This paper on the destruction of Jerusalem and the vindication of Jesus was originally delivered to the Reformation Society of Western New York on February 8, 2024. For readablity, it has been converted into a series of articles. A PDF version is available.
Introduction
Part 1 | Judgment on God’s House: A Central Theme of the Prophets
Part 2 | The Final Verdict: Judgment for Israel and Vindication for the Son of Man
Part 3 | AD 70 as a Sign of “The End”
Concluding Implications
There has been a growing interest and consensus in NT scholarship around the idea of “inaugurated eschatology,” that the kingdom of God has already been inaugurated with the advent of Jesus Christ but is not yet in its final, consummated state. Much work has been done in the fields of biblical theology and typology to show that the eschatological hopes of the OT (e.g. a restored kingdom, the end of exile, the new exodus, a new covenant, the coming of the Spirit, the new temple, the defeat of evil and Israel’s enemies, the resurrection and new creation) had begun to be fulfilled in the life, death, resurrection, and exaltation of Jesus.1See Gregory K. Beale, A New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2012); Chris Bruno, Jared Compton, and Kevin McFadden, Biblical Theology According to the Apostles: How the earliest Christians told the story of the Old Testament, ed. D. A. Carson, vol. 52, New Studies in Biblical Theology (England; Downers Grove, IL: Apollos; InterVarsity Press, 2020); R. T. France, Jesus and the Old Testament: His Application of Old Testament Passages to Himself and His Mission (1971; repr. Vancouver, B.C.: Regent College Publishing, 1998); James M. Hamilton, Typology: Understanding the Bible’s Promise-Shaped Patterns (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2022); Richard B. Hays, Echoes of Scripture in the Gospels (Waco, TX: Baylor University Press, 2016); Thomas R. Schreiner, New Testament Theology: Magnifying God in Christ (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2008); N. T. Wright, The New Testament and the People of God, Christian Origins and the Question of God (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1992). From his interaction with the disciples on the Emmaus road we see that Jesus himself understood all of Israel’s Scriptures to be about him (Lk. 24:25-27, 44-47) and that he was bringing Israel’s story to a climax. France sums up this Christ-centered view of the OT well:
Jesus saw his mission as the fulfillment of the Old Testament Scriptures; not just of those which predicted a coming redeemer, but of the whole sweep of Old Testament ideas. The patterns of God’s working which the discerning eye could trace in the history and institutions of Israel were all preparing for the great climax when all would be taken up into the final and perfect act of God which the prophets foretold. And in the coming of Jesus all this was fulfilled. That was why he could find ‘in all the scriptures the things concerning himself’.2France, Jesus and the Old Testament, 79-80, emphasis original.
In other words, eschatology is Christology. To rightly understand God’s purposes of salvation and judgment in history, we must begin with and center on Christ.
While we are quick to recognize that God’s purposes of salvation have begun to be realized, the same attention has not been given to how God’s purposes of judgment have also begun to be fulfilled because of Christ’s kingdom-inaugurating life, death, and resurrection. We know that the bodily resurrection of Jesus is proof that the new creation has broken into the present age (1 Cor. 15:20-23). His ascension and the success of his gospel are a sign of his exaltation and saving reign. Thus, it seems reasonable to expect an event in history to serve as a sign that Christ has also begun to put his enemies under his feet, specifically those who persist in their rejection of him and opposition to his church (1 Cor. 15:24-25). As Richard Hays observes, both in the OT and the gospels, “the theme of eschatological restoration is inextricably interwoven with the theme of inbreaking judgment.”3Hays, Echoes of Scripture in the Gospels, 19.
It is my contention that the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple in AD 70 is a fitting counterpart to the exaltation of Jesus as a sign of his inaugurated kingdom. According to Jesus, this was an act of vengeance (Luke 21:22) on the city that did not know the time of its salvific visitation (Luke 19:44), rejected Jesus and shed the blood of His church (Matt. 23:35; Luke 13:34-35), and was guilty of unbelief, hypocrisy, and corruption. Yet, this event remains largely overlooked, neglected, and deemed irrelevant to redemptive history.4James M. Hamilton Jr., who has written extensively in the field of biblical theology and typology, recently posted on a social media site: “What changed everything [in redemptive history] was the incarnation…and the death, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord Jesus, when the veil was rent, the tomb was empty, and the Spirit was poured out. AD 70 is irrelevant.” James M. Hamilton Jr. (@DrJimHamilton), X, July 20, 2023, https://x.com/DrJimHamilton/status/1682075077678972943. Several scholars have drawn attention to the significance of this event, most notably R. T. France, Peter Leithart, R. C. Sproul, Peter W. L. Walker, and N. T. Wright.5See France, Jesus and the Old Testament; Peter J. Leithart, Revelation, ed. Michael Allen and Scott R. Swain, vols. 1-2, The International Theological Commentary (London; Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2018); R. C. Sproul, The Last Days according to Jesus: When Did Jesus Say He Would Return? (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2015); P. W. L. Walker, Jesus and the Holy City: New Testament Perspectives on Jerusalem (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1996); N. T. Wright, Jesus and the Victory of God, Christian Origins and the Question of God (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1996). But overall, when it comes to the fulfillment of any NT passage about judgment, we often make a mortar shot to the final days of history, ignoring any potential instance of fulfillment leading up to that point.6This metaphor comes from Mark S. Gignilliat, Reading Scripture Canonically: Theological Instincts for Old Testament Interpretation (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2019) 31 n. 23.
A good example of how the destruction of Jerusalem is neglected in evangelical scholarship is seen in the ESV Study Bible note on Matthew 16:28. Here, Jesus tells his disciples, “Truly I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”7All Bible references are to the English Standard Version (ESV) (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016). The study note by Micheal Wilkins argues that the immediate context indicates the transfiguration is primarily in view. Wilkins rightly goes on to say that “at the same time,” the resurrection, the coming of the Spirit, and the growth of the church through the preaching of the gospel “are also quite possible, for they are all instances where Jesus ‘came’ in the powerful advance of his kingdom, which was partially but not yet fully realized.”8Michael J. Wilkins, “Matthew”, The ESV Study Bible, Personal Size (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 1856, emphasis mine. Carson takes a similar view in D. A. Carson, “Matthew,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew–Mark (Revised Edition), ed. Tremper Longman III and David E. Garland, vol. 9 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2010), 432-434. However, when it comes to the destruction of Jerusalem, Wilkins says this view “is less persuasive because the judgment on Jerusalem does not reflect the positive growth of the kingdom.”9Ibid. See also Fred Zaspel, “Preterism: Has All Prophecy Been Fulfilled?”, The Gospel Coalition, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/preterism-prophecy-fulfilled/. Zaspel does several things which deserve commendation. First, he distinguishes between “full” and “partial” preterism (the former being the focus of his essay, the latter being the focus of this paper). Second, he argues that the Messianic age of fulfillment has been inaugurated. Third, he rightly concludes that that AD 70 is not the climatic consummation of all biblical prophecy. However, Zaspel fails to see AD 70 as an initial fulfillment and sign of the final judgment. But if a general reference to the manifestation of Christ’s kingly reign is in view, then the destruction of the city which opposed and rejected Jesus could certainly be indicative of his kingdom coming in power along with the other more “positive” options.
Thesis
In this paper I will argue that the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple in AD 70 is a theologically significant event in redemptive history that is foundational to New Testament eschatology. The cumulative evidence will show that this event must be understood along with the resurrection, the coming of the Spirit, and the growth of the church as an eschatological sign that the kingdom has been inaugurated, that the old covenant order has come to an end, that Jesus truly is the Christ and cornerstone of a new temple, and that God’s plans and purposes of salvation for the world are now located in Christ and his church.
This argument will be advanced in three sections. The first section will demonstrate that the theme of judgment on Jerusalem was central to the OT prophets and Jesus’ own prophetic ministry. The second section will contend that this event served as the culmination of God’s judgment on Israel and the vindication of the Son of Man. In the third and final section I will argue that this event is a sign of the end of the old covenant order and also a sign of the final eschatological judgment. To conclude, I will briefly consider several implications of understanding this event as significant for eschatology.
Ultimately, my aim is to provide a more robust understanding of the profound impact that Jesus had on the role of Jerusalem and its temple in redemptive history. If the Bible is all about Jesus Christ, and if the eschatological hopes of Israel have begun to be fulfilled in the advent of Israel’s Messiah, then the theological significance of Jerusalem and its temple must be re-evaluated in light of his kingdom-inaugurating life and ministry.
Mitch Bedzyk serves as a pastor Emmanuel Community Church, overseeing music and Sunday Classes. He received his Master of Theological Studies from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and works in IT for the NY Office of Mental Health. He and his wife, Sarah, have five children: Kya, Khalli, Oliver, Amelia, and Micah. In his spare time he enjoys reading, coffee, guitar, being an MLS fanatic and playing fantasy soccer.
