Kingdom Prophecy

An understanding of kingdom prophecy is critical to understanding the kingdom of God in the New Testament. Prophecy sets the stage for the time of fulfillment and nature of the kingdom.

How can we pinpoint with some degree of accuracy, the time and nature of the kingdom? The New Testament writers tell us that prohpecy is the key.

Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you,

searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.

To them it was revelaed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven--things which angels desire to look into," (1 Peter 1:10-12)

Both sufferings (crucifixion) of Christ and the glories (kingdom)to follow received attention from the Old Testament prophets. They wanted to know the time and manner of these events. Likewise, they understood that those events were not for their day.

Speculation of an Earthly Kingdom

In other words, the kingdom would come in their lifetime. Since it is a matter of kingdom prophecy, there can be no inaccuracies, mistakes, postponements, delays or missing the mark.

An examination of those prophecies should point us, not to the 21st century, nor worse to the shameful spectacle of the 20th century, for the kingdom's arrival, but to the first century. See also the Time of the Kingdom at this website.

The mark of a false prophet/prophecy is the failure of that prophet's words/prophecy to come to pass. A time kingdom prophecy must be fulfilled at the time the prophet states for its fulfillment.

Dispensationalism went on world-wide record to tell the world that the earthly reign of Christ would begin within 40 years (one biblical generation) of Israel's resettlement into Palestine which began in 1948. This was supposed to follow a 7-year tribulation. Therefore, the earthly kingdom prophecy would begin with the 7-year tribulation in 1981, and be fulfilled starting in 1988.

Harold Camping, Hal Lindsey, Thomas Ice, Tim LaHaye, Dave Hunt, Grant Jeffery, Randall Price, and a host of other dispensationalists have seen their entire prophetic system crushed to the ground in utter and dismal failure. No earthly kingdom has been set up. Hear Moses on the failure of prophecy to come to pass.

"And if you say in your heart, 'How shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?'

--when a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptiously; you shall not be afraid of him," Deuteronomy 18:21, 22)

God said if the thing does not happen or come to pass that is the thing the Lord has not spoken..

Therefore, contrary to dispensationalism, God spoke not one word about an earthly kingdom coming in 1988, or any other time in fulfillment of divine prophecy. Kingdom prophecy of the Bible in examples listed below all show a kingdom set up during the first century in the time of Christ as none earthly in origin and nature.

Kingdom Prophecy of 2 Samuel 7:12

When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom, (2 Samuel 7:12)

This cannot refer to Solomon's kingdom as God did not establish that kingdom forever. It was divided in the days of Rehoboam, Solomon's son and removed in A.D. 70, (Matthew 21:43; Luke 21:20).

We find reference to this prophecy in Acts chapter 2 where Christ, having been raised from the dead, rises to sit on David's throne. Observe that Peter is careful to point out the details of Samuel's prophecy by noting David's death. This he does to ensure they understand his allusion to the prophetic source.

Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.

Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,

He, forseeing this spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption.

This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses.

Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.

For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself;

That God raised up Christ to sit on David's throne in fulfillment of prophecy demonstrates that Christ would not fulfill the kingdom mission on earth, but in heaven. He is raised to sit at the right hand of God.

Therefore his death and resurrection were not alterations to God's plan due to failure but pinpoint accurate actualizations of God's plan by divine prophecy to enthrone Christ, not on earth but in heaven. This is the rightful realm of God's sovereign reign.

The reference to destroying all enemies derives its origin from Genesis 3:15, (another kingdom prophecy), which foretold the crushing of Satan and his power, the last enemy being death, (Romans 16:20; Hebrews 2:14) See Kingdom Apostasy. It is this returning of the reign to heaven that is the meaning of Christ's delivering the kingdom back to God, (1 Corinthians 15:24).

Note how Christ charges the Jews of his day with kingdom apostasy, by their obstinate declaration, "But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We will not have this man to reign over us.' (Luke 20:14) Compare with 1 Samuel 8:7.

The reference to destroying all enemies derives its origin from Genesis 3:15, (another kingdom prophecy), which foretold the crushing of Satan and his power, the last enemy being death, (Romans 16:20; Hebrews 2:14). 2 Samuel 7:12, therefore is fulfilled in the resurrection and ascension of Christ to David's throne at God's right hand.

Kingdom Prophecy and Isaiah

This kingdom prophecy likewise has its New Testament counterpart.

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.

And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end," (Luke 1:32, 33).

This is announced to Mary showing that God destined Christ to be king on the throne of David ruling over the house of Jacob forever. This would include people of all nations for Daniel prophesied all dominions shall serve and obey Him, (Daniel 7:27).

Kingdom Prophecy of Daniel 2:44

The kings or kingdoms Daniel speaks about are four world empires Gentile rulers. They are:

Babylon, the head of Gold

Medo-Persia - the chest and arms of silver

Grecian-the belly and thighs of brass and,

Rome-the legs of iron, with feet partly of iron and partly of clay, (Daniel 2:33)"

The next kingdom is of divine origin expressed as the stone cut out of the mountain without hands. This is the Messiah's kingdom

It is one so powerful, that it strikes the fourth image and destroys all the preceding kingdoms as well. According to Jamison Fausset and Brown, the Hebrew may be translated, "in one indiscriminate mass'-literally, 'as one;' and therefore not simultaneously. Hence, the kingdom, each by its successive conquering of the previous one, continued to exist within the other.

The stone (Messianic kingdom engages in conflict during the time of the fourth beast, i.e. Rome. Hence, according to prophecy, the kingdom of God would come during the days of ancient Rome.

We have New Testament confirmation in the third chapter of Luke who identifies the ministry of John the Baptist as announcing the imminent arrival of the kingdom.

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, --when Pointius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee...during the high pristhood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the desert, (Luke 3:1, 2).

John's message was "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Six months after John was cast into prison, Jesus announced that the time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God is at hand.

Christ alludes to the prophets who spoke of the kingdom prior to John who becomes a line of demarcation from prophesying about the coming of the kingdom to the time of entrance into it.

The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it, (Luke 16:16).

The kingdom is not of this world hence its servants do not fight the wars of this world, (John 18:36). Their warfare is not carnal weapons but those which are mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds and captivating the ungodly and wicked thoughts of men, (2 Corinthians 10:3).

For we do not wrestle with flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places, (Ephesians 6:12).

This was a heavenly war, fought in a heavenly place (Revelation 12:7, 8) with heavenly weapons, (Ephesians 6:17), for a heavenly purpose, the salvation of men's souls, (Revelation 11:15).