A Study of "Quickly", "Speedily," etc.
by Harley Pinon
It is my contention that the Bible uses the expressions "quickly," "speedily," etc., in a different way than we do. Some have been so insistent on making the Bible "quickly" the same as our quickly that they have made an entirely new and different interpretation of even when the end of the word will be, etc. In fact, they even contend that that the resurrection has already happened, and that all of Revelation has been fulfilled including chapters 20 - 22.
The following is more of a word study and verse comparison without too much commentary, but I provide it for your consideration.
MEANINGS OF THE GREEK WORD
τάχος "TACHOS" AND ITS USE
IN THE N. T.
From Strong's Exhaustive Concordance Hebrew/Greek Dictionary we find the
following definitions for the
Greek word τάχος, "tachos":
5034. tachos, takh'-os; from the same as G5036; a brief space (of time),
i.e. (with G1722 pref.) in haste:--+ quickly, + shortly, + speedily.
Thayer Definition: τάχος tachos 1) quickness, speed
Thayer Definition: ταχύς tachus 1) quick, fleet, speedy
Below we have some verses that contain the words translated from that Greek word
"Tachos".
The words in bold letters in the following verses show some of the ways that
the word "tachos" is
translated in the New Testament.
Luke 18:8 (NKJV) "I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless,
when the Son of Man comes, will
He really find faith on the earth?"
I understand "when the Son of Man comes" as being the end of this world as we know it. This hasn't happened yet.
Romans 16:20 (NKJV) And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet
shortly. The grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
Has Satan been crushed under our feet? Obviously
not, yet nearly 2,000 years have passed, yet this is called "shortly." We
are still waiting for the fulfillment of this promise.
Revelation 1:1 (NKJV) The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show
His servants; things which
must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His
servant John,
"things which must shortly take place." Some things that related to the seven churches of Asia did take place in a relatively short period of time, but other things in the book haven't happened yet.
Revelation 22:6 (NKJV) Then he said to me, "These words are faithful and true."
And the Lord God of the holy
prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take
place.
"the things which must shortly take place." -- see note above for Rev 1:1
FROM GOD'S PERSPECTIVE "IT IS A LITTLE WHILE"
(Haggai's prophecies were written sometime between 520-505 B.C.)
Haggai 2:6-7 "For thus says the LORD of hosts:
'Once more (it is a little
while) I will shake heaven and earth,
the sea and dry land; 7 'and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to
the Desire of All Nations,
and I will fill this temple with glory,' says the LORD of hosts.
Hundreds of years after the
prophet Haggai wrote this, (after the destruction of the temple that was
standing when Haggai wrote this
prophecy) the Hebrew writer, quotes this verse as being still in the future,
even though Haggai said: "it is a
little while" when he wrote the prophecy.
Hebrews 12:25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who
refused Him who spoke on earth,
much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven,
26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying,
"Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven."
27 Now this, "Yet once more,"
indicates the removal of those things that are
being shaken, as of things that are
made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain.
28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us
have grace, by which we may
serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.
"it is a little while" took hundreds of years to take place. In fact, I don't believe this shaken has happened yet.
THE TIME IS NEAR
God has wanted every generation to feel the expectancy of His coming and to be
prepared for His coming.
The prophet Zephaniah wrote his prophecies around 630 B.C., yet he uses the same
kind of urgency in his
message to the people of his day that John uses in the book of Revelation.
Zephaniah says: "the great day of the LORD is near and
hastens quickly" and
"He
will make speedy riddance."
Zephaniah is speaking of the same "great day of the LORD" that John is writing
about in Revelation, hundreds of years later.
Amos 3:7 says: "Surely the Lord GOD does nothing, Unless He reveals His secret
to His servants the prophets."
Zephaniah 1:14-18 - 2:3 (NKJV)
(14) The great day of the LORD is near; It is near and hastens quickly.
The noise of the day of the LORD is bitter;
There the mighty men shall cry out.
(15) That day is a day of wrath, A day of trouble and distress,
A day of devastation and desolation, A day of darkness and gloominess,
A day of clouds and thick darkness,
(16) A day of trumpet and alarm Against the fortified cities And against the
high towers.
(17) "I will bring distress upon men, And they shall walk like blind men,
Because they have sinned against the LORD;
Their blood shall be poured out like dust, And their flesh like refuse."
(18) Neither their silver nor their gold Shall be able to deliver them
In the day of the Lord's wrath;
But the whole land shall be devoured By the fire of His jealousy,
For He will make speedy riddance Of all those who dwell in the land.
Zephaniah 2:1 Gather yourselves together, yes, gather together, O undesirable nation,
(2) Before the decree is issued, Or the day passes like chaff, Before the Lord's
fierce
anger comes upon you, Before the day of the Lord's anger comes upon you!
(3) Seek the LORD, all you meek of the earth, Who have upheld His justice.
Seek righteousness, seek humility.
It may be that you will be hidden In the day of the Lord's anger.
It is near and hastens quickly, but read the description that follows. Some of this sounds like the end of the world to me. "But the whole land shall be devoured By the fire of His jealousy," Has this happened yet?
Other Time Related Scriptures
In Revelation 1:3, with the same urgency, John says:
"Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy,
and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near.
James 5:7-9 also speaks to the Christians of the first century, urging them to
be patient - "until the coming of the
Lord" and James says, "the coming of the Lord is at hand" and
"Behold, the Judge
is standing at the door."
We see the expectancy in James' message, but it is still valid for us today even
though it was written nearly 2000
years ago and sounds as if he were speaking to the first century Christians.
The
same urgency and expectancy
apply to the book of Revelation, which is also still valid for us today, just as
is James .
James 5:7-9
7. Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord.
See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth,
waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain.
8. You also be patient. Establish your hearts,
for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
9. Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned.
Behold, the Judge is standing at the door!
Paul also, in his letter to the Christians at Thessalonica, encourages them to
remember
the things he had taught them when he was with them. He reminds them that --
The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night upon those who are not
Christians, but reminds them that
they are children of the day and are not in darkness.
He says that this Day should not overtake Christians as a thief, because a thief
comes upon those who are
unsuspecting. Christians have been told that the LORD is coming and therefore
should be watching and
preparing themselves to be ready when the LORD comes. When He comes to pour out
wrath upon the
unbelieving world, He will take His children out of the world so that they will
not be partakers of that punishment.
(See verse 9 below).
1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 (NKJV)
1.But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren,
you have no need that I should write to you.
2. For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes
as a thief in the night.
3. For when they say, "Peace and safety!" then sudden destruction comes upon
them,
as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.
4. But you, brethren, are not in darkness,
so that this Day should overtake you as a thief.
5. You are all sons of light and sons of the day.
We are not of the night nor of darkness.
6. Therefore let us not sleep (spiritually), as others do,
but let us watch and be sober.
7. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at
night.
8. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith
and love,
and as a helmet the hope of salvation.
9. For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord
Jesus Christ,
10. who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with
Him.
11. Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are
doing.
Peter also writes to Christians concerning the day of the LORD coming upon the
world as a thief in the night.
He reminds us that we need to be sure that our lives reflect "holy conduct and
godliness,
looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God."
2 Peter 3:10-13 (NKJV)
10.But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the
heavens will pass away
with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat;
both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.
11. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons
ought you to be
in holy conduct and godliness,
12. looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which
the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with
fervent heat?
13. Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for NEW HEAVENS AND A NEW
EARTH
in which righteousness dwells.
(See Isaiah 65:17-25 and Revelation 21:1-8)
Above, Peter reminds us that we have new heavens and a new earth to look forward
to, in which righteousness
dwells. The old will be destroyed in the great fire that is associated with the
coming of the the day of the
LORD, even as Paul also tells us and gives us further insight into the evil that
will be evident as "the mystery of
lawlessness" comes to its peak in the man called "the lawless one" and his false
prophet (Rev.13:11-18)
who will be empowered by Satan to work signs and lying wonders and will deceive
those who did not receive
the love of the truth.
2 Thessalonians 2:6-8 explains that this "lawless one" (elsewhere called "the
antichrist") will be revealed
in his own time and that the LORD will destroy him with the breath of His mouth
and with the brightness of His
coming. So we are warned to watch out for this great deceptive power that will
be evident to Christians and
will be a sign that time is getting close for the return of the LORD.
2 Thessalonians 1:3-10 (NKJV)
(3)We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because
your faith grows exceedingly, and
the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other,
(4) so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your
patience and faith in all your persecutions
and tribulations that you endure,
(5) which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be
counted worthy of the kingdom
of God, for which you also suffer;
(6) since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who
trouble you,
(7) and to give you who are troubled REST with us WHEN the Lord Jesus is
revealed from heaven with His
mighty angels,
(8) in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those
who do not obey the gospel
of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(9) These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of
the Lord and from the glory of His
power,
(10) when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired
among all those who believe,
because our testimony among you was believed.
Warning about
thinking the Day of the Lord had already come!
Thessalonians 2:1-12
(1) Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and
our gathering together to Him, we ask you,
(2) not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by
letter, as if from us, as though the
day of Christ had come.
(3) Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come UNLESS the
falling away comes first, and
THE MAN OF SIN is revealed, the son of perdition,
(4) who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is
worshiped, so that he sits as God in the
temple of God, showing himself that he is God.
(5) Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?
(6) And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own
time.
(7) For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains
will do so until He is taken out of
the way.
(8) And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with
the breath of His mouth and
destroy with the brightness of His coming.
(9) The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all
power, signs, and lying
wonders, (See Rev. 13)
(10) and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did
not receive the love of the
truth, that they might be saved.
(11) And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should
believe the lie, (12) that they all may be condemned who did not believe
the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness
Since the LORD did not reveal the time of His coming to His apostles, and since
He wanted all of us to be
watching and ready, the message is always one that expresses that the time is
near or "at hand". As Peter says:
"But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful . . ."
1 Peter 4:7 (NKJV)
The speed with which the end of all things will come to pass is also prophesied
by Isaiah:
Isaiah 60:19-22 (NKJV)
(19)"The sun shall no longer be your light by day, Nor for brightness shall the
moon give light to you;
But the LORD will be to you an everlasting light, And your God your glory.
20) Your sun shall no longer go down, Nor shall your moon withdraw itself;
For the LORD will be your everlasting light, And the days of your mourning shall
be ended.
21) Also your people shall all be righteous; They shall inherit the land
forever,
The branch of My planting, The work of My hands, That I may be glorified.
(22) A little one shall become a thousand, And a small one a strong nation.
I, the LORD, will hasten it in its time."
(Yes, "in its time, the LORD will make
it happen speedily.)
Revelation 22:6-7 (NKJV)
(6) Then he said to me, "These words are faithful and true." And the Lord God of
the holy prophets
sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place.
(7) "Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the
prophecy of this book."
--Yet we are still waiting!
Revelation 22:12
(12) "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to
every one according to his work.
Revelation 22:20 He who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming quickly." Amen.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
Luke 18:7-8 (NKJV)
7 "And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him,
though He bears long with them?
8 "I tell you that He will avenge them speedily.
Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the
earth?"
He's coming speedily, but we are still waiting.
God does not think of time in the way we do. that's why Peter said,
(2 Pet 3:8-9 NKJV) But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. {9} The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
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