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VII.
Coming Events and Signs of
the Times
»
Chapter 68
:
Our Lord's Great Prophecy
1.
HOW did Christ feel concerning Jerusalem, as He was
about to make His final visit to the city before His
crucifixion?
"And when He was come near, He beheld the city, and wept
over it, saying, If thou had known, even thou,
at least in
this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace!
but now they are hid from your eyes." Luke 19:41,42.
2. In
what words did He foretell its destruction?
"For the days shall come upon thee, that your
enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee
round, and keep thee in on every side, and shall lay
thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee;
and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another;
because thou knew not the time of thy visitation."
Verses 43,44.
3.
What pitiful appeal did He make to the impenitent city?
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that kills the
prophets, and stones them which are sent unto thee, how
often would I have gathered thy children together, even
as a hen gathered her chickens under her wings, and you
would not!" Matt. 23:37.
4. As
He was about to leave the temple, what did He say?
"Behold, your house is left unto you desolate." Verse
38.
NOTE.-That which was to fill up their cup of
iniquity was their final rejection and crucifixion
of Christ, and their condemnation and persecution of
His apostles and people after His resurrection. See
Matt. 23:29-35; John 19:15; Acts 4-8.
5.
Hearing these words, what questions did the disciples
ask?
"Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be
the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the world?"
Matt. 24:3.
NOTE.-Christ's answers to these questions are worthy
of the most careful study. The destruction of
Jerusalem and the overthrow of the Jewish nation
attending it are a type of the final destruction of
all the cities of the world, and the overthrow of
all nations. To some extent, therefore, the
descriptions of the two great events seem to be
blended. When Christ referred to the destruction of
Jerusalem, His prophetic words reached beyond that
event to the final conflagration when the Lord shall
rise out of His place "to punish the inhabitants of
the earth for their iniquity, and when the earth
shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover
her slain." Isa. 26:21. Thus the entire discourse
was given not for the early disciples only, but for
those who were to live during the closing scenes of
the world's history. During the discourse Christ
did, however, give definite signs, both of the
destruction of Jerusalem and of His second coming.
6. In
His reply, how did Christ indicate that neither the end
of the world nor of the Jewish nation was immediately at
hand?
"Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no
man deceive you. For many shall come in My name,
saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And you
shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that you be
not troubled: for all these things must come to pass,
but the end is not yet." Verses 4-6.
7.
What did He say of the wars, famines, pestilences, and
earthquakes which were to precede these events?
"All these are the beginning of sorrows." Verse
8.
NOTE.-These were to precede and culminate in the
great calamity and overthrow, first, of Jerusalem,
and finally of the whole world; for, as already
noted, the prophecy has a double application, first,
to Jerusalem and the Jewish nation, and secondly, to
the whole world; the destruction of Jerusalem for
its rejection of Christ at His first advent was a
type of the destruction of the world at the end for
its rejection of Christ in refusing to heed the
closing warning message sent by God to prepare the
world for Christ's second advent.
8. In
what language did Christ briefly describe the
experiences of His people previous to these calamities?
"Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and
shall kill you: and you shall be hated of all nations
for My name's sake. And then shall many be offended, and
shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive
many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of
many shall wax cold." Verses 9-12.
9.
Who did He say would be saved?
"But he that shall endure unto the end, the same
shall be saved." Verse 13.
10.
When did Christ say the end would come?
"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be
preached in all the world for a witness unto all
nations; and then shall the end come." Verse
14.
NOTES.-In A.D. 60 Paul carried the gospel to Rome,
which was then the capital of the world. In A.D. 64
he wrote of the saints of "Caesar's household"
(Phil. 4:22); and the same year he says that the
gospel had been "preached to every creature which is
under heaven." Col. 1:23. Very soon after this
(October, 66 A.D.) the Romans began their attacks
against Jerusalem; and three and one-half years
later the overthrow of the city and of the Jewish
nation followed in the notable five months' siege
under Titus, in the spring and summer of 70 A.D.
Thus it was respecting the end of the Jewish nation;
and thus it will be in the end of the world as a
whole. When the gospel, or good news, of Christ's
coming kingdom has been preached in all the world
for a witness unto all nations, the end of the
world-of all nations-will come. As the end of the
Jewish nation came with overwhelming destruction, so
will come the end of the world. Armageddon, the
battle of the nations, will be fought, and the world
will be swept with the besom of destruction under
the seven last plagues. See readings in Chapters 65.
and 66. of this book.
11.
What sign did Christ mention by which His disciples
might know when the destruction of Jerusalem was near?
"And when you shall see Jerusalem compassed with
armies, then know that the desolation thereof is
nigh." Luke 21: 20.
12.
When this sign appeared, what were the disciples to do?
"When you therefore shall see the abomination of
desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in
the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
then let them which be in Judea flee into the
mountains." Matt. 24:15,16.
NOTE.-In October, 66 A.D., when Cestius came against
the city, but for some unaccountable reason suddenly
withdrew his army from it, the Christians discerned
in this the sign foretold by Christ, and fled. After
the departure of Cestius, Josephus, in his "Wars of
the Jews," chapter 20, says that "many of the most
eminent of the Jews swam away from the city, as from
a ship when it is going to sink." It is a remarkable
fact that in the terrible siege which occurred under
Titus three and one-half years later, not a single
Christian is known to have lost his life, while
1,100,000 Jews are said to have perished in it. Here
is a most striking lesson on the value and
importance of studying and believing the prophecies,
and giving heed to the signs of the times. Those who
believed what Christ had said, and watched for the
sign which He had foretold, were saved, while the
unbelieving perished. So it will be in the end of
the world. The watchful and believing will be
delivered, while the careless and unbelieving will
be snared and taken. See Matt. 24:36-44; Luke
21:34-36; 1 Thess. 5:1-6.
13.
When the sign appeared, how suddenly were they to flee?
"Let him which
is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of
his house: neither let him which is in the field return
back to take his clothes." Verses 17,18.
14. Besides telling His disciples when to flee, how did
Christ further show His solicitude and tender
care
for them?
"But pray you that your flight be not in the winter,
neither on the Sabbath day." Verse 20.
NOTES.-The winter would be an unfavorable time in
which to flee, entailing discomfort and hardship;
and an attempt to flee on the Sabbath day would
doubtless have been met with difficulty, so false
and pharisaical were the notions of the Jews
respecting the true character and object of the
Sabbath. See Matt. 12:1-14; Luke 13:14-17; Mark
1:32; 2:23-28; John 5:10-18.
The prayers of Christ's followers were heard. Events
were so overruled that neither Jews nor Romans
hindered the flight of the Christians. Upon the
retreat of Cestius, the Jews pursued after his army,
and the Christians thus had an opportunity to leave
the city. The country also had been cleared of
enemies who might have endeavored to intercept them.
At the time of this siege, the Jews were assembled
at Jerusalem to keep the Feast of Tabernacles, and
thus the Christians of Judea were able to escape
unmolested, and in the autumn, a most favorable time
for flight.
15.
What trying experience did Christ then foretell?
"For then shall be great tribulation, such as was
not since the beginning of the world to this time, no,
nor ever shall be." Verse 21.
NOTES.-In paragraph 4 of his preface to his "Wars of
the Jews," Josephus, referring to the destruction of
Jerusalem, says: "The misfortunes of all men, from
the beginning of the world, if they be compared to
these of the Jews, are not so considerable." In this
terrible calamity, the prophecy of Moses recorded in
Deut. 28:47-53 was literally fulfilled. He said:
"Thou shall eat the fruit of your own body, the
flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, . . . in the
siege, and in the straitness, wherewith your enemies
shall distress thee." For an account of the
fulfillment of this, see Josephus's "Wars of the
Jews," book 6, chap. 3, par. 4.
Following the destruction of Jerusalem came the
persecution of the early Christians under the pagan
emperors during the first three centuries of the
Christian era, that begun under Diocletian in 303
A.D., and continuing for ten years (Rev. 2:10),
being the most bitter and extensive persecution of
God's people the world had yet witnessed. Following
this came the still greater and more terrible
persecution of the saints during the long centuries
of papal supremacy, foretold in Dan. 7:25 and Rev.
12:6. All these tribulations occurred under either
pagan or papal Rome.
16.
For whose sake did Christ say the period of papal
persecution would be shortened?
"And except those days should be shortened, there should
no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those
days shall be shortened." Verse 22.
NOTE.-Through the influence of the Reformation of
the sixteenth century, and the movements which grew
out of it, the power of the Papacy to enforce its
decrees against those it pronounced heretics was
gradually lessened, until with the exception of
Spain, persecution ceased almost wholly about the
middle of the eighteenth century -the beginning of
an epoch of freedom.
17.
Against what deceptions did Christ then warn us?
"Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ,
or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false
Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs
and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they
shall deceive the very elect." Verses 23, 24.
18.
Answering the question as to what would be the sign of
His coming and the end of the world, what did Christ
say?
"There shall be signs in the sun, and in
the moon, and in the stars; and upon the
earth, distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea
and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for
fear, and for looking after those things which are
coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall
be shaken." Luke 21:25,26.
19.
When were the first of these signs to appear, and what
were they to be?
"Immediately after the tribulation of those days
shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not
give her light, and the stars shall fall from
heaven." Matt. 24:29.
20.
How is this expressed by Mark?
"But in those days, after that tribulation, the
sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her
light, and the stars of heaven shall fall, and the
powers that are in heaven shall be shaken." Mark
13:24,25.
NOTE.-As already noted, papal persecution almost
wholly ceased about the middle of the eighteenth
century. Then, true to Christ's words, the signs of
His coming at once began to appear.
21.
When was there a wonderful darkening of the sun?
On May 19, 1780.
NOTE.-May 19, 1780, is known in history as "the dark
day." On this day over a large portion of the New
World, upon which at this time the eyes of all the
world were centered, there occurred, at midday, a
remarkable darkness. "Candles were lighted in many
houses. The birds were silent, and disappeared. The
fowls retired to roost." In harmony with the
impression God evidently designed should be made by
the sign, many thought the day of judgment was at
hand. See next reading.
22.
When did the moon refuse to give her light?
The night following the darkening of the sun, May 19,
1780.
NOTE.- Although it was full moon only the night
before, the darkness of this night was so intense
that for a time no luminous body whatever appeared
in the heavens, and a sheet of white paper could not
be seen when held within a few inches of the eyes.
See next reading.
23.
What sign was to follow the darkening of the sun and the
moon?
"And the stars shall fall from heaven."
Matt. 24:29.
24.
When did the stars fall, as here predicted?
November 13, 1833.
NOTE.-On the morning of November 13, 1833, there
occurred the most wonderful exhibition of shooting
stars the world has ever seen. Those who witnessed
it, says Professor Olmsted, the celebrated
astronomer of Yale College, "probably saw the
greatest display of celestial fireworks that has
ever been since the creation of the world, or at
least within the annals covered by the pages of
history." The extent of this shower, he says, was
such as to cover no inconsiderable part of the
earth's surface." And, like the darkening of the sun
and moon, it was considered by many who saw it as
"the harbinger of the coming of the Son of man."
25.
What were to be the signs on earth of Christ's coming?
"And upon the earth distress of nations,
with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's
hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after
those things which are coming on the earth: for the
powers of heaven shall be shaken." Luke 21:25,26.
NOTE.-This is an exact picture of the condition of
things in the world today. Through greed of gain,
lawlessness, licentiousness, increasing violence,
trouble between capital and labor, international
complications, and the awful horror of modern wars,
the nations are perplexed, and men's hearts tremble
with fear as they look into the future. The elements
are also disturbed, as seen in great earthquakes and
storms on land and sea.
26.
What did Christ say was to be the next great event
following these signs?
"And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a
cloud with power and great glory." Verse 27. See
Matt. 24:30.
27.
When these things should begin to come to pass, what did
Christ tell His people to do?
"And when these things begin to come to pass, then
look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption
draws nigh." Luke 21:28.
28.
When the trees put forth their leaves, what do we know?
"Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is
yet tender, and puts forth leaves, ye know that
summer is nigh." Matt. 24:32.
29.
What may be known with equal certainty when these signs
have been seen?
"So likewise you, when you shall see all these things,
know that it is near, even at the doors." Verse
33. "So likewise you, when you see these things come to
pass, know you that the kingdom of God is nigh at
hand." Luke 21:31.
30.
What did Christ say of the certainty of this prophecy?
"Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass,
till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth
shall pass away, but My word shall not pass away." Matt.
24:34,35.
NOTE.-Everyone at all acquainted with history knows
that what Christ foretold concerning the destruction
of Jerusalem came true to the very letter. So
likewise may we be assured that what He has said
concerning the end of the world will as certainly
and as literally be fulfilled.
31.
Who alone knows the exact day of Christ's coming?
"But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not
the angels of heaven, but My Father only." Verse
36.
32.
What did Christ say would be the moral condition of the
world just preceding His advent?
"But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming
of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were
before the Flood they were eating and
drinking, marrying and giving in marriage,
until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and
knew not until the Flood came, and took them all away;
so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."
Verses 37-39.
33.
In view of the fact that we do not know the exact time
of Christ's coming, what important admonition has He
given us?
"Therefore be you also ready: for in such an hour
as you think not the Son of man cometh." Verse 44.
34.
What will be the experience of those who say in their
hearts that the Lord is not soon coming?
"But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My
lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to smite his
fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he
looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware
of, and shall cut him asunder [cut him off, margin], and
appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall
be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Verses 48-51.
IN
the sun, and moon, and stars,
Signs and wonders have appeared;
Earth has groaned with bloody wars,
And the hearts of men have feared.
But, though from His awful face
Heaven shall fade and earth shall fly,
Fear not you, His chosen race,
Your redemption draws nigh.
REGINALD
HEBER. |
