Download Why Partial Preterism is Wrong

Why Partial Preterism
is Incorrect
Three Views of the Future
Almost all Christians agree that five key prophetic
Bible passages refer to the same events: Matthew
24, Mark 13, Luke 21, Zechariah 14, and much of
the Book of Revelation.
Futurism is the view of many (but not all)
genuine Christians, that these end-time passages
have their ultimate fulfillment in the future. Some
variations: Pre-trib, Mid-trib, Post-trib, Pre-wrath,
unknown time of rapture
Premillennialists vs. futurist amillennialists
Babylon refers to Rome, Babylon, or another city
However, all futurists agree these are all events
which will be ultimately fulfilled in the future
Full preterism is an extremely strange view that
everything in the entire Book of Revelation was
fulfilled prior to 70 A.D., including a symbolic
rapture of the saints, the Antichrist, Babylon in
Revelation etc. They believe there is no coming of
Christ after 70 A.D. This is so far from the truth
that very few believe it.
Partial preterists are genuine Christian postmillennialists and amillennialists who agree that
full preterism is not viable. However, they still
believe that all the prophecies in Matthew 24:1-34,
Mark 13:1-30, Luke 21:17-32 and some of the
prophecies in Revelation were fulfilled by 70
A.D., Amazingly, they also believe Jesus returned
in 70 A.D.! R.C. Sproul and Kenneth L. Gentry Jr.
teach this.
The rest of this paper summarizes why they
believe this, and why they are incorrect. But first,
let’s summarize what the relevant scriptures say.
What God’s Word Says On the Future
Futurists, full preterists, and partial preterists agree
that these scriptures refer to the same set of events.
However, full preterists say all of these things
have happened already.
Event
…Beginnings of Sorrows
Bible Verses
Watch out, many will come
claiming to be Jesus
Wars and fighting come before
the end
Christians persecuted, tried,
and killed
Nation against nation…
Great earthquakes
Famine
Plague and death come before
God. ¼ of the earth killed.
Great signs in the heavens
Gospel preached to all nations
…Middle of the 70th Week
Abomination that causes
desolation
Jerusalem surrounded by
armies; flee to the mountains
Greatest distress ever
Many false Christs and prophets
Sun turns dark and moon turns
to blood
Stars fall from the heavens/sky;
rolled up like a scroll
People very afraid and hide in
caves from God’s wrath
Jesus comes with the clouds
with great glory. All tribes will
see Him and mourn.
Not know when Jesus will return
Jesus / the Day of the Lord will
come like a thief in the night
Some taken and some left
Birds gorge themselves on flesh
Mt 24:4; Mk 13:5-6; Lk
21:8
Mt 24:6-7; Mk 13:7; Lk
21:4; Rev 6:1-4
Mk 13:9-13; Lk 21:12-19;
Rev 6:9-11
Mk 13:8; Luke 21:10
Mt 24:7; Mk 13:8; Lk
21:11; Rev 6:12; 8:5
Mt 24:7; Mk 13:8; Lk
21:11; Rev 6:5-6
Mt 24:7; Lk 21:11; Rev
6:7-8
Lk 21:11; Rev 6:12-14
Mt 24:14; Mk 13:10
Mt 24:15; Mk 13:14; Dan
9:27
Mt 24:16-20; Mk 13:1518; Lk 21:20-24
Mt 24:21-22; Mk 13:1920
Mt 24:23-25; Mk13:21-23
Mt 24:29; Mk 13:24; Lk
21:25; Rev 6:12-13
Joel 2:10; Mt 24:29; Mk
13:25; Isa 34:4; Rev 6:13
Isa 2:10-11; 19-21; Lk
21:26; Rev 6:14-17
Mt 24:30; Mk 13:26; Lk
21:27; Acts 1:7; Rev 1:7
Mt24:36;Mk13:32;Rev3:3
Mt 24:42-43; 1 Th 5:2;
2 Pet 3:10; Rev 16:15
Mt 24:31; Mk 13:27; Lk
17:31-36
Mt 24:28; Lk 17:37; Rev
19:17-21
Rationale for Preterism
Partial preterists believe all these events
happened before 70 A.D., because of three Bible
verses. In Mt 24:34; Mk 13:30; and Lk 21:32
Jesus said that this generation will not pass away
until all these things have happened.
In not accepting futurist interpretations of these
verses, yet holding to the truthfulness of scripture,
partial preterists have to believe all these things
were fulfilled in “this generation”, that is
approximately forty years from the time they were
spoken. Supporting their view is that Roman
armies came starting in 67 A.D., and Jerusalem
was destroyed in 70 A.D. Telling believers to
leave the well-fortified city of Jerusalem and flee
to the mountains when they saw armies
approaching turned out to be life-saving advice.
Ramifications of Partial Preterism
Book of Revelation had to be written before 70
A.D. according to R.C. Sproul. Otherwise both
partial and full preterism fall. There is no point in
prophesying events that occurred in the past.
The Great Tribulation is already over.
Christians should not be concerned about this past
event in Israel and the Roman Empire.
There is no millennium on earth. Many
preterists are post and a-millenialists, but all post
and a-millenialists are not necessarily preterists.
Amillennialism means that the millennium is
going on now in heaven, the serpent is bound and
cast into the bottomless pit (Revelation 20:2-4)
and we can rejoice that the nations are not being
deceived anymore until the serpent is released. An
alternate preterist view is that the millennium
started after 70 A.D. and is on earth now.
There is at most a small gap, less than a
generation, between the 69th and 70th week of
Dan 9:24-27.
Metaphors include clouds for historical divine
judgments on nations. “All the nations of the
earth” means “all the nations of the land [of
Israel]” On Luke 21:25-28 preterists use “massive
doses of symbolic interpretation” according to
Thomas Ice (p.97).
The sun and heavenly bodies being darkened
did not physically occur. This is just a metaphor
for great and catastrophic events that would occur.
All the tribes/people all saw the Son of Man
coming on the clouds of heaven with power and
great glory (Matthew 24:30b; Mark 13:26).
Christ returned to or near the earth in 70 A.D. to
use the Roman armies to execute judgment on
Jerusalem. Christ’s return was invisible, yet all the
peoples saw Him. Honestly, I am not too clear on
how this works for them though.
What Does “This” Mean Here?
The Greek word here means “this” or secondarily
“that”, but is this the generation of 30 A.D. or the
generation that sees the start of the fulfillment of
the prophecy? One view among futurists is that
these passages say it is approximately forty years
from the start of the fulfillment of the first parts of
the prophecy. The NIV Study Bible on Mark 13:30
p.1521 mentions this view among others, and
Thomas Ice in The Great Tribulation Past or
Future? p.103 advocates this view.
What Does “Generation” Mean Here?
Generation (people living at the same time or in a
40-year period) is often the best translation of
genea. According to one source, it can mean only
“generation”, and nothing else, in 19 places in the
New Testament. Here are 18 of them. Mt 1:17 (4
times); Mt 12:39; Mt 12:41; Mt 12:42; Mt 12:45;
Mt 16:4; Mt 17:17; Mt 23:36; Lk 1:50 (2 times);
Lk 7:31; Lk 9:41; Acts 13:36; Eph 3:5; Heb 3:10.
In the Septuagint Greek translation of the Old
Testament, in Genesis through Ezra it can only
mean generation in Gen 15:16; Gen 17:7; Gen
50:23; Ex 1:6; Ex 17:16; Ex 20:5; Ex 27:21; Ex
29:42; Ex 30:8; Ex 30:10; Ex 30:21; Ex 30:31; Ex
34:7; Num 14:18; Num 32:13; Dt 1:35; Dt 2:14;
Dt 5:9; Dt 7:9; Dt 23:3; Dt 23:8; Dt 29:22; Dt
32:20. It also only means generation in Joel 1:3.
Outside of the Bible, genea means only a
generation in Herodotus 2,142 et al. Heraclitus in
Plutarch def. orac c.11 and Plutarch l.c.
However, all should agree that genea cannot mean
generation in two places: Acts 8:33 (descendants /
offspring / race) and Luke 16:8 (kind of people).
R.C. Sproul in his tape agrees that this meaning is
a possibility in the end-time passages, though he
says the primary meaning of generation is to be
preferred.
Acts 8:33 says “…who will recount his [Jesus’]
generation?” (Green’s literal translation)
Generation here has to mean descendants.
Luke 16:8 says, “…for the sons of this age are
more prudent than the sons of light themselves are
in their generation.”
In the Septuagint Greek translation of the Old
Testament, it means cannot mean generation in
Gen 31:3; Num 15:14
Outside of the Bible, the two Greek lexicons at the
end show that it has the same range of meaning. It
also means a “birth” in Herodotus 3:33;
Zenophon/Xenophon 1,2,8, “men of the same
stock”. It also means a “family” as early as
Homer, and Josephus Antiquities of the Jews 5,1,5.
In a will (manuscript Papyrus Oxyrhynchus I 104)
in 96 A.D., it means the man’s “issue” (i.e. sons
and daughters). It also means family in PSI III 240
(2nd century A.D.), PSI IV 713 (97 A.D.), P. Hal I
1 (3rd century B.C.) and the Syll 856 (2nd century
A.D.) according to Vocabulary of the Greek New
Testament by J.H. Moulton and G. Milligan
p.122)
In 24 places genea can mean generation,
descendants, or kind of people, or all the above,
according to one source. For example, in Mark
8:12 Jesus said no sign shall be given to this
generation. Was Jesus really referring to all his
disciples, the 70, all early Christians, the crowds
who were fed, who lived at this time? Or, was he
referring to the unbelieving kind of people who
lived at this time? In many cases the meaning is
broad; it definitely means generation (in time) but
also definitely means descendants. Here are 18
places.
Mt 11:16; Mt 24:34; Mk 8:12; Mk 8:38; Mk 9:19;
Mk 13:30; Lk 1:48; Lk 11:29; Lk 11:30; Lk 11:31;
Lk 11:32; Lk 11:50; Lk 17:25; Lk 21:32; Acts
2:40; Eph 3:21; Php 2:15; Col 1:26. In the
Septuagint Greek translation of the Old
Testament, in Genesis through Ezra it can be
either or both in Gen 7:1; Gen 17:9; Gen 17:12;
Ex 3:15 (2 times); Ex 12:14; Ex 12:17; Ex 12:42;
Ex 16:32; Ex 16:33; Ex 31:13; Ex 31:16; Ex
40:15; Lev 3:17; Lev 6:18; Lev 10:9; Lev 17:7;
Lev 22:3; Lev 23:14; Lev 23:21; Lev 23:31; Lev
23:41; Lev 24:3; Num 10:8; Num 15:15; Num
15:21; Num 15:23; Num 15:38; Num 18:23; Num
35:29; Dt 32:5; Josh 22:27; Jdg 2:10. It also can
mean either in Lam 5:19 (2 times).
Rather than thinking genea has three meanings, to
a Greek it had only one meaning: the same kind. It
can refer to three kinds of relationships: primarily
“latitudinal” (generation), “longitudinal”
(family/descendants), and “type” (metaphorically
as spiritual siblings/descendants).
Some futurists can see parts of these end-time
passages having dual fulfillment, with the
fulfillment of all the prophecies including Christ’s
return awaiting the future. Perhaps genea was the
perfect choice of word to use here because it
conveyed both immediate attention and allowed
longer term aspects.
Copyist Error?
As a “red-herring”, a one-letter manuscript change
from genea to genia / gonea / genos gives the
primary meaning of race. The earliest manuscripts
that contain these three verses (Mt 24:34; Mk
13:30; and Lk 21:32) are Vaticanus (325-250
A.D.), Sinaiticus (340-350 A.D.). No early extrabiblical writings referred to these three verses
except Tatian’s Diatessaron harmony (written
c.170 A.D.). However though pre-Nicene
manuscripts are preserved with these verses, have
the word gonea, it is difficult to envision genea as
the same manuscript error in all three synoptic
gospels plus the Diatessaron.
Conclusion: The sole reason for preterists
believing that Jesus already returned with great
power and glory in 70 A.D.., is a rejection that
genea can have a broader meaning in these three
verses than just the generation of Jesus’ time. Yet
it HAS to have the broader meaning in Acts 8:33
and Luke 16:8, and it CAN have the broader
meaning in 24 other places in the Bible.
Recommended Reading
Thomas Ice and Kenneth L. Gentry Jr. The Great
Tribulation : Past or Future? : Two Evangelicals
Debate the Question. Kregel Publications 1999.
Moulton, J.H. and G. Milligan. Vocabulary of the
Greek New Testament. Hendrickson Publishers
1930. p.122.
Thayer, J.H. (translator and reviser) A Greek
English Lexicon of the New Testament. (20th
printing) Zondervan 1979. (p.112).