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Dispensationalism
A Tool for Bible
Interpretation
There is a biblical
interpretation system, called dispensationalism, that identifies basic time
periods or historical ages in which God dispensed methods of organization, law,
and government to humankind.
A popular Bible dictionary
indicates that the word dispensationcomes from the
Greek oikonomia which means “management” and the first
definition listed is “the method or scheme according to which God carries out
his purposes.”
So,
basically, dispensationalism is a specialized study process for organizing and
charting how God historically dealt with humankind. “These different dispensations are not separate ways of salvation.
During each of them, man is reconciled to God in only one way . . . although
the divine revelation unfolds progressively, the deposit of truth in earlier
time-periods is not discarded, rather it is cumulative.”
Throughout history, different
authors have indicated varying schemes for dispensations, but most use a system
modified and popularized by Cyrus Scofield in the early 20th century.
Scofield
stated that “a dispensation is a period
of time during which man is tested in respect to his obedience to some specific
revelation of the will of God.”
It is not doctrine, dogma, or
religious tenet – it is just a tool to help with organization and
interpretation.
Today, dispensationalism comes
in many “flavors” dispensed by various Christian authors and groups, including
the adding of all types of specific beliefs, like varying rapture ideas:
pre-tribulation, mid-tribulation, or post-tribulation concepts.
Some Christian leaders and
churches debate between what they call classic dispensationists and progressive
dispensationists; some say there are four dispensations, some that there are
five, and some say seven or eight.
Some theologians differ on which
verses to include in a particular dispensation. And then, some declare precise
and/or elaborate schemes that they call a dispensational theology. And the list
goes on.
This conservative author
considers there are benefits to approaching Bible study using a basic structured
dispensational concept without including all the extra baggage added by an
assortment of Christian visionaries over the past 100 plus years.
The basic system used in this
study is dividing the Bible into eight periods in which God deals with
humankind in different ways.
This discourse will not include
all the details of each period, but a scant overview. It is assumed that the
reader has a basic biblical knowledge of the time periods and the expanse of
stories that accompany them.
The Dispensation of Innocence: Creation to the Fall of Man
First
is the “Dispensation of Innocence” and covers Genesis 1:26–3:7 and it involves
how God dealt with his new human creatures from their creation to the moment of
losing their innocence. This period of time could, very well, also be called
the Eden period, as it involved the elementary God-given rule dispensed to Adam
and Eve while living in the garden of Eden.
Although some authors disagree,
innocence is really an accurate description. Adam and Eve were naive and
guiltless, so their condition matched the definition of innocence. Their
stewardship was to take care of the garden and obey a simple law that God
dispensed: don’t eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Adam was fully at fault for
their failure, even though Eve was the one deceived and who first ate the
fruit. Adam was given that simple law, along with the responsibilities of
tilling the ground, before Eve was created (Genesis 2:15–17). Eve was his
helper, his counterpart for which he was responsible. Basically, the only rule
involved was that they obey God. That primary responsibility, it turned out,
was too much for them to handle. In speaking to Adam, Eve, and the serpent, God
gave grievous punishments to them. For the humans, great hardship and death
would be upon them and their descendants, but there was also a hint that all
would work out in the end (Genesis 3:15).
The Dispensation of Conscience:
Fall of Man Through the Flood
Second is the “Dispensation of
Conscience.” This time covers Genesis 3:8–8:14 and is sometimes called the antediluvian
period, because it dealt with God’s administration after being removed from the
garden in Eden to the time of the flood. Humankind had obtained its awareness
of good and evil, as a result of eating the forbidden fruit and learned, as
well, that there are consequences attached to their choices. Now a test period
is established to see if humankind would use their conscience to make proper
decisions. The idea for that was simple: to do only good.
In Genesis chapter four, Cain
and Abel, two sons of Adam and Eve, brought offerings to the Lord. Cain’s
offering was part of his crop, whereas Abel’s gift was the best portion
of “the firstborn lambs from his flock. The Lord accepted Abel and
his gift, but did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and
he looked dejected” (Genesis 4:3–5, NLT). Cain was
jealous and killed his brother. So, murder began as a consequence of
humankind’s rebellion against God’s rule. Cain built a city that was godless
and filled with violence. Humankind had failed again. Evil filled the world by
the time Noah arrived and, through him, God devised a way to cleanse the earth
and give humankind a fresh start.
The Dispensation of Civil
Government: After the Flood
Next is the “Dispensation of
Civil Government” and covers the span of time as recorded in Genesis 8:15–11:9,
starting immediately after the flood event and ends with the tower of Babel
fiasco. During this time period, God dispenses instructions to multiply and
fill the earth, and the right to rule over others, administer capital
punishment, and to use animals, which now fear humans, as a source of food. God
continues instructing with emphasis on blood, giving more direction than the
simple required sacrifice that appeared in the last dispensation. He also promised
to never flood the earth again and gave the rainbow as a symbol of that promise
(Genesis 9:1–17). The rules and laws applied in the previous dispensations did
not disappear, but continued under this new strategy, as it was with all new
dispensations.
Instead of filling the earth,
humankind decided to group together and build a large city and tower in Babel.
Once again, humankind didn’t fair very well with their choices, so God sent
judgement by the confusion of languages forcing them to scatter over the face
of the earth.
The Dispensation of Promise:
Patriarchal Rule
Now
we enter the fourth period, the “Dispensation of Promise” (promise to Abraham).
Genesis 11:10–Exodus 18:27 could also be called a dispensation of patriarchal
rule, because God moves from a direct governing relationship with his creation,
to one where he relates to the population indirectly through one family line.
God dealt graciously with
Abraham and his descendants and made a covenant (Genesis 15). God promised
Abraham that he would bless him, make his name great, protect him, and give him
land. The promise included that he would be guaranteed many descendants and be
the father of many nations. Furthermore, humankind’s redeemer would come
through his bloodline.
A lot happens during this period
of time, including the stories of God changing Abraham’s name,4 Sodom and Gomorrah, the
beginning of the Arab race, and God asking Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac.
It follows with the birth and earlier life of Moses — when he was born and how
he dealt with Pharaoh and then the escape from Egypt, including the time in the
wilderness. In this new dispensation, humankind needed to learn that God’s
promise was an incentive to do good. Humankind failed, once again. Get the idea
— know where this is going? This period ends when God summoned Moses to the top
of Mount Sinai.
The Dispensation of Law: The
Mosaic Period
The fifth is the “Dispensation
of Law,” or the Mosaic period, when God establishes specific laws for which
people were responsible for obeying.
The
Bible records this long period at Exodus 20–Acts 1, which includes everything
of the remaining old testament books as well as the Gospels.
Although there were more than
600 laws given to Moses by God, which cover all modes of living, the nucleus of
the Mosaic Law was the decalogue written by God, on tablets of stone at Mount
Sinai, early in this period.
Those
ten commandments consisted of some rules concerning their relationship with God
and some rules concerning relationships between people.
These
laws were a renewal of God’s covenant with Israel and imposed penalties if they
were broken.
This
was a new way to administer to His people and gave structure to society and
provided for a better relationship between them.
The
commandments would be beneficial to anyone, but God was now dealing,
specifically, with His chosen people, Israel, and they were responsible for
following them all.
Of course, more failure was the
result. Moses didn’t even get away from Mount Sinai before the people started
to ignore the laws and, as a result, God’s judgement was brought upon Israel.
And
Israel failed over and over again which brought punishment upon them. Most
notable was the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities, and the Greek and Roman
oppression.
Blood sacrifice was amplified
throughout this dispensation, ending with Christ’s crucifixion, which was a
rejection by the Jews of its Messiah. Humankind failed this dispensation, too.
The Dispensation of Grace: The
Church Period
The
sixth age brings the “Dispensation of Grace” — this present dispensation —
which records how humankind’s newest responsibility is to accept God’s free
gift of justification (through the crucifixion of Jesus Christ) and is recorded
in Acts 2–Revelation 19:21.
This
period is from shortly after Jesus’s death to his second coming and toward the
end of the dispensation, when the tribulations will occur.
Some
people refer to this time as the Church age because it also covers the
creation, expansion, and maturing of the Christian Church and illustrates how
they behaved.
This
dispensation of grace was presented to the apostle Paul to disseminate (Ephesians 3:2; Colossians 1:25-27) and he did so, far and wide, with several missionary
journeys.
God in His wisdom had determined
that Paul would be ‘“my
chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and
before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my
name” (Acts 9:15-16, NIV).
The
evidence is clear: Paul was obedient to the heavenly vision (Acts 26:19),
and his ministry made possible the spread of the gospel to the ends of the
earth.
This current period will fail,
too, because the majority have not, do not, will not accept this free gift and
will be judged accordingly.
Current
events give us an indication of how close we are to the close of this age, and
some alive on earth now may witness the outcome from this dispensation.
The Dispensation of the
Millennium: Reign of Jesus Christ
The seventh age will be the
“Dispensation of the Millennium” and starts after Satan is bound for a thousand
years.
That
starts the long expected millennial reign of Christ which begins at Revelation
20:1–6.
That age will bring about a
righteous rule during the theocratic reign of Christ and provide a final
fulfillment of the promises made to Abraham and a full restitution of what was
lost in the garden of Eden.
During
this time, Satan will be bound and war will be eradicated. We will live longer,
food will be abundant, and our climate will be restrained.
The
first resurrection will occur during this time, when the saints of Christ come
alive and reign with Him for the duration of the millennium.
Even
after living during the wonderful conditions of the seventh dispensation, with
no influence from Satan and a thousand years to get their act together, it is
expected that some will not survive when Satan is released, again.
The Final Dispensation: New
Eternal State
John’s vision in Revelation
20:7,8 states that after the thousand years, Satan will be released and return
to deceive the nations.
That
will be similar to the situation that occurred in the garden of Eden, when
Satan deceived Eve.
This
time, humankind will have experienced all forms of government and, hopefully,
learned that they need rule from a perfect King to obtain a perfect life, and
they must choose this path of their own free will.
The end of the Bible tells of Satan gathering forces
to do battle with God’s people. “He will go out to deceive the nations — called
Gog and Magog — in every corner of the earth. He will gather them together for
battle — a mighty army, as numberless as sand along the seashore.
“And
I saw them as they went up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded God’s
people and the beloved city. But fire from heaven came down on the attacking
armies and consumed them.
“Then
the devil, who had deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of burning
sulfur, joining the beast and the false prophet. There they will be tormented
day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:8–10, NLT).
Finally,
the dead will be judged according to their deeds. Then death and the grave will
be thrown in the lake of fire along with all those whose name was not found in
the Book of Life.
After
this, there will be a real new world order, one that is under the full
administration of Jesus and one will last forever.
Conclusion
There are many approaches to
studying the Bible. This author hopes that the dispensational approach will be
a useful tool in understanding how God has administered to His chosen people
and how the Church, through testing our faith, is in need of divine leadership.
It
is a structured and systematic study for explaining God’s relationship with us
as His plan unfolds and comes to a conclusion with a restitution of all things
lost when sin entered the world.
Ray Hermann, D.Min.
I'm a retired pastor and now devote most of my time to
researching and writing Christian articles for the Outlaw Bible Student
ministry web site. Most of these essays are serious in-depth studies on
religious-related topics and, although the majority of posts found on the
website are for general audiences, there may be certain controversial, mature,
or adult content.
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