Bible Prophecy Under the Microscope-Episode 82 Gary continues his overview of biblical eschatology by refuting current speculation about the “prophecy of Elam.” The “four corners of the earth” or “land” in Isaiah 11 presents no difficulty since the Israelites that were taken into captivity were often sold to other neighboring nations (Ezek. 27:13; Joel 3:7; Amos 1:6, 9). The use of “fo [...]

There are reports that troops are being told that what’s happening with Iran is a divine end-time event related to the return of Jesus and Armageddon. I’ve seen reports that Pete Hegseth is pushing this narrative. I find that claim hard to believe, since Hegseth is a member of a CREC Church affiliated with the denomination founded by Douglas Wilson. Wilson certainly does not believe that Armageddo [...]

Gary introduces a two-part discussion about all the recent speculation and finding biblical “proof” that the current Iran invasion is fulfilling Bible prophecy. Tim LaHaye writes that the image of the sun, moon, and eleven stars of Genesis 37:9 and the “woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet,” and having “on her head a crown of twelve stars” (Rev. 12:1) “is a reference [...]

Bible Prophecy Under the Microscope-Episode 81 You’ve probably heard it said that the Gospel going out into all the world is a sign that Jesus’ second coming is near. Many who read Matthew 24:14 conclude that there is no way the gospel could have been preached in the whole world before the destruction of the temple in AD 70. Our first commitment is to what the Bible says by letting its [...]

Gary invites Kim Burgess back to the podcast to conclude his series on the resurrection and 1 Corinthians 15. We are not saying the world is now ethereal; we are not being Gnostic; we are not being anti-creation in terms of the material reality of Genesis 1. We are saying that the salvation that was going to come to the Gentile nations in the Genesis space-time creation order was going to come thr [...]

Gary gives an update on what he’s been working on lately, and responds to an article about the antichrist by Jase Robertson. No matter what century you study, prophetic speculation was prevalent. There have been numerous antichrist candidates. Early Christian thinkers like Irenaeus, Tertullian, and Hippolytus speculated on the topic, sometimes linking the Antichrist to the Roman Empire and t [...]

Bible Prophecy Under the Microscope-Episode 80 Gary responds to a Facebook video by an individual claiming that the rapture and the end times are very “soon” to begin. In terms of audience relevance related to a study of the Olivet Discourse, students of Scripture need to begin with Matthew 21:1 where we read that Jesus and some of His disciples had come “to the Mount of Olives.” By th [...]

Gary is interviewed by UK Pastor Alex Gillan about biblical eschatology and fulfilled prophecy. Hal Lindsey argued that Revelation was written in the form of an ancient code that needed a time machine to speed to the right prophetic era where the original Revelation symbols could be understood. “You might say,” Lindsey writes in There’s A New World Coming, “that John was put into a ‘divine time ma [...]

Bible Prophecy Under the Microscope-Episode 79 Gary responds to recent comments by individuals who claim that our modern days are fulfilling Daniel 9. It’s been said that necessity is the mother of invention. The “gap” that has been placed between the sixty-ninth and seventieth weeks of Daniel’s prophecy was created because it was needed to make the dispensational hermeneutical model work. Nothing [...]

Note: This is the sixth and final article on worldview concepts that Christians have failed to overcome. (First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth) George Will called 1968 “perhaps the worst year in American History” and called the sixties “the most dangerous decade in America’s life as a nation.”[1] This is not surprising because of the continued escalation of the Vietnam War, the draft, and the assas [...]

Bible Prophecy Under the Microscope-Episode 78 Gary disputes the claim of preterists being “scoffers” by using the Bible to interpret itself and also by recognizing the Bible’s own timing of when the last days take place. What does the Bible say, not just about the “last time,” but about the “last days”? In 1 Peter 4:7, we read: “The end of all things is at hand.” Whatever “all t [...]

Futurists just can’t bring themselves to believe what Jesus actually said and meant about His “this generation” coming, that it was “about to” take place, before all those who first heard His words died (Matthew 16:27-28). Jesus told His apostles that they would not finish going through the cities before He came (10:23). The use of “about to” in Matthew 16:27 coincides with 10:23, 23:36, and 24:34 [...]

Bible Prophecy Under the Microscope-Episode 77 Gary analyzes a clip from a teacher on Facebook claiming that Gog and Magog from Ezekiel 38-39 will soon be upon us. A more recent interpretation holds that Ezekiel’s Gog and Magog battle is fulfilled in the details of Revelation 20:7–10 when Rome and its international armies attacked Israel and destroyed the temple in A.D. 70. This approach is diffic [...]

How do we determine how documents like the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution should be interpreted? Let’s check with those who were there when they were written and the circumstances for their construction. Such a methodology comes to mind with a book I read as a child, We Were There at the Driving of the Golden Spike (1960).Eyewitness accounts are the starting point (e.g., Luke 1:1 [...]

One of the arguments against the preterist (past) interpretation of the Olivet Discourse and the use of the second person plural “you” is an appeal to Matthew 23:35: “And so upon you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.” The claim is made that Jesus’ use of “ [...]

Bible Prophecy Under the Microscope-Episode 76 Gary discusses Jesus’ statement in Matthew 23:35 about Zechariah, son of Berechiah. There is no record of the prophet Zechariah (Zech. 1:1) being murdered. Berechiah, like Zechariah, is a common name in the Bible (1 Chron. 3:20; 6:39; 9:16; 15:17; 15:23; 2 Chron. 28:12; Neh. 3:4, 30). Jesus says that it was this Zechariah who was murdered by som [...]

I love the monthly news magazine World. You can thank David Chilton for contributing to its existence. He used his influence to help launch World with editor Joel Belz and wrote a monthly column for the publication for years. You should subscribe. You can do it here. Gary North wrote the following in his article “David Chilton Made the Case for Long-Run Christian Optimism.” “From the very beginnin [...]

Gary continues his discussion with Bob Cruickshank about the biblical usage of the word “antichrist.” (Click here for Part One.) You will not find the word antichrist in the book of Revelation. This is significant since the John who defines antichrist for us in his first two letters is the same John who penned the book of Revelation. Second, according to the Bible antichrist is not a s [...]

Gary interviews his friend Bob Cruickshank about a few recent articles he has written about the “antichrist.” The word “antichrist” appears only in John’s epistles (1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 7). John’s description of antichrist is altogether different from the modern image. John’s antichrist is • Anyone “who denies that Jesus is the Christ” (1 John 2:22). • Anyone who “denies the Fa [...]

Bible Prophecy Under the Microscope-Episode 75 Gary interviews Ed Stevens about the 1993 Covenant Eschatology Symposium that was held in Florida. Debates continue over which biblical passages refer to the AD 70 judgment coming of Jesus and those that refer to what is commonly called the yet Second Coming of Jesus. As I have repeatedly pointed out, there is no unanimous agreement among scholars on [...]