A lot of popular modern ideas about End-Times are derived from the view that Bible-prophecies will have a second fulfilment. But is that really Scriptural?
For example, the Bible prophesied that the Temple would be rebuilt, and it was - but some assert that a replica 'temple' must be built in future.
The Bible prophesied that the Jews would be regathered to the land of Israel after the Babylonian captivity, and they were - but some say it is being fulfilled with end-times significance now.
The Bible prophesied that 'Elias' would come, and Jesus said he indeed came (John the Baptist) - but some say he will come again in the last days.
The Bible prophesied that the Temple would be destroyed and Jerusalem would undergo great tribulation, and it has - but some are expecting it to happen again.
Those things are now history. It's been fulfilled. But is it valid to say a second and real fulfilment will happen again at some time in the future? perhaps in our generation?
If that's a valid way of interpreting Bible prophecy, there should be an example of that method being used in the Bible. But can you think of a Bible example?
Some cite Isaiah's prophecy that "the virgin shall conceive". They say it was fulfilled twice: once when Isaiah's wife conceived; and secondly, when Mary conceived Jesus by the Holy Spirit. But only one of those women was a virgin when she conceived, right?
Others cite the verse, "Out of Egypt have I called my son". They say it was fulfilled twice: once when Israel was brought out of Egypt, and the second time when Jesus returned to Israel out of Egypt. But in its source text, this was not a predictive prophecy. It was a statement about Israel's past, written hundreds of years after Israel had already come out of Egypt - it was never a prediction about Israel's future. The return of Jesus out of Egypt bore some similarities, but it was not a second fulfilment of a prediction. There was never even a first fulfilment of the prediction, because it was never written as a prediction at all - it was only ever a statement about the past.
Others cite the verse in Psalms where David wrote, "They pierced my hands and my feet". They say it was fulfilled twice: once in David's own experience, and secondly in Jesus' experience. But David's hands and feet were never pierced. Being a prophet, David spoke not about himself, Peter tells us, but about the Lord. It had only one literal fulfilment.
So there isn't really any precedent in the Bible that I can see where a predictive prophecy about a future event came to pass multiple times or even two times. Predictive prophecies in the Bible all came to pass once and once only.
Therefore I think many of the prophecies popularly thought to be about still-future events may actually have already had their fulfilment. And this adjusts our view of what is still to come. It adjusts our concept of end-times events.
Failure to distinguish between fulfilled and unfulfilled prophecy may be the reason why so many modern end-times predictions fail. It's as if they're expecting something to happen which has in fact already happened.
It also takes away from our appreciation of the Gospel. Imagine if I gave you a Users Manual for your latest iPhone, but you thought it was a prediction about Apple's next iPhone. Instead of helping you to appreciate the phone in your hand, it would leave you confused when Apple never seems to bring-out the next phone you thought you should be expecting.
Similarly, those Bible prophecies which you thought might be for the future, were in fact all about Jesus and the Gospel and the covenant which we now live in.
Understanding this distinction achieves three things:
One, it helps you avoid the repeat cycle of failing predictions and wacky ideas about the future;
Two, it helps you appreciate the blessings of your salvation; and
Three, it equips you to convince unbelievers, using the Scriptures, that Jesus and the Gospel is the real thing.
"Rightly dividing the word" helps you to avoid, appreciate and convince!
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