Matthew records that Jesus referred to "this generation" ten times (Matt. 1:17; 11:16; 12:39; 12:41, 42, 45; 16:4; 17:17; 23:36; 24:34). With the final reference, Jesus had said, "Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place" (Matt. 24:34).
The previous nine references were pointing to the Jews who opposed King Jesus. Are we to believe that with the tenth reference where Jesus described "this generation" that He was pointing to the future? No! The context of Jesus' Olivet Discourse is the desolation of the temple that He had just been in when He rebuked the Jews and said, "Verily I say unto you, all these things shall come upon this generation" (Matt. 23:36).
All of the things that Jesus described from Matthew 23:36 to Matthew 24:33 were fulfilled by A.D. 70 when the Romans desolated Jerusalem, the temple, and the Jewish nation. The enemy has deceived people concerning the symbolism of the sun, moon, and stars being darkened; Messiah coming in power and glory; and the elect being gathered into the kingdom. But the Bible gives the proper definitions for the symbols.
We need to believe Jesus and take Him at His Word, looking at how the things that He described concerned the Jewish nation, for their punishment of continuing to rebel against the Father, for delivering Jesus up to be killed, and for persecuting His disciples. The Olivet Discourse is directly related to the 70th Week of Daniel 9, which says that the city and temple will be desolated because of the abominations of the Jews. If you insist that the 70th week of Daniel has not been fulfilled, then go read Daniel 9:24-27, and ask yourself these questions:
- During which week of the seventy-week prophecy did Messiah carry out his multiyear ministry?
- In which week did He die for our sins?
If you are honest with the text, you will discover that the only place for those events is in the 70th week.
Regarding the ‘covenant’ of Daniel 9:27, it is the same covenant that Daniel just mentioned in Daniel 9:4, which already existed. It is the everlasting covenant that was made to Abraham, which Jesus came to ‘confirm’ by ransoming us with His blood as the Passover Lamb, and liberating us from sin and the domain of darkness.
Both the Chiastic structure of Daniel 9:24-27 and the Poetic structure absolutely destroy the false interpretation imposed on the text by Dispensationalists. Whether you want to hear it or not, Dispensationalism is a cult much like the Jehovah's Witnesses. They both isolate and rip random verses from their immediate contexts and force them to agree with their own fairy tale interpretations.