Jonathan Kirsch - A History of the End of the World

Apocalyptic eschatology.“Eschatology,” strictly speaking, is the study of “last things”—that is, the end of the world and what comes afterward. “Apocalyptic eschatology” refers to the study of what God has supposedly revealed to human beings about “last things,” generally including predictions of a final and successful battle of the forces of good against the forces of evil, the resurrection of the dead, a final judgment with rewards for the good and punishments for the evil, and the advent of a new and eternal realm of divine perfection. Jewish apocalyptic eschatology focuses on the coming of an earthly redeemer and savior (see Messiah ) whose name and nature are the subject of speculation. According to Christian theology, Jesus of Nazareth is identified as the Messiah, and so Christian apocalyptic eschatology focuses on the return (or “Second Coming”) of Jesus. (see Parousia. )

Apocalypticism.A belief in the notion that God has disclosed various divine secrets to human beings through visions or other forms of revelation, including “the mysteries of heaven and earth” and, generally but not invariably, the time and circumstances of the end of the world. (See Apocalyptic eschatology. ) Some scholars regard apocalypticism purely as a theological matter, but others insist that it also applies to social and political movements and phenomena. Apocalypticism is often (but not always) alloyed with a belief in the establishment of a golden age on earth. (See Millennialism. )

Armageddon.The place-name used in the book of Revelation to identify the site of the final battle between the armies of God and the armies of Satan at the end of the world. The name is apparently derived from the Hebrew phrase Har Megiddo (“Hill of Megiddo”), a site in northern Israel that controls the approach to a strategic pass and thus figured in several historical battles, some of which are mentioned in the Hebrew Bible (e.g., 2 Kings 23:29).

Bible.The Bible as it is known and used in Jewish tradition is called the Tanakh, a Hebrew acronym for the Five Books of Moses ( Torah ), the Prophets ( Nevi’im ), and the various other biblical writings ( Ketuvim ). Torah, a Hebrew word that carries the meaning of both “law” and “teaching,” refers to the first five books of the Bible, also known as the “Five Books of Moses” because they were traditionally ascribed to Moses, or the “Pentateuch” (a Greek word that means “five scrolls”). The Hebrew Bible is known in Christian usage as the “Old Testament,” and the “New Testament” is the term used to describe the four Gospels, the letters (or “epistles”) of Paul and other Christian authors, and the historical narrative titled the Acts of the Apostles. “The Bible,” as the term is used in Christian circles, includes both the Old Testament and the New Testament.

Chiliasm.See Millennialism.

Dispensational premillennialism.See Dispensationalism.

Dispensationalism.A doctrine in Christian apocalyptic tradition that divides the history of humankind into ages (or “dispensations”), each one characterized by a distinctive theme and set of events, and all of which are believed to be stages in the divine plan for the end of the world. One variety of dispensationalism, variously known as “dispensational premillennialism” or “premillennial dispensationalism,” holds that we are now living in the so-called Church Age, which began with the rejection of Jesus of Nazareth by the Jewish people in antiquity and will end only when Jesus returns to earth and establishes a millennial kingdom. (See also Millennialism. ) Among the articles of faith in dispensational premillennialism is the doctrine of the Rapture—that is, the belief that faithful Christians will be spared the sufferings of the Tribulation by sudden removal to heaven before the end-times. (See also Rapture and Tribulation. ) Dispensational premillennialism also assigns an important role to the Jewish people, whose return to sovereignty in Israel is seen as an event that must take place before the second coming of Jesus Christ and the end of the world.

Eschatology.See Apocalyptic eschatology.

Futurism.See Preterism.

Historicism.See Preterism.

Messiah.“Messiah” is an English word derived from the Hebrew word moshiach, which means “the anointed one”—that is, someone who has been anointed with oil. As used in the Hebrew Bible, moshiach usually refers to a priest, a king, or some other human being who is designated by God for a special and important task. By late biblical antiquity, however, the Messiah came to be seen in Jewish tradition as a savior who would be sent by God to relieve the suffering of the Jewish people and reign over an earthly realm of peace and security. In Jewish tradition, the Messiah is understood to be human rather than divine, although it is believed that he will be sent by God and endowed with remarkable power and authority. Christianity sees Jesus of Nazareth as the long-promised Messiah but also introduces the concept that the Messiah is divine—that is, the Son of God. “Messianism” is a term used to describe the belief in the coming of a savior or redeemer, whether human (as in Judaism) or divine (as in Christianity).

Messianism.See Messiah.

Millennialism.“Millennialism,” a term derived from the Latin word for “thousand,” is the belief in the coming of a future golden age on earth under a redeemer sent by God, a concept that is rooted in Jewish messianic tradition but finds its fullest expression in the book of Revelation with the prediction that Jesus Christ will reign over a divine kingdom on earth for one thousand years after his second coming. (See Parousia. ) Used more loosely, the same term is sometimes used to identify the belief in a future age of peace and prosperity on earth without specific reference to the Christian tradition of the thousand-year reign of Jesus Christ. “Millennialism,” “millenarianism,” and “chiliasm,” which is derived from the Greek word for “thousand,” are all roughly equivalent in meaning and are sometimes used interchangeably. However, “millenarianism” is often reserved for the beliefs and practices of the most radical and violence-prone millennial movements.

Variants of the term are used in scholarly and religious writings to describe a variety of specific beliefs about the timing and nature of the millennial kingdom. “Premillennialism” is the belief that Jesus Christ will return before the millennial kingdom is established. “Postmillennialism” is the belief that Jesus Christ will return only after the millennial era—that is, after the world (or, according to some varieties of postmillennialism, the church) has been purged of evil. “Amillennialism” or “antimillenialism” is the belief that the thousand-year reign of Christ as described in Revelation should be understood purely as an allegory for the spiritual perfection of the human soul or human institutions and not as a prediction that Jesus Christ will actually return to earth for a thousand years prior to the end of the world and the final Day of Judgment.

Premillennialism can be subdivided into several categories. “Pretribulationists” believe that faithful Christians will be removed to heaven (or “raptured”) before the Tribulation. “Midtribulationists” believe that the Rapture will take place after Antichrist has come to power but before the final Day of Judgment. “Posttribbulationists” believe that even faithful Christians must endure the Tribulation before they are removed to heaven at the end of the world. (See Rapture and Tribulation. )