Lets Not Be Confused

Matthew 24-25

Next to Ezek. 38-39, these two chapters must be truly understood if we want all the

questions concerning the rapture and the second advent to be cleared up. Most of the

fallacies of men regarding these two subjects come from a wrong understanding of

prophecy, and because we do not take literally what we read in prophecy. As a whole we

are leaning to the mystical, spiritual, symbolic and figurative—even to the

sensational—instead of turning to that which is literal and simple to understand. To begin

with, the church is not once mentioned in Mt. 24-25, much less the rapture of the church.

As long as we allow the church and its rapture to be injected into these chapters which

deal exclusively with Israel and the second coming of Christ to set up a kingdom in the

world, then we shall be confused. Some men today are rejecting the rapture altogether

because they struggle to find the church in these two chapters, and it is simply not there. If

we would regard the Bible even half as sensibly as we do other writings, we would not

have such confusion. If any other book said plainly that its subject was Israel, and made no

mention of the church, we would more than likely read the book from that standpoint. If

we sought to force the church into a book that was written exclusively for Jews, we could

not help becoming confused. So it is with Mt. 24-25. This is one discourse wherein we

must keep the church out of it, if we want the truth.

Three Questions asked of Jesus

by His Jewish disciples

First Question

“Tell us when shall these things be?” Jesus had just announced that the time was coming

when there would not be one stone of the Jewish temple at Jerusalem which would not be

thrown down (Mt. 24:2). He did not predict that St. Peter’s Church in Rome or any other

church building at any other place in the world would be thrown down. He simply limited

His prediction to the one temple—the temple of Herod at Jerusalem—saying it would be

thrown down. Also, we know from history that Christ referred to the destruction of the

temple by the Romans in a.d. 70, when His prophecy was fulfilled. Luke tells us that

“when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation

thereof is nigh” (Lk. 21:20-24). Luke further explains that when Jerusalem would be

destroyed (as in a.d. 70) the Jews themselves would fall by the edge of the sword and

many be led away captive among all nations until the time of the Gentiles would be

fulfilled. Jerusalem was also to be trodden down of the Gentiles until the times of the

Gentiles would be fulfilled. In answering the above question, Jesus was therefore talking

to national Israel, not the church.

Only in our generation have the Jews begun to go back to Palestine and are now

building up a great nation in fulfillment of Ezek. 37 and many other scriptures. See

Chapter 9, Fallacy 5. Not many years ago Jerusalem was still in Gentile hands, and those

of us who knew the Bible said that the Jews would have to be given control of the city

again to fulfill prophecy. We based our conclusion upon the fact that the city would have

to be in Jewish control in order to be given back to the Gentiles, as predicted, for the last

42 months of this age (Rev. 11:1-2). Now we are saying that no man or combination of

men and nations will defeat Israel enough to take the city from them again until in the days

of Antichrist when he breaks his covenant with Israel in the middle of Daniel’s 70th week

(Dan. 9:27; Mt. 24:15-22; Rev. 11:1-2). At that time Israel will be defeated by the

Gentiles and have to flee into the wilderness (Dan. 11:40-43; Isa. 16:1-5; Ezek. 20:33-44;

Hos. 2:14-18; Mt. 24:16; Rev. 12:6, 14). The Jews will then get control of the city again

at the end of the tribulation but Antichrist, when he comes down with his armies from the

north and east, will take the city once again (Zech. 14:1-5).

Second Question

“What shall be the sign of thy coming?” This was plainly a question asking for some signs

or evidences whereby they might know of the nearness of His coming to the earth again.

The coming that the disciples asked about could not have been the rapture of the

church to heaven, but rather the literal, visible, second advent that will end this age. Christ

had told them many times about His visible coming to the earth to set up a kingdom, such

as in Mt. 13:30-50; 16:27; 23:37-39. Whenever Christ mentioned His second advent, His