Revelation Chronologically

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Table of Contents
Introduction..................................................................................................................................... 3
Chapter One: Claiming the Blessings ............................................................................................ 6
Chapter Two: Interpreting the Symbols....................................................................................... 10
Chapter Three: The Jewish Remnant........................................................................................... 17
Chapter Four: The War Begins .................................................................................................... 20
Chapter Five: Unleash the Beast.................................................................................................. 23
Chapter Six: Birth Pains............................................................................................................... 27
Chapter Seven: The Mark and its Consequences......................................................................... 32
Chapter Eight: The Invasion Begins ............................................................................................ 37
Chapter Nine: Woe, Woe............................................................................................................. 41
Chapter Ten: Here’s the Wrath .................................................................................................... 45
Chapter Eleven: Eat it .................................................................................................................. 48
Chapter Twelve: A Capital in Ruins............................................................................................ 51
Chapter Thirteen: Firstfruits ........................................................................................................ 56
Chapter Fourteen: Maranatha! (The Final Woe) ......................................................................... 60
Chapter Fifteen: Ripe for the Harvest.......................................................................................... 66
Chapter Sixteen: The Promise to Abraham ................................................................................. 71
Chapter Seventeen: Into the Abyss .............................................................................................. 74
Chapter Eighteen: A Great White Throne ................................................................................... 78
Chapter Nineteen: To Him Who Overcomes............................................................................... 82
Chapter Twenty: One Family Under God.................................................................................... 86
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The world we live in is constantly changing. Flash floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, wars,
terrorism, and the like permeate the news day after day. Can the human race survive? Wouldn’t
it be nice to know where we’re headed as a nation, people, and planet?
Every sensible person has thought about

and wants to know where we are in God’s The book of
grand scheme of things. Fortunately for Revelation contains a
us, God hasn’t left it a mystery. He’s
given us sixty-six books of testament to litany of symbolism,
tell us all about the past, present, and
future of our planet earth.
vivid descriptions,
graphic text, and
These books make up the standard
Christian Bible, starting with Genesis and
allegory; enough to
its “In the beginning” account, and ending drain the brain power
with Revelation and its “what must soon
take place” account. God has given us
of any serious Bible
everything we need to know to take us student. But does it
from the beginning to the end of human
life.
have to be that hard?
Thanks to Sunday school, most Christians probably feel they have a good grip on the book of
Genesis with its stories of the Garden, the nations being created, and God’s beginning promises
to the Jewish nation; but few Christians ever receive clear teaching on the content found in
John’s Apocalypse, or what is commonly called the book of Revelation.
This is probably because the book of Revelation contains a litany of symbolism, vivid
descriptions, graphic text, and allegory; enough to drain the brain power of any serious Bible
student. But does it have to be that hard?
It seems odd to think that God would so clearly lay out our beginning but leave us in such a
prophetic fog when it comes to our future. The same God who penned Genesis is the God who
penned Revelation. Yes, the literature is different (Revelation is prophetic; Genesis is historic)
but the author remains the same. If the author remains the same then the understanding
Christians have about Genesis should be available in Revelation.
A brief glance at three Scripture sections penned by the hand of God should give us some
confidence about Revelation:
Number 1: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared
for those who love Him – but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit” (1 Corinthians
2:9-10). Through the Holy Spirit we can know all the mysteries of God. Anything
you could imagine asking Him is available for answering through the Holy Spirit.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Introduction
Number 2: “For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him? But we have
the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16). Jesus isn’t in the dark about our future,
and we shouldn’t be either. As we begin to look at the book of Revelation from
Jesus’ perspective, misconceptions will wash away.
Number 3: “Whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to

be brought out into the open” (Mark 4:22). God has always been in the business of
enlightening. Everything about Him shouts perfect truth and knowledge, and it’s
that same knowledge He wants to pour into us.
But before knowledge can be cultivated through His Scriptures in Revelation, we first need to
understand one important Bible reading maxim – let Scripture interpret Scripture. We use
Scripture that is most clear to interpret Scripture that is least clear.
As an example of the need for good interpretation, consider the book of 1 Thessalonians. Paul
wrote to the “church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (1
Thessalonians 1:1). As the Thessalonians read through this letter to the church, they found
various references to Jesus’ return to the earth. Perplexed by Paul’s snippets about Jesus’ return,
the Thessalonians began to question if Jesus had already returned, and if they had somehow
missed it.
Paul remedies this improper reading of the text with a follow-up letter to the church, our 2
Thessalonians. In 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3 Paul deals with the false doctrine of an already returned
Jesus and clears up any misconceptions by telling the church in verse 3, “Don't let anyone
deceive you in any way, for (that day will not come) until the rebellion occurs and the man of
lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction”.
Do you see how easily we Christians can misread a passage of text? Any misconceptions the
Thessalonians could have had in their day could also be repeated by Christians today.
Because of our tendency toward misreading Scripture, it’s good to view the content in the book
of 1 Thessalonians in light of what Paul tells us in 2 Thessalonians. We use the clearer Scripture
of 2 Thessalonians to interpret the difficult Scripture of 1 Thessalonians. This same principle
holds true for the book of Revelation.
Revelation isn’t a stand alone book. Its content isn’t

Let Scripture unique from the other books of the Bible. Much of its
content can be found in modified forms throughout the Old
interpret and New Testaments. Places where Scripture clearly
Scripture. explains end time events can then be used to better
understand the vision given to John in Revelation.
Most importantly, because Revelation is less clear Scripture, we can’t try to make other books of
the Bible fit into it. Instead, Revelation needs to fit into more clear writings of Scripture.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Introduction
This takes us to our initial supposition: The clearest Scriptures concerning end-time events are
the three documented accounts of Jesus’ end-time chronology as listed in Matthew 24, Mark 13,
and Luke 21. Therefore, these three accounts will serve as the foundation for interpreting
Revelation and placing it in chronological order.
Jesus’ account in the Gospels should never be made to conform to Jesus’ revelation as given to
John. Instead, we will time and again check our Revelation chronology against the Matthew,
Mark, and Luke timelines.
In certain places of the book you’ll find sections entitled “Speculation Alert:”. These sections
indicate formulated ideas that have little to no biblical backing. In these cases, the content that
follows should be taken with a grain of salt. The intention isn’t to deceive anyone in any way,
but rather to stimulate our thinking about certain events that will unfold in our future. These
speculative sections are ended with “End Speculation Alert”.
Besides speculation alerts, you’ll also see sections entitled “Gospel Check:”. These sections
indicate times when we’ll stop our chronology and check it against the words of Jesus in order to
determine if we’ve wandered from His teachings. These sections are ended with “End Gospel
Check”.
We’re now ready to open up our look at Revelation.
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First things first, we have to identify the source of this revelation and the author of its content,
which brings us to Revelation 1.
Revelation 1
“1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his
servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending
his angel to his servant John, 2 who testifies to everything he
saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. 3
Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and
blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it,
because the time is near.”
Verse 1 opens with an important statement: The

authority behind this revelation is none other than
Jesus Himself, and the Father gave Jesus permission We can trust
to tell us what must soon take place. We as
Christians can take comfort in this statement since
Jesus and be at
we know the upcoming content of Revelation will be peace knowing
one hundred percent accurate and truthful. that no matter
Following this, John identifies himself as the what happens
recipient of this revelation and reminds us in verse 2
that he’s seen firsthand everything he writes to us in
God is in control.
his gospel, letters and revelation.
Then, the book opens with a conditional blessing for all who read it and for all who take its
words to heart. The reason for the blessing becomes clear after one finishes reading Revelation:
we can trust Jesus and be at peace knowing that no matter what happens God is in control.
In fact, Jesus reminds us in John 16:1, “All this I have told you so that you will not go astray”.
This assurance and the conditional blessing are reiterated at the close of Revelation as follows:
Revelation 22
“10 Then he told me, "Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of
this book, because the time is near. 11 Let him who does wrong
continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let
him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy
continue to be holy."
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Claiming the Blessings
12 "Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will

give to everyone according to what he has done. 13 I am the Alpha
and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
14 "Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have
the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the
city. 15 Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the
sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who
loves and practices falsehood.
16 "I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the
churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright
Morning Star."
17 The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears
say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever
wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this
book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the
plagues described in this book. 19 And if anyone takes words away
from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his
share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in
this book.
The words of verses 18 and 19 really hit home when considering the content of our chronology.
“If anyone adds anything to them…and if anyone takes words away from the book”, is a stern
warning and call to careful stewardship. There’s a need to be ever sober in judgment on the
interpretation and arrangement of Revelation.
In light of this warning, our chronology will be based on scripturally backed arguments as we
remember the admonition of James 3:1, “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my
brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly”. That said; let’s
return to the blessings outlined by Jesus for everyone who “take to heart what is written”.
In Revelation 2 and 3 Jesus gives seven calls to attention by saying, “he who has an ear, let him
hear what the Spirit says to the churches”. With each of these come blessings, or promise
statements, to all who overcome this world. These promise statements are summarized as
follows:
Revelation 2
1. “To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the
paradise of God” (v. 7).
2. “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of
you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to
the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life…He who overcomes will not be
hurt at all by the second death” (v. 10-11).
3. “To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a
white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it” (v. 17).
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4. “To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the
nations— 'He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery'
— just as I have received authority from my Father. I will also give him the morning
star” (v. 26-28).
Revelation 3
5. “Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk
with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes will, like them, be
dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will
acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels” (v. 4-5).
6. “I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. Him
who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it.
I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new
Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on
him my new name” (v. 11-12).
7. “To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I
overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne” (v. 21).
Clearly Jesus has some pretty wonderful blessings prepared for everyone who remain faithful to
Him, but what exactly is God requiring here?
God’s requirements of faithfulness are

If we want to be part listed in Revelation 13 when God’s chosen
angel says “If anyone is to go into
of His Revelation captivity into captivity he will go. If
blessings, then we anyone is to be killed with the sword with
the sword he will be killed. This calls for
have to overcome. patient endurance and faithfulness on the
part of the saints”.
And then in Revelation 14 the angel says, “This calls for patient endurance on the part of the
saints who obey God's commandments and remain faithful to Jesus. Then I heard a voice from
heaven say, "Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the
Spirit, "they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them."”
Do you see what God is looking for? If we want to be part of His Revelation blessings, then we
have to overcome. Overcoming the world means remaining faithful “even to the point of death”.
For a lot of us this is a scary idea, but Jesus wants to shake us free from the lulling sleep that
Satan has been cradling us into. The content of Revelation applies to everyone alive at the
appointed time without any pre-tribulation rapture to be found anywhere promised by Jesus in
Matthew 24, Mark 13, or Luke 21. But we aren’t left without His promised blessings, for “I will
give you the crown of life” and “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them”.
First Corinthians 15:46 says, “the spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the
spiritual”. The same principle holds true in end-time events. First we suffer, and then we
receive our eternal reward.
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We aren’t any different from the early church who, in Acts 14:22, was forewarned, “we must go
through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God”. Surprising as it may sound, this
statement was used for, “strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the
faith”. So too, Revelation is becoming our warning of the hardships that await “those who obey
God's commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus” (Revelation 12:17).
But take courage! Jesus has overcome the world and shown us exactly what we need to do; how
we need to speak and how we need to act. Just as the Apostle James wrote, “Speak and act as
those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom” (James 2:12). God is faithful to
do for us everything we need to make it through the events written in Revelation.
With the promised blessings fresh in our minds, let’s delve into the chronology of Revelation 6
through 22.
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The book of Revelation is by no means written in chronological order. A good friend once told
me, “John’s purpose was never to ‘write an orderly account for you’ (Luke 1:3), but rather, so
‘that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may
have life in his name” (John 20:31)’”.
As with John’s gospel, the book of Revelation isn’t focused on step by step instruction but the
lesson learned: there is one God – Jesus, and one way to eternal life – believing. Because of
this, chronology takes a back seat to purpose in John’s Apocalypse, and so we begin our purpose
in Revelation 12.
Revelation 12
“1 A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman
clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of
twelve stars on her head. 2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain
as she was about to give birth. 3 Then another sign appeared in
heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns
and seven crowns on his heads. 4 His tail swept a third of the stars
out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in
front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that he might
devour her child the moment it was born. 5 She gave birth to a son,
a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. And
her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. 6 The woman
fled into the desert to a place prepared for her by God, where she
might be taken care of for 1,260 days.”
This scene screams symbolism: A woman

clothed with the sun with the moon under her
feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head;
The book of
an enormous red dragon with seven heads and Revelation is by no
ten horns and seven crowns on his heads; a
third of the stars swept from the sky and flung
means written in
to the earth; and the birth of a son who will chronological order.
rule all the nations with an iron scepter.
Let’s take these one at a time starting with the woman. A woman clothed with the sun, with the
moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. This woman symbolizes Israel.
The crown of twelve stars represents the twelve tribes of Jacob. This interpretation about the
sun, the moon, and the stars can be found in Genesis 37.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Interpreting the Symbols
In Genesis 37:9 Joseph has a dream that “the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down
to me”. The dream’s interpretation is immediately understood by Joseph’s father Jacob who
says, “Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground
before you?” Jacob’s interpretation explains that the stars are the twelve tribes of Israel, that the
sun is Jacob, and that the moon is the mother of Joseph.
The next symbol is a red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on his heads.
The red dragon symbolizes Satan as interpreted in Revelation 12:9, “The great dragon…that
ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray”.
Speculation Alert:
The seven heads with seven crowns is the first of many imitations of Satan toward God that can
be found in Revelation. In this case, the seven heads with seven crowns is a mimicking of the
sevenfold nature of God.
Besides the many hundreds of references in

Just as God the Bible to completeness through the
strengthens all those number seven we also see an interesting
concept of the sevenfold nature of God in
who are committed Zechariah 3:9 “See the stone I have set in
to Him, so Satan will front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that
one stone and I will engrave an inscription
be allowed to on it ' says the LORD Almighty 'and I will
strengthen everyone remove the sin of this land in a single day”.
who takes his mark. The seven eyes of the Lord are seen again in
Zechariah 4:2, “He asked me, "What do you see?" I answered, "I see a solid gold lampstand with
a bowl at the top and seven lights on it, with seven channels to the lights"” with the interpretation
coming in verse 10, “"(These seven are the eyes of the LORD, which range throughout the
earth.)"”.
Revelation isn’t silent on the concept of the seven eyes of the Lord. Revelation 5:6 says, “Then I
saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the
four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven
spirits of God sent out into all the earth”.
These seven spirits of God, or the sevenfold spirit of God “range throughout the earth to
strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him” (2 Chronicles 16:9).
The following imitations of God by Satan can then be proposed as a result of his false sevenfold
appearance:
1. Just as God strengthens all those who are committed to Him, so Satan will be allowed to
strengthen everyone who takes his mark, “so that no one could buy or sell unless he had
the mark” (Revelation 13:17).
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2. Just as God’s authority covers the whole earth, so Satan will have far-reaching authority;
“He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was
given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation” (Revelation 13:7).
3. Just as God is worthy of praise and all-powerful, so Satan will appear to be God Himself,
worthy of praise, and unbeatable, “Men 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 make war against him?" (Revelation 13:4).
We will cover further imitations by Satan in upcoming chapters of Revelation.

End Speculation Alert
The red dragon not only has seven heads and seven crowns but also ten horns. The ten horns
symbolize the revived Roman Empire. For this interpretation we turn to the book of Daniel.
In Daniel 2, king Nebuchadnezzar has a dream depicting not only his current reign but also
subsequent kingdoms including the final Messianic kingdom. The Lord gives Daniel the
substance of the dream and the interpretation as follows:
Daniel 2
“31 "You looked, O king, and there before you stood a large
statue—an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in
appearance. 32 The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its
chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs
of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. 34 While
you were watching, a rock was cut out, but not by human hands. It
struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed
them. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold
were broken to pieces at the same time and became like chaff on a
threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without
leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge
mountain and filled the whole earth.
36 "This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the
king. 37 You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has
given you dominion and power and might and glory; 38 in your
hands he has placed mankind and the beasts of the field and the
birds of the air. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over
them all. You are that head of gold.
39 "After you, another kingdom will rise, inferior to yours. Next, a
third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole
earth. 40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—
for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things
to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. 41 Just as you
saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of
iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the
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strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As
the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be
partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron
mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not
remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.
44 "In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a
kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another
people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end,
but it will itself endure forever. 45 This is the meaning of the
vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—
a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the
gold to pieces. "The great God has shown the king what will take
place in the future. The dream is true and the interpretation is
trustworthy."”
Nebuchadnezzar’s dream includes a statue with a kingdom symbolized by gold that Daniel
interprets as the king’s own reign.
Therefore, we call the head of gold a representation of ancient Babylonian rule. Daniel then
explains that a kingdom symbolized by silver will follow the Babylonians. For this kingdom we
turn to Daniel 5.
Nebuchadnezzar’s descendant Belshazzar has become king. Belshazzar holds a great banquet
using goblets of gold and silver from the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem. King Belshazzar has
rejected the lessons learned by his father Nebuchadnezzar that “Heaven rules” (Daniel 4:26) and
refuses to honor the one true God.
Belshazzar’s blasphemy toward God results in an abrupt shift in power as, “That very night
Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain, and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at
the age of sixty-two” (Daniel 5:30-31).
Therefore, we call the chest and arms of silver a representation of Median and Persian rule.
For the third kingdom listed in

Nebuchadnezzar’s statue we turn to
A statue with a
Daniel 8. Daniel has the following kingdom symbolized
vision in Daniel 8:3-8, “I looked up, and
there before me was a ram with two
by gold that Daniel
horns, standing beside the canal, and the interprets as the king’s
horns were long. One of the horns was
longer than the other but grew up later. I
own reign…we call the
watched the ram as he charged toward chest and arms of
the west and the north and the south. No
animal could stand against him, and none silver a representation
could rescue from his power. He did as of Median and Persian
he pleased and became great.
rule.
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As I was thinking about this, suddenly a goat with a prominent horn between his eyes came from
the west, crossing the whole earth without touching the ground. He came toward the two-horned
ram I had seen standing beside the canal and charged at him in great rage. I saw him attack the
ram furiously, striking the ram and shattering his two horns. The ram was powerless to stand
against him; the goat knocked him to the ground and trampled on him, and none could rescue the
ram from his power. The goat became very great, but at the height of his power his large horn
was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven”.
Following the vision, the angel Gabriel gives him this interpretation in Daniel 8:19-22, “He said:
"I am going to tell you what will happen later in the time of wrath, because the vision concerns
the appointed time of the end. The two-horned ram that you saw represents the kings of Media
and Persia. The shaggy goat is the king of Greece, and the large horn between his eyes is the first
king. The four horns that replaced the one that was broken off represent four kingdoms that will
emerge from his nation but will not have the same power.”
Therefore we call the belly and thighs of bronze a representation of Grecian rule.
History tells us that the next great kingdom would be that of Rome, but let’s take a further look
at Daniel to make sure we’ve got the right kingdom for the fourth kingdom listed in
Nebuchadnezzar’s statue.
Daniel 7:7 says, “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth
beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and
devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the
former beasts, and it had ten horns”. The ten horns are a dead giveaway that this beast also
represents the same kingdom territory as our ten horns on the red dragon in Revelation 12:3.
Historically, the Roman Empire, as a rule, was a conglomerate of ten senatorial provinces.1 The
readers of Daniel wouldn’t yet be familiar with a Roman Empire but the readers of John’s
Revelation certainly would.
They would immediately understand these ten horns to represent the far reaching authority of the
ten senatorial provinces of Rome. Therefore we call the legs of iron a representation of Roman
rule.
Lastly, the feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. Daniel interprets this as, “a divided
kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with
clay. As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and
partly brittle. And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a
mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.” (Daniel 2:41-43).
Today the ancient territory of Roman rule covers a land of many nations; nations that will need
to unite under a common flag in order to usher in the kingdom of iron mixed with clay. These
nations will unite out of necessity, but never fully commit to each other for, “this kingdom will
be partly strong and partly brittle” and “the people will be a mixture and will not remain united”.
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Therefore, we call the feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay a representation of the revived
Roman Empire.
This Empire will remain under the authority of one Caesar-like ruler, the Antichrist, who will
dole out responsibility to ten “Proconsular Senators”1, or kings, until the Second Coming of
Jesus Christ.
At that time Jesus will fulfill the end of

We call the belly and Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in which, “the
God of heaven will set up a kingdom that
thighs of bronze a will never be destroyed, nor will it be left
representation of to another people. It will crush all those
kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it
Grecian rule…we call will itself endure forever. This is the
the legs of iron a meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of
a mountain, but not by human hands—a
representation of rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the
Roman rule…we call clay, the silver and the gold to pieces”
(Daniel 2:44-45).
the feet partly of iron
With the woman and dragon identified,
and partly of baked next is the third of the stars in the sky that
clay a representation are flung to the earth. These symbolize
Satan’s loyal angels that fight against
of the revived Roman Michael and his angels as written in
Empire. Revelation 12:7.
Lastly, we see the birth of a son who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter. This is
symbolic of Jesus who fulfills the promise of Isaiah 9:6, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is
given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” and matches the iron scepter ruling
authority of Jesus in Revelation 2:27.
With our symbolism explained and our initial characters set in place, we can tackle the
interpretation of this section of Scripture: In the beginning, the woman, Israel, is protected from
the red dragon, Satan, for a period of 1,260 days, or the initial three and one-half years of the
tribulation period that is marked by two sets of forty-two thirty-day months; i.e. 42 times 30
equals 1,260.
With our tribulation about to begin, a very important issue needs to be addressed to fulfill
Scripture – what about the Jewish remnant? We’ll open with this question in the next chapter.
Chapter Two Bibliography
15
1. UN RV History. http://www.unrv.com/government/senatorial-provinces.php. Accessed

December 2008.
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Throughout the course of the Bible, beginning in Genesis 45:7 when Joseph said, “But God sent
me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great
deliverance”, God has kept a faithful, obedient remnant of Israelites alive from generation to
generation.
We see this remnant in 2 Kings 19:30-31, “Once more a remnant of the house of Judah will take
root below and bear fruit above. For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant, and out of Mount
Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this”.
And in Isaiah 10:20-21, “In that day the remnant of Israel, the survivors of the house of Jacob,
will no longer rely on him who struck them down but will truly rely on the LORD, the Holy One
of Israel. A remnant will return, a remnant of Jacob will return to the Mighty God”.
And again in Micah 5:7, “The remnant of Jacob will be in the midst of many peoples like dew
from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which do not wait for man or linger for mankind”.
And also in Zechariah 8:12-13, “"The seed will

grow well, the vine will yield its fruit, the ground
God has kept a
will produce its crops, and the heavens will drop faithful, obedient
their dew. I will give all these things as an
inheritance to the remnant of this people. As you
remnant of
have been an object of cursing among the Israelites alive
nations, O Judah and Israel, so will I save you,
and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid, but
from generation to
let your hands be strong"”. generation.
When it comes to the tribulation period, then, we shouldn’t expect anything to change
concerning God’s promises to His Jewish remnant, which takes us to Revelation 7.
Revelation 7
“1 After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the
earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind
from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree. 2 Then I saw
another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the
living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who
had been given power to harm the land and the sea: 3 "Do not
harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the
foreheads of the servants of our God." 4 Then I heard the number
of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel. 5
17
A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation The Jewish Remnant
From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed, from the tribe of
Reuben 12,000, from the tribe of Gad 12,000, 6 from the tribe of
Asher 12,000, from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000, from the tribe of
Manasseh 12,000, 7 from the tribe of Simeon 12,000, from the
tribe of Levi 12,000, from the tribe of Issachar 12,000, 8 from the
tribe of Zebulun 12,000, from the tribe of Joseph 12,000, from the
tribe of Benjamin 12,000.”
Christians read this passage and wonder about whom these people are and whether we’re
somehow included in the 144,000 mentioned here. In fact, whole doctrines, causing divisions in
the church, have been built around these verses. Most of these issues and the general sense of
wonderment come from a lack of Old Testament understanding.
Speculation Alert:
These 144,000 are not Christians, nor are they Messianic Jews, nor will they form a last great
evangelistic outreach for the peoples of the earth after the church has been raptured pre-
tribulation (an event not found in Scripture). Instead these people are a continuation of the
Jewish remnant God has again and again spared throughout history.
Perhaps a quick review of how we become Christians and an Old Testament example of God
sealing Israelites would help to clear up this perplexing Revelation event.
1 Corinthians 12:3 explains that, “no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit”;
meaning that the Holy Spirit is the one who draws us to Jesus. After this drawing to Jesus, we’re
met with a choice – to receive His gift of life through the cross, or to reject His gift of life
through the cross.
Anyone who chooses to accept Jesus then moves to John 1:12 which explains, “Yet to all who
received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God”.
Once we become children of God, the seal

These 144,000 are of the Holy Spirit is placed upon us, “And
you also were included in Christ when you
not Christians, nor heard the word of truth, the gospel of your
are they Messianic salvation. Having believed, you were
marked in him with a seal, the promised
Jews…Instead these Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing
people are a our inheritance until the redemption of
those who are God's possession—to the
continuation of the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14).
Jewish remnant. From that day forward we’re known as
Christians.
Compare the Christian scenario to the following sealing found during the time of exile in Ezekiel
9:1-6, “Then I heard him call out in a loud voice, "Bring the guards of the city here, each with a
18
A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation The Jewish Remnant
weapon in his hand." And I saw six men coming from the direction of the upper gate, which
faces north, each with a deadly weapon in his hand. With them was a man clothed in linen who
had a writing kit at his side. They came in and stood beside the bronze altar. Now the glory of the
God of Israel went up from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold
of the temple. Then the LORD called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his
side and said to him, "Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of
those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it." As I listened, he
said to the others, "Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion.
Slaughter old men, young men and maidens, women and children, but do not touch anyone who
has the mark. Begin at my sanctuary." So they began with the elders who were in front of the
temple.”
There are some very important differences between the sealing of Jews in both Revelation 7 and
Ezekiel 9 and the sealing of Christians elsewhere in Scripture.
First and foremost, Christians are sealed by the Holy Spirit whereas the Jewish remnant is sealed
by angels.
Second, these sealing stories are entirely Jewish in their participants whereas in Christianity,
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ
Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). God has included descriptive details in these stories to indicate a Jewish
remnant, and that apart from Christianity.
Lastly, there is no mention in either story

of the Jewish remnant doing anything but First and foremost,
surviving during the times of tribulation.
Christians, on the other hand, are told in Christians are sealed
Matthew 28:19-20, “Therefore go and
make disciples of all nations, baptizing
by the Holy Spirit
them in the name of the Father and of the whereas the Jewish
Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching
them to obey everything I have
remnant is sealed by
commanded you. And surely I am with angels.
you always, to the very end of the age."”
The 144,000 Jews of Revelation 7 are sealed by God at the onset of the tribulation in order to
protect the Jewish remnant from the coming seven years of turmoil. Scripture tells us the angels
are told not to harm the earth “until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God”.
This indicates that the sealing of this Jewish remnant is prior to any unleashing of distress against
the earth.
With the 144,000 accurately identified as the sealed Jewish remnant to be protected for a full
seven years, and the rest of Israel safe for the first three and one-half years, we’ll resume our
look at Revelation 12.
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Revelation 12
“7 And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought
against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8
But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.
9The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called
the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was
hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. 10 Then I heard a loud
voice in heaven say: "Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For
the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day
and night, has been hurled down. 11 They overcame him by the
blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not
love their lives so much as to shrink from death. 12 Therefore
rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the
earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is
filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short."
13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he
pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 The
woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might
fly to the place prepared for her in the desert, where she would be
taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent's
reach. 15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a
river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent.
16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and
swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.”
According to verse 7, in our present day, Satan isn’t completely restricted from heaven.
Although Satan fell from his original angelic position “like lightning” (Luke 10:18), he currently
still has access to God’s ear until the time when he’ll be thrown out by the angel Michael
(Revelation 12:8).
This idea can be found in Job 1:6 as we read, “one day the angels came to present themselves
before the LORD, and Satan also came with them” and in Zechariah 3:1, “he showed me Joshua
the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to
accuse him”. So too in Revelation 12 the Accuser is present in heaven and war breaks out
between Satan and Michael.
Speaking of war, let’s take a look at an interesting angelic concept: powers and principalities
that restrain or release kingdoms upon the earth. For this concept we return to Daniel.
20
A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation The War Begins
In Daniel 10:2-3, we find Daniel in the midst of a vision that left him awestruck so that, “At that
time I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks. I ate no choice food; no meat or wine touched my lips;
and I used no lotions at all until the three weeks were over”. After these twenty-one days an
angel appears to Daniel to interpret the substance of the vision.
The angel indicates that Daniel is held in high esteem and would have received the interpretation
immediately had it not been for this one thing, “the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me
twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was
detained there with the king of Persia” (Daniel 10:13). Here we need to remember that during
the time of Daniel’s vision its, “In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia” (Daniel 10:1).
The top-ranking principality in the heavenlies at that time is “the prince of the Persian kingdom”,
i.e., a fallen angel given authority to cause Persia to rule the known world. Because this fallen
angel is not being restrained from exercising his authority, Persia is flourishing as the dominant
power on earth.
An interesting angelic As soon as Michael takes his stand against

this Persian prince and is given aid by the
concept: powers and angel talking to Daniel we see this result
“Soon I will return to fight against the
principalities that prince of Persia and when I go the prince
restrain or release of Greece will come” (Daniel 10:20).
Interesting! We know from our earlier
kingdoms upon the discussion that Persian dominance of the
earth. world was followed by Grecian rule.
It appears that God’s holy angels work to restrain or allow the releasing of kingdoms upon the
earth. When the holy angels begin to restrain the Persian principalities, the prince of Greece (a
fallen angel) is allowed to introduce Grecian rule into the world.
But is there and solid scriptural backing for this idea? Yes, there is: Paul explains in Ephesians
6:12 that, “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the
authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the
heavenly realms”.
Speculation Alert:
Continuing with this theme, we turn quickly to a misunderstood section of Scripture: 2
Thessalonians 2:1-7.
Second Thessalonians 2:1-7 states, “Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our
being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some
prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has
already come. Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for (that day will not come) until the
rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He will
21
A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation The War Begins
oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets
himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God.
Don't you remember that when I was with you I used to

tell you these things? And now you know what is
The “one who
holding him back so that he may be revealed at the now holds it
proper time. For the secret power of lawlessness is
already at work; but the one who now holds it back will
back” is the
continue to do so till he is taken out of the way”. angel Michael.
(Although I stated in the introduction that Paul’s letter of 2 Thessalonians was used to clarify
misunderstandings from 1 Thessalonians, biblical scholars have disputed for years as to Paul’s
meaning behind verses 6 and 7. It seems we still haven’t learned the lessons Paul was trying to
clear up and teach to the church.)
In light of our recent look into Daniel, and Paul’s indication of whom we struggle against in
Ephesians, it becomes clear that once again the power to restrain or release a kingdom is in the
hands of God’s holy angels. And in the case of 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7, the “one who now holds
it back” is the angel Michael.
God has given his angels the task of keeping His timeline of kingdoms rising and falling
because, “the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he
wishes” (Daniel 4:25).
And God can trust his angels to follow His plan because we read in Psalm 103:20-21, “Praise the
LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word. Praise the
LORD, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will”.
Therefore, Revelation 12 reminds us that Satan is allowed to set up his kingdom on earth because
he is no longer restrained by the angel Michael, the same event Paul mentions in his
Thessalonians letter.
As soon as Satan finds himself free to have some dominion over the earth, he attempts to destroy
Israel in Revelation 12:13-16 but is reminded that God is still Sovereign and has set up a timeline
that can’t be changed no matter how hard Satan tries to “change the set times and the laws”
(Daniel 7:25).
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As we saw in Revelation 12:13-15, Satan is on a rampage attempting to destroy Israel. Verse 16
explains that he isn’t able to do so because of God’s 1,260 day protection plan for the nation.
This takes us to verse 17, “Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war
against the rest of her offspring—those who obey God's commandments and hold to the
testimony of Jesus”. No matter how hard Satan tries to “change the set times and the laws”, he’s
not able to move one iota away from God’s sovereign plan listed in Scripture.
After a failed attempt to wipeout Israel

No matter how hard Satan will begin to make war against
“those who obey God’s commandments
Satan tries…he’s not and hold to the testimony of Jesus”. These
able to move one iota are clearly Christians. Christians are
called the offspring of Israel in Galatians
away from God’s 3:29 “If you belong to Christ then you are
sovereign plan. Abraham's seed and heirs according to the
promise”.
Abraham, the father of the Jewish nation, was a man of faith. His faith made him righteous in
God’s sight (Genesis 15:6), and this righteous faith makes us children of Abraham and offspring
of Israel; grafted into the promises of Jesus (Romans 11:17).
But just how will Satan make war against Christians during the tribulation? He enlists some
help:
Revelation 13
“1 And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast
coming out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten
crowns on his horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. 2 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. 3 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 astonished and followed the
beast. 4 Men 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 make war against him?"
5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and
blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months. 6
23
A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Unleash the Beast
He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name

and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. 7 He was
given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them.
And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and
nation.
9 He who has an ear, let him hear. 10 If anyone is to go into
captivity, into captivity he will go. If anyone is to be killed with
the sword, with the sword he will be killed. This calls for patient
endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints. 11 Then I saw
another beast, coming out of the earth. He had two horns like a
lamb, but he spoke like a dragon. 12 He exercised all the authority
of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and its
inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been
healed. 13 And he performed great and miraculous signs, even
causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in full view of
men.”
Verses 1 and 2 give us a symbolic representation of

Satan setting up his Antichrist. The beast out of the sea Satan is a
represents the Antichrist as well as his area of
dominion. This Antichrist looks symbolically similar copycat of God
to the red dragon of Revelation 12 with a few minor the Father.
differences.
Both have ten horns and seven heads, with the horns representing authority over an earthly
empire and the heads representing a false sevenfold nature of God. The difference between
Satan and his Antichrist is found in the crowns. We’re told in Revelation 12:3 that Satan’s
crowns are on his seven heads, whereas here we see the Antichrist’s crowns are on his ten horns.
Speculation Alert:
Satan’s seven crowns on his seven heads represent a mimicking of the Father’s rule over all the
earth and all creation. Remember in Chapter Two of this book we discussed some facets of
God’s sevenfold nature, including His right to rule all creation.
Satan is a copycat of God the Father. The Antichrist’s ten crowns on his ten horns represent an
authority over the revived Roman Empire. Notice in verse 2 that the dragon (Satan) gave the
beast (the Antichrist) his authority. This is a mimicking of God the Father giving Jesus all
authority to rule as seen in Revelation 2:27, “He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash
them to pieces like pottery' — just as I have received authority from my Father”.
Revelation 13:2 continues to describe the Antichrist’s dominion symbolically using the beasts
from Daniel 7:3-6, “Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
"The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off
and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a man, and the heart of a man
was given to it.
24
"And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its
sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, 'Get up and eat your fill of
flesh!'
"After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And
on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given
authority to rule"”.
These beasts from Daniel’s vision symbolically represent the same kingdom powers as
Nebuchadnezzar’s statue. The Antichrist who “resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a
bear and a mouth like that of a lion” will have dominion over all the territories historically
owned by the Babylonian (lion), Medo-Persian (bear), and Greek (leopard) Empires as well as
the historical territory of the Roman Empire (ten horns).
Revelation 13:3 shows us yet another

example of Satan’s longing to be God. A Furthering his
longing that has existed since the day Satan
sinned, for he said, “I will ascend above the attempt to make
tops of the clouds; I will make myself like himself “like the
the Most High” (Isaiah 14:14).
Most High”; Satan
Well here’s his chance to make himself “like enables a fake Holy
the Most High”. Verse 3 explains that the
Antichrist has a fatal wound that has been Spirit to mimic the
healed, resulting in the astonishment of the real one.
world.
It’s easy to see the correlation between the slain Lamb that yet lives (Revelation 5:6), and a slain
beast that yet lives. Satan, mimicking the Father, will set up his Antichrist, mimicking Jesus, by
using “all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders” (2 Thessalonians 2:9).
Speculation Alert:
One of the miracles will be his Antichrist that appears to have died but is resurrected from the
dead by the (supposed) power of Satan. Because of this, Revelation 13:4 explains that, “Men
worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the
beast”.
But Satan won’t stop there. Furthering his attempt to make himself “like the Most High”; Satan
enables a fake Holy Spirit to mimic the real one. Let’s take a quick look at the similarities
between the second beast (Revelation 13:11-13) and the Holy Spirit.
We’re told in verse 11 that the second beast, called the False Prophet (Revelation 16:13, 19:20),
is similar to a lamb but speaks like a dragon. This fake Holy Spirit will continue the work of the
Antichrist and will speak everything the dragon tells him.
25
This is strikingly similar to the Holy Spirit’s role in the Trinity in John 16:13-15, “But when he,
the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will
speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by
taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine.
That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you”.
The Holy Spirit speaks what He hears from God and brings glory to Jesus. What does the fake
Holy Spirit do? Revelation 13:12 explains that he exercises authority for the Antichrist; making
the world worship him. In other words, the fake Holy Spirit (False Prophet) brings glory to the
fake Jesus (Antichrist).
Under the authority of Satan (allowed by the will of God), the False Prophet not only assumes
the same role as the Holy Spirit in the Trinity but he also assumes the Holy Spirit’s power.
Verse 13 says, “he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from
heaven to earth in full view of men”.
God’s Holy Spirit is the powerhouse of God. Zechariah 4:6 reveals that it’s “'Not by might nor
by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty” and Acts 1:8 says, “But you will receive
power when the Holy Spirit comes on you”. Satan once again shows his desperate need to copy
all-things-God.
Now we’ll pause for a moment to discuss some things in Revelation that’ll be happening on the
earth once Satan arrives.
Revelation 12:12 says, “Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to
the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he
knows that his time is short”. The earth and sea will undergo a severe set of birth pains, just like
Jesus talks about in Matthew 24:8, “these are the beginning of birth pains”.
Revelation 6 and 8 begin to discuss these birth pains as we are about to see.
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“The beginning of birth pains” is preceded by the first of seven seals in Revelation 6. This
allows the coming Antichrist to conquer and needs to be opened before any of Satan’s fury can
be unleashed.
Revelation 6
“1 I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then
I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder,
"Come!" 2 I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its
rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a
conqueror bent on conquest.”
It seems like there’s no end to Satan’s mimicking of God. This first seal symbolically reveals the
Antichrist released upon the earth to conquer it riding a white horse.
When Jesus returns to set up His

The release of the millennial kingdom at the end of
Antichrist isn’t Revelation He’s seen riding a white horse.
This is written about in Revelation 19:11
something Satan when John says “I saw heaven standing
cooked up and open and there before me was a white
horse whose rider is called Faithful and
brought forth by his True. With justice he judges and makes
war”. So once again Satan wants to make
own power. himself “like the Most High”.
But the coming Antichrist isn’t something to fear as we discussed in Chapter One, “we can trust
Jesus and be at peace knowing that no matter what happens God is in control”.
The release of the Antichrist isn’t something Satan cooked up and brought forth by his own
power; instead, it’s the Lamb who opens the first of seven seals to allow the Antichrist to come.
This should bring us comfort knowing that at all times in what will seem like a world gone mad,
Jesus will be in perfect control over everything.
As Jesus is busy opening seven seals, the blowing of seven trumpets is beginning in Revelation
8.
Revelation 8
“2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them
were given seven trumpets.
27
A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Birth Pains
3 Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the
altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all
the saints, on the golden altar before the throne. 4 The smoke of
the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before
God from the angel's hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled
it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there
came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an
earthquake. 6 Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets
prepared to sound them. 7 The first angel sounded his trumpet, and
there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down
upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the
trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.”
Now we begin to see the tribulation start unfolding just as the loud voice in Revelation 12:12
said it would. The earth and sea are beginning to undergo a transformation toward death because
Satan walks the earth.
With the blowing of the first trumpet comes the decimation of a third of the earth burnt beyond
use. Here’s where a topic that will continue throughout the tribulation period should be
interjected: Satan’s wrath against Christians vying against God’s wrath on the world.
God will continue to rule from heaven during this time, bringing His judgments against those
who refuse to accept Jesus; while Satan, being the copycat that he is, will continue to rule from
earth bringing his fury against those who refuse to accept his Antichrist.
Speculation Alert:
But some may ask: If God is such a loving God, how can He cause such wrath to come against
the earth and its people?
Isaiah 24:5-6 gives us one answer. “The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the
laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse consumes the
earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth's inhabitants are burned up, and very few
are left”.
The majority of the world has rejected

God and rejected the sacrifice of Jesus on A topic that will
the cross. Their own selfish refusal to
humble themselves before the Lord has continue throughout
brought destruction upon their own heads. the tribulation…
God is a God of justice and must satisfy
the guilt these people have piled up over Satan’s wrath against
the ages. Christians vying
God explains to us in Isaiah 24:1-4 that against God’s wrath
because of their insolence “the LORD is on the world.
going to lay waste the earth and devastate
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it; he will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants it will be the same for priest as for people, for
master as for servant, for mistress as for maid, for seller as for buyer, for borrower as for lender,
for debtor as for creditor. The earth will be completely laid waste and totally plundered. The
LORD has spoken this word. The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers,
the exalted of the earth languish”.
But for what purpose? Just for wrath’s sake? Would God really do something just to be
vengeful? Surprisingly enough we learn in Isaiah 26:9 that “When [God’s] judgments come
upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness”. He’s a holy God, and we need to
learn to trust Him. No matter what the world looks like during this time, God is working things
out for our own good (Romans 8:28).
During the beginning of this tribulation period Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet set up
their world headquarters as capital of all nations in Revelation 17. Remember that Satan needs
to make it look like he’s in control, and he’s god over the earth regardless of how much of a
mess the world is in.
Revelation 17
“3 Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a desert. There
I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with
blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The
woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with
gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her
hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.
5 This title was written on her forehead:
MYSTERY
BABYLON THE GREAT
THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES
AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
7 Then the angel said to me: "Why are you astonished? I will
explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides,
which has the seven heads and ten horns. 8 The beast, which you
saw, once was, now is not, and will come up out of the Abyss and
go to his destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names
have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the
world will be astonished when they see the beast, because he once
was, now is not, and yet will come. 9 "This calls for a mind with
wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits.
10 They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has
not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for a little
while. 11 The beast who once was, and now is not, is an eighth
king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction. 15
Then the angel said to me, "The waters you saw, where the
prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. 18
29
The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of
the earth."”
We just don’t know Enter Babylon the Great represented by a

woman sitting on a beast. The beast is the
exactly where the Antichrist who has authority over “the great
city that rules over the kings of the earth”. This
city of Babylon will Babylon will be the capital of the world.
be built.
Zechariah sees this same woman, called wickedness, in Zechariah 5:11 sitting in a basket being
carried “To the country of Babylonia to build a house for it. When it is ready, the basket will be
set there in its place”.
Scripture gives us no exact location for this city, but we do have some clues to its placement. It
is said to arise in the country of Babylonia (Zechariah 5:11), for John to see it while in a desert
(Revelation 17:3), and for the city to sit on seven hills (Revelation 17:9). Unfortunately this
leaves us with little extra help in determining the possible placement of the future city as
explained below.
Speculation Alert:
Our first clue is the country of Babylonia. Today it most closely spans the country of modern
Iraq. To pinpoint the future location of a city within the territory that ranges from the Persian
Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea is no small task; just look at a map.
Our second clue is the desert John is taken to. Proponents of the great city existing in historic
Babylon will find the desert connection easy to make (the Arabian Desert is in the area of Iraq).
But at this time in the tribulation, can we know how much of the world has been made into a
desert when one-third of the world has been burned? (Revelation 8:7).
Our last clue is the seven hills on which the city sits. The world is filled with hills and filled with
cities claiming to be built on seven hills. A quick Google1 search of “cities on seven hills” found
over 40 cities claiming this title.
So in short, we just don’t know exactly where the city of Babylon will be built, and to say
anything more is just speculation.
Now, verse 4 indicates that the wealth of the world will be displayed in this city and verse 15
tells us that people from all around the world will inhabit the city.
Notice also the angelic interpretation of the beast’s seven heads. Verses 9 and 10 indicate that
the beast’s seven heads represent seven hills and seven kings. The seven hills have been
discussed above. The seven kings are human kings who have existed throughout history as
archetypes for the Antichrist.
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1 John 2:18 explains, “and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many
antichrists have come”. Revelation 17:11 tells us that the Antichrist is an eighth king that
belongs to the seven, i.e. he is just like them. This future Antichrist will follow in the footsteps
of his successors, and just like his successors he will be utterly destroyed in the end. But for
now, the Antichrist has firmly established his rule on earth by the power of Satan.
With the Antichrist’s capital established and his power over the kings of the earth at its peak, it’s
time for Satan to make his power play against God Most High. It’s time for the mark.
Chapter Six Bibliography
1. Google.com. http://www.google.com/. Accessed December 2008.
31
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Revelation 13 gives us a great glimpse into the False Prophet’s abilities as he continues to play
his role as the fake Holy Spirit. What’s about to unfold is a dramatic performance that leaves the
whole world in awe of this unholy trinity. The bedazzled inhabitants of earth become willing
participants in selling their souls to Satan as they sign up to receive the mark of the beast.
Revelation 13
“14 Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the
first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered
them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by
the sword and yet lived. 15 He was given power to give breath to
the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who
refused to worship the image to be killed. 16 He also forced
everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive
a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, 17 so that no one
could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the
beast or the number of his name.
18 This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate
the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is
666.”
As we discussed earlier, the False Prophet’s job is to bring glory to the Antichrist, just like the
Holy Spirit’s job is to bring glory to Jesus. What’s interesting about this section of Revelation is
Satan’s attempt to copy God’s ability to give life.
Genesis 2:7 says, “the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into
his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being”. In Revelation 13:15 the fake
Holy Spirit gives “breath to the image” and brings it to life.
Satan wants to be God, so Satan must do the things God has done. God created man in His own
image (Genesis 1:27), Satan creates a man in his Antichrist’s image; God breathed into the man
to make him a living being, Satan will breathe into his idol to make it a living being. Step by
step Satan is attempting to replace God.
But he won’t stop there. He then forces everyone who worships him to receive his mark on the
right hand or forehead. A quick glance at Revelation 22:4 reveals that God is planning to do the
same thing with his people, “They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads”.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation The Mark and its Consequences
In triune completeness God’s number is 777;

man’s number is 666. Man was created on the The bedazzled
sixth day and like God, man is triune in nature inhabitants of earth
(spirit, soul, and body). 666 represents man
just as 777 represents God. become willing
Revelation 13:17-18 reveals to us that 666 “is
participants in
the name of the beast or the number of his selling their souls to
name” and we’re told, “if anyone has insight
let him calculate the number of the beast”.
Satan as they sign
This has led many people to assign 666 to up to receive the
prominent figures throughout history in a vain
attempt to uncover the Antichrist.
mark of the beast.
Speculation Alert:
Our numerological attempts to assign 666 to a human figure in order to identify the Antichrist
may not be exactly what John had in mind. Instead, John may have been simply warning us to
be on guard against the man who tries to give us the number of his name.
By the time the False Prophet has created a talking idol, don’t you think Christians will know the
score and be able to identify the Antichrist without calculating his number? There will be many
signs that clearly identify the Antichrist before his mark is installed.
Because of this, it’s probable that John didn’t intend for us to use this number to make a
preemptive identification of the Antichrist. So be careful about throwing around your own 666
formula for identifying the Antichrist as this seems to only lead to hysteria.
With that said, let’s take a look at Revelation 6 where we once again read that Jesus is pulling all
the strings no matter how much Satan thinks he’s in control down here.
Revelation 6
“3 When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second
living creature say, "Come!" 4 Then another horse came out, a
fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the
earth and to make men slay each other. To him was given a large
sword.
5 When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living
creature say, "Come!" I looked, and there before me was a black
horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. 6 Then I
heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures,
saying, "A quart of wheat for a day's wages, and three quarts of
barley for a day's wages, and do not damage the oil and the
wine!"”
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What we read about here is a preparation of the earth for Jesus’ Second Coming. As the first seal
was to unleash the Antichrist, so the second and third seals are to take away any chance of real
peace on earth.
Jesus is the prince of peace (Isaiah 9:6), and without Jesus there can be no real peace. The
Antichrist will do his best to establish a false peace, but God in His infinite love will bombard
the earth with every kind of plague to show its inhabitants that this guy is a faker.
God uses many tactics to try to bring men to repentance, including hardships. Haggai 2:17 says,
“I struck all the work of your hands with blight, mildew and hail, yet you did not turn to me,'
declares the LORD” and Isaiah 42:24-25 says, “For they would not follow his ways; they did not
obey his law. So he poured out on them his burning anger, the violence of war. It enveloped
them in flames, yet they did not understand; it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart”.
He is always pouring out His blessings on the earth

Jesus is the but men don’t repent and turn to Jesus, so
prince of peace sometimes He pours out trials and tribulations to
see who will turn toward Him for healing and
(Isaiah 9:6), and forgiveness.
without Jesus Seals 2 and 3 bring wars, famine, inflation and
there can be no death. Trumpet 1 in Revelation 8:7 resulted in a
third of the grass getting roasted (causing a lack of
real peace. usable farm land).
Speculation Alert:
It’s only natural to see how the earth would soon plunge into famine without adequate farm land
for the nations. This in turn would bring about large inflation on the prices of goods and
eventually war over supply and demand.
With three seals open and one trumpet blown this seems like a fair time to mention that the exact
placement of seals and trumpets chronologically in the first 1,260 days of the tribulation is not
humanly possible. But one thing we do know is this: the seven seals and seven trumpets span
the whole seven years of tribulation as explained throughout this book.
Understand, then, that these events will be unfolding during the time when the Antichrist sets up
his Babylonian capital and begins to persecute Christians. These events will continue to unfold
all the way to Jesus’ Second Coming.
Trumpets 2 through 4 and seal 4 are covered below because they seem to fit the first 1,260 days
of the tribulation period, which takes us through more of Revelation 8 and then 6.
Revelation 8
“8 The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a
huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the
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sea turned into blood, 9 a third of the living creatures in the sea
died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.
10 The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing
like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the
springs of water— 11 the name of the star is Wormwood. A third
of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters
that had become bitter.”
The blowing of trumpets 2 and 3 result in turmoil for the waters of earth. Just as trumpet 1 was
an initial judgment against the land, so trumpets 2 and 3 are an initial judgment against the water.
This takes us to the opening of seal 4.
Revelation 6
“7 When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the
fourth living creature say, "Come!" 8 I looked, and there before me
was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was
following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth
of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild
beasts of the earth.”
Seal 4 continues the havoc of seals 2 and 3, bringing more death and destruction. At this point
one fourth of the earth has erupted into war, is wrought with famine, and enveloped with
plagues.
However, verse 8 does not say that one fourth of the

inhabitants of earth are killed but rather that one What we see is a
fourth of the earth is affected by the opening of this
seal. The rider’s dominion may very well be limited
general
to a single hemisphere of earth or multiple sections unraveling of
of hemispheres. Whatever combination adds up to
one fourth that’s what he has power over.
Genesis 1.
After seal 4 comes trumpet 4.
Revelation 8
“12 The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun
was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a
third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and
also a third of the night.
13 As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out
in a loud voice: "Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth,
because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other
three angels!"”
Just as trumpet 1 was an initial judgment against the land and trumpets 2 and 3 against the
waters, so trumpet 4 is an initial judgment against the sky.
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What we see is a general unraveling of Genesis 1. In Genesis, God separated waters from waters
and allowed them to teem with living creatures, God gathered the waters together to create land
and vegetation and animals, and God formed lights to separate night and day.
In Revelation, God destroys a third of the waters and all that’s in them, God burns a third of the
land and vegetation, and God snuffs out a third of the night and day. Just as Jesus was
responsible for establishing creation in Genesis (Colossians 1:15-16), so Jesus will be
responsible for removing creation in Revelation (Jesus opens the seals that unravel creation).
With four seals and four trumpets open, we’ve completed the first 1,260 days of the tribulation
period.
God’s promise to Israel for safekeeping (Revelation 12:6) is about to end, three woes equaling
the three final trumpet blasts are about to occur, and Satan is about to get what he’s always
wanted – the Holy Land.
36
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We now enter the second 1260 days of the
It’s important to tribulation period or what some call the time of
make sure our great tribulation. A quick Scripture check will
show us how accurate our chronological look at
timeline fits His. the book of Revelation has been so far.
Gospel Check:
Matthew 24, Luke 21, and Mark 13 all tell the same event – Jesus’ end-time discussion with his
disciples. Because Jesus is the foremost authority on end-time events, it’s important to make
sure our timeline fits His. For this particular check, we’ll use His end-time description in
Matthew 24.
Jesus begins in verses 6 through 8 by telling us that there will be wars, famines, and earthquakes
in various places. We have covered all these things thus far as part of our first 1,260 days of
tribulation.
Verse 8 says, “All these are the beginning of birth pains”. Birth pains indicate a birthing process,
or new creation as its final result. Since these are the beginning of birth pains, we place the first
four seals and first four trumpets in the first half of tribulation.
Jesus then says in verses 9 through 13 that Christians will be persecuted and killed while the
world is lead astray. He gives us a glorious hope by telling us, “but he who stands firm to the
end will be saved”.
Jesus makes no attempts to sugarcoat the issue. Christians will die during the tribulation and in
order to be saved from death they must stand firm to the end. He makes no mention of pre-
tribulation rapture, instead He makes it clear that death’s coming and perseverance is needed
straight through to the end if we want to be saved.
Because of this, we discussed the killing of Christians by Satan during the first 1,260 days since
he wasn’t allowed to harm Israel.
But with the expiration of God’s 1,260 day protection of Israel, we see Jesus in verse 15 talk
about “'the abomination that causes desolation” from Daniel 9:27, 11:31 and 12:11. This
abomination is set up in the holy place, the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem (Daniel 9:27), and is the
same talking idol we discussed in Revelation 13:15 set up by the False Prophet.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation The Invasion Begins
This brings us to the middle of Jesus’ tribulation talk, to the end of our first 1,260 days, and to
the end of God’s absolute protection over Israel the nation. So far our timeline fits well into
Jesus’ discussion on end-time events.
Jesus then details a time of “great distress”, the time we call the great tribulation, or last 1,260
days of the tribulation. In verses 16 through 21 He tells everyone in Judea to flee from the
abomination, and to be aware of a great distress that’s unequaled in its dread.
Turning quickly to Luke 21:24, Jesus tells the Jews that, “They will fall by the sword and will be
taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times
of the Gentiles are fulfilled”.
End Gospel Check
In our Revelation timeline Satan is now about to

be unleashed against Israel but God’s not without God’s 1,260 day
a plan. As soon as Satan’s allowed to harm
Israel God follows suit by enlisting the help of protection plan for
His two witnesses which takes us to Revelation Israel has run out.
11.
Revelation 11
“1 I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, "Go and
measure the temple of God and the altar, and count the worshipers
there. 2 But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it
has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city
for 42 months. 3 And I will give power to my two witnesses, and
they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth." 4 These
are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the
Lord of the earth. 5 If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from
their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who
wants to harm them must die. 6 These men have power to shut up
the sky so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying;
and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the
earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.”
In agreement with Jesus’ description in Luke 21, Revelation 11 discusses Jerusalem being
trampled for 42 months. It’s at this time that God’s 1,260 day protection plan for Israel has run
out, and Satan’s allowed to trample the Jews. As soon as this trampling begins, God sends His
two witnesses described as, “two olive trees and two lampstands that stand before the Lord”.
This description is also seen in Zechariah 4:11-14, “Then I asked the angel, "What are these two
olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?" Again I asked him, "What are these two
olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil?" He replied, "Do you not
know what these are?" "No, my lord," I said. So he said, "These are the two who are anointed to
serve the Lord of all the earth."”.
38
Speculation Alert:
The three most talked about candidates for these two witnesses are Moses, Elijah, and Enoch.
Those who hold to the Elijah and Enoch, but not Moses theory use Hebrews 9:27 “man is
destined to die once, and after that to face judgment” to say that a man can only die once. Since
these two witnesses will eventually die at the hand of the Antichrist, they purport that Moses,
who has already died, cannot be one of the two witnesses; while Elijah and Enoch can come and
witness since neither of them have ever died.
The problem with excluding Moses on the principle of “only one death allowed” is this: Many
other men have died and been resurrected only to die again. Take for example all the people
raised from the dead by Jesus and His apostles.
Those who hold to the Elijah and Moses, but not Enoch theory use Matthew 17:3 “Just then there
appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus” to say that these two are present at
Jesus’ transfiguration and are therefore the best candidates for His two witnesses. They propose
that the complete Gospel brings two parts: a proclamation and a demonstration (Romans 15:18-
19). Moses being God’s mouthpiece (proclamation) and Elijah being God’s hand of power
(demonstration).
The problem with excluding Enoch is that we know so little about him. He may very well be
able to fill the needed proclamation or demonstration piece of the gospel just as easily as Elijah
or Moses could.
Most all hold to the theory that Elijah will

Whoever these two be one of the returning witnesses due to
the following Scriptures: Malachi 4:5
witnesses are, they’ve “See I will send you the prophet Elijah
been prepped by God before that great and dreadful day of the
LORD comes” and Matthew 17:11 “Jesus
for a long time. replied "To be sure Elijah comes and will
restore all things"”.
It’s also interesting to note that the signs of these two witnesses in Revelation 11:6 are to “shut
up the sky so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying” and to “turn the waters
into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague”. Elijah is noted in James 5:17 as a
man who “prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a
half years” and Moses tells Pharaoh in Exodus 7:17 “With the staff that is in my hand I will
strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood”.
Whoever these two witnesses are, they’ve been prepped by God for a long time to come and
prophesy for the last 1,260 days of the tribulation.
With the witnesses beginning their time of prophesy and plagues, and Satan forcing men to
worship him and receive his mark, we now come to Revelation 14.
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Revelation 14
“9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: "If anyone
worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the
forehead or on the hand, 10 he, too, will drink of the wine of God's
fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath.
He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the
holy angels and of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment
rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who
worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the
mark of his name." 12 This calls for patient endurance on the part
of the saints who obey God's commandments and remain faithful
to Jesus.
13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, "Write: Blessed are the
dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit,
"they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them."”
Speculation Alert:
God begins to prepare His wrath (verse 10), something that He restrained in the first 1,260
tribulation days. The initial judgments of the first four seals and first four trumpets are not His
wrath, but rather His last great attempt to save mankind from the clutches of hell.
His wrath in Revelation is easy to spot because God named the plagues of His wrath “bowls of
wrath”. Until we reach the bowls, we don’t see a God of wrath, but instead a God of justice and
righteousness.
With the cup of His wrath filling up, the time of Satan’s rule is quickly coming to an end. It’s at
this time in verse 12 that Christians are reminded to hold strong and remain faithful to Jesus
because a time of great distress is coming upon the whole earth.
This time on earth is so extreme that God tells John to write “Blessed are the dead who die in the
Lord from now on”. Every Christian who dies during this upcoming great tribulation will be
honored for “their deeds” and “rest from their labor” because they “remain faithful to Jesus”.
Knowing that Jesus is coming soon, Satan begins to panic; in a furious attempt to take as many
people down with him as possible he’s about to go on a rampage.
40
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Revelation 9
“1 The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had
fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the
shaft of the Abyss. 2 When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from
it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were
darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. 3 And out of the smoke
locusts came down upon the earth and were given power like that
of scorpions of the earth. 4 They were told not to harm the grass of
the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not
have the seal of God on their foreheads. 5 They were not given
power to kill them, but only to torture them for five months. And
the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion
when it strikes a man. 6 During those days men will seek death,
but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.
7 The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. On their
heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces
resembled human faces. 8 Their hair was like women's hair, and
their teeth were like lions' teeth. 9 They had breastplates like
breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the
thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. 10
They had tails and stings like scorpions, and in their tails they had
power to torment people for five months. 11 They had as king over
them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon,
and in Greek, Apollyon.
12 The first woe is past; two other woes are yet to come.”
Trumpet blast 5 is also woe number 1 from Revelation 8:13. With this trumpet blast we see the
beginning of Satan’s greatest fury against mankind.
Speculation Alert:
The 144,000 people of the Jewish remnant are protected from torture (Revelation 9:4); but the
rest of mankind is vulnerable to torment for a period of five months by Satan and his minions.
This five months of time when men will “long to die, but death will elude them” is mentioned by
Jesus in Matthew 24:21 when He talks about, “great distress, unequaled from the beginning of
the world until now—and never to be equaled again”.
But all is not lost. In a time when Satan is rampaging and God is preparing to pour out His
wrath, there’s still hope. The prophet Isaiah forewarned us to, “Go, my people, enter your rooms
and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by”
41
A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Woe, Woe
(Isaiah 26:20). God isn’t silent about our future. He wants us to be prepared so that we can hide
from the time of wrath as much as possible.
End of Speculation
With one woe down, the sixth trumpet sounds as woe number two begins in Revelation 9.
Revelation 9
“13 The sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice
coming from the horns of the golden altar that is before God. 14 It
said to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four
angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates." 15 And the
four angels who had been kept ready for this very hour and day
and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind. 16
The number of the mounted troops was two hundred million. I
heard their number.
17 The horses and riders I saw in my vision looked like this: Their
breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The
heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their
mouths came fire, smoke and sulfur. 18 A third of mankind was
killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur that came out
of their mouths. 19 The power of the horses was in their mouths
and in their tails; for their tails were like snakes, having heads with
which they inflict injury.
20 The rest of mankind that were not killed by these plagues still
did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop
worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and
wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk. 21 Nor did they
repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or
their thefts.”
A two hundred million man army is mustered by

Satan to kill a third of mankind. Even with this
We see the
outpouring of Satan’s wrath against mankind beginning of
verses 20 and 21 tell us that men still don’t turn
to Jesus. After seeing what a monster the
Satan’s greatest
Antichrist really is they still don’t repent of their fury against
wickedness.
mankind.
It’s after this final attempt by God to get men to see that He’s a much better choice to follow than
Satan that God finally begins to pour out His wrath against all those who have failed to “repent
of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts”.
But before we can get to the end of the tribulation and the pouring out of God’s wrath, we have
to open the fifth seal in Revelation 6.
Revelation 6
42
“9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of
those who had been slain because of the word of God and the
testimony they had maintained. 10 They called out in a loud voice,
"How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the
inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" 11 Then each of
them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little
longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who
were to be killed as they had been was completed.”
Jesus mentions in Matthew 24:22 that “If

God now allows His those days had not been cut short no one
final wrath to unfold would survive but for the sake of the elect
those days will be shortened”. This refers to
to avenge the blood the great fury of Satan unleashed against
mankind as he tries to kill as many people as
of His saints. possible knowing his end is soon to come.
Some of the people who were killed during this shortened time ask the Lord when He will
avenge their blood. The Lord asks them to remain patient explaining that more Christians will
die as this chapter of history is wrapping up.
Jesus’ comment in Matthew 24 also explains to us that many Christians will make it through this
shortened time of “great distress”. Of the remaining Christians, some are destined to die as their
“fellow servants and brothers” had, and some are destined to stand “firm to the end” and “be
saved” (Matthew 24:13).
But the request of those Christians killed at the hand of the Antichrist (Revelation 6:10) does not
go unanswered as God now allows His final wrath to unfold to avenge the blood of His saints,
which takes us to Revelation 15.
Revelation 15
“1 I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels
with the seven last plagues—last, because with them God's wrath
is completed. 2 And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed
with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been
victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his
name. They held harps given them by God 3 and sang the song of
Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb: "Great and
marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are
your ways, King of the ages. 4 Who will not fear you, O Lord, and
bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will
come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been
revealed."
5 After this I looked and in heaven the temple, that is, the
tabernacle of the Testimony, was opened. 6 Out of the temple
came the seven angels with the seven plagues. They were dressed
43
in clean, shining linen and wore golden sashes around their chests.
7 Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels
seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God, who lives for
ever and ever. 8 And the temple was filled with smoke from the
glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the
temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were
completed.”
Verse 1 and verses 5-8 give us a picture of God’s seven angels with seven plagues in seven
golden bowls ready to bring God’s wrath upon the earth and avenge the Christians pictured in
verse 2.
Remember that seven represents completion and entering into a period of rest (Genesis 2:2-3 and
Hebrews 4:9). After seven years of tribulation a great rest for the earth will be in order as it
finishes its birth pains and welcomes the rule of Jesus (Romans 8:19).
But before this completion and rest can be entered into, a reckoning for the spilled blood of
saints must be made.
Those slain during Satan’s fury are given harps and sing a song that foreshadows Philippians
2:10-11 which says, “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth
and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the
Father”.
The Second Coming is at the door and Satan and his followers are about to feel the wrath of God
poured out on them, as we will see in the next chapter.
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Satan’s reign is closing and God’s ready to go “eye for eye and tooth for tooth” (Leviticus 24:20)
for the killing of His saints. It’s at this time that His final wrath is doled out on earth.
His meting out of justice and wrath are clearly not against His own people but against all those
who have killed His Christians and maligned His Great Name.
Revelation 16
“1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven
angels, "Go, pour out the seven bowls of God's wrath on the earth."
2 The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and
ugly and painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark
of the beast and worshiped his image.
3 The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned
into blood like that of a dead man, and every living thing in the sea
died.
4 The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of
water, and they became blood. 5 Then I heard the angel in charge
of the waters say: "You are just in these judgments, you who are
and who were, the Holy One, because you have so judged; 6 for
they have shed the blood of your saints and prophets, and you have
given them blood to drink as they deserve." 7 And I heard the altar
respond: "Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and just are your
judgments."
8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun
was given power to scorch people with fire. 9 They were seared by
the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control
over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him.
10 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast,
and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. Men gnawed their
tongues in agony 11 and cursed the God of heaven because of their
pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had
done.
12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river
Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the
kings from the East. 13 Then I saw three evil spirits that looked
like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the
mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14
They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they
45
A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Here’s the Wrath
go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle
on the great day of God Almighty.
15 "Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake
and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be
shamefully exposed."
16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in
Hebrew is called Armageddon.”
God’s final wrath has started against the

Antichrist and his cronies. Bowl 1 brings sores, His meting out of
bowls 2 and 3 bring a final blow to the waters of
earth; just as trumpets 2 and 3 brought an initial justice and wrath
blow to them. are clearly not
Bowls 4 and 5 bring a final blow to the sun; just against His own
as trumpet 4 brought an initial blow to it. Isaiah
30:26 says, “The moon will shine like the sun,
people but against
and the sunlight will be seven times brighter, like all those who have
the light of seven full days”. With the scorching
intensity of bowl 4, mankind is “seared by the
killed His
intense heat”. Eventually bowl 5 is poured out Christians and
against the Antichrist resulting in darkness. The
intensely burning sun may now be either a
maligned His Great
deadened star or blocked from giving its light, Name.
resulting in darkness on the earth.
At this point, it’s a good idea to check our chronology against Jesus’ to make sure we’re on the
right track.
Gospel Check:
This takes us to Matthew 24:29 where Jesus says, “"Immediately after the distress of those days
'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and
the heavenly bodies will be shaken.'"”.
In the verses just prior to Him saying this, He discussed the great fury of Satan so we know our
chronology of Revelation, and His end-time timeline are in agreement with each other.
End Gospel Check
Now for bowl 6 which is poured on the Euphrates River. This sixth bowl of God’s wrath causes
the river to dry up; an event also described in Isaiah.
Isaiah 11:15 says, “The LORD will dry up the gulf of the Egyptian sea; with a scorching wind he
will sweep his hand over the Euphrates River. He will break it up into seven streams so that men
can cross over in sandals”. Once the Lord has dried up the Euphrates, Satan knows it’s time to
gather his massive army to fight against the soon-to-return King of Kings.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Here’s the Wrath
Revelation 16:13-14 tells us that Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet pull one more set of
miraculous signs so wonderful that it’s enough to gather the kings of the world for the great
coming battle of Armageddon.
Now picture this; the man they follow and call god is unable to save them from painful sores,
searing heat, and darkness. He’s also unable to provide for them clean drinking water and peace
on earth. In spite of all these things, we’re told the people of the earth “cursed the God of
heaven” and “refused to repent of what they had done”.
In 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 the reasoning behind their behavior becomes clearer, as it explains
“The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all
kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those
who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. For this
reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be
condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness”.
Because the inhabitants of the earth delight in wickedness they willingly follow the Antichrist to
his doom.
With the kings of the world gathering to fight against the coming Messiah, Jesus interjects in
Revelation 16:15 that His people need to be ready for His sure and quick coming. Isn’t it
interesting that here at the end of the tribulation Jesus would now mention the fact that He’s
about to return?
Jesus makes no mention of His quick return at the start of the tribulation; instead He continually
warns His people to patiently endure. Now, as we come to a close, Jesus reminds His followers
of His Second Coming and their being raptured to Him.
Before His return and our rapture commence, John listens in on classified information from
seven thunders, hears a proclamation about the end of our current age, and receives an Ezekiel-
like commission, which we’ll cover in the next chapter.
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Revelation 10
“1 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven.
He was robed in a cloud, with a rainbow above his head; his face
was like the sun, and his legs were like fiery pillars. 2 He was
holding a little scroll, which lay open in his hand. He planted his
right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, 3 and he gave a
loud shout like the roar of a lion. When he shouted, the voices of
the seven thunders spoke. 4 And when the seven thunders spoke, I
was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven say, "Seal up
what the seven thunders have said and do not write it down."
5 Then the angel I had seen standing on the sea and on the land
raised his right hand to heaven. 6 And he swore by him who lives
for ever and ever, who created the heavens and all that is in them,
the earth and all that is in it, and the sea and all that is in it, and
said, "There will be no more delay! 7 But in the days when the
seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God
will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the
prophets."”
We don’t know what kind of information the seven thunders gave to John, but we do know that
the seventh trumpet is the last trumpet to be sounded because with it “the mystery of God will be
accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets”. What mystery is this?
There are three mysteries listed in the New Testament that I want to focus on and these three
mysteries go hand in hand with each other. The first is found in 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 which
says, “Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed — in a flash,
in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised
imperishable, and we will be changed”.
This mystery is the event known as the rapture; an event that can now be accurately placed after
the seventh and last trumpet. This trumpet’s about to sound and Jesus is about to return. We’ll
cover this in more detail when we actually get to His Second Coming in Revelation 19.
The second mystery is found in Ephesians 3:3-6 which says, “that is, the mystery made known to
me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. In reading this, then, you will be able to
understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to men in other
generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets. This
mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together
of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus”.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Eat it
Paul explains the mystery of Jesus is the forming

Our becoming one of one new faith filled body of Jesus followers. A
with Jesus at our rebirth into the promise of Christ Jesus resulting in
one body made up of both Jews and Gentiles.
rapture and His When Jesus returns He receives both His 144,000
Jews and all His remaining saints together as one
return. body.
The third mystery is found in Ephesians 5:29-32 which says, “After all, no one ever hated his
own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church — for we are members of
his body. "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and
the two will become one flesh." This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and
the church”.
This mystery is explained as our becoming one with Jesus at our rapture and His return.
So now we see that the mystery spoken of by the angel in Revelation 10:7 is the mystery of what
will happen when the Messiah returns to the earth; an event long talked about by Old and New
Testament writers alike.
As I said earlier, before His return and our rapture commence, we must finish Revelation 10.
After this we will see the final punishment against the Antichrist and against his capital city as
Jesus returns to reign in glory.
Revelation 10
“8 Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me once
more: "Go, take the scroll that lies open in the hand of the angel
who is standing on the sea and on the land."
9 So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll.
He said to me, "Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour,
but in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey." 10 I took the little
scroll from the angel's hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey
in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. 11
Then I was told, "You must prophesy again about many peoples,
nations, languages and kings."”
John receives a commission similar to Ezekiel’s as seen here:
Ezekiel 3:1-3, 14, “And he said to me, "Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then
go and speak to the house of Israel." So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat.
Then he said to me, "Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it."
So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth”, and “The Spirit then lifted me up and
took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the
LORD upon me”.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Eat it
Both Ezekiel and John are given commissions to speak the word of the Lord to people. Ezekiel
is given a commission to speak to Israel, who, he is told, will not listen, “You are not being sent
to a people of obscure speech and difficult language, but to the house of Israel- not to many
peoples of obscure speech and difficult language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if
I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you. But the house of Israel is not willing to
listen to you because they are not willing to listen to me, for the whole house of Israel is
hardened and obstinate” (Ezekiel 3:5-7).
While John on the other hand is being sent to those exact people whom God said Ezekiel was not
being sent to, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings”
(Revelation 10:11).
Ezekiel is responsible for the Jewish portion of God’s mystery, while John is responsible for the
Gentile portion of God’s mystery, so that together they can fulfill the one new creation and body
that Jesus Christ died on the cross to make possible. Jesus will soon return to finally fulfill the
last remaining prophesies of the Bible.
A quick recap of where we are in the tribulation will give us the final boost we need to end this
chronology and bring in “everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint
the most holy” (Daniel 9:24).
We’ve covered the first 1,260 days of the tribulation in which Satan set up his Antichrist and was
hindered from harming the Jewish nation. We’ve walked through five seals, six trumpets, two
woes, and six bowls.
We’ve entered the second 1,260 days and looked at the Antichrist’s abomination that causes
desolation, read about God’s appointment of two witnesses and seen Satan’s fury against
mankind.
We’re now about to come to the final hour before Jesus returns with “thousands upon thousands
of his holy ones” (Jude 1:14).
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Revelation 14
“6 Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the
eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every
nation, tribe, language and people. 7 He said in a loud voice, "Fear
God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has
come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and
the springs of water."”
Verses 6 and 7 show us God’s final bid for souls before His Second Coming. The hour of His
return is here and a last plea for repentance is requested of mankind.
In one hour Jesus will come with His holy ones and “judge everyone, and to convict all the
ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words
ungodly sinners have spoken against him” (Jude 1:15).
It’s during this last hour that Babylon the Great is laid to waste by the wrath of God as we see in
Revelation 17.
Revelation 17
“1 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said
to me, "Come, I will show you the punishment of the great
prostitute, who sits on many waters. 2 With her the kings of the
earth committed adultery and the inhabitants of the earth were
intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries." 6 I saw that the
woman was drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of those
who bore testimony to Jesus. When I saw her, I was greatly
astonished.”
John and one of the angels of God’s wrath take a

look at the final punishment of earth’s capital city God’s final bid for
Babylon. The woman Babylon is symbolically
“drunk with the blood of the saints”. It stands to souls before His
reason that many Christians will die at the hand of Second Coming.
the Antichrist in his capital city.
Many Christians will undoubtedly make their home in the world’s capital city, just as in the
present day we see Christians in every major city around the world.
51
A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation A Capital in Ruins
Continuing Revelation 17 we read about the love-hate relationship between the Antichrist and
everything around him.
Revelation 17
“12 "The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet
received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as
kings along with the beast. 13 They have one purpose and will give
their power and authority to the beast. 14 They will make war
against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is
Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called,
chosen and faithful followers." 16 The beast and the ten horns you
saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave
her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. 17 For
God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by
agreeing to give the beast their power to rule, until God's words are
fulfilled.”
In Revelation 16:14, 16 we saw the Antichrist gathering

One super- his army to fight Jesus upon His return. We read that out
of the mouths of Satan, the Antichrist, and the False
massive army Prophet came three frog-like demons to perform a final set
sent to wage of miracles.
war against Recall that, “They are spirits of demons performing

miraculous signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole
the Returning world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God
King. Almighty. Then they gathered the kings together to the
place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.”
These kings that are deceived by the demons then receive a global kingship from the Antichrist
as we’re told in Revelation 17:12. Verses 13 and 14 explain their singular purpose is to give the
Antichrist the right to rule over one super-massive army sent to wage war against the Returning
King. These kings cross over the dried up Euphrates and gather at Armageddon in Israel.
The authority of the ten global kings is said to last for only one hour. The reason their authority
lasts but one hour is because the angel told us in Revelation 14:7 that the hour of God’s judgment
is upon them.
Soon Babylon will be destroyed, Jesus will return, the kings will be wiped out, Satan will be
bound, and the Antichrist and False Prophet will be thrown into the lake of fire; and all this at the
end of a single hour.
Within the time span of one hour the Antichrist’s home, which he hates anyway (Revelation
17:16), will fall victim to the greatest capital city destruction the world has ever seen, which
takes us to Revelation 18.
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Revelation 18
“1 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He
had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor.
2 With a mighty voice he shouted: "Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the
Great! She has become a home for demons and a haunt for every
evil spirit, a haunt for every unclean and detestable bird. 3 For all
the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The
kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants
of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries."
4 Then I heard another voice from heaven say: "Come out of her,
my people, so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will
not receive any of her plagues; 5 for her sins are piled up to
heaven, and God has remembered her crimes. 6 Give back to her as
she has given; pay her back double for what she has done. Mix her
a double portion from her own cup. 7 Give her as much torture and
grief as the glory and luxury she gave herself. In her heart she
boasts, 'I sit as queen; I am not a widow, and I will never mourn.' 8
Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her: death,
mourning and famine. She will be consumed by fire, for mighty is
the Lord God who judges her.”
Verse 4 gives a preemptive warning to God’s people so

they won’t share in His wrath poured out on the city.
This solidifies the idea that Christians will be living in “Flee from
Babylon during the time of the Antichrist’s reign. Babylon! Run
They’ll be persecuted and put to death for the sake of
Jesus. But some will survive and are then told to flee for your lives!”
from the city for its doom is imminent.
We see this same call from God issued in Jeremiah 51:6, “Flee from Babylon! Run for your
lives! Do not be destroyed because of her sins. It is time for the LORD's vengeance; he will pay
her what she deserves.”
Verse 8 then explains that a combination of plagues and fire will lead to the destruction of the
city’s infrastructure. It seems the Antichrist will play his own role in destroying his capital as
Revelation 17:16 makes clear, “The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute.
They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire”.
Speculation Alert:
The Antichrist and his newly appointed kings will have left the capital city to gather at
Armageddon as they amass an unholy army to battle the Coming King.
All of a sudden, these reckless kings will look upon their splendorous symbol and mourn as we
see in the continuation of Revelation 18.
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Revelation 18
“9 "When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with her
and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep
and mourn over her. 10 Terrified at her torment, they will stand far
off and cry: " 'Woe! Woe, O great city, O Babylon, city of power!
In one hour your doom has come!'
11 "The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her
because no one buys their cargoes any more— 12 cargoes of gold,
silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and
scarlet cloth; every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind
made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble; 13 cargoes of
cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine
and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and
carriages; and bodies and souls of men.
14 "They will say, 'The fruit you longed for is gone from you. All
your riches and splendor have vanished, never to be recovered.' 15
The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from
her will stand far off, terrified at her torment. They will weep and
mourn 16 and cry out: " 'Woe! Woe, O great city, dressed in fine
linen, purple and scarlet, and glittering with gold, precious stones
and pearls! 17 In one hour such great wealth has been brought to
ruin!'
"Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the sailors, and all
who earn their living from the sea, will stand far off. 18 When they
see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, 'Was there ever a
city like this great city?' 19 They will throw dust on their heads,
and with weeping and mourning cry out: " 'Woe! Woe, O great
city, where all who had ships on the sea became rich through her
wealth!
In one hour she has been brought to ruin!”
Although the Antichrist and his kings hated the city of their wealth (Revelation 17:16) they also
now realize it was the symbol of their greatness. Along with these deceived kings, all those who
profited from Babylon mourn in deep regret.
An entirely different air of attitude is seen in the cries of the Christians as we read:
Revelation 18
“20 Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice, saints and apostles and
prophets! God has judged her for the way she treated you.' "21
Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large
millstone and threw it into the sea, and said: "With such violence
the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found
again. 22 The music of harpists and musicians, flute players and
trumpeters, will never be heard in you again. No workman of any
trade will ever be found in you again. The sound of a millstone will
54
never be heard in you again. 23 The light of a lamp will never

shine in you again. The voice of bridegroom and bride will never
be heard in you again. Your merchants were the world's great men.
By your magic spell all the nations were led astray. 24 In her was
found the blood of prophets and of the saints, and of all who have
been killed on the earth."”
Revelation 14
“8 A second angel followed and said, "Fallen! Fallen is Babylon
the Great, which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of
her adulteries."”
This angel and the angel in Revelation 18 are in agreement on their declaration of the fall of
Babylon and the reason for its fall – adultery against God Most High.
Babylon’s destruction comes in one hour, but a lot can happen in an hour. Because I can’t
explain all these things simultaneously, I’ve broken them up into sections. But realize as we
continue that each of the upcoming events are occurring in one of three closely knit places: right
before Babylon’s destruction, during Babylon’s destruction, right after Babylon’s destruction.
Because each of these upcoming chapters and verses of Revelation are interwoven, please view
them as a concerted effort to describe the same timeframe of events.
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The first thing we’ll look at is a set of events starting right before the fall of Babylon and
continuing through to its destruction.
Speculation Alert:
Now picture this: Satan knows his time is about to end, so he has his Antichrist muster all his
kings and armies in a great rage at Armageddon. In a last ditch effort to get revenge against God
for ruining his reign, the Antichrist seeks out the two witnesses who have been prophesying this
whole time.
Remember that Revelation 11:3 told us they would be on the earth for the last 1,260 days. It’s at
this point that their days have ended, and just as God’s 1,260 day protection plan for Israel ended
with Satan’s quick move into the Jerusalem temple, so now the Antichrist will quickly move
against the two witnesses at the close of God’s second protection plan, which takes us to
Revelation 11.
Revelation 11
“7 Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that
comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill
them. 8 Their bodies will lie in the street of the great city, which is
figuratively called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was
crucified. 9 For three and a half days men from every people, tribe,
language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them
burial. 10 The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will
celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets
had tormented those who live on the earth.
11 But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God
entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those
who saw them. 12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven
saying to them, "Come up here." And they went up to heaven in a
cloud, while their enemies looked on.
13 At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of
the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the
earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the
God of heaven.
14 The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon.”
Following a timeless plan etched out by God Himself, Satan once again moves like clockwork to
snuff out God’s two witnesses at the expiry of their 1,260 day protection plan. No doubt this
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Firstfruits
renewal of authority by the Antichrist gives Satan his final thrust of power to rejuvenate his
troops for the final battle of Armageddon.
Satan once again Anyone who would’ve doubted the Antichrist’s

authority is now put in check as the two witnesses
moves like who for three and a half years refused to die are now
lying dead in the streets of Jerusalem.
clockwork.
Then, to the shock of all who saw them, verse 12 says, “they went up to heaven in a cloud, while
their enemies looked on”. This reminds me symbolically of Romans 1:16 which declares, “I am
not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who
believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile”.
Speculation Alert:
God’s two Jewish witnesses are the first to be raptured from the earth during this final hour of
tribulation. Almost like a firstfruits of God’s righteous church about to meet Him in the clouds.
Verse 13 explains, at that very hour a tenth of Jerusalem collapses and many people turn to Jesus
just before His return.
We are then reminded in verse 14 that the damage of the sixth trumpet (the one from Revelation
9 that caused such carnage and death) is now done and the third woe, i.e. last trumpet, is about to
occur.
With six trumpets done, two woes passed, five seals open, and six bowls poured we are right on
the cusp of Jesus’ glorious coming, which takes us to Revelation 16.
Revelation 16
“17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of
the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, "It is done!"
18 Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of
thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever
occurred since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the
quake. 19 The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the
nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave
her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20 Every
island fled away and the mountains could not be found. 21 From
the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred pounds each fell upon
men. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail,
because the plague was so terrible.”
Pay attention to the same earthquake listed in three separate places of Revelation. The
earthquake that splits Babylon into three parts and collapses cities all around the world
(Revelation 16:19) is the same earthquake that occurs during the sixth seal listed in Revelation 6
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and is the same earthquake seen when trumpet 7 blasts in Revelation 11 (visited later in this
chapter). This earthquake’s results are reiterated below.
Revelation 6
“12 I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great
earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair,
the whole moon turned blood red, 13 and the stars in the sky fell to
earth, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong
wind. 14 The sky receded like a scroll, rolling up, and every
mountain and island was removed from its place.
15 Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich,
the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and
among the rocks of the mountains. 16 They called to the mountains
and the rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who
sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great
day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?"”
This singular earthquake of Revelation 11:19 (Trumpet 7, woe 3), Revelation 16:18 (bowl 7),
and Revelation 6:12 (seal 6) is responsible not only for the death and destruction of many people
and places but also for causing every mountain to be laid low and every island to disappear
(Revelation 6:14, 16:20).
We initially see these results from the

earthquake: Revelation 6:14 “The sky receded God will remove
like a scroll rolling up”; Revelation 16:21 “From any hiding place of
the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred
pounds each fell upon men”; Revelation 6:16 man when He
“They called to the mountains and the rocks "Fall returns in the
on us and hide us from the face of him who sits
on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!”. clouds.
With the picture of men trying to hide from God inside mountains we’re brought to Revelation
6:14, “every mountain and island was removed from its place”; and Revelation 16:20, “Every
island fled away and the mountains could not be found”.
You see, no one’s allowed to hide from Jesus’ Second Coming no matter how hard they cry
“hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne” because as Jesus explains, “At that time the
sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They
will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory” (Matthew
24:30).
In fact, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid
bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13). In a very literal
sense, God will remove any hiding place of man when He returns in the clouds.
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Just prior to His return we see two kinds of people: people who repent, “the survivors were
terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven” (Revelation 11:13) and people who love
wickedness, “they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so
terrible” (Revelation 16:21). So we see God reaping a harvest of repentant souls even up to the
very moment of His return.
It’s this wonderful return that brings us back to Revelation 1 at the opening of the next chapter.
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Revelation 1
“7 Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will
mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen.
8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is,
and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty."”
One last quick recap will get us up to speed and on the same page as we close the book on this
current age of man. We’ve seen seven terrible years of hardship and tribulation for God’s
Christians and seven terrible years of hardship and tribulation for Satan’s followers.
We’ve seen six trumpets, six seals, seven bowls, and two woes. We’ve seen Satan copying God
step by step in his attempt to be “like the Most High”. And we’ve seen the undoing of God’s
Genesis creation.
This brings us back to our current situation: a super-massive army at Armageddon under the
leadership of one Antichrist and ten general-kings, a burning, ruined world capital city; an
earthquake that utterly wipes out the mountains, islands and world cities; two types of human
beings, one repentant and one wicked; and the initial blast of glory that appears with Jesus’
return, seen in Revelation 11.
Revelation 11
“15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud
voices in heaven, which said: "The kingdom of the world has
become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will
reign for ever and ever." 16 And the twenty-four elders, who were
seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and
worshiped God, 17 saying: "We give thanks to you, Lord God
Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken
your great power and have begun to reign. 18 The nations were
angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging
the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your
saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great—
and for destroying those who destroy the earth."
19 Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and within his
temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of
lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great
hailstorm.”
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Maranatha! (The Final Woe)
With the blast of trumpet 7, we hear this triumphant shout, “The kingdom of the world has
become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ”. It’s at this moment that Jesus is returning
on the clouds in His famed Second Coming. And with that Second Coming we see the rapture of
God’s people as we turn to Revelation 14.
Revelation 14
“14 I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on
the cloud was one "like a son of man" with a crown of gold on his
head and a sharp sickle in his hand. Then another angel came out
of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on
the cloud, "Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has
come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe." So he who was seated on
the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was
harvested.”
Placement of the rapture event here at the end of the tribulation and hand-in-hand with the
Second Coming of our Lord is certainly a hot-button issue. Because of that, we must clarify why
this is the only scripturally valid place to put it.
Speculation Alert:
First and foremost this follows Jesus’ description of end-time events in Matthew 24, Mark 13,
and Luke 21. In Matthew 24:30-31 Jesus says these words, “At that time the sign of the Son of
Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of
Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels
with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the
heavens to the other”.
This same event is echoed by the Apostle Paul

Jesus is returning in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 as he says “According
on the clouds in to the Lord's own word we tell you that we who
are still alive who are left till the coming of the
His famed Second Lord will certainly not precede those who have
Coming. And with fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come
down from heaven with a loud command with
that Second the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet
call of God and the dead in Christ will rise first.
Coming we see the After that we who are still alive and are left will
rapture of God’s be caught up together with them in the clouds to
meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with
people. the Lord forever”.
Notice that Paul begins with the phrase, “according to the Lord’s own word” indicating that he is
using Jesus’ end-time chronology as the basis for his beliefs.
Paul goes on to write about this same event again in 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 as he says, “Listen, I
tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed — in a flash, in the
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twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised
imperishable, and we will be changed”.
Paul’s placement of the rapture after the last trumpet follows our placement of the rapture after
the last trumpet, which follows Jesus’ placement of the rapture at His Second Coming preceded
by a trumpet blast. This trumpet blast is none other than the seventh trumpet of Revelation. A
blast that no one who has taken an unbiased look at Scripture can deny is anywhere else but at
the end of the tribulation.
But some may say, “What about Revelation

3:10?” In it Jesus says, “Since you have kept my “My prayer is not
command to endure patiently, I will also keep
you from the hour of trial that is going to come that you take
upon the whole world to test those who live on them out of the
the earth.”
world but that you
Give this verse to pre-tribulationists and they’ll protect them from
say, “See, the rapture is before the tribulation
period”. But no where in this section of verses the evil one”
does Jesus specify by what means He’ll keep us (John 17:15,
from “the hour of trial”. It’s pure speculation to
attribute this verse to pre-tribulation rapture. Our italics added for
Christian minds are prone to making Scripture fit emphasis).
our preconceived notions rather than attempting
to understand what He really meant.
Remember how we said Revelation is the less clear Scripture and needs to be interpreted using
more clear Scripture? Well the gospel of John comes in handy when considering this Revelation
verse; particularly John 17.
In John 17 we find Jesus in a series of prayers first for Himself, then for His disciples, and of
course by extension “for those who will believe in me through their message”.
During His time of prayer, Jesus makes a statement that He immediately knows will be
misinterpreted, “protect them from the evil one”. Because He knows this won’t be understood in
the way He means it, He qualifies His statement by saying, “My prayer is not that you take them
out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one” (John 17:15, italics added for
emphasis).
A word study on the original Greek found in Revelation 3:10 and John 17:15 reveals that Jesus
uses the same Greek word “tēreō” for our English word “keep”. According to
1
blueletterbible.org , this Greek word means, “to attend to carefully, take care of, to guard,
metaph. to keep, one in the state in which he is”.
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This is why Jesus says in John 17, “While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe
by that name you gave me” and “I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the
world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name”
A fresh look at Revelation 3:10 in light of John 17:15 allows us to see that Jesus wasn’t talking
about pre-tribulation rapture, but rather He was talking about God’s ability to protect His
Christians as they go through the tribulation period.
One last look at the rapture event takes us to Isaiah 26:19. Here we read, “But your dead will
live; their bodies will rise. You who dwell in the dust, wake up and shout for joy. Your dew is
like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead”.
The timing for this birthing event is indicated in verse 21, “See, the LORD is coming out of his
dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed
upon her; she will conceal her slain no longer”.
Verse 21 tells us that when God comes out of His dwelling (heaven) that the earth will conceal
the slain (dead) no longer. Isaiah understood the rapture event to coincide with the coming of the
Lord out of heaven and to the earth to judge the people of the world.
End of Speculation Alert
Okay, with the earth harvested by Jesus in Revelation 14, we now see the results of His great
Coming in Revelation 19.
Revelation 19
“1 After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great
multitude in heaven shouting: "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and
power belong to our God, 2 for true and just are his judgments. He
has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her
adulteries. He has avenged on her the blood of his servants." 3 And
again they shouted: "Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for
ever and ever."
4 The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down
and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they cried:
"Amen, Hallelujah!"
5 Then a voice came from the throne, saying: "Praise our God, all
you his servants, you who fear him, both small and great!"
6 Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of
rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:
"Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. 7 Let us rejoice
and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has
come, and his bride has made herself ready. 8 Fine linen, bright
and clean, was given her to wear." (Fine linen stands for the
righteous acts of the saints.)
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9 Then the angel said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are
invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!' " And he added,
"These are the true words of God."
10 At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, "Do
not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers
who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the
testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."”
Because Revelation details seven seals spanning seven years and seven trumpets spanning seven
years, we must expect to see the results of both the seals and the trumpets listed in two different
places of Revelation. The result of seven trumpets is shown in Revelation 19 (i.e., Jesus returns,
we’re raptured to Him, tribulation ends), whereas the result of the seven seals is shown in
Revelation 7.
Revelation 7
“9 After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude
that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and
language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.
They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in
their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice: "Salvation
belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb." 11
All the angels were standing around the throne and around the
elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces
before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: "Amen! Praise
and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and
strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!"
13 Then one of the elders asked me, "These in white robes—who
are they, and where did they come from?"
14 I answered, "Sir, you know."
And he said, "These are they who have come out of the great
tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in
the blood of the Lamb. 15 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 spread his tent over them. 16 Never again will they
hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon
them, nor any scorching heat. 17 For the Lamb at the center of the
throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living
water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."”
We must expect to Both Revelation 19 and Revelation 7 show the

end of seven years of tribulation. Both include
see the results… specific references to the same Second Coming
event at the very end of this age. And with the
listed in two opening of the seventh seal we see this curious
different places. event in Revelation 8.
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Revelation 8
“1 When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven
for about half an hour.”
It’s here at the Second Coming of Jesus that an event unlike anything the world has ever seen is
happening. This event is mentioned by Jesus (Matthew 24:30) and further detailed in the Old
Testament.
Zechariah 14:6-7 says, “On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. It will be a unique
day, without daytime or nighttime—a day known to the LORD. When evening comes, there will
be light”.
Speculation Alert:
As the Returning King appears in the clouds and blasts His trumpet to gather us to Him, so the
world looks on in wonder. For one half of an hour, every raptured Christian stands in stunned
silence as they behold the glory of Jesus. We wait silently as the world begins to look upon “the
one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve
bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son” (Zechariah 12:10).
Our stunned silence is spoken of this way in 2 Thessalonians 1:10, “on the day he comes to be
glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed”.
At this point it’s now too late for the inhabitants of the earth to choose Jesus (the final woe).
Another harvest is coming, a harvest of judgment against all those who have taken the mark of
the beast.
Chapter Fourteen Bibliography
1. BlueLetterBible.Org. http://www.blueletterbible.org/ Accessed April 2009.
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Revelation 14
“17 Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too
had a sharp sickle. 18 Still another angel, who had charge of the
fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had
the sharp sickle, "Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of
grapes from the earth's vine, because its grapes are ripe." 19 The
angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw
them into the great winepress of God's wrath. 20 They were
trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed out of
the press, rising as high as the horses' bridles for a distance of
1,600 stadia.”
Let’s take a quick look at a statement

made in Revelation 15:7-8 that will help The temple was re-
us determine the accuracy of our timeline
thus far. We read, “Then one of the four opened after two
living creatures gave to the seven angels important events: the
seven golden bowls filled with the wrath
of God, who lives for ever and ever. And seven bowls were
the temple was filled with smoke from the completed, and the
glory of God and from his power, and no
one could enter the temple until the seven seven trumpets were
plagues of the seven angels were blown.
completed”.
The seven bowls were completed prior to Jesus’ Second Coming and with their completion came
the ability to enter the temple in heaven again, a temple that had been off-limits until God’s
wrath was completed.
Revelation 14 tells of angels coming out of the temple as we’re told, “Then another angel came
out of the temple”, one telling Jesus to first harvest His saints and then “Another angel came out
of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle”, the second angel being told to prepare
God’s enemies for destruction.
As a side note, the re-opening of God’s temple is mentioned in Revelation 11:19 as, “Then God's
temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there
came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm”.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Ripe for the Harvest
This re-opening event is listed after the blast of the seventh trumpet and during the time of an
earthquake and great hailstorm. The accuracy of our “sickle reaping” timeline holds true as we
now know that the temple was re-opened after two important events: the seven bowls were
completed, and the seven trumpets were blown.
As the temple is reopened, Jesus is descending to

Jesus swung His earth, His saints are gathering to Him, the angels
sickle and are preparing mankind for God’s judgment, our
last great earthquake is occurring, and a great
gathered His hailstorm of “hailstones of about a hundred
pounds each” (Revelation 16:21) is pounding
saints to Him. mankind.
Therefore, the “sickle reaping” of Revelation 14 occurs at the end of the tribulation period at a
time when Jesus is making His return i.e. He is seen as, “seated on the cloud was one "like a son
of man" with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand” indicating His Second
Coming and our being gathered to Him “in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1
Thessalonians 4:17).
Just as Jesus swung His sickle and gathered His saints to Him, so now do His holy angels gather
His enemies to Him for destruction. The enemies of God are symbolically trampled in the great
winepress of God’s wrath. This symbolism leads us to the real-life event about to transpire in
Revelation 19.
Revelation 19
“11 I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white
horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he
judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his
head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one
knows but he himself. 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood,
and his name is the Word of God. 14 The armies of heaven were
following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen,
white and clean. 15 Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with
which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron
scepter." He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God
Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name
written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud
voice to all the birds flying in midair, "Come, gather together for
the great supper of God, 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings,
generals, and mighty men, of horses and their riders, and the flesh
of all people, free and slave, small and great."
19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies
gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and
his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with him the false
prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf.
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With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark
of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were
thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 21 The rest of
them were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the
rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their
flesh.”
Now the world sees that the Dragon the Antichrist and the
False Prophet they’ve been worshipping pale in The Word
comparison to the true God Jesus. As we saw Satan Himself…will
mimicking God with the Antichrist riding a white horse
while he conquered the world in Revelation 6:2 so now now destroy
we see the true God coming on His white horse ready to all those who
conquer the world in Revelation 19:11. He’s the one
who’s worthy to “tread the winepress of the fury of the have willingly
wrath of God Almighty” a winepress that was prepared rejected the
for Him in Revelation 14:19.
Most High.
At this point, we Christians are riding with our King, as
Revelation 19:14 explains, and we watch as all those who followed Satan are “killed with the
sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the horse”.
Jesus is sure to destroy mankind with the power of His spoken word as echoed in 2
Thessalonians 2:8, “And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will
overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming”. The Word
Himself, the same Word that created the universe, will now destroy all those who have willingly
rejected the Most High.
Not only will Satan’s army be destroyed, but his puppets (The Antichrist and False Prophet) will
be “thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur”. Can you imagine what this punishment
would seem like to all those who were deceived by the Antichrist?
Isaiah 14:9-17 gives us the following picture, “The grave below is all astir to meet you at your
coming; it rouses the spirits of the departed to greet you — all those who were leaders in the
world; it makes them rise from their thrones — all those who were kings over the nations. They
will all respond, they will say to you, "You also have become weak, as we are; you have become
like us." All your pomp has been brought down to the grave, along with the noise of your harps;
maggots are spread out beneath you and worms cover you. How you have fallen from heaven,
[Heylel], son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the
nations! You said in your heart, "I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of
God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred
mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High."
But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit. Those who see you stare at you,
they ponder your fate: "Is this the man who shook the earth and made kingdoms tremble, the
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man who made the world a desert, who overthrew its cities and would not let his captives go
home?"”
This is a vivid picture of the ultimate destruction awaiting the Antichrist and his False Prophet.
Satan’s power over mankind has been crushed and the kings of the earth are in shock as they
now realize he is as weak as they are. The Antichrist is no god; in fact, he’s nothing special at
all. He’s been “brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit” and this is shocking to his
deluded followers. Each of them will stare at him and ponder his fate. What awe they’ll have as
they now see the truth of Jesus as “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS”.
Recall that Isaiah 26:21 describes the coming of the Lord as follows, “See, the LORD is coming
out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the
blood shed upon her; she will conceal her slain no longer”.
The next verse in Isaiah is chapter 27 verse 1 which states, “In that day, the LORD will punish
with his sword, his fierce, great and powerful sword, Leviathan the gliding serpent, Leviathan the
coiling serpent; he will slay the monster of the sea”.
Speculation Alert:
Match these verses with Revelation 13:1, and we begin to understand what the prophet was
seeing, “And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea.
He had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on his horns, and on each head a
blasphemous name”.
The Lord explains of Leviathan in Job 41:33-34 that “Nothing on earth is his equal— a creature
without fear. He looks down on all that are haughty; he is king over all that are proud."
This Leviathan is made out to be a symbolic representation of the unholy trinity (Satan, the
Antichrist, and the False Prophet) and his dominion on earth.
The multiple heads of Leviathan are also written about in Psalm 74:14 as Asaph says, “But you,
O God, are my king from of old; you bring salvation upon the earth. It was you who split open
the sea by your power; you broke the heads of the monster in the waters. It was you who crushed
the heads of Leviathan and gave him as food to the creatures of the desert”.
The Old Testament prophets are in

The Antichrist is no agreement that God would crush that
serpent also called Leviathan aka the
god; in fact, he’s dominion of Satan; that He would slay him
nothing special at all. and give him over as food to the creatures
of the desert.
Interestingly enough we see that all who followed Satan to Armageddon are killed and “all the
birds gorged themselves on their flesh”. God is sure to bring to pass those things that He
revealed to His servants of old.
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This feasting of flesh by the birds of the air is a strikingly vivid picture of the battlefield carnage
that will ensue as the rebellious kings of the earth, accompanied by their armies, are decimated
by God Most High.
Remember earlier in the book we learned that “When [God’s] judgments come upon the earth,
the people of the world learn righteousness” (Isaiah 26:9).
Although this is true, it seems not everyone was willing to be instructed by the Lord and so,
“Though grace is shown to the wicked, they do not learn righteousness; even in a land of
uprightness they go on doing evil and regard not the majesty of the LORD” (Isaiah 26:10).
Because the majority of earth’s inhabitants have chosen the way of wickedness instead of God’s
path of salvation, “They will be left together for mountain birds of prey, And for the beasts of the
earth; And the birds of prey will spend the summer feeding on them, And all the beasts of the
earth will spend harvest time on them” (Isaiah 18:6) and “On the mountains of Israel you will
fall, you and all your troops and the nations with you. I will give you as food to all kinds of
carrion birds and to the wild animals” (Ezekiel 39:4).
The remaining inhabitants of earth are left to wonder what their fate will be as Jesus “will stand
on the Mount of Olives” (Zechariah 14:4) just as the angels said He would in Acts 1:11-12,
“"Men of Galilee, why are you standing here looking into the sky? Jesus, whom you saw taken
up from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you saw him go." Then they went
back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives”. A look at their fate follows next.
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The fate of the rest of mankind is not like that of the armies that followed Satan to his doom;
instead, they’ll now have a King who “will rule them with an iron scepter”.
For certain peoples of the earth it’ll mean humbling

themselves greatly, “At that time a gift of homage will be For the Jews
brought to the LORD of hosts from a people tall and
smooth, even from a people feared far and wide, a
it will be a
powerful and oppressive nation, whose land the rivers bitter-sweet
divide to the place of the name of the LORD of hosts, even
Mount Zion” (Isaiah 18:7).
day.
The other nations will follow suit, according to Zechariah 14:16, “Then it will come about that
any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to
worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths”.
And we’re told their hearts will be changed as they say, “"Come, let us go up to the mountain of
the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in
his paths."” (Isaiah 2:3).
For the Jews it will be a bitter-sweet day. Bitter because they hadn’t known Jesus as Messiah;
sweet because they’ll finally have the King they always thought the Messiah should be.
Scripture gives us a glance at the Jewish response in Zechariah 12:10-14 when they see Jesus
coming in the clouds, “"And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced,
and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one
grieves for a firstborn son. On that day the weeping in Jerusalem will be great, like the weeping
of Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land will mourn, each clan by itself, with their
wives by themselves: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of
Nathan and their wives, the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and
their wives, and all the rest of the clans and their wives”.
But all is not lost for Israel. God predestined to pour out His Spirit of grace and supplication.
The Jews are still alive and the coming King, the one they’ve always wanted but never accepted,
is now ready to fulfill Isaiah 9:6-7, “the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be
called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of
his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his
kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and
forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this”.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation The Promise to Abraham
But how can the Jews, who rejected Jesus as Messiah, be allowed to enter into His kingdom?
Scripture isn’t silent about this.
Romans 11:25-27, “I do not want you to

“By warfare and exile be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so
you contend with that you may not be conceited: Israel has
experienced a hardening in part until the
her… By this, then, full number of the Gentiles has come in.
will Jacob's guilt be And so all Israel will be saved, as it is
written: "The deliverer will come from
atoned for” (Isaiah Zion; he will turn godlessness away from
Jacob. And this is my covenant with them
27:8-9) when I take away their sins."”.
But some may ask: How can God remove their sins if they haven’t accepted Jesus?
Isaiah 27:8-13 explains, “By warfare and exile you contend with her— with his fierce blast he
drives her out, as on a day the east wind blows. By this, then, will Jacob's guilt be atoned for, and
this will be the full fruitage of the removal of his sin: When he makes all the altar stones to be
like chalk stones crushed to pieces, no Asherah poles or incense altars will be left standing. The
fortified city stands desolate, an abandoned settlement, forsaken like the desert; there the calves
graze, there they lie down; they strip its branches bare. When its twigs are dry, they are broken
off and women come and make fires with them. For this is a people without understanding; so
their Maker has no compassion on them, and their Creator shows them no favor. In that day the
LORD will thresh from the flowing Euphrates to the Wadi of Egypt, and you, O Israelites, will
be gathered up one by one. And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were
perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the LORD on
the holy mountain in Jerusalem”.
We’re told that God willl use the desolation against Israel as payment for their sins. You see,
“As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies on your account; but as far as election is
concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God's gifts and his call are
irrevocable” (Romans 11:28-29).
God determined to set aside for them a different way to make atonement for their sins as a
nation. Note, however, that this difference is not without consequences for the Israelites who
never choose Jesus by faith.
Ezekiel 43:6-9 first explains that God will live among His people forever, “While the man was
standing beside me, I heard someone speaking to me from inside the temple. He said: "Son of
man, this is the place of my throne and the place for the soles of my feet. This is where I will live
among the Israelites forever. The house of Israel will never again defile my holy name—neither
they nor their kings—by their prostitution and the lifeless idols of their kings at their high places.
When they placed their threshold next to my threshold and their doorposts beside my doorposts,
with only a wall between me and them, they defiled my holy name by their detestable practices.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation The Promise to Abraham
So I destroyed them in my anger. Now let them put away from me their prostitution and the
lifeless idols of their kings, and I will live among them forever”.
But then Ezekiel 43:18 explains the stipulations that come with God dwelling among the
Israelites, “These will be the regulations for sacrificing burnt offerings and sprinkling blood upon
the altar when it is built”.
Because many Israelites have rejected the shed blood of Jesus to make atonement for their sins
they’re left sacrificing burnt offerings during the millennial kingdom of Christ just as they have
always expected to be doing.
Yes, they join in on the thousand year reign of Jesus on earth, but they miss out on the one-time
gift of His sacrifice and are required to institute the Laws of Moses once again.
We’ll see however that this re-institution doesn’t last forever, as the close of Christ’s 1,000 year
earthly reign changes everything mankind has ever known.
But before we can see what comes after this, a quick reminder about the coming millennial
kingdom of Christ must be mentioned.
This kingdom is the same one we covered in Daniel 2:44, “In the time of those kings, the God of
heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It
will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever”.
And now as Jesus is about to establish His earthly kingdom, He realizes some business needs to
be dealt with.
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Revelation 20
“1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key
to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the
dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound
him for a thousand years. 3 He threw him into the Abyss, and
locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the
nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that,
he must be set free for a short time.”
Jesus’ return sees the end of the Antichrist and

False Prophet as both are thrown into the Lake of
Fire. Their final judgment has been levied
What about his
against them but Satan seems to escape for a little fallen angels?
while.
Instead of joining his compatriots, we see an angel binding him for “a thousand years”. We’re
told this is “to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore”.
Speculation Alert:
What about his fallen angels? Revelation doesn’t seem to address what happens to them at this
point. This leads to speculation about them.
Let’s consider two options for these rebellious, fallen, demon angels.
Option 1:
The fallen angels are allowed to remain on the earth but without their king (Satan). These fallen
angels become like the wicked armies of Old that devour each other instead of focusing their
efforts against God.
We read about such an army in Judges 7:22 “the LORD caused the men throughout the camp to
turn on each other with their swords”. Because these angels are missing their general they are
mostly ineffective during the time of Jesus’ millennial reign as the majority of their time is spent
fighting amongst themselves just like the pagan army did in Judges.
Most everyone follows Jesus at this time because the main kingdom in authority is God’s
kingdom. The “ruler of the kingdom of the air” (Ephesians 2:2) has been bound up, so his
kingdom isn’t able to maintain its grip on the inhabitants of the world. But since the fallen
angels still exist on earth, they are able to do some prep work for the return of their king in
Revelation 20:7.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation Into the Abyss
Option 2:
The fallen angels are bound along with Satan until the time of Satan’s return. During the reign
of Jesus there would therefore be no evil influence on the earth save that of man’s own hearts.
Isaiah 24:21-22 says, “In that day the LORD will punish the powers in the heavens above and the
kings on the earth below. They will be herded together like prisoners bound in a dungeon; they
will be shut up in prison and be punished [or released] after many days”.
If this is talking about the principalities of Satan then it seems his fallen angels are also bound
along with him and forced to wait for their judgment until after the thousand years has ended.
One thing we know for sure, Satan is bound by the power of Jesus and our King now declares
Himself Ruler and Judge over all the earth.
This same Ruler and Judge told us ahead of

Many Christians will time in Revelation 2 and 3 that if we would
suffer loss during only make it through to the end, if we would
only stick with Him no matter what, then we
this time, while would receive “the crown of life” and
others who have “authority over the nations” with Him.
overcome will Every Christian who has lived and died for
receive authority as Christ throughout all ages is now called
before Him to receive their rewards as we see
kings. in Revelation 20.
Revelation 20
“4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given
authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been
beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the
word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and
had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They
came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 5 (The rest
of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were
ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those
who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no
power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and
will reign with him for a thousand years.”
Finally! We finally receive peace from all the hardships we’ve had to endure as Christians from
the days of the first Apostles to the last-day saints. Jesus finally sits on His throne and judges us
– but wait, is that a good thing or a bad thing? Many Christians will suffer loss during this time,
while others who have overcome will receive authority as kings.
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2 Corinthians 5:10 tells us, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each
one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad”.
Your bad deeds as well as your good ones

will be counted against you when you “Let us rejoice and be
stand before Jesus on that Day. But don’t
be overcome with fear, these bad deeds glad and give him
aren’t to condemn you, for we’re told,
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation
glory! For the
for those who are in Christ Jesus” wedding of the Lamb
(Romans 8:1). has come, and his
Our judgment in front of Jesus isn’t like bride has made
the judgment of those who’ve died and
haven’t accepted Jesus; instead He judges
herself ready.”
us with truth to remove any deceptions (Revelation 19-7)
that might exist in our perceptions.
If I’ve written anything in this book that doesn’t stand true against the test of Scripture, then God
will judge me for that on His Day in order to correct my wrong perceptions. I’ll have to bear the
price of that judgment as I stand before my God. This is why I take what is written here very
seriously and have strived to study the Word with an unbiased view.
For the Christians who haven’t lived much more than what God calls a “lukewarm” life
(Revelation 3:16), they should expect a 1 Corinthians 3:13-15 type of judgment, “his work will
be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and
the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his
reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping
through the flames”.
It’s been said that post-tribulation rapture doesn’t leave time for judging the saints. This claim
comes from a misunderstanding of when our judgment occurs.
Revelation 19:7-8 says, “Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the
Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her
to wear." (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints)”. Some Christians apply this
verse to mean that our judgment has already occurred because the fine linen stands for our
righteous acts, indicating that we were already judged and given rewards for righteousness.
But let’s look at when Jesus says our judgment will happen.
Gospel Check:
Jesus says in Matthew 25:31-34, “"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels
with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him,
and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the
goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. "Then the King will say to
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those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom
prepared for you since the creation of the world"”.
These verses indicate that Jesus’ judgments are not made in heaven and also after His Second
Coming as indicated by, “When the Son of Man comes in his glory” and “All the nations will be
gathered before him”.
This has a two-fold impact: A pre-tribulation rapture with judgment in heaven is excluded by
Jesus, and a need for a quick post-tribulation judgment on His coming saints is also excluded by
Jesus.
The truth is that Jesus will take His time and judge each of us thoroughly as He prepares His
court in Jerusalem on the earth.
End Gospel Check
After our judgment as Christians is completed, Jesus will continue to judge the nations during
His initial reign, “He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not
take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore” (Isaiah 2:4).
Jesus brings His just judgments upon the earth and for the first time since the Garden of Eden the
world sees what true peace and happiness looks like. Praise God that He’s told us a little about
this time period in Scripture, so we can look forward to it with eagerness.
Isaiah 65:18-25 gives us this descriptive picture of God’s new earthly kingdom, “But be glad and
rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a
joy. I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of
crying will be heard in it no more. "Never again will there be in it an infant who lives but a few
days, or an old man who does not live out his years; he who dies at a hundred will be thought a
mere youth; he who fails to reach a hundred will be considered accursed. They will build houses
and dwell in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit. No longer will they build houses
and others live in them, or plant and others eat. For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of
my people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the works of their hands. They will not toil in vain or
bear children doomed to misfortune; for they will be a people blessed by the LORD, they and
their descendants with them. Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will
hear. The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but dust
will be the serpent's food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain," says the
LORD”.
What a glorious future this will be. Well worth the wait and tribulation to get us there. But wait,
there’s more – Satan hasn’t been judged, neither have his angels, nor have the peoples of the
earth who rejected Jesus and died in their rebellion.
The topic of Satan’s doom, and that of his angels, and the rebellious peoples of the earth will be
addressed in the next chapter.
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Revelation 20
“7 When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from
his prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nations in the four
corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—to gather them for battle.
In number they are like the sand on the seashore. 9 They marched
across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God's
people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and
devoured them. 10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown
into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false
prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for
ever and ever.”
Speculation Alert:
What a copycat Satan is! Continuing his seemingly never-ending attempt to be “like the Most
High” Satan mimics Jesus’ Second Coming with a second coming of his own! But whereas
Jesus’ Second Coming reigned in truth and peace, so now Satan’s second coming works to
reinstitute deception and warfare.
In Revelation 20:3 we were told, “After that, he must be set free for a short time”. Whatever a
“short time” is in God’s eyes is anyone’s guess, but one thing we do know is this: he’s given
enough time to “deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth” so much so that “In number
they are like the sand on the seashore”.
Referring back to the speculative suggestions

What a copycat about Satan’s angels, maybe his wide-
Satan is! Satan sweeping deception is made possible because
his demons had 1,000 years to prep the earth
mimics Jesus’ for Satan’s return.
Second Coming On the other hand, such scheming would still
with a second be possible along with Satan while the whole
troop was bound up for 1,000 years.
coming of his own! End Speculation Alert
Regardless of how the peoples got deceived, we know they once again reject Jesus as their Lord.
Something that one would think is utterly impossible after 1,000 years of bliss given by God
Himself.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation A Great White Throne
This truly is a testimony to just how wicked mankind can really be. Rejecting Jesus after a
millennium of basking in His presence is not something God will put up with.
Jesus’ patience has run out with Satan and his angels and they are consumed by fire that comes
down from heaven, an event mentioned in Isaiah 66:16, “For with fire and with his sword the
LORD will execute judgment upon all men, and many will be those slain by the LORD.” And at
last, “the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast
and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever”.
By now we know his fallen angels have also received their punishment with Satan as Jesus tells
us, “'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his
angels” (Matthew 25:41).
Certainly the final resting place for those rebellious angels, which is really no rest at all, is
joining their master in the Lake of Fire.
Now it’s time for the judgment of all who rejected Jesus and died in their sins which we see as
we continue Revelation 20.
Revelation 20
“11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it.
Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for
them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the
throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which
is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they
had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead
that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in
them, and each person was judged according to what he had done.
14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The
lake of fire is the second death. 15 If anyone's name was not found
written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
Recall that Isaiah 24:21-22 says, “In that day the LORD will punish the powers in the heavens
above and the kings on the earth below. They will be herded together like prisoners bound in a
dungeon; they will be shut up in prison and be punished [or released] after many days”.
This set of verses talks about more than

just the fallen angels. It includes all the
rebellious kings of the earth who allied
Now it’s time for the
themselves with the Antichrist during his judgment of all who
reign. These kings along with the people
who followed them are now called to
rejected Jesus and
account before a “great white throne” and died in their sins
before “him who was seated on it”.
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Jesus gives us a glimpse of how this event will come together as we review the Parable of the
Net in Matthew 13:47-50, “"Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down
into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the
shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is
how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the
righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of
teeth”.
God’s holy angels gather up all the wicked humans from all of history and prepare them for the
Judgment. We’re told, “The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up
the dead that were in them” and “I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and
books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged
according to what they had done as recorded in the books”.
Because these people rejected Jesus and

died in their sins they now have to try to
“I saw that from what measure up to the holiness of God through
appeared to be his the standards of their good works. In the
glorious presence of our God and Savior all
waist up he looked their righteous acts will truly seem like
like glowing metal, as “filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6).
if full of fire, and that These people lived their lives thinking they
from there down he had eternal security because they were in
their own minds “good people”. But when
looked like fire; and standing in the presence of absolute Purity
the truth of their conditions comes to light.
brilliant light
surrounded him.” The presence of our king as He judges
these people is so daunting that “Earth and
(Ezekiel 1:27) sky fled…and there was no place for
them”.
Speculation Alert:
Glimpses of our God in His glory can help to give us a visual understanding of what they might
see on this Day.
Revelation 4:3 describes Him this way, “And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper
and carnelian. A rainbow, resembling an emerald, encircled the throne” and verse 5 tells us that,
“From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder”.
Revelation 1:13-15 enhances our description of Him by saying, “among the lampstands was
someone "like a son of man," dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash
around his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were
like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound
of rushing waters”.
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Ezekiel 1:26-28 is in agreement with John’s visuals of Jesus as we read, “Above the expanse
over their heads was what looked like a throne of sapphire, and high above on the throne was a
figure like that of a man. I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing
metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light
surrounded him. Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the
radiance around him”.
And so what response is to be expected from these people when they finally come face to face
with the all-powerful King of the universe? I think John’s response in Revelation 1:17 is
probably a good foreshadow, “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead”.
We’re told that, “If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into
the lake of fire”. God makes it clear to us that “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of
my book” (Exodus 32:33). For these people who are judged on this Day before “a great white
throne”, “no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire
that will consume the enemies of God” (Hebrews 10:26-27).
Their rejection of Jesus has led to their ultimate demise as they now join Satan, the Antichrist,
the False Prophet, and the fallen angels in eternal torment and utter separation from God.
Lastly, before Jesus decides to make “everything new” (Revelation 21:5), He determines to
destroy death and Hades as He told us He would do in 1 Corinthians 15:26 as we’re told, “The
last enemy to be destroyed is death” so that we can boast, “Death has been swallowed up in
victory." "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"” (1 Corinthians
15:54-55).
Now we’re finally coming to the recreation of God’s universe and the last few sections of
Revelation.
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Revelation 21
“1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven
and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any
sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of
heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her
husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now
the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They
will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their
God. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no
more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of
things has passed away."
5 He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything
new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are
trustworthy and true."
Although these things seem so

spectacularly novel to the New Testament “Shout and be glad, O
reader the promises of a new heaven and a
new earth a Holy City married to its God Daughter of Zion. For
and God making His final dwelling among I am coming, and I
men are not things unique to John’s
Revelation. In fact everyone familiar with will live among you”
the Scriptures of John’s day would have (Zechariah 2:10)
been well versed in these ideas.
In considering a new creation, Isaiah 65:17 tells us, “Behold, I will create new heavens and a
new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind”.
The idea of a new Jerusalem that will be married to its God can be found in Isaiah 62:3-5, “You
will be a crown of splendor in the LORD's hand, a royal diadem in the hand of your God. No
longer will they call you Deserted, or name your land Desolate. But you will be called
Hephzibah [my delight is in her], and your land Beulah [married]; for the LORD will take delight
in you, and your land will be married. As a young man marries a maiden, so will your Builder
marry you; as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you”.
And lastly, God’s decision to dwell with the inhabitants of the earth is written about in Zechariah
2:10, “"Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,"
declares the LORD”.
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A Chronological Look at the Book of Revelation To Him Who Overcomes
Recognizing these Scriptures as repeats from earlier books doesn’t take away from John’s
Revelation but rather adds to the validity of it. We can trust that everything John saw and heard
is backed up by the Bible of his day.
Continuing Revelation 21 we read:
Revelation 21
In fact, only “6 He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the
one thing is Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is
thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring
needed to of the water of life. 7 He who overcomes will inherit all
ensure such a this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. 8 But
the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers,
gruesome fate: the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the
idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery
unbelief. lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."”
As we look into the end of this age the loud voice speaking from the throne reminds John that
every human has a singular eternal choice to make: Jesus or the world.
For anyone who chooses Jesus, He calls this person an overcomer and is proud to proclaim that
He is “his God” and ready to say of that person “he will be my son”. What a marvelous
proclamation for God to make over us!
Romans 8:17 explains, “Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs
with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory”.
Do you see the connection? Paul writes that our ability to share in His glory is hinged on one
supposition – that we also “share in his sufferings”. Jesus tells us in Revelation 21:7 that “He
who overcomes will inherit all this”.
Once again, we shouldn’t think that going through trials and suffering, through a terrible
tribulation, and martyrdom is something to be avoided. I can’t stress enough that there won’t be
any pre-tribulation rapture for His people. It’s just not in Scripture and completely at odds with
every part of overcoming to gain the right to share in His glory.
For those who reject Jesus and choose to live for the things of this world, He reminds them of
their eternal dwelling, “their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur”. It’s not hard to
end up there as we’re told that even liars will find their place within the Lake of Fire.
In fact, only one thing is needed to ensure such a gruesome fate: unbelief. Verse 8 tells us
plainly that “the unbelieving” will be lumped in with all “the vile, the murderers, the sexually
immoral, those who practice magic arts” and “the idolaters”. A simple lack of belief in Jesus
results in an eternity of torment and suffering.
83
If this frightens you then consider the future glory God has written about for those who
overcome and join the ranks of those who believe that Jesus Christ is both Lord and Savior of all
the earth.
God has given us such a detailed glimpse at His future glory that we should be able to feed off
these verses to keep the fire inside us stoked as we burn our way through this life. For more
insight into our glorious future consider the following:
Revelation 21
“9 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the
seven last plagues came and said to me, "Come, I will show you
the bride, the wife of the Lamb." 10 And he carried me away in the
Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City,
Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. 11 It shone with
the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious
jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a great, high wall
with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates
were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. 13 There
were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south
and three on the west. 14 The wall of the city had twelve
foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of
the Lamb.
15 The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to
measure the city, its gates and its walls. 16 The city was laid out
like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the
rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high
as it is long. 17 He measured its wall and it was 144 cubits thick,
by man's measurement, which the angel was using. 18 The wall
was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. 19
The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind
of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second
sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth
sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth
beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth,
and the twelfth amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls,
each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of
pure gold, like transparent glass. 22 I did not see a temple in the
city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for
the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. 24 The
nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring
their splendor into it. 25 On no day will its gates ever be shut, for
there will be no night there. 26 The glory and honor of the nations
will be brought into it. 27 Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor
will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those
whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.”
84
This city will truly be a wondrous sight to behold as its sheer size will devour everything around
it. The measurements of this cubed city are 12,000 stadia in length, width, and height.
Speculation Alert:
In order to put those distances into something we can grasp with our imaginations we turn to
Dictionary.com1 for an explanation about the term “stadia”. According to the dictionary, one
stadium (the plural being stadia) is “an ancient Greek and Roman unit of length, the Athenian
unit being equal to about 607 feet”. There are 5,280 feet in a mile. Some simple math tells us
that 12,000 stadia are equal to about 1,380 miles.
To give some perspective on this, according to Worldatlas.com2 the width of the Continental
United States of America is 1,582 miles. With our New Jerusalem measuring 1,380 miles cubed,
one can begin to speculate on the domineering presence this single city will have on the world
around it.
It will certainly become “a crown of splendor in the LORD's hand” (Isaiah 62:3) and the peoples
will say “Great is the LORD, and most worthy of praise, in the city of our God, his holy
mountain. It is beautiful in its loftiness, the joy of the whole earth. Like the utmost heights of
Zaphon is Mount Zion, the city of the Great King” (Psalm 48:1-2).
With only two more chapter sections left in our chronological look, we discover why the animal
sacrifices from Israel during the 1,000 years can now cease, we catch up once again with that
sealed Jewish remnant, and we take one last look at the spectacular future awaiting everyone
who let’s Jesus be their Lord.
Chapter Nineteen Bibliography
1. Dictionary.com. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/stadia. Accessed February 2009.
2. Worldaltlas.com.
http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/namerica/usstates/uslandst.htm. Accessed
February 2009.
85
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Speculation Alert:
In the previous chapter of this book we read in Revelation 21:22 that “I did not see a temple in
the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.”
Recall from the 1,000 year millennial rule of Jesus

that Jewish sacrifices were re-instituted at the temple And what of
according to the book of Ezekiel, and we learned that
because the Jews were still alive at Jesus’ return, but God’s chosen
had rejected Him as Messiah, they were forced to Jewish remnant?
continue with the Old Testament sacrifices for sins.
But then Satan returned on the scene giving these people a second chance at the choice they
hadn’t made before. For all those who didn’t choose Jesus the first time but were still alive at
Satan’s second coming, they now had the opportunity to either cut-and-run or stick with Jesus.
Everyone who ultimately stands with Jesus and overcomes Satan is given the right to God’s
forgiveness through the cross, Jew and Gentile alike. There is no longer any difference between
the two after the 1,000 year period is ended.
With the judgment seat of Christ and great white throne judgment complete and everyone in their
eternal positions, animal sacrifices are no longer needed and hence they cease to be given. Also
no longer needed is the temple for God to dwell in because God determines to live inside and
alongside each and every one of us.
And what of God’s chosen Jewish remnant? For that answer we turn to Revelation 14.
Revelation 14
“1 Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on
Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his
Father's name written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a sound
from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of
thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their
harps. 3 And they sang a new song before the throne and before the
four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song
except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4
These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for
they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he
goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as
86
firstfruits to God and the Lamb. 5 No lie was found in their

mouths; they are blameless.”
His 144,000 are given special distinction as only they are able to sing a new song before the
Lamb of God (Jesus). We’re told that these Jews had not followed the ways of the world, had
not become defiled with sexual immorality; instead “they kept themselves pure”. Because of
their piety toward God they have been rewarded.
These 144,000 are given the right to “follow the Lamb wherever He goes” and can boast over the
testimony that “no lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless”.
Should Christians be jealous that they are not part of Jesus’ Jewish entourage? Certainly not!
God’s plan has always been to redeem His Jews as “firstfruits to God and the Lamb”, and we
should be happy for them.
In fact, we’re told in Romans 11:12 that when they are restored to Jesus this will mean glorious
benefits for all Christians, “But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss
means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their fullness bring!”. Because of
this we should be exceedingly joyful over His Jewish remnant.
And remember Christians you may not be

You actually get to part of the 144,000 that follows Him
wherever He goes but you have a much
become a part of Him, greater gift from God “On that day you
and He a part of you. will realize that I am in my Father and you
are in me and I am in you” (John 14:20).
Do you understand this? The Almighty Maker of heaven and earth has determined to live inside
of you and allow you to live inside of Him. This is a much greater gift than just following Him.
You actually get to become a part of Him, and He a part of you.
Now only one thing remains in our Revelation chronology and that last section is found in
Revelation 22.
Revelation 22
“1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear
as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down
the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river
stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit
every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the
nations. 3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God
and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.
4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5
There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp
or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And
they will reign for ever and ever.”
87
At first glance verses 1 and 2 may, like many sections of Revelation, seem completely new for
the Bible, but once again we can find elements of this passage paralleled in the Old Testament.
Ezekiel 47:1-7 says, “The man brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water
coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east).
The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. He then
brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing
east, and the water was flowing from the south side. As the man went eastward with a measuring
line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was
ankle-deep. He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-
deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. He
measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water
had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. He asked me, "Son
of man, do you see this?" Then he led me back to the bank of the river. When I arrived there, I
saw a great number of trees on each side of the river” and verse 12 explains, “Fruit trees of all
kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail.
Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will
serve for food and their leaves for healing"”.
John and Ezekiel were seeing the same scene after the end of our age and at the opening of
eternity. Let’s take a moment to briefly review the similarities between these accounts and see if
we can clear up any discrepancies.
Both see a river of water bringing life, both see trees bearing fruit, both see the fruit coming
every month, and both see the leaves being used to heal the nations. The only real discrepancy
between the two accounts is this: Ezekiel sees a temple, and John sees a throne.
Speculation Alert:
Remember, both of these accounts are visions, and visions contain things that are literal as well
as figurative. To gain insight into this seeming discrepancy look back at something John noticed
in Revelation 21:22, “I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the
Lamb are its temple”.
Ezekiel’s seeing a temple with water flowing from it and John’s seeing a throne with water
flowing from it doesn’t actually contradict each other at all. The simple answer is that God
seated on His throne becomes the new temple.
With all these things wrapped up, our chronological look at the Book of Revelation comes to a
close. Take with you the hope written about in Revelation 22 verses 3 and 5, “No longer will
there be any curse… And they will reign for ever and ever”. Amen.
88

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Every sensible person has thought about

Number 3: “Whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to

Revelation isn’t a stand alone book. Its content isn’t

We’re now ready to open up our look at Revelation.

Verse 1 opens with an important statement: The

12 "Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will

God’s requirements of faithfulness are

This scene screams symbolism: A woman

Besides the many hundreds of references in

We will cover further imitations by Satan in upcoming chapters of Revelation.

For the third kingdom listed in

At that time Jesus will fulfill the end of

Chapter Two Bibliography

1. UN RV History. http://www.unrv.com/government/senatorial-provinces.php. Accessed

And also in Zechariah 8:12-13, “"The seed will

Once we become children of God, the seal

Lastly, there is no mention in either story

An interesting angelic As soon as Michael takes his stand against

Don't you remember that when I was with you I used to

After a failed attempt to wipeout Israel

He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name

Verses 1 and 2 give us a symbolic representation of

Revelation 13:3 shows us yet another

When Jesus returns to set up His

The majority of the world has rejected

We just don’t know Enter Babylon the Great represented by a

Chapter Six Bibliography

1. Google.com. http://www.google.com/. Accessed December 2008.

In triune completeness God’s number is 777;

He is always pouring out His blessings on the earth

However, verse 8 does not say that one fourth of the

In our Revelation timeline Satan is now about to

Most all hold to the theory that Elijah will

A two hundred million man army is mustered by

Jesus mentions in Matthew 24:22 that “If

God’s final wrath has started against the

Paul explains the mystery of Jesus is the forming

John receives a commission similar to Ezekiel’s as seen here:

John and one of the angels of God’s wrath take a

In Revelation 16:14, 16 we saw the Antichrist gathering

war against Recall that, “They are spirits of demons performing

Verse 4 gives a preemptive warning to God’s people so

never be heard in you again. 23 The light of a lamp will never

Satan once again Anyone who would’ve doubted the Antichrist’s

We initially see these results from the

This same event is echoed by the Apostle Paul

But some may say, “What about Revelation

We must expect to Both Revelation 19 and Revelation 7 show the

Chapter Fourteen Bibliography

1. BlueLetterBible.Org. http://www.blueletterbible.org/ Accessed April 2009.

Let’s take a quick look at a statement

As the temple is reopened, Jesus is descending to

The Old Testament prophets are in

For certain peoples of the earth it’ll mean humbling

Romans 11:25-27, “I do not want you to

Jesus’ return sees the end of the Antichrist and

This same Ruler and Judge told us ahead of

Your bad deeds as well as your good ones

Referring back to the speculative suggestions

This set of verses talks about more than

Because these people rejected Jesus and

Although these things seem so