The Covenant Universalist: The Judgment of the Nations: A Preterist Interpretation of the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats (Matthew 25:31

Introduction

Among the parables contained in the Olivet Discourse, the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats (Matt 25:31–46) stands as one of the most vivid and eschatologically charged. Traditionally interpreted as a depiction of the final judgment at the end of the world, this passage is frequently cited as evidence of a universal and individual reckoning before Christ. However, preterist scholars challenge this assumption, asserting instead that the judgment depicted in this passage was a historical event involving nations, not individuals, and was fulfilled in the first-century judgment upon Israel and the Gentile world, climaxing in the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. This essay explores the preterist understanding of the parable, grounding it in the text’s context, its linguistic and thematic details, and the broader framework of covenantal judgment.

I. Contextual and Linguistic Foundations: "All the Nations"

The parable begins: "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations (ta ethnē), and he will separate people one from another..." (Matt 25:31–32, ESV). The Greek term ethnē is critical to the preterist reading. While many interpret ethnē as individuals from all the nations, Milton S. Terry notes that ethnē consistently refers to collective bodies, political entities, or Gentile peoples in both biblical and classical usage (Terry, Biblical Apocalyptics, 1898, p. 231).

James Stuart Russell likewise emphasizes that the use of ethnē in the Gospels, particularly in eschatological contexts, should be understood as a reference to political nations or Gentile groups, especially in distinction from Israel. He argues: “There is no reason to depart from the ordinary signification of the word. It is the nations as such, the representatives of races and peoples, that are the objects of judgment” (Russell, The Parousia, 1878, p. 137).

This understanding shifts the referent of the judgment: it is not a final, individual judgment of all people, but a historical evaluation of how the Gentile nations responded to the gospel and to the “least of these,” Christ’s disciples, during the crisis period leading up to AD 70.

II. The Judgment as a First-Century Event

Preterists assert that the judgment described in this parable is not future to us but was future to Jesus’ audience and fulfilled in the first century. This reading is consistent with the larger Olivet Discourse, in which Jesus explicitly states: “Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place” (Matt 24:34).

Don K. Preston argues that the entire Olivet Discourse—including Matthew 25—is part of a unified prophetic narrative forecasting the end of the Jewish age, not the end of the physical universe. He writes, “There is not a break between chapters 24 and 25... The entire context is focused on the end of the Old Covenant world in AD 70” (Preston, Who Is This Babylon?, 2006, p. 111).

Michael J. Sullivan further develops this view by tying the “coming of the Son of Man in glory” to apocalyptic and symbolic language drawn from Daniel 7, where the Son of Man comes to the Ancient of Days, not to earth. This, Sullivan argues, reflects Christ's enthronement and judgment from heaven, which was visibly vindicated in the fall of Jerusalem (Sullivan, Armageddon Deception, 2011, pp. 65–70).

III. The Role of the "Least of These My Brothers"

A pivotal interpretive element in the parable is the identity of the “least of these my brothers” (Matt 25:40, 45). Rather than a general reference to the poor or suffering, preterists identify them specifically as Christ’s disciples—especially those sent out to proclaim the gospel during the period of apostolic mission and persecution. This interpretation finds strong support in Matthew 10:40–42 and Matthew 18:5, where Jesus uses similar language in reference to His representatives.

Ed Stevens observes that during the first-century missionary activity, nations were evaluated based on their treatment of the gospel messengers. The sheep represented those Gentile communities that received and supported the church’s emissaries, while the goats represent those who opposed or persecuted them. “This is not about general humanitarianism,” Stevens explains, “but about covenant loyalty and how nations responded to the messengers of the kingdom during the transition period” (Final Decade Before the End, 2015, p. 193).

IV. The Covenant and Theocratic Framework

Preterism views Matthew 25:31–46 within the larger redemptive-historical and covenantal drama between Israel and the nations. As the Old Covenant world was drawing to a close, Christ, as the enthroned Messianic King, was judging between the sheep and the goats—not as a final soteriological pronouncement, but as a covenantal reckoning upon how the nations responded to the gospel during the apostolic age.

Milton Terry connects this covenantal dimension with Old Testament prophetic oracles against the nations (e.g., Isaiah 13–23, Jeremiah 46–51), in which God judges collective entities based on their ethical or spiritual posture toward Israel or her mission. “The judgment of nations,” Terry writes, “was a common prophetic theme... it must be understood in the same light here” (Biblical Apocalyptics, p. 233).

V. Implications of a Temporal, National Judgment

Understanding this judgment as historical rather than eschatological reshapes its implications. The "eternal punishment" (Matt 25:46) and "eternal life" are best seen as qualitative rather than strictly temporal categories. Preterists like Don Preston argue that “eternal” (aiōnios) often refers to the age to come, not endless duration. Thus, the punishment and life refer to the covenantal blessings and curses accompanying the transition from the Old to the New Covenant era (Preston, Into All the World, Then Comes the End, 2009, pp. 88–90).

Michael Sullivan and Ed Stevens agree that this parable reflects a transition of ages, not a final cosmic judgment. Those nations that aligned with Christ and His people were incorporated into the blessings of the New Covenant, while those that resisted faced national collapse and covenantal exclusion.

Conclusion

The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, far from depicting the final judgment at the end of world history, is better understood through the preterist lens as a first-century national judgment that took place within history. The ethnē refers to collective nations; the “least of these my brothers” refers to Christ’s emissaries; and the judgment reflects the outworking of covenantal blessings and curses during the transition from the Old to the New Covenant. Preterist interpreters such as James Stuart Russell, Milton Terry, Don Preston, Michael Sullivan, and Ed Stevens offer a compelling and biblically grounded framework for understanding this passage within the broader context of redemptive history and the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70.

Bibliography

Russell, James Stuart. The Parousia: A Critical Inquiry into the New Testament Doctrine of Our Lord’s Second Coming. London: Daldy, Isbister & Co., 1878.
Terry, Milton S. Biblical Apocalyptics: A Study of the Most Notable Revelations of God and of Christ. New York: Eaton & Mains, 1898.
Preston, Don K. Who Is This Babylon? Ardmore, OK: JaDon Management, 2006.
Preston, Don K. Into All the World, Then Comes the End. Ardmore, OK: JaDon Management, 2009.
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