Index
Introduction
This page is a 'work in progress' and can change at any time
:)
Purpose: Christian
Eschatology is the study of study of the destiny of
man as it is revealed in the Bible.
Why is this a relevant subject of research? Because Jesus himself taught
about it! The 'Olivet
Discourse' took place on the Mount
of Olives and is covered in the synoptic Gospels (Matthew
24
/
Mark
13
/
Luke
21). That should be sufficient reason on its own, but
the Bible also contains numerous other passages on the same
topic -- including the most eschatological book of all: Relevation.
If
it
wasn't
important
for
us
to know, Jesus would not have mentioned it. So does Daniel,
Ezekiel,
Joel,
Paul,
and John!
Previously: Up to
2012 and (almost) my 50th year, I had always accepted the
most widely held evangelical
understandings of the biblical book of Revelation
i.e. a futurist
literal fulfillment of the 'End Times',
including the predominant 'Pre
Tribulation' timing of the 'Rapture',
in a Dispensational
Premillennial
framework.
Currently: As I set
out for a 'big picture' understanding of the chronology
involved, I was challenged with the newer (in name, but not
in concept) theory of 'Pre Wrath
Rapture' within a more traditional Historic
Premillennial framework. Although this
interpretation is not without its own issues, I am now
seeing it as 'fitting the facts' better than what I
understood to this point. With the disclaimer that I
don't (yet?) fully endorse any particular person or group on
this perspective, credit goes to the following:
References
& Resources
Websites:
YouTube Videos:
Classic Essays:
My Contributions:
Daniel
/ Matthew / Thessalonians: Puzzle Frame Pieces
From my class presentation
slides, this one illustrates the basic chronology of
Daniel's 70th week that can be linked to Jesus (in Matthew
24) and Paul (in Thessalonians) and not yet involving the
book of Revelation, in order to form a core 7 year 'frame'
for the 'puzzle':
Here is the same puzzle frame in tabular
form, with some expansion beyond the 7 year time frame
using some extra material from Revelation:
Initial Events |
Beginning of Agonies
|
2nd
Coming & Rapture Core Events
|
|
Later Events
(Mostly book of Revelation)
|
God's Wrath, Babylon Fall, Wedding
Supper, Armageddon Battle, Millennium, White
Throne Judgement, New Jerusalem/Eternity
|
Another very useful graphic from a great Youtube
video series by Chris White Bible
Prophecy Talk channel is this timeline that he
created:
Revelation:
Puzzle Completion
Next, I added some cross-reference verses for the 'core'
event puzzle pieces, now including the book of
Revelation. In doing so, it became fairly apparent
where the key matching overlay events were with the
non-Revelation references -- primarily locating them after
the '6th Seal' openings, as shown below (pick either summary
or detail cross-reference verse listings):
Revelation:
Puzzle Challenge
Now that the overall puzzle appearance was complete, it was
time for me to tackle the complexity of the book of
Revelation directly.
You will find no attempt on this page to 'date set' any of
the events described in the book of Revelation, since I find
those efforts to be silly (at best) and dangerous (at
worst). However, I am interested to form a logical
framework for understanding the chronological sequence of
events (without
dates) as they will occur -- noting that though the book is
mostly chronological as written, it is not 100%
sequential. Many chapters appear to 'review' in
greater detail events that had already been mentioned.
In this attempted chronological outline of Revelation, I
have attempted to color-cod the cells/chapters:
- Events/periods following one another back-to-back (GREEN)
- Longer time frames (i.e. 3.5 years) that overlap with
the previous ones (BLUE)
- Past events relating to the time period when John
wrote the book (GREY)
- Sections that are 'timeless' (WHITE)
I have also created markers to the best of my ability to
show when certain periods begin/end/occur:
The ending of the 7 years i.e Daniel's
70th Week is also not clear, but it may be at the
start of the Bowls of Wrath -- leaving 30 days for them to
complete when the The
Day of the Lord ends (thus satisfying the Daniel
12:11 reference to an additional 30 days). The
chronological duration/placement of the remaining cells is
not clear, and are perhaps more parenthetical.
Also take note that the parallel verse references made below
are usually only a portion of the full list. A more
complete cross-reference (at least for the core events) can
be found in the charts above)l.
Revelation
Chronology: Overview Charts
Here are some useful charts that I have found over the
years depicting the timeline illustrated by the Pre-Wrath
view:
This next section specifically deals with the detailed
attempt to justify the puzzle piece theme links that join
eschatological verse passages from one part of the Bible
to another. We will start with a graphic
illustrating the various thematic links between the
dominant Old Testament and New Testament books:
'Abominating
Desolator' Link: Daniel to Matthew
Daniel
9:27; 11:31; 12:11-12
And he shall make a strong
covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week
he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the
wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate,
until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator...
Forces from him shall appear and profane the temple and
fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering.
And they shall set up the abomination that makes
desolate...
And from the time that the regular burnt offering is taken
away and the abomination that makes desolate is set up,
there shall be 1,290 days. Blessed is he who waits and
arrives at the 1,335 days.
My Comments: Anti-Christ
involved
in
7-year
covenant. Broken after 3.5 years with end to temple
sacrifices when the 'Abomination that makes desolate'
occurs. Another 3.5+ years till the End. NOTE:
In order to understand that Daniel 12:11 is stating that the
1290 days follows both the 'end to sacrifice and offering' and 'abomination that makes
desolate', you need to take into account the other
parallel verses which clarify that point.
Matthew
24:15-26
So when
you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by
the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let
the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to
the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not
go down to take what is in his house,
and let the one who is in the field not
turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and
for those who are nursing infants in those days!
Pray that your flight may not be in
winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great
tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning
of the world until now, no, and never will be.
And if those days had not been cut
short, no human being would be saved. But for the
sake of the elect those days will be cut short.
Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here
is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.
For false christs and false prophets
will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so
as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.
See, I have told you beforehand.
So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in
the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look,
he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.
My Comments: Christ
confirms Daniel's prophecy, and that it will start the most
terrible time period in Earth's history, when the false
Messiah appears.
'Little
Horn' Link: Daniel to Matthew, 2 Thessalonians, and
Revelation
Daniel
7:8,20-22,24-25
I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among
them another horn, a little one, before which three of the
first horns were plucked up by the roots. And behold, in
this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth
speaking great things...
...and about the ten horns that were on its head, and the
other horn that came up and before which three of them
fell, the horn that had eyes and a mouth that spoke great
things, and that seemed greater than its companions. As I
looked, this horn made war with the saints and prevailed
over them, until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment
was given for the saints of the Most High, and the time
came when the saints possessed the kingdom...
And another
sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon,
with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven
diadems As for the ten horns,
out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise,
and another shall arise after
them;
he shall be different from the former ones,
and shall put down three kings.
He shall speak words against the Most High,
and shall wear out the saints of
the Most High,
and shall think to change the
times and the law;
and they shall be given into his hand
for a time, times, and half a
time."
Daniel
8:11-12
It
became great, even as great as the Prince of the host.
And the regular burnt offering was taken away from
him, and the place of his sanctuary was overthrown.
And a
host will be given over to it together with the
regular burnt offering because of transgression, and
it will throw truth to the ground, and it will act and
prosper.
Daniel
9:27
And he
shall make a strong covenant with many for one week,
and for half of the week he shall put an end to
sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of
abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until
the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.
Daniel
11:31
Forces
from him shall appear and profane the temple and
fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt
offering. And they shall set up the abomination that
makes desolate.
Daniel
12:11
And from
the time that the regular burnt offering is taken away
and the abomination that makes desolate is set up,
there shall be 1,290 days.
Matthew
24:15
“So when
you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by
the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let
the reader understand),...“
2
Thessalonians 2:3-4,9
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,
who
opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god
or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the
temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God...
The
coming of the lawless one is by the activity of
Satan with all power and false signs and wonders,...
Revelation
13:5-7
And the
beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and
blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise
authority for forty-two months. It opened its
mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming
his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in
heaven. Also it was allowed to make war
on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was
given it over every tribe and people and language and
nation,...
My Comments: These
verses link the a figure in Daniel ('Little Horn'), who will
enact the 'abomination that causes desolation' event, also
referenced in Matthew, 2 Thessalonians ('Man of
Lawlessness'), and finally Revelation ('Beast') as a
boasting blasphemer that cruelly persecutes the people of
God.
NOTE: We also see reference in Revelation 13:5 to the 3.5
year time-span of the rule of the Beast/Anti-Christ, linking
back to Daniel 7:25.
'Beast' Link:
Daniel to Revelation
Daniel
7:2-8,11-12,15-27
Daniel
declared, “I saw in my vision by night, and behold,
the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great
sea. And four great beasts came up out
of the sea, different from one another.
The
first was like a lion and had eagles' wings. Then as I
looked its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted
up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like
a man, and the mind of a man was given to it.
And
behold, another beast, a second one, like a bear. It
was raised up on one side. It had three ribs in its
mouth between its teeth; and it was told, ‘Arise,
devour much flesh.’ After this I
looked, and behold, another, like a leopard, with four
wings of a bird on its back. And the beast had four
heads, and dominion was given to it. After this I
saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast,
terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had
great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces and
stamped what was left with its feet. It was different
from all the beasts that were before it, and it had
ten horns. I considered
the horns, and behold, there came up among them
another horn, a little one, before which three of the
first horns were plucked up by the roots. And behold,
in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a
mouth speaking great things..."
“I looked
then because of the sound of the great words that the
horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was
killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be
burned with fire. As for the
rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but
their lives were prolonged for a season and a time..."
“As for me, Daniel, my
spirit within me was anxious, and the visions of my
head alarmed me. I approached
one of those who stood there and asked him the truth
concerning all this. So he told me and made known to
me the interpretation of the things. ‘These four
great beasts are four kings who shall arise out of the
earth. But the saints of the Most High
shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom
forever, forever and ever.’
“Then I
desired to know the truth about the fourth beast,
which was different from all the rest, exceedingly
terrifying, with its teeth of iron and claws of
bronze, and which devoured and broke in pieces and
stamped what was left with its feet, and about the
ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn
that came up and before which three of them fell, the
horn that had eyes and a mouth that spoke great
things, and that seemed greater than its companions.
As I
looked, this horn made war with the saints and
prevailed over them, until the
Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given for the
saints of the Most High, and the time came when the
saints possessed the kingdom.
“Thus he
said: ‘As for the fourth beast,
there shall
be a fourth kingdom on earth,
which shall be different
from all the kingdoms,
and it shall devour
the whole earth,
and trample it down, and
break it to pieces.
As
for the ten horns,
out of this kingdom
ten kings shall arise,
and another shall arise
after them;
he shall be different
from the former ones,
and shall put down three
kings.
He
shall speak words against the Most High,
and shall wear out the
saints of the Most High,
and shall think to change
the times and the law;
and they shall be
given into his hand
for a time, times, and half
a time.
But
the court shall sit in judgment,
and his dominion shall be
taken away,
to be consumed and destroyed
to the possibleend.
And
the kingdom and the dominion
and the greatness of the
kingdoms under the whole heaven
shall be given to the people
of the saints of the Most High;
his kingdom shall be
an everlasting kingdom,
and all dominions shall
serve and obey him.’
Revelation
12:3
And
another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red
dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his
heads seven diadems.
Revelation
13:1-8,11-18
The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a
beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven
heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a
blasphemous name. The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but
had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a
lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne
and great authority. One of the heads of the beast seemed
to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been
healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and
followed the beast. People worshiped the dragon because he
had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped
the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can wage
war against it?”
The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and
blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two
months. It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to
slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live
in heaven. It was given power to wage war against God’s
holy people and to conquer them. And it was given
authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.
All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all
whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of
life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the
world.
Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth.
It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon.
It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its
behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the
first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. And it
performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from
heaven to the earth in full view of the people. Because of
the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the
first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It
ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who
was wounded by the sword and yet lived. The second beast
was given power to give breath to the image of the first
beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who
refused to worship the image to be killed. It also forced
all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and
slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their
foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they
had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number
of its name...
This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight
calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of
a man. That number is 666.
Revelation
17:3,7-14
And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness,
and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full
of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten
horns...
But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell
you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven
heads and ten horns that carries her. The beast that you
saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the
bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on
earth whose names have not been written in the book of
life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see
the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. This
calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven
mountains on which the woman is seated; they are also
seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other
has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain
only a little while. As for the beast that was and is not,
it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes
to destruction. And the ten horns that you saw are ten
kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are
to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with
the beast. These are of one mind, and they hand over their
power and authority to the beast. They will make war on
the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord
of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called
and chosen and faithful.”
My Comments: A
strong parallel between the 4 'beasts' with 7 heads (i.e.
lion, bear, leopard, monster =
kingdoms/empires/countries/political alliances) of Daniel 7
and single 'hybrid' beast with 7 heads of Revelation 13/14.
The text indicates that the 10 'horns' on the hybrid beast
are individuals (i.e. kings/rulers) -- with the Anti-Christ
figure arising among them as an 11th 'little horn' that
subjugates 3 of the others. In Revelation, the 'little
horn' has become one of the 'heads' of the Beast. The
Dragon (Satan) will give his power/throne/authority to the
Beast, which will in turn greatly oppress the people of God
during the time of the Great Tribulation.
The identity of the sea Beasts in Daniel is not made clear
i.e. are the Lion/Bear/Leopard/Monster beasts successive
empires from the historical past, or a future
contemporaneous partnership (Daniel
7:11-12)? It seems clearer that the 4th Beast of
Daniel is (also?) a future coalition, due to the strong
similarity to the Beast of Revelation i.e. 10 horns, united
in purpose to persecute the saints. The 'Daniel
7 - How to Find the Antichrist 101' Youtube video
series by Chris White presents some interesting ideas.
Here is a graph to illustrate the implied links between the
multiple beasts of Daniel with those of Revelation:
'Gog/Magog'
Battle Link: Ezekiel to Revelation
Ezekiel
38:1-2,7-8,17-18
The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, set your
face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince
of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him...
“Be ready and keep ready, you and all your hosts that
are assembled about you, and be a guard for them. After
many days you will be mustered. In the latter years you
will go against the land that is restored from war, the
land whose people were gathered from many peoples upon
the mountains of Israel, which had been a continual
waste. Its people were brought out from the peoples and
now dwell securely, all of them...
“Thus says the Lord God: Are you he of whom I spoke in
former days by my servants the prophets of Israel, who
in those days prophesied for years that I would bring
you against them? But on that day, the day that Gog
shall come against the land of Israel, declares the Lord
God, my wrath will be roused in my anger.
Ezekiel
39:17-20
“As
for you, son of man, thus says the Lord God:
Speak to the birds of every sort and to all beasts of
the field: ‘Assemble and come, gather from all around
to the sacrificial feast that I am preparing for you,
a great sacrificial feast on the mountains of Israel,
and you shall eat flesh and drink blood.
You
shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood
of the princes of the earth—of rams, of lambs, and of
he-goats, of bulls, all of them fat beasts of Bashan.
And
you shall eat fat till you are filled, and drink blood
till you are drunk, at the sacrificial feast that I am
preparing for you. And you
shall be filled at my table with horses and
charioteers, with mighty men and all kinds of
warriors,’ declares the Lord God.
Revelation
19:17-18
Then I
saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud
voice he called to all the birds that fly directly
overhead, “Come, gather for the great supper of God,
to
eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the
flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their
riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave,
both small and great.”
Revelation
20:7-9
And when the thousand
years are ended, Satan will be released from his
prison and will come out to deceive the
nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog
and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is
like the sand of the sea. And they
marched up over the broad plain of the earth and
surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved
city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed
them,..
My Comments: At
first glance, it would appear as though the Ezekiel 38/39
Gog/Magog battle is the same one as the Armegeddon battle
described in Revelation 19 i.e. same references to birds and
animals assembling, but the link of combatants (i.e. Gog of
Magog) and conditions (i.e. time of peace) make it much more
likely that the Ezekiel battle is the Final Battle mentioned
in Revelation 20, which follows the Millennium.
However, this is not a 100% confident conclusion on my
part. For more detail on this study, see the following
rough comparison between
Ezekiel 38/39, and the two massive battles described in
Revelation 16/19 (Armageddon) and Revelation 20 (Final
Battle). A good video by Chris White on this topic can
be found here.
A much newer/better series on this same topic is here.
'Restrainer'
Link: Daniel to Matthew to 2 Thessalonians
Daniel
12:1
“At that time shall arise
Michael, the great prince who has charge of your
people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such
as never has been since there was a nation till that
time. But at that time your people shall be
delivered, everyone whose name shall be found
written in the book...
Matthew
24:15-16,21
“So when you see the abomination of
desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel,
standing in the holy place (let the reader
understand), then let those who are in Judea
flee to the mountains...
For then there will be great tribulation, such
as has not been from the beginning of the world
until now, no, and never will be.
2
Thessalonians 2:3-6
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,
who
opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god
or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the
temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.
Do
you not remember that when I was still with you I told
you these things? And you know
what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed
in his time.
My Comments: The
'time of great distress' that the world has never seen
before -- or will ever experience again -- is
parallel-referenced in Daniel and Matthew, and occurs after
the Anti-Christ is revealed at the 'abomination that
causes desolation' event -- paralleled in Matthew
and 2 Thessalonians. By linking in this way,
there is good evidence that the 'Restrainer' --
the one 'holding back' the Anti-Christ before this
occurs -- is the archangel Michael. In this case,
a better translation of Michael 'arising' in
Daniel 12:1 would be 'stand aside', 'pass aside',
'pass by', or 'withdraw'. See this
and this
by Alan
Kurschner.
End
Times Chronology Link: Matthew to Luke
Matthew
24:9-14,19-20a
“Then they’ll hand you over to suffer and will kill
you, and you’ll be hated by all the nations on account
of my name. Then many people will fall away, will betray
one another, and will hate one another. Many false
prophets will appear and deceive many people, and
because lawlessness will increase, the love of many
people will grow cold. But the person who endures to the
end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will
be proclaimed throughout the inhabited world as a
testimony to all nations, and then the end will
come.”...
“How terrible it will be for women who are pregnant or
who are nursing babies in those days!
Luke
21:12-24
“But
before all these things, people will arrest you and persecute you. They
will hand you over to synagogues and prisons, and
you will be brought before kings and governors for
my name’s sake, in order to give you an opportunity to
testify. So purpose in your hearts not to prepare
your defense ahead of time, because I will give you the ability to
speak, along with wisdom, that none of your
opponents will be able to resist or refute.
You will be betrayed even by parents,
brothers, relatives, and friends, and they will put
some of you to death. You will be hated continuously by
everyone on account of my name.
And yet not a hair on your head will be
lost. But the person who endures to the end
will be saved.”
“So
when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then
understand that its devastation is approaching.
Then those
in Judea must flee to the mountains, those inside
the city must leave it, and those in the countryside
must not go into it, because these are the days of vengeance
when all that is written will be fulfilled.
“How terrible it will be for those women
who are pregnant or who are nursing babies in those
days!—because there will be great distress in the
land and wrath against
this people. They will fall by the edge of the sword
and be carried off as captives among all the
nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled on by
unbelievers until the times
of the unbelievers are
fulfilled.”
My Comments: At
first glance, it would appear as though these passages are
speaking of the same events (considering that Matthew 24 and
Luke 21 are parallel passages), but there is a definite
possibility that they are not i.e. this portion of Luke 21
is referencing the near-term destruction of Jerusalem in 70
AD by the Romans, and Matthew is referencing the far-future
70th Week of Daniel. Furthermore, this suggests that
Matthew 24 doesn't address the question of the destruction
of the Temple at all (leaving that for Luke 21) --
the later words of Jesus that 'this generation won’t
disappear until these things' take place does not --
in any way -- reference the nearer-term 70 AD destruction
(i.e. Preterism), but something else.
I credit this
series of articles on the The
Pre-Wrath Tribune by Dave Bussard for his
insights. A suggested reading order/interpretation of
his presentation can be found here.
End
Times Chronology Link: Matthew to 1 Thessalonians
Matthew
24:30-31,37-39,40-41,44,48-50
Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of
Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and
they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of
heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out
his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather
his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to
the other...
For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the
Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they
were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage,
until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were
unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so
will be the coming of the Son of Man...
Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and
one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will
be taken and one left.
1
Thessalonians 4:15-17,5:2-6
For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord,
that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of
the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry
of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the
sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will
rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be
caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the
Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord...
For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the
Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are
saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden
destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a
pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you are not
in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a
thief. For you are all children of light, children of the
day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. So then
let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and
be sober.
My Comments:
This core sequence of future events spoken by Jesus, and
discussed again by Paul, are in extremely close agreement on
a number of factors, highly suggestive that they are
referring to the same events. Together, they confirm
that the the 'Arrival' of Jesus (i.e. '2nd Coming') occurs
at the same time as the 'Gathering' of Believers
(i.e. 'Rapture') -- which is during the
'Persecution' of Believers by the Anti-Christ (i.e. 'Great
Tribulation) -- and before the 'Wrath' of God
begins. The day/hour of these events is unknown, but
there are clearly-stated events which precede them. It
is unbelievers that are caught unaware by these momentous
events.
End
Times Chronology Link: Matthew to Revelation
Matthew
24:30-31
Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of
Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will
mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on
the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
And he will send out his angels with a
loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect
from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the
other.
Revelation
6:15-17
Then
the kings of the earth and the great ones and the
generals and the rich and the powerful, and
everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the
caves and among the rocks of the mountains,
calling
to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide
us from the face of him who is seated on the
throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb,
for
the great day of their wrath has come, and who can
stand?”
Revelation
7:9-17
After this I
looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one
could number, from every nation, from all tribes
and peoples and languages, standing before the
throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white
robes, with palm branches in their hands,
and
crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs
to our God who sits on the throne, and to the
Lamb!” And all
the angels were standing around the throne and
around the elders and the four living creatures,
and they fell on their faces before the throne and
worshiped God, saying,
“Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and
thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to
our God forever and ever! Amen.”
Then
one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are
these, clothed in white robes, and from where have
they come?” I said to
him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These
are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.
They have washed their robes and made them white
in the blood of the Lamb.
“Therefore they are before the throne
of God,
and serve him day and
night in his temple;
and he who sits on the
throne will shelter them with his presence.
They
shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;
the sun shall not strike
them,
nor any scorching heat.
For
the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be
their shepherd,
and he will guide them
to springs of living water,
and God will wipe
away every tear from their eyes.”
My Comments: My
defense of the Pre-Wrath eschatological position is the
straight-forward ability to overlay the chronological
events of words of Jesus himself in Matthew 24 with
matching summary chronological 'seal' events outlined in
Revelation 6. When Matthew 24:30-31 is then linked
to Revelation 7:9-17, the 'Rapture' event Jesus mentions
in Matthew 24:31 can be fit chronologically as well into
Revelation 6 -- even though it is not specifically
mentioned i.e. it immediately follows the appearance of
Christ. Matthew 24 events have been
logically/chronologically linked to 1 Thessalonians
(above), and now Matthew 24 events are
logically/chronologically linked to Revelation 6.
Each passage affirms/confirms the other. Any
deviation from this straight-forward order-of-events
(i.e. from another eschatological framework) forces a
break in these inter-related passages.
End
Times New Heaven & Earth Link: Isaiah to 2 Peter to
Revelation
Isaiah
65:17-18
“For behold, I create new heavens
and a new earth,
and the former things shall not be remembered
or come into mind.
But be glad and rejoice forever
in that which I create;
for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy,
and her people to be a gladness.
2
Peter 3:10
But
the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and
then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and
the heavenly bodies will be burned up and
dissolved, and the earth and the works that are
done on it will be exposed.
Revelation
21:1-2
Then I saw a new heaven
and a new earth, for the first heaven and the
first earth had passed away, and the sea was no
more. And I saw
the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of
heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for
her husband.
My Comments:
These passages, taken together, present chronological
and terminological challenges:
- Is the creation of a 'new Heaven(s) and a new
Earth' a single event which both Isaiah and
Revelation refer to? The Isaiah 65 event is
presented in a Millennial context, whereas
Revelation 21 -- if taken chronologically -- seems
to follow the Millennium described in Revelation
20. Does this suggest that Revelation 21 does
not necessarily follow Revelation 20
chronologically? Is it possible that Isaiah 65
is combining both a prophecy of the Millennium and
also the later prophecy of a New Heaven and Earth?
- Is Peter 3 referring to the same 'new Heaven(s)
and a new Earth' destruction event as Isaiah 65 and
Revelation 21 construction events? Is its
reference to the 'day of the Lord' meant to equate
to the Wrath of God period in the latter part of
Daniel's 70th week? Are these verses not to be
taken as a complete description of these events --
and that there is room even for the large Millennium
time period to be present in them? 2 Peter 3
seems to suggest that the destruction takes place
in, or immediately following the 70th week -- and
before the Millennium. This suggests a
different ordering than Revelation 20/21 -- or
perhaps that the 'day of the Lord' itself includes
the Millennium.
As of this writing, I am uncertain of what to make of
these verses, and how closely they are linked to each
other. If there is just a single
destruction/construction event, then it is not totally
clear whether it occurs at the start or end of the
Millennium. However, if there are two
events -- then there might be one at the beginning and
also end of the Millennium. A possibly helpful
discussion by Marvin Rosenthal can be found here.
A Pre-Trib analysis by Dr. Mike Stallard can be found
here.
Finally, a specific response to this question by Jack
Kelley can be found here.
End
Times Comparison: Jewish vs Christian
It is interesting to compare and contrast the
traditional Jewish beliefs regarding the End Times.
Appendix
II - Moshiach 101
Jewish tradition speaks of two redeemers, each
one called Mashiach.
Both are involved in ushering in the Messianic
era. They are Mashiach
ben David
and Mashiach
ben Yossef.
The term Mashiach unqualified
always refers to Mashiach ben David
(Mashiach the descendant of David) of the tribe of
Judah. He is
the actual (final) redeemer who shall rule in the
Messianic age. All that was said in our text
relates to him.
Mashiach ben Yossef (Mashiach the
descendant of Joseph) of
the tribe of Ephraim (son
of Joseph), is also referred to as Mashiach
ben Ephrayim,
Mashiach the descendant of Ephraim. He
will come first, before the final redeemer, and
later will serve as his viceroy.
The essential task of Mashiach ben Yossef is to
act as precursor to Mashiach ben David: he will
prepare the world for the coming of the final
redeemer. Different sources attribute to him
different functions, some even charging him with
tasks traditionally associated with Mashiach ben
David (such as the ingathering of the exiles, the
rebuilding of the Bet Hamikdash,
and so forth).
The principal and final function ascribed to
Mashiach ben Yossef is of political and military
nature. He shall wage war against the forces of
evil that oppress Israel.
More specifically, he will do battle against Edom,
the descendants of Esau.
Edom is the comprehensive designation of the
enemies of Israel, and it will be crushed
through the progeny of Joseph. Thus it was
prophesied of old, "The House of Jacob
will be a fire and the House of Joseph a flame,
and the House of Esau for stubble.." (Obadiah
1:18): "the progeny of Esau shall be
delivered only into the hands of the progeny of
Joseph."
The immediate results of this war will
be disastrous: Mashiach ben Yossef will be
killed. This is described in the prophecy
of Zechariah,
who says of this tragedy that "they shall mourn
him as one mourns for an only child." (Zechariah
12:10). His death will
be followed by a period of great calamities. These
new tribulations shall be the final test for
Israel, and shortly thereafter Mashiach ben
David shall come, avenge his death, resurrect
him, and inaugurate the Messianic era of
everlasting peace and bliss.
What
Is the Jewish Belief About Moshiach (Messiah)? -
Kabbalah, Chassidism and Jewish Mysticism
The Talmud describes the period immediately prior
to the advent of Moshiach as one of great travail
and turmoil. There will be a world recession, and
governments will be controlled by despots. It is
in this troubled setting that Moshiach will
arrive.
...
Maimonides,
a great Jewish philosopher and codifier of the 12th
century, rules that if we recognize a human being
who possesses the superlative qualities ascribed to
Moshiach, we may presume that he is the potential
Moshiach. If this individual actually succeeds
in rebuilding the Temple and gathering in the
exiles, then he is the Moshiach.
Maimonides states in his Mishneh Torah—a
compendium of the entire halachic tradition—that
Moshiach will first rebuild the Temple and then
gather in the exiles. Jerusalem and the Temple
will be the focus of divine worship, and “from
Zion shall go forth Torah, and the word of the
L‑rd from Jerusalem.”
The Sanhedrin—the
supreme Jewish law court of 71 sages—will be
re-established, and will decide on all matters of
law. At this time, all Jews will return to full
Torah observance and practice. It should be noted
that in this present age of great assimilation and
emancipation, an unprecedented return of Jews to
true Torah values has taken place. This “baal
teshuvah” phenomenon is on
the increase, and paves the way for a full return
in the messianic era.
My Comments: The
belief that the coming Messiah (Moshiach) will be the
person that defeats Israel's enemies, rebuilds the
Temple, and helps reinstitute the ancient Jewish
sacrificial system parallels the Christian understanding
of the End Times timeline perfectly -- but dangerously
and tragically misses the fact that this false 'Messiah'
is really the Anti-Christ, who betrays Israel and the
World -- and leads to incredible disaster and suffering
for Christians and Jews, eventually resulting in the
wrath of God.
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