The Last Days (2) - Confusion

Many readers will find this hard to believe that the "last days" are finished. The reason for the muddle is that the last days (plural) of the Jewish system are confused with the last day (singular), that glorious day when Jesus will return. The Last Days are really the period of time between the ministry of Jesus and the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. The Last Day is the day when Jesus returns. They are very different. The first is a season, whereas the last day is an epochal event.

An examination of the Scriptures reveals five references to the last days (Acts 2:17; 2 Tim 3:1; Heb 1:2; James 5:3; 2 Pet 3:3) and two referring to the last times (1 Pet 1:20; Jude 18). In four of the seven, the author considered that he was living in the last days. Hebrews James and Peter's letters were written to Jewish Christians and that Timothy was a Jew, so all references to the last days were in epistles written to the Jews. They would have understood that they were living in the last days of their national system.

The term Last Days refers to the period between Jesus birth and the destruction of Jerusalem. The Last Day is in the future, but the Last Days are in the past.