Herb wrote:That is really an interesting point. I may use that in a commentary. Thanks for sharing that Watcher!
Herb
Here's something else I thought was interesting, and that I've noticed in a new way.
Luk 21:29 says:
"And he spake to them a parable; BEHOLD the fig tree, and all the trees;"
Jesus says,
BEHOLD, or "
look and pay attention to" the "
fig tree", first of all.........and then "
all the trees”.
He refers to the “fig tree” as being a
specific kind of tree in nature, and biblically, it is the
specific nation of Israel. “All the trees” that Jesus spoke of next, then, are
general trees in nature and biblically, all the
general nations.
He's saying to
look and pay attention to the specific nation of Israel and all the other, general nations, in the context of
signs of the end times.
Now, from the “Jewish dispersion” until 1948, Israel did not even exist as a nation. So, until then, there was
nothing to “
look and pay attention to”.Also, before the advent of technology, it would have been nearly impossible to “
look and pay attention to ” all the other nations, let alone
non-existent Israel.
With no radio, TV, Internet, worldwide newspapers, magazines, worldwide transportation systems, etc., it would be awfully difficult to access information even about our own nation, let alone other ancient nations.
But now, Daniel’s prophecy makes perfect sense…..regarding the end times, when KNOWLEDGE would be increased and people would travel TO and FRO.
"But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, [even] to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased." Dan 12:4
The words of Daniel's prophecy have been "shut up" and "sealed" to the "time of the end".
I believe Dan.12:4
parallels what Jesus was talking about in the passage of Luke. It would not be
until the time of the end, that it would even be
POSSIBLE to
BEHOLD the "fig tree" and "all the trees".
When Jesus said to "Behold the fig tree" (the Nation of Israel), He would not have been speaking to any generation before 1948, because there was no national Israel (fig tree) to BEHOLD before that time. We ARE the generation for whom it is possible to behold the fig tree. We are the generation that can
see it.
This simply confirms in my mind, that we are in the END TIMES, specifically recognizable because, #1, Israel is in fact EXISTING as a nation after being NON-EXISTENT for almost 2000 years. And #2, our world has been changed with lightning speed, in just the last century, by a flood of technology, which has ENABLED God's people to do just what Jesus said to do.............
WATCH!
This was not possible before, because there was no "fig tree" to look
at and pay attention to, and so it proves to me that Jesus
was speaking to our generation when He said to Behold the fig tree and all the trees. We are the ones who can literally
SEE THESE THINGS COMING TO PASS.... other generations could not. Praise God.