JERUSALEM; ROME; REVELATION - The Preterist Archive

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Matthew 24:15,21,28f). 300 440. The book of Revelation is a writing about God’s judgments against Jerusalem and against Rome and also against the whole of the Ancient World in its ungodliness. It is a book shedding light on the progress of the Gospel, especially by predicting its then-future course from the time of the destruction of the old Jerusalem till the time of the completed construction of the New Jerusalem alias the Christian Church and her future everlasting dwelling-place on the New Earth yet to come. 441. The book is a warning about the various kinds of earthy punishments modern men too should expect to receive, for breaking God’s Covenant Law even today. And the book is also a ‘microphotograph’ of foreshadowings of the Final Judgment of all humanity at the very end of all ages yet to come. 301 442. However, the book of Revelation is even more a precious record of the saving promises for all penitent sinners who are washed in the blood of Jesus Christ as their only Lord and Saviour. Too, it is also a testimony about the various kinds of earthly rewards we should expect, if we (by God’s grace) keep God’s Covenant Law even today. 443. It is also a ‘microphotograph’ of the ultimate vindication of all saved humanity, progressively, down throughout history - and then finally even on the New Earth yet to come. 302 Indeed, it is also a predictive writing about the wonderful ‘Final Sabbath’ and its ‘Jubilee Blessings’ which would progressively begin here and now even in our present World - throughout the Roman Empire, and indeed throughout the Earth, after the end of those seven lean years A.D. 64 to 70 A.D., and before the very close of World History. 303 444. “And the seventh angel sounded [his trumpet]. And there were great voices in Heaven, saying: ‘The kingdom of this World has become that of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall keep on reigning for ever and ever!” 304 “‘Babylon’ has fallen, fallen [thoroughly] - that great city - because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” 305 And then, “all nations shall come and worship before You; for Your judgments are made manifest.” 306 445. “Man by his fall having made himself incapable of life..., the Lord was pleased to make... the Covenant of Grace, whereby He freely offereth unto sinners life and salvation by Jesus Christ.... This Covenant was differently administered in the time of the Law..., [when] it was administered by promises, prophecies, sacrifices, circumcision, the paschal lamb, and other types and ordinances delivered to the people of the Jews - all foresignifying Christ. Hebrews chapters 8 to 10, etc.” Thus, the Westminster Confession, 7:3-5. 446. Indeed temple worship was undoubtedly the chief means through which God then revealed Christ and His saving work to sinners - until the incarnation and the resurrection of Christ and the completion of the Bible at the inscripturation of the book of Revelation. So it is more than likely that God for this reason too held back the Roman destruction of the Jerusalem temple and the resultant cessation of its ritual, until just after the completion of the book of Revelation (as the last book of the Bible ever inscripturated) - after which time Holy - 74 -
Scripture alone would be the chief vehicle exhibiting Christ thenceforth onward. 447. Consequently, by 70 A.D., all ‘former ways of God’s revealing His will unto His people....ceased.” Westminster Confession 1:1. Indeed, all of what God formerly gave “to the people of Israel, as a Church under age” - namely the “ceremonial laws...prefiguring Christ, His graces, actions, sufferings, and benefits...are now abrogated under the New Testament.” And even “sundry judicial laws...expired together with the state of that people” in 70 A.D. Westminster Confession 19:3-4. 448. Yet unfulfilled predictions still remained to get fulfilled - in God’s good time. Negatively, such include the advent of “Popish monastical vows” and “superstitious and sinful snares in which no Christian may entangle himself” with “Papists or other idolaters” and “damnable heresies (Second Corinthians 6:14).” They include those regarding the rise of “the Pope of Rome” alias “that antichrist that exalteth himself in the Church against Christ (Second Thessalonians 2:3-9 and Revelation 13:15-17 & 13:6).” Such include too “the Popish sacrifice of the ‘Mass’” - being “most abominably injurious to Christ’s one only sacrifice (Hebrews 7:23-27 & 10:11-18).” And such include “Transubstantiation” as “repugnant of Scripture” and “even to common sense and reason” - and other “manifold superstitions” and gross idolatries (Luke 24:6-39 & Acts 3:21).” Westminster Confession 22:7r & 23:4o 24:3g & & 25:6o & 29:2d-6m. 449. Yet also positive unfulfilled predictions still remain to get fulfilled - in God’s good time! Such include the promise that God would heed faithful prayers for “the conversion of the Jews, the [conversion of the] fullness of the Gentiles, [and] the fall of Antichrist” - and prayers “for the deliverance of the distressed churches...from the tyranny of the antichristian faction and from the cruel oppression and blasphemies of the Turk” alias Islam. Westminster Directory for the Publick Worship of God (compare Revelation 9:2-19 & 16:13f & 19:20). For in the Lord’s Prayer which Christ gave to His disciples to use, the petition ‘Thy Kingdom come!’ pleads that “the kingdom of sin and Satan may be destroyed (Revelation 12:10-11), the Gospel propagated throughout the World (Second Thessalonians 3:1), the Jews called (Romans 10:1 [11:11-32]), the fullness of the Gentiles brought in (John 17:9-20 & Romans 11:25-26), [and] the [Deformed and even the Romish] Church...purged from corruption (Malachi 1:11 & Zephaniah 3:19 [cf. Second Thessalonians 2:3-8] & 3:1).” Westminster Larger Catechism (Q. & A. 191). 450. So God’s judgments were manifested, as John had predicted, in the seven lean years A.D 64 to 70. For the fact is that the inspired book of Daniel (9:24-27 cf. 12:1-5) clearly teaches us that all special revelation - including the completion of the book called “Revelation” as the last-written book of the Bible - would close and be sealed, and thus cease being written down, by the time of the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. See sections 221 to 227 above. Since then, God’s judgments (and also His saving Gospel for those who repent under those judgments) have kept on being manifested - through the vehicle of the now-completed Bible. And they shall continue to be manifested through the preaching, teaching, reading and heeding of Holy Scripture - till all nations everywhere shall come and worship the God of Revelation! - 75 -
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JERUSALEM; ROME; REVELATION JOHN’
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FOREWORD Jesus and Josephus and Sue
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did not forsake Him. For He appeare
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divine prophecies that God’s Spir
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9. In A. D, 380, however, Epiphaniu
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23. Then, in 66.5 A.D., the Hebrew
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39. We claim, then, that the Apostl
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Domitilla either to the island of P
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71. Naturally, greater weight shoul
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86. It was apparently not John’s
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101. Indeed, Irenaeus does not ment
Page 23 and 24: Claudius (cf. Acts 11:28 & 18:2), A
Page 25 and 26: 133. “The astrologers also urged
Page 27 and 28: 148. This Historians’ History of
Page 29 and 30: 162. Tacitus (writing probably arou
Page 31 and 32: Empire - from Jerusalem in the East
Page 33 and 34: 186. “The Synoptic Gospels were c
Page 35 and 36: east side, nor the Danube on the no
Page 37 and 38: illiant success...and the glory of
Page 39 and 40: 221. Very significantly, the Bible
Page 41 and 42: horribly disfigures the body, broke
Page 43 and 44: marriage to her uncle Herod. Therea
Page 45 and 46: 261. Almost prophetically, the fina
Page 47 and 48: 272. See once again the etching of
Page 49 and 50: 284. The 295 A.D. Victorinus, in hi
Page 51 and 52: comes on the clouds too] throughout
Page 53 and 54: Origen (230), Commodian (240), Cypr
Page 55 and 56: 315. The book seems to fall, natura
Page 57 and 58: 329. He, the Lamb of God, had come
Page 59 and 60: Jesus called the greatest tribulati
Page 61 and 62: 353. This seems to go hand in hand
Page 63 and 64: 367. This conglomerate Roman beast
Page 65 and 66: 380. At the great Protestant Reform
Page 67 and 68: east ‘Babylon.’ “Three unclea
Page 69 and 70: 408. Revelation chapter eighteen gi
Page 71 and 72: 420. The resurrection of the dead-i
Page 73: 433. In summary, then, this is how
Page 77 and 78: 17) Rev. 17:9-11. 18) Rev. 13:13-18
Page 79 and 80: 8].... But I cannot readily admit t
Page 81 and 82: 85) I Pet. 5:13 cf. Rev. 14:8 & 16:
Page 83 and 84: 131) Rev. 3:1-4. 132) Cf. Our secti
Page 85 and 86: 176) Rev. 12:1 cf. Gen. 1:26-28 & P
Page 87 and 88: 221) Rev. 17:10. 222) Rev. 7:12. 22
Page 89 and 90: 267) Rev. 21:1 cf. II Pet. 3:10-2 c
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