The Dispensations of God’s Plan
Alan Plumley
Foundational Interpretive Issue: Whether the Church has replaced Israel
I. Objectives
A. Show that they are & will continue to be distinct (I’ll read a lot of Scripture)
That will pave the way for our subsequent speakers, who will provide an overview of the future of both Israel and the Church.
B. Provide an overview of God’s revealed plan for the future (an overview of the overviews)
C. Help you to appreciate how God has revealed His own character through His plan
II. God Has a Sovereign Plan for Man That is Not Contingent on Man’s Choices
[Start in Genesis]
[After His resurrection, Jesus showed Himself in the O.T. to His disciples.]
A. The Curse of the Serpent
(Genesis 3:15) “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel.”
1. God knows the end from the beginning.
2. God’s plan is not frustrated by man.
(Ephesians 1:3-6) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.
(2 Timothy 1:8-9, NKJV) Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began….
B. Abrahamic Covenant
(Genesis 12:1-3) Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go forth from your
country, and from your relatives and from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you; and I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”
(Genesis 12:7) The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your
descendants I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the LORD who had appeared to him.
(Genesis 13:14-17) The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Now lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward; for all the land which you see, I will give it to you and to your descendants forever. I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth, so that if anyone can number the dust of the earth, then your descendants can also be numbered. Arise, walk about the land through its length and breadth; for I will give it to you.”
(Genesis 15:5-7) And He took him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness. And He said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess it.”
(Genesis 15:18) On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram,
saying, “To your descendants I have given this land, From the river of
Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:”
1. Three Parts [Repeated more times, and to Isaac and Jacob]
a. Descendants
b. Blessing
c. Land [The Promised Land]
2. Three Characteristics
a. Unilateral
b. Unconditional
c. Unfulfilled [Israel has not yet occupied all of the promised land.]
C. The Mosaic Covenant
(Exodus 19:3-8) Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain, saying, "Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob and tell the sons of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself. ‘Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel." So Moses came and called the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which the LORD had commanded him. All the people answered together and said, "All that the LORD has spoken we will do!" And Moses brought back the words of the people to the LORD.
(Deuteronomy 28:1-2, 15) "Now it shall be, if you diligently obey the
LORD your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I
command you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the
nations of the earth. All these blessings will come upon you and overtake
you if you obey the LORD your God:…”
(v. 15) "But it shall come about, if you do not obey the LORD your God, to observe to do all His commandments and His statutes with which I charge you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:…”
1. Unilateral
2. Conditional
3. Fulfilled
(Matthew 5:17) “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the
Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.”
D. What’s the relationship between the Abrahamic & Mosaic Covenants?
(Galatians 3:15-4:7) Brethren, I speak in terms of human relations: even
though it is only a man’s covenant, yet when it has been ratified, no one sets it aside or adds conditions to it. Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, "And to seeds," as referring to many, but rather to one, "And to your seed," that is, Christ. [Gen 17:7 “seed” (KJV) is “descendants” in NASB, here and most places. Can mean singular or plural.] What I am saying is this: the Law, which came four hundred and thirty years later, does not invalidate a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to nullify the promise. For if the inheritance is based on law, it is no longer based on a promise; but God has granted it to Abraham by means of a promise. Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made.
[The period of the Law was temporary, and ended with Christ.] Now a
mediator is not for one party only; whereas God is only one. Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law. But the Scripture has shut up everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. [Referring to the
Church.] And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise. [So, at least some of the descendants promised to Abraham were (like us) descendants by faith, not by the flesh.] Now I say, as long as the heir is a child, he does not differ at all from a slave although he is owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by the father. So also we, while we were children, were held in bondage under the elemental things of the world. [i.e., the Law] But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" [Those in the Church are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, which was not generally true of O.T. believers.] Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.
E. There is still a future for Israel (because of the promise to Abraham)
(Romans 9:1-8) I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my
conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but: "THROUGH ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED." That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants. [Not Ishmael, Not Esau, Not even all Israelites]
(Romans 9:22-24) What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath [e.g., unsaved Israelites] prepared for destruction? And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles. [Both Jews and Gentiles to be saved]
(Romans 10:19-11:5) But I say, surely Israel did not know, did they? First Moses says, "I WILL MAKE YOU JEALOUS BY THAT WHICH IS NOT A NATION, BY A NATION WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING [i.e.,
Gentiles] WILL I ANGER YOU." And Isaiah is very bold and says, "I WAS
FOUND BY THOSE WHO DID NOT SEEK ME, I BECAME MANIFEST
TO THOSE WHO DID NOT ASK FOR ME." But as for Israel He says,
"ALL THE DAY LONG I HAVE STRETCHED OUT MY HANDS TO A
DISOBEDIENT AND OBSTINATE PEOPLE." [Looks bad for Israel,
but…]
(11:1) I say then, God has not rejected His people, has He? May it never be! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? "Lord, THEY HAVE KILLED YOUR PROPHETS, THEY HAVE TORN DOWN YOUR ALTARS, AND I ALONE AM LEFT, AND THEY ARE SEEKING MY LIFE." But what is the divine response to him? "I HAVE KEPT for Myself SEVEN THOUSAND MEN WHO HAVE NOT BOWED THE KNEE TO BAAL."
In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time a remnant according to God’s gracious choice. [Jewish Christians, or
Israel?….]
(Romans 11:13-36) But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry, if somehow I might move to jealousy my fellow countrymen and save some of them.
[That is, that they would become part of the Church] For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too. But if some of the branches were broken off [i.e., unbelieving Israelites excluded from God’s “tree”], and you, being a wild olive [i.e., Gentiles], were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you. [The Church is joined with believing Israel—not the other way around.] You will say then, "Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in." Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear; for if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you, either. Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree? [He’s obviously not talking about Jews entering the Church, but rather Jews being grafted back again into the people of God by faith.] For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery--so that you will not be wise in your own estimation--that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has
come in; and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, "THE
DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, HE WILL REMOVE
UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB." "THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH
THEM, WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS." From the standpoint of
the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of
God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. [God will be faithful to His
promises to Abraham, etc.] For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience, so these also now have been disobedient, that because of the mercy shown to you they also may now be shown mercy. For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all. [Does that seem hard to understand?] Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.
F. The Davidic Covenant
(2 Samuel 7:8-16) "Now therefore, thus you [Nathan] shall say to My
servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, "I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be ruler over My people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make you a great name, like the names of the great men who are on the earth. I will also appoint a place for My people Israel and will plant them, that they may live in their own place and not be disturbed again, nor will the wicked afflict them any more as formerly, even from the day that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. The LORD also declares to you that the LORD will make a house for you. When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name [refers, in part, to Solomon], and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever [this can’t refer to Solomon]. I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men [this does refer to Solomon], but My lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever [this can’t be refering to Solomon]."’"
(Isaiah 9:6-7) For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and
the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this. [The Messiah will reign on David’s throne forever.]
(Jeremiah 33:14-26) ‘Behold, days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will fulfill the good word which I have spoken concerning the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth [i.e., the Messiah]; and He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth [not in heaven]. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell in safety; and this is the name by which she will be called: the LORD is our righteousness.’ "For thus says the LORD, ‘David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel; and the Levitical priests shall never lack a man before Me to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings and to prepare sacrifices continually.’" [Can that be fulfilled by the Church? No. Has it been fulfilled yet? No.] The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, "Thus says the LORD, ‘If you can break My covenant for the day and My covenant for the night, so that day and night will not be at their appointed time, then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant so that he will not have a son to reign on his throne, and with the Levitical priests, My ministers. ‘As the host of heaven cannot be counted and the sand of the sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the descendants of David My servant and the Levites who
minister to Me.’" [This is referring to the nation of Israel.] And the word of
the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, "Have you not observed what this
people have spoken, saying, ‘The two families which the LORD chose, He has rejected them’? Thus they despise My people, no longer are they as a nation in their sight. [i.e., people concluding that God has given up on Judah and Israel] "Thus says the LORD, ‘If My covenant for day and night stand not, and the fixed patterns of heaven and earth I have not established, then I would reject the descendants of Jacob and David My servant, not taking from his descendants rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy on them.’" [This is not talking about Jews entering the Church, but rather Israel as a nation being ruled by the Messiah, the son of David.]
(Ezekiel 34:17-31) "As for you, My flock, thus says the Lord GOD,
‘Behold, I will judge between one sheep and another, between the rams and the male goats. Is it too slight a thing for you that you should feed in the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the rest of your pastures? Or that you should drink of the clear waters, that you must foul the rest with your feet? As for My flock, they must eat what you tread down with your feet and drink what you foul with your feet!’" Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD to them, "Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you push with side and with shoulder, and thrust at all the weak with your horns until you have scattered them abroad, therefore, I will deliver My flock, and they will no longer be a prey; and I will judge between one sheep and another. [i.e., believing vs. unbelieving Israelites] Then I will set over them one shepherd, My servant David, and he will feed them; he will feed them himself and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and My servant David will be prince among them; I the LORD have spoken. I will make a covenant of peace with them and eliminate harmful beasts from the land so that they may live securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing. And I will cause showers to come down in their season; they will be showers of blessing.
Also the tree of the field will yield its fruit and the earth will yield its
increase, and they will be secure on their land. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bars of their yoke and have delivered them from the hand of those who enslaved them. They will no longer be a prey to the nations, and the beasts of the earth will not devour them; but they will live securely, and no one will make them afraid. I will establish for them a renowned planting place, and they will not again be victims of famine in the land, and they will not endure the insults of the nations anymore. Then they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are My people," declares the Lord GOD.
"As for you, My sheep, the sheep of My pasture, you are men, and I am your God," declares the Lord GOD.
(Ezekiel 37:19-28) say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, "Behold, I will
take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will put them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand."’ "The sticks on which you write will be in your hand before their eyes. "Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, "Behold, I will take the sons of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king will be king for all of them; and they will no longer be two nations and no longer be divided into two kingdoms. [This can’t be the Church.] They will no longer defile themselves with their idols, or with their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. And they will be My people, and I will be their God. My servant David [i.e., the Messiah, the son of David, in fulfillment of the covenant with David] will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd; and they will walk in My ordinances and keep My statutes and observe them. They will live on the land that I gave to Jacob My servant, in which your fathers lived; and they will live on it, they, and their sons and their sons’ sons, forever; and David My servant will be their prince forever. I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever. My dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people. And the nations will know that I am the LORD who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever."’" [Not surprising that at the time of Christ, the Jews were waiting for this to happen.]
(Luke 1:30-33) The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the
throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end." [The Church, here, is still a mystery!]
(Acts 1:4-11) Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, "Which," He said, "you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, "Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?" He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven."
1. Unilateral
2. Unconditional
3. Unfulfilled
G. The Church: A Mystery—in the O.T. Concealed, but in the N.T. Revealed
1. Jesus spoke of building the Church in the future
(Matthew 16:15-18) He *said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”
2. The Church is founded on the N.T. apostles and prophets
(Ephesians 2:11-3:11) Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called "Uncircumcision" by the so-called
"Circumcision," which is performed in the flesh by human hands--
remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity. AND HE CAME AND PREACHED PEACE TO YOU WHO WERE FAR AWAY, AND PEACE TO THOSE WHO WERE NEAR; for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you [N.T. believers] are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets [the N.T. prophets], Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.
(3:1) For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles-- if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace which was given to me for you; that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery, as I wrote before in brief. By referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit; to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body [i.e., the Church], and fellow partakers of the promise [i.e., the promise to Abraham] in Christ Jesus through the gospel, of which I was made a minister, according to the gift of God’s grace which was given to me according to the working of His power. To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord,” So, the Church participates in the promises to Abraham, but the church is not founded on Abraham—but rather on Christ, and His holy apostles
and prophets.
3. People enter the Church by being baptized by the Holy Spirit, and are
then indwelt by the Holy Spirit—neither of which was true of O.T.
believers.
(1 Corinthians 12:13) For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
(Romans 8:9) However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.
H. Summary
1. God has a future plan for the nation of Israel, in which Christ will rule
over them on David’s throne in Jerusalem.
2. In the meantime, God is saving both Jews and Gentiles, and placing them into the Church.
3. Salvation has always been and always will be by grace alone through
faith alone.
4. The Abrahamic Covenant will be fulfilled both by the Church and (on the land) by the remnant of Israel.
5. Eventually, the saved of the nation of Israel and the Church (made up of both Jews and Gentiles) will be one people of God (one tree).
6. God is sovereign, omniscient, eternal, faithful, gracious
III. God’s Timetable – Dispensations
(Daniel 9:20-27) Now while I was speaking and praying, and confessing
my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication
before the LORD my God in behalf of the holy mountain of my God, while I was still speaking in prayer, then the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision previously, came to me in my extreme weariness about the time of the evening offering. He gave me instruction and talked with me and said, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you insight with understanding. At the beginning of your supplications the command was issued, and I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed; so give heed to the message and gain understanding of the vision. Seventy weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the most holy place. 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. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined. And he will make
a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the
week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate.”
A. 70 weeks = 70 sevens of years = 490 years
B. 69 weeks = 483 lunar years from the decree to restore Jerusalem until the Messiah was cut off (crucified). This was the conclusion of the dispensation of the Law.
C. Between the crucifixion of Christ and the beginning of the 70th week, there is an undetermined amount of time, after which the events foretold for the nation of Israel will resume. That interval, or dispensation, is the Church Age, which was a mystery in the O.T.—sometimes referred to as a “parentheses” between the 69th and 70th weeks. It can end at any time, with the Rapture of the Church—the first resurrection.
D. The last week of 7 years will then unfold. It is for Daniel’s people, the
nation of Israel. It is elsewhere called the Tribulation period—a distinct
dispensation on God’s timetable.
E. During the Tribulation week, the Church will receive her final purification, appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ, and celebrate her marriage to the Lamb, her Head, the Lord Jesus Christ. [Jacob/Israel’s marriage celebration lasted one week.] O.T. believers will apparently be the guests invited to the wedding.
F. At the end of the 70th week, Christ will return in victory and judgment. This is the Second Coming, and will usher in a 1,000-year dispensation called the Millennium, during which Satan will be bound in prison, Christ will reign on the throne of David in Jerusalem, and His Bride, the Church, will reign with Him over the remnant of the nation of Israel, who will place saving faith in their Messiah.
G. At the end of the 1,000 years, Satan will be released from prison, and incite one last rebellion against Christ, Who will defeat the rebellion. Satan and his colleagues will be banished forever to the lake of fire, and the bodies of all unbelievers will be raised to appear before the Great White Throne of judgment, then sent to their eternal home—the lake of fire. For believers, there will be a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem, and Christ will reign forever.
Pesquisa: Pastor Charles Maciel Vieira
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