Why the Number of the Elect
Will Forever Be Finite
and why it matters

"Full Preterists" believe the Kingdom of God began in the past and lasts forever. Preterists believe Jesus established His Kingdom at His First Coming. Acts 2 says God had made Jesus the Christ. "Christ" means "King." Here is why Preterists believe this Kingdom will last forever.

A criticism of this view is based on the idea found in the Westminster Confession of Faith, in Chapter III, "Of God’s Eternal Decree":

IV. These angels and men, thus predestinated, and fore-ordained, are particularly and unchangeably designed, and their number so certain and definite, that it cannot be either increased or diminished.(h)

Critics of Preterism claim that since the number of the elect is "definite" it must be "finite," but presumably people are being saved every day in Christ's Kingdom, and if the Kingdom lasts forever, the number of the elect will not be "definite" (meaning "finite"), because the number will forever be increasing.

This criticism is based on a misunderstanding of the words "definite" and "finite."

God the Creator alone is infinite.
The Creation is finite.
Romans 1:25 says we must worship the Creator rather than the Creature.

Imagine a timeline for the Creator (not to scale)

The "past" for God goes infinitely to the left.
The "future" for God goes infinitely to the right.
God is Infinite.

Now imagine a timeline for the Creation, the Human Race, and the Kingdom of God (not to scale)

The creation has a beginning. Bishop Ussher calculated that the Creation and the human race began in the year 4004 B.C.

Looking at the history of the creation from today, we can see it does not go infinitely into the past, like God does.
The creation and the human race only extend back a few thousand years before Jesus was born and began reigning as the Messiah.

Looking back at the history of the elect, the number of elect persons so far is a finite number.

The Bible says God knows the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10). That means that in 4005 B.C. (one year before God created everything), God already knew how many people will have been saved by the end of the day today. This number is finite. The whole Creation is finite. Only God is infinite.

The Creator already knows how many people will be saved by the end of the day tomorrow. This number will still be finite. Add to this number the number of people who will be saved by the end of this year. The number will be finite and known to God. The hairs on this finite number of human heads will be numbered by God (Luke 12:7). Add to this number the number of people who will be saved by the end of this century. The number will be finite and known to God.

The number of the elect is always known by God. It will always be finite. The Creation will never be infinite like the Creator, because it had a beginning in time. It will always be finite. Day after day, the number of the elect will be finite and known to God. Day after day, forever, the number will be finite and known to God.

"Change my mind."

The Prooftexts

The Westminster Confession of Faith, in Chapter III, "Of God’s Eternal Decree" says:

IV. These angels and men, thus predestinated, and fore-ordained, are particularly and unchangeably designed, and their number so certain and definite, that it cannot be either increased or diminished.(h)

When the Westminster Confession says the number of the elect "cannot be either increased or diminished," does the Confession mean that God cannot increase the number? No, the Confession is not talking about eschatology, but about God's omnipotent decree. The Confession means that the creature cannot change the number of the elect by an act of "free will" which was unanticipated by God before the foundation of the world, either by exercising saving faith and increasing the number of the elect, or by apostatizing and decreasing the number of the elect, apart from from God's electing decree.

From our time-based perspective, the number of the elect increases daily. Yet at the end of the day, the number is still finite. No amount of time, during which the number of the elect increases (from our perspective), increases the number above a finite number. It is a number "which no man could number" (Revelation 7:9), but at no point in time does the number of daily-increasing elect become more than God can number. The day never comes that God does not know what the number of the elect will be the next day. The day never comes when the number of the elect is no longer finite. The day never comes when God does not know about one of the elect coming to faith. The number is known to God at every point in time -- because He decreed that number.

To prove the doctrine asserted in the Confession of Faith, the Westminster Divines adduced two prooftexts:

(h) 2 Tim. 2:19; John 13:18.

2 Timothy 2:19
19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

John 13:18
18 I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me.

[The emphasis is found in the edition of the Confession published by the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland.]

Taking these verses as premises in a syllogism, one cannot logically or Biblically conclude that the Kingdom of God must end by sundown tonight, otherwise the number of the elect might be "increased" by someone coming to faith, or "decreased" by an elect person apostatizing. Whoever is saved or apostatizes in the next 24 hours was known to God before the foundation of the world. If the Kingdom lasts another thousand years, the number of the elect will be known to God.

The proof texts adduced by the Westminster Divines in support of their claim that the number of the elect cannot be increased or diminished -- which anti-preterists use to buttress their claim that the Kingdom of God must come to an end before God loses count of the elect -- only say that the number of the elect is "known" by God, not that the number cannot exceed a certain limit. There is no number of elect that is beyond God's comprehension or ability to "know." The number will forever and always be finite and known by an infinite God.

It is difficult for finite creatures to understand the knowledge possessed by an Infinite Being. How can God "know" me today, but also "know" someone who hasn't even been born yet? The Bible says God "knew" His chosen people ("the elect") before the world was created. The names that are written in the Book of Life were written in that Book before a single human being was created (Revelation 13:8; 18:8). The birth of someone tomorrow will not add another name to that Book. The Lord already "knows" all of the people who will ever be born and be converted. With the addition of a new convert every day, the number of converts will always be finite and "known" by God. And always was known.

Appendix A
The Kingdom of God is Everlasting

Jesus established His Kingdom at His First Coming. In Acts 2, Peter says God had already made Jesus the Christ. "Christ" means "King."

The Bible says this Kingdom lasts forever.

Not just 10 centuries, as millennialists hold

Isaiah 9:6-7
⁶ For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
⁷ Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

The Messianic Age Never Ends --  "world without end." Of the baby Jesus it was foretold:

Luke 1
³² He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
³³ And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

This reign began 2,000 years ago. And it has only just begun.

Pushback

This is not an easy concept. It raises a few thorny questions.

Here is a criticism of the position we advocate: "Heretical Preterism"

It does not bode well for an article that is highly critical of a position when that article does not fairly state the position it is attacking, nor anticipates the obvious rebuttals that will be offered by that position. None of the verses above are considered in that article. Nor are these:

Micah 4:5
Though all people walk each in the name of his god,
We will walk in the name of the LORD our God Forever and ever.

Micah 4:7
I will make the lame a remnant,
And the outcast a strong nation;
So the LORD will reign over them in Mount Zion
From now on, even forever.

Daniel 7:14  
Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
Which shall not pass away,
And His kingdom the one
Which shall not be destroyed.

Daniel 7:27
Then the kingdom and dominion,
And the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven,
Shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High.
His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
And all dominions shall serve and obey Him.’

Revelation 11:15
Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”

Revelation 14:6
6 Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people—

The Book of Hebrews says Jesus is a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 5:6; 6:20; 7:17,21). Many anti-preterists believe that no priestly intercession will be needed in the sinless New Heavens and New Earth.

The article above creates more problems than it solves.

In reply, it might be said that the "everlasting" kingdom will not begin until the Second Coming. Which is another way of saying that Jesus is not the reigning Messiah right now. Which falls under the condemnation of 1 John 2:2. So while our position might be called "heretical," the opposing position might be called "antichrist."

Jesus is the Christ Today. It is wrong to say Jesus is not yet the Christ.