Welcome to SolaScripturaToday!
SolaScripturaToday is devoted to the exposition and defense of the Word of God: it is elegant, beautiful, the source of all authority and worthy of all praise.
Pro 1.7
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
Fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Psa 138.2
I will bow down toward Your holy temple
And give thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth;
For You have magnified Your word according to all Your name.
As the first text above tells us, there will be those who reject the authority of the Scripture; they are the fools of every age. It is, therefore, necessary to call out that which is contrary to the Word of God, items such as:
- unashamed and humanistic "interpretations" of the Word of God (at the expense of sound exposition);
- that which is commonly called conservative evangelical Christianity (because it frequently distorts the Word of God to suit its humanism);
- the false exercise of that which is called "fellowship" (at the expense of true "oneness of mind");
- theological frameworks of every kind, including Covenant Theology and Dispensationalism;
- eschatological frameworks of every kind, including (especially!) Amillennialism and Postmillennialism;
The purpose of my site is to expound Scripture, and thereby help you to identify the false doctrines and frameworks, persons, churches and sites to avoid. My goal, like the Apostle, is to:
Act 20.27
For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God.
Editorial: 12 Oct 2024
Luk 21.10-36: The Fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE, or the Parousia?
After my recent surgery and recovery, I’ve been busy working on the first of several articles to rebut Amillennial eschatology. The first article challenges the ridiculous notion of recapitulation, a theory that the LORD, when He inspired John to pen the Revelation, gave him 7 revelations of the same events—just from different “perspectives or points of view”. Like the theory of cosmic evolution, eschatological recapitulation lacks an agreed-upon set of details. One author may say this, another that, and yet another something else. While Amil authors generally agree that recapitulation is most certainly found in the Revelation, don’t expect them to agree upon exactly where that recapitulation is to be found, what events are recapitulated, or even how the events are recapitulated. When the Amil proponent discusses recapitulation, you’ll find words indicating wholesale speculation; there are no “details”. The “discussions” of recapitulation are closer to sightings of Big Foot or Loch Ness than serious eschatology.
It should come as no surprise that I’ve been spending (way too much!) time with Greogry Beale’s tome on the Revelation, since this appears to be a major Amil “go to” commentary which is cited frequently.
Something that caught my attention in one of Beale’s extended arguments on recapitulation was a comment that he made on ppg 373-374 in a paragraph dealing with Luk 21 and Rev 6:
[Luk 21 is part of the eschatological discourse of the Synoptics, while Rev 6 deals with the breaking of seals 1 to 6. Beale appears to want to chronologically align the two accounts—if Rev 6 actually speaks of the same event(s) as Luk 21.]
Beale: ppg 373-374:
“The presence of this additional background confirms further our contention that Rev. 6:1-8 deals not only with judgments on the world of unbelief but also with persecution of Christians, since this is a theme shared by all three versions of the Synoptic apocalyptic discourse (e.g., Luke 21:12-24). But it is more difficult to understand the chronological relationship of the prophesied events in the Synoptic discourse to Revelation 6 because there is debate about what exactly the Synoptic prophecies refer to. The discourse has been variously interpreted as predicting the fall of Jerusalem or the events leading up to Christ’s Parousia or a combination of both.”
Let’s see if we can supply a first approximation of a solution to this “issue” by looking at the details of Luk 21.10-33 (the more complete context) instead of the limited text cited by Beale. The question is, is the text:
- about the fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE;
- about the events leading up to the Lord’s future Parousia; or,
- is a combination of both
[Remember, the Amil proponent asserts that we are currently in the Millennium (despite the abundant real evidence to the contrary). I believe that this is the background for the highlighted assertion in the citation above.
Rev 6 is the opening of the first six seals of the Scroll of Life, a future event (See my article, The Scroll of Life, on this site.)]
Here is a tabulation of the unique details that clearly tell us that the Lord Christ was referring to His future return in glory—and only to His return in glory—not the fall of Jerusalem.
Great earthquakes, plagues and famines, signs from heaven.
Heavenly Signs Mention 1: The main detail here is the last one (signs from heaven). There were no signs from heaven at the fall of Jerusalem; however, we can expect something extraordinary when the Lord’s return draws near.
Persecution and the opportunity for a testimony.
Zec 12.10-14 tells us of a future time of national, genuine repentance for Israel. Zec 13.7-9 is a good example of the persecution that will occur upon that newly converted, Christian nation of the future.
Jerusalem surrounded by armies, the Jews are to flee because, and there will be great wrath enacted upon the Jews.
The Jews have been a persecuted people for centuries (due primarily to their national obstinance), so this is nothing unique. However, the last phrase (“led captive”) is compatible with Zec 13.7-9 and Zec 14.1-2.
The time of the Gentiles will be fulfilled.
This was certainly not fulfilled in the fall of Jerusalem in 70 CE, or at any time since. It can be fulfilled only at the Lord’s return.
Signs in the sun, moon and stars, dismay among the nations; perplexity.
Heavenly Signs Mention 2: The Lord repeated the detail of signs in the heavens (clearly indicating that it will be a major and unmistakable series of events); therefore, again, there were no signs in the sun, moon and stars at the fall of Jerusalem.
There will be even more global confusion and anxiety than there is now.
The powers from the heavens will be shaken.
Heavenly Signs Mention 3: The Lord mentions heavenly signs yet a third time; and to repeat, there was no shaking of the heavens at the fall of Jerusalem (Isa 13.13; Hag 2.6,21)
They will see the sign of the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.
This was not the crucifixion/resurrection, as the Amil proponent claims! Remember, Act 1.9-11 tells us that He will return in the clouds, just as He left. This event will be unmistakable. (Mat 24.27)
Your redemption draws near.
There has never been a time when Christians have been free of persecution; however, a time is coming when the Lord will rule the earth with His saints.
The Lord told His disciples a parable emphasizing the nearness of the kingdom of God. A detail that is often overlooked, though, is that heaven and earth will pass away.
The Lord did not say: “Even if heaven and earth pass away My words will remain.” He said clearly “Heaven and earth will pass away” as one of the concomitant events of His return. (Mat 24.35; Mar 13.31)
[While I will not prove this here (since it will be another complete article in this series), this statement is the same event spoken of by Isaiah (Isa 65.17) and by Peter (2 Pet 3.10). This will be the “regeneration” (Mat 19.28), which takes place at the commencement of the Millennium. The New Heaven and the New Earth (Rev 21.1) takes place at the conclusion of the Millennium.]
Unique to Luke’s account is the fact that he does not include the detail of the Abomination of Desolation, also spoken of by the Apostle Paul in 2 The 2.1-12 (something that has not happened). Like the signs in the heaven, both will occur only in the Parousia.
My point is that contrary to Beale’s assertion of “there is debate about what exactly the Synoptic prophecies refer to”, when one carefully and obediently reads the Lord's words in their full context, it is very clear that He meant the signs of His coming and not the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 CE.
There should not be, nor ever be, “debate”.
I'm currently working on a series of future articles to rebut the eschatological train wreck known as Amillennialism (and to a lesser extent, Postmillennialism).
I have learned over the last 54 years that the Bible is not truly honored by those who claim to fear and revere the LORD's name and Word. Instead, where there should be sound, solid Bible exposition by men who have stood in the pulpit for 20+ years there is instead religious "fluff", a terrifying readiness to set aside sound doctrine for that which is actually contrary to Scripture, careless "exposition", a conflation of theology with humanism, sight and sound entertainment by talented bands with expensive audio and visual electronic equipment—all of which produce humanistic side-stepping around what the Scripture really teaches. Essentially anything is acceptable as long as it brings in contributors and/or makes people "feel good about themselves". A thoroughly fake "fellowship" has been created by people that is based on feelings and "getting along" on a Sunday morning (or Saturday night!).
The Lord Christ asked the question nearly 2000 years ago:
Luk 18.8
“However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”
There is nearly nothing left that is truly biblical; as a result, true churches have nearly disappeared from America (in spite of the fact that they are located on nearly every corner). The preachers and pastors who occupy the pulpits in these so-called churches and have become the vanguard for America's steady moral decline and rejection of the LORD's authority. So, in answer to the Lord's question above, my reply is, "Yes, but just barely."
The Apostle Paul, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, warned us about what was to take place in the "last days":
2 Tim 3.1-5
But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.
This is the situation we now observe in nearly every "church" in America (aka., the Institutions of Theological Gaslighting). By design, the articles on my site are not light reading; they demand careful reflection. If you are not willing to spend the time and thought, then my site is definitely not for you; you probably should go elsewhere. However, it is my hope and prayer that as you read and consider the Bible exposition on this site, you'll come to the same conclusion that I have:
The 'Christian' church in America is in real trouble and bears essentially no resemblance to the pattern for the Body of Christ set forth in the Scripture.
The "church" has been in this miserable state nearly since its beginnings. Like the ancient church in Ephesus, the modern church also has "left [its] first love", the Lord Christ. (Rev 2.4) If it comes about that you become convinced of these things as I am, then it is my prayer that you will leave the dead "churches" you currently attend and instead take up the mantle of the true Word of God and seek out the biblical "oneness of mind" with other true believers as the LORD commands. We will always be the remnant—true, consistent, biblical Christianity will never be popular. Get used to being in the minority, shunned by those who consider themselves believers but have none of the fruit of true faith and certainly don't know the Scriptures. (Mat 7.20) This includes those who stand in the pulpit!
At this time there are seven main categories (as shown in the left column):
- Ecclesiology
- Eschatology
- Theology
- History
- Quick Notes
- Of Interest
- Editorials