Matthew 11:20-24: A Preterist Commentary

The Jewish War began on the Month that begins with the Holiday called the Day of Judgment

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Matthew 11:20-24 A Preterist Commentary: Summary and Highlights

            In Matthew 11:20-24, Jesus says that it would be more bearable for Tyre, Sidon and Sodom on the day of judgment than it would be for Korazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum.  The Roman army arrived in Jerusalem in A.D. 66 in Tishri, a month that begins with the Day of Judgment.  Korazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum were ravaged by the Romans during this war in fulfillment of Jesus’ warning in Matthew 11:20-24.

The following may seem unbelievable.  However, all information is taken from unbiased historical records, cited and is easily verifiable.

The Jewish War began on the Month that begins with the Holiday called the “Day of Judgment”

²⁰Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. ²¹“Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. ²²But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. ²³And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. ²⁴But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”

A Preterist Commentary on Matthew 11:20-24: Arriving in Israel in Tishri, a Month that begins with the “Day of Judgment,” the Romans attacked and destroyed all the Cities mentioned Above.

Though there is an underlying message about hell in these verses, these threats are also fulfilled in the Jewish War.¹  In A.D. 66, Israel declared war on Rome.  Rome responded by sending the 12^th legion in addition to thousands of auxiliaries from neighboring kingdoms.  These troops arrived in Tishri, a month that begins with the Day of Judgment.  It is on this day that trumpets sound the somber days of atonement and final judgment.²  Thus began the Jewish War.³

According to Josephus, the Jewish War was the worst war in history.⁴  Jesus echoed these words in Matthew 24:21.  In this verse, Jesus predicted that this war would bring unparalleled distress.   All the cities mentioned in these verses were attacked and destroyed by the Roman military.  In Luke 12:49 Jesus says, “I have come to bring fire on the earth. . . .” Just after the initial aspect of the Parousia in A.D. 66, the Roman army attacked Israel.  See Historical Evidence that Jesus was LITERALLY SEEN in the Clouds in the First Century.  The Romans demolished and burned the cities and countryside of Israel leaving the province a burning wasteland.  The fiery fate of Israel is itself an earthly reflection of hell.

 

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Interested in THE PRETERIST VIEW OF ESCHATOLOGY, or are you a PRETERIST struggling with a prophecy or verse?  It DID happen just like the Bible says!  If you liked this essay, see PRETERIST BIBLE COMMENTARY for a detailed explanation of the FULFILLMENT OF ALL MAJOR END TIME PROPHECIES IN THE BIBLE. The more unbelievable the prophecy, the more amazing and miraculous the fulfillment!

Also see Historical Evidence that Jesus was LITERALLY SEEN in the Clouds in the First Century. For an explanation of how the end of the age and its fulfillment during the Jewish War mirror Genesis 1-3; how the Bible teaches that the resurrection of the dead is a resurrection of heavenly bodies to heaven, not a resurrection of perfected earthly bodies; and how the resurrection is a mirror opposite of the fall see How the Jewish War and Resurrection to Heaven Mirror Genesis and the Fall; and How Preterism fixes the Age of the Earth Problem and unravels the Mysteries in Genesis.

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1. Perhaps the Jews who rejected the teachings of the apostles were consigned to a more severe punishment in the life to come than the citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah?
2. This fact accounts for the seven trumpets of Revelation.
3. Josephus indicates that the twelfth legion and a number of auxiliaries arrived in Ptolemais seemingly at the end of Elul or the beginning of Tishri. (Josephus The Wars of the Jews 2.18.9)  Josephus describes several brisk marches and brief skirmishes throughout Galilee that would seem to last roughly one month before Josephus states that Cestius had arrived in Lydda.  When the Roman general arrived at Lydda, he found the majority of the city had left to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles.  This holiday began on the fifteenth of Tishri and ended on the twenty-second.  This gave the Romans about fourteen to twenty-four days to complete the battles described by Josephus in The Wars of the Jews 2.18.9-2.19.1 taking into account the fact that the people of Lydda would have to travel twenty miles to Jerusalem.  By my estimation, it seems that the Romans must have begun their attack not more than a couple days away from the Feast of Trumpets, on the first day of Tishri, because fourteen to twenty-four days is a very likely timeframe between the arrival of the Romans and Cestius’ arrival at Lydda described in this portion of The Wars of the Jews.
4. Josephus The Wars of the Jews Preface.1.