Already Gone

Last week I asked for prayer for an uncle who was in the hospital. It turned out he had died a couple of days before that, and no one called with the news. No news is supposed to be good news, right? Mmm. I may have been the last to know.

His funeral was livecast this morning here, if anyone wants to know more. It was almost two hours long. The Henry Herald has an obituary here, which is much shorter.

Uncle Ralph did a lot in life. It makes me pause and reflect on my own life. It makes me think about the time that's passed and what time might be left. Short of anti-aging technology becoming more widely available, the road backward looks longer than the road ahead. I wonder how much I can actually physically do in the time left.

Fig Tree

Speaking of time, we're up against what looks like a hard deadline on the prophetic calendar.

Matthew 24:32-34 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.

The Old Testament identifies Israel as the fig tree. The putting forth of leaves is understood to be the rebirth of Israel on May 15, 1948.(Some use a date of May 14, but that date is legally and prophetically incorrect.) The mystery through the ages has been how long a generation is. There have been various speculations. Most of those have fallen by the wayside as the years since 1948 have increased. Maybe we don't need to know that. What we really need to know is how long a human lifespan is. By definition a generation cannot be longer than a lifespan.

Psalm 90:10 The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.

A generation can't be longer than 80 years. The "all these things" in Matthew 24 includes the Second Coming. By combining these passages, the Second Coming has to occur before May 15, 2028. Subtracting the seven years of the Tribulation puts the Tribulation starting before May 15, 2021. That's fewer than three weeks away. If these passages are consistent, the Antichrist has to confirm a covenant with the many before May 15th. The Rapture would have to occur before that. Hmm.

So, what happens if the Tribulation doesn't start on time? Nothing good. The best case scenario is that the fig tree prophecy would have to be reinterpreted. The line of thinking for it it pretty simple. The fig tree is Israel. The leaves sprouting are its rebirth. The generation that sees that will see the Second Coming. And if the Bible is consistent with itself, an unbreakable doctrine otherwise it falls apart, then a generation cannot under any circumstances be longer than 80 years regardless of whether some humans live longer than that.

If nothing happens between now and May 15th, theologians are going to have to come up with a new interpretation of the fig tree prophecy. Maybe the sprouting leaves mean something else. Long ago I read an opinion that it might refer to Israel's capture of the Temple Mount in 1967. But they gave it up so hmm.

The confirming of a covenant is a peace treaty. We'll just have to wait and see if the peace process has a dramatic leap forward in the next few weeks.

Have a great weekend.