The Timeline of the Great Tribulation

[EclipseEventSigns]

This will hopefully shed some light on a very common wrong assumption that most prophecy experts and teachers state. Whenever someone begins their teaching with this particular assumption, I know immediately that whatever they follow with will be incorrect. What is this wrong assumption? It is the statement that the Jewish year is 360 days long. Before your knee-jerk reaction to write a comment telling me I'm wrong, I'll show exactly why this is incorrect.

1. The Great Tribuation
First, we have to make sure of the time frame that is being addressed. Jesus talks about the "great tribulation" in Matt 24.

[Mat 24:21 LSB] 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.

A time unparallelled in human history. It is a time which has no equal. Has it happened yet? Was it the Roman destruction of Jerusalem? Was it the expulsion of the Jews from Spain? Was it during World War II? Jesus said that the great tribulation will be immediately followed by His return.

[Mat 24:29-30 LSB] 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. 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.

When does the Great Tributation start? Jesus says it starts with the Abomination of Desolation.
[Mat 24:15 LSB] 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),

2. The Start of the Great Tribulation

This Abomination of Desolation as the start of this Great Tribuation is said to be found in what Daniel wrote. This specific term occurs twice in Daniel. But it is mentioned several other times as well. The phrase is used in Daniel 11 in the narrative of the time of the end (Dan 11:40) specifically how the King of the North violates the temple fortress, stops the daily sacrifices and sets up the desolation.

The second use of the phrase is in Daniel 12 and is associated with two specific numbers when the desolation is set up and the daily sacrifices cease. He states 1290 days and then up to 1335 days. This is a very specific timeline. These numbers are given as further details to what was stated in Daniel 12:7.

[Dan 12:6-7 LSB] ... "How long [will it be] until the end of [these] wonders?" 7 And I heard the man dressed in linen, ... 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.

This matches exactly with what is stated in Daniel 9:27:
[Dan 9:27 LSB] 27 "And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will make sacrifice and grain offering cease; and on the wing of abominations [will come] one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate."

3. Other Specific Numbers

There is another specific number in Daniel associated with the daily sacrifices ceasing.
[Dan 8:13-14 LSB] "How long will the vision [about] the regular sacrifice apply, while the transgression causes desolation, so as to allow both the holy place and the host to be trampled?" 14 He said to me, "For 2,300 evenings [and] mornings; then the holy place will be made righteous."

The word translated "regular" means that which continually happens daily. The temple sacrifices were commanded to happen twice daily, one in the morning and one at evening. 2300 evening/morning units of sacrifice. 1150 days in total.

So there is a timeline that has been given. There is a Week (a heptad of years); that is, a period of 7 years. At the mid point, 3 1/2 years, the abomination is set up.

• From the point of abomination there are 3 1/2 years left.
• From the point of abomination there are 1150 days until the temple is cleansed of the abomination.
• From the point of abomination there are 1290 days until all the events are completed
• From the point of abomination there are 1335 days until a time of blessing for those that survive.

But there are still further specific numbers. These are found in Revelation.

In Revelation 12, the signs in heaven describing the narrative of the woman and the dragon.
[Rev 12:6, 13-14 ESV] 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. ...
13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.

The woman fleeing into the wilderness is stated to be a period of 1260 days which equates to 3 1/2 years (time, times and half a time). This is a restatement of what Jesus predicted in Matthew 24.

• From the point of abomination there are 1260 days until the people represented by the woman are delivered

Then there is the period of 42 months.

[Rev 13:5, 7 YLT] 5 And there was given to it a mouth speaking great things, and evil-speakings, and there was given to it authority to make war forty-two months, ... 7 and there was given to it to make war with the saints, and to overcome them, and there was given to it authority over every tribe, and tongue, and nation.

[Rev 11:2 LSB] the sanctuary .... has been given to the Gentiles, and they will trample the holy city under foot for forty-two months.

• From the point of abomination there are 42 months of time of war and occupation of Jerusalem and the temple

Then there are God's two Witnesses
[Rev 11:3 LSB] 3 "And I will give [authority] to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth."

Although this verse occurs immediately after the verse stating 42 months, there is no specific statement that they mean the same period of time. This is very commonly assumed. However, the death and resurrection of the 2 witnesses is stated to be the Second Woe. The Third Woe is said to follow quickly. And that is the establishment of the kingdom of the Messiah.

[Rev 11:14 LSB] The second woe is past; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.

• Shortly after 1260 days of the 2 Witnesses, there is the return of the Messiah

4. The timeline:

• From the point of abomination there are 3 1/2 years left.
• From the point of abomination there are 1150 days until the temple is cleansed of the abomination.
• From the point of abomination there are 42 months of time of war and occupation of Jerusalem and the temple
• From the point of abomination there are 1260 days until the people represented by the woman are delivered
• Shortly after 1260 days of the 2 Witnesses, there is the return of the Messiah
• From the point of abomination there are 1290 days until all the events are completed
• From the point of abomination there are 1335 days until a time of blessing for those that survive.

 

[EclipseEventSigns]

5. The Jewish Year

I hope you are still with me. That took a bit of effort to lay out the timeline of the Great Tributation. Now many prophecy teachers make a huge mistake using these numbers. They focus on the 3 1/2 years, 42 months and 1260 days and say they are all equal.

They divide 1260 days by 42 months and come up with 30 day months. They divide 1260 days by 3 1/2 years and come up with 360 day years. To them this proves that Jewish years are 360 days long and each month is 30 days.

This is absolutely and factually false. The Jewish calendar is not arranged in this way at all. Those that do research the actual Jewish calendar and see the issue then try to suggest that this is a "special" type of year – a prophetic year. Sir Robert Anderson's method and Hoehner's improvement of the method have this as their foundation.

In addition, the glaring error that most don't catch on to, is what about all those other numbers? The 3 1/2 years are also tied to to 1290 days and 1335 days. Why didn't they choose to use those to determine the length of the month and the year? There is something more complicated at the heart of these numbers than just the obvious method to pick a few numbers for some simple math.

I won't go through the entire explanation of how the Jewish calendar is setup. There are just a few basic facts needed. The calendar is a luni-solar calendar. That is each year is associated with the lunar cycle – each cycle is 29.5 days long. Since a day can not be less than 24 hours, the months alternate between 29 days and 30 days. Each year is then 354 days long.

Since 354 days is less than a solar year, each year will slip further back in the seasons. This requires the addition of a leap month every 2 to 3 years to sync the year back up. There is a set pattern to this intercalation – called the Metonic cycle. A leap month will result in a year being 384 days long (the added month is always 30 days).

6. The Proofs

So now we have enough information to make some calculations of how the numbers should be understood. And this will use the actual Jewish calendar method of 354 day years and 384 day intercalated years.

We know there is a period of 3 1/2 years. We always assume the years are 12 months long. But in the Jewish calendar a year can also be 13 months. However, we know that it is associated with a period of 1260 days. So let's lay this all out.

30 29 30 29 30 29 30 29 30 29 30 29	= 354 days (12 months)
30 29 30 29 30 29 30 29 30 29 30 29	=354 days (12 months)
30 29 30 29 30 29 30 29 30 29 30 30 29	= 384 days (13 months)
30 29 30 29 30	= 148 days (5 months)
20 days
Total of 1260 days; 42 full months

For the 1290 days, the additional 30 days can still be rounded down to a period of 3 1/2 years.

There is no such thing as a "prophetic" year of 360 days. The Jewish year is not 360 days long. The proper way to consider these numbers is using the actual method to construct the Jewish calendar. Only with this understanding can the significant expected future dates be worked out.

 

[EclipseEventSigns]

By the way, this is original research that has not been published anywhere else so far. It's on BAM first.

 

[dwight92070]

This will hopefully shed some light on a very common wrong assumption that most prophecy experts and teachers state. Whenever someone begins their teaching with this particular assumption, I know immediately that whatever they follow with will be incorrect. What is this wrong assumption? It is the statement that the Jewish year is 360 days long. Before your knee-jerk reaction to write a comment telling me I'm wrong, I'll show exactly why this is incorrect.

1. The Great Tribuation
First, we have to make sure of the time frame that is being addressed. Jesus talks about the "great tribulation" in Matt 24.

[Mat 24:21 LSB] 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.

A time unparallelled in human history. It is a time which has no equal. Has it happened yet? Was it the Roman destruction of Jerusalem? Was it the expulsion of the Jews from Spain? Was it during World War II? Jesus said that the great tribulation will be immediately followed by His return.

Dwight -Then why did Jesus say that everything before verse 34 would happen in that generation? In each of the 19 times that Jesus is recorded as saying "this generation", He is referring to the generation during His lifetime.

[Mat 24:29-30 LSB] 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. 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.

When does the Great Tributation start? Jesus says it starts with the Abomination of Desolation.
[Mat 24:15 LSB] 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),

2. The Start of the Great Tribulation

This Abomination of Desolation as the start of this Great Tribuation is said to be found in what Daniel wrote. This specific term occurs twice in Daniel. But it is mentioned several other times as well. The phrase is used in Daniel 11 in the narrative of the time of the end (Dan 11:40) specifically how the King of the North violates the temple fortress, stops the daily sacrifices and sets up the desolation.

The second use of the phrase is in Daniel 12 and is associated with two specific numbers when the desolation is set up and the daily sacrifices cease. He states 1290 days and then up to 1335 days. This is a very specific timeline. These numbers are given as further details to what was stated in Daniel 12:7.

[Dan 12:6-7 LSB] ... "How long [will it be] until the end of [these] wonders?" 7 And I heard the man dressed in linen, ... 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.

This matches exactly with what is stated in Daniel 9:27:
[Dan 9:27 LSB] 27 "And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will make sacrifice and grain offering cease; and on the wing of abominations [will come] one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate."

3. Other Specific Numbers

There is another specific number in Daniel associated with the daily sacrifices ceasing.
[Dan 8:13-14 LSB] "How long will the vision [about] the regular sacrifice apply, while the transgression causes desolation, so as to allow both the holy place and the host to be trampled?" 14 He said to me, "For 2,300 evenings [and] mornings; then the holy place will be made righteous."

The word translated "regular" means that which continually happens daily. The temple sacrifices were commanded to happen twice daily, one in the morning and one at evening. 2300 evening/morning units of sacrifice. 1150 days in total.

So there is a timeline that has been given. There is a Week (a heptad of years); that is, a period of 7 years. At the mid point, 3 1/2 years, the abomination is set up.

• From the point of abomination there are 3 1/2 years left.
• From the point of abomination there are 1150 days until the temple is cleansed of the abomination.
• From the point of abomination there are 1290 days until all the events are completed
• From the point of abomination there are 1335 days until a time of blessing for those that survive.

But there are still further specific numbers. These are found in Revelation.

In Revelation 12, the signs in heaven describing the narrative of the woman and the dragon.
[Rev 12:6, 13-14 ESV] 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. ...
13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.

The woman fleeing into the wilderness is stated to be a period of 1260 days which equates to 3 1/2 years (time, times and half a time). This is a restatement of what Jesus predicted in Matthew 24.

• From the point of abomination there are 1260 days until the people represented by the woman are delivered

Then there is the period of 42 months.

[Rev 13:5, 7 YLT] 5 And there was given to it a mouth speaking great things, and evil-speakings, and there was given to it authority to make war forty-two months, ... 7 and there was given to it to make war with the saints, and to overcome them, and there was given to it authority over every tribe, and tongue, and nation.

[Rev 11:2 LSB] the sanctuary .... has been given to the Gentiles, and they will trample the holy city under foot for forty-two months.

• From the point of abomination there are 42 months of time of war and occupation of Jerusalem and the temple

Then there are God's two Witnesses
[Rev 11:3 LSB] 3 "And I will give [authority] to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth."

Although this verse occurs immediately after the verse stating 42 months, there is no specific statement that they mean the same period of time. This is very commonly assumed. However, the death and resurrection of the 2 witnesses is stated to be the Second Woe. The Third Woe is said to follow quickly. And that is the establishment of the kingdom of the Messiah.

[Rev 11:14 LSB] The second woe is past; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.

• Shortly after 1260 days of the 2 Witnesses, there is the return of the Messiah

4. The timeline:

• From the point of abomination there are 3 1/2 years left.
• From the point of abomination there are 1150 days until the temple is cleansed of the abomination.
• From the point of abomination there are 42 months of time of war and occupation of Jerusalem and the temple
• From the point of abomination there are 1260 days until the people represented by the woman are delivered
• Shortly after 1260 days of the 2 Witnesses, there is the return of the Messiah
• From the point of abomination there are 1290 days until all the events are completed
• From the point of abomination there are 1335 days until a time of blessing for those that survive.

Dwight - I can't believe that so many calculations and juggling of numbers is necessary to accurately interpret Matthew 24. It's more likely that most believers, not being mathematicians, should be able to interpret what Jesus is saying without going to all that trouble. That would be more in line with the rest of scripture, not being written for intellectuals, but for the common man - like the apostles were. I think a few keys to unlock Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21 are:

1. Comparing the synoptic gospels: Matthew 24:15, Mark 13:14, and Luke 21:20 From these verses, the abomination of desolation can easily be identified as: "Jerusalem surrounded by armies" or 70 A.D.

2. Again, comparing the synoptics: Matthew 24:34 and 35, Mark 13:30 and 31, and Luke 21:32 and 33 From these 3 passages it can be understood that the first verse of each - Mt. 24:34; Mark 13:30, and Luke 21:32 are all giving us the same information - i.e. This generation will not pass away until all these things take place. So everything before these 3 verses must be before 70 A.D.
Then we look at the 2nd verse in each of these - Mt. 24:35; Mark 13:31 and Luke 21:33 - These also are giving us the same information - i.e. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away. So we know that heaven and earth does not pass away until His 2nd coming, so everything after these 3 verses must be referring to the 2nd coming. This is confirmed by looking at Mt. 24:36; Mark 13:32; and Luke 21:34. That day and hour no one knows, only the Father. Luke 21:34 is a bit different but still speaking of the 2nd coming.

3. Last, but not least, it is good to recognize that Matthew has taken many of the words of Jesus and separated them by topic, and put them together in 5 major discourses. 1. The Sermon on the Mount 2. The Mission Discourse 3. The Parables 4. The church Discourse and 5. The Olivet Discourse. So the words in these 5 discourses may not always be in perfect chronological order. For example, in the Olivet discourse, it appears that some verses that seem to refer to the 2nd coming were put in with the time of 70 A.D. - and I think vice-versa. The information is all there, but is it possible that Matthew may have accidentally put some words in the wrong place? I think so. If not, then there are a few passages that don't seem to fit in with surrounding verses.

 

[EclipseEventSigns]

Dwight - I can't believe that so many calculations and juggling of numbers is necessary to accurately interpret Matthew 24. It's more likely that most believers, not being mathematicians, should be able to interpret what Jesus is saying without going to all that trouble. ....snip....

But you didn't disprove anything I wrote. It is nothing to do with being a "mathematician". It's about taking God's word seriously.

 

[DavidTree]

Dwight - I can't believe that so many calculations and juggling of numbers is necessary to accurately interpret Matthew 24. It's more likely that most believers, not being mathematicians, should be able to interpret what Jesus is saying without going to all that trouble. That would be more in line with the rest of scripture, not being written for intellectuals, but for the common man - like the apostles were. I think a few keys to unlock Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21 are:

1. Comparing the synoptic gospels: Matthew 24:15, Mark 13:14, and Luke 21:20 From these verses, the abomination of desolation can easily be identified as: "Jerusalem surrounded by armies" or 70 A.D.

2. Again, comparing the synoptics: Matthew 24:34 and 35, Mark 13:30 and 31, and Luke 21:32 and 33 From these 3 passages it can be understood that the first verse of each - Mt. 24:34; Mark 13:30, and Luke 21:32 are all giving us the same information - i.e. This generation will not pass away until all these things take place. So everything before these 3 verses must be before 70 A.D.
Then we look at the 2nd verse in each of these - Mt. 24:35; Mark 13:31 and Luke 21:33 - These also are giving us the same information - i.e. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away. So we know that heaven and earth does not pass away until His 2nd coming, so everything after these 3 verses must be referring to the 2nd coming. This is confirmed by looking at Mt. 24:36; Mark 13:32; and Luke 21:34. That day and hour no one knows, only the Father. Luke 21:34 is a bit different but still speaking of the 2nd coming.

3. Last, but not least, it is good to recognize that Matthew has taken many of the words of Jesus and separated them by topic, and put them together in 5 major discourses. 1. The Sermon on the Mount 2. The Mission Discourse 3. The Parables 4. The church Discourse and 5. The Olivet Discourse. So the words in these 5 discourses may not always be in perfect chronological order. For example, in the Olivet discourse, it appears that some verses that seem to refer to the 2nd coming were put in with the time of 70 A.D. - and I think vice-versa. The information is all there, but is it possible that Matthew may have accidentally put some words in the wrong place? I think so. If not, then there are a few passages that don't seem to fit in with surrounding verses.

As you know, the Roman Army plundered Jerusalem in 70 AD = fulffiled

There is a soon coming OT Prophecy that JESUS was speaking of in Matthew ch23-ch24 = Zechariah ch14