Therein lies the Rub.
Numbers 24:17 "I see Him, but
not now; I behold Him, but
not near; A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And destroy all the sons of tumult.
Of what value are the time indicators in the above passage of "not now" and "not near" if the value of "now" and "near" is to be streched into thousands of years?
If "now" and "near" are to be interprated in polar opposite fashion of their
literal meaning to mean "far" ie; thousands of years, then should "not near" and "not now" be likewise interprated exactly opposite to mean near, soon, or even immediatly?
Can we trust God to do what He says He'll do,
when He says He'll do it? or is the "when" of a prophesy irrelevant because of Gods timeless nature?
Seems by the above SG, you have no issue with the when being irrelevant, and in fact insist the when is irrelevant, but is that what scripture teaches?
In
Ezekiel 12:21-28, it is written:
Then the word of the Lord came to me saying, "Son of man, what is this proverb you people have concerning the land of Israel, saying, ‘The days are long and every vision fails?’ Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, "I will make this proverb cease so that they will no longer use it as a proverb in Israel." But tell them, "The days a draw near as well as the fulfillment of every vision. For there will no longer be any false vision or flattering divination within the house of Israel. For I the Lord shall speak, and whatever word I speak will be performed. It will no longer be delayed, for in you days, O rebellious house, I shall speak the word and perform it," declares the Lord God.’ " Furthermore, the word of the Lord came to me saying, "Son of man, behold, the house of Israel is saying, ‘The vision that he sees is for many years from now, and he prophesies of times far off.’ Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, "None of My words will be delayed any longer. Whatever word I speak will be performed," ’ " declares the Lord God.
In this passage the nation of Israel, like you, said that the time statements of God’s word
were irrelevant.
You say, just like Israel, "Those passages were not for the original audience but were ‘for many years from now’ and for ‘times far off.’ "
But notice what God thinks about that kind of hermeneutic. God said, "None of My words will be delayed any longer. Whatever word I speak
will be performed." He stated that He would say the word and He would perform it. Again, notice the implication of that statement.
God Himself fulfills His word. When we try and say that the imminent time statements in the New Testament concerning Christ’s coming in the first century are really "for many years from now," i.e., our time, we are saying that
God will not fulfill His word! So the real issue here is
not just differences of interpretation concerning eschatology, but the nature and character of God. If the futurist is correct in his interpretation and application new testament time imminency statements (
of which there are over 100), then God is made out to be a
liar because He will not fulfill His word
when He said He would. Plain and simple. If the futurist is correct, then we might as well be atheists because God Himself cannot even be trusted, and then we are lost. Why? Because, if God is dishonest concerning
when He would fulfill His word, how do we know He was honest concerning the doctrines of Grace? Or anything else for that matter? It’s simple. We don’t. So, again, this is much more than just a difference of interpretation. Our salvation depends on God keeping every aspect of His word.
Including when He was to fulfill it.
Look how Jesus himself interprates "near"...
Luke 21:8
And He said: "Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am He,' and, 'The time has drawn
near.' Therefore do not go after them.
In this passage, it is clear that Jesus is using the
literal meaning of the term "near" when referring to His coming, and His interpratation is authoritative for me. Is it for you?
Scripture unanimously supports the conclusion that the
timing of the prophecy is
just as important as the
events of the prophecy.
Think about that for a moment..........
What purpose would it serve if God gave a specific prophecy of judgment to a wicked nation, telling them that He would fulfill it within a specific time frame, and warned those people of the coming judgment, if the time passages (and the whole prophecy itself for that matter) were actually for some other generation of people? What purpose would the warnings serve the nation to whom it was originally given? How would that nation interpret the character and nature of God? That is to say, how would those people view God if He swore that He would judge them at a certain time, and then He didn't follow through with His judgment? What would they think of God? That He can't be trusted? That He speaks empty words and threats? That He lied?
If God is dishonest concerning
when He would fulfill His word, how do we know He was honest concerning the doctrines of Grace? Or anything else for that matter? It's simple. We don't. So, again, this is much more than just a difference of interpretation. Our salvation depends on God keeping every aspect of His word. Including
when He was to fulfill it.
