Simply put, John understands Daniel’s reference to a distant time as referring to his own era and he updates the text accordingly. What Daniel expected to occur in the distant days’ -- the defeat of cosmic evil and the ushering ‘latter in of the divine kingdom -- John expects to begin in his own ‘quickly,’ generation, if it has not already begun to happen.” Therefore, Rev 1:1a anticipates (via Daniel) an imminent fulfilment in the first century. This is reinforced by Rev 1:7, He is coming with “Behold, clouds” (NKJV), an allusion to Dan 7:13, followed by a description of the of man” in Danielic terms in Rev 1:13-17 (cf. Dan 7:9; 10:6). “Son Significantly, Jesus warned the judges at his that they, see the “…will Son of Man…coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matt 26:64), indicating that they would personally experience his coming in judgement. All of the allusions to Daniel in the first chapter of the Apocalypse point to an imminent first century fulfilment of Daniel’s prophecies. The use of Daniel by Jesus in Rev 1:1 corresponds with Jesus’ use of Daniel in the Olivet Prophecy regarding the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. The conclusion is inescapable that the prophecy of Daniel/Olivet/Revelation had at least a partial fulfilment in the first century. The Breach Principle The of the Son of Man” in AD 70 was an act of judgment that only “coming partially realized the terms of Daniel/Olivet/Revelation. First Century Christians expected the in-breaking of the kingdom to quickly follow. We might ask why the kingdom was not inaugurated immediately and if there is a scriptural precedent for this. Scripture does indeed have a precedent for delaying the promised inheritance….it is known as the breach principle: After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise. Num.14:34 (KJV)
Simply put, John understands Daniel’s reference to a distant time as referring to his own era and he updates the text accordingly. What Daniel expected to occur in the distant ‘latter days’ -- the defeat of cosmic evil and the ushering in of the divine kingdom -- John expects to begin ‘quickly,’ in his own generation, if it has not already begun to happen.” Therefore, Rev 1:1a anticipates (via Daniel) an imminent fulfilment in the first century. This is reinforced by Rev 1:7, “Behold, He is coming with clouds” (NKJV), an allusion to Dan 7:13, followed by a description of the “Son of man” in Danielic terms in Rev 1:13-17 (cf. Dan 7:9; 10:6). Significantly, Jesus warned the judges at his that they, “…will see the Son of Man…coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matt 26:64), indicating that they would personally experience his coming in judgement. All of the allusions to Daniel in the first chapter of the Apocalypse point to an imminent first century fulfilment of Daniel’s prophecies. The use of Daniel by Jesus in Rev 1:1 corresponds with Jesus’ use of Daniel in the Olivet Prophecy regarding the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. The conclusion is inescapable that the prophecy of Daniel/Olivet/Revelation had at least a partial fulfilment in the first century. The Breach Principle The “coming of the Son of Man” in AD 70 was an act of judgment that only partially realized the terms of Daniel/Olivet/Revelation. First Century Christians expected the in-breaking of the kingdom to quickly follow. We might ask why the kingdom was not inaugurated immediately and if there is a scriptural precedent for this. Scripture does indeed have a precedent for delaying the promised inheritance….it is known as the breach principle: After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise. Num.14:34 (KJV)
Oct_2010.docx