Tuesday, July 13, 2010

What Is Your Favorite Gap?

One thing that I appreciate about dispensationalists is that they refreshingly admit when they are having trouble making their system work. Rather than bore their readers with exacting exegesis, dispensationalists admit that their system has gaps in it and just throw it out there for their audience. In fact, one of the more distinctive aspects of dispensationalism is its admission that it is full of holes: When the system cannot explain an important eschatological text, they declare: “There is a gap here! There must be!”

Daniel’s Famous Gap
Perhaps dispensationalism’s most famous — and most important — gap is the one they impose upon Daniel’s prophecies of the Seventy Weeks in Daniel 9:24–27. This prophecy is deemed by dispensationalists such as John F. Walvoord to be a linchpin in the dispensational system. In this prophecy Daniel uses the image of Seventy Weeks to represent a period of 490 years, with each “week” representing seven years.

Daniel breaks those 490 years into three sections: The first period is seven weeks (Dan 9:25; i.e., forty-nine years), then follows the second period of sixty-two weeks (Dan 9:25; you will have to compute the actual number of years by multiplying 7 x 62. I am no mathematician; I don’t do such high-level mathematical computation). Then finally the last week (Dan 9:27; I can handle this since there is none of this “carrying” business: it represents seven years).

But a problem arises for dispensationalists: Their best book sales deal with the great tribulation by which they frighten people to buy their novels so that they can become millionaires in order to invest their retirement into long-term real estate ventures. Consequently, they cannot allow that the last “week” follows immediately upon the preceding sixty-nine weeks — despite it appearing to do so when reading Daniel’s prophecy.

If they allowed this consecutive computation of the weeks-of-years, it would mean that the tribulation occurred in the first century when the Jewish temple was forever destroyed in A.D. 70 — just as Christ prophesied it would be. For the dispensationalist this would not make sense: Why is that such an important event? Big deal! So Israel worshiped by sacrifices for 1500 years from the time of Moses and the tabernacle. Big deal! So Israel worshiped in a temple for a 1000 years since the time of Solomon (except for a brief interruption during the Babylonian captivity). Big deal! Why would the final cessation of the sacrificial system, the rendering null and void the entire levitical system, and the absolute destruction of their central, unifying temple mean anything of significance to redemptive-history?

How then do they escape the obvious consecutive flow of weeks? By their own version of deus ex machina. They impose a gap between the sixty-ninth week and the seventieth. A gap arises on the scene to save the day. That is, the sixty-ninth week reaches until Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem, but then the next week leaps into the distant future over 2000 years distant! Consequently, they impose a gap in the record. Though the whole period of prophetic interest is 490 years, dispensationalists say that this measuring device must have a gap of over 2000 years before the last seven years starts. Voila! Prophecy doesn’t fit? No problem! Look for the gap.

The Old Testament’s Many Gaps
We also find the system’s tendency to impose gaps in various Old Testament prophecies that speak of the coming of Christ’s kingdom. Many prophecies read as if Christ comes to earth in the incarnation to establish his kingdom. For instance, consider Isaiah 9:6–7:

For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us;
And the government will rest on His shoulders;
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace,
On the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From then on and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.


This (and many similar verses) appears to teach that Christ is born into history in the first century and that he establishes his kingdom then. But this will not do for dispensationalists. You can’t sell books by telling people that Christ established a spiritual-redemptive kingdom in the first century. Readers of the National Inquirer and others need something a little more exciting than that.

Thus, once again the necessity of a gap. Those prophecies that speak of Christ’s coming to establish his kingdom are not to be read consecutively. According to dispensationalists we must read these prophecies as teaching that Christ comes in the first century, then he returns to heaven for 2000 years or so, then he returns once again to establish his kingdom.

Looking at these Old Testament prophecies, they say, is like looking at mountain ranges: the farther mountain ranges in one’s view appear to be right behind the closer ones. But we know there is a great distance separating them. Likewise, must we read all those Old Testament prophecies that speak of Christ coming and establishing his kingdom

Matthew’s Gap
In Matthew 23–24 Jesus weeps over Jerusalem (Matt 23:37), declares her temple desolate (Matt 23:38), then leaves the temple only to have the disciples come and remind him of its magnificence (Matt 24:1). To this Jesus responds: “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here shall be left upon another, which will not be torn down” (Matt 24:2). In surprise the disciples ask him: “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” (Matt 24:3).

Then beginning in Matthew 24:4 the Lord launches into his great eschatological discourse, known as the Olivet Discourse: “And Jesus answered and said unto them. . .”

You would think Matthew might record Jesus’s answer to their surprised question about the destruction of the temple that sparks the discourse. But in the dispensational view he does not. All classic dispensationalists say that Matthew’s record of Jesus’ response does not record the answer to their specific question — which involves issues that would dramatically affect them. Rather, Matthew only records the part of Jesus’ answer that refers to events 2000 or more years into the future. Hence, another infamous dispensationalist gap.

This time, though, it is not necessarily a gap in prophetic time, but a gap in the revelational record of Matthew. Jesus’ reply to his disciples’ questions — as recorded by Matthew (and Mark!) — totally skips over any answer to it and begins deliberating upon events that will not occur for thousands of years. But you must admit: this makes the dispensational system work admirably!

Conclusion
Dispensationalism is an unworkable system that is literally full of holes (i.e., gaps). To make their system function dispensationalists must lay the Scriptures on a Procrustean bed. Much like Damastes (called Procrustes) of old, dispensationalists must either stretch or chop up things to make them fit their predetermined system. A Procrustean bed is an arbitrary standard to which exact conformity is forced; dispensationalism is a Procrustean bed, an arbitrary standard.

But now, my readers, what are some of your favorite dispensational gaps? Everyone knows Daniel 9; most are familiar with the mountain-valley theory of prophetic interpretation; some even know of Matthew’s gap. Dispensationalism, though, does not just apply to Daniel, or to Matthew, or even to the Old Testament in general. Dispensationalism’s gap theory applies throughout the biblical record. You must have a favorite make-it-work gap. Please let me know by replying to this blog

Perhaps we could start a collection of gaps and publish a multi-million selling book? I will split the profits with you — 2000 years after I receive them.

24 comments:

Unknown said...

Jesus' implied gap in Isaiah 61:1-3:

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and freedom to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor,

[GAP]

and the day of our God's vengeance; to comfort all who mourn, to provide for those who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair. And they will be called righteous trees, planted by the LORD, to glorify Him.
(Isa 61:1-3 HCSB)

Zach said...

I was taught in my dispensational Gospels class that Matt. 12:32 must be understood as having a gap. "And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age..." (GAP) "... or in the age to come."

The first age is that of the Law which Jesus was under when He only came to be King of the Jewish race, though that mission failed. The age to come passes over us to the millennium back to the Jews again. Apparently they never get a break on this one. We however, finding ourselves between these two ages, can sit comfortably knowing this sin doesn't pertain to us. Whew... That was close. Thanks dispensationalism.

lee n. field said...

Well, how about the other gap in Daniel 9, the gap between the time Gabriel shows up in response to Daniel's prayer and when the seventy weeks actually begins, a hundred some odd years later!

Once that happens, it's a dead to the minute calculation for the time until Jesus enters Jerusalem on holy week. If you make a bunch of assumptions about the Hebrew calendar and other stuff. I heard this once some time ago, it's quite complex. And (IMHO) for that reason fragile. Screw up anywhere and it breaks.

alaskazimm said...

The other famous gap of Daniel comes in chapter 2 where the feet are completely disconnceted from the rest of the statue seen in the vision.

Len said...

How about a gap with a flip-flop or two thrown in.

I attend an Evangelical Free Church which is rabidly dispensational. Why I attend there is a long story, but I digress.

Recently, the pastor gave a sermon on Isaiah 13 where the destruction of the Babylonian Empire is prophesied. First of all, we were told that verses 1 thru 9 applied to the Medes destroying Babylon. Then, beginning with verse 10, we flip forward thousands of years. Since, obviously, the sun and the stars didn’t all go dark when the Medes conquered them, everything thru verse 13 is still sometime in the future as predicted in Revelation when it talks about Babylon falling and being destroyed.

Starting with verse 14, we then flop back to the Medes whupping up on Babylon. But then at verse 19 we flip forward again thousands of years. Even though the city of Babylon has never been inhabited since it was destroyed, (as prophesied if verse 20) since it wasn’t completely wiped off the face of the earth like Sodom and Gomorrah, and since Revelation refers to Babylon being destroyed, the prophesy regarding it never being inhabited again must be still sometime in the future, especially seeing as how Saddam Hussein at one time tried to start rebuilding the city. Therefore, the city will be rebuilt and then destroyed again (as predicted in Revelation) and then verses 20 thru 22 will finally be fulfilled.

Even though a normal, literal reading of the chapter would lead one to understand that this prophesy was referring to only one event, the destruction of Babylon by the Medes, dispensationalism manages to make it flip-flop more than most politicians do once they are elected.

lee n. field said...

How about a gap with a flip-flop or two thrown in.

I attend an Evangelical Free Church which is rabidly dispensational.


I'm in a similar situation. A Sunday or two ago, I brought up in a Sunday School discussion of God's glory, how Ezekiel saw God's glory pick up and go from the Jerusalem Temple (EZ 10-11). Several folks, including one of the pastors, chimed in that that was a prophecy about the destruction of the Temple in AD70. Excuse me? From Ezekiel's vantage point, the Temple was about to get just as thoroughly destroyed in 586 BC.

I figured I'd stumbled across some peculiarity of dispensational interpretation. After running into more than a few of these, I've resolved to, if I run into something odd from a dispensationalist, to ignore it unless an amil, postmil or historic premil interpreter can be found that agrees.

Daviel D'Paz said...

One of the most troublesome gaps in dispensational teaching, is the gap called THE GREAT PARENTHESIS which applies to the church. As a matter of fact, this particular teaching was one of my first (among others)warning lights about dispensationalism, that something was deadly wrong with the system.

To say the church is A GREAT PARENTHESIS in God's plan that WAS NOT ENVISIONED in OT times, made me SCREAM. According to Disp'l teaching we are presently living in that GREAT PARENTHESIS between the first coming and the second coming of Jesus.

This of course, means that the kingdom promised in OT prophecies was POSTPONED until the end of the GREAT PARENTHESIS. So, the church is literally living IN A HISTORICAL VACUUM or LIMBO with NO SIGNIFICANCE WHATSOEVER! The historical significance STARTS ONLY after the rapture of the church and the begining of the LAST of Daniel's 70 weeks.

This kind of explanation was very convincing in my first christian years. But after a while, this explanation began to make me very uncomfortable, specially when I asked what was then the role of the church at the present time. What is our role in this world? Was God's camera turned off until the church no longer exists in this planet? If so, why?

Is not true that the Bible says that Christ IS PRESENTLY BUILDING HIS CHURCH? How then we are living in A GREAT PARENTHESIS or historical vacuum with no significance if Christ is DOING SOMETHING of a great importance? I don't see how Disp'l GAP THEORY can fit with what the Bible clearly teaches about the Church and the Kingdom of God.

Thank you.

Len said...

With regard to the Church being the great “Parenthesis,” it seems to me that just the opposite might be true.

The Church has always existed in some form or another from all eternity. All the believers names, those who are drawn by God to repentance and to trust in Christ for their salvation rather than any merit which they may possess, have been written in “The Lamb’s Book of Life” from the foundation of the world. Therefore, there were members of the true Church ever since the creation. Some placed their trust in the Messiah promised, while others, have or will place their trust in the Messiah revealed.

Judaism, however, is an interim entity. There are many reasons why God chose to establish the Jewish nation and Judaism. All were explained within the various covenants (Adamic, Noahic, Abrahamic, Sinaitic, & Davidic) and these covenants were all fulfilled in the appearance, life, suffering, death, resurrection and reign of Christ as demonstrated in the new covenant which He and the Father established with the Church – the Church which has always existed either in God’s mind, purpose and plans or in actual spiritual and physical form (all true believers, while alive, possess physical existence.)

With the advent of the Messiah and His elevation to the throne of His kingdom at His resurrection, Judaism and the Jewish nation became obsolete and no longer necessary, (Ref: Hebrews 8:13) although God has always promised to preserve a Godly remnant of the physical descendants of Jacob – true physical sons of Abraham.

As an example, which I’ve never heard discussed to any extent, is the fact that one reason why God established the Jewish nation is in order to preserve a pure lineage of descendants from Abraham to Christ the Messiah. This is one way in which He chose to demonstrate that His promise to Abraham was actually fulfilled. If He hadn’t visibly and physically set apart the line and descendants of Abraham through whom the Messiah would come, and had He not provided some means for all to clearly know that the Messiah, when He was revealed, was in fact a true descendant of Abraham, there could be no proof that God’s promise to Abraham had been fulfilled. Without such a clear means of identification of actual descent from Abraham, anyone and everyone could claim that they had descended from Abraham. Of course, once the Messiah had come, this method of identification was no longer needed.

This can be said of every reason for God establishing Judaism and the physical nation of Israel. All were temporary until Messiah should come. The book of Hebrews (especially chapter 8) and Galatians (especially chapters 3 & 4) make this clear.

If anything is a “Parenthesis,” it sure isn’t the Church. It’s the nation of Israel and Judaism.

Len said...

With regard to the Church being the great “Parenthesis,” it seems to me that just the opposite might be true.

The Church has always existed in some form or another from all eternity. All the believers names, those who are drawn by God to repentance and to trust in Christ for their salvation rather than any merit which they may possess, have been written in “The Lamb’s Book of Life” from the foundation of the world. Therefore, there were members of the true Church ever since the creation. Some placed their trust in the Messiah promised, while others, have or will place their trust in the Messiah revealed.

Judaism, however, is an interim entity. There are many reasons why God chose to establish the Jewish nation and Judaism. All were explained within the various covenants (Adamic, Noahic, Abrahamic, Sinaitic, & Davidic) and these covenants were all fulfilled in the appearance, life, suffering, death, resurrection and reign of Christ as demonstrated in the new covenant which He and the Father established with the Church – the Church which has always existed either in God’s mind, purpose and plans or in actual spiritual and physical form (all true believers, while alive, possess physical existence.)

With the advent of the Messiah and His elevation to the throne of His kingdom at His resurrection, Judaism and the Jewish nation became obsolete and no longer necessary, (Ref: Hebrews 8:13) although God has always promised to preserve a Godly remnant of the physical descendants of Jacob – true physical sons of Abraham.

As an example, which I’ve never heard discussed to any extent, is the fact that one reason why God established the Jewish nation is in order to preserve a pure lineage of descendants from Abraham to Christ the Messiah. This is one way in which He chose to demonstrate that His promise to Abraham was actually fulfilled. If He hadn’t visibly and physically set apart the line and descendants of Abraham through whom the Messiah would come, and had He not provided some means for all to clearly know that the Messiah, when He was revealed, was in fact a true descendant of Abraham, there could be no proof that God’s promise to Abraham had been fulfilled. Without such a clear means of identification of actual descent from Abraham, anyone and everyone could claim that they had descended from Abraham. Of course, once the Messiah had come, this method of identification was no longer needed.

This can be said of every reason for God establishing Judaism and the physical nation of Israel. All were temporary until Messiah should come. The book of Hebrews (especially chapter 8) and Galatians (especially chapters 3 & 4) make this clear.

If anything is a “Parenthesis,” it sure isn’t the Church. It’s the nation of Israel and Judaism.

Mike Bull said...

I'm a preterist, but I believe there was a postponement concerning Daniel's seventieth week. It occurred when Christ forgave His murderers. The rest of the week was only played out in type, and instead of the Herods being wiped out, only one Herod was. The Covenant curses fell upon this man of sin as he sat upon his throne and claimed to be God.

Then, after one generation of mercy, a 40 year "wilderness" during which Israel was sifted as wheat, the final week was played out again. This time it was massacred saints who were cut off in the midst of the week. And this time, the destruction of Herod worship was complete, the antitype.

The Old Testament reason for this is that Christ was the Head of the Sacrifice, and these martyred saints were the Body (Rev. 14). This completed the foundation of the church.

So I believe there was a gap, due to unbelief, just as there was a gap between Israel's exodus and their entry into Canaan. The warnings in the book of Hebrews seem to support this idea.

I have some more thoughts here on this if you are interested:

http://www.bullartistry.com.au/wp/2009/08/05/the-end-of-shadows/

kerygma said...

Daniel 9 is entirely about postponement (a type of 'gap', I guess), but it is introduced through a (probably pseudonymous) prophet, through an angel, so maybe that works.

"You thought you would return from exile after 70 years, but in fact (because of implied lack of repentance) a real return will not occur for 70 7's, in the days after the end of Antiochus Epiphanes and his persecution."

Jason said...

Greetings,
Rather than naming my favorite Dispensational gap, I just wanted to express my appreciation to the authors of this blog.

You're doing a great service by countering this behemoth branch of eschatology and I wish you success.

I'm in the southeastern US, and dispensationalism is rampant in these parts. Not only does it cause embarassment to many Christians, it damages testimonies and works to prevent the spread of the Gospel. Many of the disp. televangelists who currently flood the airwaves make merchandise of Christians, and this is sickening.

In addition, dispensationalism leads to murder and death. As many of its followers are zionist worshippers of Israel, they support that Israeli gov't along with our current US gov't which acts as Israel's foreign policy enforcer.

I think what you, the authors, are doing here is vital in this day. I pray that you are able to continue this blog and reach more people. Here's to the growth of the "rapture" out of dispensationalism!

ChadDA said...

Great blog!

One gap I heard taught was in Daniel 2:40-45. There the dispensationalist teacher said that the legs of iron represented Rome, but the feet of iron and clay represented the future antichrist kingdom. So it looks like they inserted a gap at the ankles! Each body segment is attributed to a kingdom in verses 38, 39, and 40. Dispensationalists apparantly insert a similar verse at the ankles to create another "kingdom". This is very important, because the establishment of the Christ's kingdom in verses 44-45 is then postponed until some future world government instead of being established during the time of Roman empire. It is quite clear that the apostles believed Christ's kingdom was certainly established during His ascension,rather than being in limbo for a couple thousand years.

SwrdnShld said...

How are dispensationalists ignorant when they put a gap in the same place you do? Jerusalem wasn't destroying until about 40 years after Jesus died. Yet when you read Daniel 9, there is no such "gap". Your system does the same thing dispies do, you just shorten your "gap".

How do you explain that double standard?

NiceneCouncil.com said...

Swrdn:
Keep in mind two things:

(1) Dispensationalists impose a gap that is already four times longer than the whole time period of 490 years. On the surface this should be absurd. After all, what is the point of defining a 490 year period but stretching it out to be 2490 years?

(2) I do not impose a gap at all. In my book Perilous Times I point out that the destruction of the temple is not a part of the Seventy Weeks at all. The Seventy Weeks will complete all the actions in Dan 9:24 -- but verse 24 does not even mention the destruction of the temple. That destruction is something that is added to the Seventy Weeks as a consequence of their completion. Thus: there is no gap -- of even one second, much less 2000+ years.

Mike Bull said...

The gap is due to the same reason there was a 40 year gap between the Hebrews' rejection of Moses as their judge and their deliverance; and between their leaving Egypt and their possession of Canaan: unbelief. One generation fails and God waits for the next one. This is exactly what we see reflected in the book of Hebrews. And Paul says this was God's mercy, allowing a remnant to survive so that first century Judah was not totally destroyed as Sodom.
Read my comment above and the article linked.

Anonymous said...

!?: "That destruction is something that is added to the Seventy Weeks as a consequence of their completion. Thus: there is no gap"

No offense, but isn't adding "X" to an equation the same as a gap. The difference only comes down to the nomenclature you are choosing to use.

Also, concerning your point #1 I'm curious if you know the mind of God? I'm not meaning this as ignorance or insult, but seriously just dismissing a "gap" on the basis that it is 4 times the size of the original prophecy means nothing. There are plenty of references in the Bible where God chooses to delay a judgment/prophecy. Why is it that this specific passage must be different!?

Additionally, Mike Bull & Swrdn have presented great points that I believe you should listen to and take heart; for it appears to me that your articles only focus on creating strife in the Christian community. Dispensational Theology is not the big evil that you claim it to be (yes there are differences, and yes some of these differences are serious). But honestly if you want to focus on a contemporary problem in Christianity focus on something more worrisome, like the Emergent Church Movement or Joel Osteen.

Last, SharperIron has postsed a really good article refuting your 95 Theses Against Dispensationalism.

NiceneCouncil.com said...

Cascadingfaith:

Thanks for your blog note. However, it seems that may not have read my statement carefully. I will rephrase (just to be sure):

The period of 70 weeks is for accomplishing the six purposes that are clearly and objectively stated in Dan 9:24. Not one of those purposes has to do with the destruction of the Temple. Read them yourself: where is the declaration of the temple's destruction?

The "addition" of the destruction of the temple in Dan 9 is indeed an addition to the fundamental 70 Weeks prophecy. Therefore, there is no gap. That added event occurs after the completion of the 70 Weeks. There is no gap, because this prophesies a different event.

We very much believe that dispensatonalism has caused grave harm and embarrassment to the Church. We are critiquing it as an evangelical error, not a soul-damning heresy, but error nonetheless.

SharperIron has not rebutted the 95 Theses. He has simply complained against them in a typically naive dispensational fashion.

But we do appreciate your comments.

Doug said...

NiceneCouncil.com is correct IMO, when he says there is no gap in the 70 weeks, but wrong to say the 70 weeks have been fulfilled already.

Daniel's 70 weeks prophecy is about the duration of Jerusalem's desolation, and the restoration of true worship, and Israel's reconciliation to God, and other things mentioned in Daniel 9:24, that we don't see fulfilled yet.

Isaiah said that Jerusalem and Zion will be raised up above the hills [Isa. 2:2] and in the NT, Jerusalem is put up in heaven, and identified with the church. "But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem..." [Heb. 12:22] So Jerusalem and Zion are raised up far higher than the hills. But, the desolation has not ended.

In Revelation 11, 12, and 13, the saints are involved in warfare. This is a great struggle for possession of the church's spiritual inheritance. In Revelation 11:7, the beast from the pit makes war with God's two witnesses, and overcomes them. In Revelation 12:7, the war is in heaven; it is spiritual warfare, as angels are involved in it. The great red dragon, Satan, is cast out, and when this happens, he has only a short time left, to cause grief in the world. In Revelation 13:7, the beast with seven heads and ten horns makes war with the saints, and overcomes them. He continues for 42 months, the same period mentioned in Revelation 11:2, where the holy city is trampled by Gentiles. The holy city here is the church. This 42 months, 1,260 days, and "time, times and a half" of Revelation 12:14 are all related to the 70 weeks; they represent the last half-week.

The first two sections in the 70 weeks, 7 weeks and 62 weeks, point to the coming of the Messiah, and in the last week, he "confirms the covenant with many." The ministry of Jesus was part of that last week. He confirmed the covenant. Paul said,

Romans 15:8
Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers:

His crucifixion began the last half-week, which can't be a literal three years and a half, or else the apostles would have noticed that Daniel's prophecy had been fulfilled, but nowhere do they tell us that. Jesus continues to fulfill his covenant with the saints today, so the last half-week is not finished yet.

There are no gaps in the 70 weeks, as that would imply there a temporary reconciliation, and a lapse of the curse, that Daniel refers to in 9:11. The curse alludes to the four periods of seven times in Leviticus 26. The first of these periods was the exile; the last three correspond to the three sections of the 70 weeks. In the final one, God is reconciled to his people and remembers his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that Paul calls the gospel. He also "remembers the land," which is symbolic of spiritual things promised to the saints. Understanding Daniel's prophecy is included in those things; and Daniel's 70 weeks prophecy is key to understanding the time periods mentioned in Revelation 11, 12, and 13, which all refer to the same thing, the time, times and a half, which is symbolic of the last half-week in the 70 weeks, when Jesus continues to confirm his covenant with his saints.

Anthony Rogers said...

Okay, this is not a "gap" that can allegedly be found in the Bible, but how about the gap between all of Hal Lindsey's predictions of the end of the world and the end of the world itself? How about the gaps between all the other predictions made by dispensationalists and their fulfillments?

Anonymous said...

My favorite (it is in the Scofield Reference Bible), but I'm not sure if it's just Dispensationalists that believe it,is the gap between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2 that supposedly can be filled with a strange Lucifer's flood. My head hurts every time I try to follow the logic and twisting of the Scripture you have to do to get to the point where 1:2 means that.

~Matt

John Calvin: Calvinism My Way said...

The only gap in Dan 9 is between the ears of dispensationalist.

Anonymous said...

Matt mentions the supposed gap between Gen. 1:1 and 1:2. Although I don't think of it as "Lucifer's flood", I do believe there is a gap there. Why? Because the planet earth exists BEFORE Day 1. Not only does the planet earth exist, it is also covered in water. At no time within the "6 days" does God ever create the planet earth or the water. They are already there. The first and ONLY thing that is said to be created on day one is "Light." So how long was the planet earth in darkness and covered in water? It could have been one day or a trillion years. The 6 days seem like a re-creation to me, not the original creation.

Anonymous said...

Wow! An oasis... After years of struggling with intense guilt and feelings that I was literally "mad" because I could not 'get' the dispensationalist view I find this blog. THANK YOU...

One small comment...

If Messiah was cut off "in the midst of the week", perhaps there is a gap (of a generation maybe as someone said above?) of sorts? In other words, in the middle of the 70th week?

Just a thought...