, "Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!" (13:1). Luke says the disciples remarked how the temple was "adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God" (21:5).
Think of what must have been going through the disciples' minds. Jesus' comments about Jerusalem's desolation and his confrontation with the religious leaders both frightened and excited the disciples. They must have wondered why he was speaking of impending doom on Judaism and its institutions. Wasn't the Messiah coming to glorify both? By their comments about the temple, it seems as if the concerned and confused disciples were thinking, Surely, nothing can happen to this beautiful temple in which God dwells!?
Jesus then made the disciples more curious and frightened. He brushed aside their lavish praise of the temple. "Do you see all these things?" he asked. "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down" (24:2).
This must have been shocking to the disciples. They thought the Messiah was going to save Jerusalem and the temple, not allow both to be destroyed. As Jesus spoke of these things, the disciples must have thought about the end of gentile rulership and the glory of Israel, both which are prophesied so many times in the Hebrew Scriptures. They knew these events would occur at "the time of the end" (Daniel 8:17; 11:35, 40; 12:4, 9). It was at this time that the Messiah would appear or "come" to usher in the kingdom of God. This meant Israel would arise to national greatness as the spearhead of that kingdom.
When will this happen?
The disciples, who believed Jesus was that Messiah, were naturally anxious to know if the "time of the end" had come. There was great expectation that Jesus was about to announce that he was the messiah (John 12:12-18). It's not surprising, then, that the disciples pressed Jesus about the nature and timing of his "coming."
As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the excited disciples came to him privately to get some inside information. "`Tell us,' they said, `when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?'" (24:3). They wanted to know when the things Jesus said about Jerusalem would take place, for they undoubtedly associated these with the end of the age and his "coming."
When the disciples asked about his "coming," they didn't have a "second" coming in mind. In their thinking, the Messiah would come and immediately establish his government in Jerusalem, and it would last "forever." There would be no "first" and "second" coming.
There is another vital point to notice about Matthew 24:3, for it is a kind of summary statement of the content of chapter 24. Let us repeat the disciples' question, italicizing some important words: "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" (24:3). They wanted to know when the things Jesus said about Jerusalem would take place, for they associated these with the end of the age and his "coming."
Disciples' three questions
The disciples were really asking three questions. First, they wanted to know when "this" would happen. The "this" could be a reference to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, which Jesus had just finished describing as being threatened with destruction. Second, they wanted to know what the "sign" of his coming was, which as we shall see, Jesus finally gave them in 24:30. Third, the disciples also wanted to know when the "end of the age" would occur. This is something Jesus told the disciples they could not know (24:36).If we separate out the three questions, and see how Jesus answered each of them, we can clear up a number of problems or misinterpretations associated with Matthew 24. Jesus was telling his disciples that Jerusalem and the temple (the "this") would, indeed, be destroyed in their day. But the "sign" they asked about, Jesus said, would be associated with his coming, not with the destruction of the city. Finally, as to the disciples' third question, Jesus said, no one could know the answer to the question of when he would return and "the end" of the age would occur.
In Matthew 24 are three questions, and each is answered individually in Jesus' reply. We can still have Jesus' return and the "end of the age" occur in the future, and Jerusalem be destroyed in the past, in A.D. 70, just as Jesus prophesied.
That is not to say the disciples separated out the destruction of Jerusalem from "the end," because they almost certainly didn't. And they most likely thought that the events would occur almost immediately.
Let us see how these questions play out in Matthew 24. First, we note that Jesus didn't seem particularly interested in talking about the circumstances of "the end." It was his disciples who provoked the questions, and Jesus obliged them by providing some comments.
We also realize that almost certainly the disciples' questions about "the end" were based on a wrong conclusion — that all the events would occur almost immediately, and all at the same time. Hence, it's not surprising that they thought Jesus' "coming" as Messiah was extremely close, in the sense that it might happen within days or weeks. Still, they wanted a physical "sign" of his coming as a confirmation. With this private and secret knowledge they would be able to place themselves at the most advantageous position when Jesus made his move.
We should see Jesus' comments in Matthew 24 in that context. In short, the disciples provoke the discussion. They think Jesus is about to assume power, and they want to know exactly when this will happen. They want a preparatory sign. But the disciples totally misunderstood Jesus' mission.
"The end" is not yet
Rather than answering the disciples' questions on their terms, Jesus used the occasion to teach them three important things. One, he taught them that the scenario they were asking about was much more complicated than their simplistic notions. Two, they could not know when Jesus would "come," or as we would say, "return." Three, they should worry about or "watch" their relationship with God and not worry about "watching" world or local events.Let's now notice how Jesus' conversation with his disciples unfolded, keeping these principles and the prior discussion in mind. The first thing he did was warn the disciples not to be deceived by traumatic events that might make it appear as though "the end" was near (Matthew 24:4-8). Tumultuous things would happen in the world, but "the end is still to come" (verse 6).
Next, Jesus told his disciples that they would be persecuted and put to death (24:9-13). How shocking that must have seemed! They must have wondered, "What is all this talk about persecution and death?" The Messiah's people would be triumphant and victorious, not butchered and destroyed, they thought.
Jesus then began talking about a gospel to be preached to the whole world. After this, "the end" would come (24:14). This must have also been confusing to the disciples. They probably thought the Messiah would "come" first, then establish his kingdom. Only after that would the word of the Lord go forth to all the earth (Isaiah 2:1-4).
Next, Jesus seemed to backtrack and forecast a dire warning for the temple. The abomination of desolation would be seen in the holy place, and those in Judea would have to flee to the mountains (24:15-16). These would be dreadful times indeed for the Jews. "For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now — and never to be equaled again," said Jesus (24:21). Things would get so bad that no one would survive if those days weren't cut short.
Though Jesus mentioned what would happen in the world at large, Jesus was talking primarily about what would happen in Judea and Jerusalem. Luke uses the phrase "there will be great distress in the land" to describe the context of Jesus' comments (Luke 21:23). The temple, Jerusalem and Judea were the focus of Jesus' warning, not the entire world. The warning Jesus gave about impending doom was primarily for Jews in Jerusalem and Judea. The events of A.D. 66-70 confirmed this. TO be continue on Part 2
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