unknown4

Does anyone have an idea what the disciples might have known when it's mentioned that the gospel would be preached as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come? I think that "world" sometimes meant only the Roman Empire, but did they know of anywhere else? The OT makes reference to Persia and I think the area around the Indus, so I suppose they could have known about that area. But I see no evidence of that in the NT. What was the "whole world" to the apostles? Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

judge

Paul seemed to think the whole world had heard the gospel when he wrote to the Church at collosae.

Colossians 1:6
All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth.

Colossians 1:23
if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become ..

A good question might be did "end of the world" mean the same thing 2000 years ago as it means today?
I think it meant.."the end of the age"

Quotes from here

Of course the whole world knows that I am wrong about this

Amlodhi

I think that Acts 2:5 gives us some good insight on their perspective:

Thus, since I highly doubt that there were any devout Jews in Jerusalem at this time that were just in from the Americas, & etc., it would appear that the apostles were simply referring to those nations they were immediately familiar with.


Amlodhi

Amlodhi

Hi judge,

Been reading?

It should be noted, however, that misunderstanding has a very long history. Thus, the intended meaning of this phrase will be dependent upon the particular author and the surrounding context.


Great fun!

Amlodhi

unknown4

I think Paul mentioned Arabia, but I question whether the NT authors really knew of many areas outside of the Roman Empire. There's that passage which says the gospel would be preached as a witness to all nations, and then the end will come. If the NT authors only knew of the Roman Empire and I guess the Sassanian empire/Indus valley region, then maybe they thought the early Christians could get to all those nations and at least do a general preaching. I was just wondering if anyone had an exact idea of what was the "known world" to people in the Roman Empire in NT times, which might help explain what the NT authors had in mind when it was said the gospel would be preached to all the nations and then the end would come.

Chili

That's the double hook of the bible. Paul was a religionist who send people looking in the wrong direction to spread the good news while Jesus told us that the reign of God is within us and cannot be found until the religon (temple of his mind) has been destroyed (Judaism explained when Judas spilled his guts). Jonah also went to the end of his world to find the sign of Jonah and Paul himself was a persecutor of Christians to say that he was trying to get to an understanding of his own religion.

In this sense is the word "nations" a metaphor for strongholds and these were the twelve shepherds each with their own flock of knowledge.