Imminency vs Prophecy

 

One common objection to the doctrine of the imminent return of Christ (as a thief- 1 Thes.5:1-2) is that if Jesus could have returned before Peter died (Jn.21:18-9, 2 Pt.1:14) or Paul bore witness before kings (Act 9:15-6,) then Jesus prophecies would have failed. And this simple point is managed with great verbose to be squeezed into large bodies of text fatiguing the spryest of readers. It is assumed that God could not have 2 potentially different outcomes based upon whatever contingencies He prescribes as God, else a contradiction ensues.

 

Let me offer a couple of counter examples to this imagination. Consider Isaiah 38. Hezekiah was told explicitly and without conditions, ”Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live.”(v1) Hezekiah wept sore entreating the mercies of God and the Lord sent Isaiah back “Go, and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith the Lord, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years.” (v5)

Consider Jonah. The Lord told him “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.”(1:2) After a slight detour he went “And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.” Notice the lack of any conditions in his proclamation- “And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.” (3:1-4) Was it over thrown in 40 days as the prophet declared? No, much to Jonah’s displeasure (4:1)

What about Eli? “And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Did I plainly appear unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's house? And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel? Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people? Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the Lord saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.” (1 Sam.2:27-30)

 I’m sure more examples could be given if we sought, but if we apply their standard to these prophets then they were likewise false. We could make Christ contradict himself if we applied this standard. In the Olivet discourse Christ told the disciples including Peter “ye shall hear of wars” (Mt.24:6), “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”(v9) “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet”(v15), “So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.” (v33) But I suppose in their minds Jesus in the same discourse gainsaid himself when he declared ”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.”(Lk.21:36) So will they see these things or can they escape?

Once reduced to absurdity we should consider that perhaps likewise in Christ’s revelation to Peter and Paul there was a condition not stated; an unstated ‘if he tarries’ then these things will surely happen.