Second Coming

The following biblical passages [KJV] clearly show that Jesus' disciples and other followers believed that he would return shortly to establish God's kingdom and judge mankind while some of them were still alive [the phrases "kingdom of God" and "kingdom of heaven" are interchangeable].

In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
[Matthew 3:1-2]
Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
[Matthew 4:17]
And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
[Matthew 10:7]
But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.
[Matthew 10:23]
For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom
[Matthew 16:27-28]
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
[Mark 1:15]
So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all be fulfilled.
[Luke 21:31-32]
Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
[Philippians 4:5]
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by [his] Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
[Hebrews 1:2]
For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.
[Hebrews 10:37]
Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
[James 5:8]
But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.
[1 Peter 4:7]
Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
[1 John 2:18]
The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified [it] by his angel unto his servant John:
[Revelation 1:1]
Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they [also] which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
[Revelation 1:7]
And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward [is] with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
[Revelation 22:12]

The public prophecy

The private prophecy

... Jesus delivered his private prophecy [Mat 24, 25; Mar 13; Luk 21], which concluded as follows:

The public prophecy previewed the private prophecy

1. Imminent fulfillment:
This generation shall not pass, til all these things be fulfilled.
[Mat 24:34]

2. Coming with glory & angels:
When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him ...
[Mat 25:31; also Mat 24:30-31 & Mar 13:26-27]

3. Final judgment:
Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world ...
[Mat 25:34]
Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels ...
[Mat 25:41]

And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward [is] with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
[Rev 22:12]

An unknown day and hour?

There is no contradiction between not knowing the precise day and hour and knowing it would occur sometime during his generation. Moreover, Jesus had no reason to caution his listeners to watch [Mat 24:42; Mar 13:33; Luk 21:36] and be ready [Mat 24:44] for an event that would not occur for thousands of years.

The public prophecy did not predict the Transfiguration

Futurists believe that the public prophecy was fulfilled in the Transfiguration, when three disciples, Peter, James, and John accompanied Jesus to the top of a mountain where they had a vision of him transformed and talking with the ghosts of Moses and Elija.
[Mat 17:1-8; Mar 9:2-8; Luk 9:28-36]

Moreover, it would have made no sense for Jesus to warn the three disciples to keep private what he had already made public only six to eight days earlier:

"Generation" was a period of 30-33 years

In Matthew, the word "genea" is clearly defined as one of 14 generations between Abraham and David:

Then, using the same word, Jesus focused on his own generation and that of his listeners:

"All these things" included Jesus' return

A period of great Tribulation
[Mat 24:7-28; Mar 13:8-23; Luk 21-24]

and, immediately afterward
[Mat 24:29]:

the Sun and Moon darken and the stars fall
[Mat 24:29; Mar 13:24-25; Luk 21:25]

all the tribes of Earth see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven
[Mat 24:30; Mar 13:26; Luk 21:27]

even by those who pierced him
[Rev 1:7]

Jesus sends his angels with a trumpet blast to gather his chosen from all nations
[Mar 24:31; Mar 13:27]

for imminent redemption
[Luk 21:28]

to reward every man according to his works
[Mat 16:27; Rev 22:12]

and to separate those who would inherit God's kingdom from those who would receive everlasting punishment
[Mat 25:31-46]

Moreover, it is illogical to claim that the things Jesus predicted have not yet occurred. For example, suppose that an economist predicts that the stock market will crash in "this administration," but it doesn't happen. Later on, during some succeeding administration, it makes no sense to say that the fact the crash has not yet occurred indicates that the economist was not referring to the administration current when he made his prediction.

Jesus did not return in 70 CE

Preterists believe that Jesus fulfilled both the public and private prophecies by returning invisibly and spiritually in 70 CE to pass judgment on Jerusalem. However, his return could not been figurative, because it was to be witnessed by all people on Earth, including those who had been present at his crucifixion:

Moreover, no event around 70 CE, including the destruction of Jerusalem, was greater than any other since the beginning of the world or in the future:

Jesus' prophecy was not about the destruction in 70 CE

... he predicted the destruction of the temple buildings only. If he had intended that the main theme of the prophecy be the destruction of the whole city, then here would have been the best place for him to make that clear.

In fact, both Jesus and his disciples had a far more momentous event in mind when they used the same phrase "end of the world (or age)" ("sunteleias tou aionos") [Mat 13:49 & Mat 24:3]. Neither the destruction of the Temple nor the destruction of the city of Jerusalem in 70 CE fits an event that was to be the greatest ever, in the past or future [Mat 24:21], when all the tribes of the Earth would mourn at the sight of the Son of man coming in the clouds [Mat 24:30].

Conclusion

At least one prominent theologian supports the view that Jesus either intentionally misled his disciples or was mistakenly convinced that he would return shortly to establish his kingdom, while some of his followers were still alive:

Most conservatives reject the plain meaning of the passage, "This generation shall not pass away until all these things take place," because it means admitting that Jesus was mistaken about the time. The issue is intensified because Jesus added, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away" [Mat 24:35; Mk 13:31; Lk 21:33]. All attempts to reinterpret "generation" are armchair approaches to solve our difficulty in understanding the passage. As [previously] noted, the clear-cut testimony of the rest of the New Testament is that the disciples, Paul, and the early church understood Jesus literally. If Jesus really referred to events more than 2000 years in the future, then he was playing word games with his disciples. When we look at the problem honestly there are two basic options: either Jesus was leading his disciples to think something different from what he had in mind, or he was mistaken. The latter is far more preferable because it was done in innocence and shows his true humanity.

-- Dewey M. Beegle, Christian theologian, "Prophecy and Prediction," 1978, pp. 131-132

Second Coming

The public prophecy

The private prophecy