Verse 10
"Unto all the nations" is in the emphatic first position in the Greek text. All the nations must hear the gospel before the end of the age (cf. Matthew 24:14). This is the responsibility of every generation of disciples (Matthew 28:19). The generation of believers alive during the Tribulation immediately preceding Jesus’ return will accomplish this task in their generation (Revelation 7). "Must" (Gr. dei) indicates divine necessity. God wants this to happen, and it will happen.
"It is part of God’s eschatological purpose that before the End [of this age] all nations shall have an opportunity to accept the gospel." [Note: Cranfield, p. 399.]
This verse is not a promise that if disciples will preach the gospel to all nations in a particular generation God will then begin the kingdom, as postmillennialists teach. Man cannot bring in the kingdom by the universal preaching of the gospel. God will bring it in at His appointed time. This is not a promise that everyone will become a believer in Jesus either.
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