How often we hear these often casual references to the end of the world, but such an event would hardly be a trivial thing! It is also a favorite subject of cartoonists, showing long bearded men carrying signs with dire messages, like: "Repent - the end of the world is nigh." Many people think that the idea that the world is coming to an end comes from prophecies in the Bible - and to them the question is not whether, but when this catastrophe will occur.
These words are found in the Gospel of Matthew and in Paul's Epistle to the Hebrews.
Two of the phrases in Matthew occur in a chapter devoted to parables about the kingdom of heaven.
The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. (Matthew 13:39)So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just. (Matthew 13:49)
The next example is from chapter twenty-four, talking about the second coming of Christ.
And as He sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto Him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? (Matthew 24:3)
There is one more reference in this Gospel, and it is in the last verse.
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. (Matthew 28:20)Looking at these verses, we can't help wondering what is meant by the expression: "the end of the world." Looking up in the original Greek we find that the term translated "world" is "aion" which means "an indefinite time, a dispensation." Most modern translations render this as the end of the age. Those translators who held onto the term world are using the term in the sense of an era of history, as in the sentence: "When the Huns invaded Rome, it was the end of the world for the Romans."
One of the ways we know that it does not mean the end of the planet, is that it talks about things happening on earth after the end of the world, most importantly the coming of the kingdom of heaven. Compare what is said in Luke's Gospel: "Two will be in one bed, one will be taken, and the other left." (Luke 17:34) The one who is left is alive, showing that the planet has not been destroyed.
Some people have been convinced that the world will end in fire. This is based on a statement in the Second Epistle of Peter:
The world that then existed perished, being flooded with water. But the heavens and the earth which now exist are kept in store by the same word reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. (2 Peter 3:6-8)The first thing to notice is that it says that the world came to an end a long time ago at the time of Noah. But although the world perished, the planet earth did not! Most life on the planet was destroyed, it is true, but it was the end of the world only for those who were not in the ark. Noah and his family emerged from the ark to a renewed earth.
When I read of the world being destroyed by fire, I am reminded of news reports that talk about forty acres in the mountains being destroyed by fire. I have hiked up into areas after such a fire, and found that the vegetation was indeed burned up, but that the land, and the mountain were still intact. The image of a fireball encompassing the earth and turning it to a cinder, is a more dramatic picture of being destroyed by fire than is intended.
Looking through the Bible we find that the world has been destroyed by fire before, at the time of the first coming of Christ.
Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him. (Psalm 50:3)For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:5,6)
Thou shalt be visited of the LORD of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with storm and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire. (Isaiah 29:6 -- See also Isaiah 30:27,30; 66:15,16; Malachi 3:2)
Peter writes about the world coming to an end at the time of the flood. Paul says that it also came to an end at the time of Christ. Writing about Jesus, he says: But now once in the end of the world hath He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself (Hebrews 9:26). According to this passage the world came to an end two thousand years ago. In what sense did the world come to an end? What world was it? Wasn't it the world of the Scribes and Pharisees, the world of the old order? When that world came to an end, a new world, the world of Christianity, came into being.
It is important to understand that when the Lord prophesies the end of the world as a future event, He is talking about another such end of an era, a consummation of an age, not the end of the planet.
Let us look at the expression: "Heaven and earth shall pass away" (found in Matthew 24:35). Once again we find that this image is in Old Testament prophecies as well -- as in Isaiah 51:6, talking about the heavens vanishing. The idea of a new heaven and new earth is found not only in the New Testament (Revelation 21:1) but also in the Old Testament (Isaiah 65:17, 66:22). The "earth" usually refers to the peoples on the earth, and their religious condition. And "heaven" refers to the inner state of the people. The end of the world, and heaven and earth passing away are talking about changes in religious institutions and the spiritual state of people. The world, heaven and earth all passed away two thousand years ago with the coming of Christ, and a new heaven, new earth and new world were started. Why should it be any different at the Second Coming?
This seems to be based on the twentieth chapter of the Book of Revelation, although the chapter says nothing about the end of the world. It is said that Satan would be bound for a thousand years and that some reigned with Christ for a thousand years (Revelation 20:2-6). It also says that Satan will be released from prison after the thousand years were over. The book ends with a description of the holy city New Jerusalem descending from heaven, and the creation of a new heaven and earth.
Those Christians who feared that the world might come to an end in the year 1,000 were clearly mistaken. Chapter 20 of Revelation does not mean that the world would come to an end in a thousand years although many people thought that was precisely what it meant. In these calculations two important facts are overlooked.
One: When the Bible uses the word thousand it rarely is meant to be an exact number, no more than it is with us when we say: "there are a thousand things that I have to do before Sunday" or "I've told you a thousand times not to exaggerate." It just happens that in ancient times the largest number for which they had a name was 1,000. So when they wanted to refer to some long period of time or some huge amount they would say "a thousand."
When Winston Churchill gave his famous Battle of Britain speech, he said something like this: "If the British Empire should last a thousand years, they will say 'This was their finest hour'." If someone from the crowd had asked - When will this thousand years be up?, Churchill might have managed a weak smile or heavy frown. He did not expect people to take that number literally.
We still use that kind of expression, though since we have much larger numbers with names we might say "a million years" - or even a billion or a trillion, just to make a point.
Two: If the number 1,000 were to be taken literally, there would still the question, when do you start counting? The people who got nervous when the year 1,000 arrived assumed that it was a thousand years from the birth of Christ. Unfortunately, because of calendar alterations over the centuries they were about four years too late. One thousand years after the birth of Christ was probably 996 A.D. (In the year 532 Dionysius Exiguus decided to create a new calendar based on the year of the birth of Christ. The system he invented was not generally adopted until 800 years later. It seems that Dionysius made a mistake about the dates). Most scholars say that Christ was born 4 or 6 B.C., which means that in his calendar Christ was born "Before Christ." If it was thought that He was referring to a time one thousand years after He made this comment that would have been fulfilled in about the year 1030 A.D. But He specifically told them that they were not to try to calculate this.
But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. (Matthew 24:36)Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh. (Matthew 25:13 -- see also Matthew 24:35-44, 50; Mark 13:30-33; Luke 12:39-46)
This prophecy is found in Matthew's gospel:
Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. (Matthew 24:29, compare Luke 21:25)
Amazingly there are prophecies in the Old Testament about the first coming of Christ that are almost identical to those about the second coming. Here are a few:
For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. (Isaiah 13:10)This prophecy was fulfilled at the time of the crucifixion.The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. (Joel 2:10, also Joel 3:15)
And it was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. Then the sun was darkened and the veil of the temple was rent in twain. (Luke 23:44,45; compare Matthew 27:45,51; Mark 15:33)And So We Have The Following Points:
But don't scientists say that the world is coming to an end? Yes they do, but notice two things:
We are encouraged to think of the renewal of the earth, not its destruction. This is why the Bible ends with the inspiring picture of a holy city descending from God out of heaven, a revival of genuine Christianity.