Center for Biblical Theology and Eschatology

This Generation Shall Not Pass, Till
All These Things be Fulfilled

by Tony Warren

"So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled." - Matthew 24:33-34

 

atthew chapter twenty-four has been a difficult chapter for many Christians to understand, as even seasoned theologians seem to stumble when exegeting the phrase "this generation." Consequently, we believe that an informational article concerning this issue needed to be written. When Christ declared that this generation would not pass until all the things that He spoke about would be fulfilled, the question most frequently asked is, "how could all those things that Christ had spoken about, could have been fulfilled before that generation had passed?" It doesn't make sense. Most Christians understand that this Chapter of Matthew is speaking about later-day occurrences, and so they are puzzled as to how the phrase "this generation" fits into that context. Let us first lay the popularized assumption that Jesus Christ prophesied His first-century return to rest. The confusion exists because so many Christians are indifferent to or unaware of the fact that there are several ways that this Greek word genea [genea], translated generation, is used in the Bible.

1. Through extension of kin or family, it denotes a particular patriarchal life span (his generation) or related time period.
2. Through extension of kin or family, it denotes a physical family's ancestry, posterity, lineage or genealogy.
3. Through extension of kin or family, it denotes a spiritual family ancestry, as kindred spirits of Satan or evil.
4. Through extension of kin or family, it denotes a spiritual family ancestry, as kindred spirits of Christ or righteousness.

These are four related, and yet very distinct and Biblically justifiable applications of this word genea [genea]. The word translated generation is unambiguously used in the Bible in all these contexts. Even most of those holding to a Praeterit/Preterist eschatology will not deny this biblical fact. Through the meaning of genesis, genea [genea] is derived from its root word genos [genos], meaning a common birth, kin, or family relationship. genea [genea], by extension, is used in this same family relationship connotation of a generational (family) life of timespan.

Another point that is worthy of note is that Scripture has always used Patriarchs or founding father figures as dating components. Even to this day, we date this way (probably without even giving it much thought). Whenever someone says that "this is the year 2000," they are dating (though not accurately) by our Patriarch reference, Christ. In other words, we are saying that we are living 2000 years after the birth of Christ (AD, anno domini, or the year of our Lord). He is the Patriarchal family reference by which a large part of the civilized world dates today. This is a biblical and historical practice that dates back to the very beginning, and is explained in depth in my paper on "The Biblical Timeline of Creation."But my point here is, the year we use is really a Patriarch family or generational reference.

Moreover, there are actually four words that are translated as "generation" in the New Testament. They are:

1. genesis [genesis] (Matthew 1:1)
2. gennema [gennema] (Matthew 23:33)
3. genos [genos] (Acts 17:29)
4. genea [genea] (Acts 8:33)

In some way, they all stem from the same family or kindred relationship. Generation can mean the period of a family line, a period of time, age, or even a Patriarch's offspring, but the core or foundational reference comes from this family relationship. For example, if we were to declare that something occurred in the 4th generation, we would be saying that it happened in the family period of the 4th child. So it would be illustrating a particular family relationship removed by three from the original Patriarch reference. We see a form of this in the listing of Christ's family tree in the first chapter of Matthew:

Matthew 1:1

• "The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham."

This is the book of the genesis [genesis], origin, or the family source or kindred of Jesus Christ. Obviously so, as it is a list of His ancestral or "family" history. This once again points to the fact that all these words are rooted in the family relationship motif. In other words, they are listed there because they are those of His family line, His kindred. Understanding this principle, we can see how God unambiguously uses these words translated generation to signify not only the physical family of God, but also often the Spiritual family of God. Likewise and not coincidentally, He also uses it to speak of the spiritual family of the Lord's adversary, the Devil. These are two families, people who are of two contrasting and distinct seeds or kindred spirits. Even as God Himself spoke of them in the Garden of Eden, and the enmity that He declared would be between them.

Genesis 3:15

• "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."

The Serpent seed is Satan, and the Woman's Seed is Christ, two distinct families. The children of God and children of the Devil are two diverse and distinct generations, offspring, or families that stem from these two seeds. The family of God extends all the way back to the beginning, and the family of Satan extends to that same period. This is illustrated vividly in the episode of the relationship of Abel and Cain. The way that the word genea [genea] is often used denotes this spiritual offspring or children of either Christ or His adversary, Satan. For example, God uses the phrase Generation of evil (Luke 11:29) not to declare that all people living at that particular time (generation) were the most evil of any other time period in History, but to point out they were the children (family) of the Devil. It does not refer only to that immediate age, but is to denote the spiritual kindred that they were a part of. The Generation of evil refers to all the seed of the Serpent throughout time. They are the seed or family of evil by their kindred spirit relationship. Just as the children of God refer to the whole family of God in whatever age they live, because they are a chosen generation, genos [genos] or family (1st Peter 2:9) that extends throughout time. So the generation was not just people who happened to be living at the time in which the phrase was written; he spoke of a righteous generation that lived at the same time period as the evil generation Christ spoke of. God uses these family relationships to illustrate those who are of the same spiritual kinship. As also illustrated in passages like John chapter 8:

John 8:44

• "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it."

Once again, we see that Christ is clearly explaining the divine truth that they were the kindred, seed, or children of the Devil. They were kindred spirits, part of a particular spiritual family group relationship. That is why Christ identifies them as the seed of their "father," the Devil. Satan is the spiritual Patriarch reference for the whole generation or family of evil. Clearly, Satan has had many children throughout time, not merely those to whom Christ was speaking in this immediate time period. All those under Satan's spiritual control are the generation, age, or family of evil, whom we all know have existed from the time of the fall. In Biblical terms, they are the spiritual offspring (a generation) of their Patriarch reference, which is that old Serpent called the Devil and Satan. Just as when Christ speaks of the wicked people as a "generation of vipers," He is identifying that seed, these children, that family group, as a people who serve their father, Satan. He is not talking about everyone in that physical generation or time period. How could He be, since the chosen who were living in that exact same generation (time period) were not a generation of serpents. It's not an enigma; it is plain, Biblical, and logical. How could God be addressing that whole generation? All who were living in that physical (generation) time span could not be this generation Christ spoke of. QED, that generation did not speak of a time period. Nor could it be, since many of that generation were children of God, the foundation of the church, and His resurrection and Witnesses brought salvation to the whole world, "in that generation." In that time period. You see, the generation was a family of serpents, not a time period. e.g.

Matthew 12:32-35

• "And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.
• Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.
• O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
• A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things."

How can a gennema [gennema], meaning offspring or family of vipers, be all the generation of the people of Israel? They weren't all children of the serpent; many were children of God who spoke good things when they spoke from their hearts. But many, the family or generation of vipers, were full of evil. This generation that Christ references is the seed or offspring of the serpent. They are the generation or children of the serpent. All those alive at that time, consisting of the Apostles, John the Baptist, Mary, Elizabeth, or any of the saints of that period, cannot be of that generation. They cannot commit the unforgivable sin of blaspheming against the Holy Ghost. So of necessity it has to be only the unregenerate 'family' of the viper, Satan. Likewise, when Christ spoke about the generation that would not pass until all is fulfilled, He could not be talking about the whole generation living at that time. That would be disjointed, inconsistent, and conflicting with other Scriptures. He spoke of the family of Satan who would remain on the earth until Christ returns, and who would not escape the damnation of Hell--that generation. Therefore, when Christ calls them the gennema [gennema] of vipers, or the genea [genea] that He was grieved with, he is not referring to all those people of that time (as many often understand generation to to mean), but he is speaking only of the seed of the serpent, Satan. It is this family or generation of evil that cannot escape judgment, and He is illustrating that Satan is their spiritual Patriarch father.

Matthew 23:32-34

• Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
• Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
• Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:"

The well-oiled myth that the word generation always refers to a particular span of that contemporary time, and that the word genea [genea] cannot refer to a Spiritual generation or lifespan, is without validation. Just as the idea that all was fulfilled in that genea [genea] or literal human time span of that era, is without Biblical validation. Both words gennema [gennema] and genea [genea] are derived from the same genos [genos] as two branches from the same trunk. Here Christ references the previous people (their fathers) who lived before, and who killed and who persecuted the prophets, and includes them as this same generation (or family) of vipers and snakes. He also includes those who would come after to persecute His prophets. That proves it's not referring only to his contemporaries. Because it is self-evident that if this word meant that all this generation (the way many understand the word) at that time were a bunch of snakes who couldn't escape the damnation of hell, then it would mean the wicked who came before them and after them, and killed the prophets and the Apostles, were not in that generation also. That contradicts the passage itself. The Apostles were of that physical generation, "if" the word generation actually meant what many believe that it means. But obviously, Christ is not talking about that local contemporary physical generation; He is talking about those who are a "family" of spiritual vipers or snakes.

Psalms 140:1-3

• "Deliver me, O LORD, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man;
• Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.
• They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders' poison is under their lips. Selah."

Selah, meaning think circumspectly about this. The adder is a type of viper or snake representing Satan, and these people are of that same generation or genesis of evil. Men who (out of the evil in their hearts) bring forth wicked fruit, are all of this generation. In this we see that there is not only precedence for the word generation not used in reference to the present time, but many times the context itself demands that it not be understood that way. A generation of vipers is clearly an evil family, kindred spirits with the Devil who live throughout time and bridge eras.

We also should not lose sight of the fact that for All to be fulfilled in that physical generation (which Christ declared in Matthew chapter 24), the time He refers to must have all those things being fulfilled. Not a few things, not some, not most, but all those things had to be fulfilled if we are to honestly understand generation to mean that time period. But the only time when all will be fulfilled is at the end of the world/age. It is only then that this generation of evil passes. When we study the context of Matthew chapter 24, it becomes abundantly clear that this end-time period is what God is referring to when all will be fulfilled.

Matthew 24:3

• "And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?"

We are all well aware of the claims that the end of the age took place in 70 AD, but that is a Biblically untenable position for several reasons.

First, the end of the age if it referred to the Old Testament dispensation came when Christ died and was resurrected (approximately 33 AD), not almost 40 years later in A.D. 70.

Second, His coming is declared to be as it was in the days of Noah, A global and world devastating appearance that didn't happen in A.D 70. The proponents of this theory come to this incohesive conclusion by selectively interpreting age/world aion [aion], and then arbitrarily making the supposition that there was an end of the age/world in A.D. 70. This even though there is absolutely no Biblical warrant for declaring 70 AD (37 to 40 years after Christ's death) as the time of an end of an age.

Not one single Scripture makes that claim. So while they insist that Matthew 24's declaration of the end of the world is a mis-translation of the word aion [aion], meaning age. They are still unable to coherently explain verses such as are found in places like Luke chapter 18:

Luke 18:30

• "Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting."

This is the exact same Greek word aion [aion], meaning world/age. If that present time when Christ spoke was before 70 AD, when He says they receive manifold more, and the age to come brought eternal life for them, then obviously 70 AD, being the next age (according to their theory), must have been the age when eternal life was instituted. Did eternal life come in 70 AD, when Christ was born, or when Christ was resurrected? Does it come when Christ returns? Did life everlasting only start after Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans? All these questions must be addressed, comparing Scripture with Scripture. The New Dispensation started at the death and resurrection of Christ, and is consummated at the end of the world/age when Christ returns. So this theory is quite bankrupt and void of any solid scriptural foundation. Jesus is obviously speaking not about an alleged beginning of an age in 70 AD, but about the end of the world/age at His second coming. This is when all would be fulfilled, and this is when this Generation of evil would pass. Because it's at the judgment, and not a second before. Indeed, that is the answer to the very question that the Disciples asked in Matthew 24 when they questioned about the timing of the end and when His second coming would be.

I must say with all due respect, this 70 AD doctrine is convoluted on many different levels, because there was never any Biblical foundation for making a prophecy of a new age established in 70 AD in the first place. Reformed, Biblical, or sound Theology must be established on Biblical foundations, not on inconsistent and contradictory suppositions, or the spurious writings of the non-Christian man Josephus. Nor can our Christian beliefs be rightly based upon a theory that is solely based upon man's speculation. Of necessity, these theologians would have to place another age between the cross and the end of the world in order for this theory to be true. In effect, it splits the New Testament period into diverse ages. That would be the New Testament age after the cross but before 70 AD, which was clearly established by Christ's work, then another new age that came after 70 AD, and a third age where eternal life is instituted. Because their position on 70 AD is untenable without it, and yet it is also quite unbiblical with it.

What is Matthew chapter 24 really saying? When we look at the context circumspectly, we see that the overview is that God is not only warning the disciples about false prophets, persecutions, and false Christs, but the unfaithfulness of churches throughout time as well. The Bible isn't written only for those to whom any epistle or letter is addressed. The words are for, apply to, and are warnings for the universal church to consider as well. For example, the book of Thessalonians is addressed to the Thessalonians, but it was written to the universal church throughout time. The Book of Romans is written to the Romans, but is for the church throughout time. When Christ told the disciples to do this in remembrance of Him (Communion), He was not merely giving them a commandment, but instituting this practice for the whole church throughout time. This is just basic sound hermeneutics that are essential for correct understanding and sound exegesis. Likewise, when Christ said, this generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled, He was talking to all of the church throughout time. He was talking about the genea [genea] or family of evil, and the very context of false church sinfulness illustrates this. Moreover, true to His word, that same evil [genea] or family has "to this day," not passed away. The children of Satan are as present today as they ever were. We will always have this generation of wicked rebellion and false prophets among God's people. We will always have wars, tribulations, and abominations, because we will always have this generation of evil on earth until all is fulfilled. Selah.

Let's review the context of Matthew chapter 24 for our answer to understanding that generation that should not pass. For starters, Christ is warning the disciples (and all of us) about the enemies of Christ (and particularly, those who call themselves of Christ), and how they will thrive deceitfully as wolves in sheep's clothing. They come as false prophets and false Christs, with all lying signs and machinations. He speaks of their deception that is so clever and convincing that it would even deceive the very elect (chosen), if that were possible! Therefore, He tells the Apostles (and us) to watch, for these are the signs that will alert us of His soon second coming. The key to understanding what Christ meant by "this generation will not pass away until all these things take place" lies in the qualifications He made, the signs that will be present, and the context of this passage. Christ is warning His people of future events that will happen. He had already prophesied to Israel during His earthly ministry of their loss of the kingdom representation(Matthew 21:43). Therefore, He cannot be talking about the nation Israel being persecuted for His sake in AD 70, but of a far future time. The generation that Christ declares would not pass until He returns is the generation of evil. Not that some things might be fulfilled, but that all these things must first be fulfilled. In other words, the false prophets, nation against nation, famines, pestilence, and earthquakes in diverse places, false Christs, etc. Things like people delivering Christ's servants up to be afflicted and killed, and God's people being hated by all peoples for Christ's sake. Were the Jews hated by all nations for Christ's sake in AD 70? Things like the gospel having been preached to the entire world for a witness, and the greatest tribulation ever in the world, and the Son of man coming on the clouds of Glory. All this must be fulfilled before this generation passes. The only generation that shall not pass until all these things are fulfilled is the generation of evil (Matthew 12:39), the generation of Serpents (Matthew 12:34). Two different Greek words with the identical meaning. A family of kindred spirits of evil. Physical seeds or generations will pass away, and indeed have passed, but we still have all these things. It is the spiritual family of evil that is the only generation that has not passed. Like the word seed is used in the Bible, the word generation is used in Scripture to describe a lineage or a family. Consider God’s promises to Abraham and his descendants as declared in the book of Genesis:

Genesis 17:6-9

• "And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
• And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.
• And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.
• And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations."

This is a prophecy of the Seed (Christ - Galatians 3:16) instituting a covenant generation or family in Him. The only generation of an everlasting possession is that which is fulfilled in Him. These are those who have the nativity of Christ, where they have been reborn with a new nature. This family of God, these sons of God, these children of God, are the generation of the Seed, which is Christ. All true believers are the generation of the Seed because they are in Christ, made a family of God.

Psalms 22:30-31

• "A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation.
• They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done this."

This is because the kingdom is the Lord's, and He is the governor among the nations, and the generation is a spiritual family that is forever. We are those ascribed or accounted to the Lord a generation or family. We are the generation associated as the seed or generations of the righteous, through Christ's atoning work in reconciling us to God as His children.

Psalms 14:5

• "There were they in great fear: for God is in the generation of the righteous."

God is with the family or kindred of the righteous, as they are His children. This makes the wicked fear and detest them because of the enmity that this brings. The wicked fear because God watches over His family. The truth is, the evil generation persecutes Christ when they persecute His generation or family. Because the communion of God's children with Him is that of a father and child relationship. The generation of evil has this same family or seed relationship with Satan. It runs from Cain to the time of Judgment when that generation shall pass away. This wicked generation is speaking of consanguinity, not a contemporary populace of the time of Christ's first advent. This evil generation or kindred spans all of the history of the world. As long as there is the seed of the Serpent, there is this generation that shall not pass until all God's purposes are fulfilled. So then, the word generation refers to a kindred ascribed or marked by an evil moral character. e.g.:

Psalms 12:6-8

• "The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
• Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
• The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted."

Preserve or guard them against what vile generation [dowr]? It is the progeny, offspring, or family of evil. Surely it wasn't only from the people of David's day, it was from the posterity, kindred, or generation that Christ spoke of that will not pass from this earth until all is fulfilled. This is a Psalm of promise by the Lord to keep all of His people, to preserve every single one of them from this generation or family of evil, forever. Because the wicked and adulterous roam undisturbed, doing evil whenever vile men exist and are exalted. They are a wicked, evil generation that Christ stigmatized as a generation of vipers, a family of serpents. They will still be on this earth right up until the very day that Christ returns on the clouds of glory. Eating and drinking just as they were in the days that were before the flood (Matthew 24:37-39). They were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, right up until the day that the Lord God brought judgment upon them.

Deuteronomy 32:5

• "They have corrupted themselves, their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a perverse and crooked generation."

The children of men have forsaken their creator, where they are as orphans, and have become a perverse or corrupt generation that is estranged from their God. Even as Cain was, by the blood of Abel. God spoke of this generation again in Luke chapter 11.

Luke 11:50-51

• "That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;"
• From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation."

Were all those people who were standing there (the contemporary generation, or people of that time) guilty of the blood of all the Prophets from Abel to Zechariah, and would be judged for those murders? God Forbid! In God's economy, every man is responsible for his own sins. The sons are not responsible for the sins of their father (Deuteronomy 24:16). The Apostles and the rest of those who were believers and who stood there won't have the blood of the Prophets required of them. But those who are part of that family/generation of Satan sure would. How is the blood of Abel and all of these Prophets who lived long ago required of that generation that Christ spoke of? It can only be because those who killed the Prophets, though they lived hundreds of years before Christ, were still all a part of that generation or family that Jesus condemned. All who are of the family of Satan are part of the generation that killed Abel, and they all have murder in their hearts.

Genesis 3:14-15

• "And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
• And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."

The two seeds speak of two distinct families. The seed or family that springs forth of Christ, and the seed or family that springs forth of the Serpent. Two distinct posterities or families. That is why Christ spoke of the wicked as the generation [gennema] of vipers. That Greek word conveys or indicates offspring or progeny. Christ was very literally calling them the spiritual children of the serpent. When Christ said that the blood of all the prophets that was shed from the foundation of the world will be required of this generation, it cannot logically, rationally, or Biblically mean this particular generation of people standing there at the time. They are guilty because they commit the exact same murder as Cain, who slew Abel. Even as Christ vividly illustrated in Matthew chapter 23:

Matthew 23:30-33

• "And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.
• Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.
• Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
• Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?"

They are measured as murderers of God's people the same way Cain was. So what this means should be self-evident. It refers only to the generation or kin of Satan. Those of the generation, lineage, or family of the Devil. Christ calls these, the seed or children of the Serpent. Moreover, let's be clear that this phrase I use (generation of evil or vipers) is not something that I privately interpreted to support my personal view of a generation; it is a phrase that was divinely inspired and inerrant in its usage.

Luke 11:29

• "And when the people were gathered thick together, he began to say, This is an evil generation: they seek a sign; and there shall no sign be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet."

He's not talking about a time, He's talking about a people--and more specifically, a particular people, an evil family of men. This Greek word genea [genea] is the exact same word from the root meaning genos [genos] or offspring. It is the same word found in Matthew chapter twenty-four that is translated generation. Was Christ saying there would be no sign given to the wise men, the Apostles, or the seventy disciples that He sent out to witness two by two? Of course not. They had signs. And they were physically part of the literal span of time of that day, called a generation. But they were not part of the generation that Christ was speaking of. The evil and adulterous generation (family) of the Serpent that was not given a sign, except for that of His crucifixion. The sign of Jonas the prophet, spending three days and three nights in a fish. While the generation or family of Christ indeed had and does see the signs (Mark 16:20; Hebrews 2:4) of their deliverance. This generation defines a continuing moral classification of people, as illustrated by many Scriptures. That should be proof enough for any logical thinking person that this generation was not referring to men of one specific time period. If we only understand the Greek word genea [genea] or generation to mean those living there at the time (as some insist we must), then none of the Apostles, nor anyone else in that day or that generation, could escape the damnation of hell. The truth is a lot less complicated, and in total agreement with the whole of Scripture. Not one jot or tittle of it shall fail until all be fulfilled!

Luke 21:32-34

• "Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.
• Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.
• And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares."

Again, this word translated generation is genea [genea], same as it is in Matthew 24, and is often used to express a spiritual generation, a family kinship. This definition is also clearly demonstrated in the Septuagint, where in passages like Genesis 43:7 declaring, "The man asked us straitly of our kindred," the word kindred is [genea]. Or in Numbers 10:30, "I will depart to my own kindred." Again, Kindred is the word [genea]. Likewise in Leviticus 20:18, "Both shall be cut off from their people." Here, the word people is [genea]. I quote the Septuagint "only" to demonstrate that, clearly, the meaning of this Greek word was clearly known of old, and used to denote a family relationship. Thus, it cannot be scholastically alleged that it must mean the short-term generation of a man’s life or his general lifespan.

Luke 7:30-35

• But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him.
• And the Lord said, Whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like
• They are like unto children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept.
• For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine; and ye say, He hath a devil.
• The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners!
• But wisdom is justified of all her children."

Were the Apostles the men of this generation? If we are to understand generation the way many Christians do, absolutely! But they are not who Christ is talking about because He is speaking of a generation or family of evil, the children or seed of Satan. God's word boldly declares that Christians are a chosen generation. How can the people living at the time of Christ be both called of God a chosen generation, and yet also be a generation that cannot escape the damnation of hell? Obviously, there is a distinction. They are two separate generations or families that Christ spoke about. Would we say that "everyone" living there at the time must be part of the chosen generation just because someone arrogantly insists the word translated generation demands it? Not if we use common sense. The chosen generation is the elect family of God. It's not every family living in that physical time period, nor was it designating that we are all of that chosen family.

1st Peter 2:9

• "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light:"

Here we see the truth of the matter. Only the true believers are the eklektos genos [eklektos genos] or chosen generation. Not everyone at the time that this was written, but everyone throughout time who were Predestinated to be of the family of God (Galatians 3:26-29; 1st John 3:9-10). Because we have two distinct generations coexisting in this world. A generation of evil that cannot escape the damnation of hell, and a generation of Christ that will inherit an everlasting possession that He purchased in His blood. Both these generations or families span eons of time.

Philippians 2:15

• "That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;"

You may not have known it, but that Greek word that is translated nation, is the exact same Greek word genea [genea] that is translated generation in Matthew chapter 24. It is again illustrating the crooked and perverse people who are the family or children of evil. This is that very same genea [genea] that shall not pass until all be fulfilled, and the same family that the saints must live in the midst of until the end. Note that here in Philippians it is contrasted with "the sons of God," noted as the children who shine as lights among them. The classic illustration of this contrast is also found in the book of Luke, chapter 16:

Luke 16:8

• "And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light."

Again, this is the exact same word genea [genea] that is found in Matthew chapter 24. It speaks of the wicked in their generation (spiritual family, not time span) are sometimes wiser than the children of light. In other words, it's illustrating that in certain ways, the seed or children of God are not as smart as the seed or children of the Devil. It's contrasting the two generations. So it's impossible that this word genea [genea], as used here, refers to a literal person's life span or generation as the word is understood by many today. Comparing Scripture with Scripture, it would be ludicrous for anyone to insist that the word generation always meant a present or contemporary generation of people in this passage, or in considering all the pertinent Scriptures that use the word. Yet many choose to make such untenable arguments. Nevertheless:

Number one: While some claim that the end of the age was in 70 AD, there is not one single Scripture that supports that conclusion, and many Scriptures that preclude it. There was instituted a new dispensation (age) when Christ died, was resurrected, and sent His holy Spirit that the church would go forth to witness with power. But there was no new dispensation or age instituted years later, in 70 AD.

Number two: There is nothing in Scripture that declares that the word genea [genea] translated generation, must always be understood to mean the contemporary people or their time period, and plenty of Scriptures that precludes it (as we've clearly shown).

Number three: There is abundant proof texts in Scripture that the entire New Testament period was (and is) the last days, and the last age, indicating that there would not be any other age between this one and the Old Testament, nor following this one. The age to come is Christ's return and consummation of eternal life. That is when all will be fulfilled as required by Matthew 24, and indeed by all of Scripture. That is when this evil generation shall finally pass away, and the kingdom will be delivered up to the Father. This will occur on 'The Last Day.'

Revelation 6:11

• "And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled."

Conclusion All will be fulfilled at the last day. It is when this evil generation can no longer be kings to rule with their prince of darkness. In other words, when Christ returns. For there is this age, the age to come, and no age in between. That's the whole purpose of God using the term "last days" to signify that there are no more days after these New Testament days. There are no more dispensations. It is self-evident that, contrary to interpretive license, the age of the last days was instituted by the death and resurrection of Christ, not in 70 AD as some theorize.

There will always be the Christ haters, spirits of antichrists, false teachers (1st John 4:1), lying prophets that attack everything that our Lord stands for, just like those living at the time Christ spoke the words that this generation shall not pass until all these things are fulfilled. This evil and adulterous family was clearly "not" exclusive to that time period; it continues on this earth until the very day that every word of God has been fulfilled. That can only be at the time of the redemption of the souls bought (Ephesians 1:13-14) by the blood of Christ. Until that happens, this evil, wicked, and adulterated generation will not pass away from this earth. That's the only time when all these things will be fulfilled. This is specifically why Christ Jesus called this generation a brood/family of vipers or snakes, because serpents were (and still are), from the beginning recorded in Scripture as figures of lowly, cursed creatures (Genesis 3:14), and a symbol of liars and deceivers that were not to be trusted.

No matter what any theologian (Reformed or otherwise) may postulate, Scripture must interpret Scripture. And the age to come is at the end of this age when Christ returns. The generation that will not pass until all is fulfilled is the generation that the entire chapter of Matthew 24 so vividly warned the church continual against. In context, it was the evil false prophets, false teachers, deceivers, false Christs, abominations, great tribulation, and all that this evil family would bring forth against the camp of the saints. Though this evil generation will not pass until Christ's return, the kingdom of God ultimately triumphs. It is then, and only then, that 'all' these things will be fulfilled, as required by Christ's prophecy. Then and only then will this evil and adulterous generation or family pass.

May the God of Mercy and wisdom grant us all the judiciousness and humility to receive and discern the unadulterated truth of His Most Holy Word.

Amen!

Peace,

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Copyright ©2000 Tony Warren
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