The prophecies in the Bible describe future events with such detail that they even provide the means to construct a timeline of how the events will unfold prior to the Second Coming.  Although we are told by Christ that we cannot know the exact day and hour of his coming, the Bible does provide enough information to map out an end times chronology with amazing precision.  This section discusses the major events of the last days with a view toward piecing them together into a coherent diagram of things to come.  The references to Biblical prophecies mentioned in this chapter also are described more thoroughly in the other section links found at the top of this page.

Knowing the Times

Now that the prophecies of the last days have been discussed with great detail, the entire end times chronology of events leading up to the Second Coming can be placed together like a puzzle with a high level of accuracy.  These pieces come together from diverse sources from within the Bible, which create correlating events and time frames that can be carefully assembled into a logical picture.  Sometimes, it can be difficult to get a feel for the overall perspective of the last days if we concentrate too deeply on isolated events.  For instance, learning about specific prophecies like the rise of the Antichrist, the rebirth of Israel, or the nuclear conflicts surrounding Armageddon doesn’t necessarily explain how each one of these events fits together within the whole end times scenario.  However, upon careful study, the Bible can be found to provide intricate information regarding the way each of the prophecies of the end will unfold relative to each other as Christ’s return approaches.

This is not to say that we can assign precise dates on events before they occur.  For example, it would have been difficult or impossible to predict the exact date of Israel’s rebirth as a nation before it took place in 1948, even though it was a spectacular fulfillment of many Biblical prophecies.  For most prophecies of the last days, God simply does not provide the date when they will occur in advance of their happening.  Many have erred in this regard by trying to predict the exact date of an event through some obscure mathematical calculations or through their own contorted view of the Bible.  For instance, literally hundreds of people have foolishly tried to predict the date of Christ’s return by using methods that are not based upon the clear teachings of the Bible and virtually all of these attempts have failed (see: http://www.bible.ca/pre-date-setters.htm).

However, for many Biblical prophecies it is indeed possible to determine the correct end times chronology between when one event will occur and the time when other prophecies occur relative to it.  The Bible makes many predictions of end time events that provide precision timings between those events, as though they were flag posts or sentinel events within the last days.  For instance, it is predicted clearly that the Antichrist will be given power to reign for exactly 42 months (Rev. 13:5).  We can know therefore, that when the Antichrist comes to power as the leader of the final world empire his term will only last 3.5 years (actually 1260 days, which represents 3.5 years from the Jewish calendar consisting of 360-day years—more on this later).  Other prophecies also have precise timings associated with them, and it is these timings that we can use to put together a highly accurate chronology of the last days…[more]