Last Things I

by Lee Johnson

Last Things 1 – Return of Christ and preliminary events

Matthew 24 = Two questions are asked, when is the destruction of the temple and when is the return of Christ. The Lord gives two answers. The temple has many surrounding events, and will occur within one generation. The coming of Christ, no one knows, and will be like the rain in Noah’s time, and the Two Servants, the Ten virgins. The primary theme is that the return of Christ is without warning. No preliminary signs. Only the preparation of the righteous hints of what is to come. We are to be prepared. Christ will come in the timing of God. Let this be our theme as we look at the other issues.

The Mass Conversion of the Jewish people = There is disagreement among many within the Reformed Camp on this issue, men stand on both sides. Turretin believes in a conversion of the Jewish people, while Louis Berkoff does not. Romans 11:25ff is the main verse that supports a mass conversion. They take the statement “so all Israel will be saved” as the nation of Israel will experience salvation. Many Old Testament verses promising restoration of the nation of Israel can also be used. However, I disagree. Let the premise we read in Matthew 24 be our guide. Let the silence of Christ be our guide. Let the argument of Paul in Romans be our guide. This section starts in chapter 9. Verse 6 tells us that “not all Israel are Israel” while discussing the promises to Israel. Verse 8 tells us that not the children of flesh, but of the promise. To hold that Paul later teaches that the fleshly children of Abraham do have a spot is contradictory. Paul continues chapter 9 with proof that not all Israel are Israel with Jacob and Esau. Chapter 10 then goes on to describe the rejection of Christ. Chapter 11 answers the question has God cast away his people? May it not be so! The answer Paul then gives is not one of a promised future restoration, but ‘look at me’ “I also am an Israelite of the seed of Abraham.” Paul is proof that not all of Israel was rejected. There shall always be a remnant. Paul continues to warn the Gentiles against pride with the story of the vine, and concludes that is ‘in part’ is blinded so that the gentiles can be grafted in. Then after the salvation of the part of the Jews, and the fulness of the gentiles, then and only then will all spiritual Israel be saved. NOTE OTHER VERSES CLAIMING NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN JEW AND GREEK.

This mass conversion would also have to be seen as a sign of the second coming of the Lord. This again violates the rule set down by Christ himself, that no one knows the hour or the day. That Christ comes as a thief in the night. No warning will exist. The conversion of a large portion of Jews would consist of a warning.

The Antichrist = again this is a highly disputed subject in which many men have disagreed. Even within the Reformed Camp. Of course our standards permit both views. No stance is taken. This time Berkoff believes in a man appearing as the Antichrist, while Turretin believes that it is more of a force that found its main fulfillment in the Papacy at Rome. This also appears to have been the view of the Westminster Divines, as they called the pope the Antichrist in that document, which has since been edited out by the modern Presbyterian Churches.

The only passages that use the word Antichrist are found in I John. I John 2:18-19. Here we see that an expectation of a Antichrist existed during John’s time. We also see that antichrists existed already, and that those antichrists came out from the church. John continues to explain the Antichrist in I John 4:1-4. Here we see that everyone who denies Christ in the flesh is an antichrist and that his spirit is already in the world. The necessity of their being one Antichrist is not necessary in John’s writings. It is only through linking with other verses, that we believe in one person.

Yet, we must also look at the Man-of-Lawlessness in 2 Thess. 2:3-11. Note the present nature of Paul’s comments. The (7) mystery of iniquity is already at work, and the one who restrain must be removed first. Paul speaks also of the man standing in the temple (4). This could be the church, but it could also be the physical temple, which would have still been standing. I agree with B.B. Warfield that this verse probably refers to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple (pg. 181 in Sproul).

The Beast of Revelation comes next. Many commentators see the Beast in Revelation 13 as the Antichrist. We see certain aspects of the beast that are described. He makes war with the saints (7), blasphemes (6), worshiped as god (8), and his numbers is 666 (18). Now before I give my belief of who the beast is, we need to examine the book of Revelation as a whole. Revelation 1:1 states that the things that must shortly take place. Verse 3 states that the time is at hand. Verse 19 of the first chapter also indicates things that are about to come to pass. The temple mentioned in places like 11:1 view the temple as still standing. No where does it discuss the rebuilding or allude to its previous destruction. These things tend to point to a pre-A.D. 70 authorship.

External evidence also indicates that we should hold to an early date of the book of Revelation. Ireneaus, a student of Polycarp, refers to “ancient copies” of the John’s vision. This would preclude the A.D. 100 or later date. Clement of Alexandria believes John to be the author of Revelation, but also states that “the teaching . . . of the apostles, embracing the ministry of Paul, ends with Nero.” Clement believes the apostles did not have any writings after Nero, which would include Revelation. I believe many other post-Apostolic writings hint at this as well. The Shepherd of Hermas, Papias both hint at it. Eusebias believes that Nero banished John to Patmos. The ‘History of John’, and Syriac versions of Revelation, Arethas, and Theophylact all claim it.

Therefore, I believe that the Beast of Revelation is NOT the antichrist. John is the only one who uses the term, and he does NOT use it in Revelation. He terms him the beast. The beast then is designated by 666. Using the Hebrew way of numbering letters, it can be seen as Nero. I believe the beast of Revelation is Nero. He meets the qualifications. He wars against the saints, blasphemes, sets up a statue of himself to be worshiped as god, and his name fits the 666. A textual variant changes 666 to 616. This probably was done on purpose. The textual variant is Latin, and the Latinized version of Nero’s name is different than the Hebrew, which goes to 666, but the Latinized name goes to 616. The variant probably existed to keep consistent the meaning of Nero as the Beast. Also note that the 7 heads of the beast are in chapter 17 equated to the 7 hills in Revelation 17:9. The city of seven hills has always been Rome. The system of counting the kings also gives us Nero.

In summary, I believe that the Second Coming of Christ will have no predictive events. It is like a thief in the night. No one knows the hour or day, and no hints are given. I believe that the Jewish nation shall have converts to Christianity forever, but not have a national or major ethnic conversion. I believe that the Bible tells us of the Spirit of the Antichrist that is the spirit of apostasy. Antichrists go out from us everyday, and are often manifested in people. The papacy is a perfect example. Yet, I believe there is not a connection between the Antichrists and the Son of Perdition or the Beast of Revelation. Nero is the beast which wars against the Christian community. The great apostasy is the falling away of the Jewish nation. The Son of Perdition or man of lawlessness that sets himself up in the temple, the Abomination of Desolations, can be seen then as Nero or Titus, the general who destroyed Jerusalem.