Despite being largely united on doctrinal issues like the Trinity and moral issues like sexual morality, Christians who take the Bible literally and seriously are remarkably scattered on eschatology (a fancy term that means “beliefs concerning the end times”). Is Jesus coming back before a thousand year reign? After? Is there a thousand year reign at all? What about the tribulation? What on earth is Revelation about?

If you are skeptical of Christianity or are struggling with grounding your faith in reason, you have every right to expect the end times passages in the Bible to make logical sense, be internally consistent, and be straightforward when properly grasped.

After 17 years (starting with my conversion) of trying to navigate the confusing maze of Christian theological claims about the end times, I found it necessary during the course of my chronology studies to “solve” eschatology. I therefore included the model I developed in my “A Journey Through the Bible Timeline” chronology project. If you find eschatology a blocker to accepting or returning to the Christian faith, hopefully it will help you.

Note: To help you understand eschatology in the Bible, I must educate you about important historical events from 530 BC to 678 AD (all of which you can look up for yourself, except in a few instances where I claim that the Bible calls into question secular historical scholarship). It may come across as a bit dry, but if you can get through it, with any luck the Bible’s end times passages will “click” for you.

With the framework I have developed in place, Bible students interested in eschatology could potentially work on successfully interpreting all the end times passages in Scripture (I haven’t interpreted every single relevant verse, focusing instead at times on high-level narrative).

To fully understand the model I’m proposing, including all the relevant Scripture passages and how they work together, please review the following articles, which constitute the “eschatology” section of my chronology project:

• 70 Years in Babylon
• 7 Weeks of Restoration
• 62 Weeks of Intertestamental History and the Week of the Messiah
• The Life of Jesus
• The End Times
• The Future
• Appendix: Bible Evidence for a First-Century Parousia

If you just want the high-level overview, here is a summary of what’s covered in those articles.

Historical Context

• In the Bible, the “former days” of Israel started with the Exodus and ran through the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the subsequent exile of the Jews in Babylon.
• The “latter days” started with the return of the Jews to Judah by decree of Persian king Cyrus the Great and ran through the destruction of national Israel in the second century AD.
• The metals of Daniel 2 and the beasts of Daniel 7 represent the four Gentile empires that ruled Israel from the closing of the time of the Israelite kings until the coming of the Messiah. Each imperial rule would be inaugurated by a mighty king.
  • Gold/Lion is Babylon / Nebuchadnezzar the Great
  • Silver/Bear is Media-Persia / Cyrus the Great
  • Bronze/Leopard is Greece / Alexander the Great
  • Iron / Terrifying Beast is Rome / Julius Caesar
    • The clay mixed with the iron is the Herods

The Beginning of the Latter Days

• The 70 years in Babylon begin in the Sabbath year 3360.
• Babylon besieges Jerusalem in 3362.
• Babylon sacks Jerusalem in 3364.
• Cyrus the Great (AKA Darius the Mede and Cyrus the Persian) conquers Babylon in 3430, the 70th Sabbath of Sabbaths (3430 = 7 x 10 x 7 x 7).
• Cyrus returns the Jews to Judah in 3431, the 70th Jubilee from creation. This is the first year of the Seven Weeks (49 years) of Daniel 9.
• The “Prince of Persia” is Cambyses II, son of Cyrus and an enemy of the Jews.
• Darius the Great (AKA Darius king of Persia, Ahasuerus, and Artaxerxes king of Persia) supports the completion of the Second Temple, funds Ezra’s trip to Jerusalem, marries Esther, and sponsors Nehemiah’s rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem.
• The original Purim happens in 3459, when Esther and Mordecai defeat Haman. This initiates the millennium of Revelation 20, at the beginning of which the martyrs from Abel to Zechariah the son of Berechiah are resurrected and begin to minister in the heavenly temple. For the remainder of the millennium, martyred believers are resurrected directly into heaven to join them.
• Nehemiah returns from being governor in 3479, the final year of the Seven Weeks.

Intertestamental History

• Greek king Alexander the Great conquers Darius the Great and Media-Persia (the goat defeating the ram in Daniel 8).
• Alexander dies and Greece is broken apart, primarily into four large pieces. The “South” of Daniel 11 is the Ptolemaic kingdom, which rules Israel initially, while the “North” is the Seleucid Empire, which rules Israel later.
• Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes initiates the “beginning of the time of the end” by deposing the High Priest and stealing or defiling the articles of temple worship.
• Antiochus’ forces defile the altar by sacrificing a pig on it, which is the original Abomination of Desolation.
• Antiochus’ attempts to stamp out the Jewish religious system are opposed by Jewish rebels called the Maccabees, who after three years retake Jerusalem, cleanse the temple, and re-establish the sacrificial worship system on the original Hanukkah.
• The Maccabees establish an independent Jewish kingdom ruled by their descendants, the Hasmonean dynasty, which eventually overthrows Seleucid rule.
• Rome conquers Israel, originally leaving the Hasmoneans in power as client rulers but ultimately replacing them with Herod the Great.

The Life of Jesus

• Jesus is born in 3884 (spring of 6 BC).
• Jesus becomes a rabbi in 3914, after the end of the 62 Weeks (434 years) of Daniel 9 and in the first year of the 70th Week, the Week (7 years) of the Messiah.
• Jesus is baptized in 3918 (early 30 AD).
• Jesus cleanses the temple for the first time at the beginning of 3919 (spring of 30 AD). This begins the “Last Days” of the Old Covenant.
• Jesus resurrects Lazarus at the end of 3920, at the close of the 70th Week, in the 80th Sabbath of Sabbaths (3920 = 8 x 10 x 7 x 7).
• Jesus enters Jerusalem triumphantly at the beginning of 3921, the 80th Jubilee (spring of 32 AD).
• Jesus cleanses the temple for a second time, is crucified, and then is resurrected from the dead.
• After 40 days, Jesus ascends to Heaven and sits down at the right hand of the Father.

The First Jewish-Roman War

• Caesar Nero blames Christians for the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD and afflicts them with severe persecution, the Great Tribulation of the Church that lasts until Nero’s death in 68 AD.
• The Jews rebel against Rome in 66 AD, halting the offering of sacrifices at the temple on behalf of the Roman emperor (which constitutes the second Abomination of Desolation) and eventually establishing a provisional government with Jerusalem as its capital. The Romans send their military to suppress the uprising, thereby beginning the First Jewish-Roman War.
• The Roman general Vespasian (the pompous horn of Daniel 7) takes over the Roman war effort in early 67 AD. This begins the covenant-confirming week of Daniel 9:27, as well as the Great Tribulation of the Jews.
• Vespasian becomes emperor in 69 AD and transfers control of the Roman military effort against the Jews to his son Titus (the “prince who is to come” of Daniel 9:26).
• Titus besieges Jerusalem in spring of 70 AD.
• In 3959, exactly halfway through the millennium, in August of 70 AD, on the “Last Day” of the Old Covenant, Jesus returns on the clouds in judgment against Israel (the Second Coming / Return of Jesus / Parousia). At this time, the seventh trumpet sounds, rapturing or resurrecting all first-century believers, at which point the true disciples join Jesus on His throne, while the false disciples are sent to Hell. Jesus becomes King of kings, replacing Rome’s spiritual mandate with the permanent Messianic kingdom of God. Jesus also marries the Church at this time, and God and Jesus replace the former heavenly temple as the eternal heavenly temple in the New Jerusalem.
• At the same moment, Titus successfully sacks Jerusalem, burning the Second Temple and the city to the ground and ending the “Last Days” of the Old Covenant. This also ends the first half (3.5 years) of the covenant-confirming week.

The Third Jewish-Roman War

• In early 132 AD, the Jews rebel again under the leadership of Simon bar Kokhba (the Beast from the Sea in Revelation 13), who is promoted as messiah by Rabbi Akiva (the Beast from the Earth in Revelation 13).
• Bar Kokhba establishes yet another rebel Jewish government, minting coins that declare him to be the prince of Israel, such that anyone who buys or sells with them acknowledges him as messiah (the “mark of the beast” in Revelation 13).
• Bar Kokhba wages war against Jewish Christians who refuse to acknowledge him as messiah.
• The Romans again send their military to suppress the Jewish revolt, thereby beginning the Third Jewish-Roman War. This resumes the covenant-confirming week.
• The Romans and Jews war for an additional 3.5 years, until the Romans muster at Megiddo (Armageddon) and launch a final conquest.
• Jesus returns in judgment again (the “Third Coming”) and raptures/resurrects the Jewish Christians who died opposing Bar Kokhba, along with any other Christians who died in the New Covenant up to that point. For the remainder of the millennium, all those who die in Christ go directly to Heaven.
• The Romans kill Bar Kokhba, slaughter Jews in Judea at a near genocidal level, expel the Jews from Jerusalem, and effectively end the national state of Israel until 1948.
• The end of the Third Jewish-Roman War completes the judgment of Israel and fully avenges the bloodguilt of the Jews for their slaughter of the prophets, the Messiah, and His saints.

The Church Age

• In 4459, in 570 AD, at the end of the millennium, Muhammed is born and Satan is released. Hades is emptied, everyone in it is judged and sent to Heaven or Hell (the Lake of Fire), and Hades is destroyed. From then on, everyone who dies is judged immediately upon death.
• In 4566, in 677/678 AD, the Byzantines defeat the Muslim Arabs with Greek fire. Satan is cast into Hell.

The Future

[Note: This section is all speculation]

• In December of 1991, in 5880, the 120th Sabbath of Sabbaths (5880 = 12 x 10 x 7 x 7), the Soviet Union dissolves.
• 5881, the 120th Jubilee from creation, is the first year of 120 years before the year 6000.
• During the 120 years, the spread of the gospel to the Gentile nations will finish, and then the nation of Israel will convert to Christianity. This will usher in a Sabbath millennium of the global faithfulness and peace and prosperity described in Isaiah 65:17-25. A redeemed Jerusalem will be the capital of the converted Israel.
• Christians will eventually spread throughout the universe, establishing a Church that spans galaxies.