The Kingdom of God, The Dragon, the Two Witnesses, and the Antichrist...
Everything comes together in the middle of Revelation. Chapter 11 is the "split point" between the two halves of the Tribulation, and the assassination of the two witnesses is the cusp of that point in future (to us) history.
Chapter 12 introduces the evil, but mighty personage behind the evil in our world, the Dragon.
Chapter 13 introduces the Dragon's human instruments, the Beast (Antichrist) and False Prophet, and discusses their course of action.
So Chapters 11-13 are crucial in understanding the book of Revelation.
Here is how I see these three chapters, and remember that everything about the future is an inference from evidence--in other words, there's intelligent speculation involved, and that's how it has to be.
Revelation 11 encompasses about 3-1/2 years, beginning at Revelation 4, and ending when the Antichrist kills them
Revelation 12 encompasses an unknown number of years, beginning in the distant past, and ending when the Christians (Israeli Christians?) flee into the desert after the assassination of the two witnesses, where God has a place for them. In other words, the Dragon's story begins in the past, and we now see it up to the time he is cast down to the earth--slightly after the murder of the two witnesses. Revelation 11:15-19 records the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet, and this marks the defeat of Satan and the Antichrist as a certain event in the future. When it seems darkest, God has already planned the permanent defeat of Satan and all evil. Take heart. God is still running the show, and He prevails.
Revelation 13 begins the accession of the Antichrist to be the undisputed ruler of the earth (or, at least, of the Middle East), and describes the character of his reign.
So what I see here is this:
Dragon (Rev. 12):
<---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
(Distant past...) (Chases Christians into desert)
Two Witnesses:
<-----------------------------|
Rev. 4-11, 3-1/2 years
Antichrist
<---------------|
Rev. 13-19
(Antichrist's reign begins in Rev. 13, shortly after the murder of the two witnesses, ends in Rev. 19 with the return of Christ).
We'll deal with these matters more in the next few posts. For now, if you are just looking at my blog, you should read the passages in at least Revelation 11-through 13, so you'll get a glimpse of what's happening in heaven and on earth
Everything comes together in the middle of Revelation. Chapter 11 is the "split point" between the two halves of the Tribulation, and the assassination of the two witnesses is the cusp of that point in future (to us) history.
Chapter 12 introduces the evil, but mighty personage behind the evil in our world, the Dragon.
Chapter 13 introduces the Dragon's human instruments, the Beast (Antichrist) and False Prophet, and discusses their course of action.
So Chapters 11-13 are crucial in understanding the book of Revelation.
Here is how I see these three chapters, and remember that everything about the future is an inference from evidence--in other words, there's intelligent speculation involved, and that's how it has to be.
Revelation 11 encompasses about 3-1/2 years, beginning at Revelation 4, and ending when the Antichrist kills them
Revelation 12 encompasses an unknown number of years, beginning in the distant past, and ending when the Christians (Israeli Christians?) flee into the desert after the assassination of the two witnesses, where God has a place for them. In other words, the Dragon's story begins in the past, and we now see it up to the time he is cast down to the earth--slightly after the murder of the two witnesses. Revelation 11:15-19 records the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet, and this marks the defeat of Satan and the Antichrist as a certain event in the future. When it seems darkest, God has already planned the permanent defeat of Satan and all evil. Take heart. God is still running the show, and He prevails.
Revelation 13 begins the accession of the Antichrist to be the undisputed ruler of the earth (or, at least, of the Middle East), and describes the character of his reign.
So what I see here is this:
Dragon (Rev. 12):
<---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
(Distant past...) (Chases Christians into desert)
Two Witnesses:
<-----------------------------|
Rev. 4-11, 3-1/2 years
Antichrist
<---------------|
Rev. 13-19
(Antichrist's reign begins in Rev. 13, shortly after the murder of the two witnesses, ends in Rev. 19 with the return of Christ).
We'll deal with these matters more in the next few posts. For now, if you are just looking at my blog, you should read the passages in at least Revelation 11-through 13, so you'll get a glimpse of what's happening in heaven and on earth
