We know Jesus Christ came nearly 2000 years ago as the promised Messiah.  After His death and  resurrection, He returned to his Father in heaven.   After His departure, the leadership of the developing Christian community continually taught that Christ was going to return.  The return of Christ was seen as an event which was near at hand. The return of Jesus Christ was viewed as an event to occur in their life time.

       The expected imminency of Christ’s return is clearly shown by the multiple dozens of time frame statements that are found throughout the New Testament narrative.  In the letter to the Jewish Christians, the writer makes the following clear and concise statement:

       Hebrews 10:36-37:  You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, "He who is coming will come and will not delay.

      The Greek here is very emphatic. Bullinger, in the Companion Bible, shows the Greek phrase mikron hoson hoson to mean: "in a very,very little while." This statement was made nearly 2000 years ago to Jewish Christians who are being told to persevere so they will receive what was promised at a near to occur return of Jesus Christ. The return of Christ is viewed as an event that will take place in a very little while and without delay.  The writer had already told these first century Christians not to abandon meeting together as they saw the day  approaching (Hebrews 10:25).

       Apostle Paul made numerous statements that show an anticipated return of Christ within the generation that he was addressing at the time.  To the Corinthian and Philippian Churches, Paul said this:

       1 Corinthians 1:7-8:  Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

       Philippians 3:20-21:  But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

       Paul speaks of eagerly awaiting the return of Christ.  You don’t eagerly await something that isn’t going to happen for thousands of years into the future.  Paul’s use of the word eagerly shows us that there was expectation of a soon to occur return of Christ. Paul provides further attestation of this in two additional statements he made in his letters to these two churches.

       I Corinthians 7:29: What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short.

       Philippians 4:5: Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.  
 
       Paul is writing from the viewpoint that the time is short and the return of Christ is near at hand. In his letter to the Thessalonian Church, Paul sees the return of Christ within the context of a judgement that was soon to come upon Israel. He views these Christians as waiting for Christ to come and rescue them from the coming wrath.

       1 Thessalonians 1:8-10: They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,  and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead--Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.
                           
       Paul’s continues to show the first century context of the issues he is addressing by telling the Thessalonian’s to not only have their spirit and soul but also their body kept blameless at the return of Christ. If the return of Christ was to be thousands of years into the future, the instruction to keep their bodies blameless at His return would have made no sense.

       1 Thessalonians 5:23:  May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  
 
       Apostle James exhorted his readers to be patient because the coming of Christ was near. Such exhortation would have been meaningless to these first century Christians if Christ’s coming was to be thousands of years into the future.

       James 5:7-8: Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near.

       Apostle John taught first century Christians that many antichrists had come and it was because of this that they knew they were living in the last hour.  John then exhorts his readers to continue in Christ so they will be confident and have nothing to be ashamed of at Christ’s coming. 

       1 John 2:18:  Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour.

       1 John 2:28:  And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.  

       The writer to the Hebrew Christians shows the time they were living in as the “last days” by identifying these days with the appearance of Christ in the first century.  Apostle Peter does the same by associating the events on Pentecost with the “last days.” 

       Hebrews 1:1-2:  In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.

       Acts 2:17: In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.

       The question we must address is this:  How long were these “last days” to be and what do they represent?  We must also ask and answer the Question: Did such words as “soon” and “near” mean the same thing to people two thousand years ago as these words mean to us today?

       The Revelation given to John by Christ begins and ends with statements that show the events discussed were about to take place.  These events included the return of Christ. Remember, this prophesy was written nearly 2000 years ago.

       Revelation 1:1:  The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place.

       Revelation 1:3:  Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.

       Revelation 22:6: The angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place."

       Revelation 22:7:  "Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book."

      Revelation 22:10: Then he told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near.

       Revelation 22:12:  "Behold, I  am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.

       Revelation 22:20: He who testifies to these  says, "Yes, I am coming soon."

       It is significant to note that John is told not to seal up the words of this prophecy because the time is near.  This is in stark contrast to the prophet Daniel who was told to seal up the words of the prophecies given to him because they are seen as being fulfilled in the distant future.

       Daniel 8:26:  "The vision of the evenings and mornings that has been given you is true, but seal up the vision, for it concerns the distant future."

       Daniel 12:9: Go your way, Daniel, because the words are closed up and sealed until the time of the end.

       Later in this series we will deal with Daniel’s prophecies and see how they relate to the Revelation given to John.  We will now take a look at words such as soon and near and determine whether such words meant the same to people living in the first century as they do to us living in the twenty-first century

THE MEANING OF THE WORD SOON:

       If I were to tell you that I was coming over to visit you soon, you would understand me to mean  in a short time I would be coming to see you.  You would understand my use of the word soon to mean something that was going to occur in a short period of time.  Is this the way people 2000 years ago used and understood the word soon?  Let’s take a look.

       Luke 7:11: Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him.

       Acts 19:29:  Soon the whole city was in an uproar. The people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul's traveling companions from Macedonia, and rushed as one man into the theater.

       Acts 25:4-5:  Festus answered, "Paul is being held at Caesarea, and I myself am going there soon. Let some of your leaders come with me and press charges against the man there, if he has done anything wrong."

       1 Corinthians 4:19:  But I will come to you very soon, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have.

       Philippians 2:19:  I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you.

       1 Peter 1:13-14:  I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body,  because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me.

       It should be clear from the context of the foregoing scriptures that when the writers used the word soon in their language, it was to communicate the idea that what they were writing about was going to take place in a short period of time. When the word soon is used in reference to the return of Jesus Christ, it doesn’t suddenly lose its normal meaning of something that is about to occur.

       The English word soon is translated from the basic Greek word takos.  In its various tenses, ( taku, takeos, takinos, takion, takus, takista)  this word appears 39 times in the Greek scriptures and by context can be seen to always refer to something that is soon to take place.  The word always means with speed, quickness, swiftness and haste.  Any Greek dictionary will show this.  It is these Greek words that are used in the passages sited above, including all the scriptures in Revelation that reference the return of Christ. 

       The Greek scholar, Kurt Aland, in his comments on Revelation 22:12, says: “In the original text, the Greek word used is tachu, and does not mean ‘soon,’ in the sense of ‘sometime,’ but rather ‘now,’ immediately.”  It would appear that when someone heard the apostles speak the word takos in its various tenses, they understood it to mean something about to occur in a short time.

       Where this word is used in reference to the coming of Christ, is there any linguistic reason to believe that it means something other than a soon to occur event in the first century?  Is it logical to stretch soon into a period of nearly 2000 years and counting? 

       Some have suggested that where this word is associated with the return of Christ, it is referring to the manner in which Christ will return and means when Christ comes He will come quickly.  “Soon” is felt to be descriptive of the manner in which Christ will return and not the time frame of His return.  Translators at times do translate takos as quickly in the New Testament narrative.  Does such usage change the meaning of the word to refer to the manner in which an event occurs as opposed to the time frame of its occurrence?   Let’s look at two such passages in the NIV.

       Matthew 28:7-8: “Then go quickly and tell his disciples: `He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you.”

       Luke 14:21:  "The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ ”

       In both these passages we see that someone is being told to go and do something immediately.  Is the manner of doing different from the time frame?  By context it is clear that what is to be done is expected to be done in a short time frame.  There is nothing here to suggest that what is to be done can be done far into the future but that when it is done it must be done quickly.  There simply is no credence to the idea that this word can mean the manner in which something occurs irrespective of the time frame.  Whether you translate takos and its tenses as “soon” or as “quickly,” it means something that is about to occur. 

       There simply is no grammatical/linguistic/contextual reason to view this word as referring to the manner in which something is done irrespective of the time frame.   

        If I told you I was coming over to your house quickly, you would not conclude that the manner of my coming over would be different from the time frame of my coming over. You would not conclude that when I came I would come quickly as opposed to slowly.  You would simply expect me to arrive in a short period of time.  

       Some, in their effort to avoid the obvious, have concluded that such terms as soon, short and near are relative terms and can mean one thing to one person and another thing to another person.  Is this a reasonable conclusion?  Look up every occurrence of the Greek words translated  soon, short, and quickly.  You will find by context these words mean exactly what they mean in our communication today.  They simply mean something that is soon to take place.

       To say that “soon”  can mean something to occur hundreds or thousands of years into the future is an oxymoron, a contradiction.  Therefore, when we see statements made to people living nearly 2000 years ago saying  Christ is coming soon, we have to believe that those who heard or read such statements understood them to mean Christ was going to return in a short period of time from when such statements were made.

       A careful review of the scriptures speaking of Christ coming soon (quickly in the King James Version) will show that the focus is on the time frame of His return and not on the manner of His return. The context is the determining factor as to how takos, in its various tenses, is to be understood. In the Revelation, Christ told John that He was coming soon. Christ did not say to John that when He returns He would return in a quick manner. It would go without saying that when Christ returned, His manner of return would be quickly. He wouldn’t return slowly. There is no reason to conclude that “soon” is addressing the manner of His return. The manner of His return is addressed in the first chapter of Revelation where Christ is seen coming with the clouds. Christ’s coming in the clouds will be discussed later in this series.

       Furthermore, it should be noted that in Revelation 1:1-3, Christ says that the revelation given to Him by God was for the purpose of showing His servants what must soon (takos) take place. The readers of this revelation are instructed to take it to heart because the time is near. The context should be obvious. Christ is speaking of events that were about to take place.  He is not speaking of the manner in which they will take place once they begin to take place.

       It must also be noted that the revelation is addressed to seven churches existing in the province of Asia in the first-century. It is these servants of God who are being addressed and asked to take heart. It should be evident that the events spoken of pertained to those first century Christians and therefore “soon” and “near” are time frame statements and not statements dealing with the manner in which events would take place.

THE MEANING OF THE WORD NEAR:

       The English word near is translated from the Greek word engus. This word, in its various tenses, generally means near or close and is so translated in many New Testament passages. Here are a few examples of how engus is translated:

               Matthew 26:18: He replied, ‘Go into the city to a certain man and tell him,  The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house. 

        John 7:2-3: But when the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles was near, Jesus' brothers said to him, ‘You ought to leave here and go to Judea, so that your disciples may see the miracles you do.’ 

       Acts 9:38: Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, ‘Please come at once!’

       The context of the above scriptural passages show how the Greek word engus was commonly used in the first-century. It should be apparent that this Greek word meant “near” to first century Christians in the same manner as it means near to us today. It simply means something close at hand.

       As with the Greek word takos, the context will dictate how engus is to be understood. In the epistle written by James, the apostle is addressing the twelve tribes scattered among the nations (James 1:1). In chapter 5 he speaks of the last days and exhorts his readers to be patient and stand firm because the Lord’s coming is near (James 5:7-9). He concludes this section of his letter by saying “the judge is standing at the door."

       Some have suggested that James is saying that the coming of the Lord is certain or guaranteed as certainty is a meaning associated with certain tenses of the Greek engus. The context of this letter does not support such a conclusion. The context of this letter is obvious from the start. James is addressing the twelve tribes of Israel. He is not addressing tribes of Israel living thousands of years into the future. He is addressing his contemporaries living in the first century. He is telling first-century Israelites to be patient and stand firm because the coming of the Lord is near (Greek engus). James said the judge was standing at the door. How would that be relevant to Israelites living beyond the first century?

CONCLUSION OF PART ONE:

       When we read the letters that are found in the New Testament, we are in essence reading someone else’s mail. The letters written by the apostles were addressed to first century congregations of the Christian Church. When Paul wrote to the Christians attending the Church at Corinth, and says to them “the time is short,” it would be reasonable to conclude Paul meant the time is short. It would also be reasonable to believe that the Corinthian Church members understood Paul to mean the time is short. The question is, what time that is short is Paul referring to? This question will be answered as we proceed with our investigation.

       The last book of the Bible contains a revelation of future events. The question that we must ask is how future were these events to be?  The apostle John was instructed to write about what was soon to take place and direct this information to seven churches that Church history shows physically existed at the time this message was given. The instruction given in association with this revelation is that those who read it should take it to heart because the time is near.

          Revelation 1:4: John, to the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne.

                 Revelation 1:10-11: On the Lord's Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: ‘Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.’

       Revelation 1:1-3: The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.

       It should be evident from the context that John was sending the message of the revelation to his contemporaries who made up the congregations of seven different Christian Churches that existed at the time he wrote. It should also be evident from the narrative that the purpose of the revelation was to show the servants of Jesus Christ what was soon to take place and that the time was near for these things to take place. John is not addressing people living in the 2nd, 3rd or 4th centuries. He is not addressing those of us living in the 21st century. John is addressing those living in the first century and instructing them about what would soon take place.

       The revelation given to John is filled with a great deal of apocalyptic symbolism. That is why this message is often referred to as the Apocalypse. Apocalyptic language uses symbols to represent the real thing. This method of writing is found throughout the prophetic scriptures. We find Christ using this method of speaking in what is commonly referred to as the Olivet Discourse as found recorded in Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21. It is here in this discourse that we will discover what time is being referred to in the above quoted passages. In part two of this series we will examine the Olivet Discourse as recorded in the 24th chapter of Matthew.

PART TWO