Matthew 24 Exposes OSAS, Pacifism, and the Pre-Trib Rapture

There are also accounts of the discourse on the Mount of Olives in Mark chapter 13 and Luke chapter 21.

Matthew 24:1-3: “And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye 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. And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?”

We know now that the Temple was destroyed in AD 70- yet Christ did not return in person to rule and reign over the earth at that point. There is a lot of debate over whether the things said in this chapter apply to AD 70 or to the 2nd coming of Christ. The fact that these events are distinguished, yet Jesus answered the question without distinctly explaining which things apply to which time, is evidence that there are great parallels between the two events. We should generally note the parallels between them while using common sense to distinguish the things which apply to one event but not the other.

Matthew 24:4-5: “And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.”

People say things like “don’t be deceived!” and “wake up!” Yet saying such things means nothing when you don’t elaborate. In this case, all we have to do is keep reading through this discourse to know what Jesus is talking about.

Jesus will warn about false christs (i.e. false messiahs) later on in this chapter. Consider though that in verses 4 and 5 Jesus is speaking in the first person to His disciples. He is evidently warning here that the most dangerous deception will come in His name from those who say that He (Jesus of Nazareth) is the Messiah. People find fault with Christianity and say “Look at all the different denominations, all the arguing among professing Christians, and all the confusion in Christ’s name.” Yet this great confusion is something which Jesus Himself warned of.

Matthew 24:6-8: “And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers (or, various) places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.”

Some take such things as signs that the end is near. Yet Jesus basically said not to take such things as signs that the end is near. This also proves that the prophecy in Isaiah 2:4 about the Messiah’s kingdom has not been fulfilled yet.

Isaiah 2:4: “And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”

People use this verse to justify belief in Pacifism. Yet Jesus told His disciples to carry swords. His kingdom has not yet come to the earth in its fullness. That is, He does not reign over the nations yet. When He does, it will be His use of force from the top which will bring peace. To not use appropriate force according to one’s jurisdiction in this dark age is actually rebellion against His kingdom (i.e. rebellion against His supreme authority). It is a misrepresentation of Him when such failure to put down evil by force happens in His name.

Matthew 24:9-13: “Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity (i.e. anomia; lawlessness) shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.”

Effective deception causes one to practice lawlessness. This would include tolerating lawlessness where one has jurisdiction to put it down. It also includes being cold towards righteousness- including being cold towards the sufferings of those who are faithful to Christ and cold towards any in real need. You can be sure that those who deny Lordship salvation, along with all who don’t faithfully lead those who listen to them to shun sin and obey God’s Word faithfully, are among the very deceivers that Jesus is warning about. Such are promoting the very deception which He is warning us not to get trapped in. “But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved” would be a meaningless statement if one did not need to endure to the end to be saved.

Matthew 24:14: “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”

In relation to verses 9 to 13, you can be sure that those who preach a gospel which denies Jesus’ Lordship is false. His Lordship is denied by preachers who don’t insist that people forsake their sins and submit to His supreme authority (and exemplify this obedient faith themselves). These are obviously enemies of His kingdom.

The Dispensationalist concept that Paul preached a different gospel to the Gentiles than Jesus and the other Apostles preached among the Jews is a bold-faced lie. Note also that the Bible equates the kingdom of God with the Kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 19:23-24: “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.”

Paul also testified in Romans 15:18-19: “For I will not dare to speak of any of those things which Christ hath not wrought by me, to make the Gentiles obedient, by word and deed, Through mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God; so that from Jerusalem, and round about unto Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.”

Verse 14 is not necessarily saying that the Gospel would have to come to every single tribe or people group on earth in order for the end to come. It is speaking of the general plan that the Gospel be preached to the nations outside of Israel before the end comes. That thought alone would have contradicted the belief which many had in the 1st century that the end was imminent.

Matthew 24:15: “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)”

We can know by the following verses that this is speaking directly of when Jerusalem was invaded by the Romans and eventually destroyed by them (though not ruling out some general parallel at the very end of time which might be cross-referenced with 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 and Revelation chapters 11 to 13). Any desecration of that which is appointed by God as holy can be the abomination of desolation in principle. There was such a desecration between the time the Book of Daniel was written and the time of the Gospel accounts in the 2nd century BC when the Syrian King Antiochus Epiphanes put an idol in the holy place of the Temple. In the context of the then coming destruction of Jerusalem, the Roman Army surrounding Jerusalem could be the abomination of desolation. The Romans eventually did enter the Temple and destroy it. This was God’s judgment upon the Jewish people for their rejection of their Messiah and their sins which led to that (and His wrath has not turned away from them). The heathen ways of the Jews made a judgment and a blatant defilement of their Temple by the blatantly heathen Romans a very fitting judgment. It was the very same with the destruction of the first Temple by the Babylonians several centuries beforehand (see especially Ezekiel chapters 8 and 9 along these lines).

We also see by Matthew 24:15 that you can’t receive what is written in the New Testament without reading and understanding the Old Testament. Great multitudes of Christians barely or never read the Old Testament (and a significant amount don’t read the New Testament either).

Matthew 24:16-20: “Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:”

There was a mysterious withdrawal of the Romans from Jerusalem after they initially compassed it. This gave those in Jerusalem a chance to actually comply with this warning. That is how the Jerusalem Christians were spared from destruction after the Romans returned, sieged the city again, and eventually destroyed it. The Romans killed or enslaved Jerusalem’s remaining inhabitants after much starvation, disease, and infighting among the Jews had already caused untold misery in the city and had caused many to die already.

The Christians were commanded to pray that the flight which they would inevitably have to make would not be in the winter nor on the Sabbath day. In the winter, the cold would obviously make things much worse and much harder than they already were. If the flight were on the Sabbath Day, they would then be risking arrest by the Jewish authorities for violating the Sabbath. When understood in its context, these verses are by no means teaching that Christians should be keeping the Sabbath now like some claim.

And considering that the Jews had no commission from the Lord to re-enter the land and re-establish a political nation called Israel, and considering how Jerusalem and modern Israel have provoked Him so greatly in relation to this endeavor by committing abominations that are numerous and shocking, I sure wouldn’t recommend living in the nation of Israel now- especially in Jerusalem. Modern Israel and Jerusalem are ripe for a severe judgment. It is obvious that it would have been wise to flee Sodom and Gomorrah even if you didn’t know when their destruction was coming. Fleeing quickly is better than taking the risk of waiting too long.

Matthew 24:21-22: “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.”

“Shortened” could also have been translated as abridged. To abridge is to make a brief or modified version of something. That does not need to be a shortening at the very end. It could come through making things briefer or modified at any point. I see no reason to believe that the shortening referred to here is not a reference to the mysterious Roman withdrawal after the Romans initially compassed Jerusalem which allowed the Christians to escape before the Romans returned and eventually destroyed the city in AD 70.

Matthew 24:23-25: “Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before.”

There were especially many false messiahs among the Jews in the 1st and 2nd centuries, and there have been many false messiahs throughout history. Contrary to what many teach, it is possible to deceive the very elect. Did Jesus not tell His handpicked Apostles here to take heed that they be not deceived?

Matthew 24:26-28: “Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.”

Jesus will return again in person to condemn His enemies with the sword and deliver His faithful people. He will not have a secret coming before that point. He will not be walking around on the earth in disguise. He did give a foretaste of His return when He judged Jerusalem in AD 70. Yet AD 70 and any other foretastes of Judgment Day are not His 2nd coming. He will dwell at God’s right hand until He returns visibly to immediately assume His rightful authority over all things.

Hebrews 10:12-13: “But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.”

This principle that Jesus will not return secretly also destroys the pre-tribulation rapture doctrine. The pre-tribulation rapture will even be destroyed directly in the following verses.

Matthew 24:29-31: “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”

There will be no trumpet after the last trumpet. 1 Corinthians chapter 15 makes it clear that the faithful will be delivered at the last trumpet. This demolishes the pre-tribulation rapture doctrine. We are now dealing with the very end of the age. This relates to what was said near the beginning of this study regarding how we should generally note the parallels between the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 and the 2nd coming of Christ while using common sense to distinguish the things which obviously apply to one but not the other.

The account of the Mount of Olives discourse in Luke chapter 21:20-28 makes the transition between the AD 70 judgment and the 2nd coming of Christ a lot more apparent and evident (read it yourself).

Matthew 24:32-35: “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh (near): So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.”

The word generation here is ”genea” in the Greek text. “Genea” can mean “age.” I see no good reason to not relate this back to the question which began this discourse in verse 3 of this chapter concerning the end of the age. Jesus is speaking of the end of the world in the sense of the end of this period of time. The conclusion of this will lead to His reign over the nations.

Acts 3:19-24: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days.”

Revelation 11:15: “And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.”

Matthew 24:36: “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.”

And yet many have foolishly tried to specifically predict this. They often don’t even admit their error afterwards nor confess that they were fools in making their faulty predictions.

Matthew 24:37-39: “But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.”

Note that the rescue of the righteous and the destruction of the wicked happened on the very same 24 hour day. Jesus relates how it was with Noah, and those on earth in Noah’s time, directly to the time of His 2nd coming. This is another nail in the coffin to the pre-tribulation rapture. Note also that it was being obsessed with the cares of life which generally prevented the people in Noah’s day from repenting and serving God faithfully. This warning would mean nothing if we did not need to turn from sin and follow Jesus faithfully as His disciple who keeps His Word until the end. Those who are obsessed with the cares of life inevitably live in sin and will inevitably be surprised when Jesus comes back for judgment.

Luke records the following words from Jesus in wrapping up the account which he gave of this discourse.

Luke 21:34-36: “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting (i.e. excess), and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare (i.e. a trap) shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.”

Rather than this being a reference to the pre-tribulation rapture (which Matthew 24 has repeatedly taught against), the escape which we should watch and pray always to obtain in order to stand before the Son of man is deliverance from the snare of sin. No one can escape tribulation in this world- especially not those who would be faithful to Christ.

John 16:33: “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”

Acts 14:21-22: “And when they had preached the gospel to that city, and had taught many, they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch, Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.”

Matthew 24:40-41: “Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.”

It is obviously possible for a righteous person and a wicked person to be doing the same job right next to each other. One cannot be doing a wicked job and simultaneously be a righteous person. However, a wicked person might do a job that in itself isn’t wicked- such as those jobs alluded to in verses 40 and 41.

Matthew 24:42-44: “Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.”

Watching is not referring to trying to discern when it will happen. It is referring to walking before the true God and doing righteousness before Him at all times. The only way to be ready and not be ashamed when Christ returns is to be steadfast in doing what is pleasing in His eyes all of the time. This is what Jesus is warning us to not be deceived concerning in any way whatsoever. We can relate this directly back to verses 9 to 13 of Matthew 24, as well as to Matthew 24’s closing verses which we’ll soon get to. Even if you knew when He was coming, and you weren’t doing what is righteous in His eyes, you’d still be condemned. Longing for the day of the Lord is no proof that one is actually ready to meet Him (see Amos 5:14-20).

Concluding with Matthew 24:45-51: “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat (i.e. food) in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; And shall begin to smite his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

This is referring to the eternal fire of hell. It is not referring to Purgatory nor to some non-Catholic version of Purgatory as some Dispensationalists, and perhaps certain others, claim.

The following passages not only illustrate the separation of the wicked and the righteous at the end of this age, they especially also illustrate the separation of righteous Christians from wicked Christians at that time (as is implied in the closing verses of Matthew chapter 24 as well).

Matthew 13:40-43: “As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.”

Matthew 13:47-50: “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”