As stated in Chapter 1, it is the nature
of prophecy to contain heavy symbolism. While the meanings of most biblical
symbols are defined in scripture, there are nevertheless different interpretations
of prophetic/eschatological passages among believers. (Eschatology
refers to the study of what the Bible calls the “last days”.) Unsettled
questions that contribute to differing interpretations include:
1) Which events described by scripture are
literal and which are symbolic?
2)
Have
documented historical events already fulfilled the passage?
3)
Will
future events fulfill them “better” or more literally?
4)
Could
there be more than one fulfillment of some passages?
Here are some competing eschatological
views:
1)
Futurists believe many passages concerning the
last days have yet to be fulfilled, including most of the book of Revelation,
Matthew 24, and many Old Testament passages that seem to describe events such
as the Battle of Armageddon, the Second Coming of Christ, and the Millennial
Kingdom.
2)
Preterists believe virtually all last days passages
were fulfilled at the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD and/or the centuries that
followed with the fall of the Roman Empire.
3)
Historicists believe many last days prophecies were
fulfilled throughout church history, particularly in the Middle Ages through
the papacy and the Roman Catholic Church.
4)
Multiple
Fulfillment Advocates
believe many last days prophecies have both legitimate past and future
fulfillments because it is the nature of biblical prophecy to sometimes repeat
or contain both spiritual and literal fulfillments.
5)
Symbolic/Spiritual
View Advocates
believe many prophetic passages, particularly in the book of Revelation,
generically illustrate the ongoing conflict between God’s kingdom and Satan’s
kingdom in ways that apply to every generation.
TO BE CONTINUED…