WHAT IS A GENERATION ?
“Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled”
(Matt 24:34).
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In the article “Who Does The Fig Tree Represent,” the foundation was laid for this finishing article. We learned who the parables of the fig tree represented. We also learned that trees in God’s word can represent rulers or nations.
Now we will look into who are “all the trees” spoken of in Luke 21:29 ? Then follow up with “How long is a generation?” and “what does it have to do with 1948?"
Let’s refresh our mind with “Who or what is the fig tree” These verses will recapture Jesus Christ’s words and will help us tie the two articles together.
Lets begin with Matt 24: 32 - 34. This is where we are being advised to learn something! “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; when his branch is yet tender, and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near: So likewise you, when you shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the door. Verily I say unto you, this generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away.”
What generation and things is Jesus Christ telling the disciples they are to wait for and see? The answer is what He spoke of prior to verse 33.
First, Christ speaks of false churches, then wars and rumors of war, nations rise against nation, kingdom against kingdom, government against government, famines, scarcity of food, pestilence’s, diseases, earthquakes in various places, men betraying one another, men hating one another, false prophets rise up, many falling away from truth, iniquity, lawlessness abounding, many who have been called to truth grow cold. We are told in Daniel 12:7, we will see “the breaking up of power of the holy people.” We see this going on today!
Another notable event is homosexual marriages dominating the news.
This is probably one of the greatest sins of all! This sin goes against God’s plan for mankind! The one time this happened before was “during the days of Noah.” Matthew 24:37 says, “But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” We are like the days of Noah right now and only right now! Marrying and giving in marriage, homosexuals!
All of these signs were to testify to the nearness of Jesus Christ second coming and pointing to the generation that will see and be living through these events. Verse 34 said, “This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled-[be accomplished].”
F.W. Grant who wrote the 7 volume Numerical Bible said, “The generation that sees the beginning of these things will see the end. The same people who see the rise of Israel as a Nation, for who see the beginning of the tribulation will see the Lord Jesus coming in the clouds of heaven to reign.”
Luke gives us more background information, “Then He [Christ] spoke to them [the apostles] a parable: Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near. Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place.”
Jesus Christ through Matthew, Mark, and Luke is saying all the events predicted would happen within one generation of time. One other parable to notice is Matthew 21: 19-20. “And when He saw a fig tree in the way, He came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, let no fruit grow on you henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away. And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away! [dried up].
We now recognize the fig tree represents the house of Judah the nation called Israel today. It was also observed that all the other trees would also be represented as other nations and people. Do those trees,”Nations surround Israel today?
We have read about the fig tree drying up and withering away, and then sprouted buds again as did all the other trees. Proof of that was found written in Ezekiel 17: “Thus saith the Lord God; I will also take of the highest branch of the high cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one, and will plant it upon an high prominent mountain : in the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it: and it shall bring forth branches, and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar: and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing; in the shadow of the branches thereof shall they dwell. And all the trees of the field shall know that I the Lord have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I the Lord have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I the Lord have spoken and have done it”(Ezekiel 17:22-24).
It would appear that God’s word is referring to other people and nations in close proximity to Israel being brought back to life also. When looking into this it was discovered, that all of the countries that border Israel came back to be independent nation around the same time as the nation of Israel.
The CIA World Fact Book discusses how Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and Egypt gained their independence all between the years 1943 and 1952. All within five years of the rebirth of the house of Judah now called -- the nation of Israel.
The CIA World Fact Book writes, Lebanon, “Following World War I, France acquired a mandate over the northern portion of the former Ottoman Empire province of Syria. The French separated out the region of Lebanon in 1920, granted this area independence in 1943.” Jordan, “Following World War I and the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, the UK received a mandate to govern much of the Middle East. Britain separated out a separate region of Trans-Jordan from Palestine in the early 1920s, and the area gained its independence in 1946; it adopted the name of Jordan in 1950.” Syria,“Following World War I, France acquired a mandate over the northern portion of the former Ottoman Empire province of Syria. The French administered the area as Syria until granting it independence in 1946.” The last one is Egypt, “Following the completion of the Suez Canal in 1869, Egypt became an important world transportation hub, but also fell heavily into debt. Ostensibly to protect its investments, Britain seized control of Egypt’s government in 1882, but nominal allegiance to the Ottoman Empire continued until 1914. Partially Independent from the UK in 1922, Egypt acquired full sovereignty with the overthrow of the British-backed monarchy in 1952.”
These countries, like Israel, did not exist as independent countries until 1943 and after. They were simply parts
of the Ottoman Empire and then parts of the British Empire or a colony of the French. Their birth around the birth time of the nation of Israel strengthens the significance of 1948.
Keep in mind what Matthew 24, told us to learn. “Now learn this parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that Summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it Is near--at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place” (Matt 24:32-35).
When Jesus spoke this parable He was not speaking Greek to His disciples, but was speaking Hebrew. Matthew translated his writings of Greek into the Hebrew language. When considering the question what is a generation? Generation is – dor - Strong’s #1755 in Hebrew. It was translated from Greek genea, Strong’s #1074.
Jesus when speaking, spoke Hebrew, so the word that we ought to be considering is the Hebrew word dor – Strong’s #1755 for generation. Dor is defined by Gesenius Hebrew Lexicon as (1). an age, -- generation of men, (2). as if the period and circuit of the years of life. The Driver Briggs defines it primarily as, period,- age,- generation,- duration in the past, former ages, - men living at a particular time period.
Dor is used 79 times in the Bible. The word should be defined as the period of a person’s life. In other word, generation is defined both as period of time and a collective group of people which cannot be separated.
The Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament explains the meaning of generation: (1). as it relates to the entirety of a person’s life: (2). man’s lifetime beginning with the womb of earth and returning there to. Genesis 3:19, gives a good definition of dor. “In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return." A new generation begins with the birth of one’s offspring. That still
does not negate the fact that the length of a particular generation is the total life-span. In reality, the Hebrew or Greek word is not that different from the English equivalent.
If we talk about our parents generation it is the group of people born around the similar time as them. We are not in our parents’ generation, we are considered the second generation. We should not define the length of a generation as the interval between the two but rather as the lifetime of a given person.
Consider the following two verses, that show us a group of people who died after a certain period of time. Exodus 1:6“And Joseph died, all his brothers, and all that generation.” This verse clearly was not talking about people in
PSALM 90:10
“The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years.”
Abraham’s day or people in Moses day. It was a group of people during a particular time period that died, that is a generation!
The psalmist in chapter 78, demonstrates a similar usage where he is exhorting those living during his time to not be like their fathers generation. “And may not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not set its heart aright, and whose spirit was not faithful to God” (Psalms 78: 8 ). That generation is being spoken of as both a group of people and their fathers living before them. When the psalmist says “a generation that did not set its heart aright,” he is talking about a specific group of people who lived at a specific time.
This is reinforced by Deuteronomy 2:14, where Moses discusses the time Israel spent in the desert as punishment against the generation that rebelled against the Lord. “And the time we took to come from Kadesh Barnea until we crossed over the valley of the Zered was thirty-eight years, until all the generation of the men of war was consumed from the midst of the camp, just as the Lord had sworn to them.”
That generation was the life-time of forty years plus twenty. Derived from Numbers 32, in which God gives the minimum time of a generation. Hebrew: dor is seen as a generation of sixty years, twenty and above plus wandering forty years. “Surely none of the men who came up from Egypt, from twenty years old and above, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, because they have not wholly followed Me…So the Lord’s anger was aroused against Israel, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation that had done evil in the sight of the Lord was consumed” (Numbers 32:11,13).
The minimum age of that generation was sixty years. Forty years is never a generation in scripture contrary to what many have claimed. There is another verse that provides a more average life-span of a human being which is an important key to see especially knowing Jesus Christ will return for the second time. Notice Psalms 90,“The days of our lives are seventy years; and if by reason of strength they are eighty years, yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away” (Psalms 90:10 ).
The fullness of a generation being 70 or 80 years is striking when one considers that Moses, the author of this Psalm, lived to be 120 years old. Bible commentator Thomas Constable points out: “It is interesting that he said the normal human life span was 70 years. He lived to be 120, Aaron was 123 when he died, and Joshua died at 110. Their long lives testify to God’s faithfulness in providing long lives to the godly as He promised under the Mosaic covenant.”
It would seem that the Holy Spirit guided Moses to write down what a typical lifetime is, versus his and other ancients life-time. Modern research confirms Psalm 90:10, according to the CIA World Fact Book writes: “The longest average life expectancy (by country) for 2009 was 84.36 years in The country of Macau China. The Swiss had the 10th longest life expectancy of 80.85. Israelis ranked 12th in the world and on average lived to be 80.73 years old, Americans ranked 49th with an expectancy of 78.11 years and Guatemalans ranked 143rd with an expectancy of 70.29. People in only 38 countries (out of 224) live less than 60 years on average.”
Psalm 90:10 therefore provides a very realistic picture of how long a generation is. There is a group of people by nationality that lives until they are in their sixty’s, the majority live into their seventies, however, only a fraction live on average into their eighties.
Matthew provides our last clue in the beginning of his gospel when discussing the number of generations from Abraham until Christ, thereby demonstrating that generation (genea) the same word used in Matthew 24:34, signifies the lifetime of a person. So all the generations [ genea ] from Abraham to David are fourteen generations.
We find this written in Matthew 1:17, “So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.” Here we see that a generation was the lifetime of a person, not the specific amount of years and we have learned that the duration of a generation is anywhere from sixty years to eighty years.
We need to understand that generations overlap one another. When a father and mother have children a new generation is born. Think of it this way:— the baby boomer generation that has been in the news lately were born between 1946 and 1964 and has not yet passed away. In fact, the oldest members would just now be reaching their mid 60’s. Saying that – we have to recognize some of that generation have passed away already, but the majority can expect to make it well into their 70’s and some into their 80’s.
In the same way, the generation spoken of by Jesus will not pass away - until all the things He mentioned in
Matthew, Mark, and Luke has taken place.
We should by now see that one generation over laps another generation. Example – take a family–there is husband and wife, they have a child, say, a boys then he marries and has children. That adds up to three generations. 1st generation would be - mother and father (their total life span); 2nd generation is their children (another total life-span) that over-laps the 1st generation. Then grandchildren is the 3rd generation having a total life-span over-lapping the 1st and 2nd generation.
Lets propose that the baby boomer generation that was born between 1946 – 1964 is the generation that will not pass away until the Jesus Christ comes back. Remember we were told in Matt 24:32-34, “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; when his branch is yet tender, and putts forth leaves, you know that summer is nigh: When you see all these things, [ listed in this chapter ] know that it is near – at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.” The generation spoken of here must be the generation that would see all of the things that Jesus spoke of in Matt 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21.
When the disciples questioned Jesus Christ, He specifically said, it would be the generation that would be alive and witness seeing the “fig tree budding” [developing]. Since we have seen that the fig tree was presented as the house of Judah in both the prophets and apostles and according to Jesus, then “this generation” must be the one that began at the commencement of the new Nation of Israel.
In our fig tree study we have seen the fig tree – the house of Judah weathered for about 1900 years and then miraculously the branch budded and put forth leaves in one day on May 14,1948, just as Isaiah told us it would. “Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion [ Jerusalem ] travailed, she brought forth her children” (Isa 66:8). Jesus told us that when this happens His return is at the door. He said that the generation that witnessed this would by no means pass away. A generation is the lifetime of a person and that is on average between seventy or eighty years.
Keeping that generation period in mind, turn to Daniel 9, where the prophecy of the seventy weeks — 62 weeks and seven weeks – is expressed. “Seventy weeks” [the word weeks is a Hebrew word shabua, it can refer to any period of seven: Seven days – seven weeks – seven months – seven years - and so on]. Only the context indicates what period of seven is intended, here it is intended to be seven years. “Seventy years are determined upon your people and upon your holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the prince shall be seven weeks,[seven years] and threescore and two weeks: [62 years]. The street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times” (Dan 9:24 ).
The final generation spoken of here appears to be between 2018 - and 2028. According to the above considerations. We could write out our equation in the following manner: 1948 + 70 years adds up to — 2018, or if by reason of strength 1948 + 80 years adds up to – 2028. If you subtract seven years for the beginning of the troublous times, called the beginning of birth pains, or the beginning of sorrows, we find the “threescore and two weeks” that we read of in verse 25. Being 62 years added to 1948 = is 2010.
The parable of the fig tree was the answer to the disciples’ original question at the beginning of Matthew 24, verse 3, “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?”
This reference to when the end of the age will be is in seeming contradiction to Jesus’ own words in Acts 1:6-8. “Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? And He said to them, "it is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." This apparent contradiction is resolved when we consider just who Jesus was talking to. The disciples that He was speaking to in Acts were the same men who, only some forty days earlier, He had told what to look for at the end of the age.
The sign that He told them would definitively mark the beginning of the generation that would see the end was nothing less than the fig tree putting forth its branch’s and becoming tender. Thus, the solution is the fig tree. The disciples asked a question which He had already answered for them. Look for the revival of the fig tree– the return of the house of Judah which Jesus had pronounced cursed. In other words, there was no point in looking for the end of the age so long as the house of Judah was seen as a dried up fig tree!
There was no point in looking for the final generation and Christ return so long as the fig tree remained cursed that is: not reborn as a Nation. Only when it would be budding and tender could the restoration of the house of Judah occur.
Until the revival of the fig tree and ultimately Christ’s coming there would be no restoration of the kingdom to Israel which is of course only logical. The house of Judah cannot have a part in God’s kingdom if they did not exist as a national entity. It appears within a generation the lifetime of a person and the revival of the fig tree, the house of Judah will be restored
Recapping — We have seen that the biblical interpretation of the fig tree is clearly speaking of the house of Judah. We have also seen that a generation is the lifetime of a person, which according to Psalm 90:10 is generally 70 or 80 years.
Whether or not the Lord is required to return within the years 1948 - 2028, we obviously cannot be dogmatic. But remember we are to know the times and the seasons! Jesus said very literally that the day and the hour no one can know. In light of the events that are happening today In numerous categories, economics, natural disasters, etc. on a global scale, the Lord’s return from the reestablishment of the house of Judah in 1948 to 2028 appears almost certain
We need to heed Jesus Christ’s inspired instructions found in 1 Thess 5, “But of the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. You are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation” (1 Thess 5:1-8).
James Russell
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Unleavened Bread
3/4 c scalded milk
1/4 c. honey
1/4 c. butter
1 tsp salt
1 egg
2 1/4 c. flour
Beat egg and first four ingredients together, while gradually adding the flour. Knead smooth. Roll to 1/4 inc thickness. Cut in round or squares, prick with a fork. Place on a baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.
Unleavened Biscuits
1 C. Flour, sifted
½ c. Cornmeal
½ tsp salt
4 TBSP shortening
1 egg
milk
Mix all together, adding enough milk to make a medium stiff dough. Roll out to about 1/4 in. thick. Cut out. Place on a slightly greased pan. Oil the top. Bake 8 min. in a preheated oven of 425 degrees.
O’ Henry Bars
4 c. oatmeal
1 c. brown sugar
½ c. shortening
½ c. butter
½ c. sugar
½ tsp salt
½ tsp vanilla
6 oz. chocolate chips
2 Tbsp peanut butter
Mix oatmeal, sugar, shortening, butter, salt and vanilla. Press into a 10X15 pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 20 minutes. Frost with chips, melted with peanut butter.
Butterscotch Brownies
½ c. butter
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
1tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
1 c. flour
Mix all ingredients together and pour into greased 8 in. pan. Bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
Spritz
1 c. butter
3 egg yolks, beaten
2 ½ c. flour
2/3 c. sugar 1tsp almond extract
Cream butter and sugar. Add beaten egg yolk, extract and flour. Roll into balls the size of marbles , place on cookie sheet and flatten with a fork. Place a pecan or cherry on cookie. Bake at 350 degrees until lightly brown on the edges.
Sprinkle with powdered. sugar when baked.
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