By Dennis Edwards:
Pre-wrath Rapture Chart posted by Michelle Troup McCullough with my comments.
This first chart was posted by Michelle showing the new "cutting short" doctrine with the Pre-Wrath Rapture Chart.
This second chart is my correction of Michelle's chart as much as I was able to do with my limited knowledge of microsoft photoshop. Sorry they have come out so small.
Following is my explanation for Michelle. For those who are not familiar with Bible prophecy it may be a bit tedious or hard to understand. I suggest you follow Mark McMillion's Daniel classes on YouTube which can be found here. I would suggest you roll down on his page and start with the classes at the bottom of his page such as: Introduction to Bible Prophecy, Daniel 2, Daniel 7, Daniel 8, Alexander the Great Comes to Israel, Famous Failure Prophecies, Daniel 9 and Some Say the Antichrist Has Come.
The picture above gives the basic outline of the Post-Tribulation view. We see the Tribulation period divided into two 3 1/2 year periods. The heading should be the Last Seven Years. The Tribulation period is only the second have of the seven year period or 3 1/2 years. The Rapture of the saints occurs after the tribulation. Once the Rapture takes place, then begins the 30-75 days of the Wrath of God. In the chart directly above, however, is missing the 30 to 75 days of wrath which occurs after the Rapture. Jesus' actual return to take over the earth occurs at the Battle of Armageddon and takes place at or after the first 30 days of the Wrath have taken place.
The first diagram above, the 70 Weeks chart, correctly shows the 30 days plus 45 extra days, which occur after the 3 and 1/2 years of tribulation. I would designate the 30-75 days as the Wrath and mopping up exercise where God's forces take control of the earthly kingdoms. The 75 days precede the 1,000 year Millenium of Christ's rule on earth. Jesus' forces come back at the 1290 day of Daniel 12:11 durung the Battle of Armageddon. The Wrath terminates at the 1,335 day of Daniel 12:12 or 75 days after the Rapture.
The following is my letter to Michelle.
Is the “Cutting Short” Scriptural?
I took some liberties to adjust the first time table-above, to what I believe is a more accurate interpretation of the scriptures. The view I hold to is found in the second time-table. Two things surprised me the most in the chart you presented. The first was how people get so confused with the Seals. They try to put them in chronological order and cannot see how they are panoramic in their scope.
The second view, that was new to me, and reminded me of the pre-tribulation doctrine, is the idea of “cutting short” the Tribulation period to less than 3 ½ years. Over and over again in God’s word the Tribulation is described as a period of 3 ½ years. Let’s look at some of them.
The first place we see the 3 ½ year period is in Daniel. We read, “And he, (the Antichrist), shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they, (God’s people), shall be given into his hand until a time, (one year), and times, (two years), and the dividing of time, (half a year)."[1]
We see nearly the same imagery when talking about the Antichrist in Revelation. “And there was given unto him, (Antichrist), a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months, (which is 3 ½ years)…And it was given unto him, (the Antichrist), to make war with the saints, and to overcome them.”[2] The saints are obviously God’s people and the 3 ½ years cannot be missed.
Even a simple reading of Matthew 24 shows that God’s people will suffer through the Great Tribulation and be Raptured after the Tribulation. First of all, we need to remember that Jesus is answering the question of his disciples: “What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?”[3]
He gives them the various “signs of the times” or “the beginnings of sorrows,” which you are familiar with and finally leads up to the statement: “When you therefore shall see the Abomination of Desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whosoever reads, let him understand).”[4] What in the world is Jesus talking about here? To find out, we need to look back to Daniel.
In Daniel 9 we find one of the passages talking about the Abomination of Desolation. “And he, (again talking about the Antichrist), shall confirm the covenant with many for one week, or seven year period: and in the midst of the week, (or half way through the seven year period-3½ years), he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”
Traditionally this passage has been understood to mean that half way through the seven year pact, at the 3½ year mark, the Antichrist will Break the Covenant. He stops the sacrifice in the rebuilt Jewish Temple on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and “places the abomination that makes desolate” there instead.
In another passage in Daniel concerning the Abomination of Desolation we read, “And arms shall stand on his part, (the Antichrist’s), and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that makes desolate.” Some eschatology students have speculated that the Abomination of Desolation may have something to do with the “Image of the Beast” spoken of in Revelation 13 which all the world is forced to worship.[5]
Paul seems to be talking about the Breaking of the Covenant which happens at the beginning of the Tribulation in his warning to the Thessalonians. He writes, “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, (in other words the Rapture), that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, (the Antichrist); who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”[6]
Here we see the Antichrist in the Temple demanding to be worshipped, which seems to take place at the time of the placing of the Abomination of Desolation.
Revelation shows us that the Antichrist will be successful in gaining popularity. “And all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon, the devil, which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? Who is able to make war with him?...And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not found written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”[7]
Going back to Matthew 24, we see Jesus saying, “When ye therefore shall see the Abomination of Desolation stand in the holy place…then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.”[8] “Immediately after the tribulation of those days…he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”[9]
What we notice here in these verses is that Jesus is saying that it is for the elect’s sake that the days would be shortened. But then we see the elect being raptured “immediately after the tribulation.” Therefore, since the elect are present during the Tribulation and then at the Rapture the “cutting short” is in fact the 3 ½ year period.
God lets us know exactly how long the persecution will be to encourage us during this terrible period of history. In this case, knowing the length of the Tribulation will give us strength and conviction to hang on. It will help us keep fighting the good fight of faith, knowing that our Lord will soon return to deliver us and bring Satan’s demise for a thousand years.
I can understand why people look for these escape hatches from passing through the persecution. That is why the pre-Tribulation doctrine was so popular. People long to escape the Tribulation period. Now again, we seem to have a similarly unscriptural doctrine in the “cutting short.”As much as I would like for it to be true, it is just not so.
The period of Tribulation is revealed to us over and over again in the scripture to be 3 ½ years. It will not be secretly “cut short” to save God’s people from having to suffer any longer. In fact scripture says he will be giving us power for witnessing and power for miracles. “But the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. And they that understand among the people shall instruct many.”[10]
Daniel goes on to say, “And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, (like the 144,000 who were given white robes),[11] even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.”[12] In other words, the end will not come earlier than it is appointed to, it will not come sooner.
If we look at the two end-time witnesses we see the same thing. We see that “the holy city shall be given to the Gentiles: and they shall tread it under foot forty and two months, (or 3 ½ years).”[13] The prophecy is talking about when the Antichrist breaks the covenant and takes over the Temple Mount and the Temple and Jerusalem itself. Then concerning the two end-time witnesses we read, “And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, (or 3 ½ years).”[14]
The two witnesses will not be cowering, but will witness with power and miracles. Nevertheless, they will also be killed. But their death shall be turned into victory at the Rapture. So, again we see no escape. God lets them suffer and be killed. But remember what Jesus said, “And fear not them which can kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”[15]
To me it seems that the “cutting short” idea must be coming from one of those preachers with “itching ears,” who turn our hearts away from the truth. “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.”[16]
We believe what we want to. We do not want to hear that we, our children, or our grandchildren or some future generation will have to suffer through 3 ½ years of Tribulation. Let’s invent a doctrine, a fable, to save our sorry selves from the persecution Satan shall be unleashing on us and all those who refuse to obey him.
The scriptures repeat the 3 ½ year period more than seven times in Revelation and Daniel. I counted ten. But I guess God doesn’t mean what he says. Yet the scripture says that “God is not a man that he should lie.”[17] Maybe the Lord will “come as a thief in the night”[18] and cut things short? And yet he has told us that “you are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.”[19]
I think we are just having wishful thinking with the “cutting short” doctrine, because we do not want to suffer? But Peter admonishes us, “But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s suffering; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy!”[20]
The Pre-Last Seven Year’s Birth Pangs or Sign of the Times
In the chart I would put the “Beginning Birth Pangs of Matthew 24” from the time of Christ through to the Breaking of the Covenant at the mid-seven year period, not just during the first half of the Tribulation period. Perhaps, like a woman in labor, these signs may become more frequent and more intense, which many Bible students claim is the case. It is obvious that false Christs have already arisen and there have been wars and rumor of wars, earthquakes, pestilences, and famines in diverse places, with the hearts of man growing colder.[21] And yet, we are not in the last seven year period, as far as we know.
But many believe we are already in the “beginning of sorrows,” of Matthew 24. You cannot just put those “pangs” during the first 3 ½ year period. They are occurring before the beginning of the last seven years, like right now, though they may be more intense during the last seven year period.
In Daniel we find another verse which also serves as one of the “signs of the times.”We read, “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.”[22]Obviously this prophecy is talking about today’s mass rapid transportation system and the new vast web of information now available through the internet. These are signs of “the time of the end.”
But the book of Daniel has been shut up or man has been unable to properly understand it, until “the time of the end.” The fact that the prophecy seems to be fulfilled, plus we seem to be able to understand the Daniel prophecies serves as a good warning that we are living near to or in “the time of the end.”
Understanding Daniel 8
In Daniel 8 we read, “How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?”[23] From the same chapter, we see that “at the time of the end shall be the vision,” and “I will make thee know what shall be in the last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end shall be,” and later still, “in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up.”[24] Therefore, we know this prophecy of Daniel 8 is concerning the last days and specifically for the last seven year period.
The vision in Daniel has two parts, “the daily sacrifice” and the “transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and host to be trodden under foot.” The “daily sacrifice” has been traditionally understood as a returning to the ritualistic Jewish custom of daily sacrifice on the Temple Mount.
The Temple Institute in Jerusalem is specifically working to bring this possibility to fruition. The second part of the verse has been understood to be the Tribulation period when the Antichrist stops the newly invoked daily sacrifice, places the Abomination of Desolation in the Temple and begins his persecution of all those who do not accept the Mark of the Beast.
God’s People are Persecuted During the Great Tribulation for 3 ½ Years
In Daniel 7 we have seen that the little horn, the Antichrist, “made war with the saints, and prevailed against them…and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.”[25] In Daniel 8 we see the little horn again, and it “waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.”[26]
Later in Daniel 12 we see further in response to the question, “How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?” The response is “that it shall be for a time, times, and an half, (again we see the 3 ½ years); and when he, (the Antichrist), shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.”[27] In these verses we see God’s people, whether or not they are newly converted Jews, we do not know; but we do know that they are Christian saints, and that they are persecuted: “the host to be trodden under foot,” “made war with the saints, and prevailed against them,” “cast down some of the host…and stamped upon them,” and “accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people.”
Very much in the same way we see in Revelation 12 the Woman, the Church, fleeing into the wilderness from the face of the serpent “for a time, and times, and half a time,”[28] the same 3 ½ year period. We also read “And the woman fled into the wilderness… that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days,”[29] again 3 ½ years. “And the dragon was wroth with the woman,” remember the Woman is the church of believers which we see will be persecuted during the Tribulation period and not just Mary, the mother of Jesus; “and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”[30]
In Revelation 13 we see the same events from a different perspective. Talking about the Antichrist we read “and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.”[31]Forty-two months is 3 ½ years. A bit further on it says, “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.”[32] So the during the Great Tribulation God will be tribulating the unbelieving world, while the Antichrist will be persecuting God’s people and any others that refuse to submit to him.
The point I am trying to show you is that the scriptures are pretty clear that the Antichrist is persecuting God’s people, the saints, the believing Christians, during the 3 ½ year period of Great Tribulation.
The 2,300 day period mentioned in Daniel 8 is talking about the period of the sacrifice at the rebuilt Jewish temple before the Tribulation and the period of the Tribulation/persecution of the saints after the Breaking of the Covenant.[33]
Since we know the persecution will be for 1260 days or 3 ½ years, or 42 months, or times, time and half a time; all we need to do is subtract 1260 from 2300 and we get the length of the period of time of the sacrifice and oblation. Doing the math, we find there will be a total of 1040 days of sacrifice before the Breaking of the Covenant and then 1260 days of Tribulation afterwards, for a total of 2300 days.
Who are the 144,000?
Another thing that usually screws up people’s interpretation of Revelation is Scofield’s unscriptural footnotes and doctrine giving special place to the unsaved Jews who will find Christ during the Tribulation period.
We have no way to know if the 144,000 are saved Jews or saved Christians. The mixing of Jewish blood throughout the Christian nations is widespread, so who is it that does not have the blood of Shem within his DNA? I saw one mathematical study which seemed to indicate that everyone in the world would have DNA from Shem by this time. Also, some say that most of today’s Jews are not descendents from Jewish blood but in fact from a bloodline that were converts to Judaism.
Are the 144,000 saints of the Tribulation flesh Jews, or could they be spiritual Jews that Paul talks about in Romans? “For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.”[34] And later in Galatians he writes, “And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”[35]
If God sees fit to have 144,000 flesh Jews in Israel become believers in Christ, that’s wonderful. But let’s not leave them to suffer alone while we get secretly raptured away in some “cutting short” of the Tribulation period. We, the believers on Christ, are in this together, whatever our flesh bloodline may be. Let’s not believe the “fables” of “itching ears” preachers. Even Jesus said, “the flesh profits nothing.”[36]
The Key in Matthew 24 – the Abomination of Desolation or the Breaking of the Covenant
Jesus gave us the key sign in Matthew 24 when he said, “When ye shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet stand in the Holy place (whosoever reads, let him understand.)”[37] We then go down further to where we read, “For then there shall be Great Tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.”[38]
The sacrifice and oblation plus the Tribulation period equal 2,300 days. Therefore, I have put the 220 days for the rebuilding of the Jewish temple, where sacrificial worship will take place once again, at the beginning of the seven year period.
How did I get the 220 days? Well, the whole seven year period is 1260 days plus 1260 days or a period of 2520 days. If we subtract the 2300 days, which is the period of both the sacrifice/oblation before the Breaking of the Covenant and the period of the Great Tribulation afterwards, we are left with 220 days. (To read more on the 2,300 days of Danoel 8 click HERE.)
The Temple Institute in Jerusalem, which I mentioned earlier, has already made the plans for the rebuilding of the Temple and already has the stones prepared for assembling. So it is possible that during the 220 day period, which is a little more than seven months, the Temple could be rebuilt. The Temple itself was not a very large building, though the original Temple had other buildings with it on the Temple compound. Bible scholars believe the Holy Covenant will give the Jews the right to rebuild a temple on the Temple Mount.
Apostle Paul describes the Breaking of the Covenant with these words which we have also looked at earlier, “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day, the day of Christ’s appearing and our gathering together unto him, shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”[39] The Breaking of the Covenant starts the 3 ½ years of Tribulation.
To go to Part 2
Footnotes
[1] Daniel 7:25
[2] Revelation 13:5,7a
[3] Matthew 24:3b
[4] Matthew 24:15
[5] Revelation 13:14,15
[6] 2Thessalonians 2:1-4
[7] Revelation 13:3a,4,8
[8] Matthew 24:15,21,22
[9] Matthew 24:29a,31
[10] Daniel 11:32b,33a
[11] Revelation 7:13,14
[12] Daniel 11:35
[13] Revelation 11:2
[14] Revelation 11:3
[15] Matthew 10:28
[16] 2Timothy 4:3-4
[17] Numbers 23:19
[18] 1Thessalonians 5:2
[19] 1Thessalonians 5:4
[20] 1Peter4:13
[21] Matthew 24:5-8,12
[22] Daniel 12:4
[23] Daniel 8:13-14
[24] Daniel 8:17, 19, 23
[25] Daniel 7: 21, 25b
[26] Daniel 8: 10
[27] Daniel 12: 6-7
[28] Revelation 12: 14
[29] Revelation 12: 6
[30] Revelation 12:17
[31] Revelation 13:5
[32] Revelation 13:7
[33] Daniel 8:13,14
[34] Romans 2: 28-29
[35] Galatians 3: 29
[36] John 6:63
[37] Matthew 24: 15
[38] Matthew 24: 21
[39] 2 Thessalonians 2: 1-4
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