Peter speaks

Preterists point to a panoply of time statements in Scripture regarding the eschaton. Twenty of the twenty-six books of the NT give such time statements, expectations of an imminent occurrence of eschatological significance: “this generation shall not pass until…”; “about to”; “some standing here will not taste death before…”; “at hand”; “soon”.

Matthew 3:2,7,10,12, 4:17, 10:7,23, 12:32, 16:27,28, 21:40-45, 24:34, 26:64

Mark 1:15, 12:9,12, 13:30

Luke 3:7,9,17, 10:9,11, 20:15-19, 21:22,32, 23:28-30, 24:21

John 14:18,20,22, 21:22

Acts 2:16-17, 4:25, 17:31, 24:15

Romans 4:23-24, 8:13,18, 13:11-12, 16:20

1 Corinthians 7:29,31, 10:11, 15:51-52, 16:22

Ephesians 1:21

Philippians 4:5

Colossians 1:23,46, 2:16-17

1 Thessalonians 4:15,17, 5:23

2 Thessalonians 1:6-7

1 Timothy 4:8, 6:14,19

2 Timothy 3:1-9, 4:1

Hebrews 1:1-2,14, 2:5, 6:5,7-8, 8:13, 9:8-10,11,26, 10:1,25,27,37, 13:14

James 2:12, 5:1,3,7,8

1 Peter 1:6,20, 3:3,5, 4:5,7,17, 5:1

2 Peter 1:19, 2:3, 3:10-12

1 John 2:8,17,18, 4:3

Jude 4,14-15,17-19

Revelation 1:1,3, 2:25, 3:10,11, 12:5, 18:24, 22:6,7,10,12,20

If time statements are at all suggestive, they must always be taken at face value. It is no good to point at the majority of these listed above and proclaim, “The New Testament ubiquitously predicts an imminent, first-century Day of the Lord,” and then deny one or two instances of those time statements. If one or two may be denied as truly imminent, all may be denied. If Jesus’ standing “at the door” (Rev 3:20) or if the axe “already laid at the root of the tree” (Matt 3:10) can be said to admit a multi-millennia interval, then partial preterists cannot claim with a straight face that any of the other time statements demand imminent fulfillment.

Yet this is what is done when partial preterists ignore 1 Peter 4:3-7. Here, Peter boldly declares,

For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do-living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation, and they heap abuse on you. But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to men in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit. The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray.

The underlined, bolded, italicized sentence translates the word ēggiken as “is near”, but is better translated “has (already) drawn near”. The end of which things has drawn near? All things. Well, if it was near then, and the judgment was global and cataclysmic, why is the physical universe still around? The answer is that the “all things” that were to be ended were only the things that have an end; in other words, the only things that would pass away were things that weren’t intended to be eternal, things that were prophesied to end. I think it’s clear that the Apostle was informed in his declaration by the words of His Master recorded in Luke 21:20-36:

“When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. For this is the time of punishment in in fulfillment of all that has been written. How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

“There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.

“I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

“Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

Let’s look at parallels between these passages. In both,

1. Moral failure is warned against, both specifically mentioning “dissipation” (drunkenness)
2. The need for prayer and watchfulness is reinforced.
3. Both of the above are asserted specifically because of an impending time in which “all things” would be fulfilled.

Jesus specified that the “all things” Peter mentioned were the totality of the prophecies of the Old Testament. How were Jesus’ and Peter’s audience to know when this impending time of fulfillment would come upon them? Here again, Jesus nailed it down: the time of the fulfillment of “all things” that were prophesied about in the Old Testament would be the time of the desolation of the Holy City. The tell-tale marker of when sin was to be done away with, wickedness atoned for, and everlasting righteousness established (Dan 9:24) was “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies…”

Don’t miss this: when any of the first century audience actually saw Titus’ armies surrounding Jerusalem, they would have been amiss if they did not interpret that event as the fulfillment of Jesus’ statements, and thus the fulfillment of all things.

Peter speaks again in Acts 3:19-26, where he specified that some of these Scriptures to be fulfilled at the imminent eschaton was the “restoration of all things”:

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you-even Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets. For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from among his people.’ “Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days. And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’ When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”

The fulfillment of all God’s promises to the Israel “after the flesh” was to come at the time of His judgment of the Israel “after the Spirit”. Jesus associated the passing of the Law with the heavens and earth passing away (Matt 5:18), and here He proclaims that when the dust of that system had settled, His words — the “words of life” Peter identified — these words would be the order of the day. Peter, too, looks forward to new heavens and earth in 2 Peter 3.

The completion of true Israel’s redemption was just decades away at the time Peter predicted the restoration of all things. It is now two millennia since the Law of Moses ceased to be practiced after the destruction of the Temple in AD 70, and some among us are still unsatisfied with our completed redemption.

What would Peter think of that?

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