IN MATTHEW, chapters 24 and 25; Mark, chapter 13; and Luke, chapter 21, we have a record of our Lord's Olivet Discourse. These three accounts should be read in order that one may have the proper and full conception of our Lord's teaching on this occasion.

This Olivet Discourse is one of the most important prophetic utterances for our day and time. In this message our Lord outlined the present dispensation, gave the sign of the end of the age, discussed the Tribulation, and spoke of His second coming in glory and the establishment of the kingdom of God upon earth.

The occasion of His giving this message was His prediction concerning the destruction of the Temple built by Herod. As He was going forth from it on the last day of His public ministry, the disciples called attention to the large stones used in the construction of the temple and the trophies that had been dedicated to the Lord by devoted souls in the Temple as remembrances before God.

After the Lord made this prediction and walked to the summit of the Mount of Olives, He sat down. There Peter, James, John, and Andrew (as we learn from Mark's account) came and asked Him two questions: "Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" (Matt. 24:3).

The question immediately arising in this connection is, Why did they ask concerning His second coming and the consummation of the age? The answer is clear to the one who is familiar with the Old Testament background. If anyone will look at Zechariah, chapter 14, and read it carefully, he will note that there are three things mentioned as occurring in connection with each other: The siege and the fall of Jerusalem in the day of Jehovah, the second coming of Christ when His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives, and the close of this age and the introduction of the new age--the Millennium. The mention of any one of these, to the one who is familiar with the passage, would immediately bring up into the field of consciousness the other related events. When therefore the Lord foretold the destruction of Jerusalem, which occurred as we know from history in 70 A.D., the Apostles immediately thought that He was speaking of the prediction of Zechariah, which will be fulfilled in the end of the Tribulation, as we know from other passages. Thus it is evident that they misunderstood Him on this point. But their misunderstanding Him called forth these questions. We are indeed glad that they did misunderstand it and did ask these questions, because of the information which their questions brought forth from His lips.

The two questions asked by the disciples were: "When shall these things be?" and "what shall be the sign of thy coming and of the end of the world?" In this connection let me call attention to the fact that though our Lord answered both of these, Luke alone gave His reply to the first one, which is found in Luke 21:20-24.

Unfortunately many expositors have endeavored to find in Matthew, chapter 24, Christ's answer to both questions. To show that Matthew did not record His reply to the first one, all one has to do is to note the fact that, in verse 6, our Lord said: "But the end is not yet." The end of what? The end of the thing about which they asked, namely, the end of the world. Again, in verse 13, we see these words, "He that endureth to the end. ..." The end of that about which they asked, the end of the age. Again, in verse 14, we read, "and then shall the end come." The end of what? The end of the world. When we also examine verse 15, we read these words, "When therefore ye see the abomination of desolation. ..." Thus the adverbial conjunction "when" links verse 15 with verse 14, which speaks of the end. An examination of verses 15-28 shows that our Lord was speaking in them about the Tribulation. Verses 29-31 likewise discuss the very end of the Tribulation. In view of all these facts we see that, in the section, verses 6-31, our Lord was speaking about the end of the world.

The second question, "What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" is a double one. The Apostles understood that there would be some sign or event that would occur, and that would signify two facts: That His return is close at hand, and that the end of the world is near--one event signifying the two others.

If anyone will notice the marginal reading of the expression, "the end of the world," he will see that there is a footnote in the Revised Version which reads: the consummation of the age. The term, end of the world, means consummation of the age in the Greek and should have been rendered that way in the text. The Apostles were not asking about the end of the world, the physical universe, but the end of the present age. This fact must be clearly held in mind as we continue this study.

As stated above, our Lord answered the first question regarding the time when His prediction concerning the destruction of Jerusalem would occur. This answer is found in Luke 21:20-24. A glance at this passage shows that He was foretelling the siege of Jerusalem by Titus and its subsequent fall. Thereupon the Jews were dispersed among all the nations and Jerusalem was trodden down of the Gentiles and will continue to be so until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

The answer to this second question is found in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. But we shall notice only Matthew's record. As stated above, the disciples were very much interested in our Lord's return. Knowing what would arise in the future, Jesus foretold that many would come in His name claiming that they were the Messiah of Jewish prophecy. This prediction is found in verses 4 and 5. A glance at Jewish history shows that, at various times, there have arisen pretenders to the messianic honors, who have misled multitudes of Jews and have wrought havoc in various communities from time to time.

Since, as we have already seen, the disciples' minds went to such passages as Zechariah, chapter 14, when our Lord uttered His prediction concerning the destruction of the Temple, we can see more clearly why our Lord, in verse 6, spoke about local wars that would occur all during His absence. In this verse He in substance told them that there would be wars and rumors of wars during His absence, but that these would have no prophetic significance. Hence when one would break out, they were not to conclude that the end of the age was at hand. The conditions which produce wars are here. So long as they exist, just so long there will be conflicts among the nations. A glance at the history of the Christian centuries shows that there have been many such wars, and we may conclude that there will be wars until the end--just as our Lord said. Hence, said Jesus, when a war breaks out, the end is not yet--the end of the age about which they asked Him.

The reason for His making this statement is: "For nation shall rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom; and there shall be famines and earthquakes in divers places." Luke in his account adds pestilences. What is the significance of this verse? An examination of such passages as II Chronicles 15:1-7 and Isaiah 19:1-5 shows that this idiom indicated a war that would affect all the territory before the prophet's mind when he used it. Since our Lord had a world outlook in the Olivet Discourse, as is evident from a glance at the entire passage, it is clear that He had a world vision. Then from His use of the expression, "nation shall rise again nation, and kingdom against kingdom," we know that He was speaking, not of a local war, one between two or more nations, but of a global conflict. Moreover, He said that such a war as the one of which He spoke would be attended by famines, pestilences, and great earthquakes in different places. Whenever therefore you see, said Jesus, a global war which begins by one nation's rising up against another, and when this conflict is enlarged by other nations' coming into the struggle until it becomes a world war, and you see famines, pestilences, and great earthquakes accompanying such an upheaval in the political world, then you can know that such a conflict together with these plagues are the beginning of travail.

According to verse 8 our Lord declared, "But all these things are the beginning of travail." The Common Version says "the beginning of sorrows," a very inaccurate translation. A better one would be, "All these things are the first birth pain." What is the meaning of travail, or the period of birth pains? An examination of the prophetic word, together with the Psalms, reveals the fact that the prophets and psalmists often spoke of some great conflict through which Israel would pass as her travail. In speaking on a number of occasions of the Great Tribulation through which Israel must yet pass, they likewise compared these sorrows and distress to that of birth pains. When our Lord said that a world war, attended by famines, pestilences, and earthquakes are the first birth pain, He was simply indicating that the disciples were not to arrive at the conclusion that the end was at hand until after such a global conflict occurred.

These events constitute the sign--the infallible, unmistakable sign--of the end of the age. Have we had such a world conflict? When we take all the facts into consideration, we can hardly avoid the conclusion that we have already had that which Jesus designated as the sign of the end of the age. This occurred in the years 1914-1918. It is generally accepted that the great war was World War I, and that the recent conflict was World War II. These statements being true, we know that we are in the end of the age. Let us bear in mind that the Apostles asked for the sign of His coming and the consummation of the age. Jesus said for them to wait until they saw such a global conflict, accompanied by famines, pestilences, and earthquakes. When these occur, said He, they constitute the sign of my return and of the end of the age. In view of these facts no one had any right to expect the return of the Lord until after this conflict, which we know occurred in 1914-1918. Someone might hastily conclude that this interpretation robs the Christians of former generations and centuries of the blessed hope. Not so. No generation since the Apostles could be positive and know that such a global conflict would not occur in their own time. So far, then, as the Christians of the first century were concerned, they could not tell when that conflict would develop. Hence they were to live upon the tiptoes of expectation inasmuch as such a conflict might occur in their time, and following it the Lord would return.

In Matthew 24:9-14 we have a general description of the first part of the Tribulation, the first three and one-half years of the seven years of wrath. There will occur during this first half of the Tribulation many sorrows and distresses for those who take their stand for the Lord Jesus Christ and the things of God. Those of their own immediate family will oppose believers. Iniquity will abound, but there is a promise to the ones who will endure to the end, the end of the Tribulation, that they will be saved. Those who, during that time of stress, prove the sincerity of their hearts, that they are wanting truth and are determined to stand for the right, and who maintain this attitude all the way through the Tribulation will, at its end, see and accept the truth and be saved. They will be saved, not by their having endured to the end, but because, when the truth is presented to them, they will receive Christ with all their hearts.

This gospel of the kingdom, according to verse 14, will be preached in the whole world for a testimony unto all the nations and then the end will come, the end of the Tribulation. What is "the gospel of the kingdom?" There is but one gospel--that is, the good news concerning the redemption wrought by the Lord Jesus Christ. As we look back at His suffering on the cross, the substitute for our sins when He poured out His life for us, we are thinking about and considering the gospel of the grace of God. On the other hand, when we are looking forward to the establishment of His millennial reign upon earth and the introduction of that glorious Kingdom Age, we are talking about the gospel of the kingdom. There is but one gospel, which is the everlasting gospel. Now this gospel will be preached in the whole world for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end comes. The gospel was preached in all the world, in the first three decades of the existence of the Christian church. This is seen by a glance at Romans 10:18, which declares that the message went out to the uttermost parts of the earth. In the Colossian Epistle (1:6, 23) we are told that the gospel was preached in all creation under heaven. The letter was written between 61 and 63 A.D. From these statements we see that the gospel was preached to the whole world in the Apostolic Age. But since the Apostolic Era closed, the church has not one time given the gospel to the whole world. It is to be said to the credit of the Hebrew Christians in the first three decades of the church, they largely gave the gospel to the world. But after the Jewish elements ceased to predominate in the church, she has not given the gospel to all nations. The missionary zeal began to die down and its activities slowed up until, in the middle Ages, Christendom had lost its worldwide vision. Only after the Reformation did it begin to look out upon the world and see that the heathen needed the gospel which she enjoyed. The modern missionary movement is one of the great marvels of the age. Thank God for what has been done thus far. But Christendom has been blighted by rationalism under the name of modernism. We are now in the Apostasy, without a doubt. The nearer we approach the end of the age, the deeper will the falling away be, and the greater will be the spread of wickedness and sin. According to the prophetic word we cannot expect any great sweeping revival prior to the Tribulation. But, after the church is gone, which event occurs before the Tribulation bursts forth upon the world, there will arise 144,000 Jewish servants of God, "Pauls," who will conduct the greatest revival of all the ages during the first part of the Tribulation. The result of this ministry will be the conversion of an innumerable host of people who come out of the Tribulation and wash their robes and make them white in the blood of the Lamb. The number who will be saved will be innumerable. It is this world-wide evangelistic campaign, doubtless, to which our Lord referred in Matthew 24:14.

The latter part of the Tribulation is described in verses 15-28. In the middle of the Tribulation, as we learn from Daniel 9:27 and Revelation 13:1-8, the Antichrist will set up an image of himself in the Jewish Temple which will have been rebuilt and which will be standing during the Tribulation. This image is called "the abomination which maketh desolate." An idol in the Old Testament was called an "abomination." It is therefore this thing to which the Lord referred in Matthew 24:15,16. Since the Antichrist sets up his image in the middle of the Tribulation, we know that the judgments referred to in verses 15-28 are descriptive of that time of unparalleled suffering. As the Tribulation advances, the strokes of judgment become harder and more thorough-going. The judgments of the latter half of the Tribulation are set forth in a symbolic form in Revelation, chapter 16.

The Tribulation will be a time of unprecedented suffering and trouble. There has never been anything like it from the beginning of time until it occurs and there never will be after that anything comparable to it. At the conclusion of the Tribulation, as we learn in verses 26 and 27, our Lord will come in glory and power, and every eye shall see Him. Immediately after the Tribulation has come to a close, there will be a universal blackout of the light from the heavenly bodies. This is set forth in verses 29-31. There will then penetrate this Egyptian darkness the sign of the Son of man coming from heaven to earth. As He approaches the earth, the sight will be terrifying; for all the tribes of earth will mourn because of Him, He will come and take the government of the world into His own hands.

In view of the facts which I have just narrated, one can see that from verses 4-31, our Lord was giving a description of the Christian Dispensation, of the Tribulation Period, and of His second coming. In verses 32 and 33 He set forth the parable of the fig tree. Whenever anyone sees the buds on the fig trees beginning to swell and observes the appearance of the leaves, he knows that summer is near. In the same manner, said Jesus, when "you see all these things [a world war, famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in divers places] know ye that he is nigh, even at the doors." Since He was talking about the sign of the end of the age in these verses, and since He declared that those seeing this sign could know that His coming is close at hand, we know positively that in these verses our Lord took us back in His thinking to the time of World War I, the sign of the end of the age. To the generation arising at that time and old enough to interpret the prophecy and to recognize in the current happenings the fulfillment of the prophecy, our Lord gave this sign. Thus the rising generation of the time of World War I could arrive at the conclusion from the fulfillment of the prediction that the coming of the Lord for His saints was at hand.

That He was talking about the rising generation is evident from the fact that He could not have been talking about the generation that had spent half or two-thirds of its life. The only reasonable interpretation is that He was talking to the rising generation that was able to interpret the passage and the signs of the times.

Jesus furthermore said that that generation would not pass away until the entire prediction is fulfilled. The length of a scriptural generation according to Psalm 90 is three-score years or, if by reason of health and strength, four-score years. Since that sign first began to appear upon earth thirty years ago, quite a bit of time has been lopped off of that generation. We refuse, however, to set any dates. We can, as the Lord said in Hebrews 10:25, see the day approaching. To all prophetic students, it is evident that we are approaching the great crisis.

There are some sincere brethren who believe that we may expect a revival now. I cannot share these views. There may be a local turning to God here and there, but a mighty, sweeping national or international revival is not scheduled for this time of the age, but only in the Tribulation. Jesus compared the closing days of this age with those of the days of Noah immediately before the Flood. They were eating, drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage, buying and selling, until the day that Noah entered the ark. Thus it will be in the closing days of this age before the Tribulation. The Flood came suddenly upon the ungodly ones of Noah's day. "So will the Tribulation come upon the world suddenly, as set forth in I Thessalonians 5:1f. But the days before the Tribulation are the days of the coming of the Son of man. When He comes, two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken, the other left; two men will be plowing in the field, one will be taken, the other left; two men will be lying on a bed at night, one will be taken, the other left. The ones taken will be the saints, who will be caught up in a moment of time, when the Lord descends from heaven to the air. The ones left will be those not born again, the ungodly.

Concerning the day and hour no one knows. We can see the time approaching, but cannot tell on what day or what time of day our Lord will call us hence. We should therefore be ready: "... for in an hour that ye think not the Son of man cometh" (vs. 44).

The wise and faithful servant is contrasted with the unfaithful servant in verses 45-51. Of course only the wise and faithful servants are those who are born again. The unfaithful servants are those who are not born again.

"Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins . . ." (25:1). When will the kingdom of heaven be like ten virgins? Then--at the time of the rapture. This interpretation is demanded by the drift of thought of the sermon. But what is "the kingdom of heaven"? John announced that the kingdom of heaven was at hand. Jesus sounded the same note. The Twelve preached the same message. Near the conclusion of our Lord's ministry, the Seventy did likewise. We read of the kingdom of heaven from the third chapter of Matthew on to the Olivet Discourse. Our Lord in the parables of the kingdom (Matthew, chapter 13) tells us exactly what the kingdom of heaven is. (On this point see Installment 13, August, 1945 issue of the Monthly, which discusses the parables in detail.) When a person studies this chapter, he comes to the conclusion that this expression includes all Christendom--all who have heard the message, the seed that falls upon the four types of soil in the parable of the sower. All the people thus represented in this parable are in the kingdom of heaven. Then this kingdom, embracing all who have ever heard--whether they accept or whether they reject--will be like ten virgins, five wise and five foolish. The wise ones will be admitted to the marriage feast; the foolish ones will be turned away. The wise ones, the saved ones, will enter into the joys of their Lord; the foolish ones, the unsaved ones, will be banished from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His might for ever.

In Matthew 25:14-30 our Lord gave us the parable of the talents and connected it with the parable of the ten virgins by the conjunction, for. This fact is significant. The parable of the virgins, as we have just seen, illustrates Christendom at the time of the coming of the Lord for His saints. Since the parable of the talents is linked indissolubly with the parable of the ten virgins, the parable of the talents likewise refers to the time of the rapture and our being caught up to meet the Lord in the air.

In this parable a certain man went abroad, but before leaving home he delivered to his servants his goods, giving to each according to his ability. To one he gave five talents; to another, two; and to a third, one. The man who received the five talents went and gained therewith five others; he who received two gained two more; the one who received one hid it in the earth and made no attempt to invest his master's money. After a long time abroad the master of those servants had a reckoning with each. The one who gained five talents was allowed to enter into the joys of his lord. The same thing was true with reference to the one who received two and gained two. But the man who hid his, the unsaved man, was driven into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. A close study of the section, Matthew 24:32--25:30, shows that these verses, which I have barely skimmed in this cursory review, deal with the rapture of the church and the events connected therewith. But verses 31-46 are separated from this section and are set apart from it by the disjunctive conjunction, but. "But when the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit on the throne of his glory . . ." (vs. 31). This passage refers to the glorious manifestation of our Lord which occurs at the end of the Tribulation. Thus we know that at least seven years separate these two comings--the coming of Jesus for His saints before the Tribulation, and the coming of Jesus with His saints after the Tribulation.

The judgment of the nations described in 25:31-46 occurs upon earth when our Lord returns. Those who survive the Tribulation will be brought before Him, and He will separate them as a shepherd separates sheep from goats. To those who have lived up to the best light--all the light that they have--and who have been kind toward Christ's brethren, especially the Jews, will be given the privilege of entering into that kingdom. Being of this character when the full light of the truth of the gospel is given to them, they will accept. On this point see Psalms 15 and 24. These will "receive a blessing from Jehovah, And righteousness from the God of his salvation" (Ps. 24:5). Those put on the left hand are the ones who have not lived up to the light which they received, and who have been inconsiderate of the least of Christ's brethren. These will be banished into outer darkness.

There is nothing said of any resurrection in this passage. There is nothing to favor the theory of a general judgment for all people as is taught by some. This judgment is at the beginning of the Millennium. But the judgment of the wicked dead will occur at the conclusion of the Millennium (Rev. 20:11-15).