The Covenant Universalist: Full Preterism and Universal Salvation: Eschatological Fulfillment and the Fate of the Unsaved Dead

Introduction

Full preterism, also known as consistent preterism, posits that all biblical prophecy, including the Second Coming, Resurrection, and Final Judgment, was fulfilled in the events surrounding the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. As a consequence, history continues indefinitely under the reign of Christ's spiritual kingdom. This framework departs from traditional futurist eschatology by eliminating a final cosmic consummation. This theological stance has profound implications for doctrines concerning the fate of the dead, particularly those who die outside of saving faith. If the world does not end and eschatological judgment is past, then the destiny of the unevangelized and the unsaved must be re-evaluated. This essay will explore how full preterist eschatology potentially reshapes and even supports various expressions of universal salvation, including forms proposed by James Relly and John Murray, Gregory of Nyssa and Elhanan Winchester and Origen and William Brennan.

I should add at the outset that although I am not convinced of this particular doctrine, I look at it as an alternate interpretation of the eschatological situation. It seems more in line with Origen's view which emphasizes free will than with my supralapsarian variation on it. My theonomic postmillenialism leads me to favor the idea that there will be a final consummation and a finite number of souls that are to be redeemed after which the earth will be no more.

I. Full Preterism: A Summary of Its Eschatological Claims

Full preterism interprets New Testament eschatology as being entirely fulfilled in the past. Its central claims include:

The Second Coming of Christ occurred in AD 70 in a non-physical, covenantal, and judicial manner.
The resurrection of the dead refers to the raising of the Old Covenant faithful into the New Covenant order.
The final judgment was executed upon Old Covenant Israel and her persecutors.

This framework sees no future global destruction or bodily resurrection, viewing such language as apocalyptic metaphor within a covenant-historical paradigm (Don K. Preston, Who Is This Babylon?, 2006). As Ed Stevens and Michael Sullivan argue, time continues indefinitely in a post-parousia world governed by Christ's spiritual reign (Final Decade Before the End, 2015; Armageddon Deception, 2011).

The result is an open-ended history in which human beings continue to be born, live, die, and enter the afterlife—without an eschatological terminus. This raises a significant theological problem: What becomes of those who die outside of explicit Christian faith in this ongoing, post-judgment world?

II. The Fate of the Unsaved in a Preterist Framework

Traditional Christian eschatology, both Augustinian and Reformed, envisions a final resurrection and judgment at the end of time, after which individuals are assigned to eternal reward or punishment. Full preterism, by contrast, holds that the “final” judgment has already occurred (Matt 24:34; Rev 22:12), and that individuals are judged at death, not at the end of time. This implies a form of realized personal eschatology.

Yet, within such a system, where history never ends, a troubling scenario emerges: countless generations are born post-AD 70 with no future "last chance" judgment. Those who die “unsaved” cannot be judged at a future final day—they must be judged at death. Does this entail eternal damnation for all who fail to embrace explicit gospel faith during life? This is where universalist theology enters the conversation.

III. Universalism in Patristic and Evangelical Thought

Gregory of Nyssa and Elhanan Winchester: Salvation Through Judgment

Gregory of Nyssa, the 4th-century Cappadocian Father, proposed a restorative view of divine judgment, wherein punishment purifies rather than eternally torments. In On the Soul and the Resurrection, he writes of divine fire that “removes the foreign matter” from the soul (Gregory, On the Soul and the Resurrection, §8). Elhanan Winchester, an 18th-century American preacher, taught similarly that the damned would eventually be purified and reconciled to God (Winchester, Dialogues on the Universal Restoration, 1788).

This view harmonizes well with preterism: since final judgment is past, and since the damned continue to exist in the afterlife, divine justice can still act beyond death, gradually restoring the wicked. The fire of judgment—fulfilled covenantally in AD 70—serves as a type for the spiritual fire of post-mortem purification.

The main caveat against this view is that it seems to downplay the significance of existence in the temporal realm. If all mankind were to die in their sins they could all be redeemed and removed from the purgatorial fires of divine judgement. This seems to make terrestrial existence rather meaningless, certainly less significant to ay the least.

John Relly and Rellian Inclusivism: Salvation Without Punishment

John Relly, an 18th-century theologian, developed a radical form of inclusivist universalism in which all are considered saved in Christ regardless of conscious faith, since the elect corporate humanity was unified in Him. This view, sometimes called Rellian Inclusivism, posits no post-mortem punishment, only immediate entrance into divine presence upon death. This view was brought to America by his disciple John Murry.

For full preterists who interpret hell (Gehenna) as a historical judgment on Jerusalem, Relly's view becomes attractive. Without a literal hell in the afterlife, and with judgment past, inclusivism seems to resolve the ethical tension of eternal damnation for finite sin. Don Preston and Michael Sullivan leave the door open to such interpretations, suggesting that "hell" is better seen as a temporal, covenantal consequence rather than a metaphysical place of torment (Armageddon Deception, p. 81).

But if the purgatorial view of Winchester downplayed the significance of terrestrial history and existence then the view of Relly does so with a vengeance. On his view there is absolutely no reason to preach he gospel since everyone goes to heaven immediately regardless of the life they lived on earth or their spiritual; state upon death, Of the three options this one seems the most flagrantly unbiblical as it ignores all the passages which call men to make a decision for Christ and to make disciples of the nations.

Origen and William Brennan: Salvation Through Reincarnation

Origen of Alexandria famously proposed a doctrine of apokatastasis, the final restoration of all souls—even Satan—through cycles of correction and rebirth (Origen, De Principiis, I.6.2–3). Similarly, modern universalist William Brennan has suggested that metempsychosis offers the soul repeated opportunities to come to God. This view can be expressed along Arminian lines as with Origen or along strong, even supralapsarian lines, as with Brennan.

Within a preterist cosmology, there is no eschatological deadline, allowing such views to flourish logically. A never-ending world provides limitless time for divine pedagogy, whether through multiple earthly lives or extended spiritual correction. Brennan argues: “Without a terminal eschaton, God can restore all things by love and truth alone, across ages of grace” (Brennan, Universal Restoration and Eternal Progress, 2008, p. 214).

IV. Evaluating the Ethical and Theological Implications

If history continues indefinitely and all prophecy is fulfilled, God’s universal saving purposes are not constrained by eschatological deadlines. This opens up possibilities for a more hopeful theological anthropology, in which even those who die unrepentant may eventually be reconciled to God. From this vantage point, post-mortem salvation is not a deviation from biblical teaching but a logical corollary of preterist eschatology.

However, such a stance requires a rethinking of mission, evangelism, and justice. If salvation is ultimately universal, does it negate the urgency of preaching? Not necessarily. As Gregory of Nyssa and Origen emphasize, judgment and discipline remain real—even if restorative. Evangelism, then, becomes a participation in God's healing work, not a rescue from eschatological destruction.

Conclusion

Full preterism, by declaring the end already fulfilled, forces theologians to reconsider the eternal fate of the unevangelized and unsaved. In a world with no eschatological terminus, universalist models offer compelling answers. Whether through restorative punishment (Gregory, Winchester), post-mortem reincarnation and repentance (Origen, Brennan), or immediate universal inclusion (Relly), the implications of full preterism seem to press toward the inevitability of universal salvation. While these views remain controversial within orthodox theology, they find in preterism an eschatological framework that allows them to flourish—and demand renewed theological reflection on God's justice, mercy, and ultimate purposes for humanity.

Bibliography

Brennan, William. Hope for the Lost (Toms River: Evangelical Universalist Press, 2011)
Gregory of Nyssa. On the Soul and the Resurrection. Translated by Catherine P. Roth. St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1993.
Origen. On First Principles (De Principiis). Translated by G.W. Butterworth. Harper and Row, 1966.
Preston, Don K. Who Is This Babylon? Ardmore, OK: JaDon Management, 2006.
Stevens, Ed. Final Decade Before the End: The Eight Years That Changed the World. Bradford, PA: International Preterist Association, 2015.
Sullivan, Michael J. Armageddon Deception. West Palm Beach: Tree of Life Ministries, 2011.
Winchester, Elhanan. Dialogues on the Universal Restoration. London, 1788.