by George Sidney Hurd
The Preterist Postmillennialists tend to sweep the testimony of the early Church under the carpet, simply saying - in spite of evidence to the contrary, that the majority position of the Church from the beginning has been Preterist and not Futurist. However, even the renowned historian, Schaff, who was not himself a Futurist, recognized that the Premillennial hope was indeed held by the Early Church Fathers. He said the following concerning their eschatology: “The most striking point in the eschatology of the ante-Nicene age is the prominent chiliasm, or millennarianism, that is the belief of a visible reign of Christ in glory on earth with the risen saints for a thousand years, before the general resurrection and judgment. It was indeed not the doctrine of the church embodied in any creed or form of devotion, but a widely current opinion of distinguished teachers, such as Barnabas (died AD 61), Papias (died AD 100), Justin Martyr (AD 100 – 165), Irenaeus (AD 130 – 202), Tertullian (AD 160 – 225), Methodius (died AD 311), and Lactantius (AD 250 – 325); while Caius (third century AD) , Origen (AD 184 – 253), Dionysius the Great (died AD 264), Eusebius (AD 265 – 340) as afterwards Jerome (AD 347 – 420) and Augustin (AD 354 – 430) opposed it… In connection with this the general expectation prevailed that the return of the Lord was near, though uncertain and unascertainable as to its day and hour, so that believers may be always ready for it. This hope, through the whole age of persecution, was a copious fountain of encouragement and comfort under the pains of that martyrdom which sowed in blood the seed of a bountiful harvest for the church… Justin Martyr…speaks repeatedly of the second parousia of Christ in the clouds of heaven, surrounded by the holy angels. It will be preceded by the near manifestation of the man of sin (anthropos tas anomias) who speaks blasphemies against the most high God, and will rule three and a half years. He is preceded by heresies and false prophets. Christ will then raise the patriarchs, prophets, and pious Jews, establish the millennium, restore Jerusalem, and reign there in the midst of his saints; after which the second and general resurrection and judgment of the world will take place.” [1] Also, the early Church historian Eusebius, who died in AD 339, traced the belief in the Futuristic Premillennial hope to the very feet of John the Revelator when he said: “These things are attested by Papias, an ancient man who was a hearer of John and a companion of Polycarp, in his fourth book. To these belong his statement that there will be a period of some thousand years after the resurrection of the dead, and that the kingdom of Christ will be set up in material form on this very earth.” [2] I would say that the likelihood that Papias who, according to Eusebius, was taught by John himself and was a companion of Polycarp, would teach a doctrine different from that of the Apostle John, is very remote indeed. Who would most likely reflect the original teaching of John the revelator? Papias who sat at John’s feet, or the Jesuit priest Alcasar who originated Preterism as an eschatology in the 17th century? I did a search of the writings of the Early Church Fathers and found that the Futuristic hope of a Premillennial return of Christ after the apostasy, the future Great Tribulation, and the manifestation of the man of sin, was a recurrent theme throughout all of their writings. They all lived many years after the A.D 70 destruction and did not see that as having been the Second Coming. If indeed Christ came in 70AD and every eye of all nations and tribes of the earth saw Him coming in power and great glory as Jesus said they would (Matt 24:30; Rev 1:7), we would expect to have record of someone having seen Him come. In fact, there is no record of anyone, Christian or non-Christian, who considered Christ to have come in AD 70. The following is a brief sampling of just a few of the references to the Futuristic hope made by the Early Fathers: Justin Martyr (AD 100 to 165) “…two advents of Christ have been announced: the one, in which He is set forth as suffering, inglorious, dishonoured, and crucified; but the other, in which He shall come from heaven with glory, when the man of apostasy, who speaks strange things against the Most High, shall venture to do unlawful deeds on the earth against us the Christians…” [3] “But I and others, who are right-minded Christians on all points, are assured that there will be a resurrection of the dead, and a thousand years in Jerusalem, which will then be built, adorned, and enlarged, [as] the prophets Ezekiel and Isaiah and others declare.” [4] Epistle of Barnabas (AD 120 to 150) “Ten kingdoms shall reign upon the earth, and a little king shall rise up after them, who shall subdue under one three of the kings. In like manner Daniel says concerning the same, ‘And I beheld the fourth beast, wicked and powerful, and more savage than all the beasts of the earth, and how from it sprang up ten horns, and out of them a little budding horn, and how it subdued under one three of the great horns.’” [5] The Shepherd of Hermas (2nd Century) “Go, therefore, and tell the elect of the Lord His mighty deeds, and say to them that this beast is a type of the great tribulation that is coming. If then ye prepare yourselves, and repent with all your heart, and turn to the Lord, it will be possible for you to escape it, if your heart be pure and spotless, and ye spend the rest of the days of your life in serving the Lord blamelessly.” [6] Irenaeus (AD 160 to 230) “But there is another among these heretics, Marcus by name, who boasts himself as having improved upon his master… Thus it appears as if he really were the precursor of Antichrist.” [7] “For he (Antichrist) being endued with all the power of the devil, shall come, not as a righteous king, nor as a legitimate king in subjection to God, but an impious, unjust, and lawless one; of whom the apostle thus speaks in the second Epistle to the Thessalonians: ‘Unless there shall come a falling away first, and the man of sin shall be revealed, the son of perdition, who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself as if he were God.’” [8] “And for this reason the apostle says: ‘Because they received not the love of God, that they might be saved, therefore God shall also send them the operation of error, that they may believe a lie, that they all may be judged who have not believed the truth, but consented to unrighteousness.’ For when he (Antichrist) is come, and of his own accord concentrates in his own person the apostasy, and accomplishes whatever he shall do according to his own will and choice, sitting also in the temple of God, so that his dupes may adore him as the Christ; wherefore also shall he deservedly ‘be cast into the lake of fire… whose coming John has thus described in the Apocalypse… And he will cause a mark [to be put] in the forehead and in the right hand, that no one may be able to buy or sell, unless he who has the mark of the name of the beast or the number of his name; and the number is six hundred and sixty-six," that is, six times a hundred, six times ten, and six units.’” [9] “But when this Antichrist shall have devastated all things in this world, he will reign for three years and six months, and sit in the temple at Jerusalem; and then the Lord will come from heaven in the clouds, in the glory of the Father, sending this man and those who follow him into the lake of fire; but bringing in for the righteous the times of the kingdom…and restoring to Abraham the promised inheritance.” [10] “If, however, any shall endeavor to allegorize [prophecies] of this kind, they shall not be found consistent with themselves in all points, and shall be confuted by the teaching of the very expressions [in question]. For all these and other words were unquestionably spoken in reference to the resurrection of the just, which takes place after the coming of Antichrist, and the destruction of all nations under his rule; in [the times of] which [resurrection] the righteous shall reign in the earth.” [11] Daniel too, looking forward to the end of the last kingdom, i.e., the ten last kings, amongst whom the kingdom of those men shall be partitioned, and upon whom the son of perdition shall come, declares that ten horns shall spring from the beast, and that another little horn shall arise in the midst of them, and that three of the former shall be rooted up before his face…and [everything] shall be given into his hand until a time of times and a half time,’ that is, for three years and six months, during which time, when he comes, he shall reign over the earth. Of whom also the Apostle Paul again…thus says: ‘And then shall the wicked one be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the spirit of His mouth, and destroy by the presence of His coming.” [12] “The Lord also spoke as follows to those who did not believe in Him: ‘I have come in my Father's name, and ye have not received Me: when another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive,’ calling Antichrist ‘the other,’ because he is alienated from the Lord. Which also he shall do in the time of his kingdom: he shall remove his kingdom into that [city], and shall sit in the temple of God, leading astray those who worship him, as if he were Christ. To this purpose Daniel says again: ‘And he shall desolate the holy place’…. And then he points out the time that his tyranny shall last, during which the saints shall be put to flight, they who offer a pure sacrifice unto God: ‘And in the midst of the week,’ he says, ‘the sacrifice and the libation shall be taken away, and the abomination of desolation [shall be brought] into the temple: even unto the consummation of the time shall the desolation be complete.’ Now three years and six months constitute the half-week.” [13] Tertullian: (AD 160 to 220) “Christ promises to the Jews their primitive condition, with the recovery of their country…. As for the restoration of Judea, however, which even the Jews themselves, induced by the names of places and countries, hope for just as it is described… But we do confess that a kingdom is promised to us upon the earth, although before heaven, only in another state of existence; inasmuch as it will be after the resurrection for a thousand years in the divinely-built city of Jerusalem…” [14] “In the Revelation of John, again, the order of these times is spread out to view…and that the city of fornication may receive from the ten kings its deserved doom, and that the beast Antichrist with his false prophet may wage war on the Church of God; and that, after the casting of the devil into the bottomless pit for a while, the blessed prerogative of the first resurrection may be ordained from the thrones; and then again, after the consignment of him to the fire, that the judgment of the final and universal resurrection may be determined out of the books. Since, then, the Scriptures both indicate the stages of the last times, and concentrate the harvest of the Christian hope in the very end of the world, it is evident, either that all which God promises to us receives its accomplishment then…” [15] Hippolytus (AD 170 to 236) “For John says, ‘And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.’ That is the half of the week whereof Daniel spake… What saith the prophet? ‘the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them,’ because they will not give glory to Antichrist… 53. These things, then, shall be in the future, beloved… That refers to the one thousand two hundred and threescore days (the half of the week) during which the tyrant is to reign and persecute the Church, which flees from city to city… 62. The Lord also says, ‘When ye shall see the abomination of desolation stand in the holy place (whoso readeth, let him understand), then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains, and let him which is on the housetop not come down to take his clothes; neither let him which is in the field return back to take anything out of his house. And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved.’ 64. These things, then, will come to pass, beloved, and the one week being divided into two parts, and the abomination of desolation being manifested then, and the two prophets and forerunners of the Lord having finished their course, and the whole world finally approaching the consummation, what remains but the coming of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ from heaven, for whom we have looked in hope? 67. These things, then, I have set shortly before thee, O Theophilus, drawing them from Scripture itself, in order that, maintaining in faith what is written, and anticipating the things that are to be, thou mayest keep thyself void of offence both toward God and toward men, ‘looking for that blessed hope and appearing of our God and Saviour’…” [16] Cyprian (AD 200 to 258) “For you ought to know and to believe, and hold it for certain, that the day of affliction has begun to hang over our heads, and the end of the world and the time of Antichrist to draw near, so that we must all stand prepared for the battle; nor consider anything but the glory of life eternal, and the crown of the confession of the Lord; and not regard those things which are coming as being such as were those which have passed away.” [17] Lactantius (AD 250 – 325) “When the close of the times draws nigh, a great prophet shall be sent from God to turn men to the knowledge of God, and he shall receive the power of doing wonderful things….” “But that king will not only be most disgraceful in himself, but he will also be a prophet of lies; and he will constitute and call himself God, and will order himself to be worshipped as the Son of God; and power will be given him to do signs and wonders, by the sight of which he may entice men to adore him. He will command fire to come down from heaven, and the sun to stand and leave his course, and an image to speak; and these things shall be done at his word, by which miracles many even of the wise shall be enticed by him. Then he will attempt to destroy the temple of God, and persecute the righteous people; and there will be distress and tribulation such as there never has been from the beginning of the world… As many as shall believe him and unite themselves to him, shall be marked by him as sheep; but they who shall refuse his mark will either flee to the mountains, or, being seized, will be slain with studied tortures. He will also enwrap righteous men with the books of the prophets, and thus burn them; and power will be given him to desolate the whole Earth for forty-two months.” [18] “Therefore the Son of the most high and mighty God shall come to judge the quick and the dead, as the Sibyl testifies and says: ‘For then there shall be confusion of mortals throughout the whole Earth, when the Almighty Himself shall come on His judgment-seat to judge the souls of the quick and dead, and all the world.’ But He, when He shall have destroyed unrighteousness, and executed His great judgment, and shall have recalled to life the righteous, who have lived from the beginning, will be engaged among men a thousand years, and will rule them with most just command…. Then they who shall be alive in their bodies shall not die, but during those thousand years shall produce an infinite multitude, and their offspring shall be holy, and beloved by God; but they who shall be raised from the dead shall preside over the living as judges…. About the same time also the prince of the devils, who is the contriver of all evils, shall be bound with chains, and shall be imprisoned during the thousand years of the heavenly rule in which righteousness shall reign in the world, so that he may contrive no evil against the people of God.” [19] Conclusion As one can see, reading the Early Church Fathers is just like reading the present-day writings of Futuristic Premillennialists. They speak of Daniel’s 70th week of years with its final three-and-a-half years as yet future and separate in time from the first 69 weeks of years. They speak of the apostasy and the tyranny of the Antichrist beginning at the mid-point of Daniel’s 70th week and ending when he is cast into the lake of fire at Christ’s Second Coming. They speak of the abomination of desolation as being the Antichrist sitting in a rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem. They speak of the mark of the Beast being required in the hand or in the forehead in order to be able to buy or sell. They speak of the final three-and-half years as a time of distress and tribulation such as has never been from the beginning of the world. They speak of the Second Coming and resurrection of the saints followed by Satan being bound for 1,000 years, during which time Christ will reign on the Earth with His saints. About the only thing that is altogether absent from their teaching which is heard among many Futurists today, is the mention of a rapture of the Church, seven years prior to His Second Coming. To the contrary, Justin Martyr speaks of the Antichrist as doing unlawful things against us, the Church during the tribulation. Tertullian also speaks of the Antichrist with his false prophet waging war on the Church of God and Hippolytus presents the Church as being persecuted during the Great Tribulation by the Antichrist. The only hint of a rapture before the Second Coming of Christ is mentioned by the Shepherd of Hermas. However, he appears to be referring to a partial “pre-Great Tribulation rapture” which would occur at the mid-point of Daniel’s 70th week, rather than at its beginning, as Pretribulationists teach. He seems to speak of this “escape” as only including those who have already prepared themselves prior to the Great Tribulation and for that reason will have no need of further purification in the fires of affliction. (For more on this subject see my book entitled: “Focusing in on End-time Events”). However, a pretribulation rapture seven years prior to the Second Coming of Christ is also of recent origin and is not an essential element of Futuristic eschatology. Therefore, we see that the Futurist Premillennial interpretation was that which was held by our Early Church Fathers. It is true that Amillennialism became predominant in the 5th Century, having been conceived through Origin’s spiritual/allegorical approach to Scriptures, and further developed and popularized by Augustine. It ruled the day throughout the Dark Ages and even into the beginnings of the Reformation. However, it is my conviction that we need to continue the Reformation until every historic biblical doctrine has been fully restored to the way they were before entering into the Dark Ages. This blog is an excerpt from my book: Last Days – Past or Present? [1] Schaff´s History of the Christian Church, Volume 1, chapter 12,158. Chiliasm. [2] Eusebius Church History Chapter 39 – The writings of Papias [3] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1, Justin Martyr; Dialogue with Trypho, Chapter 110 [4] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1, Justin Martyr; Dialogue with Trypho, Chapter 80 - The Opinion of Justin with Regard to the Reign of a Thousand Years. [5] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1, Epistle of Barnabus Chapter 4 [6] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Pastor of Hermas; Book 1 Visions Chapter 2 [7] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1 Irenaeus; Against Heresies Book 1 Chapter 13 [8] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1, Irenaeus: Against Heresies Book 5 Chapter 25 section 1 [9] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1, Irenaeus: Against Heresies Book 5 Chapter 28 section 2 [10] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1, Irenaeus: Against Heresies Book 5 Chapter 30 section 4 [11] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1, Irenaeus: Against Heresies Book 5 Chapter 35 section 1 [12] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1, Irenaeus: Against Heresies Book 5 Chapter 35 section 4 [13] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 1, Irenaeus: Against Heresies Book 5 Chapter 25 section 3,4 [14] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 3 Irenaeus: Against Heresies Book 3 Chapter 24 [15] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 3, Tertullian: (AD 160 to 220) Apologetic Writings – The chaplet, Chapter 25 [16] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 5, Hyppolytus (AD 170 to 236),Treatise on the Antichrist, Sections 47-67 [17] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 5, Cyprian (AD 200 to 258) The Epistles of Cyprian, Epistle 55 §1 [18] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Lactantius (AD 250 – AD 325) Volume 7, Book 7, Chapter 17 [19] Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 7, Lactantius (AD 250 – AD 325) Volume 7, Book 7, Chapter 24 – Of the Renewed World. 
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