The End of Prophecy and Miracles

(Essay #8 – God’s Prophetic Spirit)

KINDLE VERSION

So far in our studies we have seen that Joel’s prophecy about the work of the Holy Spirit in the church shows us the nature of the work (prophecy, dreams, and visions), the time of His work (“In the last days”), and the extent of His work (among “all flesh”). However, there is one more feature about the Holy Spirit’s work in the church that is easily overlooked in an examination of this great passage. Joel’s prophecy also tells us when that prophetic work of the Holy Spirit would end.

Read again Joel’s words and notice the time statements that are present in the passage:

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit. “And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. (Joel 2:28-31)[1]

Joel’s construction is that at a point “afterward” from his prophecy God would do two things: 1) “I will pour out my Spirit;” and 2) “I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth . . . .” It is then stated that those things will occur “before” the coming of the “great and awesome day of the Lord.” In short Joel’s prophecy gives us the “bookend” time statements regarding the timeframe in which the Holy Spirit would complete the work of Joel’s prophecy. It would occur “afterward” and it would occur “before” the day of the Lord. Since the New Testament reveals to us that the “afterward” begins in Acts 2, if we can identify what Joel means by the “day of the Lord” we will know the specific period of time to which Joel’s prophecy applies. That search will be the focus of this essay.

Scripture Envisions the End of Prophecy

Before moving into a direct study of Joel’s words, it needs to be established that the Bible does discuss quite openly the ending of prophecy within its pages. This fact is a message that many people do need to hear. Most modern preaching relies on some claim of modern-day revelation. Different doctrinal stances state their connection more strongly than others, but most do make some claim. Charismatics claim a full blessing of the Spirit’s inspiration and even would make use of Joel 2 in support of their beliefs. However, while most evangelical ministers would deny such a strong connection as that, they still hold to the idea the Spirit is directly involved in directing their thinking and “laying a message on their hearts.”  In order to preserve and honor the sanctity of the all-sufficient gospel (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:3), it is vital to understand that the Bible is clear that once the revelation that is now contained in the written words of the New Testament was completed, there would be no more revelation coming from the Holy Spirit. There would be no leanings, nudgings, whispers, and certainly no more prophecies, dreams, or visions.

A Pragmatic End to Prophecy

It is this author’s contention that Joel’s prophecy provides, within its words, a definitive end point for the age of prophecy. However, before examining that point, it is worth noting that the scripture provides us another line of reasoning that would cause a necessary end to prophecy even while providing no clear statement of time for its endpoint. As we have shown in this series of studies, once the apostles were empowered with the gifts of the Holy Spirit the only manner available to man to receive those gifts was through the laying on of an apostle’s hands.[2] The text clearly states that fact in Acts 8:18-19:

Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 8:18-19)

There is an immediate consequence to that fact:

1. We know that a man must have the Holy Spirit in order to prophecy[3]
2. We know that a man receives the Holy Spirit through the laying on of an apostle’s hands
3. We know that every prophet after the time of the apostles was a man on whom an apostle had laid his hands[4]
4. We know that no man who has not had an apostle lay his hands is a prophet

Consider then the practical reality of that line of reasoning. The consensus of church history is that John was the last of the apostles to die. Most scholars place his death somewhere near the close of the first century. For argument’s sake, place his death in the year A. D. 100. After that point, no apostle would have been alive to lay hands on another man. Further suppose that John, just prior to his death, found the youngest disciple available. Again suppose that young man or woman was 15 years old at the time. If that disciple then lived to the age of 100, he/she would have passed away in the year A. D. 185. With that person’s death the last disciple empowered through the means described in Acts 8 would have passed from the earth. And since the Bible reveals no other ongoing manner of empowering saints with the power of the Holy Spirit, of necessity, the gifts of the Holy Spirit would have passed from the earth with that disciple.

Even if scripture gave no other indication that prophecy should end, given that prophecy in the church came from the Holy Spirit through the administration of an apostle, there is no practical way of extending prophecy past the of life of the last disciple living on whom an apostle had laid his hands. We live in an age that is well beyond that limit. There is no active method for any person to be receiving new, modern day revelation from God.

Prophecy’s End is a Scriptural Expectation

The idea that prophecy or revelations from the Holy Spirit were intended to be a temporary act of God is foreign to many people’s thinking. However, it should not be that way. The Bible actually is quite clear that prophecy would have an end point. A brief survey of some of these passages in both the Old and New Testament will help to illustrate this.

Old Testament Indications of the End of Prophecy

Beyond Joel 2, there are at least two other passages which make a concrete statement about the end of prophecy.

Daniel 9:24-27

Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place. Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off and shall have nothing. And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed.  And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.”

Many long works have been written trying to explain the complexity of this great passage and much of that argumentation lies outside the scope of this work. However, there are some items within the passage which are easy to discern and are explained elsewhere in the Bible. In answer to Daniel’s prayer over the sins of his people (9:23), the angel of God informs Daniel that a time of “70 weeks” has been determined over his people and the holy city. This time period was needed to accomplish six things in Jerusalem’s (the holy city) future:

1. To finish the transgression
2. To put an end to sin
3. To atone for iniquity
4. To bring in everlasting righteousness
5. To seal both vision and prophet
6. To anoint a most holy place

For the purpose of our studies here, it is sufficient to say that the items of that list can find their fulfillment in only one person. The focus of this passage is clearly messianic and looking forward to the coming of Jesus. Almost no commentator would disagree with that statement.

Further, there is no need to argue about the end point of Daniel’s vision. In the 70^th week of his vision, he sees the following happening:

And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator. (Daniel 9:27)

At the end of his vision a “desolator” would bring in “abominations” that would put an end to the sacrifices taking place in the holy city that is the focus of this vision (9:24). The certainty of our knowledge as to the meaning of this portion of the passage does not come from our own insight, but from the divine commentary of Jesus Himself. In His prophecy about the impending destruction of Jerusalem, He uttered these words:

So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! (Matthew 24:15-19)

Jesus applies the abomination of desolation of Daniel 9 to the fall of Jerusalem of A. D. 70 prophesied in Matthew 24. While the details of the chronology of Daniel’s weeks can be argued, the end point of that chronology is beyond dispute. When the events of Matthew 24 are fulfilled, the prophecy of Daniel 9 is fulfilled. And so are the six items which are promised to be completed within the prophecy’s timeframe.

Did you happen to notice item #5 in the list the angel Gabriel gave to Daniel? The angel said that before the end of the 70 weeks, vision and prophet would be sealed. If you look at the list as a whole now, notice what is being said. The time of atonement, of the ending of sin, of everlasting righteousness – in other words, the time of the blessings brought in by the Messiah’s death, burial, and resurrection – is not the age of continuing prophecy, but of the sealing up of prophecy. During the time of the blessings of Jesus through the gospel, prophecy would come to an end, not a beginning.

Zechariah 13:1-2, 7

At least one other Old Testament passage makes the same connection. Zechariah ties the coming of forgiveness of sin through Jesus to the end of prophecy:

On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness. And on that day, declares the LORD of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, so that they shall be remembered no more. And also I will remove from the land the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness. . . . Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me,” declares the LORD of hosts. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones.” (Zechariah 13:1-2, 7)

Zechariah states that when the fountain for sin and uncleanness is opened the prophet would pass from the land. So completely would prophecy end, if any man even claimed a prophetic gift for himself even his father and mother who bore him would “pierce him through when he prophesies” (13:3). If there were any confusion about the time of the great ending of prophecy or when the fountain for sin and uncleanness would be opened, Zechariah’s prophecy points us directly to the crucifixion of Jesus in verse 7 as he speaks of the striking of God’s Shepherd. Jesus applies these words directly to Himself: Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered’” (Matthew 26:31).

Once again the connection is clear and easily seen from Scripture. The time of the coming of Jesus would usher in a new period of redemption, but the same “day” that brought in the Messiah’s great salvation would also cause the prophetic out pouring of God to come to an end.[5]

New Testament Indications of the End of Prophecy

Statements describing the end of prophecy are found in the New Testament as well.[6] The link between the completion of God’s revelation and the end of the work of the prophets is completed in the New Testament’s testimony on the subject. If one understands revelation as the content of a prophet’s message and inspiration as the method by which the prophet is equipped to deliver that message, it follows then that when God’s need to reveal new truth to humanity ended that process of inspiration ended also. When that work of inspiration was over so would the need of the gifts of prophecy, dreams, and visions promised by the words of Joel 2.

What the New Testament asserts for itself is that it is the completion of God’s revelation to man:

1. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
2. His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence. (2 Peter 1:3)
3. Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. (Jude 1:3)

Notice especially the words of Peter and Jude from above. Well before the close of the first century, the Bible states that God through his power had provided “all things that pertain to life and godliness” and had “once for all” delivered the faith to the saints.[7] The Bible is making the case that all the revelation that man needed in order to serve God fully was in the hands of Christians as early as the middle 60’s of the first century. If that is the case then we should expect to find passages in the New Testament which discuss the ending of prophecy and work to prepare the church to live in a time when the gifts of prophecy are no longer active.

Paul’s great discussion of love makes a strong argument for the early church to look beyond just the temporary gifts of prophecy at their disposal.

1 Corinthians 13:8-10

The church in Corinth was divided over a good many things (1 Cor. 1:10-13). One of the causes of the divisions was in the use of the miracles provided by the Holy Spirit. It appears that tongue-speaking had been elevated above the other gifts in their assembly (14:1, 5). In response to this growing division Paul encouraged the church to pursue the higher and enduring gift of love (12:31, 13:13). To show the contrast between the permanent nature of love and the temporary nature of prophetic gifts Paul challenged them with these words:

Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. (1 Corinthians 13:8-10)[8]

Love has no end, but prophecy, tongue-speaking, and the divinely-given knowledge they possessed all would end. It is his point to admonish the church not to focus on temporary things that would be ending in a short period of time. The maintenance of their unity needed to be based on the unchanging and unending bond of love that should exist between them.

In Paul’s words he places the ending of prophetic abilities at a point which he describes as “when the perfect comes.” His contrast is between prophecy and tongues which are “in part” or “partial” and something that he calls “perfect.” The Greek word he chose in this place does not mean “perfect” as in sinless, rather, “finished” or complete.”[9] The finished or completed here stands in contrast to the partial or in part. Since it is prophecy that is “in part” the Corinthian church, it follows that when all of the “parts” of prophecy were revealed the sum of those parts would create a “finished” and “complete” knowledge in Corinth. At the time of completion, one would expect the “complete” revelation to remain and the “in part” to be dismissed.

But how were the gifts of the Spirit “partial” in their function? Paul addresses that question in this same context. In 13:9, he states “we prophesy in part.” Compare that with his commands to the Corinthians about the use of the gifts in chapter 14:

Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said. If a revelation is made to another sitting there, let the first be silent. For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be encouraged, and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. (1 Corinthians 14:29-32)

As has been discussed, prophetic gifts were distributed widely in the early church. The church at Corinth was no exception (1 Corinthians 1:5). In their assembly multiple people would have been able to prophesy. Part of what Paul is trying to accomplish in chapter 14 is to encourage that church to use their gifts in an orderly manner which would allow for the whole church to be edified (14:26, 40). One method of ensuring that was to limit the number of prophets who spoke at each assembly to “two or three.” However, there was a reason he did not limit that number to one prophet. Verse 30 states, “If a revelation is made to another sitting there . . .” No one prophet in Corinth had access to the full revelation of God. Each person had his own portion or part of the revelation. In order for the church to hear all that God wanted said on a matter, multiple prophets needed to speak. In other words, each prophet “prophesied in part and knew in part.”[10]

That is precisely the condition Paul describes in 13:8-10. However, once the revelation was completed and encapsulated in scripture, it became possible for each person to know not just a part of God’s word, but all of it. While the task of knowing all of God’s word is enormous, it is possible in the sense that its totality is held in our hands each time we pick up our Bibles. No first century saint, not even an apostle, could have done that prior to the completion of the revelation.

However, once the revelation was completed or finished, the need for the partial gifts of prophecy came to an end. Just as Peter and Jude alluded to the closing up of the revelation, Paul connects the ending of prophetic abilities to the same point in time.

Joel’s End Point for Prophecy

To this point in this essay, we have noted three Old Testament passages which predict the end of prophetic revelation in the world. However, when all three of those passages are placed beside the others a clear pattern emerges in their testimony about the end of prophecy. Each one of them links the cessation of the Spirit’s work in prophetic gifts to a day of judgment. Note again the connection of these passages as they describe judgment.

Daniel 9:24, 26

Seventy weeks are decreed about your people and your holy city . . . to seal both vision and prophet . . . . And the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war. Desolations are decreed.

Zechariah 13:1-2, 14:1-4

On that day there shall be a fountain opened . . . And on that day, declares the LORD of hosts . . . I will remove from the land the prophets . . . Behold, a day is coming for the LORD, when the spoil taken from you will be divided in your midst. For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses plundered and the women raped. . . . On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward.

Joel 2:28-32

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh . . . in those days I will pour out my Spirit. And I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes . . . For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said . . .

From the New Testament we have already identified the time considered in both Daniel 9 and Zechariah 13. Jesus makes direct application of both passages (Matthew 24:15; 26:31). In both places the object of God’s wrath is specifically identified as Jerusalem (“the holy city” – Daniel 9:24; “Jerusalem” – Zechariah 14:2). Daniel’s prophecy states that by the endpoint of prophecy the “vision and prophet” would be sealed or closed up. Zechariah states that the prophet would pass from the land in the “day” of his prophecy. Both texts then speak, not of the beginning of prophecy, but of its coming end. Both passages then directly connect the end of prophecy to God’s judgment on the city of Jerusalem.

Joel 2 does not directly assign a place of the judgment, but brings Jerusalem into view by stating that the survivors of God’s judgment would be those in Mount Zion who “called on the Lord.”[11] This parallels very nicely Zechariah’s prophecy that two-thirds of Jerusalem would be destroyed and only one-third would survive to be called the people of God (Zechariah 13:8-9).

In all three places then, the end of prophecy is directly tied to a judgment by God which directly impacts Jerusalem and the Jews. The consequence of this would be to suggest that the prophetic gifts of the Holy Spirit have an ending point that is also connected to the judgment of Jerusalem to which Jesus applies Daniel 9 and by extension Zechariah and Joel – the judgment that occurred in A.D. 70. If that is true, one should expect to find indications in the New Testament that the passing away of the prophetic gifts is indeed connected to the destruction of Jerusalem.

Are there such passages?

Prophecy’s End Connected to A. D. 70 in the New Testament

 Consider four passages which link the end of prophecy to A. D. 70.

Matthew 3:7-12

. . . Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

John the Baptist’s message was one of hope that announced the coming of the kingdom and the Messiah, but it was also one of judgment.[12] His words to the Pharisees who had come to spy on his ministry were a call to true repentance. In those words he warned them of a “wrath to come.” The coming of this wrath was not some distant event. The axe which would cut down the unfruitful tree was “even now . . . laid to the root of the trees” and the winnowing fork that would separate the chaff from the wheat was already in God’s hand (vs. 10, 12).[13] John’s message was providing Israel a choice to receive or reject Jesus as the Messiah. Based on that choice Jesus would either baptize them with the Holy Spirit or with fire.[14]

Jesus Himself connects this passage with Joel 2. Jesus quotes John’s words in Acts 1:4-5 as an indication that the promise of the Holy Spirit made by Joel would soon come upon the apostles. Here then is another passage which links the coming of the Holy Spirit to a time of judgment as well. While this passage does not make a specific statement of the end of prophecy, it does connect the concepts of Joel’s prophecy to the judgment of A. D. 70 once again.

Matthew 28:18-20/Mark 16:15-20

When Jesus delivered the Great Commission to His apostles He connected the end of miracles to the end of a point in time He referred to as the “end of the age.” This connection becomes easily seen when Matthew’s and Mark’s accounts are laid beside each other.

Verses 17-18, 20 of Mark’s account are clear statements of the miraculous gifts of the Spirit that were present in the early church. Notice the promise of Jesus that is recorded at the end of Matthew’s account: “I am with you always, to the end of the age.” When that is compared to Mark’s account a full picture of the promise of Jesus comes into focus. His promise was to be with His disciples on their mission. The manner in which that presence manifested itself was that the “went with them” (KJV) and “worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.”[15] Jesus’ work with his disciples was to confirm the message they were preaching by the signs He provided them beginning in Acts 1-2.[16]

But how do we know that Matthew’s recording of Jesus’ promise is not just a universal promise of the abiding presence of Jesus that all believers experience in all times? It is certainly a Bible truth that Jesus does maintain an intimate presence and fellowship with the child of God (Hebrews 13:5). However, the fact that Jesus places a time element on the promise in Matthew 28:20 shows that His intention was not to introduce a general truth about His relationship to the believer, but His purpose was to teach a more specific truth. Here He does not promise to be with all believers for all-time. He promises to be with his disciples “to the end of the age.” That is specific in its impact, not general.

To what “age” then does Jesus refer? The age under consideration is the age already introduced in Matthew’s account of the gospel:

Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?” (Matthew 24:1-3)

Matthew’s “end of the age” is the point at which Jesus said that not one stone would remain standing of the temple in Jerusalem. [17] In other words, the “end of the age” is to be identified by the destruction of Jerusalem in A. D. 70.

If then Matthew 28, Mark 16, and Matthew 24 are viewed together, they indeed make the same argument as Joel 2, Daniel 9, and Zechariah 13. As shown, those Old Testament prophets predicted the following in regard to prophecy:

1. The prophet would pass from the land “on that day” (Zechariah 13:1-2).
2. That day is the day that God would gather “all the nations against Jerusalem to battle” (Zechariah 14:2)
3. Joel calls that day the “great and awesome day of the Lord” (Joel 2:31).
4. That day would be identifiable by the abomination of desolation appearing in Jerusalem (Daniel 9:27; Matthew 24:15).
5. When the abomination of desolation was seen visions and the prophet would be sealed up (Daniel 9:24).
6. Matthew and Mark say that the preaching of the gospel with accompanying signs worked by Jesus would continue until the “end of the age.”
7. That end point of the age is described in Matthew 24 as the fall of Jerusalem which occurred in A. D. 70.
8. It is in that passage (Matthew 24) that Jesus directly states one would find the fulfillment of Daniel 9 when Jerusalem fell.[18]

In summary, the Great Commission completes a picture of the duration of miracles in the early church:

1. Beginning at the Pentecost of Acts 2, Jesus provided man access to the prophetic gifts of the Holy Spirit in fulfillment of God’s promise in Joel 2 (Acts 2:33).
2. The Spirit empowered men to preach the gospel in the last days of the age beginning in Acts 2 (Joel 2:28; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:16ff).
3. God bore witness to the truth of this new gospel with confirmatory signs (Mark 16:20; Hebrews 2:4).
4. Jesus was the administrator of those confirmatory signs (Mark 16:20).
5. His administration of those signs continued until the “end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).
6. The event marking the “end of the age” was God’s judgment on Israel (Matthew 24:2ff).
7. With the close of the age, the out-pouring of the Spirit came to an end (Joel 2:28-30); the prophet passed out of the land (Zechariah 13:1); and “vision and prophet” were sealed up (Daniel 9:24).

When the Great Commission is placed beside the prophecies of the Old Testament which promised the prophetic revelation needed to complete the preaching of that commission, one finds a divine commentary on the duration of the Spirit’s empowerment of men to preach the fullness of the message He delivered.

1 Corinthians 1:4-8

I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge—even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you—so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Even a cursory study of Paul’s writings to the Corinthians reveals how prevalent the miraculous gifts of the Spirit were in that congregation. In 1 Corinthians alone, three full chapters (12-14) are devoted to a discussion of the proper understanding and use of those gifts in the church. So it should come as no surprise that Paul’s introduction of the topic begins in chapter 1 of his first epistle to them. His evaluation of the church in Corinth was that they were “not lacking in any spiritual gift.” Since one of the primary functions of an apostle was to ensure a wide distribution of the gifts among the early Christians and saints and as Paul spent at least 18 months working in Corinth, that statement is understandable (Acts 18:11). If any church should have been overflowing in spiritual gifts Corinth should have and was. The extent of the gifts’ impact on the Corinthian congregation was that they had been “in every way . . . enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge” (cp. 1 Corinthians 12:8 – “an utterance of knowledge”).

But Paul does not leave it to our speculation how that congregation has been so enriched by God. He states that it occurred “even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you” (1 Corinthians 1:6). How then did an apostle seek to “confirm” the message or the “testimony about Christ” in the early church? As we just read, in the early days of the preaching of the gospel of Jesus, it was confirmed by “accompanying signs” or as the Hebrews writer says it: “While God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit”(2:4). Paul even makes reference to his own working of miracles among the Corinthians: “The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works” (2 Corinthians 12:12). The testimony about Christ was confirmed in the church at Corinth by the miracles of the Holy Spirit.

However, Paul not only states that the Corinthians had received the confirmed gospel and been enriched by its knowledge, he also states the duration of that period of confirmation: “ . . . as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:7-8). Their sustaining (or confirming – ASV, KJV) would continue to “the end.” In this context that confirmation has already been established as tied to the miraculous gifts. Here then is a promise of the continuation of their enrichment by the miracles of the Holy Spirit until “the end.”

What “end” does Paul have in mind?  First, the “end” is connected to the “revelation of our Lord Jesus” and is referred to as “the day of our Lord Jesus.” Second, later in 1 Corinthians, Paul speaks of this again: “Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come” (1 Corinthians 10:11). The Corinthians were among those “on whom the end of the ages” had come. So once again, “the end” of the confirming gifts is found in a context which speaks of a coming day of the Lord and of the end of the age(s). 

Clarity about the meaning of this passage can be found in answering two questions:

1. Does the Bible teach that miracles are to continue until the end of the world?
2. What event in the days of the apostles could be spoken of as “the end of the ages?”

With all due respect to those of a charismatic viewpoint, the answer to question #1 is “no.” That fact has been addressed in this chapter already. So unless one can show that Jesus was enriching the Corinthians in all speech (words – “logos” in the Greek) and knowledge and confirming them in some method other than the spiritual gifts mentioned in these verses, it must be the case that “the day of the Lord” and “the end” contained in 1 Corinthians 1 refers to some event other than the end of the physical world. As one turns to the second question, there is no need to “re-invent the wheel.” The Bible has already told about the end of the age found in the first century. The Matthew 24 destruction of Jerusalem which was fulfilled in A. D. 70 fits perfectly into the language that the “end of the ages” had come upon the Corinthians.

However, can the “end of the age” in Matthew 24 be shown to be a “revelation of Jesus” and a “day of the Lord?” Both of those questions can be answered, “Yes.” Matthew 24:29-30 refers to the culmination of the Great Tribulation accompanying Jerusalem’s fall in these words:

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 heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Many view this as a yet future event. However to do so ignores the first word of the quotation: “Immediately.” This coming of Jesus is tied to the tribulation which was to take place within the lifetime of the generation in which Jesus lived (Matthew 24:34). Compare this language to a passage we have already examined, Zechariah 14:3-4:

Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle. On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward.

We know from our examination of these verses earlier that this is a prophecy of the smiting of God’s shepherd in Jesus’ crucifixion and the events that would occur after that, culminating in the removal of the prophet from the land and the fall of Jerusalem. Now, did the Lord literally stand on the Mount of Olives while Jerusalem was being judged because of its rejection of Jesus? Of course He did not. But in using the armies of the nations against Jerusalem, He did come in judgment and He was seen in His prophesied direction of those events. The same is true of the language of Matthew 24. Jesus’ will, power, authority, and presence were most certainly seen in the fall of Jerusalem. He had directed the gospel of the kingdom to be preached among all the nations as witness to the fall of Israel (Matthew 24:14). There was most certainly a “coming” and “revelation” of Jesus at the “end of the age.”[19]

The “end of the age” is also then the “day of the Lord.” It is again a connection we have already made. Jesus links Daniel 9 and Matthew 24 together for us. He also links Joel 2 with Matthew 24 in the giving of the Great Commission. But do you remember Joel’s statement about when the Holy Spirit would be poured out? He says it would be “afterward” (in the last days), but also it would occur “before the great and awesome day of the Lord.” We now know that “day of the Lord” is found at the end of the age. It is to this end that Paul refers. And in so doing, again links the confirmatory signs present in the church at Corinth to the fall of Jerusalem in A. D. 70.

To state it simply: Jesus would continue to confirm the Corinthian Christians by their use of the miraculous gifts until the end of the age, because He would go with them confirming the word with accompanying signs until the end of the age. That’s what 1 Corinthians 1, Matthew 28, and Mark 16 teach when studied together as they should be.

Ephesians 1:13-14 | Ephesians 4:30

In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

 The church at Ephesus was another place that Paul labored for an extended period (Acts 19:10). It was a church that followed the pattern of having miracles present in it from the earliest possible moment (Acts 19:6-7). It was also a church to whom Paul wrote a great deal about the presence of the Spirit’s gifts among them. In three places Paul speaks of a time-limited work of the Holy Spirit in their midst. Two of these passages speak directly of the “seal” of the Holy Spirit and of the duration of that blessing (1:13-14; 4:30).[20]

At this point it is not our focus to defend a particular position on the nature of the seal of the Spirit. When that time comes, our conclusion will be that this is a reference to the prophetic empowerment from the Spirit.[21] However, even without getting lost in the details of the seal, it is still possible to see the timeframe of the work of the Spirit mentioned by Paul.

First, note Paul’s description of the Holy Spirit in 1:13. He calls the Spirit the “promised Spirit” or the “Holy Spirit of promise” (KJV).[22] Why would he use that appellation for the Holy Spirit? There was but one manner in which the Holy Spirit was “promised.” The promise in Joel 2’s prophecy is the only passage ever referred to as the “promise of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:33). If Paul is trying to direct the Ephesians (who all had spiritual gifts) to think of some work of the Spirit that was wholly non-prophetic, why would he use a phrase which has only prophetic passages in its background?

Rather, Paul’s use of that appellation is trying to focus the minds of the Ephesians on the gifts shared among them. While those gifts were important to sustaining the unity of the church in Ephesus, they were known to be temporary. As those who had the gifts had been instructed about their temporary nature, they would have naturally expected teaching about them to contain time-limited statements.  Paul fulfills that expectation by tying the Spirit’s prophetic work in the Ephesians to a specific point in time.

In both chapter 1 and 4, we do find that the work of the “promised Spirit” is connected to a point in time.

In Ephesians 1:14 we see the promise that the seal would continue until “we acquire possession of it.” Other translations help clarify the ESV’s rendering:

1. Until the redemption of the purchased possession (KJV)
2. Unto the redemption of God’s own possession (ASV)
3. With a view to the redemption of God’s own possession (NASB)
4. Until the redemption of those who are God’s possession (NIV)

What becomes clear from these renderings is that a purchasing (or redemption) of God’s possession would mark the end point of the need for the seal of the Spirit to continue. From that two questions need answering:

1. What is God’s possession?
2. When is God’s possession redeemed?

Before answering those questions another point can be added from Ephesians 4:30. There, the seal is said to last until the “day of redemption.” Surely, that “day of redemption” must be the same time of redemption as in chapter 1. Paul would not change his mind about the duration of the seal between chapters 1 and 4. So then question #2 is really: “When is the day of redemption for God’s possession?”

What is God’s possession?

Twice more in the New Testament, it is said that God has a possession. Each time they refer to his people, the church (Titus 2:14; 1 Peter 2:9). Further, the church is said to have been “purchased” with the blood of Jesus (Acts 20:28) which matches the KJV’s rendering of Ephesians 1:13. It seems clear that the possession of God in the world is the church.

When is God’s possession redeemed?

Perhaps surprisingly, the New Testament speaks directly of redemption fewer than a dozen times.

1. One time it speaks of the redemption of Israel (Luke 2:38). As Ephesians 1:13-14 is speaking of the church, this cannot be the correct one.
2. It is used of individual redemption by the offering of Jesus (Romans 3:24; 1 Corinthians 1:30; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14; Hebrews 9:12). This use would certainly apply to the members of the church in Ephesus; however as Ephesians 1:7 states, they already possessed that redemption. The day of their individual redemption was part of history. The seal of the Holy Spirit was looking forward to a future event not proclaiming a past one. This cannot be the correct understanding.

One last use of the phrase is found in the New Testament. It refers to the redemption of God’s people at the fall of Jerusalem:

They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. . . . Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. (Luke 21:24, 28)[23]

We may not often think of the fall of Jerusalem as redemption of the church, but the idea that God bought his righteous people out of the dying corpse of Judaism is expressed in scripture. From the earliest days of the church, it was the Jews who were largely responsible for the persecution suffered by Christians.[24] The removal of the temple and the priesthood forever silenced Jewish critics about the Gentile’s right to participate in the gospel.[25] It is to that idea that the letter to the Hebrews spoke:

At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe. (Hebrews 12:26-28)

When God destroyed the nation of Israel, only the immovable, eternal kingdom of Jesus was left to claim to be the true sons of God. In that sense, the church which was born into a Jewish world had been bought back out of it by God to stand alone. This idea is the thought to which Paul is alluding in Ephesians 1:13-14 and 4:30.

Conclusion

This connection fully folds the statements in Ephesians about the work of the Spirit into all of the other passages examined so far. The seal of the Holy Spirit would last until the coming “day of the Lord” which would bring a baptism of fire upon those that rejected Jesus and would bring a vindicating “day of redemption” upon the true children of God. By that time the revelation would be completed and the need for the continuing miracles of the Holy Spirit would have been met. Once the gospel, and so by extension, the people of the gospel had been redeemed and confirmed – once the perfect had come – the miracles of the Holy Spirit and their “in part” manifestation would cease, vanish, and pass away. All that would remain would be God’s exalted saints and his complete, perfect revelation once delivered to the saints. To this construction the Old Testament prophets (Joel, Daniel, Zechariah), the testimony of Jesus (Matthew 24, 28, Mark 16), and the epistles of Paul (1 Corinthians, Ephesians) all agree.

Prophecy ended at the “end of the age” when the “great and awesome day of the Lord” removed the physical nation of Israel and left only his eternal kingdom.

[1] All scripture quotations taken from the English Standard Version (ESV) unless stated otherwise.

[2] Please see Essay #3: “The Work of the Holy Spirit in the Gospel Accounts” and its comments on Luke 11:13 for discussion of this topic.

[3] 2 Peter 1:21; 2 Samuel 23:2 and host of other passages prove this point to be true.

[4] This argument makes no reference to creation of prophets before the time of the apostles. However, once the apostles are empowered, their ability to create other prophets was central to their identity and so of necessity must have remained exclusive to them. Paul’s defense of his apostleship uses this fact to the Corinthians: “The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works” (2 Corinthians 12:12). There were signs that only a “true apostle” could work. One of those signs is stated in Acts 8:17-18 as shown above. They had the ability to give others the Holy Spirit. The fact that ability was exclusive to them means that no man could become a prophet without the direct involvement of an apostle.

[5] The “day” of Zechariah is part of a longer prophecy included Zechariah 12-14. A full discussion of that passage goes beyond the scope of this work. However, additional comments about this text can be found in Essay #11: “God’s Mystery: Finished by Judgment.” The “day” of this text includes the earthly ministry of Jesus (13:7), but it also includes the destruction of Jerusalem (13:7-14:2). It is the contention of this work (as will be established by this essay and additional argumentation on this topic) that the beginning and ending of Zechariah’s “day” is the same time frame contained in the “afterward” and “before” statement of Joel 2:28-32. The outpouring of prophecy in the New Testament is then limited to the timeframe expressed by the “day” in Zechariah 12-14 (i. e. from the opening of the fountain for sin to the time of God’s judgment on Jerusalem in A. D. 70).

[6] The end of prophecy is discussed in the New Testament in at least the following passages: Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-20; 1 Corinthians 1:5-8, 13:1-13; Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:1-16, 30; 2 Peter 1:3; Jude 3.

[7] The “power” of which Peter writes is tied with a multiplied knowledge in those saints and their participation in the divine knowledge (vs.2, 4). The later portion of chapter 1 (vs. 16-21), moves to a discussion of the men of God speaking the confirmed word by the actions of the Holy Spirit. In this context, it seems that the specific demonstration of the “power” of God that had given the saints their understanding of all things relating to life and godliness is undoubtedly the process of revelation and inspiration that is our consideration in this essay.

[8] Paul listed nine spiritual gifts granted by the Holy Spirit in chapter 12. Among the nine, four are repeated in chapter 13: Knowledge (12:8; 13:2, 8); Faith (12:9; 13:2); Prophecy (12:10; 13:2, 8, 9); Tongues (12:10; 13:1, 8). It is clear then that Paul is connecting the items of 13:8-10 back to the gifts of chapter 12. 

[9] Teleios: “pertaining to that which is fully accomplished or finished—‘complete, finished.’ ἡ δὲ ὑπομονὴ ἔργον τέλειον ἐχέτω ‘but be sure that patience completes its work’ Jas 1:4. (Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: Based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition.). New York: United Bible Societies.).

[10] Romans 12:6 makes reference to this same fact. The gift of prophecy was given in proportion to “faith.” The presence of prophecy was not necessarily uniform in each prophet. As the spirit of the prophet was subject to the prophet, he played some role in the amount of prophetic revelation that would come through him. It is in this light that Timothy is told not to “neglect the gift” that was in him (1 Timothy 4:14), but to “fan into flame the gift of God” which was in him through the laying on of Paul’s hands (2 Timothy 1:6). It also this thought that helps us understand more fully how the church is completed by the participation of each member (12:25-31) and is built up by what every “joint” within it supplies (Ephesians 4:11-16). Without the participation of each of the different spiritual gifts supplied by the Holy Spirit, the early church would not have grown in all the ways God needed it to and no one person was able to fill all of the necessary gifted roles. Each one had his/her place and served “in part.”

[11] Joel 3 also needs to be considered in this context. The restoration of God’s blessings to His people promised in Joel 2 is continued into Joel 3. For those who “call on the name of the Lord” their fortunes would be restored (3:1). Yet, those who refused would find the “great day of the Lord” of Joel’s prophecy a time when the God would “roar from Zion” against them (3:16). This roaring of God in which the heavens and earth quake is reminiscent of Haggai 2:21 as quoted in Hebrews 12 of God’s coming judgment on Jerusalem. Further, Joel’s statement that “Judah shall flow with water; and a fountain shall come forth from the house of the Lord” is most naturally connected to the statement of John 7:38-39 that when the Holy Spirit was given that from the heart of those who received Him would “flow rivers of living water.” Joel’s prophecy then promises the beginning of the outpouring of the Spirit in Acts 2 and states that the period of that outpouring would be “before” the great day of the Lord in which He shook the heavens and earth. According to Hebrews 12, that day of the Lord occurred in A. D. 70.

[12] One overlooked element about the coming of Jesus is that His appearance was not just a time of rejoicing, but also a harbinger of judgment for the nation of Israel. Malachi 3-4 prophesied of the coming of John the Baptist (3:1). But at the same time prophesied that when Jesus came He would bring a day of judgment that none could endure (3:2).  Unlike other judgments on Israel that always promised a spared “remnant,” the judgment envisioned for Israel at the Messiah’s coming and the one pronounced by John would leave nothing for those caught up in it: “”For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. . . . Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes” (4:1, 5). It is this judgment that would have been the minds of every Israelite upon hearing the preaching of “Elijah.” Every student of John’s statements about the Holy Spirit should keep this passage in mind.

[13] Many connect the promise of judgment here to the end of the world because they assert that the “unquenchable fire” of 3:12 can only be a reference to Hell. First, if that is the case, why then the emphasis in John’s message that the judgment is impending by saying “Even now . . .” the axe is laid to the root of the tree and that his fan is in his hand? The most natural reading of those metaphors is that God is ready to judge, not that he is waiting for thousands of years to bring judgment. Second, “unquenchable fire” appears in Old Testament prophecy that has nothing to do with Hell (Isaiah 66:24; Jeremiah 4:4, 17:27, 21:12; Ezekiel 20:47; Amos 5:6). In fact, prior to the time of John the Baptist the concept of an unquenchable fire had never been applied to an eternal place of judgment. If this is the first time it is to be understood in that manner John uses a metaphor of judgment with which the Pharisees would have been familiar and would have had an established understanding without need to correct  their understanding in any discernible fashion.

[14] Pentecostal groups argue that the baptism of fire is fulfilled in the tongues like fire found in Acts 2. However, it is important to note in Acts 1 when Jesus quotes John’s words he does not include the baptism of fire: “for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Jesus never applied the baptism of fire to His disciples. John’s message was that Jesus would bring both baptisms and which one any individual Jew received was dependent on whether or not he bore “fruit in keeping with repentance.”

[15] Acts 10:38 shows another use of this “with you” concept in the life of Jesus. Peter states that Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit and “went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed.” He concludes that Jesus was able to accomplish that mission “for God was with him.” To make the “with you” statement of Matthew 28:20 a generic promise for all saints not only overlooks the time element contained in the promise, but also the Bible’s own commentary on the “with you” statement. Mark 16:20 provides that commentary and Acts 10:38 supports that understanding of this language.

[16] Acts 2:33 attributes the presence of the signs (including the tongue-speaking listed in Mark 16) to the work of Jesus in pouring the promise of the Holy Spirit.

[17] For a more complete discussion  of this topic, please see Essay #6: “The Holy Spirit and the Last Days”

[18] It should also be noted that the “end” of Matthew 24 is said to come after “this gospel of the kingdom” is proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations” (v. 14). So, the verse before Jesus connects Daniel 9 to Matthew 24, He connects the command of the Great Commission to Matthew 24 as well. Further, Matthew 24:15 states that after the gospel was proclaimed among the nations, “then the end will come.” Jesus established a direct correlation between the preaching of the gospel among the nations and the end of the age. So then when one finds statements in the New Testament about the gospel’s full-spread among the nations (Colossians 1:23), he should expect that the end of the age would come quickly after that point. The only event which can rightly be viewed as that end point is the fall of Jerusalem discussed in Matthew 24. The “end” of Matthew 24 and Matthew 28 must be the same point in time. One cannot separate Matthew 28/Mark 16 from Matthew 24.

[19] While much of current teaching on Matthew 24 does view the events of that chapter as  yet future, there is a view which not only views those events as past events, but it also views the fall of Jerusalem as the end point of all prophetic fulfillment in the Bible. In other words, no prophecy of either the Old or New Testament extends beyond A. D. 70. This view is known as “Covenant Eschatology” or “Realized Eschatology.” While this author does agree that proponents of this view do identify correctly many of the time statements in the New Testament, he also believes their spiritualization of death and of the resurrection to be a grave error in teaching. For a more thorough discussion of this view please see the discussion on Covenant Eschatology in the appendices of Volume 15 in this series.

[20] 4:8-13 says that the gifts given by Jesus would continue “until we all attain to the unity of the faith.” For a discussion of the meaning of that phrase see Essay #10: “God’s Mystery: Established by the Holy Spirit.”

[21] For that discussion please see Essay #15: “The Work of the Holy Spirit in Corinth (1 and 2 Corinthians” and Essay #17: “The Work of the Holy Spirit in the Prison Epistles (Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon).”

[22] Paul uses the same term in Galatians 3:14, just nine verses after asking his audience this question: “Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by the law, or by hearing with faith?”

[23] Romans 8:23 also speaks of the redemption of “our body.” As Essay #16:“The Work of the Holy Spirit in Rome and Galatia (Romans and Galatians)” discusses that passage; we will leave commentary on that verse to that portion of this work.

[24] In the book of Acts, nearly every persecution of the church was through the hands or encouragement of the Jews. Paul first persecuted the church as a Jew (Acts 8:1-4) and then received persecution from them (Acts 17:5; 1 Thessalonians 2:14).

[25] For a full discussion of this see Essay #9:”What is the Mystery?”