Immortality or Resurrection (Updated) by William West (reading strategies book .TXT) 📖

23:36-38].
In Matthew 24:34 He again says, "THIS GENERATION SHALL NOT PASS AWAY, TILL
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ALL THESE THINGS BE ACCOMPLISHED." All the woes in Matthew 23 and all the
signs of Matthew 24 were to come upon that generation, before that generation
passed away.
"ALL THESE THINGS SHALL COME UPON THIS GENERATION" Christ used
"generation" twenty-five times IN REFERENCE TO THE JEWS OF HIS DAY,
nine of the twenty-five are in Matthew [Matthew 11:16; 12:39; 12:41; 12:42; 12:45;
16:4; 17:17; 23:36; 24:24]. "But first he (Christ) must suffer many things and be rejected
of THIS GENERATION" [Luke 17:25; also Mark 8:12; 8:12; 8:38; 9:19; 13:30; Luke
7:31; 9:41; 11:29; 11:30; 11:31; 11:32; 11:50; 11:51; 16:8; 17:25; 21:32]. "Genea," the
Greek word from which "generation" is translated never means "race" as the
Millennialists contend that it does in Matthew 24:34.
• "Verily I say unto you, THIS GENERATION shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled" King
James.
• "I tell you this: THE PRESENT GENERATION will live to see it all." New English Bible.
• "Remember this! All these things will happen before THE PEOPLE NOW LIVING have all died"
Today's English Version.
• "I tell you truly, THE PRESENT GENERATION will not pass away, till all this happens" Moffatt's
Translation.
• "I tell you in solemn truth that THE PRESENT GENERATION will certainly not pass away until all
this has taken place" Weymouth's Translation.
• "THIS GENERATION will not disappear till all this has taken place" Phillips Translation.
• "All these things will take place before THIS PRESENT GENERATION passes on" Modern
Language Bible.
• "THE PRESENT GENERATION will not pass away until all this takes place" New American Bible.
• "THE PRESENT GENERATION will not pass away, till all this happens" James Moffat.
"THIS GENERATION" The generation of Jews in the time of Christ.
• John the Baptist: "O GENERATION OF VIPERS, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"
[Luke 3:7].
• Christ: "O GENERATION OF VIPERS, how can you, being evil, speak what is good?" [Matthew
12:34].
• "But to what shall I liken THIS GENERATION? It is like children sitting in the market places, who
call out to the other children, and say, We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we
song a dirge, and you did not mourn" [Matthew 11:16-19; Luke 7:31-33].
• Likened to Tyre and Sodom, which would have repented if they had seen the works did in Israel,
but Israel would not repent [Matthew 11:20-24].
• "The men of Nineveh shall stand up with THIS GENERATION at the judgment, AND SHALL
CONDEMN IT because they repented at the preaching Jonah; and behold, something greater
than Jonah is here" [Matthew 12:41].
• "The Queen of the South shall rise up with THIS GENERATION at the judgment AND SHALL
CONDEMN IT, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon;
and behold, something greater than Solomon is here" [Luke 12:42].
• Likened to a man from which an unclean spirit went out but returned with seven other spirits
that were more wicked. "This is the way it will also be with THIS EVIL GENERATION" [LUKE
1243-45].
• "Why does THIS GENERATION seek for a sign? Truly I say to you, no sign shall be to THIS
GENERATION" [Mark 8:12]
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• "An EVIL AND ADULTEROUS GENERATION seeks after a sign; and no sign will not be given it,
except the sign of Jonah" [Matthew 12:39; 16:4].
• "O UNBELIEVING AND PERVERTED GENERATION, how long shall I be with you? How long shall
I put up with you?" [Matthew 17:17; Mark 9:19; Luke 9:41].
• "Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send unto them prophets and apostles; and some
of them they shall kill and persecute; the blood of all the prophets, which were shed from the
foundation of the world, MAY BE REQUIRED OF THIS GENERATION; from the blood of Abel
unto the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary: yea, I say unto
you, IT SHALL BE REQUIRED OF THIS GENERATION" [Luke 11:49-51].
• "You serpents, you GENERATION OF VIPERS, how can you escape the judgment of Gehenna?"
[Matthew 23:33].
• "Truly I say to you, all these things shall come upon THIS GENERATION" [Matthew
23:36].
• "Truly I say unto you, THIS GENERATION shall not pass away till all these things be
accomplished" [Matthew 24:34].
• "Truly I say to you, THIS GENERATION shall not pass away until all these things take
place" [Mark 13:30]. That generation passed away long ago.
• "But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by THIS GENERATION" [Luke 17:25].
• "Be saved from THIS PERVERSE GENERATION" [Acts 3:40]. This was said before A. D. 70
• "That you may prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach
in the midst of A CROOKED AND PERVERSE GENERATION" [Philippians 2:15].
If "this generation" means "this race" as some Millennialists teach, are there forty-two
"races" spoken of in Matthew 1:1-17?
The use of "YOU" clearly identified the "generation" Jesus was speaking to in Matthew
24. When speaking to His disciples Jesus said:
• "Do YOU not see all these things? Truly I say to YOU, not one stone here shall be left upon
another" Verse 2.
• "See to it that no one misleads YOU" Verse 4.
• "YOU will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars" Verse 6. Not someone today will hear of wars.
• "See that YOU are not frightened" Verse 6.
• "They will deliver YOU to tribulation and will kill YOU, and YOU will be hated by all nations"
Verse 9.
• "When YOU see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet,
standing in the holy place" Verse 15. "When YOU see Jerusalem compassed with armies" Luke
21:20. Not when someone today sees this. JERUSALEM COMPASSED WITH ARMIES, WHICH
WERE SPOKEN OF BY DANIEL [Daniel 9:27] WAS TO BE IN THEIR TIME AND SEEN BY THEM.
• "Even so YOU too, when YOU see all these things, know YOU that He is nigh, even at the door"
Verse 33. Not when someone today sees all these things.
• "Truly I say unto YOU, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place" Verse
34.
• "For this reason YOU be ready too; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when YOU do not
think He will" Verse 44.
[3] THEN AN ADDRESS TO HIS DISCIPLES ON THE MOUNT OF OLIVES
OVERLOOKING JERUSALEM: Matthew 24:1-51. There have been thousands of
speculations made on Matthew 24 over the centuries, and it has perhaps been abused
more than any other passage.
THE CONTEXT OF MATTHEW 24: It is in the midst of passages about Israel.
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• The Two Sons [Matthew 21:27-32] Israel believed not Christ
• The Wicked Husbandman [Matthew 21:33-46]. (a) "He will miserably destroy
those miserable men" (b) The stone, Christ, rejected by Israel and Israel “scatted
as dust”
• The Marriage Feast [Matthew 22:1-14] "They that were bidden (Israel) was not
worthy"
• The Seven Woes [Matthew 23:1-36] "All these things shall come upon this
generation." Pronounced upon the scribes and Pharisees of His day.
• Their House (the Temple) left desolate [Matthew 23:27-39]
• Not One Stone Upon Another [Matthew 24:1-2] The Temple to be destroyed
o There question about what He had just said [Matthew 24:3]
o His answer [Matthew 24:4-31]
• The Fig Tree [Matthew 24:32-36] "This generation shall not pass away, till all
these things be accomplished"
• Israel The Unfaithful Servant [Matthew 24:45-25:30]
MATTHEW 24
Matthew 24:1-2 "And Jesus went out from the temple, and his disciples came to him
TO SHOW HIM THE BUILDINGS OF THE TEMPLE, but he answered and said unto
them, see you not all these things? Verily I say unto you, THERE SHALL NOT BE
LEFT HERE ONE STONE UPON ANOTHER, THAT SHALL NOT BE THROWN
DOWN." The stones were the "buildings of the temple." THESE WORDS ARE THE
REASON FOR THE QUESTIONS BY HIS DISCIPLES AND THE REASON FOR
THE DISCOURSE THAT FOLLOWED. The purpose of this discourse was not to give
His disciples signs of His coming at the end of the world but signs of the destruction of
Jerusalem, to warn believers in that generation of the coming destruction of Jerusalem
and to give them a sign for them to flee from the destruction coming in their lifetime.
"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is
nigh" [Luke 21:20; Matthew 24:15].
Matthew 24:3 "And as he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him
privately, saying, tell us"
Matthew 24:3
Question one: "Tell us, when shall THESE THINGS be?"
Question two: "And what shall be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the
age?"
o Except for the bad translation of the King James Version ("end of the
world") no one would see the end of the world in these two questions. The
Greek says, "end of the age" (aion); not "end of the world" (kosmos). Not
even the New King James Version would go along with the King James
Version on this bad translation.
Mark 13:4
Question one: "Tell us, when shall THESE THINGS be?"
Question two: "And what shall be the sign when THESE THINGS are all about to
be accomplished?"
Luke 21:6-7
Question one: "When therefore shall THESE THINGS be?"
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Question two: "And what shall be the sign when THESE THINGS are about to
come to pass?"
Question two as given in the three parallel accounts. All are the same question.
1. Matthew "And what shall be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?"
2. Mark "And what shall be the sign when THESE THINGS are all about to be
accomplished?"
3. Luke "And what shall be the sign when THESE THINGS are about to come to
pass?"
• "THESE THINGS" were the things Christ had just said, "And Jesus said unto him,
‘Do you see these great buildings? There shall not be left here one stone upon
another, which shall not be thrown down.’ And as he seat on the Mount of Olives
over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him
privately, ‘Tell us, when shall THESE THINGS be?’" [Mark 13:2-3]. The
disciples, thinking of what the Lord had said, asked two questions, which they
supposed both would be at the same time. (1) When shall THESE THINGS You
speak of be (2) and what shall be the sign that THESE THINGS are about to
come to pass? NEITHER IN WHAT CHRIST SAID OR IN THE QUESTIONS
THE DISCIPLES ASKED IS THERE ANY REFERENCE TO THE SECOND
COMING OR TO A GREAT TRIBULATON THOUSANDS OF YEARS
AFTER "THESE THING." AT THE TIME THEY ASKED THESE
QUESTIONS THEY DID NOT BELIEVE OR KNOW THAT JESUS
WOULD BE PUT TO DEATH OR THAT HE WOULD BE GOING BACK
TO HEAVEN AND COMING A SECOND TIME. THE DISCIPLES STILL
THOUGHT THE CHRIST WOULD RESTORE THE EARTHY
KINGDOM OF ISRAEL JUST AS ALL THE JEWS DID.
1. “And they understood none of these things, and this saying was hidden from them,
and they did not comprehend the things that were said” [Luke 18:34; 19:11;
24:21-27; John 16:16-18; 20:9].
2. When they asked these two questions they did not know or believe Christ would
die and be resurrected from the dead or know or believe anything about the
second coming of Christ or the judgment day.
3. On the day of His resurrection they did not know it was the resurrected Christ
they were talking to and said to Him, "But we hoped (past tense) that it was he
who should REDEEM ISRAEL" [Luke 24:21]. Hoped that Christ was the one the
Jews looked for to redeem Israel from