Romans – God’s Timeline XXXVI: In Conclusion

There are only a few more uses of “eonian” which we may consider. First, let us consider the final use of “eonian” in the four accounts, in Mark 3:29–

“Verily, I am saying to you that all shall be pardoned the sons of mankind, the penalties of the sins and the blasphemies, whatsoever they should be blaspheming, yet whoever should be blaspheming against the holy spirit is having no pardon for the eon, but is liable to the eonian sin penalty.”

We previously considered this passage in relation to the so-called “unforgivable sin,” which is, in truth, only for the duration of the third and fourth eons. Those who do commit this blasphemy during this eon and the next, will be subject to the eonian sin penalty, being the second death. A misapprehension of God’s character is one thing, yet a slanderous take on His character is another matter. Such who enforce the slanderous idea that God’s heart reflects the villain from the Temple of Doom will face severe chastisement for the eons.

In Paul’s evangel, this is called “eonian extermination.” The only passage which the Christian community has ever pointed at in relation to “eternal punishment” being taught by Paul is 2 Thess. 1:9. However, having learned by now that eonian is the true thought, let us observe the true nature of the passage:

to you who are being afflicted, ease, with us, at the unveiling of the Lord Jesus from heaven with His powerful messengers, in flaming fire, dealing out vengeance to those who are not acquainted with God and those who are not obeying the evangel of our Lord Jesus Christ -- who shall incur the justice of eonian extermination from the face of the Lord, and from the glory of His strength…

It is evident, right off the bat, that the assertion we have pondered in this study – that the believers in Paul’s evangel will not be present for the coming indignation at the end of this eon – is confirmed here in this passage. The vengeance God will inflict at the end of the eon is for those who are not acquainted with God. In contrast, the evangel which we have been studying fundamentally acquaints us with God, and draws us into faith-obedience (Rom. 1:5.)

In this day, believers will be at “ease,” even as Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy were, being totally uninvolved in the events of that fearful era. Paul even wrote to the Thessalonians in his prior letter that we believers are awaiting God’s Son out of the heavens, Whom He rouses from among the dead, Jesus, our Rescuer out of the coming indignation (1 Thess. l :10).

Furthermore, once again, we can assert that the justice of eonian extermination is a temporary event. If God were always exterminating, then He has failed to exterminate (would you keep calling pest control to rid you of a wasp’s nest if more wasps move in after every visit??) In other passages of scripture, the “extermination” of Revelation is given a specific time limit (Dan. 9:25-27.) The extermination, as we read in Revelation 14, will cause the fumes of this vengeance to ascend for the eons of the eons – hence, the extermination lasts for the eons, as Paul verifies here.

Indeed, this letter is supposed to console, not scare. If Paul had said, “Oof, guys, get ready, because if you think your afflictions are bad now, just wait!” Then he would have failed miserably to console the ecclesia. Worse still would it have been if Paul had said, “Just wait until everyone gets what’s coming to them, followed by perpetually torturing them for not being able to pull themselves out of this sinful state that was imposed upon them by God to begin with.”

Right. God is better than this. Paul writes later, at the end of 2 Thess. 2,

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God, our Father, Who loves us, and is giving us an eonian consolation and a good expectation in grace, be consoling your hearts and establish you in every good work and word.

A good expectation, by definition, does not leave the majority of humanity to be flayed alive permanently, but sees the reconciliation of God to our loved ones, our family and friends, with freedom from the Satanic deception which invades their hearts. It should console us that the wicked will get what’s coming to them, yes, but it should console us all the more that Christ will get what’s coming to Him! In enduring the cross, He has purchased all, not some. Love does not cast away, but builds up and draws in.

We should be excited for these final two eons in which God resolves the problems we have witnessed and endured over the course of our lives. The consummations of this eon, the next eon, and the final eon have attained to us (1 Cor. 10:11,) and there is merit in looking forward to and desiring all three of them. The third eon ends with the extermination of the wicked, which lasts for the eons. The fourth eon ends with the destruction of this second earth, to pave the way for Judgment Day and the new heavens and earth. And the fifth eon ends with the completed kingdom of the Father – a kingdom in which all become subject to the Father, having been educated as to Who He is, for His glory (Phil. 2:10-11.)

This principle is further demonstrated in Paul’s short letter to Philemon. Observe Phil. 1:14-15–

For perhaps therefore is [Onesimus] separated for an hour, that you may be collecting him as an eonian repayment, no longer as a slave, but above a slave, a brother beloved…

In similar fashion, Paul presents the idea that we are to be consoled by the future expectation in a demonstration with Onesimus. Onesimus was separated from Philemon, and this evidently caused Philemon a great sorrow. Yet Paul pointed out that a temporary separation – a type of temporary struggle – will bring about a greater repayment in the coming eons, in glory. By pointing at our future glory, Paul makes the otherwise unbearable present separation from Christ and great affliction completely bearable.

Eonian Evangel

It is foolishly supposed that the message Paul brings in 2 Thess. 1:8-9 is the evangel, because of the following statement in Revelation 14:6–

And I perceived another messenger flying in mid-heaven, having an eonian evangel to preach over those situation on the earth, and over every nation and tribe and language and people…

*sigh*

I don’t know, man. Look, if this were the only verse in Revelation or something, then sure, I guess you would be forgiven for making such a dramatic assumption. But since the verse quite literally continues with a proclamation of what this “eonian evangel” is, I’m far less sympathetic to the bloodlust of such an interpretation. The passage continues,

…saying with a loud voice, “Fear ye God and be giving glory to Him, seeing that the hour of His judgment came; and worship the Maker of heaven and the land and the sea and springs of water.”

Man, what a clear departure from the evangel given in Romans! Here the evangel is one of fear. It is not one of justification, or even of baptism. It is specifically introduced as the effect of the hour of His judgment during the indignation! There is no request to recognize God’s love or grace, but authority. He is not considered the “Father,” here, or even the “eonian God,” but the Maker of this physical world, and dammit, He will get His respect. A God like this should be feared, He deserves to be worshipped, and for us to neglect this with any audacity on our end is truly unintelligent dealing, and will serve as proof of destruction.

Where Is “Endlessness” in the Bible?

This is a brief aside, but I feel it is necessary as a complement to our study. If aion and aionios don’t convey the idea of “eternality” or “endlessness,” then what term does?

There is only one word which I have found, to this day in the New Testament, which indicates that something has a beginning, but no end. The word is aperanton, and it appears only once, in 1 Tim. 1:4–

…you should be charging some not to be teaching differently, nor yet to be heeding myths and endless genealogies…

It is used here only as an exaggeration, and gives no thought to the permanent punishment of unbelievers.

The only other method by which scripture conveys “endlessness” is through the use of a negative. The kingdom shall have “no end” (Is. 9:7, Luke 1:33) is the primary example which we have covered so far. Keep an eye out for this concept, wherever it may appear.

The Final Use

This final use of “eonian” is not one which “proves” anything, or “disproves” anything. It should simply be noted by now that aion and aionios refer to a period of time, and as having the quality of a period of time. The verses considered all line up with such an ideal, and we can – and should – keep this in mind when considering any passage of scripture, that we do not become lost. The divine calendar, while detailed, serves a great and rigid structure for us to fill in our understanding of the Biblical narrative.

I hope that this study on every use of the word has been as beneficial for you as it has been for me. Let’s wrap up the last use with simple praise, in 1 Tim. 6:16–

[Christ] alone has immortality, making His home in light inaccessible, Whom not one of mankind perceived nor can be perceiving, to Whom be honor and might eonian! Amen!

This One, Who graced us with the knowledge and newfound understanding of the eons, Who alone has immortality, has shown, unequivocally, with intellect and love, that He alone is deserving of honor and might for the eons. He alone can fulfill His Father’s will, being His Father’s Image, and we should indeed spend as much time as we can thanking this One for His great deed at the cross, and His Father for planning us to believe His evangel. Amen.

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I’d like to wrap this section up with another quote from A.E. Knoch, just to drive home the importance of keeping these administrations in mind when studying Scripture:

“It is of the utmost importance in going back to the New Testament: doctrine and practice, that we do not draw back too far into the Transitional or Pentecostal economy, and thus add to the confusion in which we find ourselves. Some truths hold good in all administrations, but the characteristic truth of any economy cannot be misplaced without becoming a malignant error.”

Wise words. When we keep scripture in its administrational context, we gain the advantage of correctly cutting the word of God. As we progress through any other part of scripture, I will continually reaffirm the administration which we are studying from, that we do not become lost or tossed about by every wind of teaching. Grace and peace.

- GerudoKing