Post by bruce on Feb 8, 2023 10:35:49 GMT -6
Hello all,
The recent World War 3 rumors have got me thinking again about rapture and tribulation timelines. After Gary's "The Final Four" article and various videos by other watchmen arguing for the tribulation to start between now and 2026, I started wondering if it were possible to zero in on some more specific scenarios with plausibility. Others already have put forth some interesting timelines to ponder, and what follows are just my own personal observations.
In particular, I have started to ponder the relationship between the destruction of America and the rapture and the start of the Tribulation. It seems increasingly likely that America will be diminished in the years ahead if not rendered unrecognizable by war and economic collapse. Bible prophecy does not mention America which adds weight to the idea that America will undergo some sort of serious downfall. A separate issue is whether America fits with one of the end times Babylons described in the Bible, but for my purposes it doesn't really matter. It is enough that America seems to be at the center of the current world order and must be removed for the antichrist kingdom to rise in its place.
So my first question is when will America fall? If the signs in the heavens are a clue, I would say 2024. That's when the second solar eclipse completes the X across America. If America's downfall comes from an attack by China and/or Russia, 2024 would make a certain amount of geopolitical sense. Those nations might try to attack the US while the Biden administration is still in power. They know Biden's weakness, and after 2024 there could be stronger leadership (even another Democrat might take a stronger defensive posture than Biden). If America were destroyed in 2025 or 2026 it would be during a new administration, and the 7-year warning from the solar eclipses would not seem to be pointing as precisely towards the fulfilment of judgment.
So, if it is the case that America’s destruction will come in 2024, the next question is how does that fit into rapture and tribulation timelines? I have two ideas:
The first scenario is a rapture this year and tribulation this fall stretching from 2023 to 2030. In this scenario America would survive for a few months to a year into Daniel’s 70th week before being destroyed, likely in conjunction with some of the Revelation judgments. The rapture alone might be enough of a punch in the gut to America to make room for the rise of the antichrist before America is destroyed completely. This scenario puts the second coming in what I believe may be the 2000th anniversary of the start of Jesus’ ministry and would therefore seem to place Jesus’ two public advents exactly 2000 years apart.
The second scenario is that the rapture does not happen until just before or in conjunction with America’s destruction sometime in 2024. In this scenario I tend to look forward to when I think Jesus is likely to return related to the end of his ministry and count back to find the start of the tribulation. As someone who thinks Jesus ascended in 33AD, I tend to think that if the second coming is not in 2030, it probably won’t happen until 2032 or 2033 to correspond with the year of the 2000th anniversary of Jesus’ ascension. I know there is controversy over these dates and those debates have happened elsewhere, but I am just sharing my assumptions.
So, if the year running from the fall of 2032 to the fall of 2033 is the 2000th anniversary of Jesus ascension, I think a fall 2032 second coming would make a lot of sense, which would put the start of the tribulation in the fall of 2025. However, if America is destroyed in 2024, that would leave a year in between America’s destruction and the start of Daniel’s 70th week. I think it is unlikely that the rapture would happen after America’s destruction because the Bible seems to indicate that the rapture takes the world by surprise. It comes as a thief in the night and as in the days of Noah and Lot. People are going about their lives in a wicked world. If America collapses, the world will descend into chaos almost instantly. So, in this scenario I think the rapture would happen in 2024, America would be destroyed, and this would start the gap which would last approximately a year to a year and a half before Daniel’s 70th week started in the fall of 2025.
I am hoping for the first scenario for two reasons, first I want to get out of here sooner than later. Second, for the sake of Americans who will be left behind, I am hoping that they will have time before judgment falls on this nation to turn to Christ. That said, God is in control, and this will all play out according to his plan. Maranatha!
The recent World War 3 rumors have got me thinking again about rapture and tribulation timelines. After Gary's "The Final Four" article and various videos by other watchmen arguing for the tribulation to start between now and 2026, I started wondering if it were possible to zero in on some more specific scenarios with plausibility. Others already have put forth some interesting timelines to ponder, and what follows are just my own personal observations.
In particular, I have started to ponder the relationship between the destruction of America and the rapture and the start of the Tribulation. It seems increasingly likely that America will be diminished in the years ahead if not rendered unrecognizable by war and economic collapse. Bible prophecy does not mention America which adds weight to the idea that America will undergo some sort of serious downfall. A separate issue is whether America fits with one of the end times Babylons described in the Bible, but for my purposes it doesn't really matter. It is enough that America seems to be at the center of the current world order and must be removed for the antichrist kingdom to rise in its place.
So my first question is when will America fall? If the signs in the heavens are a clue, I would say 2024. That's when the second solar eclipse completes the X across America. If America's downfall comes from an attack by China and/or Russia, 2024 would make a certain amount of geopolitical sense. Those nations might try to attack the US while the Biden administration is still in power. They know Biden's weakness, and after 2024 there could be stronger leadership (even another Democrat might take a stronger defensive posture than Biden). If America were destroyed in 2025 or 2026 it would be during a new administration, and the 7-year warning from the solar eclipses would not seem to be pointing as precisely towards the fulfilment of judgment.
So, if it is the case that America’s destruction will come in 2024, the next question is how does that fit into rapture and tribulation timelines? I have two ideas:
The first scenario is a rapture this year and tribulation this fall stretching from 2023 to 2030. In this scenario America would survive for a few months to a year into Daniel’s 70th week before being destroyed, likely in conjunction with some of the Revelation judgments. The rapture alone might be enough of a punch in the gut to America to make room for the rise of the antichrist before America is destroyed completely. This scenario puts the second coming in what I believe may be the 2000th anniversary of the start of Jesus’ ministry and would therefore seem to place Jesus’ two public advents exactly 2000 years apart.
The second scenario is that the rapture does not happen until just before or in conjunction with America’s destruction sometime in 2024. In this scenario I tend to look forward to when I think Jesus is likely to return related to the end of his ministry and count back to find the start of the tribulation. As someone who thinks Jesus ascended in 33AD, I tend to think that if the second coming is not in 2030, it probably won’t happen until 2032 or 2033 to correspond with the year of the 2000th anniversary of Jesus’ ascension. I know there is controversy over these dates and those debates have happened elsewhere, but I am just sharing my assumptions.
So, if the year running from the fall of 2032 to the fall of 2033 is the 2000th anniversary of Jesus ascension, I think a fall 2032 second coming would make a lot of sense, which would put the start of the tribulation in the fall of 2025. However, if America is destroyed in 2024, that would leave a year in between America’s destruction and the start of Daniel’s 70th week. I think it is unlikely that the rapture would happen after America’s destruction because the Bible seems to indicate that the rapture takes the world by surprise. It comes as a thief in the night and as in the days of Noah and Lot. People are going about their lives in a wicked world. If America collapses, the world will descend into chaos almost instantly. So, in this scenario I think the rapture would happen in 2024, America would be destroyed, and this would start the gap which would last approximately a year to a year and a half before Daniel’s 70th week started in the fall of 2025.
I am hoping for the first scenario for two reasons, first I want to get out of here sooner than later. Second, for the sake of Americans who will be left behind, I am hoping that they will have time before judgment falls on this nation to turn to Christ. That said, God is in control, and this will all play out according to his plan. Maranatha!
