J.
DWIGHT PENTECOST’S VIEWS
OF
MATTHEW 25:31-46
MAJOR ISSUES RAISED:
Pentecost gives his opinion on three
major issues related to this chapter:
1. What
is the Sheep and Goats Judgment? Who are
those judged? What is the basis of their
judgment?
2. When
will the Sheep and Goats Judgment take place?
3. What
is the nature of the Kingdom?
WHAT IS THE “SHEEP AND GOATS
JUDGMENT”?
The first question that Pentecost
addresses is whether the word “nations” (ethne)
refers to nations as whole or to individuals within those nations. Pentecost concludes that, in this context,
the term “nations” refers to individuals within the Gentile nations. He cites a number of other passages that uses
the term to refer to individuals: Matthew
6:31-32; 12:21; 20:19; 28:19; Acts 11:18; 15:3; 26:20 (Pentecost, 421). Moreover, he, following Peters, concludes
these are living, not resurrected,
Gentiles—living at the time of the Second Coming (Pentecost, 417) and awaiting
the return of Christ (Pentecost, 214).
What
is the purpose of this judgment? It is
to decide who among the Gentiles will enter the Millennial Kingdom (Pentecost,
422). These Gentiles are the living
survivors of the Tribulation period.
They are gathered before Christ after His Second Coming and are judged,
as Jesus describes it in this passage, and are either accepted into the
Millennium or condemned into the lake of fire (Pentecost, 315, 412).
The
basis of the judgment is stated to be what the subjects have done to “the least
of these my brothers.” (Matthew 25:40, English Standard Version—as are other
Scripture quotations) This raises two
questions:
·
Who are “my brothers”?
·
Is this a judgment of works?
Pentecost
concludes that the “brothers” of Christ are the 144,000 Israelites described in
Revelation 7:1-8 and 14:1-5. Pentecost
describes them as a “believing remnant” and equates them with what he calls the
“believing witnesses” that he understands to be described in Isaiah
66:19-21. Pentecost further identifies
this group to be the ones who preach the “gospel of the kingdom” in all the
world (Matthew 24:14). Those who
“accepted their gospel accepted the messenger…” (Pentecost, 419). Thus, the description of the sympathetic care
for the “brothers” is interpreted to be an acceptance of these messengers and
their message.
This Scripture also gives rise to
the question: is this a judgment of
works. Pentecost rejects that conclusion
by giving the following reasoning.
First, the outcome of the judgment is the eternal destiny of the
subjects; they are either received into the Millennial Kingdom or they are sent
to the lake of fire. Second, it is the
established doctrine of Scripture that eternal destiny is not by works but by
acceptance of the saving work of Christ.
Therefore, this, though it appears to be on the basis of works, is not a
judgment of works. The works described
are evidence of the born-again state of the “sheep.” (Pentecost, 418-419)
WHEN WILL THE “SHEEP AND GOATS
JUDGMENT” TAKE PLACE?
Pentecost believes that this
judgment that is described in Matthew 25:31-46 will take place following the
Second Coming of Christ before the institution of the Millennial Kingdom. It follows the judgment of upon the living
Israelites, which he believes is referred to in Matthew 25:1-30. (Pentecost, 415)
Pentecost is adamant that the “Sheep
and Goats Judgment” (my term) is not the “Great White Judgment” (I capitalize
the term, but it is a common designation for the judgment described in
Revelation 20:11-15.). Pentecost devotes
some space in distinguishing these two judgments. He begins by rejecting the idea of a “general
judgment.” I cannot find his definition
for this term, but I gather he means a judgment in which both righteous and
unrighteous stand for judgment. “It
would seem that even the casual observer,” he writes, “could see that the Word
of God can not be made to support the idea of a general judgment, when there
are no less than eight different judgments mentioned in the Scripture, each
with a different time, place, subject, basis and result. Those who posit such a general judgment
identify the judgment of the Gentiles (Matt.25:31-46) with the judgment of the
great white throne (Rev. 20:11-15).
There are a number of distinctions between these two judgments which
makes it impossible to make them the same judgment.” (Pentecost, 425) The following table gives his distinctions
between the two judgments:
PENTECOST’S DISTINCTIONS
BETWEEN THE “GREAT WHITE THRONE”
AND
“SHEEP AND GOATS” JUDGMENTS
(Pentecost, 425-426)
|
SHEEP AND GOATS
|
GREAT WHITE THRONE
|
|
·
No resurrection
·
Living nations
·
Nations
·
On earth
·
No books
·
At the return of Christ
·
Righteous & wicked
·
Some go into Kingdom and some to punishment
·
Judge on throne of His glory
·
Basis is treatment of the brethren
·
Coming of Christ precedes the judgment
·
Sentence is announced and separation is made
before the cause of judgment is known
·
5 classes of beings are mentioned: Son of man, sheep, goats, brothers, angels
|
·
Resurrection
·
Dead
·
No nations
·
Heaven & earth fled
·
Books
·
After 1000 years have expired
·
Only wicked
·
None to blessing, all to eternal punishment
·
Judge on great white throne
·
Basis is evil works
·
No coming mentioned
·
No judgment until after careful examination of
the books
·
Only God and one class of people are mentioned
|
WHAT IS THE NATURE OF THE KINGDOM?
This is a huge theological
question. It is not one to be considered
in relation to the present passage. And
yet, as I studied Pentecost’s viewpoint of the Sheep and Goats Judgment, a
number of issues concerning the Kingdom of God arose. I shall consider a few of those. As I do so, I shall be omitting many
issues. My intention is to give some
insight into Pentecost’s interpretative perspective. In some cases, I believe that Pentecost
develops a strong rationale and defense for his position, but that certain
biases (especially the Pretribulation Rapture Theory and a strong defense of
Premillennialism) are the ultimate motivating factors. Whether that is true does not necessarily
detract from some of his arguments or conclusions.
I shall begin with a summary of the
Dispensationalist prophecy time line, which is given below, as follows:
·
Jesus’ ministry of about 3 ½ years
·
Jesus death, burial, resurrection, and
ascension
·
The church begins at Jerusalem, most
visibly, on the Day of Pentecost: the beginning
of the church age
·
Those saved during the church age and
who have died are resurrected and those who are living at that time are
raptured and both groups go into heaven
·
The 70th Week/Tribulation
begins and lasts for 7 years. During
that time…
o
A group of 144,000 Israelites become
special witnesses to the coming Kingdom of God and evangelize many Jews, who
receive Christ
o
A group of Gentiles also receive this
witness and also await the Kingdom
o
The Antichrist/Beast arises and
persecutes believers as well as all Israelites
·
At the end of the Tribulation, Christ
returns to earth, defeating the Antichrist/Beast
·
The living Israelites are judged as to
whether they are born again believers or not
·
The living Gentiles are also judged
·
Those who are born again are admitted
into Christ’s Kingdom, which lasts 1000 years
·
Those who are not born again are
rejected from the Kingdom; at least the Gentiles are thrown into the Lake of
Fire
·
The Millennium continues for 1000 years
·
There is a brief rebellion led by Satan;
Satan is cast into the Lake of Fire
·
The dead unbelievers are brought back to
life and judged at the Great White Throne judgment
·
The Eternal Kingdom ensues
There are several
important principles that are intertwined with this time line, as follows:
·
The Kingdom “program” (a favorite term
of Pentecost) is separate from the church program of God. (Pentecost, 212 and elsewhere)
·
The church destiny is a “heavenly
destiny.” (Pentecost, 212)
·
The Kingdom has an earthly destiny. (Pentecost, 212)
·
The Kingdom is a “theocratic
kingdom.” It began in Eden and was
manifested in human government, the Hebrew patriarchs, the judges, the Hebrew
monarchy—especially David, and the Hebrew prophets. (Pentecost, 433-444)
·
The theocratic kingdom will be fully
realized in the Millennial Kingdom under Christ. (Pentecost, 472)
As
one reads Pentecost, one eventually becomes aware that this division of God’s
work on earth runs throughout Pentecost’s thinking. As I read further and further into his book,
I began to feel that the Millennium was, for Pentecost, the climax of God’s
work and of all prophecy. The Millennial
Kingdom overshadows every Scripture, it seems.
The church is really just a parenthesis in God’s plans.
As
he discusses Matthew 24-25, Pentecost understands the Olivet Discourse to be a
statement of the destiny of the Hebrew nation.
The church is simply not in view.
As he comes to chapter 25, he understands the entire chapter to portray
two judgments that take place after the Second Coming of Christ and before the
start of the Millennium (his justification for this view is discussed in the
previous article). The first two
passages—the parables of the virgins and of the talents—depict the judgment of
the living Israelites to determine who among them will enter the Millennial
Kingdom. The last passage—the Sheep and
Goats Judgment—depicts a judgment of the living Gentiles, as I have already
described.
The
living Gentiles who are accepted into the Kingdom have been born again, as
demonstrated by their treatment of the messengers of Christ (also discussed
above). Pentecost affirms that only
those who are born again can enter the Kingdom,
referring to John 3:3 as justification.
(Pentecost, 420) When I first
noted his reference to John 3:3 as referring to the Millennial Kingdom, I was a
little shocked. It was one of those
passages in Pentecost that alerted me to his perspective. Whereas thousands of preachers have used that
passage to refer to being saved, not very many have given it the kind of spin
that makes being born again a prerequisite to entering the Millennial
Kingdom. Note that I am not disputing
that conclusion. I am simply noting the
very different emphasis that Pentecost makes.
Most people just pass over the part about the Kingdom of God. For Pentecost, it is all important.
The
living Gentiles who enter the Millennial Kingdom are really not entering a
Kingdom planned for them. In fact, they
will be subject to the Israelites, according to Pentecost. (Pentecost, 508) The fact that they will enter the Kingdom is
a matter of prophecy and fulfills the “universal aspects of the Abrahamic
covenant.” (Pentecost, 508) But the focus of God’s work in the Millennium
is to establish His sovereignty over the earth through the fulfillment of the
Davidic covenant and the exaltation of Israel (Pentecost, 432, 492, and 508),
for “this is Israel’s kingdom” (Pentecost, 422).
COMMENTARY
In my view, Pentecost imposes an
interpretation on chapter 25 that is questionable. First, he has a set of assumptions that guide
his interpretation of chapter 24. These
can certainly be argued with, but he does make some good arguments for his
point of view. That point of view is
that this chapter is directed toward the Hebrews and deals with their destiny—and
that it is silent regarding the church.
As he uses those assumptions, he is able to “see” various events that he
believes are well-established from other Scripture. When he comes to chapter 25, he rationalizes
much of what he says by noting that the chapter begins with the word
“then.” This gives him warrant to
consider that the chronology that paused at 24:31 is continuing. So, the three pericopes of the chapter depict
events that take place immediately after the Second Coming. He decides that the first two both relate to
the judgment of the Hebrews and the third to the judgment of the Gentiles.
I
believe that the church is in view in these chapters. This gospel, though it has many Jewish
elements, is a Christian document. The
disciples would become apostles of the church.
In the depiction of the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21:9ff, there are 12
gates in the walls that were named after the 12 tribes of Israel and 12
foundations that were named after the 12 apostles. It seems evident that this is depicting the
amalgamation of the people of God. And
in that amalgamation, the apostles are representative of the church—not
Israel. So, as Jesus spoke the Olivet
Discourse to four of the apostles, He was speaking to the representatives of
the church.
Chapter
25 makes it clear that the coming of Christ will bring about distinctions and that
there will be an accounting. The five
foolish virgins were not spiritually prepared for the coming of Christ and were
told, “I do not know you.” The three
servants gave an account for their stewardship of what had been put in their
trust, but also for their attitudes toward the Lord.
The
Sheep and Goats Judgment is the one passage in chapter 25 that is not parabolic
in character. Pentecost gives explicit
reasons why one should not consider this as identical to the Great White Throne
Judgment in Revelation 20. His reasoning
is good, yet I am not fully convinced.
Many Christians split up judgment in various ways. Pentecost counts 8 different judgments
(Pentecost, 425). Many make much of what
they call a “judgment of works” for the rewards of the Christian. Yet, in various mentions of judgment, there
is not explicit teaching that would distinguish these various judgments as
occurring in separate times and places and with different subjects. Rather, in some cases, a particular aspect of
the concept of judgment is dealt with.
For example, Paul states in II Corinthians 5:10: “For we must all appear before the judgment
seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has
done in the body, whether good or evil.”
A standard teaching that has long been accepted is that this refers to
the “Bema” judgment of the Christian works, that it will take place in heaven
after the (Pretribulation) Rapture of the church and before the Second Coming,
and that it is entirely separate from the Great White Throne Judgment. There are good reasons to believe this. Yet, the passage itself does not demand all
of this teaching. In fact, it does not
necessarily preclude the judgment occurring at the Great White Throne.
I do agree with
Pentecost that the Sheep and Goats Judgment need not teach salvation by
works. The kindness of the Sheep
exhibits to the “brothers” of Christ gives evidence of a born-again life
style. Just as the Philippian jailer
showed kindness to Paul and Silas after his conversion (Acts 16), those who
have received Christ will show kindness to those identified with Christ, especially
those who are persecuted because of the Word.
Pentecost declares that these are persons who have been born again, but
he—because of his eschatological time chart—cannot identify them as part of the
church. He also believes that the
description of the judgment scene does not coincide with the judgment scene of
the Great White Throne. However, I think
one could just as easily see a parallel account. The following table is my version of a
comparison of the two judgments:
COMPARISON
OF THE
GREAT
WHITE THRONE JUDGMENT TO THE
SHEEP
AND GOATS JUDGMENT
|
SHEEP AND GOATS
|
GREAT WHITE THRONE
|
|
No
resurrection stated but not ruled out
|
Resurrection
implied because “dead”
are
mentioned
|
|
Living
nations are not specifically mentioned
|
The
dead are mentioned
|
|
Nations
(Gentiles) are mentioned, but Pentecost argues these are of individuals
|
Individuals
are implied
|
|
On
earth is not implied: simply says
“when the
Son
of Man comes…”
|
Heaven
and earth flee away
|
|
No
books are mentioned, but a record has obviously been kept
|
Books
are mentioned
|
|
Does
not state that this will occur immediately after Jesus returns; it only
states that it will occur subsequent to His return
|
A
1000 year (of debatable meaning) period is mentioned before this judgment
|
|
Righteous
and wicked are present
|
The
“dead” may imply only wicked are present, but it could imply that all people
will be judged; there are mentions of a judgment or separation of all people
(John 5:28-29 and
Hebrews
9:27)
|
|
Some
go to punishment and some inherit the Kingdom
|
Those
who are not found in the book of life go to punishment; nothing is stated explicitly
of the destiny of those found in the book of life, except that the very next
chapter describes the new heaven and new earth
|
|
Judge
on the throne of His glory
|
Judge
on the Great White Throne, which could very well be equivalent to the throne
of glory
|
|
Basis
is treatment of the brothers; however, Pentecost has made the case that this
is
evidence
of their born-again
status
or lack of it
|
Basis
is evil works, but it is also whether they are found in the Book of Life,
which is determined (as Pentecost would surely agree) by the born-again
status
|
|
Coming
of Christ precedes the judgment
|
The
coming of Christ is not mentioned in the immediate context, but the Book of
Revelation evidences that the Second Coming has already occurred
|
|
Sentence
is announced and separation is made before the cause of judgment is made
known; however, it is obvious that the record of deeds has been carefully
examined before the separation has been made.
|
No
judgment until after careful examination of the books
|
|
5
classes of beings are mentioned
|
Only
2 classes are mentioned; this is a trivial contrast that only says that
details are given in one account that are not given in the other
|
I
think this table opens the possibility that the Sheep and Goats Judgment is the
same as the Great White Throne Judgment.
UNDERSTANDING
THE FUNCTION OF THE PASSAGE: I believe
that it is important to step back from this chapter and ask what its function
is in the Olivet Discourse. Pentecost
leverages the idea that chapter 25 is a continuation of the chronology that
ends in 24:31. However, I do not think
that is warranted. First of all, the
Lord uses parabolic language at the very beginning of the chapter: “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like…” This language alerts us to Jesus continuing
His commentary on the issues that His Second Coming raises. In chapter 24:32-51, He discusses…
·
The evidence of coming events as the
leafing of a fig tree evidences the coming of summer
·
The spiritual obliviousness of many as
in the days of Noah
·
The separation of people that His coming
will bring
·
The watchfulness needed as a householder
watches for a thief
·
The necessity of servants to be about
their duty
Now,
in chapter 25, He continues His commentary on the certainty of His coming. The emphasis in the commentaries in chapter
24 was on preparedness for His coming.
This theme continues in the parable of the virgins. The latter two passages give more of an
emphasis on the kind of accountability that will be required. In the parable of the talents, the emphasis
is on accountability for those opportunities and responsibilities that have
been given to servants. In the final
passage, the Sheep and Goats Judgment, the accountability is of how servants
have responded to the needs of the “brothers.”
In Matthew 10 Jesus discusses the whole issue of ministry. Toward the end of the chapter, He discusses
the response to ministry. Note
especially the following words:
“Whoever receives
you receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. The one who
receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and
the one who receives a righteous person because he is a righteous person will
receive a righteous person’s reward. And whoever gives one of these little
ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he
will by no means lose his reward.”
(Matthew 10:40-42)
Under
the same principles, Jesus, on Mount Olives, is speaking to those who will be
ordained to go to the “nations.” He is
telling them that the people of all nations will have a great opportunity to
experience the light of the Gospel through the “brothers” of Christ. Some will welcome them. Others will persecute them. They will be judged according to their
reception of the message—according to their faith. But that faith will be evidenced by their
treatment of the messengers.
THE NATURE OF THE KINGDOM: Pentecost has both a broad and a narrow view
of the Kingdom of God. He acknowledges
there is a “spiritual kingdom” that would include, for example, the
church. However, he focuses on the “theocratic
kingdom. He understands this to be God’s
earthly rule, whether it be in Eden, through human government in the days
following the flood, through the patriarchs, or through the Hebrew
monarchy. This theocratic kingdom
“program” has been, since Abraham, concentrated on the land of Israel and the
Israelite nation. The Old Testament
prophecies of eventual glory and worldwide domination of Israel is the promise
of the theocratic kingdom.
When
Jesus came and announced, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17), He was “offering” the kingdom
to the Jews. However, the Jews rejected
His Messianic claims and His offer of the Kingdom. He was crucified, bringing about salvation
and then inaugurated the church “program.”
The church, however, is a parenthesis in the plan of God. Eventually, in the 70th
Week/Tribulation, the nation of Israel will again have the “gospel of the
kingdom” preached to her. (The church
will be absent, having been raptured.)
Many (Hebrews and Gentiles) will accept that gospel and look forward to
the coming of the King. This will take
place at the Second Coming. When Jesus
returns, He will establish the Kingdom of God on earth, which will last for
1000 years. At the end of that period, a
series events will take place that eventually lead into the Eternal Kingdom.
My
understanding of the Kingdom is a little different, as follows:
·
The first 11 chapters of Genesis give a
synopsis of the world in its fallen state.
Three times evil is judged—by expelling Adam and Eve from the garden,
through the flood, and at the Tower of Babel.
·
With the call of Abraham, God begins His
redemptive program. He calls a man. Through His grace, he allows this man to
become a junior partner in the redemptive process, so that in Abraham “all the
families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:3)
·
The land that Abraham is promised, I
believe, represents a “beach head” in God’s great re-invasion of the earth.
·
Throughout the Old Testament, we see the
God at work. Children are born to barren
women. A whole nation is rescued from
slavery and the gods of Egypt are defeated.
The Promised Land is invaded under the power of God. The judges, under the power of the Holy
Spirit, rescue the people from the oppression of pagans and their gods. The kings, at first, continue this process of
humans’ being the instruments of the power of God. Later, the prophets take over that role.
·
We can discern then that the Kingdom of
God is not so much a place or a system of government as it the rule of God to
bring about God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.
·
In the book of Daniel, we observe that,
even as pagan rulers dominate the defeated nation of Judah, God is still
ruling. Moreover, there is a vision that
someday the Kingdom of God would crush all human empires (Daniel 2:44).
·
Moreover, also in Daniel, we learn that someday
“one like a son of man” will come and be given authority over the whole earth
(Daniel 7:13-14).
·
Throughout the Old Testament, we learn
that God’s rule is a beneficent rule.
God demands absolute loyalty and obedience. But God is also vitally interested in the
welfare of people—in widows and orphans and strangers, fair weights, in keeping
family farms together and opposing huge estates, in resisting the sinful lusts
that disintegrate society.
·
When Jesus came and announced the
Kingdom, He proceeded to demonstrate the nature of God’s rule—through ethical
teaching and through healing and miracles.
God’s Kingdom is powerful, able to cast out demonic power and overcome
the effects of sin.
·
When He died on the cross, Jesus was an
instrument of the Kingdom of God. It was
necessary that He die to bring about an end to sin. When He rose from the dead, the Kingdom was
proclaimed as fully triumphant.
·
On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit
empowered the people of God. The Kingdom
of God was now fulfilling the promise of Abraham to bring about a people that
would fill the whole earth. Satan would
be defeated and God’s people would be “a kingdom, priests to his [Jesus’] God
and Father” (Revelation 1:6, compare
Exodus 19:6).
·
Because the church is an instrument of
the Kingdom of God, she participates in God’s plan to redeem the whole
earth. Contrary to Pentecost, the church
is not limited to a “heavenly destiny.” The
church will live and reign with Christ on the earth.
Thus,
I believe that the Dispensationalist teaching has distorted the message of the
Bible. They have created barriers and
chopped the Scripture up, calling this “Kingdom” and that “church.” It is true that revelation has been
progressive. It is true that there have
been “types and shadows.” Yet, it
appears to me that God has had a plan to reconcile the world to Himself that
has been active throughout human history.
I recognize that prophetic interpretation gets pretty difficult when one
goes in the direction I have gone. The
Dispensationalists have put in countless hours and have had wonderful
scholarship for many years. To try to
overthrow that system is an enormous project.
I am not sure I am up to it, but I believe that one must be faithful to
the Scripture and one must prayerfully interpret with that faithfulness.
Obviously, my understanding of the
Kingdom affects the interpretation of prophecy.
Because I believe the church participates in the Kingdom, I am
comfortable that the church will be present in 70th Week/Tribulation
period. Moreover, the church will
experience the Second Coming of Christ at the end of that period. For Gentiles to be welcomed into the Kingdom
(Matthew 25:34), does not require the “judgment to determine which living
Gentiles will enter the Millennial Kingdom,” a kingdom that belongs to Israel.
SUMMARY: I believe that the Sheep and Goats Judgment
gives us one aspect of judgment. It
states that people will be judged for their response to Christ’s messengers. I do not believe this passage can be
dogmatically placed at the beginning of the Millennium as a judgment to
determine which living Gentiles will be allowed into the Millennium. It cannot be ruled out that the passage
refers to the same judgment that is called the Great White Throne
Judgment. Moreover, all the passages in
chapter 25 need to be understood as further commentary by Jesus on issues that
His Second Coming give rise to. In this
case, He is reminding the messengers that people will be judged for how they
treat the messengers.
Rather than take a narrow view of
the Kingdom as referring to Christ’s reign in the Millennium, I understand the
Kingdom to be God’s powerful reign to bring about the redemption of the human
race. In the Old Testament, the
experience of the nation of Israel is the focus of the Kingdom. With the coming of Jesus, the cross is the
ultimate act of God’s Kingdom. The
church continues to be an instrument of the Kingdom as it is empowered by the
Holy Spirit. This changes one’s
understanding of the Millennium and the church’s relationship to it. It also has implications for the timing of
the rapture and the presence or absence of the church in the 70th
Week/Rapture.
REFERENCES
Crossway
Bibles (2009-04-09). ESV Study Bible
(Kindle Locations 233188-233189). Good News Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Pentecost,
J. Dwight. Things to Come. Grand
Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publ. Co. 1958.
NEXT: SURVEY OF WALVOORD’S VIEWS ON CHAPTER 25 PLUS
A SUMMARY OF THE OLIVET DISCOURSE
