Also See What Was the Message of Jesus? And The Christian Hope: Life in the Land of the Promise Made to Abraham Much controversy has surrounded Matthew 16:27- 28 and the parallel passages in Mark and Luke, in which Jesus says that some who were present there with Him would not die until they saw the coming of the kingdom. The accounts given by both Mark and Luke are, for the most part, parallel to that furnished by Matthew, with one vital difference… the tense differs between the three accounts, often underplayed in English Translations. As pointed out by Robertson's Word Pictures of the New Testament, Luke has only “see the kingdom of God,” while Matthew has “see the Son of man coming” (erchomenon, present participle, a process). Mark has “see the kingdom of God come” (elēluthuian, perfect active participle, already come) and adds “with power.” [All Emphasis Added] For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of man also shall be ashamed of him, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. Mark And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There are some here of them that stand by, who shall in no wise taste of death, till they see the kingdom of God come with power. [Mark 8:38-9:1] For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then shall he render unto every man according to his deeds. Verily I say unto you, there are some of them that stand here, who shall in no wise taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom. [Matthew 16:27-28] For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in his own glory, and the glory of the Father, and of the holy angels. But I tell you of a truth, There are some of them that stand here, who shall in no wise taste of death, till they see the kingdom of God. [Luke 9:26-27]
Note Young’s Literal translation uses the word “reign” instead of “kingdom”. However the three accounts have, for all practical purposes, exactly the same lead in... Our Lord’s promise that the gates of hell would not prevail against church, a brief prediction of His passion (Matthew: 16:21), Peter’s protest (Matthew:16:22), and Jesus’ reprimand. All of which is followed by laying down one's life for the sake of the gospel, with the attendant rewards which follow. Step back in time for a moment to the Sermon on the Mount related in Matthew 5… an almost literal face off between Jesus and the Pharisees, which turned Judaism on its ear. In it Jesus emphasized that doing a great job at keeping the letter of the Law, while ignoring the intention behind it wasn’t ever what God had intended. Perfect obedience to the law took place in thought, word, and deed. However, in Matthew 16, Jesus takes this change of focus to a new level, giving the disciples some clear absolutes for anyone who would “come after” Him. Not only is keeping the spirit of the law a requirement, but salvation requires a person to deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Jesus. As Dr. Constable notes in his commentary on Matthew… “The three verbs in this challenge are significant. The first two, "deny" and "take up," are aorist imperatives indicating a decisive action. The last one, "follow," is a present imperative indicating a continuing action”. [1] It is a theme of self-sacrifice, with but two alternatives... live for ourselves which will result in being condemned by the Lord, or give our lives to Him and be rewarded with eternal life. Each of us has choices to make and will be rewarded accordingly. Note: Losing one’s life can have more than one connotation. While for some it may come down to literally and physically dying for the Gospel, for the vast majority of Christians it will involve putting a higher value on spiritual matters over physical ones, a principle that applies not only to everything we consider important in life, but life itself. “We must be willing to lose the temporal things of life, if need be, that we may faithfully and loyally follow Christ. It might involve losing comfort or physical security. It might mean forgoing something pleasurable or some source of momentary happiness. It might cost us acceptance with family, friends or associates. It might cost us physical wealth. These are the things of this life. We must put following Christ above them all (Mark 10:28-31)”. [2]
The Problem Many believe that Matthew 16:27-28 and the parallel verses (Mark 8:38-9:1 Luke 9:26-27) are critical texts, which have a huge bearing on the entire sequence of end-time events. For example it has been pointed out that if verses 27 and 28 refer to the same event (they do and they don’t) then the pre-millennial doctrine is proven false since verse 28 unequivocally puts the kingdom in the lifetime of Jesus' audience. There have been some long and unwieldy explanations as to what Jesus could possibly have meant and some entirely erroneous conclusions drawn. Certainly we are faced with some interesting choices, a couple of which are even slightly bizarre. Very Old People: “Some of them that stand here, who shall in no wise taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom”. Since, this statement was made some 2000 years ago and Jesus coming with the angels to render to each man according to his deeds has certainly not yet happened, there must be some extremely old people living on earth. I am reasonably sure that everyone will see the fallacy of this train of thought. Jesus Has Already Returned: Preterists believe that most Biblical prophecies were fulfilled in or around 70 A.D. at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, and will have no future fulfillment. They believe that since Jesus clearly said that He will return before some of His disciples died, He came in His kingdom at the time of the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., an event sometimes described as "Christ's coming in judgment." The problem being that this view, apart from all the other problems with Preterism, completely disregards the rewards bit. The Resurrection and Ascension: Jesus spoke of those events elsewhere as His departure, not His coming... Nevertheless I tell you the truth: It is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I go, I will send him unto you. [John 16:7] Fulfillment at The Transfiguration: Many believe that the transfiguration was the fulfillment of verse 28. (The transfiguration refers to the time when Jesus took Peter, James, and John up a mountain to pray, and while He was praying He was transfigured (The Greek word metamorphoō used by Matthew indicates a change in form, rather than simply a change of appearance) in front of their eyes. His clothes became dazzling white and He was seen talking to Elijah and Moses. At this time God’s voice came from a cloud calling Jesus… Son). While undoubtedly the entire incident was designed to be a representation of the manner in which Jesus would one day appear, and gave the disciples, who had only known Jesus in His human body, a unique glimpse of His glory and a greater realization of His deity, it was not exactly “the Son of man coming in his kingdom”. The belief that the Transfiguration was a fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy is largely founded on the fact that in each of the synoptic Gospels, it is the very next event mentioned, taking place just a week later. In fact all three accounts connect Jesus' prediction and the Transfiguration... Matthew and Mark using the word "and" while Luke uses "and . . . it came about". However the problem lies in two areas. Jesus’ statement that some disciples would be alive seems a little disproportionate when one is talking of a period of just one week. It is a phrase far more suited to a longer period of time… In other words it just seems like an odd way to refer to three of the twelve disciples, who witness the Transfiguration a mere six days later. Also, Jesus saying that some disciples would be alive indicates that others would not be. We know all the disciples lived longer than the next seven days, through the Transfiguration. Fulfillment at Pentecost: Yet others believe that verse 27 speaks of the end times, while verse 28 speaks of the establishment of the kingdom on Pentecost, which certainly came with great power and was seen by all the apostles, except Judas. Undoubtedly the church quickly transformed from a small and feeble bunch of believers to being an established force in a large part of the known world, including Asia, Rome, and Greece. However The Holy Spirit came on Pentecost, not the Son of Man. Besides which, if as is often claimed, Vs. 27 and 28 are a unit (and we once again state that they are related, but not exactly the same), Pentecost can not be a fulfillment of the prophecy, since Jesus did not judge all men at Pentecost. [See The Millennium]
The Solution Perhaps the answer to this fascinating, but controversial, statement by Jesus is actually different, and slightly more complex, than the simplistic ‘one prophecy...one fulfillment’ scenario The problem seems to lie in the fact that most people interpret Jesus’ use of the phrase "the kingdom of God." (Greek he basileia tou theou,) as referring to the age to come or, in other words … Heaven. While there is no question that the end of this age (at the seven bowls) will signify the dawning of the Millennium Kingdom, followed by an eternity of God’s rule, there were plenty of indications that this kingdom had already begun in Jesus’ day. The kingdom of God was a central element in the preaching of John and Baptist and Jesus Himself. John the Baptist told the crowds to "Repent! for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" [Matthew 3:2], and after John was cast into prison, Jesus took over… preaching exactly the same message… “ From that time began Jesus to preach, and to say, Repent ye; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”. [Matthew 4:17].
“This phrase "kingdom of God" appears 53 times in the New Testament gospels, almost always on the lips of Jesus. The synonymous phrase, "kingdom of heaven," appears 32 times in the Gospel of Matthew [the terms are synonymous]. Jesus spoke continuously about the kingdom of God through out His ministry, with many of His parables emphasizing the importance of this kingdom. He likened it to a mustard seed, a treasure, a merchant looking for pearls, and a king who gave a banquet (Matt 13:44-47; 22:2)”. [Read article by Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts. What Was the Message of Jesus?] Not only does Jesus define his purpose in light of the kingdom [Emphasis Added] "I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose" (Luke 4:43).
But, the Kingdom of God in the New Testament is always strikingly connected with the proclamation of the Gospel [All Emphasis Added] And Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of disease and all manner of sickness among the people. [Matthew 4:23] but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. [Matthew 10:6-7] And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a testimony unto all the nations; and then shall the end come. [Matthew 24:14] Now after John was delivered up, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe in the gospel. [Mark 1:14-15] But he said unto them, I must preach the good tidings of the kingdom of God to the other cities also: for therefore was I sent. [Luke 4:43] And it came to pass soon afterwards, that he went about through cities and villages, preaching and bringing the good tidings of the kingdom of God, and with him the twelve, [Luke 8:1] And he sent them forth to preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick.[Luke 9:2] But when they believed Philip preaching good tidings concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. [Acts 8:12]
The Kingdom of God…Strictly A Future Event? Does this mean that the New Testament preaching of the kingdom of God was something that would come about only at some future date? That it was strictly an end time message? Actually no! Jesus clearly distinguishes between the coming of the Kingdom in glory, when he will be accompanied by His angels... But when the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit on the throne of his glory: [Matthew 25:31]
... And the Kingdom of God which "does not come with observation" and was already in their midst, which means it had to be a very different type of kingdom from the temporal/worldly one the Jews were expecting. And being asked by the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God cometh, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: neither shall they say, Lo, here! or, There! for lo, the kingdom of God is within you. [Luke 17:20-21]
You may well ask how this is possible. The answer lies in… Defining The Concept of “Kingdom” The Aramaic word malkuta (kingdom) had a completely different significance to people of ages past than it does to the 21st century westerner. Only in isolated instances in the Old Testament does malkut denote a realm as territory; instead it almost always denotes the government, authority and power of a king In the words of the Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels The primary meaning of the Aramaic malku and Greek basileia is abstract and dynamic, that is, “sovereignty” or “royal rule.” This is almost always the case in the OT and Jewish literature where the term is applied to God. The sense of realm, a territorial kingdom, is secondary, arising out of the necessity for a definite locus as the sphere for the exercise of sovereignty. The Gospels introduce the ministries of John the Baptist and of Jesus by stating that they proclaimed the nearness of the kingdom of God. No word of explanation is ever offered, and the conclusion must be that the idea of God’s kingdom was well known. [3]
This borne out by Young’s Literal translation which, as mentioned before, uses the word “reign” rather than “kingdom” in all three accounts. This concept is further explained by Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts Throughout the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus continually refers to the kingdom of heaven, as in "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near" (Matt 3:2). Many Christians take the phrase "the kingdom of heaven" as a description of what we call heaven: the place where we go to be with the Lord after we die. This makes good sense in English, because "kingdom" signifies a place ruled by a king, and "heaven" is the place we believers go after we die, the place where God rules (Matt 6:10). [4]
However, when Jesus spoke of the kingdom of God, it was not in terms of real estate, but authority. “The word basileia could sometimes refer to a locale over which a king ruled, but it's primary meaning in the first-century was "reign, rule, authority, sovereignty." (The same was true of the Aramaic term, malku, the word actually spoken by Jesus.) We see this meaning clearly in one of Jesus' parables. He speaks of a nobleman who "went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return" (Luke 19:12, NIV; the NRSV reads "to get royal power for himself"). The Greek of this verse reads, literally, "he went to a distant country to receive a basileia for himself." He didn't go to get a new region over which to rule, but rather to get new and greater authority over the place he lived. “So when Jesus proclaims that the kingdom of God has come near, he doesn't mean that a place is approaching like the giant comet in the movie Deep Impact, but that God's own royal authority and power have come on the scene. "God's reign is at hand. God's power is being unleashed," Jesus says. "Turn your life around and put your trust in this good news.". Jesus proclaimed the reign of God and demonstrated its presence through doing mighty deeds, such as healings and exorcisms. [4]
(In fact it was this message of the Kingdom, coupled with another watershed event, that led to his crucifixion). Of course Jesus' announcement of God's reign didn't come in a vacuum. It was both consistent with, and a fulfillment of, a central theme in the Hebrew prophets.” … Though it begins humbly, in Jesus' own ministry, it will someday be gloriously large, a resting place for all creation”. [Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts. What Was the Message of Jesus?]
Jesus’ words to Pilate in John 18:36 furthers this idea. “My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence”.
Note: that Jesus is not denying that His kingdom is in this world, but is stating that it is not of this world, just as His Apostles were in the world but, like Jesus, were not of the world. And I am no more in the world, and these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep them in thy name which thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we are. I have given them thy word; and the world hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. [John 17:11,14]
In other words the authority of Jesus’ kingdom does not stem from secular sources. Certainly it did not arrive all at one time. The Three Stage Emergence of the Kingdom Stage One: When Jesus reiterated the message preached by John The Baptist, proclaiming that the kingdom was “at hand” or near [Matthew 3:2 and 4:17], He was not saying that the kingdom was arriving in fullness, but that its initial stages had come… It’s King had entered the world, verifying who He was by fulfilling prophecy, and demonstrating the arrival of the reign of God with mighty deeds. Which explains a rather perplexing statement made by Jesus in Matthew 11:11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”
In the words of Matthew Allen (The Kingdom in Matthew) “Jesus was not suggesting that John was not a believer; rather, his point was that John was the last of the Old Testament saints and, as such, he stood on the threshold of the eschatological kingdom. This implies that the kingdom was yet future during John’s public ministry”. [5]
However there is no kingdom, earthly or otherwise, without subjects, so Jesus then proceeded to make disciples, thus establishing His reign in the earthly realm. Stage Two: Shortly after Jesus physically left earth, His kingdom, which until that point had consisted of a handful of discouraged followers, took a gigantic step forward at Pentecost. It literally exploded on to public consciousness with the arrival of the Holy Spirit, causing a rapid multiplication of Jewish disciples. However this was but the beginning, the mission to the Gentiles followed Pentecost by a few years. During the siege of Jerusalem in A.D. 69 by Titus, the members of the church were forced to flee from Jerusalem to Pella across the Jordan, which meant that Jerusalem could no longer remain the center of Christianity. The spiritual leadership moved to other cities, such as Antioch which removed the possible danger that Christianity might never outgrow it’s Jewish Roots. In fact Antioch, a Gentile church, grew so large that it was able to give relief to the Jewish churches when they faced famine and it was from Antioch that Paul began the missionary journeys that eventually carried him to Rome itself. Christianity was carried to people of many other races. Philip visited Samaria (Acts 8:5-25) whose inhabitants were not of pure Jewish blood, but were a mix of the remnants of Jewish tribes who were not carried off on the Assyrian invasion, and the settlers who the Assyrians brought in from other parts of their empire. In fact the spread of the Gospel in Samaria was so rapid that Peter and John went down to assist Philip. Philip then preached the gospel to an Ethiopian eunuch (apparently a high official in the government of Ethiopia), while Peter took the gospel to the Romans via the centurion Cornelius (Acts 10-11). Stage Three: However this kingdom (in every sense of the word) will only be fully be realized when Jesus physically returns to earth and takes it over, destroying His enemies and ruling from Jerusalem. This final consummation, or fulfillment, of the kingdom of God on earth, has always been the ultimate goal.
Conclusion So if there is a three stage emergence of the kingdom, why are we trying to pin down Jesus’ words to a particular event. The apostles apparently did not, using as they did different tenses. As mentioned in the beginning of this article… Luke has only “see the kingdom of God,” while Matthew has “see the Son of man coming” (erchomenon, present participle, a process). Mark has “see the kingdom of God come” (elēluthuian, perfect active participle, already come) and adds “with power.” [Robertson's Word Pictures of the New Testament. All Emphasis Added]
They certainly all saw the beginnings of the Kingdom… all except Judas lived to see the burst of power on Pentecost and some even lived to see the rapid spread of the Gospel after the destruction of the temple. Jesus was first century Jewish rabbi and taught the same way other rabbis did making it imperative that we try and understand the way Jews thought about the Bible. Much of the prophecy in Scripture is slightly more complex than a one prophecy.. one fulfillment scenario which is a Western idea. The Hebrew idea of prophecy is a pattern that is repeated, multiple fulfillments with one ultimate fulfillment… each of the multiple fulfillments being both a type of, and a lesson on, the ultimate fulfillment. Which certainly applies to the Kingdom of God… defined as God’s authority and rule. It arrived with Jesus’ preaching of Gospel of the Kingdom establishing itself within the disciples who were the initial ‘subjects’ of the kingdom. It made huge strides among the Jewish community at Pentecost spreading throughout the known world. It exists wherever men truly gather in His name. And it’s final fulfillment, which is around the corner, will take place when Jesus makes His glorious return to establish His physical rule on earth. For more on the patterns of prophecy in Scripture See Prophecy and Typology. End Notes [1] http://www.soniclight.com/constable/notes/pdf/matthew.pdf [2] "Whoever Loses His Life Shall Save It" http://www.bible.ca/ef/expository-matthew%206-25.htm. [3] Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels. By Joel B. Green, Scot McKnight, I. Howard Marshall. Page 417-418. [See Footnote below for extended quote] [4] What Language(s) Did Jesus Speak and Why Does It Matter? by Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts. http://markdroberts.com/htmfiles/resources/jesuslanguage.htm [5] http://bible.org/article/kingdom-matthew Foot Note Unfortunately Scot McKnight, one of the authors of the book Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels, is clearly an advocate of the Emerging church. [See The Emerging Church.. A Protest Movement?]. However the section quoted well expresses the idea of the ancient concept of “kingdom”. “The primary meaning of the Aramaic malku and Greek basileia is abstract and dynamic, that is, “sovereignty” or “royal rule.” This is almost always the case in the OT and Jewish literature where the term is applied to God. The sense of realm, a territorial kingdom, is secondary, arising out of the necessity for a definite locus as the sphere for the exercise of sovereignty. The Gospels introduce the ministries of John the Baptist and of Jesus by stating that they proclaimed the nearness of the kingdom of God. No word of explanation is ever offered, and the conclusion must be that the idea of God’s kingdom was well known While the expression “kingdom of God” is absent, the idea is present through the OT. ..and underlies Yahweh’s whole relation to Israel. For example “The demand presented to Pharaoh to let Israel go is the demand of the lawful king over the usurper. In the conquest of Canaan Yahweh as king apportions to his people a country; a country, moreover which He, as the creator and king of the earth, can dispose of as he pleases. The rule of God over Israel is especially exemplified in the time of the Judges, who functions we his representatives. A crises emerged with Israel’s demand for a king (1Sam 8:4-5), a demand that was interpreted as a rejection of Yahweh’s rule (1 Samuel 8:6-8). With the accession of David to the throne, the situation was somewhat normalized and the king was understood to function as Yahweh’s representative and be under Yahweh’s suzerainty. In other words the monarchy was looked upon as the concrete manifestation of Yahweh’s rule. This explains the authoritative role of the prophets at the courts (Nathan, Gad Elijah etc.). The promise to establish David’s throne forever, despite the rejection of Solomon (1 Kings 11:11-14), led to focus upon a future Messiah who would rule over David’s kingdom in righteousness and prosperity. However a crisis occasioned by Israel’s faithlessness was made “especially acute when the last vestiges of David’s kingdom was swept away in the Babylonian captivity. The promise made to David for a everlasting kingdom was now in some circles radically reinterpreted” ….. and transformed by Daniel who sets the divine sovereignty “vis-à-vis human kingdoms”, which “are described as being under the control of the God of heaven, who allots the sovereignty in accordance with His will”. See Daniel 2 where the kingdom of God is described as a stone cut without hands which crushes the human kingdoms. “In Daniel 7 the symbolism changes to one of wild beasts portraying the ungodly character of the human kingdoms”
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