subject: End of the world countdown: Can a single prophecy be fulfilled in two dispensations? [print this page] End of the world countdown: Can a single prophecy be fulfilled in two dispensations?
The biblical countdown of end-of-the-world events has been getting a lot of attention with the turn of the century. I seems like many are more focused on the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation for a better understanding of end-time predictions. But it seems like there are not a lot of prophecy students who are paying enough attention to the fact that some of these last-day predictions apply to more than one dispensation.
Some of the prophecies we read and take for granted are not as straight' as we usually consider them to be. There are several cases where a prophecy applies in both a primary and a secondary sense. This kind of prophecy is called proleptic prophecy'. One of the most prominent examples of this kind of prophecy is that which was uttered by Jesus on the Mount of Olives in Matthew 24.
In His famous countdown of events leading up to the end of the world, you will see that He was primarily speaking of the destruction of Jerusalem, but there are obvious indications in those same predictions that He is also prophesying of end-time events. I guess that's the reason why the apostles believed that Christ will return in their time. This Second-Advent expectation was indicated in Paul's epistle to the Thessalonians saying, " then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord." 1Thess. 4:17.
Among the predictions of the Minor Prophets there is a prophecy issued by Joel, which always stands out whenever I think about propleptic prophecies. It is found in the second chapter. Speaking of the final outpouring of the Holy Spirit, he thus declared,
"And it shall come to pass afterwards that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit." Joel 2:29, 30
That this prophecy is a part of a countdown of end-of-the-world events in the book of Joel is unmistakable for two reasons:
1. This prophecy is in the context of what is called "the great and the terrible day of the Lord" (Joel 2:31), a clear reference to an end-time scenario.
2. Peter himself, in quoting the prophet Joel on this very prophecy, clearly suggested that it will take place "in the last days" (Acts 2:17)
What is interesting about Peter's inspired sermon on the Day of Pentecost is that he applies Joel's prediction to what was being experienced by the disciple at that point in time. He clearly stated that the outpouring of the Spirit of God at Pentecost is what the prophet Joel spoke of (Acts. 2:16). But should we confine Joel's prophecy to Pentecost alone?
Apart from the fact that this is supposed to be a last-day prophecy, there are some features in connection to Joel's end-time prediction that were not fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost. You will recall the mention of the signs in the heavens such as "blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke", the darkening of the sun, and the moon turning into blood (Joel 2:30, 31; Acts. 2:19, 20) none of these manifestations showed up at Pentecost.
In our analysis of the biblical countdown to the end of the world, we need to accept the fact that none of the prophecies that comes from God will fail. The accurate fulfillment of Bible prophecy is what God is banking on to vindicate His unerring utterances. If we are to believe that the word of God cannot be broken, we cannot expect this prophecy to be confined to the Pentecostal dispensation. Obviously, what we read in the book of Acts is a limited, secondary application of a prophecy that will have a more complete fulfillment in the last days.
