The Sign of the Son of Man in heaven
This is found in Mat 24:30
Mat 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
The phrase "sign of the Son of Man in heaven" is different from the phrase "signs of the heavens" which I covered in:
https://advancingtruth.blogspot.com/2020/05/signs-in-heavens-day-of-lord.html
The "signs (and wonders) in the heavens" speaks about the heavenly bodies such as the sun, moon and stars and it was prophesied by Joel in Joel 2:28-32, and Peter spoke of its fulfillment in Acts 2:19.
The phrase "sign of the Son of Man in heaven" is also another fulfillment of another prophecy in Dan 7:13-14, where Jesus as the Son of Man was prophesied to receive from God (the Ancient of Days) a kingdom that is forever and unshakable.
See my write up on the shakable and the unshakable:
https://advancingtruth.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-shaking-of-powers-of-heavens.html
So Mat 24:30 "sign of the Son of Man in heaven" is about the coming of Jesus to bring a destruction of the Old Mosaic Covenant by the destruction of Jerusalem and the desolation of the center of Judaism, that is the Temple, and bring in a new and everlasting kingdom that is everlasting and will never end.
Check out an extra-biblical writing of J. Marcellus Kik in his book "An Eschatology of Victory" 1971:
[ The judgement upon Jerusalem was the sign of the fact that the Son of Man was reigning in heaven. There has been misunderstanding due to the reading of this verse as some have thought it to be a sign in heaven. This is not what the verse says. It says the "sign of the Son of Man IN heaven". The phrase "in heaven" describes the locality of the Son of Man and not of the sign. The sign was not to appear in the heavens by the destruction of Jerusalem was to indicate the rule of the Son of Man in heaven. ]
In David H. Chilton's book "The Great Tribulation" 1987, he wrote with respect to Matthew 24:30,
[ The destruction of Jerusalem was the sign that the Son of Man, the Second Adam, was in heaven, ruling ovver the world and disposing it for His own purposes. At His ascension, He had come on the clouds of heaven to receive the kingdom from His Father. The destruction of Jerusalem was the revelation of this fact.
In Matthew 24, therefore Jesus was not prophesying that He could literally come on the clouds in AD70 (although it was figuratively true). His literal coming on the clouds in fulfillment of Daniel 7, took place in AD30 at the beginning of the terminal generation. But in AD70, the tribes of Israel would see the destruction of the nations as the result of His having ascended to the throne of heaven to receive His kingdom. ]
This is what was meant by the fulfillment of Daniel 7:13-14, where Jesus had to remove the kingdom of Moses Old Covenant and receive a New Covenant of the Kingdom of God that is forever.
In David H. Chilton's book "Paradise Restored" 1985, he added:
[ The location spoken of "is heaven" and not just the sky. Secondly, it is not the sign that is in heaven but the Son of Man who is IN heaven. The point is simply, that this great judgement upon Israel, the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, will be the sign that Jesus Christ is enthroned in heaven at the Father's right hand, ruling over the nations and bringing vengeance. The divinely ordained cataclysm of AD70 revealed that Christ had taken the kingdom from Israel and given it to the Church. The desolation of the old Temple was the final sign that God had deserted it and was now dwelling in a new Temple, the Church. ]
Jesus repeated this transition of kingdom to the Pharisees and Jewish audience:
Mat 21:43 Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.
The kingdom of God that was given to Israel will be taken away and given to another. This was the interpretation of the parable of the wicked tenant in Mat 21:33-43.
This Mat 24:30 is another of Jesus interpretation of the kingdom of God taken and given to another.
Albert Barnes in his commentary on the kingdom of God in Mat 21:43 says,
[ Mat 21:43 "The kingdom of God" ... - Jesus applies the parable to them - the Jews.
They had been the children of the kingdom, or under the reign of God; having his law and acknowledging him as King. They had been his chosen and special people, but he says that now this privilege would be taken away; that they would cease to be the special people of God, and that the blessing would be given to a nation who would bring forth the fruits thereof, or “be righteous” that is, to the Gentiles, Act 28:28.
Act 28:28 Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen. ]
In Mat 24:30, what is the meaning of "all the tribes of the earth mourn" ?
Q: What is this tribes?
A: The word tribe has always meant to refer to Israel and has never meant the Gentiles. Tribe is a term reserved for the descendants of Israel (Jacob) and the segregation of their ancestors and descendants by their families.
The phrase "the tribes of Israel will mourn" is a fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecy in Zechariah 11.
That is, all the tribes or people of the land of Judea shall mourn at the great calamities coming upon them, and they shall wail when He comes in judgement. All the wicked shall mourn at the prospect of their doom (Rev 1:7). The cause of their wailing at the day of judgment will be chiefly that they have pierced, killed, rejected their Savior, and that they deserve the condemnation that is coming upon them (John 19:37; Zec 12:12).
Zech 11:10-12 tells us how God had broke His Covenant with Israel, if they would buy Him out of the Covenant with 30 pieces of silver. Incredibly, in Mat 26, we read of Judas betraying Jesus, the Son of God, to the Pharisees for 30 pieces of silver. This term "30 pieces of silver" is the price of a wounded slave according to Exodus 21:32.
Q: What about the term "earth"? Futurist will say that it means the whole world, and this the "sign of the Son of Man in heaven" has not been seen by the whole world, and therefore Jesus has not yet come.
A: The understanding comes from the Greek word "ghay" for "earth" and it literally means "land" or "ground". So the tribes of the land refers to the Jewish tribes of the land, and not the whole world. It was the Jews who fled Jerusalem to the mountains during the destruction of Jerusalem, and the Jews that were left behind in the city mourned. Other lands and countries were not usually divided into tribes and they were also not affected with the calamities and desolation of Jerusalem and its Temple, and the vengeance of the Son of Man. Because other countries were not involved in the carnage of Jerusalem, they would have no reason to mourn.
Coming back to His disciples question in Matthew 24:3, what shall be the sign of His coming and of the end of the age? This sign of the Son of Man in heaven would be one of the answers that satisfied their question. The "destruction of Jerusalem", the "sign of the Son of Man in heaven" coming in the clouds with great glory and power is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy and also an answer to their need of the sign of His coming.
