THE COMING KINGDOM, PART IV

by Dr. Andy Woods

Because today's evangelical world largely believes that the church is presently

experiencing the messianic kingdom, we began a study chronicling what the Bible teaches

concerning this important issue of the kingdom. That there will be a future, messianic kingdom

on earth has been revealed thus far through the divine intention to restore the office of Theocratic

Administrator (Gen. 1:26-28) that was lost in Eden (Gen. 3). Likewise, the promise of a future,

earthly, messianic reign was prophesied in the Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 15) and related sub-

covenants. It was also explained that while these covenants guarantee that the kingdom will one

day come to the earth through Israel, according to the Mosaic Covenant, the kingdom's ultimate

manifestation is conditioned upon the nation's acceptance of Christ as her long-awaited king

during the final events of the future Tribulation period. The previous article also explained how

God restored the office of Theocratic Administrator that was lost in Eden, at least in a limited

sense, at Sinai. This theocratic arrangement covered most of Old Testament history as God, even

after the time of Moses, governed Israel indirectly through Joshua, various judges, and finally,

Israel’s kings until the Babylonian Captivity ended the Theocracy.

TIMES OF THE GENTILES

This Babylonian Captivity initiated a dark time in Jewish history known as the "Times of

the Gentiles" (Luke 21:24; Rev. 11:2). This era is defined as the period of time when the nation

no longer has a Davidic king reigning on David’s Throne. During this period, Judah would be

trampled down by various Gentile powers. These powers include Babylon (605–539 B.C.),

Medo-Persia (539–331 B.C.), Greece (331–63 B.C.), Rome (63 B.C.–A.D. 70), as well as the

future, revived Roman Empire of the Antichrist (sometimes called "Rome Phase II").
Nebuchadnezzar, in a dream, saw this time period symbolized by a beautiful, dazzling statue.

Each part of the statue represents a different Gentile power (Dan. 2). In his dream, Daniel saw

the same period of time in the form of four grotesque beasts. Each beast pictured a different

Gentile power (Dan. 7). To Nebuchadnezzar, who was the king of Babylon or the first Gentile

power to trample down Judah, this period appeared beautiful. This perspective explains why

Nebuchadnezzar perceived this era in the form of an attractive statue. To Daniel, a Jew, whose

people would be trampled down by these Gentile powers, this period was dismal. This

perspective explains why he saw the Times of the Gentiles as represented by various ferocious

beasts.

Note, the Times of the Gentiles, which began with Nebuchadnezzar's deposing of

Zedekiah and the Babylonian Captivity in 586 B.C., are marked by the following three

characteristics: the termination of the earthly theocracy, the lack of a Davidic king reigning on

David’s Throne in Jerusalem, and Judah being trampled underfoot by a successive array of

Gentile powers. The Times of the Gentiles will run their course and will eventually conclude

with restoration of a rightful king reigning on David’s Throne, and the return of the shekinah

glory of God to the Millennial temple (Ezek. 43:1-5). This difficult period will end with the

return of Jesus Christ to rule and reign from David’s Throne in Jerusalem (Dan. 2:34-35, 44-45;

Matt. 25:31). While the Times of the Gentiles began with Nebuchadnezzar's deposing of

Zedekiah, it will be terminated at the return and enthronement of Christ thus inaugurating the

long-awaited messianic kingdom.

Thus, only after the final kingdom of man (the revived Roman Empire of the Antichrist)

has been terminated by Christ, will the Davidic kingdom then be established on earth (Dan. 2:34-

35; 43-45; 7:23-27). This fact alone should deter interpreters from finding a premature
manifestation of the kingdom in the present Church Age. Unfortunately, "kingdom now"

theologians ignore this chronology by arguing for a present, spiritual form of the kingdom,

despite the fact that the kingdoms of man have not yet run their course, the Antichrist and his

kingdom have not yet been overthrown, and the Second Advent has not yet occurred. This

Danielic chronology causes Unger to conclude:

...Daniel neither in the image prophecy of chapter 2 nor in the beast

prophecy of chapter 7 deals with the present age of the calling out of the
church, the period during which Israel is temporarily in national
rejection...Daniel was given the prophetic vision of Rome up to the time
of Christ's death (the two legs). The vision resumed with the resumption
of the divine dealing with national Israel (after the completion of the
church at the rapture) during the period between glorification of the
church and the establishment of the Kingdom over Israel (Acts 1:6).
Hence, the iron kingdom with its feet of iron and clay (cf. 3:33-35, 40,
44) and the nondescript beast of 7:7-8 envision not only Gentile power
(1) as it was at the first advent, but (2) also the form in which it will exist
after the church period, when God will resume His dealing with the
nation Israel. How futile for conservative scholars to ignore that fact and
to seek to find literal fulfillment of those prophecies in history or in the
church, when those predictions refer to events yet future and have no
application whatever to the church.1

THE PROPHETS ANTICIPATE THE KINGDOM

Throughout the dark years of national disobedience, Gentile dominion, and kingdom

postponement, the Old Testament prophets held out hope for the nation and the world by

faithfully speaking of a coming generation of Jews who would return to Yahweh thereby

ushering in kingdom blessings. On account of this ray of spiritual light that the prophets provided

in the midst of spiritual darkness, Peter refers to prophecy as, " . . . the prophetic word made

more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the

day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts" (2 Pet. 1:19). While it would take multiple

1
Merill F. Unger, Unger's Commentary on the Old Testament (Chicago: Moody, 1981; reprint, Chatanooga, TN:
AMG, 2002), 1643.
volumes to adequately portray all that the Old Testament prophets revealed concerning the

coming kingdom,2 a few predictions from the prophet Isaiah will suffice. According to Isaiah

2:1b-4:

Now it will come about that In the last days The mountain of the house
of the LORD Will be established as the chief of the mountains, And will
be raised above the hills; And all the nations will stream to it. And many
peoples will come and say, "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the
LORD, To the house of the God of Jacob; That He may teach us
concerning His ways And that we may walk in His paths." For the law
will go forth from Zion, And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
And He will judge between the nations, And will render decisions for
many peoples; And they will hammer their swords into plowshares and
their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against
nation, And never again will they learn war.

Isaiah 11:6-9 similarly says:

And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down
with the young goat, And the calf and the young lion and the fatling
together; And a little boy will lead them. Also the cow and the bear will
graze, Their young will lie down together, And the lion will eat straw
like the ox. The nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, And the
weaned child will put his hand on the viper's den. They will not hurt or
destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will be full of the
knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea.
According to these wonderful predictions, when the messianic kingdom materializes,

Jerusalem will be the center of world spiritual and political authority. This authority will result in

perfect justice, world peace, cessation of conflict with and among the animal kingdom, and

universal, spiritual knowledge. These glorious conditions await a future Jewish generation's

enthronement of the king of God's own choosing (Deut. 17:15). Such enthronement will make

Israel not only the owner but also the possessor of all that is promised in Israel's covenants. As

2
For example, see J. Dwight Pentecost, Things to Come: A Study in Biblical Eschatology (Findlay, OH: Dunham,
1958; reprint, Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 1964), 481-90.
these covenantal blessings come upon Israel in that future day, the entire world will be blessed as

well (Rom. 11:12, 15).

CONTINUATION OF THE TIMES OF THE GENTILES UNTIL CHRIST'S COMING

Following the Babylonian Captivity in 586 B.C., the prophesied seventy years of national,

divine discipline had run their course (Lev. 25:1-7; 2 Chron. 36:20-21; Jer. 25:11; 29:10). The

newly inaugurated Persian government allowed God's people to return to their homeland (Ezra;

Neh.). Thus, by the time of Christ, the nation had been back in the Promised Land for over five

centuries. However, such long residency in the land did not mean that the Times of the Gentiles

had concluded. During all of this time, Israel still had no reigning king upon David's Throne.

Moreover, as Daniel predicted (Dan. 2; 7), Israel continued to be under the domination of various

Gentile powers. Those powers included Persia, which was followed by Greece, and finally

Rome. By the time Christ was born, the Roman Empire occupied the Promised Land, placed

Israel under an enormous tax burden, and usurped from the Jews the right to execute their own

criminals. Beyond this, the nation had gone through four hundred years of silence when God was

not directly speaking to His people through prophetic oracles.

Against the backdrop of such silence and bondage entered Jesus Christ, the rightful heir

to David's Throne. The Gospel accounts identify and affirm Jesus Christ as the long-awaited

Davidic Descendant prophesied in both the Abrahamic and Davidic Covenants. For example,

Matthew’s Gospel connects Christ genealogically to both Abraham and David (Matt. 1:17).

Matthew also routinely associates Christ with the title "Son of David" (Matt. 9:27). Luke

similarly shows Jesus to be the rightful Heir to God’s promises to David (Luke 1:32-33, 68-69).

(To Be Continued...)