The day after His triumphal entry to Jerusalem, Jesus was hungry. “Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, He went to find out if it had any fruit. When He reached it, He found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then He said to the tree, ‘May no one ever eat fruit from you again.’” (Mark 11:12-14). Immediately the tree withered and His disciples were amazed how quickly it withered (Matthew 21:19-20).
Three profound implications appear in this story. First, the fig tree looked good from a distance, with its leaves acting as fine plumage. As with the Pharisees, however, a closer examination proved no fruit existed. There was nothing but decoration, which Jesus abhorred. As a metaphor of what was about to befall the Jewish people (Judah the fig tree), Jesus terminated the tree.
Second, the “distance” mentioned in this passage of Scripture has important prophetic meaning. The distance was not just spatial, it was also temporal and alluded to future events relating to Israel and the Jewish people, specifically the rebirth of Israel in the 20th century. Third, Jesus’ hunger was not just physical, it was spiritual. Whereas His body longed for physical food, His heart longed more for spiritual food. Jesus wanted to know if the fig tree would ever bear any fruit, for in His time it would not. In this passage, Jesus is looking down the centuries to obtain His answer, which has meaning for us today.
Just as Jesus withered the fig tree just before His death, God withered the Jewish people in 70 AD. They withered quickly, just as the fig tree did. But fig trees bear two crops, one in the spring, and one in the fall, so Jesus implied hope existed. Even though Judah was about to fade for almost two millennia, Jesus saw in the future the glorious restoration of Israel, a time when not only would the leaves return, but the tree would bear fruit. Thus, Jesus spoke prophetically in both Mark and Matthew.
God waited almost 2,000 years, but He returned Israel to life in 1948 by His grace and miraculous hand. As predicted in Isaiah 66:8, the nation was born in a day! Who has ever heard of such a thing? Many say the rebirth of Israel is the resurrection of the fig tree, and it is partly true. Remember, however, Israel was the olive tree; Judah was the fig tree, the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. It is the descendants of Judah the fig tree that populate Israel today, in a time when the war between good and evil crescendos. It is also a necessary condition for end times’ prophecy to be fulfilled.
Jesus said, “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door. I tell you the Truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.” (Matthew 24:32-34).
Praise the LORD – the olive tree by name and the fig tree by heritage have returned and Jesus is coming! Even more exciting is that the fig tree is in bloom, which will produce the final crop for the harvest. Since Israel came to life in 1948, it has blossomed literally. The desert, barren since 70 AD, is now in bloom and is producing fruit in season. It is also being prepared to bear spiritual fruit.
Not coincidentally and important to end times prophecy, the rebirth of Israel occurred amidst the knowledge explosion of the 20th and 21st centuries, which continues to accelerate at a mind-numbing pace. This knowledge explosion was prophesied by Daniel as a sign of the end times (Daniel 12:4).
Understand clearly – God cannot be put in a box. Even the Son does not know the day of His return (Matthew 24:36). Having said that, Jesus told us to watch for the signs. “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for he sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.” (Matthew 16:2-3). Ask yourself today if your interpretation skills are satisfactory.
We are in a tetrad, an extremely rare astronomical event. A tetrad contains four lunar eclipses combined with a solar eclipse. It started last fall and will end this fall, with each even happening on one of the major Jewish festivals. Only God can arrange such timing. Not coincidentally, months in the Jewish calendar years are based on a lunar cycle. Jesus told us to look to the sky, the Heavens, to watch for the signs. God is moving.
Recently Jupiter and Venus aligned to recreate the star that marked Jesus’ birth, a heavenly confluence that has not happened since His birth. Summer is near. Moreover, we are in a Shemitah (Sabbath) year (Leviticus 25:1-22, Deuteronomy 15:1-11), and when it ends this fall we will start a Jubilee year, the biblical years for canceling debts. The last two Shemitah completions witnessed the two greatest stock market crashes in history, canceling many debts and wiping out trillions of dollars. Only God knows what is in store this year.
Regarding Daniel’s prophecy, we are a generation seeing explosive increases in knowledge in every field – computers, communications, medicine, agriculture, space exploration, and more. These advances have given us great blessings, but they come at a spiritual cost. Knowledge puffs up (1 Corinthians 8:1) and produces arrogance. We have become arrogant, rejecting God. Atheism is on the rise. We have banished prayer from schools and other public places. We allow our unborn children to be killed through abortion. The U.S. Supreme court recently sanctioned homosexual marriage. The list goes on; God cannot be pleased.
We are eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Many are enjoying and glorifying their sinful behavior, denying it as sin, and condemning those who speak out against their actions. Worse yet, part of the Church is eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, supporting sinful activities.
The onslaught of sin is overwhelming. The internet now propagates the spread of evil like wildfire, and the world is eating heartily from the tree. It is time for repentance. Even if Jesus does not return for several millennia, repentance is needed right now.
When Jesus called His first disciples, it was about the tenth hour, late in the day (John 1:39). It was also late in His time on Earth, with only about three years left to present the Gospel. God appears to be telling us it is late in the day. Israel has returned. Knowledge has exploded. Tetrads occur rarely – once every few hundred years on average. The star of Bethlehem has reappeared. God has put signs in the sky.
We are the distance Jesus saw, with the nation of Israel again on the map. Whether the final generation is that of my parents, my generation, my children’s, grandchildren’s, or other generation down the road is known only to God. However, now is always the time for each soul to get right with God, no matter when Jesus comes.
We are but a mist and are not guaranteed tomorrow (James 4:14). Jesus is coming soon. He will only tolerate good fruit; all other fruit is unacceptable. Are you ready? There are only two types of figs, the ones to keep and the ones to throw out. Which one are you?
This series is based on lectures by Barbara Richmond Houseman.
In His love and service,
Jeff Myers
A servant of Jesus Christ
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