Lesson 13 Of The Series – Parables Of Vengeance

This lesson continues to show the “things which must shortly come to pass” of Revelation 1:1. These things were morally necessary. The saints expected to be avenged; Jesus had promised it; Paul predicted it; and in 2 Thessalonians, he told when it would happen.

Jesus’ Parables of Vengeance

Two references from the Gospels make it very clear that the saints expected to be avenged soon of the persecution they were experiencing at the hands of the Pharisaical Jews. One is the parable of the unjust judge in the context of the prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem: “Will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night? Will He keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice quickly.” (See also Luke 18:3-8, NIV).

The other parable is that of the vineyard, Matthew 21:33-45. It clearly shows that Jesus intended to take the “vineyard,” the Kingdom of Israel, away from the Pharisees and give it to the Christian saints, the Church. He fulfilled this promise and in doing so, He took vengeance upon those wicked Pharisees.

Paul Predicted Vengeance For The Saints

Paul predicted that the saints to whom he wrote, as well as himself would be avenged by the revelation of Jesus Christ, executing wrath upon their enemies. In his letter to the Thessalonians Paul mentions the suffering of the churches in Judea at the hands of:

“The Jews, who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to all men…In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit….The wrath of God has come upon them at last,” 1 Thessalonians. 2:14-16, NIV.

But the saints will not be under that wrath: “For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,” 1 Thessalonians 5:9.

“When The Lord Jesus Is Revealed From Heaven”

That wrath is described in 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10, NIV: “God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with His powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of His power on the day He comes to be glorified in His holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you because you believed our testimony to you.”

Also see Luke 21:27-32, (NIV), in the context of His message concerning the destruction of Jerusalem: “(27) And then shall they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory…. Lift up your heads, because your redemption is near…. (32) Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away till all be fulfilled.” And so it was.

The Church Confirmed That These Things Were Fulfilled

The early Church believed that these Scriptures were true as evidenced by the fact that they accepted them into the Canon. Therefore, they must have seen the destruction of Jerusalem and the dispersion of the remaining Jews as the fulfillment of their promised vindication, and must have believed that Jesus Christ was revealed from heaven in some publicly attested way such as was recorded by Josephus in the passage cited previously, (Wars 6.5.3).

Next Lesson: God Is Morally Obligated to Avenge His People, Continued.

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