The Parousia

An In-Depth Study on the Second Coming of Christ

The Parousia

Why Believe in the Second Coming?

―I will come again.‖ - Jesus, John 14:3

Why Believe in the Second Coming?

―Paul, himself showed . . . That he was among those awaited the imminent return of Christ. Yet, as the history that era

clearly shows, all was for naught. No messiah appeared. . . . The NT repeatedly says the messiah was to return in a very short time. Yet, mankind has waited for nearly 2,000

years and nothing has occurred. By no stretch of the imagination can that be considered ―coming quickly.‖ . . . It is, indeed, unfortunate that millions of people still cling to the forlorn hope that somehow a messiah will arise to extract

them from their predicament. How many years (2,000, 10,000, 100,000) will it take for them to finally say, ‗We can

only conclude that we are the victims of a cruel hoax?‖ - Dennis McKinsey, ―Immanence‖ in Biblical Errancy, May 1990

―Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking,

following after their own lusts, and saying, ―Where is the promise of His coming?

For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning

of creation.‖ ‖ (2 Peter 3:3–4)

Two main reasons:

1. The prophetic claims and track record of Scripture

2. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead

A Look at a Few General Prophetic Examples

―No prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men

moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God."

-2 Peter 1:21

The Restoration of Israel

―Then it will happen on that day that the Lord will again recover the second time with His hand the remnant of His people, who will remain,

from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And He will lift up a standard for the

nations and assemble the banished ones of Israel, and will gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.‖

-Isaiah 11:11-12

―Before she travailed, she brought forth; Before her pain came, she gave birth to a boy. ―Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Can a land be born in one day? Can a nation be brought forth

all at once? As soon as Zion travailed, she also brought forth her sons. ‖

(Isaiah 66:7–8)

The Dispersion/Restoration of Israel

• Israel was taken over first by the Assyrians who came and deported 10 of the 12 Jewish tribes into captivity. A second deportation followed in 587 B.C. consisting of survivors in Jerusalem (2 Kings 25:11). Finally, Jeremiah 52:30 records a third Assyrian deportation that occurred in 582 B.C.

• Around 587 B.C., the Babylonians captured Jerusalem and took the Jewish tribes of Judah and Benjamin away. For many years they were subject to the Persians, Greeks and Romans.

• In A.D. 70, Titus and the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the Jews were scattered to the nations

• The Jews have always faced opposition wherever they went (e.g. Russia, Germany, etc.)

The Dispersion/Restoration of Israel

• World War I prepared the land for the Jews as control of the land passed from the Turks to Britain. The Holocaust then motivated the Jews to return. In May 1948, the nation of Israel was re-established just as God had predicted in Isaiah 11. What Biblical scholars had pointed to for many years (and laughed at because of it) happened.

• On May 14, 1948 Israel declared her independence and the nation was recognized and established in one day as Isaiah said. The very next day, the nation was attacked and the war of her independence was fought just as predicted also (with the birth pains coming after the birth).

Daniel‘s Rise and Fall of Kingdoms

―I was looking in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea. ―And four great beasts were coming up from the sea, different from one another.

―The first was like a lion and had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man; a

human mind also was given to it. ―And behold, another beast, a second one, resembling a bear. And it was raised up on one side, and three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth; and thus they said to it, ‗Arise, devour much meat!‘ ―After this I kept looking, and behold, another one, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird; the beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it. ―After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured

and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet‖ (Daniel 7:1–8)

Daniel‘s Rise and Fall of Kingdoms

• The lion represented Babylon, which was in power during the time of the vision • The bear is Medo-Persia. The side raised up represents dominance the Persians

demonstrated over the Medes. The 3 ribs were Lydia, Babylon, and Egypt, which were conquered by the bear

• The leopard is Greece. Four wings represent the swiftness of Greece and Alexander the Great. The four heads represent the four-fold division of Greece‘s power after Alexander‘s death

• The final beast is Rome, which was more destructive than any before it • Daniel‘s prophecies are so precise about Antiochus Epiphanies that critics claim it could

only have been written after the fact. The fact that the Septuagint (the Greek Old Testament) was written in 280 BC and included Daniel proves its historicity

• Another strong piece of evidence is Jesus‘ own words as he clearly calls Daniel a prophet (cf. Matt. 24) and refers to his future prophecies

―And when the Book of Daniel was showed him [Alexander the Great] wherein Daniel declared that one of

the Greeks should destroy the empire of the Persians, he supposed that himself was the person intended. And as he was then glad, he dismissed the multitude for the present; but the next day he called them to him, and bid them ask

what favors they pleased of him; whereupon the high priest desired that they might enjoy the laws of their forefathers, and might pay no tribute on the seventh year. He granted

all they desired. And when they entreated him that he would permit the Jews in Babylon and Media to enjoy their own laws also, he willingly promised to do hereafter what they

desired. " -Josephus, Antiquities, Chapter 11

The Desolation of Tyre ―Now in the eleventh year, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me saying, ―Son of man,

because Tyre has said concerning Jerusalem, ‗Aha, the gateway of the peoples is broken; it has opened to me. I shall be filled, now that she is laid waste,‘ therefore thus says the Lord God, ‗Behold, I am against you, O

Tyre, and I will bring up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves. ‗They will destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers; and I will scrape her debris from her and make her a bare rock. ‗She will be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea, for I have spoken,‘ declares the Lord God, ‗and she will

become spoil for the nations. ‗Also her daughters who are on the mainland will be slain by the sword, and they will know that I am the Lord.‘ ‖ For thus says the Lord God, ―Behold, I will bring upon Tyre from the north

Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses, chariots, cavalry and a great army. ―He will slay your daughters on the mainland with the sword; and he will make siege walls against you, cast up a ramp against you and raise up a large shield against you. ―The blow of his battering rams he will direct against your walls, and

with his axes he will break down your towers. ―Because of the multitude of his horses, the dust raised by them will cover you; your walls will shake at the noise of cavalry and wagons and chariots when he enters your gates as

men enter a city that is breached. ―With the hoofs of his horses he will trample all your streets. He will slay your people with the sword; and your strong pillars will come down to the ground. ―Also they will make a spoil of your

riches and a prey of your merchandise, break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses, and throw your stones and your timbers and your debris into the water. ―So I will silence the sound of your songs, and the

sound of your harps will be heard no more. ―I will make you a bare rock; you will be a place for the spreading of nets. You will be built no more, for I the Lord have spoken,‖ declares the Lord God. Thus says the Lord God to Tyre, ―Shall not the coastlands shake at the sound of your fall when the wounded groan, when the slaughter

occurs in your midst? ―Then all the princes of the sea will go down from their thrones, remove their robes and strip off their embroidered garments. They will clothe themselves with trembling; they will sit on the ground,

tremble every moment and be appalled at you. ‖ (Ezekiel 26:1–16)

The Desolation of Tyre

• According to Josephus, 1-2 years after Ezekiel‘s prophecy, Nebuchadnezzar besieged Tyre for 13 years (585-573 BC)

• Most of the Tyrians had fled to Tyre‘s island to escape • In 332 BC, Alexander the Great came against Tyre, but had no navy to

reach the holdout‘s on the island of Tyre • Alexander employed tens of thousands of his men and the surrounding

nations to destroy the city of Tyre. • They dumped the debris of Tyre into the sea and built a causeway to the

island of Tyre • Once there, Alexander slaughtered those on the island • Tyre has not been rebuilt to this day and is simply a fishing village

A Look at Messianic Prophecies

―Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the

things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures. ‖ (Luke 24:27)

• Prophecy takes up 1/5 of the Scripture • Of that 1/5, 1/3 refers to the 2nd coming of Christ • There are over 660 general prophecies • There are 224 prophecies about His second coming • Of the 46 Old Testament prophets, less than 10 of them speak of His first

coming, but 36 speak of His second coming • There are 1500 passages in Old Testament that refer to 2nd coming • 1 out 25 verses in New Testament refer to 2nd coming • For every time the Bible mentions His first coming, it mentions His 2nd

coming 8 times • For each time the Atonement is mentioned once, the 2nd coming is mentioned

twice • Jesus refers to His 2nd coming 21 times • Over 50 times He tells Christians to get ready for His 2nd coming

―You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these

that testify about Me‖ (John 5:39)

Prophecies concerning Christ‘s First Coming

300 total prophecies that concern the Messiah‘s first coming

108 distinct prophecies that concern the Messiah‘s first coming

All fulfilled in the life of Jesus of Nazareth

Peter Stoner in Science Speaks calculates the odds of just eight prophecies being accidently fulfilled in the life of one man.

1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000 (one hundred quadrillion: 1017)

Statisticians say anything past 1 to 1050 power is no chance. This is exceeded once 20 fulfilled prophecies is considered (and Jesus fulfilled 108).

―Jesus deliberately lived in a way to fulfill all those prophecies…!‖

―So you are to know and discern that from the issuing of a decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; it will be

built again, with plaza and moat, even in times of distress. Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will

destroy the city and the sanctuary.‖ - Daniel 9:25-26, 500 B.C.

Clock began in 445 B.C. with Artaxerxes allowing Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem.

449 442 435 428 14 21 28 35

1 2 3 67 68 69

Sabbatical Years 70

BC AD

The Timeframe of Messiah‘s Birth

The Place of Messiah‘s Birth

―But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity.‖ - Micah 5:2, 700 B.C.

―Before the mountains were born or You gave birth to the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.‖ - Psalm 90:2

―Joseph also went up … to Bethlehem … While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth.‖ - Luke 2:4-6

―olam‖

―Then the Lord said to me, 'Throw it to the potter, that magnificent price at which I was valued by them.' So I took the thirty shekels of silver and threw them to the potter in the

house of the Lord.‖ – Zechariah 11:13, 500 B.C.

―Then one of the twelve, named Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, ‗What are you willing to give me to betray Him to you?‘ And they weighed out thirty pieces of silver to

him. ‖ – Matthew 27:14-15

―Even my close friend in whom I trusted, Who ate my bread, Has lifted up his heel against me.‖ – Psalm 41:9, 900 B.C.

The Messiah‘s Betrayal

―Jesus then answered, ―That is the one for whom I shall dip the morsel and give it to him.‖ So when He had dipped the morsel, He took and gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. ‖

(John 13:26)

The Messiah‘s Murder

―They pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me; They divide my garments among them, And for my clothing they cast

lots.‖ – Psalm 22:16, 900 B.C.

―And when they had crucified Him, they divided up His garments among themselves by casting lots.‖ – Matthew 27:35

―…they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son…‖ – Zechariah 12:10, 500 B.C.

The Messiah‘s Resurrection

―For you will not leave my soul in Sheol; nor will You allow Your Holy One to see decay.‖ – Psalm 16:10, 900 B.C.

―Jesus answered them, ‗Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.‘‖ – John 2:19

―The angel said to the women, 'Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said.

Come, see the place where He was lying.‗‖ – Matthew 28:5-6

• The Messiah would come through the line of Abraham, Judah, and David (Genesis 12:2, Genesis 49:10, 2 Samuel 7:12-16)

• The Messiah would come before Judah‘s scepter departed (Gen. 49:10) • The Messiah would be preceded by a messenger (Malachi 3:1). • The Messiah would come to his people mounted on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9). • The Messiah would be virgin born (Isaiah 7:14) • The Messiah would be of the line of David (Isa. 11:1-5) • The Messiah would perform miracles (Isaiah 35:5-6) • The Messiah would remain silent/suffer at the hands of men (Isaiah 53). • The Messiah would be disfigured at the hands of men (Isaiah 52). • The Messiah would have no bone broken (Psalm 34:20). • The Messiah would be buried with the rich (Isaiah 53:9). • The Messiah would ascend to Heaven (Psalm 68:18; Luke 24:50-53)

Other Key Messianic Prophecies

The Verdict?

• The Old Testament predicted that the Messiah would come and made numerous claims about Him

• The Messiah would be God Himself • Jesus fulfilled every Old Testament prophecy • The odds of such fulfillment are zero chance • Many if not most of the prophecies were out of Jesus‘ hands • The supernatural nature of the Bible is confirmed

―For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.‖ (Revelation 19:10)

More Evidence – Jesus‘ Olivet Discourse

• In His Olivet discourse (cf. Matt. 24), Jesus predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and the complete leveling of the temple

• About 40 years later in A.D. 70, to crush a Jewish revolt (which was precipitated by tension between the Jews and Greeks), Titus and the Roman army attacked Jerusalem and murdered many Jews (Josephus records 1.1 million died). The Jews were then taken captive and pushed into all the nations. The Romans also burned the temple, with the fire becoming so hot that the stones literally crumbled. The Romans sifted through the rubble to obtain the gold and precious stones from the temple and shoveled all debris aside, fulfilling Jesus prophecy of not one stone being left upon another:

• Fulfilled prophecy demonstrates the omniscience of God

• Fulfilled prophecy demonstrates that the Bible is a supernatural Book

• Fulfilled prophecy demonstrates that Jesus is the Messiah and God

• Fulfilled prophecy gives Christians confidence in the future predictions that the Bible makes

―Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and

there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times

things which have not been done, Saying, ‗My purpose will be established, And I will

accomplish all My good pleasure‘; ‖ (Isaiah 46:9–10)

"I see many contradictory religions, and consequently all false save one. Each wants to be believed on its own authority, and threatens

unbelievers. I do not therefore believe them. Every one can say this; every one can call

himself a prophet. But I see that Christian religion wherein prophecies are fulfilled; and

that is what every one cannot do." -Blaise Pascal

Evidence from Jesus‘ Resurrection

Jesus‘ Promises about His Coming ―Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe

also in Me. ―In My Father‘s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a

place for you. ―If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you

may be also. ‖ (John 14:1–3)

―I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. ‖

(John 14:18)

But why trust what Jesus said…?

―no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as Jonah was three days and three

nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days

and three nights in the heart of the earth.‖ (Matthew 12:38-40)

"who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of

holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,"(Romans 1:4)

The Proof of Christ‘s Word

―Our Saviour‘s resurrection is truly of

great importance in Christianity, so great that His being or not

being the Messiah stands or falls with it.‖

- John Locke

―Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to

all men by raising Him from the dead.‖ (Acts 17:30–31)

The Proof of God‘s Prophetic Word

Two main reasons:

1. The prophetic claims and track record of Scripture – it has never been wrong

2. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead – it confirms Christ‘s divinity and His truthfulness

―For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, ―This is My beloved

Son with whom I am well-pleased‖— and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven

when we were with Him on the holy mountain. So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which

you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star

arises in your hearts. ‖ (2 Peter 1:17–19)

―Surely the Lord God does nothing unless He reveals His secret counsel to His servants the

prophets.‖ (Amos 3:7)

God has told us what is going to happen in the future by revealing His knowledge to His prophets who have, in turn, given them to us via

God‘s inerrant Word.

The Parousia

Why Believe in the Second Coming?