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{{Eskatologi Kristen}}
'''Kotbah di atas Bukit Zaitun''' ({{lang-en|Olivet Discourse}} atau ''Olivet prophecy''; "Nubuat di atas Bukit Zaitun") adalah bagian [[Alkitab]] [[Kristen]] yang dimuat dalam tiga [[Injil sinoptik]] yaitu dalam [[Matius 24]], [[Markus 13]], [[Lukas 21]]. Dalam bahasa Inggris juga disebut "Little Apocalypse" ("[[Apokalips]] kecil") karena memuat sejumlah istilah [[Apokalips|apokaliptik]], dan memuat peringatan [[Yesus]] [[Kristus]] kepada para pengikut-Nya bahwa mereka akan mengalami penganiayaan besar sebelum kemenangan [[Kerajaan Allah]].<ref>"Frontline" TV series. PBS. Online: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/apocalypse/primary/ Accessed: 19 September 2008</ref> Kotbah ini merupakan yang terakhir dalam [[:en:Five Discourses of Matthew|Lima kotbah panjang yang dicatat dalam Injil Matius]] dan diberikan tidak lama sebelum [[penyaliban Yesus]].
== Tempat == [[Berkas:JerusalemFromMountOfOlives.JPG|jmpl|ka|250px|"[[Al Haram Asy Syarif]]", bekas kompleks [[Bait Kedua|Bait Suci]] di [[Yerusalem]] pada zaman Yesus, di lihat dari [[Bukit Zaitun]].]] Dalam [[Injil Matius]] dan [[Injil Markus|Markus]] ditulis bahwa Yesus berbicara secara khusus dengan sejumlah murid-Nya di atas [[Bukit Zaitun]],<ref>{{Alkitab|Matius 24:3; Markus 13:3}}</ref> menghadap ke arah [[Bait kedua|Bait Suci]]. Dalam Injil Lukas tidak disebutkan jelas tempatnya, kecuali disebutkan bahwa Yesus berbicara lama di Bait Suci dan bermalam di atas [[Bukit Zaitun]]<ref>{{Alkitab|Lukas 21:37}}</ref><ref name=BenW>Ben Witherington The Gospel of Mark: A Socio-rhetorical Commentary page 340.</ref> Posisi pada Bukit Zaitun ini mencerminkan bagian dari [[Kitab Zakharia]] yang menyebutkan tempat itu sebagai lokasi peperangan terakhir antara [[Mesias]] dan lawan-lawannya, yang tertulis dalam [[Zakharia 14]]:3-4:
: ''Kemudian TUHAN akan maju berperang melawan bangsa-bangsa itu seperti Ia berperang pada hari pertempuran.''
: ''Pada waktu itu kaki-Nya akan berjejak di '''bukit Zaitun yang terletak di depan Yerusalem di sebelah timur'''.''
: ''Bukit Zaitun itu akan terbelah dua dari timur ke barat, sehingga terjadi suatu lembah yang sangat besar;''
:: ''setengah dari bukit itu akan bergeser ke utara dan setengah lagi ke selatan.'' (TB)<ref>{{Alkitab|Zakharia 14:3-4}} - Sabda.org</ref>
== Catatan Alkitab ==
{{Injil Yesus}}
=== Pengantar ===
{{Lihat pula|Bait Allah akan diruntuhkan}}
[[File:Ercole de Roberti Destruction of Jerusalem Fighting Fleeing Marching Slaying Burning Chemical reactions b.jpg|thumb|''The Siege and Destruction of Jerusalem'' ("Pengepungan dan Kehancuran Yerusalem"), karya [[:en:David Roberts (painter)|David Roberts]] (1850).]]
Menurut catatan Injil-[[Injil Sinoptik]], seorang [[Murid (Kekristenan)|murid]] berkomentar mengenai keagungan [[Bait Kedua|Bait Suci]] yang dibangun oleh [[Herodes Agung|Herodes]],<ref>Kilgallen, John J. ''A Brief Commentary on the Gospel of Mark'' Paulist Press, 1989. ISBN 0-8091-3059-9.</ref> suatu bangunan yang dikatakan tingginya mencapai 10 lantai dan dihiasi dengan emas, perak dan berbagai bahan mahal. Yesus menjawab bahwa tidak ada satupun batu-batu dari bangunan itu akan tetap berdiri, karena semuanya akan dihancurkan ({{Alkitab|Matius 22:23-34}}, {{Alkitab|Markus 13:1-2}}; {{Alkitab|Lukas 21:5-6}}). Ini menyebabkan para murid menanyakan mengenai tanda-tanda hal itu akan terjadi, yang merupakan pengantar kepada [[Kotbah di atas Bukit Zaitun]].<ref name=BenW>Ben Witherington The Gospel of Mark: A Socio-rhetorical Commentary page 340.</ref>
=== Permulaan penderitaan ===
<div style="font-family:Verdana">
{| class="wikitable" border="2px"
|+ <big>Permulaan penderitaan</big>
!style="width: 33%;"| {{Alkitab|Matius 24:3-14}}
!style="width: 33%;"| {{Alkitab|Markus 13:3-13}}
!style="width: 33%;"| {{Alkitab|Lukas 21:7-19}}
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
| <sup>24:3</sup> Ketika Yesus duduk di atas Bukit Zaitun, datanglah murid-murid-Nya kepada-Nya untuk bercakap-cakap sendirian dengan Dia. Kata mereka: "Katakanlah kepada kami, bilamanakah itu akan terjadi dan apakah tanda kedatangan-Mu dan tanda kesudahan dunia?"
| <sup>13:3</sup> Ketika Yesus duduk di atas Bukit Zaitun, '''berhadapan dengan Bait Allah, Petrus, Yakobus, Yohanes dan Andreas''' bertanya sendirian kepada-Nya: <sup>13:4</sup> "Katakanlah kepada kami, bilamanakah itu akan terjadi, dan apakah tandanya, kalau semuanya itu akan sampai kepada kesudahannya."
| <sup>21:7</sup> Dan murid-murid bertanya kepada Yesus, katanya: "Guru, bilamanakah itu akan terjadi? Dan apakah tandanya, kalau itu akan terjadi?"
|- style="vertical-align: top;"
| <sup>24:4</sup> Jawab Yesus kepada mereka: "<font color="green">Waspadalah supaya jangan ada orang yang menyesatkan kamu! 24:5 Sebab banyak orang akan datang dengan memakai nama-Ku dan berkata: Akulah Mesias, dan mereka akan menyesatkan banyak orang. 24:6 Kamu akan mendengar deru perang atau kabar-kabar tentang perang. Namun berawas-awaslah jangan kamu gelisah; sebab semuanya itu harus terjadi, tetapi itu belum kesudahannya. 24:7 Sebab bangsa akan bangkit melawan bangsa, dan kerajaan melawan kerajaan. Akan ada kelaparan dan gempa bumi di berbagai tempat. 24:8 Akan tetapi semuanya itu barulah permulaan penderitaan menjelang zaman baru. 24:9 Pada waktu itu kamu akan diserahkan supaya disiksa, dan kamu akan dibunuh dan akan dibenci semua bangsa oleh karena nama-Ku, 24:10 dan banyak orang akan murtad dan mereka akan saling menyerahkan dan saling membenci. 24:11 Banyak nabi palsu akan muncul dan menyesatkan banyak orang. 24:12 Dan karena makin bertambahnya kedurhakaan, maka kasih kebanyakan orang akan menjadi dingin. 24:13 Tetapi orang yang bertahan sampai pada kesudahannya akan selamat. 24:14 Dan Injil Kerajaan ini akan diberitakan di seluruh dunia menjadi kesaksian bagi semua bangsa, sesudah itu barulah tiba kesudahannya.</font>"
| <sup>13:5</sup> Maka mulailah Yesus berkata kepada mereka: "<font color="green">Waspadalah supaya jangan ada orang yang menyesatkan kamu! 13:6 Akan datang banyak orang dengan memakai nama-Ku dan berkata: Akulah dia, dan mereka akan menyesatkan banyak orang. 13:7 Dan apabila kamu mendengar deru perang atau kabar-kabar tentang perang, janganlah kamu gelisah. Semuanya itu harus terjadi, tetapi itu belum kesudahannya. 13:8 Sebab bangsa akan bangkit melawan bangsa dan kerajaan melawan kerajaan. Akan terjadi gempa bumi di berbagai tempat, dan akan ada kelaparan. Semua itu barulah permulaan penderitaan menjelang zaman baru. 13:9 Tetapi kamu ini, hati-hatilah! Kamu akan diserahkan kepada majelis agama dan kamu akan dipukul di rumah ibadat dan kamu akan dihadapkan ke muka penguasa-penguasa dan raja-raja karena Aku, sebagai kesaksian bagi mereka. 13:10 Tetapi Injil harus diberitakan dahulu kepada semua bangsa. 13:11 Dan jika kamu digiring dan diserahkan, janganlah kamu kuatir akan apa yang harus kamu katakan, tetapi katakanlah apa yang dikaruniakan kepadamu pada saat itu juga, sebab bukan kamu yang berkata-kata, melainkan Roh Kudus. 13:12 Seorang saudara akan menyerahkan saudaranya untuk dibunuh, demikian juga seorang ayah terhadap anaknya. Dan anak-anak akan memberontak terhadap orang tuanya dan akan membunuh mereka. 13:13 Kamu akan dibenci semua orang oleh karena nama-Ku. Tetapi orang yang bertahan sampai pada kesudahannya ia akan selamat.</font>"
| <sup>21:8</sup> Jawab-Nya: "<font color="green">Waspadalah, supaya kamu jangan disesatkan. Sebab banyak orang akan datang dengan memakai nama-Ku dan berkata: Akulah Dia, dan: Saatnya sudah dekat. Janganlah kamu mengikuti mereka. 21:9 Dan apabila kamu mendengar tentang peperangan dan pemberontakan, janganlah kamu terkejut. Sebab semuanya itu harus terjadi dahulu, tetapi itu tidak berarti kesudahannya akan datang segera.</font>" 21:10 Ia berkata kepada mereka: "<font color="green">Bangsa akan bangkit melawan bangsa dan kerajaan melawan kerajaan, 21:11 dan akan terjadi gempa bumi yang dahsyat dan di berbagai tempat akan ada penyakit sampar dan kelaparan, dan akan terjadi juga hal-hal yang mengejutkan dan tanda-tanda yang dahsyat dari langit. 21:12 Tetapi sebelum semuanya itu kamu akan ditangkap dan dianiaya; kamu akan diserahkan ke rumah-rumah ibadat dan penjara-penjara, dan kamu akan dihadapkan kepada raja-raja dan penguasa-penguasa oleh karena nama-Ku. 21:13 Hal itu akan menjadi kesempatan bagimu untuk bersaksi. 21:14 Sebab itu tetapkanlah di dalam hatimu, supaya kamu jangan memikirkan lebih dahulu pembelaanmu. 21:15 Sebab Aku sendiri akan memberikan kepadamu kata-kata hikmat, sehingga kamu tidak dapat ditentang atau dibantah lawan-lawanmu. 21:16 Dan kamu akan diserahkan juga oleh orang tuamu, saudara-saudaramu, kaum keluargamu dan sahabat-sahabatmu dan beberapa orang di antara kamu akan dibunuh 21:17 dan kamu akan dibenci semua orang oleh karena nama-Ku. 21:18 Tetapi tidak sehelaipun dari rambut kepalamu akan hilang. 21:19 Kalau kamu tetap bertahan, kamu akan memperoleh hidupmu.</font>"
|}</div>
* Semua kutipan [[Alkitab]] dari [[Terjemahan Baru]].
Yesus mula-mula memperingatkan hal-hal yang akan terjadi tetapi yang bukan merupakan tanda-tanda:
*Akan ada orang-orang yang akan mengklaim sebagai [[Kristus]] (=[[Mesias]]; lihat pula [[Antikristus]]).<!-- It was a general belief that if the [[Jewish messianism|Jewish Messiah]] arrived in [[Jerusalem in Christianity|Jerusalem]], it would mean that the [[Kingship and kingdom of God|Kingdom of Heaven]] was imminent.-->
*Akan ada deru perang atau kabar-kabar tentang perang.
Kemudian Yesus mengidentifikasi "permulaan penderitaan menjelang zaman baru", dikiaskan seperti "permulaan sakit bersalin":
* Bangsa akan bangkit melawan bangsa dan kerajaan melawan kerajaan
* Akan terjadi gempa bumi di berbagai tempat
* Akan ada kelaparan
* Akan ada penyakit sampar
* Akan terjadi juga hal-hal yang mengejutkan dan tanda-tanda yang dahsyat dari langit.
Kemudian Yesus menyebutkan mengenai hal-hal yang akan dialami oleh para murid menjelang kesudahannya:
* Para murid akan diserahkan supaya disiksa. Mereka akan diserahkan juga oleh orang tua, saudara-saudara, kaum keluarga dan sahabat-sahabat mereka sendiri
* Para murid akan diserahkan kepada majelis agama dan akan dipukul di rumah ibadat dan akan dihadapkan ke muka penguasa-penguasa dan raja-raja karena Yesus
* Para murid akan ada yang dibunuh
* Para murid akan dibenci semua bangsa oleh karena nama Yesus
* Banyak orang akan murtad dan mereka akan saling menyerahkan dan saling membenci.
* Banyak nabi palsu akan muncul dan menyesatkan banyak orang.
* Kedurhakaan makin bertambah, maka kasih kebanyakan orang akan menjadi dingin.
* Injil Kerajaan ini akan diberitakan di seluruh dunia menjadi kesaksian bagi semua bangsa
Dalam menghadapi hal-hal itu, Yesus memberikan penghiburan:
* Orang yang bertahan sampai pada kesudahannya akan selamat ("Kalau kamu tetap bertahan, kamu akan memperoleh hidupmu").
* Tidak sehelaipun dari rambut kepala mereka akan hilang.
* Hal itu akan menjadi kesempatan untuk bersaksi.
* Janganlah kuatir akan apa yang harus dikatakan, tetapi para murid perlu mengatakan apa yang dikaruniakan kepada mereka pada saat itu juga, sebab bukan mereka yang berkata-kata, melainkan Roh Kudus.
* Jangan memikirkan lebih dahulu pembelaan mereka, sebab Yesus sendiri akan memberikan kepada mereka kata-kata hikmat, sehingga mereka tidak dapat ditentang atau dibantah lawan-lawan mereka.
<!--
Jesus then warned the disciples about the [[Abomination of desolation|Abomination of Desolation]] "standing where it does not belong". The Gospels of Matthew and Mark add ''"—let the reader understand—"''. This is generally considered to be a reference to two passages from the [[Book of Daniel]].{{bibleref2c|Dan.|9:27}} {{bibleref2c-nb|Dan.|11:31}}{{citation needed|date=May 2016}}
Some{{who|date=May 2016}} consider these declarations to be unlikely or implausible. However, there also are noted Christian theologians who believe that each of Jesus' declarations were prophecies. One view ([[Futurism (Christian eschatology)|Futurism]]) is that the future Jesus predicted is the unfolding of events from trends that are already at work in contemporary human society.<ref name=Stedman>Stedman, Ray C. ''What on Earth Is Happening? What Jesus Said About the End of the Age. '' Discovery House Publishers, 2003. {{ISBN|1-57293-092-6}}</ref> Another prophetic view ([[Preterism]]) is that all of these predictions were fulfilled by the time Jerusalem fell in 70 AD.<ref>Jackson, Wayne. [http://www.christiancourier.com/articles/19-a-study-of-matthew-24 "A Study of Matthew Twenty-four"] November 23, 1998. ''Christian Courier''. Contains in-depth discussion of the significant of the chapter and the signs that have come to fruition.</ref> A key issue in Jesus' discussion concerns the illustration of the fig tree (and other trees). This is a juxtaposition, balancing the two parts of the discussion. The first part being the answer to the first question concerning the destruction of the Temple, the second part being the answer to the question of Jesus' return at the end of the age. Hence, concerning the first he says that "this Generation" would see the fulfillment, whereas the second, "No man knows", not even Jesus himself.{{Citation needed|date=February 2014}}
Although the Book of Daniel internally claims to be a prophecy dictated to [[Daniel (biblical figure)|Daniel]] by [[Gabriel]] during the [[Babylonian captivity]], modern scholars believe that the Book was [[pseudepigrapha|pseudepigraphically]] written in the mid-2nd century BC, and that rather than being a genuine prophecy the passage was a postdiction, written as a [[polemic]] against the shrine to [[Zeus]] set up in the temple in 168 BC by [[Antiochus IV Epiphanes]], which had a [[paganism|pagan]] [[altar]] added onto the Altar of the Holocausts<ref>{{citation|author=Souvay|first=Charles|contribution=Altars (in Scripture)|title=The Catholic Encyclopedia|volume=1|place=New York|publisher=Robert Appleton|year=1907|accessdate=5 September 2009|contribution-url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01360a.htm}}.</ref><ref>Brown, Raymond E. et al. ''The New Jerome Biblical Commentary''. Prentice Hall, 1990. {{ISBN|0-13-614934-0}}. p. 624.</ref><ref>Miller, Robert J. (ed.) ''The Complete Gospels''. Polebridge Press, 1994. {{ISBN|0-06-065587-9}} p. 44.</ref> Exactly how the Synoptics meant it to be reinterpreted or interpreted, however, is a matter of debate among Christian scholars:
*A successful prophecy about [[Titus]]'s [[Siege of Jerusalem (70)|destruction of the Temple in AD 70]] (see [[preterism]])<ref>[[Craig Blomberg]], ''Jesus and the Gospels'', Apollos 1997, pp. 322–26.</ref><ref>[[N. T. Wright|Wright, N.T.]], ''Jesus and the Victory of God (Christian Origins and the Question of God, Volume 2)'', Fortress 1996. {{ISBN|978-0-80062682-2}}. pp. 348ff.</ref>
*A ''[[vaticinium ex eventu]]'' (prophecy after the fact) about the destruction of the Temple<ref>[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/mark.html Gospel of Mark]</ref>
*A reference to a future Antichrist (see [[futurism (Christian eschatology)|futurism]])
*A ''vaticinium ex eventu'' about [[Caligula]]'s attempt to put a statue of himself or of [[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter]] into the Temple (37–41 AD)<ref>Brown, Raymond E. ''An Introduction to the New Testament''. Doubleday 1997 {{ISBN|978-0-385-24767-2}}</ref>
{{Quotation|The reign of Gaius Caligula (37–41 AD) witnessed the first open break between the Jews and the [[Julio-Claudian]] empire. Until then—if one excepts [[Sejanus]]' heyday [19–31 AD] and the trouble caused by the [[Census of Quirinius|census after Archelaus' banishment]] [6 AD]—there was usually an atmosphere of understanding between the Jews and the empire…. These relations deteriorated seriously during Caligula's reign, and, though after his death the peace was outwardly re-established, considerable bitterness remained on both sides. ...Caligula ordered that a golden statue of himself be set up in the [[Herod's Temple|Temple in Jerusalem]]. ...Only Caligula's death, at the hands of Roman conspirators (41 AD), prevented the outbreak of a Jewish-Roman war that might well have spread to the entire [[Eastern Roman Empire|East]].<ref>Ben-Sasson, H.H. ''A History of the Jewish People''. Harvard University Press, 1976. {{ISBN|0-674-39731-2}}, pp. 254–56.</ref>}}
===Great Tribulation===
{{Main|Great Tribulation}}
After Jesus described the "abomination that causes desolation", he warns that the people of Judea should flee to the mountains as a matter of such urgency that they shouldn't even return to get things from their homes. Jesus also warned that if it happened in winter or on the [[Biblical Sabbath|Sabbath]] fleeing would be even more difficult. Jesus described this as a time of "Great Tribulation" worse than anything that had gone before.
Jesus then states that immediately after the time of tribulation people would see a sign, "the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken".{{bibleref2c|Matt.|24:29–30|NIV}} {{bibleref2c |Joel.|3:15}}
The statements about the sun and moon turning dark sound quite apocalyptic, as it appears to be a quote from the [[Book of Isaiah]].{{bibleref2c|Isa.|13:10}} The description of the sun, moon and stars going dark is also used elsewhere in the Old Testament. Joel wrote that this would be a sign before the great and dreadful [[Day of the Lord]].{{bibleref2c|Joel|2:30–31}} The Book of Revelation also mentions the sun and moon turning dark during the sixth seal of the [[seven seals]], but the passage adds more detail than the previous verses mentioned.{{bibleref2c |Rev.|6:12–17}}
====Two opposing interpretations====
Within conservative, evangelical Christian thought, two opposite viewpoints have been expressed in a debate between theologians [[Kenneth Gentry|Kenneth L. Gentry]] and [[Thomas Ice]].<ref name=DTS/>{{Rp|197–99}}
;''Tribulation as a past event'' (Dr. Gentry)
*The Great Tribulation occurred during the 1st century.
*Those events marked the end of God's focus on and exaltation of [[Israel]].
*Jesus' prophecies marked the beginning of the Christian era in God's plan.
*The Tribulation is God's judgement on Israel for rejecting the [[Messiah]].
*The Tribulation judgements will be centred on local events surrounding ancient [[Jerusalem]], and also somewhat affecting other portions of the former [[Roman Empire]].
*The Tribulation judgements are governed by Jesus as the Christ to reflect his judgement against Israel, thus showing that he is in heaven controlling those events.
;''Tribulation as a future event'' (Dr. Ice)
*The Great Tribulation is still to come and is rapidly approaching prospect.
*Those events marked the beginning of God's focus on and exaltation of Israel.
*The prophecy says the Christian era will be concluded just after the church is taken from the world.
*Rather than being God's judgement on Israel, it is the preparation of Israel to receive her Messiah.
*The judgements involve catastrophes that literally will affect the stellar universe and impact the entire planet.
*The coming of Christ in the Tribulation requires his public, visible and physical presence to conclude those judgements.
=== Coming of the Son of Man ===
In the Olivet Discourse, Jesus states that after the time of tribulation and the sign of the sun, moon and stars going dark the [[Son of man (Christianity)|Son of Man]] would be seen arriving in the clouds with power and great [[glory (religion)|glory]]. The Son of Man would be accompanied by the [[angel]]s and at the trumpet call the angels would gather the elect ([[Chosen people#Christianity|God's chosen]]) from the heavens and the four winds of the earth. ({{bibleref2|Matthew|24:31}})
Although most scholars, and almost all Christians, read this as meaning that the gathering would include people not only from earth but also ''from'' heaven, a few Christians, mostly modern American [[Protestant]] [[Premillennialism|Premillennialists]],<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=DrKgIIxCHVIC&pg=PA17 |author= Rosen, Christine |title= Preaching Eugenics |publisher= Oxford Press |year=2004 |page=17}}</ref> have interpreted it to mean that people would be gathered from earth and taken ''to'' heaven—a concept known in their circles as the ''[[rapture]]''.{{cn|date=April 2016}} Most scholars see this as a quotation of a passage from the [[Book of Zechariah]] in which God (and the contents of heaven in general) are predicted to come to earth and live among ''the elect'', who by necessity are gathered together for this purpose.{{Bibleref2c|Zech.|2:10}}
==Imminence==
{{See also|Christian eschatology}}
In the Olivet Discourse, Jesus stated that when all these signs are seen, the [[second coming|coming of the Son of Man]] would be imminent. He went on to say "this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place." (Mark 13.30)
Historically, this has been one of the most difficult passages to resolve with a literal interpretation of the text. At face value it would seem to imply that the disciples would still be alive today. Awkward legends arose suggesting that the disciples to whom Jesus was speaking did not die but remain alive, eventually developing into legends like those of the [[Wandering Jew]] and [[Prester John]]. [[C. S. Lewis]] called this "the most embarrassing verse in the Bible".<ref>C. S. Lewis ''The World's Last Night and Other Essays''</ref>
The fourth-century church father [[John Chrysostom]] held this interpretation:
{{quote|After this, that they might not straightway return to it again, and say, “When?” he brings to their remembrance the things that had been said, saying, “Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled!” All these things. What things? I pray thee. Those about Jerusalem, those about the wars, about the famines, about the pestilences, about the earthquakes, about the false Christs, about the false prophets, about the sowing of the gospel everywhere, the seditions, the tumults, all the other things, which we said were to occur until His coming. How then, one may ask, did He say, “This generation?” Speaking not of the generation then living, but of that of the believers. For He is wont to distinguish a generation not by times only, but also by the mode of religious service, and practice; as when He saith, “This is the generation of them that seek the Lord. ”|John Chrysostom<ref>http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf110.iii. LXXIV.</ref>}}
In the earliest known Christian document, the [[First Epistle to the Thessalonians]], [[Paul the Apostle|Paul]] seems to envisage that he and the Christians to whom he was writing would see the [[resurrection of the dead]] within their own lifetimes: "For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. (ESV)"{{bibleref2c-nb|1Thes|4:15-17|9}} Some argue that the [[Second Epistle to the Thessalonians]] was [[Authorship of the Pauline Epistles|forged]], essentially for the sole purpose of contradicting the first epistle.<ref>Without agreeing with this theory, biblical scholar Leon Morris reports it in his book ''The First and Second Epistles to the Thessalonians''. Eerdmans, 1991. {{ISBN|978-0-8028-2512-4}}</ref>
In modern times, a popular (but far from unanimous) opinion is that Jesus in the Olivet Discourse is using the [[Apocalypse|apocalyptic]] language of his time ''symbolically, '' as did many Jewish prophets. Nevertheless, throughout history there have been many groups who read the discourse literally. [[Christian philosophy|Christian thought]] continues to include groups who say that ''the end of the world is near'', some even giving exact dates which have since come and gone without an intervening end of world.<ref>Ravitz, Jessica. "Road trip to the end of the world". [http://www.cnn.com/2011/LIVING/03/06/judgment.day.caravan/index.html] Accessed 6 May 2013</ref> Some Christians believe that predictions of several events are related: the second coming of Jesus, the war of [[Armageddon]], the arrival on earth of the Antichrist, the Tribulation, the Rapture, some horrendous natural disaster, etc. Jewish, Islamic, psychic and occult predictions have also been offered as well. Some very prominent individuals have been consistently wrong when they predicted the end of the world. End-of-the-world predictions have been common throughout Christianity and other religions for almost 2000 years.
==Interpretations==
There are four quite different interpretations of {{Bibleref2|Matthew|24}}. By far the more prominent are futurism and preterism. Futurism dominates the more conservative theological viewpoints at present, though preterism is seen in a resurgence.
===Idealism===
{{Main|Idealism (Christian eschatology)}}
The [[Idealism (Christian eschatology)|Idealist]] (timeless) sees no evidence of timing of prophetic events in the Bible. Thus they conclude that their timing cannot be determined in advance. Idealists see prophetic passages as being of great value in teaching truths about God to be applied to present life.
Idealism is primarily associated with liberal scholarship, and is not a major factor in current evangelical Christian deliberation over when prophecy will be fulfilled.<ref name=DTS/>
===Preterism===
{{Main|Preterism}}
Preterism<ref name=DTS/> considers that most, if not all, prophecy has been fulfilled already, usually in relation to the [[destruction of Jerusalem]] by the Romans in 70CE.
*[[Partial preterism]] says that most (but not all) Bible prophecy, including everything within Matthew 24, Daniel, and Revelation up to chapters 19 or 20, has already been fulfilled when Jerusalem was destroyed.<ref>Gentry, Kenneth L. Jr. "Falsely Declaring 'The Time. ' The Great Tribulation in Progressive Dispensationalism (Part 5)". Dispensationalism in Transition: Challenging Traditional Dispensationalism's 'Code of Silence. ' November 1998. Online: http://reformed-theology.org/ice/newslet/dit/dit11.98.htm. Accessed: 13 December 2008.</ref> Since it still includes belief in a future physical [[Second Coming]] of Christ, the [[resurrection of the dead]], and the [[last judgment]], [[partial preterism]] falls within the parameters of [[orthodoxy]] because it conforms to the early Christian [[creed]]s.
*[[Full preterism]] says all biblical prophecy was fulfilled by 70CE. It does not hold to a future judgment, return of Christ, or resurrection of the dead (at least not for non-Christians). Due to the belief that all biblical prophecy has been fulfilled, it is sometimes considered "radical" and usually described as "unorthodox" because it goes against the [[ecumenical creeds]] of early Christianity.
===Historicism===
{{Main|Historicism (Christianity)}}
Historicism considers that most prophecy has been or will be fulfilled during the present church age. It was the chief view of Protestants from the [[Protestant Reformation|Reformation]] until the mid-19th century. Only among [[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-day Adventist]]s is historicism applied to current conservative Christian interpretation of Tribulation understanding.<ref name=DTS/>
===Futurism===
{{Main|Futurism (Christianity)}}
Futurism typically holds that all major unfulfilled prophecies will be fulfilled during a global time of catastrophe and war known as the [[Great Tribulation]], in which many other prophecies will be fulfilled during or after the [[Millennialism|Millennium Reign]] of Jesus Christ. According to many futurists, many predictions are currently being fulfilled during the Church Age, in which [[antinomianism|lawlessness]] and [[apostasy]] are currently plaguing secular society. This is seen as a major sign of the approaching fulfillment of all other prophecies during the Tribulation. Within [[evangelical Christianity]] over the past 150 years, futurism has come to be the dominant view of prophecy. However, around the 1970s evangelical preterism—the polar opposite of futurism—was seen as a new challenge to the dominance of futurism, particularly within the Reformed tradition. Yet, futurism continues as the prevalent view for the time being.<ref name=DTS/>{{Rp|p.7}}
Futurists anticipate many coming events that will fulfill all eschatological prophecy: the seven-year period of tribulation, the [[Antichrist]]'s global government<ref>http://www.deeptruths.com/articles/rise_reign_ac.html</ref> the Battle of Armageddon, the Second Coming of Jesus, the millennial reign of Christ, the eternal state, and the [[Christian eschatology#Two Resurrections|two resurrections]].
*In his popular book, ''The Late Great Planet Earth, '' first published in 1970, evangelical Christian author [[Hal Lindsey]] argued that prophetical information in Matthew 24 indicates that the “generation” witnessing the “rebirth of Israel” is the same generation that will observe the fulfillment of the “signs” referred to in {{Bibleref2|Matthew|24:1-33}}—and that would be consummated by the second coming of Christ in approximately 1988. He dated it from the “rebirth of Israel” in 1948, and took a generation to be “something like forty years. ”<ref>Lindsey, Hal. ''The Late Great Planet Earth''. Grand Rapids, MI. Zondervan, 1970.</ref> Lindsey later stretched his forty-year timetable to as long as one hundred years, writing that he was no longer certain that the terminal "generation" commenced with the rebirth of Israel.<ref>Lindsey, Hal. 1977. ''Eternity'', January 1977</ref>
* Another detailed analysis, one written by theologian Ray Stedman, calls it the "Olivet Prophecy: The most detailed prediction in the Bible". According to Stedman: "There are many predictive passages in both the Old and New Testaments, but none is clearer or more detailed than the message Jesus delivered from the Mount of Olives. This message was given during the turbulent events of the Lord's last week before the cross".<ref name=Stedman/>-->
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