The Definitive Calendar for the Second Coming

An Exercise in Date-Setting:

Numerous authors have suggested that it is possible to determine the year of the Lord's return. They take the Lord's statement in Matt 24 to allow such arithmetic.

36 " But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. Matt 24:34

The logic is that they are determining the year, not the day or hour. This all sounds fine, and it completely ignores the fact that Jesus is saying that we are not to know just when the second coming will be.

7 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; Acts 1:7

Without getting into all of the theological implications of date-setting, let us examine a scenario or two. It is well known that many scholars believe that the history of the earth follows what has been described as the "cosmic week." Based on the "thousand years is as a day" stated in 2 Peter 3:8 (c.f. Ps 90:4) they propose 6,000 years as the 6 days of the cosmic week, with the second coming ushering in the Sabbath which is equated with the millennium of Revelation 20. This concept holds an intrinsic simplicity which is satisfying to many people. With its clear parallel to the weekly cycle which is so sacred, it is so appealing that even the Talmud endorses the concept. There we find reference to 2,000 years before Moses and the Torah, 2,000 years of the Torah, and 2,000 years of the Messianic age preceding the millennial Sabbath. The close correlation of this with observed history cannot be discounted lightly. So, having briefly laid a foundation, let us calculate the time of the Lord's return.

The chrono-genealogies of Gen 5 allow us to count the number of years from creation to the flood. Bishop Ussher used this data (and other chronological data in the Bible) to determine that creation occurred in 4,004 BC. Remembering that there is no year zero, that means that the 6,000 years expired in 1997. Since we are still here in 2000, that calculation is obviously wrong. So what errors may Bishop Ussher have committed that we can correct?

The most obvious answer comes from the flood story. Noah was in the ark from the 17th day of the 2nd month (Gen 7:11) until the 17th day of the 7th month (Gen 8:4), a total of 150 days (Gen 7:24). This means months were 30 days long (in simple explanations). We can count the ten generations from Adam to Noah, and see that there were 1,656 years of 360 days (12 months of 30 days) until the flood. This needs to be converted to solar years of 365 1/4 days.

1,656 years x 360 days = 596,160 days

596,160 days ÷ 365 1/4 days per year = 1,632 solar years

This adds 24 years to the calculation so that the second coming will be in 2021.

Unfortunately, this is not the only error which may have been made. We know that months are actually determined by the new moon, with an average period of 29 1/2 days. This means that twelve months are actually 354 days long. There were no recorded seasonal festivals and Genesis even hints that there may have been no seasons before the flood (Gen 8:22), so there would have been no reason to have leap years to adjust to the solar year. So we need to recalculate.

1,656 years x 354 days = 586,224 days

586,224 days ÷ 365 1/4 days per year = 1,605 solar years

This adds 51 years to the calculation so that the second coming will be in 2048.

As you can see, things are getting complicated. But we have made another error in this calculation. The ages in the genealogies are given in exact years, but we know that the births of sons did not happen exactly on birthdays. Due to the nature of Jewish inclusive counting, Adam's age of 130 at the birth of Seth could be closer to 129 by our reckoning. Since there are ten generations between creation and the flood, the total time could be as much as five years shorter, putting the end of the cosmic week five years later. But we have another confounding factor to consider.

There is scholarly debate on the length of the stay of the Israelites in Egypt. The long-sojourn position calls for 430 years in Egypt. This is the chronology Ussher used. But many scholars believe the actual time was 200 years. This means that we have to add 230 years to the time for the end of the cosmic week. Let us summarize.

Calculated date of second coming.

We may now say definitively, based on the cosmic week, that the Lord will come in 2021, or 2026, or 2048, or 2053, or 2256, or 2283, or.

May we humbly submit that the only rational way to understand the time of the second coming is:

1 Now as to the times and the epochs, brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you.
2 For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night.
3 While they are saying, "Peace and safety!" then destruction will come upon them suddenly like birth pangs upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
4 But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day should overtake you like a thief;
5 for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness;
6 so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober. 1 Thess 5:1-6