Jesus and Paul speak of two ages. Few preachers mention them, and fewer still preach about them. In addition, Christians are woefully ignorant of the two-age model, the model taught by Jesus himself and which Paul built upon. When you examine it, you might be surprised at the results. So, let’s establish first how many ages there are.
This Age and The Age to Come
- Matt. 12:31-32, blasphemy of the H.S. will not be forgiven in this age or the age to come.
- Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30, we receive much in this age, and in the age to come, we will receive eternal life.
- Eph. 1:21, Jesus above all rule and authority in this age and the age to come
- IN THIS AGE: We will receive 100 times as much, Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30; People are given in marriage, Luke 20:34; Jesus rescued us from the present evil age, Gal. 1:4.
- IN THE AGE TO COME we will receive eternal life, Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30; do not marry, Luke 20:35
- See also, Luke 16:8; 1 Cor. 1:20; 2:6, 8; 3:18; 2 Cor. 4:4; Gal. 1:4; Titus 2:12
So, as you can see, there are two ages: this age and the age to come. The following is the information above, presented in a grid.
| TABLE 1 | ||
| This Age | Age to Come | |
| Blasphemy | Blasphemy is not forgiven, Matt. 12:31-32 | Blasphemy is not forgiven, Matt. 12:31-32 |
| Eternal Life | Receive Eternal Life, Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30 | |
| Marriage | Marry and Given in Marriage, Luke 20:34 | No marriage in age to come, Luke 20:35 |
| Power and Superiority of God | Power and Superiority of God in this age, Eph. 1:21 | Power and Superiority of God in the age to come, Eph. 1:21 |
| The present age is evil | Evil in the present age, Gal. 1:4 | |
| Receive 100 times | In the present age (Greek “time”), Mark 10:30 | |
| Rulers | Rulers of this age, 1 Cor. 2:6 | |
| Satan | God of this world (Greek “age”), 2 Cor. 4:4 | |
| Wisdom | Wisdom of this age, 1 Cor. 1:20 | |
Hopefully, I have shown from Scripture that there are two ages. Now we can look at other Scriptures to see what happens at the end of this age. In so doing, I believe that you will see what God has in store.
The Judgment, Harvest, Resurrection, Rapture, and the New Heavens
Following is a grid that arranges end times events according to category. I suggest you take a piece of paper and map out when the events occur as you check them out. Remember, there are two ages: this age and the age to come. So you could produce your own chart by taking a piece of paper and drawing a vertical line in the middle. On the left is this age, and on the right is the age to come. I’ve done this below in TABLE 3. But first, let’s take a look at TABLE 2.
| TABLE 2 Arrangement of events according to the End of the Age, Last Day, Day of the Lord, Last Trumpet, After the Tribulation |
|||||
| END OF THIS AGE |
LAST DAY |
DAY OF THE LORD |
LAST TRUMPET |
AFTER THE TRIBU- LATION |
|
| Judgment of Good | 1 Cor. 1:8; 5:5 | ||||
| Wicked Gathered | Matt. 13:40, Matt. 13:49-50 |
||||
| Judgment of Wicked | Matt. 13:40-42 | John 12:48 | John 12:48 | ||
| Elect Gathered | Matt. 24:1-31 | ||||
| Harvest | Matt. 13:39, 49 | ||||
| Resurrection | John 6:39, 40, 44, 54; 11:24 | 1 Thess. 4:16-5:2 | 1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16 | ||
| Jesus’ Return | Matt. 24:1–3, 29-30 | 1 Thess. 4:16-18 | Matt. 24:1–3, 29-31; Mark 13:24-27 | ||
| Rapture | Matt. 24:1–3, 31 | 1 Thess. 4:16-18 | 1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16; Matt. 24:1–3, 29-31 | Matt. 24:1–3, 29-31; Mark 13:24-27 | |
| Like a Thief Rapture New Heavens and Earth |
1 Thess. 4:16-5:2; 2 Pet. 3:10 | ||||
Paragraph Summary
At the end of this age, the wicked are gathered (Matt. 13:40,49-50) and judged (Matt. 13:40-42). Also, that is when the elect are gathered (Matt. 24:1-31), which is when the rapture occurs at Jesus’ return (Matt. 24:1-3, 29-31). On the Last Day, the wicked are judged (John 12:48), but that is also the day of the resurrection (John 6:39, 40, 44, 54; 11:24) which occurs at the Last Trumpet (1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16) which is also when the rapture occurs (1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16; Matt. 24:1–3, 29-31). The Resurrection occurs on the Day of The Lord (1 Thess. 4:16-5:2), which is also Jesus’ return, and the rapture (1 Thess. 4:16-18) all happen after the Tribulation (Matt. 24:1–3, 29-31; Mark 13:24-27). The Day of the Lord (which is Jesus’ return, the rapture, and the resurrection) will come like a Thief in the Night, which is also when the New Heavens and Earth are made (2 Peter 3:10)
- Legend to the chart below to show commonality
- ˟ = Jesus Return
- * = Judgment of Wicked
- ^ = Rapture
- Summation
- ˟ Jesus’ return occurs at the END OF THE AGE, DAY OF THE LORD, AFTER TRIBULATION
- * Judgment of the wicked occurs at the END OF THE AGE, DAY OF THE LORD, LAST DAY
- ^ Rapture occurs on the DAY OF THE LORD, AFTER TRIBULATION
- Resurrection occurs on the DAY OF THE LORD
| TABLE 3 This Age and The Age To Come with events mapped out according to Scripture |
||
| THIS AGE (Matt. 13:40, 49-50) Wicked Gathered – END OF THE AGE → (Matt. 13:40-42) *Judgment of Wicked – END OF THE AGE → (Matt. 24:1-31) The elect are Gathered – END OF THE AGE → (Matt. 13:39, 49) Harvest – END OF THE AGE → (Matt. 24:1-3, 29-31) ˟Jesus’ Return – END OF THE AGE → (Matt. 13:40-42; John 12:48) *Judgment of Wicked – LAST DAY → (1 Cor. 1:8; 5:5) The judgment of good – DAY OF THE LORD → (John 12:48) *Judgment of the wicked – DAY OF THE LORD → (1 Thess. 4:16-5:2) Resurrection – DAY OF THE LORD → (1 Thess. 4:16-18) ˟Jesus’ Return – DAY OF THE LORD → (1 Thess. 4:16-18) ^Rapture – DAY OF THE LORD → (1 Th. 4:16-5:2; 2 Pt. 3:10) New Heavens/Earth comes as a thief – DAY OF THE LORD → (1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16) Resurrection – LAST TRUMPET → (1 Cor.. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16; Matt. 24:1–3, 29-31) Rapture – LAST TRUMPET → (Matt. 24:1–3, 29-31; Mark 13:24-27) ˟Jesus’ Return – AFTER TRIBULATION → (Matt. 24:1–3, 29-31; Mark 13:24-27) ^Rapture – AFTER TRIBULATION → |
THE AGE TO COME
|
|
I hope that this has been informative and perhaps even a little surprising. What I’ve presented here is not normally taught in churches in America today. Nevertheless, it seems to be biblical.
Following is the list of verses used in this article. Please check them out and use your own Bible to verify. Remember, always check everything by Scripture.
Scriptures Used In This Study
- Matt. 13:36–43, “Then He left the crowds and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.” 37 And He said, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, 38 and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the tares are the sons of the evil one; 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels. 40 “So just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. 41 “The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, 42 and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 “Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.”
- Matt. 13:49–50, “So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, 50 and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
- Matt. 24:1–3, “Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. 2 And He said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.” 3, “As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen [destruction of Temple], and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”
- Matt. 24:29–31, “But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 “And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. 31 “And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.”
- Mark 10:30, “but that he will receive a hundred times as much now in the present age, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and farms, along with persecutions; and in the age to come, eternal life.”
- Mark 13:24–27, “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, 25 and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken. 26 “Then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 “And then He will send forth the angels, and will gather together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest end of the earth to the farthest end of heaven.”
- Luke 18:30, “…who will not receive many times as much at this time and in the age to come, eternal life.”
- John 6:39–40, “This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. 40 “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”
- John 6:44, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.
- John 6:54, “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
- John 11:24, “Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.”
- 1 Cor. 15:52, “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.”
- 1 Thess. 4:16–5:2, “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words. 5:1 Now as to the times and the epochs, brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you. 2 For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night.”
- 2 Peter 3:10, “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.”
