A Different View of Matthew 24
“A striking feature of all this writing” (the New Testament) “ is that it was dine in the street language of the day, the idiom of the playground and marketplace. In the Greek-speaking world of that day there were two levels of language: formal and informal. Formal language was used to write philosophy and history, government decrees and epic poetry. If someone were to sit down and consciously write for posterity, it would be in this formal language with its learned vocabulary and precise diction. But if the writing was routine – shopping lists, family letters, bills and receipts – it was written in the common, informal idiom of everyday speech, street language.
“And this is the language used throughout the New Testament.”
“The goal is not to render a word-for-word conversion of Greek into English, but rather to convert the tone, the rhythm, the events, the ideas, into the way we actually think and speak.”
From the introduction to “The Message, the New Testament in Contemporary Language” by Eugene H. Preston.
I got going on this by a recent thread on the Watchtower changing its understanding on the Earthquakes mentioned in the so-called sign of the last days. “The Message” presents an entirely different interpretation of Jesus’ words. This intrepretation raises a number of questions in my mind about how Christians ought to view “the last days.”
Here are some of the relevant portions of Matthew chapter twenty-four. (Note – Preston does not use verse numbers.)
“Later as he was sitting on Mount Olives, his disciples approached and asked him, ‘Tell us, when are these things going to happen? What will be the sign of your coming, that the time’s up?’
“Jesus said, ‘Watch out for doomsday deceivers. Many leaders are going to show up with forged identities, claiming ‘I am Christ, the Messiah.’ They will deceive a lot of people. When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don’t panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. Nation will fight nation, and ruler fight ruler, over and over. Famines and earthquakes will occur in various places. This is nothing compared to what is coming.”
{I’m skipping a couple of verses for clarity}
“In the confusion, lying preachers will come forward and deceive a lot of people.”
{I’m skipping a couple of verses for clarity}
“If anyone tries to flag you down, calling out, ‘Here’s the Messiah!’ or points, ‘There he is!’ don’t fall for it. Fake Messiahs and lying preachers are going to pop up everywhere. Their impressive credentials and dazzling performances will pull the wool over the eyes of even those who ought to know better. But I’ve given you fair warning.
“ So if they say, ‘Run to the country and see him arrive!’ or ‘Quick, get downtown, see Him come,’ don’t give them the time of day. The Arrival of the Son of Man isn’t something you go to see. He comes like swift lightening to you.”
{I’m skipping a couple of verses for clarity}
“Then the Arrival of the Son of Man! It will fill the skies – no one will miss it.”
This view of these passages takes the exact opposite approach than that taken by the Watchtower. The various signs discussed are not “the sign of the end,” they are just the normal course of events. Rather than telling us what we are to be looking for in world events, Jesus is telling us that none of these thinks presage His arrival. We are to be focused on our walk with Him, not trying to predict the future. The long standing belief of the Watchtower that their interpretation of these verses is proof that we are in the last days is simply wrong.
This then gives special impetus to Jesus next statement about being wary of false claims to be the Messiah. He can state emphatically that all such ones are false, because when He does return it will be an event even nonbelievers will see and understand. This utterly refutes the Watchtower understanding of an invisible “presence.”
While it is easy to point to the likes of David Koresh or Jim Jones and say they are falsely claiming to be God, can it be said that the Watchtower has made similar claims? I say the answer is yes.
“And while now the witness yet includes the invitation to come to Jehovah’s organization for salvation…” WT 11/15/81
“To keep in relationship with ‘Our Savior, God,’ the ‘great crowd’ needs to remain united with the remnant of spiritual Israelites.” WT 11/15/79
“So in this strict Biblical sense Jesus is the mediator only for anointed Christians…The ‘great crowd’ of ‘other sheep’ that is forming today is not in that new covenant. However by associating with the ‘little flock’ of those yet in that covenant they come under the benefits that flow from that new covenant.” WT 4/1/79
“They recognize that they are not spiritual Israelites in the new covenant mediated by Jesus Christ.” WT 11/15/79
“However for God to answer our prayers for his spirit we must meet his conditions, among which is that we must recognize the visible channel he is using for that very purpose.” WT 7/1/65
By these words the Watchtower, in my view, usurps the proper place of Jesus in a Christians life. In order to obtain salvation we must follow the Watchtower; to have a relationship with God, we must remain united with the Watchtower and its followers. Jesus said He was the way, the truth and the life; not a publishing corporation attempting to steal His seat.
A final point, a question I’d like to ask of a witness (or anybody else that thinks we are in the last days):
What difference does it make? If you knew for certain that the end of the world was tomorrow would you change what you are doing? What about if you knew for certain that it was ten thousand years away? If you are a Christian, you should be doing what you do because you love God. That shouldn’t change based on one’s understanding of some cosmic calendar.