‍Matthew 24 - Part 3

In our examination of Matthew 24, we have arrived at verse 2, and I’ll read verses 1-2: “And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to [him] for to shew him the buildings of the temple. {2} And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

We want to keep in mind that in the historical context the disciples come to the Master to show him “...the buildings of the Temple,” which are physical structures that can typify the two outward representations of the Kingdom of God on earth - national Israel and the end-time churches and denominations. The Lord Jesus then uses this very occasion to teach a profound spiritual lesson regarding these two institutions, which are, in a sense, two sides of the same coin.

See Ye [blepo:G991] Not [ou:G3756]

The phrase “See ye not all these things” is an interesting one. Let’s consider the first part of this phrase, “See ye not…,” which is comprised of two terms, that appear together in 32 verses, and we will take a look at a few of them, in which their spiritual or parabolic emphasis is expressed by the way that God employs these two words together:

Matthew 13:13 and 17 are excellent illustrations of this, as they highlight the fundamental truth that only God can open the eyes (and ears) of the elect to the truths He had hidden in Scripture, which can only be understood spiritually, which is why the Lord “spoke in parables”: “Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing [blepo:G991] see [blepo:G991] not [ou:G3756]; and hearing they hear not [ou:G3756], neither do they understand. ... {17} For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous [men] have desired to see [those things] which ye see [blepo:G991], and have not [ou:G3756] seen [them]; and to hear [those things] which ye hear, and have not [ou:G3756] heard [them].”

John 11:9-10 refers to the “day of salvation” as “the day” or the “twelve hours in the day” - in contrast to our present “day of judgment” - which is typified as “the night”: “Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not [ou:G3756], because he seeth [blepo:G991] the light of this world. {10} But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because there is no light in him.” John 9:4 further explains that Christ is “the man” that is not “working” or saving people during the “night”: “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.”

Colossians 2:8 presents this warning as well: “Beware [blepo:G991]  lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition [paradosis:G3862] of men [anthropos:G444], after the rudiments of the world, and not [ou:G3756] after Christ.” Incidentally, the same two expressions, “the traditions” and “of men” only surface together in one other citation - in verse 8 of Mark 7:6-8, in which the Savior levels this charge against the religious leaders of his day: “He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with [their] lips, but their heart is far from me. {7} Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men. {8} For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition [paradosis:G3862]  of men [anthropos:G444], [as] the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.” 

All [pas:G3956] These Things [tauta:G50232]

The second half of the phrase, “See ye not all these things,” is “all these things” referring to the “buildings of the Temple,” and their spiritual downfall, as the rest of verse 2 underscores: “...There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” These two terms crop up three other times in this chapter, in verses 8 and 33-34, pinpointing the 23-year Great Tribulation of our day (May 21, 1988 - May 21, 2011) : “All [de:G1161/pas:G3956] these [tauta:G5023][are] the beginning of sorrows. ... {33} So likewise ye, when ye shall see all [pas:G3956] these things [tauta:G5023], know that it is near, [even] at the doors. {34} Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all  [pas:G3956]  these things [tauta:G5023] be fulfilled.”

Lord willing, next month we will examine the rest of verse two more closely.

Please Pray For The Following:

• For BMI’s monthly support that we are urgently in need of as we continue our daily programming, and work on the studio. You will notice that we have had to put multiple layers of rubber sealant on the floor, as water seeped in due to the heavy rains a few weeks ago. Our next step will be to put up all the lighting and electrical outlets.
  
  

‍

‍

• For Gunther as he will be co-leading a missions trip to Seville and Madrid Spain in May (3rd-16th) on behalf of E-Bible Fellowship and please pray that God will prepare those of His choosing to receive tracts in this effort to “feed God’s sheep.”

• Please note that we have a new schedule change for our Sunday programming:

              Sunday Bible Study:  1:00 PM - 2:00 PM (West Coast)/4:00 PM - 5:00 PM (East Coast)

Q&A (Audio Only): 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM (West Coast)/ 7:30 PM - 8:30 PM (EasTOTT | Bible Reading: 6:30 PM - 7:00 PM (West Coast)/9:30 PM - 10:00 PM (East Coast)