Recently some Preterism has relied on Strongs to define whether the temple is physical or the body of Christ, the church. They are attempting to use this to defend their flawed doctrine, believing that the temple AND the city in Matthew 24:1-2, Luke 19, Luke 21, Mark 13, etc. are literal so that it should fall in 70AD.
Well, the problem is the Greek term used there is NOT relevant to identifying the Spiritual nature of what Christ was speaking about. It simply means "
Holy or Sacred place" and can include the entire precincts (
Remember Jesus spoke about leveling even with the ground, not only the Temple Sanctuary but the entire city). It would be akin to us saying that we are a member of the assembly, church, and congregation. The terms are
synonymous and
speak of every congregation everywhere. As I have demonstrated in John chapter 2 where both those Greek terms are used.
Besides, I have no problem with them saying the disciples spoke of the literal temple (G2411 - hieron). In fact, we can see it's quite OBVIOUS! Keep in mind that the disciples were not greatly
enlightened as yet so were still thinking in terms of the Old Testament dispensation, as the Holy Spirit of "
revealing" had not been poured out at Pentecost yet.
John 16:12
- "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
- Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
- He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you."
John 14:26
- "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
Revelation is NOT instant, as many things were revealed to the Disciples
progressively. We can see remnants of this "
even" after Pentecost as Peter was talking about requiring circumcision in the church, and his poor understanding of the lawfulness of eating unclean meats. We're talking about progressive Revelation here people! Like the Jews, the chosen Disciples were STILL thinking in terms of Old Testament Temple, when Christ was revealing the mystery of new and Spiritual things that the temporal merely "
represented." Christ is illuminating (
to them, and by extention, us, the True Church) the fall of the Old Testament Temple
as a type of the Old Testament congregation, and the coming restoration/rebuilding of the Temple and Holy City in the
New Testament type of the New Testament body of Christ--which is the church (Acts 15:14-17).
Now, note the language as Christ "
went out of the Temple," and He "
departed from it." Granted, it may seem coincidental language that this is when they pointed out the SAME physical temple buildings. But it has a
Spiritual meaning. The Disciples are illustrating the great pride they (of course, they were
being Jews) had in this glorious building, and such reverence for the greatness of it as the pride of Israel. They put so much stock in their bloodline and Jewish traditions, when without Christ their Messiah, this was all
meaningless. The truth is what it represented would be thrown down. Many of the Jews (
and their cousins the Premillennialists, Dispensationalists, Preterists, and even some amillennialists today) had put all their trust in the
natural/physical/temporal, and God was prophesying in the
Spiritual--which isn't an anomaly since this is what Christ did throughout His ministry. Just like when the disciple's brethren, the Jews, asked Jesus
for a sign. And He gave them one, even though they didn't even realize it or its significance. They missed it
because they were thinking like many in the church and on this forum today, in terms of a literal Temple being destroyed, and Christ was responding to their question by
prophesying in spiritual terms. Not one stone left standing one upon another is very specific illustrating that it is completely vanished, totally 100% GONE! It no longer represented the Holy One of Israel. The Disciples in that episode were glorying over a physical building, and Christ is saying what it represents will be taken away completely in God's economy. His words are not ever coincidental, they are deliberate. Again, as is His promise of the
sign to the Jews (
which they asked for) was fulfilled, and all they could think about was a literal building--just like the congregation and people here on this forum today. But whether or not men ever understand what Temple Christ was speaking of, doesn't mean that he spoke of a physical, literal, brick Temple. Because the Holy Spirit being poured out at Pentecost would eventually reveal the "
real" deeper Spiritual truth of His words--to His people. For example, when Christ threw the buyers and sellers
out of the Temple (G2411 - hieron)
John 2:18-21
- "Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?
- Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.
- Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?
- But he spake of the temple of his body."
See that word Temple Christ used there is a different word (G3485 - naos), but it is obvious that the words are
interchangeable in the context as the Jews spoke of the physical building, declaring it took 46 years to build. No question about that. And note Christ NEVER told them that He spoke of the Temple of His body, because it remained a MYSTERY to them and to some of you, too! But it is written by the Apostle John for us, who would come after and receive the deeper Spiritual truth of His words. True to His words,
the Jews did destroy the Temple, and Christ did raise
THAT TEMPLE up in three days, and
it was the sign that Jesus had the power/authority to do these things--as they had asked. A sign that many are blinded to from that day to this very day.
The truth is many Jews looked upon the Gentiles as Dogs and Swine and gloried in the fact that they were the chosen seed of Abraham that could never fall from that (
in their minds). Even as many in the premillennial/Dispensational church today think the New Testament church can never fall. But the fact is, the old testament congregation DID fall and the New Testament congregation today is no better than the congregation was then! Why? Because their eyes were on the temporal rather than the Spiritual, even as the Disciples were admiring the great buildings of the Jewish nation in Matthew 24:1-2. The Premillennial and Dispensational church, as well as the Pretersits today feel the
very same way about the nation of Israel's position because
their hermeneutic is almost identical in its looking at God's word only literally (
John 3:4) and to some degree having great disdain for God authored Spiritual truths. It's simply the other side of that "
exact same" coin of methodology. Many people forgot that the stones represent the people--BOTH those who fell and those BUILDERS who would be raised up/ built again, when we understand the builder and maker is God. I can see that many of you does not realize that Christ specifically said about the stones. For example:
Matthew 3:9-10
- "And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.
- And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire."
Yes, God
was able of those stones to raise up children unto Abraham,
And He Did! Not literal stones as you thought, but SPIRITUAL ONES! The ones that build the spiritual temple!
Galatians 3:29
- "And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise."
Nothing coincidental about the language of God raising up stones as the children of Abraham, though it may seem so to many who seem antithetical to the Spirit of truth. Nothing coincidental about stones being the building of the New Testament church, or the stones being made of wood hay and stubble, or of gold silver and precious gems "
when we gracefully receive God authored Spiritual truths!" The word temple (G2411 - hieron) used by the Disciples does
NOT preclude Christ from talking about a spiritual Temple any more than the word temple (G3485 - naos) that the Jews used in saying it took 46 years to build it precluded Christ from speaking of His body and not whatever building the Jews spoke of.
Interchangeable! See... the Disciples were Jews also and because of their carnal minds, they were talking about the physical temple building there. But Christ was NOT! Just as the Jews were talking about the physical temple in another passage saying it took them 46 years to build, but again, Obviously, Christ was not. Selah.
In close, with the truth of the deeper spiritual meaning of Scriptures--Not that it will matter most times. There are not many Berean-like Christians today who will do anything but ignore the Spiritual facts and argue the Hebrew, Greek, and Strongs nuances, neglecting the most crucial part of interpretations--which is that it belongs to God. No one is privately interpreting stones of the Temple to represent God's people because Christ Himself did! The idea is not what the Jews or the Disciples thought
at the time, but
what Christ says all throughout Scripture. Christ is the only prophet who is never wrong, and He said not one stone would be left standing one upon another in both the city and the Holy Temple. You might ask them (
if these things were to be understood literally) how come there are stones left standing one upon another in the city and of the Temple foundations today.
Not that this truth will matter much to those who turn to the right hand and to the left to avoid the truth of that matter.
As I said, there are not many Berean-like Christians who will do anything but ignore the facts, and argue the Hebrew, Greek, and Strongs nuances with me, and neglect the most important part of interpretations--which is they belong to God.
Isaiah 8:14
- "And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem."
It is written, the Stone the builders rejected, is become the head of the corner--of a new building after the fall. Christ is THE cornerstone, and we are the STONES that were built again. Selah! So were the remnant Jews of Israel. But for those who are not part of that restoration, not one of them was left standing one upon another in that Old Testament Temple.
70 A.D. notwithstanding!
www.nbcnews.com
