32"Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. 33So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near -- at the doors! 34Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. 35Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.
It is interesting that Jesus would choose the parable of the fig tree’s appearance of leaves as a sign that summer is near. Leaves on the trees is not all that summer is about. I think of summer as warmth, sunshine, vacations, etc. By the time summer is in full swing, the leaves on the trees, though definitely there in the summer, are the last things on my mind.
But the same is true of the end times. The signs that will be seen through the chaos in the world, the great tribulation, the gathering of the elect are not images of the life to come, but signs of the new life at the doors. What is beyond those doors is so much more than what the signs indicate. He compares it to summer, a new season. The end times do not signal an end, but the approach of a new season. And that season, being so different from the one we are in, cannot be imagined.
But the surprising text here is that Jesus said this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Again, footnotes in my Bible indicate that here is another confirmation that Jesus is talking of the destruction of Jerusalem. For it was a major destruction which happened during the lifetime of many of those yet living and followed a pattern similar to what Jesus describes here for the end times. But that destruction did not usher in the end of the world. I do not think Jesus is talking of the destruction of Jerusalem here. And by this generation, I don’t think Jesus means only those still living at that time.
According to my dictionary, the term generation can mean a couple different things. One is the offspring having common parentage and constituting a stage of descent. Using this definition, I can see how interpreters would come to the conclusion that Jesus was talking of the destruction of Jerusalem, which happened during their lifetime. But another definition is a group of contemporaneous individuals. For example, in my lifetime, I have heard of the hippy generation, the baby boomer generation, etc. People may be part of a generation for only part of their lifetime, or one of these generations may span several lifetimes. I believe Jesus was using the term generation in the second definition. Throughout the book of Matthew, He has talked of this generation:
In Matthew 11:16-19:
16"But to what shall I liken this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, 17and saying:
18For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, "He has a demon.' 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, "Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' But wisdom is justified by her children." |
In Matthew 12:38-42:
| 38Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." 39 But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here. 42 The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. |
In Matthew 12:43-45
| 43"When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. 44Then he says, "I will return to my house from which I came.' And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation." |
In Matthew 16:1-4
| 1Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven. 2He answered and said to them, "When it is evening you say, "It will be fair weather, for the sky is red'; 3and in the morning, "It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.' Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. 4A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah." |
In Matthew 17:14-16:
| 14And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, 15"Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. 16So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him." 17 Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me." 18And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour. |
And in Matthew 23:36 after He lists off all the woes to the Scribes and Pharisees:
| Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. |
Who is this generation Jesus keeps talking about? This evil and adulterous generation, this wicked generation, this faithless and perverse generation? Can we brush it off as just those who were living at the time of Jesus? No! He is talking about us! We are all part of this generation! Our generation is still missing the signs of Jesus calling us to dance with him, to lament with him. Our generation still seeks a sign rather than turning to Jesus, the greatest preacher, the most wise of all. The wickedness, the evil around us seems to be getting worse all the time. We still do not have faith strong enough to accomplish that which Jesus says we should be able to do. The woes to the Scribes and Pharisees are still falling on our generation. We are all part of this generation.
Do you ever wonder why there is so much evil in the world? Why does there always seem to be people out there who are wicked? Why do we ourselves keep messing up? It would be so easy for God to erase it all. But Jesus said this generation: this evil, adulterous, wicked, faithless, and perverse generation, will not pass away till all these things happen. We try to live right, to teach others what we know, to make this world a better place. It seems impossible for us to remove evil from our world. Actually, it is impossible for us to do so. For Jesus says it will not go away till all these things happen. It will not go away till we reach the end times.
And after these things happen, this evil and adulterous generation which seemed to have no possible end, will pass away, and we will become a part of a new generation, as a new season. Note, use of this definition of the term generation allows people to move from being a part of one generation to being a part of another. It does not necessarily mean death and no hope for people of the other generation as the other definition of generation implies. The other generation will simply pass away. Those chosen, the elect, will become part of the new generation. But first we must go through the end times.
There are things in our lives that seem so permanent: heaven, earth, the evil around us that seems to never be completely eradicated. But all those things will some day pass away. But the real permanence in our lives are the words of Jesus Christ. They will never pass away. All He told us is true. All His promises to us will be kept. Jesus is the one stability in our lives that we can count on.