Explain this

MasterYourLife said:

The way Jesus spoke makes me believe he predicted his second coming to be within 100 years after his death.
Before you answer, carefully read through all the points I made.

1)
"For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done. “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Very plainly Jesus said he will return within at least 50-100 years (assuming his disciples wouldn't live past 100).

Before you answer keep in mind in verse 27, Jesus explains the events that will happen when he returns. He will come with his angels and to commence judgement. If your answer doesn't include these, then it's most likely wrong. There are many verses where Jesus explains what his second coming will entail...which of course haven't happened. Ex: "They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other."
A lot of answers I've heard are: "this happened in the transfiguration"...there were no angels and was no judgement.

2)
"Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened."

To bring this verse into context: Jesus' disciples asked him 2 questions. When will the temple be destroyed and when the ends of times will be.
Jesus first answered the temple question, and the end times question immediately after. Concluding his statement he plainly stated: the end of times will happen within his (Jesus') generation (within 100 years respectively).
Some answers will be: "he wasn't talking about his generation". I invite you to read every verse Jesus used the word "generation". Ex: "O generation of vipers", "But to what shall I compare this generation?", "Faithless and perverse generation! How long will I be with you?", etc.
Also, please don't answer with this being a metaphor for the fig tree.

3)
"Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away. No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."

If Jesus claims he himself doesn't know the day or hour, why is he predicting the times of his second coming?
You could say, "he's predicting the season, not day or hour". I would disagree as he gives specific time frames. If he says "some standing here shall not die", then I'm sure he has a good idea of the time frame.

4)
"Truly I tell you, you will not finish going through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes."

Self explanatory, when Jesus was telling his disciples to go spread the gospel, he said he would "come" before they finished their mission. When Jesus used the words, "Son of Man coming", he didn't mean, "I'll catch up with you". He always referred to the second coming. If you don't agree with that, read that chapter in context.

5)
Jesus' own disciples believed he would return within their lifetime.

"Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall."

"For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel"

"The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers."

“Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done."

"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel."

Click to expand...

There's some confusion that goes on in trying to understand the Olivet Discourse. Namely that when Jesus speaks of the various signs that would be seen, He's not referring to His Parousia, but to the events which surround the destruction of the Temple during the first Jewish-Roman War. Consider the context of the Olivet Discourse in Matthew where the disciples ask Jesus about Him saying that the Temple would be destroyed.

Further, "the Son of Man coming into His kingdom" should probably be better understood as its allusion to Daniel, where there is the vision of the Son of Man being taken up on clouds before the Ancient of Days being given dominion and everlasting kingdom. So rather than having the Parousia in mind, this is probably better understood to be a reference to Jesus' Ascension.

The fathers of the Church, and historic Christian interpretation, has also seen Jesus' references seeing the Son's glory as being, at least in part, fulfilled in the Transfiguration.

So we have the Transfiguration, the Ascension, and the destruction of Jerusalem--all of which happened within the generation to whom Jesus spoke.

The question is then this: is there anything clearly about His Parousia when He speaks of "some will not taste death" or "this generation shall not pass away"? Or can these things be better understood with the above?

As far as some of the things Paul himself writes, it is very possible, even probable, that the Apostles thought Jesus would return within their lifetime, but as the Apostles began dying off, and the Church moved toward planning for the long term, as it were, the shift in language does change. So we have in 2 Peter (probably not written by Peter at all, and in fact written in the early to mid 2nd century) the reassurance that God is not slow in keeping His promises.

-CryptoLutheran

When Jesus ascended into heaven, according to the record, “a cloud caught him up from their vision.” (Acts 1:9) The disciples did not see Jesus riding away on a cloud, but rather, the cloud obscured their vision of him. This helps us to understand Jesus’ words concerning his presence: “They will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory,” and Revelation’s statement: “He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him.” (Luke 21:27; Matthew 24:30; Revelation 1:7) In past cases, clouds represented invisible presence; but observers could “see” the meaning with their mental “eyes.” In this case the physical occurrences that are visible would cause the one looking to “see” or realize that Christ is invisibly present.—See also Matthew 24; Mark 13; Revelation 14:14.

Just before this comment he had spoken of the prophet Daniel. (Matthew 24:15; Daniel 9:27; 11:31) And from the expression Jesus here used it is evident that he was now referring back to Daniel 7:13, 14, where the vision depicted “with the clouds of the heavens someone like a son of man” gaining access to “the Ancient of Days” and receiving a ‘kingdom that will not be brought to ruin.’ This linked “the sign of the Son of man” with the time when Jesus would be exercising Kingdom power. Jesus applied the expression “Son of man” and the prophecy at Daniel 7:13, 14 to himself.-Matthew 26:63, 64; Mark 14:61, 62.

About 96 C.E., 26 years after the destruction of Jerusalem, John wrote about things that would take place in the future, and he saw in vision Jesus Christ “coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, and those who pierced him.” (Revelation 1:1, 7) Hence, both this statement about something that was to take place after 96 C.E. and what Christ said about “the sign of the Son of man” referred to Jesus as coming in the clouds and as being seen by all people. It should be noted, however, that while the Greek verb ho·ra′o, “see,” used at Matthew 24:30 and Revelation 1:7, can mean literally to “see an object, behold,” it can also be used metaphorically, of mental sight, to “discern, perceive.”-A Greek-English Lexicon, by H. Liddell and R. Scott, revised by H. Jones, 1968, p. 1245, col. 1.

This is evidently an allusion to the prophetic Psalm 110, Jesus Christ having earlier shown that this psalm applied to him. (Matthew 22:42-45) This psalm, as well as the apostle’s application of it at Hebrews 10:12, 13, reveals that there would be a waiting period for Jesus Christ before his Father would send him forth to “go subduing in the midst of [his] enemies.” It therefore appears that the fulfillment of the prophecy in Daniel comes, not at the time of Jesus’ resurrection and ascension to heaven, but at the time of his being authorized by God to take action against all opposers in vigorous expression of his kingly authority. The ‘coming of the Son of man to the Ancient of Days,’ then, apparently corresponds in time to the situation presented at Revelation 12:5-10, when the symbolic man-child is brought forth and caught up to God’s throne. Then war breaks out in heaven, and the cry goes up: “Now have come to pass the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ.”

Jesus is 100% and 100% humans. As God He needs to fully submit to God the Father during His earthly journey. He only knows what God the Father let Him know in a specific time.

As human He's a prophet following the prophet rules. It's common for prophets to prophesy a near event and for God to make use of the same context to prophesy a far end event.

Daniel made a prophecy, possibly related to a scenario at a time spot near him. Jesus extended this long time prophecy and for God to make it a far end prophecy.

Matthew 24:15-16 (NIV2011)
So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—
then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.

As a result, this prophecy can be a mixture of Daniel's time + Jesus' time + end time, or one or 2 of them individually.

MasterYourLife said:

The way Jesus spoke makes me believe he predicted his second coming to be within 100 years after his death.
Before you answer, carefully read through all the points I made.

1)
"For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done. “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Very plainly Jesus said he will return within at least 50-100 years (assuming his disciples wouldn't live past 100).

Before you answer keep in mind in verse 27, Jesus explains the events that will happen when he returns. He will come with his angels and to commence judgement. If your answer doesn't include these, then it's most likely wrong. There are many verses where Jesus explains what his second coming will entail...which of course haven't happened. Ex: "They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other."
A lot of answers I've heard are: "this happened in the transfiguration"...there were no angels and was no judgement.

2)
"Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have happened."

To bring this verse into context: Jesus' disciples asked him 2 questions. When will the temple be destroyed and when the ends of times will be.
Jesus first answered the temple question, and the end times question immediately after. Concluding his statement he plainly stated: the end of times will happen within his (Jesus') generation (within 100 years respectively).
Some answers will be: "he wasn't talking about his generation". I invite you to read every verse Jesus used the word "generation". Ex: "O generation of vipers", "But to what shall I compare this generation?", "Faithless and perverse generation! How long will I be with you?", etc.
Also, please don't answer with this being a metaphor for the fig tree.

3)
"Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away. No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."

If Jesus claims he himself doesn't know the day or hour, why is he predicting the times of his second coming?
You could say, "he's predicting the season, not day or hour". I would disagree as he gives specific time frames. If he says "some standing here shall not die", then I'm sure he has a good idea of the time frame.

4)
"Truly I tell you, you will not finish going through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes."

Self explanatory, when Jesus was telling his disciples to go spread the gospel, he said he would "come" before they finished their mission. When Jesus used the words, "Son of Man coming", he didn't mean, "I'll catch up with you". He always referred to the second coming. If you don't agree with that, read that chapter in context.

5)
Jesus' own disciples believed he would return within their lifetime.

"Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall."

"For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel"

"The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers."

“Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done."

"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel."

Click to expand...

Matthew 24 has a dual fulfillment. You ask a very good question and you correctly stated that in Jesus' answer he was addressing two questions. Firstly, Jesus said concerning the temple that one stone will not be left upon another, so the disciples asked him when will that happen. Secondly, they asked him what will be the sign of his coming.

Some of what Jesus said was fulfilled in the disciples time, for instance when he spoke about the abomination of desolation. This is in reference to the destruction of Jerusalem which took place in 70AD, in the disciples generation.