The Kingdom of the Son of Man: Exploring the Foundations of a Biblical Philosophy of History
Nishanth Arulappan
Abstract
Developing a biblical philosophy of history begins with the nature of God, and His attributes with regards to His omnipotent control over all dimensions of time, and His omniscience that guarantees future outcomes. While a biblical philosophy of history might have areas of overlap with the philosophy of time, they are not synonymous; and a nuanced treatment of the former mandates exegeting several passages that touch on eschatological topics. Such a broad scope is beyond the purpose of this present article. Therefore, this essay will be focused on understanding God’s purpose in history – to what end is God directing history? How does the Kingdom of God interact with the various events and elements in world history? Based on a limited exegesis of relevant passages (primarily focused on Daniel), we will build our understanding to see how the Kingdom of the Son of Man – the Second Adam – differs from the rest of the kingdoms of earthly origin, and how the exaltation of Christ is the purpose towards which all events in history are ordained. We will conclude with practical observations on how, as Christians – with our citizenship in heaven (Philippians 3:20) – we are to relate to the world around us and to shine God’s light in the midst of the world.