ESCHATOLOGY
What Is Eschatology in the Bible?
From the Greek word eschatos ("last") comes "eschatology," a study of "last things" (e.g., the second coming of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, the judgment day, the end of the world, heaven, and hell).
Eschatology has to do with the consummation of God's redemptive scheme. The following elements are significant:
Eschatology has to do with the consummation of God's redemptive scheme. The following elements are significant:
- The Bible teaches that Christ will return (Jn. 14:3; Phil. 3:20; 1 Thes. 4:14ff; 2 Thes. 1:7ff).
- At the time of his second coming, Jesus will raise all the dead at the same time (Jn. 5:28-29; Acts 24:15). The resurrection of the righteous and the wicked will not be separated by a span of 1,000 years -- called the millennium, as some allege.
- There will be a day of judgment upon which all men will give an account for the deeds of their lives (Acts 17:31; Rom. 14:10-12; 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Tim. 4:1), and God's righteousness will be vindicated (Rom. 2:5).
- The material world will end (Mt. 24:35; 2 Pet. 3:10ff; Rev. 21:1).
- The eternal phase of human existence will commence -- heaven for the righteous and hell for the wicked (Mt. 25:31ff; v. 46).
A bizarre modern theory called "realized eschatology" argues that each of these foregoing events occurred in A.D. 70, when the Romans demolished the Jewish state. This ideology contradicts Scripture in every particular.
