A Chronological Outline
In the Introduction to this book I wrote that my conclusions are derived from five essential Bible doctrines (discussed at length in the book, Jesus: The Alpha and The Omega) and four self-evident rules of interpretation which are found in the book of Daniel.
Chronological order is a critical part of apocalyptic prophecy because God Himself has declared the order of events within each prophecy. The human challenge is to properly divide the books of Daniel and Revelation into distinct prophecies so that religious bias or personal whim does not manipulate God’s chronology. God has declared the divine order in the books of Daniel and Revelation. If God’s declaration is not true, two insurmountable problems would arise. First, there is no authority on Earth who can tell the whole world what the order of coming events will be. Second, without God providing His chronological order, confusion would reign and Bible students would not have confidence in “the more sure word of prophecy.” Some people claim that God gave us prophecy so that we can see His providence after prophecy has been fulfilled. My response to this argument is, “What is the point of understanding the mark of the beast after it is imposed?” Jesus told His disciples, “I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe.” (John 14:29, italics mine)
Over the years, people have asked for charts and outlines of coming events. I have many charts available showing the relationships between the seventeen prophecies. (See http://www.wake-up.org/Charts/ChartIndex.htm.) Because of the huge quantity of information and the small paper size in this book, a comprehensive chart showing the alignment of all seventeen prophecies is not possible, but a simple, abbreviated chart is provide on pages 4-5. I have also compressed the seventeen prophecies into two short verbal outlines. Section I (taken from the book of Daniel) starts with the ancient empire of Nebuchadnezzar and extends to the Second Coming. Section II (taken from the book of Revelation) starts with the birth of Jesus and extends to the end of the 1,000 years.
Section 1 – Daniel
| Event | Kingdom | Date |
| 1. Head of gold/Lion | Babylon | 538 B.C. |
| 2. Chest of silver / Bear / Ram | Medo-Persia | 538-331 B.C. |
| A. 2,300 years begin | 457 B.C. | |
| B. 70 Weeks begin | 457 B.C. | |
| C. Israel caught between kings in the north and south | 456 B.C. | |
| 3. Thighs of brass/Leopard/Goat | Grecia | 331-168 B.C. |
| 4. Legs of iron/Monster | Rome | 168 B.C. to A.D. 476 |
| A. Messiah’s ministry & death | A.D. 27-30 | |
| B. Rome utterly destroys Jerusalem | A.D. 70 | |
| 5. Little horn rises and persecutes saints 1,260 years | Papal Rule | A.D. 538-1798 |
| 6. Cleansing of Heaven’s temple begins at the end of the 2,300 years |
A.D. 1844 to present | |
| 7. Horn power from the north/ Stern faced king appears — this horn is the physical appearing of Lucifer (fifth trumpet) |
Shortly before the Second Coming |
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| 8. Michael stands up/Time of great trouble (seven bowls) | ||
| 9. Resurrection at the end of the 1,335 days |
Section 2 – Revelation
| Event | Date |
| 1. War occurs between Christ & Satan before world was created | |
| 2. Satan attempts to kill Jesus at birth | 4 B.C. |
| 3. During His time on Earth, Jesus is victorious over sin – redeems mankind The devil is cast out of Heaven a second time |
A.D. 30 |
| 4. Jesus is found worthy to receive a kingdom and the Book of Life | 1798 |
| 5. Jesus breaks open the first three seals (the revealing of Jesus begins) – First seal 1798 / Salvation through Jesus alone – Second seal 1800/The translation and distribution of the Bible – Third seal 1844/Judgment of the dead begins |
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| 6. God’s patience ends/Jubilee Calendar expires – The seven angels were given the seven trumpets |
1994 |
| 7. A delay – waiting for appointed time to arrive (we are currently living in this delay) |
1994 to present |
- Nuclear war breaks out on earth? / World leaders call for peace and safety
- The 144,000 are selected, sealed, and empowered
- Censer is cast down / Global earthquake / God’s wrath begins
Two Witnesses begin work / 1,260 days - 144,000 proclaim first message: “Fear God, worship the Creator”
- Fourth seal broken / 25% of Earth’s population is destroyed
First four trumpet judgments occur / Fiery hailstorm,
two asteroid impacts, darkness - Crisis government is formed and given power
Babylon persecutes the saints for 42 months
Babylon is the composite beast with seven heads and ten horns - 144,000 proclaim second message: “Babylon is false,
it is the work of the devil” - Fifth trumpet occurs 890 days into the Great Tribulation
The devil physically appears masquerading as God
The devil is the lamblike beast who deceives the whole world - 144,000 proclaim third message: “If you worship the devil,
God will punish you” - Sixth trumpet occurs 148 days later
The devil sets up a one world church state (the whore, his theocracy)
The 144,000 proclaim the Fourth Angel’s Message, “Come out of her, the whore.”
The devil rules as king of kings and lord of lords
Fifth seal broken / Martyrdom
The devil kills one-third of mankind / Imposes tattoo /Mark of the beast - Two Witnesses are slain on the 1,260th day / 144,000 are dead
for 3.5 days - 144,000 resurrected / Taken to Heaven
Seventh trumpet sounds / Ark of the Covenant shown in sky
First four bowls poured out / Those having the mark suffer greatly - Fifth bowl / Lucifer unmasked / His officials and employees blinded
- Sixth bowl / Lucifer gathers the kings of Earth
to make war against Jesus - Seventh bowl / Jesus appears / All of the wicked are destroyed
Saints meet the Lord in the air / Earth is desolate / No life on Earth - Jesus takes the saints to the Holy City, New Jerusalem for 1,000 years
The devil is bound in the abyss during the 1,000 years - The saints reign with Jesus in Heaven
Victims determine the amount of suffering the wicked must suffer (restitution) - At the end of the 1,000 years, Holy City descends from Heaven
- The wicked of all ages are resurrected to meet their Creator and receive their sentence
- Every knee bows admitting that God has been more than fair in His judgment
- Seventh seal broken open, contents of The Book of Life exposed
God completely exonerated - The devil urges the wicked to attack the Holy City
- Fire comes down from God and burns them up
- Jesus wipes away the tears
- Jesus creates a new Heaven and a new Earth
- The meek inherit the Earth