The Nature of the Second Coming
In our last article, we learned from the word that there are several instances in the Old Testament where the phrase “Day of the Lord” was used to describe God’s judgement on a particular nation (such as Babylon in Isaiah 13-14). We then saw how God used the same type of language to describe what is often called the Second Coming of Christ. Some will object to our conclusions and say that the Day of the Lord in the New Testament is of a different “nature.” They will concede that the Old Testament Days of the Lord were often described using figurative language, but they will not agree that we should bring those same principles to the New Testament. Some of the verses often used to answer our conclusions are below.
“Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:9-11, emp. added).
“Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, amen” (Revelation 1:7, emp. added).
While citing these passages, the questions that are usually asked alongside are, “Did EVERY eye see Him? Did He come in EXACTLY THE SAME WAY that He went?” In this article, we will examine what the New Testament writers had to say regarding the “Second Coming” of Christ, and, specifically, the nature of the Coming.
First, we will examine the nature and the timing of the kingdom of God. I propose that the kingdom of God came in progression. That means that it all did not show up at one time. Just as a child is conceived, born, grows, learns what it takes to survive own its own, and, eventually, becomes an adult, the kingdom of God grew into what it would eternally be by the overthrow of Judaism in AD70. That is to say, what I’m about to say does not take away from the kingdom being already in existence before AD70.
The Old Testament speaks of the coming of the kingdom in several places, and we will take the space to note a few. The first is Isaiah 9. “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this” (Isaiah 9:6-7, emp. added). With what would the kingdom be ordered and established? Isaiah said “with judgement and justice.” This indicates that the kingdom would not come into its fullness until a time of judgement. As we will eventually see, this same idea is foreseen in the New Testament.
The second passage we will see is in Daniel 7. "I was watching; and the same horn was making war against the saints, and prevailing against them, until the Ancient of Days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom” (Daniel 7:21-22). 'But the court shall be seated, And they shall take away his dominion, To consume and destroy it forever. Then the kingdom and dominion, And the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, Shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, And all dominions shall serve and obey Him’” (Daniel 7:26-27). Once more, we see that the saints would receive full possession of the kingdom at a time of judgement. For those more familiar with the text in Daniel 7, this would take place in the time of the fourth beast (Rome).
We see then that the full coming of the kingdom and the time when the saints would be given possession is directly related to a time of judgement. Do the New Testament writers indicate the same thing? Let’s see!
“Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!" And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying: "We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, The One who is and who was and who is to come, Because You have taken Your great power and reigned. The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come, And the time of the dead, that they should be judged, And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, And those who fear Your name, small and great, And should destroy those who destroy the earth” (Revelation 11:15-18, emp. added). John saw the time of the coming of the kingdom to be inseparable with the time of reward and judgement.
Now, hear the words of Jesus, “For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works. Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom” (Matthew 16:27-28, emp. added). Just like in the Old Testament and in Revelation, Jesus connected the time of the kingdom to the time of the judgement. Why then should we separate the two? Allow me to show just two more passages on this subject of the kingdom and judgement.
"And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken [this is judgement language as seen in the lastarticle – DR]. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near." Then He spoke to them a parable: "Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place” (Luke 21:25-32).
Again, we have the coming of the kingdom connected with a time of judgement, but did you see something interesting about that passage and the one before? Jesus said in Matthew 16:27-28 that some of those listening to His speech would not die until they saw those things (judgement and the kingdom) come to pass. In like manner, in Luke, Jesus said that the generation to which He was speaking would not pass away until all of those things be fulfilled! What things? The coming of Jesus in His kingdom and judgement. That being said, notice this next passage from Paul’s writings to Timothy: “I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom…” (2 Timothy 4:1). Paul connects the appearing of Christ with the kingdom and judgement! The time indicators attached to the other two passages that talk about the same things apply to this passage as well.
If the kingdom was to come within the generation that the apostles were living, in what nature would it come? Fortunately, Jesus does not leave us in the dark concerning these matters. “Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, "The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!' For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:20-21). Wait a minute! Jesus said a few chapters earlier, “But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:27). So, would they see it or would they not? Obviously, they would, but not in the manner that we typically think of seeing – that is, not with observation! If the kingdom of God could come in the first century without being seen with physical eyes and still fulfill what Jesus said about those that would “see” the kingdom of God, then Jesus could return in the first century without observation and the verses that say that “every eye” would see Him are not any less true!
In fact, consider the questions below.
If Jesus’ kingdom would come without observation….
1. Why would the King coming in His kingdom be with observation? (Matthew 16:27-28; II Timothy 4:1)
2. Why would the throne be with observation? (Matthew 25:31; Revelation 20:11)
3. Why would the saints entering the kingdom be with observation? (Acts 14:22; II Peter 1:11)
4. Why would the judgement accompanying the coming of the kingdom be with observation? (Daniel 7:9-10l; Revelation 20:12)
Now, let’s turn our attention to the second appearing of Christ. We will focus in on the two verses presented at the beginning of the lesson and do our best to properly interpret them. First, we will notice Acts 1:10-11.
“Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, "Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" And He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:6-11).
The disciples had a question: “Is it time for the kingdom?”. It was a perfectly logical question considering that Jesus had spoken to them things concerning the kingdom and had even opened their minds to the scriptures (Luke 24:45; Acts 1:3). Jesus said that it was not for the disciples to know the times or seasons, but then He uses an interesting word: “but.” But what? “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." Why is this significant? Because Jesus already told them when the kingdom would fully come! If you remember back to Luke 21, Jesus said. “So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place” (Luke 21:31-32). Do you remember what would be one of the number one signs to indicate that the end had drawn near? “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14).
So, what Jesus is saying to them is this: “I’m not going to tell you the exact time or even the season that the kingdom will fully arrive, but I will send the Holy Spirit and He will be a sign for you as you preach the gospel to the whole world – then comes the end!” Why would Jesus say that it was not for them to know the times or seasons? Read these three verses.
“It shall be one day Which is known to the LORD Neither day nor night. But at evening time it shall happen That it will be light” (Zechariah 14:7).
“And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath” (Matthew 24:20).
"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only” (Matthew 24:36).
Paul also said, “But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, "Peace and safety!" then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief” (1 Thessalonians 5:1-4). Though the disciples would not know the specific day, hour, or even the season, they would know that it would come within their generation., and they knew that when they completed their preaching to the whole world, that the kingdom had drawn near.
After Jesus ascends, the angles say, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). As a side note, I used the phrase “in like manner” earlier in this essay to demonstrate the similarity of Jesus’s comments in Matthew 16:27-28 and Luke 21:32. Now, did Jesus make the exact same word for word statement, or was the general idea of the thought the same? Most likely, you probably did not think that I was lying when I used the phrase “in like manner” to compare Jesus’s comments. Here are some other times in scripture where the phrase “in like manner” is used in a similar way to how I did. We will be approaching this from the Greek, so feel free to use a concordance or Bible program to check our work!
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as [same word in the Greek – DR] a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” (Matthew 23:37).
“But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they” (Acts 15:11).
“Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith” (2 Timothy 3:8).
Think about this: was Jesus literally spreading forth a set of wings to gather together the children of Israel? Were the circumstances of Cornelius’s conversion exactly the same as that of Peter’s or one of the other Christians? Were the false teachers of Paul’s day resisting the preachers of the word in the exact same manner that Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses? Or were the general ideas of all these things the same? What did the angels mean? Jesus went to Heaven on the clouds and He was coming back on the clouds. We have already seen how the Olivet Discourse contains the same subject matter that was being discussed in Acts 1 (Holy Spirit – Luke 21:15; Preaching to all nations – Matthew 24:14; Kingdom – Luke 21:31). Did Jesus in the Olivet Discourse also predict the time when He would return in the clouds? “Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30). When would these things take place? “Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place” (Matthew 24:34). Therefore, Jesus’ coming in the clouds in like manner of Acts 1:7 was the same coming that He discussed in Matthew 24 and would take place in that first century generation.
Finally, we will examine Revelation 1:7 where John said, “Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen” (Revelation 1:7). Right off the bat we should notice again the theme of Jesus coming with the clouds. Already, this should bring our minds back to passages such as Matthew 24:30 and Acts 1:10-11. So, the issue isn’t “Did this take place in the first century?” because we have already established that! The question is, “how?” Remember, Jesus promised that the kingdom would come within His generation and the people would see it, but He then went on to say that the kingdom wouldn’t come with observation. Was He contradicting Himself? Of course, not. Why then should we force a woodenly literal interpretation on this passage? Notice the timing of when this would take place.
“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants – things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John” (Revelation 1:1).
“Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near” (Revelation 1:3).
“And he said to me, "Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand” (Revelation 22:10).
"Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book” (Revelation 22:7, 12, 20).
The time constraints of this passage are the same of the other second coming passages we have mentioned. Of course, even if the text didn’t say what it so plainly does, the text would still inherit the timing of the passages that speak of similar subject matter. We will now turn our attention to the prophetic background of this text – or, at least part of it! Where does the idea of “they who pierced Him” come from? Well, we know that John used that same quotation in John 19:37. The prophetic source of that message, however, is from Zechariah 12:10-12. Notice what the Bible says, “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn. In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. And the land shall mourn, every family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves” (Zechariah 12:10-12, emp. added). John, in Revelation 1:7, is referencing this text that speaks of the judgement of Jerusalem! Now we can clearly see what the subject of Revelation 1:7 is discussing: the same as the Olivet Discourse – that is, the fall of Jerusalem in AD70!
In conclusion, we have seen that the kingdom would not come with observation, but it would come at a time of judgement and it would still be seen! Jesus, likewise, would return in His unobservable kingdom just like He said: on the clouds! “But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him, "I put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!" Jesus said to him, "It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matthew 26:63-64).