The Two Ages

If the cosmos has changed over time, as redemptive history has moved through “five worlds” from creation (Genesis 1–2) to the new creation (Revelation 21–22), then there have also been covenantal changes, too.

In the beginning, God made a covenant with Adam (Gen. 2:15–17; cf. Hos. 6:7), which is often called the “covenant of works.” Then, after the flood, God re-established a covenant with Noah and all creation. As Genesis 9:8–17 reports, God hung his bow in the sky as a sign that he would not flood the whole earth again. To this day, whenever the rainbow appears in the sky, it reminds him and us of that covenant. And though other covenants have come and gone (think: Abrahamic, Mosaic, Levitical, Davidic), the Lord continues to uphold the world he made, until he makes all things new.

That new creation is described most completely in Revelation 21, as it begins, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more” (v. 1). As John envisions the new creation, he sees a day when the first earth (the one upheld by Noahic Covenant) is no more. This glorious future corresponds to Paul’s testimony in 1 Corinthians 15:24, when he says, “Then comes the end, when he [the Son] delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.”

In short, there is a day coming when everything will be made right. This will be the consummation of new creation. And from the vantage point of the Old Testament, the Prophets anticipated its arrival as one climactic moment, when everything in the world would be changed at once. Like New Year’s Eve, which transitions one year immediately into the next, the Old Testament saw the end of time in a similar fashion. And with hopes of salvation and the coming of the Messiah, they prophesied about a new king like David (Isa. 9:6–7), the arrival of the Holy Spirit (Joel 2:28–32), a new covenant (Jer. 31:31–34), and a host of other blessings associated with this new age.

Yet, when the kingdom of God finally arrived (Matt 4:23–25; 9:35; 12:28), and the new covenant was sealed with Christ’s blood (Heb. 9:11–28), and the Spirit was poured out in Jerusalem (Acts 2), it did not immediately end the old age. In fact, it did not even terminate the old covenant, as the temple, priesthood, and sacrifices would continue for forty years (Acts 21:26). Rather, as Jesus prophesied in the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24, Mark 13, Luke 21), the “evil and adulterous generation” (Matt. 12:39) would be given a short period of time to repent, believe, and leave Jerusalem (Matt. 24:15–21) before the fiery judgment of God cut down Israel’s tree (Matt. 3:10).

Long story short, the perspective from the Old Testament receives fresh insight with Christ’s incarnation. While the Old Testament offered true shadows of the future, the person and work of Jesus Christ provided greater clarity. Instead of the darkness of the Old Age disappearing immediately and entirely, as it was expected, the Son of God brought God’s light into the world. Now, the light of Christ has dawned and is continuing to displace the darkness, so that the two ages are now overlapping. The new age has broken into time. Yet, the old age still remains, even as its days are numbered.  

The Two Ages
 
To get specific, the language of “two ages” is derived from the way Jesus and his Apostles described the time frame of world events. For instance, Jesus could speak of the “present age” and the “age to come.” And after using this terminology in Matthew 12–13, he defines his terms in Matthew 24. Just the same, Paul, Peter, and the author of Hebrews describe the two ages, too; while John incorporates other terms to speak of the end of the age and the coming of a new creation.

As far as the word itself, aion can be translated “age,” or “world,” or “eternity,” and it conveys the idea of an indefinite period of time, or an era, whether in the past or future. More specifically, the word “age” is also used to express “the object of eschatological expectation, as in eternal life (John 4:14), the eternal kingdom (2 Pet 1:11), the heavenly body (2 Cor 5:1), and the eternal fire (Matt 18:8).” [1] In this way, there is some flexibility in the word, but the term carries a temporal meaning, with specifics being found in relationship to which “age” is in view.

Historically, those who have studied the Bible have always recognized the various “ages,” even if they have understood the time periods and terms differently. In Sunday School, I have attempted to outline many of the common features of inaugurated eschatology (the already and not yet), while also considering how different eschatologies have variously understood the relationship between the first age and the age to come. For instance, some employ these terms to distinguish the old age (under Noah) from the new (under Christ), while others speak of the Judaic age (under the Mosaic Covenant) and the Christian age (under the New Covenant).

In Sunday School, I will press the details of these approaches a bit further, with a few fun stick-figure diagrams. But for now, I want to simply enumerate the verses in the New Testament that describe the two ages. For while there are differences in how premill-, postmill-, and amill- positions interpret these passages, all Christians must do something with them. So, here’s the list. Take time to read the verses and come ready to discuss their meaning.

This Present (Evil) Age
 

• Matthew 12:32. "And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come."

 

• Luke 20:34–35. "And Jesus said to them, 'The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, 35but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, . . .”

 

• Romans 12:2. Do not be conformed to this world [aion], but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

 

• 1 Corinthians 1:20. "Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?"

 

• 1 Corinthians 2:6. "Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away."

 

• 1 Corinthians 2:8. "None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory."

 

• 1 Corinthians 3:18. "Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise."

 

• 2 Corinthians 4:4. “In their case the god of this world [aion] has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

 

• Galatians 1:4. “. . . who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father.”

 

• Ephesians 1:21. "...far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come."

 

• 1 Timothy 6:17. "As for the rich in this present age..."

 

• Titus 2:12. "...to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age..."

 

• Hebrews 9:9 "(which is symbolic for the present age)..."

  The Age to Come (7x)
  

• Matthew 12:32. "And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come."

 

• Mark 10:30. “ . . . who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.

 

• Luke 18:30. “ . . . who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”

 

• Luke 20:34–35. "And Jesus said to them, 'The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, 35but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, . . .”

 

• Ephesians 1:21. "...far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come."

 

• Ephesians 2:7. “So that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

 

• Hebrews 6:5. “ . . . and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, . . .”

  The End of the Age(s) (7x)
  

• Matthew 13:39–40, 49. “ . . .and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. . . .  So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous

 

• Matthew 24:3. As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

 

• Matthew 28:20. “teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

 

• 1 Corinthians 10:11. “Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come.”

 

• Hebrews 9:26. “For then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

  Things Present / Things to Come
 

• Romans 8:18. “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

 

• Romans 8:38. "For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers,

 

• 1 Corinthians 3:22. “ . . . whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future . . .”

 

• 1 Corinthians 7:26. “I think that in view of the present distress it is good for a person to remain as he is.”

 
 What Time Is It?
 
 In the end, these time stamps help us ascertain the way in which the New Testament explains what time it is. And as the list shows, there is both a present age and an age to come. Likewise, there is evidence that there were multiple ages in the past, that were coming to an end (1 Cor. 10:11; Heb. 9:26). But at the same time, there is evidence of multiple ages coming in the future (Eph. 2:7). Put together, we can see why a full macro-eschatology must consider each of these ages and how they relate to one another.

In all, there is more to consider than just the verses that talk about the ages. And even in the list above we can see temporal language that doesn’t use the word aion. Nevertheless, the two ages are critical for understanding how the Bible presents the work of God from beginning to the end. And as we have considered the five worlds and two ages and the seven covenants, we will be prepared to think about the last days, the Day of the Lord, and even the last hour. But that will come in the weeks ahead.

For now, take time to read, review, compare, and consider the verses above and how they help put the big picture of God’s eschatology in place. For truly, macro-eschatology is not an esoteric approach to the Bible, but it emerges from the Bible itself.
 
   [1] Rebecca Skaggs, “Time,” in Lexham Theological Wordbook, 2014.