That passage in 1Thess is extremely similar in content to Matt 24 and Luke 21 (something that preterists will quickly point out). Fascinating stuff.
Andrew | 09.09.03 - 10:27 pm | #

I followed you with interest right up to the end, but I must take issue with the word "obvious." If it were obvious, I would have anticipated your saying the destruction of Jerusalem. I was left with, "Where did he get that?"

Jesus speaks of a time of tribulation the lies of which we have never seen nor will see again. Does 70 AD measure up? Was it worse than 586BC? Was it worse than the Holocaust?

I enjoy your writing and your reasoning and having no particular axe to swing am more open than most, but the events of 70 AD are far too typical to be obvious.
Don Curtis | Homepage | 09.10.03 - 9:40 am | #

Don,

I will write about the destruction of Jerusalem later in the course, and you can reach your own conclusions. I think it had a vastly more significant role in redemptive history than the holocaust, but whether it was "worse" is hard to say.

Maybe "obvious" is not the best word, but I did say is was obvious to some, and I did not say it should be obvious to all-- it depends on your presuppositions. Since I have a partial-preterist perspective, it seems "clear enough" (is that a better wording?) to me!
David Heddle | Homepage | 09.10.03 - 4:43 pm | #