Introduction

The above words of Christ are perhaps some of the most critical found in the scriptures in regards to the integrity of the New Testament and the truth of Christ's claim as to His identity. Did all that He said would come to pass actually come to pass within the timeframe He said it would happen? If not, then Christ would then have prophesied falsely, and our hope in Him would be in vain. What then did He say would come to pass? The prophecy in question is the Olivet Discourse regarding the End of the Age, which is found in Matthew 24MATTHEW_24_1, Luke 21LUKE_21_1, and Mark 13MARK_13_1 of the synoptic Gospels. Important to the debate, there are two distinct parts to the prophecy: the first deals with the judgement against Jerusalem, and the second deals with the Coming of the Son of Man at the End of the Age. In this article we will not deal with the first half of the prophecy, since the exegesis of it in Luke 21:5-24LUKE_21_5LUKE_21_6LUKE_21_7LUKE_21_8LUKE_21_9LUKE_21_10LUKE_21_11LUKE_21_12LUKE_21_13LUKE_21_14LUKE_21_15LUKE_21_16LUKE_21_17LUKE_21_18LUKE_21_19LUKE_21_20LUKE_21_21LUKE_21_22LUKE_21_23LUKE_21_24 in combination with the witness of Josephus ¹ clearly demonstrates it's fulfillment in 70 AD with the Siege of Jerusalem. We will instead deal with primarily the second half, the Coming of the Son of Man, and the End of the Age. The common forms of protestant eschatology (e.g. the various forms of Premillennialism) denies that this had a fulfillment within the generation of those living during Christ's ministry, but instead argue that "this" should instead be understood as "that" generation who would eventually experience its fulfillment in the far future relative to Christ's earthly ministry. We contend that this is an incorrect departure from the plain meaning of Christ's words mirrored in each of the synoptic Gospel accounts of the Olivet Discourse, and of the natural use of the word "generation", Γενεὰ (Genea), found elsewhere in the synoptic Gospels. Instead, we defend that the End of the Age did in fact occur within the lifespan of those who witnessed Christ's earthly ministry, specifically at the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD. We, however, strongly deny Full Preterism, the belief that there no longer remains any unfulfilled prophecies in the scriptures. While it is common within mainstream Amillennialism and Postmillennialism to defend that the End of the Age and a Coming of the Son occurred in 70 AD, we also defend that the mysterious First Resurrection of Revelation 20:4-6REVELATION_20_4REVELATION_20_5REVELATION_20_6 not only was meant to coincide with the Coming of the Son of Man, but that it did occur alongside it in 70 AD. On its face it sounds absurd, but we will demonstrate from that while the First Resurrection is a physical resurrection, it was strictly limited as a reward to the Apostolic Church leading up to the End of the Age, and that these Apostolic Christians are currently ruling and reigning with Christ in heaven. Defending this understanding of the First Resurrection from Revelation 20:4-6REVELATION_20_4REVELATION_20_5REVELATION_20_6 also means we necessarily defend the Second Resurrection from Revelation 20:11-14REVELATION_20_11REVELATION_20_12REVELATION_20_13REVELATION_20_14 as a general physical resurrection of both the enemies and the children of God from across the ages, marking the Day of Judgement and the end of history. Since it is controversial and unconventional to argue that the Coming of the Son of Man and the First Resurrection occurred in 70 AD, it may sound to some that this results in an intrinsic denial of the Second Coming, which we in turn deny this theoretical allegation. We instead strongly affirm the return of Christ on the Day of Judgement at the end of the Millennium - this is more precise than the term "Second Coming", which could refer to either this or the Coming of the Son of Man at the beginning of the Millennium. We believe this variant of Postmillennialism helps to explain difficult passages in the Epistles of the New Testament for all the major eschatological positions that insist upon the imminence of both the Coming of the Son of Man alongside a physical resurrection of the "dead in Christ" ^✝1 Thessalonians 4:14-16FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_14FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_15FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_16, 1 Corinthians 15:22-27FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_22FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_23FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_24FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_25FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_26FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_27. We also propose that the other difficult facets of the Epistles that are commonly understood as referring to the Rapture under Dispensational Premillennialism ^✝1 Thessalonians 4:17FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_17, 1 Corinthians 15:51-52FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_51FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_52 should be instead be understood as partial revelation ("a mystery") that should be interpreted in light of the full revelation given in the Book of Revelation. We will demonstrate that these Rapture passages are read in this light can be cleanly parsed out as referring to events that span from the First Resurrection, through the Millennium, then up to and including the Second Resurrection. We are proposing this relatively novel variant of Postmillennialism to challenge the prevailing, though slowly diminishing, dominance of Dispensational Premillennialism in the Protestant Church, increasingly recognised for its inconsistent hermeneutics and its practical ramifications. We also aim to counter valid criticisms of weak-points in mainstream Postmillennialism, such as its inconsistencies defending the Coming of the Son of Man as being fulfilled in 70 AD but arguing that the First Resurrection was either not a physical resurrection or was a future event unrelated to 70 AD. As much as it is painted as a speculative field with little practical application, eschatology in fact has far-reaching impacts on wider theology. This is most obvious in eschatological positions where the End of the Age is still future to us in the present day, which has been the starting point of the erroneous Charismatic and Pentecostal traditions that assert we are currently receiving the signs, wonders, and Apostolic gifts of the Holy Spirit that were promised in the Old Testament for the End of the Age. Dispensational Premillennialism can also result in teachings that portions New Testament that deal with the Kingdom of Heaven are not applicable to the Christian today, but can only be applicable to the future Millennium. In contrast, we hope to demonstrate that our variant of Postmillennialism is both able to provide a consistent argument to refute Charismatic and Pentecostal traditions, as well as to uphold the New Testament teachings regarding the Kingdom of Heaven as presently applicable to the current Millennium.

Defence

The Coming of the Son of Man

As stated in Introduction, this entire argument rests on the Olivet Discourse having been fulfilled entirely in 70 AD. Since Matthew 24:29MATTHEW_24_29 cleanly demarcates the point in the Olivet Discourse where prior verses can be easily interpreted as having been fulfilled in 70 AD, whereas every verse including and beyond it is contentious, the onus is on us to demonstrate that they were fulfilled in 70 AD. Important to this argument is the chronological marker found in Matthew 24:29MATTHEW_24_29 that is placed "immediately after the tribulation of those days". The tribulation in question is referred to earlier in Matthew 24:15-22MATTHEW_24_15MATTHEW_24_16MATTHEW_24_17MATTHEW_24_18MATTHEW_24_19MATTHEW_24_20MATTHEW_24_21MATTHEW_24_22, and found there is a geographical marker that the tribulation affects those "in Judea"^✝Matthew 24:16MATTHEW_24_16. To emphasise the locality of the tribulation, Luke 21:20LUKE_21_20 identifies the Abomination of Desolation as "Jerusalem surrounded by armies". The tribulation of the Olivet Discourse therefore cannot be mistaken for having its fulfilment in anything other than the Siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD. The chronological marker of "immediately after the tribulation of those days"^✝Matthew 24:29MATTHEW_24_29 must therefore be relevant to what occurred "immediately after" the Siege of Jerusalem. What then are the events that are meant to have occurred at this chronological marker onwards? The events described are on their face astronomical in nature, with the sun being darkened, the moon not giving its light, and the stars of heaven falling ^✝Matthew 24:30MATTHEW_24_30. While it may seem that literal astronomical events are required for their fulfillment, the portions of the Old Testament that are being quoted reveal this not to be so. The are a number of Old Testament passages this verse draws from, with the most overt quotation in verse 29 being found in Isaiah 13:

Isaiah 13 is an oracle of judgement against Babylon ^✝Isaiah 13:1ISAIAH_13_1, which experienced a fulfillment in the Medo-Persian conquest of Babylon in the 6th century BC ^✝Isaiah 13:17-19ISAIAH_13_17ISAIAH_13_18ISAIAH_13_19. It's quotation by Christ in Matthew 24 however signify's that the judgement against Jerusalem is at least on par with the judgement against Babylon, and that Jerusalem is being spoken of as a type of Babylon. In fact, the second quotation in Matthew 24:29 from Isaiah 14 reinforces the point that Jerusalem should be regarded as the greater Babylon foretold in the Old Testament. Before demonstrating this however, the context of the Isaiah 14 quotation should first be established. The beginning of Isaiah 14 follows on from the end of Isaiah 13 in its description of Israel returning to the Promised Land after the defeat of Babylon at the hands of the Medo-Persians:

While there was a fulfillment of this in history with the return from the Babylonian Exile, the part of this passage where the Israelites take their Babylonian captors captive was not fulfilled in this time. However, the passage goes on:

Up to this point the passage could be understood simply as a supernatural view of the human kings of Babylon being dragged down into the underworld and being received by other fallen kings. However, verse 12 onwards clarifies the identity of the singular King of Babylon:

Here the King of Babylon is now spoken of in supernatural terms, one who was once in heaven, but after being cast out is seeking to overthrow the powers of heaven. Isaiah 14:16ISAIAH_14_16 returns to speaking of the King of Babylon in human terms, but there are examples elsewhere is scripture such as Ezekiel 28EZEKIEL_28_1 where a human king and a separate supernatural entity are addressed simultaneously. Due to the parallels between Isaiah 14:12-15ISAIAH_14_12ISAIAH_14_13ISAIAH_14_14ISAIAH_14_15 and Ezekiel 28:11-19EZEKIEL_28_11EZEKIEL_28_12EZEKIEL_28_13EZEKIEL_28_14EZEKIEL_28_15EZEKIEL_28_16EZEKIEL_28_17EZEKIEL_28_18EZEKIEL_28_19, the Son of the Dawn in Isaiah 14 is most likely referring to Satan, specifically his pre-Fall identity. The defeat of Babylon in history definitely had a supernatural aftermath, but just as there was an unfulfilled component of Israel's subjugation of Babylon, there is also an unfulfilled component of Satan's total humiliation by this point in history. Consequently, the final defeat of Babylon must also coincide with the final humiliation of the King of Babylon, Satan. Christ equating the end of the tribulation of Jerusalem as the fulfilment of the final defeat of Babylon in Matthew 24:29MATTHEW_24_29 would then necessarily correspond with the casting down of Satan into Sheol. It is possible to see this in the language of Olivet Discourse itself, where the "stars" falling and the "powers of heaven" being shaken can be understood as supernatural authorities being overthrown, with the greatest supernatural authority to be overthrown being Satan. The argument for this correlation is further bolstered by a study of the Book of Revelation, which will be left to a later section.

Moving onto the next verse of the Olivet Discourse:

The "sign of the Son of Man" at face value could be taken as another astronomical event, but as we have seen in the proceeding verse this would go against the pattern of Christ's and the Old Testament's use of astronomical language. The only other reference to a "sign of the Son of Man" in either the Old or New Testaments however is from the beginning of the Olivet Discourse:

Here the disciples are associating the sign of Christ's coming with not only the End of the Age, but also the destruction of the Second Temple. Consequently, the destruction of the Second Temple can be understood as an earthly sign of Christ's coming. However, Christ states that the sign of the Son of Man will also appear in heaven (the underlying Greek for "sky" is οὐρανῷ, or ouranō, which can equally be translated as "heaven"). If this is meant to be a supernatural heavenly sign, as opposed to a natural sign in the sky, then it would rule out an physical astronomical sign as being its fulfillment. Considering the passage where the Son of Man coming on the clouds is quoted from however, the sign being a supernatural heavenly one is evident:

The vision of Daniel is centred around the destruction of the Fourth Beast and the Little Horn, and does not occur at the end of history. The scene of the Ancient of Days seated on His throne takes place in heaven, not on Earth, and the Son of Man receives the everlasting dominion from the Ancient of Days in heaven. Consequently, Christ quoting this portion of Daniel 7 suggests that it is not a claim that He will physically and visibly descend onto the Earth, but rather that He will receive the everlasting kingdom from the Ancient of Days at the very end of Jerusalem's tribulation, the destruction of the Second Temple.

When Matthew 24:30MATTHEW_24_30 states that all the tribes of the earth will see and mourn this sign, we are forced to grasp what is being referred to by "earth". Our astronomical concept of the Earth is not the same as the New and Old Testament concept of the "earth". the greek for "earth" for example, γῆς, can equally be translated as "land". The "tribes of the land" can therefore be understood as a specific reference to the twelve tribes of Israel, not of every single person on Earth. This understanding is not necessary however, since there is precedent in the Old Testament for the "earth" being used to refer to a locality, not the literal entirety of the Earth.

Those who are being offered the cup of the Lord's wrath listed prior in Jeremiah 25:17-26JEREMIAH_25_17JEREMIAH_25_18JEREMIAH_25_19JEREMIAH_25_20JEREMIAH_25_21JEREMIAH_25_22JEREMIAH_25_23JEREMIAH_25_24JEREMIAH_25_25JEREMIAH_25_26 that are referred to as the "earth" span from Egypt through to Mesopotamia. While this judgement manifested in history through the onslaught of the Neo-Babylonian Empire and the Empire's eventual subjugation by the Medo-Persian Empire, this singular example demonstrates that references to the "remotest parts of the earth"^✝Jeremiah 25:32JEREMIAH_25_32, "all the inhabitants of the earth"^✝Jeremiah 25:29JEREMIAH_25_29, "the nations"^✝Jeremiah 25:31JEREMIAH_25_31, can be understood as being local, even being strictly local to the Near East. Therefore, the "tribes of the earth" in Matthew 24:30MATTHEW_24_30 can be understood as those who had just witnessed the tribulation and its aftermath in the preceding verse, i.e. Judea and the wider Roman Empire. But how then do we understand the reference to these tribes seeing the "Son of Man coming on the clouds with power and great glory"^✝Matthew 24:30MATTHEW_24_30? Once more, the Old Testament precedents for the judgement language that Christ employs in informative. Isaiah 19ISAIAH_19_1 for example is a prophecy against Egypt foretelling of its impending destruction and humiliation, but then a promise that they alongside Israel will one day be united in the true worship of Yahweh after they are delivered by Yahweh's "savior"^✝Isaiah 19:20ISAIAH_19_20. The timeline of the prophecy clearly extends into the Christian age, but its beginning had its fulfilment in history with Egypt's subjugation over the centuries at the hands of the four great kingdoms of Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. However, this fulfilment in history begins with the Egyptians beholding Yahweh "riding on a swift cloud" and having their hearts melt within them in His presence^✝Isaiah 19:1ISAIAH_19_1. This fulfilment of this however did not involve the Egyptians physically seeing Yahweh "riding on a swift cloud" however. Consequently, it should not be expected that Christ's use of heavenly imagery in His judgement against Jerusalem should necessarily have a fulfilment involving being physically seen in a specific moment in time for it to be true. In turn, if the destruction of the Second Temple is the earthly facet of the sign of the Son of Man, then the statement that these tribes of the earth "see" the Son of the Man coming on the clouds can also be true at the same time, since they have witnessed the earthly consequence (namely, the destruction of the Second Temple) of what could only be the result of the heavenly sign (namely, the vindication of the Son of Man in Daniel 7:13DANIEL_7_13).

In conclusion, we believe that the Old Testament foundations of Christ's prophecy of the Coming of the Son of Man points to the event being inextricably linked with 70 AD, culminating with the destruction of the Second Temple. The sign of the Son of Man should be understood as the scene of Daniel 7:13DANIEL_7_13 taking place in heaven at the moment of the Temple's destruction, since the end of the tribulation of Jerusalem represents the vindication of Christ as His status as the Third Temple^✝John 2:21JOHN_2_21. The Coming of the Son of Man and the End of the Age as so far described in the Olivet Discourse points to having been fulfilled in 70 AD. There are, however, other important aspects related to the the events that are discussed outside of the Olivet Discourse, and each of these need to demonstrated as being applicable to 70 AD too.

The First Resurrection

This section will aim to demonstrate that the First Resurrection of Revelation 20:4-6REVELATION_20_4REVELATION_20_5REVELATION_20_6 should not only be understood as having to have occurred at the End of the Age, but that it should be identified with the repeated statements found in the New Testament Epistles regarding the expectation of the dead in Christ rising first at His coming.

The context of Revelation 20:4-6REVELATION_20_4REVELATION_20_5REVELATION_20_6 must first be noted. The First Resurrection takes place at the beginning of the Millennium, after Satan has been bound so that he can no longer deceive the nations for the entirety of the Millennium^✝Revelation 20:2-3REVELATION_20_2REVELATION_20_3. Those who receive the First Resurrection are specifically those who are Christ's martyrs and had not worshipped the Beast or it's Image, and had not received it's Mark ^✝Revelation 20:4REVELATION_20_4. This subset of humanity are the only ones who are resurrected, with rest of humanity only resurrecting at the end of the Millennium ^✝Revelation 20:5REVELATION_20_5. Those who receive the First Resurrection will then reign with Christ and be priests before Him for the duration of the Millennium. Considering that those who receive the First Resurrection are those who refused to receive the Mark of the Beast, then identifying the Beast can help to identify the recipients of the First Resurrection.

The Beast referred to in Revelation 20:4REVELATION_20_4 is the one who was thrown into the Lake of Fire alongside the False Prophet in Revelation 19:20REVELATION_19_20, just prior to Satan being bound. We know that this occurs prior to Satan being bound and the beginning of the Millennium, since Satan is thrown into Lake of Fire at the end of the Millennium where the Beast and the False Prophet already are ^✝Revelation 20:10REVELATION_20_10. Importantly, the Beast and the False Prophet are thrown into the Lake of Fire at the coming of Christ Revelation 19:19-20REVELATION_19_19REVELATION_19_20. Considering that we are following on from the conclusion of the section The Coming of the Son of Man that the Coming of the Son of Man and the End of the Age took place in 70 AD according to the Olivet Discourse, then the entities, either natural or supernatural, that the Beast and the False Prophet symbolise must also have existed up until 70 AD. The Beast and the False Prophet matches a typology found throughout The Book of Revelation and Daniel of there being a powerful pair of God's enemies that co-jointly wage war on His people up until the Coming of the Son of Man. Prior to their appearance in Revelation 19, the Beast and the False Prophet are depicted as the Scarlett Beast carrying the Great Harlot in Revelation 17 and 18, and as the Beast of the Sea and the Beast of the Earth in Revelation 13. This pairing also appears in the Book of Daniel, where prior to the Coming of the Son of Man the Fourth Beast and the Little Horn wage war upon the saints in Daniel 7, and in Daniel 2 this pairing is depicted as the Feet of Iron and Clay. These pairings are no coincidence, and each of their depictions illuminates different aspects of their relationship with each other and against God.

Daniel 2

In Daniel 2 the Legs of Iron are identified as the Fourth Kingdom, which in turn can be conclusively identified as the Roman Empire, having followed the prior three kingdoms of Babylon, Persia, and Greece. The Feet of Iron and Clay belong to the Legs of Iron, so they can be interpreted as representing a phase of the Roman Empire right before the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven (represented by the Stone cut without hands) that takes away its dominion. Multiple interpretations are given in Daniel 2:41-43DANIEL_2_41DANIEL_2_42DANIEL_2_43 about the meaning of the iron mixed with the clay, with the first being that it represents "a divided kingdom" ^✝Daniel 2:41DANIEL_2_41. The iron represents the power of the Roman Empire, but the clay, being an earthen material, can be understood as representing a people being derived from the land. In the Old Testament context, this people from the "dust" can only be an allusion to either Adam or to the people that God "formed" for himself, i.e. Israel^✝Isaiah 43:1ISAIAH_43_1. Since the Romans belong to Adam, this leaves Israel as the only other candidate for the clay. This union of iron and clay can be seen in history, where by the New Testament era Judea was deeply intertwined within the wider Roman Empire, and its rulers exercised their authority with the permission of Rome. This relationship between Jerusalem and Rome was always strained, however. Daniel 2:43DANIEL_2_43 emphasises the ethnic division within this relation between the Jews and the Romans by noting how the "seed of men" represented by the iron and the clay do not cling together, just as iron does not combine with clay, yet it remains dangerous due to the presence of the iron. There is also a focus on the toes of the feet being partly iron and others being partly clay in Daniel 2:42DANIEL_2_42, although the emphasis of the iron and clay is on their relative strengths. The number ten represented by the number of toes found across the feet will also appear again later in Daniel 7. The Stone cut without hands is noted as striking the Feet of Iron and Clay "in the days of those kings" ^✝Daniel 2:44DANIEL_2_44, resulting in the entire statue turning to dust. The imagery of a stone is often used to refer to the Messiah in the Old and New Testament ^✝Psalms 118:22PSALMS_118_22, Isaiah 28:16ISAIAH_28_16, Ephesians 2:20EPHESIANS_2_20, and this passage seems to draw upon that imagery while at the same time identifying the Stone as the Kingdom of Heaven ^✝Daniel 2:44DANIEL_2_44. These two concepts are not in conflict with one another, and it will be seen in Daniel that the Coming of the Son of Man should be considered as synonymous with the arrival of the Kingdom of Heaven. Since the Messiah arrived in the days of the Julio-Claudian Caesars and the latter days of Judea, the best candidates for the Iron and the Clay are the authorities of Rome and Jerusalem.

Daniel 7

The pair representing the great enemies of God before the Coming of the Son of Man in Daniel 7:13-14DANIEL_7_13DANIEL_7_14 are named the Fourth Beast and the Little Horn. Due to the Fourth Beast being identified in Daniel 7:23DANIEL_7_23 as the same Fourth Kingdom in Daniel 2:40DANIEL_2_40, the Fourth Beast can be confidently identified once more as the Roman Empire. The Fourth Beast is noted as having ten horns, interpreted as being ten kings, that will arise from it ^✝Daniel 7:24DANIEL_7_24. The natural interpretation of this is that ten rulers of the Roman Empire will arise before the Coming of the Son of Man. This accords with history, in that there had been ten Caesars of the Roman Empire that had ruled consecutively by 70 AD: Julius Caesar, Augustus, Tiberias, Caligula, Claudius, Nero, Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian. Daniel 7:24DANIEL_7_24 also notes that there is another horn, the Little Horn ^✝Daniel 7:8DANIEL_7_8, that is different from the other horns ^✝Daniel 7:24DANIEL_7_24. It is different from the other horns in that it is larger than the other horns, and that it had eyes and a mouth by which it blasphemed and boasted ^✝Daniel 7:20DANIEL_7_20. The Little Horn also arises after the ten horns ^✝Daniel 7:24DANIEL_7_24, not in a temporal sense, but in a positional sense (the Aramaic word underlying "after" can equally be translated as "with", "before", or "in the midst of"). Since the Little Horn arises out of the Fourth Beast but seemingly takes on a life of its own and turns on the Fourth Beast by uprooting three of its horns ^✝Daniel 7:8DANIEL_7_8, the Little Horn should be understood as an authority that had its origin within the Fourth Kingdom, but then declared independence, rebelled against the Fourth Kingdom, but then had only a partial victory against it that it prematurely took pride in. The Little Horn is also noted as attempting to "make changes in seasons and in law"^✝Daniel 7:25DANIEL_7_25. This reference to "law" should be understood as referring to the Law of Moses, since it is spoken of not in relation to the laws of the Fourth Kingdom, but is instead spoken of in the context of the Little Horn's persecution of the "saints of the Highest One" ^✝Daniel 7:25DANIEL_7_25 who rightly follow the Law of Moses. If, then, the Little Horn is intent upon changing the Law of Moses, then they must be an entity who must have control of Jerusalem, since exerting control over the Second Temple is a prerequisite to exerting control over the Law of Moses. The attempt of the Little Horn to make a "change in seasons"^✝Daniel 7:25DANIEL_7_25 should not be understood as an attempt to change time-keeping or the weather, but it instead should be understood as an attempt to change fate, or the appointed time. Considering that the Little Horn's war against the saints is taking place shortly before the Coming of the Son of Man, the Little Horn's rage against the seasons and the law can be understood as an attempt to thwart the Coming of the Son of Man and His day of vengeance ^✝Luke 4:18-19LUKE_4_18LUKE_4_19, Isaiah 61:1-2ISAIAH_61_1ISAIAH_61_2. Each of these features of the Little Horn point to it being identified as Jerusalem and its authorities, just like the Clay in Daniel 2. That no singular "king" can be identified for Jerusalem unlike the ten horns of the Fourth Beast can be explained by the statement made in Daniel 7:24DANIEL_7_24 that the Little Horn is "different" from the ten horns. Its greater appearance, combined with the horn imagery of the Old and New Testament referring to the power and authority of both individuals and kingdoms in general, points towards the Little Horn being more than just a singular king. As for the three kings that fall before the Little Horn, there is a period of time known as the Year of the Four Emperors in Roman history where three weak Caesars (Galba, Otho, and Vitellius) ruled Rome after the assassination of Nero in 68 AD, with each of them having very short reigns during the civil war that ensued. When General Vespasian withdrew his armies from Judea to end the civil war in Rome, there was a period of time when the Jewish forces believed God had delivered the crumbling Roman Empire into their hands, which could explain the Little Horn's boasting if it is to be identified as Jerusalem. While there remain other data-points in Daniel 7 that further strengthen this case which will be addressed later, we conclude at this point that the Little Horn of Daniel 7 should be identified as Jerusalem and its authorities.

Revelation 13

Featuring the Beast of the Sea and the Beast of the Earth, this pair of great enemies of God can also be mapped onto the prime suspects of the Roman Empire and Jerusalem. As for the Beast of the Sea, it's description is directly drawn from Daniel 7, bearing features from all four Beasts representing the four kingdoms that also come out of the sea in Daniel 7:2-7DANIEL_7_2DANIEL_7_3DANIEL_7_4DANIEL_7_5DANIEL_7_6DANIEL_7_7. Consequently, this Beast of the Sea can be understood as representing the fourth and final kingdom before the Coming of the Son of Man that has subsumed the prior three kingdoms. This accords with history, in that the Roman Empire was the most powerful empire in history up until that point and had adopted much of the preceding kingdoms cultures and strategies. The Beast of the Sea is also granted authority to war with the saints and overcome them for three and a half years ^✝Revelation 13:5REVELATION_13_5. This too accords history, where Nero's great persecution of the Church that included the executions of the Apostles Paul and Peter lasted three and a half years from the end of 64 AD up until Nero's death in the middle of 68 AD. As for the seven heads of the Beast of the Sea, and the head that had been healed of a fatal wound, more will be unpacked regarding it in Revelation 17 that further connects the Beast of the Sea with the Roman Empire. Another piece of evidence for the Beast of the Sea being an entity contemporaneous with the author and immediate audience of the Book of Revelation in the first century AD is the author's warning in Revelation 13:9-10REVELATION_13_9REVELATION_13_10 that those saints who received the book should be prepared to be slain by the Beast of the Sea, and that they should persevere. This warning, in combinations with other warnings like the one found in Revelation 1:3REVELATION_1_3, point to the Beast of the Sea being an entity that was a threat to the immediate audience of the Book of Revelation in the first century.

As for the Beast of the Earth's identity, the first relevant piece of information is that the Beast is seen "coming up out of the earth"^✝Revelation 13:11REVELATION_13_11. As mentioned earlier, the Greek term for "earth" - γῆς - can be understood as referring to land, not necessarily the Earth as a whole. The details given for the Beast of the Earth in the same verse reinforces the term's usage here as referring to the land - the Promised Land. The detail is that the Beast "had two horns like a lamb" and spoke "as a dragon" ^✝Revelation 13:11REVELATION_13_11. The imagery of a lamb is a strong allusion to the sacrificial system of the Law of Moses, and for the Beast to be presented with the horns of a lamb suggests that the Beast claims authority over the over the sacrificial system, and the atonement specifically. This necessarily means the Beast is imposing itself onto the priestly authority of Jerusalem and the Second Temple, or is a corrupted form of it. That the same Beast also had the voice of a dragon, with the dragon being later identified as being Satan himself ^✝Revelation 20:2REVELATION_20_2, suggests that it reflects a perverse and unholy priestly system that deceives others regarding its purity, which strongly accords with the state of Jerusalem's priestly authorities during Christ's earthly ministry ^✝Matthew 23:27-28MATTHEW_23_27MATTHEW_23_28. Consequently, the land the Beast arises out of should be understood as a reference to Judea. The Beast of the Earth is also said to exercise "all the authority of the first beast in his presence". On the assumption that the first beast, the Beast of the Sea, is to be identified with the Roman Empire, then the entity that the Beast of the Earth is identified with must have exercised the authority of Rome with its permission. Jerusalem once more matches this description^✝John 11:47-48JOHN_11_47JOHN_11_48, with an example being that it was only able to deal out capital punishment with the permission of Rome². As for the Beast of the Earth making "the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed"^✝Revelation 13:12REVELATION_13_12, it must be demonstrated that the authorities of Jerusalem were actively leading Judea into an idolatrous relationship with Rome. This can be demonstrated in multiple places in the New Testament, with John 11:47-80JOHN_11_47JOHN_11_48JOHN_11_49JOHN_11_50JOHN_11_51JOHN_11_52JOHN_11_53JOHN_11_54JOHN_11_55JOHN_11_56JOHN_11_57JOHN_11_58JOHN_11_59JOHN_11_60JOHN_11_61JOHN_11_62JOHN_11_63JOHN_11_64JOHN_11_65JOHN_11_66JOHN_11_67JOHN_11_68JOHN_11_69JOHN_11_70JOHN_11_71JOHN_11_72JOHN_11_73JOHN_11_74JOHN_11_75JOHN_11_76JOHN_11_77JOHN_11_78JOHN_11_79JOHN_11_80 demonstrating the priestly authorities willingness to kill Jesus to preserve their authority granted to them by Rome, and John 19:15JOHN_19_15 demonstrating Jerusalem's explicit idolatry with the masses declaring that they have "no king but Caesar" in place of God ^✝1 Samuel 8:7-8FIRST_SAMUEL_8_7FIRST_SAMUEL_8_8.

When it states that the Beast of the Earth "does great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men", it is not necessary for there to be a literal manifestation of this sign in history. Instead, the imagery of fire coming down out of heaven is meant to evoke Elijah's instances of the same miracle in the Old Testament ^✝1 Kings 18:36-38FIRST_KINGS_18_36FIRST_KINGS_18_37FIRST_KINGS_18_38, 2 Kings 1:10SECOND_KINGS_1_10, where it demonstrated the favour of God upon Elijah. Consequently, the Beast of the Sea being able to perform the same miracle, even though it is idolatrous, is meant to symbolise that the Beast of the Sea successfully deceives others that it has gained the favour of God. This can be seen in the history of Jerusalem, since by being able to crucify Jesus, persecute His followers, grow and prosper, and even for a time drive out Romans during the Jewish War, it appeared to both Jews and professing Christians that were tempted to revert back to Judaism that Jerusalem was in fact favoured by God. Revelation 13:14REVELATION_13_14 specifically notes that it was God who gave the signs for the Beast of the Sea to do, for the purpose of elevating him before bringing him down even lower. This accords with Paul's explanation for God partially hardening Israel "until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in"^✝Romans 11:25ROMANS_11_25, and that they are raised up as enemies of the saints for the sake of the Gospel^✝Romans 11:28ROMANS_11_28. Consequently, the sign of fire being brought down out of heaven can be attributed to Jerusalem in a non-literal manifestation.

As a result of deceiving the people of the land with this sign, the Beast of the Earth then commands them to make an image of the Beast of the Sea ^✝Revelation 13:14REVELATION_13_14. The Beast of the Earth then gives life to the Image of the Beast, granting the Image the ability to speak and causing those who do not worship the Image to be killed ^✝Revelation 13:15REVELATION_13_15. The Beast of the Earth, pretending to be favoured by Yahweh, must be understood as presenting the Image of the Beast as an image of Yahweh, much like Aaron presenting the Golden Calf ^✝Exodus 32:4-5EXODUS_32_4EXODUS_32_5. That the Image is made in the likeness of the Beast of the Sea, yet is proclaimed as God and takes on a life of its own, suggests that the forging of the Image of the Beast marks an act of rebellion from the Beast of the Earth against the Beast of the Sea, since the people's worship is now redirected from the Beast of the Sea to the now living Image of the Beast. It also parallels how the Little Horn of Daniel 7 took on a life of its own and turned on the Fourth Beast ^✝Daniel 7:8DANIEL_7_8. This too would accord with the history of Jerusalem, since even though the authorities of Jerusalem had long depended upon Rome as the foundation of their power, the Jewish War began due to Jerusalem declaring they had no need for a Roman foundation anymore and that they had the favour of God to not only conquer the Romans, but also assume Rome's worldly power and prosperity under their expected Messiah. However, the tyranny that the authorities of Jerusalem inflicted upon Judea were worse than the tyranny of the Romans ³, all the while claiming the favour of God to ultimately win the war much like how Rome had come back from the brink of death ⁴, and enforcing total submission to the Second Temple system by the sword ². This supposed devotion to Yahweh therefore was not only similar to their prior devotion to Caesar, but in many ways was even more perverse.

In regards to the Mark of the Beast in Revelation 13:16REVELATION_13_16, this is meant to be a deliberate perversion of God's command in Deuteronomy 6:8DEUTERONOMY_6_8 and Deuteronomy 11:18DEUTERONOMY_11_18 to symbolically mark their forehead and hands with the word of God, which represents their active devotion to God. The idolatrous repurposing of this imagery from the Law of Moses reinforces the conclusion that the Image of the Beast is meant to be a deliberate mockery of Yahweh worship. That those without the Mark are prevented from buying or selling accords with New Testament history for how the saints of Jerusalem were often suffering great poverty ^✝Acts 4:34-35ACTS_4_34ACTS_4_35, 1 Corinthians 16:3FIRST_CORINTHIANS_16_3, Romans 15:25-27ROMANS_15_25ROMANS_15_26ROMANS_15_27, and they were excluded to a greater extent within Jerusalem as time went on leading up to the Jewish War. As for the name and number of the Beast that the Mark consists of, the Beast in question could be either the Beast of the Earth or the Beast of the Sea that the Image depicts, since it is possible that it is the Image of the Beast that is acting in this verse ^✝Revelation 13:16REVELATION_13_16. This is where we admit there is still an element of mystery regarding candidate names for the number of the Beast, six hundred and sixty-six. We do insist however that it is not necessary for it to be the name of an individual, since the statement that "it is the number of man" in Revelation 13:18REVELATION_13_18 is similar to the statement in Revelation 21:17REVELATION_21_17 where the point is that the "human measurements" are human comprehendible, and are not impossible to calculate. The candidate for the name also needs to be knowable for the Greek-speaking recipients of the Book of Revelation in the 1st century, due to the author's call for "him who has understanding" to calculate the number of the beast. The strongest contender for the name we believe was recorded by Iranaeus in the second century AD, where he posited the name Lateinos (ΛΑΤΕΙΝΟΣ), the Greek name for the Romans. If this is true, then number of the Beast could be a device used by the author of the Book of Revelation to help the audience recognise that the Roman Empire, the Latins, are the Fourth Beast of Daniel ^✝Daniel 7:7DANIEL_7_7, and that even Jerusalem leading up to Jewish War was to be identified with the Fourth Beast before splitting off as the Little Horn ^✝Daniel 7:8DANIEL_7_8.

Revelation 17 & 18

Here the pairing of God's arch-enemies appear once more. Here, the author of Revelation is shown the impending judgement of the Great Harlot ^✝Revelation 17:1REVELATION_17_1. The Great Harlot is seen seated upon a Scarlett Beast, who once more has seven heads and ten horns ^✝Revelation 17:3REVELATION_17_3. The Great Harlot is stated as being clothed in purple and scarlett, and adorned with gold, precious stones and pearls ^✝Revelation 17:4REVELATION_17_4. This imagery immediately evokes the description of the garments of the high priest in Exodus 28EXODUS_28_1, hinting that the Great Harlot is to be identified with the priestly authorities of Jerusalem. Yet, the Great Harlot as named Babylon the Great according to what is written on her forehead ^✝Revelation 17:5REVELATION_17_5. Babylon is the greatest archetypal enemy of God in the Old Testament, from the defiance of God's decree at Babel in Genesis 11GENESIS_11_1through to King Nebuchadnezzar destroying Solomon's Temple in 2 Kings 25SECOND_KINGS_25_1. The Great Harlot however also has another title on her forehead, "Mother of harlots and of the abominations of the earth". The imagery of both a harlot and Babylon together appears in Ezekiel 23EZEKIEL_23_1, where Jerusalem is depicted as whoring herself out to Babylon in graphic detail ^✝Ezekiel 23:16-21EZEKIEL_23_16EZEKIEL_23_17EZEKIEL_23_18EZEKIEL_23_19EZEKIEL_23_20EZEKIEL_23_21. Consequently, the Great Harlot is immediately associated with both Jerusalem and Babylon simultaneously.

Then come the details regarding the Scarlett Beast, which are more challenging to unpack. The seven heads and ten horns of the Scarlett Beast clearly identifies it with both the Beast of the Sea in Revelation 13REVELATION_13_1 and the Fourth Beast of Daniel 7DANIEL_7_1. It's introduction as the Beast that "was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction" ^✝Revelation 17:8REVELATION_17_8 is a deliberate inversion of Christ's title as the one "who is and who was and who is to come" ^✝Revelation 1:8REVELATION_1_8. The imagery of the Scarlett Beast coming out of the abyss and then going to destruction parallels Satan being released from the abyss at the end of the Millennium Revelation 20:3REVELATION_20_3. The Beast of the Sea however, which the Scarlett Beast is equivalent, is destroyed at the beginning of the Millennium ^✝Revelation 19:20REVELATION_19_20. The fate of the Scarlett Beast is therefore meant to deliberately mirror the later fate of Satan. Alongside the statement that the Scarlett Beast "is not", there is later statement made that the Scarlett Beast "is". The seven heads are explained as being seven mountains that the Great Harlot sits upon ^✝Revelation 17:9REVELATION_17_9, which correlates strongly to the seven hills of Rome, the power that the Great Harlot depends upon. The seven heads are also identified as seven kings, with five having already fallen, one currently ruling (who "is"), and another in the future set to reign for only short time from the point of view of the author of the Book of Revelation ^✝Revelation 17:10REVELATION_17_10. When placed in the history of the Roman Empire, the Book of Revelation must have been written during the reign of Nero, the sixth emperor of Rome, whose successor Galba reigned only for approximately six months. Since Nero must have been alive during the writing of the Book of Revelation, his assassination could not be the reference for the Scarlett Beast being presently regarded as "is not". Considering that the Scarlett Beast is stated as being presently in the abyss ^✝Revelation 17:8REVELATION_17_8, and that the Great Harlot is also seated upon many waters ^✝Revelation 17:1REVELATION_17_1, it appears that the abyss is to be equated with the many waters, and that the Scarlett Beast is not only in the abyss, but is the abyss that the Great Harlot is seated upon. This accords too with the Beast in Revelation 13REVELATION_13_1 that is identified as Rome being described as "coming up out of the sea" ^✝Revelation 13:1REVELATION_13_1. Later in Revelation 17:15REVELATION_17_15 the many waters, and consequently the abyss, are also equated with "peoples and crowds and nations and tongues". Consequently, the Scarlett Beast being "not" and then arising out of the abyss can be understood as representing the cycle and sequence of the beastly kingdoms and Satanic dominions of Daniel 7 rising ("was"), falling ("is not"), and rising again ("is about to come") repeatedly within the world ("the waters"), ultimately manifesting in its latest form as the Roman Empire. The "arising" of the Scarlett Beast could also be a metaphor for the Beast preparing to make its long-awaited move against God in its war against the saints, and its state of "is not" is rather the Beast's state of being subdued.

The Scarlett Beast itself is regarded as "an eighth and is one of the seven" kings ^✝Revelation 17:11REVELATION_17_11. This mysterious phrase should be understood in light of the presently reigning king, and that the full power of the Scarlett Beast is being wielded by the present king uniquely, "who goes to destruction". The ten horns are also explained as being ten different kings from the kings the seven heads represent. These ten "have not yet received a kingdom", but they will "receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour" for one singular purpose that they lend their power and authority to the Scarlett Beast for ^✝Revelation 17:12-13REVELATION_17_12REVELATION_17_13. That singular purpose is to "wage war against the Lamb" ^✝Revelation 17:14REVELATION_17_14, which is what will last for only an hour before their defeat, symbolising a limited period of time. Considering the prevalence and consistency of the references to the specific timespan of 42 months, or three and a half years, found across the Book of Revelation ^✝Revelation 11:2REVELATION_11_2, Revelation 13:5REVELATION_13_5 and Daniel ^✝Daniel 7:25DANIEL_7_25, Daniel 12:7DANIEL_12_7, the hour mentioned in Revelation 17:12REVELATION_17_12 most likely refers to this same finite period of time. The ten kings the horns represent must be contemporaneous with either the present sixth or later seventh king of the Scarlett Beast's seven heads. If they are meant to be kings that have never possessed a kingdom beforehand, then it appears that Revelation 17:20REVELATION_17_20 is emphasising that these are entities that are made kings by the Scarlett Beast granting them authority equivalent to that of a king, namely in the form of waging war or executing capital punishment. The number of the kings, ten, could either represent another ten literal individuals in history, or it could rather represent completeness in the form of every principality in the Scarlett Beast being vested with the authority to wage war against the Lamb. This war against the Lamb must take place before the Great Harlot is destroyed by the Scarlett Beast and the ten kings, as seen in Revelation 17:17REVELATION_17_17. Assuming that the Great Harlot is Jerusalem, which will be further demonstrated in Revelation 18REVELATION_18_1, then this war against the Lamb must have occurred between the reign of Nero and 70 AD. The candidate for this war against the Lamb is therefore the persecution of the Church under Nero, which began at the end of 64 AD, and only ended with Nero's assassination in the middle of 68 AD. This intense period of persecution, the first of its kind which was empire-wide and resulted in the deaths of Apostles such as Paul and Peter, also lasted only three and a half years, which accords with the likely meaning of the single hour in Revelation 17:12REVELATION_17_12. Due to the empire-wide nature of the persecution, we therefore believe that the ten kings represent the principalities from every part of the Roman Empire being granted the authority by the emperor to execute capital punishment on Christians. Upon the commencement of the Jewish War and the death of Nero however, these principalities across the Roman Empire not only lent their forces to destroy Jerusalem, but also began persecuting Jews found throughout the empire. This aspect of history can explain the Scarlett Beast's and the ten king's role in turning on and destroying the Great Harlot in Revelation 17:16-17REVELATION_17_16REVELATION_17_17.

The last important statement made in Revelation 17 regarding the identity of the Great Harlot is found in Revelation 17:18REVELATION_17_18. The Great Harlot is identified as the great city, "which has a kingdom over the kings of the earth" ^✝Revelation 17:18REVELATION_17_18. The present tense of the statement signifies that the Great Harlot is to be identified as a kingdom contemporaneous with the author of the Book of Revelation, which rules out a literal or future Babylon. The identification of the Great Harlot as Jerusalem however is confirmed by her being name "the great city", since it is the same name given to Jerusalem earlier in Revelation 11:8REVELATION_11_8. The fact that it states that this great city "has a kingdom over the kings of the earth" ^✝Revelation 17:18REVELATION_17_18 does not conflict with this identification. We can once more take the meaning of the greek word for "earth", γῆς (gēs), in a more localised sense. We cannot limit this to the scope of strictly Judea however due to the details given for the kings in Revelation 18, but we can affirm "earth" having a wider scope if the dominion of the Great Harlot can be equated with the dominion of Satan. Prior to the Coming of the Son of Man, Satan has dominion over the kingdoms of the world ^✝Matthew 4:8-9MATTHEW_4_8MATTHEW_4_9, and at the same time the Great Harlot is clearly Satanically influenced ^✝Revelation 17:6REVELATION_17_6. Since the Great Harlot would be considered part of Satan's dominion, and since the depravity of the Great Harlot is especially unique ^✝Revelation 11:8REVELATION_11_8, the Great Harlot could be understood as the focal point of Satan's dominion and his war against the Lamb, and consequently the kings of the world would be subordinate to the Great Harlot. Jesus' temptation demonstrated the Satan had a presence in Jerusalem ^✝Luke 4:9LUKE_4_9, so the Great Harlot can therefore still remain identified as Jerusalem.

Here the kings of the earth are paralleled with "the nations", with the nations having the received the wrath of her sexual immorality, whereas the kings have commited sexual immorality with her ^✝Revelation 18:3REVELATION_18_3. This distinction in the English is less clear in the Greek, so therefore we will assume that both the nations and the kings of the earth are deemed to have shared in the idolatry of the Great Harlot. The "merchants of the earth" are also described as having become wealthy through her ^✝Revelation 18:3REVELATION_18_3, where "earth" clearly refers to the same "earth" that the kings are of. The reference to the nations in the same verse confirms that the scope of the "earth" is beyond just that of the Judean territory. This by no means contradicts the identification of Jerusalem as the Great Harlot, since the event of the Coming of the Son of Man was concerned both ending the deception of the nations by Satan ^✝Matthew 24:29MATTHEW_24_29, and of executing judgement against the apostates among God's people ^✝Matthew 24:15-16MATTHEW_24_15MATTHEW_24_16. As mentioned before, Satan's power over Israel, to the point of crucifying the Lord of glory, necessarily meant that the dominion of Satan and the Beastly Kingdom included Jerusalem. Jerusalem was meant to be a light to the nations ^✝Isaiah 49:6ISAIAH_49_6, and Jerusalem was an incredibly powerful and wealthy at the crossroads of the Roman Empire. That Jerusalem had fallen into apostasy, and had thus borne God's name into falsehood before the whole known world at that time, means that the sins of Jerusalem did have a "universal" scope that led others into sin and idolatry, Jew and Gentile alike.

These details also accord with history regarding the destruction of Jerusalem, with the annihilation of one of the wealthiest, strongest, and ancient cities in the world being a cataclysmic event that reverberated throughout the whole Roman Empire.

This is the last portion relevant to the identity of the Great Harlot in Revelation 18. The "all" refers to the category of the prophets and saints, the faithful people of God, who have been slain. With "earth" being defined as including and exceeding confines the of Judea earlier, the bloodguilt for all slain saints is being attributed to the Great Harlot. Once more the Great Harlot can be identified as Jerusalem through this, since Jerusalem not only crucified Jesus, but exhorted the Roman authorities to persecute Christians across the empire, and applauded them for doing so. Consequently, it is justified for the "blood" of the saints to be thought of as being found "in" Jerusalem, due to it being the origin of their persecution.

The Identity of the Fourth Beast and the Little Horn

As a result of these studies across Daniel and Revelation, the recurring motif of a pair of entities that wage war against God and His saints up until the Coming of the Son of Man can be strongly identified as the two principalities of Rome and Jerusalem. These principalities represented the focal points of Satan's dominion during the Apostolic age, and consequently they together represent the fourth and final Beastly kingdom. If the Coming of the Son of Man occurred in 70 AD, then the overthrow of the Fourth Beast and the Little Horn that make up the final dominion of Satan would correspond with the end of the line of Caesars at the assassination of the first great persecutor Nero, and with the Destruction of Jerusalem and the annihilation of the Jewish nation. Daniel 7:12DANIEL_7_12 also states that the three beasts that preceded the Fourth Beast have their dominions taken away, but they are granted an extension of life "for an appointed season of time" beyond the Coming of the Son of Man in Daniel 7:13DANIEL_7_13. While the preceding beasts are identified as the historical kingdoms of the Neo-Babylonian, Medo-Persian, and Greek empires, the stripping of the dominions from these beasts means that we shouldn't understand these surviving beasts as geographic empires, but that the vestiges and rebellion of prior wordly kingdoms would be allowed to persist during the reign of the Messiah. Importantly, the Beast of the Sea in Revelation 13:1-2REVELATION_13_1REVELATION_13_2 is depicted as the convergence of each of the four Beasts of Daniel 7, so based off Daniel 7:12DANIEL_7_12 an aspect of the Beast of the Sea would have survived its defeat. Consequently, if the defeat of Fourth Beast and the Beast of the Sea is to be identified with the end of the Caesars in 68 AD, then the survival of the Roman Empire out of the subsequent civil war and the victory of Vespasian can be understood as the manifestation of the lesser beastly powers that were permitted to endure beyond the Coming of the Son of Man, since the Roman Empire never again regained the glory and divine status of the Pax Romana under the rule of the Caesars.

Now that we have identified confidently the Fourth Beast and the Little Horn, we can return to the matter of the First Resurrection. The defeat of the Fourth Beast and the Little Horn and the chaining of Satan mark the inauguration of the Millennium ^✝Revelation 20:2REVELATION_20_2, and the inauguration of the Millennium in turn also marks the First Resurrection ^✝Revelation 20:4-6REVELATION_20_4REVELATION_20_5REVELATION_20_6. We therefore come to the matter of defining the First Resurrection, and then testing whether it is coherent with the events that is meant to immediately follow if we are to be consistent with a 70 AD dating for the End of the Age.

A physical resurrection

The clearest passage regarding the First Resurrection is found in Revelation 20:

The author of Revelation stating that he "saw thrones", and that "they sat on them", is a direct allusion to Daniel 7:

The thrones are set up before the Ancient of Days and prior to the Coming of the Son of Man in Daniel 7:13DANIEL_7_13, and the heavenly court are the "they" in Revelation 20:4REVELATION_20_4 who sit on the thrones that are set up ^✝Daniel 7:10DANIEL_7_10. Once "they" are seated, and the books are opened, the Fourth Beast and the Little Horn are then destroyed ^✝Daniel 7:11DANIEL_7_11. When the thrones are set up in Revelation 20:4REVELATION_20_4the Beast and the False Prophet have already been destroyed in Revelation 19:20REVELATION_19_20, so this scene that the author of Revelation "saw" in Revelation 20:4REVELATION_20_4 is another view of this moment in Revelation 19. This scene involves Christ vindicating the martyrs who endured the Beast and the False Prophet by granting them the First Resurrection. This occurs at the Coming of the Son of Man, based off 1 Corinthians 15:23FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_23. This also accords with the sequence of events in Daniel 7:12-13DANIEL_7_12DANIEL_7_13 with the Coming of the Son of Man occurring immediately after the thrones are set up for judgement against the Fourth Beast and the Little Horn. This First Resurrection is identical in quality with Christ's Resurrection, that being a physical and immortal resurrection ^✝1 Corinthians 15:23FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_23, Revelation 20:4REVELATION_20_4. Those who receive the First Resurrection then reign with Christ throughout the Millennium ^✝Revelation 20:6REVELATION_20_6. Those who receive the First Resurrection however are only those martyred or resisted taking the Mark of the Beast while the Beast and the False Prophet were still alive. Since the Beast and the False Prophet were destroyed by 70 AD, the recipients of the First Resurrection must have at least been the Christians of the Apostolic era. How can it be said however that the Apostolic Christians received the First Resurrection when their graves are still amongst us to this day? For example, the bones of the Apostle Peter still lies beneath the Vatican. Our answer to this is that it is not necessary for the bodies of a Christian to be physically raised out of the ground for the soul of the Christian to be resurrected with an immortal body. Christ's resurrection was unique in how His crucified body was raised immortal, along with His wounds, and He retained that immortal but wounded body when He ascended into heaven ^✝Luke 24:51LUKE_24_51, Revelation 5:6REVELATION_5_6. However, the promise of immortal resurrection for the Christian is not that their wounds are retained ^✝Revelation 21:4REVELATION_21_4 - the martyrs who were beheaded in Revelation 20:4REVELATION_20_4 will not remain headless at their resurrection. Instead, the Christian "puts on the incorruptible" and "puts on immortality" ^✝1 Corinthians 15:53FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_53, and their mortal body is likened to a seed that is "sown in weakness", and "raised in power" ^✝1 Corinthians 15:43FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_43. Importantly, 1 Corinthians 15:44FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_44 states a "natural body" is sown, and "it is raised a spiritual body" of a very different substance. Consequently, the mortal body of the Christian does not need to be integrated into the immortal body their soul receives. With this understanding of Christian Resurrection applied to the First Resurrection, if the First Resurrection occurred at the Coming of the Son of Man, then the souls of Apostolic Christians in the care of Abraham in Hades^✝Luke 16:22LUKE_16_22 such as the Apostle Peter could have received their physical resurrection without their mortal bodies having to leave their graves. Where, then, does the First Resurrection takes place? The answer is also found in Revelation 20:4REVELATION_20_4. Just as the direct reference to Daniel 7:9DANIEL_7_9 has the thrones being set up in heaven, the souls of the Apostolic Christians are also seen and are raised to life in heaven. Just as the physical man Christ Jesus stands before the Father in heaven ^✝1 Timothy 2:5FIRST_TIMOTHY_2_5, so can His martyrs in physical form also. Consequently, the First Resurrection can be understood as taking place entirely in heaven.

The Millennium

To argue that the Coming of the Son of Man occurred at the Destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, we also have to argue that the Millennium also began in 70 AD. First of all, we must define the Millennium based off the clearest passages that refer to it.

Aside from the First Resurrection, the beginning of the Millennium is identified with the binding of Satan ^✝Revelation 20:2REVELATION_20_2. Satan is thrown and sealed within the Abyss "so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were finished" ^✝Revelation 20:3REVELATION_20_3. The Abyss has previously been identified in Revelation 17:8REVELATION_17_8, Revelation 17:15REVELATION_17_15 as the nations that revolt against God, and this understanding can apply here due to the purpose of Satan's binding is prevent him from deceiving the nations, which represents only a partial limitation of his power. Satan's prior deceit of the nations before this point is meant to be contrasted with the advance of the Gospel and the Kingdom of Heaven ^✝Matthew 24:14MATTHEW_24_14, and he is bound so that it advance of the Gospel is successful. It can be inferred from this passage however that even though he may be powerless before the advance of the Gospel during the Millennium, Satan himself is not powerless within the Abyss that consist of the Children of Wrath. The Apostle Peter's comparison of Satan to a prowling and devouring lion in 1 Peter 5:8FIRST_PETER_5_8 for example would still be applicable of him within the Abyss during the Millennium, with Satan still being capable of sowing chaos amongst the nations as seen in this present day.

The only other detail given in Revelation 20 regarding the nature of the Millennium are those related to the receivers of the First Resurrection reigning with Christ and ministering as priests before Him throughout the entire Millennium ^✝Revelation 20:6REVELATION_20_6. While the nature of this reign and ministry of First Resurrection Christians during the Millennium is mysterious, but the nature of Christ's reign during the Millennium is clear:

What each of these central Messianic psalms make clear is that Christ's reign is in the midst of actively rebellious nations who yet fall within His possession ^✝Psalms 2:8PSALMS_2_8. These details of the Messianic reign also further reinforce that the Coming of the Son of Man is not meant to mark the end of history but the beginning of process of all the nations yielding to Him.

Paul builds upon Psalms 110:1PSALMS_110_1 by stating that after the Coming of the Son of Man and the First Resurrection ^✝1 Corinthians 15:23FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_23, this process of abolishing the powers and authorities of the world begins until the last enemy Death is abolished ^✝1 Corinthians 15:25-26FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_25FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_26, which would mark the Second Resurrection immediately after the end of the Millennium ^✝Revelation 21:4REVELATION_21_4.

The centre-point of the Messiah's reign in the Psalms is also identified as Zion ^✝Psalms 2:6PSALMS_2_6, which in the New Testament context is to be understood as the Heavenly Jerusalem ^✝Matthew 28:18MATTHEW_28_18, Revelation 21:10REVELATION_21_10. Christ therefore rules over the nations from heaven during the Millennium, and the centre of Christ's reign only transfers to Earth after the Millennium and the Second Resurrection, as seen in Revelation 21:1-4REVELATION_21_1REVELATION_21_2REVELATION_21_3REVELATION_21_4.

Interestingly, in Revelation 21:1REVELATION_21_1 there is a reference to the creation of a new heavens and a new earth that is drawn from Isaiah 65:17ISAIAH_65_17, but these new heavens and new earths are very different between Revelation and Isaiah, the most significant of them being that death is present in Isaiah's version ^✝Isaiah 65:20ISAIAH_65_20, whereas it is abolished in Revelation's version ^✝Revelation 21:4REVELATION_21_4. These should therefore be understood as two different sets of new heavens and earths, which accords with there being two ages promised in Revelation of the Millennium before the Second Resurrection and the Eternity after the Second Resurrection. The relevant passage from Isaiah 65 that would therefore correspond with the Millennium is found below:

If we to understand ourselves as Christians who are living in the Millennium, then this vision of the Kingdom of Heaven may appear utopian and impossible. But when understood in light of Christ's parables of the Kingdom of Heaven being comparable to a mustard seed and leaven, Isaiah's vision can be understood as the full manifestation of the Kingdom of Heaven over time by the end of the Millennium. Even as Christians of the present day, all can attest that the advancement of Christianity up until this point in history has resulted in an unmatched level of prosperity, life and justice, even if there have been active and successful attempts to undo that progress in recent times. Isaiah 65 should therefore be understood as a glimpse of the world by the end of the Millennium, prior to the releasing of Satan:

Satan at the end of the Millennium is released by God to deceive the nations again like he was capable of prior to the Millennium. The nations that he deceives are drawn from the farthest parts of the earth and are equated with Gog and Magog from Ezekiel 38EZEKIEL_38_1 and Ezekiel 39EZEKIEL_39_1, and the details given for how they are gathered for war, are innumerable in number, march against Jerusalem, and are finally destroyed by a supernatural act of God ^✝Revelation 20:8-9REVELATION_20_8REVELATION_20_9 match perfectly with the details given in Ezekiel. Relevant to the nature of the Millennium, Ezekiel 38 provides extra details regarding the inhabitants of Jerusalem "in the last years" who are gathered out of "the peoples" after the land of Israel had been for the longest time a "continual waste", and were all now "living securely" after having been "restored from the sword" ^✝Ezekiel 38:8EZEKIEL_38_8, dwelling "quietly" in villages without bars, walls, or gates ^✝Ezekiel 38:11EZEKIEL_38_11. This description of the inhabitants of Jerusalem accords perfectly with the description of the same inhabitants in Isaiah 65:18-19ISAIAH_65_18ISAIAH_65_19 by the end of the Millennium. In regards to whether the Jerusalem being referred to in Ezekiel 38, Isaiah 65, and Revelation 20 represents the Church or a restored earthly Jerusalem, Romans 11 opens the door to an earthly Jerusalem and the Promised Land being restored after the "fullness of Gentiles has come in" and "all Israel" are saved by the Gospel ^✝Romans 11:25-26ROMANS_11_25ROMANS_11_26. We do not believe the present day State of Israel is the fulfillment of this restored earthly Jerusalem and the Promised Land since neither of the conditionals laid out in Romans 11 have been accomplished, but by the end of the Millennium it could be a reality that is central to the release of Satan and its aftermath.

The final detail provided in Revelation 20 regarding the end of the Millennium is the destruction of Satan after the annihilation of Gog and Magog ^✝Revelation 20:10REVELATION_20_10. Satan joins the Beast and the False Prophet in the Lake of Fire, which is a data-point is useful for reinforcing that the destruction of the Beast and the False Prophet in 70 AD and the destruction of Satan bookend the Millennium. In all, the picture that is painted of the Millennium across these primary texts accords strongly with the imagery in Daniel 2:34-35DANIEL_2_34DANIEL_2_35 of the Stone cut without hands toppling the statue, representing the vindication and triumph of the Coming of the Son of Man, becoming then a "great mountain" that "filled the whole earth", a process that reaches the final state of peace, prosperity, and true religion depicted in Isaiah's new heavens and earth, before the final chapter of Satan's release commences. While the rate and trajectory of progress between these start and end points of history is not well defined, the state of these start and end points are.

The Second Resurrection

The Second Resurrection immediately follows the destruction of Satan in Revelation 20:10REVELATION_20_10. All those who did not receive the First Resurrection in Revelation 20:4REVELATION_20_4 are physically resurrected at this point in time, as according to Revelation 20:5REVELATION_20_5. In contrast with the First Resurrection, the Second Resurrection clearly takes place on Earth as Christ and His throne descend and earth and heaven flee before Him ^✝Revelation 20:11REVELATION_20_11. Those who are judged are receive eternal life or eternal damnation, according to whether their name is found written in the Book of Life ^✝Revelation 20:15REVELATION_20_15. While we have up until this point been describing the Beast, False Prophet, and Satan as being "destroyed" when thrown into the Lake of Fire, the persistence of the Beast and the False Prophet within the Lake of Fire when Satan is thrown in suggests eternal torment rather than annihilation ^✝Revelation 20:10REVELATION_20_10. The Second Resurrection would also be identical to the First Resurrection in terms of granting an immortal resurrection to both the condemned and the redeemed, since the Second Resurrection is only distinguished from the First Resurrection in Revelation 20:5REVELATION_20_5 according to when it takes place and who receives it. A parallel description of the Second Resurrection is found at the beginning of Daniel 12:

An interesting detail of Daniel 12:2DANIEL_12_2 is that it does not say all "who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake", but "many". This distinction can be understood in light of the First Resurrection already having taken place before the End of Days in Daniel 12. The "many" then similarly receive everlasting life or contempt after they are judged. For one to undergo everlasting contempt after their resurrection, they necessarily need to receive immortality, even though they are thrown into the Lake of Fire and undergo the Second Death ^✝Revelation 20:13-14REVELATION_20_13REVELATION_20_14. Consequently, the quality of resurrection both the condemned and redeemed received is the same.

The Second Resurrection then ends with Death and Hades being the last realms or curses to be thrown into the Lake of Fire. This accords once more with the timeline provided by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:24-28 when he says:

There is potentially another reference to the Second Resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15:50-57:

Paul specifically refers to the "last trumpet" in 1 Corinthians 15:52FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_52, which is a key part of the "mystery" that Paul received ^✝1 Corinthians 15:51FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_51. It being a "mystery" suggests that Paul received only partial revelation concerning the End of the Age and the Age to Come. Considering that the Book of Revelation was intended to be the final and clearest explanation for what had been prior to it only partial revelations received by the Church concerning the Coming of the Son of Man and beyond ^✝1 Corinthians 13:8-12FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_8FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_9FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_10FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_11FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_12, we must interpret this "mystery" in light of the Book of Revelation. Consequently, when Paul speaks about the "last trumpet" alongside the alive and dead putting on "immortality", then we should understand this as him describing the Second Resurrection, since nowhere else is the First Resurrection referred to as being the "last" action in history. The "dead" and the alive here who are resurrected also encompasses all of humanity, as opposed to the First Resurrection being strictly applied to the dead in Christ.

The Rapture

These discussions of Paul in relation to the Second Resurrection cannot continue without dealing with key Rapture texts such as 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, whose common interpretation appears to contradict the timeline of the First and Second Resurrection:

Here Paul states that here he is conveying "the word of the Lord" ^✝1 Thessalonians 4:15FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_15 directly, which could be the same as the "mystery" revealed to him in ^✝1 Corinthians 15:51FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_51, since both of these revelations are concerned with resurrection. The First Resurrection is once more stated as occurring at the Coming of the Son of Man when he says "the dead in Christ will rise first" ^✝1 Thessalonians 4:15-16FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_15FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_16, matching 1 Corinthians 15:23FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_23. Paul then goes on to discuss what will happen to those who are alive and remaining after the Coming of the Son of Man. Paul interestingly notes that after Christ descends from heaven ^✝1 Thessalonians 4:16FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_16, He still remains "in the air" ^✝1 Thessalonians 4:17FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_17, which reinforces the case that the Coming of the Son of Man occurs entirely in heaven, with the descent mentioned by Paul being the Son of Man descending on the "clouds of heaven" to receive the Kingdom from the Ancient of Days in Daniel 7:13DANIEL_7_13. In 1 Thessalonians 4:14FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_14, Paul also states that God will bring with Him "those who have have fallen asleep in Jesus", which are the recipients of the First Resurrection, which means the First Resurrection has already occurred, and therefore the descent of God being described must the Great White Throne scene of Revelation 20:11REVELATION_20_11 that corresponds with the Second Resurrection. Paul makes this same distinction between the Son and the Father in 1 Corinthians 15:23-24FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_23FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_24 when he discusses "Christ" handing over the kingdom "to the God and Father" at the Second Resurrection. Pauls primary point in this passage is that those who are alive will not precede the dead who receive the First Resurrection at the Coming of the Son of Man. It would be a mistake to interpret this passage as stating that those who are alive receive the resurrection immediately after those who receive the First Resurrection, since it would not only contradict the timeline of the Revelation 20:5REVELATION_20_5, but it would diminish the significance of the reward of the First Resurrection for the dead in Christ at His coming if those who are alive receive it immediately after. Everything else that is described in 1 Thessalonians 4:17-18FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_17FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_18 must therefore pertain to either Millennium or the Second Resurrection. Paul does not explicitly discuss the resurrection of those "who are alive and remain" in this portion unlike his discussion of the Second Resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15:50-57FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_50FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_51FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_52FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_53FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_54FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_55FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_56FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_57, which leads us to believe that it is the Millennium in view. The language of those remaining being "caught up" (raptured) in 1 Thessalonians 4:17FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_17 has its only parallel found in the Olivet Discourse:

The angels who go out to "gather" are sent out after the "great trumpet", which matches the rapture occurring after the "trumpet of God". The gathering should therefore be equated to the rapture. However, we have already established that Matthew 24:31MATTHEW_24_31 marks the very beginning of the Millennium, and that the gathering of the elect is therefore the beginning of a process. Consequently, the rapture must also be referring to this same process within the Millennium. Also, since there is no resurrection in view in 1 Thessalonians 4:17FIRST_THESSALONIANS_4_17, and that the designation of those "who are alive and remain" refers to those alive after the Coming of the Son of Man who are not themselves exempt from death during the Millennium, then them meeting "the Lord in the air" as well as "them" who received the First Resurrection should be understood as the souls of Christians being gathered to Christ in heaven over the course of the Millennium leading up to the Second Resurrection, whereas prior to the Coming of the Son of Man all the souls of the faithful were gathered with Abraham in Hades ^✝Luke 16:23LUKE_16_23.

The other key Rapture text is found in 2 Thessalonians 2:

In 2 Thessalonians 2:1SECOND_THESSALONIANS_2_1 we have another reference to the "gathering" that follows the Coming of the Son of Man, which confirms the link between the Rapture and the gathering in mentioned in Matthew 24:31MATTHEW_24_31. As for the other details provided for the signs leading up to the Coming of the Son of Man, particularly the Man of Lawlessness ^✝2 Thessalonians 2:3SECOND_THESSALONIANS_2_3, they can be strongly identified in history leading up to 70 AD and the Destruction of Jerusalem. Firstly, "the apostasy" can be equally rendered "the falling away" or "the rebellion", which can be understood simultaneously as the abandonment and betrayal of the faith by previously professing Christians that Christ warned about in Matthew 24:9-13MATTHEW_24_9MATTHEW_24_10MATTHEW_24_11MATTHEW_24_12MATTHEW_24_13, or as a political and armed rebellion. The likelihood of it referring to a political rebellion is bolstered by the apostasy being associated with the revealing of the Man of Lawlessness. The contrast of this Man against lawfulness immediately brings the Law of Moses into view, and subsequently, the rebellion of Judah, the First Jewish War beginning in 66 AD, as well. A key part of the Man of Lawlessness' identity is also that he seats himself within the Second Temple, thereby exalting himself in his blasphemy ^✝2 Thessalonians 2:4SECOND_THESSALONIANS_2_4. In history there can be no doubt that the Man of Lawlessness can be identified as John of Gischala, the false Messiah who tyrannized Jerusalem during the First Jewish War, who induced Jerusalem's false prophets to proclaim their ultimate deliverance by God and victory over the Romans ⁴, and who set his headquarters within the Second Temple until Jerusalem was overthrown by Titus in 70 AD. Paul, writing 2 Thessalonians in the early 50's AD, states that the Thessalonian church "know what restrains him now, so that in his time he will be revealed" ^✝2 Thessalonians 2:6SECOND_THESSALONIANS_2_6, meaning that this Restrainer which held back the Man of Lawlessness was no mystery for them. This Restrainer is then stated as holding back "lawlessness" only until the Restrainer itself is taken out of the way ^✝2 Thessalonians 2:7SECOND_THESSALONIANS_2_7, which could mean that it either unleashes it willingly or is overwhelmed by it. In the context of what led up to the First Jewish War, this Restrainer could be understood as the remnant of the leadership in Judah that were zealous for the Law but did everything in their power to prevent Judah from rebelling against Rome and igniting a war they could never win. Flavius Josephus would then be considered one of the restrainers by this definition, until the rebellion grew beyond his control and he willingly joined it out of his love for Judah in spite of it being hopeless. We therefore identify the Restrainer as those Paul described in Romans 10:1-3ROMANS_10_1ROMANS_10_2ROMANS_10_3 as those "have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge". Lastly, the slaying of the Man of Lawlessness by the Coming of the Son of Man can be understood as John of Gischala and his followers being captured and paraded in chains through streets of Rome where he died in captivity ⁵. We therefore conclude confidently from this text that the Rapture should be understood as the gathering of God's elect "from the four winds" Matthew 24:31MATTHEW_24_31 that commenced following the revealing of the Man of Lawlessness, the Destruction of Jerusalem, and the Coming of the Son of Man in 70 AD.

Conclusion

In conclusion, approaching Christ's words in Matthew 24:34MATTHEW_24_34 in combination with the Book of Revelation as if they were intended to be sources of clarity instead of confusion results in coherent timeline for the End of the Age and the Age to Come. The timeline that has been presented in this study ends up according closely with the common form of Postmillennialism with some variations in regards to how the First Resurrection is understood, the identification of the Beast of the Book of Revelation, and the identity of Man of Lawlessness. This proposed variant of Postmillennialism insists upon the Coming of the Son of Man and the First Resurrection as occurring in 70 AD as the fulfillment of Christ's prophecy in the Olivet Discourse, and that as present-day Christians living currently in the Millennium we are part of the work of the King Jesus putting "all His enemies under His feet" ^✝1 Corinthians 15:25FIRST_CORINTHIANS_15_25 up until the day of the Second Resurrection and the death of Death.

We believe that this eschatology benefits not only apologetics in demonstrating the fulfillment in history of the Olivet Discourse and the Book of Revelation precisely as Jesus prophesied, but also many other areas of Biblical theology. One area that it is immediately relevant for is its ability to counter Charismatic theology that insists that the Apostolic and Prophetic gifts are being poured out on the Church now that the End of the Age and the Coming of the Son of Man is imminent. In response, not only does this eschatology accord with Peter in Acts 2:16ACTS_2_16 that the Prophet Joel's prophecy in Joel 2:28-29JOEL_2_28JOEL_2_29 for the End of the Age was fulfilled at Pentecost, but it is able to demonstrate from 1 Corinthians 13:8-12FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_8FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_9FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_10FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_11FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_12 that the Apostolic and Prophetic gifts ceased upon the Coming of the Son of Man ("the perfect" ^✝1 Corinthians 13:10FIRST_CORINTHIANS_13_10) after 70 AD, which accords with the surviving testimony of early Church history from the second century onwards of there being no Apostolic and Prophetics gifts that matched what was experienced during the Apostolic era. This eschatology also provides a hope for the future of this age that is not inherit to Premillennialism or Amillennialism, with the clear optimistic endpoint of the Millennium reinforcing the Calvinistic claim that God and His people will succeed their mission, regardless of the attempts of man or spirit to thwart it. This too provides hope for Christians that are enduring and losing their lives to the remaining evil in the world. While there remain key foundational assumptions that this argument is heavily dependent on, with the dating and authorship of the Book of Revelation being particularly critical, this has been defended elsewhere. We hope that this eschatology provides a consistent and coherent way of comprehending the Bible, the End of the Age, the Age to Come, and our present day place in history.

Footnotes

1. Flavius Josephus, The Jewish War, trans. Henry St. J. Thackeray (Harvard University Press, 1927-28).
2. Flavius Josephus, Jewish Antiquities, trans. Henry St. J. Thackeray and Ralph Marcus (Harvard University Press, 1930-1965), 20.200.
3. Josephus, The Jewish War, 5.442.
4. Josephus, The Jewish War, 6.286.
5. Josephus, The Jewish War, 7.3.

Bibliography

• Josephus, Flavius. Translated by Henry St. J. Thackeray. The Jewish War. The Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1927-28.
• Josephus, Flavius. Translated by Henry St. J. Thackeray, Ralph Marcus. Jewish Antiquities. The Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1930-1965.

Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.

• Signs of Christ’s Return

  And coming out from the temple, Jesus was going along, and His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him.

• The Widow’s Offering

  And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury.

• Signs of Christ’s Return

  And as He was going out of the temple, one of His disciples *said to Him, “Teacher, behold what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!”
• 5 And while some were talking about the temple, that it had been adorned with beautiful stones and dedicated gifts, He said,
• 6 “As for these things which you are looking at, the days will come in which there will not be left one stone upon another which will not be torn down.”
• 7 So they questioned Him, saying, “Teacher, when therefore will these things happen? And what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?”
• 8 And He said, “See to it that you are not deceived; for many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time is at hand.’ Do not go after them.
• 9 And when you hear of wars and disturbances, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first, but the end does not follow immediately.”

• Signs of Christ’s Return

  10 Then He continued saying to them, “Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom,
• 11 and there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues; and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven.
• 12 “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My name’s sake.
• 13 It will result in an opportunity for your testimony.
• 14 So set in your hearts not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves;
• 15 for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute.
• 16 But you will be betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death,
• 17 and you will be hated by all because of My name.
• 18 Yet not a hair of your head will perish.
• 19 By your perseverance you will gain your lives.
• 20 “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is at hand.
• 21 Then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those who are in the midst of the city must leave, and those who are in the countryside must not enter the city;
• 22 because these are days of vengeance, so that all things which are written will be fulfilled.
• 23 Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land and wrath against this people,
• 24 and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
• 4 Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their witness of Jesus and because of the word of God, and who also had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand. And they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
• 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
• 6 Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection. Over these the second death has no authority, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.

• The Great White Throne Judgment

  11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sits upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.
• 12 Then I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.
• 13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them, and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds.
• 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
• 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.
• 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
• 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
• 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.
• 23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming.
• 24 Then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.
• 25 For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.
• 26 The last enemy to be abolished is death.
• 27 For He has put all things in subjection under His feet. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him.
• 17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
• 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed,
• 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed.

• The Coming of the Son of Man

  29 “But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

• Abomination of Desolation and the Tribulation

  15 “Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),
• 16 then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains.
• 17 Whoever is on the housetop must not go down to get the things out that are in his house.
• 18 And whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his garment.
• 19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!
• 20 But pray that your flight will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath.
• 21 For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will.
• 22 And unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.
• 30 And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.

• An Oracle Concerning Babylon

  The oracle concerning Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz beheld.
• 
  17

  Behold, I am going to awaken the Medes against them,

  Who will not think about silver or take pleasure in gold.
• 18

  And their bows will dash the young men to pieces,

  They will not even have compassion on the fruit of the womb,

  Nor will their eye pity children.
• 19

  And it will be that Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the honor of the Chaldeans’ pride,

  Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
• 16

  Those who see you will gaze at you,

  They will carefully consider you, saying,

  ‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble,

  Who caused kingdoms to quake,

• Prophesy Against the King of Tyre

  The word of Yahweh came again to me, saying,
• 12

  How you have fallen from heaven,

  O star of the morning, son of the dawn!

  You have been cut down to the earth,

  You who have weakened the nations!
• 13

  But you said in your heart,

  ‘I will ascend to heaven;

  I will raise my throne above the stars of God,

  And I will sit on the mount of assembly

  In the recesses of the north.
• 14

  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;

  I will make myself like the Most High.’
• 15

  Nevertheless you will be brought down to Sheol,

  To the recesses of the pit.

• Lament over the King of Tyre

  11 Again the word of Yahweh came to me saying,
• 12 “Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh,

  “You had the seal of perfection,

  Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
• 13

  You were in Eden, the garden of God;

  Every precious stone was your covering:

  The ruby, the topaz, and the diamond;

  The beryl, the onyx, and the jasper;

  The lapis lazuli, the turquoise, and the emerald;

  And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets,

  Was in you.

  On the day that you were created

  They were prepared.
• 14

  You were the anointed cherub who covers,

  And I placed you there.

  You were on the holy mountain of God;

  You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.
• 15

  You were blameless in your ways

  From the day you were created

  Until unrighteousness was found in you.
• 16

  By the abundance of your trade

  You were internally filled with violence,

  And you sinned;

  Therefore I have cast you as profane

  From the mountain of God.

  And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub,

  From the midst of the stones of fire.
• 17

  Your heart was lofty because of your beauty;

  You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor.

  I cast you to the ground;

  I put you before kings,

  That they may see you.
• 18

  By the abundance of your iniquities,

  In the unrighteousness of your trade

  You profaned your sanctuaries.

  Therefore I have brought out fire from the midst of you;

  It has consumed you,

  And I have turned you to ashes on the earth

  In the eyes of all who see you.
• 19

  All who know you among the peoples

  Are appalled at you;

  You have become terrified,

  And you will cease to be forever.”’”
• 17 Then I took the cup from the hand of Yahweh and made all the nations to whom Yahweh sent me drink it:
• 18 Jerusalem and the cities of Judah and its kings and its princes, to make them a waste place, an object of horror, an object of hissing, and a curse, as it is this day;
• 19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his princes, and all his people,
• 20 and all the foreign people, all the kings of the land of Uz, all the kings of the land of the Philistines (even Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod),
• 21 Edom, Moab, and the sons of Ammon,
• 22 and all the kings of Tyre, all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the coastlands which are beyond the sea,
• 23 and Dedan, Tema, Buz, and all who cut the corners of their hair,
• 24 and all the kings of Arabia and all the kings of the foreign people who dwell in the desert,
• 25 and all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of Media,
• 26 and all the kings of the north, near and far, one with another; and all the kingdoms of the earth which are upon the face of the ground, and the king of Sheshach shall drink after them.
• 
  32 Thus says Yahweh of hosts,

  “Behold, evil is going forth

  From nation to nation,

  And a great storm is being stirred up

  From the remotest parts of the earth.
• 29 For behold, I am beginning to bring evil against this city which is called by My name. But shall you be completely free from punishment? You will not be free from punishment, for I am calling for a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth,” declares Yahweh of hosts.’
• 31

  A rumbling has come to the end of the earth

  Because Yahweh has a contention against the nations.

  He is entering into judgment with all flesh;

  As for the wicked, He has given them to the sword,’ declares Yahweh.”

• An Oracle Concerning Egypt

  The oracle concerning Egypt.

  Behold, Yahweh is riding on a swift cloud and is about to come to Egypt;

  The idols of Egypt will shake at His presence,

  And the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them.
• 20 And it will become a sign and a witness to Yahweh of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they will cry to Yahweh because of oppressors, and He will send them a Savior and a Champion, and He will deliver them.

• The Son of Man

  13

  “I kept looking in the night visions,

  And behold, with the clouds of heaven

  One like a Son of Man was coming,

  And He came up to the Ancient of Days

  And came near before Him.
• 21 But He was speaking about the sanctuary of His body.
• 2 And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years;
• 3 and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were finished. After these things he must be released for a short time.

• The Beast and False Prophet Are Seized

  20 And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who did the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone.
• 10 And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
• 19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to make war with Him who sits on the horse and with His army.
• 41 Now in that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron; it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have in it the toughness of iron, inasmuch as you saw the iron mixed with common clay.
• 42 And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so some of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will be brittle.
• 43 And in that you saw the iron mixed with common clay; they will combine with one another in the seed of men; but they will not cling to one another, even as iron does not combine with clay.

• The Redemption of Israel

  But now, thus says Yahweh, your Creator, O Jacob,

  And He who formed you, O Israel,

  “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;

  I have called you by name; you are Mine!
• 44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will cause a kingdom to rise up which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself stand forever.
• 
  22

  The stone which the builders rejected

  Has become the chief corner stone.
• 16 Therefore thus says Lord Yahweh,

  “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone,

  A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed.

  He who believes in it will not be disturbed.
• 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone,
• 14

  And to Him was given dominion,

  Glory, and a kingdom,

  That all the peoples, nations, and men of every tongue

  Might serve Him.

  His dominion is an everlasting dominion

  Which will not be taken away;

  And His kingdom is one

  Which will not be destroyed.
• 23 “Thus he said: ‘The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it.
• 40 Then there will be a fourth kingdom as strong as iron; inasmuch as iron crushes and shatters all things, so, like iron that breaks in pieces, it will crush and break all these in pieces.
• 24 As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will make low three kings.
• 8 While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth speaking great boasts.
• 20 and the meaning of the ten horns that were on its head and the other horn which came up and before which three of them fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth speaking great boasts and which was larger in appearance than its associates.
• 25 He will speak words against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make changes in seasons and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.
• 18

  “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,

  Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.

  He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,

  And recovery of sight to the blind,

  To set free those who are oppressed,
• 19

  To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

• Exaltation of the Afflicted

  The Spirit of Lord Yahweh is upon me

  Because Yahweh has anointed me

  To bring good news to the afflicted;

  He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

  To proclaim release to captives

  And freedom to prisoners,
• 2

  To proclaim the favorable year of Yahweh

  And the day of vengeance of our God,

  To comfort all who mourn,
• 2 Daniel answered and said, “I was looking in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of heaven were stirring up the great sea.
• 3 And four great beasts were coming up from the sea, different from one another.
• 4 The first was like a lion and had the wings of an eagle. I kept looking until its wings were plucked, and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man; and a heart of a man was given to it.
• 5 And behold, another beast, a second one in the likeness of a bear. And it was raised up on one side, and three ribs were in its mouth between its teeth; and thus they said to it, ‘Arise, devour much meat!’
• 6 After this I kept looking, and behold, another one, like a leopard, which had on its back four wings of a bird; the beast also had four heads, and dominion was given to it.
• 7 After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, fearsome and terrifying and extraordinarily strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns.
• 5 And there was given to him a mouth speaking great boasts and blasphemies, and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him.
• 9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear.
• 10 If anyone is destined for captivity, to captivity he goes; if anyone kills with the sword, with the sword he must be killed. Here is the perseverance and the faith of the saints.
• 3 Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy and keep the things which are written in it, for the time is near.

• The Beast from the Earth

  11 Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and he was speaking as a dragon.
• 27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.
• 28 In this way, you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

• The Leaders Plot to Kill Jesus

  47 Therefore the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the Sanhedrin together, and were saying, “What are we doing? For this man is doing many signs.
• 48 If we let Him go on like this, all will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”
• 12 And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed.
• 49 But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all,
• 50 nor do you take into account that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.”
• 51 Now he did not say this from himself, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation,
• 52 and not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.
• 53 So from that day on they planned together to kill Him.
• 54 Therefore Jesus no longer continued to walk openly among the Jews, but went away from there to the region near the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim; and there He stayed with the disciples.
• 55 Now the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up to Jerusalem from the region before the Passover to purify themselves.
• 56 So they were seeking Jesus, and were saying to one another as they stood in the temple, “What do you think? That He will not come to the feast at all?”
• 57 Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he was to report it, so that they might seize Him.
• 15 So they cried out, “Away with Him! Away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate *said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.”
• 7 Then Yahweh said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them.
• 8 Like all the deeds which they have done since the day that I brought them up from Egypt even to this day—in that they have forsaken Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you also.

• Yahweh Answers, He Is God

  36 Now it happened at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, today let it be known that You are God in Israel and that I am Your slave and I have done all these things at Your word.
• 37 Answer me, O Yahweh, answer me, that this people may know that You, O Yahweh, are God, and that You have turned their heart back again.”
• 38 Then the fire of Yahweh fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
• 10 And Elijah answered and spoke to the commander of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
• 14 And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which were given to him to do in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who *had the wound of the sword and has come to life.

• All Israel Will Be Saved

  25 For I do not want you, brothers, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in;
• 28 From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God’s choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers;
• 15 And it was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast would even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
• 4 And he took this from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made it into a molten calf; and they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.”
• 5 And Aaron looked and built an altar before it; and Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to Yahweh.”
• 16 And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, that they be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead,
• 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as phylacteries between your eyes.
• 18 “You shall therefore place these words of mine on your heart and on your soul; and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as phylacteries between your eyes.
• 34 For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales
• 35 and lay them at the apostles’ feet, and they would be distributed to each as any had need.
• 3 And when I arrive, whomever you may approve, I will send them with letters to carry your gracious gift to Jerusalem,
• 25 But now I am going to Jerusalem to serve the saints.
• 26 For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to share with the poor among the saints in Jerusalem.
• 27 Yes, they were pleased to do so, and they are indebted to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are indebted to minister to them also in material things.
• 18 Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of man; and his number is 666.
• 17 And he measured its wall, 144 cubits, according to human measurements, which are also angelic measurements.

• The Woman and the Beast

  Then one of the seven angels who have the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters,
• 3 And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; then I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns.
• 4 And the woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her sexual immorality,

• The Priests’ Garments

  “Now as for you, bring near to yourself Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the sons of Israel, to minister as priests to Me—Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons.
• 5 and on her forehead a name was written, a mystery, “BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.”

• The Tower of Babel

  Now the whole earth had the same language and the same words.

• Nebuchadnezzar Besieges Jerusalem

  Now in the ninth year of his reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his military force, against Jerusalem, and he camped against it and built a siege wall all around it.

• The Harlotries of Oholah and Oholibah

  The word of Yahweh came to me again, saying,
• 16 And she saw them and lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.
• 17 So the Babylonians came to her to the bed of love and defiled her with their harlotry. Then she became defiled by them, and her soul became disgusted with them.
• 18 And she uncovered her harlotries and uncovered her nakedness; then My soul became disgusted with her, as My soul had become disgusted with her sister.
• 19 Yet she multiplied her harlotries, remembering the days of her youth, when she played the harlot in the land of Egypt.
• 20 She lusted after their paramours, whose flesh is like the flesh of donkeys and whose issue is like the issue of horses.
• 21 Thus you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when the Egyptians handled your bosom because of the breasts of your youth.

• The Beast from the Sea

  And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore. Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names.

• The Vision of the Four Beasts

  In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel saw a dream and visions in his head as he lay on his bed; then he wrote the dream down and said the following summary of the matter.
• 8 “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come.
• 8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
• 9 Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits,
• 10 and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while.
• 15 And he *said to me, “The waters which you saw where the harlot sits, are peoples and crowds and nations and tongues.
• 11 And the beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction.
• 12 And the ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour.
• 13 These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast.
• 14 These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and elect and faithful.”
• 2 And leave out the court which is outside the sanctuary and do not measure it, for it has been given to the Gentiles, and they will trample the holy city under foot for forty-two months.
• 7 And I heard the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, as he raised his right hand and his left toward heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and half a time; and as soon as they complete shattering the power of the holy people, all these events will be completed.
• 17 For God gave it in their hearts to do His purpose both by doing their own common purpose and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be finished.

• Fallen Is Babylon

  After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illumined with his glory.
• 16 And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the harlot and will lay waste to her and make her naked, and will eat her flesh and will burn her up with fire.
• 18 And the woman whom you saw is the great city, which has a kingdom over the kings of the earth.”
• 8 And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.
• 8 Again, the devil *took Him to a very high mountain and *showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory;
• 9 and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.”
• 6 Then I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. When I saw her, I wondered greatly.
• 9 And he led Him to Jerusalem and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here,
• 3 For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her sexual immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the power of her sensuality.”
• 6

  He says, “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant

  To raise up the tribes of Jacob and to cause the preserved ones of Israel to return;

  I will also give You as a light of the nations

  So that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”
• 12 As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but an extension of life was given to them for an appointed season of time.
• 2 And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority.
• 10

  A river of fire was flowing

  And coming out from before Him;

  Thousands upon thousands were attending Him,

  And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him;

  The court sat,

  And the books were opened.
• 11 Then I kept looking because of the sound of the great boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was killed, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire.
• 51 And it happened that while He was blessing them, He parted from them and was carried up into heaven.
• 6 Then I saw in the midst of the throne and the four living creatures and in the midst of the elders a Lamb standing, as if slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent out into all the earth.
• 4 and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain. The first things passed away.”
• 53 For this corruptible must put on the incorruptible, and this mortal must put on immortality.
• 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;
• 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.
• 22 Now it happened that the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom, and the rich man also died and was buried.

• The Ancient of Days

  9

  “I kept looking

  Until thrones were set up,

  And the Ancient of Days was seated;

  His clothing was like white snow

  And the hair of His head like pure wool.

  His throne was ablaze with fire,

  Its wheels were a burning fire.
• 5 For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,
• 14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be proclaimed in the whole world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.
• 8 Be of sober spirit, be watchful. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
• 8

  Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance,

  And the ends of the earth as Your possession.

• You Are a Priest Forever

  Of David. A Psalm.

  Yahweh says to my Lord:

  “Sit at My right hand

  Until I put Your enemies as a footstool for Your feet.”
• 6

  “But as for Me, I have installed My King

  Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”
• 18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.

• New Jerusalem, the Holy City

  10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,

• The New Heaven and Earth

  Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.
• 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
• 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,

• New Heavens and a New Earth

  17

  “For behold, I am creating a new heavens and a new earth;

  And the former things will not be remembered or come upon the heart.
• 20

  No longer will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days,

  Or an old man who does not fulfill his days;

  For the youth will die at the age of one hundred,

  And the one who does not reach the age of one hundred

  Will be thought accursed.

• Prophecy Against Gog

  And the word of Yahweh came to me saying,

• Prophecy About Gog’s Judgment

  “Now as for you, son of man, prophesy against Gog and say, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal;
• 8 and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore.
• 9 And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them.
• 8 After many days you will be mustered; in the last years you will come into the land that is restored from the sword, whose inhabitants have been gathered from many peoples to the mountains of Israel which had been a continual waste; but its people were brought out from the peoples, and they are living securely, all of them.
• 11 and you will say, ‘I will go up against the land of unwalled villages. I will go against those who dwell quietly, that live securely, all of them living without walls and having no bars or gates,
• 18

  But be joyful and rejoice forever in what I create;

  For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing

  And her people for joy.
• 19

  I will also rejoice in Jerusalem and be joyful in My people;

  And there will no longer be heard in her

  The voice of weeping and the voice of crying.
• 26 and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written,

  “The Deliverer will come from Zion,

  He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.”
• 34 You continued looking until a stone was cut out without hands, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay and crushed them.
• 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed all at the same time and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away so that not a trace of them was found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
• 15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
• 2 And many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to reproach and everlasting contempt.
• 8 Love never fails, but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.
• 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
• 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away.
• 11 When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child. When I became a man, I did away with childish things.
• 12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.
• 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
• 50 Now I say this, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the corruptible inherit the incorruptible.
• 54 But when this corruptible puts on the incorruptible, and this mortal puts on immortality, then will come about the word that is written, “Death is swallowed up in victory.
• 55 O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
• 56 Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law;
• 57 but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!
• 31 And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.
• 23 And in Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and *saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom.

• The Man of Lawlessness

  Now we ask you, brothers, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him,
• 3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it has not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction,
• 9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.
• 10 And at that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another.
• 11 Many false prophets will arise and will deceive many.
• 12 And because lawlessness is multiplied, most people’s love will grow cold.
• 13 But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.
• 4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the sanctuary of God, exhibiting himself as being God.
• 6 And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he will be revealed.
• 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.

• Brothers, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation.
• 2 For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.
• 3 For not knowing about the righteousness of God and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.
• 34 Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.
• 16 but this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

• Yahweh Will Pour Out His Spirit

  28

  “And it will be afterwards

  That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind;

  And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy;

  Your old men will dream dreams;

  Your young men will see visions.
• 29

  Even on the male slaves and female slaves

  I will in those days pour out My Spirit.