RamistThomist
Puritanboard Clerk
Mid 90s. Riddlebarger lists numerous problems with preterism
Problems with Preterism
Arguments in favor:
1) Rev. 11 seems to mention a physical temple, which would imply it was still standing.
Response: The language in Revelation is symbolic. If it is literal, then we have the odd case of the Gentiles’ occupying the outer court for 3 ½ years but leaving the inner court undefiled.
2) The seven heads and sevens clearly suggest Rome, so we have six kings before AD 70, the last of which is Nero.
Response: With which emperor do you begin counting? If we start with Julius Caesar, then we get Nero. But if we start with the first official emperor, Augustus, we do not get Nero.
3) Some preterists argue that Jerusalem is Babylon, since it was the “city in which our Lord was crucified.”
Response: That same city is also called “Sodom and Egypt,” so we probably aren’t dealing with literal terms.
4) He is coming with the clouds, and the reference in Zechariah clearly refers to the generation who pierced him.
Response: The reference in Zech. is to Israel’s final salvation, not her final judgment.
Problems with Preterism
Arguments in favor:
1) Rev. 11 seems to mention a physical temple, which would imply it was still standing.
Response: The language in Revelation is symbolic. If it is literal, then we have the odd case of the Gentiles’ occupying the outer court for 3 ½ years but leaving the inner court undefiled.
2) The seven heads and sevens clearly suggest Rome, so we have six kings before AD 70, the last of which is Nero.
Response: With which emperor do you begin counting? If we start with Julius Caesar, then we get Nero. But if we start with the first official emperor, Augustus, we do not get Nero.
3) Some preterists argue that Jerusalem is Babylon, since it was the “city in which our Lord was crucified.”
Response: That same city is also called “Sodom and Egypt,” so we probably aren’t dealing with literal terms.
4) He is coming with the clouds, and the reference in Zechariah clearly refers to the generation who pierced him.
Response: The reference in Zech. is to Israel’s final salvation, not her final judgment.