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Second Coming

October 15, 2023

For other uses, see Second Coming (disambiguation).

The Second Coming (sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia) is the Christian and Islamic belief that Jesus will return to Earth after his ascension to heaven (which is said to have occurred about two thousand years ago). The idea is based on messianic prophecies and is part of most Christian eschatologies. Other faiths have various interpretations of it.

Greek icon of the Second Coming, c. 1700

Terminology Edit

See also: Theophany and Christophany

Several different terms are used to refer to the Second Coming of Christ:

In the New Testament, the Greek word ἐπιφάνεια (epiphaneia, appearing) is used five times to refer to the return of Christ.[1]

The Greek New Testament uses the Greek term parousia (παρουσία, meaning "arrival", "coming", or "presence") 24 times, seventeen of them concerning Christ. However, parousia has the distinct reference to a period of time rather than an instance in time. At Matthew 24:37, the word parousia is used to clearly describe the period of time in which Noah lived. The Greek word eleusis, which means "coming", is not interchangeable with parousia. So this parousia or "presence" would be unique and distinct from anything that had occurred before.[2] The word is also used six times referring to individuals (Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus,[3] Titus,[4] and Paul the Apostle[5]) and one time referring to the "coming of the lawless one".[6]

Gustav Adolf Deissmann (1908)[7] showed that the Greek word parousia occurred as early as the 3rd century BC to describe the visit of a king or dignitary to a city – a visit arranged in order to show the visitor's magnificence to the people.

In Islam, the term Rajʽa (Arabic: الرجعة, romanized: al-rajʿah, lit. 'Return') refers to the Second Coming.[8] The term is most commonly used by Shia Muslims.[8]

Specific date predictions and claims Edit

Main article: Predictions and claims for the Second Coming

Views about the nature of the Second Coming vary among Christian denominations and among individual Christians. Many specific dates have been predicted for the Second Coming, some now in the distant past, others still in the future.

Christianity Edit

Main article: Christian eschatology
Further information: Katechon

Most English versions of the Nicene Creed include the following statements:[citation needed]

...he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in his glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. ... We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

A 2010 survey showed that about 40% of Americans believe that Jesus is likely to return by 2050. This varies from 58% of white evangelical Christians, through 32% of Catholics to 27% of white mainline Protestants.[9] Belief in the Second Coming was popularised in the US in the late nineteenth century by the evangelist Dwight L. Moody and the premillennial interpretation became one of the core components of Christian fundamentalism in the 1920s.

Early Christianity Edit

See also: Olivet Discourse § Imminence, and Historical Jesus § Apocalyptic prophet

Jesus told his disciples,

Truly I tell you, this generation [greek: genea] will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

— Matthew 24:34-35, Mark 13:30-31, Luke 21:32-33[10]

The most common English translation of genea is "generation",[11] which lead some to conclude that the Second Coming was to be witnessed by the people living in the same generation as Jesus. According to historian Charles Freeman, early Christians expected Jesus to return within a generation of his death, and the non-occurrence of the second coming surprised them.[12]

In most German Bibles, genea is instead translated as "family/lineage" (Geschlecht).[13] Likewise for Danish, Swedish and Norwegian (slægt, släkte and slekt, respectively).[14][15][16] The Danish linguist Iver Larsen argues that the word "generation" as it was used in the King James Version of the Bible (1611) had a much wider meaning than it has today, and that the correct translation of genea in the context of the second coming is "kind of people" (specifically the "good" kind of people; the disciple's kind of people, who, like the words of Jesus, will endure through all the tribulations). In Psalm 14, the King James version uses "generation" in this wide and outdated sense, when it declares that "God is in the generation of the righteous".[17] According to Larsen, the Oxford Universal Dictionary states that the latest attested use of genea in the sense of "class, kind or set of persons" dates from 1727. Larsen concludes that the meaning of "generation" in the English language has narrowed considerably since then.[18]

Bible scholar Philip La Grange du Toit argues that genea is mostly used to describe a timeless and spiritual family/lineage of good or bad people in the New Testament, and that this is the case also for the second coming discourse in Matthew 24. In contrast to Larsen however, he argues that the word genea here denotes the "bad kind of people", because Jesus had used the word in that pejorative sense in the preceding context (chapter 23). He also lists the main competing translation alternatives, and some of the scholars who support the different views:

  • "This generation" refers to Jesus's contemporaries who would witness "all these things" [πάντα ταῦτα] as outlined in verses 4–31, including Jesus' second coming (Davies & Allison 1997:367–368; Hare 1993:281; Maddox 1982:111–115). Because Jesus' contemporaries did not witness his second coming, some contend that Jesus erred in his predictions (Luz 2005:209; cf. Schweitzer 1910:356–364).
  • "This generation" refers to Jesus's contemporaries who would witness "all these things" as outlined in verses 4–22 or 4–28, pointing to the destruction of the temple in 70 CE and everything leading up to it. Jesus' second coming (vv. 29–31) is thus excluded from "all these things" (Blomberg 1992:364; Carson 1984:507; France 2007:930; Hagner 1995:715).
  • "This generation" points to the Ἰουδαῖοι [Jews or Judaeans], implying that they as a race would last until the Parousia (Hendriksen 1973:868–869; Schweizer 1976:458).
  • In patristic opinion, "this generation" points to the church against which the gates of Hades would not prevail (cf. Chrysostom, Hom. Matt. 77:1; Eusebius, Frag. in Lc. ad loc).
  • 'This generation' points to some future generation, from Matthew's perspective, that sees "all these things" (Bock 1996:538–539; Conzelmann 1982:105).
  • The words "take place" or "have happened" [γένηται] are interpreted as an ingressive aorist: "to begin" or "to have a beginning". In other words, "all these things" would start to happen in the generation of Jesus' present disciples, but would not necessarily finish in their time (Cranfield 1954:291; Talbert 2010:270).
  • "This generation" points to a certain kind of people in accordance with the pejorative connotations to "generation" [γενεά] elsewhere in the gospel (Morris 1992:613; Nelson 1996:385; Rieske 2008:225; see, e.g., Mt 11:16; 12:39, 41–42, 45; 16:4; 17:17; 23:36). While DeBruyn (2010:190) and Lenski (1943:953) interpret the expression in a similar way, they connect "this generation" to a certain kind of people from the Ἰουδαῖοι who resisted Jesus (cf. view 3 discussed earlier).[19]

Jesus is also recorded as saying,

there are some standing here, which shall not taste death, till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.

— Matthew 16:28[20]

He makes similar predictions in five other places in the Gospels.[21] In religious sceptic Victor J. Stenger's view, when the coming did not happen within the life-times of his disciples, Christianity changed its emphasis to the resurrection and promise of eternal life.[22] A competing view is that it is Jesus' coming in power on the mountain that provides the correct interpretative frame for the "not taste death" statement. The author of Second Peter describes the event:

For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, "This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased." We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.

— 2 Peter 1:16-18[23]

Preterism Edit

Main article: Preterism

The position associating the Second Coming with 1st century events such as the destruction of Jerusalem and of the Jewish Temple in AD 70 is known as Preterism.[24]

Some Preterists see this "coming of the Son of Man in glory" primarily fulfilled in Jesus's death on the cross. They believe the apocalyptic signs are already fulfilled including "the sun will be dark",[25] the "powers ... will be shaken",[26] and "then they will see".[27] Yet some critics note that many are missing, such as "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up."[28][29] And "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, 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."[30][31]

Catholicism Edit

 
The Last Judgment by Michelangelo (1541) in the Sistine Chapel, Rome

According to the Catholic Church, the second coming will happen in a single moment, suddenly and unexpectedly (not even the angels, saints, or demons know when it will occur).[32] It will cause the fullness of the reign of God and the consummation of the universe and mankind.[33]

The fullness of the reign of God means God fully manifests the victory he won over his enemies (sin, suffering, and Satan) on the Cross.[34] Just as God gradually revealed himself to Israel until the birth of Jesus,[35] so God gradually manifests his victory through the church's sacraments (baptism forgiving sin and exorcising Satan, holy unction relieving suffering, etc.),[36] until the moment when he will fully manifest his victory through the consummation of the universe and mankind, e.g., by granting the universe and mankind a share in Jesus' resurrection (the universe being transfigured and the dead being resurrected, judged, and recompensed).[37][38]

The church does not believe the second coming will happen via a catastrophe (such as a nuclear war or extinction event),[39] reincarnation (such as someone claiming to be Jesus),[40] social or technological progress (such as mankind abolishing slavery or curing disease) or ascendancy (such as the church having political power).[41] Nor does the church believe in double predestination.[42]

At the moment of Jesus' arrival, three events will happen all at once in an instant, in the blink of an eye: the living will die, the universe will be transfigured, and the dead will be resurrected, judged, and recompensed. After this single instant or moment, the church does not know what will happen for the rest of eternity - only that the damned will continue to be in hell and the saved will continue to experience the beatific vision.[43]

The second coming is suspended until Jesus is recognized by "all of Israel",[44] and it will be followed by a final and ultimate temptation to sin - in this case, apostasy - caused by the antichrist.[45] Yet there are three things that hasten the second coming: the celebration of the Eucharist;[46] Christians living with the mind of Jesus;[47] and Christians praying for the Second Coming.[48]

Like many Christian denominations, the church considers this second coming of Christ to be the final and eternal judgment by God of the people in every nation[49] resulting in the glorification of some and the punishment of others. The concept is found in all the Canonical gospels, particularly the Gospel of Matthew.

A decisive factor in this Last Judgment during the second coming of Christ will be the question, if the corporal and spiritual works of mercy were practiced or not during lifetime. They rate as important acts of mercy, charity and justice. Therefore, and according to the Biblical sources (Matthew 25:31–46), the conjunction of the Last Judgment and the works of mercy is very frequent in the pictorial tradition of Christian art.[50]

Oriental Orthodoxy and Eastern Orthodoxy Edit

It is the traditional view of Orthodox Christians, preserved from the early Church, that the Second Coming will be a sudden and unmistakable incident, like "a flash of lightning".[51] They hold the general view that Jesus will not spend any time on the earth in ministry or preaching, but come to judge mankind.[52] They teach that the ministry of the Antichrist will take place right before the Second Coming.[52]

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church, a part of the Oriental Orthodox communion of churches, teaches that the second coming of Jesus will be radically different from his first coming, which "was to save the lost world".[53]

Orthodox layman Alexander Kalomiros explains the original Church's position regarding the Second Coming in River of Fire[54] and Against False Union,[55] stating that those who contend that Christ will reign on earth for a thousand years "do not wait for Christ, but for the Antichrist". The idea of Jesus returning to this earth as a king is a heretical concept to the Church, equated to "the expectations of the Jews who wanted the Messiah to be an earthly King." The Church instead teaches that which it has taught since the beginning.

Lutheranism and Anglicanism Edit

 
The Second Coming of Christ stained glass window at St. Matthew's German Evangelical Lutheran Church in Charleston, South Carolina, United States

A reference to the second coming is contained in the Nicene Creed and Apostles Creed, which is recited during the Lutheran and Anglican liturgies: "He [Jesus] shall come again in glory to judge the living and the dead; and His kingdom shall have no end." An analogous statement is also in the biblical Pauline Creed (1 Corinthians 15:23).[56]

The Lutheran and Anglican churches proclaim the Mystery of Faith in their liturgies: "Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again."[57][58][59]

Methodism Edit

Methodist denominations teach that the Second Coming is connected with the Last Judgment, as professed in the Creeds.[60] The United Methodist Church does not teach that there will be a "rapture" or otherwise speculate on the nature of the Second Coming.[61]

Latter Day Saint movement Edit

Main article: Second Coming in Mormonism

The standard works of the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), say that Christ will return, as stated in the Bible. They also teach that

When the Savior comes again, He will come in power and glory to claim the earth as His kingdom. His Second Coming will mark the beginning of the Millennium. The Second Coming will be a fearful, mournful time for the wicked, but it will be a day of peace for the righteous.[62]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its leaders do not make predictions of the actual date of the Second Coming.

Latter-day Saints have particularly distinct and specific interpretations of what are considered to be signs stated in the Book of Revelation.[63] According to the teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the restored gospel will be taught in all parts of the world prior to the Second Coming.[64] Church members believe that there will be increasingly severe wars, earthquakes, hurricanes, and other man-made and natural disasters prior to the Second Coming.[65]

Seventh-day Adventists Edit

Main article: Seventh-day Adventist eschatology

Fundamental Belief #25 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church states:

The second coming of Christ is the blessed hope of the church, the grand climax of the gospel. The Saviour's coming will be literal, personal, visible, and worldwide. When He returns, the righteous dead will be resurrected, and together with the righteous living will be glorified and taken to heaven, but the unrighteous will die. The almost complete fulfillment of most lines of prophecy, together with the present condition of the world, indicates that Christ's coming is imminent. The time of that event has not been revealed, and we are therefore exhorted to be ready at all times.[66][67]

Jehovah's Witnesses Edit

Jehovah's Witnesses rarely use the term "second coming", preferring the term "presence" as a translation of parousia.[68] They believe that Jesus' comparison of "the presence of the Son of man" with "the days of Noah" at Matthew 24:37–39 and Luke 17:26–30 suggests a duration rather than a moment of arrival.[69] They also believe that biblical chronology points to 1914[70] as the start of Christ's "presence", which continues until the final battle of Armageddon. Other biblical expressions they correlate with this period include "the time of the end" (Daniel 12:4), "the conclusion of the system of things" (Matthew 13:40,49; 24:3) and "the last days" (2 Timothy 3:1; 2 Peter 3:3).[71][72] Witnesses believe Christ's millennial reign begins after Armageddon.[73]

Emanuel Swedenborg and the New Church Edit

Emanuel Swedenborg, an 18th-century scientist turned theologian, taught that his time (that historians have called the Age of Enlightenment) was an age of darkness and doubt for the Christian church. Historian Marguerite Beck Block writes,

Now therefore it was time for a new church to be founded upon the earth, and for this purpose it was necessary for the Lord Himself to make his Second Coming to the sons of men.

"The night is followed by a morning which is the coming of the Lord. . . . The prevailing opinion in the churches at the present day is, that when the Lord shall come for the last judgment. He will appear in the clouds of heaven with angels and the sound of trumpets, etc.," but this opinion is erroneous. The Second Coming of the Lord is not a coming in person, but in spirit and in the Word, which is from Him, and is Himself. . . . Heretofore it has not been known that 'the clouds of heaven' mean the Word in the sense of the letter, and that the 'glory and power' in which He is then to come, mean the spiritual sense of the Word, because no one as yet has had the least conjecture that there is a spiritual sense in the Word, such as this sense is in itself. But as the Lord has now opened to me the spiritual sense of the Word, and has granted me to be associated with angels and spirits in their world as one of them, it is now disclosed.

. . . This Second Coming of the Lord is effected by means of a man to whom the Lord has manifested Himself in Person, and whom He has filled with His Spirit, that he may teach the doctrines of the New Church from the Lord by means of the Word. . . . That the Lord manifested Himself before me. His servant, and sent me to this office, . . . I affirm in truth."[74]

Esoteric Christian teachings Edit

See also: Last Judgment (Esoteric Christian tradition)

In Max Heindel's teaching, there is a distinction between the cosmic Christ, or Christ without, and the Christ within.[75] According to this tradition, the Christ within is regarded as the true Saviour who needs to be born within each individual[76] in order to evolve toward the future Sixth Epoch in the Earth's etheric plane, that is, toward the "new heavens and a new earth":[77] the New Galilee.[78] The Second Coming or Advent of the Christ is not in a physical body,[79] but in the new soul body of each individual in the etheric plane of the planet[80] where man "shall be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air."[81] The "day and hour" of this event is not known.[82] The esoteric Christian tradition teaches that first there will be a preparatory period as the Sun enters Aquarius, an astrological concept, by precession: the coming Age of Aquarius.[83]

Islam Edit

Traditional view Edit

Main articles: Jesus in Islam and Islamic eschatology

In Islam, Jesus (or Isa; Arabic: عيسى ʿĪsā) is considered to be a Messenger of God and the masih (messiah) who was sent to guide banī isrā'īl (the Israelites) with a new scripture, the Injīl (Gospel).[84] The belief in Jesus (and all other messengers of God) is required in Islam, and a requirement of being a Muslim. However, Muslims believe that Jesus was never crucified or resurrected, instead ascending directly into heaven. Additionally, they do not recognize Jesus as the Son of God, as they believe God has no equals, but rather that he was merely a prophet. The Quran states that Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary. Muslims believe that Jesus performed all the miracles in the Gospels (with God's permission). The pertinent verses in Sura An-Nisa 4:157 reads "And for their saying, 'Indeed, we have killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, the messenger of Allah.' And they did not kill him, nor did they crucify him; but another was made to resemble him to them. And indeed, those who differ over it are in doubt about it. They have no knowledge of it except the following of assumption. And they did not kill him, for certain." 4:158 continues "rather, Allah raised him to Himself. And ever is Allah Exalted in Might and Wise."

The Quran refers to a conversation between Jesus and God on judgement day in Sura Al-Ma'idah 5:116, 5:117. Jesus is questioned 5:116 "Did you ever ask the people to worship you and your mother as gods besides Allah?" To which Jesus replies 5:117 "I never told them anything except what You ordered me to say: "Worship Allah—my Lord and your Lord!" And I was witness over them as long as I remained among them."

And ˹on Judgment Day˺ Allah will say, "O Jesus, son of Mary! Did you ever ask the people to worship you and your mother as gods besides Allah?" He will answer, "Glory be to You! How could I ever say what I had no right to say? If I had said such a thing, you would have certainly known it. You know what is ˹hidden˺ within me, but I do not know what is within You. Indeed, You ˹alone˺ are the Knower of all unseen. 5:116

I never told them anything except what You ordered me to say: "Worship Allah—my Lord and your Lord!" And I was witness over them as long as I remained among them. But when You took me, You were the Witness over them—and You are a Witness over all things. 5:117

In the Quran, the second coming of Jesus is heralded in Sura Az-Zukhruf as a sign of the Day of Judgment.

And (Jesus) shall be a Sign (for the coming of) the Hour (of Judgment): therefore have no doubt about the (Hour), but follow ye Me: this is a Straight Way. 43:61[85]

Ibn Kathir presents this verse as proof of Jesus' second coming in the Quran in his exegesis Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim.[86]

There are also hadiths that foretell Jesus' future return such as:[87] Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 3, Book 43: Kitab-ul-`Ilm (Book of Knowledge), Hadith Number 656:

Allah's Apostle said, "The Hour will not be established until the son of Mary (i.e. Jesus) descends amongst you as a just ruler, he will break the cross, kill the pigs, and abolish the Jizya tax. Money will be in abundance so that nobody will accept it (as charitable gifts).[88]

According to Islamic tradition, Jesus' descent will be in the midst of wars fought by the Mahdi (lit. "the rightly guided one"), known in Islamic eschatology as the redeemer of Islam, against the al-Masih ad-Dajjal (literally "the false messiah", synonymous with the Antichrist) and his followers.[89] Jesus will descend at the point of a white arcade, east of Damascus, dressed in saffron robes — his head anointed. He will then join the Mahdi in his war against the Dajjal. Jesus, considered in Islam as a Muslim (one who submits to God) and one of God's messengers, will abide by the Islamic teachings. Eventually, Jesus will slay the Antichrist Dajjal, and then everyone from the People of the Book (ahl al-kitāb, referring to Jews and Christians) will believe in him. Thus, there will be one community, that of Islam. Sahih Muslim,

After the death of the Mahdi, Jesus will assume leadership. This is a time associated in Islamic narrative with universal peace and justice. Islamic texts also allude to the appearance of Ya'juj and Ma'juj (Gog and Magog), ancient tribes that will disperse and cause disturbance on earth. God, in response to Jesus' prayers, will kill them by sending a type of worm in the napes of their necks.[89] Jesus' rule is said to be around forty years, after which he will die (since according to Islam, Jesus did not die on the cross but was taken up to heaven and continues to live until his return in the second coming). Muslims will then perform the Salat al-Janazah (funeral prayer) for him and bury him in the city of Medina in a grave left vacant beside Muhammad.[87]

Ahmadiyya Edit

 
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
Main article: Jesus in Ahmadiyya Islam

The Ahmadiyya movement believe that the promised Mahdi and Messiah arrived in the person of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835–1908). This is widely rejected by other Muslims, who do not regard Ahmadis as a legitimate sect of Islam.

The hadith (sayings of the Islamic prophet Muhammad) and the Bible indicated that Jesus would return during the latter days. Islamic tradition commonly depicts that Jesus, upon his second coming, would be an Ummati (Muslim) and a follower of Muhammad and that he would revive the truth of Islam rather than fostering a new religion.

The Ahmadiyya movement interpret the Second Coming of Jesus prophesied as being that of a person "similar to Jesus" (mathīl-i ʿIsā) and not his physical return, in the same way as John the Baptist resembled the character of the biblical prophet Elijah in Christianity. Ahmadis believe that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (the founder of the movement) demonstrated that the prophecy in Muslim and Christian religious texts were traditionally misunderstood to suggest that Jesus of Nazareth himself would return, and hold that Jesus survived the crucifixion and later died a natural death. Ahmadis consider Ghulam Ahmad, in both his character and teachings, to be representative of Jesus, and that he attained the same spiritual rank of Prophethood as Jesus. Thus, Ahmadis believe this prediction was fulfilled and continued by his movement.[90][91]

Baháʼí Faith Edit

 
The Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh

According to the Baháʼí Faith, the Second Coming is a gradual process that coincides with the advancement of human civilization from the beginning of humanity. It teaches that the founders of the major world religions each represent a return of the Word and Spirit of God as a new, unique personification sent by God, who introduces new teachings, laws and revelations, such that all major religions are part of a progressive revelation. Each Coming is said to build upon the major world religions emerging from earlier ages, verifying previous spiritual truths, and fulfilling its prophesies regarding a future return or coming. In this context, the Second Coming is depicted as a continuation of God's will in one continuous faith, with different names as presented by the founders of each religion as the voice of God at different times in history.

Bahá'u'lláh announced that he was a manifestation of the returned Christ, understood as a reappearance of the Word and Spirit of God:

O thou who art waiting, tarry no longer, for He is come. Behold His Tabernacle and His Glory dwelling therein. It is the Ancient Glory, with a new Manifestation.[92]

He wrote to Pope Pius IX,

He Who is the Lord of Lords is come overshadowed with clouds... He, verily, hath again come down from Heaven even as He came down from it the first time. Beware that thou dispute not with Him even as the Pharisees disputed with Him without a clear token or proof.[93]

He referred to himself as the Ancient of Days and the Pen of Glory,[94] and also claimed:

This is the Father foretold by Isaiah, and the Comforter concerning Whom the Spirit had covenanted with you. Open your eyes, O concourse of bishops, that ye may behold your Lord seated upon the Throne of might and glory.[95]

Baha'u'llah also wrote,

Say: We, in truth, have given Ourself as a ransom for your own lives. Alas, when We came once again, We beheld you fleeing from Us, whereat the eye of My loving-kindness wept sore over My people."[94]

Followers of the Baháʼí Faith believe that prophecies of the second coming of Jesus (along with prophecies from other religions) were fulfilled by his forerunner the Báb in 1844 and then by the events occurring during the days of Bahá'u'lláh.[96] They believe that the fulfillment of Christian prophecies by Baha'u'llah is similar to Jesus' fulfillment of Jewish prophecies, where in both cases people were expecting the literal fulfillment of apocalyptic statements that led to rejections of the Return, instead of accepting fulfillment in symbolic and spiritual ways. Baháʼís understand that the return of the Christ with a new name was intended by Jesus to be a Return in a spiritual sense, due to Jesus explaining in the Gospels that the return of Elijah in John the Baptist was a return in a spiritual sense.[97][98]

Judaism Edit

Main article: Judaism's view of Jesus
See also: Rejection of Jesus

Judaism teaches that Jesus is one of the false Jewish Messiah claimants because he failed to fulfill any Messianic prophecies, which include:

  1. Build the Third Temple (Ezekiel 37:26–28).
  2. Gather all Jews back to the Land of Israel (Isaiah 43:5–6).
  3. Usher in an era of world peace, and end all hatred, oppression, suffering and disease. As it says: "Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall man learn war anymore." (Isaiah 2:4)
  4. Spread universal knowledge of the God of Israel, which will unite humanity as one. As it says: "God will be King over all the world ― on that day, God will be One and His Name will be One" (Zechariah 14:9).[99]

Regarding the Christian idea that these prophecies will be fulfilled during a "second coming," Ohr Samayach states "we find this to be a contrived answer, since there is no mention of a second coming in the Jewish Bible. Second, why couldn't God accomplish His goals the first time round?"[100] Rabbi David Wolpe believes that the Second Coming was "grown out of genuine disappointment. [...] When Jesus died, true believers had to theologically compensate for the disaster."[101]

Rastafari Edit

In the early developments of the Rastafari religion, Haile Selassie (the Ethiopian Emperor) was regarded as a member of the House of David, is worshipped as God incarnate,[102] and is thought to be the "black Jesus" and "black messiah" – the second coming of Christ.[103] It was claimed that Marcus Garvey preached the coming of the black messiah on the eve of Selassie's coronation. Due to this prophecy, Selassie was the source of inspiration of the poor and uneducated Christian populations of Jamaica, who believed that the Emperor would liberate the black people from the subjugation of European colonists.[104]

Paramahansa Yogananda's commentary Edit

Main article: The Second Coming of Christ (book)

In modern times some traditional Indian religious leaders have moved to embrace Jesus as an avatar, or incarnation, of God. In light of this, the Indian guru Paramahansa Yogananda, author of Autobiography of a Yogi, wrote an extensive commentary on the Gospels published in 2004 as a two-volume set: The Second Coming of Christ: The Resurrection of the Christ Within You.[105] The book offers a mystical interpretation of the Second Coming in which it is understood to be an inner experience, something that takes place within the individual heart. In the introduction of this book, Yogananda wrote that the true Second Coming is the resurrection within you of the Infinite Christ Consciousness. Also stated in the Book of Luke – "Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you." (Luke 17:21)

Daya Mata wrote in the preface of The Second Coming of Christ that the "two-volume scriptural treatise thus represents the inclusive culmination of Paramahansa Yogananda's divine commission to make manifest to the world the essence of original Christianity as taught by Jesus Christ." In sharing her memories of when she wrote down his words, she shares – "the great Guru, his face radiantly enraptured, as he records for the world the inspired exposition of the Gospel teachings imparted to him through direct, personal communion with Jesus of Nazareth."[105] Larry Dossey, M.D., wrote that "Paramahansa Yogananda's The Second Coming of Christ is one of the most important analyses of Jesus' teachings that exists. ... Many interpretations of Jesus' words divide peoples, cultures, and nations; these foster unity and healing, and that is why they are vital for today's world".[106]

In modern culture Edit

Jesus Christ returning to earth has been a theme in several movies and books, for example:

  • The Seventh Sign – 1988 film starring Demi Moore about a pregnant lady who discovers the Second Coming of Christ has rented a room from her, in order to begin the countdown that will trigger the Apocalypse.
  • Left Behind – Film- and book-franchise (1995– ) built by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins based on the time-period before, during and after the Second Coming of Christ.
  • End of Days – 1999 action-adventure film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger about a policeman who must stop Satan before he ends the world.
  • Thief In the Night by William Bernard Sears – The popular TV and radio personality plays the role of a detective in writing a book about identifying the clues and symbols from the Biblical prophecies of the return of the Christ that have been overlooked or misunderstood, and settles on a shocking conclusion (2002) [1961]. Oxford, UK: George Ronald. ISBN 0-85398-008-X.
  • SCARS: Christian Fiction End-Times Thriller by Patience Prence – 2010 novel about a girl named Becky who struggles through the time of the Great Tribulation.[107]
  • At the End of All Things by Stony Graves – 2011 novel about the days following the Rapture, and right before the Final War between God and Satan.[108]
  • The Second Coming: A Love Story by Scott Pinsker – 2014 novel about two men who claim to be the Second Coming of Christ. Each claims that the other is a liar – but only one is telling the truth.[109]
  • Black Jesus – Adult Swim television series (2014-2015 and 2019) created by Aaron McGruder and Mike Clattenburg, tells the story of Jesus living in modern-day Compton, California, and his efforts to spread love and kindness on a daily basis. He is supported in his mission by a small-but-loyal group of downtrodden followers, while facing conflicts involving corrupt preachers, ethnic tensions, and the hate spreading activities of the manager of his apartment complex.
  • "Good Omens" - TV Series and book franchise. The Second Coming will be the focus of the upcoming third and final season.

See also Edit

References Edit

  1. ^ "Greek Lexicon :: G2015 (KJV)". Blue Letter Bible.
  2. ^ . Blueletterbible.org. Archived from the original on 2010-08-25. Retrieved 2009-11-21.
  3. ^ 1Co.16:17Template:Bibleverse with invalid book
  4. ^ 2Co. 7:6–72Template:Bibleverse with invalid book
  5. ^ 2Co. 10:10Template:Bibleverse with invalid book, Phil 1:26, 2:12
  6. ^ 2Thes 2:9
  7. ^ Gustav Adolf Deissmann (1908). Light from the Ancient East:The New Testament Illustrated by Recently Discovered Texts of the Graeco-Roman World.
  8. ^ a b Momen, Moojan (1987-09-10). An Introduction to Shiʻi Islam: The History and Doctrines of Twelver Shiʻism. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-03531-5.
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  11. ^ "International Standard Version". Bible Gateway (English). Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  12. ^ Freeman, Charles. The Closing of the Western Mind, p. 133. Vintage. 2002.
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  17. ^ "King James Version". Bible Gateway. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  18. ^ Larsen, Iver (2010-01-28). "Generation is a wrong translation choice for Greek genea". Academia.edu. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  19. ^ Du Toit, Philip La Grange (2018-08-15). "'This generation' in Matthew 24:34 as a timeless, spiritual generation akin to Genesis 3:15". Verbum et Ecclesia. AOSIS. 39 (1). doi:10.4102/ve.v39i1.1850. ISSN 2074-7705.
  20. ^ Matt 16:28
  21. ^ Mark 9:1, Mark 13:30, Matt 24:34, Luke 9:27, Luke 21:32.
  22. ^ Victor J. Stenger (2009). Chapter 2, 'The Folly of Faith' p. 54 in "The New Atheism", published by Prometheus Books, ISBN 978-1-59102-751-5
  23. ^ 2 Peter 1:16–18
  24. ^ 1) Future Survival, Chuck Smith, The Word for Today, Costa Mesa, CA 1978, page 17 2) The Life of Jesus Critically Examined, David Strauss, Sigler Press, Ramsey, NJ 1994, page 587 3) Jesus and The Last Days, George Murray, Hendrickson Publisher, Peabody, Mass. 1993, pages 443–444 4) The Quest of the Historical Jesus, Albert Schweitzer, Macmillan, NY, 1968, page 240 5) Last Days Madness, Gary DeMar, American Vision Inc., Atlanta, GA 1994, page 114 6) The Parousia, Stuart Russell, T. Fisher Unwin Pub., London, 1887, page 84 7) The Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire, Edward Gibbon, Penguin Books, NY 1985, page 276 8) Apocalypse of The Gospels, Milton Terry, (1819), chapter 18 reprinted and its pages renumbered in 1992 by John Bray, PO Box 90129, Lakeland, FL 33804, pages 34 & 38
  25. ^ cf. Mark 13:24–15:33
  26. ^ cf. Mark 13:25–14:63, 15:5
  27. ^ cf. Mark 13:26–15:31, 15:39
  28. ^ 2 Peter 3:10
  29. ^ Austin Best. "White Horse Media". whitehorsemedia.com.
  30. ^ Matthew 24:30
  31. ^ Austin Best. "White Horse Media". whitehorsemedia.com.
  32. ^ CCC 1040
  33. ^ "Catechism of the Catholic Church 1042–1050".
  34. ^ CCC 671
  35. ^ CCC 69
  36. ^ CCC 1130
  37. ^ CCC 1042
  38. ^ CCC 1038
  39. ^ CCC 677
  40. ^ CCC 1013
  41. ^ CCC 678
  42. ^ CCC 1037
  43. ^ CCC 679
  44. ^ CCC 674
  45. ^ CCC 675
  46. ^ "Catechism of the Catholic Church 1107".
  47. ^ "Catechism of the Catholic Church 2046".
  48. ^ "Catechism of the Catholic Church 671".
  49. ^ Catholic Encyclopedia: General Judgment: "Few truths are more often or more clearly proclaimed in Scripture than that of the general judgment. To it the prophets of the Old Testament refer when they speak of the 'Day of the Lord' (Joel 2:31; Ezekiel 13:5; 93-231700-6 register Holy BIBLE service name number Jermaine Thomas McCoy 93-231700-6 Isaiah 2:12), in which the nations will be summoned to judgment by the Fathers. In the New Testament the Parousia, or coming of Christ as Judge of the world, is an oft-repeated doctrine. The Saviour Himself not only foretells the event but graphically portrays its circumstances (Matthew 24:27 sqq.;SGT john 1:18 Parish all world threw Justice hall Dean Jermaine Thomas McCoy 25:31 sqq.). The Apostles Malachi peter phophet labour give a most prominent place to this doctrine in their preaching (Acts 10:42; 17:31) and writings (Romans 2:5–16; 14:10; 1 Corinthians 4:5; 2 Corinthians 5:10; 2 Timothy 4:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:5; James 5:7). Besides the name Parusia (parousia), or Advent (1 Corinthians 15:23; 2 Thessalonians 2:19), the Second Coming is also called Epiphany, epiphaneia, or Appearance (2 Thessalonians 2:8; 1 Timothy 6:14; 2 Timothy 4:1; Titus 2:13), and Apocalypse (apokalypsis), or Revelation (2 Thessalonians 2:7; 1 Peter 4:13). The time of the Second Coming is spoken of as 'that Day' (2 Timothy 4:8), 'the day of the Lord' (1 Thessalonians 5:2), 'the day of Christ' (Philemon 1:6), 'the day of the Son of Man' (Luke 17:30), 'the last day' (John 6:39–40). The belief in the general judgment has prevailed at all times and in all places within the Church. It is contained as an article of faith in all the ancient creeds: 'He ascended into heaven. From thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead' (Apostles' Creed). The two shall come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead' (Nicene Creed). 'From thence they shall come to judge the living and the dead, at whose coming all men must rise with their bodies and are to render an account of their deeds' (Athanasian Creed). Relying on the authority of Papias, several Fathers of the first four centuries advanced the theory of a thousand years' terrestrial reign of Christ with the saints to precede the end of the World (see article on MILLENNIUM). Though this idea is interwoven with the eschatological teachings of those writers, it in no way detracted from their belief in a universal world-judgment. Patristic testimony to this dogma is clear and unanimous."
  50. ^ Ralf van Bühren, Caravaggio's 'Seven Works of Mercy' in Naples. The relevance of art history to cultural journalism, in Church, Communication and Culture 2 (2017), pp. 63–87.
  51. ^ Mt 24:27
  52. ^ a b "Jesus is Coming Soon". Orthodoxphotos.com. Retrieved 2009-11-21.
  53. ^ Melketsedek, Abba (1997). The Teaching of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Alem Publishers. p. 33.
  54. ^ "THE RIVER OF FIRE". Saint Nectarios Press and Book Center.
  55. ^ "Against False Union" (PDF). Russian Orthodox Autonomous Church (ROAC) of America.
  56. ^ "What Lutherans Teach about Christ's Second Coming". Concordia Publishing House. 4 January 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
  57. ^ Anglican Church of Canada, Book of Alternative Services, p 195
  58. ^ Paul E. Engle and John H. Armstrong, eds., Understanding Four Views on the Lord's Supper, Zondervan Counterpoints Collection (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2007), 46.
  59. ^ Tabletalk Magazine, March 2005: The Exaltation of Christ (Lake Mary, FL: Ligonier Ministries, 2005), 11.
  60. ^ Gorrie, Peter Douglass (1852). Episcopal Methodism. Derby and Miller. p. 148.
  61. ^ "What does the UMC teach about the second coming?". The United Methodist Church. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
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  63. ^ "Chapter 43: Signs of the Second Coming", Gospel Principles, Salt Lake City, Utah: LDS Church, 2011, pp. 251–256.
  64. ^ Matthew 24:14 KJV
  65. ^ Doctrine and Covenants 45:26
  66. ^ Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:28; John 14:1–3; Acts 1:9–11; Matthew 24:14; Revelation 1:7; Matthew 24:43, 44; 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18; 1 Corinthians 15:51–54; 2 Thessalonians 1:7–10; 2:8; Revelation 14:14–20; Revelation 19:11–21; Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21; 2 Timothy 3:1–5; 1 Thessalonians 5:1–6
  67. ^ "28 Fundamental Beliefs of the Seventh-day Adventists" (PDF). p. 11 (last page) of the pdf file.
  68. ^ "Appendix 5B Christ's Presence (Parousia)", New World Translation—Large Reference Edition, Watch Tower Society, 1984.
  69. ^ "Presence", Insight on the Scriptures – Volume 2, ©1988 Watch Tower, page 677.
  70. ^ "1900 Onward—Skirts Splattered With Blood". Awake!: 22. November 8, 1989.
  71. ^ "Keep Jehovah's Day Close in Mind". The Watchtower: 21. September 1, 1997.
  72. ^ "No Peace for the Wicked Ones". The Watchtower: 13. July 1, 1987.
  73. ^ "There Is a Future for the Dead". The Watchtower: 200. April 1, 1968.
  74. ^ Block, Marguerite Beck (1932). The New Church in the New World. New York: Henry Holt and Company. p. 38.
  75. ^ The Rosicrucian Fellowship, Eastern and Western Spiritual Alternatives
  76. ^ Galatians 4:19
  77. ^ 2Pet 3:13, 3:7
  78. ^ Heindel, Max, How Shall We Know Christ at His Coming?, May 1913 (stenographic report of a lecture, Los Angeles), ISBN 0-911274-64-2
  79. ^ 1Cor 15:50, John 18:36
  80. ^ 2Cor 5:1–3, Greek "politeuma" [commonwealth], "Our commonwealth is in heaven ...": Philippians 3:20–21
  81. ^ Matthew 24:30, 1Thess 4:17, Acts 1:10–11, 1John 3:2
  82. ^ Matthew 24:23–27
  83. ^ The Aquarian Age (cf. 1Cor 2:6–16)
  84. ^ The Oxford Dictionary of Islam, p.158
  85. ^ Yusuf Ali, Abdullah. "Surah Az-zukhruf".
  86. ^ kathir, Ibn. "Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim".
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Bibliography Edit

External links Edit

 
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  • "Lecture XV: On the Clause, And Shall Come in Glory to Judge the Quick and the Dead; Of Whose Kingdom There Shall Be No End.", delivered by Cyril of Jerusalem in the mid-4th century.
  • "The Second Coming", a summary article.
  • A Critical Summary of "The Second Coming" by W.B Yeats-RiseNotes

October 15, 2023
second, coming, other, uses, disambiguation, sometimes, called, second, advent, parousia, christian, islamic, belief, that, jesus, will, return, earth, after, ascension, heaven, which, said, have, occurred, about, thousand, years, idea, based, messianic, proph. For other uses see Second Coming disambiguation The Second Coming sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia is the Christian and Islamic belief that Jesus will return to Earth after his ascension to heaven which is said to have occurred about two thousand years ago The idea is based on messianic prophecies and is part of most Christian eschatologies Other faiths have various interpretations of it Greek icon of the Second Coming c 1700 Contents 1 Terminology 2 Specific date predictions and claims 3 Christianity 3 1 Early Christianity 3 2 Preterism 3 3 Catholicism 3 4 Oriental Orthodoxy and Eastern Orthodoxy 3 5 Lutheranism and Anglicanism 3 6 Methodism 3 7 Latter Day Saint movement 3 8 Seventh day Adventists 3 9 Jehovah s Witnesses 3 10 Emanuel Swedenborg and the New Church 3 11 Esoteric Christian teachings 4 Islam 4 1 Traditional view 4 2 Ahmadiyya 5 Bahaʼi Faith 6 Judaism 7 Rastafari 8 Paramahansa Yogananda s commentary 9 In modern culture 10 See also 11 References 12 Bibliography 13 External linksTerminology EditSee also Theophany and Christophany Several different terms are used to refer to the Second Coming of Christ In the New Testament the Greek word ἐpifaneia epiphaneia appearing is used five times to refer to the return of Christ 1 The Greek New Testament uses the Greek term parousia paroysia meaning arrival coming or presence 24 times seventeen of them concerning Christ However parousia has the distinct reference to a period of time rather than an instance in time At Matthew 24 37 the word parousia is used to clearly describe the period of time in which Noah lived The Greek word eleusis which means coming is not interchangeable with parousia So this parousia or presence would be unique and distinct from anything that had occurred before 2 The word is also used six times referring to individuals Stephanas Fortunatus and Achaicus 3 Titus 4 and Paul the Apostle 5 and one time referring to the coming of the lawless one 6 Gustav Adolf Deissmann 1908 7 showed that the Greek word parousia occurred as early as the 3rd century BC to describe the visit of a king or dignitary to a city a visit arranged in order to show the visitor s magnificence to the people In Islam the term Rajʽa Arabic الرجعة romanized al rajʿah lit Return refers to the Second Coming 8 The term is most commonly used by Shia Muslims 8 Specific date predictions and claims EditMain article Predictions and claims for the Second Coming Views about the nature of the Second Coming vary among Christian denominations and among individual Christians Many specific dates have been predicted for the Second Coming some now in the distant past others still in the future Christianity EditMain article Christian eschatology Further information Katechon Most English versions of the Nicene Creed include the following statements citation needed he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father He will come again in his glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end We look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come A 2010 survey showed that about 40 of Americans believe that Jesus is likely to return by 2050 This varies from 58 of white evangelical Christians through 32 of Catholics to 27 of white mainline Protestants 9 Belief in the Second Coming was popularised in the US in the late nineteenth century by the evangelist Dwight L Moody and the premillennial interpretation became one of the core components of Christian fundamentalism in the 1920s Early Christianity Edit See also Olivet Discourse Imminence and Historical Jesus Apocalyptic prophet Jesus told his disciples Truly I tell you this generation greek genea will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened Heaven and earth will pass away but my words will not pass away Matthew 24 34 35 Mark 13 30 31 Luke 21 32 33 10 The most common English translation of genea is generation 11 which lead some to conclude that the Second Coming was to be witnessed by the people living in the same generation as Jesus According to historian Charles Freeman early Christians expected Jesus to return within a generation of his death and the non occurrence of the second coming surprised them 12 In most German Bibles genea is instead translated as family lineage Geschlecht 13 Likewise for Danish Swedish and Norwegian slaegt slakte and slekt respectively 14 15 16 The Danish linguist Iver Larsen argues that the word generation as it was used in the King James Version of the Bible 1611 had a much wider meaning than it has today and that the correct translation of genea in the context of the second coming is kind of people specifically the good kind of people the disciple s kind of people who like the words of Jesus will endure through all the tribulations In Psalm 14 the King James version uses generation in this wide and outdated sense when it declares that God is in the generation of the righteous 17 According to Larsen the Oxford Universal Dictionary states that the latest attested use of genea in the sense of class kind or set of persons dates from 1727 Larsen concludes that the meaning of generation in the English language has narrowed considerably since then 18 Bible scholar Philip La Grange du Toit argues that genea is mostly used to describe a timeless and spiritual family lineage of good or bad people in the New Testament and that this is the case also for the second coming discourse in Matthew 24 In contrast to Larsen however he argues that the word genea here denotes the bad kind of people because Jesus had used the word in that pejorative sense in the preceding context chapter 23 He also lists the main competing translation alternatives and some of the scholars who support the different views This generation refers to Jesus s contemporaries who would witness all these things panta taῦta as outlined in verses 4 31 including Jesus second coming Davies amp Allison 1997 367 368 Hare 1993 281 Maddox 1982 111 115 Because Jesus contemporaries did not witness his second coming some contend that Jesus erred in his predictions Luz 2005 209 cf Schweitzer 1910 356 364 This generation refers to Jesus s contemporaries who would witness all these things as outlined in verses 4 22 or 4 28 pointing to the destruction of the temple in 70 CE and everything leading up to it Jesus second coming vv 29 31 is thus excluded from all these things Blomberg 1992 364 Carson 1984 507 France 2007 930 Hagner 1995 715 This generation points to the Ἰoydaῖoi Jews or Judaeans implying that they as a race would last until the Parousia Hendriksen 1973 868 869 Schweizer 1976 458 In patristic opinion this generation points to the church against which the gates of Hades would not prevail cf Chrysostom Hom Matt 77 1 Eusebius Frag in Lc ad loc This generation points to some future generation from Matthew s perspective that sees all these things Bock 1996 538 539 Conzelmann 1982 105 The words take place or have happened genhtai are interpreted as an ingressive aorist to begin or to have a beginning In other words all these things would start to happen in the generation of Jesus present disciples but would not necessarily finish in their time Cranfield 1954 291 Talbert 2010 270 This generation points to a certain kind of people in accordance with the pejorative connotations to generation genea elsewhere in the gospel Morris 1992 613 Nelson 1996 385 Rieske 2008 225 see e g Mt 11 16 12 39 41 42 45 16 4 17 17 23 36 While DeBruyn 2010 190 and Lenski 1943 953 interpret the expression in a similar way they connect this generation to a certain kind of people from the Ἰoydaῖoi who resisted Jesus cf view 3 discussed earlier 19 Jesus is also recorded as saying there are some standing here which shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom Matthew 16 28 20 He makes similar predictions in five other places in the Gospels 21 In religious sceptic Victor J Stenger s view when the coming did not happen within the life times of his disciples Christianity changed its emphasis to the resurrection and promise of eternal life 22 A competing view is that it is Jesus coming in power on the mountain that provides the correct interpretative frame for the not taste death statement The author of Second Peter describes the event For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory saying This is my Son my Beloved with whom I am well pleased We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven while we were with him on the holy mountain 2 Peter 1 16 18 23 Preterism Edit Main article Preterism The position associating the Second Coming with 1st century events such as the destruction of Jerusalem and of the Jewish Temple in AD 70 is known as Preterism 24 Some Preterists see this coming of the Son of Man in glory primarily fulfilled in Jesus s death on the cross They believe the apocalyptic signs are already fulfilled including the sun will be dark 25 the powers will be shaken 26 and then they will see 27 Yet some critics note that many are missing such as But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise and the elements will melt with fervent heat both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up 28 29 And Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven 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 30 31 Catholicism Edit nbsp The Last Judgment by Michelangelo 1541 in the Sistine Chapel RomeAccording to the Catholic Church the second coming will happen in a single moment suddenly and unexpectedly not even the angels saints or demons know when it will occur 32 It will cause the fullness of the reign of God and the consummation of the universe and mankind 33 The fullness of the reign of God means God fully manifests the victory he won over his enemies sin suffering and Satan on the Cross 34 Just as God gradually revealed himself to Israel until the birth of Jesus 35 so God gradually manifests his victory through the church s sacraments baptism forgiving sin and exorcising Satan holy unction relieving suffering etc 36 until the moment when he will fully manifest his victory through the consummation of the universe and mankind e g by granting the universe and mankind a share in Jesus resurrection the universe being transfigured and the dead being resurrected judged and recompensed 37 38 The church does not believe the second coming will happen via a catastrophe such as a nuclear war or extinction event 39 reincarnation such as someone claiming to be Jesus 40 social or technological progress such as mankind abolishing slavery or curing disease or ascendancy such as the church having political power 41 Nor does the church believe in double predestination 42 At the moment of Jesus arrival three events will happen all at once in an instant in the blink of an eye the living will die the universe will be transfigured and the dead will be resurrected judged and recompensed After this single instant or moment the church does not know what will happen for the rest of eternity only that the damned will continue to be in hell and the saved will continue to experience the beatific vision 43 The second coming is suspended until Jesus is recognized by all of Israel 44 and it will be followed by a final and ultimate temptation to sin in this case apostasy caused by the antichrist 45 Yet there are three things that hasten the second coming the celebration of the Eucharist 46 Christians living with the mind of Jesus 47 and Christians praying for the Second Coming 48 Like many Christian denominations the church considers this second coming of Christ to be the final and eternal judgment by God of the people in every nation 49 resulting in the glorification of some and the punishment of others The concept is found in all the Canonical gospels particularly the Gospel of Matthew A decisive factor in this Last Judgment during the second coming of Christ will be the question if the corporal and spiritual works of mercy were practiced or not during lifetime They rate as important acts of mercy charity and justice Therefore and according to the Biblical sources Matthew 25 31 46 the conjunction of the Last Judgment and the works of mercy is very frequent in the pictorial tradition of Christian art 50 Oriental Orthodoxy and Eastern Orthodoxy Edit It is the traditional view of Orthodox Christians preserved from the early Church that the Second Coming will be a sudden and unmistakable incident like a flash of lightning 51 They hold the general view that Jesus will not spend any time on the earth in ministry or preaching but come to judge mankind 52 They teach that the ministry of the Antichrist will take place right before the Second Coming 52 The Ethiopian Orthodox Church a part of the Oriental Orthodox communion of churches teaches that the second coming of Jesus will be radically different from his first coming which was to save the lost world 53 Orthodox layman Alexander Kalomiros explains the original Church s position regarding the Second Coming in River of Fire 54 and Against False Union 55 stating that those who contend that Christ will reign on earth for a thousand years do not wait for Christ but for the Antichrist The idea of Jesus returning to this earth as a king is a heretical concept to the Church equated to the expectations of the Jews who wanted the Messiah to be an earthly King The Church instead teaches that which it has taught since the beginning Lutheranism and Anglicanism Edit nbsp The Second Coming of Christ stained glass window at St Matthew s German Evangelical Lutheran Church in Charleston South Carolina United StatesA reference to the second coming is contained in the Nicene Creed and Apostles Creed which is recited during the Lutheran and Anglican liturgies He Jesus shall come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and His kingdom shall have no end An analogous statement is also in the biblical Pauline Creed 1 Corinthians 15 23 56 The Lutheran and Anglican churches proclaim the Mystery of Faith in their liturgies Christ has died Christ is risen Christ will come again 57 58 59 Methodism Edit Methodist denominations teach that the Second Coming is connected with the Last Judgment as professed in the Creeds 60 The United Methodist Church does not teach that there will be a rapture or otherwise speculate on the nature of the Second Coming 61 Latter Day Saint movement Edit Main article Second Coming in MormonismThe standard works of the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints LDS Church say that Christ will return as stated in the Bible They also teach thatWhen the Savior comes again He will come in power and glory to claim the earth as His kingdom His Second Coming will mark the beginning of the Millennium The Second Coming will be a fearful mournful time for the wicked but it will be a day of peace for the righteous 62 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints and its leaders do not make predictions of the actual date of the Second Coming Latter day Saints have particularly distinct and specific interpretations of what are considered to be signs stated in the Book of Revelation 63 According to the teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints the restored gospel will be taught in all parts of the world prior to the Second Coming 64 Church members believe that there will be increasingly severe wars earthquakes hurricanes and other man made and natural disasters prior to the Second Coming 65 Seventh day Adventists Edit Main article Seventh day Adventist eschatology Fundamental Belief 25 of the Seventh day Adventist Church states The second coming of Christ is the blessed hope of the church the grand climax of the gospel The Saviour s coming will be literal personal visible and worldwide When He returns the righteous dead will be resurrected and together with the righteous living will be glorified and taken to heaven but the unrighteous will die The almost complete fulfillment of most lines of prophecy together with the present condition of the world indicates that Christ s coming is imminent The time of that event has not been revealed and we are therefore exhorted to be ready at all times 66 67 Jehovah s Witnesses Edit Jehovah s Witnesses rarely use the term second coming preferring the term presence as a translation of parousia 68 They believe that Jesus comparison of the presence of the Son of man with the days of Noah at Matthew 24 37 39 and Luke 17 26 30 suggests a duration rather than a moment of arrival 69 They also believe that biblical chronology points to 1914 70 as the start of Christ s presence which continues until the final battle of Armageddon Other biblical expressions they correlate with this period include the time of the end Daniel 12 4 the conclusion of the system of things Matthew 13 40 49 24 3 and the last days 2 Timothy 3 1 2 Peter 3 3 71 72 Witnesses believe Christ s millennial reign begins after Armageddon 73 Emanuel Swedenborg and the New Church Edit Emanuel Swedenborg an 18th century scientist turned theologian taught that his time that historians have called the Age of Enlightenment was an age of darkness and doubt for the Christian church Historian Marguerite Beck Block writes Now therefore it was time for a new church to be founded upon the earth and for this purpose it was necessary for the Lord Himself to make his Second Coming to the sons of men The night is followed by a morning which is the coming of the Lord The prevailing opinion in the churches at the present day is that when the Lord shall come for the last judgment He will appear in the clouds of heaven with angels and the sound of trumpets etc but this opinion is erroneous The Second Coming of the Lord is not a coming in person but in spirit and in the Word which is from Him and is Himself Heretofore it has not been known that the clouds of heaven mean the Word in the sense of the letter and that the glory and power in which He is then to come mean the spiritual sense of the Word because no one as yet has had the least conjecture that there is a spiritual sense in the Word such as this sense is in itself But as the Lord has now opened to me the spiritual sense of the Word and has granted me to be associated with angels and spirits in their world as one of them it is now disclosed This Second Coming of the Lord is effected by means of a man to whom the Lord has manifested Himself in Person and whom He has filled with His Spirit that he may teach the doctrines of the New Church from the Lord by means of the Word That the Lord manifested Himself before me His servant and sent me to this office I affirm in truth 74 Esoteric Christian teachings Edit See also Last Judgment Esoteric Christian tradition In Max Heindel s teaching there is a distinction between the cosmic Christ or Christ without and the Christ within 75 According to this tradition the Christ within is regarded as the true Saviour who needs to be born within each individual 76 in order to evolve toward the future Sixth Epoch in the Earth s etheric plane that is toward the new heavens and a new earth 77 the New Galilee 78 The Second Coming or Advent of the Christ is not in a physical body 79 but in the new soul body of each individual in the etheric plane of the planet 80 where man shall be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air 81 The day and hour of this event is not known 82 The esoteric Christian tradition teaches that first there will be a preparatory period as the Sun enters Aquarius an astrological concept by precession the coming Age of Aquarius 83 Islam EditTraditional view Edit Main articles Jesus in Islam and Islamic eschatology In Islam Jesus or Isa Arabic عيسى ʿisa is considered to be a Messenger of God and the masih messiah who was sent to guide bani isra il the Israelites with a new scripture the Injil Gospel 84 The belief in Jesus and all other messengers of God is required in Islam and a requirement of being a Muslim However Muslims believe that Jesus was never crucified or resurrected instead ascending directly into heaven Additionally they do not recognize Jesus as the Son of God as they believe God has no equals but rather that he was merely a prophet The Quran states that Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary Muslims believe that Jesus performed all the miracles in the Gospels with God s permission The pertinent verses in Sura An Nisa 4 157 reads And for their saying Indeed we have killed the Messiah Jesus the son of Mary the messenger of Allah And they did not kill him nor did they crucify him but another was made to resemble him to them And indeed those who differ over it are in doubt about it They have no knowledge of it except the following of assumption And they did not kill him for certain 4 158 continues rather Allah raised him to Himself And ever is Allah Exalted in Might and Wise The Quran refers to a conversation between Jesus and God on judgement day in Sura Al Ma idah 5 116 5 117 Jesus is questioned 5 116 Did you ever ask the people to worship you and your mother as gods besides Allah To which Jesus replies 5 117 I never told them anything except what You ordered me to say Worship Allah my Lord and your Lord And I was witness over them as long as I remained among them And on Judgment Day Allah will say O Jesus son of Mary Did you ever ask the people to worship you and your mother as gods besides Allah He will answer Glory be to You How could I ever say what I had no right to say If I had said such a thing you would have certainly known it You know what is hidden within me but I do not know what is within You Indeed You alone are the Knower of all unseen 5 116 I never told them anything except what You ordered me to say Worship Allah my Lord and your Lord And I was witness over them as long as I remained among them But when You took me You were the Witness over them and You are a Witness over all things 5 117 In the Quran the second coming of Jesus is heralded in Sura Az Zukhruf as a sign of the Day of Judgment And Jesus shall be a Sign for the coming of the Hour of Judgment therefore have no doubt about the Hour but follow ye Me this is a Straight Way 43 61 85 Ibn Kathir presents this verse as proof of Jesus second coming in the Quran in his exegesis Tafsir al Qur an al Azim 86 There are also hadiths that foretell Jesus future return such as 87 Sahih al Bukhari Volume 3 Book 43 Kitab ul Ilm Book of Knowledge Hadith Number 656 Allah s Apostle said The Hour will not be established until the son of Mary i e Jesus descends amongst you as a just ruler he will break the cross kill the pigs and abolish the Jizya tax Money will be in abundance so that nobody will accept it as charitable gifts 88 According to Islamic tradition Jesus descent will be in the midst of wars fought by the Mahdi lit the rightly guided one known in Islamic eschatology as the redeemer of Islam against the al Masih ad Dajjal literally the false messiah synonymous with the Antichrist and his followers 89 Jesus will descend at the point of a white arcade east of Damascus dressed in saffron robes his head anointed He will then join the Mahdi in his war against the Dajjal Jesus considered in Islam as a Muslim one who submits to God and one of God s messengers will abide by the Islamic teachings Eventually Jesus will slay the Antichrist Dajjal and then everyone from the People of the Book ahl al kitab referring to Jews and Christians will believe in him Thus there will be one community that of Islam Sahih Muslim 41 7023After the death of the Mahdi Jesus will assume leadership This is a time associated in Islamic narrative with universal peace and justice Islamic texts also allude to the appearance of Ya juj and Ma juj Gog and Magog ancient tribes that will disperse and cause disturbance on earth God in response to Jesus prayers will kill them by sending a type of worm in the napes of their necks 89 Jesus rule is said to be around forty years after which he will die since according to Islam Jesus did not die on the cross but was taken up to heaven and continues to live until his return in the second coming Muslims will then perform the Salat al Janazah funeral prayer for him and bury him in the city of Medina in a grave left vacant beside Muhammad 87 Ahmadiyya Edit nbsp Mirza Ghulam AhmadMain article Jesus in Ahmadiyya Islam The Ahmadiyya movement believe that the promised Mahdi and Messiah arrived in the person of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad 1835 1908 This is widely rejected by other Muslims who do not regard Ahmadis as a legitimate sect of Islam The hadith sayings of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the Bible indicated that Jesus would return during the latter days Islamic tradition commonly depicts that Jesus upon his second coming would be an Ummati Muslim and a follower of Muhammad and that he would revive the truth of Islam rather than fostering a new religion The Ahmadiyya movement interpret the Second Coming of Jesus prophesied as being that of a person similar to Jesus mathil i ʿIsa and not his physical return in the same way as John the Baptist resembled the character of the biblical prophet Elijah in Christianity Ahmadis believe that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad the founder of the movement demonstrated that the prophecy in Muslim and Christian religious texts were traditionally misunderstood to suggest that Jesus of Nazareth himself would return and hold that Jesus survived the crucifixion and later died a natural death Ahmadis consider Ghulam Ahmad in both his character and teachings to be representative of Jesus and that he attained the same spiritual rank of Prophethood as Jesus Thus Ahmadis believe this prediction was fulfilled and continued by his movement 90 91 Bahaʼi Faith Edit nbsp The Shrine of Baha u llahAccording to the Bahaʼi Faith the Second Coming is a gradual process that coincides with the advancement of human civilization from the beginning of humanity It teaches that the founders of the major world religions each represent a return of the Word and Spirit of God as a new unique personification sent by God who introduces new teachings laws and revelations such that all major religions are part of a progressive revelation Each Coming is said to build upon the major world religions emerging from earlier ages verifying previous spiritual truths and fulfilling its prophesies regarding a future return or coming In this context the Second Coming is depicted as a continuation of God s will in one continuous faith with different names as presented by the founders of each religion as the voice of God at different times in history Baha u llah announced that he was a manifestation of the returned Christ understood as a reappearance of the Word and Spirit of God O thou who art waiting tarry no longer for He is come Behold His Tabernacle and His Glory dwelling therein It is the Ancient Glory with a new Manifestation 92 He wrote to Pope Pius IX He Who is the Lord of Lords is come overshadowed with clouds He verily hath again come down from Heaven even as He came down from it the first time Beware that thou dispute not with Him even as the Pharisees disputed with Him without a clear token or proof 93 He referred to himself as the Ancient of Days and the Pen of Glory 94 and also claimed This is the Father foretold by Isaiah and the Comforter concerning Whom the Spirit had covenanted with you Open your eyes O concourse of bishops that ye may behold your Lord seated upon the Throne of might and glory 95 Baha u llah also wrote Say We in truth have given Ourself as a ransom for your own lives Alas when We came once again We beheld you fleeing from Us whereat the eye of My loving kindness wept sore over My people 94 Followers of the Bahaʼi Faith believe that prophecies of the second coming of Jesus along with prophecies from other religions were fulfilled by his forerunner the Bab in 1844 and then by the events occurring during the days of Baha u llah 96 They believe that the fulfillment of Christian prophecies by Baha u llah is similar to Jesus fulfillment of Jewish prophecies where in both cases people were expecting the literal fulfillment of apocalyptic statements that led to rejections of the Return instead of accepting fulfillment in symbolic and spiritual ways Bahaʼis understand that the return of the Christ with a new name was intended by Jesus to be a Return in a spiritual sense due to Jesus explaining in the Gospels that the return of Elijah in John the Baptist was a return in a spiritual sense 97 98 Judaism EditMain article Judaism s view of Jesus See also Rejection of Jesus Judaism teaches that Jesus is one of the false Jewish Messiah claimants because he failed to fulfill any Messianic prophecies which include Build the Third Temple Ezekiel 37 26 28 Gather all Jews back to the Land of Israel Isaiah 43 5 6 Usher in an era of world peace and end all hatred oppression suffering and disease As it says Nation shall not lift up sword against nation neither shall man learn war anymore Isaiah 2 4 Spread universal knowledge of the God of Israel which will unite humanity as one As it says God will be King over all the world on that day God will be One and His Name will be One Zechariah 14 9 99 Regarding the Christian idea that these prophecies will be fulfilled during a second coming Ohr Samayach states we find this to be a contrived answer since there is no mention of a second coming in the Jewish Bible Second why couldn t God accomplish His goals the first time round 100 Rabbi David Wolpe believes that the Second Coming was grown out of genuine disappointment When Jesus died true believers had to theologically compensate for the disaster 101 Rastafari EditIn the early developments of the Rastafari religion Haile Selassie the Ethiopian Emperor was regarded as a member of the House of David is worshipped as God incarnate 102 and is thought to be the black Jesus and black messiah the second coming of Christ 103 It was claimed that Marcus Garvey preached the coming of the black messiah on the eve of Selassie s coronation Due to this prophecy Selassie was the source of inspiration of the poor and uneducated Christian populations of Jamaica who believed that the Emperor would liberate the black people from the subjugation of European colonists 104 Paramahansa Yogananda s commentary EditMain article The Second Coming of Christ book In modern times some traditional Indian religious leaders have moved to embrace Jesus as an avatar or incarnation of God In light of this the Indian guru Paramahansa Yogananda author of Autobiography of a Yogi wrote an extensive commentary on the Gospels published in 2004 as a two volume set The Second Coming of Christ The Resurrection of the Christ Within You 105 The book offers a mystical interpretation of the Second Coming in which it is understood to be an inner experience something that takes place within the individual heart In the introduction of this book Yogananda wrote that the true Second Coming is the resurrection within you of the Infinite Christ Consciousness Also stated in the Book of Luke Neither shall they say Lo here or lo there for behold the kingdom of God is within you Luke 17 21 Daya Mata wrote in the preface of The Second Coming of Christ that the two volume scriptural treatise thus represents the inclusive culmination of Paramahansa Yogananda s divine commission to make manifest to the world the essence of original Christianity as taught by Jesus Christ In sharing her memories of when she wrote down his words she shares the great Guru his face radiantly enraptured as he records for the world the inspired exposition of the Gospel teachings imparted to him through direct personal communion with Jesus of Nazareth 105 Larry Dossey M D wrote that Paramahansa Yogananda s The Second Coming of Christ is one of the most important analyses of Jesus teachings that exists Many interpretations of Jesus words divide peoples cultures and nations these foster unity and healing and that is why they are vital for today s world 106 In modern culture EditJesus Christ returning to earth has been a theme in several movies and books for example The Seventh Sign 1988 film starring Demi Moore about a pregnant lady who discovers the Second Coming of Christ has rented a room from her in order to begin the countdown that will trigger the Apocalypse Left Behind Film and book franchise 1995 built by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B Jenkins based on the time period before during and after the Second Coming of Christ End of Days 1999 action adventure film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger about a policeman who must stop Satan before he ends the world Thief In the Night by William Bernard Sears The popular TV and radio personality plays the role of a detective in writing a book about identifying the clues and symbols from the Biblical prophecies of the return of the Christ that have been overlooked or misunderstood and settles on a shocking conclusion 2002 1961 Oxford UK George Ronald ISBN 0 85398 008 X SCARS Christian Fiction End Times Thriller by Patience Prence 2010 novel about a girl named Becky who struggles through the time of the Great Tribulation 107 At the End of All Things by Stony Graves 2011 novel about the days following the Rapture and right before the Final War between God and Satan 108 The Second Coming A Love Story by Scott Pinsker 2014 novel about two men who claim to be the Second Coming of Christ Each claims that the other is a liar but only one is telling the truth 109 Black Jesus Adult Swim television series 2014 2015 and 2019 created by Aaron McGruder and Mike Clattenburg tells the story of Jesus living in modern day Compton California and his efforts to spread love and kindness on a daily basis He is supported in his mission by a small but loyal group of downtrodden followers while facing conflicts involving corrupt preachers ethnic tensions and the hate spreading activities of the manager of his apartment complex Good Omens TV Series and book franchise The Second Coming will be the focus of the upcoming third and final season See also EditFalse prophet Inaugurated eschatology List of messiah claimants List of people claimed to be Jesus Life of Jesus in the New Testament Mahdi Realized eschatology The Second Coming poem by William Butler YeatsReferences Edit Greek Lexicon G2015 KJV Blue Letter Bible Strong s G3952 Blueletterbible org Archived from the original on 2010 08 25 Retrieved 2009 11 21 1Co 16 17Template Bibleverse with invalid book 2Co 7 6 72Template Bibleverse with invalid book 2Co 10 10Template Bibleverse with invalid book Phil 1 26 2 12 2Thes 2 9 Gustav Adolf Deissmann 1908 Light from the Ancient East The New Testament Illustrated by Recently Discovered Texts of the Graeco Roman World a b Momen Moojan 1987 09 10 An Introduction to Shiʻi Islam The History and Doctrines of Twelver Shiʻism Yale University Press ISBN 978 0 300 03531 5 Public Sees a Future Full of Promise and Peril Section 3 War Terrorism and Global Trends Pew Research Center June 22 2010 Retrieved Feb 1 2016 Matt 24 34 35 Mark 13 30 31 Luke 21 32 33 International Standard Version Bible Gateway English Retrieved 2021 03 16 Freeman Charles The Closing of the Western Mind p 133 Vintage 2002 Schlachter 2000 Bible Gateway German Retrieved 2021 03 16 Dette er Biblen pa dansk Bible Gateway Danish Retrieved 2021 03 16 Svenska 1917 Bible Gateway Swedish Retrieved 2021 03 16 Det Norsk Bibelselskap 1930 Bible Gateway Norwegian Retrieved 2021 03 16 King James Version Bible Gateway Retrieved 2021 08 04 Larsen Iver 2010 01 28 Generation is a wrong translation choice for Greek genea Academia edu Retrieved 2021 03 16 Du Toit Philip La Grange 2018 08 15 This generation in Matthew 24 34 as a timeless spiritual generation akin to Genesis 3 15 Verbum et Ecclesia AOSIS 39 1 doi 10 4102 ve v39i1 1850 ISSN 2074 7705 Matt 16 28 Mark 9 1 Mark 13 30 Matt 24 34 Luke 9 27 Luke 21 32 Victor J Stenger 2009 Chapter 2 The Folly of Faith p 54 in The New Atheism published by Prometheus Books ISBN 978 1 59102 751 5 2 Peter 1 16 18 1 Future Survival Chuck Smith The Word for Today Costa Mesa CA 1978 page 17 2 The Life of Jesus Critically Examined David Strauss Sigler Press Ramsey NJ 1994 page 587 3 Jesus and The Last Days George Murray Hendrickson Publisher Peabody Mass 1993 pages 443 444 4 The Quest of the Historical Jesus Albert Schweitzer Macmillan NY 1968 page 240 5 Last Days Madness Gary DeMar American Vision Inc Atlanta GA 1994 page 114 6 The Parousia Stuart Russell T Fisher Unwin Pub London 1887 page 84 7 The Decline amp Fall of the Roman Empire Edward Gibbon Penguin Books NY 1985 page 276 8 Apocalypse of The Gospels Milton Terry 1819 chapter 18 reprinted and its pages renumbered in 1992 by John Bray PO Box 90129 Lakeland FL 33804 pages 34 amp 38 cf Mark 13 24 15 33 cf Mark 13 25 14 63 15 5 cf Mark 13 26 15 31 15 39 2 Peter 3 10 Austin Best White Horse Media whitehorsemedia com Matthew 24 30 Austin Best White Horse Media whitehorsemedia com CCC 1040 Catechism of the Catholic Church 1042 1050 CCC 671 CCC 69 CCC 1130 CCC 1042 CCC 1038 CCC 677 CCC 1013 CCC 678 CCC 1037 CCC 679 CCC 674 CCC 675 Catechism of the Catholic Church 1107 Catechism of the Catholic Church 2046 Catechism of the Catholic Church 671 Catholic Encyclopedia General Judgment Few truths are more often or more clearly proclaimed in Scripture than that of the general judgment To it the prophets of the Old Testament refer when they speak of the Day of the Lord Joel 2 31 Ezekiel 13 5 93 231700 6 register Holy BIBLE service name number Jermaine Thomas McCoy 93 231700 6 Isaiah 2 12 in which the nations will be summoned to judgment by the Fathers In the New Testament the Parousia or coming of Christ as Judge of the world is an oft repeated doctrine The Saviour Himself not only foretells the event but graphically portrays its circumstances Matthew 24 27 sqq SGT john 1 18 Parish all world threw Justice hall Dean Jermaine Thomas McCoy 25 31 sqq The Apostles Malachi peter phophet labour give a most prominent place to this doctrine in their preaching Acts 10 42 17 31 and writings Romans 2 5 16 14 10 1 Corinthians 4 5 2 Corinthians 5 10 2 Timothy 4 1 2 Thessalonians 1 5 James 5 7 Besides the name Parusia parousia or Advent 1 Corinthians 15 23 2 Thessalonians 2 19 the Second Coming is also called Epiphany epiphaneia or Appearance 2 Thessalonians 2 8 1 Timothy 6 14 2 Timothy 4 1 Titus 2 13 and Apocalypse apokalypsis or Revelation 2 Thessalonians 2 7 1 Peter 4 13 The time of the Second Coming is spoken of as that Day 2 Timothy 4 8 the day of the Lord 1 Thessalonians 5 2 the day of Christ Philemon 1 6 the day of the Son of Man Luke 17 30 the last day John 6 39 40 The belief in the general judgment has prevailed at all times and in all places within the Church It is contained as an article of faith in all the ancient creeds He ascended into heaven From thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead Apostles Creed The two shall come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead Nicene Creed From thence they shall come to judge the living and the dead at whose coming all men must rise with their bodies and are to render an account of their deeds Athanasian Creed Relying on the authority of Papias several Fathers of the first four centuries advanced the theory of a thousand years terrestrial reign of Christ with the saints to precede the end of the World see article on MILLENNIUM Though this idea is interwoven with the eschatological teachings of those writers it in no way detracted from their belief in a universal world judgment Patristic testimony to this dogma is clear and unanimous Ralf van Buhren Caravaggio s Seven Works of Mercy in Naples The relevance of art history to cultural journalism in Church Communication and Culture 2 2017 pp 63 87 Mt 24 27 a b Jesus is Coming Soon Orthodoxphotos com Retrieved 2009 11 21 Melketsedek Abba 1997 The Teaching of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Alem Publishers p 33 THE RIVER OF FIRE Saint Nectarios Press and Book Center Against False Union PDF Russian Orthodox Autonomous Church ROAC of America What Lutherans Teach about Christ s Second Coming Concordia Publishing House 4 January 2016 Retrieved 18 May 2021 Anglican Church of Canada Book of Alternative Services p 195 Paul E Engle and John H Armstrong eds Understanding Four Views on the Lord s Supper Zondervan Counterpoints Collection Grand Rapids MI Zondervan 2007 46 Tabletalk Magazine March 2005 The Exaltation of Christ Lake Mary FL Ligonier Ministries 2005 11 Gorrie Peter Douglass 1852 Episcopal Methodism Derby and Miller p 148 What does the UMC teach about the second coming The United Methodist Church Retrieved 31 December 2022 Second Coming of Jesus Christ Study Helps Gospel Topics LDS Church retrieved 2014 07 09 Chapter 43 Signs of the Second Coming Gospel Principles Salt Lake City Utah LDS Church 2011 pp 251 256 Matthew 24 14 KJV Doctrine and Covenants 45 26 Titus 2 13 Hebrews 9 28 John 14 1 3 Acts 1 9 11 Matthew 24 14 Revelation 1 7 Matthew 24 43 44 1 Thessalonians 4 13 18 1 Corinthians 15 51 54 2 Thessalonians 1 7 10 2 8 Revelation 14 14 20 Revelation 19 11 21 Matthew 24 Mark 13 Luke 21 2 Timothy 3 1 5 1 Thessalonians 5 1 6 28 Fundamental Beliefs of the Seventh day Adventists PDF p 11 last page of the pdf file Appendix 5B Christ s Presence Parousia New World Translation Large Reference Edition Watch Tower Society 1984 Presence Insight on the Scriptures Volume 2 c 1988 Watch Tower page 677 1900 Onward Skirts Splattered With Blood Awake 22 November 8 1989 Keep Jehovah s Day Close in Mind The Watchtower 21 September 1 1997 No Peace for the Wicked Ones The Watchtower 13 July 1 1987 There Is a Future for the Dead The Watchtower 200 April 1 1968 Block Marguerite Beck 1932 The New Church in the New World New York Henry Holt and Company p 38 The Rosicrucian Fellowship Eastern and Western Spiritual Alternatives Galatians 4 19 2Pet 3 13 3 7 Heindel Max How Shall We Know Christ at His Coming May 1913 stenographic report of a lecture Los Angeles ISBN 0 911274 64 2 1Cor 15 50 John 18 36 2Cor 5 1 3 Greek politeuma commonwealth Our commonwealth is in heaven Philippians 3 20 21 Matthew 24 30 1Thess 4 17 Acts 1 10 11 1John 3 2 Matthew 24 23 27 The Aquarian Age cf 1Cor 2 6 16 The Oxford Dictionary of Islam p 158 Yusuf Ali Abdullah Surah Az zukhruf kathir Ibn Tafsir al Qur an al Azim a b Isa Encyclopedia of Islam Sahih al Bukhari 3 43 656 a b Sonn Tamara 2015 Islam History Religion and Politics John Wiley amp Sons p 209 ISBN 978 1 118 97230 4 A Prophet Like Unto Moses The Promised Mehdi and Messiha by Aziz Ahmad Chaudhry Islam International Publications Limited The Four Questions Answered by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad AAIIL 1996 J E Esslemont 2006 Baha u llah and the New Era Bahaʼi World Centre Bahaʼi World Centre p 23 ISBN 0 87743 136 1 Baha u llah 2002 The Summons of the Lord of Hosts Baha i World Centre Bahaʼi World Centre pp 54 55 ISBN 978 1 931847 33 9 a b Baha u llah 2002 The Summons of the Lord of Hosts Haifa Israel Bahaʼi World Centre p 57 ISBN 978 1 931847 33 9 Baha u llah 2002 The Summons of the Lord of Hosts Haifa Israel Bahaʼi World Centre p 63 ISBN 978 1 931847 33 9 Buck Christopher 2004 The eschatology of Globalization The multiple messiahship of Baha u llah revisited In Sharon Moshe ed Studies in Modern Religions Religious Movements and the Babi Baha i Faiths Boston Brill pp 143 178 ISBN 978 90 04 13904 6 Baha i Prophecy Fulfilled Homepage bci org Archived from the original on 1999 05 08 Lambden Stephen Catastrophe Armageddon and Millennium some aspects of the Babi Bahaʼi exegesis of apocalyptic symbolism Bahai library com Retrieved 2009 11 21 Simmons Rabbi Shraga Why Jews Don t Believe in Jesus Accessed December 22 2011 Why Jews Don t Believe in Jesus Ohr Somayach Ask the Rabbi Accessed December 22 2011 Wolpe Rabbi David 2003 01 09 Why Jews Don t Accept Jesus Jewish Journal Jewish Journal Retrieved 2017 07 12 Rastafarian beliefs BBC 9 October 2009 Retrieved 12 September 2010 Asante Molefi Kete Mazama Ama 2005 Encyclopedia of Black Studies ISBN 9780761927624 Charet M 2010 Root of David The Symbolic Origins of Rastafari No 2 ISPCK a b Yogananda Paramahansa The Second Coming of Christ The Resurrection of the Christ Within You Self Realization Fellowship 2004 ISBN 978 0876125557 Dossey Larry Author of Healing Words The Power of Prayer and the Practice of Medicine Harper One ISBN 978 0062502520 Prence Patience July 27 2010 SCARS Christian Fiction End Times Thriller Spring Harvest ASIN B003XKNF1K At the End of All Things goodreads com Retrieved 2011 01 25 Pinsker Scott June 5 2014 The Second Coming A Love Story ISBN 978 1500167219 Bibliography EditC S Lewis 1960 The World s Last Night and Other Essays Harcourt Brace Jovanovich ISBN 0 15 698360 5 Max Heindel How Shall We Know Christ at His Coming May 1913 stenographic report of a lecture Los Angeles ISBN 0 911274 64 2 Markus Muhling Grundinformation Eschatologie Systematische Theologie aus der Perspektive der Hoffnung Vandenhoeck amp Ruprecht Gottingen 2007 ISBN 978 3 525 03619 8 221 241 James Stuart Russell The Parousia A Careful Look at the New Testament Doctrine of the Lord s Second Coming London 1887 Emanuel Swedenborg The Consummation of the Age the Coming of the Lord and the New Heaven and New Church Chapter 14 in The True Christian Religion Containing the Universal Theology of The New Church Foretold by the Lord in Daniel 7 13 14 and in Revelation 21 1 2 Swedenborg Foundation 1952 Henry Wansbrough The New Jerusalem Bible 1990 Doubleday ISBN 0 385 14264 1 Paramahansa Yogananda The Second Coming of Christ The Resurrection of the Christ Within You Self Realization Fellowship 2004 ISBN 978 0876125557External links Edit nbsp Wikiquote has quotations related to Second Coming nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Second Coming of Jesus Christ Lecture XV On the Clause And Shall Come in Glory to Judge the Quick and the Dead Of Whose Kingdom There Shall Be No End delivered by Cyril of Jerusalem in the mid 4th century The Second Coming a summary article A Critical Summary of The Second Coming by W B Yeats RiseNotes Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Second Coming amp oldid 1178078797, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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