For the last one hundred years or so it has been the privilege of Christians to have a better understanding of the Word of God in its proper application and scope than perhaps at any other time since the days of the apostles. God's purposes and ways concerning man in the various ages may be better apprehended today than then. It has pleased God to unfold His marvelous designs to us who live in the last days. We do not infer by this that there have not been devoted Christians in the Church of God at all times, and at times probably more devoted than those living today; but we speak only of the present privilege of having a clearer understanding of His purposes as revealed in His written Word.
The special aspect of the truth which brings an understanding of God's revealed mind to His own is what is generally called dispensational truth. This term as used in relation to the Scriptures may be a little difficult for some of our readers to understand without an explanation. It is not some special truth, as we might refer to the truth of justification by faith, or the resurrection of the dead. There is a time factor connected with it, for it enables us to discern the mind of God concerning His revelation in the various ages since men were upon the earth, and thus gives us in general a way of understanding all truth. It also enables us to see His ultimate purposes both for a heavenly and an earthly people; and again, to distinguish things that differ and to recognize those that are similar and coincidental.
Without such an understanding, the Bible is a book of confusion and disarray; whereas it is in reality a book of most exquisite beauty and design. And the more anyone understands the divine order of God's Word, the more he will marvel in wondering amazement. He will not wish any other confirmation of its divine authorship; he will not wish the external evidences which may be exhumed from the earth by the archeologist's spade, for its internal structure will carry a conviction far beyond that which may be had from any other source.
Dispensationalism has been a great boon to the saints of God in these last days. May we value that which we have received and hold it fast, for it is being given up and many would take it from us. But the question may be asked, If this is such an important line of teaching, why then is it not found in the writings of the early so-called Church fathers? nor does it appear in any archives of the dark ages. This should present no problem to anyone, for the inculcation of error and departure from the truth was already active in the days of the apostles. An examination of the writings of the so-called fathers will present much mixture of truth and error. Nothing can be proved or disproved by what the fathers wrote, except that the early Church soon departed from the truth. Paul spoke about what would come in after his departure, and committed the saints to God and the word of His grace—not to the fathers of the second, third, or any century. John exhorts the saints to continue in that which was from the beginning, not to what the fathers would bring in. Peter and Jude likewise speak of their not departing from the truth they had received, but of keeping it in remembrance and contending for it.
Moreover, we should not expect to find any clear understanding of truth in the dark ages, when nearly all truth was obscured; even "justification by faith" was lost. True, many suffering saints in those days misapplied the beast of Rev. 13 to the Pope, and took comfort from it too. They felt encouraged that he would be judged, although they had much confusion regarding the Scriptures.
In view of the fact that it took a long time to assemble the various writings of the New Testament, it is probable that most of the early Christians did not get a very clear view of the whole range of dispensational truth. They were converted from their idols and Jewish ritual to wait for God's Son to come back. This was the immediate result of their salvation, and God never intended that any thought of a long period before the Lord returned should cast a shadow over their hope. This was the hope of the Thessalonians at the beginning; and when Satan sought to dim the hope, two apostolic letters were written to instruct them.
In confirmation of this principle, we should note that nothing in the parables indicated this long lapse of time before the Lord returned. They were the same virgins who at first waited for the bridegroom, who were there when he returned. They were the same servants who received their lord's money, who were there to give an accounting when he came back. Even the addresses to the seven churches, in Rev. 2 and 3, which we now understand as a prophetic outlook of the Church as a responsible witness on earth, were given to seven actual assemblies then existing in the province of Asia. It had a direct and present application, but now that the end is here, we understand their deeper meaning, and should profit thereby.
The parable of the ten virgins tells how the Church would become drowsy and go to sleep, forgetting to watch for their Lord. The wise and the foolish all slept together until a cry went forth at midnight, "Behold the bridegroom." This parable does not indicate that they would all go to sleep again, but the departure from revealed dispensational truth is in a considerable measure putting many to sleep. If we allow anyone to put something before our souls, which must take place before our Lord can come, then the expectancy of hope is GONE. We are not then waiting and watching for the Lord.
But truth, no matter how precious, may become dull in the soul, and remain in a cold intellectual form. When this happens, the love of it is soon given up; and ultimately even the form of it is dropped. This is exactly what has happened and what is happening in Christendom today. Many who once possessed the hope of the Lord's coming for His saints, and day by day thrilled at the bright prospect, now merely hold the doctrine of His pretribulation coming. Thus there is no separating power in it, and the world is embraced rather than being treated as it was by the Apostle—a thing crucified (Gal. 6:1414But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. (Galatians 6:14)).
Now even the form of it is being dropped by many, and so-called fundamental and evangelical Christendom is going through what is considered as a re-appraisal of dispensational truth and of the Lord's coming. It is having to be re-worked by today's theologians, with the result that many in these circles who formerly embraced it have given it up, and many others take such a neutral stand that it is effectively lost.
Periodicals of evangelical circles have given considerable space to this debate during the last few years. They can clearly define the varying positions of the amillennialist, the premillennialist, and the postmillennialist; and the last named is today gaining favor that it once lost. For the sake of clarity, may we state: the amillennialist is one who does not believe in the coming kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ to reign for 1000 years on earth, but envisages the coming of Christ at some time to make a new earth; the premillennialist is one who says that the Lord will come and set up His kingdom in Zion and govern this world in righteousness for 1000 years (but these are again divided into two classes, one of which expects Him momentarily before the seven years of trouble, including the final apostasy, come; and the other which says the Church must go through the tribulation). The postmillennialist says that a sort of moral kingdom will gain the ascendency, and the Lord will not come until after a thousand years of peace has been attained by some such means.
It is impossible to go into all the ramifications of these varying views in these pages, but let us state firmly and clearly the position which we take; and then as we proceed we shall seek to bring the light of the Scriptures to bear upon it. We definitely and without qualification or reservation believe that the moment of our Lord's return to take His people home is near at hand. We trust that we not only hold as a doctrine, but as a living hope, that the Lord Himself will soon descend into the clouds of heaven and call all the believers from the earth and from the tomb to be with Himself according to His unequivocal promise, "I will come again, and receive you unto Myself." John 14:33And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (John 14:3). We are not looking for the apostasy or for seven years of trouble, the latter half of which is called the great tribulation, but for the Lord from heaven, although we can clearly discern the times in which we live as indicated by those epistles which describe the last days. We also see the world being readied for events which will take place after we are gone, so the moment of our departure is NEAR.
When once we understand the importance of the dispensational outlook, we shall, when reading the holy Scriptures, seek to see who was being addressed, who was being spoken of, and what the Spirit of God would convey in that place. Of course all the Bible is for us, but it is not all about us; nor was it originally all spoken to us. Every scripture, when rightly understood, complements every other part; for it was all given by the one Spirit of God. A divine design and ultimate purpose pervades the whole Book from cover to cover. Even as it was written: "Knowing this first, that the scope of no prophecy of scripture is had from its own particular interpretation, for prophecy was not ever uttered by the will of man, but holy men of God spake under the power of the Holy Spirit." 2 Peter 1:20, 2120Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. (2 Peter 1:20‑21); J.N.D. Trans. There is one design of the Holy Spirit in the Book, although it deals with the various ages since men have been on the earth until the day of the new heavens and a new earth. When we grasp the divine design, each part falls easily and naturally into its own place without having to be forced or twisted to make it fit.
The word dispensation as used in the Word of God signifies a certain ordered administration for a certain time. It may be called an economy, or the management of an organized system. God, in the beginning, placed the earth under the rule of Adam, and made him lord over it; but, alas, he sinned and pulled the whole creation down with him. God thereafter tried mankind in many and various ways to see if he were recoverable, only to see him fail in every test. Finally He sent His Son, and they cast Him out; then He sent a message of grace through that One whom they rejected. But it is the purpose of God that this world will be ruled by a man, and He will be the Man of His counsels and choice — "the second man," "the last Adam." At that time all His plans for man to rule will be made good; not only will that Man rule on earth, but in heaven. We read, "That in the dispensation [should be translated, administration] of the fullness of times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him." Eph. 1:1010That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him: (Ephesians 1:10). He will then administer all for the glory of God in the culmination of the times.
The above verse has been confused by some opponents of the truth with a verse in Gal. 4 "But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law." v. 4. The most careless reader should observe that the "fullness of the time" and the "fullness of times" are not the same terms at all. The former refers to that time when man had been fully tried by every conceivable means and found to be totally wanting. When there was no hope for man in the flesh, God sent forth His Son to redeem men. To mix these two verses and confuse the Lord's coming in flesh the first time to put away sin, and His coming the second time to administer all for the glory of God, is to confound things that differ, which is just what the rejection of dispensational truth does.
We have spoken of the meaning of the word dispensation, but in a larger and more general sense it is used to describe any period of time wherein God operated toward man in a particular manner. In the broader sense we might consider: (a) He first placed man in an earthly paradise, but he was no sooner there than he sinned.
(b) After the sin in Eden came expulsion from Eden, and man was left to his own way. This in a strict sense could not be called a dispensation, for man was left to himself; but for our purpose we shall consider it as a special period. Here man became utterly lawless—so much so that God destroyed all except Noah and his family with a flood.
(c) After the flood, God put government into the hand of man, and decreed, "Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed" (Gen. 9:66Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man. (Genesis 9:6)); but then men turned to idolatry. Read Rom. 1 for the manner in which they turned to the worship of that which their hands had made—images made like to man, to birds, to quadrupeds, to creeping things (or back to the serpent).
(d) Out of this prevalent condition of idolatry which came in when man gave up the traditional knowledge of God acquired through Noah's posterity, God called the man Abraham and made a covenant with him; but he soon denied his wife and had to be reproved by a heathen.
(e) After God's allowing Abraham's descendants to be enslaved in Egypt, He sent the man Moses to bring them forth; but ere long the children of Israel said, Up, make us gods to go before us, for as "for this Moses,... we wot not what has become of him."
(f) At this time the Israelites had covenanted to obey all which God would speak, and put themselves under the conditional arrangement of keeping God's law. While Moses was away receiving the words of God for them, they made the golden calf.
(g) God raised up the priesthood for Israel, but, as soon as it was instituted, it failed; and two of Aaron's sons died the first day for offering strange fire. It was more or less set aside later in the days of aged Eli, for his sons had corrupted the people.
(h) Afterward, God raised up a king, David, "a man after His own heart." But for a long time he was hunted and his life endangered, and his son Solomon brought idolatry into his own family circle. After that, the kingdom was divided; and God had compassion on His people and sent messenger after messenger unto them, until the sins of Manasseh made judgment on them imperative.
(i) God brought a remnant back in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah, but the prophet Malachi describes the sad condition into which that remnant sank.
(j) Finally, God sent His Son, saying, "They will reverence My Son," but Him they cast out and slew. This is a very brief outline of man's pathway of failure from Adam to Christ.
In this period in which we live, God has been dealing in great grace and beseeching men to be reconciled to Him (2 Cor. 5:2020Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20)). The gospel first went forth from an ascended and glorified Christ to the Jews, or, as John Bunyan called them, "Jerusalem sinners." The message was to begin in the very place where the Lord was crucified. Then the book of The Acts outlines the carrying of the message from Jerusalem and Judea to Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth. Acts 1:88But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. (Acts 1:8) is in substance a table of contents of The Acts of the Apostles.
After Stephen's death, the scenes began to change, for Israel had now rejected the gospel sent down from heaven in the power of the Holy Spirit. From place to place through The Acts, the Jews were given the gospel first ("to the Jew first"); but when they rejected it, it was then given to the Gentiles until, at length, in the last chapter, the sentence of judicial blindness, foretold by the prophet Isaiah, was placed upon them, and Paul said to them: "Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it." Acts 28:2828Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it. (Acts 28:28).
We are now living in the end of the period of God's special grace to the Gentiles; it is spoken of as "the fullness of the Gentiles" in Rom. 11:2525For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. (Romans 11:25). Their fullness will come in when the Lord calls His Church home to be with Himself. For this blessed moment we wait. God has been visiting the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name (Acts 15:14), but they are a people destined for heaven. We should, however, keep in mind that in the Church of God there has always been a saved remnant of the Jews. At the first (Acts 2) only Jews or Jewish proselytes were brought into the Church; but as the nation rejected grace, the call went wider, and in Acts 10 a Gentile centurion and his family were saved and brought into the Church. Already a man had been saved (chap. 9) who was to be the Lord's special messenger to the Gentiles (see Acts 15).
Strictly speaking, the Church period is not a dispensation in the sense of an administration of God's way on earth, but a gathering out of a people for heaven; however, we shall consider it as a special period of God's ways while He makes known His purposes and plans not only for them, but for the earth. He has treated us in this age as His friends and made His mind known to us (John 15:1414Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. (John 15:14)). Perhaps we should consider the Church period as merely a long parenthesis in God's ways and dispensations for the earth. When the Church has been translated to heaven, then God's ways (of which Israel will be the center) will again begin to unfold, and a time is to follow, called "the time of Jacob's trouble" (Jer. 30:77Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it. (Jeremiah 30:7)). He (that is, a remnant of Israel) will be saved "out of it," like Noah was saved out of the flood, while the Church has been promised by the Lord that it will be kept out of the hour of it—altogether kept from the time of it (Rev. 3:1010Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. (Revelation 3:10)), as Enoch was taken away before the flood came. For the "time of Jacob's trouble" will also be "the great tribulation" which "shall come upon all the world.”
After the rapture of the Church, apostasy of both Christendom and Judaism will mount up to their peaks to receive the judgments decreed already. The spirit of apostasy has been at work as a mystery since the days of the Apostle, for he speaks of "the mystery of iniquity" (2 Thess. 2:77For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. (2 Thessalonians 2:7)); and John wrote that there were already many antichrists (1 John 2:1818Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. (1 John 2:18)). But the thing, although far advanced, will not be full blown until we are taken from the scene. Then there will be the attempted complete overthrow of all reverence for God, and even the mention of His name. It will be man in daring infidelity who will blaspheme God. Man will be deified, but overthrown in the end. Apostate Christendom and apostate Judaism will perish, while a remnant will be saved.
The increase in numbers and respectability of the false cults, and the shocking infidelity and daring resistance to God and His Word in many places of what was once orthodox Christendom point the way and the trend to the great apostasy. It has been on its way since the days of the apostles, but now has taken over large sections of so-called Christianity. Whenever the moment comes for the home call of the true believers, wickedness will ripen almost over night. There will be no restraining hand of the Spirit of God to hinder its open manifestation. After that, that is, after the great tribulation, and the coming of Christ as "King of kings and Lord of lords" to execute judgment, He will establish His throne on earth in righteousness, and reign for 1000 years. Then, according to Rev. 20, Satan will be loosed out of his prison to test the multitudes of Gentiles who were born during the Millennium. This will be the crowning proof that man, unless born again, is hopelessly bad, even after seeing the wonderful beneficence of God during the Millennium; for they will rise up against Him. At that time God will destroy the rebels, and the present earth and its heaven will be destroyed, and a new heaven and new earth will be formed. In this, righteousness will dwell forever in a state of eternal bliss. But the Church's portion will be to dwell with Christ in heavenly glory forever.
For Christians today to reject dispensationalism is to go (as it were) to sea without chart or compass, trusting only to their own feelings and intuitions. Such will not know whither they sail, nor have directions day by day how to live. During the past economies in God's ways on earth, His saints have needed directions for their path, and have required faith to discern His mind in each particular period. When Saul first reigned, for instance, obedience to the king was obedience to God; when David was rejected, faith identified itself with a king in hiding; when the time came to make David king, the ones who discerned what to do came to make him king in Hebron. Some, of whom we read, "had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do." 1 Chron. 12:32. 0 for Christians with true understanding of these times! Such will not belittle dispensational truth.
God's people have always needed a directed path for their feet since the expulsion from Eden. Multitudes of examples might be adduced, but let us mention a few: there was a time when Isaac was told, "Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of." Gen. 26:22And the Lord appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: (Genesis 26:2). Later, Jacob was told, "Fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will make of thee a great nation." Gen. 46:33And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation: (Genesis 46:3). And in the days of Jeremiah, when the people thought to go down into Egypt to escape trouble, God said, "0 ye remnant of Judah; Go ye not into Egypt." Jer. 42:1919The Lord hath said concerning you, O ye remnant of Judah; Go ye not into Egypt: know certainly that I have admonished you this day. (Jeremiah 42:19). At that time God had given Jerusalem into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar to destroy it; but, in the days of Ezra, to be in the current of His thoughts one would help to build the temple; and in the days of Nehemiah, discerning Jews would help rebuild the walls of the city. Then in the days when the epistle to the Hebrews was written, Christian discernment made them leave the temple and all its ritual, even as they were exhorted to go forth unto Christ outside of the camp of Judaism.
From these few examples it should be evident that a Christian cannot pick up his Bible and read just anywhere and find directions for his feet. If he does not read discerningly, he may think it is his duty to help rebuild a temple in Jerusalem today, or do any of thousands of things that would be totally inconsistent with his position as a Christian, whose life, commonwealth, and hopes are in heaven (Col. 3:1-31If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 2Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 3For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. (Colossians 3:1‑3)).
A lack of understanding of dispensational truth led the men who wrote the page headings in our King James Version Bibles to make huge mistakes. Take up the average Bible and run through the headings of the Old Testament and you will find the blessings promised to Israel ascribed to the Church. while the threats of judgment are generally applied to Israel. Is that consistent? Is it in any sense the truth?
Are we to consider that Israel and the Church are one and the same thing? This is exactly what the rejection of dispensational understanding leads to. This has been the bane of the Church from its formation at the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). Judaizing teachers have ever sought to corrupt the Church and bring Judaistic principles into Christianity, and the Apostle Paul contended energetically against this all through his ministry. Today a new term is in common vogue—Judeo-Christianity." Let it be once and forever clear that the Church is not an adjunct of Judaism. Did not the Lord Himself say that one cannot put new wine into old bottles (or skins) lest the bottles burst and the wine be lost? But the lack of the clear-cut distinction between the two has caused Christendom to put many patches on the old bottles in an effort to contain the new within the old.
Dr. George E. Ladd, of the Fuller Seminary of Pasadena, California, has recently written a book entitled, "The Blessed Hope." Dr. Ladd takes a premillennial outlook, but his book is an attack on the doctrine of the Lord's coming for His Church before the tribulation. Hence the title of his book is misleading, for we have not a present hope of expecting our Lord if we have to wait and go through the great apostasy and the tribulation period, perhaps to suffer martyrdom. The immediacy of the hope being lost, it ceases to be the blessed hope. Certainly the apostasy and martyrdom are poor substitutes for the hope of seeing Him momentarily. The one who embraces these has lost the blessed expectancy which many Christians have rightly enjoyed.
It would take a lengthy tome to answer Dr. Ladd's book, but it is certainly answerable. It displays much of the confusion that goes with the denial of dispensationalism; at times it misrepresents the true position of those who zealously hold the pretribulation rapture of the saints of this age; for instance, it says that dispensationalists define His pretribulation coming "in terms of escape from suffering [in the tribulation] rather than union with Christ." This is not true for the great body of those who watch for their Lord.
Dr. Ladd's remarks on page 130 exhibit a sad lack of understanding of that notable prophecy of our Lord's on Olivet. In His discourse with His own after His public ministry was closed, He opens up the future and explains His coming back, in three parts: first (Matt. 24:1-441And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to show him the buildings of the temple. 2And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. 3And 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? 4And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. 5For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. 6And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. 10And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 12And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. 13But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. 15When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 16Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains: 17Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: 18Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. 19And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! 20But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: 21For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. 23Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. 24For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. 25Behold, I have told you before. 26Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. 27For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 28For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together. 29Immediately 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: 30And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. 32Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: 33So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 35Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. 36But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. 37But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 40Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 42Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. (Matthew 24:1‑44)), He tells of His coming as regards the Jewish people; second (chap. 24:45 to chap. 25:30), as it will relate to the Christian profession; third (chap. 25:31 to end), with reference to the Gentile nations. Dr. Ladd, however, will have the Church treated of throughout. He sees no distinction between "the gospel of the kingdom" and "the gospel of the grace of God." Neither will he allow that it is the Jews who are to flee from Jerusalem when an idol (spoken of in Dan. 12, which Dr. Ladd confuses with the antichrist—pp. 72, 73) is set up in the holy place of their new temple; for he makes this fleeing to apply to Christians. Dr. Ladd says: "The people of God are seen in the Tribulation. They are to be put to flight by the Abomination of Desolation (Matt. 24:2020But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: (Matthew 24:20)). The Tribulation will bring martyrdom to the elect.... Who are the elect? Are they the Church, or Israel? Dispensationalism solves this problem by the application of its major premise," meaning Israel, of course. But will Dr. Ladd please explain, if his thesis is correct and it means the Church, why it is that Christians are to pray that their flight be not on the Sabbath day? His stand would please the Seventh-day Adventists, who would make Jews out of us. Did he never discover that in Luke 21, when the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus in A.D. 70 was prophesied, the believers were not inhibited by Jewish rules of a Sabbath day? But when the Church has been translated to heaven, and the Jews become once more the center of God's ways, they will be bound by the Sabbath; therefore the Lord said (anticipating the Jewish remnant who will be in Jerusalem at that time), "Pray ye that your flight be not... on the sabbath day." v. 20.
Dr. Ladd's confusion over the "abomination of desolation" is an example of his inexactitude in dealing with subjects which have been ably set forth by spiritual men of profound learning. He speaks of, "The coming of antichrist who is called the Abomination of Desolation" (pp. 72, 73), and "the persecutions of the Great Tribulation which shall be inflicted upon the people of God by the Abomination of Desolation" (p. 86), and "In both Matthew and the Revelation where the Great Tribulation is prophesied, the people of God are seen in the Tribulation. They are put to flight by the Abomination of Desolation" (p. 130). He thus plainly identifies the "abomination of desolation" with what he terms the antichrist; by this he means "the beast" of the Roman Empire (the "antichrist" is more generally considered as the second beast of Rev. 13—the false Messiah in Jerusalem).
This word "abomination" in both Dan. 12:1111And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. (Daniel 12:11) and Matt. 24:1515When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) (Matthew 24:15), in both the Hebrew and the Greek, means "an idol" or "idolatry" and does not refer to a man. It is the same original word that is used in Dan. 9:2727And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. (Daniel 9:27), "for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate"; or better translated, because of idolatry "shall come one that maketh desolate" (A. R V.). It is plainly evident that the "abomination of desolation" is the image which the second beast of Rev. 13 makes of the first, beast of that chapter, whereupon worship of the image becomes mandatory. And the Lord Jesus in giving instructions for the Jewish remnant of the future day tells them to flee Jerusalem when this image is set up, or stands "in the holy place" of the temple. A man will not stand in the holy place, but an idol will.
Furthermore, the Lord's directions concerning the placement of this abomination of desolation in the temple instructed "them which be in Judea" to "flee to the mountains." To make this passage instruction for all the Church during the tribulation would of necessity place all the Church in Judea. Such an idea would be nonsense. Only confusion results from mixing instructions for the Church with those for a future Jewish remnant.
On page 131 of his book, he challenges the believers who enjoy the blessed hope by referring them to Rev. 17, where the corrupt woman—"BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH" — is said to be "drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus." Here he again asks, "Who are the saints who suffer martyrdom? Are they the Church or Israel?" He seems to feel he has executed a coup here, and says that dispensationalists apply their major premise to this; that is, they make the martyrs to be of Israel. The evidence of Scripture is that this woman is the last stage of the false church which has had the seven-hilled city of Rome for its headquarters. Would not Dr. Ladd admit that according to this scripture God is going to judge her for the blood she shed in her inquisitions, and her systematic destruction of those whom she called heretics? It is a review of her whole course, and not merely tribulation martyrdom' committed by her.
In an article of Dr. Ladd's published in Eternity magazine of May, 1957, wherein he attempts to answer Dr. John F. Walvoord's new book, The Rapture Question, he says: "In the Old Testament, Israel was the people of God; now, it is the church; and there is continuity rather than discontinuity between the two. There is one people of God, not two. This truth is clearly set forth in Rom. 11. There is one olive tree — the people of God. Natural branches have been broken off—unbelieving Israel. Wild branches have been grafted on—believing Gentiles." And this he makes out to be the ekklesia, or Church of God. This is a ready-made example of the confusion Christians get into by rejecting dispensational truth. How readily he mixes Israel and the Church. They never were one, or intended to be one. Israel will be God's earthly people of the future, but the Church will be the heavenly bride of Christ.
Let us notice Dr. Ladd's confusion regarding Rom. 11. He says the olive tree there represents the one people of God. This it does not. The olive tree there is the tree of privilege and blessing on the earth. Surely Israel had many advantages—"much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God." Rom. 3:22Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God. (Romans 3:2). They were cut off, but not until after they rejected the gospel sent down from a glorified Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. The Gentiles have been brought into the privileged place. They have the advantage today, for there is no veil over their hearts. But the branches which are grafted in are not believing Gentiles, but Gentiles as Gentiles. If this is not so, will Dr. Ladd say that believing Gentiles who have been brought into this "one people of God" are to be cut off? Will he allow believers to be utterly lost? Yet his statements make that a necessity. His arguments are bankrupt.
When the Apostle began to speak about the olive tree, he said, "For I speak to you Gentiles" (v. 13). Thus there is no excuse for the confusion of supposing he was speaking to believers among them. How could he say to a believer, "Thou shalt be cut off." Down in the 25th verse he began to explain truth to believers, and his form of address changed to, "I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery." But rejecters of dispensational truth have not learned what Paul sought to explain to his brethren in the remainder of the 11th chapter of Romans. It is a marvelous unfolding of God's wisdom in His dispensational dealings with Jew and Gentile which leads the Apostle into a grand doxology: "0 the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out!" etc.
Characteristic of those who reject dispensational truth, Dr. Ladd rejects what to us seems quite patent; that is, the dispensational nature of Matthew's Gospel. Each of the four gospels has its own specialty, or distinctive mark; if this is not so, why then are there four? Matthew's Gospel clearly presents the Messiah to the Jews, and develops the consequences dispensationally, to a certain point, of their rejection of their Messiah.
In keeping with this design, the Lord Jesus is presented in Matthew as the son of David and Abraham, through whom the promised Messiah had to come. Consequently, more scriptures of the Old Testament are quoted in Matthew than in any other gospel. At the beginning, the gospel that the King was coming was announced. It was distinctly the gospel of a coming kingdom presented according to the prophecies. This was formally rejected by the mass of the Jews with their leaders, so that in the 12th chapter, they commit the unpardonable sin of attributing the power of the Holy Spirit, by whom the Lord wrought miracles, to the power of Satan. Thereupon, the Lord disclaims relationship with Israel and, in the 13th chapter, goes out to the seaside (which has a figurative bearing) where He gave the parable of the sower who introduces something new. New seed was sown which is the mystery of the kingdom of heaven—a time when the king who came to His own was rejected by them, while something new would grow in the world. A people would be on earth who claimed to honor an absent king. The kingdom of heaven in its mysterious form is Christendom of this age, or that which says, "In God we trust," and, "in the year of our Lord.”
Then further on in Matthew, the 16th chapter, Christ announced that He would build His Church; in the 17th chapter, the three apostles were given a preview of the coming millennial kingdom. Chapters 24 and 25 (as we have already noticed) give the prophecy of His coming back in its threefold form. And the Gospel closes with Him risen and present with His own on earth—figurative of a godly remnant of the Jews who will be waiting for Him when He comes to reign. In the first part of the book, He also gives the principles on which His kingdom will be established. While they refer to His earthly kingdom, yet a well-taught Christian is interested in those principles, and gathers profit from them. No such collection of principles is gathered together in any other gospel, and it should not be supposed that chapters 5 to 7 were all uttered at one time. We know they were not; but Matthew, writing by the Spirit, was led to bring these all together into a group for dispensational reasons. To reject the most evident arrangement of the Gospel of Matthew is to shut out the light and prefer darkness.
Dr. Ladd's statement that "Nowhere are we told to watch for the coming of Christ" (italics his) requires some examination. That may be literally correct and yet be basically wrong. Is there no implied need of watching for Him, whom our souls love, in those memorable words sent down from heaven, in which we are exhorted to remember Him in death? And it is given in a touching fashion when it says that "the Lord Jesus, the same night in which He was betrayed" made such a request. In this message from the ascended and glorified Lord, He said, "For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till He come." Here we are reminded of His death for us and of His coming again for us. Shall not we watch? Were not the Thessalonians watching for God's Son from heaven? And were they not commended for it? What is the proper response to His promised "I will come again, and receive you unto Myself"? Is it not an upturned eye, eagerly expecting Him? Should we be finding ways to "prove" something must first take place, hence we need not watch? Far be the thought! Furthermore, we dislike the phrase watching for His coming; it should be rather watching for Himself—a person, not something about Him.
Dr. Ladd reasons away the word in Rev. 3:33Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. (Revelation 3:3), "If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief." He makes use of other translations which say "wake up" or "be wide awake" to offset the force of watching; but the R.V., A.R.V., Confraternity, J.N.D., and W.K. versions stand by the word "watch" there. After all it is the same word in the Greek that is translated "watch" in Mark 13:33-3733Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is. 34For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. 35Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: 36Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. 37And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch. (Mark 13:33‑37) and 14:34-38, where "be wide awake" would scarcely do. And if it is "wake up," wake up to what? Remember the sleeping virgins! And what about the last chapter of Revelation? After the prophecy is fully told, the Lord tells the Church that He is coming—He Himself, not another—and finally a hearty response is awakened, so that "The Spirit and the bride say, Come." 22:17. Maybe we are not commanded to watch for Him, but it is the only proper response of hearts which have heard His accents of promised coming. We greatly fear that dedication to an opposing view is parent to the thought advanced by anti-dispensationalists.
Furthermore, in regard to Rev. 3:33Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. (Revelation 3:3), attention should be called to the fact that failure to watch will bring down the same judgment that will overtake the world. This is borne out in another portion: "For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they [the world] shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them,... and they shall not escape." If the professing Church lives with and like the world, it will reap the world's judgment—unbelievers, of course. (1 Thess. 5:1-81But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. 2For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. 3For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. 4But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 5Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. 6Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. 7For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. 8But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. (1 Thessalonians 5:1‑8).) And a thief never comes for good.
Notice too that it is the "day of the Lord" which so comes, not the coming of the Lord for His own, or the day of Christ which has a heavenly aspect. But the book which we have reviewed more or less confuses the "day of the Lord" and the "day of Christ." They are not the same and never approximate each other. Even men do not confuse differing terms; is God less accurate than men?
Did not all of the ten virgins—the profession of Christianity—go forth to meet the Bridegroom? Was not that their mission? And did they not sin when they went to sleep and failed to watch? And anti-dispensationalists would put the Church back to sleep again. A play on Greek words will not avail in connection with the ten virgins, but of course the obvious can be rejected. Did not the evil servant sin for saying "in his heart,”
My lord delays his coming? He merely said to himself, "Oh, He will not come yet." It is no longer only said "in the heart," but taught openly.
Dr. Ladd asks, "Is not the Blessed Hope the hope of deliverance from tribulation?" If that is so, then a poor suffering saint might just as well say that death would be the blessed hope. "He [Himself] is our hope." Do we only desire Him to fulfill His word and take us to be with Himself when we suffer tribulation? We trust not!
We have not selected just the points in Dr. Ladd's book that are easy for rebuttal, but have merely picked out things at random. The whole work indicates a lack of spiritual perception of the dispensational line of truth; hence reasoning against it becomes easy for him. And when the whole is read, we say, "They have taken away the hope that we may see Him today, and given us no substitute"—what a loss! And the effect can be disastrous in the tone of Christian life.
Dr. Ladd would have all of us who have tenaciously held and happily enjoyed the prospect of seeing our Lord at any moment to re-examine and re-think the whole matter, and gives us his deductions and conclusions from which to think. This would lead to confusion and a giving up of a well-charted course in exchange for speculation, although Dr. Ladd assures us that our blessed hope is an unjustified inference. The burden of proof is his.
He has not discovered the beauty of Peter's reference to Joel's prophecy in Acts 2. When Peter defended the Christians, who were speaking the gospel in various tongues, from the charge of intoxication, he merely said, "This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel." It was not the fulfillment of Joel 2, but merely a part of what Joel prophesied for the future. Peter, like his Lord before him, knew where to close the book (Luke 4:16-2016And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. 17And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, 18The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 19To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 20And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. (Luke 4:16‑20)), for he did not read the rest of what Joel said. What took place there was not intoxication, but merely evidence of the power of the Spirit; and Joel is only used to that end. The prophecy of Joel will yet be fulfilled in the day of Israel's restoration.
Dr. Ladd's claim that "the new covenant, promised in Jer. 31, was made by our Lord with the Church, and is now in effect," is gratuitous to say the least. There is no scriptural support for this statement. It is to be made with the houses of Israel and Judah, and with none else. Paul did not infer in Hebrews that it was made with the Church; he merely brought in the subject to prove to the converted Jews that it was folly to cling to the old covenant, for it was to be superseded. Paul drops the subject as soon as his point is made. Even the Lord Himself said, "This is My blood of the new testament [covenant], which is shed for many for the remission of sins." Matt. 26:2828For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. (Matthew 26:28). It is the blood on which the new covenant will be established with the houses of Israel; and, through it, we who believe now, get the blessing of having our sins forgiven. Even dispensationalists may mistakenly say that we are under the new covenant, but a search will prove we are not.
On pages 89 and 90 of Dr. Ladd's book, he quarrels with the differentiation between the Lord's coming for and coming with His saints. But that should certainly present no problem, for the Old Testament foretold His coming with His saints; for instance, "The LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with Thee"; and Enoch prophesied that the Lord would come with His saints. It was no unrevealed mystery that Christ would come with His saints, but that He should come for them was not revealed until Paul received it from the Lord (see 1 Thess. 4:15-1715For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:15‑17)).
Dr. Ladd uses Titus 2:1313Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; (Titus 2:13) for the title to his book; and quite characteristically he sees only one thing in it, while there are in reality two things. This verse is fully capable, without distention or abuse, of bringing before us both Christ's coming for and with His saints. Let us notice it: "Looking for that blessed hope and appearing of the glory of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ." A.R.V. We will quote the words of a staunch defender of the faith, William Kelly: “We need... to look for 'the blessed hope and appearing of the glory.' These are two parts which comprise the revealed object God would have before our souls.
“The one article given to the two objects brackets them together, not at all as if they were identical, but as here expressly associated to convey the complex and combined outlook. `The blessed hope' is that which alone can satisfy the heart; it is to be in the presence of Christ on high, changed at His coming into His likeness and with Him forever. 'The appearing of the' divine 'glory' is bound up with it, and follows in due time, as that display or the divine manifestation in power, which our renewed souls cannot but desire to the utter exclusion of moral and physical evil and of Satan's guileful energy." Thus Titus 2:1313Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; (Titus 2:13) is not what Dr. Ladd avers, a "proof-text.”
Dr. Ladd makes a considerable play on the Greek words for the Lord's coming, revelation, and manifestation; but those who hold the opposite view use the same words to disprove what he seeks to prove by them. God has used each word in perfect wisdom, and there is nothing in their use that will disprove the Lord's pretribulation coming for His saints. It rests on the matter of the correct understanding of the truth, and not on some quick turn of Greek words. Christ's coming for and with His saints are surely both His coming, but at separate times and under different circumstances.
The book of Revelation is a hopeless muddle in Dr. Ladd's book. By putting the Church in the world to go through the tribulation period, we have a book applied to Christians where their proper relationship with God as their Father is unknown. The fact that, the Old Testament names by which God revealed Himself to the fathers and to the people of Israel should be used in Revelation is enough to settle the problem he creates. God was in old time revealed as Lord, God, Almighty; and these names are again seen in Revelation—not Father. Furthermore, there are cries for vengeance from the saints in Revelation, but such cries never belong to Christians. We are followers of One "Who, when He was reviled, reviled not again; when He suffered, He threatened not." Not once in the New Testament is there a reference to a Christian's taking vengeance, or even of his desiring it. Paul's reference to Alexander the coppersmith may seem like an exception, but a better translation will prove otherwise. Paul merely expressed his knowledge that God would reward him according to his works, not that he (Paul) desired it. See 2 Tim. 4:1414Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: the Lord reward him according to his works: (2 Timothy 4:14).
Dr. Ladd says on page 80, "The doctrine of the resurrection had been long taught (cf. Dan. 12:22And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:2))." Let us examine this verse which he says taught the resurrection: "And many of them [Daniel's people, the Jews of verse 1] that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." We are bold to say that this verse says nothing about the resurrection, but of the bringing back Jews that have been sleeping among the nations. This will take place at Messiah's coming. (Isa. 26:19-2119Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead. 20Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. 21For, behold, the Lord cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain. (Isaiah 26:19‑21) and Ezek. 37 deal with the same subject.) But suppose we try to make this a resurrection. Confusion is the only result, for it would be only a partial resurrection of both just and unjust. It plainly says that "many," not "all," shall awake; and these fall into two classes.
Another statement of this book is, "The Rapture of the Church before the Tribulation is an assumption; it is not taught in the Olivet Discourse.".p. 73. Why did the writer look for the pretribulation rapture of the saints in Matt. 24 and 25? The first intimation of such a coming was in John 14 (which was spoken on the night of His agony in Gethsemane) where the Lord said, "I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." v. 3. This was an unequivocal promise of His personal coming for His saints. The truth of this is later detailed in 1 Thess. 4:15-1815For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 18Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (1 Thessalonians 4:15‑18). At that time those who had been converted from idols to "wait" for God's Son to come back (let some say that we are not called to watch for Him—these people knew the reality of watching and waiting) became discouraged when some of their number fell asleep. To correct their misapprehension, the Apostle wrote instructions which he received from the Lord. They feared that those who died would miss out on His coming, but the Apostle says that when He comes back to reign He will bring them with Him (v. 14). Then in a parenthesis of verses 15 through 18 he explains a special revelation of how the sleeping saints would get to be with Him in order to come back with Him. In the beginning of chapter 5, the Apostle reverts to the subject of His appearing with His saints. The Christians of this age do not belong to the night, but to the coming day. We shall be off the scene before the awful tribulation breaks.
But Dr. Ladd continues: "The only verse in this discourse [Matt. 24 and 25] which can possibly be construed to refer to the Rapture is verse 31 [of Matthew 24], 'And He shall send forth His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other!'
“There are elements of striking similarity between this verse and Paul's teaching about the Rapture of the Church. `For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven, with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God' (1 Thess. 4:1616For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: (1 Thessalonians 4:16)).”
Need we call our reader's attention to the fact that there is much contrast and little or no similarity between the passages in Matthew and 1 Thess. 4? In the former, the Lord tells of His coming back as regards the Jewish people. In that case, He will use the instrumentality of angels to gather the elect Jews. For the Church, He will come and shout the shout that assembles them. This He will do personally. Of what use would angels be to gather the Church when He Himself will assemble the believers from the earth and the grave in such a short time that the transformation will take place "in the twinkling of an eye"? No, He will not send angels to gather the Church, but will do that Himself.
Of course there is the mention of the trumpet in both instances, but will not the trumpet be used to gather the elect of Israel? Verily, it will be the fulfillment of the feast of trumpets (Lev. 23:2424Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation. (Leviticus 23:24)); and then "the great trumpet shall be blown," and the dispersed Jews will come from Assyria and Egypt, and "shall worship the LORD in the holy mount at Jerusalem." Isa. 27:1313And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown, and they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the Lord in the holy mount at Jerusalem. (Isaiah 27:13). Can we by any stretch of imagination apply this trumpet blowing to the rapture of the Church, and assume that it will then assemble at Jerusalem to worship the Lord?
Dr. Ladd further states that the presence of angels is found in both the passage in Matt. 24:31 and in 1 Thess. 4, but this is very inaccurate; for in Matt. 24 He will send angels to gather elect Jews, but angels are not mentioned in the epistle, except that He will come with the "voice of the archangel"—where are angels spoken of? To mix these two unrelated verses is to compound confusion.
The author works hard to put the Church in the tribulation period, and applies the sealed 144,000 in Revelation to "the true Israel," as though that meant the Church. Let it be clearly stated that the Church is never called Israel in any sense. The one verse that is often quoted from Galatians (6:16), to prove this contention, is grossly misunderstood. It says: "And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, AND UPON THE ISRAEL OF GOD." Those who walked according to the rule were saved Gentiles, and "the Israel of God" were saved Jews, and nothing more or less.
Utter confusion is indicated in Dr. Ladd's book when the subject of the "first resurrection" is mentioned. Its author will not allow that there are different parts to the first resurrection, that the first resurrection is one of character rather than of a single instance of time. But to begin with, the whole point of Christ's resurrection as the firstfruits is overlooked—"Christ the firstfruits." Did He not rise first, and then did not a sample of the saints come forth out of their graves as visible evidence of the power of His resurrection? This is entirely overlooked. Did not this also have to do with the first resurrection? Then the resurrection of the believers at His call from the air, according to 1 Cor. 15 and 1 Thess. 4, is surely the major portion of the first resurrection; but this is summarily rejected. In its place, Rev. 20:4-64And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. 6Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. (Revelation 20:4‑6) is brought forward as the one and only installment of the first resurrection. But let us examine this portion: "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them." Who are these? Not those about to be raised! To understand who they are, we need to go back into the previous chapter; the ones mentioned there are the armies that follow the Son of man out of heaven. These are now seen occupying thrones. In Dan. 7:99I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. (Daniel 7:9), the prophet saw the thrones placed, but not yet occupied. Here, the Apostle sees them occupied, and we know that the Lord will be the supreme center and will be the One to act in judgment; but when that time comes, the resurrected saints of all ages and the changed and translated saints of this age will reign with Him. The saints previously seen in heaven will have come forth with Him to judge.
But let us look at the next statement of the verse: "and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God." Now mark it clearly, John did not say he saw the souls that were beheaded, for that might mean that he saw the persons in their bodies; but he plainly states he saw "the souls of them that were beheaded." These are souls separate from the bodies. Compare this group with those mentioned in Rev. 6:99And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: (Revelation 6:9): "I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held." Here is the same group. Their bodies were in the graves, and their souls were in heaven; they had been martyred during the tribulation because of their testimony. These were most likely martyred by the false and oppressing church during the first 31/2 years —they were Jews, in all probability. They had the testimony of the book of Revelation—"The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
Now John also sees the souls of another martyr group those who had "not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark." When John saw the souls under the altar, in chapter 6, they were told that they would have to wait a little season until their fellow servants and brethren should be killed. Now the second group of martyrs is revealed; their souls too are in heaven. The careful distinction between the two groups is lost in the King James Version, but the A.R.V. and J.N.D. translations, besides many others, make the matter plain by adding after the first group of martyrs are seen in the disembodied state, "and such as worshipped not the beast," etc. They are the ones mentioned in chapter 13:15, those who were put to death during the 31/2 years of the great tribulation for refusal to do homage to the image of the beast. Now the two groups of those martyred after the rapture are complete, and they are raised from the dead, and share in the reigning with Christ along with those who were already seated on judgment thrones, and to whom judgment was committed. Of these two martyr groups it is said, "And they lived," which might be translated, "and they were raised to life." They had not lost out on heavenly glory and reigning with Christ because their testimony during the fateful 7 years had been cut short by martyrdom; they will be raised and complement those raised at the rapture. Thus these very verses which Dr. Ladd uses to prove there is only one part to the first resurrection, destroy his whole plan when carefully considered and understood.
Even in the types, the distinction is maintained. In Lev. 23, the next thing after the feast of Pentecost (which prefigures the formation of the Church on earth) is the harvest, for which no time was specified— the ingathering of saints into the heavenly barn—then there follows an allowance for resurrected tribulation saints, as the grain left in the corners of the field for "the poor and the stranger." And this precedes the feast of trumpets which prefigures the calling back of Israel. But this notable chapter can only be understood in the light of dispensational truth.
The Old Testament closes with the earthly saints looking for Christ to rise as the sun shining in its strength, while the New Testament closes with the Church called to look for Him as the morning star. Why should we ignore this definite distinction? Is the morning star the same as the sun? Do they appear at the same instant? Of course not! Neither will the Lord come for the Church at the same time He appears with all the effulgence as the ruler of the day for the world. But anti-dispensationalism is maintained by its adherents at any cost. May God preserve many to hold fast His faithful promise, "Surely I come quickly," without any intervening event mentioned, so that we may in heart reply, "Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus." Nothing will compensate for the loss of expecting that we may see HIM today.
Dr. Ladd has missed the point of Rev. 3:1010Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. (Revelation 3:10) altogether. The verse reads: "Because thou hast kept the word of My patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth." It is a promise to the overcomer (in general, to all the Christians) to be kept out of the great tribulation which is coming. Dr. Ladd dwells on the Greek for the word "out" and connects it with the Lord's prayer in John 17:1515I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. (John 17:15), desiring that the Christians be kept out of evil. He then reasons that it does not involve a removal from the scene, but being kept from evil and the tribulation while in it. But his basic error is in not seeing that the Lord's promise is that of being kept from "the hour" of tribulation; that is, altogether from the time of it not being preserved from danger during the time, but delivered from the time in which it will take place. The Greek word for hour is hora and means an hour, a period, or a season. It is from the entire period of the tribulation that the Christians are to be delivered by the coming of the Lord to take them to Himself first—not by some special preservation in it.
Time and space will not permit an exhaustive review of all the errors of the book entitled, "The Blessed Hope"; but we feel there is at least one more point that should be mentioned. Dr. Ladd takes up the old cry that "the gospel of the kingdom," which according to Matt. 24:1414And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. (Matthew 24:14) must be preached "in all the world" before the end, is the same as the gospel of the grace of God. But as we have before noted, this statement in Matt. 24 is connected with the Jews, Judea, and an idol in the holy place of the temple, and a sabbath day's journey, etc. Now how does it happen that he can bring this age and the gospel of the grace of God into such a Jewish setting? He says: "Christ is tarrying until the Church has completed its task. When Matt. 24:1414And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. (Matthew 24:14) has been fulfilled, then Christ will come." p. 148. The Apostle Paul did not believe this, for he taught the saints to expect the Lord in his day.
Dr. Ladd further says: "The world is nearly evangelized; any generation which is really dedicated to the task can complete the mission. The Lord can come in our own generation, in our life-time—if we stir ourselves and finish our task." (Italics his.) Our hearts would utterly sink if we believed this statement, for the fact is that there are more unevangelized people on earth today than there were last year, ten years ago, or further back. Christianity is losing the race with the explosive population growth, and with the spread of communistic ideology, and plain infidelity. Furthermore, a large percentage of the so-called missionaries in the world are not preaching either the gospel of the grace of God, or the gospel of the kingdom which John the Baptist preached. Dr. Ladd himself refers to the frightful anti-Christian heresy of a prominent missionary, Albert Schweitzer, to whom "Jesus... is an offense, not a Savior." No, there is, and there can be, only one explanation of Matt. 24:1414And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. (Matthew 24:14); it is a gospel that the King is coming back, which was first preached by John the Baptist, and will be resumed by a Jewish remnant whose hearts God will touch after the Church age has closed. To assume Dr. Ladd's premise would be to put off the Lord's coming ad infinitum.
This review of Dr. Ladd's book has not been undertaken out of any personal animus, but for the reason that he has placed himself out in the forefront of the challengers of dispensationalism and of the pretribulation coming of the Lord for His own. Furthermore, he is now in the position of leading others along the same course he has followed, which we consider will lead the saints of God to settle down and sleep like the wise virgins among the foolish. He has used the names of opponents of these truths with considerable skill, and used their arguments to bolster his position. He speaks of many who have given up the dispensational teaching, and of others who, while they have remained silent on the issue, simply do not believe it. But none of these things move us, nor do they prove anything more than the position of these individuals—not that they were right or wrong. We would also warn Christians who hold these truths dear not to relax and be unmindful of the attacks that are being made on them, lest we lose them by default. Let us "hold fast" the precious deposit that has been committed to us.
We have wondered why the growing tendency to discard that which has been such a hope and cheer to the saints of God. Perhaps the answer lies in a reported interview of Christian Life magazine with Dr. E. Schuyler English, who is himself a dispensationalist and pretribulationist. He was asked: "You have already said that in your opinion many do not accept the dispensational interpretation of Scripture because they do not understand what dispensational means. Are there other reasons?" Dr. English replied: "There are several principal reasons, in my judgment, for the critical attitude that some evangelicals show toward dispensationalism. One of them is that it is not considered scholarly to follow the dispensational method of interpreting the Scriptures since modern dispensationalism stems, in part at least, from the writings of the so-called Plymouth Brethren.”
Perhaps this is the underlying cause, for Dr. English states that "most theologians credit J. N. Darby... with first systematizing dispensational theology in the middle of the 19th century.”
And Dr. Ladd mentions Mr. J. N. Darby and "Darbyism" time and time again, as the root cause of this teaching, although in one place he says that "Darbyism in fact restored something precious-which had long been lost." He indicated that in spite of what he considers errors of "Darbyism," it was helpful in awakening Christians to the reality of the Lord's coming (p. 43). How strange that what he calls error should be so beneficial spiritually! May spiritual perception be the guiding power in searching the Scriptures, rather than some assumption to superior scholarship.
We feel we must now notice a few remarks of Dr. Donald G. Barnhouse in his Eternity magazine. In the September, 1957, issue we read: "Before I go further, let me affirm that I believe firmly in the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, that He will overthrow the antichrist, and will establish His rule on earth. Premillennarian? yes; dispensationalist? no." But then he expresses the difference between one who says the Lord will come before the Millennium but after the tribulation, and one who is a dispensationalist and looks for the Lord at any moment before the tribulation. Thus: the premillennialist believes "that the Lord might not come for another century or another thousand years. The dispensationalist is forced into the awkward position (which is not biblical) of believing that we are now in the end of the end times" (italics his). He then misrepresents the truth held by most dispensationalists by saying that we are looking for the apostasy more than for the Lord. This is a sad misstatement of purpose and intent of those who hold the pre-tribulation coming of the Lord. This may be true in a few instances, but it is basically false. We are not acquainted with believers who are looking for the apostasy or the antichrist, rather than looking for Him whom our souls love. Perhaps spiritual lethargy has dimmed the hope in some Christians, but that is not the fault of dispensationalism. Many Christians have lost the joy of their salvation through worldly entanglements, but is salvation false because of that?
Dr. Barnhouse further states that the dispensationalist's hope causes him to turn away from "social service." Just what does he mean by this? Would he take what is left of true Christianity down the slippery road of the "social gospel" that ruined much of Christendom some years ago? We fear he would, for this can be a natural result of the giving up the hope of our Lord's imminent return. It was the loss of this hope that carried the early church down. The giving up of "the blessed hope" is helping to prepare the way for the ecumenicalist's dream of one world and one church—in other words, "BABYLON THE GREAT." But the drowsy Christian will be of no more help to this world than Lot was to Sodom. The only way for a Christian to be a help in the world is to live for Christ, in the constant expectation of His return, and witnessing for Him as God may give opportunity. He will have to walk in separation from its schemes, its aims, its hopes, its all. Abraham walking with God was of more value to Sodom than Lot who was probably seeking to do social service in it. Abraham's intercessions would have availed if the wicked city had not passed the point where immediate judgment was inevitable.
But social service, ecumenicalism, and worldly principles would be the natural product of putting off the Lord's coming for perhaps "another century or another thousand years." Is not this the principle of the unfaithful servant who said in his heart, "My lord delays his coming"? We were saddened to read such comments from the editor of Eternity, although we should not have been surprised; for he wrote in his May, 1950 issue, "I shall hope to publish a paper on why I am not a dispensationalist and never have been." In the same issue he added, "Those who know my preaching well know that I seldom speak about the second coming of Christ." In this he differs from that venerable servant of the Lord, the Apostle Paul, for he connected his gospel preaching with telling his hearers of the Lord's coming back. He preached it to the unsaved, and did not hold it back from the youngest converts.
We earnestly hope that the Lord's soon return will prevent a wholesale departure from this separating and encouraging hope. While we are not looking for the apostasy or any world developments, we see them shaping very fast for the days to come after we are ushered home. Christians who cannot discern the character of these days must be spiritually blind.
A word of explanation and warning should be appended regarding what is sometimes called "hyper-dispensationalism.”
This is an erroneous view, and some people who hold it have very serious error connected with it. Extreme dispensationalism is of comparatively recent origin, and has for its main tenet that the Church was not formed on the day of Pentecost. Those who hold this view insist that what took place then was only a transitional thing composed of Jews exclusively, and that the Church proper was not formed until later; in fact, until Paul was in Rome. In this way they take away from Christians the Acts of the Apostles and all the epistles Paul wrote before his imprisonment in Rome. A special dispensation for Jews is thus set forth.
It is true that only Jews or Jewish proselytes were in the, Church at the beginning, but it was the Church of God formed by the baptism of the Holy Spirit at that time. They were all baptized into one body. Later, Samaritans and, subsequently, Gentiles were brought in; the one in Acts 8, and the other in Acts 10. Eph. 2 makes it quite plain that Jews and Gentiles are all in that one body. That which took place in Jerusalem in Acts 2 was not fully understood—not until Paul wrote the epistle to the Ephesians— nevertheless, it was the Church. One would look and search in vain for any formation of a Gentile Church at a subsequent time.
One of the disastrous results of this error is to take away from Christians both baptism and the Lord's Supper. These misguided people insist that these two things were only for the Jews of the transitional church; this is not so. Hyper-dispensationalists' rejection of all but the prison epistles of Paul has brought them into some strange incongruities. This may be best explained by an incident that was told to us. One of the preachers of this strange doctrine was speaking one day on Col. 2, which according to their theory is for the Church. When he came to the 12th verse, he read, "Buried with Him in baptism," etc. He then stopped and said, "I do not know why baptism is in Colossians; it should not be there." It did not set with his strange view that Colossians is for the Church, but not baptism.
On another occasion we came in contact with one who had imbibed these extreme views, and he contended that the Lord's supper was not for Gentile Christians. We carefully sought to explain to him the difference between Luke 22, where the Lord instituted the remembrance of Himself in death, and 1 Cor. 11, where the Apostle received the instructions on this memorial from the Lord in glory. In Luke 22, only men partook of the loaf and cup; in Corinthians, men and women. In Luke it is connected with remarks about the coming kingdom, while in Corinthians it is associated with His coming for His saints. At that time, the instructions were. to do it until He comes back for us.
This poor brother was so influenced by the error he had been taught, that he pressed the point that 1 Corinthians was written only to Jews; whereupon we asked him to read a verse down in the 12th chapter: "Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led." v. 2. He refused to see it, even though it could not be plainer; these Corinthians had been Gentile idolaters before their conversion. For him, that epistle might just as well not be in his Bible, for he rejected what it said.
But apart from the folly of their erroneous teaching, what can be the state of soul of a true believer who can either refuse to be publicly identified in this world with Him whom it cast out, or be satisfied to not break bread in remembrance of Him who gave Himself for us? The Lord made only one request of us —"This do in remembrance of Me." Shall we carelessly fail to do so, or find some false principle that nullifies it? Far be the thought! He asked one thing of us; shall we fail to respond in that one thing?
Hyper-dispensationalism should not be confused with true dispensationalism which properly evaluates the Lord's promise of returning to take us before the world's judgment falls. May the Lord keep His saints out of the pitfalls on either side, and may the hope of His coming burn more brightly in our souls. "Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”
“Lord Jesus, Come!
Thine absence here we mourn;
No joy we know apart from Thee,
No sorrow in Thy presence see.
Come, Jesus, Come.
“Lord Jesus, Come!
And claim us as Thine own;
With longing hearts the path we tread,
Which Thee on high to glory led.
Come, Savior, Come.
“Lord Jesus, Come!
And take Thy people home;
That all Thy flock, so scattered here,
With Thee in glory may, appear.
Lord Jesus, Come!”