Before Jerusalem Fell

Th Approach to the Question of Dating 19
Temple (A.D.67-70); and(3) the Roman Civil Warof A. D. 68-69.
The compaction of the time-frame in question should not be deemed
of little consequence. For instance, the events separating 1770 from
1800 in American history certainly brought about a remarkable
change in American society, as did the events of 1940-1945 as to
Japan’s and Germany’s histories.
A basic rule of hermeneutics is that a writing’s date of origin
must be ascertained as exactly as possible. This is as true for the
revealed books in Scripture as it is for any other works of literature.
As Berkhof noted in his standard hermeneutics manual: “The word of
God originated in a historical way, and ttbrefore, can be understood on~ in .&
light of histo~.”a From this general principle he goes on to assert
strongly that: “It is impossible to understand an author and to interpret hfi
words correct~ unless he is seen against th proper histon”cid background.”g
Terry, in his longstanding hermeneutics classic, spoke of this principle:
It is of the first importance, in interpreting a written document, to
ascertain who the author was, and to determine the time, the place,
and the circumstances of his writing. . . . Herein we note the import
of the term grammatico+istotial interpretation. We are not only to
grasp the grammatical import of words and sentences, but also to feel
the force and bearing of the historical circumstances which may in
any way have affected the writer. Hence, too, it will be seen how
intimately connected may be the object or design of a writing and the
occasion which prompted its composition. 10
This rule is especially important in interpreting a book purporting
to be prophetic. To choose a bold example by way of illustration,
it is a matter of immense significance whether we accept the Latterday
Saints’s assertion that T/w Book of Mormon was written only a few
centuries after the birth of Christ or the non-Mormon consensus that
it was written in the late 1820s. If it is acknowledged that the book
was written in the 1800s then its “prophecies” regarding the “future”
discovery of America are exposed as frauds.
8. Louis Berkhof, Pnr@les of Biblizal Int@retatwn (Grand Rapids: Baker, [1950]
1974), p. 113.
9. Ibid., p. 114.
10. Milton S. Terry, Biblical Henrumeutus (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, rep. 1974), p.
231.