Category Archives: Nature of Bible Prophecy

Keys to Prophecy: God Works in Our Lives, Part I of III

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God works in many everyday things in our lives, and it is He who does these things and not we ourselves, or an ambiguous “nature” that does these things.

“… For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.”
Mtt 5:45 WEB

These are not just random happenings. God makes, He sends. Also this does not imply that He may not at some point or other makes specific moves to assist us or to correct us. The book of Job also speaks of God using the weather in various ways.

You and I cannot command the clouds of the sky, but God can and does.

“9 Out of its chamber comes the storm,
And cold out of the north.
10 By the breath of God, ice is given,
And the breadth of the waters is frozen.
11 Yes, he loads the thick cloud with moisture.
He spreads abroad the cloud of his lightning.
12 It is turned round about by his guidance,
That they may do whatever he commands them
On the surface of the habitable world,
13 Whether it is for correction, or for his land,
Or for loving kindness, that he causes it to come.”
Job 37:9-13 WEB

But He is the one who encourages things, or blocks them, and sometimes merely allows them for a time.

It is all according to His will.

God overrules the affairs of men. So James argues that we should not be bragging about we are going to do.

“13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow let’s go into this city, and spend a year there, trade, and make a profit.” 14 Whereas you don’t know what your life will be like tomorrow. For what is your life? For you are a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away.”
Jas 4:13-14 WEB

So what should we do?

“For you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will both live, and do this or that.” ”
Jas 4:15 WEB

God is the overruling authority over
ALL in heaven or earth.

He is the one who feeds us, and we should receive His bounty with thanks, for they are

“3 … foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with thanksgiving.”
1Tim 4:3-4 WEB

We are NEVER outside of His power.

A disaster may occur which we never would have allowed if it were in our power! Outside of our power, but none are outside of God’s power!

“7 Where could I go from your Spirit? Or where could I flee from your presence? 8 If I ascend up into heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, you are there! 9 If I take the wings of the dawn, And settle in the uttermost parts of the sea; 10 Even there your hand will lead me, And your right hand will hold me.”
Psa 139:7-12 WEB

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: God Works in History, Part III of III

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Remember the objective is that, “that they should seek the Lord, if perhaps they might reach out for him and find him,” Acts 17:25 WEB

Jeremiah compares God’s work with the nations
to a potter working with clay.

“3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he was making a work on the wheels. 4 When the vessel that he made of the clay was marred in the hand of the potter, he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.”
Jer 18:3-4 WEB

Then the Lord comments,

“House of Israel, can’t I do with you as this potter? says Yahweh. Behold, as the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, house of Israel.”
Jer 18:6 WEB

Even so, God is not just concerned with physical Israel, but with all men. God oversees and deals with all men, to discourage them from wickedness, and to encourage them “to seek the Lord, if perhaps they might reach out for him.”

So perhaps “a nation” has turned aside to
selfish and evil conduct.

Then God may decide concerning that nation to destroy it.

“At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up and to break down and to destroy it;”
Jer 18:7 WEB

However, if that nation will repent, and turn toward better conduct?

“if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do to them.”
Jer 18:8 WEB

God has the power to do whatever He wills with, and can either bless them or destroy them.

At other times God may decided to bless a nation.

“At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it;”
Jer 18:9 WEB

Sometimes though, when nations experience just a little of prosperity they immediately begin to indulge in evil things which they had not considered before. What then? So God says,

“if they do that which is evil in my sight, that they not obey my voice, then I will repent of the good, with which I said I would benefit them.”
Jer 18:10 WEB

These are continual things in history.

Nations are not made safe by military might. It takes more than that.

“The horse is prepared for the day of battle;
But victory is with Yahweh.”
Prov 21:31 WEB

Assyrian War Chariot

Further, in our time, in New Testament times, all of this power and authority over the nations is given to God’s One and Only Son, Jesus the Christ (Mtt 28:18), that He exercises the rule over the nations, and He,

“Yahweh will send forth the rod of your strength out of Zion.
Rule in the midst of your enemies. ”
Psa 110:1-2 WEB

That is of course out of the heavenly Zion that Jesus presently rules.

How we act, the decisions we make, do make a difference. Thus the relevance of what God sees as happening in history.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: God Works in History, Part II of III

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The example of the Assyrians

God’s very own people, the descendants of Abraham, had become very wicked in ancient times. They had themselves turned to the very sins of the Canaanites and the Amorites whom they had dispossessed some 800 or so years earlier. The pictures of the moral condition of both the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah were indeed very dark. It included a great deal of lying, cheating, violence, fornication and adultery, worshipping false gods, and even human sacrifice. The capstone was that there was no inclination to repentance.

The Assyrians at that time were a prosperous people,

and at their height dominated much of what we now call the Middle East. Art and architecture were prospering under them, and they had some very good engineers among them. Also they were a very ruthless and bloodthirsty people, and were able to field some very capable armies, with the engineering skills to attack formidable fortified cities.

This is what Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, is thought to have looked like at its height.

So God raised up the Assyrians to bring judgement
on sinful nations, including Israel.

The Assyrians were very proud of their status as successful conquerers. They were on the top of the heap. They could do as they pleased with their conquests, and the people involved, and brutally suppressed any opposition. Part of their strategy in maintaining their conquests was simple to completely uproot captive peoples and move them en masse to far distant locations, thus removing any impulse to rebellion. They were fierce, successful and proud.

The Assyrians bragged about mutilating captives in their artwork. The above picture shows Assyrians soldiers skinning captives alive. From a bas-relief.

But God said the Assyrians should NOT
get carried away with themselves.

“5 Ho Assyrian, the rod of my anger, the staff in whose hand is my indignation! 6 I will send him against a profane nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. 7 However he doesn’t mean so, neither does his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy, and to cut off not a few nations.”
Isa 10:5-7 WEB

Isaiah tells us that Assyria is merely
a tool that God is using.

“Shall the axe boast itself against him who hews therewith? Shall the saw magnify itself against him who wields it? as if a rod should wield those who lift it up, or as if a staff should lift up him who is not wood.”
Isa 10:15 WEB

So what about also sinful Assyria?

Why should they get away with the things they are doing? God’s answer is that they won’t. When God is finished using Assyria, He will then bring judgment also on Assyria!

“Therefore it shall happen that, when the Lord has performed his whole work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.”
Isa 10:12 WEB

By and large this is not speaking of the “miraculous,” but of an Almighty God working behind the scenes to both protect the righteous and punish the wicked.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: God Works in History, Part I of III

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There is a master plan.

One place that gives a summary in terms of objectives, is in Acts 17. How He acts is summed up in a single verse. Paul speaks of God making mankind and says,

“And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;”
Acts 17:26 KJV

Paul spoke to the philosophers in Athens and outlined God’s grrand plan for mananging this present world.

Among other things it says that there appointed times for men. Times for them to flourish, times for them to perhaps fail and waste away, or times perhaps for renewal. Time for Babylon to rise, and a time for her to fall. A time for the Medes and the Persians to rise, and a time for them to fall. A time for Greece to rise, and a time for Rome to rise. Or the United States of America, or Britain, or France or Russia, or whoever. Then Paul says something else: God appointed the bounds of their habitations. In other words, he says God determines where nations will live, and their boundaries!

These are very long range plans.

In the long ago, in the nineteenth century BC, God spoke to Abraham about a nation with whom He was not well pleased: the Canaanites. God had brought Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees to the land of Palestine. God said,

… “I am Yahweh who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.”
Gen 15:7 WEB

So God is going to give the land of Palestine to Abraham, that is to his descendants, his “seed.” In the passage which follows Abraham enters into a covenant with God involving these promises. God assures Abraham that he will inherit these land after his descendants spend 400 year in another land as slaves. There are special reasons why it is to be 400 years. For one that 400 years is so that Abraham’s descendants will have time to grow into a nation themselves. There is something else, though. It is not yet time for Abraham’s descendants to take over this land, but,

“In the fourth generation they will come here again, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet full.”
Gen 15:16 WEB

So we can see: God is very patient, and will put up with much bad conduct, at times even for centuries, but there is limit to what God will endure. When a peoples sins are “full,” sometimes he will do away with a people, and give that land to others. And God foresees, and prepares a people to replace the Amorites.

“He changes the times and the seasons; he removes kings, and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to those who have understanding;”
Dan 2:21 WEB

What then is the purpose of these plans?

“that they should seek the Lord, if perhaps they might reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.”
Acts 17:27 WEB

KJV is the King James Version of 1611

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: There is more than one Jerusalem

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David did say,

“For David said, Yahweh, the God of Israel, has given rest to his people; and he dwells in Jerusalem forever:”
1Chron 23:25 WEB

“Forever,” David says. That is in line with the prophecy in 2Samuel 7 about that special son of David who would build the temple of the Lord. Solomon does tell us by inspiration that he was the fulfillment of this prophecy.

“Yahweh has established his word that he spoke; for I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as Yahweh promised, and have built the house for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel. ”
1Kgs 8:20 WEB

That indeed seems to fit 2Samuel 7, and there it is that it says,

“Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure for ever before you: your throne shall be established forever.”
2Sam 7:16 WEB

That would fit 1Chron 23:25 reviewed above. Still there are problems.

For Solomon’s throne only lasted until 586 BC.

For another 50 years few Jews lived in Jerusalem. Further, starting in the second century AD Jews were banned from living in Jerusalem for many centuries. None of which sounds like “forever”, and I am sure it caused many to wonder if these prophecies were false.

Nonetheless, are other factors at work here?

For starters, Heb 1:5 says that 2Samuel 7 refers to Jesus the Christ. That would have Solomon as a “type”/symbolic of Jesus. Of that fulfillment Isaiah seems to speak of a Mount Zion and Jerusalem beyond the moon and sun passing away!

“Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed; for Yahweh of Hosts will reign on Mount Zion, and in Jerusalem …”
Isa 24:23 WEB

Present Jerusalem, pictured above with the Mohammedan “Dome of the Rock” sitting where Solomon’s Temple used to sit, is symbolic of the New Jerusalem in the New Heaven and the New Earth.

Additionally Isaiah writes of a time of no more mourning or crying in Jerusalem. For instance,

“For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem; you shall weep no more; he will surely be gracious to you at the voice of your cry; when he shall hear, he will answer you.”
Isa 30:19 WEB

Further, Isaiah clearly speaks in more than one passage of this earth, and this universe being completely destroyed. For instance in Isaiah 13, and Isaiah 34. Isaiah writes well before the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC. So what are the missing parts of the puzzle.

For Isaiah writes of a new
heavens and earth.

“17 For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. 18 But be you glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.”
Isa 65:17-18 WEB

And that is the context in the New Testament. When God makes everything new (Rev 21:5), He make a new Jerusalem.

“I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready like a bride adorned for her husband.”
Rev 21:2 WEB

Some of those Old Testament passages are about the “new,” heavenly, Jerusalem. And that one, of that kingdom, indeed will be forever!

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: There is more than one Mount Zion

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Both Mount Zion and Jerusalem are symbolic
of heavenly entities.

Also both the earthly Zion is spoken of in Scripture, and also the heavenly Zion. For instance you can see this in Psalm 11. In Psalm 11 David is being told that he had better run for his life, because the wicked are getting ready to shoot him in the dark, Psa 11:1-2. David then asks very mournfully, if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do, Psa 11:3? Indeed, David has already said that Yahweh lives on Mount Zion.

“Sing praises to Yahweh, who dwells in Zion,
And declare among the people what he has done.”
Psa 9:11 WEB

But there is more to the story.

Despite this, David by inspiration also says in Psa 11:4, “Yahweh is in his holy temple.” There is more to point out even here. In English, and in many languages, there is a word for a temple, and word for a palace, and these are different concepts. In Hebrew however the word hekal does double duty as the word for both a king’s palace and a religious temple. In this sense then, the temple of God is really God’s palace to the Hebrew mind. The other term used in Hebrew is to call it “the house of God,” which is the ordinary term for in Hebrew for a “house,” byet, which even further enforces the idea that God lives there, and David did say Yahweh lives/dwells in Zion, Psa 9:11 above.

Solomon of course denies the literalness of God
living on earthly Mount Zion,

“But will God in very deed dwell on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens can’t contain you; how much less this house that I have built!”
1Kgs 8:27 WEB

But David says more that once more.

“Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God shines forth. ”
Psa 50:2 WEB

Or again, and of course Jerusalem is Jeru-salem, David speaks of the original tent of meeting.

“His tent is also in Salem;
His dwelling place in Zion.”
Psa 76:2 WEB

And God’s rule goes forth out of Zion (a double meaning do you think?)

“Yahweh will send forth the rod of your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of your enemies.”
Psa 11:2 WEB

Or another time, but perhaps more mysteriously

“Yahweh is great in Zion.
He is high above all the peoples.”
Psa 99:2 WEB

All the same, David gives details in Psalm 11.

Yes, Yahweh is in His holy temple, Psa 11:4a, and then he tells us,

“Yahweh is on his throne in heaven,” Psa 11:4b

The palace of God, the real palace, is in heaven.

God’s rule is not threatened by the rule or
opposition of someone on earth.

The old earthly temple on Mount Zion in Jerusalem is only symbolic (a type) of the heavenly temple on the heavenly Mount Zion (the fulfillment).

“5 Yahweh examines the righteous,
But the wicked and him who loves violence his soul hates. Psa. 11:6 On the wicked he will rain blazing coals; Fire, sulfur, and scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup. ”
Psa 11:5-6 WEB

Earthly Zion is only symbolic, a type, of the true palace of God and His throne.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: The Kingdom will come!

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Even now the kingdom exists and Jesus has ALL authority, Mtt 28:18. Even now He rules over all of the kings of the earth, Rev 1:5, and if they do not serve His purposes, He may shatter them, Psa 2:9; or He may destroy in their way, Psa 2:12.

Just the same, there are future aspects to the
kingdom which are yet unseen.

Mankind has yet to see the kingdom in its fulness. So near the end of his life, Paul says,

“And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me for his heavenly kingdom; to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”
2Tim 4:18 WEB

There is a future sense to this kingdom which is yet unseen, and Paul expects to be there. These things are to happen when Jesus comes again.

“20 and that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before, 21 whom heaven must receive UNTIL the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.”
Acts 3:20-21 WEB

So there are times of restoration which are yet to come. It is also called “times of refreshing.

“Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, so that there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord,”
Acts 3:19 WEB

When does this restoration, this renewal happen. At the Second Coming of Christ, as seen above in Acts 3:21.

Then this present universe will pass away.

“… ”the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.”
2Pe 3:10 WEB

Then a new universe will come, a new universe where sin and death and entropy (things run down!) are no longer operating principles. So Peter notes,

This universe will pass away, and a new universe not subject to death and decay will be created.

“But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which dwells righteousness.”
2Pe 3:13 WEB

So also it says in Revelation that the apostle John says,

“I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more.”
Rev 21:1 WEB

“He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” He said, “Write, for these words of God are faithful and true.””
Rev 21:5 WEB

It is called “heaven,” or a new heavens and a new earth. It is called the heavenly kingdom. It will be an everlasting rule.

“Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end …”
Isa 9:7 WEB

At that time, Jesus will say to
one Christian,

““‘Well done, you good servant! Because you were found faithful with very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’”
Lk 19:17 WEB

And to another, “‘And you are to be over five cities.’” Lk 19:15. There will be cities there. This will be a real place. These things have not happened yet, but they will.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: Prophecy is a Moral Issue

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It has never been anything else. It is about
believing God!

Eight of the ten spies sent into Canaan verified the productivity of Canaan in those days, but doubted God’s promise of victory.

Many fail in salvation because they do not believe prophecy! That includes 1.) the children of Israel who died in the wilderness during Moses’ time, because they did not believe the prophecies of their conquering the land of Canaan, and 2.) the Pharisees and Sadduccees of the first century AD, who did not believe the prophecies of Jesus the Christ, the one and only Son of God.

Prophecy has NEVER been idle information about
what might happen.

Unfortunately that is the way many view prophecy. That is to say, many have been persuaded to treat prophecy as inscrutable statements of what might happen, and which no one can ever figure out. These are false views of Scripture and of prophecy. Peter says,

“We have the more sure word of prophecy; whereunto you do well that you take heed, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns, and the day star arises in your hearts:”
2Pe 1:19 WEB

Someone is mixed up! Either Peter is, or we are. Perhaps we are the ones who are mixed up.

God has plans for history, and for both the
righteousness and the wicked.

We need to declare the whole counsel of God to men, just as Paul did.

“… for I didn’t shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.”
Acts 20:27 WEB

That means among other things:

1. We should use ALL Scripture for doctrine/teaching

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine …”
2Tim 3:16 KJV

The word “doctrine” here in the KJV is a translation of the word didaskalia and it is the normal word for a teaching. This does NOT mean that we are under Moses Law, which would mean we are separated from Christ.

“you are alienated from Christ, you who desire to be justified by the law. You have fallen away from grace.”
Gal 5:4

Still, even Moses law is to be used for teaching/doctrine. There are many New Testament examples of this. For instance, in 1Corinthians chapter 9 Paul uses Deut 25:4, a regulation from the law of Moses about how to treat oxen, to prove that ministers of the gospel should be paid. We are not bound by the regulation as such, but that regulation teaches truths that are binding on us.

2. We should use prophecy as an integral part of teaching

A conservative estimate is that 30% of the Bible is prophecy. That is a great deal of “the whole counsel of God” to neglect. We are to “keep” the prophecies of Revelation, and there is a blessing for keeping these words.

“Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things that are written in it, for the time is at hand.”
Rev 1:3 WEB

Or again,

“He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who disbelieves will be condemned.”
Mk 16:16 WEB

This is a prophecy, a “will be,” future. If you believe this prophecy (and you should), then you will BE baptized, and the prophecy says you “will be saved.” Alas, many do not believe this prophecy.

KJV is the King James Version, 1611.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: Some Types/Symbols are NOT Announced.

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However, generally there are hints that a person, place, thing, or event is symbolic of something else

Generally speaking, it will say things which only fit
the ultimate fulfillment.

There is an in depth analysis of 2Sam 7:12-16 in Prophecy Principles,

An example of this is the prophecy of a son of David who will build a temple of the Lord, in 2Sam 7:12-16. Solomon is the immediate subject of this prophecy, and he did build a literal temple in Jerusalem in the 10th century BC. Still Solomon is symbolic of Jesus who is now building a spiritual temple for God. The tip off is the parts of this prophecy which really DO NOT FIT SOLOMON! Parts of this prophecy only fit Solomon, and parts only fit Jesus, and parts fit both, but in different ways. There is a complete discussion of this prophecy in Prophecy Principles, in the section called “Type and Anti-Type, Symbol and Fulfillment.

Another example is Antiochus IV and the mysterious
“abomination of desolation.”

Antiochus IV put a full statue of “Zeus” in the temple in Jerusalem. This is described in Daniel as an “abomination”

Many different kings are spoken of in the prophecies of Daniel. Some of them are very easy to identify, for instance Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon in Dan 2:38, and Alexander the Great and the four Greek kings who succeeded Alexander in Dan 8:20-22. Others require more research. It seems that Antiochus IV Epiphanes (215-163 BC) is clearly described in more than one place in Daniel’s writing, including Dan 11:21, 27-35. Antiochus IV tried to force Greek paganism on the Jews, and spectacularly failed. He put an idol of “Zeus” in the temple in Jerusalem, and offered a pig as a sacrifice on the altar there. This is described in the these prophecies as “the abomination of desolation,” Dan 11:31, etc. Idols are commonly called an abomination to God in the Old Testament. These are well known events in ancient history.

Then come the “problems” with these prophecies.

For also clearly, not everything ascribed to “Antiochus IV” happened in ancient times, especially Dan 11:36-45. Nor does everything said about “the abomination of desolation” fit the events in those same days. These are signs of either 1.) a false prophecy, as many liberal argue, or 2.) Antiochus IV is symbolic of some other ruler who will come later, and parts of these descriptions fit Antiochus IV, and parts fit someone else in later times! When?

Then Jesus makes the mystery even deeper.

Details of these things are disccused in both Prophecy Principles and Revealing the Christian Age, from different points of view.

Jesus clearly speaks in Matthew 24 of both the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, and the end of the world, and says,

““When, therefore, you see the abomination of desolation, which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),”
Mtt 24:15 WEB

So Jesus does indicate the idol of “Zeus” was also symbolic … and part of what He says will happen, clearly DOES NOT fit 70 AD! Keep in mind that Matthew 24 talks about TWO subjects!

These issues are described in much more detail in both Prophecy Principles, and in Revealing the Christian Age.

God evidently WANTS US to HAVE TO think out these
things in order to understand them.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901

Keys to Prophecy: Some Types/Symbols are Announced

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There are other terms for symbolism.

“who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, even as Moses was warned by God when he was about to make the tabernacle, for he said, “See, you shall make everything according to the pattern that was shown to you on the mountain.””
Heb 8:5 WEB

So when a person, place, thing, or event in history is symbolic of some future person, place, thing, or event, it might be called a “copy,” or a “shadow,” or a “pattern.” In this verse the word translated “pattern” is the the word tupos, which also sometimes translated as “type,” as for instance in Rom 5:14 in the New American Standard 95 ed., and the New King James Version. Other words are also used at times.

Moses is clearly a “type,” symbolic
of the Christ

As Moses said,

“Yahweh your God will raise up to you a prophet from the midst of you, of your brothers, like me; to him you shall listen;”
Deut 18:15 WEB

Moses was clearly intended to be symbolic of the Christ.

That is an unequivocal statement of symbolism, and has been discussed in more detail in previous posts.

And Adam is announced as a type of the Christ. He is the head and the first of new race of men who will all be like Him.

“Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those whose sins weren’t like Adam’s disobedience, who is a foreshadowing of him who was to come.”
Rom 5:14 WEB

“Foreshadowing” is here another translation of the Greek word tupos or “type.”

The fulfillment of a symbol/type is in Greek sometimes
called an antitype.

The Greek word is anittupos (anti-tupos), and in Greek the word or prefix anti has the idea of replacement. Thus an anti-type is the fulfillment/replacement for the symbol, the type. Antitupos is used in this sense in 1 Peter 3.

“19 … while the ark was being built. In it, few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water. 21 This is a symbol of baptism, which now saves you …”
1Pe 3:19-20 WEB

So Peter says that the waters of Noah’s flood, while destroying the wicked, floated Noah and his family to safety, and that is a “symbol” (antitupos) of baptism. The New King James Version gives a very literal translation here: “There is also an antitype which now saves us—baptism …”

So here is another type which is announced in Scripture, the waters of the flood being symbolic of baptism.

Of course this is NOT saying we are saved
by any work of man.

Baptism is NOT a work of man! You do not DO baptism, rather you ARE baptized. Baptism is something you must SUBMIT to.

“For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.”
1Cor 12:13 KJV

The One who works in baptism is the Holy Spirit of God, changing your soul, and washing you in the blood of Jesus Christ. Otherwise, all you did was to have a bath.

KJV is the King James Version, 1611.

WEB is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision
of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901