The Practical Approach
The fear of the Lord is the instruction for wisdom, and before honor comes humility. - Proverbs 15:33
Welcome back, friends! In this installment we'll take a look at a practical approach to studying Bible prophecy. But before we do, a quick word about our heart posture towards this subject.
In almost every instance of Scripture where the Lord gives His prophets or apostles prophetic revelation, the recepient will usually respond in the same way… by becoming ill or passing out.1 This response is triggered by the overwhelming sense of unworthiness and repentance felt after an encounter with the Lord. Not even the “greats” were immune to this reaction. Isaiah, Daniel, Paul, and John were all humbled by a healthy fear of the Lord.
Then I, Daniel, was done in and sick for days…
These men would record their Spirit inspired revelations,2 which would become the basis for all Biblical prophecy discussions from then on. But if they were so dramatically affected by the encounters which inspired their prophetic words, then we must ask ourselves: How are we stewarding these oracles?
Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. - 2nd Timothy 2:15
If we are to be faithful stewards, we must approach the Word with a deep sense of humility that only a healthy fear of the Lord can instill. This approach to prophecy will mature us and reveal Jesus in a deeper way. This is why it's so important not to turn the study of Bible prophecy into a source of speculation or entertainment.
It’s important to resist the carnal desire to be the one who “unlocks the secrets.” God has designed the mystery of prophecy in such a way as to shield it's meaning from the prideful while simultaneously disclosing it to the humble.3
Bind up the testimony, seal the teaching among my disciples…
If we approach the Scriptures with a reverence for the Lord and an attitude of humility, then we can be sure the Spirit will lead us to understanding.4 Having said that, there are four practical observations I'd like to share regarding our approach to Bible prophecy.
Progressive Revelation
The first is understanding that God reveals Himself progressively throughout the Scriptures. As we move forward through the Old Testament, we can see the foundational narrative being expounded upon as each writer adds to prior revelations through revelations of their own.
Even though they each have their own unique perspective, all of the prophets are telling the same story and reaching the same conclusions.5 They show a keen awareness of the earlier prophets and understand that their own revelations are expanding the narrative.6 The entire Old Testament is threaded together this way, forming the complete works of the first century apostles' Bible, the Law and the Prophets.7
When we read the New Testament then, it's helpful to ask ourselves, “How would a first century Jew (or Gentile) have understood this?” By following the approach of interpreting the New through the Old, we will avoid developing novel ideas that have to be shoehorned back into the Old Testament.
It's also helpful to remember that newly revealed does not equal newly existent. What I mean by this is that the New Testament writers never changed the foundational narrative, but explained it to their audience through the lens of prophetic insight. As the old saying goes, “What's in the Old concealed is in the New revealed.”
Israel Centric
Our second observation is the wholly Israel centric nature of the Bible.8 From beginning to end, the Word of God laser focuses on Israel and the Jewish people, in addition to the surrounding Middle Eastern nations. This is not to say that the Bible isn't applicable to any non Jewish (Gentile) person.
… to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
To be sure, Jesus' Kingdom will include people from every tribe, tongue, and nation.9 It is simply to say that the Bible is an Eastern book written by Jewish writers who focused their content around God's covenant with Israel. Great care must be taken not to place our modern, Western centric lens over these ancient Hebrew prophecies.
But you, Israel, My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen…
For perspective, using the search function on any Bible app yields 2,361 occurrences of the place name Israel from Genesis to Revelation, with Jerusalem mentioned 788 times. This underscores the Israel centric nature of the Scriptures with Jerusalem as ground zero.
Scripture Interprets Scripture
Our third observation is the principle that Scripture interprets Scripture. God is not a God of confusion.10 He desires for us to have clarity regarding His Word. And since prophecy is not subject to our own interpretation,11 it's important to rely on the full counsel of Scripture in order to understand a theme or idea. It's dangerous to isolate passages and form doctrines without taking into account everything the Bible has to say on the matter.
Precept upon precept… line upon line, here a little, there a little…
The Old Testament prophets all had unique insight into God's plans and purposes, with each typically receiving a smaller portion of the bigger picture, but never in conflict with the overall narrative. A lot of times, the prophets speak about the same event, with one adding something unique not mentioned by the others. Because the prophecies are connected by a shared event, overlapping them and reading them “line upon line” reveals the full picture.12
So Close Yet So Far
The final observation we'll make is the near/far nature of Biblical prophecy. This is a phenomenon of Eastern prophecy in which the seer speaks through current events towards the eschaton.13 This telescoping feature of Hebrew prophecy blends the timing of events that are close at hand with events that are far off.14
At first glance, it appears that all of the events are supposed to happen in a condensed timeframe. This was one of the ways the Lord kept the veil of mystery over the two advents of Messiah.15 This is important to keep in mind as we study prophecy, because it's natural for our modern Western minds to try to make things fit neatly into a box.
The reality is that a lot of Bible prophecy blurs elements of past, present, and future because there are historical foreshadows, or interim fulfillments, that occur along the way to the ultimate fulfillment. This blueprint actually helps us more easily navigate these oracles because of the practical implication. Prophecy is pattern.
In next week's issue, we'll take a closer look at God's covenant with Israel to see why it’s the foundation for all Biblical prophecy.
Isaiah 6:5, Daniel 8:17 & 27, Daniel 10:8-9, Ezekiel 1:28, Habakkuk 3:16, Matthew 17:6-9, Acts 9:3-9, Revelation 1:17
2nd Peter 1:21, Jeremiah 30:1-2
Matthew 11:25-26, Isaiah 29:10-14, Isaiah 8:16
1st Corinthians 2:10-16, James 1:5-6, Matthew 7:7-11, Colossians 1:9, Job 32:8
Isaiah 2:2-4, Micah 4:1-3, Ezekiel 38:17 & 39:8
Jeremiah 29:10, Daniel 9:2
Acts 13:15, Romans 3:21, Matthew 5:17
Deuteronomy 7:6, Psalm 48:2, Psalm 137:5-6, Isaiah 41:8-9, Jeremiah 31:31-33, Ezekiel 43:7, Romans 1:16, Romans 11:25-26, Revelation 21:10-14
Daniel 7:14, Revelation 7:9
1st Corinthians 14:33
2nd Peter 1:20
Isaiah 28:10, Daniel 11:31, Matthew 24:15
End of the age and return of Jesus
Isaiah 9:5-7, 1st Peter 1:10-12
1st Corinthians 2:8