# "You will not see Me until you say 'Blessed is He...'" When is that referring to?



## KGP (Mar 8, 2014)

Matt 23:39

For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

When is this referring to, specifically?

Is this referring to the 2nd coming of Christ when they see him coming in judgment?
Is this referring to his triumphal entry?
Is this referring to such a time as individuals convert and thus "see him" in the new spiritual house he now dwells in (his church) as opposed to the old physical house that has now been "left to you desolate"?
Is this referring to something else?

The big shot Dispensational I know would say this refers to Christs 2nd coming when national Israel is converted when they "look on him whom they have pierced" (or one third of them do at least. Or something.) But I am in the process of shedding that system...


I've read mixed opinions. Set me straight if you are able


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## Bill The Baptist (Mar 8, 2014)

Here is what Matthew Henry has to say;

"Lastly, Here is the final farewell that Christ took of them and their temple; Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh. This bespeaks.

1. His departure from them. The time was at hand, when he should leave the world, to go to his Father, and be seen no more. After his resurrection, he was seen only by a few chosen witnesses, and they saw him not long, but he soon removed to the invisible world, and there will be till the time of the restitution of all things, when his welcome at his first coming will be repeated with loud acclamations; Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Christ will not be seen again till he come in the clouds, and every eye shall see him (Rev. 1:7); and then, even they, who, when time was, rejected and pierced him, will be glad to come in among his adorers; then every knee shall bow to him, even those that had bowed to Baal; and even the workers of iniquity will then cry, Lord, Lord, and will own, when his wrath is kindled, that blessed are all they that put their trust in him. Would we have our lot in that day with those that say, Blessed is he that cometh? let us be with them now, with them that truly worship, and truly welcome, Jesus Christ.

2. Their continued blindness and obstinacy; Ye shall not see me, that is, not see me to be the Messiah (for otherwise they did see him upon the cross), not see the light of the truth concerning me, nor the things that belong to your peace, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh. They will never be convinced, till Christ’s second coming convince them, when it will be too late to make an interest in him, and nothing will remain but a fearful looking for of judgment. Note, (1.) Wilful blindness is often punished with judicial blindness. If they will not see, they shall not see. With this word he concludes his public preaching. After his resurrection, which was the sign of the prophet Jonas, they should have no other sign given them, till they should see the sign of the Son of man, Matt. 24:30. (2.) When the Lord comes with ten thousand of his saints, he will convince all, and will force acknowledgments from the proudest of his enemies, of his being the Messiah, and even they shall be found liars to him. They that would not now come at his call, shall then be forced to depart with his curse. The chief priests and scribes were displeased with the children for crying hosanna to Christ; but the day is coming, when proud persecutors would gladly be found in the condition of the meanest and poorest they now trample upon. They who now reproach and ridicule the hosannas of the saints will be of another mind shortly; it were therefore better to be of that mind now. Some make this to refer to the conversion of the Jews to the faith of Christ; then they shall see him, and own him, and say, Blessed is he that cometh; but it seems rather to look further, for the complete manifestation of Christ, and conviction of sinners, are reserved to be the glory of the last day."


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## Peairtach (Mar 8, 2014)

Our Lord is speaking about the apostasy of_ the Jewish nation_ _in general_. That's what the pronoun "you" refers to. Therefore His use of Psalm 118 is about the restoration to faith in Him of the Jewish nation in general (long before the Eschaton In my humble opinion). 

An unconverted Jewish nation will never say "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!"


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## KGP (Mar 9, 2014)

Peairtach said:


> An unconverted Jewish nation will never say "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!"



I can buy that when he comes in his glory and every eye sees him that all people will acknowledge his blessedness; whether in joy or terror, as Matthew Henry posits...

...however, reading Psalm 118 does not support that view at all in my opinion, as it is a Psalm of salvation.
So I am with you that it is referring to the Jewish nation.



Peairtach said:


> Our Lord is speaking about the apostasy of_ the Jewish nation_ _in general_. That's what the pronoun "you" refers to. Therefore His use of Psalm 118 is about the restoration to faith in Him of the Jewish nation in general (long before the Eschaton In my humble opinion).



Okay; so you put the restoration of the Jewish nation, generally, before the eschaton; what does that look like for you? why do you place it long before? Is it a historic event / revival? Is it the conversion of ethnic Jews over an extended period of time?

What does this restoration of the Jewish nation look like; where does it fit, and why?


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## Andrew P.C. (Mar 9, 2014)

Peairtach said:


> Our Lord is speaking about the apostasy of_ the Jewish nation_ _in general_. That's what the pronoun "you" refers to. Therefore His use of Psalm 118 is about the restoration to faith in Him of the Jewish nation in general (long before the Eschaton In my humble opinion).
> 
> An unconverted Jewish nation will never say "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!"



Unless you are a futurist, or hold ethnic Jews in a higher stance than "gentile" believers like a dispensationalist does, then this would be inconsistent. I believe it is more accurate to say that Christ is saying "_unless_ you say". I don't see anywhere in this passage that Christ is referring to some future restoration of the ethnic Jews.


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## Peairtach (Mar 9, 2014)

Charles Hodge, John Murray and many of the Puritans believed in a national conversion of the Jews, and yet were Covenant Theologians. There has been an over-reaction to Dispensationalism in some Reformed circles. It is not Didpensationalist to believe that the Apostle teaches that Jews exist, that thete will always be some Jews in the Church - not spiritually superior to the Gentile believers as they were under the OT - and that there will be a national conversion of the Jews that will coincide with great Gospel blessing for world.

The Jews like the Gentiles find their salvation in Christ's Church, which is the Israel of God (Gal 6:16), and not in building temples, offering commemorative sacrifices, having Christ return to Earth to live in Jerusalem, or putting their faith in the government or nation-state of Israel.

See e.g. Charles Hodge "Systematic Theology", Robert Lewis Dabney " Systematic Theology", John Murray "Romans", Martyn Lloyd-Jones "Romans", Iain Murray, "The Puritan Hope" (BoT), etc.

Sent from my HTC Wildfire using Tapatalk 2


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