The Jews, the Gentiles, the Church, and the Times of the Gentiles
Scripture speaks of three broad groups among humanity: the Jews, the Gentiles, and the Church. The Church is made up of both Jews and Gentiles united in Christ. Outside the Church, all who are not Jews are counted among the Gentiles.
Before the call of Abraham, all the peoples of the earth were Gentiles. Abraham was the first Hebrew. His grandson Jacob—whose name God changed to Israel (Genesis 32:24–28)—had twelve sons, and these sons became the heads of the twelve tribes of Israel.
After the death of King Solomon, the nation was divided. Ten tribes became known as the Kingdom of Israel, while two tribes—Judah and Benjamin—became known as Judah.
- In 721 BC, Israel was taken captive by Assyria.
- In 606 BC, Judah was taken captive to Babylon.
When Judah returned after seventy years of captivity, representatives of the whole twelve tribes returned with them. From that time onward they became known collectively as the Jews.
The Jews were God’s chosen people. Yet when they fell into idolatry and were carried into captivity, dominion passed into Gentile hands.
The nations of Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon had long desired to overthrow Israel, but God restrained them until Israel’s iniquity had reached its full measure. Then He allowed world power to pass into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon (Jeremiah 27:5–7).
This transfer of dominion in 606 BC marked the beginning of what Christ later called:
“the times of the Gentiles.”
— Luke 21:24
This period should not be confused with “the fullness of the Gentiles” spoken of by Paul in Romans 11:25.
- The Times of the Gentiles – the era of Gentile political domination over Jerusalem and the earth.
- The Fullness of the Gentiles – the gathering of the elect from among the nations to form the Church.
Paul teaches that Israel’s present blindness is only partial and will continue until the full number of Gentiles has come in. Then Israel will again come into prominence in God’s plan.
The fullness of the Gentiles began at Pentecost.
It will end before the times of the Gentiles conclude.
The outline of these times is given most fully in the Book of Daniel.
Daniel and the Times of the Gentiles
Daniel contains one dream given to Nebuchadnezzar and four visions given to Daniel, all concerning the course of Gentile world power.
1. Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream
In the second year of his reign Nebuchadnezzar had a troubling dream that he could not remember. He demanded that his wise men not only interpret it but also tell him the dream itself. They could do neither.
Daniel sought God in prayer, and the dream and its interpretation were revealed to him in a night vision.
The dream concerned a great image or colossus, representing the course of Gentile world dominion.
The image consisted of successive metals:
- Head of Gold
- Breast and Arms of Silver
- Belly and Thighs of Bronze
- Legs of Iron
- Feet and Toes of Iron mixed with Clay
Daniel told Nebuchadnezzar:
“Thou art this head of gold.”
— Daniel 2:38
These metals represent four successive world empires:
- Babylonian
- Medo-Persian
- Grecian
- Roman
Babylon is identified in Daniel 2.
Medo-Persia appears in Daniel 5.
Greece is named explicitly in Daniel 8.
Rome is implied in Daniel 9:26.
The metals decline in value from gold to clay, signifying degeneration in the character of Gentile rule.
The image ends in a divided kingdom symbolized by ten toes of iron and clay.
Then:
a stone cut without hands strikes the image.
The stone destroys the image and becomes a mountain filling the whole earth.
This stone represents Christ at His Second Coming, when He establishes His earthly kingdom.
Thus the times of the Gentiles end only when Christ returns.
2. The Vision of the Four Beasts
About forty-eight years later Daniel received a vision of four beasts rising from the sea (Daniel 7).
These correspond to the same four kingdoms of Nebuchadnezzar’s image.
Where man sees a glorious metallic image, God sees predatory beasts.
First Beast – Lion with Eagle’s Wings
Represents Babylon.
Second Beast – Bear
Represents Medo-Persia, raised on one side.
Third Beast – Leopard with Four Wings and Four Heads
Represents Greece under Alexander the Great.
The four heads represent the four divisions of his empire.
Fourth Beast – Terrible and Dreadful
This beast represents Rome.
It possessed ten horns, symbolizing the final division of the empire.
Among them arose a little horn that spoke great things and persecuted the saints.
This ruler is identified as the Antichrist.
3. The Vision of the Ram and the He-Goat
In Daniel 8 Daniel saw:
- a ram with two horns
- a he-goat with a notable horn
The angel Gabriel explained the vision.
- The ram represented Medo-Persia.
- The he-goat represented Greece.
- The great horn represented Alexander the Great.
After Alexander’s death, his empire divided into four kingdoms.
From one of these divisions arises a fierce ruler who opposes God and persecutes His people.
This again points toward the Antichrist, though it has a historical foreshadowing.
4. The Kings of the North and South
Daniel 11 describes the conflicts between the King of the North and the King of the South, generally understood as the rulers of Syria and Egypt after Alexander’s empire was divided.
Verses 5–31 trace these struggles with extraordinary historical accuracy.
The prophecy then moves beyond Antiochus Epiphanes to the end-time ruler, called the willful king, again identified with the Antichrist.
5. The Vision of the Seventy Weeks
Daniel 9 contains the prophecy of the seventy weeks.
Gabriel tells Daniel:
“Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city.”
— Daniel 9:24
These weeks are seventy sevens, or 490 years.
They concern Israel and Jerusalem, not the Church.
The period divides into:
- 7 weeks
- 62 weeks
- 1 final week
From the command to rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince would be 69 weeks.
After this:
“Messiah shall be cut off.”
Jerusalem and the Temple would then be destroyed by the people of the prince who shall come.
Historically this occurred under the Romans in AD 70.
Thus the final ruler—the Antichrist—arises from the Roman sphere.
Between the 69th and 70th week lies the present age.
The 70th week is the future Tribulation period.
The Times of the Gentiles and the Fullness of the Gentiles
Jesus said:
“Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.”
— Luke 21:24
These times began with Babylon’s ascendancy in 606 BC and will end when Christ returns.
The Fullness of the Gentiles concerns the completion of the Church.
The two periods overlap but are not identical.
Prophetic Time
In prophecy:
- 42 months
- 1,260 days
- time, times, and half a time
all refer to the same period of three and a half years.
Therefore:
- time = 1 year
- times = 2 years
- half a time = half a year
A prophetic year equals 360 days.
Conclusion
The Book of Daniel outlines the entire course of Gentile world dominion from Babylon until the return of Christ.
Man sees these kingdoms as glorious and powerful, like a magnificent image.
God sees them as ravenous beasts.
Their rule continues only until the moment when Christ—the Stone cut without hands—strikes the image, destroys Gentile supremacy, and establishes His everlasting kingdom over all the earth.
Bibliography
(Works of Clarence Larkin)
Larkin, Clarence. Dispensational Truth: or God’s Plan and Purpose in the Ages. Philadelphia: Clarence Larkin Estate, 1918.
Larkin, Clarence. The Book of Daniel. Philadelphia: Clarence Larkin Estate, 1929.
Larkin, Clarence. The Second Coming of Christ. Philadelphia: Clarence Larkin Estate, 1918.
Larkin, Clarence. Rightly Dividing the Word. Philadelphia: Clarence Larkin Estate, 1920.
Larkin, Clarence. The Spirit World. Philadelphia: Clarence Larkin Estate, 1921.
Larkin, Clarence. The Book of Revelation. Philadelphia: Clarence Larkin Estate, 1919.
