I think I found a way around "The bible says no one knows the day or the hour"?

Question

Is it possible for two people to alternate every other day in saying that they know that the next day is "the day" ?

I know this sounds goofy, but when I was young, I figured that the way I could avoid the 2nd coming of Christ was to say the the day I was in was the day I thought he was coming.
I would say this to "postpone" the Apocalypse. I was only 5 or six at the time but as an adult now, I wonder if this theory is correct. Being such a small and naive child at the time had me thinking of a way to avoid having so many people perish.

I have yet to meet a pastor/preacher who could answer this.

Answer 1

Understand time comes from man. And that verse can be interpreted as "Expect the unexpected."

Answer 2

No, it doesn't quite work that way. That'd be akin to waking up every morning, and saying, "Today will be a good day" (not in a way to hope it was good, but rather, in an attempt to state as foreknown fact it would be a good day). Did you foreknew that that day would be good? No, you were going through a routine, and if you happened to have a good day, it was by sheer coincidence, as every bad day, then, would make you technically a liar.

There is a level of intellectual dishonesty there that makes the whole premise null and void.

For even though you said the words, it did not mean you *knew*. Knowing comes from understanding the truth about a matter, not about stating a repetitious mantra.

A child can state 2+2=4, and he can state 4-2=2... but he does not *know* the relationship between the two, unless he can visualize having two items, putting two down, seeing that there are four, and taking those same two away, leaving the two he started with. Without understanding that, the child is merely reciting numbers, but not knowing how basic math works.

So too, in reciting, "This is the day", you are merely reciting words, with no understanding... without actually knowing. In doing so, you neither postponed the Second Coming, nor hastened it. You simply proved that you, like everyone else including me, have no real clue about when it'll come.

And on that note... why even attempt to delay it? Aren't you sick of wars, of hate, of death, of disease, of misery, of poisons, of deforestation, of pollution, of sadness, of depression... of sin?

Answer 3

so what about if/when one of them fell ill and went into a coma for a week?

this reminds me of a story about a rabbi once who found out somehow that he was going to die on sabbath, no more specific than that.
and that there was a belief that Death could not take you while you were in the process of studying torah.
so what he did was every sabbath he spent the *entire* time studying non-stop, postponing death as his death-time was already narrowed to sabbath, and death being restrained fro taking him while studying...

then eventually he got sick and wasn't able to study one sabbath, and BAM.

or something like that.

I think the INTENT of that is the idea that some events do not occur at a distinct specific predictable time.

and another point is that saying that wouldn't be "knowing" but simply "guessing". if you have a dr's appointment, you know what day its on. if someone else knows you have a dr's appointment coming up, but you won't tell them exactly when, if they say "is it today" every day, eventually they will be right.

and I utterly do not understand the idea of wanting to hold it off, in Judaism the coming of the messiah (which is very likely part of the same events you call the second coming) is looked forward to eagerly.

Answer 4

The answer to your question is this. If you are still alive when the Lord Jesus returns and if every day you say "this is the day Jesus is coming back" then one day you will happen to be correct. You won't know that you are correct until it happens though, so you won't really know that on that day you had the right confession of truth.

As to no one knowing the day or the hour, we do know some of the signs that will precede the coming of Christ.

Matthew 24:24 For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you beforehand. 26 So, if they say to you, 'Look, he is in the wilderness,' do not go out. If they say, 'Look, he is in the inner rooms,' do not believe it.

27 For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28 Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

29 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

32 "From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates.

2 Thessalonians 2:1 Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.

3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.

5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.

8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.

Answer 5

The problem with your theory is that the 2 individuals making these statements would obviously be lying...thus not knowing. Therefore, should the statement ever come true in their lifetime, their repeated claims of 'tomorrow' would prove they never knew and just got lucky.

Answer 6

If that's the case, the Apocalypse is never coming, because there's an endless supply of people who think it's today or tomorrow.

Answer 7

"GOD...hath in these last days spoken unto us by his SON...who being the brightness of his glory, and the EXPRESS IMAGE OF HIS PERSON..." - Hebrews 1:1-3

The end of the world has been happening since the birth of Jesus. Also, another major event was Israel becoming a nation in 1948. God said he would rebuild Israel.

Answer 8

You were more amusing as a child. His coming does not depend on your being confused about what day of the week it is.


Theory rejected.

Answer 9

Does thinking that you will die today prevent you from dieing?
Does thinking that you will have a test today prevent you from being given one?

Get real!

Answer 10

The only reality is "NOW. Past is dead and gone, yet when it was real it was "NOW. Future is just as illusory. When it arrives it will be "NOW". BE HERE NOW. That is all you can know.