Many Deceivers
Christ’s Olivet Discourse opens with a warning about the many deceivers who will propagate false expectations about the end.
Jesus begins his Olivet Discourse with an
ominous warning concerning coming deceivers who will claim his authority and
spread rumors about calamities. In this way, they will “deceive many.” He
repeats this warning at pivotal points in the discourse. For example, prior to
the coming of the Son of Man, “many false prophets will arise and deceive
many.”
No subject receives more stress in the
discourse than his repeated warning about deceivers and “false prophets.”
Their purpose will be to mislead his followers, “even very the elect.”
Jesus provides us with a list of natural and
manmade calamities he states do NOT signal the arrival of the “end.”
Yet, these events are the very “evidence” offered by these deceivers as
evidence of the rapidly approaching “end.” And in the passage, the emphasis is
on what disciples will “hear,” presumably, from the very same “deceivers.”
- (Mark 13:5-8) – “And Jesus began to say to them: Beware, lest anyone deceive you, for many will come on my name, saying, I am he, and will deceive many. And when ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars, be not alarmed; it must come to pass, but not yet is the end. For there will arise nation against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, there will be earthquakes in places, there will be famines. These things are the beginning of birth pangs.”
DECEIVERS
The point is not that disasters will not
occur, but they ARE NOT signs of the “end” – events, presumably,
that can be used to calculate the time of the end and the return of Christ.
For emphasis, this warning is found at the very
start of the discourse. Deceivers have plagued the church since its inception,
and there is a long history of heightened end-time expectations caused by false
teachers who point to these very kinds of disasters as harbingers of the
onrushing end. And very often, these false expectations have been based on the
very sorts of incidents that Jesus declared were NOT signs of the “end”
and his soon return.
“For many will come on the basis of my
name.” The Greek conjunction gar or “for” used in this clause
introduces the explanation. Many are deceived because false prophets make
claims “on” (epi) Christ’s name - they claim his authority for
their words and deeds.
“Moreover, you will hear of wars and
reports of wars.” The Greek conjunction de or “moreover” signifies
the further development of the subject. The Greek word rendered “rumors”
points to something that is heard.
The stress here is on the content of what
disciples will hear, and “reports of wars” reiterates the point. The
issue is not whether wars will occur. However, these deceivers spread “rumors
of wars” to raise false expectations about the imminence of the end.
Paul deals with this in his letter to the Thessalonians. False information about
the “day of the Lord” has caused consternation among members of the
congregation:
- (2 Thessalonians 2:1-2) – “Now we beseech you, brethren, touching the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together to him; to the end, you be not quickly shaken from your mind nor yet be troubled, either by spirit, or by word, or by epistle as from us, as that the day of the Lord is just at hand.”
CALAMITIES AS SIGNS?
Jesus affirms that human and natural
catastrophes will occur - earthquakes, wars, political upheavals, famines,
plagues, “terrors and great signs from heaven” – but his disciples must
“not be alarmed” by them.
Chaos and violence have characterized every era of human history, and therefore, they cannot be used to calculate the time of the end - (“The end is not yet”).
At most, calamities of this sort constitute a
“beginning of birth-pangs,” harbingers pointing to the eventual
consummation of the age, evidence that the present world order cannot continue
forever. Jesus acknowledges that such things will continue to occur, but he never
calls them “signs” or designates them as chronological keys for determining the
nearness of his return.
In Scripture, the analogy of “birth pains”
is common for the suddenness and inevitability of judgment and destruction. But
nowhere does Jesus predict any increase in the frequency or intensity of the calamities
listed by him - (Isaiah 26:17, 66:8, Jeremiah 6:24, 13:21, Hosea 13:13, 1
Thessalonians 5:1-3).
Attempts to calculate future dates by wars,
earthquakes, and the like are problematic. These things occur in the world with
regularity. What distinguishes one war or earthquake from another in its
prophetic importance?
In the version of the Discourse recorded in Luke,
an interesting element is added to the list: “Many will come in my name,
saying, I am he, and the season is at hand.” That clause confirms that these
deceivers will point to wars, earthquakes, and famines as evidence that the final
“season” (kairos) is at hand - (Luke 21:8-9).
And what “season” does he mean? Jesus
warns us that no one “knows the day and hour” when the “Son of Man”
will arrive except “the Father ALONE.” Disciples must “watch and
pray, for you know not when the season (kairos) is. He does not provide
us with any “signs of the times” by which we may ascertain the nearness
of the end, but instead, he warns us NOT to heed such claims by
deceivers - (Matthew 24:36, Mark 13:32-33).
And rather ironically, the presence of the very
deceivers who engage in such deceptions is indisputable proof that the “last
days” are underway.
Moreover, during troublesome times, “many
false prophets shall arise and deceive many.” And in the Greek clause, “many”
has the definite article or “the, and it refers to the same group, “the
many” that will be deceived by these “false prophets” - (Matthew
24:11-12, Mark 13:9-13).
To reiterate, Jesus continues to warn us to
this very day of the “MANY deceivers,” false prophets, and false teachers
who work within the church to mislead disciples about the future and a great
many other things.
What will count in the end is faithful endurance in bearing witness
and tribulations. And the deceivers' activities are part of the “tribulations”
that disciples must endure, but only “he who endures to the end will be
saved.”
