OLD TESTAMENT ESCHATOLOGY Jesus began his public ministry by announcing that “the time has been fulfilled, and the kingdom of God [ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ, hē basileia tou theou] is at hand” (Mark 1:15). Nowhere did Jesus define what he meant by his use of the phrase “the kingdom of God.” This would suggest that he assumed, because of Old Testament teaching on the subject, that the idea and something of its content were familiar to his listeners. While the expression “the kingdom of God” does not