He Shall Have Dominion

metaphor explaining the divine providence behind AD 70, as Riddlebarger
should know since he cites a Keith Mathison edited work that explains
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it. One wonders how Riddlebarger would explain the parable of vinegrowers
(Mt 21:33–39). For after giving it, Christ asks “when the owner
of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers (Mt 21:40)? 42
When “the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they
understood that He was speaking about them” (Mt 12:45). Most
commentators recognize that the parable refers to the temple’s AD 70
demise.
Great tribulation. Many bring forth Matthew 24:21 to overthrow the
broad-based preterist argument. Walvoord states that “interpreted
literally, the tribulation clearly eclipses anything that the world has ever
43 44
known by way of destruction.” Hoekema and Riddlebarger agree.
But against such comments I would argue: First, the covenantal
significance of the temple’s demise stands as the most dramatic redemptive-historical
outcome of the Jewish War. Because of the carnage,
Josephus laments in words quite similar to our Lord’s: “The war which the
Jews made with the Romans hath been the greatest of all those, not only
that have been in our times, but, in a manner, of those that ever were
heard of” (J.W., Preface, 1, 4; cf. 5:10–5). Even to this day the Jews go the
“wailing wall” of the temple to pray.
Second, we must regard the events as God’s holy judgment upon
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Jerusalem’s wickedly crucifying his Son. This comes out clearly in the
41. Mathison, When Shall These Things Be?, 51–55.
42. That Mt 21:40 uses the Greek term elthe (from erchomai) and Mt 24:27 uses
the term parousia, does not harm this comparison. Both terms can apply to the
second coming of Christ: elthe (erchomai) in 1Co 4:5; 11:26; 2Th 1:10; parousia in
1Co 15:23; 1Th 4:15. And parousia can even apply to other types of coming, such
as the coming to Paul of Stephanas (1Co 16:17) and Titus (2Co 7:6), or even the
presence of Paul among friends (Php 2:12) or in appearance (2Co 10:10). Riddlebarger
even mentions this problem of the alternative uses of parousia (Riddlebarger,
Amillennialism, 263 n 44.
43. Walvoord, The Nations, Israel, and the Church in Prophecy, 3:129. See also:
Turner, “Structure and Sequence of Matthew 24:1–41, 13.”
44. Hoekema, Bible and the Future, 178. Riddlebarger, Amillennialism, 262.
45. The New Testament frequently emphasizes this. The Jews are responsible:
Ac 2:22–23; 3:13–15a; 4:26–27; 5:30; 7:52; 1Th 2:14–15. They demand that the
Romans crucify Him: Rev 17; Mt 20:18–19; 27:11–25; Mk 10:33; 15:1; Lk 18:32;
23:1–2; Jn 18:28–31; 19:12, 15.