Jesus’ Failed Prophecy?
A common objection to Christianity is that Jesus predicted the time of his return to earth after his death and that he predicted it to be within the generation of his hearers. Since he did not return as he said he would, with all the world seeing him come in the clouds, we see that he was a false prophet (Mark 13.28–30; Matt 24.30–34; Luke 21.27–32). The above meme show why this argument fails. This generation, the generation he is speaking to, shall not pass before all these things (the signs of his coming, not his actual retuning) take place.
This generation, the generation he is speaking to, shall not pass before all these things (the signs of his coming, not his actual retuning) take place.
It is also sometimes claimed that Jesus predicted his second coming within a generation or less in some other notable passages. For example, in Matthew 16.27–28 Jesus speaks of some of his hearers not dying before seeing the Son of man coming in his kingdom. But this could very easily refer to Jesus’ transfiguration before three of his disciples only a few days later. If it is objected that Jesus would have known this would occur in only a few days and would not have made it sound as though it might occur within a lifetime, we should remember that much of this information was kept from Jesus until it was about to occur. He may not have known when some of these events would occur (cf. Matt 24.36). Incarnated as a man, God the Son gave up his unlimited power and knowledge and was dependent upon God the Father to give him knowledge when it was needed or requested (John 5.19; Phil 2.6–8).
In another passage Jesus said his disciples would not go through all the towns of Judea before he returns (Matt 10.23). There are several events this could be referring to; he might have even been merely saying he would meet them on the way before they finish their current missionary journey. Though possible, this latter explanation seems unlikely. Would the Gospel writer have included this statement if it were truly such a trivial and spiritually useless bit of information? He might indeed have been speaking of his second advent but it could also be that he was speaking of the gospel message effectively reaching all the Jewish people. The Jewish people will not respond to him as a nation in mass (all of the Jewish towns will not be reached) until the end of the Gentile era when he returns to the earth. He said they will not see him again until they say, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” It is then that they will look on him whom they have pierced and weep for him as for a firstborn child (Zech 12.10; Matt 23.39, 24.30; Rom 11:26, 32; Rev 1.7). Though I think this is the better explanation, there are others which are possible. This merely shows that any claim to being a false prophecy simply fails.
Jesus could be "at the gate" and ready to return and still be delayed depending on God's determined plan.
Dennis Jensen, January 2024
Note: If the image and meme in this article are not available on your display, they may be described as follows:
A timeline begins with “Abraham ~2000 BC,” moves to the right to “Jerusalem destroyed AD 70,” and then on further to “Today ~AD 2000.” The time between Abraham and Jerusalem destroyed is marked, “Time of the Jews.” The time between Jerusalem destroyed and today is marked, “Time of the Gentiles.” Below the timeline is an open Bible with each set of pages indicating one of the two ages or eras of the Bible. Below this image is the following text.
“Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.” (Luke 21:24b)
If the time of Abraham’s descendants required an age of 2000 some years, should we expect that the time of the Gentiles would be any less before Jesus returns?
“They will see the Son of man coming in clouds . . . and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. . . .
29 When you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates.
30 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away before all these things take place.” (Mark 13:26, 27, 29, 30 RSV)
The “these things” of v30 refers to the “these things” of v29 (same word); that is, signs of Jesus’ coming, not his returning. All the signs (false Christs; tribulation; signs in the sun, moon, and stars; etc., vv22–25) may occur long before he returns. Jesus could be “at the gate” and ready to return and still be delayed depending on God’s determined plan. (See Robert Mounce, Why I Trust the Bible, 49–50.)
Here ends the text in this meme. However, we should note that the words “these things” in v29 and 30 are circled and an arrow points from the second “these things” to the first. This indicates that both are referring to the same things, the signs of Jesus’ retuning, not his returning.
