daneel said:
Regarding the time factor, does God work in regards to mans time or His own?
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In scripture, When God places a time limit on the fulfillment of prophesy, it is
always given to be understood by how time relates to man, NOT how time relates to God. Every time, without fail.
An excellent article on this here:
http://www.preteristarchive.com/Preterism/Odyssey/o-gillespie_02.html
Exerpt:
Our first reference is Genesis 7:1-4. There, God told Noah:
Enter the ark, you and all your household; for you alone I have seen to be righteous before Me in this time [generation]. You shall take with you of ever clean animal by sevens, a male and his female; and of the animals that are not clean two, a male and his female; also of the birds of the sky, by sevens, male and female, to keep offspring alive on the face of all the earth. For after seven more days, I will send rain on the earth forty days and forty nights; and I will blot our from the face of the land every living thing that I have made.
There are several things in this passage that should be noted. First, this is a prophecy of judgment. Secondly, God declared
when the judgment, i.e., the rain, would start. Thirdly, He stated
how long the rain would last. Fourthly, God spoke this to Noah, a man trapped in time. God was very specific as to
when the rain would begin and to
how long it would last. God told Noah that after
seven days it would rain for
forty days and nights. Now, our first question regarding this passage is
not how we should interpret what God said, but how would
Noah interpret what God said. Would he understand that God was outside time? That is to say, the references that God made concerning when the judgment would come were to be measured by how time relates to God? Applying the futurists interpretation of 2 Peter 3:8-9 to this passage, was God telling Noah that after
7,000 years it would begin to rain and once it started raining, it would continue for
40,000 years? Or should the plain, everyday definitions of the terms be understood? We find our answer in verses 10 and 12:
And it came about after the seven days, that the water of the flood came upon the earth¼ And the rain fell upon the earth for forty days and forty nights.
Here, just a few short verses later, we have the fulfillment of that prophecy. This shows us that God meant exactly what He said to Noah. Seven days equaled seven days. Forty days and nights equaled forty days and nights.
.....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? To be quite honest, it wouldnt serve any purpose at all. 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 didnt follow through with His judgment? What would they think of God? That He cant be trusted? That He speaks empty words and threats? That He lied?
....Lastly, lets look at a passage that has tremendous relevance to the subject at hand. 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 said that the time statements of Gods word were
irrelevant. This is
exactly what the futurist claims about the time statements concerning the return of Christ in the first century. They 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 mis-use 2 Peter 3:8-9 as a formula to interpret prophetic time, i.e., that the imminent time statements in the New Testament concerning Christs return 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, 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? Its simple. We dont. 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.