Tuesday, January 1, 2019

1980 Prophecy Fulfilled.


Times of the Gentiles Prophecy fulfilled in 1980… where does that leave us in the time stream of prophetic history?

JERUSALEM IN BIBLE PROPHECY
Roy F. Cottrell   1947

In 1944, the Pacific Press published a book entitled Palestine in Prophecy. It was used as a "book of the month" by The Voice of Prophecy. The final paragraph of the book reads:

The apostle Paul speaks of old Jerusalem as being "in bondage with her children." (Gal. 4:25) Had the Jews been faithful, Jerusalem would have been enlarged and beautified to become the center Of the whole earth, beautiful for situation. But throughout the generations [from] the fall of that city in AD. 70, Jerusalem has been "a burdensome stone" and "a cup Of trembling unto all people" (Zechariah 12:2, 3); and it will be so till the end of time. Palestine and Jerusalem do not have a bright future in this present world, and those who are holding the hope Of a national restoration for the Jews are following a theological will-o'-the-wisp.
Then in 1947, the Pacific Press published another book The Jews and Palestine In it were noted the objectives of Zionism:

The father Of modern Zionism was Theodor Herzl , an Austro-Hungarian journalist. In 1896 he published a book entitled, The Jewish State. The following year the first Zionist Congress convened in Basel, Switzerland, and presented to the world its program for "'a publicly assured and legally secured home for the Jewish people in Palestine." (p. 57)
Near the close of this particular chapter, the conclusion is drawn:

The God Of heaven who overthrew the city and nation and who because of their apostasy dispersed the inhabitants to the ends of the earth, forever settles the question of a complete return and restitution in old Canaan by asserting that it "cannot be." (p. 61)
In 1947, the Church took the position that it was absolutely impossible for a Jewish state to ever be re-established in Palestine. One year later. in 1948, the Jewish state became a reality.
In 1948, I became pastor of the First church in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Sabbath following the establishment of the Jewish state, I prepared a sermon to shore up confidence in the church's position. I told the congregation - "Don't get too disturbed. Do not become overly alarmed. There are still more Jews in New York City than can possibly get settled in the small area of Palestine." I had no other answer. What was I to say? In other words, as a result of then current events, it became obvious that we as a Church were fallible in our prophetic interpretations, and that there needed to be some re-thinking.

By 1952, the Church returned to a position as had been set forth by James Edson White, and faced up to the  reality of the prophecy Jesus had given in Luke 21 :24 "...and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled"
First, in considering this prophecy of Jesus, one must recognize what Jesus did not say. He did not tie this prophecy to the time of the restoration of the Jewish State. Therefore, in 1948, when Israel again became a nation, this event in and of itself was not a fulfillment of prophecy. Jesus did not talk about a Jewish state, nor Palestine, but a city - "Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." Further, Jesus did not associate this prophecy with the restoration of the temple or its services. A few hours prior to His giving this prophecy to the disciples, He told the Jewish leadership as He left the temple for the last time - "Behold, your house is left unto you desolate." (Matt. 23:38) This prophecy was tied solely to the control and government of just one city, and that city was Jerusalem!
In 1952, the Church conducted a world-wide Bible Conference. It was held in the Sligo Seventh-day Adventist Church. Elder Arthur Maxwell, then editor of the Signs Of the Times presented a paper on "The Imminence of Christ's Second Coming, " in which he directed the attention of the ministry of the Church to Jesus' prophecy in Luke 21:24. He said:

The recent dramatic restoration of the nation Of Israel has focused the attention of mankind once more on Palestine. Many Christians have mistakenly permitted themselves to believe that the return of thousands of unconverted Jews to their native land is in fulfillment of the promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, not realizing that, since the death of the Son of God on Calvary, there is no salvation, nor any eternal homeland, except for those who believe in Him and accept His sacrifice.

However, there is one prophecy concerning Palestine that we should all be watching with special care. Said Jesus, "Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." (Luke 21:24). (Our firm Foundation, 11, p. 230)  

The ministers of the Church from around the world were directed to this neglected prophecy of Jesus by Maxwell. Then he observed that a principle God applied to the Amorites might well apply in this instance, only on a wider scale. He stated:

Centuries ago Israel was not permitted to enter Palestine for a certain time because 'the iniquity of the Amorites" was "not yet full" (Gen. 15: 16); that is, not until the probationary time allotted to the Amorites had run Out. it may well be that the same principle applies today, on a wider scale. If so, then Jerusalem is to remain trodden down by Gentiles till the probationary time Of all Gentiles has run Out. If this be correct, how much hinges upon the fate of this ancient city and the power that occupies it! (Ibid., pp. 230-231)

As noted above, in taking this position, Maxwell reverted back to the position taken by James Edson White in his book - The Coming King. White wrote:

We also read that "Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." (Luke 21:24). Jerusalem has never again come into the possession of the Jews and will not until •the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." This will be when the work of the gospel is finished. (1898 ed., p. 98)
Up until 1947, in our evangelistic publications, we taught that there would never be again a Jewish State. Then in 1948, we were shocked into reality because a Jewish State - Israel -did come into existence short of Jerusalem. Maxwell at the 1952 Bible Conference said that "as by an unseen hand" the Jewish forces were "mysteriously... held back "from achieving this most cherished goal" of retaking Jerusalem. Then he asked, "What could be the reason?" and answered his own question - "Only that the times of the Gentiles are not yet fulfilled." That was in 1952.
Now we are faced with certain other realities with which we must be concerned. In 1967, in the Six-Day War, Israeli military forces took Jerusalem, thus restoring to Jewish control the city. However, the Capital of the State of Israel remained in Tel Aviv. Then in 1980, the entire Jewish government - The Supreme Court, the Knesset, the office of both the President and Prime Minister - was moved to Jerusalem. The prophecy of Jesus had met its complete fulfillment. And yet, here we are still in time. Again, it is obvious that this prophetic interpretation has failed us. How are we to relate to this fulfilled prophecy? Ignore it? We dare not - it was a prophecy Jesus gave!

You ask, why two dates? In 1967, Jerusalem was captured but not until 13 years later in 1980 was the government moved to Jerusalem, thus occupying the city and bringing it once more under full control of the State of Israel. Let us consider this question.
Luke, in both his Gospel and the book of Acts, uses twenty times the word translated, "until" 1). But three different times, he combined with the preposition a relative, making it an idiomatic expression - achri hQ!Q ( axpt 'co). One of these times was in Luke 21:24. The other two times are in the book of Acts. It is the last use in Acts which helps us to understand best the meaning of this idiomatic expression.
Take your Bible and turn to Acts 27. Paul, as a prisoner, was on his way to Rome. The ship in the midst of storm was in trouble. All aboard had fasted for fourteen days. Then the record reads - "and while the day was coming on, Paul besought them all to take food" (ver. 33 KJV) The word, "While" is a translation of the words, achri hou. What does it mean - "while the day was coming on"? This morning as I left the library to go home for breakfast, in the east were the first glimmers of light. In a brief period of time, the sun arose above the horizon and all the shades of night disappeared. The day was coming on. To describe that brief but definite span of time, Luke used the idiomatic Greek expression - achri hou. The 'times of the Gentiles" ended in a brief period of time marked by an event in the history of Jerusalem both at its beginning in 1967, and its ending in 1980.
You may now ask another question: "Are we not introducing something new in prophetic interpretation which is without precedent?" No! Let me give you an illustration. In 533 A.D, Justinian issued a decree establishing the Bishop of Rome the supreme ruler in the West. However, it was not until 538 A.D., that Belisarius, Justinian's general , with force of arms put into effect the decree. We begin the prophecy of the 1260 years not with 533, but with 538. "The times of the Gentiles" closes not with 1967, but with 1980, although the event in 1967 alerted us to what was about to take place had we had eyes to see and ears to hear.

Into this picture for Adventists, there are some factors that must be introduced and understood. In 1901 , Ellen G. White wrote to Dr. P.T. Magan, that now very familiar warning. It read:

We may have to remain here in this world because of insubordination many more years, as did the children of Israel, but for Christ's sake, His people should not add sin to sin by charging God with the consequence of their own wrong course of action. (M-184-1901)

Now what was said in 1901? "We may have to remain here in this world...many more years". Have we? WE'RE HERE! The very fact that we are here, many years after 1901 attests to the accuracy of the possibility and should tell us something. The statement also infers that we shouldn't be here! "We may have to remain." It was not God's purpose that we should so remain. Why? Various events that were indicated had already occurred. Let us review some history.
In the Review & Herald (Nov. 22, 1892) Ellen G. White had written:

The time of test is just upon us, for the loud cry of the third angel has already begun in the revelation of the righteousness of Christ, the sin pardoning Redeemer. This is the beginning of the light of the angel whose glory shall fill the whole earth.

Why was "The time of test...just upon us"? In August of 1892, a National Sunday Law had been attached as a rider to an appropriation bill and signed into law by President Harrison. It was a period of pronounced Sunday law agitation. In the closing years of the previous decade, Ellen White had noted a National Sunday Law as a sign for God's people. (Keep in mind "time and place. )

Now I ask you a further question. Can you show me a single reference in the Writings - and I have asked many; I cannot find it - that after 1901, Ellen White ever referred to a National Sunday Law as a "sign" for God's people? Three weeks later, she did write about the "false Sabbath" being "enforced by an oppressive law' but does not note it as a "National Sunday Law," but as an event to occur "after the truth has been proclaimed as a witness to all nations." (R&H, Dec. 13, 1892) Something went wrong, which caused the warning that 'We may have to remain here...many more years."

However, in the very year that this warning was given 1901 - Ellen White directed attention to another "sign" by which we would know the end was indeed "upon us." She wrote:

In the twenty-first chapter of Luke, Christ foretold what was to come upon Jerusalem, and with it He connected the scenes which were to take place in the history of this world just prior to the coming of the Son of man in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (Letter 20, 1901; Counsels to Writers, pp. 23-24)
I ask you - in 1901 , when Ellen White indicated that "we may have to remain here...many more years" with what events had she that very year connected the end? A National Sunday Law? No! She connected it with events in Jerusalem and said study Luke 21. Now what is in Luke 21 , that one does not find in Mark 13 or Matthew 24? Only one thing - "And Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." This event would signal 'the scenes which were to take place just prior to the coming of the Son of man" the second time. What then does the fulfillment of Luke 21 :24 in 1980 tell us, if anything? It shouts loud and clear that we have reached the end of time. We are at the very end of human history as we know it today. We stand at the very border of the eternal kingdom and we need to recognize that fact.
TO BE CONTINUED…

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