Monday, December 4, 2023

Robert Sungenis (Conservative Catholic) on the Contingent Nature of Biblical Prophecy

  

The prophecy of Ezekiel 40-48 may also be relevant here. Ezekiel speaks of the Levites offering sacrifices in the new temple (cf. Ez 40:46; 43:19; 44:10; 45:5; 48:11). These prophecies may be related to similar descriptions in the New Testament (cf. Ac 15:16-18; Ac 1:6-8; 26:7; Jm 1:1; Rm 11:26; Gls 6:16). Other outstanding features of Ezekiel 40-48 which correlate with New Testament imagery are: Ez 40:20/Ap 21:10; Ez 40:3/Ap 11:1; Ez 40:17/Ap 11:2; Ez 41:23/Hb 9:23; Ez 42:20/Ap 21:16; Ez 44:4/Ap 15:8; Ez 44:17/Ap 19:8; Ez 47:1/Ap 22:1; Ez 47:7, 12/Ap 22:2; Ez 47:22/Ep 2:12f; Ez 48:35/Ap 21:3; Ez 48:1-35/Ap 7:1-8. Many of these passages coincide with the prophecies of Zc 14:1-21. At least three interpretations are possible for Ez 40-48: (1) it is symbolic of the New Testament period, which will pass into eternity; (2) its meticulous detail forces it to be a literal prophecy of future events which have not yet been fulfilled; (3) it is a conditional prophecy only for the post-exilic remnant of Jews, which was not fulfilled due to their disobedience (Ml 3:8-12). (Robert A. Sungenis, Not By Bread Alone: The Biblical and Historical Evidence for the Eucharistic Sacrifice [2d ed.; State Line, Pa.: Catholic Apologetics International Publishing, Inc., 2009], 99-100 n. 101, emphasis in bold added)

 

Shall a man afflict God? for you afflict me. And you have said: Wherein do we afflict thee? in tithes and in firstfruits. And you are cursed with want, and you afflict me, even the whole nation of you. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in my house, and try me in this, saith the Lord: if I open not unto you the flood-gates of heaven, and pour you out a blessing even to abundance. And I will rebuke for your sakes the devourer, and he shall not spoil the fruit of your land: neither shall the vine in the field be barren, saith the Lord of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed: for you shall be a delightful land, saith the Lord of hosts. (Malachi 3:8-12 | Douay-Rheims)

 

In support of the thesis that "God knows some things contingently":

 

Contingency” is the theological term used to distinguish between God’s sole predeterminations as opposed to determinations based on man’s free will decisions or the natural working out of events. In other words, “contingency” means that some or all of God’s predeterminations are made based on what man will decide to do or the natural outworking of events. Scripture gives us some interesting examples of contingency. In one instance, David inquires of the Lord if a certain event will take place in the future if David stays at the place where the event would have happened. God tells him that the event will occur if David stays there. David decides not to go to that place and the foreseen event never occurs (1Sm 23:1-14). Although this is a rudimentary example of contingency, it nevertheless gives us a glimpse into the dynamic relationship between what God sees as real possibilities in the future and the free decisions of man. (Robert A. Sungenis, Not By Faith Alone: The Biblical Evidence for the Catholic Doctrine of Justification [2d ed.; State Line, Pa.: Catholic Apologetics International Publishing, Inc., 2009], 417 n. 518)