Immortality or Resurrection, William West [best romance books of all time txt] 📗
- Author: William West
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looking for the city" The Jewish War.
"The Dead Sea too was filled with corpses which the river (the Jordan River) carried down to it by the thousands" Josephus.
"And except these days had been shortened, no flesh would have been saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened" [Matthew 24:22]. If the war had gone on it would have reached beyond Israel unto Pella and other cities in the mountains where many Christians were that had left Israel; but it was stopped before it reached them. "No flesh" will be saved at the second coming. "Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God" [1 Corinthians 15:50]. That the days were shortened and some flesh was saved proves this is not speaking of the second coming of Christ.
[5] HE (CHRIST) IS NIGH, EVEN AT THE DOORS: Matthew 24:32-44
"Now from the fig tree learn her parable: when her branch is now become tender, and puts forth its leaves, you know that the summer is nigh; (33) even so you also, WHEN YOU SEE ALL THESE THINGS, KNOW YOU THAT HE IS NIGH, EVEN AT THE DOORS. (34) VERILY I SAY UNTO YOU, THIS GENERATION SHALL NOT PASS AWAY, TILL ALL THESE THINGS BE ACCOMPLISHED. (35) Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. (36) But of that day and hour knows no one, not even the angels of heaven, neither the Son, but the Father only. (37) And as were the days of Noah, so shall be the coming of the Son of man. (38) For in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, (39) and they knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall be the coming of the Son of man. (40) Then shall two men be in the field; one is taken, and one is left; (41) two women shall be grinding at the mill; one is taken, and one is left. (42) Watch; therefore: for you know not on what day your Lord comes. (43) But know this that if the master of the house had known in what watch the thief was coming, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to broken through. (44) Therefore be you also ready; for in an hour that you think not the Son of man comes." This makes it clear that all Jesus had said before this applies to the destruction of Jerusalem and not to His second coming for "this generation" has long ago passed away. "ALL THESE THINGS" are the things He has just told them. When they saw the signs coming to pass, they know that the end of the temple and Israel was at hand. Although we are to watch and always be ready, we are not given any signs as they were that we can see and know that His coming is soon, not even that it will be in our lifetime or in the next thousand or ten thousand years. Commentaries on verses 35-44 are divided on whether this is speaking of the coming of Christ in judgment on Israel or His second coming. It seems unlikely to me that He would have changed from speaking of judgment on Israel in verse 34, then His second coming in verse 35, and back to judgment on Israel in verse 40 with nothing to show He changed. He was speaking to His disciples at this time [Matthew 24:1], and telling them they were to watch for the signs He gave them of His coming in judgment on Israel. We are given no signs to watch for but are always to be ready for His second coming.
"ALL THESE THINGS" Is things before 70 A. D., not at the second coming of Jesus. Luke says, "But when THESE THINGS begin to come to pass, look up, and lift up your heads; because your redemption draws nigh" [Luke 21:38]. This redemption draws nigh to those of that generation. It was a redemption from the persecution of the Jews. "This generation shall not pass away, till ALL THINGS be accomplished" Luke 21:32. Not the redemption of the U. S. from Russia or any other redemption today.
• "But before all THESE THINGS, they shall lay hands on you, and shall persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons" Luke 21:12.
• "This generation shall not pass away, till ALL THINGS be accomplished" Luke 21:32, Matthew 24:34.
• "As for THESE THINGS which you behold (The temple and how it was adorned) the days will come, in which there shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down" Luke 21:5.
• "When therefore shall THESE THINGS be?" (Not one stone upon another) Luke 21:7.
• "And what shall be the sign when THESE THINGS are about to come to pass?" Luke 21:7.
• "And when you shall hear of wars and tumults, be not terrified: for THESE THINGS must needs come to pass first; but the end is not immediately" Luke 21:9.
• "But when THESE THINGS begin to come to pass" Luke 21:28.
• "Even so you also, when you see THESE THINGS coming to pass" Luke 21:31.
• "But watch you at every season, making supplication, that you may prevail to escape all THESE THINGS that shall come to pass" Luke 21:36.
Matthew 24:34 is a key to understanding all that came to pass before it, all that has been said up to this point must come before "this generation" would pass away. Not at the second coming of Jesus at the end of the world. A generation is about 40 years. It is the same "generation" spoken of in Matthew 23:36.
Matthew 24:35 "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away." He had assured them that the end of Jerusalem was coming, now He assured them that His word would come to pass, that the heavens would end and the earth would pass away but not His word; the end of Jerusalem was sure. He was speaking of the end of the Jewish heavens and earth, the end of their nation, not the end of the world. They did not know the season when the end would come but was told to pray that it be not in the winter season, nor did they know the day but were told to pray that it not be on a Sabbath Day. "But watch you at every season, making supplication, THAT YOU MAY PREVAIL TO ESCAPE ALL THESE THINGS THAT SHALL COME TO PASS, and to stand before the Son of man" [Luke 21:36; Matthew 24:42-44; Mark 13:35-37]. The Christians did watch and did escape all these things, all the things He has just warned them about what was coming to Israel; but no one will escape the judgment to come.
Just as Noah warned of the destruction of the world but did not give the exact time and all went on with their lives and did not pay attention to the warning, the warning of Christ were not heeded by the Jews and the end came when they were not looking for it. As in the flood only the evil was destroyed and the righteous saved, the unbelieving Jews were destroyed and the believers were saved; "two men in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left." The righteous would be left.
JOSEPHUS, the Jewish first century historian, recorded concerning the year 70, "Thus were the miserable people persuaded by these deceivers, and such as belied God himself; while they did not attend, nor give credit to the signs that were so evident and did so plainly foretell their future desolation; but, like men infatuated, without either eyes to see, or minds to consider, did not regard the denunciations that God made to them."
JOHN LIGHTFOOT (1859) "This generation shall not pass. Hence, it appears plain enough that the foregoing verses are not to be understood of the last judgment but, as we said, of the destruction of Jerusalem." (A Commentary of The New Testament, Volume 2, Page 320).
JOHN WESLEY (1754) "This generation of men now living shall not pass till all these things be done - The expression implies that great part of that generation would be passed away, but not the whole. Just so it was; for the city and temple were destroyed thirty-nine or forty years after."
MATTHEW HENRY "As to these things, the wars, seductions, and persecutions, here foretold, and especially of the ruin of the Jewish nation; 'This generation shall not pass away, till all these things be fulfilled (Mt 24:34); there are those now alive that shall see Jerusalem destroyed, AND THE JEWISH CHURCH BROUGHT TO AN END." One Volume Commentary on the Whole Bible.
JAMES D. BALES "And the destruction of the whole Jewish economy was the fulfillment of the rest of it (Joel's prophecy of the last days Acts 2:16-21). If there was one thing the Jew felt sure of it was that Jerusalem was the favored city of God and that its future supremacy among the nations was as certain to come as the sunrise. Its sacrifices would always be acceptable offered on the altars by the sons of Levi. Now we see the national life of Israel forever ended; the temple forever closed; the sacrifices become useless; the priesthood forgotten; and Israel no more to God than any other nation...If you could think of a pious Jew having gone to sleep three years before Christ was crucified and then wakened in a few years after the destruction of Jerusalem, what an utter bewilderment he would have! All that he supposed to be permanent was gone, and in place of it a company of men preaching God's love to all men, worshiping in all places, and claiming earthly dominion in none. He would well say this in indeed what Joel said to us" The Hub Of The Bible Or Acts Two Analyzed, Page 70, 1960.
[6] ISRAEL THE UNFAITHFUL SERVANT
Matthew 24:45-51
"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord has set over his household, to give them their food in due season? (46) Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he comes shall find so doing. (47) Verily I say unto you, that he will set him over all that he has. (48) But if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord terries; (49) and shall begin to beat his fellow-servants, and shall eat and drink with the drunken; (50) the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he expects not, and in an hour when he knows not, (51) and shall cut him asunder, and appoint his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Like all parables, all that are in them are not to be taken literally. They teach a lesson which is the main point of the parable. The point of this one is that Israel had been unfaithful and a judgment was coming.
[7] UNPROFITABLE SERVANT - OUTER DARKNESS
Matthew 25:30; 8:12; 22:13
IT WAS THE "UNPROFITABLE SERVANT" AND "SONS OF THE KINGDOM" THAT WERE CAST INTO OUTER DARKNESS, NOT THE ONES WHO NEVER BELIEVED, NOT THE LOST FOR THEY WERE NEVER IN THE KINGDOM. The Jews who rejected Christ
"The Dead Sea too was filled with corpses which the river (the Jordan River) carried down to it by the thousands" Josephus.
"And except these days had been shortened, no flesh would have been saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened" [Matthew 24:22]. If the war had gone on it would have reached beyond Israel unto Pella and other cities in the mountains where many Christians were that had left Israel; but it was stopped before it reached them. "No flesh" will be saved at the second coming. "Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God" [1 Corinthians 15:50]. That the days were shortened and some flesh was saved proves this is not speaking of the second coming of Christ.
[5] HE (CHRIST) IS NIGH, EVEN AT THE DOORS: Matthew 24:32-44
"Now from the fig tree learn her parable: when her branch is now become tender, and puts forth its leaves, you know that the summer is nigh; (33) even so you also, WHEN YOU SEE ALL THESE THINGS, KNOW YOU THAT HE IS NIGH, EVEN AT THE DOORS. (34) VERILY I SAY UNTO YOU, THIS GENERATION SHALL NOT PASS AWAY, TILL ALL THESE THINGS BE ACCOMPLISHED. (35) Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. (36) But of that day and hour knows no one, not even the angels of heaven, neither the Son, but the Father only. (37) And as were the days of Noah, so shall be the coming of the Son of man. (38) For in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, (39) and they knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall be the coming of the Son of man. (40) Then shall two men be in the field; one is taken, and one is left; (41) two women shall be grinding at the mill; one is taken, and one is left. (42) Watch; therefore: for you know not on what day your Lord comes. (43) But know this that if the master of the house had known in what watch the thief was coming, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to broken through. (44) Therefore be you also ready; for in an hour that you think not the Son of man comes." This makes it clear that all Jesus had said before this applies to the destruction of Jerusalem and not to His second coming for "this generation" has long ago passed away. "ALL THESE THINGS" are the things He has just told them. When they saw the signs coming to pass, they know that the end of the temple and Israel was at hand. Although we are to watch and always be ready, we are not given any signs as they were that we can see and know that His coming is soon, not even that it will be in our lifetime or in the next thousand or ten thousand years. Commentaries on verses 35-44 are divided on whether this is speaking of the coming of Christ in judgment on Israel or His second coming. It seems unlikely to me that He would have changed from speaking of judgment on Israel in verse 34, then His second coming in verse 35, and back to judgment on Israel in verse 40 with nothing to show He changed. He was speaking to His disciples at this time [Matthew 24:1], and telling them they were to watch for the signs He gave them of His coming in judgment on Israel. We are given no signs to watch for but are always to be ready for His second coming.
"ALL THESE THINGS" Is things before 70 A. D., not at the second coming of Jesus. Luke says, "But when THESE THINGS begin to come to pass, look up, and lift up your heads; because your redemption draws nigh" [Luke 21:38]. This redemption draws nigh to those of that generation. It was a redemption from the persecution of the Jews. "This generation shall not pass away, till ALL THINGS be accomplished" Luke 21:32. Not the redemption of the U. S. from Russia or any other redemption today.
• "But before all THESE THINGS, they shall lay hands on you, and shall persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons" Luke 21:12.
• "This generation shall not pass away, till ALL THINGS be accomplished" Luke 21:32, Matthew 24:34.
• "As for THESE THINGS which you behold (The temple and how it was adorned) the days will come, in which there shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down" Luke 21:5.
• "When therefore shall THESE THINGS be?" (Not one stone upon another) Luke 21:7.
• "And what shall be the sign when THESE THINGS are about to come to pass?" Luke 21:7.
• "And when you shall hear of wars and tumults, be not terrified: for THESE THINGS must needs come to pass first; but the end is not immediately" Luke 21:9.
• "But when THESE THINGS begin to come to pass" Luke 21:28.
• "Even so you also, when you see THESE THINGS coming to pass" Luke 21:31.
• "But watch you at every season, making supplication, that you may prevail to escape all THESE THINGS that shall come to pass" Luke 21:36.
Matthew 24:34 is a key to understanding all that came to pass before it, all that has been said up to this point must come before "this generation" would pass away. Not at the second coming of Jesus at the end of the world. A generation is about 40 years. It is the same "generation" spoken of in Matthew 23:36.
Matthew 24:35 "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away." He had assured them that the end of Jerusalem was coming, now He assured them that His word would come to pass, that the heavens would end and the earth would pass away but not His word; the end of Jerusalem was sure. He was speaking of the end of the Jewish heavens and earth, the end of their nation, not the end of the world. They did not know the season when the end would come but was told to pray that it be not in the winter season, nor did they know the day but were told to pray that it not be on a Sabbath Day. "But watch you at every season, making supplication, THAT YOU MAY PREVAIL TO ESCAPE ALL THESE THINGS THAT SHALL COME TO PASS, and to stand before the Son of man" [Luke 21:36; Matthew 24:42-44; Mark 13:35-37]. The Christians did watch and did escape all these things, all the things He has just warned them about what was coming to Israel; but no one will escape the judgment to come.
Just as Noah warned of the destruction of the world but did not give the exact time and all went on with their lives and did not pay attention to the warning, the warning of Christ were not heeded by the Jews and the end came when they were not looking for it. As in the flood only the evil was destroyed and the righteous saved, the unbelieving Jews were destroyed and the believers were saved; "two men in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left." The righteous would be left.
JOSEPHUS, the Jewish first century historian, recorded concerning the year 70, "Thus were the miserable people persuaded by these deceivers, and such as belied God himself; while they did not attend, nor give credit to the signs that were so evident and did so plainly foretell their future desolation; but, like men infatuated, without either eyes to see, or minds to consider, did not regard the denunciations that God made to them."
JOHN LIGHTFOOT (1859) "This generation shall not pass. Hence, it appears plain enough that the foregoing verses are not to be understood of the last judgment but, as we said, of the destruction of Jerusalem." (A Commentary of The New Testament, Volume 2, Page 320).
JOHN WESLEY (1754) "This generation of men now living shall not pass till all these things be done - The expression implies that great part of that generation would be passed away, but not the whole. Just so it was; for the city and temple were destroyed thirty-nine or forty years after."
MATTHEW HENRY "As to these things, the wars, seductions, and persecutions, here foretold, and especially of the ruin of the Jewish nation; 'This generation shall not pass away, till all these things be fulfilled (Mt 24:34); there are those now alive that shall see Jerusalem destroyed, AND THE JEWISH CHURCH BROUGHT TO AN END." One Volume Commentary on the Whole Bible.
JAMES D. BALES "And the destruction of the whole Jewish economy was the fulfillment of the rest of it (Joel's prophecy of the last days Acts 2:16-21). If there was one thing the Jew felt sure of it was that Jerusalem was the favored city of God and that its future supremacy among the nations was as certain to come as the sunrise. Its sacrifices would always be acceptable offered on the altars by the sons of Levi. Now we see the national life of Israel forever ended; the temple forever closed; the sacrifices become useless; the priesthood forgotten; and Israel no more to God than any other nation...If you could think of a pious Jew having gone to sleep three years before Christ was crucified and then wakened in a few years after the destruction of Jerusalem, what an utter bewilderment he would have! All that he supposed to be permanent was gone, and in place of it a company of men preaching God's love to all men, worshiping in all places, and claiming earthly dominion in none. He would well say this in indeed what Joel said to us" The Hub Of The Bible Or Acts Two Analyzed, Page 70, 1960.
[6] ISRAEL THE UNFAITHFUL SERVANT
Matthew 24:45-51
"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord has set over his household, to give them their food in due season? (46) Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he comes shall find so doing. (47) Verily I say unto you, that he will set him over all that he has. (48) But if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord terries; (49) and shall begin to beat his fellow-servants, and shall eat and drink with the drunken; (50) the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he expects not, and in an hour when he knows not, (51) and shall cut him asunder, and appoint his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Like all parables, all that are in them are not to be taken literally. They teach a lesson which is the main point of the parable. The point of this one is that Israel had been unfaithful and a judgment was coming.
[7] UNPROFITABLE SERVANT - OUTER DARKNESS
Matthew 25:30; 8:12; 22:13
IT WAS THE "UNPROFITABLE SERVANT" AND "SONS OF THE KINGDOM" THAT WERE CAST INTO OUTER DARKNESS, NOT THE ONES WHO NEVER BELIEVED, NOT THE LOST FOR THEY WERE NEVER IN THE KINGDOM. The Jews who rejected Christ
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