Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.  Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. © Copyright 2010 - 2021  All rights reserved. Daniel 11 Explained (condensed ‘one page’ commentary) ‘Matthew 24’ Explained (must match Revelation) The ‘Seals’ Explained (Revelation timeline revealed) Seven Churches Explained (Past & Present Church Prophecy) Note: ‘Sitemap’ gives a complete list of all pages (by category). ‘Homepage’ shows timelines + summary. Current Events from Daniel 11 (matching the Middle East) The Abomination (Daniel 11:31) done Recent Events ISIS - Saudi - Turkey (Daniel 11: 24-27) Final Events to the Abomination (Daniel 11: 28-30) Shiites re-take Persia + America’s Role Begins (Daniel 11: 21-23) soon done done Related page: Salvation to Maturity (a simply guide) ‘Matthew 24’ Explained (must match Revelation) Related pages: The ‘Seals’ Explained (Revelation’s true timeline) Seals of Revelation 38 minutes Related videos: End Times Explained (pre-trib rapture) 40 minutes Re-written: 10-30-2021 ‘Pre-tribulation’ Proof  -  6th Seal Rapture   Yes, the title is correct.  It’s actually very easy to prove the rapture to be ‘pre-tribulation’.  However, for that to happen, a person must realize that the rapture in Matthew 24:29-31 matches the 6th Seal, which is easy to do because the signs in the sun, moon, and stars are unquestionably the same. (below)  Plus, the signs are too unique to be two separate occasions, both during end times, so the rapture is clearly the 6th Seal.    So, if the rapture is the 6th Seal, then it has to be ‘pre-tribulation’ because the “multitude from every nation” (Christians) are in heaven, “standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb,” in Revelation 7:9, between the 6th and 7th Seals.  That fact is crucial because the Trumpet plagues, in Rev 8, and the subsequent Bowl plagues, in Rev 16, literately can’t start until the 7th Seal is done (Rev 8), because the 7th Seal is a half hour of silence.  Naturally, Trumpets can’t sound during a ‘silence’.    Also, the 6th Seal is ‘pre-tribulation’ because Seals 1-5 were fulfilled during the last 2000-years, so Seal 6 is next.  Afterwards, the ‘post-rapture’ tribulation will consist of the Trumpets and Bowls.  That’s my simple explanation, which should be sufficient because Revelation should be the gold-standard that everyone goes by when discussing God’s plan for end times.    However, post-tribs would rather use other scriptures (incorrectly and out of context) and justify themselves by overlapping and re-arranging Revelation to fit.  For example, post-tribs mis-interpret Matthew 24:15-31 because they got into their heads, long ago, that only one group was described, and Jesus’ narrative was strictly sequential.  However, that’s not right.  Jesus is clearly describing two separate groups because it’s the same two groups that are in Revelation 7, following the 6th Seal.  The first group is the 144,000 Israelites (Jewish) who are selected and sealed by God, so they won’t be fooled by the false prophet.  However, they must still endure the Trumpet plagues and be martyred for not taking the mark of the beast. (Rev 14)  The second group, in Rev 7, is the “multitude from every nation” (Christians) who are standing immediately before the throne. (7:9)  Post-tribs shouldn’t ignore the existence of both groups in Matt 24:15-31 because that is the same as subtracting from Revelation, which is expressly forbidden and carries a severe penalty.   [See Matthew 24 page for more details w/chart.] Revelation 22:19 “And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.”   The penalty is severe because changing God’s prophecy of end times and teaching a different version is the exact definition of a false prophet.  The same penalty for false prophets was described by Jesus, in Matthew 7:15-23. (partial below)  Matthew 7:15; 21-23 15 "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. … 21 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 23 Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'   Post-tribs can look and sound religious (below), but anyone should have enough common sense to know that over-lapping and re-arranging God’s prophecy in Revelation is wrong and forbidden.  2 Corinthians 11:13-15 13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.  15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.   So, what do post-tribs say to spread their false prophecies and what is the truth?  Well, one of the first things they usually say is that the word ‘rapture’ is not in the Bible.  However, the word ‘rapture’ just means ‘caught up’ or ‘gathered in the sky’ and those are certainly in the Bible.   Jesus described the ‘gathering’ or rapture in Matthew 24:29-31. (below) Matthew 24:29-31 29 "Immediately after the distress of those days "'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.'   30 "At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. 31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.   Paul gave further details in 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 and 1 Thessalonians 4:17. (below) 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed- in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them  in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”    There is no question that Christians will be ‘gathered in the clouds’ to ‘meet Jesus in the air’, which is what ‘raptured’ means.  The main difference between pre-tribs and post-tribs is that pre-tribs recognize that we are gathered in the sky to attend the Wedding Supper of the Lamb and then return with Jesus, several years later, after the Trumpets and Bowls have taken place.  I never knew how post-tribs justify the ‘meeting in the air’ until I recently saw where one wrote that we meet Jesus in the air and then immediately return to earth.  However, he was clearly adding things that are not actually in the Bible.  In doing so, he was directly contradicting Revelation because the multitude from every nation (Christians) are in heaven in Rev 7.  We will be ‘standing before the Lamb, wearing white robes, and holding palm branches’, which symbolizes ‘arrival’. (7:9)  Then, in Revelation 19, we will be following Jesus back to earth, riding white horses. (19:14).  By the way, that occurs at the ‘end’ of the Wedding Supper, which is mentioned in 19:7.  Contrary to what some people claim, those are not angels riding the white horses because 19:6 mentions the “great multitude,” which matches the Christians in Rev 7.  Plus, 19:7-8 says the “bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.”  That perfectly matches the armies’ attire who are following Jesus on white horses. (19:14)    If a person actually reads Revelation, it’s easy to see that a lot happens between the ‘gathering’ (Rev 7) and the ‘returning’ (Rev 19), which can’t all happen instantly.  Post-tribs would have people believe that the gathering in the sky and returning to fight the beast all happens at once, which is ridiculous.  How could we go from standing in white robes, holding palm branches, to having made ourselves ‘ready’, changing into fine linen, and riding white horses back to earth, all at once?  That’s not Biblical or realistic.    By trying to condense everything into one event, post-tribs overlap the Seals, Trumpets, and Bowls, in Revelation, which causes them to re-arrange certain events, and exclude others.  However, subtracting anything from Revelation is forbidden.  For example, post-tribs put the antichrist and mark of the beast (Rev 13) before the 6th Seal rapture (Rev 6), which is clearly wrong because they are re-arranging God’s prophecy of end times.  They essentially exclude the two witnesses because, instead of real men, as the Bible says they are (Rev 11:6), post-tribs try to explain them away as being something symbolic.  However, in my opinion, that’s changing God’s prophecy and subtracting, which is forbidden.    Another thing post-tribs like to say is that ‘pre-tribulation’ was only proposed in the 1830’s, but that’s not exactly true.  Recent translations of a Byzantine theologian, Ephraem the Syrian, circa 373 AD, have shown that ‘pre-tribulation’ was around in the early church too.  When you think about it, the current books of the Bible were compiled in 330 AD, so Ephraem’s writings show that pre-tribulation was proposed very early.  Unfortunately, some teachings were probably lost during the corrupt years of the Catholic Church, especially during the dark ages.  The concept of pre-tribulation re-emerged in the 1830’s, when a young Scottish girl named Margaret MacDonald fell into a trance for several hours, during a meeting, and prophesied that Christ’s return would be in two phases.  I don’t know how detailed Miss MacDonald’s prophecy was, but she was not the one who adapted the concept to the Bible.  No, from what I understand, that task was left primarily to a Scottish preacher, Edward Irving, and an English preacher, John Darby.  Unfortunately, they chose to place the rapture in Revelation 4, which was totally wrong.  In my opinion, they should have known better because the signs in the sun, moon, and stars, during the rapture in Matthew 24:29-31, perfectly match the same signs during the 6th Seal.  Anyone can see that.  Plus, the multitude of Christians arrive in heaven between the 6th and 7th Seals, not Rev 4.  Irving and Darby probably chose Rev 4, instead, because they didn’t know how to explain Seals 1-5, since they were only on Seal 3, at the time.  Oh well, people make mistakes.  However, just because Irving and Darby put the rapture in the wrong place doesn’t mean that MacDonald’s vision or prophecy was wrong.  On the contrary, as I explained above, Revelation confirms MacDonald’s vision because the 6th Seal ‘gathering’ and 7th Bowl ‘return’ for Armageddon are clearly two separate events.  People shouldn’t let Irving and Darby’s mistake, almost 200-years ago, prevent them from seeing the facts and truth, now.     Frankly, I don’t know how Irving and Darby could make such a glaring mistake because putting the rapture in Revelation 4 puts it before the crucifixion in Rev 5, which is clearly wrong.  They also explained Seal 1 as being the ‘antichrist on the white horse’, which is a horrible misinterpretation because it clearly matches ‘Jesus on the white horse’, in Rev 19.  Seal 1 is clearly the ‘resurrection’ because it follows the crucifixion (slain Lamb) in Revelation 5.  Unfortunately, many old-school pre-tribs refuse to listen to anything new and hold fast to the errors that Irving and Darby made almost two centuries ago.    As for the other Seals, God provided His own brand of verification in the form of two 70-year periods to show that Seals 1-5 took place during the last 2000-years.  Seal 2 was the Jewish revolts, which spanned 70-years, from 66 AD to 136 AD, which ultimately got the Jews expelled from Palestine and Jerusalem.  Yet, that was necessary because Jeremiah prophesied that God would gather the Israelites and make them one nation again.  Naturally, they had to be scattered first.  Seal 3 is just a vague statement that illustrates God’s protection and prosperity for the Jews while they were scattered.  That prosperity was necessary because it gave them the means to buy their way back into the Promised Land.  Their first purchase was a multi- family property called Petah Tikvah, in 1878.  Seal 4 was clearly the Holocaust, since the historical facts such as number of deaths and various methods perfectly match the prophecy.  Plus, persecution in Europe sped the Jewish migration to Palestine and helped them become a nation again, in 1948, thus completing Jeremiah’s prophecy.  Notice the second 70-year period between the first settlement, in 1878, and Israel’s declaration of independence, in 1948.  That means God placed two 70-year periods, within the Seals, for verification at a later time, which is now.  Seal 5 is just a waiting period, when some Christians will be martyred for spreading the gospel, which has already been satisfied, but will technically continue until the 6th Seal is broken and the rapture happens.  This explanation is not only logical but fills in a 2000-year gap in Revelation.  Plus, God provided two 70-year periods for verification, so what else do some people need?  [The Seals Page has more details.]   I keep emphasizing the Seals because this explanation is the only interpretation for Revelation that has no contradictions or manipulations.  The old-school pre-tribs should be happy to finally have an explanation that makes sense with no contradictions, but many will not listen to anything new.  That’s a shame.  When you think about it, the main difference I have with old-school pre-tribs is whether the Seals are past or future, which is relatively minor.  However, it’s vitally important because it moves the rapture from Revelation 4 to Revelation 6 (6th Seal), where it belongs.  That change is relatively minor on paper, but absolutely critical because it single-handedly eliminates all pre-trib contradictions and should eliminate all post-trib desires to overlap and re-arrange Revelation.    As for what post-tribs think about the Seals, it’s hard to get a straight answer because, like the old-school pre-tribs, they just claim they’re in the future and don’t explain much.  I’m pretty sure they have the same problem with Seal 1 as the old-school pre-tribs because they also claim it’s the antichrist instead of the resurrection of Jesus.  That’s where the similarities with pre-tribs stop because post-tribs accept that the 6th Seal is the rapture.  However, post-tribs can’t accept my logical explanation for Seals 1-5 because it instantly proves them wrong.  I mean, they can’t overlap everything with the Seals, if Seals 1-5 are in the past.    Post-tribs shouldn’t be overlapping the Seals, Trumpets, and Bowls anyway.  It’s a ridiculous concept because the Seals sound nothing like the Trumpets and Bowls.  Some of the Trumpets and Bowls deal with similar things, but the Trumpets are clearly different because Trumpets 1-4 address ‘one-third’ of this or that, and the Bowls are more severe and complete.  For example, the 2nd Trumpet causes one-third of the sea to turn to blood and one-third of the sea creatures die. (Rev 8:8-9)  On the contrary, the 2nd Bowl causes all the sea to turn to blood and all the sea creatures die. (Rev 16:3)  If post-tribs insist on overlapping, then they are essentially eliminating the 2nd Trumpet’s “one-third” because the 2nd Bowl completely overshadows it.    Some may ask, “What’s the big deal about being overshadowed?”  Well, it’s a very big deal because the Seals, Trumpets, and Bowls are not just a collection of events, but specific time- periods when those events occur.  The Trumpets take place during the first 42-months after the rapture, when the two witnesses are prophesying in Jerusalem and the antichrist is rising to power elsewhere in the Middle East (most likely Iran).  At the end of 42-months, the ‘beast’ (armies of the antichrist) successfully invade Israel and kill the two witnesses. (Rev 11:7)  That is also the 6th Trumpet War in Rev 9:13-21.  A person can clearly see that the 1260-days that the two witnesses prophesy are during the Trumpet plagues because the 7th Trumpet sounds after they arise and ascend to heaven. (Rev 11:11-15)  Likewise, the 42-months that the antichrist rises to power is also during the Trumpet plagues because it is the ‘beast’ who kills the two witnesses, after they are done. (Rev 11:7)  That’s when the antichrist will set himself up in God’s Temple, which will be built while the two witnesses are prophesying and protecting the builders.  The antichrist will not have long to enjoy the win because God will send an earthquake that destroys one-tenth of the city and kills 7000 people. (Rev 11:13)  Personally, I think that is when the antichrist is severely wounded (but later healed). (13:12)  That paves the way for the false prophet to perform many signs and miracles on behalf of the antichrist, even forcing the mark of the beast upon Israel. (Rev 13:12:17)  That’s when the 144,000 will be rounded up and beheaded for refusing the mark. (Rev 14)  Only then can the Bowls start, since the 1st Bowl mentions the mark of the beast.  Thus, the Bowl plagues will continue for about 36-months, completing the 2300-day (78 lunar month) post-rapture tribulation. (Daniel 8:13-14)  My point is: The Seals, Trumpets, and Bowls each represent specific time-periods with different events.  The Seals are considered the “great tribulation” when people can have their sins washed in the blood of the Lamb.  The Trumpets and Bowls are separate and distinct time-periods after the rapture.  If the post-tribs overlap everything into one time-period, then they are essentially subtracting about half of Revelation and drastically changing God’s prophecy of end times.  Post-tribs will deny that they are subtracting (since they are overlapping), but common sense can see that overlapping subtracts from God’s prophecy, which is forbidden.    The post-trib overlapping and re-arrangement of Revelation forces everything before the rapture, which is wrong and dangerous because they have people looking for the wrong signs.  For example, if a person is told that they will definitely see the antichrist, mark of the beast, and 3rd Temple, before Jesus’ return, then that could cause them to procrastinate before being saved and thus miss heaven.  In other words, changing God’s prophecy in Revelation can be tragic for some people, which is why there’s such a severe penalty for false prophets who do it.   Revelation 22:19 “And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.”   Of course, post-tribs don’t advertise their overlapping techniques, unless you ask specific questions.  But remember, they all do it because that’s the only way they can force the 6th Seal rapture to the ‘end’, so it can overlap with Armageddon.  Don’t listen to them. So, Instead of Revelation, what Scriptures do Post-tribs like to use?   The bread-n-butter for post-tribs, which they almost always go back to is Matthew 24:15-31 because they consider it to be ‘sequential’ and describe ‘one continuous group’.  However, I’ve already explained that Jesus’ narrative in Matt 24:15-31 must contain two separate and different groups because they are the same two groups as in Revelation 7.  After all, the two accounts of end times must match.  And when it comes to God’s plan for end times, Revelation should be the gold-standard on which other scriptures are compared, not the other way around.  In other words, post-tribs shouldn’t overlap and re-arrange Revelation to match their misinterpretation of Matthew 24, which is a shorter and vaguer.  On the contrary, people should examine Matt 24:15-31 in the context of Revelation, which was given later, with more details.  That’s just common sense.  If that is done, then it’s easy to see that Matt 24:15-31 is describing the same two groups as Revelation 7.  They are the 144,000 Israelites (Jews) who are ‘sealed by God’ but remain on earth and the multitude of Christians who are gathered immediately to meet Jesus in the clouds (raptured).  When post-tribs insist that Matt 24:15-31 is describing just one group, they are essentially subtracting the 2nd group from Revelation, which is forbidden.    Another reason they like Matthew 24 is that the KJV of verse 29 says, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give it’s light …” (24:29)  They like to dwell on the word ‘tribulation’, in that sentence, and say that it proves the rapture comes after the tribulation.  However, that’s not true.  First of all, in the KJV, ‘tribulation’ is a common word that is used 22 times.  When compared to the NIV, which uses modern English, 21 of those times are translated into different words such as distress, trouble, hardships, suffering, persecution, and afflictions.  In fact, the only time that the NIV uses the word ‘tribulation’ is in Rev 7:14 when referring to the “great tribulation,” since that obviously refers to a specific time-period.  Revelation 7:13-14 “Then one of the elders asked me, "These in white robes-who are they, and where did they come from?"  14 I answered, "Sir, you know."  And he said, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.   When a person understands the true meaning of the Seals, then that verse makes perfect sense because it’s speaking in ‘past tense’, about Seals 1-6 in Revelation 6.  After all, the period between the resurrection (Seal 1) and rapture (Seal 6) is the only time someone can ‘wash their robe in the blood of the Lamb’.  So, when Matt 24:29 says, “after the tribulation  in those days,” it is technically correct because the abomination, in Matthew 24:15, will start the 6th Seal rapture, which will end the ‘great tribulation’, but start the ‘post-rapture’ tribulation.    The 6th Seal rapture starts with an earthquake, which I think will generate a tsunami, which will have people ‘perplexed and anguished at the tossing of the sea’. (Luke 21:25)  Of course, it takes a little time for a tsunami to reach the shore.  So, whether the word ‘tribulation’ in Matt 24:29 is referring to the general distress caused by the earthquake and tsunami, or the fact that the “great tribulation” of the Seals is ending, both make sense with my explanation of the Seals and the two groups in Rev 7.  2nd Thessalonians 2   Another passage that post-tribs like to use is 2 Thess 2, but they use it out of context.  2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 “Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. 3 Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God.”      As you can see by verses 1-2, Paul is just trying to squash a rumor (lie about him) that the rapture had already happened.  To support his denial, Paul is just naming some things that happen during end times.  He is not trying to give a definitive timeline.  If you examine it carefully, verse-by-verse, only verse 3 says it is before the rapture, which is correct.  That’s because the “rebellion” Paul is referring to is the ‘uprising and abomination’, in Dan 11:31, which does indeed happen just before the rapture.  Paul’s use of the word “rebellion” is consistent with Daniel 8:13-14, which refers to the abomination as the “rebellion that causes desolation,” which is just a way to include the uprising and abomination together.  After the rebellion or abomination, there was nothing more that Paul could have included, before the rapture, because the rapture happens almost immediately after the abomination.  Consequently, verse 4 is just elaborating on the previous verse and explaining what the man of lawlessness (antichrist) does later, … years later   Another comparison to show how these verses fit on the actual timeline is to compare this passage to Daniel 11, since Jesus specifically referred to the prophet Daniel when speaking about end times and the abomination. (Matt 24:15)  Like I said before, the ‘rebellion’ in verse 3 matches the ‘uprising’, which sets up the abomination in Daniel 11:31.  However, the actions of the antichrist, in verse 4, such as exalting himself above God, perfectly match Daniel 11:36, which is five verses after Daniel 11:31.  That fact shows that verses 3 and 4 don’t happen at the same time.    As I said before, the antichrist cannot set himself up in God’s Temple until the two witnesses are killed because they will be too powerful.  They are only killed after they finish prophesying, which is 1260-days (42 months) after the rapture.  That allows plenty of time for the 3rd Temple  to be built, which can only happen while the two witnesses are alive and protecting the building process.  That’s why John is told to “go and measure the temple of God …,” just before the two witnesses are introduced. (Rev 11:1)  I think the ‘measuring’ is actually for the Temple Mount and represents ‘surveying’, which is always done before any building can start.  In current events reality, any hint of ground-breaking on the Temple Mount would send Muslims into a frenzy, so only someone as powerful as the two witnesses could supernaturally hold them back until the Temple is done.    So, by comparing this passage to Daniel and Revelation, we can see that verses 3 and 4 are actually about 1260-days or 42-months apart.  The post-tribs are using Paul’s writing out of context (squashing a rumor) and manipulating Revelation to match, which is the opposite of what they should be doing.  Like I said, Revelation should be the gold-standard for God’s timeline of end times, not a short passage from Paul that was written for a different purpose.  Last Words   Thanks for reading.  I know this is the same general information that I’ve written before, but hopefully I combined some elements from different pages and explained them better.  I know I was repetitious in some areas, but sometimes, that’s the best way to teach.  As a teacher of math and science, for several years, I had to repeat myself often, in various ways, to get the students to understand and remember.    I wish all Christians could come together and accept this logical explanation of end times and agree on Revelation.  That would set a great example for non-Christians and perhaps persuade some to be saved.  However, in today’s society, I’d probably have equal luck wishing for world peace.  All I can do is present the information as best I can.  After that, all I can do is wait for Jesus to come and sort things out.  God only knows an individual’s true motives for teaching what they teach.  1 Corinthians 4:5 “Therefore, judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.”  Page available for printing on PDF.
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