Elijah and the ravens

In the three years and six months of drought during the time of Elijah, God appointed ravens to bring food to him. [1 Kings 17:1-7] In the New Testament, the famine of three years and six months in the time of Elijah is connected to the age of the church, and the role of the holy Spirit. The age of the church is represented by the same symbolic period, of three years and six months, which is half of seven years, or seven times. Together with the ministry of Jesus and John the Baptist, the whole time assigned to the church is “seven times.” Note that a “time” can be expressed in various units.

The exodus theme in Daniel 9

In an article on “Daniel’s Seventy Weeks and the New Exodus”, Peter J. Gentry, Professor of Old Testament Interpretation at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, presents a preterist interpretation of Daniel’s 70 weeks prophecy. [1] He discusses the background of Daniel’s prayer of confession, which he relates to Solomon’s dedication of the temple. [1 Kings 8:33-34, 46-51] He notes that the exile is due to the violation of the covenant which brought on the curse. [Deut. 28:15-68]

Jesus and his saints compared

Many of the things said of Jesus in scripture are also said of his saints. Some similar sayings are compared in the table below.

Daniel’s 70 weeks FAQ

Does the 70 weeks prophecy apply to the church?
Which commandment began the 70 weeks?
Is the 70 weeks prophecy connected to Leviticus 26?
How do the 70 weeks “seal up the vision and prophecy”?
Why are there three sections in the 70 weeks?
When did the ministry of Jesus begin?
When did the ministry of Jesus end?
What covenant is confirmed for one week?
Did sacrifices cease in the midst of the week?
Was Jesus crucified in the 70th week?
What about gaps in the 70 weeks?
What is the flood at the end?
What war continues to the end?
What does the “wing” represent in verse 27?
What holy city has become desolate?
How does the 70 weeks prophecy relate to the gospel?
Is the last half of the 70th week a long period of time?

Tyso’s notes on the historicists

Joseph Tyso commented on some of the interpretations of the 1260 days of Revelation 11 and 12 :3 that are included in my post Genealogy of the gap.

Genealogy of the gap

The idea of a gap in the 70 weeks, or in the period between the earthly ministry of Jesus and the start of the time, times and a half, has been nurtured for centuries by scholars who embraced the year-day theory. 1260 days is the duration of the ministry of the two witnesses of Revelation 11, and the period for which the woman in Revelation 12, who represents the church, flees to the wilderness. The idea of a gap prior to the 1260 days was adopted by futurists and incorporated into dispensationalism, whose gap surpasses every historicist gap.

The church’s Exodus in Revelation

In the book of Revelation, John alludes to themes from the Old Testament, such as the Exodus, and Israel’s sojourn in the wilderness, and the conquest and possession of the land under Joshua, and other events in Israel’s history, which are applied to the church’s spiritual experience.

The land in the first vial

The seven vials or bowls of God’s wrath in Revelation 16 were to be poured out on the earth, [Revelation 16:1] but the first one was to especially target the land, while others were poured on the sea, rivers and fountains, the sun, the seat of the beast, Euphrates, and the air. In the KJV, and several other English translations, the first angel pours out his vial upon the earth, but the NIV, and Young’s Literal translation, say land rather than earth. Barnes Notes on the second verse states: “In Revelation 16:1, the word earth is used in the general sense to denote this world as distinguished from heaven; in this verse it is used in the specific sense, to denote land as distinguished from other things.” The NIV says:

Historic interpretations of the ten horns

Futurist Joseph Tyso (1774-1852), Baptist minister at Wallingford, Oxfordshire, compiled a table showing the variety among expositors on the identification of the ten horns of the beast in Daniel 7:7, Revelation 13:1 and 17:3, 12. The data he presented is summarized in the table below. Tyso intended to discredit the year-day theory and support his futurist theory that the beast was yet to appear. [1]

T. R. Birks on the time periods of prophecy 4

1 2 3 4

This is the concluding article by T. R. Birks in the series on the time periods of prophecy, in which he defends the year-day theory.

T. R. Birks on the time periods of prophecy 3

1 2 3 4

T. R. Birks’ discussion of the time periods of prophecy (part 3 of 4) continues below.

T. R. Birks on the time periods of prophecy 2

1 2 3 4

In the following, T. R. Birks’ discussion of the time periods of prophecy is continued. He exposed the weaknesses in the arguments of futurist S. R. Maitland.

T. R. Birks on the time periods of prophecy 1

1 2 3 4

The following is the four part series, presenting a discussion of the time periods of prophecy by T. R. Birks (1810-1883), who defended the year-day theory, and responded to criticisms by the futurist S. R. Maitland.

Joel 2:1-11 cross references

Cross references for Joel 2:1-11 are provided in the table below.

Milligan’s comments on the second woe

In Revelation 9:20-21, John declares that the previous series of plagues had not caused men to repent, and he lists several things that men did not repent of: worship of devils, idolatry, murder, sorcery, fornication, and theft. These statements may mean that the plagues associated with the first six trumpets are effects of the unsuccessful efforts of some to persuade others to repent.

Overview of the mountains of prophecy

In the following table, many prophecies about mountains are compared, under various headings. The mountains of prophecy represent promises, blessings, and prophecies, which are the inheritance of the saints, according to the gospel. When Jesus said flee to the mountains, he alluded to the promises of God.

Mountains of refuge

When Jesus said, flee to the mountains, he did not mean that Christians would need to flee, in order to save their own lives, but he meant that they should flee to those things that the mountains of Scripture represent, which are promises of God. Four times in the gospels, Jesus is reported as saying that the person who seeks to save his life will lose it, showing in an emphatic way that Jesus was not telling people to flee to the mountains to save their own lives.

A place where the eagles will be gathered together

The table below compares the two accounts of the woman’s flight to the wilderness in Revelation 12:6 and 14.

Contrasting views on the heavenly Jerusalem

The prophecy describing the heavenly Jerusalem in Revelation 21 is a metaphorical description of the church, the bride of the Lamb, and the holy city that God is building in the present age. Most commentators assume that the prophecy in this chapter describes either the church as she will be, or a place where the saints will dwell in the future. Only the former view is considered here. Among scholars who adopt that view, there are various positions. Either the prophecy applies to the church in the present age, or it describes the church in a future one.

Richard Bauckham thought that two Jerusalems are described in Revelation, besides the earthly city. He thought the description of the heavenly Jerusalem in chapter 21 applies to the New Jerusalem of the future. But if that were so,  what need would there be for the wall, and gates? Bauckham invoked another Jerusalem, one that is “trampled by the Gentiles” for forty-two months as stated in Revelation 11:2. His comments supporting this idea are provided below. A table in which the New Jerusalem is contrasted with Babylon follows. Comments by William Milligan, who proposed that the vision of the heavenly Jerusalem applies to the church in the present age, which would seem to make Bauckham’s two Jerusalem idea unnecessary, are also provided.