Exploring Bible Prophecy Through a Fresh Lens

For many Christians, understanding Bible prophecy can feel overwhelming. The modern narrative often focuses on anticipated future events, emphasizing the Rapture, a coming Antichrist, and an apocalyptic Great Tribulation. But what if much of what we’ve been taught belongs to a different framework? What if most of the New Testament prophecies have already been fulfilled? We explore prophecy and history through the lens of partial preterism.

The great thing is once the prophecies are put in their proper context, concrete evidence for the hand of God arises.

What Is Partial Preterism?

The term preterism comes from the Latin word praeter, meaning “past.” Partial preterism is the view that many New Testament prophecies, including those about the Great Tribulation and Christ’s second coming, were fulfilled in the first century. This interpretation contrasts with the more common futurist view, which places most prophetic events in our future.

At the heart of partial preterism is the belief that much of the New Testament was written to and about Jesus’s generation, leading up to the cataclysmic events of the first century—specifically, the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.

Why Focus on the First Century?

We center our study on the first century for two key reasons:

  1. Fulfilled Prophecy: This period is rich with prophecies that can be directly verified through historical events, such as the Jewish-Roman War and the fall of Jerusalem.
  2. Historical Documentation: Ancient texts, including the works of the historian Josephus and the Dead Sea Scrolls, provide invaluable context to confirm and illuminate biblical prophecies.

This approach provides a solid foundation for faith by connecting Scripture with tangible historical evidence.

The Framework of Partial Preterism

Partial preterism offers a perspective rooted in the context of Jesus’s generation. Here’s how it reshapes common prophetic themes:

  1. The Great Tribulation: Seen as the Jewish-Roman War (66–73 AD), this was a time of unparalleled distress for Israel, fulfilling Jesus’s words in Matthew 24.
  2. The Second Coming of Christ: Understood as a coming in judgment upon Israel, fulfilling prophecies about the end of the Old Covenant age, not the end of the world.
  3. The Kingdom of God: Already established, encompassing people from all nations worshiping the God of Israel through Christ. This kingdom continues to grow, as described in Daniel’s prophecy of a stone becoming a great mountain (Daniel 2:35).

Addressing Futurist Views

Most Christians are familiar with the futurist interpretation, which moves many prophecies which have already been fulfilled into our future. Many instruments are used to bridge the gap in time from the era they were actually prophesied to be fulfilled into our era:

  • A revived Roman Empire and a ten-nation confederacy.
  • A future Antichrist who desecrates a rebuilt Temple.
  • A seven-year Tribulation, disconnected from its first-century context.

While futurism dominates popular eschatology, partial preterism critiques its approach:

  • Disconnected Context: Moving the last week of Daniel’s 70 week prophecy into our future ignores the clear historical scope outlined in the Bible.
  • Unnecessary Scaffolding: Futurism relies on layers of interpretation that extend beyond the text, often recasting kingdoms or adding unprophesied events like a “Church Age.”

Key Prophetic Passages Revisited

Partial preterism encourages a fresh look at key passages often associated with future events:

  1. Matthew 24 (“This Generation”): Jesus’s words about the Great Tribulation are tied to the destruction of the Temple, which occurred within the lifetime of His disciples.
  2. Daniel’s 70 Weeks: The timeline places the fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy in the first century, culminating in the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the Old Covenant.
  3. The Abomination of Desolation: This refers to the Roman desecration of the Temple during the Jewish-Roman War, not a future event.

Why Does This Matter?

Understanding prophecy in its first-century context removes much of the confusion surrounding eschatology. It highlights the faithfulness of God’s promises, fulfilled exactly as foretold. It also shifts the focus from a distant, apocalyptic future to the present reality of God’s kingdom, which continues to shape the world today.

Follow the Evidence

Join us as we evaluate the evidence by rooting biblical events in their historical context. This approach builds faith on a foundation that can be demonstrated.

This helps us see the mountain of evidence before us pointing unmistakably to Christ as King of His already-established kingdom.