there the eagles will be gathered

[kenod]

There seem to be several different interpretations of this Scriptural event ... just wondering what the people here think.

Mat 24:28 KJV

For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

Luke 17:37 KJV

And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.

Edited December 17, 2006 by kenod

[kenod]

CJ, thank you for your reply.

I wonder if there is another way of looking at the event described in Mat 24:28 and Luke 17:37.

Mark 6:29

And when his disciples heard of it, they came and took up his

corpse [Greek: ptoma]

and laid it in a tomb.

Mat 24:28

For wheresoever the

carcase [ptoma]

is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

Luke 17:36-37

Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the

body [soma]

is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.

Luke 22:19

And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my

body [soma]

which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.

John 6:53-54

Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.

Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.

Psalm 103:5

Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things;

so that thy youth is renewed like

the eagle's.

Isaiah 40:31

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength;

they shall mount up with wings as

eagles

;

they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

1. How do we

[kenod]

the interpretation of this prophecy is given in the book of Revelation.

Did you ever notice that there are two "suppers" mentioned in Rev 19

- the marriage supper of the Lamb (v7-9),

- the supper of the great God (v17-18)?

Rev 19:6-10

6And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.

7Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

8And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

9And he saith unto me, Write,

Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb

.

And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

10And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

The way I am reading it, those who are "taken" in Luke 17:34-36 are the ones who are "called" to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, before the Tribulation, which culminates in Rev 19:11-21.

[kenod]

Personally I don't believe Luke 17 makes any reference to the rapture other than the fact that if you see any of the events of the Tribulation spoken of in Luke 17, Mathew 24, Mark 13, then you have missed the Rapture. (although as early as last week I believed that one or two verses might actually refer to the rapture in these chapters, I no longer hold that belief.), (Note*: not interested in a rapture debate, if you are, please proceed here, as not to displace this topic.)

To discuss the significance of the "eagles", one must refer to the context ... a context which I see as the rapture.

Luke places Christ's reference to the "eagles", as an answer to a question asked by the disciples: "Where will this happen, that is, where will there be one taken and one left?".(Luke 17:37) Jesus' answer is wherever the "body" is".

So we need to understand what "the body" is before we can know where the eagles will be gathered. I have tried to address that in my second post. To me, it indicates a world wide event - wherever believers are gathered around the Word of God.

That this is a world wide event is supported by the activities of those who are taken - sleeping, grinding, and working in the field. When this takes place, in some parts of the world it is night, and in others it is day.

For an understanding of the word "taken", compare these verses:

Luke 17:36

Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be

taken, [Greek: paralambano]

and the other left.

John 14:3

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and

receive [paralambano]

you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Mat 1:20

But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to

take [paralambano]

unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

I will address the issue of the "eagles" in Mat 24 in my next post.

God bless

Ken

[kenod]

I believe the only way to understand Matthew 24, is to identify the three questions that the disciples asked Jesus:

1. Tell us, when shall these things be" (when one stone shall not be left upon another)?

2. "what shall be the sign of thy coming?

3 (And what shall be the sign) of the end of the world?

when shall these things be

v15 - 21

Some see a future fulfillment in this, and it may indeed be a compound fulfillment, but history shows us that it happened in 70AD.

the sign of thy coming

v22-28

This is the coming Jesus' refers to in John 14:3 ("I will come again and receive you unto myself"). In other words, it is the rapture.

the end of the world

v29-31

This culminates in the return of Jesus Christ to the earth (Rev 19:11-21) to reign as King of Kings for 1000 years (the millennium).

A comparison of Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 show the same divisions. The only difference is that the Luke places the reference to the rapture in chapter 17.

Mat 24:27-28

For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

What is the 'lightning"? Well, we know it is very bright light. (Psalm 119:105 "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."). We also know that the light of the Gospel travelled from the east to the west. Jesus said: "Mat 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." (Mat 24:14). I believe this all points to the body/carcase being the Word of God.

Some are offended that the Word of God should be described in this way, but we know that the metaphor of food and eating is used in the Scriptures to refer to believing God's word. Hebrews 5:14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

These are just a few thoughts I wanted to share. I believe it is the Truth, but I respect the fact that others see things differently.

God bless

Ken

Edited December 19, 2006 by kenod