152 pp. EPub format. Scripture and Subject Indexes.

Also available as paperback on this site

What is the Great Tribulation?
When will it occur?
What significance does it have for understanding the New Testament?


These and other important questions are carefully answered in this book as Dr. Kenneth Gentry analyzes Jesus' Olivet Discourse. In this addition to the Made Easy Series you will discover an insightful and compelling verse-by-verse exposition of the Lord's longest discourse. Not only so but you will also be introduced to vitally important contextual cues essential for properly interpreting it.

Christ's teaching on the great tribulation has long intrigued and transfixed Christians. This is especially true in the modern evangelical church today. What Bible-believing Christian has not been alarmed by Christ's prophetic warning about a time in which men will experience "wars and rumors of wars" (Matt 24:6)? "Famines and earthquakes" (Matt 24:7)? "False prophets" who "will mislead many" (Matt 24:10)? These are fearsome images presented by our Lord to his people.

Unfortunately, most Christians leap into the Olivet Discourse with little understanding of how Matthew carefully sets it into the context of Jesus' whole ministry. As a result they wholly misconstrue its message. Since Jesus gave us this much prophetic material and at the very climax of his ministry, we need to understand it as he intended.

In this work the reader will find thirteen evidences that Matt 24:34-36 is transitioning from an AD 70 focus to the future Second Advent. This material serves as an important corrective to two errors: (1) Many scholars teach that Jesus mixes the two events together in such a way that it is difficult to sort out which elements of the Discourse belong to AD 70 and which belong to the Second Advent. (2) Some writers see the whole of the Discourse focusing only on AD 70, overlooking the fact that Jesus is answering two questions his disciples pose in Matt 24:3.

In this work, Dr. Gentry re-issues the call of the discourse itself: "let the reader understand" (Matt. 24:15b).

Contents
Preface
1. Olivet's Narrative Context (Matthew 1-22)
2. Olivet's Specific Impetus (Matthew 23)
3. Olivet's Central Focus (Matthew 24:1-3)
4. Olivet's Interpretive Key (Matthew 24:34)
5. False Expectations of the End (Matthew 24:4-14)
6. The Beginning of the End (Matthew 24:15-28)
7. The Coming of the End (Matthew 24:29-31)
8. The Transition Passage (Matthew 24:32-36)
9. Conclusion

Review

Exceptional, Unique, Edifying

I just finished reading "Olivet Discourse Made Easy." It is exceptional, unique, and edifying — among best I've read on this topic.

I find it ironic that though Matthew is my favorite NT book (I've examined it inside and out over the last 25 years) and YET he has presented it in an entirely different, unique, and spiritual light. In other words, I don't think I really knew Matthew's Gospel at all until I read "Olivet Discourse Made Easy."

I've always viewed Matthew's Gospel as sort of an ad hoc, arbitrary, and yet well-organized self-contained collection of facts about Jesus without a ton of rhyme or reason apart from the basic Gospel message that Jesus came to atone for our sins. It requires mastery of the entire Bible, non-canonical literature, history, language, and a lifetime of study to understand the fuller "Preterist" intent of books like Matthew's Gospel.

Gentry has uncovered, illustrated, and explained an entirely different intent for the entire Gospel that few have ever seen: Matthew's Gospel is fundamentally eschatological, Preterist, and Christian centric in its entirety from beginning to end. He’s even uncovered details that full Preterist authors have failed to see, identify, or even care about.

Although rather profound from beginning to end, "Olivet Discourse Made Easy's" biggest strength, contribution, and revelation may be Chapter 1 in my humble opinion. There Gentry makes the case that Matthew's Gospel is Pretero-Eschatological in its entirety from beginning to end, starting with the genealogy, and carefully unfolding with each event in the life and times of Jesus. That is, Matthew's Gospel is not just a well-structured collection of arbitrary facts about Jesus for instructional purposes, but rather each event is designed to carefully illustrate how Jesus fulfills the prophecy of God's Kingdom come in the form of a world-wide Christian church on Earth. How could I have missed the simple intent of my favorite Bible book for 25 long years?

Gentry could have stopped with Chapter 1 and made a big dent in Judeo-Christian theology. Who needs the Apocalypse of St. John if you truly understand Matthew's Gospel? It would be great if he could one day do a one page summary of each New Testament book from a Pretero-Eschatological perspective, if not the entire Bible.

Dr. David F. Rico, PMP, CSEP, FCP, FCT, ACP, CSM, SAFe

Reader Response

I just finished the book on the Olivet Discourse - very enlightening. Thanks again for your hard work and efforts for the rest of us. 

Jim S.

I  have read other books by Dr. Gentry but this is the best so far. The first couple of chapters are an outline of the Gospel of Matthew, and then it builds as Isaiah teaches: precept upon precept and line upon line.

A. F. K.