Was Israel’s return to the land in 1948 a fulfillment of Bible prophecy, specifically, the prophecy of the fig tree budding Matthew 24:32, Mark 13:28, Luke 21:29-30? ABSOLUTELY NOT! By Tuese Ahkiong

Was Israel’s return to the land in 1948 a fulfillment of Bible prophecy, specifically, the prophecy of the fig tree budding Matthew 24:32, Mark 13:28, Luke 21:29-30?

ABSOLUTELY NOT!

By Tuese Ahkiong

Zionists Christians teach that the prophecy about the fig tree budding was fulfilled in Israel returning to land in 1948.  Nothing could be further from the truth!!!  These Zionists rip the passage right out of its historical context and eisogete their meaning into it around 1900 years later.  

The lesson from the fig tree is written in response TO the disciples questions surrounding the destruction of Israel’s Temple. 

The disciples’ questions were:

1.      When will these things be?

2.      What will be the sign of your coming?

3.      What will be the sign of the end of the age?

4.      What will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?

Yeshua then ANSWERS His disciples from v4-34 in Matthew 24, Mark 13:5-31, Luke 21:8-33 and tells them that all these things would take place in “this generation” (first century) and they did if you believe Yeshua.

In Scripture, the Fig tree sometimes is identified as Israel.  This is NOT one of those times.  The Luke account differs from Matthew and Mark’s because it not only mentions the fig tree but ALL THE TREES.  Christ’s is comparing “all these things,” the signs: false christs, wars, rumors of wars, famines, pestilences, earthquakes, persecution, put to death, The Gospel preached to the world, the abomination of desolation (which is Jerusalem being surrounded by armies), great tribulation, The Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven. 

When the disciples would SEE the fig tree and ALL THE TREES budding they would KNOW it meant that Summer was near.  This is compared to the signs coming to pass as meaning Christ and His Kingdom were near, at the very gates.
It’s interesting that James writes in 5:7-9

⁷ Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. ⁸ You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.⁹ Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.

Yeshua said to His disciples, “TRULY, I SAY TO YOU, THIS GENERATION WILL NOT PASS AWAY UNTIL ALL THESE THINGS TAKE PLACE. 

Many Christians believe that Christ was wrong or mistaken about what He said to His disciples in that all these things would take place before that generation passed away.

This writer does not believe that Christ was wrong or mistaken but spoke the truth in that all these things did take place in that “this generation.”

The context of the disciples’ questions are CAPITALIZED BELOW along with THE FIG TREE CONTEXT.  Matthew 24:32-35, Mark 13:28-31, Luke 21:29-33.

Matthew 24 

JESUS LEFT THE TEMPLE AND WAS GOING AWAY, WHEN HIS DISCIPLES CAME TO POINT OUT TO HIM THE BUILDINGS OF THE TEMPLE. ² BUT HE ANSWERED THEM, “YOU SEE ALL THESE, DO YOU NOT? TRULY, I SAY TO YOU, THERE WILL NOT BE LEFT HERE ONE STONE UPON ANOTHER THAT WILL NOT BE THROWN DOWN.”

³ AS HE SAT ON THE MOUNT OF OLIVES, THE DISCIPLES CAME TO HIM PRIVATELY, SAYING, “TELL US, WHEN WILL THESE THINGS BE, AND WHAT WILL BE THE SIGN OF YOUR COMING AND OF THE END OF THE AGE?” ⁴ And Jesus answered them, “See that no one leads you astray. ⁵ For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. ⁶ And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. ⁷ For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.

⁹ “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. ¹⁰ And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. ¹¹ And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. ¹² And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. ¹³ But the one who endures to the end will be saved. ¹⁴ And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

¹⁵ “So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), ¹⁶ then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁷ Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, ¹⁸ and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. ¹⁹ And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days!²⁰ Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. ²¹ For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. ²² And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. ²³ Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. ²⁴ For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. ²⁵ See, I have told you beforehand. ²⁶ So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.²⁷ For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ²⁸ Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

²⁹ “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ³⁰ Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. ³¹ And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

³² “FROM THE FIG TREE LEARN ITS LESSON: AS SOON AS ITS BRANCH BECOMES TENDER AND PUTS OUT ITS LEAVES, YOU KNOW THAT SUMMER IS NEAR. ³³ SO ALSO, WHEN YOU SEE ALL THESE THINGS, YOU KNOW THAT HE IS NEAR, AT THE VERY GATES. ³⁴ TRULY, I SAY TO YOU, THIS GENERATION WILL NOT PASS AWAY UNTIL ALL THESE THINGS TAKE PLACE. ³⁵ Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

Mark 13 

13 AND AS HE CAME OUT OF THE TEMPLE, ONE OF HIS DISCIPLES SAID TO HIM, “LOOK, TEACHER, WHAT WONDERFUL STONES AND WHAT WONDERFUL BUILDINGS!” ² AND JESUS SAID TO HIM, “DO YOU SEE THESE GREAT BUILDINGS? THERE WILL NOT BE LEFT HERE ONE STONE UPON ANOTHER THAT WILL NOT BE THROWN DOWN.”

³ AND AS HE SAT ON THE MOUNT OF OLIVES OPPOSITE THE TEMPLE, PETER AND JAMES AND JOHN AND ANDREW ASKED HIM PRIVATELY, ⁴ “TELL US, WHEN WILL THESE THINGS BE, AND WHAT WILL BE THE SIGN WHEN ALL THESE THINGS ARE ABOUT TO BE ACCOMPLISHED?” ⁵ And Jesus began to say to them, “See that no one leads you astray. ⁶ Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. ⁷ And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. ⁸ For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.

⁹ “But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them. ¹⁰ And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations. ¹¹ And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. ¹² And brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death. ¹³ And you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

¹⁴ “But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁵ Let the one who is on the housetop not go down, nor enter his house, to take anything out, ¹⁶ and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. ¹⁷ And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! ¹⁸ Pray that it may not happen in winter. ¹⁹ For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, and never will be. ²⁰ And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he shortened the days. ²¹ And then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. ²² For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect.²³ But be on guard; I have told you all things beforehand.

²⁴ “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, ²⁵ and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. ²⁶ And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. ²⁷ And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.

²⁸ “FROM THE FIG TREE LEARN ITS LESSON: AS SOON AS ITS BRANCH BECOMES TENDER AND PUTS OUT ITS LEAVES, YOU KNOW THAT SUMMER IS NEAR. ²⁹ SO ALSO, WHEN YOU SEE THESE THINGS TAKING PLACE, YOU KNOW THAT HE IS NEAR, AT THE VERY GATES. ³⁰ TRULY, I SAY TO YOU, THIS GENERATION WILL NOT PASS AWAY UNTIL ALL THESE THINGS TAKE PLACE. ³¹ Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

Luke 21 

⁵ AND WHILE SOME WERE SPEAKING OF THE TEMPLE, HOW IT WAS ADORNED WITH NOBLE STONES AND OFFERINGS, HE SAID, ⁶ “AS FOR THESE THINGS THAT YOU SEE, THE DAYS WILL COME WHEN THERE WILL NOT BE LEFT HERE ONE STONE UPON ANOTHER THAT WILL NOT BE THROWN DOWN.” ⁷ AND THEY ASKED HIM, “TEACHER, WHEN WILL THESE THINGS BE, AND WHAT WILL BE THE SIGN WHEN THESE THINGS ARE ABOUT TO TAKE PLACE?” ⁸ And he said, “See that you are not led astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is at hand!’ Do not go after them. ⁹ And when you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified, for these things must first take place, but the end will not be at once.”

¹⁰ Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.¹¹ There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven. ¹² But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name's sake. ¹³ This will be your opportunity to bear witness. ¹⁴ Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer, ¹⁵ for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. ¹⁶ You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you they will put to death. ¹⁷ You will be hated by all for my name's sake. ¹⁸ But not a hair of your head will perish. ¹⁹ By yourendurance you will gain your lives.

²⁰ “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. ²¹ Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it, ²² for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written. ²³ Alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! For there will be great distress upon the earth and wrath against this people. ²⁴ They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

²⁵ “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, ²⁶ people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ²⁷ And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. ²⁸ Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

²⁹ AND HE TOLD THEM A PARABLE: “LOOK AT THE FIG TREE, AND ALL THE TREES. ³⁰ AS SOON AS THEY COME OUT IN LEAF, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. ³¹ SO ALSO, WHEN YOU SEE THESE THINGS TAKING PLACE, YOU KNOW THAT THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS NEAR.³² TRULY, I SAY TO YOU, THIS GENERATION WILL NOT PASS AWAY UNTIL ALL HAS TAKEN PLACE. ³³ HEAVEN AND EARTH WILL PASS AWAY, BUT MY WORDS WILL NOT PASS AWAY.