Both passages speak to the season of Christ's return. The Bible never contradicts itself — different prophecies illuminate different facets of the same coming. Here's how each stands on its own, and where they overlap.
Apostasy and falling away from the faith
“Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.”
Church attendance and Christian identification continue to decline across Western nations, with theological drift in many denominations.
Read more →Gospel preached to all nations
“And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”
The gospel must be proclaimed to every nation before the end. Bible translation efforts have now reached over 7,000 languages, with remaining projects accelerating through technology.
Read more →How they relate
These prophecies address different signs, but together they fill out the prophetic pattern Scripture lays down for the season before Christ's return.
Neither passage tells us the day or the hour — “no one knows” (Matt 24:36). They tell us the shape of the season we're in so we can watch with hope, not fear.